Reduced RBPMS Levels Promote Cell Proliferation and Decrease Cisplatin Sensitivity in Ovarian Cancer Cells

Worldwide, the number of cancer-related deaths continues to increase due to the ability of cancer cells to become chemotherapy-resistant and metastasize. For women with ovarian cancer, a staggering 70% will become resistant to the front-line therapy, cisplatin. Although many mechanisms of cisplatin resistance have been proposed, the key mechanisms of such resistance remain elusive. The RNA binding protein with multiple splicing (RBPMS) binds to nascent RNA transcripts and regulates splicing, transport, localization, and stability. Evidence indicates that RBPMS also binds to protein members of the AP-1 transcription factor complex repressing its activity. Until now, little has been known about the biological function of RBPMS in ovarian cancer. Accordingly, we interrogated available Internet databases and found that ovarian cancer patients with high RBPMS levels live longer compared to patients with low RBPMS levels. Similarly, immunohistochemical (IHC) analysis in a tissue array of ovarian cancer patient samples showed that serous ovarian cancer tissues showed weaker RBPMS staining when compared with normal ovarian tissues. We generated clustered regularly interspaced short palindromic repeats (CRISPR)-mediated RBPMS knockout vectors that were stably transfected in the high-grade serous ovarian cancer cell line, OVCAR3. The knockout of RBPMS in these cells was confirmed via bioinformatics analysis, real-time PCR, and Western blot analysis. We found that the RBPMS knockout clones grew faster and had increased invasiveness than the control CRISPR clones. RBPMS knockout also reduced the sensitivity of the OVCAR3 cells to cisplatin treatment. Moreover, beta-galactosidase (beta-Gal) measurements showed that RBPMS knockdown induced senescence in ovarian cancer cells. We performed RNAseq in the RBPMS knockout clones and identified several downstream-RBPMS transcripts, including non-coding RNAs (ncRNAs) and protein-coding genes associated with alteration of the tumor microenvironment as well as those with oncogenic or tumor suppressor capabilities. Moreover, proteomic studies confirmed that RBPMS regulates the expression of proteins involved in cell detoxification, RNA processing, and cytoskeleton network and cell integrity. Interrogation of the Kaplan-Meier (KM) plotter database identified multiple downstream-RBPMS effectors that could be used as prognostic and response-to-therapy biomarkers in ovarian cancer. These studies suggest that RBPMS acts as a tumor suppressor gene and that lower levels of RBPMS promote the cisplatin resistance of ovarian cancer cells.

Automated summary

Research has shown that ovarian cancer patients with high levels of RBPMS have longer survival times, while serous ovarian cancer tissues showed weaker RBPMS staining compared to normal ovarian tissues. Experimental CRISPR-mediated RBPMS knockout resulted in faster growth, increased invasiveness, reduced sensitivity to cisplatin, and induced senescence in ovarian cancer cells. RNAseq analysis in the RBPMS knockout clones identified downstream transcripts associated with tumor microenvironment alteration and oncogenic or tumor suppressor capabilities, while proteomic studies showed RBPMS regulates detoxification, RNA processing, and cytoskeleton network proteins. Analysis of the KM plotter database identified potential downstream-RBPMS effectors as prognostic and therapy response biomarkers for ovarian cancer.