Abstract P1-05-13: Dissecting the interplay of the long non-coding RNA NORAD and PARP inhibitors in triple negative breast cancer
Authors: Klec Christiane , Kapeller Anita , Prinz Felix , Trenk Christoph , Stöger Herbert , Pichler Martin 
Published: March 2020

Background and Aims: Triple-negative breast cancer (TNBC) is the most aggressive subtype, and is often associated with mutations in the breast cancer susceptibility protein (BRCA) genes, which are known tumor-suppressor genes involved in DNA damage repair. Chromosomal instability (CIN) has been added to the hallmarks of cancer and is characterized by a frequent gain or loss of chromosomes during mitosis (i.e. chromosomal aberrations). BRCA1 and BRCA2 breast tumors develop by specific and distinct evolutionary paths, as their gene profiles and genome aberration spectra differ from each other and from those in sporadic BC. The lncRNA Non-Coding RNA Activated by DNA Damage (NORAD) has been demonstrated to contribute to the progression of several cancer entities by regulating genomic stability. Therefore, we wanted to explore a potential additive anti-cancerous effect by treating TNBC cells with a combination of NORAD silencing and PARP inhibition.

Material and Methods: To clarify the potential clinical significance of NORAD in human TNBC, patient data from publicly available databases were analyzed. In order to further characterize NORAD, we performed phenotypic experiments after establishing an siRNA-mediated knock-down approach. Expression levels of NORAD as well as DNA-damage repair proteins were analyzed by qRT-PCR and Western Blot after combined cell treatment with NORAD silencing and PARP inhibition. To further unravel the molecular mechanism behind, we performed immunofluorescent experiments against markers for DNA-double strand breaks and homologous recombination efficiency (i.e. Rad51 and yH2AX) after TNBC treatment with NORAD siRNAs and PARP inhibitors.

Results: High NORAD levels were identified to be a negative prognostic factor for disease-free survival of TNBC patients (HR with 95% CI: 2.4 (1.35-4.25); n=161; p=0.002). Furthermore, the NORAD gene is amplified in up to 3% of BC cases and mRNA levels are higher in tumor tissue when compared to healthy tissue. A qPCR based screening of several breast cancer cell lines showed an at least 4-times increased expression of NORAD when compared to normal mammary cells (i.e. MCF 12A). Knock-down of NORAD in TNBC cells resulted in a slightly reduced proliferation as well as to a decreased expression of several DNA repair proteins. Immunofluorescent experiments of TNBC cells treated with the PARP inhibitor olaparib and/or after NORAD silencing revealed increased yH2AX-dependent nuclear foci formation when compared to control conditions, indicating augmented DNA double-strand breaks after treatment.

Conclusion: Our first data let us hypothesize that a combination of NORAD knock-down and PARPi treatment increases inhibition of DNA repair mechanisms and leads to a more pronounced “anti-tumorigenic” phenotype in TNBC cells. This approach could lead to the optimization of current treatment concepts. Furthermore, as increased NORAD expression is associated with an unfavorable patient survival, this lncRNA could serve as potential prognostic biomarker.

Citation Format: Christiane Klec, Anita Kapeller, Felix Prinz, Christoph Trenk, Herbert Stöger, Martin Pichler. Dissecting the interplay of the long non-coding RNA NORAD and PARP inhibitors in triple negative breast cancer [abstract]. In: Proceedings of the 2019 San Antonio Breast Cancer Symposium; 2019 Dec 10-14; San Antonio, TX. Philadelphia (PA): AACR; Cancer Res 2020;80(4 Suppl):Abstract nr P1-05-13.