Differential vitamin D 24-hydroxylase/CYP24A1 gene promoter methylation in endothelium from benign and malignant human prostate

Epigenetics. 2011 Aug;6(8):994-1000. doi: 10.4161/epi.6.8.16536. Epub 2011 Aug 1.

Abstract

Epigenetic alterations occur in tumor-associated vessels in the tumor microenvironment. Methylation of the CYP24A1 gene promoter differs in endothelial cells isolated from tumors and non-tumor microenvironments in mice. The epigenetic makeup of endothelial cells of human tumor-associated vasculature is unknown due to difficulty of isolating endothelial cells populations from a heterogeneous tissue microenvironment. To ascertain CYP24A1 promoter methylation in tumor-associated endothelium, we utilized laser microdissection guided by CD31 immunohistochemistry to procure endothelial cells from human prostate tumor specimens. Prostate tissues were obtained following robotic radical prostatectomy from men with clinically localized prostate cancer. Adjacent histologically benign prostate tissues were used to compare endothelium from benign versus tumor microenvironments. Sodium bisulfite sequencing of CYP24A1 promoter region showed that the average CYP24A1 promoter methylation in the endothelium was 20% from the tumor microenvironment compared with 8.2% in the benign microenvironment (p< 0.05). A 2-fold to 17-fold increase in CYP24A1 promoter methylation was observed in the prostate tumor endothelium compared with the matched benign prostate endothelium in four patient samples, while CYP24A1 remained unchanged in two patient sample. In addition, there is no correlation of the level of CYP24A1 promoter methylation in prostate tumor-associated endothelium with that of epithelium/stroma. This study demonstrates that the CYP24A1 promoter is methylated in tumor-associated endothelium, indicating that epigenetic alterations in CYP24A1 may play a role in determining the phenotype of tumor-associated vasculature in the prostate tumor microenvironment.

Publication types

  • Research Support, N.I.H., Extramural
  • Research Support, Non-U.S. Gov't

MeSH terms

  • Cell Line, Tumor
  • CpG Islands
  • DNA Methylation*
  • Endothelium / metabolism
  • Endothelium / pathology
  • Epigenesis, Genetic*
  • Gene Expression Regulation, Neoplastic*
  • Humans
  • Laser Capture Microdissection
  • Male
  • Promoter Regions, Genetic*
  • Prostatectomy
  • Prostatic Neoplasms / blood supply
  • Prostatic Neoplasms / genetics*
  • Prostatic Neoplasms / pathology*
  • Steroid Hydroxylases / genetics*
  • Steroid Hydroxylases / metabolism
  • Tumor Microenvironment / genetics
  • Vitamin D3 24-Hydroxylase

Substances

  • Steroid Hydroxylases
  • CYP24A1 protein, human
  • Cyp24a1 protein, mouse
  • Vitamin D3 24-Hydroxylase