MITF has a central role in regulating starvation-induced autophagy in melanoma

• Published in: Scientific Reports
• Main Authors: Möller, Katrin, Sigurbjornsdottir, Sara, Arnþórsson, Ásgeir O., Pogenberg, Vivian, Dilshat, Ramile, Fock, Valerie, Brynjólfsdóttir, Sólveig Hlín, Bindesboll, Christian, Bessadóttir, Margrét, Ögmundsdóttir, Helga M., Simonsen, Anne, Larue, Lionel, Wilmanns, Matthias, Thorsson, Vésteinn, Steingrimsson, Eirikur, Ogmundsdottir, Margret H
• Other Authors: Læknadeild (HÍ), Faculty of Medicine (UI), Lífvísindasetur (HÍ), Biomedical Center (UI), Heilbrigðisvísindasvið (HÍ), School of Health Sciences (UI), Háskóli Íslands, University of Iceland
• Format: Article in Journal/Newspaper
• Language: English
• Published: Springer Science and Business Media LLC 2019
• Subjects: Macroautophagy; Melanoma; Genarannsóknir; Húðkrabbamein; Iceland
• Online Access: https://hdl.handle.net/20.500.11815/1577; https://doi.org/10.1038/s41598-018-37522-6

Publisher's version (útgefin grein). Supplementary information accompanies this paper at https://doi.org/10.1038/s41598-018-37522-6. The MITF transcription factor is a master regulator of melanocyte development and a critical factor in melanomagenesis. The related transcription factors TFEB and TFE3 regulate lysosomal activity and autophagy processes known to be important in melanoma. Here we show that MITF binds the CLEARbox element in the promoters of lysosomal and autophagosomal genes in melanocytes and melanoma cells. The crystal structure of MITF bound to the CLEAR-box reveals how the palindromic nature of this motif induces symmetric MITF homodimer binding. In metastatic melanoma tumors and cell lines, MITF positively correlates with the expression of lysosomal and autophagosomal genes, which, interestingly, are diferent from the lysosomal and autophagosomal genes correlated with TFEB and TFE3. Depletion of MITF in melanoma cells and melanocytes attenuates the response to starvation-induced autophagy, whereas the overexpression of MITF in melanoma cells increases the number of autophagosomes but is not sufcient to induce autophagic fux. Our results suggest that MITF and the related factors TFEB and TFE3 have separate roles in regulating a starvation-induced autophagy response in melanoma. Understanding the normal and pathophysiological roles of MITF and related transcription factors may provide important clinical insights into melanoma therapy. Tis work was supported by a grant of excellence from the Research Fund of Iceland (no 152715) to E.S., M.H.O. and V.T., a Rannís/Marie Curie START Postdoctoral grant to M.H.O. (no 120457041), grant from Eggertssjodur to M.H.O., PhD student grant from the University of Iceland Eimskip Fund to R.D., a United States National Institutes of Health grant (no U24CA143835) to V.T. We acknowledge the European Synchrotron Radiation Facility, Grenoble, France, for provision of synchrotron radiation facilities and we would like to thank Matthew Bowler for assistance in ...