High-Molecular-Weight Hyaluronan Is a Hippo Pathway Ligand Directing Cell Density-Dependent Growth Inhibition via PAR1b. Ooki T et al. (2019) High-molecular-weight hyaluronan, a major component of the extracellular matrix, is anti-oncogenic, whereas low-molecular-weight hyaluronan is pro-oncogenic, though the mechanisms underlying the size-dependent opposite bioactivities of hyaluronan remain uncertain. We show here that treatment with high-molecular-weight hyaluronan stimulates tumor-suppressive Hippo signaling in breast epithelial cells. Mechanistically, clustering of the CD44 extracellular domain by high-molecular-weight hyaluronan leads to recruitment of the polarity-regulating kinase PAR1b by the CD44 intracellular domain, which results in disruption of the Hippo signaling-inhibitory PAR1b-MST complex. Once liberated from PAR1b, MST activates Hippo signaling. Conversely, low-molecular-weight hyaluronan, which is produced by hyaluronidase-mediated degradation of high-molecular-weight hyaluronan, inhibits Hippo signaling by competing with high-molecular-weight hyaluronan for CD44 binding. Triple-negative breast cancers with higher hyaluronidase-2 expression show poorer prognosis than those with lower hyaluronidase-2 expression. Consistently, decreased hyaluronidase-2 is associated with reduced tumorigenicity in a tumor xenograft model. Hence, perturbation of high-molecular-weight hyaluronan-mediated Hippo signaling activation contributes to cancer aggressiveness.//////////////////
Hyaluronan, or hyaluronic acid (HA), is a high molecular weight unbranched polysaccharide of the extracellular matrix.
When expressed in cell culture, the HAS2 cDNA increased hyaluronan production. The sequence of the predicted
552-amino acid protein differs from HAS1 (OMIM 601463) and so was designated HAS2. The HAS2 amino acid sequence is 55%
similar to the Xenopus DG42 sequence and 55% identical to mouse Has1.
/////////Hyaluronic acid (HA) is a high molecular weight polysaccharide found in the extracellular matrix of most animal tissues, that exerts a profound influence on cell behavior. HA is one of the most abundant glycosaminoglycans (GAGs) in the uterine, oviductal and follicular fluids in mouse, pig, human and cattle.
NCBI Summary:
Hyaluronan or hyaluronic acid (HA) is a high molecular weight unbranched polysaccharide synthesized by a wide variety of organisms from bacteria to mammals, and is a constituent of the extracellular matrix. It consists of alternating glucuronic acid and N-acetylglucosamine residues that are linked by beta-1-3 and beta-1-4 glycosidic bonds. HA is synthesized by membrane-bound synthase at the inner surface of the plasma membrane, and the chains are extruded through pore-like structures into the extracellular space. It serves a variety of functions, including space filling, lubrication of joints, and provision of a matrix through which cells can migrate. HA is actively produced during wound healing and tissue repair to provide a framework for ingrowth of blood vessels and fibroblasts. Changes in the serum concentration of HA are associated with inflammatory and degenerative arthropathies such as rheumatoid arthritis. In addition, the interaction of HA with the leukocyte receptor CD44 is important in tissue-specific homing by leukocytes, and overexpression of HA receptors has been correlated with tumor metastasis. HAS2 is a member of the newly identified vertebrate gene family encoding putative hyaluronan synthases, and its amino acid sequence shows significant homology to glycosaminoglycan synthetase (DG42) from Xenopus laevis, and human and murine hyaluronan synthase 1. [provided by RefSeq, Jul 2008]
General function
Apoptosis, Enzyme
Comment
Conserved miR-26b enhances ovarian granulosa cell apoptosis through HAS2-HA-CD44-Caspase-3 pathway by targeting HAS2. Liu J et al. (2016) The hyaluronan synthase 2 (HAS2)-hyaluronic acid (HA)-CD44-Caspase-3 pathway is involved in ovarian granulosa cell (GC) functions in mammals. HAS2 is a key enzyme required for HA synthesis and is the key factor in this pathway. However, the regulation of HAS2 and the HAS2-mediated pathway by microRNAs in GCs is poorly understood. Here, we report that miR-26b regulates porcine GC (pGC) apoptosis through the HAS2-HA-CD44-Caspase-3 pathway by binding directly to the 3'- untranslated region of HAS2 mRNA. Knockdown of miR-26b reduced pGC apoptosis. Luciferase reporter assays demonstrated that HAS2 is a direct target of miR-26b in pGCs. Knockdown and overexpression of miR-26b increased and decreased, respectively, HA content, and HAS2 and CD44 expression in pGCs. At the same time, inhibition and overexpression of miR-26b decreased and increased the expression of Caspase-3, a downstream factor in the HAS2-HA-CD44 pathway. Moreover, knockdown of HAS2 enhanced pGC apoptosis, reduced the inhibitory effects of a miR-26b inhibitor on pGC apoptosis, repressed HA content and CD44 expression, and promoted Caspase-3 expression. In addition, overexpression of HAS2 has a opposite effect. Collectively, miR-26b positively regulates pGC apoptosis via a novel HAS2-HA-CD44-Caspase-3 pathway by targeting the HAS2 gene.//////////////////
Cellular localization
Plasma membrane
Comment
Identification of Potential Biomarkers of Polycystic Ovary Syndrome via Integrated Bioinformatics Analysis. Yang D et al. (2020) Polycystic ovary syndrome (PCOS) is a life-long reproductive, endocrine, and metabolic disorder that affects up to 17% of women of reproductive age. However, the effect of granulosa cells (GCs) transcriptome changes on oocyte capacity and follicular development in patients with PCOS has not been elucidated. This study aims to analyze transcriptome changes in GCs of PCOS from different perspectives and explore potential biomarkers for the diagnosis and treatment of PCOS. The gene expression profiles of GSE34526 and GSE107746 were obtained from the GEO database. Differentially expressed genes (DEGs) and key signaling pathways were identified. Gene Set Enrichment Analysis (GSEA) revealed that Toll-like receptors, NOD-like receptors, and NOTCH signaling pathways were obviously enriched in GCs of PCOS. We further analyzed DEGs from three aspects: transcription factors (TFs), secreted proteins, and follicular development. Compared with normal GCs, the DEGs encoding TFs and secretory proteins in GCs of PCOS remarkably changed. Besides, HAS2 and CBLN1, which are highly expressed in preovulatory follicular GCs and may trigger ovulation, were significantly decreased in GCs of PCOS. This study found candidate genes and signaling pathways in PCOS, providing new insights and foundations for the etiology of PCOS. Besides, HSA2 and CBLN1 may be potential therapeutic biomarkers for ovulation disorders in PCOS.//////////////////
HAS2-AS1 is a novel LH/hCG target gene regulating HAS2 expression and enhancing cumulus cells migration. Yung Y et al. (2019) The cumulus expansion process is one of the LH mediated ovulatory processes. Hyaluronan synthase 2 (HAS2) regulates the synthesis of hyaluronic acid, the main component of the cumulus expansion process. Recently, the lncRNA HAS2 antisense RNA 1 (HAS2-AS1) was identified in our global transcriptome RNA-sequencing of novel ovulation associated genes. The role of HAS2-AS1 in HAS2 regulation w.as studied previously with contradictive results in different models but not in the ovary. Taken together the induction of HAS2-AS1 and the important role of HAS2 in the cumulus expansion process, we hypothesize that HAS2-AS1 regulate HAS2 expression and function in the ovary. Therefore we undertook to study the expression, regulation, and possible functional role of HAS2-AS1 in the human ovary. HAS2-AS1, located within the HAS2 gene that was highly regulated in our library. We found that HAS2-AS1 express mainly in cumulus cells (CCs). Furthermore, HAS2-AS1 showed low expression in immature CCs and a significant increase expression in mature CCs. Functional studies reveal that inhibition of HAS2-AS1 by siRNA caused decrease expression of HAS2. Furthermore, inhibition of HAS2-AS1 by siRNA results in decrease migration of granulosa cells. Our results suggest that HAS2-AS1 is an LH/hCG target gene that plays a positive role in HAS2 expression and thus might play a role in regulating cumulus expansion and migration.//////////////////
.Hyaluronic Acid Promotes the Expression of Progesterone Receptor Membrane Component 1 via Epigenetic Silencing of miR-139-5p in Granulosa Cells. Zhao G 2014 et al.
Primary ovarian insufficiency (POI) is a serious reproductive dysfunction with the follicle pool reduced and depleted. Abnormal apoptosis of ovarian granulosa cells (GCs) is believed to result in follicle loss. Progesterone receptor membrane component (PGRMC) 1, critical for the GC survival, was reported to reduce in POI patients, but the mechanism is unknown. Here we found that PGRMC1 expression was correlated with hyaluronic acid (HA) level in POI patients. HA up-regulated PGRMC1 expression in GCs via suppression of miR-139-5p, which was proved to target PGRMC1 by Western blotting and luciferase reporter assays. Consistent with these findings, miR-139-5p level was significantly increased and presented an inverse correlation with PGRMC1 in POI patients. Noticeably, HA inhibited CD44-mediated miR-139-5p expression, but had no effect on luciferase activity after insertion of miR-139 promoter into luciferase plasmid. Interestingly, miR-139-5p was significantly up-regulated in the KGN cells (GC tumor cell line) by histone deacetylase inhibitor, trichostatin A, indicating that HA down-regulated miR-139-5p expression via histone deacetylation. Taken together, we report an unrecognized mechanism of HA in the promotion of PGRMC1 expression, suggesting that HA may be a potential molecule for the prevention and treatment of POI.
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Targeted suppression of Has2 mRNA in mouse cumulus cell-oocyte complexes by adenovirus-mediated short-hairpin RNA expression. Sugiura K et al. RNA interference (RNAi) is an effective tool for studying gene function in oocytes, but no studies have targeted somatic cells of primary cultured cumulus cell-oocyte complexes (COCs). This is probably due to difficulty in introducing RNAi-inducing molecules, such as a short-hairpin RNA (shRNA) gene, into COCs by commonly used transfection reagents. We therefore tested whether a developmental process of intact COCs could be suppressed by adenovirus-mediated shRNA expression. Has2, encoding hyaluronan synthase 2, was selected as the target transcript, because the process of cumulus expansion depends upon expression of Has2 mRNA and this process is easily evaluated in vitro. Intact COCs were infected with replication-incompetent adenoviruses containing an expression sequence of shRNA targeting either Has2 (Has2 shRNA) or a control transcript not expressed in cumulus cells, and the effects on epidermal growth factor (EGF)-stimulated cumulus expansion were determined. Has2 shRNA expression suppressed Has2 mRNA levels in COCs by more than 70%, without affecting expression levels of Ptgs2, Ptx3, Tnfaip6 mRNAs, which are also required for cumulus expansion, or other transcripts not related to expansion. Interestingly, levels of Areg and Ereg mRNAs were decreased in COCs expressing Has2 shRNA when compared with those in controls, while Btc mRNA levels remained unaffected. Furthermore, the degree of cumulus expansion by Has2 shRNA-expressing COCs was significantly less than that of controls. Thus adenovirus-mediated introduction of shRNA produces specific gene silencing and a phenotype in intact COCs, providing proof of principle that this method will be a helpful tool for understanding mechanisms of COC development.
Expression regulated by
LH
Comment
Stock AE, et al 2002 reported the induction of hyaluronan synthase 2 by human chorionic gonadotropin in mural granulosa cells of equine preovulatory follicles.
In contrast to other species, the preovulatory rise in gonadotropins in mares causes a remarkable expansion of the entire granulosa cell layer in vivo, suggesting that hyaluronan (HA) synthesis may be regulated in mural granulosa cells in this species. The objectives of this study were to clone and characterize equine hyaluronan synthase 2 (HAS2) and investigate the regulation of its transcript and of HA synthesis in equine follicles during human chorionic gonadotropin (hCG)- induced ovulation. Results showed that the equine HAS2 cDNA contains a 5'-untranslated region of 436 bp, an open reading frame of 1659 bp, and a 3'-untranslated region of 707 bp. The open reading frame encodes a 552-amino acid protein that is highly conserved (98-99% identity), compared with other known mammalian homologs. The regulation of HAS2 mRNA was studied in equine follicles isolated during estrus between 0 and 39 h after an ovulatory dose of hCG and in corpora lutea obtained on d 8 of the estrous cycle. Results from semiquantitative RT-PCR/Southern blotting analyses revealed a transient induction of HAS2 during the ovulatory process. Levels of HAS2 transcripts were undetectable in follicles before hCG treatment (0 h), increased markedly after gonadotropin treatment (P < 0.05), but returned to undetectable levels in corpora lutea. Analyses performed on isolated preparations of theca interna and granulosa cells showed that the granulosa cell layer was the predominant site of HAS2 expression. An immunohistochemical approach showed that this induction of HAS2 transcript was accompanied by a dramatic increase in HA production after hCG treatment. The isolation and characterization of a 1.8-kb fragment of genomic sequence located immediately upstream of equine HAS2, and comparison with corresponding human and mouse genomic regions identified several conserved putative cis-acting elements. Thus, this study describes the primary structure of equine HAS2, demonstrates for the first time the regulation of HAS2 in mural granulosa cells during the ovulatory process in vivo and identifies a valuable model in which to study the molecular control of HAS2 gene expression.
Ovarian localization
Oocyte, Cumulus
Comment
Naoko Kimura et al 2002 reported the expression of Hyaluronan Synthases and CD44
Messenger RNAs in Porcine Cumulus-Oocyte
Complexes During In Vitro Maturation.
The transient synthesis and accumulation of hyaluronan (HA), an extracellular matrix component of cumulus cells, brings
about expansion of cumulus-oocyte complexes (COCs) in preovulatory mammalian follicles. In this study, the authors investigated
the mRNA expressions of hyaluronan synthase 2 (has2), hyaluronan synthase 3 (has3), and CD44, as well as the
responsiveness to eCG and porcine follicular fluid (pFF) of these genes, in porcine COCs, oocytectomized complexes
(OXCs), and oocytes during in vitro maturation. Immunolocalization of CD44 was also analyzed in COCs. After 12 h of
culture, the area of cumulus expansion in medium 199 supplemented with both 10 IU/ml eCG and 10% (v/v) pFF was
significantly greater than that in the medium supplemented with eCG or pFF. Oocytectomy reduced the expansion area in the
group supplemented with eCG. In reverse transcription-polymerase chain reaction analysis, all transcripts were identified in
COCs, but has3 transcript was not found in OXCs. Only has3 mRNA was detectable in oocytes, indicating that cumulus cells
express has2 and CD44 mRNAs, and oocytes express has3 mRNA. The expression levels of has2 and CD44 mRNAs in
COCs and OXCs increased in the presence of eCG and pFF after 24 h of culture, suggesting that these genes have a positive
dependency on eCG and pFF. In contrast, the high level of has3 mRNA was detected in COCs cultured in the medium alone.
Oocytectomy slightly reduced the expression level of has2 mRNA. On immunostaining for CD44, CD44 was expressed
apparently in COCs cultured with eCG and pFF for 24 h. The positive staining was distributed on cytoplasm along the
perimembrane of cumulus cells and at the junctions between cumulus cells and oocytes. CD44 was also localized on
cytoplasm of some oocytes. These results indicate that 1) porcine oocytes promote eCG-dependent cumulus expansion and
the expression of has2 mRNA in cumulus cells, but these are not essential for expansion of cumulus cells and the expression
of has2 mRNA; 2) HAS2 is involved in HA synthesis during cumulus expansion, and eCG and pFF up-regulate its
expression; 3) the expression profile of the has3 mRNA that is transcribed in oocytes is different from those of has2 and
CD44 mRNA; and 4) CD44 may participate in the interaction between cumulus cells and oocytes.