Src as a novel therapeutic target for endometriosis

- EGF plus HC promote anchorage independent growth of endometriosis cells.
- Endometriosis cells are sensitive to inhibition of Src and Wnt signaling.
- Src is activated in human endometriosis lesions, and in the endometrium of endometriosis patients.

BackgroundEndometriosis is a common condition that is associated with an increased risk of developing ovarian carcinoma. Improved in vitro models of this disease are needed to better understand how endometriosis, a benign disease, can undergo neoplastic transformation, and for the development of novel treatment strategies to prevent this progression.MethodsWe describe the generation and in vitro characterization of novel TERT immortalized ovarian endometriosis epithelial cell lines (EEC16-TERT).ResultsExpression of TERT alone was sufficient to immortalize endometriosis epithelial cells. TERT immortalization induces an epithelial-to-mesenchymal transition and perturbation in the expression of genes involved in the development of ovarian cancer. EEC16-TERT was non-tumorigenic when xenografted into immunocompromised mice but grew in anchorage-independent growth assays in an epidermal growth factor and hydrocortisone dependent manner. Colony formation in agar was abolished by inhibition of Src, and the Src pathway was found to be activated in human endometriosis lesions.ConclusionsThis new in vitro model system mimics endometriosis and the early stages of neoplastic transformation in the development of endometriosis associated ovarian cancer. We demonstrate the potential clinical relevance of this model by identifying Src activation as a novel pathway in endometriosis that could be targeted therapeutically, perhaps as a novel strategy to manage endometriosis clinically, or to prevent the development of endometriosis-associated ovarian cancer.