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Nephroblastoma Overexpressed/Cysteine-Rich Protein 61/Connective Tissue Growth Factor/Nephroblastoma Overexpressed Gene-3 (NOV/CCN3), a Selective Adrenocortical Cell Proapoptotic Factor, Is Down-Regulated in Childhood Adrenocortical Tumors

Institut de Pharmacologie Moléculaire et Cellulaire Centre National de la Recherche Scientifique Unité Mixte de Recherche 6097 and Université de Nice Sophia Antipolis (M.D., M.A., G.R., J.D.M., E.L.), 06560 Valbonne, France; Institut National de la Santé et de la Recherche Médicale U515 (H.T., M.L., C.M.), Hôpital St. Antoine, UPMC, Paris 6, 75012 Paris, France; Institut National de la Santé et de la Recherche Médicale U526 (S.G., P.A.), Faculté de Médecine, 06107 Nice, France; Department of Biochemistry (A.N.W., G.P.Z.), St. Jude Children’s Research Hospital, Memphis, Tennessee 38105; Service de Pédiatrie (J.-C.M.) and Service de Gynécologie Obstétrique (A.B.), Hôpital de l’Archet, Centre Hospitalier Universitaire, 06200 Nice, France; and Instituto de Pesquisa Pelé Pequeno Principe and Centro de Genética Molecular e Pesquisa do Câncer em Crianças (B.C.F.), Curitiba, 80.060-110 Paraná, Brazil

Address all correspondence and requests for reprints to: Enzo Lalli, M.D., Institut de Pharmacologie Moléculaire et Cellulaire, Centre National de la Recherche Scientifique Unité Mixte de Recherche 6097, 660 Route des Lucioles, Sophia Antipolis, 06560 Valbonne, France. E-mail: ninino{at}ipmc.cnrs.fr.

Context: Childhood adrenocortical tumors (ACTs) have a fetal adrenal phenotype and overexpress steroidogenic factor-1 (SF-1). Nephroblastoma overexpressed (NOV)/cysteine-rich protein 61/connective tissue growth factor/nephroblastoma overexpressed gene-3 mRNA is significantly down-regulated in childhood ACTs.

Objective: The objective of the study was to measure NOV protein levels in childhood ACTs and characterize NOV expression regulation and biological function in human adrenocortical cells.

Design and Setting: Protein extracts from ACT and normal adrenal cortex samples, human adrenocortical carcinoma H295R, primary adrenocortical tumors and fetal adrenal cultures, tissue culture supernatants, and cell lysates from H295R cells overexpressing SF-1 in an inducible fashion were used.

Main Outcome Measures: NOV protein levels were measured by enzyme-linked immunoassay and immunoblot. Transient transfection assays were used to study the activity of NOV promoter. Terminal deoxynucleotidyl transferase-mediated deoxyuridine triphosphate nick end labeling, caspase assays, and flow cytometry were used to assess the proapoptotic activity of NOV on cells in culture.

Results: NOV mRNA and protein expression is lower in childhood ACTs than in normal adrenal cortex. No significant difference was observed between adenomas and carcinomas. SF-1 overexpression down-regulates NOV at the transcriptional level. NOV has a selective proapoptotic activity toward human adrenocortical cells. The C-terminal domain of NOV is responsible for its proapoptotic effect. NOV protein is expressed in DAX-1-positive human fetal adrenal cells.

Conclusions: NOV is a selective proapoptotic factor for human adrenocortical cells. Reduced expression of NOV in ACTs may play an important role in the process of childhood ACT tumorigenesis, accounting at least in part for the defect of apoptotic regression of the fetal adrenal that has been proposed to be responsible for tumor formation.

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