Exocyst controls exosome biogenesis via Rab11a.

Tumor cells actively release large quantities of exosomes, which pivotally participate in the regulation of cancer biology, including head and neck cancer (HNC). Exosome biogenesis and release are complex and elaborate processes that are considered to be similar to the process of exocyst-mediated vesicle delivery. By analyzing the expression of exocyst subunits and their role in patients with HNC, we aimed to identify exocyst and its functions in exosome biogenesis and investigate the molecular mechanisms underlying the regulation of exosome transport in HNC cells. We observed that exocysts were highly expressed in HNC cells and could promote exosome secretion in these cells. In addition, downregulation of exocyst expression inhibited HN4 cell proliferation by reducing exosome secretion. Interestingly, immunofluorescence and electron microscopy revealed the accumulation of multivesicular bodies (MVBs) after the knockdown of exocyst. Autophagy, the major pathway of exosome degradation, is not activated by this intracellular accumulation of MVBs, but these MVBs are consumed when autophagy is activated under the condition of cell starvation. Rab11a, a small GTPase that is involved in MVB fusion, also interacted with the exocyst. These findings suggest that the exocyst can regulate exosome biogenesis and participate in the malignant behavior of tumor cells. © 2022 The Authors.

Citation

Suwen Bai, Wenxuan Hou, Yanheng Yao, Jialin Meng, Yuan Wei, Fangfang Hu, Xianyu Hu, Jing Wu, Ning Zhang, Ruihuan Xu, Faqing Tian, Benguo Wang, Hailan Liao, Yinan Du, Haoshu Fang, Wei He, Yehai Liu, Bing Shen, Juan Du. Exocyst controls exosome biogenesis via Rab11a. Molecular therapy. Nucleic acids. 2022 Mar 08;27:535-546

PMID: 35036064

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