Cited by 557Circadian rhythm and melatoninSleep and Work-Related FatigueCancer-related Molecular Pathways

Circadian Rhythm Disruption Promotes Lung Tumorigenesis

Open access
Papagiannakopoulos, Thales, Bauer, Matthew R., Davidson, Shawn M., Heimann, Megan, Subbaraj, Lakshmipriya, Bhutkar, Arjun, Bartlebaugh, Jordan, Vander Heiden, Matthew G. +1 more·2016·Cell Metabolism

Abstract

Circadian rhythms are 24-hr oscillations that control a variety of biological processes in living systems, including two hallmarks of cancer, cell division and metabolism. Circadian rhythm disruption by shift work is associated with greater risk for cancer development and poor prognosis, suggesting a putative tumor-suppressive role for circadian rhythm homeostasis. Using a genetically engineered mouse model of lung adenocarcinoma, we have characterized the effects of circadian rhythm disruption on lung tumorigenesis. We demonstrate that both physiologic perturbation (jet lag) and genetic mutation of the central circadian clock components decreased survival and promoted lung tumor growth and progression. The core circadian genes Per2 and Bmal1 were shown to have cell-autonomous tumor-suppressive roles in transformation and lung tumor progression. Loss of the central clock components led to increased c-Myc expression, enhanced proliferation, and metabolic dysregulation. Our findings demonstrate that both systemic and somatic disruption of circadian rhythms contribute to cancer progression.

Integrity signals

Registry

Crossref · 10.1016/j.cmet.2016.07.001

Cites

45 of 45 references verified0 citation errors · 0 not checkable

Statistics

Nothing to recompute.

Claims the paper makes

0 of 20 cited sources checked · 0 supported · 0 flagged

  • Findingown data

    Per2 mutant cells with high c-Myc showed increased glucose use for the TCA cycle, detected by M4 labeling of TCA cycle intermediates.

    “Increased use of glucose for the TCA cycle was detected as determined by carbon 4 labeling (M4) of TCA cycle intermediates (Figure 4C).”
    Quote in the paperSubstantial claim
  • Findingown data

    In K and KP mice, whole-animal loss of Per2 function increased tumor burden and tumor grade.

    “both K (Figure S1A and S1B) and KP (Figure 1G and 1H) animals that had systemic Per2 loss-of-function exhibited increased tumor burden and grade.”
    Quote in the paperSubstantial claim
  • Findingown data

    In KP mice, jet lag after tumor initiation decreased survival, with a median survival of 9 days.

    “animals placed in jet lag post-tumor initiation (jet lag progression) conditions showed decreased survival (9 days median survival) (p<0.01; Figure 1f)”
    Quote in the paperSubstantial claim
  • Findingown data

    In the KrasLA2 model, no increase in tumorigenesis was observed in other sporadic Kras-driven tumors.

    “We did not observe increased tumorigenesis in other sporadic Kras-driven tumors in this model (data not shown).”
    Quote in the paperSubstantial claim
  • Findingown data

    In KP mice, jet lag beginning before tumor initiation significantly increased the percentage of high-grade grade 3 and 4 tumors compared with LD12:12 controls.

    “we did observe a significant increase in the percentage of high-grade tumors in this cohort compared to LD12:12 animals (grade 3 and 4; p<0.05; Figure 1e)”
    Quote in the paperSubstantial claim
  • May combine two claims. 16
  • Classified as probably not a substantial claim. 4
  • May combine two claims.

    Findingown data

    K; Per2m/m, K; Bmal1Δ/Δ, and KP; Per2m/m tumors had significantly increased c-Myc protein levels compared with control K and KP tumors.

    “K; Per2m/m (p<0.05; Figure 3C and 3F), K; Bmal1Δ/Δ (p<0.01; Figure 3C and 3G) and KP; Per2m/m (p<0.0001; Figure 3D and 3I) tumors showed a significant increase in the protein levels of c-Myc as compared to control samples K and KP tumors”
    Quote in the paperSubstantial claim
  • May combine two claims.

    Findingown data

    In human lung adenocarcinoma TCGA data, all core circadian genes except CLOCK had significantly lower transcript levels in matched tumors than in normal lung, while CLOCK was increased.

    “With the exception of CLOCK, whose expression was significantly increased in tumors, the transcripts of all the circadian genes were significantly decreased in matched tumors when compared to normal lung (Figure S4A).”
    Quote in the paperSubstantial claim0 of 1 sources checked
    • cites Cancer Genome Atlas Research, 2014

      Not checked in the free run.

  • May combine two claims.

    Findingown data

    In KP mice, jet lag during tumor progression shifted tumor grades, reducing grade 2 tumors and increasing grade 3 and 4 tumors.

    “a shift in the tumor grades, with fewer grade 2 and more grade 3 and 4 tumors (grade 2 p<0.05; grade 3 p<0.01; Figure 1e)”
    Quote in the paperSubstantial claim
  • May combine two claims.

    Findingown data

    K; Per2m/m, K; Bmal1Δ/Δ, and KP; Per2m/m tumors had increased BrdU-positive nuclei compared with controls.

    “BrdU incorporation analysis revealed increased BrdU positive nuclei in K; Per2m/m (p<0.001; Figure 4A), K; Bmal1Δ/Δ tumors (p<0.01; Figure 3A) and KP; Per2m/m tumors (p<0.0001; Figure 3B) compared to controls.”
    Quote in the paperSubstantial claim
  • May combine two claims.

    Findingown data

    KP Per2m/m cells proliferated faster and had greater clonogenic potential than wild-type KP cells.

    “KP Per2m/m cells proliferated faster and had a greater clonogenic potential compared to WT KP cells (Figure S2C and S2D).”
    Quote in the paperSubstantial claim
  • May combine two claims.

    Findingown data

    KrasLA2/+ mice with germline Per2 mutation or Bmal1 mutation exhibited decreased survival.

    “exhibited decreased survival (p<0.05 and p<0.01; Figure 1K)”
    Quote in the paperSubstantial claim
  • May combine two claims.

    Findingreasoning

    KrasLA2/+; Bmal1−/− mice showed a trend toward more lung tumors and poorer survival than KrasLA2/+; Per2m/m mice.

    “KrasLA2/+; Bmal1−/− animals displayed a trend of developing more lung tumors and poorer survival than KrasLA2/+; Per2m/m animals”
    Quote in the paperNot a substantial claim
  • May combine two claims.

    Findingown data

    KrasLA2/+ mice with germline Per2 mutation or Bmal1 mutation had increased lung tumor number.

    “both KrasLA2/+; Per2m/m and KrasLA2/+; Bmal1−/− animals had an increased lung tumor number (p<0.05 and p<0.01; Figure 1J)”
    Quote in the paperSubstantial claim
  • May combine two claims.

    Findingown data

    K; Per2m/m and KP; Per2m/m mice had decreased survival relative to Per2+/+ controls.

    “both K; Per2m/m (p<0.01; Figure S1c) and KP; Per2m/m (p<0.001; Figure 1I) animals also had decreased survival compared to wild-type (Per2+/+) controls.”
    Quote in the paperSubstantial claim
  • May combine two claims.

    Interpretationown data

    Circadian rhythm disruption can promote lung tumorigenesis, and circadian homeostasis has an important tumor-suppressive role.

    “The data presented here demonstrate that circadian rhythm disruption can promote lung tumorigenesis and support an important tumor suppressive role for circadian homeostasis.”
    Quote in the paperSubstantial claim
  • May combine two claims.

    Interpretationown data

    Loss of Per2 or Bmal1 can independently increase c-Myc transcriptional output.

    “Therefore loss of Per2 or Bmal1 can independently lead to increased c-Myc transcriptional output.”
    Quote in the paperSubstantial claim
  • May combine two claims.

    Premisecitation

    Night-shift workers have a higher risk of developing cancer and poorer cancer prognosis.

    “Epidemiological studies have revealed that individuals who work night-shifts are at higher risk for developing cancer (Hansen, 2001; Kloog et al., 2009; Megdal et al., 2005; Schernhammer et al., 2006; Schernhammer et al., 2001; Viswanathan et al., 2007) or display poorer cancer prognosis (Lis et al., 2003).”
    Quote in the paperSubstantial claim0 of 3 sources checked
    • cites Hansen, 2001 source

      Not checked in the free run.

    • cites Kloog et al., 2009 source

      Not checked in the free run.

    • cites Lis et al., 2003 source

      Not checked in the free run.

  • May combine two claims.

    Premisecitation

    KRAS and P53 are mutated in 30% and 50% of human lung adenocarcinoma patients, respectively, making the GEMMs relevant to a large subset of human lung cancers.

    “KRAS and P53 are mutated in 30% and 50% of human lung adenocarcinoma patients respectively, making these GEMMs highly relevant to a large subset of human lung cancers (Cancer Genome Atlas Research, 2014).”
    Quote in the paperSubstantial claim0 of 1 sources checked
    • cites Cancer Genome Atlas Research, 2014

      Not checked in the free run.

  • Probably not a substantial claim: may not pass S3 (load-bearing). May combine two claims.

    Premisecitation

    Loss of Bmal1 and Clock suppressed leukemogenesis in a prior study, suggesting that circadian disruption can have context-specific effects in different cancers.

    “Ebert et al. recently demonstrated that loss of Bmal1 and Clock suppressed leukemogenesis, suggesting that circadian disruption can have context specific effects in different types of cancers (Puram et al., 2016).”
    Quote in the paperNot a substantial claim0 of 1 sources checked
    • cites Puram et al., 2016 source

      Not checked in the free run.

  • Probably not a substantial claim: may not pass S3 (load-bearing).

    Premisecitation

    Earlier reports using germline mutations in circadian components have highlighted a role for circadian rhythm disruption in tumor predisposition.

    “Earlier reports using germline mutations in circadian components have highlighted a role for circadian rhythm disruption in tumor predisposition (Filipski et al., 2005; Fu et al., 2002; Gery et al., 2006; Janich et al., 2011; Kettner et al., 2014; Lee et al., 2010; Sahar and Sassone-Corsi, 2009; Van Dycke et al., 2015; Wood et al., 2008).”
    Quote in the paperNot a substantial claim0 of 3 sources checked
    • cites Filipski et al., 2005 source

      Not checked in the free run.

    • cites Fu et al., 2002

      Not checked in the free run.

    • cites Gery et al., 2006 source

      Not checked in the free run.

  • Probably not a substantial claim: may not pass S3 (load-bearing).

    Premisecitation

    Systemic loss of Per2 and Bmal1 has different effects on animal circadian behavior.

    “Systemic loss of Per2 and Bmal1 has differential effects on circadian behavior of animals (Bunger et al., 2000; Zheng et al., 1999).”
    Quote in the paperNot a substantial claim0 of 2 sources checked
    • cites Bunger et al., 2000 source

      Not checked in the free run.

    • cites Zheng et al., 1999 source

      Not checked in the free run.

  • May combine two claims.

    Interpretationown data

    Tumor cell-specific deletion of core clock components leads to increased proliferation, c-Myc levels or activation, and metabolic activity.

    “We demonstrate through several in vitro and in vivo systems that tumor cell-specific deletion of core clock components leads to increased proliferation, c-Myc levels/activation and metabolic activity.”
    Quote in the paperSubstantial claim
  • Probably not a substantial claim: may not pass S3 (load-bearing).

    Study design and conductnone given

    Mice assigned to LD12:12 or jet lag conditions were randomized.

    “Randomization was used for mice placed into LD12:12 or jet lag.”
    Quote in the paperNot a substantial claim
  • May combine two claims.

    Interpretationown data

    Loss of Per2 or Bmal1 accelerated lung cancer despite their differential effects on whole-animal circadian behavior.

    “Despite these differences on whole-animal behavior, loss of Per2 or Bmal1 accelerated lung cancer.”
    Quote in the paperSubstantial claim
19 of 19
  • The paper relies on this without support.

    The mechanism linking circadian rhythm disruption to cancer development and the way oncogenic events cooperate with clock disruption during initiation and progression are not known.

    “Despite several lines of evidence implicating circadian rhythm disruption in cancer, the underlying mechanism that contributes to disease development remains elusive. It is unclear how oncogenic events may cooperate with circadian clock disruption during cancer initiation and progression.”
  • The paper relies on this without support.

    Research on physiologic risk factors such as circadian rhythm disruption has been limited by a lack of rigorous in vivo experimental systems.

    “The study of physiologic risk factors, such as circadian rhythm disruption, has been largely hindered by the lack of rigorous in vivo experimental systems.”
2 of 2

Claims other papers make about this one

Each is checked against this paper’s own text: does it say what the citing paper says it does?

  • Animal models with environmentally disturbed circadian systems (simulated shift work) indicate that circadian disruption increases cancer progression, possibly through cell cycle dysregulation, DNA damage accumulation, and reduced tumor suppression.

    “Findings in animal models with environmentally disturbed circadian systems (simulated shift work) indicate that circadian disruption increases the progression of cancer, possibly through dysregulation of the cell cycle, accumulation of DNA damage, and reduced tumor suppression [49,50,51,52].”

Self-check

Percentages, sums and reported differences re-computed from the paper’s own numbers.

Each contradiction between two passages listed here was confirmed by an independent check.

  • Jet-lag initiation duration differs by one week

    Minor

    The results say initiation-group mice began jet lag one week before tumor initiation and continued until 13 weeks afterward, a total of 14 weeks. The methods instead say they remained under those conditions for 13 weeks.

1 of 1

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Authors
Papagiannakopoulos, T., Bauer, M. R., Davidson, S. M., Heimann, M., Subbaraj, L., Bhutkar, A., Bartlebaugh, J., Vander Heiden, M. G., & Jacks, T.
Affiliations
  • Koch Institute for Integrative Cancer Research At MIT (US)
  • Howard Hughes Medical Institute (US)
Corresponding author
Jacks, Tyler
Venue
Cell Metabolism
Publisher
Elsevier BV
Published
2016-08
Volume
24
Issue
2
Pages
324-331
ISSN
1550-4131 (ISSN-L)
OpenAlex
W2505703250
Cited by
557
References
46
Citations by year
2026: 42 · 2025: 62 · 2024: 65 · 2023: 73 · 2022: 68 · 2021: 64 · 2020: 72 · 2019: 41 · 2018: 37 · 2017: 24 · 2016: 8 · 2013: 1
FWCI
23.33
Type
journal article
Language
en
Open access
Locations
  • Cell Metabolism (publishedVersion)
  • PubMed (publishedVersion)
  • Europe PMC (PubMed Central) (acceptedVersion)
  • PubMed Central (acceptedVersion)
  • DSpace@MIT (Massachusetts Institute of Technology) (submittedVersion, cc-by-nc-nd)
  • PMC
Funders
  • Howard Hughes Medical Institute
  • American Cancer Society
  • Lung Cancer Research Foundation
  • Hope Funds for Cancer Research
  • Koch Institute for Integrative Cancer Research, Massachusetts Institute of Technology
  • National Cancer Institute (P01CA042063, R01CA168653, P30CA014051)
Topics
  • Life Sciences › Neuroscience › Endocrine and Autonomic Systems › Circadian rhythm and melatonin
  • Social Sciences › Psychology › Experimental and Cognitive Psychology › Sleep and Work-Related Fatigue
  • Health Sciences › Medicine › Oncology › Cancer-related Molecular Pathways
Keywords
circadian rhythm disruption, lung carcinogenesis, lung adenocarcinoma, jet lag, shift work, clock genes, Per2, Bmal1, c-Myc, tumor progression, tumor suppression, cell proliferation, metabolic dysfunction, genetically engineered mouse models
MeSH terms
Adenocarcinoma of Lung, Adenocarcinoma, Animals, Cell Transformation, Neoplastic, Circadian Rhythm, Glucose, Glutamine, Humans, Lung, Lung Neoplasms, Mice, Inbred C57BL, Mutation, Proto-Oncogene Proteins c-myc, Jet Lag Syndrome, Cell Proliferation, Period Circadian Proteins, Carcinogenesis, Cellular Reprogramming

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