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Background: Breast cancer is a remarkably heterogeneous disease. Luminal, basal-like, ''normal-like'', and ERBB2+ subgroups were identified and were shown to have different prognoses. The mechanisms underlying this heterogeneity are poorly understood. In our study, we explored the role of cellular differentiation and senescence as a potential cause of heterogeneity. Methodology/Principal Findings: A panel of breast cancer cell lines, isogenic clones, and breast tumors were used. Based on their ability to generate senescent progeny under low-density clonogenic conditions, we classified breast cancer cell lines as senescent cell progenitor (SCP) and immortal cell progenitor (ICP) subtypes. All SCP cell lines expressed estrogen receptor (ER). Loss of ER expression combined with the accumulation of p21Cip1 correlated with senescence in these cell lines. p21Cip1 knockdown, estrogen-mediated ER activation or ectopic ER overexpression protected cells against senescence. In contrast, tamoxifen triggered a robust senescence response. As ER expression has been linked to luminal differentiation, we compared the differentiation status of SCP and ICP cell lines using stem/progenitor, luminal, and myoepithelial markers. The SCP cells produced CD24+ or ER+ luminal-like and ASMA+ myoepithelial-like progeny, in addition to CD44+ stem/progenitor-like cells. In contrast, ICP cell lines acted as differentiation-defective stem/progenitor cells. Some ICP cell lines generated only CD44+/ CD24-/ER-/ASMA- progenitor/stem-like cells, and others also produced CD24+/ER- luminal-like, but not ASMA+ myoepitheliallike cells. Furthermore, gene expression profiles clustered SCP cell lines with luminal A and ''normal-like'' tumors, and ICP cell lines with luminal B and basal-like tumors. The ICP cells displayed higher tumorigenicity in immunodeficient mice. Conclusions/Significance: Luminal A and ''normal-like'' breast cancer cell lines were able to generate luminal-like and myoepithelial-like progeny undergoing senescence arrest. In contrast, luminal B/basal-like cell lines acted as stem/ progenitor cells with defective differentiation capacities. Our findings suggest that the malignancy of breast tumors is directly correlated with stem/progenitor phenotypes and poor differentiation potential. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The sodium/iodide symporter mediates active iodide transport in both healthy and cancerous thyroid tissue. By exploiting this activity, radioiodide has been used for decades with considerable success in the detection and treatment of thyroid cancer. Here we show that a specialized form of the sodium/iodide symporter in the mammary gland mediates active iodide transport in healthy lactating (but not in nonlactating) mammary gland and in mammary tumors. In addition to characterizing the hormonal regulation of the mammary gland sodium/iodide symporter, we demonstrate by scintigraphy that mammary adenocarcinomas in transgenic mice bearing Ras or Neu oncogenes actively accumulate iodide by this symporter in vivo. Moreover, more than 80% of the human breast cancer samples we analyzed by immunohistochemistry expressed the symporter, compared with none of the normal (nonlactating) samples from reductive mammoplasties. These results indicate that the mammary gland sodium/iodide symporter may be an essential breast cancer marker and that radioiodide should be studied as a possible option in the diagnosis and treatment of breast cancer. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Abstract: The function of sodium iodide symporter (Na+/I− symporter, or NIS) in mammary epithelial cells is essential for the accumulation of I− in milk; the newborn’s first source of I− for thyroid hormone synthesis. Furthermore, increased mammary gland NIS expression has previously been shown in human breast cancer. Several hormones and factors including all-trans-retinoic acid (tRA) regulate the expression of NIS. In this study, using breast cancer cell lines, we established that tRA-responsive NIS expression is confined to estrogen receptor-α (ERα) positive cells and we investigated the role of ERα in the regulation of NIS expression. We showed that the suppression of endogenous ERα by RNA interference downregulates NIS expression in ERα positive mammary cells. Besides, in an ERα negative cell line, reintroduction of ERα resulted in the expression of NIS in a ligand-independent manner. We also identified a novel estrogen-responsive element in the promoter region of NIS that specifically binds ERα and mediates ERα-dependent activation of transcription. Our results indicate that unliganded ERα (apo-ERα) contributes to the regulation of NIS gene expression. [Copyright &y& Elsevier]