Identification of coilin in bone marrow as a potential neuroblastoma tumor progression marker transcriptionally regulated by MYCN.

BACKGROUND: Current risk stratification for neuroblastoma (NB) relies on limited markers like MYCN amplification. Coilin, a key Cajal body component, regulates cellular processes. This study investigates whether coilin expression in bone marrow (BM) serves as a predictive biomarker for NB progression and elucidate its function in this disease. METHODS: The functions and molecular mechanisms of coilin were investigated by employing cell lines and animal models. Coilin mRNA levels in patient samples were measured by RT-PCR, and their relationships with clinicobiological characteristics and outcomes were analyzed. RESULTS: Cisplatin induced dramatic changes of coilin distribution and expression. Databases showed that high expression of coilin exerted predictive values for poor outcome in NB. Coilin promoted proliferation in vitro and in vivo. Knockdown of coilin expression inhibited cell migration and invasion, promoted apoptosis and increased the Cisplatin drug sensitivity. Moreover, coilin activates p53/p21 signaling pathway and was a direct target of MYCN. Analysis of BM samples demonstrated that high expression of coilin was obviously associated with adverse clinical biological features. Importantly, the levels of coilin at diagnosis were markedly higher than those at the time before maintenance treatment in the exact paired patients. Survival analysis presented that high coilin expression in BM is associated with poor prognosis. CONCLUSIONS: A novel and accessible coilin-targeted liquid biopsy method was developed, capable of detecting minimal residual disease (MRD) in early-stage NB and predicting disease progression and recurrence. Coilin was transcriptionally regulated by MYCN, offering potential avenues for the development of novel drugs or intervention strategies.