WNT11 is a direct target of early growth response protein 1

WNT11 is a member of the non-canonical Wnt family and plays a crucial role in tumor progression. However, the regulatory mechanisms underlying WNT11 expression are unclear. Tumor necrosis factor-alpha (TNF alpha) is a major inflammatory cytokine produced in the tumor microenvironment and contributes to processes associated with tumor progression, such as tumor invasion and metastasis. By using site-directed mutagenesis and introducing a serial deletion in the 5'-regulatory region of WNT11, we observed that TNF alpha activates the early growth response 1 (EGR1)-binding sequence (EBS) in the proximal region of WNT11 and that the transcription factor EGR1 is necessary for the TNF alpha-induced transcription of WNT11. EGR1 bound directly to the EBSs within the proximal 5'-regulatory region of WNT11 and ectopic expression of EGR1 stimulated WNT11 promoter activity, whereas the knockdown of EGR1 expression by RNA interference reduced TNF alpha-induced WNT11 expression in T47D breast cancer cells. We also observed that mitogen-activated protein kinases (MAPK), extracellular signal-regulated kinase (ERK), c-Jun N-terminal kinase (JNK), and p38 kinase mediated TNF alpha-induced transcription of WNT11 via EGR1. Our results suggest that EGR1 directly targets WNT11 in response to TNF alpha stimulation in breast cancer cells.