Abstract

Breast cancer is the second leading cause of cancer-related deaths in the United States, with the majority of these deaths due to metastatic lesions rather than the primary tumor. Thus, a better understanding of the etiology of metastatic disease is crucial for improving survival. Using a haplotype mapping strategy in mouse and shRNA-mediated gene knockdown, we identified Rnaseh2c, a scaffolding protein of the heterotrimeric RNase H2 endoribonuclease complex, as a novel metastasis susceptibility factor. We found that the role of Rnaseh2c in metastatic disease is independent of RNase H2 enzymatic activity, and immunophenotyping and RNA-sequencing analysis revealed engagement of the T cell-mediated adaptive immune response. Furthermore, the cGAS-Sting pathway was not activated in the metastatic cancer cells used in this study, suggesting that the mechanism of immune response in breast cancer is different from the mechanism proposed for Aicardi-Goutieres Syndrome, a rare interferonopathy caused by RNase H2 mutation. These results suggest an important novel, non-enzymatic role for RNASEH2C during breast cancer progression and add Rnaseh2c to a panel of genes we have identified that together could determine patients with high risk for metastasis. These results also highlight a potential new target for combination with immunotherapies and may contribute to a better understanding of the etiology of Aicardi-Goutieres Syndrome autoimmunity. Author SummaryThe majority of breast cancer-associated deaths are due to metastatic disease, the process where cancerous cells leave the primary tumor in the breast and spread to a new location in the body. To better understand the etiology of this process, we investigate the effects of gene expression changes in the primary tumor. In this study, we found that changing the expression of the gene Rnaseh2c changed the number of metastases that developed in the lungs of tumor-bearing mice. By investigating the enzyme complex Rnaseh2c is part of, RNase H2, we determined that Rnaseh2cs effects may be independent of RNase H2 enzyme activity. Because Rnaseh2c is known to cause the autoimmune disease Aicardi-Goutieres Syndrome (AGS), we tested whether the immune system is involved in the metastatic effect. Indeed, we found that the cytotoxic T cell response is important for mediating the effect that Rnaseh2c has on metastasis. Together these data indicate that Rnaseh2c expression contributes to a patients susceptibility to developing breast cancer metastasis and demonstrate that the immune system is involved in this outcome. The implications of this study suggest immunotherapy could be a viable treatment for breast cancer metastasis and may help inform the understanding of AGS and RNase H2 in cancer.