Tumor suppressor PTEN inhibition of cell invasion, migration, and growth: differential involvement of focal adhesion kinase and p130Cas

PTEN/MMAC1 is a major new tumor suppressor gene that encodes a dual-specificity phosphatase with sequence similarity to the cytoskeletal protein tensin. Recently, we reported that PTEN dephosphorylates focal adhesion kinase (FAK) and inhibits cell migration, spreading, and focal adhesion formation. Here, the effects of PTEN on cell invasion, migration, and growth as well as the involvement of FAK and p130 Crk-associated substrate (p130Cas) were investigated in U87MG glioblastoma cells missing PTEN. Cell invasion, migration, and growth were down-regulated by expression of phosphatase-active forms of PTEN but not by PTEN with an inactive phosphatase domain; these effects were correlated with decreased tyrosine phosphorylation levels of FAK and p130Cas. Overexpression of FAK concomitant with PTEN resulted in increased total tyrosine phosphorylation levels of FAK and p130Cas and effectively antagonized the effects of PTEN on cell invasion and migration and partially on cell growth. Overexpression of p130Cas increased total tyrosine phosphorylation levels of p130Cas without affecting those of FAK; however, although p130Cas could reverse PTEN inhibition of cell invasion and migration, it did not rescue cell growth in U87MG cells. In contrast to FAK, p130Cas could not be shown to interact with PTEN in cells, and it was not dephosphorylated directly by PTEN in vitro. These results suggest important roles of PTEN in the phenotype of tumor progression, and that the effects of PTEN on cell invasion, migration, and growth are mediated by distinct downstream pathways that diverge at the level of FAK.