Voltage-gated Sodium Channel Activity Promotes Cysteine Cathepsin-dependent Invasiveness and Colony Growth of Human Cancer Cells

Voltage-gated sodium channels (Na-V) are functionally expressed in highly metastatic cancer cells derived from nonexcitable epithelial tissues (breast, prostate, lung, and cervix). MDA-MB-231 breast cancer cells express functional sodium channel complexes, consisting of Na(V)1.5 and associated auxiliary beta-subunits, that are responsible for a sustained inward sodium current at the membrane potential. Although these channels do not regulate cellular multiplication or migration, their inhibition by the specific blocker tetrodotoxin impairs both the extracellular gelatinolytic activity (monitored with DQ-gelatin) and cell invasiveness leading to the attenuation of colony growth and cell spreading in three-dimensional Matrigel (R)-composed matrices. MDA-MB-231 cells express functional cysteine cathepsins, which we found play a predominant role (similar to 65%) in cancer invasiveness. Matrigel (R) invasion is significantly decreased in the presence of specific inhibitors of cathepsins Band S (CA-074 and Z-FL-COCHO, respectively), and co-application of tetrodotoxin does not further reduce cell invasion. This suggests that cathepsins B and S are involved in invasiveness and that their proteolytic activity partly depends on NaV function. Inhibiting NaV has no consequence for cathepsins at the transcription, translation, and secretion levels. However, NaV activity leads to an intracellular alkalinization and a perimembrane acidification favorable for the extracellular activity of these acidic proteases. We propose that Na-v enhance the invasiveness of cancer cells by favoring the pH-dependent activity of cysteine cathepsins. This general mechanism could lead to the identification of new targets allowing the therapeutic prevention of metastases.