# The Role of USP22 in Prostate Cancer Development and Progression

> **NIH NIH K00** · DUKE UNIVERSITY · 2021 · $88,655

## Abstract

ABSTRACT
Prostate cancer (PCa) is the second leading cause of cancer-related death for men in the United States.
While organ-confined disease is manageable, advanced and disseminated PCa currently has no durable
treatment options. Thus, understanding the causes and consequences of the transition from early stage to
late stage castrate-resistant PCa (CRPC) are critical. While this transition has a requisite for androgen
receptor (AR) activity, the mechanisms by which AR and other oncogenes are functionally increased, even
after initial treatment with androgen deprivation therapy (ADT) have not been completely characterized.
USP22, a known deubiquitinase associated with the SAGA transcriptional activation complex, was originally
designated in a “death from cancer” gene signature. Importantly, USP22 is significantly upregulated in PCa
patients with late-stage disease, and specifically indicates for poor outcome in PCa patients. Moreover,
tumor-associated USP22 increases AR levels and activity as well as the c-MYC function, partially defining the
mechanism by which tumor-associated USP22 drives PCa progression. Thus, while certain consequences of
tumor-associated USP22 expression have been elucidated, the remaining downstream effects have not been
thoroughly characterized. In this proposal, I will delineate the manner by which USP22 drives PCa
development and progression. Specifically, I will describe the biochemical events controlled by USP22 that
confer proliferation and survival on PCa cells, and furthermore I will define the role of tumor-associated
USP22 on tumor development and therapeutic bypass in vivo. Moreover, I will expand on my ambition to
continue studying transcriptional deregulation in cancer once I complete my predoctoral research.

## Key facts

- **NIH application ID:** 10106592
- **Project number:** 5K00CA212225-05
- **Recipient organization:** DUKE UNIVERSITY
- **Principal Investigator:** Jennifer Jones McCann
- **Activity code:** K00 (R01, R21, SBIR, etc.)
- **Funding institute:** NIH
- **Fiscal year:** 2021
- **Award amount:** $88,655
- **Award type:** 5
- **Project period:** 2019-04-23 → 2023-03-31

## Primary source

NIH RePORTER: https://reporter.nih.gov/project-details/10106592

## Citation

> US National Institutes of Health, RePORTER application 10106592, The Role of USP22 in Prostate Cancer Development and Progression (5K00CA212225-05). Retrieved via AI Analytics 2026-05-23 from https://api.ai-analytics.org/grant/nih/10106592. Licensed CC0.

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