Inhibition of glycogen synthase kinase-3β promotes nuclear export of the androgen receptor through a CRM1-dependent mechanism in prostate cancer cell lines

The androgen receptor (AR) is a ligand‐dependent transcription factor belonging to the steroid hormone receptor superfamily. Under normal conditions, in the absence of a ligand, the AR is localized to the cytoplasm and is actively transported into the nucleus upon binding of androgens. In advanced prostate cancer (PCa) cell lines, an increased sensitivity to dihydrotestosterone (DHT), enabling the cells to proliferate under sub‐physiological levels of androgens, has been associated with increased stability and nuclear localization of the AR. There is experimental evidence that the glycogen synthase kinase‐3β (GSK‐3β), a multifunctional serine/threonine kinase is involved in estrogen and AR stability. As demonstrated in the following study by immunoprecipitation analysis, GSK‐3β binds to the AR forming complexes in the cytoplasm and in the nucleus. Furthermore, inhibition of GSK‐3β activity by pharmacological inhibitors like the maleimide SB216761, the chloromethyl‐thienyl‐ketone GSK‐3 inhibitor VI or the aminopyrazol GSK‐3 inhibitor XIII in cells grown in the presence of DHT triggered a rapid nuclear export of endogenous AR as well as of green fluorescent AR‐EosFP. The nuclear export of AR following GSK‐3β inhibition could be blocked by leptomycin B suggesting a CRM1‐dependent export mechanism. This assumption is supported by the localization of a putative CRM1 binding site at the C‐terminus of the AR protein. The results suggest that GSK‐3β is an important element not only in AR stability but also significantly alters nuclear translocation of the AR, thereby modulating the androgenic response of human PCa cells. J. Cell. Biochem. 109: 1192–1200, 2010. © 2010 Wiley‐Liss, Inc.