Effects of TGF-betas and a specific antagonist on apoptosis of immature rat male germ cells in vitro

Massive apoptosis of pubertal male germ cells is important for the development of functional spermatogenesis in the adult testis. Although the trigger(s) for male germ cell loss at puberty remain undefined, we have hypothesized that transforming growth factor-betas (TGF-βs) play an active role. Here we demonstrate that the three mammalian TGF-β isoforms, TGF-β1, TGF-β2 and TGF-β3, induce distinct apoptosis of pubertal spermatogonia and spermatocytes in a dose-dependent manner. Induction of male germ cell death by activation of caspase-3 was most pronounced with TGF-β2 compared to TGF-β1 and TGF-β3. Furthermore, we found colocalization of activated caspase-3 with apoptotic protease-activating factor-1 (Apaf-1) in apoptotic germ cells, thus indicating the importance of the intrinsic mitochondrial pathway in TGF-β-induced apoptosis. The specificity of the TGF-β effects was proven by addition of recombinant latency-associated peptide against TGF-β1 (rLAP-TGF-β1) which completely abolished TGF-β1-induced and TGF-β3-induced germ cell apoptosis. Although TGF-β2-triggered germ cell death also was significantly reduced by rLAP-TGF-β1, inhibition was not maximal. Our results suggest that the three TGF-β isoforms induce apoptosis of pubertal male germ cells via the mitochondrial pathway in vitro and are thus likely candidates involved in the excessive first wave of apoptosis of male germ cells during puberty. Lutz Konrad and Marcel Munir Keilani contributed equally to this work.     

NAG-1 up-regulation mediated by EGR-1 and p53 is critical for quercetin-induced apoptosis in HCT116 colon carcinoma cells

Quercetin, a flavonoid molecule ubiquitously present in nature, has multiple effects on cancer cells, including the inhibition of cell proliferation and migration. However, the responsible molecular mechanisms are not fully understood. We found that quercetin induces the expression of NAG-1 (Non-steroidal anti-inflammatory drug activated gene-1), a TGF-β superfamily protein, during quercetin-induced apoptosis of HCT116 human colon carcinoma cells. Reporter assays using the luciferase constructs containing NAG-1 promoter region demonstrate that early growth response-1 (EGR-1) and p53 are required for quercetin-mediated activation of the NAG-1 promoter. Overexpression of NAG-1 enhanced the apoptotic effect of quercetin, but suppression of quercetin-induced NAG-1 expression by NAG-1 siRNA attenuated quercetin-induced apoptosis in HCT116 cells. Taken together, the present study demonstrates for the first time that quercetin induces apoptosis via NAG-1, providing a mechanistic basis for the apoptotic effect of quercetin in colon carcinoma cells.     

Induction of apoptosis in normal cultured rat hepatocytes and in Hep3B, a human hepatoma cell line

The in vitro occurrence of apoptosis in hepatic cells has not been well characterized because it depends on apoptosis inducing-agents and culture conditions. Furthermore, for a given hepatic cell and the same agent, discrepant results have been reported depending on the technique used to evaluate the proportion of apoptotic cells. In this study, we compared the effects of several apoptosis-inducing agents – transforming growth factor β₁ (TGF-β₁), retinoic acid (RA), okadaic acid (OA), and cycloheximide (CY) – on two types of hepatic cells, the human hepatoma cell line Hep3B and normal rat hepatocytes, maintained either plated for 24 to 48 h or in suspension for 20 h. Chromatin condensation and/or nucleus fragmentation were investigated morphologically by DAPI staining. DNA fragmentation was investigated biochemically by agarose gel electrophoresis and poly(ADP-ribose) polymerase (PARP) cleavage was studied by western blot. Apoptotic cells were quantified either by counting cells on UV microscopy after DAPI staining or by flow cytometry. Nuclear changes, the ladder pattern on DNA electrophoresis and PARP cleavage were observed in plated cells, hepatoma cells and normal rat hepatocytes, with all inducers but especially with OA. Semiquantification confirmed that OA was a strong inducer in plated cells under the present conditions, since about 14% and 30% of Hep3B cells (with DAPI staining and flow cytometry, respectively) were apoptotic after 48 h treatment, while, with the other inducers, apoptosis was weaker and discrepancies were also observed between the two counting methods (TGF-β₁; 4% and 12%; RA, 7% and 12%; CY, 4% and 16%, with DAPI staining and flow cytometry, respectively). OA induced a moderate apoptosis in cultured hepatocytes (13% with DAPI staining), while TGF-β₁, RA and CY were found to be weakly apoptotic (respectively 4% for the first two and 6% for the last ) after 48 h. In contrast, in suspension cells, apoptosis was observed neither in Hep3B cells nor in normal hepatocytes, whatever the apoptotic inducer and whatever the techniques used to detect apoptosis. In conclusion, our results show that induction of apoptosis in hepatic cells depends not only on the apoptosis-inducing agent but also on the culture conditions. This revised version was published online in July 2006 with corrections to the Cover Date.     

Activation of extracellular signal-regulated kinase by TGF-β1 via TβRII and Smad7 dependent mechanisms in human bronchial epithelial BEP2D cells

Transforming growth factor-β1 (TGF-β1) can activate mitogen-activated protein kinases (MAPKs) in many types of cells. The mechanism of this activation is not well elucidated. Here, we explore the role of TGF-β/Smads signaling compounds in TGF-β1-mediated activation of extracellular signal-regulated kinase (ERK) MAPK in human papillomavirus (HPV)-18 immortalized human bronchial epithelial cell line BEP2D and the role of TGF-β1-induced phosphorylation of ERK in proliferation and apoptosis of BEP2D. The cell models of siRNA-mediated silencing of TGF-β receptor type II (TβRII), Smad2, Smad3, Smad4, and Smad7 were employed in this study. Our results demonstrate that TGF-β1 activates ERK in a time-dependent manner with a maximum effect at 60 min; overexpression of Smad7 increased this TGF-β1-mediated phosphorylation of the ERK; and siRNA-mediated silencing of TβRII, Smad3, Smad4, and Smad7 abrogated this effect. Moreover, we observed that overexpression of Smad7 restored TGF-β1-mediated ERK phosphorylation in Smad4 knockdown cells but not in TβRII knockdown cells. In BEP2D cells, TGF-β1 treatment effectively inhibited cells’ proliferation and induced their apoptosis. Pretreatment with U0126, an inhibitor of ERK1/2, significantly enhanced the TGF-β1-mediated antiproliferative and apoptosis induction effects in BEP2D cells. These data revealed that TβRII and Smad7 play the critical roles in TGF-β1-mediated activation of ERK; Smad3 and Smad4 can play an indirect role through up-regulating Smad7 expression; and TGF-β1-induced phosphorylation of ERK may participate in BEP2D cell proliferation and apoptosis regulation.     

Mutational analysis on the function of the SWAP-70 PH domain

Hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC), the major manifestation of primary liver cancer, is one of the most frequent and malignant cancers worldwide, especially in Taiwan. Estrogen receptors (ERs) have been reported to play either a proliferation- or apoptosis-enhancing role in the differentiation of cancers, including HCC. In a previous experiment, we showed that transient overexpressed estrogen receptor-α induced early stage HCC cell line Hep 3B cell apoptosis by increasing the hTNF-α gene expression in a ligand-independent manner. To further clarify if the apoptotic effect occurs in poorly differentiated HCC cell line, HA22T, and elucidate the roles of ERs and TNF-α, DNA fragmentation and caspase activity were measured in late stage HCC cell line, HA22T, by measuring the expression of hER-α and hER-β using a Tetracycline-induciable system (Tet-on). Increased DNA fragmentation and caspase-3 activity were found in hERβ-overexpressed HA22T cells treated with estrogen (10⁻⁸ M) but not in hERα-overexpressed HA22T cells. Using RT-PCR/PCR and western blotting in HA22T cells, overexpressed hER-β was also found to increase the expression of hTNF-α mRNA and induce hTNF-α-dependent luciferase activity in a ligand-dependent manner. Additionally, LPS treatment and hER-β overexpression both enhance caspase-8 activities, whereas neither hER-β nor E₂ treatment affected caspase-9 activities. In addition, the overexpressed hER-β plus E₂ enhanced DNA fragmentation and caspase-8 activities were only partially reduced by anti-hTNF-α (0.1ng/ml), which was possibly due to the involvement of P53 and TGF-β. Taken together, our data indicates that overexpressed hER-β but not hER-α may induce caspase-8-mediated apoptosis by increasing the hTNF-α gene expression in a ligand-dependent manner in poorly differentiated HA22T cells. (Mol Cell Biochem xxx: 1–9, 2005)Shares equally contribution Contract grant sponsor: National Science Council; Contract grant number: NSC 91-2314-B-075A-006, NSC 92-2314-B-075A-014.     

Opposing Effects of PI3K/Akt and Smad-Dependent Signaling Pathways in NAG-1-Induced Glioblastoma Cell Apoptosis

Nonsteroidal anti-inflammatory drug (NSAID) activated gene-1 (NAG-1) is a divergent member of the transforming growth factor-beta (TGF-β) superfamily. NAG-1 plays remarkable multifunctional roles in controlling diverse physiological and pathological processes including cancer. Like other TGF-β family members, NAG-1 can play dual roles during cancer development and progression by negatively or positively modulating cancer cell behaviors. In glioblastoma brain tumors, NAG-1 appears to act as a tumor suppressor gene; however, the precise underlying mechanisms have not been well elucidated. In the present study, we discovered that overexpression of NAG-1 induced apoptosis in U87 MG, U118 MG, U251 MG, and T98G cell lines via the intrinsic mitochondrial pathway, but not in A172 and LN-229 cell lines. NAG-1 could induce the phosphorylation of PI3K/Akt and Smad2/3 in all six tested glioblastoma cell lines, except Smad3 phosphorylation in A172 and LN-229 cell lines. In fact, Smad3 expression and its phosphorylation were almost undetectable in A172 and LN-229 cells. The PI3K inhibitors promoted NAG-1-induced glioblastoma cell apoptosis, while siRNAs to Smad2 and Smad3 decreased the apoptosis rate. NAG-1 also stimulated the direct interaction between Akt and Smad3 in glioblastoma cells. Elevating the level of Smad3 restored the sensitivity to NAG-1-induced apoptosis in A172 and LN-229 cells. In conclusion, our results suggest that PI3K/Akt and Smad-dependent signaling pathways display opposing effects in NAG-1-induced glioblastoma cell apoptosis.     

Diosgenin,a plant steroid,induces apoptosis in human rheumatoid arthritis synoviocytes with cyclooxygenase-2 overexpression

In the present study, we have shown for the first time that a plant steroid, diosgenin, causes an inhibition of the growth of fibroblast-like synoviocytes from human rheumatoid arthritis, with apoptosis induction associated with cyclooxygenase-2 (COX-2) up-regulation. Celecoxib, a selective COX-2 inhibitor, provoked a large decrease in diosgenin-induced apoptosis even in the presence of exogenous prostaglandin E₂, whereas interleukin-1β, a COX-2 inducer, strongly increased diosgenin-induced apoptosis of these synoviocytes. These findings suggest that the proapoptotic effect of diosgenin is associated with overexpression of COX-2 correlated with overproduction of endogenous prostaglandin E₂. We also observed a loss of mitochondrial membrane potential, caspase-3 activation, and DNA fragmentation after diosgenin treatment.     

Transforming growth factor-β1 blocks the enhancement of tumor necrosis factor cytotoxicity by hyaluronidase Hyal-2 in L929 fibroblasts

Background  

Functional antagonism between transforming growth factor beta (TGF-β) and hyaluronidase has been demonstrated. For example, testicular hyaluronidase PH-20 counteracts TGF-β1-mediated growth inhibition of epithelial cells. PH-20 sensitizes various cancer cells to tumor necrosis factor (TNF) cytotoxicity by upregulating proapoptotic p53 and WW domain-containing oxidoreductase (WOX1). TGF-β1 blocks PH-20-increased TNF cytotoxicity. In the present study, the functional antagonism between TGF-β1 and lysosomal hyaluronidases Hyal-1 and Hyal-2 was examined.