Nrf2/ARE信号通路与胃癌耐药关系的研究进展

胃癌是癌症死亡的第二大原因。化疗是胃癌治疗的主要方法之一,胃癌化疗失败的主要原因是对化疗药物的耐受。Nrf2/ARE信号通路与肿瘤耐药的关系是当前的研究热点。转录因子Nrf2作为抗氧化反应中的关键转录因子,可以与抗氧化反应元件ARE结合,正向调节II相解毒酶、抗氧化酶及某些药物转运泵基因等靶基因的表达,诱导胃癌耐药性的产生。该综述整理归纳了Nrf2/ARE信号通路与胃癌耐药之间的关系。     

Neuroprotective Effects of the Triterpenoid,CDDO Methyl Amide,a Potent Inducer of Nrf2-Mediated Transcription

The NF-E2-related factor-2 (Nrf2)/antioxidant response element (ARE) signaling pathway regulates phase 2 detoxification genes, including a variety of antioxidative enzymes. We tested neuroprotective effects of the synthetic triterpenoid CDDO-MA, a potent activator of the Nrf2/ARE signaling. CDDO-MA treatment of neuroblastoma SH-SY5Y cells resulted in Nrf2 upregulation and translocation from cytosol to nucleus and subsequent activation of ARE pathway genes. CDDO-MA blocked t-butylhydroperoxide-induced production of reactive oxygen species (ROS) by activation of ARE genes only in wild type, but not Nrf2 knockout mouse embryonic fibroblasts. Oral administration of CDDO-MA resulted in significant protection against MPTP-induced nigrostriatal dopaminergic neurodegeneration, pathological alpha-synuclein accumulation and oxidative damage in mice. Additionally, CDDO-MA treatment in rats produced significant rescue against striatal lesions caused by the neurotoxin 3-NP, and associated increases in the oxidative damage markers malondialdehyde, F₂-Isoprostanes, 8-hydroxy-2-deoxyguanosine, 3-nitrotyrosine, and impaired glutathione homeostasis. Our results indicate that the CDDO-MA renders its neuroprotective effects through its potent activation of the Nrf2/ARE pathway, and suggest that triterpenoids may be beneficial for the treatment of neurodegenerative diseases like Parkinson''s disease and Huntington''s disease.     

基于PERK/Nrf2/HO-1信号通路研究瑞马唑仑对心肌缺血再灌注损伤大鼠铁死亡的影响

摘要 目的：基于蛋白激酶R样内质网激酶（PERK）/核因子E2相关因子2（Nrf2）/血红素氧合酶-1（HO-1）信号通路探究瑞马唑仑对心肌缺血再灌注损伤（MIRI）大鼠铁死亡的影响。方法：将90只SD大鼠随机分为假手术（Sham）组、MIRI组、低剂量-瑞马唑仑组（L-瑞马唑仑组，5 mg/kg）、高剂量-瑞马唑仑组（H-瑞马唑仑组，20 mg/kg）、H-瑞马唑仑+PERK抑制剂组（瑞马唑仑20 mg/kg+GSK2606414 1 mg/kg），每组18只。采用结扎冠状动脉左前降支（LAD）0.5 h、再灌注2 h制备MIRI大鼠模型，于再灌注2 h后即刻尾静脉注射给药，再灌注24 h后进行组织取材。酶联免疫吸附（ELISA）法检测血清心肌损伤标志物[肌酸激酶同工酶（CK-MB）、心肌肌钙蛋白I（cTnI）]水平；HE染色观察心肌组织病理改变；Tunel染色检测心肌细胞凋亡；透射电镜观察心肌细胞超微结构变化；检测心肌组织中铁死亡相关标志物[铁、活性氧（ROS）、谷胱甘肽（GSH）、丙二醛（MDA）]水平；蛋白质印迹法（Western Blot）检测心肌组织中PERK/Nrf2/HO-1信号通路相关蛋白表达。结果：与Sham组相比，MIRI组心肌结构受损，纤维排列紊乱，线粒体呈现显著的铁死亡特征（膜固缩，膜密度增加，嵴减少），血清中CK-MB、cTnI水平，心肌细胞凋亡率及心肌组织中铁、ROS、MDA水平升高（P<0.05），心肌组织中GSH水平及p-PERK/PERK、核Nrf2/Nrf2、HO-1蛋白表达降低（P<0.05）；与MIRI组相比，L-瑞马唑仑组和H-瑞马唑仑组心肌组织上述病理改变明显减轻，血清CK-MB、cTnI水平，心肌细胞凋亡率及心肌组织中铁、ROS、MDA水平降低（P<0.05），心肌组织中GSH水平及p-PERK/PERK、核Nrf2/Nrf2、HO-1蛋白表达升高（P<0.05）；与H-瑞马唑仑组相比，H-瑞马唑仑+PERK抑制剂组心肌组织上述病理改变加重，血清CK-MB、cTnI水平，心肌细胞凋亡率及心肌组织中铁、ROS、MDA水平升高（P<0.05），心肌组织中GSH水平及p-PERK/PERK、核Nrf2/Nrf2、HO-1蛋白表达降低（P<0.05）。结论：瑞马唑仑可通过抑制铁死亡减轻大鼠MIRI，可能通过激活PERK/Nrf2/HO-1信号通路而实现。     

Keap1/Nrf2 signaling regulates oxidative stress tolerance and lifespan in Drosophila

Keap1/Nrf2 signaling defends organisms against the detrimental effects of oxidative stress and has been suggested to abate its consequences, including aging-associated diseases like neurodegeneration, chronic inflammation, and cancer. Nrf2 is a prominent target for drug discovery, and Nrf2-activating agents are in clinical trials for cancer chemoprevention. However, aberrant activation of Nrf2 by keap1 somatic mutations may contribute to carcinogenesis and promote resistance to chemotherapy. To evaluate potential functions of Keap1 and Nrf2 for organismal homeostasis, we characterized the pathway in Drosophila. We demonstrate that Keap1/Nrf2 signaling in the fruit fly is activated by oxidants, induces antioxidant and detoxification responses, and confers increased tolerance to oxidative stress. Importantly, keap1 loss-of-function mutations extend the lifespan of Drosophila males, supporting a role for Nrf2 signaling in the regulation of longevity. Interestingly, cancer chemopreventive drugs potently stimulate Drosophila Nrf2 activity, suggesting the fruit fly as an experimental system to identify and characterize such agents.     

Drug resistance to 5-FU linked to reactive oxygen species modulator 1

While acute oxidative stress triggers cell apoptosis or necrosis, persistent oxidative stress induces genomic instability and has been implicated in tumor progression and drug resistance. In a previous report, we demonstrated that reactive oxygen species modulator 1 (Romo1) expression was up-regulated in most cancer cell lines and suggested that increased Romo1 expression might confer chronic oxidative stress to tumor cells. In this study, we show that enforced Romo1 expression induces reactive oxygen species (ROS) production in the mitochondria leading to massive cell death. However, tumor cells that adapt to oxidative stress by increasing manganese superoxide dismutase (MnSOD), Prx I, and Bcl-2 showed drug resistance to 5-FU. To elucidate the relationship between 5-FU-induced ROS production and Romo1 expression, Romo1 siRNA was used to inhibit 5-FU-triggered Romo1 induction. Romo1 siRNA treatment efficiently blocked 5-FU-induced ROS generation, demonstrating that 5-FU treatment stimulated ROS production through Romo1 induction. Based on these results we suggest that cellular adaptive response to Romo1-induced ROS is another mechanism of drug resistance to 5-FU and Romo1 expression may provide a new clinical implication in drug resistance of cancer chemotherapy.     

Tagitinin C induces ferroptosis through PERK-Nrf2-HO-1 signaling pathway in colorectal cancer cells

Rationale: Colorectal cancer (CRC) is a common malignant tumor of the digestive system. However, the efficacy of surgery and chemotherapy is limited. Ferroptosis is an iron- and reactive oxygen species (ROS)-dependent form of regulated cell death (RCD) and plays a vital role in tumor suppression. Ferroptosis inducing agents have been studied extensively as a novel promising way to fight against therapy resistant cancers. The aim of this study is to investigate the mechanism of action of tagitinin C (TC), a natural product, as a novel ferroptosis inducer in tumor suppression.Methods: The response of CRC cells to tagitinin C was assessed by cell viability assay, clonogenic assay, transwell migration assay, cell cycle assay and apoptosis assay. Molecular approaches including Western blot, RNA sequencing, quantitative real-time PCR and immunofluorescence were employed as well.Results: Tagitinin C, a sesquiterpene lactone isolated from Tithonia diversifolia, inhibits the growth of colorectal cancer cells including HCT116 cells, and induced an oxidative cellular microenvironment resulting in ferroptosis of HCT116 cells. Tagitinin C-induced ferroptosis was accompanied with the attenuation of glutathione (GSH) levels and increased in lipid peroxidation. Mechanistically, tagitinin C induced endoplasmic reticulum (ER) stress and oxidative stress, thus activating nuclear translocation of nuclear factor erythroid 2-related factor 2 (Nrf2). As a downstream gene (effector) of Nrf2, heme oxygenase-1 (HO-1) expression increased significantly with the treatment of tagitinin C. Upregulated HO-1 led to the increase in the labile iron pool, which promoted lipid peroxidation, meanwhile tagitinin C showed synergistic anti-tumor effect together with erastin.Conclusion: In summary, we provided the evidence that tagitinin C induces ferroptosis in colorectal cancer cells and has synergistic effect together with erastin. Mechanistically, tagitinin C induces ferroptosis through ER stress-mediated activation of PERK-Nrf2-HO-1 signaling pathway. Tagitinin C, identified as a novel ferroptosis inducer, may be effective chemosensitizer that can expand the efficacy and range of chemotherapeutic agents.     

Nrf2/HO-1信号通路在人诱导性多能干细胞氧化应激中的作用

氧化应激是诱导性多能干细胞(induced pluripotent stem cell, iPSC)在培养和应用中遇到的一个关键问题,探讨其作用机制具有重要的理论和实践意义。目前有关iPSC氧化应激的研究相对较少,Nrf2/HO-1信号通路在其中的作用尚不明了。因此,本研究以不同浓度的H2O2(100、200、300、400 μmol/L)处理人iPSC(hiPSC),分别在4 h和24 h于倒置显微镜下观察hiPSC及其饲养层细胞SNL氧化损伤的程度,通过碱性磷酸酶（alkaline phosphatase, AP）试剂盒和超氧化物阴离子荧光探针,分别检测hiPSC多能性和细胞活性氧(reactive oxygen species, ROS)水平,并通过qRT-PCR检测H2O2处理4 h后早期应激状态下Nrf2和HO 1 mRNA的表达水平,免疫细胞化学和Western印迹检测p-Nrf2和HO-1蛋白质的表达量。结果表明：hiPSC和SNL细胞的ROS水平呈H2O2剂量依赖性升高。除了100 μmol/L H2O2组hiPSC的细胞形态和多能性保持较好外,其余浓度H2O2均导致hiPSC出现不同程度损伤和死亡。但与SNL细胞相比,hiPSC中ROS水平相对较低,细胞状态也相对较好。SNL细胞中Nrf2和HO-1-mRNA表达的变化幅度与H2O2浓度呈线性相关,而hiPSC中Nrf2和HO-1表达的变化幅度与H2O2浓度之间并未呈现线性相关,其中Nrf2在100 μmol/L H2O2组表达量最高,而HO-1在200 μmol/L H2O2组表达量最高,意味着hiPSC氧化应激调控机制的复杂性。综上结果表明,hiPSC具有较好的抗氧化能力,其相关机制与Nrf2/HO-1信号通路有关,同时也可能涉及到其它相关通路的交互作用。     

A multiple-targets alkaloid nuciferine overcomes paclitaxel-induced drug resistance in vitro and in vivo

ObjectiveMultidrug resistance (MDR) is the major barrier to the successful treatment of chemotherapy. Compounds from nature products working as MDR sensitizers provided new treatment strategies for chemo-resistant cancers patients.MethodsWe investigated the reversal effects of nuciferine (NF), an alkaloid from Nelumbo nucifera and Nymphaea caerulea, on the paclitaxel (PTX) resistance ABCB1-overexpressing cancer in vitro and in vivo, and explored the underlying mechanism by evaluating drug sensitivity, cell cycle perturbations, intracellular accumulation, function and protein expression of efflux transporters as well as molecular signaling involved in governing transporters expression and development of MDR in cancer.ResultsNF overcomes the resistance of chemotherapeutic agents included PTX, doxorubicin (DOX), docetaxel, and daunorubicin to HCT-8/T and A549/T cancer cells. Notably, NF suppressed the colony formation of MDR cells in vitro and the tumor growth in A549/T xenograft mice in vivo, which demonstrated a very strong synergetic cytotoxic effect between NF and PTX as combination index (CI) (CI<0.1) indicated. Furthermore, NF increased the intracellular accumulation of P-gp substrates included DOX and Rho123 in the MDR cells and inhibited verapamil-stimulated ATPase activity. Mechanistically, inhibition of PI3K/AKT/ERK pathways by NF suppressed the activation of Nrf2 and HIF-1α, and further reduced the expression of P-gp and BCRP, contributing to the sensitizing effects of NF against MDR in cancer.ConclusionThis novel finding provides a promising treatment strategy for overcoming MDR and improving the efficiency of chemotherapy by using a multiple-targets MDR sensitizer NF.     

Redox active copper chelate overcomes multidrug resistance in T-lymphoblastic leukemia cell by triggering apoptosis

Multidrug resistance (MDR) mediated by the over expression of drug efflux protein P-glycoprotein (P-gp) is one of the major impediments to successful treatment of cancer. P-gp acts as an energy-dependent drug efflux pump and reduces the intracellular concentration of structurally unrelated drugs inside the cells. Therefore, there is an urgent need for development of new molecules that are less toxic to normal cell and preferentially effective against drug resistant malignant cells. In this preclinical study we report the apoptotic potential of copper N-(2-hydroxyacetophenone) glycinate (CuNG) on doxorubicin resistant T lymphoblastic leukaemia cells (CEM/ADR5000). To evaluate the cytotoxic effect of CuNG, we used different normal cell lines (NIH 3T3, Chang liver and human PBMC) and cancerous cell lines (CEM/ADR5000, parental sensitive CCRF-CEM, SiHa and 3LL) and conclude that CuNG preferentially kills cancerous cells, especially both leukemic cell types irrespective of their MDR status, while leaving normal cell totally unaffected. Moreover, CuNG involves reactive oxygen species (ROS) for induction of apoptosis in CEM/ADR5000 cells through the intrinsic apoptotic pathway. This is substantiated by our observation that antioxidant N-acetyle-cysteine (NAC) and PEG catalase could completely block ROS generation and, subsequently, abrogates CuNG induced apoptosis. On the other hand, uncomplexed ligand N-(2-hydroxyacetophenone) glycinate (NG) fails to generate a significant amount of ROS and concomitant induction of apoptosis in CEM/ADR5000 cells. Therefore, CuNG induces drug resistant leukemia cells to undergo apoptosis and proves to be a molecule having therapeutic potential to overcome MDR in cancer.     

Nrf2及天然产物导向的Nrf2激活剂研究进展

氧化应激能够破坏细胞内氧化还原平衡,造成系统和组织损伤,最终引起一系列疾病的产生。转录因子E2相关因子2(Nrf2),受Kelch样环氧氯丙烷相关蛋白1(Keap1)蛋白的调控,是细胞氧化应激反应中的关键因子,在氧化应激条件下,Nrf2从Keap1中分离,然后进入细胞核与抗氧化反应元件(ARE)结合,增加了Ⅱ相解毒酶的表达,保护细胞免受氧化损伤。天然产物对于药物发现具有重要意义,研究显示,Nrf2激活剂绝大多数也是天然产物或天然产物的衍生物。本文介绍Nrf2-Keap1信号通路的作用机制以及常见的天然产物导向的Nrf2激活剂。