Comparing the effects of atamestane, toremifene and tamoxifen alone and in combination, on bone, serum lipids and uterus in ovariectomized rats

Complete estrogen blockade remains under investigation as a means to optimize anti-estrogen therapy in breast cancer thus both the efficacy and end-organ toxicities are of interest with combinations. We hypothesized that a steroidal aromatase inhibitor (AI) atamestane (ATA) alone, and in combination with the anti-estrogens tamoxifen (TAM) or toremifene (TOR) would have beneficial effects in ovariectomized (OVX) rats on key end-organ functions including bone and lipid metabolism and on the endometrium. Significant positive effects on bone were noted with ATA, TOR, TAM, ATA + TOR, or ATA + TAM. TOR, TAM, ATA + TOR, or ATA + TAM caused significant decreases in serum cholesterol and low-density lipoprotein cholesterol whereas ATA had no effect. Uterine weight and epithelium lining height were not increased by ATA but were by TOR and TAM. No significant differences were found in the key parameters outlined above between OVX rats given TOR and ATA + TOR, or TAM and ATA + TAM. Our data show that ATA in combination with TOR or TAM is equivalent to TOR or TAM alone in terms of end-organ effects within a range of clinically relevant doses. Further studies of combinations of AIs with anti-estrogens on end-organ function are merited.     

High-density array analysis of DNA methylation in Tamoxifen-resistant breast cancer cell lines

Roughly two-thirds of all breast cancers are ERα-positive and can be treated with the antiestrogen, Tamoxifen, however resistance occurs in 33% of women who take the drug for more than 5 y. Aberrant DNA methylation, an epigenetic mechanism that alters gene expression in cancer, is thought to play a role in this resistance. To develop an understanding of Tamoxifen-resistance and identify novel pathways and targets of aberrant methylation, DNA from MCF-7 breast cancer cells and Tamoxifen-resistant derivatives, TMX2–11 and TMX2–28, were analyzed using the Illumina HumanMethylation450 BeadChip. Normalizing against MCF-7 values, ERα-positive TMX2–11 had 4000 hypermethylated sites and ERα-negative TMX2–28 had over 33 000. Analysis of CpG sites altered in both TMX2–11 and TMX2–28 revealed that the Tamoxifen-resistant cell lines share 3000 hypermethylated and 200 hypomethylated CpGs. ZNF350 and MAGED1, two genes hypermethylated in both cell lines, were examined in greater detail. Treatment with 5-aza-2′deoxycitidine caused a significant reduction in promoter methylation of both ZNF350 and MAGED1 and a corresponding increase in expression in TMX2–28. A similar relationship between methylation and expression was not detected in TMX2–11. Our findings are indicative of the variable responses to methylation-targeted breast cancer therapy and highlight the need for biomarkers that accurately predict treatment outcome.     

Synergistic effects of hormone therapy drugs and usnic acid on hormone receptor‐positive breast and prostate cancer cells

The aim of this study was to investigate the combined effects of usnic acid (UA) and Tamoxifen (Tam) or Enzalutamide (Enz) on hormone receptor‐positive breast and prostate cancer (BC and PC), respectively. The antiproliferative and apoptotic effects of Tam or Enz alone and in combination with UA on MCF7 and LNCaP cancer cells were detected. The results of the WST‐1 assay indicated that UA was a promising anticancer compound that significantly enhanced the effectiveness of hormone therapy drugs compared with each drug alone (combination index < 1). In addition, the combination of UA with Tam or Enz remarkably induced more cell cycle arrest at the G0/G1 phase and apoptosis than only drug‐treated cells (P < 0.01). Consequently, our findings suggest that the combination of UA with Tam or Enz may be a potential therapeutic approach for the treatment of BC and PC and further studies are required to exploit the potential mechanisms of synergistic effects.     

口服他莫昔芬法建立ICR小鼠子宫腺肌病模型

目的使用口服他莫昔芬法建立ICR小鼠子宫腺肌病模型,并检测其病灶特征、动情周期、血管生成、子宫炎症等变化,以介绍和评价这一动物模型。方法新生ICR小鼠（15只）连续4 d滴喂他莫昔芬,并与同龄对照小鼠（15只）分别于42、85-95、135-145日龄处死,使用苏木素-伊红染色检测子宫病理改变;阴道脱落细胞法检测动情周期变化;免疫组化补体31（CD31）染色计算子宫微血管的密度、直径及所占面积比;逆转录-聚合酶链反应（RT-PCR）检测子宫缓激肽受体、神经激肽受体的基因表达。结果使用口服他莫昔芬法建立ICR小鼠子宫腺肌病模型的造模率为100%,且疾病严重程度随病程进展。部分给药小鼠可出现动情周期紊乱。85-95及135-145日龄给药小鼠子宫肌层微血管密度和面积比均高于对照小鼠（P〈0.05）。135-145日龄给药小鼠子宫缓激肽受体、神经激肽受体的基因表达较对照组明显升高（P〈0.05）。结论口服他莫昔芬法可方便、高效的建立腺肌病小鼠模型,出现腺肌病相关的血管生成、炎症状态、疼痛相关受体表达增高等特征,是研究腺肌病发生、发展的良好模型。     

AIB1 is required for the acquisition of epithelial growth factor receptor-mediated tamoxifen resistance in breast cancer cells

Acquired resistance to tamoxifen has become a serious obstacle in breast cancer treatment. The underlying mechanism responsible for this condition has not been completely elucidated. In this study, a tamoxifen-resistant (Tam-R) MCF-7 breast cancer cell line was developed to mimic the occurrence of acquired tamoxifen resistance as seen in clinical practice. Increased expression levels of HER1, HER2 and the estrogen receptor (ER)-AIB1 complex were found in tamoxifen-resistant cells. EGF stimulation and gefitinib inhibition experiments further demonstrated that HER1/HER2 signaling and AIB1 were involved in the proliferation of cells that had acquired Tam resistance. However, when AIB1 was silenced with AIB1-siRNA in Tam-R cells, the cell growth stimulated by the HER1/HER2 signaling pathway was significantly reduced, and the cells were again found to be inhibited by tamoxifen. These results suggest that the AIB1 protein could be a limiting factor in the HER1/HER2-mediated hormone-independent growth of Tam-R cells. Thus, AIB1 may be a new therapeutic target, and the removal of AIB1 may decrease the crosstalk between ER and the HER1/HER2 pathway, resulting in the restoration of tamoxifen sensitivity in tamoxifen-resistant cells.     

High-density array analysis of DNA methylation in Tamoxifen-resistant breast cancer cell lines

Roughly two-thirds of all breast cancers are ERα-positive and can be treated with the antiestrogen, Tamoxifen, however resistance occurs in 33% of women who take the drug for more than 5 y. Aberrant DNA methylation, an epigenetic mechanism that alters gene expression in cancer, is thought to play a role in this resistance. To develop an understanding of Tamoxifen-resistance and identify novel pathways and targets of aberrant methylation, DNA from MCF-7 breast cancer cells and Tamoxifen-resistant derivatives, TMX2–11 and TMX2–28, were analyzed using the Illumina HumanMethylation450 BeadChip. Normalizing against MCF-7 values, ERα-positive TMX2–11 had 4000 hypermethylated sites and ERα-negative TMX2–28 had over 33?000. Analysis of CpG sites altered in both TMX2–11 and TMX2–28 revealed that the Tamoxifen-resistant cell lines share 3000 hypermethylated and 200 hypomethylated CpGs. ZNF350 and MAGED1, two genes hypermethylated in both cell lines, were examined in greater detail. Treatment with 5-aza-2′deoxycitidine caused a significant reduction in promoter methylation of both ZNF350 and MAGED1 and a corresponding increase in expression in TMX2–28. A similar relationship between methylation and expression was not detected in TMX2–11. Our findings are indicative of the variable responses to methylation-targeted breast cancer therapy and highlight the need for biomarkers that accurately predict treatment outcome.     

Synthesis and biological evaluation of prodigiosene conjugates of porphyrin,estrone and 4-hydroxytamoxifen

To generate the first series of prodigiosene conjugates, the tripyrrolic skeleton was appended to estrone, tamoxifen and porphyrin frameworks by way of ester linkers and various hydrocarbon chain lengths. The ability of the conjugates to inhibit various types of cancer cells was evaluated in vitro. The porphyrin conjugates did not exhibit significant activity. The estrone conjugates exhibited modest activity, for the most part. However, significantly greater growth inhibition activity against certain breast, colon, lung, leukemia, melanoma and prostate cell lines was noted. This unusual effect for this first generation model class of compound warrants further investigation and comparison to cases where estrogens are linked to prodigiosenes via connection points that do not feature in estrogen receptor binding. The 4-hydroxytamoxifen conjugates exhibit nanomolar range activity against the MCF-7 breast cancer cell line, paving the way to expand the scope and connectivity of prodigiosene–tamoxifen conjugates.     

C—erbB2与乳腺癌三苯氧胺耐药细胞生长关系的研究

目的：探讨获得性三苯氧胺（TAM）抵抗乳腺癌细胞的生长调节途径及三苯氧胺（TAM）获得性抵抗的发生机制。方法：TAM诱导野生型人乳腺癌细胞系MCF-7/WT构建TAM抵抗的细胞系MCF-7／TAMR,RT—PCR、Westem blot及免疫细胞化学方法比较MCF-7／TAMR与MCF-7/WT细胞系中C—erbB2mRNA、蛋白表达及其活化状态的不同,用C—erbB2单克隆抗体herceptin对两种细胞系进行干预。观察细胞生长变化。结果：与MCF-7/WT细胞相比,MCF-7／TAMR细胞中cerbB-2的mRNA增加3倍（P〈0．05）,蛋白增加1．5倍（P〈0．05）。Herceptin处理MCF-7／TAMR细胞,明显抑制了细胞的生长。结论：表皮生长因子受体特异性配体的自分泌释放作用可能通过CerbB-2／MAPK途径引起MCF-7／TAMR细胞的生长。