Reversal of P-glycoprotein-mediated multidrug resistance by doxorubicin and quinine co-loaded liposomes in tumor cells

Multidrug resistance (MDR) is a major obstacle to successful clinical cancer chemotherapy. Currently, there is still unsatisfactory demand for innovative strategies as well as effective and safe reversing agent to overcome MDR. In this study, we developed a novel nanoformulation, in which doxorubicin hydrochloride (DOX) and quinine hydrochloride (QN) were simultaneously loaded into liposomes by a pH-gradient method for overcoming MDR and enhancing cytotoxicity in a doxorubicin-resistant human breast cancer cell line (MCF-7/ADR). The various factors were investigated to optimize the formulation and manufacturing conditions of DOX and QN co-loaded liposomes (DQLs). The DQL showed uniform size distribution and high encapsulation efficiency (over 90%) for both the drugs. Furthermore, DQLs significantly displayed high intracellular accumulation and potential of MDR reversal capability in MCF-7/ADR cells through the cooperation of DOX with QN, in which QN played the role as a MDR reversing agent. The IC₅₀ of DQL0.5:1 with the DOX/QN/SPC weight ratio of 0.5:1:50 was 1.80?±?0.03?μg/mL, which was 14.23 times lower than that of free DOX in MCF-7/ADR cells. And the apoptotic percentage induced by DQL0.5:1 was also increased to 62.2%. These findings suggest that DQLs have great potential for effective treatment of MDR cancer.     

Effects of miR-21 downregulation and silibinin treatment in breast cancer cell lines

Silibinin is a natural polyphenol with high antioxidant and anticancer properties, which causes cell cycle arrest and apoptosis in most cancer cell types including breast cancer, but the in-line mechanisms, are still unknown. Silibinin significantly downregulated oncomiR miR-21 expression in breast cancer cells. Here the effect of anti-miR-21 on cell viability, apoptotic induction, cell cycle distribution, and the expression levels of downstream targets of miR-21 were investigated in MCF-7 and T47D cells. MiR-21 mimic transfection was also applied in silibinin treated samples to evaluate functional role of miR-21downregulation on silibinin effects. It was found that after anti-miR-21 transfection, no significant changes were detected in cell viability, apoptosis (except early apoptosis), and cell cycle in MCF-7 and T47D cells. Compared to silibinin, miR-21 mimic transfection in combination with silibinin caused a slight modulation in some of the examined silibinin effects including apoptosis, Bcl2 mRNA and PTEN mRNA and protein levels. Silibinin slightly changed luciferase activity from reporters containing the miR-21 recognition elements from PTEN-3′UTR and Bcl2-3′UTR in both cell lines. Together these data demonstrated negligible cancer-progression impact of miR-21 and limited roles of miR-21 downregulation in examined silibinin effects, and strengthened the anti-cancer pathways of silibinin other than miR-21downregulation in MCF-7 and T47D cells.     

Redox-responsive nanoparticles from the single disulfide bond-bridged block copolymer as drug carriers for overcoming multidrug resistance in cancer cells

Multidrug resistance (MDR) is a major impediment to the success of cancer chemotherapy. The intracellular accumulation of drug and the intracellular release of drug molecules from the carrier could be the most important barriers for nanoscale carriers in overcoming MDR. We demonstrated that the redox-responsive micellar nanodrug carrier assembled from the single disulfide bond-bridged block polymer of poly(ε-caprolactone) and poly(ethyl ethylene phosphate) (PCL-SS-PEEP) achieved more drug accumulation and retention in MDR cancer cells. Such drug carrier rapidly released the incorporated doxorubicin (DOX) in response to the intracellular reductive environment. It therefore significantly enhanced the cytotoxicity of DOX to MDR cancer cells. It was demonstrated that nanoparticular drug carrier with either poly(ethylene glycol) or poly(ethyl ethylene phosphate) (PEEP) shell increased the influx but decreased the efflux of DOX by the multidrug resistant MCF-7/ADR breast cancer cells, in comparison with the direct incubation of MCF-7/ADR cells with DOX, which led to high cellular retention of DOX. Nevertheless, nanoparticles bearing PEEP shell exhibited higher affinity to the cancer cells. The shell detachment of the PCL-SS-PEEP nanoparticles caused by the reduction of intracellular glutathione significantly accelerated the drug release in MCF-7/ADR cells, demonstrated by the flow cytometric analyses, which was beneficial to the entry of DOX into the nuclei of MCF-7/ADR cells. It therefore enhanced the efficiency in overcoming MDR of cancer cells, which renders the redox-responsive nanoparticles promising in cancer therapy.     

Artemisinin-indole and artemisinin-imidazole hybrids: Synthesis,cytotoxic evaluation and reversal effects on multidrug resistance in MCF-7/ADR cells

A series of artemisinin derivatives with MDR reversal activity were designed and synthesized. All hybrids were screened to anticancer activities against four human cancer cell lines (A549, MCF-7, HepG-2, MDA-MB-231) and normal human hepatic cell (L02) in vitro. Most of the new compounds showed higher anticancer activities than artemisinin, among which compounds 11a and 11c displayed superior potency with IC₅₀ 6.78?μM and 5.25?μM against MCF-7, respectively. The further research indicated that the most potent 11c induced cell cycle arrest at G2 phase in MCF-7. Additionally, compound 11c showed remarkable MDR reversal activity which reversed adriamycin against MCF-7/ADR cells with IC₅₀ 0.76?μM.     

PI3K/AKT 通路参与调控乳腺癌多药耐药和侵袭转移的研究

目的:探讨磷脂酰肌醇-3-激酶/丝苏氨酸蛋白激酶(phosphatidylinositol 3 kinase/serine-threonine kinase,PI3K/AKT)信号通路与乳腺癌多药耐药和侵袭转移的相关性。方法:以乳腺癌细胞系MCF-7为母本,持续低浓度加药诱导建立阿霉素(Adriamycin,ADR)耐药系MCF-7/ADR’。细胞免疫荧光检测两细胞系中磷酸化AKT(phosphorylated AKT,P-AKT)、P-糖蛋白(P-Glycoprotein,P-gp)、基质金属蛋白酶2(matrix metalloproteinase-2,MMP-2)的表达。PI3K抑制剂LY294002作用两系前后,Western Blot检测P-AKT、MMP-2、P-gp的表达改变及qRT-PCR检测MMP-2、MDR1的表达改变。结果:P-AKT、P-gp(MDR1)、MMP-2在MCF-7中为低表达或不表达,MCF-7/ADR’中为高表达。LY294002作用两系后,P-AKT、P-gp(MDR1)、MMP-2在MCF-7/ADR’中的表达明显减低(P<0.05),MCF-7无明显改变。结论:抑制PI3K/AKT信号通路可有效降低MCF-7/ADR’耐药和侵袭转移能力,PI3K/AKT通路是调控乳腺癌多药耐药和侵袭转移的重要信号通路之一。     

P-gp 和MDR1 在三种乳腺癌细胞中表达差异研究

目的:比较P-gp和MDR1在人乳腺癌敏感细胞(MCF-7/S)和耐药细胞(MCF-7/ADR、MCF-7/TAM)中的表达差异,初步探讨乳腺癌细胞对阿霉素与对三苯氧胺产生耐药机制的区别。方法:采用免疫细胞化学法、流式细胞术检测P-gp,采用实时荧光定量PCR法检测MDR1在三种乳腺癌细胞中的表达情况。结果:在MCF-7/ADR细胞中P-gp和MDR1均呈高表达,阳性表达率与MCF-7/S细胞比较,有统计学意义(P<0.01)。在MCF-7/TAM细胞中P-gp、MDR1均呈低表达,与MCF-7/S细胞比较,无统计学意义(P>0.05)。结论:P-gp和MDR1的高表达是乳腺癌细胞对阿霉素产生耐药的主要机制,而并非是乳腺癌细胞对三苯氧胺产生耐药的机制。     

Quantitative study of the drug efflux kinetics from sensitive and MDR human breast cancer cells

Cancer multidrug resistance (MDR) is a major impediment to effective chemotherapy in human cancer, in which P-glycoprotein and Multidrug Resistance-Associated protein figure prominently. Design and exploitation of novel clinical MDR inhibitors is greatly hindered by a lack of understanding of drug efflux dynamics in drug-sensitive and resistant cells. The aim of our study was to provide a microelectrode method for measuring the multidrug transporter mediated efflux of doxorubicin as well as a corresponding data analysis method for quantifying the efflux kinetic parameters. We performed experiments using carbon fiber microelectrode to detect doxorubicin efflux from a monolayer of human breast cancer MCF-7 cells and derived MDR cells (MCF-7/ADR), established a material transport model and proposed a novel inverse method to quantitatively characterize the diffusion dynamics. The kinetic parameters of doxorubicin efflux from MCF-7 and MCF-7/ADR cells in the presence or absence of MDR inhibitors were estimated. Our investigations showed the average initial doxorubicin efflux rate of MCF-7/ADR that was 5.2 times faster than of MCF-7. After treatment by tetramethylpyrazine or verapamil, the drug efflux rate of the MCF-7/ADR cells was reduced by about half that of those without inhibitors. The novel methodology presented suggests new and expanded applications for computer-aided reconstruction of the drug efflux process, microelectrode design, and high-throughput drug screening.     

miR-125a-5p通过靶向调控GAB2抑制乳腺癌细胞的迁移能力

miR-125a-5p可负性调节GAB2表达,抑制胶质瘤细胞的侵袭和转移。本研究旨在证明miR-125a-5p抑癌作用的普遍性,即miR-125a-5p是否可通过靶向抑制GAB2抑制乳腺癌细胞的迁移。荧光素酶实验结果显示,miR-125a-5p可特异识别GAB2的3′-UTR,抑制报告酶的表达。荧光定量PCR结果揭示,与正常乳腺上皮细胞MCF-10A比较,miR-125a-5p在乳腺癌细胞MDA231和MCF-7中的表达明显降低;与迁移能力相对较低的MCF-7细胞比较,miR-125a-5p在迁移能力较高的MDA231细胞中的表达量更低。Western 印迹结果证明,与空载体（对照）和anti-miR125a 5p转染细胞比较,转染miR-125a-5p明显抑制GAB2蛋白在乳腺癌细胞中的表达。Transwell结果显示,与空载体转染的对照细胞比较,转染miR-125a-5p的乳腺癌细胞穿过基质胶的细胞数明显减少;相反,转染anti-miR125a-5p的细胞穿过基质胶的细胞数却明显增多。上述结果提示,miR-125a-5p在正常的乳腺细胞中高表达,而在乳腺癌细胞中低表达,其表达水平与癌细胞的迁移能力和GAB2表达呈反向关系。本研究结果还提示,miR-125a-5p通过靶向负调控GAB2抑制乳腺癌细胞的迁移能力。总之,本研究证明,miR-125a-5p在肿瘤中发挥抑癌作用。     

Tetrandrine and fangchinoline,bisbenzylisoquinoline alkaloids from Stephania tetrandra can reverse multidrug resistance by inhibiting P-glycoprotein activity in multidrug resistant human cancer cells

The overexpression of ABC transporters is a common reason for multidrug resistance (MDR) in cancer cells. In this study, we found that the isoquinoline alkaloids tetrandrine and fangchinoline from Stephania tetrandra showed a significant synergistic cytotoxic effect in MDR Caco-2 and CEM/ADR5000 cancer cells in combination with doxorubicin, a common cancer chemotherapeutic agent. Furthermore, tetrandrine and fangchinoline increased the intracellular accumulation of the fluorescent P-glycoprotein (P-gp) substrate rhodamine 123 (Rho123) and inhibited its efflux in Caco-2 and CEM/ADR5000 cells. In addition, tetrandrine and fangchinoline significantly reduced P-gp expression in a concentration-dependent manner. These results suggest that tetrandrine and fangchinoline can reverse MDR by increasing the intracellular concentration of anticancer drugs, and thus they could serve as a lead for developing new drugs to overcome P-gp mediated drug resistance in clinic cancer therapy.     

Synthesis and biological evaluation of paclitaxel and vorinostat co-prodrugs for overcoming drug resistance in cancer therapy in vitro

Paclitaxel (PTX) is the first-line treatment drug for breast cancer. However, drug resistance after a course of treatment and low selectivity restricted its clinical utility sometimes. In this study, we successfully bound PTX and vorinostat (SAHA) to form co-prodrugs based on the synergistic anticancer effects. The PTX-SAHA co-prodrugs were conjugated by glycine (1a) and succinic acid (1b) respectively and the former has shown better activity in cytotoxicity, cell cycle arrest and western-blot experiments. Therefore, 1a was further prepared to nanomicelles with mPEG₂₀₀₀-PLA₁₇₅₀ as the carrier by using thin film method. PTX-SAHA co-prodrug nanomicelles were spherical with a particle size of 20–100?nm. In vitro drug release test showed 1a nanomicelles had sustained release effect, which could reduce the resistance of PTX. In vitro cytotoxicity was evaluated by SRB assay in HCT-116 cells, MCF-7 cells and drug-resistant MCF-7/ADR cells. The results showed 1a nanomicelles had comparable or even better cytotoxicity than PTX especially in the MCF-7/ADR cells. All the results suggested that PTX-SAHA co-prodrug nanomicelles were promising treatment for PTX resistance cancer.     

Identification of the endosomal sorting complex required for transport-I (ESCRT-I) as an important modulator of anti-miR uptake by cancer cells

Mechanisms of unassisted delivery of RNA therapeutics, including inhibitors of microRNAs, remain poorly understood. We observed that the hepatocellular carcinoma cell line SKHEP1 retains productive free uptake of a miR-21 inhibitor (anti-miR-21). Uptake of anti-miR-21, but not a mismatch (MM) control, induces expression of known miR-21 targets (DDAH1, ANKRD46) and leads to dose-dependent inhibition of cell growth. To elucidate mechanisms of SKHEP1 sensitivity to anti-miR-21, we conducted an unbiased shRNA screen that revealed tumor susceptibility gene 101 (TSG101), a component of the endosomal sorting complex required for transport (ESCRT-I), as an important determinant of anti-proliferative effects of anti-miR-21. RNA interference-mediated knockdown of TSG101 and another ESCRT-I protein, VPS28, improved uptake of anti-miR-21 in parental SKHEP1 cells and restored productive uptake to SKHEP1 clones with acquired resistance to anti-miR-21. Depletion of ESCRT-I in several additional cancer cell lines with inherently poor uptake resulted in improved activity of anti-miR-21. Finally, knockdown of TSG101 increased uptake of anti-miR-21 by cancer cells in vivo following systemic delivery. Collectively, these data support an important role for the ESCRT-I complex in the regulation of productive free uptake of anti-miRs and reveal potential avenues for improving oligonucleotide free uptake by cancer cells.     

The inhibitory effect of kokusaginine on the growth of human breast cancer cells and MDR-resistant cells is mediated by the inhibition of tubulin assembly

The emergence of multidrug resistance (MDR) is a significant challenge in breast carcinoma chemotherapy. Kokusaginine isolated from Dictamnus dasycarpus Turcz. has been reported to show cytotoxicity in several human cancer cell lines including breast cancer cells MCF-7. In this study, kokusaginine showed the potent inhibitory effect on MCF-7 multidrug resistant subline MCF-7/ADR and MDA-MB-231 multidrug resistant subline MDA-MB-231/ADR. Kokusaginine markedly induced apoptosis in a concentration-dependent manner in MCF-7/ADR cells. Furthermore, kokusaginine reduced P-gp mRNA and protein levels, and suppressed P-gp function especially in MCF-7/ADR cells. In addition, kokusaginine showed to inhibit tubulin assembly and the binding of colchicine to tubulin by binding directly to tubulin and affects tubulin formation in vitro. Taken together, these results support the potential therapeutic value of kokusaginine as an anti-MDR agent in chemotherapy for breast carcinoma.     

MicroRNA-106a induces multidrug resistance in gastric cancer by targeting RUNX3

Multidrug resistance (MDR) is the main barrier to the success of chemotherapy for gastric cancer (GC). miR-106a, which is highly expressed in GC, influences a variety of aspects of GC. However, the function of miR-106a in MDR of GC still remains unclear. In the present study, we found that miR-106a is elevated in MDR cell lines. miR-106a promotes chemo-resistance of GC cells, accelerates ADR efflux, and suppresses drug-induced apoptosis. Finally, we show that runt-related trans factor 3 (RUNX3) is the functional target of miR-106a. Collectively, these findings demonstrate that miR-106a may promote MDR in GC cells by targeting RUNX3.     

Analysis of defective protein ubiquitylation associated to adriamycin resistant cells

DNA damage activated by Adriamycin (ADR) promotes ubiquitin–proteasome system-mediated proteolysis by stimulating both the activity of ubiquitylating enzymes and the proteasome. In ADR-resistant breast cancer MCF7 (MCF7^ADR) cells, protein ubiquitylation is significantly reduced compared to the parental MCF7 cells. Here, we used tandem ubiquitin-binding entities (TUBEs) to analyze the ubiquitylation pattern observed in MCF7 or MCF7^ADR cells. While in MCF7, the level of total ubiquitylation increased up to six-fold in response to ADR, in MCF7^ADR cells only a two-fold response was found. To further explore these differences, we looked for cellular factors presenting ubiquitylation defects in MCF7^ADR cells. Among them, we found the tumor suppressor p53 and its ubiquitin ligase, Mdm2. We also observed a drastic decrease of proteins known to integrate the TUBE-associated ubiquitin proteome after ADR treatment of MCF7 cells, like histone H2AX, HMGB1 or β-tubulin. Only the proteasome inhibitor MG132, but not the autophagy inhibitor chloroquine partially recovers the levels of total protein ubiquitylation in MCF7^ADR cells. p53 ubiquitylation is markedly increased in MCF7^ADR cells after proteasome inhibition or a short treatment with the isopeptidase inhibitor PR619, suggesting an active role of these enzymes in the regulation of this tumor suppressor. Notably, MG132 alone increases apoptosis of MCF7^ADR and multidrug resistant ovarian cancer A2780DR1 and A2780DR2 cells. Altogether, our results highlight the use of ubiquitylation defects to predict resistance to ADR and underline the potential of proteasome inhibitors to treat these chemoresistant cells.     

Sensitization of multidrug-resistant malignant cells by liposomes co-encapsulating doxorubicin and chloroquine through autophagic inhibition

Adenosine triphosphate (ATP)-binding cassette (ABC) transporters play a key role in the development of multidrug resistance (MDR) in cancer cells. P-glycoprotein (P-gp) and multidrug resistance-associated protein 1 (MRP1) are important proteins in this superfamily which are widely expressed on the membranes of multidrug resistance (MDR) cancer cells. Besides, upregulation of cellular autophagic responses is considered a contributing factor for MDR in cancer cells. We designed a liposome system co-encapsulating a chemotherapeutic drug (doxorubicin hydrochloride, DOX) and a typical autophagy inhibitior (chloroquine phosphate, CQ) at a weight ratio of 1:2 and investigated its drug resistance reversal mechanism. MTT assay showed that the IC₅₀ of DOX/CQ co-encapsulated liposome in DOX-resistant human breast cancer cells (MCF7/ADR) was 4.7?±?0.2?μM, 5.7-fold less than that of free DOX (26.9?±?1.9 μM), whereas it was 19.5-fold in doxorubicin-resistant human acute myelocytic leukemia cancer cells (HL60/ADR) (DOX/CQ co-encapsulated liposome 1.2?±?0.1?μM, free DOX 23.4?±?2.8?μM). The cellular uptake of DOX increased upon addition of free CQ, indicating that CQ may interact with P-gp and MRP1; however, the expressions of P-gp and MRP1 remained unchanged. In contrast, the expression of the autophagy-related protein LC3-II increased remarkably. Therefore, the mechanism of MDR reversal may be closely related to autophagic inhibition. Evaluation of anti-tumor activity was achieved in an MCF-7/ADR multicellular tumor spheroid model and transgenic zebrafish model. DOX/CQ co-encapsulated liposome exerted a better anti-tumor effect in both models than that of liposomal DOX or DOX alone. These findings suggest that encapsulating CQ with DOX in liposomes significantly improves the sensitivity of DOX in DOX-resistant cancer cells.     

Silencing of MicroRNA-21 Confers Radio-Sensitivity through Inhibition of the PI3K/AKT Pathway and Enhancing Autophagy in Malignant Glioma Cell Lines

Radiation is a core part of therapy for malignant glioma and is often provided following debulking surgery. However, resistance to radiation occurs in most patients, and the underlying molecular mechanisms of radio-resistance are not fully understood. Here, we demonstrated that microRNA 21 (miR-21), a well-known onco-microRNA in malignant glioma, is one of the major players in radio-resistance. Radio-resistance in different malignant glioma cell lines measured by cytotoxic cell survival assay was closely associated with miR-21 expression level. Blocking miR-21 with anti-miR-21 resulted in radio-sensitization of U373 and U87 cells, whereas overexpression of miR-21 lead to a decrease in radio-sensitivity of LN18 and LN428 cells. Anti-miR-21 sustained γ-H2AX DNA foci formation, which is an indicator of double-strand DNA damage, up to 24 hours and suppressed phospho-Akt (ser473) expression after exposure to γ-irradiation. In a cell cycle analysis, a significant increase in the G₂/M phase transition by anti-miR-21 was observed at 48 hours after irradiation. Interestingly, our results showed that anti-miR-21 increased factors associated with autophagosome formation and autophagy activity, which was measured by acid vesicular organelles, LC3 protein expression, and the percentage of GFP-LC3 positive cells. Furthermore, augmented autophagy by anti-miR-21 resulted in an increase in the apoptotic population after irradiation. Our results show that miR-21 is a pivotal molecule for circumventing radiation-induced cell death in malignant glioma cells through the regulation of autophagy and provide a novel phenomenon for the acquisition of radio-resistance.     

Reversal of multidrug resistance in vitro and in vivo by 5-N-formylardeemin,a new ardeemin derivative

Because multidrug resistance (MDR) is a serious impediment to the use of chemotherapy in treating cancer patients, great efforts have been made to search for effective MDR-reversing agents. We have developed a brand new synthetic ardeemin derivative, 5-N-formylardeemin, and investigated the activity of which in reversing MDR in MDR cancer cell lines derived from human breast cancer (MCF-7-R) or lung cancer (A549-R). 5-N-formylardeemin strongly enhanced the anti-cancer efficacy of doxorubicin, vincristine through potentiation of apoptosis in both MCF-7-R and A549-R at relatively noncytotoxic concentrations in vitro. Mechanistic studies showed that 5-N-formylardeemin inhibited the expression of MDR-1 (P-gp) and increased the intracellular accumulation of cytotoxic drugs in the MDR cells, suggesting that 5-N-formylardeemin reverses MDR activities through inhibiting MDR-1 expression. Interestingly, 5-N-formylardeemin also sensitized the parent wild-type cancer cells toward these chemotherapeutic agents to various extents. Importantly, in vivo studies demonstrated that 5-N-formylardeemin significantly improved the therapeutic effects of doxorubicin in nude mice bearing A549-R xenografts, which was associated with reduced expression of MDR-1 protein level and increased apoptosis in tumor tissues. These results underscore 5-N-formylardeemin as a potential sensitizer for chemotherapy against multidrug resistant cancers.     

The carotenoid fucoxanthin can sensitize multidrug resistant cancer cells to doxorubicin via induction of apoptosis,inhibition of multidrug resistance proteins and metabolic enzymes

BackgroundMultidrug resistance (MDR) causes failure of doxorubicin therapy of cancer cells, which develops after or during doxorubicin treatment resulting in cross-resistance to structurally and functionally-unrelated other anticancer drugs. MDR is multifactorial phenomenon associated with overexpression of ATP-binding cassette (ABC) transporters, metabolic enzymes, impairment of apoptosis, and alteration of cell cycle checkpoints. The cancer-prevention of the dietary carotenoid; fucoxanthin (FUC) has been extensively explored. Nevertheless, the underlying mechanism of its action is not full elucidated.Hypothesis/PurposeInvestigation of the underlying mechanism of MDR reversal by the dietary carotenoid fucoxanthin (FUC) and its ability to enhance the doxorubicin (DOX) cytotoxicity in resistant breast (MCF-7/ADR), hepatic (HepG-2/ADR), and ovarian (SKOV-3/ADR) cell lines.MethodsThe synergistic interaction of FUC and DOX was evaluated using several techniques, viz.; MTT assay, ABC transporter function assays using FACS and fluorimetry, enzyme activity via spectroscopy and luminescence assays, and apoptosis assay using FACS, and gene expression using RTPCR.ResultsFUC (20 µM) synergistically enhanced the cytotoxicity of DOX and significantly reduced the dose of DOX (FR) in DOX resistant cells (MCF-7/ADR), hepatic (HepG-2/ADR), and ovarian (SKOV-3/ADR) to 8.42-(CI= 0.25), 6.28-(CI= 0.32), and 4.56-fold (CI=0.37) (P<0.001). FUC significantly increased the accumulation of DOX more than verapamil in resistant cells by 2.70, 2.67, and 3.95-fold of untreated cells (p<0.001), respectively. A FUC and DOX combination significantly increased the Rho123 accumulation higher than individual drugs by 2.36-, 2.38-, 1.89-fold verapamil effects in tested cells (p<0.001), respectively. The combination of the FUC and DOX decreased ABCC1, ABCG2, and ABCB1 expression. The FUC and DOX combination increased the levels and activity of caspases (CASP3, CASP8) and p53, while decreased the levels and activity of CYP3A4, GST, and PXR in resistant cancer cells. The combination induced early/late apoptosis to 91.9/5.4% compared with 0.0/0.7% of untreated control.ConclusionOur data suggests a new dietary and therapeutic approach of combining the FUC with DOX to overcome multidrug resistance in cancer cells. However, animal experiments should be conducted to confirm the findings before applying the results into clinical trials.     

Hsa_circ_0092276 promotes doxorubicin resistance in breast cancer cells by regulating autophagy via miR-348/ATG7 axis

Previous study has confirmed that hsa_circ_0092276 is highly expressed in doxorubicin (DOX)-resistant breast cancer cells, indicating that hsa_circ_0092276 may be involved in regulating the chemotherapy resistance of breast cancer. Here we attempted to investigate the biological role of hsa_circ_0092276 in breast cancer. We first constructed DOX-resistant breast cancer cells (MCF-7/DOX and MDA-MB-468/DOX). The 50% inhibiting concentration of MCF-7/DOX and MDA-MB-468/DOX cells was significantly higher than that of their parental breast cancer cells, MCF-7 and MDA-MB-46. MCF-7/DOX and MDA-MB-468/DOX cells also exhibited an up-regulation of drug resistance-related protein MDR1. Compared with MCF-7 and MDA-MB-46 cells, hsa_circ_0092276 was highly expressed in MCF-7/DOX and MDA-MB-468/DOX cells. Hsa_circ_0092276 overexpression enhanced proliferation and the expression of LC3-II/LC3-I and Beclin-1, and repressed apoptosis of breast cancer cells. The effect of hsa_circ_0092276 up-regulation on breast cancer cells was abolished by 3-methyladenine (autophagy inhibitor). Hsa_circ_0092276 modulated autophagy-related gene 7 (ATG7) expression via sponging miR-384. Hsa_circ_0092276 up-regulation promoted autophagy and proliferation, and repressed apoptosis of breast cancer cells, which was abolished by miR-384 overexpression or ATG7 knockdown. In addition, LV-circ_0092276 transfected MCF-7 cell transplantation promoted autophagy and tumor growth of breast cancer in mice. In conclusion, our data demonstrate that hsa_circ_0092276 promotes autophagy and DOX resistance in breast cancer by regulating miR-348/ATG7 axis. Thus, this article highlights a novel competing endogenous RNA circuitry involved in DOX resistance in breast cancer.