Becn1通过线粒体凋亡途径参与调控肺癌细胞的凋亡过程

自噬相关基因Becn1在肺癌等多种肿瘤中处于低表达状态,具有抑制肿瘤发生发展的作用。目前,已有研究发现Becn1可以通过自噬途径参与调控肺癌的发生发展过程,且细胞自噬还与凋亡关系密切。但是,Becn1在调控肺癌发生发展过程中涉及的凋亡过程和相关机制尚未完全阐明。本研究选用肺癌细胞系PC9和A549,建立Becn1高表达的肺癌细胞模型,采用蛋白质免疫共沉淀实验和GFP-BECLIN1、DsRed-Mit荧光共定位实验首次证实了Becn1可通过线粒体途径参与调控肺癌细胞的凋亡过程。     

Grape Proanthocyanidin Inhibit Pancreatic Cancer Cell Growth In Vitro and In Vivo through Induction of Apoptosis and by Targeting the PI3K/Akt Pathway

Pancreatic cancer is an aggressive malignancy that is frequently diagnosed at an advanced stage with poor prognosis. Here, we report the chemotherapeutic effects of bioactive proanthocyanidins from grape seeds (GSPs) as assessed using In Vitro and In Vivo models. Treatment of human pancreatic cancer cells (Miapaca-2, PANC-1 and AsPC-1) with GSPs In Vitro reduced cell viability and increased G2/M phase arrest of the cell cycle leading to induction of apoptosis in a dose- and time-dependent manner. The GSPs-induced apoptosis of pancreatic cancer cells was associated with a decrease in the levels of Bcl-2 and Bcl-xl and an increase in the levels of Bax and activated caspase-3. Treatment of Miapaca-2 and PANC-1 cells with GSPs also decreased the levels of phosphatidylinositol-3-kinase (PI3K) and phosphorylation of Akt at ser(473). siRNA knockdown of PI3K from pancreatic cancer cells also reduced the phosphorylation of Akt. Further, dietary administration of GSPs (0.5%, w/w) as a supplemented AIN76A control diet significantly inhibited the growth of Miapaca-2 pancreatic tumor xenografts grown subcutaneously in athymic nude mice, which was associated with: (i) inhibition of cell proliferation, (ii) induction of apoptosis of tumor cells, (iii) increased expression of Bax, reduced expression of anti-apoptotic proteins and activation of caspase-3-positive cells, and (iv) decreased expression of PI3K and p-Akt in tumor xenograft tissues. Together, these results suggest that GSPs may have a potential chemotherapeutic effect on pancreatic cancer cell growth.     

高糖通过线粒体途径诱导成骨细胞凋亡

线粒体途径是细胞凋亡的重要途径之一. 在特定的刺激下,例如高糖条件,可以通过caspase依赖性和非依赖性两种途径诱导多种细胞凋亡.但线粒体凋亡途径在高糖引起成骨细胞凋亡中所起的作用,目前尚不清楚.本研究证明,高糖可以通过线粒体凋亡途径诱导成骨细胞凋亡.Annexin V-FITC/PI流式细胞学检测显示,高糖可诱导MC3T3-E1细胞凋亡.Western印迹检测发现,不同浓度D-葡萄糖（11,22,33 mmol/L）可以引起线粒体中Bax蛋白表达的增加,使Bax蛋白由细胞质中易位到线粒体,激活了线粒体凋亡途径.JC-1荧光探针检测证实,高糖处理成骨细胞后,线粒体膜电位明显降低,表明线粒体途径被激活.而细胞质中的细胞色素c、凋亡诱导因子（AIF）表达增加,细胞色素c和AIF从线粒体中释放到细胞质中,释放到细胞质中的细胞色素c使caspase-3、caspase-9剪切活化,从而激活了caspase依赖性凋亡途径.因此,线粒体凋亡途径可能是高糖诱导成骨细胞凋亡过程中一个重要的途径.     

Alleviation Effect of Grape Seed Proanthocyanidins on Neuronal Apoptosis in Rats with Iron Overload

Biological Trace Element Research - We aimed to evaluate the effect of grape seed proanthocyanidins (GSPCs) on neuronal apoptosis, particularly through their roles in maintaining divalent mineral...     

原花色素对HepS细胞增殖抑制诱导凋亡的研究

本文通过体外培养肝癌HepS细胞,以不同浓度原花色素处理12—72h后,MTT法测定细胞生长抑制作用,采用DNA片断分析、DNA琼脂糖凝胶电泳、荧光染色以及流式细胞技术等方法来探讨原花色素体外抑制肝癌HepS细胞及诱导其凋亡的作用。实验结果显示原花色素能抑制HepS细胞的生长,并且呈现出明显的时效和量效关系,DNA电泳出现典型的凋亡DNA梯形带,在荧光显微镜下,凋亡细胞呈亮绿色,H和AnnexinV．FIFC双染后,经流式细胞仪检测、分析显示凋亡细胞明显增多。因此原花色素能抑制肝癌HepS细胞株的生长,可能与诱导其细胞凋亡有关。     

Anthraquinone G503 Induces Apoptosis in Gastric Cancer Cells through the Mitochondrial Pathway

G503 is an anthraquinone compound isolated from the secondary metabolites of a mangrove endophytic fungus from the South China Sea. The present study elucidates the anti-tumor activity and the underlying mechanism of G503. Cell viability assay performed in nine cancer cell lines and two normal cell lines demonstrated that the gastric cancer cell line SGC7901 is the most G503-sensitive cancer cells. G503 induced SGC7901 cell death via apoptosis. G503 exposure activated caspases-3, -8 and -9. Pretreatment with the pan-caspase inhibitor Z-VAD-FMK and caspase-9 inhibitor Z-LEHD-FMK, but not caspase-8 inbibitor Z-IETD-FMK, attenuated the effect of G503. These results suggested that the intrinsic mitochondrial apoptosis pathway, rather than the extrinsic pathway, was involved in G503-induced apoptosis. Furthermore, G503 increased the ratio of Bax to Bcl-2 in the mitochondria and decreased the ratio in the cytosol. G503 treatment resulted in mitochondrial depolarization, cytochrome c release and the subsequent cleavage of caspase -9 and -3. Moreover, it is reported that the endoplasmic reticulum apoptosis pathway may also be activated by G503 by inducing capase-4 cleavage. In consideration of the lower 50% inhibitory concentration for gastric cancer cells, G503 may serve as a promising candidate for gastric cancer chemotherapy.     

布雷菲德菌素A通过线粒体凋亡途径增强顺铂抗肺癌GLC-82细胞的作用

本研究证明了线粒体凋亡途径在布雷菲德菌素A（brefeldin A,BFA）联合顺铂（cis-dichlorodiamine platinum,CDDP）抗非小细胞肺癌（non-small cell lung cancer,NSCLC）中的作用。MTT结果显示,BFA对肺癌GLC-82和NCI-H1299细胞的半数有效抑制浓度（half maximal inhibitory concentration,IC50）分别是100 ng/mL和400 ng/mL,CDDP对GLC-82和NCI-H1299细胞的IC50分别是4 μg/mL和15 μg/mL;而分别采用半量的BFA和CDDP联合处理GLC-82或NCI-H1299细胞后,抑制作用均进一步加强。DAPI染色结果进一步证明了二者的协同作用——与单独用药组相比,细胞核染色质固缩加剧,核裂解碎片增多,乃至形成凋亡小体,表明细胞凋亡的发生。与单药组比较,联合用药导致肺癌GLC-82细胞线粒体膜电位显著下降;q-RT-PCR及Western印迹结果显示,在联合用药早期（24 h）,GLC-82细胞可能通过提高Bcl2表达以促进存活;而在联合用药晚期（48 h）,细胞已发生不可逆转的凋亡,Bcl2表达受抑制,同时二者通过促进Bax表达来诱导细胞色素C释放,使胱天蛋白酶 3发生剪切激活,最终诱导细胞凋亡发生。提示线粒体凋亡途径可能是BFA协同CDDP抗非小细胞肺癌的分子机制之一,为肺癌的临床治疗方案提供了更多的理论依据。     

Antiproliferative and Apoptosis Inducing Effects of Non-Polar Fractions from Lawsonia inermis L. in Cervical (HeLa) Cancer Cells

Two non-polar fractions viz. hexane (Hex-LI) and chloroform fraction (CHCl₃-LI) of Lawsonia inermis were studied for their antiproliferative potential in various cancer cell lines viz. HeLa, MCF-7, A549 and C6 glioma cells. Both the fractions showed more than 60 % of growth inhibition in all the tested cell lines at highest tested concentration. In clonogenic assay, different concentrations of Hex-LI and CHCl₃-LI decreased the number and size of colonies as compared to control in HeLa cells. The apoptotic effects as nuclear condensation, fragmentation were visualized with Hoechst-33342 staining of HeLa cells using confocal microscope. Both fractions induced apoptotic cell death in human cervical carcinoma (HeLa) cells as evident from flow cytometric analysis carried out using Annexin V-FITC and propidium iodide dyes. CHCl₃-LI treated cells significantly induced apoptosis (25.43 %) in comparison to control. Results from Neutral Comet assay demonstrated that both fractions induced double stranded breaks (DSB’s) in HeLa cells. Our data indicated that Hex-LI and CHCl₃-LI treated cells showed significant increase of 32.2 and 18.56 % reactive oxygen species (ROS) levels in DCFH-DA assay respectively. Further, experimental studies to decipher exact pathway via which these fractions induce cell death are in progress.     

Downregulation of the Non-Integrin Laminin Receptor Reduces Cellular Viability by Inducing Apoptosis in Lung and Cervical Cancer Cells

The non-integrin laminin receptor, here designated the 37-kDa/67-kDa laminin receptor (LRP/LR), is involved in many physiologically relevant processes, as well as numerous pathological conditions. The overexpression of LRP/LR on various cancerous cell lines plays critical roles in tumour metastasis and angiogenesis. This study investigated whether LRP/LR is implicated in the maintenance of cellular viability in lung and cervical cancer cell lines. Here we show a significant reduction in cellular viability in the aforementioned cell lines as a result of the siRNA-mediated downregulation of LRP. This reduction in cellular viability is due to increased apoptotic processes, reflected by the loss of nuclear integrity and the significant increase in the activity of caspase-3. These results indicate that LRP/LR is involved in the maintenance of cellular viability in tumorigenic lung and cervix uteri cells through the blockage of apoptosis. Knockdown of LRP/LR by siRNA might represent an alternative therapeutic strategy for the treatment of lung and cervical cancer.     

Proanthocyanidins Inhibit Seed Germination by Maintaining a High Level of Abscisic Acid in Arabidopsis thaliana

Proanthocyanidins (PAs) are the main products of the flavonoid biosynthetic pathway in seeds, but their biological function during seed germination is still unclear. We observed that seed germination is delayed with the increase of exogenous PA concentration in Arabidopsis. A similar inhibitory effect occurred in peeled Brassica napus seeds, which was observed by measuring radicle elongation. Using abscisic acid (ABA), a biosynthetic and metabolic inhibitor, and gene expression analysis by real-time polymerase chain reaction, we found that the inhibitory effect of PAs on seed germination is due to their promotion of ABA via de novo biogenesis, rather than by any inhibition of its degradation. Consistent with the relationship between PA content and ABA accumulation in seeds, PA-deficient mutants maintain a lower level of ABA compared with wild-types during germination. Our data suggest that PA distribution in the seed coat can act as a doorkeeper to seed germination. PA regulation of seed germination is mediated by the ABA signaling pathway.     

腺病毒介导转化生长因子β1 诱导结肠癌细胞凋亡的研究

目的:探讨腺病毒介导的转化生长因子β-1(TGF-β1)对结肠癌细胞凋亡的诱导作用。方法:结肠癌细胞系HCT116细胞培养后分实验组及对照组,实验组以腺病毒为载体将TGF-β1转染,逆转录聚合酶链反应(RT-PCR)以及免疫组织化学检测其m RNA及蛋白的表达,MTT法检测细胞生长抑制率,流式细胞仪检测细胞凋亡的情况。结果:实验组的TGF-β1 mRNA以及蛋白的表达明显增强;实验组细胞的吸光度波动较小,在低值区相对稳定,各时相点无明显变化,24 h的细胞增殖抑制率为50%,其后在70%-80%之间;对照组细胞吸光度显著升高,与实验组各时相点比较,差异有统计学意义(P0.01)。实验组24 h、36 h、48 h、60 h、72 h的凋亡率分别为(7.55±0.03)%、(8.53±0.11)%、(13.47±0.23)%、(15.51±0.26)%、(16.59±0.26)%,与对照组细胞各时相点比较差异有统计学意义(P0.01)。结论:TGF-β1能够显著地抑制HCT 116细胞的增值及诱导其凋亡。     

Cudrania tricuspidata Stem Extract Induces Apoptosis via the Extrinsic Pathway in SiHa Cervical Cancer Cells

The focus of this study is the anti-cancer effects of Cudrania tricuspidata stem (CTS) extract on cervical cancer cells. The effect of CTS on cell viability was investigated in HPV-positive cervical cancer cells and HaCaT human normal keratinocytes. CTS showed significant dose-dependent cytotoxic effects in cervical cancer cells. However, there was no cytotoxic effect of CTS on HaCaT keratinocytes at concentrations of 0.125–0.5 mg/mL. Based on this cytotoxic effect, we demonstrated that CTS induced apoptosis by down-regulating the E6 and E7 viral oncogenes. Apoptosis was detected by DAPI staining, annexin V-FITC/PI staining, cell cycle analysis, western blotting, RT-PCR, and JC-1 staining in SiHa cervical cancer cells. The mRNA expression levels of extrinsic pathway molecules such as Fas, death receptor 5 (DR5), and TNF-related apoptosis-inducing ligand (TRAIL) were increased by CTS. Furthermore, CTS treatment activated caspase-3/caspase-8 and cleavage of poly (ADP-ribose) polymerase (PARP). However, the mitochondrial membrane potential and expression levels of intrinsic pathway molecules such as Bcl-2, Bcl-xL, Bax, and cytochrome C were not modulated by CTS. Taken together, these results indicate that CTS induced apoptosis by activating the extrinsic pathway, but not the intrinsic pathway, in SiHa cervical cancer cells. These results suggest that CTS can be used as a modulating agent in cervical cancer.     

Aminoimidazole Carboxamide Ribonucleotide (AICAR) Inhibits the Growth of Retinoblastoma In Vivo by Decreasing Angiogenesis and Inducing Apoptosis

5-Aminoimidazole-4-carboxamide-1-β-4-ribofuranoside (AICAR), an analog of AMP is widely used as an activator of AMP-kinase (AMPK), a protein that regulates the responses of the cell to energy change. Recently, we showed that AICAR-induced AMPK activation inhibits the growth of retinoblastoma cells in vitro by decreasing cyclins and by inducing apoptosis and S-phase arrest. In this study, we investigated the effects of AMPK activator AICAR on the growth of retinoblastoma in vivo. Intraperitoneal injection of AICAR resulted in 48% growth inhibition of Y79 retinoblastoma cell tumors in mice. Tumors isolated from mice treated with AICAR had decreased expression of Ki67 and increased apoptotic cells (TUNEL positive) compared with the control. In addition, AICAR treatment suppressed significantly tumor vessel density and macrophage infiltration. We also showed that AICAR administration resulted in AMPK activation and mTOR pathway inhibition. Paradoxically observed down-regulation of p21, which indicates that p21 may have a novel function of an oncogene in retinoblastoma tumor. Our results indicate that AICAR treatment inhibited the growth of retinoblastoma tumor in vivo via AMPK/mTORC1 pathway and by apoptogenic, anti-proliferative, anti-angiogenesis mechanism. AICAR is a promising novel non-chemotherapeutic drug that may be effective as an adjuvant in treating Retinoblastoma.     

沙眼衣原体通过激活MAPK/ERK信号通路抑制宿主细胞凋亡

目的:研究沙眼衣原体抑制宿主细胞凋亡活性与MAPK/ERK信号通路的关系。方法:利用化学抑制剂U0126阻断MAPK/ERK信号通路,然后分别采用流式细胞术、Caspase-3活性检测试剂盒和Western Blot实验检测沙眼衣原体感染细胞在凋亡诱导剂Etoposide作用下细胞凋亡率和Caspase-3活性变化,以及PARP是否发生裂解。结果:当MAPK/ERK信号通路被阻断时,在Etoposide的作用下,沙眼衣原体感染细胞凋亡率明显上升,同时Caspase-3被活化和PARP发生裂解。结论:沙眼衣原体抑制宿主细胞凋亡活性与MAPK/ERK信号通路激活有关。     

NaHS Protects Cochlear Hair Cells from Gentamicin-Induced Ototoxicity by Inhibiting the Mitochondrial Apoptosis Pathway

Aminoglycoside antibiotics such as gentamicin could cause ototoxicity in mammalians, by inducing oxidative stress and apoptosis in sensory hair cells of the cochlea. Sodium hydrosulfide (NaHS) is reported to alleviate oxidative stress and apoptosis, but its role in protecting aminoglycoside-induced hearing loss is unclear. In this study, we investigated the anti-oxidant and anti-apoptosis effect of NaHS in in vitro cultured House Ear Institute-Organ of Corti 1 (HEI-OC1) cells and isolated mouse cochlea. Results from cultured HEI-OC1 cells and cochlea consistently indicated that NaHS exhibited protective effects from gentamicin-induced ototoxicity, evident by maintained cell viability, hair cell number and cochlear morphology, reduced reactive oxygen species production and mitochondrial depolarization, as well as apoptosis activation of the intrinsic pathway. Moreover, in the isolated cochlear culture, NaHS was also demonstrated to protect the explant from gentamicin-induced mechanotransduction loss. Our study using multiple in vitro models revealed for the first time, the potential of NaHS as a therapeutic agent in protecting against aminoglycoside-induced hearing loss.     

Lipogenesis Is Decreased by Grape Seed Proanthocyanidins According to Liver Proteomics of Rats Fed a High Fat Diet

Bioactive proanthocyanidins have been reported to have several beneficial effects on health in relation to metabolic syndrome, type 2 diabetes, and cardiovascular disease. We studied the effect of grape seed proanthocyanidin extract (GSPE) in rats fed a high fat diet (HFD). This is the first study of the effects of flavonoids on the liver proteome of rats suffering from metabolic syndrome. Three groups of rats were fed over a period of 13 weeks either a chow diet (control), an HFD, or a high fat diet supplemented for the last 10 days with GSPE (HFD + GSPE). The liver proteome was fractionated, using a Triton X-114-based two-phase separation, into soluble and membrane protein fractions so that total proteome coverage was considerably improved. The data from isobaric tag for relative and absolute quantitation (iTRAQ)-based nano-LC-MS/MS analysis revealed 90 proteins with a significant (p < 0.05) minimal expression difference of 20% due to metabolic syndrome (HFD versus control) and 75 proteins due to GSPE treatment (HFD + GSPE versus HFD). The same animals have previously been studied (Quesada, H., del Bas, J. M., Pajuelo, D., Díaz, S., Fernandez-Larrea, J., Pinent, M., Arola, L., Salvadó, M. J., and Bladé, C. (2009) Grape seed proanthocyanidins correct dyslipidemia associated with a high-fat diet in rats and repress genes controlling lipogenesis and VLDL assembling in liver. Int. J. Obes. 33, 1007–1012), and GSPE was shown to correct dyslipidemia observed in HFD-fed rats probably through the repression of hepatic lipogenesis. Our data corroborate those findings with an extensive list of proteins describing the induction of hepatic glycogenesis, glycolysis, and fatty acid and triglyceride synthesis in HFD, whereas the opposite pattern was observed to a large extent in GSPE-treated animals. GSPE was shown to have a wider effect than previously thought, and putative targets of GSPE involved in the reversal of the symptoms of metabolic syndrome were revealed. Some of these novel candidate proteins such as GFPT1, CD36, PLAA (phospholipase A₂-activating protein), METTL7B, SLC30A1, several G signaling proteins, and the sulfide-metabolizing ETHE1 and SQRDL (sulfide-quinone reductase-like) might be considered as drug targets for the treatment of metabolic syndrome.An increase in high calorie diets and a sedentary lifestyle are considered the key factors in explaining the epidemic rise in obesity in developed countries (1). Obese patients, especially those with abdominal obesity due to visceral adipose tissue accumulation, run a higher risk of impaired glucose tolerance, which frequently evolves into insulin resistance (2). Obesity and insulin resistance are frequently associated with hypertension, proatherogenic dyslipidemia, chronic inflammation, a prothrombotic state, and recently also fatty liver (3), conditions that together make up what is known as metabolic syndrome and lead to an increased risk of developing cardiovascular disease (CVD)¹ and type 2 diabetes (4). Conversely, some dietary patterns and specific food components have been associated with a lower prevalence of obesity, type 2 diabetes, and CVD. In this sense, the traditional Mediterranean diet (characterized by a high fiber content, low glycemic index carbohydrates, unsaturated fats, vitamins, and antioxidant polyphenols) has been linked to a lower incidence of CVD, obesity, and type 2 diabetes (5–8). Moreover, the French population presents a very low prevalence of death due to CVD despite consuming a diet rich in saturated fats and cholesterol. This phenomenon, known as “the French paradox” (9), has been ascribed to the moderate consumption of red wine and specifically to its content of polyphenols (10–12).Polyphenols include flavonoids of which flavan-3-ols and their oligomeric forms (proanthocyanidins) have been reported to exhibit several beneficial health effects by acting as antioxidant, anticarcinogen, cardioprotective, antimicrobial, antiviral, and neuroprotective agents (for a review, see Ref. 13). Specifically, grape and wine proanthocyanidins have a cardioprotective effect through increasing plasma high density lipoprotein cholesterol, decreasing low density lipoprotein-derived atherosclerotic foam cell lesions, attenuating oxidant formation by quenching harmful radicals, increasing endothelium-dependent vasorelaxation, etc. (13). In this context, our group has been working for years on the effect of a grape seed proanthocyanidin extract (GSPE) (containing monomers and oligomers of flavan-3-ols) in relation to metabolic syndrome. In previous works, we have found that GSPE prevents oxidative injury (14), has an insulinomimetic effect on adipocytes and adipose tissue (15), modulates glucose homeostasis (16), decreases plasma levels of triglycerides (TGs) and apolipoprotein B in normolipidemic rats (17), and acts as an in vitro (18, 19) and in vivo (20) anti-inflammatory. We have also shown that GSPE decreases postprandial plasma TG and apolipoprotein B in mice through a hepatic induction of a farnesoid X receptor (FXR) and the small heterodimer partner (SHP) that in turn down-regulates SREBP1c and other lipogenic genes in the liver (21, 22). Furthermore, we have demonstrated that the molecules responsible for the reduced TG synthesis in HepG2 cells treated with GSPE are the sum of a proanthocyanidins trimer and a dimer gallate because they reproduce the GSPE effect (23).The effect of GSPE on metabolic syndrome has been studied in our laboratory by feeding rats a “cafeteria diet.” This diet is an experimental model of a western high sugar and high fat diet extensively used to produce obesity in rats because its palatability induces the animals to increase their energy intake (24). In a recent study conducted by our group (25) as well as this study, the rats were fed a high fat diet (HFD) (cafeteria diet) for 13 weeks, and one group of the animals was treated with a daily dose of GSPE (25 mg/kg of body weight) for the last 10 days (HFD + GSPE). In that study, HFD was shown to cause the animals to be overweight and to suffer from fatty liver, dyslipidemia, and hepatic overexpression of key genes involved in lipogenesis and VLDL assembly, whereas GSPE treatment corrected dyslipidemia and down-regulated some of the genes up-regulated by HFD (25).To better investigate the mechanism behind the changes observed in HFD- and HFD + GSPE-fed rats, we analyzed protein expression in the liver. Because GSPE treatment and obesity have multiple effects, a proteome-wide approach is needed to map proteins from different pathways. Proteomics studies related to obesity, metabolic syndrome, fatty liver, or insulin resistance have previously been performed on the liver (26–32). Two such studies looked into the effects of flavonoids in mouse livers (33, 34), but to our knowledge, this is the first hepatic proteome analysis of the effect of flavonoids in rats suffering from metabolic syndrome. To improve the proteome coverage of the complex liver samples, we performed a proteome fractionation according to protein solubility using a two-phase detergent protocol (35). This strategy was advantageous because it captured membrane proteins that otherwise would have been difficult to detect. The resulting soluble and membrane protein fractions were digested, iTRAQ-labeled, fractionated according to isoelectric point, and analyzed by nano-LC-MS/MS. The proteomics study presented here reports a differential expression due to HFD or HFD + GSPE for approximately 140 proteins, indicating that both conditions were potent modifiers of the liver proteome. We have focused on the sugar and lipid metabolism data, which confirmed the repression of hepatic lipogenesis in HFD + GSPE rats. Additionally, new proteins have been revealed as putative GSPE targets.     

Disulfiram Suppresses Growth of the Malignant Pleural Mesothelioma Cells in Part by Inducing Apoptosis

Dithiocarbamate compound Disulfiram (DSF) that binds with copper and functions as an inhibitor of aldehyde dehydrogenase is a Food and Drug Administration approved agent for treatment of alcoholism. Copper complexed DSF (DSF-Cu) also possesses anti-tumor and chemosensitizing properties; however, its molecular mechanisms of action remain unclear. Here we investigated malignant pleural mesothelioma (MPM) suppressive effects of DSF-Cu and the molecular mechanisms involved. DSF-Cu inhibited growth of the murine as well as human MPM cells in part by increasing levels of ubiquitinated proteins. DSF-Cu exposure stimulated apoptosis in MPM cells that involved activation of stress-activated protein kinases (SAPKs) p38 and JNK1/2, caspase-3, and cleavage of poly-(ADP-ribose)-polymerase, as well as increased expression of sulfatase 1 and apoptosis transducing CARP-1/CCAR1 protein. Gene-array based analyses revealed that DSF-Cu suppressed cell growth and metastasis-promoting genes including matrix metallopeptidase 3 and 10. DSF inhibited MPM cell growth and survival by upregulating cell cycle inhibitor p27Kip1, IGFBP7, and inhibitors of NF-κB such as ABIN 1 and 2 and Inhibitory κB (IκB)α and β proteins. DSF-Cu promoted cleavage of vimentin, as well as serine-phosphorylation and lysine-63 linked ubiquitination of podoplanin. Administration of 50 mg/kg DSF-Cu by daily i.p injections inhibited growth of murine MPM cell-derived tumors in vivo. Although podoplanin expression often correlates with metastatic disease and poor prognosis, phosphorylation of serines in cytoplasmic domain of podoplanin has recently been shown to interfere with cellular motility and migration signaling. Post-translational modification of podoplanin and cleavage of vimentin by DSF-Cu underscore a metastasis inhibitory property of this agent and together with our in vivo studies underscore its potential as an anti-MPM agent.