scholarly journals Pigment Epithelium-Derived Factor and its Phosphomimetic Mutant Induce JNK-Dependent Apoptosis and P38-Mediated Migration Arrest

2018 ◽  
Vol 49 (2) ◽  
pp. 512-529 ◽  
Author(s):  
Alexander Konson ◽  
Sunila Pradeep ◽  
Cosimo Walter D’Acunto ◽  
Rony Seger

Background/Aims: Pigment epithelium-derived factor (PEDF) is a potent endogenous inhibitor of angiogenesis, and a promising anticancer agent. We have previously shown that PEDF can be phosphorylated, and that distinct phosphorylations differentially regulate its physiological functions. We also demonstrated that triple phosphomimetic mutant (EEE-PEDF), has significantly increased antiangiogenic activity, and is much more efficient than WT-PEDF in inhibiting neovascularization and tumor growth. The enhanced antiangiogenic effect was associated with a direct ability to facilitate apoptosis of tumor-residing endothelial cells (EC), and subsequently, disruption of intratumoral vascularization. In the present report, we elucidated the molecular mechanism by which EEE-PEDF exerts more profound effects at the cellular level. Methods: Here we used Western blotting, as well as in vitro binding, proliferation, apoptosis and migration assays to follow the signaling components responsible for the PEDF and EEE-PEDF effects. Results: We found that EEE-PEDF suppresses EC proliferation due to caspase-3-dependent apoptosis, and also inhibits migration of the EC much better than WT-PEDF. Although WT-PEDF and EEE-PEDF did not affect proliferation and did not induce apoptosis of cancer cells, these agents efficiently inhibited cancer cell motility, with EEE-PEDF showing stronger effect. The stronger activity of EEE-PEDF was correlated to a better binding to laminin receptors. Furthermore, the proapoptotic and antimigratory activities of WT-PEDF and EEE-PEDF were found respectively regulated by differential activation of two distinct MAPK pathways, namely JNK and p38. We show that JNK and p38 phosphorylation is much higher in cells treated with EEE-PEDF. JNK leads to apoptosis of ECs, while p38 leads to antimigratory effect in both EC and cancer cells. Conclusion: These results reveal the molecular signaling mechanism by which the phosphorylated PEDF exerts its stronger antiangiogenic, antitumor activities.

Author(s):  
Mattias Lepsenyi ◽  
Nader Algethami ◽  
Amr A. Al-Haidari ◽  
Anwar Algaber ◽  
Ingvar Syk ◽  
...  

AbstractPeritoneal metastasis is an insidious aspect of colorectal cancer. The aim of the present study was to define mechanisms regulating colon cancer cell adhesion and spread to peritoneal wounds after abdominal surgery. Mice was laparotomized and injected intraperitoneally with CT-26 colon carcinoma cells and metastatic noduli in the peritoneal cavity was quantified after treatment with a CXCR2 antagonist or integrin-αV-antibody. CT-26 cells expressed cell surface chemokine receptors CXCR2, CXCR3, CXCR4 and CXCR5. Stimulation with the CXCR2 ligand, CXCL2, dose-dependently increased proliferation and migration of CT-26 cells in vitro. The CXCR2 antagonist, SB225002, dose-dependently decreased CXCL2-induced proliferation and migration of colon cancer cells in vitro. Intraperitoneal administration of CT-26 colon cancer cells resulted in wide-spread growth of metastatic nodules at the peritoneal surface of laparotomized animals. Laparotomy increased gene expression of CXCL2 at the incisional line. Pretreatment with CXCR2 antagonist reduced metastatic nodules by 70%. Moreover, stimulation with CXCL2 increased CT-26 cell adhesion to extracellular matrix (ECM) proteins in a CXCR2-dependent manner. CT-26 cells expressed the αV, β1 and β3 integrin subunits and immunoneutralization of αV abolished CXCL2-triggered adhesion of CT-26 to vitronectin, fibronectin and fibrinogen. Finally, inhibition of the αV integrin significantly attenuated the number of carcinomatosis nodules by 69% in laparotomized mice. These results were validated by use of the human colon cancer cell line HT-29 in vitro. Our data show that colon cancer cell adhesion and growth on peritoneal wound sites is mediated by a CXCL2-CXCR2 signaling axis and αV integrin-dependent adhesion to ECM proteins.


2021 ◽  
Vol 20 ◽  
pp. 153303382110278
Author(s):  
Yayan Yang ◽  
Qian Feng ◽  
Chuanfeng Ding ◽  
Wei Kang ◽  
Xiufeng Xiao ◽  
...  

Although Epirubicin (EPI) is a commonly used anthracycline for the treatment of breast cancer in clinic, the serious side effects limit its long-term administration including myelosuppression and cardiomyopathy. Nanomedicines have been widely utilized as drug delivery vehicles to achieve precise targeting of breast cancer cells. Herein, we prepared a DSPE-PEG nanocarrier conjugated a peptide, which targeted the breast cancer overexpression protein Na+/K+ ATPase α1 (NKA-α1). The nanocarrier encapsulated the EPI and grafted with the NKA-α1 targeting peptide through the click reaction between maleimide and thiol groups. The EPI was slowly released from the nanocarrier after entering the breast cancer cells with the guidance of the targeting NKA-α1 peptide. The precise and controllable delivery and release of the EPI into the breast cancer cells dramatically inhibited the cells proliferation and migration in vitro and suppressed the tumor volume in vivo. These results demonstrate significant prospects for this nanocarrier as a promising platform for numerous chemotherapy drugs.


2021 ◽  
pp. 1-9
Author(s):  
Huan Guo ◽  
Baozhen Zeng ◽  
Liqiong Wang ◽  
Chunlei Ge ◽  
Xianglin Zuo ◽  
...  

BACKGROUND: The incidence of lung cancer in Yunnan area ranks firstly in the world and underlying molecular mechanisms of lung cancer in Yunnan region are still unclear. We screened a novel potential oncogene CYP2S1 used mRNA microassay and bioinformation database. The function of CYP2S1 in lung cancer has not been reported. OBJECTIVE: To investigate the functions of CYP2S1 in lung cancer. METHODS: Immunohistochemistry and Real-time PCR were used to verify the expression of CYP2S1. Colony formation and Transwell assays were used to determine cell proliferation, invasion and migration. Xenograft assays were used to detected cell growth in vivo. RESULTS: CYP2S1 is significantly up-regulated in lung cancer tissues and cells. Knockdown CYP2S1 in lung cancer cells resulted in decrease cell proliferation, invasion and migration in vitro. Animal experiments showed downregulation of CYP2S1 inhibited lung cancer cell growth in vivo. GSEA analysis suggested that CYP2S1 played functions by regulating E2F targets and G2M checkpoint pathway which involved in cell cycle. Kaplan-Meier analysis indicated that patients with high CYP2S1 had markedly shorter event overall survival (OS) time. CONCLUSIONS: Our data demonstrate that CYP2S1 exerts tumor suppressor function in lung cancer. The high expression of CYP2S1 is an unfavorable prognostic marker for patient survival.


BMC Cancer ◽  
2021 ◽  
Vol 21 (1) ◽  
Author(s):  
Fumihiko Matsuzawa ◽  
Hirofumi Kamachi ◽  
Tatsuzo Mizukami ◽  
Takahiro Einama ◽  
Futoshi Kawamata ◽  
...  

Abstract Background Mesothelin is a 40-kDa glycoprotein that is highly overexpressed in various types of cancers, however molecular mechanism of mesothelin has not been well-known. Amatuximab is a chimeric monoclonal IgG1/k antibody targeting mesothelin. We recently demonstrated that the combine therapy of Amatuximab and gemcitabine was effective for peritonitis of pancreatic cancer in mouse model. Methods We discover the role and potential mechanism of mesothelin blockage by Amatuximab in human pancreatic cells both expressing high or low level of mesothelin in vitro experiment and peritonitis mouse model of pancreatic cancer. Results Mesothelin blockage by Amatuximab lead to suppression of invasiveness and migration capacity in AsPC-1 and Capan-2 (high mesothelin expression) and reduce levels of pMET expression. The combination of Amatuximab and gemcitabine suppressed proliferation of AsPC-1 and Capan-2 more strongly than gemcitabine alone. These phenomena were not observed in Panc-1 and MIA Paca-2 (Mesothelin low expression). We previously demonstrated that Amatuximab reduced the peritoneal mass in mouse AsPC-1 peritonitis model and induced sherbet-like cancer cell aggregates, which were vanished by gemcitabine. In this study, we showed that the cancer stem cell related molecule such as ALDH1, CD44, c-MET, as well as proliferation related molecules, were suppressed in sherbet-like aggregates, but once sherbet-like aggregates attached to peritoneum, they expressed these molecules strongly without the morphological changes. Conclusions Our work suggested that Amatuximab inhibits the adhesion of cancer cells to peritoneum and suppresses the stemness and viability of those, that lead to enhance the sensitivity for gemcitabine.


Cancers ◽  
2021 ◽  
Vol 13 (10) ◽  
pp. 2383
Author(s):  
Francesco Roncato ◽  
Ofer Regev ◽  
Sara W. Feigelson ◽  
Sandeep Kumar Yadav ◽  
Lukasz Kaczmarczyk ◽  
...  

The mechanisms by which the nuclear lamina of tumor cells influences tumor growth and migration are highly disputed. Lamin A and its variant lamin C are key lamina proteins that control nucleus stiffness and chromatin conformation. Downregulation of lamin A/C in two prototypic metastatic lines, B16F10 melanoma and E0771 breast carcinoma, facilitated cell squeezing through rigid pores, and reduced heterochromatin content. Surprisingly, both lamin A/C knockdown cells grew poorly in 3D spheroids within soft agar, and lamin A/C deficient cells derived from spheroids transcribed lower levels of the growth regulator Yap1. Unexpectedly, the transendothelial migration of both cancer cells in vitro and in vivo, through lung capillaries, was not elevated by lamin A/C knockdown and their metastasis in lungs was even dramatically reduced. Our results are the first indication that reduced lamin A/C content in distinct types of highly metastatic cancer cells does not elevate their transendothelial migration (TEM) capacity and diapedesis through lung vessels but can compromise lung metastasis at a post extravasation level.


2021 ◽  
Vol 22 (3) ◽  
pp. 1147
Author(s):  
Noy Bagdadi ◽  
Alaa Sawaied ◽  
Ali AbuMadighem ◽  
Eitan Lunenfeld ◽  
Mahmoud Huleihel

Pigment epithelium derived factor (PEDF) is a multifunctional secretory soluble glycoprotein that belongs to the serine protease inhibitor (serpin) family. It was reported to have neurotrophic, anti-angiogenic and anti-tumorigenic activity. Recently, PEDF was found in testicular peritubular cells and it was assumed to be involved in the avascular nature of seminiferous tubules. The aim of this study was to determine the cellular origin, expression levels and target cells of PEDF in testicular tissue of immature and adult mice under physiological conditions, and to explore its possible role in the process of spermatogenesis in vitro. Using immunofluorescence staining, we showed that PEDF was localized in spermatogenic cells at different stages of development as well as in the somatic cells of the testis. Its protein levels in testicular homogenates and Sertoli cells supernatant showed a significant decrease with age. PEDF receptor (PEDF-R) was localized within the seminiferous tubule cells and in the interstitial cells compartment. Its RNA expression levels showed an increase with age until 8 weeks followed by a decrease. RNA levels of PEDF-R showed the opposite trend of the protein. Addition of PEDF to cultures of isolated cells from the seminiferous tubules did not changed their proliferation rate, however, a significant increase was observed in number of meiotic/post meiotic cells at 1000 ng/mL of PEDF; indicating an in vitro differentiation effect. This study may suggest a role for PEDF in the process of spermatogenesis.


2021 ◽  
Vol 7 (1) ◽  
Author(s):  
Feng Guo ◽  
Yingke Zhou ◽  
Hui Guo ◽  
Dianyun Ren ◽  
Xin Jin ◽  
...  

AbstractNR5A2 is a transcription factor regulating the expression of various oncogenes. However, the role of NR5A2 and the specific regulatory mechanism of NR5A2 in pancreatic ductal adenocarcinoma (PDAC) are not thoroughly studied. In our study, Western blotting, real-time PCR, and immunohistochemistry were conducted to assess the expression levels of different molecules. Wound-healing, MTS, colony formation, and transwell assays were employed to evaluate the malignant potential of pancreatic cancer cells. We demonstrated that NR5A2 acted as a negative prognostic biomarker in PDAC. NR5A2 silencing inhibited the proliferation and migration abilities of pancreatic cancer cells in vitro and in vivo. While NR5A2 overexpression markedly promoted both events in vitro. We further identified that NR5A2 was transcriptionally upregulated by BRD4 in pancreatic cancer cells and this was confirmed by Chromatin immunoprecipitation (ChIP) and ChIP-qPCR. Besides, transcriptome RNA sequencing (RNA-Seq) was performed to explore the cancer-promoting effects of NR5A2, we found that GDF15 is a component of multiple down-regulated tumor-promoting gene sets after NR5A2 was silenced. Next, we showed that NR5A2 enhanced the malignancy of pancreatic cancer cells by inducing the transcription of GDF15. Collectively, our findings suggest that NR5A2 expression is induced by BRD4. In turn, NR5A2 activates the transcription of GDF15, promoting pancreatic cancer progression. Therefore, NR5A2 and GDF15 could be promising therapeutic targets in pancreatic cancer.


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