Glioma and Neurokinin-1 Receptor Antagonists: A New Therapeutic Approach

2019 ◽  
Vol 19 (1) ◽  
pp. 92-100 ◽  
Author(s):  
Miguel Muñoz ◽  
Rafael Coveñas

Background: In adults, the most lethal and frequent primary brain tumor is glioblastoma. Despite multimodal aggressive therapies, the median survival time after diagnosis is around 15 months. In part, this is due to the blood-brain barrier that restricts common treatments (e.g., chemotherapy). Unfortunately, glioma recurs in 90% of patients. New therapeutic strategies against glioma are urgently required. Substance P (SP), through the neurokinin (NK)-1 receptor, controls cancer cell proliferation by activating c-myc, mitogenactivated protein kinases, activator protein 1 and extracellular signal-regulated kinases 1 and 2. Glioma cells overexpress NK-1 receptors when compared with normal cells. The NK-1 receptor/SP system regulates the proliferation/migration of glioma cells and stimulates angiogenesis, triggering inflammation which contributes to glioma progression. In glioma cells, SP favors glycogen breakdown, essential for glycolysis. By contrast, in glioma, NK-1 receptor antagonists block the proliferation of tumor cells and the breakdown of glycogen and also promote the death (apoptosis) of these cells. These antagonists also inhibit angiogenesis and exert antimetastatic and anti-inflammatory actions. Objective: This review updates the involvement of the NK-1 receptor/SP system in the development of glioma and the potential clinical application of NK-1 receptor antagonists as antiglioma agents. Conclusion: The NK-1 receptor plays a crucial role in glioma and NK-1 receptor antagonists could be used as anti-glioma drugs.

Cells ◽  
2021 ◽  
Vol 10 (6) ◽  
pp. 1411
Author(s):  
Don Carlo Ramos Batara ◽  
Moon-Chang Choi ◽  
Hyeon-Uk Shin ◽  
Hyunggee Kim ◽  
Sung-Hak Kim

Glioblastoma multiforme (GBM) is the most common and aggressive type of primary brain tumor in adults, with a poor median survival of approximately 15 months after diagnosis. Despite several decades of intensive research on its cancer biology, treatment for GBM remains a challenge. Autophagy, a fundamental homeostatic mechanism, is responsible for degrading and recycling damaged or defective cellular components. It plays a paradoxical role in GBM by either promoting or suppressing tumor growth depending on the cellular context. A thorough understanding of autophagy’s pleiotropic roles is needed to develop potential therapeutic strategies for GBM. In this paper, we discussed molecular mechanisms and biphasic functions of autophagy in gliomagenesis. We also provided a summary of treatments for GBM, emphasizing the importance of autophagy as a promising molecular target for treating GBM.


2012 ◽  
Vol 104 (17) ◽  
pp. 1280-1292 ◽  
Author(s):  
L. V. dos Santos ◽  
F. H. Souza ◽  
A. T. Brunetto ◽  
A. D. Sasse ◽  
J. P. da Silveira Nogueira Lima

Molecules ◽  
2019 ◽  
Vol 24 (8) ◽  
pp. 1549 ◽  
Author(s):  
Marta Grodzik ◽  
Jaroslaw Szczepaniak ◽  
Barbara Strojny-Cieslak ◽  
Anna Hotowy ◽  
Mateusz Wierzbicki ◽  
...  

Our previous studies have shown that diamond nanoparticles (NDs) exhibited antiangiogenic and proapoptotic properties in vitro in glioblastoma multiforme (GBM) cells and in tumors in vivo. Moreover, NDs inhibited adhesion, leading to the suppression of migration and invasion of GBM. In the present study, we hypothesized that the NDs might also inhibit proliferation and cell cycle in glioma cells. Experiments were performed in vitro with the U87 and U118 lines of GBM cells, and for comparison, the Hs5 line of stromal cells (normal cells) after 24 h and 72 h of treatment. The analyses included cell morphology, cell death, viability, and cell cycle analysis, double timing assay, and gene expression (Rb, E2F1, CycA, CycB, CycD, CycE, PTEN, Ki-67). After 72 h of ND treatment, the expression level of Rb, CycD, and CycE in the U118 cells, and E2F1, CycD, and CycE in the U87 cells were significantly lower in comparison to those in the control group. We observed that decreased expression of cyclins inhibited the G1/S phase transition, arresting the cell cycle in the G0/G1 phase in glioma cells. The NDs did not affect the cell cycle as well as PTEN and Ki-67 expression in normal cells (Hs5), although it can be assumed that the NDs reduced proliferation and altered the cell cycle in fast dividing cells.


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