scholarly journals Sphingosine 1-Phosphate Signaling and Metabolism in Chemoprevention and Chemoresistance in Colon Cancer

Molecules ◽  
2020 ◽  
Vol 25 (10) ◽  
pp. 2436 ◽  
Author(s):  
Petra Grbčić ◽  
Mirela Sedić
Keyword(s):  
Colon Cancer ◽  
Cancer Cell ◽  
Anticancer Agents ◽  
Molecular Mechanisms ◽  
Treatment Modalities ◽  
Rational Approach ◽  
Cancer Drug ◽  
Comprehensive Overview ◽  
Chemotherapy Drugs ◽  
Sphingosine 1 Phosphate

Colorectal carcinoma (CRC) is the leading cause of cancer-related deaths worldwide. Despite advances in prevention and treatment modalities for CRC, rapidly developing resistance to chemotherapy limits its effectiveness. For that reason, it is important to better understand the mechanisms that undergird the process of chemoresistance to enable design of novel anticancer agents specifically targeting malignant properties of cancer cells. Over recent decades, bioactive sphingolipid species have come under the spotlight for their recognized role in cancer development and progression, and the evidence has surfaced to support their role as regulators of anti-cancer drug resistance. Colon cancer is characterized by a shift in sphingolipid balance that favors the production and accumulation of oncogenic species such as sphingosine 1-phosphate (S1P). S1P is known to govern the processes that facilitate cancer cell growth and progression including proliferation, survival, migration, invasion and inflammation. In this review paper, we will give a comprehensive overview of current literature findings on the molecular mechanisms by which S1P turnover, transport and signaling via receptor-dependent and independent pathways shape colon cancer cell behavior and influence treatment outcome in colon cancer. Combining available modulators of S1P metabolism and signaling with standard chemotherapy drugs could provide a rational approach to achieve enhanced therapeutic response, diminish chemoresistance development and improve the survival outcome in CRC patients.

scholarly journals Molecular Simulations Identify Target Receptor Kinases Bound by Astaxanthin to Induce Breast Cancer Cell Apoptosis

2020 ◽  
pp. 72-82
Author(s):  
Mossa Gardaneh ◽  
Zahra Nayeri ◽  
Parvin Akbari ◽  
Mahsa Gardaneh ◽  
Hasan Tahermansouri
Keyword(s):  
Breast Cancer ◽  
Drug Resistance ◽  
Combination Therapy ◽  
Cell Lines ◽  
Cancer Cell ◽  
Breast Cancer Cell ◽  
Molecular Mechanisms ◽  
Cancer Cell Lines ◽  
Cancer Drug ◽  
Breast Cancer Cell Lines

Background: We investigated molecular mechanisms behind astaxanthinmediated induction of apoptosis in breast cancer cell lines toward combination therapy against cancer drug resistance. Methods: Breast cancer cell lines were treated with serial concentrations of astaxanthin to determine its IC50. We used drug-design software to predict interactions between astaxanthin and receptor tyrosine kinases or other key gene products involved in intracellular signaling pathways. Changes in gene expression were examined using RT-PCR. The effect of astaxanthin-nanocarbons combinations on cancer cells was also evaluated. Results: Astaxanthin induced cell death in all three breast cancer cell lines was examined so that its IC50 in two HER2-amplifying lines SKBR3 and BT-474 stood, respectively, at 36 and 37 ?M; however, this figure for MCF-7 was significantly lowered to 23 ?M (P<0.05). Astaxanthin-treated SKBR3 cells showed apoptotic death upon co-staining. Our in silico examinations showed that some growth-promoting molecules are strongly bound by astaxanthin via their specific amino acid residues with their binding energy standing below -6 KCa/Mol. Next, astaxanthin was combined with either graphene oxide or carboxylated multi-walled carbon nanotube, with the latter affecting SKBR cell survival more extensively than the former (P<0.05). Finally, astaxanthin coinduced tumor suppressors p53 and PTEN but downregulated the expression of growth-inducing genes in treated cells. Conclusion: These findings indicate astaxanthin carries' multitarget antitumorigenic capacities and introduce the compound as a suitable candidate for combination therapy regimens against cancer growth and drug resistance. Development of animal models to elucidate interactions between the compound and tumor microenvironment could be a major step forward towards the inclusion of astaxanthin in cancer therapy trials.

scholarly journals The role of coagulation and platelets in colon cancer-associated thrombosis

2019 ◽  
Vol 316 (2) ◽  
pp. C264-C273 ◽  
Author(s):  
Annachiara Mitrugno ◽  
Samuel Tassi Yunga ◽  
Joanna L. Sylman ◽  
Jevgenia Zilberman-Rudenko ◽  
Toshiaki Shirai ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Colon Cancer ◽  
Cancer Cells ◽  
Cancer Patients ◽  
Cancer Cell ◽  
Platelet Activation ◽  
Molecular Mechanisms ◽  
Cell Interactions ◽  
Coagulation Cascade ◽  
Colon Cancer Cells ◽  
Cancer Associated Thrombosis

Cancer-associated thrombosis is a common first presenting sign of malignancy and is currently the second leading cause of death in cancer patients after their malignancy. However, the molecular mechanisms underlying cancer-associated thrombosis remain undefined. In this study, we aimed to develop a better understanding of how cancer cells affect the coagulation cascade and platelet activation to induce a prothrombotic phenotype. Our results show that colon cancer cells trigger platelet activation in a manner dependent on cancer cell tissue factor (TF) expression, thrombin generation, activation of the protease-activated receptor 4 (PAR4) on platelets and consequent release of ADP and thromboxane A2. Platelet-colon cancer cell interactions potentiated the release of platelet-derived extracellular vesicles (EVs) rather than cancer cell-derived EVs. Our data show that single colon cancer cells were capable of recruiting and activating platelets and generating fibrin in plasma under shear flow. Finally, in a retrospective analysis of colon cancer patients, we found that the number of venous thromboembolism events was 4.5 times higher in colon cancer patients than in a control population. In conclusion, our data suggest that platelet-cancer cell interactions and perhaps platelet procoagulant EVs may contribute to the prothrombotic phenotype of colon cancer patients. Our work may provide rationale for targeting platelet-cancer cell interactions with PAR4 antagonists together with aspirin and/or ADP receptor antagonists as a potential intervention to limit cancer-associated thrombosis, balancing safety with efficacy.

scholarly journals 7-epi-Clusianone, a Multi-Targeting Natural Product with Potential Chemotherapeutic, Immune-Modulating, and Anti-Angiogenic Properties

Molecules ◽  
2019 ◽  
Vol 24 (23) ◽  
pp. 4415 ◽  
Author(s):  
Wesley F. Taylor ◽  
Maria Yanez ◽  
Sara E. Moghadam ◽  
Mahdi Moridi Farimani ◽  
Sara Soroury ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Cancer Cell ◽  
Targeted Therapies ◽  
Acquired Resistance ◽  
Cell Types ◽  
Treatment Modalities ◽  
Cancer Drug ◽  
Cancer Drug Discovery ◽  
Anticancer Properties ◽  
Immune Therapies ◽  
Cancer Types

Targeted therapies have changed the treatment of cancer, giving new hope to many patients in recent years. The shortcomings of targeted therapies including acquired resistance, limited susceptible patients, high cost, and high toxicities, have led to the necessity of combining these therapies with other targeted or chemotherapeutic treatments. Natural products are uniquely capable of synergizing with targeted and non-targeted anticancer regimens due to their ability to affect multiple cellular pathways simultaneously. Compounds which provide an additive effect to the often combined immune therapies and cytotoxic chemotherapies, are exceedingly rare. These compounds would however provide a strengthening bridge between the two treatment modalities, increasing their effectiveness and improving patient prognoses. In this study, 7-epi-clusianone was investigated for its anticancer properties. While previous studies have suggested clusianone and its conformational isomers, including 7-epi-clusianone, are chemotherapeutic, few cancer types have been demonstrated to exhibit sensitivity to these compounds and little is known about the mechanism. In this study, 7-epi-clusianone was shown to inhibit the growth of 60 cancer cell types and induce significant cell death in 25 cancer cell lines, while simultaneously modulating the immune system, inhibiting angiogenesis, and inhibiting cancer cell invasion, making it a promising lead compound for cancer drug discovery.

scholarly journals N-Propargylglycine: a unique suicide inhibitor of proline dehydrogenase with anticancer activity and brain-enhancing mitohormesis properties

Amino Acids ◽  
2021 ◽  
Author(s):  
Gary K. Scott ◽  
Sophia Mahoney ◽  
Madeleine Scott ◽  
Ashley Loureiro ◽  
Alejandro Lopez-Ramirez ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Anticancer Activity ◽  
Cancer Cell ◽  
Anticancer Agents ◽  
Human Cancer ◽  
Cancer Drug ◽  
Normal Brain ◽  
Proline Dehydrogenase ◽  
Inner Membrane ◽  
Human Cancer Cells

AbstractProline dehydrogenase (PRODH) is a mitochondrial inner membrane flavoprotein critical for cancer cell survival under stress conditions and newly recognized as a potential target for cancer drug development. Reversible (competitive) and irreversible (suicide) inhibitors of PRODH have been shown in vivo to inhibit cancer cell growth with excellent host tolerance. Surprisingly, the PRODH suicide inhibitor N-propargylglycine (N-PPG) also induces rapid decay of PRODH with concordant upregulation of mitochondrial chaperones (HSP-60, GRP-75) and the inner membrane protease YME1L1, signifying activation of the mitochondrial unfolded protein response (UPRmt) independent of anticancer activity. The present study was undertaken to address two aims: (i) use PRODH overexpressing human cancer cells (ZR-75-1) to confirm the UPRmt inducing properties of N-PPG relative to another equipotent irreversible PRODH inhibitor, thiazolidine-2-carboxylate (T2C); and (ii) employ biochemical and transcriptomic approaches to determine if orally administered N-PPG can penetrate the blood–brain barrier, essential for its future use as a brain cancer therapeutic, and also potentially protect normal brain tissue by inducing mitohormesis. Oral daily treatments of N-PPG produced a dose-dependent decline in brain mitochondrial PRODH protein without detectable impairment in mouse health; furthermore, mice repeatedly dosed with 50 mg/kg N-PPG showed increased brain expression of the mitohormesis associated protease, YME1L1. Whole brain transcriptome (RNAseq) analyses of these mice revealed significant gene set enrichment in N-PPG stimulated neural processes (FDR p < 0.05). Given this in vivo evidence of brain bioavailability and neural mitohormesis induction, N-PPG appears to be unique among anticancer agents and should be evaluated for repurposing as a pharmaceutical capable of mitigating the proteotoxic mechanisms driving neurodegenerative disorders.

Chemoresistance mechanisms in colon cancer: focus on conventional chemotherapy

2021 ◽  
Vol 08 ◽  
Author(s):  
Klara Mladenić ◽  
Mirela Sedić
Keyword(s):  
Colon Cancer ◽  
Ribosome Biogenesis ◽  
Signalling Pathway ◽  
Screening Tests ◽  
Pathway Enrichment Analysis ◽  
Stem Cell Markers ◽  
Conventional Chemotherapy ◽  
Comprehensive Overview ◽  
Chemotherapy Drugs ◽  
Molecular Features

Background: Colorectal cancer (CRC) is a widespread tumour type amongst men and women. Despite the available screening tests, advanced stage CRC is the most frequent diagnosis. It is treated with cytotoxic chemotherapeutics 5-fluorouracil (5-FU), oxaliplatin (Ox) and irinotecan (CPT-11) that eventually lose their effectiveness as chemoresistance develops. Methods: In this review, the compilation and analysis of PUBMED-retrieved literature data was comprehensively presented and some novel and/or previously poorly described molecular features of CRC unresponsiveness to conventional chemotherapy drugs identified using bioinformatics approach. Complex interactions between previously reported biomarkers of resistance to 5-FU, Ox and CPT-11 were analysed by STRING and cytoHubba accompanied by KEGG pathway enrichment analysis using DAVID functional annotation tool. Results: The bioinformatics analysis has revealed that 5-FU affects ribosome biogenesis and functioning (translational activity) leading to colon cancer cells resistance to 5-FU. Unresponsiveness of CRC to Ox was associated with Rap1 signalling pathway, which opens the possibility of using RAP1A inhibitors as an adjuvant to oxaliplatin in CRC. Furthermore, stem cell markers c-Myc and CD44 as well as Akt kinase emerged as novel resistance biomarkers whose pharmacological targeting could elevate the therapeutic efficacy of irinotecan. Lastly, several pathways common to the resistance to all three drugs were revealed including miRNAs in cancer, proteoglycans in cancer, cellular senescence and the sphingolipid signalling pathway. Conclusion: This paper gives a comprehensive overview of resistance mechanisms to 5-FU, Ox and irinotecan in colon cancer and reveals several novel molecular players and associated mechanisms that could account for development of chemoresistance and whose targeting might enable design of novel combination strategies to overcome resistance to conventional treatment in CRC.

scholarly journals Brain-derived neurotrophic factor regulates cell motility in human colon cancer

2015 ◽  
Vol 22 (3) ◽  
pp. 455-464 ◽  
Author(s):  
Ssu-Ming Huang ◽  
Chingju Lin ◽  
Hsiao-Yun Lin ◽  
Chien-Ming Chiu ◽  
Chia-Wei Fang ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Colon Cancer ◽  
Cell Migration ◽  
Cancer Cells ◽  
Cancer Cell ◽  
Neurotrophic Factor ◽  
Transcriptional Activity ◽  
Molecular Mechanisms ◽  
Colon Cancer Cell ◽  
Cancer Cell Migration ◽  
Colon Cancer Cells

Brain-derived neurotrophic factor (BDNF) is a potent neurotrophic factor that has been shown to affect cancer cell metastasis and migration. In the present study, we investigated the mechanisms of BDNF-induced cell migration in colon cancer cells. The migratory activities of two colon cancer cell lines, HCT116 and SW480, were found to be increased in the presence of human BDNF. Heme oxygenase-1 (HO)-1 is known to be involved in the development and progression of tumors. However, the molecular mechanisms that underlie HO-1 in the regulation of colon cancer cell migration remain unclear. Expression of HO-1 protein and mRNA increased in response to BDNF stimulation. The BDNF-induced increase in cell migration was antagonized by a HO-1 inhibitor and HO-1 siRNA. Furthermore, the expression of vascular endothelial growth factor (VEGF) also increased in response to BDNF stimulation, as did VEGF mRNA expression and transcriptional activity. The increase in BDNF-induced cancer cell migration was antagonized by a VEGF-neutralizing antibody. Moreover, transfection with HO-1 siRNA effectively reduced the increased VEGF expression induced by BDNF. The BDNF-induced cell migration was regulated by the ERK, p38, and Akt signaling pathways. Furthermore, BDNF-increased HO-1 and VEGF promoter transcriptional activity were inhibited by ERK, p38, and AKT pharmacological inhibitors and dominant-negative mutants in colon cancer cells. These results indicate that BDNF increases the migration of colon cancer cells by regulating VEGF/HO-1 activation through the ERK, p38, and PI3K/Akt signaling pathways. The results of this study may provide a relevant contribution to our understanding of the molecular mechanisms by which BDNF promotes colon cancer cell motility.

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