scholarly journals Deoxyelephantopin Induces Reactive Oxygen Species-Mediated Apoptosis and Autophagy in Human Osteosarcoma Cells

2017 ◽  
Vol 42 (5) ◽  
pp. 1812-1821 ◽  
Author(s):  
Jilong Zou ◽  
Yan Zhang ◽  
Jiabing Sun ◽  
Xiaoyan Wang ◽  
Hualei Tu ◽  
...  

Background/Aims: Osteosarcoma is the predominant form of primary bone malignancy. Although the combinational application of neoadjuvant chemotherapy and surgical resection significantly increases the survival rate, the therapeutic outcome remains unsatisfactory. Deoxyelephantopin (DET), an active ingredient of Elephantopus scaber, has been reported to have an anti-tumor effect in recent publications. This study aimed to investigate whether DET has antineoplastic effects on osteosarcoma cells and its underlying mechanism. Methods: Cell viability and morphological changes were assessed by MTT and Live/dead assays. Cell apoptosis, reactive oxygen species (ROS) and mitochondrial membrane potential were detected utilizing Annexin V-FITC/PI double staining, DCFH-DA and JC-1 probes, respectively. Autophagy was detected by mRFP-GFP-LC3 adenovirus transfection and western blot. Results: DET dose-dependently reduced the viability of osteosarcoma cells following the increase in intracellular ROS levels. Pretreatment with N-acetylcysteine (NAC) reversed this effect. Furthermore, DET induced mitochondrial apoptosis. Depolarized cells were increased, and apoptosis-related proteins, such as Bax, Bcl-2, cleaved caspase-9, cleaved caspase-3 and cleaved ploy ADP-ribose polymerase, were activated. Additionally, we found that DET could induce autophagy in osteosarcoma cells, but autophagy inhibition did not affect the decrease in cell viability. Conclusion: DET induced apoptosis in osteosarcoma cells through ROS generation, mitochondrial dysfunction and caspase activation; in addition, autophagy was involved in the effects of DET on osteosarcoma cells.

2020 ◽  
Vol 22 (Supplement_2) ◽  
pp. ii17-ii17
Author(s):  
Shashank Hambarde ◽  
Martyn Sharpe ◽  
David Baskin ◽  
Santosh Helekar

Abstract Noninvasive cancer therapy with minimal side effects would be ideal for improving patient outcome in the clinic. We have developed a novel therapy using strong rotating magnets mounted on a helmet. They generate oscillating magnetic fields (OMF) that penetrate through the skull and cover the entire brain. We have demonstrated that OMF can effectively kill patient derived glioblastoma (GBM) cells in cell culture without having cytotoxic effects on cortical neurons and normal human astrocytes (NHA). Exposure of GBM cells to OMF reduced the cell viability by 33% in comparison to sham-treated cells (p< 0.001), while not affecting NHA cell viability. Time lapse video-microscopy for 16 h after OMF exposure showed a marked elevation of mitochondrial reactive oxygen species (ROS), and rapid apoptosis of GBM cells due to activation of caspase 3. Addition of a potent antioxidant vitamin E analog Trolox effectively blocked OMF-induced GBM cell death. Furthermore, OMF significantly potentiated the cytotoxic effect of the pro-oxidant Benzylamine. The results of our studies demonstrate that OMF-induced cell death is mediated by ROS generation. These results demonstrate a potent oncolytic effect on GBM cells that is novel and unrelated to any previously described therapy, including a very different mechanism of action and different technology compared to Optune therapy. The effect is very powerful, and unlike Optune, can be seen within hours after initiation of treatment. We believe that this technology holds great promise for new, effective and nontoxic treatment of glioblastoma.


Molecules ◽  
2018 ◽  
Vol 23 (12) ◽  
pp. 3372 ◽  
Author(s):  
Yan-Hui Shen ◽  
Li-Ying Wang ◽  
Bao-Bao Zhang ◽  
Qi-Ming Hu ◽  
Pu Wang ◽  
...  

Ethyl rosmarinate (RAE) is one of the active constituents from Clinopodium chinense (Benth.) O. Kuntze, which is used for diabetic treatment in Chinese folk medicine. In this study, we investigated the protective effect of RAE on high glucose-induced injury in endothelial cells and explored its underlying mechanisms. Our results showed that both RAE and rosmarinic acid (RA) increased cell viability, decreased the production of reactive oxygen species (ROS), and attenuated high glucose-induced endothelial cells apoptosis in a dose-dependent manner, as evidenced by Hochest staining, Annexin V–FITC/PI double staining, and caspase-3 activity. RAE and RA both elevated Bcl-2 expression and reduced Bax expression, according to Western blot. We also found that LY294002 (phosphatidylinositol 3-kinase, or PI3K inhibitor) weakened the protective effect of RAE. In addition, PDTC (nuclear factor-κB, or NF-κB inhibitor) and SP600125 (c-Jun N-terminal kinase, or JNK inhibitor) could inhibit the apoptosis in endothelial cells caused by high glucose. Further, we demonstrated that RAE activated Akt, and the molecular docking analysis predicted that RAE showed more affinity with Akt than RA. Moreover, we found that RAE inhibited the activation of NF-κB and JNK. These results suggested that RAE protected endothelial cells from high glucose-induced apoptosis by alleviating reactive oxygen species (ROS) generation, and regulating the PI3K/Akt/Bcl-2 pathway, the NF-κB pathway, and the JNK pathway. In general, RAE showed greater potency than RA equivalent.


Blood ◽  
2012 ◽  
Vol 120 (21) ◽  
pp. 2446-2446
Author(s):  
Shuo Yang ◽  
Jessica K. Altman ◽  
Sheila Prachand ◽  
Austin Tom ◽  
Bo Ding ◽  
...  

Abstract Abstract 2446 Andrographolide is a crystalline diterpenoid lactone. It consists of an α-alkylidene- g-butyrolactone moiety and three hydroxyls at C-3, C-14 and C-19, which are responsible for its biological activities. It is the major bioactive ingredient of the medicinal plant Andrographis paniculata and it has been used in Asia for a variety of non-malignant conditions. We previously reported that Andrographolide results in mitochondrial-mediated apoptosis in lymphoma cell lines and fresh malignant cells from patients with lymphoma (Yang et al. Clin Cancer Res 2010:16:4755). Based on the mechanism of action in lymphoma and a prior report in APL (Manikam et al. J Pharm Pharmacol 2009:61:9), we hypothesized that andrographolide may have biological activity in acute promyelocytic leukemia (APL) an that this may be related to reactive oxygen species (ROS). We therefore investigated the effects of andrographolide on cell viability, apoptosis induction, mitochondrial membrane poential and signaling pathways in 3 APL cell lines, the ATRA sensitive line NB4 and the ATRA-resistant lines NB4–007/6 and NB4–306 and 3 samples from patients with APL. Methods: NB4 (ATRA sensitive cell line), NB4–007/6 and NB4–306 (ATRA resistant cell lines) were cultured in RPMI-1640 under standard conditions. Cell viability was measured using the trypan blue or propidium iodide exclusion method. Fresh leukemic cells were obtained from 3 patients after informed consent according to an NU IRB approved protocol. One had ATRA-resistant APL and 2 had de-novo untreated APL. We measured apoptosis by Annexin V-FITC by FACS. We measured mitochondrial membrane potential and cell differentiation by standard techniques. Results: Incubation with increasing concentrations of andrographolide demonstrates loss of cell viability as measured by MTT assay. The IC50 at 48 hours was 6uM for NB4–306, 6.5uM for NB4–007/6 and 9uM for NB4. Apoptosis by Annexin V/FACS demonstrated that at 48 hours there was increasing apoptosis in all 3 cell lines and that the ATRA-resistant cell lines NB4–007/6 and NB4–306 were significantly more sensitive to andrographolide than the ATRA sensitive cell line NB4 (p< 0.025). This was accompanied by PARP and caspase 3-cleavage. There was evidence of decrease in mitochondrial membrane potential, but no effect on differentiation as measured by CD11b expression by flow. We next interrogated signaling pathways and found that in the ATRA resistant line NB4–007/6 there was an increase in phosphorylation of the Forkhead box O transcription factors p-FOXO1 at Thr24 and up-regulation of FasL (which peaked at 6 hours) and p27Kip1. We also demonstrated that andrographolide caused N-acetyl L- cysteine (NAC) reversible down regulation of c-MYC (in the ATRA resistant lines) and p-AKT (T308) (in the ATRA sensitive line) expression. In fresh patient specimens (n=3) there was dose dependent increase in apoptosis at 48 hours (>70% at 10uM, 85% at 20uM). From prior reports and our own data we suspected that the effects of andrographolide were dependent on reactive oxygen species (ROS), and indeed apoptosis was completely inhibited by NAC. Conclusion: Taken together, these data suggest that andrographolide, a novel natural diterpenoid lactone with significant biological activity in cancer, may have activity in patients with ATRA-resistant APL by a mechanism of action that is distinct from ATRA. We believe that these data provide a compelling rationale to add this natural diterpenoid lactone to the clinical trial agenda in APL. Disclosures: No relevant conflicts of interest to declare.


2020 ◽  
Vol 27 (9) ◽  
pp. 860-869 ◽  
Author(s):  
Mingning Qiu ◽  
Jie Liu ◽  
Yongxia Su ◽  
Jianjun Liu ◽  
Chenchen Wu ◽  
...  

Background: Ovarian cancer is the most lethal gynecologic malignancy worldwide with poor prognosis owing to chemotherapy resistance and cancer relapse. Hence, there is an urgent need to develop novel anticancer agents against ovarian cancer. Objective: The aim of this research is to investigate the possible anticancer activity of aloperine, an active ingredient from a traditional Chinese medicine Sophora alopecuroides, and to explore the possible Reactive Oxygen Species (ROS)-related mechanism. Methods: Cell viability, cytotoxicity, apoptosis, ROS generation, and oxidant stress indicators were analyzed. Results: Our results demonstrated that aloperine significantly induced inhibition of cell viability, promoted cytotoxicity and mitochondrial-related apoptosis, and increased ROS generation in ovarian cancer cells. Furthermore, the antioxidant α-lipoic acid reversed apoptosis in aloperinetreated cells. In addition, we identified hydrogen peroxide as the main type of ROS, and the antioxidant catalase suppressed the apoptotic inducing effect of aloperine whereas hydrogen peroxide supplement exacerbated the effect of aloperine in ovarian cancer cells. Conclusion: Taken together, our results indicated that aloperine could exert anti-ovarian cancer cell activity through a reactive oxygen species activation mechanism and suggested aloperine as a potential agent against ovarian cancer.


2018 ◽  
Vol 45 (6) ◽  
pp. 2444-2460 ◽  
Author(s):  
Shahbaz Ahmad Zakki ◽  
Zheng-Guo Cui ◽  
Lu Sun ◽  
Qian-Wen Feng ◽  
Meng-Ling Li ◽  
...  

Background/Aims: Hyperthermia is a widely used therapeutic tool for cancer therapy and a well-known inducer of apoptosis. Although the flavonoid compound baicalin (BCN) is a potent anticancer agent for several human carcinomas, it is less potent in the human U937 myelomonocytic leukemia cell line. To explore any enhancing effects of BCN on hyperthermia-induced apoptosis, this study investigated the combined effects and apoptotic mechanisms of hyperthermia and BCN in U937 cells. Methods: U937 cells were heat treated at 44ºC for 12 min with or without pre-treatment with BCN (10-50 µM) and then incubated for 6 h at 37 ºC with 5% CO2 and 95% air. Cell viability was analyzed by Trypan blue exclusion assay. Apoptosis was examined by DNA fragmentation, fluorescence microscopy and flow cytometry. Generation of mitochondrial trans-membrane potential (MMP), mitochondrial calcium, and reactive oxygen species (ROS) was also detected by flow cytometry. The expression of proteins related to apoptosis and signaling pathways was determined by western blotting. Results: Hyperthermia alone did not reduce cell viability or induce notable levels of apoptosis, but combined hyperthermia and BCN treatment markedly augmented apoptosis by upregulating proapoptotic proteins and suppressing antiapoptotic proteins, culminating in caspase-3 activation. Mitochondrial transmembrane potential was significantly decreased, and generation of reactive oxygen species (ROS) and suppression of antioxidant enzymes were marked. Furthermore, with the combined treatment, the phosphorylated forms of JNK and p38 showed increased expression, whereas AKT was dephosphorylated. JNK-IN-8 (a JNK inhibitor) and NAC (a ROS scavenger) abrogated the apoptotic effects of the combined treatment, significantly protecting the cells and indicating the involvement of high ROS generation and the MAPK pathway in the underlying molecular mechanism. Conclusion: This study provides compelling evidence that hyperthermia, in combination with BCN, is a promising therapeutic strategy for enhancement of apoptosis and suggest a promising therapeutic approach for cancer.


2016 ◽  
Vol 40 (1-2) ◽  
pp. 146-154 ◽  
Author(s):  
Chen Yang ◽  
Qing Ou Yang ◽  
Qing-Jie Kong ◽  
Wen Yuan ◽  
Yue-Ping Ou Yang

Background and Aim: Osteosarcoma is a devastating tumor of bone, primarily affecting adolescents. Parthenolide, a naturally occurring small molecule that interferes with NF-κB signaling, has recently attracted considerable attention because of its pharmacological action involving anti-cancer effects. However, the mechanism of the cytotoxic effect exerted by parthenolide on tumor cells is not clearly defined today. Methods: In this study, the effects of parthenolide were evaluated and characterized in human osteosarcoma cancer cell. Cell viability was assessed by CCK-8. Apoptosis was assessed by Annexin V-FITC/PI Flow cytometry assay. Relative quantitative real-time PCR and western blot were used to determine the expressions of genes and proteins. Results: Our results suggest that parthenolide did not cause caspase-dependent cell death in osteosarcoma cancer cells, as indicated by the absence of significant early apoptosis as well as caspase-3 cleavage. Instead, parthenolide increased the autophagy and mitophagy, as characterized by increased PINK1 and Parkin translocation to mitochondria and enhanced autophagy proteins. The induction of autophagy by parthenolide was associated with the increase of reactive oxygen species (ROS). ROS antioxidants N-acetylcysteine (NAC) attenuated parthenolide-induced autophagy activity. Conclusions: Our findings unveil a novel mechanism of drug action by parthenolide in osteosarcoma cancer cells and suggest a potential value of treating osteosarcoma cancer through a caspase-independent autophagic cell death by ROS activation.


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