scholarly journals Coupling G2/M arrest to the Wnt/β-catenin pathway restrains pancreatic adenocarcinoma

2014 ◽  
Vol 21 (1) ◽  
pp. 113-125 ◽  
Author(s):  
Sayantani Sarkar ◽  
Chandan Mandal ◽  
Rajender Sangwan ◽  
Chitra Mandal

β-catenin plays a pivotal role in organogenesis and oncogenesis. Alterations in β-catenin expression are common in pancreatic cancer, which is an extremely aggressive malignancy with a notably poor prognosis. In this report, we analyzed the apoptotic activity of withanolide-D (witha-D), a steroidal lactone that was purified from an Indian medicinal plant,Withania somnifera, and its underlying mechanism of action. Witha-D induced apoptosis in pancreatic ductal adenocarcinoma cells by prompting cell-cycle arrest at the G2/M phase. This lactone abrogated β-catenin signaling in these cells regardless of disease grade, mutational status, and gemcitabine sensitivity. Witha-D also upregulated E-cadherin in most cells, thereby supporting the inversion of the epithelial–mesenchymal transition. Furthermore, the Akt/Gsk3β kinase cascade was identified as a critical mediator of G2/M regulation and β-catenin signaling. Witha-D deactivated Akt, which failed to promote Gsk3β deactivation phosphorylation. Consequently, activated Gsk3β facilitated β-catenin destruction in pancreatic carcinoma cells. The knockdown of Chk1 and Chk2 further activated Akt and reversed the molecular signal. Taken together, the results of the current study represent the first evidence of β-catenin signal crosstalk during the G2/M phase by functionally inactivating Akt via witha-D treatment in pancreatic cancer cells. In conclusion, this finding suggests the potential identification of a new lead molecule in the treatment of pancreatic adenocarcinoma.

2016 ◽  
Vol 2016 ◽  
pp. 1-9 ◽  
Author(s):  
Wei Li ◽  
Lun Zhang ◽  
Xin Chen ◽  
Zhengdong Jiang ◽  
Liang Zong ◽  
...  

Diabetes mellitus (DM) and pancreatic cancer are intimately related, as approximately 85% of patients diagnosed with pancreatic cancer have impaired glucose tolerance or even DM. Our previous studies have indicated that high glucose could promote the invasive and migratory abilities of pancreatic cancer cells. We therefore explored the underlying mechanism that hyperglycemia modulates the metastatic potential of pancreatic cancer. Our data showed that streptozotocin- (STZ-) treated diabetic nude mice exhibit larger tumor size than that of the euglycemic mice. The number of nude mice that develop liver metastasis or ascites is much more in the STZ-treated group than that in the euglycemic group. Hyperglycemic mice contain a higher plasma H2O2-level than that from euglycemic mice. The injection of polyethylene glycol-conjugated catalase (PEG-CAT), an H2O2scavenger, may reverse hyperglycemia-induced tumor metastasis. In addition, hyperglycemia could also modulate the expression of epithelial-mesenchymal transition- (EMT-) related factors in pancreatic tumor tissues, as the E-cadherin level is decreased and the expression of mesenchymal markers N-cadherin and vimentin as well as transcription factor snail is strongly increased. The injection of PEG-CAT could also reverse hyperglycemia-induced EMT. These results suggest that the association between hyperglycemia and poor prognosis of pancreatic cancer can be attributed to the alterations of EMT through the production of hydrogen peroxide.


Cancers ◽  
2021 ◽  
Vol 13 (24) ◽  
pp. 6204
Author(s):  
Meena U. Rajagopal ◽  
Shivani Bansal ◽  
Prabhjit Kaur ◽  
Shreyans K. Jain ◽  
Tatiana Altadil ◽  
...  

Pancreatic ductal adenocarcinoma (PDAC) is a highly lethal malignancy wherein a majority of patients present metastatic disease at diagnosis. Although the role of epithelial to mesenchymal transition (EMT), mediated by transforming growth factor beta (TGFβ), in imparting an aggressive phenotype to PDAC is well documented, the underlying biochemical pathway perturbations driving this behaviour have not been elucidated. We used high-resolution mass spectrometry (HRMS) based molecular phenotyping approach in order to delineate metabolic changes concomitant to TGFβ-induced EMT in pancreatic cancer cells. Strikingly, we observed robust changes in amino acid and energy metabolism that may contribute to tumor invasion and metastasis. Somewhat unexpectedly, TGFβ treatment resulted in an increase in intracellular levels of retinoic acid (RA) that in turn resulted in increased levels of extracellular matrix (ECM) proteins including fibronectin (FN) and collagen (COL1). These findings were further validated in plasma samples obtained from patients with resectable pancreatic cancer. Taken together, these observations provide novel insights into small molecule dysregulation that triggers a molecular cascade resulting in increased EMT-like changes in pancreatic cancer cells, a paradigm that can be potentially targeted for better clinical outcomes.


2020 ◽  
Vol 21 (13) ◽  
pp. 4646
Author(s):  
Eui Joo Kim ◽  
Yoon Jae Kim ◽  
Hye In Lee ◽  
Seok-Hoo Jeong ◽  
Hyo Jung Nam ◽  
...  

Chemoresistance is a leading cause of morbidity and mortality in patients with pancreatic cancer and remains an obstacle to successful treatment. The antioxidant transcription factor nuclear factor (erythroid-derived 2)-related factor 2 (NRF2), which plays important roles in tumor angiogenesis and invasiveness, is upregulated in pancreatic ductal adenocarcinoma (PDAC), where it correlates with poor survival. Here, we investigated the role of NRF2 in two 5-Fluourouracil-resistant (5-FUR) PDAC cell lines: BxPC-3 and CFPAC-1. Levels of NRF2 and antioxidants, such as heme oxygenase 1 (HO-1), NAD(P)H quinone dehydrogenase 1 (NQO1), and superoxide dismutase 2 (SOD2), were higher in the chemoresistant cells than in their chemosensitive counterparts. Expression of epithelial mesenchymal transition (EMT) markers, stemness markers, including Nanog, Oct4, and CD133, and that of the drug transporter ATP binding cassette, subfamily G, member A2 (ABCG2) was also upregulated in 5-FUR PDAC cells. NRF2 knockdown reversed 5-FU resistance of PDAC cells via suppression of ABCG2 and HO-1. In summary, these data indicate that NRF2 is a potential target for resensitizing 5-FUR PDAC cells to 5-FU to improve treatment outcomes in patients with pancreatic cancer.


Oncogene ◽  
2021 ◽  
Vol 40 (17) ◽  
pp. 3164-3179
Author(s):  
Yang Liu ◽  
Tianchi Tang ◽  
Xiaosheng Yang ◽  
Peng Qin ◽  
Pusen Wang ◽  
...  

AbstractPancreatic ductal adenocarcinoma (PDAC) is one of the most fatal malignancies and rapidly progressive diseases. Exosomes and long noncoding RNAs (lncRNAs) are emerging as vital mediators in tumor cells and their microenvironment. However, the detailed roles and mechanisms of exosomal lncRNAs in PDAC progression remain unknown. Here, we aimed to clarify the clinical significance and mechanisms of exosomal lncRNA 01133 (LINC01133) in PDAC. We analyzed the expression of LINC01133 in PDAC and found that exosomal LINC01133 expression was high and positively correlated with higher TNM stage and poor overall survival rate of PDAC patients. Further research demonstrated that Periostin could increase exosome secretion and then enhance LINC01133 expression. In addition, Periostin increased p-EGFR, p-Erk, and c-myc expression, and c-myc could bind to the LINC01133 promoter region. These findings suggested that LINC01133 can be regulated by Periostin via EGFR pathway activity. We also observed that LINC01133 promoted the proliferation, migration, invasion, and epithelial–mesenchymal transition (EMT) of pancreatic cancer cells. We subsequently evaluated the effect of LINC01133 on the Wnt/β-catenin pathway and confirmed that LINC01133 can interact with Enhancer Of Zeste Homolog 2 (EZH2) and then promote H3K27 trimethylation. This can further silence AXIN2 and suppress GSK3 activity, ultimately activating β-catenin. Collectively, these data indicate that exosomal LINC01133 plays an important role in pancreatic tumor progression, and targeting LINC01133 may provide a potential treatment strategy for PDAC.


Cancers ◽  
2021 ◽  
Vol 13 (5) ◽  
pp. 1090
Author(s):  
Hassan Sadozai ◽  
Animesh Acharjee ◽  
Thomas Gruber ◽  
Beat Gloor ◽  
Eva Karamitopoulou

Tumor budding is associated with epithelial-mesenchymal transition and diminished survival in a number of cancer types including pancreatic ductal adenocarcinoma (PDAC). In this study, we dissect the immune landscapes of patients with high grade versus low grade tumor budding to determine the features associated with immune escape and disease progression in pancreatic cancer. We performed immunohistochemistry-based quantification of tumor-infiltrating leukocytes and tumor bud assessment in a cohort of n = 111 PDAC patients in a tissue microarray (TMA) format. Patients were divided based on the ITBCC categories of tumor budding as Low Grade (LG: categories 1 and 2) and High Grade (HG: category 3). Tumor budding numbers and tumor budding grade demonstrated a significant association with diminished overall survival (OS). HG cases exhibit notably reduced densities of stromal (S) and intratumoral (IT) T cells. HG cases also display lower M1 macrophages (S) and increased M2 macrophages (IT). These findings were validated using gene expression data from TCGA. A published tumor budding gene signature demonstrated a significant association with diminished survival in PDAC patients in TCGA. Immune-related gene expression revealed an immunosuppressive TME in PDAC cases with high expression of the budding signature. Our findings highlight a number of immune features that permit an improved understanding of disease progression and EMT in pancreatic cancer.


2021 ◽  
Author(s):  
ZHU ZENG ◽  
Shengbo Han ◽  
Yang Wang ◽  
Yan Huang ◽  
Yuhang Hu ◽  
...  

Abstract Background: Nutrient deprivation is a distinct feature of the tumor microenvironment that plays a crucial role in various cancers. However, the contribution and regulatory mechanism of nutrient deprivation on metastasis of pancreatic cancer (PC) have not been identified. Methods: PC cells were treated with normal medium, glucose-depletion or glutamine-depletion medium to observe the epithelial-mesenchymal transition (EMT). RT-qPCR and western blot assay were applied to evaluate the alteration of mRNA and protein of zinc finger E-box binding homeobox 1 (ZEB1), a crucial EMT regulator factor. Co-IP assay was utilized for evaluating the interaction between AMP-activated protein kinase (AMPK) and ZEB1. LncRNA microarray was adopted to detect the potential lncRNA, which facilitates the association between AMPK and ZEB1. Gain- and loss-of-function experiments were performed to evaluate the roles of ZNFX1 antisense RNA 1 (ZFAS1) in EMT and metastasis of PC. Results: The present study reveals that nutrient deprivation including glucose and glutamine deprivation significantly induces EMT of PC cells, which is dependent on stabilization of ZEB1. We further discover that nutrient deprivation induces upregulation of lncRNA ZFAS1, which promotes the association between AMPK and ZEB1 to phosphorylate and stabilize ZEB1 protein. Notably, ZEB1 reciprocally promotes the transcription of ZFAS1 by binding to the promoter of ZFAS1, forming feedback with ZFAS1. Consistently, depletion of ZFAS1 obviously inhibits nutrient deprivation-induced EMT of PC cells and lung metastasis of PC in nude mice. Meanwhile, clinical data displays that ZFAS1 is overexpressed in PC tissues and correlated with high expression of ZEB1 and Vimentin (VIM), low expression of E-cadherin (E-cad), as well as poor prognosis in PC patients. Conclusions: Our study implicates that glucose and glutamine deprivation promotes EMT and metastasis of PC through lncRNA-mediated stabilization of ZEB1.


2019 ◽  
Vol 2019 ◽  
pp. 1-8 ◽  
Author(s):  
Do Luong Huynh ◽  
Hyebin Koh ◽  
Nisansala Chandimali ◽  
Jiao Jiao Zhang ◽  
Nameun Kim ◽  
...  

Pancreatic cancer has a poor survival rate as compared to other types of cancer. Surface marker CD44 plays important role in epithelial-mesenchymal transition and cancer stem cell phenotype. Therefore, targeting CD44 positive pancreatic cancer cells might enhance therapies effectiveness. Our previous studies indicated the antitumorigenesis effect of BRM270 in osteosarcoma, lung cancer, and glioblastoma; however there is no evidence on BRM270 impacts on pancreatic cancer growth. In this study, we investigated the effect of BRM270 on the isolated CD44 positive pancreatic ductal adenocarcinoma cells (CD44+PDAC). Results showed that CD44 positive cells undergo apoptosis induced by BRM270. Moreover, BRM270 also inhibits stemness and metastasis traits in CD44+PDAC via Sonic hedgehog signaling pathway and SALL4 expression.In vivostudy indicated that tumor growth derived from CD44+PDAC was suppressed as daily uptake by BRM270 5 mg/kg. These data suggest the alternative approach in antipancreatic tumorigenesis via herbal plants extract and selectively targeting CD44+PDAC cells in tumor.


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