scholarly journals Picropodophyllotoxin, an Epimer of Podophyllotoxin, Causes Apoptosis of Human Esophageal Squamous Cell Carcinoma Cells Through ROS-Mediated JNK/P38 MAPK Pathways

2020 ◽  
Vol 21 (13) ◽  
pp. 4640
Author(s):  
Ah-Won Kwak ◽  
Goo Yoon ◽  
Mee-Hyun Lee ◽  
Seung-Sik Cho ◽  
Jung-Hyun Shim ◽  
...  

Esophageal squamous cell carcinoma (ESCC), a major histologic type of esophageal cancer, is one of the frequent causes of cancer-related death worldwide. Picropodophyllotoxin (PPT) is the main component of Podophyllum hexandrum root with antitumor activity via apoptosis-mediated mechanisms in several cancer cells. However, the underlying mechanism of the PPT effects in apoptosis induction in cancer remains ambiguous. Hence, in this study, we evaluate the anti-cancer effects of PPT in apoptotic signaling pathway-related mechanisms in ESCC cells. First, to verify the effect of PPT on ESCC cell viability, we employed an MTT assay. PPT inhibited the viability of ESCC cells in time- and dose-dependent manners. PPT induced G2/M phase cell cycle arrest and annexin V-stained cell apoptosis through the activation of the c-Jun N-terminal kinase (JNK)/p38 pathways. Furthermore, the treatment of KYSE 30 and KYSE 450 ESCC cells with PPT induced apoptosis involving the regulation of endoplasmic reticulum stress- and apoptosis-related proteins by reactive oxygen species (ROS) generation, the loss of mitochondrial membrane potential, and multi-caspase activation. In conclusion, our results indicate that the apoptotic effect of PPT on ESCC cells has the potential to become a new anti-cancer drug by increasing ROS levels and inducing the JNK/p38 signaling pathways.

2016 ◽  
Vol 242 (1) ◽  
pp. 45-52 ◽  
Author(s):  
Guanghui Cui ◽  
Donglei Liu ◽  
Weihao Li ◽  
Yuhang Li ◽  
Youguang Liang ◽  
...  

Increasing evidence suggests that miR-194 is down-regulated in esophageal squamous cell carcinoma tumor tissue. However, the role and underlying mechanism of miR-194 in esophageal squamous cell carcinoma have not been well defined. We used DIANA, TargetScan and miRanda to perform target prediction analysis and found KDM5B is a potential target of miR-194. Based on these findings, we speculated that miR-194 might play a role in esophageal squamous cell carcinoma development and progression by regulation the expression of KDM5B. We detected the expression of miR-194 and KDM5B by quantitative real-time reverse transcription PCR (qRT-PCR) and Western blot assays, respectively, and found down-regulation of miR-194 and up-regulation of KDM5B existed in esophageal squamous cell carcinoma cell lines. By detecting proliferation, invasion and apoptosis of TE6 and TE14 cells transfected with miR-194 mimics or mimic control, miR-194 was found to inhibit proliferation and invasion and promote apoptosis of esophageal squamous cell carcinoma cells. miR-194 was further verified to regulate proliferation, apoptosis and invasion of esophageal squamous cell carcinoma cells by directly targeting KDM5B. Furthermore, animal studies were performed and showed that overexpression of miR-194 inhibited the growth of esophageal squamous cell carcinoma tumors in vivo. These results confirmed our speculation that miR-194 targets KDM5B to inhibit esophageal squamous cell carcinoma development and progression. These findings offer new clues for esophageal squamous cell carcinoma development and progression and novel potential therapeutic targets for esophageal squamous cell carcinoma.


2019 ◽  
Vol 9 (1) ◽  
Author(s):  
Ke Sun ◽  
Guangping Zhang

Abstract Objective Esophageal squamous cell carcinoma (ESCC) is one of the leading causes of cancer-related deaths worldwide. Emerging evidence suggests the involvement of long noncoding RNAs (lncRNAs) in tumorigenesis. LncRNA Cancer Susceptibility Candidate 2 (CASC2) has been demonstrated to act as a tumor suppressor contributing to the development and progression of several cancers. However, the functional significance and underlying mechanism of CASC2 in ESCC progression has not been well elucidated. Methods The expression levels of CASC2 in ESCC tissues were detected by qRT-PCR. CASC2 overexpression and knockdown models were established and used to investigate the functional role of CASC2 in ESCC cells. RIP, RNA pull-down and dual-luciferase assay was used to detect the association between CASC2 and miR-155. The interaction between CASC2 and Suppressor Of Cytokine Signaling 1 (SOCS1) was assessed by RIP and RNA pull-down assays. Results In the present study, we found that CASC2 was significantly downregulated in ESCC tissues and positively correlated with overall survival time of patients with ESCC. Functional assays demonstrated that CASC2 suppressed proliferation, migration and invasion, as well as enhanced drug sensitivity in ESCC cells. Mechanistically, CASC2 inhibited ESCC progression by upregulating the expression of SOCS1 via two different ways. CASC2 acted as competing endogenous RNA (ceRNA) for miR-155 to post-transcriptionally increase SOCS1 expression. On the other hand, CASC2 was capable of interacting with SOCS1 protein and suppressing its degradation. Conclusion Conclusively, these results demonstrated that CASC2 could exert as a tumor suppressive lncRNA in ESCC progression via regulating SOCS1.


Forests ◽  
2019 ◽  
Vol 11 (1) ◽  
pp. 8 ◽  
Author(s):  
Goo Yoon ◽  
Mee-Hyun Lee ◽  
Ah-Won Kwak ◽  
Ha-Na Oh ◽  
Seung-Sik Cho ◽  
...  

Esophageal squamous cell carcinoma (ESCC) is one of the most common cancers in East Asia and is the seventh leading cause of cancer deaths. Podophyllotoxin (PT), a cyclolignan isolated from podophyllum peltatum, exhibits anti-cancer effects at the cellular level. This study investigated the underlying mechanism of anti-cancer effects induced by PT in ESCC cells. Exposure to increasing concentrations of PT led to a significant decrease in the growth and anchorage-independent colony numbers of ESCC cells. PT showed high anticancer efficacy against a panel of four types of ESCC cells, including KYSE 30, KYSE 70, KYSE 410, KYSE 450, and KYSE 510 by IC50 at values ranges from 0.17 to 0.3 μM. We also found that PT treatment induced G2/M phase arrest in the cell cycle and accumulation of the sub-G1 population, as well as apoptosis. Exposure to PT triggered a significant synthesis of reactive oxygen species (ROS), a loss of mitochondrial membrane potential (MMP), and activation of various caspases. Furthermore, PT increased the levels of phosphorylated c-Jun N-terminal kinase (JNK), p38, and the expression of Endoplasmic reticulum (ER) stress marker proteins via ROS generation. An increase in the level of pro-apoptotic proteins and a reduction in the anti-apoptotic protein level induced ESCC cell death via the loss of MMP. Additionally, the release of cytochrome c into the cytosol with Apaf-1 induced the activation of multi-caspases. In conclusion, our results revealed that PT resulted in apoptosis of ESCC cells by modulating ROS-mediated mitochondrial and ER stress-dependent mechanisms. Therefore, PT is a promising therapeutic candidate as an anti-cancer drug against ESCC for clinical use.


2002 ◽  
Vol 10 (4) ◽  
pp. 279-280 ◽  
Author(s):  
Narenda Singh ◽  
Krishna Verma

This present report describes the treatment of a laryngeal squamous cell carcinoma patient with the water-soluble artemisinin analog, artesunate Artemisinin is a novel anti-cancer drug with demonstrated results in killing cancer cells. Artesunate injections and tablets were administered to the patient over a period of nine months. The tumor was significantly reduced (by 70%) after two months of treatment. Overall, the artesunate treatment of the patient was beneficial in prolonging and improving the quality of life Artemisinin and its analogs offer promise for cancer therapy.


2015 ◽  
Vol 11 (1) ◽  
pp. 119
Author(s):  
Da-Lu Li ◽  
Zhu-Liang Wei ◽  
Wen-Mei Zhang ◽  
Zhi-Gang Li

<p class="Abstract">Cabozantinib is a tyrosine kinase inhibitor involved in inhibition of cell proliferation and colony formation. We studied anti-cancer properties of cabozantinib in oral squamous cell carcinoma cells. The viability of BHY and HSC-3 cells decreased with increase in cabozantinib concentration and time. The proliferation of cell lines was affected by increasing concentration of cabozantinib from 0.3 to 1.2 μM after 48 hours of treatment. The expression of MET and phosphorylated MET was not affected by cabozantinib treatment. Cabozantinib-treated cells when compared to control, showed concentration-dependent increase in BHY and HSC-3 cells during G2/M phase and decrease in S phase with increase in cabozantinib concentration. Annexin-V/propidium iodide double staining showed that cells with annexin-V increased with the increase in cabozantinib concentration. The expression of apoptosis related proteins cleaved caspase-3 and cleaved-PARP were increased with increase in cabozantinib concentration. It was also found that suppression of FAK activation and expression was dose dependent. The results from this study revealed that cabozantinib can be useful in developing a drug for effective treatment of oral squamous cell carcinoma cells.</p><p> </p>


2018 ◽  
Vol 110 (2) ◽  
pp. 795-804 ◽  
Author(s):  
Shinpei Ogino ◽  
Hirotaka Konishi ◽  
Daisuke Ichikawa ◽  
Daiki Matsubara ◽  
Katsutoshi Shoda ◽  
...  

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