Apoptosis induction in K562 human myelogenous leukaemia cells is connected to the modulation of Wnt/β-catenin signalling by BHX, a novel pyrazoline derivative

Five-FU@CuS/NH2 -UiO-66 as a drug delivery system for 5-fluorouracil to colorectal cancer cells

In this study, copper sulfide nanoparticles (CuS-NPs), which can improve the antiproliferative properties of conventional anticancer drugs such as 5-fluorouracil (5-FU), were incorporated into the pores of amine-functionalized UiO-66 (CuS/NH₂ -UiO-66). The introduced nano-drug delivery system was exerted to perform an in vitro treatment on CT-26 mouse colorectal cancer cells. The synthesized final product was labeled as 5-FU@CuS/NH₂ -UiO-66 and characterized through conventional methods including X-ray diffraction (XRD), Fourier transformation infrared spectroscopy (FT-IR), Brunauer-Emmett-Teller (BET) analysis, Ultraviolet-Visible (UV-Vis) analysis, Inductively coupled plasma mass spectrometry (ICP-MS), and 3-(4,5-dimethylthiazol-2-yl)-2,5-diphenyltetrazolium bromide (MTT) assay. In contrast to 5-FU, the outcomes of the cytotoxicity assay lacked any comparable results for 5-FU@CuS/NH₂ -UiO-66.

Discovery of Anticancer Agents from 2-Pyrazoline-Based Compounds

As nitrogen-containing five-membered heterocyclic structural units, the substituted pyrazole derivatives have a broad spectrum of pharmacological activities, especially 4,5-dihydro-1H-pyrazoles that also commonly known as 2-pyrazolines. Since 2010, considerable studies have been found that the 2-pyrazoline derivatives possess potent anticancer activities. In the present review, it covers the pyrazoline derivatives reported by literature from 2010 till date (2010-2019). This review aims to establish the relationship between the anticancer activities variation and different substituents introduced into a 2-pyrazoline core, which could provide important pharmacophore clues for the discovery of new anticancer agents containing 2-pyrazoline scaffold.

Wnt Signaling in Leukemia and Its Bone Marrow Microenvironment

Leukemia is an aggressive hematologic neoplastic disease. Therapy-resistant leukemic stem cells (LSCs) may contribute to the relapse of the disease. LSCs are thought to be protected in the leukemia microenvironment, mainly consisting of mesenchymal stem/stromal cells (MSC), endothelial cells, and osteoblasts. Canonical and noncanonical Wnt pathways play a critical role in the maintenance of normal hematopoietic stem cells (HSC) and LSCs. In this review, we summarize recent findings on the role of Wnt signaling in leukemia and its microenvironment and provide information on the currently available strategies for targeting Wnt signaling.

Cross talk between RNA N6-methyladenosine methyltransferase-like 3 and miR-186 regulates hepatoblastoma progression through Wnt/β-catenin signalling pathway

Objectives

N6‐methyladenosine (m6A) is a ubiquitous epigenetic RNA modification that plays a pivotal role in tumour development and metastasis. In this study, we aimed to investigate the expression profiling, clinical significance, biological function and the regulation of m6A‐related genes in hepatoblastoma (HB).

Materials and Methods

The mRNA and protein expression levels of m6A‐related genes were analysed using Gene Expression Omnibus (GEO) and tissue microarray (TMA) cohort. Kaplan‐Meier analysis was performed to evaluate the prognostic value of m6A‐related genes in HB. Knockdown of m6A‐related genes was conducted to analyse its function on cell proliferation, migration and invasion. Furthermore, bioinformatics analysis and experimental verification were used to explore the potential molecular mechanism and signalling pathway.

Results

We found that most m6A‐related genes were significantly upregulated in HB tumour tissues. High levels of methyltransferase‐like 3 (METTL3, P = .013), YTHDF2 (P = .037) and FTO (P = .032) indicated poor clinical outcomes, and the upregulation of METTL3 was an independent prognostic factor in HB patients. Functional assays showed that knockdown of METTL3 could dramatically suppress the proliferation, migration and invasion of HB cells. In addition, METTL3 was identified to be a direct target of microRNA‐186 (miR‐186). Consistently, miR‐186 was low expressed in HB tumour tissues. Moreover, overexpression of miR‐186 significantly inhibited cell aggressive phenotype both in vitro and in vivo, while the inhibitory effect could be reversed by METTL3 overexpression. Mechanism study indicated that miR‐186/METTL3 axis contributed to the progression of HB via the Wnt/β‐catenin signalling pathway.

Conclusions

M6A‐related genes were frequently dysregulated in HB. miR‐186/METTL3/Wnt/β‐catenin axis might serve as novel therapeutic targets and prognostic biomarkers in HB.

Synthesis of New 1,3,5-Triazine-Based 2-Pyrazolines as Potential Anticancer Agents

A new series of 1,3,5-triazine-containing 2-pyrazoline derivatives (8⁻11)a⁻g was synthesized by cyclocondensation reactions of [(4,6-bis((2-hydroxyethyl)amino)-1,3,5-triazin-2-yl)amine]chalcones 7a⁻g with hydrazine hydrate and derivatives. Chalcones 7a⁻g were obtained by Claisen-Schmidt condensation between aromatic aldehydes and triazinic derivative 5, which was synthesized in high yield by a microwave-assisted reaction. Seventeen of the synthesized compounds were selected and tested by the US National Cancer Institute (NCI) for their anticancer activity against 58 different human tumor cell lines. Compounds 7g and 10d,e,g showed important GI50 values ranging from 0.569 to 16.6 µM and LC50 values ranging from 5.15 to >100 µM.

Apoptosis induction in K562 human myelogenous leukaemia cells is connected to the modulation of Wnt/β-catenin signalling by BHX, a novel pyrazoline derivative

OBJECTIVES

The goal of this study was to explore the effects of BHX on human chronic myeloid leukaemia (CML) cells and to elucidate the underlying molecular mechanism.

MATERIALS AND METHODS

CML cell line K562 cells were treated with BHX. The effects of BHX on cell proliferation, apoptosis and cell cycle were detected. Subsequently, the caspase, ATP activity, Ca²⁺ , ROS and mitochondrial membrane potential (MMP) levels treated with various concentrations of BHX were analysed. The variation of relevant proteins and genes was detected. Further, toxicity of BHX on peripheral blood cells, bone marrow-nucleated cells (BMNC) and organ index were investigated on mice.

RESULTS

Results showed that BHX suppressed K562 cell proliferation in a dose-dependent manner and induced apoptosis and G0/G1 phase arrest. BHX induced mitochondria-mediated apoptosis, which was associated with downregulation of MMP, activation of caspase-3 and caspase-9, generation of intracellular ROS and elevation of Ca²⁺ in K562 cells. In treated cells, ATP levels were decreased, expression of total β-catenin, phosphorylated β-catenin and β-catenin in the nucleus was decreased, and expression of cell cycle-related proteins was decreased. Further analysis revealed that BHX lowered the transcriptional level of β-catenin. Lastly, BHX treatment significantly reduced the number of white blood cells, but had no effect on BMNC and organ index.

CONCLUSIONS

These findings provide further insight into the potential use of BHX as an anti-cancer agent against human leukaemia.