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Duan N, Hu X, Qiu H, Zhou R, Li Y, Lu W, Zhu Y, Shen S, Wu W, Yang F, Liu N. Targeting the E2F1/Rb/HDAC1 axis with the small molecule HR488B effectively inhibits colorectal cancer growth. Cell Death Dis 2023; 14:801. [PMID: 38062013 PMCID: PMC10703885 DOI: 10.1038/s41419-023-06205-0] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 11/15/2022] [Revised: 09/08/2023] [Accepted: 09/28/2023] [Indexed: 12/18/2023]
Abstract
Colorectal cancer (CRC), the third most common cancer worldwide, remains highly lethal as the disease only becomes symptomatic at an advanced stage. Growing evidence suggests that histone deacetylases (HDACs), a group of epigenetic enzymes overexpressed in precancerous lesions of CRC, may represent promising molecular targets for CRC treatment. Histone deacetylase inhibitors (HDACis) have gradually become powerful anti-cancer agents targeting epigenetic modulation and have been widely used in the clinical treatment of hematologic malignancies, while only few studies on the benefit of HDACis in the treatment of CRC. In the present study, we designed a series of small-molecule Thiazole-based HDACis, among which HR488B bound to HDAC1 with a high affinity and exerted effective anti-CRC activity both in vitro and in vivo. Moreover, we revealed that HR488B specifically suppressed the growth of CRC cells by inducing cell cycle G0/G1 arrest and apoptosis via causing mitochondrial dysfunction, reactive oxygen species (ROS) generation, and DNA damage accumulation. Importantly, we noticed that HR488B significantly decreased the expression of the E2F transcription factor 1 (E2F1), which was crucial for the inhibitory effect of HR488B on CRC. Mechanistically, HR488B obviously decreased the phosphorylation level of the retinoblastoma protein (Rb), and subsequently prevented the release of E2F1 from the E2F1/Rb/HDAC1 complex, which ultimately suppressed the growth of CRC cells. Overall, our study suggests that HR488B, a novel and efficient HDAC1 inhibitor, may be a potential candidate for CRC therapy in the future. Furthermore, targeting the E2F1/Rb/HDAC1 axis with HR488B provides a promising therapeutic avenue for CRC.
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Affiliation(s)
- Namin Duan
- Department of Chemistry, College of Food Science and Technology, Shanghai Ocean University, Shanghai, China
| | - Xiaohui Hu
- Department of Chemistry, College of Food Science and Technology, Shanghai Ocean University, Shanghai, China
| | - Huiran Qiu
- School of Biological Science and Technology, University of Jinan, Jinan, P.R. China
| | - Rui Zhou
- Department of Chemistry, College of Food Science and Technology, Shanghai Ocean University, Shanghai, China
| | - Yuru Li
- Department of Chemistry, College of Food Science and Technology, Shanghai Ocean University, Shanghai, China
| | - Wenxia Lu
- School of Biological Science and Technology, University of Jinan, Jinan, P.R. China
| | - Yamin Zhu
- Department of Chemistry, College of Food Science and Technology, Shanghai Ocean University, Shanghai, China
- Marine Biomedical Science and Technology Innovation Platform of Lingang Special Area, Shanghai, China
- National Experimental Teaching Demonstration Center for Food Science and Engineering, Shanghai Ocean University, Shanghai, China
| | - Shuang Shen
- Shanghai Jiao Tong University Affiliated Sixth People's Hospital, Shanghai, China
| | - Wenhui Wu
- Marine Biomedical Science and Technology Innovation Platform of Lingang Special Area, Shanghai, China
- National Experimental Teaching Demonstration Center for Food Science and Engineering, Shanghai Ocean University, Shanghai, China
- Department of Marine Bio-Pharmacology, College of Food Science and Technology, Shanghai Ocean University, Shanghai, China
| | - Feifei Yang
- School of Biological Science and Technology, University of Jinan, Jinan, P.R. China.
| | - Ning Liu
- Department of Chemistry, College of Food Science and Technology, Shanghai Ocean University, Shanghai, China.
- Marine Biomedical Science and Technology Innovation Platform of Lingang Special Area, Shanghai, China.
- National Experimental Teaching Demonstration Center for Food Science and Engineering, Shanghai Ocean University, Shanghai, China.
- Department of Marine Bio-Pharmacology, College of Food Science and Technology, Shanghai Ocean University, Shanghai, China.
- Jerome Lipper Multiple Myeloma Center, Department of Medical Oncology, Dana-Farber Cancer Institute, Harvard Medical School, Boston, USA.
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Li M, Xu W, Zhang L, Gao E, Han X, Chen Z. Convallatoxin Inhibits Cell Proliferation and Induces Cell Apoptosis by Attenuating the Akt-E2F1 Signaling Pathway in K562 Cells. Nat Prod Commun 2022. [DOI: 10.1177/1934578x221136929] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/16/2022] Open
Abstract
Objective: To determine the effect of convallatoxin on K562 cell proliferation and apoptosis. Methods: CCK-8 assay was used to detect cell proliferation; PI staining, JC-1 staining, and Annexin V-FITC/PI double staining were used to analyze the cell cycle, cell mitochondrial membrane potential, and cell apoptosis; and Western blotting was used to detect cleaved caspase-9, cleaved caspase-3, Bcl-2, Bax, and E2F1 expression and Akt phosphorylation. Subsequently, AutoDock software was used to determine the interaction between convallatoxin and Akt1. Results: Upon treatment with convallatoxin, the proliferation of K562 cells was inhibited, the cells were arrested at the S and G2/M phases, and cell apoptosis was significantly induced. In addition, Akt phosphorylation and E2F1 expression were significantly decreased, whereas E2F1 overexpression rescued convallatoxin-induced cell proliferation and apoptosis. In addition, a molecular docking assay indicated that convallatoxin could bind to Akt1. Conclusion: Convallatoxin inhibited cell proliferation and induced mitochondrial-related apoptosis in K562 cells by reducing the Akt-E2F1 signaling pathway, indicating that it is a potential agent for treating leukemia.
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Affiliation(s)
- Man Li
- Department of Clinical Laboratory, The Second People's Hospital of Hefei, Hefei, China
| | - Wangwang Xu
- Anhui Province Key Laboratory of Translational Cancer Research, Bengbu Medical College, Bengbu, China
| | - Lu Zhang
- Anhui Province Key Laboratory of Translational Cancer Research, Bengbu Medical College, Bengbu, China
| | - Erke Gao
- Anhui Province Key Laboratory of Translational Cancer Research, Bengbu Medical College, Bengbu, China
| | - Xiaojin Han
- Anhui Province Key Laboratory of Translational Cancer Research, Bengbu Medical College, Bengbu, China
| | - Zhengxu Chen
- Department of Clinical Laboratory, The Second People's Hospital of Hefei, Hefei, China
- Anhui Province Key Laboratory of Translational Cancer Research, Bengbu Medical College, Bengbu, China
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Keeping Cell Death Alive: An Introduction into the French Cell Death Research Network. Biomolecules 2022; 12:biom12070901. [PMID: 35883457 PMCID: PMC9313292 DOI: 10.3390/biom12070901] [Citation(s) in RCA: 1] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 05/27/2022] [Revised: 06/16/2022] [Accepted: 06/20/2022] [Indexed: 02/01/2023] Open
Abstract
Since the Nobel Prize award more than twenty years ago for discovering the core apoptotic pathway in C. elegans, apoptosis and various other forms of regulated cell death have been thoroughly characterized by researchers around the world. Although many aspects of regulated cell death still remain to be elucidated in specific cell subtypes and disease conditions, many predicted that research into cell death was inexorably reaching a plateau. However, this was not the case since the last decade saw a multitude of cell death modalities being described, while harnessing their therapeutic potential reached clinical use in certain cases. In line with keeping research into cell death alive, francophone researchers from several institutions in France and Belgium established the French Cell Death Research Network (FCDRN). The research conducted by FCDRN is at the leading edge of emerging topics such as non-apoptotic functions of apoptotic effectors, paracrine effects of cell death, novel canonical and non-canonical mechanisms to induce apoptosis in cell death-resistant cancer cells or regulated forms of necrosis and the associated immunogenic response. Collectively, these various lines of research all emerged from the study of apoptosis and in the next few years will increase the mechanistic knowledge into regulated cell death and how to harness it for therapy.
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Lin HP, Rea M, Wang Z, Yang C. Down-regulation of lncRNA MEG3 promotes chronic low dose cadmium exposure-induced cell transformation and cancer stem cell-like property. Toxicol Appl Pharmacol 2021; 430:115724. [PMID: 34520792 DOI: 10.1016/j.taap.2021.115724] [Citation(s) in RCA: 3] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 07/12/2021] [Revised: 09/08/2021] [Accepted: 09/09/2021] [Indexed: 12/12/2022]
Abstract
Cadmium (Cd) is a toxic heavy metal and one of carcinogens that cause lung cancer. However, the exact mechanism of Cd carcinogenesis remains unclear. To investigate the mechanism of Cd carcinogenesis, we exposed human bronchial epithelial cells (BEAS-2B) to a low dose of Cd (2.5 μM, CdCl2) for 9 months, which caused cell malignant transformation and generated cancer stem cell (CSC)-like cells. The goal of this study is to investigate the underlying mechanism. The long non-coding RNA (lncRNA) microarray analysis showed that the expression level of a tumor suppressive lncRNA maternally expressed 3 (MEG3) is significantly down-regulated in Cd-transformed cells, which is confirmed by further q-PCR analysis. Mechanistically, it was found that chronic Cd exposure up-regulates the levels of DNA methyltransferases (DNMTs), which increases the methylation of the differentially methylated region (DMR) 1.5 kb upstream of MEG3 transcription start site to reduce MEG3 expression. Functional studies showed that stably overexpressing MEG3 in Cd-transformed cells significantly reduces their transformed phenotypes. Moreover, stably overexpressing MEG3 in parental non-transformed human bronchial epithelial cells significantly impaired the capability of chronic Cd exposure to induce cell transformation and CSC-like property. Further mechanistic studies revealed that the cell cycle inhibitor p21 level is reduced and retinoblastoma protein (Rb) phosphorylation is increased in Cd-transformed cells to promote cell cycle progression. In addition, Cd-transformed cells also expressed higher levels of Bcl-xL and displayed apoptosis resistance. In contrast, stably overexpressing MEG3 increased p21 levels and reduced Rb phosphorylation and Bcl-xL levels in Cd-exposed cells and reduced their cell cycle progression and apoptosis resistance. Together, these findings suggest that MEG3 down-regulation may play important roles in Cd-induced cell transformation and CSC-like property by promoting cell cycle progression and apoptosis resistance.
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Affiliation(s)
- Hsuan-Pei Lin
- Department of Toxicology and Cancer Biology, University of Kentucky, Lexington, KY 40506, United States of America
| | - Matthew Rea
- Department of Molecular and Cellular Biochemistry, University of Kentucky, Lexington, KY 40536, United States of America
| | - Zhishan Wang
- Division of Cancer Biology, Department of Medicine, MetroHealth Medical Center, Case Western University School of Medicine, Cleveland, OH 44109, United States of America
| | - Chengfeng Yang
- Division of Cancer Biology, Department of Medicine, MetroHealth Medical Center, Case Western University School of Medicine, Cleveland, OH 44109, United States of America.
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Barillé-Nion S, Lohard S, Juin PP. Targeting of BCL-2 Family Members during Anticancer Treatment: A Necessary Compromise between Individual Cell and Ecosystemic Responses? Biomolecules 2020; 10:E1109. [PMID: 32722518 PMCID: PMC7464802 DOI: 10.3390/biom10081109] [Citation(s) in RCA: 2] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 06/12/2020] [Revised: 07/15/2020] [Accepted: 07/22/2020] [Indexed: 01/07/2023] Open
Abstract
The imbalance between BCL-2 homologues and pro-death counterparts frequently noted in cancer cells endows them with a cell autonomous survival advantage. To eradicate ectopic cells, inhibitors of these homologues (BH3 mimetics) were developed to trigger, during anticancer treatment, full activation of the canonical mitochondrial apoptotic pathway and related caspases. Despite efficiency in some clinical settings, these compounds do not completely fulfill their initial promise. We herein put forth that a growing body of evidence indicates that mitochondrial integrity, controlled by BCL-2 family proteins, and downstream caspases regulate other cell death modes and influence extracellular signaling by committed cells. Moreover, intercellular communications play a key role in spreading therapeutic response across cancer cell populations and in engaging an immune response. We thus advocate that BH3 mimetics administration would be more efficient in the long term if it did not induce apoptosis in all sensitive cells at the same time, but if it could instead allow (or trigger) death signal production by non-terminally committed dying cell populations. The development of such a trade-off strategy requires to unravel the effects of BH3 mimetics not only on each individual cancer cell but also on homotypic and heterotypic cell interactions in dynamic tumor ecosystems.
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Affiliation(s)
- Sophie Barillé-Nion
- Centre de Recherche en Cancérologie et Immunologie Nantes Angers (CRCINA), INSERMU1232, Université de Nantes, F-44000 Nantes, France; (S.B.-N.); (S.L.)
- SIRIC ILIAD, 44000 Nantes, France
| | - Steven Lohard
- Centre de Recherche en Cancérologie et Immunologie Nantes Angers (CRCINA), INSERMU1232, Université de Nantes, F-44000 Nantes, France; (S.B.-N.); (S.L.)
- Radiation Oncology Branch, National Cancer Institute, Bethesda, MD 20892, USA
| | - Philippe P. Juin
- Centre de Recherche en Cancérologie et Immunologie Nantes Angers (CRCINA), INSERMU1232, Université de Nantes, F-44000 Nantes, France; (S.B.-N.); (S.L.)
- SIRIC ILIAD, 44000 Nantes, France
- Institut de Cancérologie de l’Ouest, 15 Rue André Boquel, 49055 Angers, France
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Dual targeting of BCL2 and MCL1 rescues myeloma cells resistant to BCL2 and MCL1 inhibitors associated with the formation of BAX/BAK hetero-complexes. Cell Death Dis 2020; 11:316. [PMID: 32371863 PMCID: PMC7200824 DOI: 10.1038/s41419-020-2505-1] [Citation(s) in RCA: 19] [Impact Index Per Article: 4.8] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 01/28/2020] [Revised: 04/09/2020] [Accepted: 04/10/2020] [Indexed: 11/08/2022]
Abstract
Multiple myeloma is a plasma cell malignancy that escapes from apoptosis by heterogeneously over-expressing anti-apoptotic BCL2 proteins. Myeloma cells with a t(11;14) translocation present a particular vulnerability to BCL2 inhibition while a majority of myeloma cells relies on MCL1 for survival. The present study aimed to determine whether the combination of BCL2 and MCL1 inhibitors at low doses could be of benefit for myeloma cells beyond the single selective inhibition of BCL2 or MCL1. We identified that half of patients were not efficiently targeted neither by BCL2 inhibitor nor MCL1 inhibitor. Seventy percent of these myeloma samples, either from patients at diagnosis or relapse, presented a marked increase of apoptosis upon low dose combination of both inhibitors. Interestingly, primary cells from a patient in progression under venetoclax treatment were not sensitive ex vivo to neither venetoclax nor to MCL1 inhibitor, whereas the combination of both efficiently induced cell death. This finding suggests that the combination could overcome venetoclax resistance. The efficacy of the combination was also confirmed in U266 xenograft model resistant to BCL2 and MCL1 inhibitors. Mechanistically, we demonstrated that the combination of both inhibitors favors apoptosis in a BAX/BAK dependent manner. We showed that activated BAX was readily increased upon the inhibitor combination leading to the formation of BAK/BAX hetero-complexes. We found that BCLXL remains a major resistant factor of cell death induced by this combination. The present study supports a rational for the clinical use of venetoclax/S63845 combination in myeloma patients with the potential to elicit significant clinical activity when both single inhibitors would not be effective but also to overcome developed in vivo venetoclax resistance.
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Zhang L, Tian S, Pei M, Zhao M, Wang L, Jiang Y, Yang T, Zhao J, Song L, Yang X. Crosstalk between histone modification and DNA methylation orchestrates the epigenetic regulation of the costimulatory factors, Tim‑3 and galectin‑9, in cervical cancer. Oncol Rep 2019; 42:2655-2669. [PMID: 31661141 PMCID: PMC6859457 DOI: 10.3892/or.2019.7388] [Citation(s) in RCA: 13] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.6] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 05/31/2019] [Accepted: 10/10/2019] [Indexed: 12/22/2022] Open
Abstract
Persistent infection with high-risk human papillomavirus is known to cause cervical cancer. The binding of the costimulatory factors, Tim-3 and galectin-9, can cause immune tolerance and lead to immune escape during carcinogenesis. Epigenetic regulation is essential for Tim-3/galectin-9 expression, which affects the outcome of local cervical cancer infection. Hence, exploring the epigenetic regulatory mechanisms of costimulatory signaling by Tim-3/galectin-9 is of great interest for investigating the mechanisms through which these proteins are regulated in cervical cancer tumorigenesis. In this study, we report that E2F-1 and FOXM1 mediated by HPV18 E6 and E7 can enhance the transcriptional activity of Enhancer of zeste homolog 2 (EZH2) by binding to its promoter region, resulting in the induced expression of the EZH2-specific target protein, H3K27me3, which consequently reduces the expression of the downstream target gene, DNA (cytosine-5)-methyltransferase 3A (DNMT3A). EZH2 and H3K27me3 directly interact with the DNMT3A promoter region to negatively regulate its expression in HeLa cells. Moreover, the downregulated DNMT3A and the decreased methylation levels in HAVCR2/LGALS9 promoter regions in HeLa cells promoted the expression of Tim-3/galectin-9. Furthermore, the high expression of Tim-3/galectin-9 was associated with HPV positivity among patients with cervical cancer. Moreover, HAVCR2/LGALS9 promoter regions were hypermethylated in normal cervical tissues, and this hypermethylated status inhibited gene expression. On the whole, these findings suggest that EZH2, H3K27me3 and DNMT3A mediate the epigenetic regulation of the negative stimulatory molecules, Tim-3 and galectin-9 in cervical cancer which is associated with HPV18 infection.
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Affiliation(s)
- Li Zhang
- Department of Gynecology and Obstetrics, The First Affiliated Hospital of Xi'an Jiaotong University, Xi'an, Shaanxi 710061, P.R. China
| | - Sijuan Tian
- Department of Gynecology and Obstetrics, The First Affiliated Hospital of Xi'an Jiaotong University, Xi'an, Shaanxi 710061, P.R. China
| | - Meili Pei
- Department of Gynecology and Obstetrics, The First Affiliated Hospital of Xi'an Jiaotong University, Xi'an, Shaanxi 710061, P.R. China
| | - Minyi Zhao
- Department of Gynecology and Obstetrics, The First Affiliated Hospital of Xi'an Jiaotong University, Xi'an, Shaanxi 710061, P.R. China
| | - Li Wang
- Department of Gynecology and Obstetrics, The First Affiliated Hospital of Xi'an Jiaotong University, Xi'an, Shaanxi 710061, P.R. China
| | - Yifan Jiang
- Department of Gynecology and Obstetrics, The First Affiliated Hospital of Xi'an Jiaotong University, Xi'an, Shaanxi 710061, P.R. China
| | - Ting Yang
- Department of Gynecology and Obstetrics, The First Affiliated Hospital of Xi'an Jiaotong University, Xi'an, Shaanxi 710061, P.R. China
| | - Juan Zhao
- Department of Gynecology and Obstetrics, The First Affiliated Hospital of Xi'an Jiaotong University, Xi'an, Shaanxi 710061, P.R. China
| | - Lihua Song
- Research Center for Food Safety and Nutrition, Bor S. Luh Food Safety Research Center, Shanghai Jiao Tong University, Shanghai 200240, P.R. China
| | - Xiaofeng Yang
- Department of Gynecology and Obstetrics, The First Affiliated Hospital of Xi'an Jiaotong University, Xi'an, Shaanxi 710061, P.R. China
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