Capsaicin triggers autophagic cell survival which drives epithelial mesenchymal transition and chemoresistance in bladder cancer cells in an Hedgehog-dependent manner

Dual-factor model of sleep and diet: a new approach to understanding central fatigue

Background

Numerous studies have recently examined the impact of dietary factors such as high-fat diets on fatigue. Our study aims to investigate whether high-fat diet (HFD) alone or combined with alternate-day fasting (ADF) can lead to the central fatigue symptoms and to investigate the potential integration of dietary and sleep variables in the development of central fatigue models.

Methods

Seventy-five male Wistar rats were divided into five groups: control, HFD, HFD + ADF, modified multiple platform method (MMPM), and MMPM+HFD + ADF. Each group underwent a 21-day modeling period according to their respective protocol. Their behavioral characteristics, fatigue biochemical markers, hippocampal pathological changes, mitochondrial ultrastructure, and oxidative stress damage were analyzed.

Results

Our findings demonstrate that using only HFD did not cause central fatigue, but combining it with ADF did. This combination led to reduced exercise endurance, decreased locomotor activity, impaired learning and memory abilities, along with alterations in serum levels of alanine aminotransferase (ALT), creatine kinase (CK), and lactate (LAC), as well as hippocampal pathological damage and other central fatigue symptoms. Moreover, the MMPM+HFD + ADF method led to the most obvious central fatigue symptoms in rats, including a variety of behavioral changes, alterations in fatigue-related biochemical metabolic markers, prominent pathological changes in hippocampal tissue, severe damage to the ultrastructure of mitochondria in hippocampal regions, changes in neurotransmitters, and evident oxidative stress damage. Additionally, it was observed that rats subjected to HFD + ADF, MMPM, and MMPM+HFD + ADF modeling method exhibited significant brain oxidative stress damage.

Conclusion

We have demonstrated the promotive role of dietary factors in the development of central fatigue and have successfully established a more stable and clinically relevant animal model of central fatigue by integrating dietary and sleep factors.

Phytochemical-mediated modulation of autophagy and endoplasmic reticulum stress as a cancer therapeutic approach

Autophagy and endoplasmic reticulum (ER) stress are conserved processes that generally promote survival, but can induce cell death when physiological thresholds are crossed. The pro-survival aspects of these processes are exploited by cancer cells for tumor development and progression. Therefore, anticancer drugs targeting autophagy or ER stress to induce cell death and/or block the pro-survival aspects are being investigated extensively. Consistently, several phytochemicals have been reported to exert their anticancer effects by modulating autophagy and/or ER stress. Various phytochemicals (e.g., celastrol, curcumin, emodin, resveratrol, among others) activate the unfolded protein response to induce ER stress-mediated apoptosis through different pathways. Similarly, various phytochemicals induce autophagy through different mechanisms (namely mechanistic target of Rapamycin [mTOR] inhibition). However, phytochemical-induced autophagy can function either as a cytoprotective mechanism or as programmed cell death type II. Interestingly, at times, the same phytochemical (e.g., 6-gingerol, emodin, shikonin, among others) can induce cytoprotective autophagy or programmed cell death type II depending on cellular contexts, such as cancer type. Although there is well-documented mechanistic interplay between autophagy and ER stress, only a one-way modulation was noted with some phytochemicals (carnosol, capsaicin, cryptotanshinone, guangsangon E, kaempferol, and δ-tocotrienol): ER stress-dependent autophagy. Plant extracts are sources of potent phytochemicals and while numerous phytochemicals have been investigated in preclinical and clinical studies, the search for novel phytochemicals with anticancer effects is ongoing from plant extracts used in traditional medicine (e.g., Origanum majorana). Nonetheless, the clinical translation of phytochemicals, a promising avenue for cancer therapeutics, is hindered by several limitations that need to be addressed in future studies.

Autophagy in cancer immunotherapy: Perspective on immune evasion and cell death interactions

Both the innate and adaptive immune systems work together to produce immunity. Cancer immunotherapy is a novel approach to tumor suppression that has arisen in response to the ineffectiveness of traditional treatments like radiation and chemotherapy. On the other hand, immune evasion can diminish immunotherapy's efficacy. There has been a lot of focus in recent years on autophagy and other underlying mechanisms that impact the possibility of cancer immunotherapy. The primary feature of autophagy is the synthesis of autophagosomes, which engulf cytoplasmic components and destroy them by lysosomal degradation. The planned cell death mechanism known as autophagy can have opposite effects on carcinogenesis, either increasing or decreasing it. It is autophagy's job to maintain the balance and proper functioning of immune cells like B cells, T cells, and others. In addition, autophagy controls whether macrophages adopt the immunomodulatory M1 or M2 phenotype. The ability of autophagy to control the innate and adaptive immune systems is noteworthy. Interleukins and chemokines are immunological checkpoint chemicals that autophagy regulates. Reducing antigen presentation to induce immunological tolerance is another mechanism by which autophagy promotes cancer survival. Therefore, targeting autophagy is of importance for enhancing potential of cancer immunotherapy.

Harnessing function of EMT in cancer drug resistance: a metastasis regulator determines chemotherapy response

Epithelial-mesenchymal transition (EMT) is a complicated molecular process that governs cellular shape and function changes throughout tissue development and embryogenesis. In addition, EMT contributes to the development and spread of tumors. Expanding and degrading the surrounding microenvironment, cells undergoing EMT move away from the main location. On the basis of the expression of fibroblast-specific protein-1 (FSP1), fibroblast growth factor (FGF), collagen, and smooth muscle actin (-SMA), the mesenchymal phenotype exhibited in fibroblasts is crucial for promoting EMT. While EMT is not entirely reliant on its regulators like ZEB1/2, Twist, and Snail proteins, investigation of upstream signaling (like EGF, TGF-β, Wnt) is required to get a more thorough understanding of tumor EMT. Throughout numerous cancers, connections between tumor epithelial and fibroblast cells that influence tumor growth have been found. The significance of cellular crosstalk stems from the fact that these events affect therapeutic response and disease prognosis. This study examines how classical EMT signals emanating from various cancer cells interfere to tumor metastasis, treatment resistance, and tumor recurrence.

Capsaicin: A chili pepper bioactive phytocompound with a potential role in suppressing cancer development and progression

Cancer profoundly influences morbidity and fatality rates worldwide. Patients often have dismal prognoses despite recent improvements in cancer therapy regimens. However, potent biomolecules derived from natural sources, including medicinal and dietary plants, contain biological and pharmacological properties to prevent and treat various human malignancies. Capsaicin is a bioactive phytocompound present in red hot chili peppers. Capsaicin has demonstrated many biological effects, including antioxidant, anti-inflammatory, antimicrobial, and anticarcinogenic capabilities. This review highlights the cellular and molecular pathways through which capsaicin exhibits antineoplastic activities. Our work also depicts the synergistic anticancer properties of capsaicin in conjunction with other natural bioactive components and approved anticancer drugs. Capsaicin inhibits proliferation in various cancerous cells, and its antineoplastic actions in numerous in vitro and in vivo carcinoma models impact oncogenesis, tumor-promoting and suppressor genes, and associated signaling pathways. Capsaicin alone or combined with other phytocompounds or approved antineoplastic drugs triggers cell cycle progression arrest, generating reactive oxygen species and disrupting mitochondrial membrane integrity, ultimately stimulating caspases and promoting death. Furthermore, capsaicin alone or in combination can promote apoptosis in carcinoma cells by enhancing the p53 and c-Myc gene expressions. In conclusion, capsaicin alone or in combination can have enormous potential for cancer prevention and intervention, but further high-quality studies are needed to firmly establish the clinical efficacy of this phytocompound.

Targeting hedgehog-driven mechanisms of drug-resistant cancers

Due to the cellular plasticity that is inherent to cancer, the acquisition of resistance to therapy remains one of the biggest obstacles to patient care. In many patients, the surviving cancer cell subpopulation goes on to proliferate or metastasize, often as the result of dramatically altered cell signaling and transcriptional pathways. A notable example is the Hedgehog (Hh) signaling pathway, which is a driver of several cancer subtypes and aberrantly activated in a wide range of malignancies in response to therapy. This review will summarize the field's current understanding of the many roles played by Hh signaling in drug resistance and will include topics such as non-canonical activation of Gli proteins, amplification of genes which promote tolerance to chemotherapy, the use of hedgehog-targeted drugs and tool compounds, and remaining gaps in our knowledge of the transcriptional mechanisms at play.

New insight in urological cancer therapy: From epithelial-mesenchymal transition (EMT) to application of nano-biomaterials

A high number of cancer-related deaths (up to 90) are due to metastasis and simple definition of metastasis is new colony formation of tumor cells in a secondary site. In tumor cells, epithelial-mesenchymal transition (EMT) stimulates metastasis and invasion, and it is a common characteristic of malignant tumors. Prostate cancer, bladder cancer and renal cancer are three main types of urological tumors that their malignant and aggressive behaviors are due to abnormal proliferation and metastasis. EMT has been well-documented as a mechanism for promoting invasion of tumor cells and in the current review, a special attention is directed towards understanding role of EMT in malignancy, metastasis and therapy response of urological cancers. The invasion and metastatic characteristics of urological tumors enhance due to EMT induction and this is essential for ensuring survival and ability in developing new colonies in neighboring and distant tissues and organs. When EMT induction occurs, malignant behavior of tumor cells enhances and their tend in developing therapy resistance especially chemoresistance promotes that is one of the underlying reasons for therapy failure and patient death. The lncRNAs, microRNAs, eIF5A2, Notch-4 and hypoxia are among common modulators of EMT mechanism in urological tumors. Moreover, anti-tumor compounds such as metformin can be utilized in suppressing malignancy of urological tumors. Besides, genes and epigenetic factors modulating EMT mechanism can be therapeutically targeted for interfering malignancy of urological tumors. Nanomaterials are new emerging agents in urological cancer therapy that they can improve potential of current therapeutics by their targeted delivery to tumor site. The important hallmarks of urological cancers including growth, invasion and angiogenesis can be suppressed by cargo-loaded nanomaterials. Moreover, nanomaterials can improve chemotherapy potential in urological cancer elimination and by providing phototherapy, they mediate synergistic tumor suppression. The clinical application depends on development of biocompatible nanomaterials.

Molecular Mechanisms of Tumor Cell Stemness Modulation during Formation of Spheroids

Cancer stem cells (CSCs), their properties and interaction with microenvironment are of interest in modern medicine and biology. There are many studies on the emergence of CSCs and their involvement in tumor pathogenesis. The most important property inherent to CSCs is their stemness. Stemness combines ability of the cell to maintain its pluripotency, give rise to differentiated cells, and interact with environment to maintain a balance between dormancy, proliferation, and regeneration. While adult stem cells exhibit these properties by participating in tissue homeostasis, CSCs behave as their malignant equivalents. High tumor resistance to therapy, ability to differentiate, activate angiogenesis and metastasis arise precisely due to the stemness of CSCs. These cells can be used as a target for therapy of different types of cancer. Laboratory models are needed to study cancer biology and find new therapeutic strategies. A promising direction is three-dimensional tumor models or spheroids. Such models exhibit properties resembling stemness in a natural tumor. By modifying spheroids, it becomes possible to investigate the effect of therapy on CSCs, thus contributing to the development of anti-tumor drug test systems. The review examines the niche of CSCs, the possibility of their study using three-dimensional spheroids, and existing markers for assessing stemness of CSCs.

How Should the Worldwide Knowledge of Traditional Cancer Healing Be Integrated with Herbs and Mushrooms into Modern Molecular Pharmacology?

Traditional herbal medicine (THM) is a "core" from which modern medicine has evolved over time. Besides this, one third of people worldwide have no access to modern medicine and rely only on traditional medicine. To date, drugs of plant origin, or their derivates (paclitaxel, vinblastine, vincristine, vinorelbine, etoposide, camptothecin, topotecan, irinotecan, and omacetaxine), are very important in the therapy of malignancies and they are included in most chemotherapeutic regimes. To date, 391,000 plant and 14,000 mushroom species exist. Their medical and biochemical capabilities have not been studied in detail. In this review, we systematized the information about plants and mushrooms, as well as their active compounds with antitumor properties. Plants and mushrooms are divided based on the regions where they are used in ethnomedicine to treat malignancies. The majority of their active compounds with antineoplastic properties and mechanisms of action are described. Furthermore, on the basis of the available information, we divided them into two priority groups for research and for their potential of use in antitumor therapy. As there are many prerequisites and some examples how THM helps and strengthens modern medicine, finally, we discuss the positive points of THM and the management required to transform and integrate THM into the modern medicine practice.

Capsaicin: A Two-Decade Systematic Review of Global Research Output and Recent Advances Against Human Cancer

Capsaicin (8-methyl-N-vanillyl-6-nonenamide) is one of the most important natural products in the genus Capsicum. Due to its numerous biological effects, there has been extensive and increasing research interest in capsaicin, resulting in increased scientific publications in recent years. Therefore, an in-depth bibliometric analysis of published literature on capsaicin from 2001 to 2021 was performed to assess the global research status, thematic and emerging areas, and potential insights into future research. Furthermore, recent research advances of capsaicin and its combination therapy on human cancer as well as their potential mechanisms of action were described. In the last two decades, research outputs on capsaicin have increased by an estimated 18% per year and were dominated by research articles at 93% of the 3753 assessed literature. In addition, anti-cancer/pharmacokinetics, cytotoxicity, in vivo neurological and pain research studies were the keyword clusters generated and designated as thematic domains for capsaicin research. It was evident that the United States, China, and Japan accounted for about 42% of 3753 publications that met the inclusion criteria. Also, visibly dominant collaboration nodes and networks with most of the other identified countries were established. Assessment of the eligible literature revealed that the potential of capsaicin for mitigating cancer mainly entailed its chemo-preventive effects, which were often linked to its ability to exert multi-biological effects such as anti-mutagenic, antioxidant and anti-inflammatory activities. However, clinical studies were limited, which may be related to some of the inherent challenges associated with capsaicin in the limited clinical trials. This review presents a novel approach to visualizing information about capsaicin research and a comprehensive perspective on the therapeutic significance and applications of capsaicin in the treatment of human cancer.

Unveiling the Molecular Mechanisms Driving the Capsaicin-Induced Immunomodulatory Effects on PD-L1 Expression in Bladder and Renal Cancer Cell Lines

Simple Summary

Over time, capsaicin (CPS) has been considered both a potential anti-cancer and pro-cancer molecule. Hence, the diversity of CPS functioning has already been established. Now, exploration of its application with immunotherapies might open up a new avenue in cancer therapy. Herein, the application of CPS as an immunoadjuvant to overcome the tumor’s immune-escaping mechanisms or to increase immune checkpoint therapy has been approached. In bladder cancer, the interaction of CPS with its receptor TRPV1 increases PD-L1 expression, promoting a tumorigenic effect and also providing a target for anti-PD-1/PD-L1 immunotherapy. On the contrary, in renal cell carcinoma, CPS downregulates PD-L1 expression in a TRPV1-independent manner, suggesting a potential application of CPS as an immune-adjuvant in this type of cancer.

Abstract

The blockade of the PD-L1/PD-1 immune checkpoint has promising efficacy in cancer treatment. However, few patients with bladder cancer (BC) or renal cell carcinoma (RCC) respond to this approach. Thus, it is important to implement a strategy to stimulate the immune anti-tumor response. In this scenario, our study evaluated the effects of a low capsaicin (CPS) dose in BC and RCC cell lines. Western blot, qRT-PCR and confocal microscopy were used to assess PD-L1 mRNA and protein expression. Alterations to the cellular oxidative status and changes to the antioxidant NME4 levels, mRNA modulation of cytokines, growth factors, transcriptional factors and oncogene, and the activation of Stat1/Stat3 pathways were examined using Western blot, cytofluorimetry and qRT-PCR profiling assays. In BC, CPS triggers an altered stress oxidative-mediated DNA double-strand break response and increases the PD-L1 expression. On the contrary, in RCC, CPS, by stimulating an efficient DNA damage repair response, thus triggering protein carbonylation, reduces the PD-L1 expression. Overall, our results show that CPS mediates a multi-faceted approach. In modulating PD-L1 expression, there is a rationale for CPS exploitation as a stimulus that increases BC cells’ response to immunotherapy or as an immune adjuvant to improve the efficacy of the conventional therapy in RCC patients.

Intrinsic and Extrinsic Factors Impacting Cancer Stemness and Tumor Progression

Tumor heterogeneity represents an important limitation to the development of effective cancer therapies. The presence of cancer stem cells (CSCs) and their differentiation hierarchies contribute to cancer complexity and confer tumors the ability to grow, resist treatment, survive unfavorable conditions, and invade neighboring and distant tissues. A large body of research is currently focusing on understanding the properties of CSCs, including their cellular and molecular origin, as well as their biological behavior in different tumor types. In turn, this knowledge informs strategies for targeting these tumor initiating cells and related cancer stemness. Cancer stemness is modulated by the tumor microenvironment, which influences CSC function and survival. Several advanced in vitro models are currently being developed to study cancer stemness in order to advance new knowledge of the key molecular pathways involved in CSC self-renewal and dormancy, as well as to mimic the complexity of patients' tumors in pre-clinical drug testing. In this review, we discuss CSCs and the modulation of cancer stemness by the tumor microenvironment, stemness factors and signaling pathways. In addition, we introduce current models that allow the study of CSCs for the development of new targeted therapies.

Targeting the Interplay between Cancer Metabolic Reprogramming and Cell Death Pathways as a Viable Therapeutic Path

In cancer cells, metabolic adaptations are often observed in terms of nutrient absorption, biosynthesis of macromolecules, and production of energy necessary to meet the needs of the tumor cell such as uncontrolled proliferation, dissemination, and acquisition of resistance to death processes induced by both unfavorable environmental conditions and therapeutic drugs. Many oncogenes and tumor suppressor genes have a significant effect on cellular metabolism, as there is a close relationship between the pathways activated by these genes and the various metabolic options. The metabolic adaptations observed in cancer cells not only promote their proliferation and invasion, but also their survival by inducing intrinsic and acquired resistance to various anticancer agents and to various forms of cell death, such as apoptosis, necroptosis, autophagy, and ferroptosis. In this review we analyze the main metabolic differences between cancer and non-cancer cells and how these can affect the various cell death pathways, effectively determining the susceptibility of cancer cells to therapy-induced death. Targeting the metabolic peculiarities of cancer could represent in the near future an innovative therapeutic strategy for the treatment of those tumors whose metabolic characteristics are known.

Capsaicin attenuates TGFβ2-induced epithelial-mesenchymal-transition in lens epithelial cells in vivo and in vitro

Posterior capsule opacification (PCO), the most common complication of cataract surgery occurring in 20-50% of patients after 2-5 years of cataract surgery, is a major problem in the aging society. The epithelial-mesenchymal transition (EMT) of lens epithelial cells after cataract surgery has been proposed as a major cause of PCO. Capsaicin, widely used as a food additive and analgesic agent, is a major pungent ingredient in red pepper. Although the effect of capsaicin on EMT has been reported in cancer cells, the biological reaction of capsaicin was unique in each cell type, and there have been no reports describing its effects on EMT earlier. In this study, we demonstrated that treatment with capsaicin inhibited TGFβ2-induced EMT in vitro lens epithelial cells and ex vivo explant lens epithelial cells. Furthermore, eye drops of capsaicin inhibited the PCO model mice in vivo. Finally, we showed that capsaicin inhibited non-canonically induced Smad2/3 activation via suppression of EGFR activation and ERK phosphorylation. Our findings indicate that capsaicin and its derivatives are good candidate compounds for preventing PCO after cataract surgery.

The Clinical and Theranostic Values of Activated Leukocyte Cell Adhesion Molecule (ALCAM)/CD166 in Human Solid Cancers

Simple Summary

ALCAM (activated leukocyte cell adhesion molecule) is an important regulator in human cancers, particularly solid tumours. Its expression in cancer tissues has prognostic values depending on cancer types and is also linked to distant metastases. A truncated form, soluble form of ALCAM (sALCAM) in circulation has been suggested to be a prognostic indicator and a potential therapeutic tool. This article summarises recent findings and progress in ALCAM and its involvement in cancer, with a primary focus on its clinical connections and therapeutic values.

Abstract

Activated leukocyte cell adhesion molecule (ALCAM), also known as CD166, is a cell adhesion protein that is found in multiple cell types. ALCAM has multiple and diverse roles in various physiological and pathological conditions, including inflammation and cancer. There has been compelling evidence of ALCAM’s prognostic value in solid cancers, indicating that it is a potential therapeutic target. The present article overviews the recent findings and progress in ALCAM and its involvement in cancer, with a primary focus on its clinical connections in cancer and therapeutic values.

Defining the Role of GLI/Hedgehog Signaling in Chemoresistance: Implications in Therapeutic Approaches

Insight into cancer signaling pathways is vital in the development of new cancer treatments to improve treatment efficacy. A relatively new but essential developmental signaling pathway, namely Hedgehog (Hh), has recently emerged as a major mediator of cancer progression and chemoresistance. The evolutionary conserved Hh signaling pathway requires an in-depth understanding of the paradigm of Hh signaling transduction, which is fundamental to provide the necessary means for the design of novel tools for treating cancer related to aberrant Hh signaling. This review will focus substantially on the canonical Hh signaling and the treatment strategies employed in different studies, with special emphasis on the molecular mechanisms and combination treatment in regard to Hh inhibitors and chemotherapeutics. We discuss our views based on Hh signaling's role in regulating DNA repair machinery, autophagy, tumor microenvironment, drug inactivation, transporters, epithelial-to-mesenchymal transition, and cancer stem cells to promote chemoresistance. The understanding of this Achilles' Heel in cancer may improve the therapeutic outcome for cancer therapy.

Calcium Signaling Regulates Autophagy and Apoptosis

Calcium (Ca²⁺) functions as a second messenger that is critical in regulating fundamental physiological functions such as cell growth/development, cell survival, neuronal development and/or the maintenance of cellular functions. The coordination among various proteins/pumps/Ca²⁺ channels and Ca²⁺ storage in various organelles is critical in maintaining cytosolic Ca²⁺ levels that provide the spatial resolution needed for cellular homeostasis. An important regulatory aspect of Ca²⁺ homeostasis is a store operated Ca²⁺ entry (SOCE) mechanism that is activated by the depletion of Ca²⁺ from internal ER stores and has gained much attention for influencing functions in both excitable and non-excitable cells. Ca²⁺ has been shown to regulate opposing functions such as autophagy, that promote cell survival; on the other hand, Ca²⁺ also regulates programmed cell death processes such as apoptosis. The functional significance of the TRP/Orai channels has been elaborately studied; however, information on how they can modulate opposing functions and modulate function in excitable and non-excitable cells is limited. Importantly, perturbations in SOCE have been implicated in a spectrum of pathological neurodegenerative conditions. The critical role of autophagy machinery in the pathogenesis of neurodegenerative diseases such as Alzheimer’s, Parkinson’s, and Huntington’s diseases, would presumably unveil avenues for plausible therapeutic interventions for these diseases. We thus review the role of SOCE-regulated Ca²⁺ signaling in modulating these diverse functions in stem cell, immune regulation and neuromodulation.

GANT-61 Induces Autophagy and Apoptosis in Glioblastoma Cells despite their heterogeneity

Glioblastoma (GBM) is the most common adult primary tumor of the CNS characterized by rapid growth and diffuse invasiveness into the brain parenchyma. The GBM resistance to chemotherapeutic drugs may be due to the presence of cancer stem cells (CSCs). The CSCs activate the same molecular pathways as healthy stem cells such as WNT, Sonic hedgehog (SHH), and Notch. Mutations or deregulations of those pathways play a key role in the proliferation and differentiation of their surrounding environment, leading to tumorigenesis. Here we investigated the effect of SHH signaling pathway inhibition in human GBM cells by using GANT-61, considering stem cell phenotype, cell proliferation, and cell death. Our results demonstrated that GANT-61 induces apoptosis and autophagy in GBM cells, by increasing the expression of LC3 II and cleaved caspase 3 and 9. Moreover, we observed that SHH signaling plays a crucial role in CSC phenotype maintenance, being also involved in the epithelial-mesenchymal transition (EMT) phenotype. We also noted that SHH pathway modulation can regulate cell proliferation as revealed through the analysis of Ki-67 and c-MYC expressions. We concluded that SHH signaling pathway inhibition may be a promising therapeutic approach to treat patients suffering from GBM refractory to traditional treatments.

The Sonic Hedgehog signaling pathway regulates autophagy and migration in ovarian cancer

Background

The Sonic Hedgehog (SHH) signaling pathway plays an important role in various types of human cancers including ovarian cancer; however, its function and underlying mechanism in ovarian cancer are still not entirely understood.

Methods

We detected the expressions of SHH and SQSTM1 in borderline ovarian tumor tissues, epithelial ovarian cancer (EOC) tissues and benign ovarian tumor tissues. Cyclopamine (Cyp, a well‐known inhibitor of SHH signaling pathway) and chloroquine (CQ, the pharmaceutical inhibitor of autophagy) were used in vivo and in vitro (autophagic flux, CCK‐8 assay, wound healing assay, transwell assay, tumor xenograft model). The mechanism of action was explored through Quantitative RT‐PCR and Western Blot.

Results

We found up‐regulation of SHH and accumulation of SQSTM1/P62 in epithelial ovarian cancer. Cyp induced autophagy through the PI3K/AKT signaling pathway. Moreover, low‐dose Cyp and chloroquine (CQ) significantly promoted the migratory ability of SKOV3 cells.

Conclusions

Our findings suggest that inhibition of the SHH pathway and autophagy may be a potential and effective therapy for the treatment of ovarian cancer.

Sulforaphane Impact on Reactive Oxygen Species (ROS) in Bladder Carcinoma

Sulforaphane (SFN) is a natural glucosinolate found in cruciferous vegetables that acts as a chemopreventive agent, but its mechanism of action is not clear. Due to antioxidative mechanisms being thought central in preventing cancer progression, SFN could play a role in oxidative processes. Since redox imbalance with increased levels of reactive oxygen species (ROS) is involved in the initiation and progression of bladder cancer, this mechanism might be involved when chemoresistance occurs. This review summarizes current understanding regarding the influence of SFN on ROS and ROS-related pathways and appraises a possible role of SFN in bladder cancer treatment.

ORN: Inferring patient-specific dysregulation status of pathway modules in cancer with OR-gate Network

Pathway level understanding of cancer plays a key role in precision oncology. However, the current amount of high-throughput data cannot support the elucidation of full pathway topology. In this study, instead of directly learning the pathway network, we adapted the probabilistic OR gate to model the modular structure of pathways and regulon. The resulting model, OR-gate Network (ORN), can simultaneously infer pathway modules of somatic alterations, patient-specific pathway dysregulation status, and downstream regulon. In a trained ORN, the differentially expressed genes (DEGs) in each tumour can be explained by somatic mutations perturbing a pathway module. Furthermore, the ORN handles one of the most important properties of pathway perturbation in tumours, the mutual exclusivity. We have applied the ORN to lower-grade glioma (LGG) samples and liver hepatocellular carcinoma (LIHC) samples in TCGA and breast cancer samples from METABRIC. Both datasets have shown abnormal pathway activities related to immune response and cell cycles. In LGG samples, ORN identified pathway modules closely related to glioma development and revealed two pathways closely related to patient survival. We had similar results with LIHC samples. Additional results from the METABRIC datasets showed that ORN could characterize critical mechanisms of cancer and connect them to less studied somatic mutations (e.g., BAP1, MIR604, MICAL3, and telomere activities), which may generate novel hypothesis for targeted therapy.

Extraction, purification, bioactivity and pharmacological effects of capsaicin: a review

Capsaicin (trans-8-methyl-N-vanillyl-6-nonenamide), a well-known vanilloid, which is the main spicy component in chili peppers, showing several biological activities and the potential applications range from food flavorings to therapeutics. Traditional extraction of capsaicin by organic solvents was time-consuming, some new methods such as aqueous two-phase method and ionic liquid extraction method have been developed. During past few decades, an ample variety of biological effects of capsaicin have been evaluated. Capsaicin can be used in biofilms and antifouling coatings due to its antimicrobial activity, allowing it has a promising application in food packaging, food preservation, marine environment and dental therapy. Capsaicin also play a crucial role in metabolic disorders, including weight loss, pressure lowing and insulin reduction effects. In addition, capsaicin was identified effective on preventing human cancers, such as lung cancer, stomach cancer, colon cancer and breast cancer by inducing apoptosis and inhibiting cell proliferation of tumor cells. Previous research also suggest the positive effects of capsaicin on pain relief and cognitive impairment. Capsaicin, the agonist of transient receptor potential vanilloid type 1 (TRPV1), could selectively activate TRPV1, inducing Ca²⁺ influx and related signaling pathways. Recently, gut microbiota was also involved in some diseases therapeutics, but its influence on the effects of capsaicin still need to be deeply studied. In this review, different extraction and purification methods of capsaicin, its biological activities and pharmacological effects were systematically summarized, as well as the possible mechanisms were also deeply discussed. This article will give an updated and better understanding of capsaicin-related biological effects and provide theoretical basis for its further research and applications in human health and manufacture development.

Decreased drug resistance of bladder cancer using phytochemicals treatment

The aim of the study is to investigate the ability of phytochemicals to overcome the multiple drug resistance (MDR) of bladder cancer. 3-(4,5-dimethylthiazol-2-yl)-2,5-diphenyltetrazolium bromide (MTT) assay was used to evaluate the cytotoxic sensitivity of T24-GCB cells, a GCB resistant cell line, to different phytochemicals, including capsaicin, quercetin, curcumin, and resveratrol, and their combination with gemcitabine. Western blot analysis was used to detect the expression of membranous ABCC2 and metabolic proteins, DCK, TK1, and TK2 in tumor cells. Animal models were used to confirm the treatment efficacy of phytochemicals in combination with gemcitabine to bladder cancer. The observed/expected ratio of cytotoxicity analysis revealed that capsaicin has synergistic effect with gemcitabine to T24-GCB cells in a dose-dependent pattern. Quercetin, curcumin, and resveratrol have additive effect with gemcitabine to T24-GCB cells. Capsaicin and quercetin alone and combination with gemcitabine decreased the expression of ABCC2 and DCK and TKs, in T24-GCB cells. On the contrary, resveratrol and curcumin alone and combination with gemcitabine increased the expression of ABCC2 but decreased cytoplasmic kinases simultaneously. In xenografted subcutaneous tumor model on nude mice, combination treatment of capsaicin and gemcitabine demonstrated the highest tumor suppression effect when compared to capsaicin or gemcitabine treatment alone. The MDR of bladder cancer is closely related to membranous ABCC2, cytoplasmic DCK, and TKs expression. Capsaicin owns the strongest synergistic cytotoxic effect of gemcitabine to T24-GCB cells. This combination regimen may provide as an adjunctive treatment for overcoming MDR in bladder cancer.

N-arachidonoyl dopamine inhibits epithelial-mesenchymal transition of breast cancer cells through ERK signaling and decreasing the cellular cholesterol

N-acyl dopamines (NADAs) are bioactive lipids of the endovanilloid family with known cytotoxicity for the cancer cells; however, the available data on the participation of the endovanilloids in epithelial-mesenchymal transition (EMT) and cancer stemness are controversial. This study unveils the inhibitory role of N-arachidonoyl dopamine (AA-DA), a typical representative of the NADA family, in breast cancer cell migration, EMT, and stemness. AA-DA treatment also led to a decrease in cholesterol biosynthesis gene expressions, and addition of exogenous cholesterol reverted these AA-DA-mediated inhibitory effects. Notably, AA-DA treatment inhibited the key regulatory gene of the cholesterol biosynthesis pathway, sterol regulatory element-binding protein 1 (SREBP1), with concurrent repression of the endoplasmic reticulum kinase 1/2 (ERK1/2) pathway. Furthermore, U0126, an ERK inhibitor, inhibited SREBP1 and decreased cellular cholesterol level, unwinding the molecular mechanism behind AA-DA-mediated anticancer activity. Thus, we, for the first time, revealed that AA-DA counteracts breast cancer EMT via inhibition of ERK signaling and cholesterol content.

The Effects of Capsaicin on Gastrointestinal Cancers

Gastrointestinal (GI) cancers are a group of diseases with very high positions in the ranking of cancer incidence and mortality. While they show common features regarding the molecular mechanisms involved in cancer development, organ-specific pathophysiological processes may trigger distinct signaling pathways and intricate interactions with inflammatory cells from the tumoral milieu and mediators involved in tumorigenesis. The treatment of GI cancers is a topic of increasing interest due to the severity of these diseases, their impact on the patients' survivability and quality of life, and the burden they set on the healthcare system. As the efficiency of existing drugs is hindered by chemoresistance and adverse reactions when administered in high doses, new therapies are sought, and emerging drugs, formulations, and substance synergies are the focus of a growing number of studies. A class of chemicals with great potential through anti-inflammatory, anti-oxidant, and anti-tumoral effects is phytochemicals, and capsaicin in particular is the subject of intensive research looking to validate its position in complementing cancer treatment. Our paper thoroughly reviews the available scientific evidence concerning the effects of capsaicin on major GI cancers and its interactions with the molecular pathways involved in the course of these diseases.

Emerging role of tumor cell plasticity in modifying therapeutic response

Resistance to cancer therapy is a major barrier to cancer management. Conventional views have proposed that acquisition of resistance may result from genetic mutations. However, accumulating evidence implicates a key role of non-mutational resistance mechanisms underlying drug tolerance, the latter of which is the focus that will be discussed here. Such non-mutational processes are largely driven by tumor cell plasticity, which renders tumor cells insusceptible to the drug-targeted pathway, thereby facilitating the tumor cell survival and growth. The concept of tumor cell plasticity highlights the significance of re-activation of developmental programs that are closely correlated with epithelial-mesenchymal transition, acquisition properties of cancer stem cells, and trans-differentiation potential during drug exposure. From observations in various cancers, this concept provides an opportunity for investigating the nature of anticancer drug resistance. Over the years, our understanding of the emerging role of phenotype switching in modifying therapeutic response has considerably increased. This expanded knowledge of tumor cell plasticity contributes to developing novel therapeutic strategies or combination therapy regimens using available anticancer drugs, which are likely to improve patient outcomes in clinical practice.

Capsaicin acts through tNOX (ENOX2) to induce autophagic apoptosis in p53-mutated HSC-3 cells but autophagy in p53-functional SAS oral cancer cells

Despite the progress that has been made in diagnosing and treating oral cancers, they continue to have a poor prognosis, with a 5-year overall survival rate of approximately 50%. We have intensively studied the anticancer properties of capsaicin (a burning constituent of chili pepper), mainly focusing on its apoptotic properties. Here, we investigated the interplay between apoptosis and autophagy in capsaicin-treated oral cancer cells with either functional or mutant p53. Cytotoxicity was determined by cell impedance measurements and WST-1 assays, and cell death was analyzed by flow cytometry. The interaction between capsaicin and tumor-associated NADH oxidase (tNOX, ENOX2) was studied by cellular thermal shift assay (CETSA) and isothermal dose-response fingerprint curves (ITDRF_CETSA). Our CETSA data suggested that capsaicin directly engaged with tNOX, resulting in its degradation through the ubiquitin-proteasome and the autophagy-lysosome systems. In p53-functional SAS cells, capsaicin induced significant cytotoxicity via autophagy but not apoptosis. Given that tNOX catalyzes the oxidation of NADH, the direct binding of capsaicin to tNOX also inhibited the NAD⁺-dependent activity of sirtuin 1 (SIRT1) deacetylase, we found that capsaicin-induced autophagy involved enhanced acetylation of ULK1, which is a key player in autophagy activation, possibly through SIRT1 inhibition. In p53-mutated HSC-3 cells, capsaicin triggered both autophagy and apoptosis. In this case, autophagy occurred before apoptosis: during this early stage, autophagy seemed to inhibit apoptosis; at a later stage, in contrast, autophagy appeared to be essential for the induction of apoptosis. Western blot analysis revealed that the reduction in tNOX and SIRT1 associated with enhanced ULK1 acetylation and c-Myc acetylation, which in turn, reactivated the TRAIL pathway, ultimately leading to apoptosis. Taken together, our data highlight the potential value of leveraging capsaicin and tNOX in therapeutic strategies against oral cancer.

Nano delivery of natural substances as prospective autophagy modulators in glioblastoma

Glioblastoma is the most destructive type of malignant brain tumor in humans due to cancer relapse. Latest studies have indicated that cancer cells are more reliant on autophagy for survival than non-cancer cells. Autophagy is entitled as programmed cell death type II and studies imply that it is a comeback of cancer cells to innumerable anti-cancer therapies. To diminish the adverse consequences of chemotherapeutics, numerous herbs of natural origin have been retained in cancer treatments. Additionally, autophagy induction occurs via their tumor suppressive actions that could cause cell senescence and increase apoptosis-independent cell death. However, most of the drugs have poor solubility and thus nano drug delivery systems possess excessive potential to improve the aqueous solubility and bioavailability of encapsulated drugs. There is a pronounced need for more therapies for glioblastoma treatment and hereby, the fundamental mechanisms of natural autophagy modulators in glioblastoma are prudently reviewed in this article.

CTCF promotes colorectal cancer cell proliferation and chemotherapy resistance to 5-FU via the P53-Hedgehog axis

CTCF is overexpressed in several cancers and plays crucial roles in regulating aggressiveness, but little is known about whether CTCF drives colorectal cancer progression. Here, we identified a tumor-promoting role for CTCF in colorectal cancer. Our study demonstrated that CTCF was upregulated in colorectal cancer specimens compared with adjacent noncancerous colorectal tissues. The overexpression of CTCF promoted colorectal cancer cell proliferation and tumor growth, while the opposite effects were observed in CTCF knockdown cells. Increased GLI1, Shh, PTCH1, and PTCH2 levels were observed in CTCF-overexpressing cells using western blot analyses. CCK-8 and apoptosis assays revealed that 5-fluorouracil chemosensitivity was negatively associated with CTCF expression. Furthermore, we identified that P53 is a direct transcriptional target gene of CTCF in colorectal cancer. Western blot and nuclear extract assays showed that inhibition of P53 can counteract Hedgehog signaling pathway repression induced by CTCF knockdown. In conclusion, we uncovered a crucial role for CTCF regulation that possibly involves the P53-Hedgehog axis and highlighted the clinical utility of colorectal cancer-specific potential therapeutic target as disease progression or clinical response biomarkers.

Targeting cancer stem cell pathways for cancer therapy

Since cancer stem cells (CSCs) were first identified in leukemia in 1994, they have been considered promising therapeutic targets for cancer therapy. These cells have self-renewal capacity and differentiation potential and contribute to multiple tumor malignancies, such as recurrence, metastasis, heterogeneity, multidrug resistance, and radiation resistance. The biological activities of CSCs are regulated by several pluripotent transcription factors, such as OCT4, Sox2, Nanog, KLF4, and MYC. In addition, many intracellular signaling pathways, such as Wnt, NF-κB (nuclear factor-κB), Notch, Hedgehog, JAK-STAT (Janus kinase/signal transducers and activators of transcription), PI3K/AKT/mTOR (phosphoinositide 3-kinase/AKT/mammalian target of rapamycin), TGF (transforming growth factor)/SMAD, and PPAR (peroxisome proliferator-activated receptor), as well as extracellular factors, such as vascular niches, hypoxia, tumor-associated macrophages, cancer-associated fibroblasts, cancer-associated mesenchymal stem cells, extracellular matrix, and exosomes, have been shown to be very important regulators of CSCs. Molecules, vaccines, antibodies, and CAR-T (chimeric antigen receptor T cell) cells have been developed to specifically target CSCs, and some of these factors are already undergoing clinical trials. This review summarizes the characterization and identification of CSCs, depicts major factors and pathways that regulate CSC development, and discusses potential targeted therapy for CSCs.

Up-regulation of DRAM2 promotes tolerance of bladder transitional cell carcinoma to gemcitabine

INTRODUCTION

Bladder transitional cell carcinoma (BTCC) is one of the most prevalent human malignant diseases. Gemcitabine is commonly applied in the treatment of BTCC while acquired gemcitabine resistance has caused a severe impediment to recovery. This study aimed to investigate the function of DRAM2 in regulating gemcitabine resistance of BTCC.

MATERIAL AND METHODS

GSE77883 was introduced to screen out the differentially expressed autophagy-related genes in T24 cells and gemcitabine-resistant T24-GEM cells. After establishing T24-GEM cells ourselves, aberrant expression of DRAM2 was detected by qRT-PCR and Western blot. After stably manipulating the expression of DRAM2 in T24 and T24-GEM cells, the changes of cell biological functions under gemcitabine treatment were compared, including cell viability, apoptosis and autophagy, using colony formation, flow cytometry and electron microscopy respectively.

RESULTS

DRAM2 was up-regulated in gemcitabine-resistant T24-GEM cells. Silencing of DRAM2 in T24-GEM cells inhibited the cell autophagy induced by treatment with gemcitabine and contributed to attenuated gemcitabine resistance. Also, overexpression of DRAM2 in T24 cells enhanced the autophagy, strengthened the chemoresistance and decreased the cell apoptosis rate under the treatment with gemcitabine.

CONCLUSIONS

Our data suggested that downregulation of DRAM2 rescued the sensitivity of T24-GEM cells to gemcitabine, providing an appropriate therapeutic target for BTCC treatment.

Capsaicinoids: Multiple effects on angiogenesis, invasion and metastasis in human cancers

Cancer progression is a complex multistep process comprising of angiogenesis of the primary tumor, its invasion into the surrounding stroma and its migration to distant organs to produce metastases. Nutritional compounds of the "capsaicinoid" family regulate angiogenesis, invasion and metastasis of tumors. Capsaicinoids display robust anti-angiogenic activity in both cell culture and mice models. However, conflicting reports exist about the effect of capsaicinoids on invasion of metastasis of cancers. While some published reports have described an anti-invasive and anti-metastatic role for capsaicinoids, others have argued that capsaicinoids stimulate invasion and metastasis of cancers. The present review article summarizes these findings involving the bioactivity of capsaicin in angiogenesis, invasion and metastasis of cancer. A survey of literature indicate that they are several articles summarizing the growth-inhibitory activity of capsaicinoids but few describe its effects on angiogenesis, invasion and metastasis in detail. Our review article fills this gap of knowledge. The discovery of a second generation of natural and synthetic capsaicin analogs (with anti-tumor activity) will pave the way to improved strategies for the treatment of several human cancers.

Capsaicin: Effects on the Pathogenesis of Hepatocellular Carcinoma

Hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC) is one of the most frequent cancers, and to date, there have been very few drugs available that can improve survival, the most well-known being sorafenib. The pathogenesis of HCC is complex, involving multiple processes including abnormal cell and tissue regeneration, angiogenesis, genomic instability, cellular proliferation, and signaling pathway alterations. Capsaicin is a substance that holds increasingly high interest and is studied as a therapeutic option in a wide array of diseases. Several studies have investigated capsaicin roles in various stages of HCC oncogenesis. This paper aims to thoroughly detail the available information on the individual effects of capsaicin on the cellular mechanisms and pathways involved in HCC development, as well as investigate their possible cooperation and interferences. The synergistic antitumor effects of capsaicin and sorafenib are also addressed.

Autophagy and mitophagy in cancer metabolic remodelling

Metabolic reprogramming in tumours is now recognized as a hallmark of cancer, participating both in tumour growth and cancer progression. Cancer cells develop global metabolic adaptations allowing them to survive in the low oxygen and nutrient tumour microenvironment. Among these metabolic adaptations, cancer cells use glycolysis but also mitochondrial oxidations to produce ATP and building blocks needed for their high proliferation rate. Another particular adaptation of cancer cell metabolism is the use of autophagy and specific forms of autophagy like mitophagy to recycle intracellular components in condition of metabolic stress or during anticancer treatments. The plasticity of cancer cell metabolism is a major limitation of anticancer treatments and could participate to therapy resistances. The aim of this review is to report recent advances in the understanding of the relationship between tumour metabolism and autophagy/mitophagy in order to propose new therapeutic strategies.

The red pepper's spicy ingredient capsaicin activates AMPK in HepG2 cells through CaMKKβ

Capsaicin is a natural compound present in chili and red peppers and the responsible of their spicy flavor. It has recently provoked interest because of its antitumoral effects in many cell types although its action mechanism is not clearly understood. As metabolic dysregulation is one of the hallmarks of cancer cells and the key metabolic sensor in the AMP-activated kinase (AMPK), in this study we explored the ability of capsaicin to modulate AMPK activity. We found that capsaicin activated AMPK in HepG2 cells by increasing AMPK phosphorylation and its downstream target ACC. Mechanistically, we determined that capsaicin activated AMPK through the calcium/calmodulin-dependent protein kinase kinase β, CaMKKβ as either the CaMKK inhibitor STO-609 or CaMKK knock down with siRNA abrogated the activation of AMPK. Moreover, capsaicin decreased cell viability, inhibited Akt/mTOR pathway and increased reactive oxygen species (ROS) in HepG2 cells. AMPK activation was involved in the underpinning mechanism of capsaicin-induced cell death.

Dietary phytochemicals in the regulation of epithelial to mesenchymal transition and associated enzymes: A promising anticancer therapeutic approach

Epithelial to mesenchymal transition (EMT) is a biological phenomenon that plays a primordial role for initiation of metastasis. It renders cancer cells with increased self-renewal and tumor-initiating capabilities and exacerbated resistance to apoptosis and chemotherapy. Hence, regulation of EMT stands out to be an important strategy in controlling the behavior of malignant cells. Despite the enormous amount of preclinical data on the implication of EMT in cancer progression, there is still lack of routine clinical translation at therapeutic levels. The need of EMT-modulating drugs with high efficacy and low cytotoxicity has led to studies involving the evaluation of the efficacy of a plethora of various classes of phytochemicals present in dietary sources of fruits and vegetables. This review summarizes the role of these different classes of phytochemicals, their natural/synthetic analogs, and their nano-formulations in regulation of EMT in various preclinical models through attenuation of primary signaling pathways. Numerous proteins, transcription factors and enzymes targeted by various classes of phytochemicals in repression of EMT has been presented in this review. Additionally, we have critically analyzed the existing literature and provided views on new direction for accelerating the discovery of novel drug candidates which could be cautiously administered without concomitant effects.

Potential Phytopharmacy and Food Applications of Capsicum spp.: A Comprehensive Review

Capsicum genus (Solanaceae) is native to the Americas. Today, it is an important agricultural crop cultivated around the world, not only due to its economic importance, but also for the nutritional value of the fruits. Among their phytochemical constituents, capsaicinoids are characteristic and responsible of the pungency of sharp-tasting cultivars. Moreover, Capsicum and capsaicinoids (mainly, capsaicin) have been largely studied because of their health benefits. Thus, this study reviews the scientific knowledge about Capsicum spp. and their phytochemicals against cancer, diabetes, gastrointestinal diseases, pain, and metabolic syndrome, as well as their antioxidant and antimicrobial activity. These bioactivities can be the basis of the formulation of functional ingredients and natural preservatives containing Capsicum extracts or isolated compounds.

Hedgehog Signaling Pathway and Autophagy in Cancer

Hedgehog (Hh) pathway controls complex developmental processes in vertebrates. Abnormal activation of Hh pathway is responsible for tumorigenesis and maintenance of multiple cancers, and thus addressing this represents promising therapeutic opportunities. In recent years, two Hh inhibitors have been approved for basal cell carcinoma (BCC) treatment and show extraordinary clinical outcomes. Meanwhile, a series of novel agents are being developed for the treatment of several cancers, including lung cancer, leukemia, and pancreatic cancer. Unfortunately, Hh inhibition fails to show satisfactory benefits in these cancer types compared with the success stories in BCC, highlighting the need for better understanding of Hh signaling in cancer. Autophagy, a conserved biological process for cellular component elimination, plays critical roles in the initiation, progression, and drug resistance of cancer, and therefore, implied potential to be targeted. Recent evidence demonstrated that Hh signaling interplays with autophagy in multiple cancers. Importantly, modulating this crosstalk exhibited noteworthy capability to sensitize primary and drug-resistant cancer cells to Hh inhibitors, representing an emerging opportunity to reboot the efficacy of Hh inhibition in those insensitive tumors, and to tackle drug resistance challenges. This review will highlight recent advances of Hh pathway and autophagy in cancers, and focus on their crosstalk and the implied therapeutic opportunities.

CXCL5 promotes mitomycin C resistance in non-muscle invasive bladder cancer by activating EMT and NF-κB pathway

The emergence of chemoresistance greatly increases the recurrence risk for non-muscle invasive bladder cancer (NMIBC) patients, which is still a big concern of clinicians. Understanding the mechanisms of drug resistance is of great significance for preventing and reversing it. We showed here that CXC motif chemokine ligand 5 (CXCL5) was overexpressed in mitomycin C-resistant bladder cancer cell line M-RT4. Meanwhile, parental RT4 cell treated with recombinant human CXCL5 (rhCXCL5) reduced its sensitivity to mitomycin C. Conversely, knockdown CXCL5 sensitized M-RT4 cell. We further investigated the molecular mechanisms finding that epithelial mesenchymal transition (EMT) and NF-κB pathway were activated in M-RT4 cell, which could be attenuated by knockdown CXCL5. All these data indicated that CXCL5 may promote mitomycin resistance by activating EMT and NF-κB pathway. Thus, our study identifies CXCL5 as a novel chemoresistance-related marker in NMIBC, thereby providing new strategies to overcome chemoresistance for NMIBC patients.

Gli1 promotes colorectal cancer metastasis in a Foxm1-dependent manner by activating EMT and PI3K-AKT signaling

Colorectal cancer(CRC) is one of the most commonly diagnosed cancers in human beings and metastasis is the main death reason. Recently, Gli1 has been reported to be a key regulator of various cancer biologies and genes expressions. However, the detailed molecular mechanism of Gli1 in CRC metastasis remains largely unknown. In this study, we aimed to investigate the role of Gli1 in CRC metastasis. We used qRT-PCR, Immunohistochemistry and Western blot to test the expression levels of Gli1, Foxm1 and other target genes in the tissues and cells; Lentivirus stable transfection to change the expression levels of Gli1 and Foxm1; Wound-healing, cell invasion, migration assays and tail vein metastatic assay to test the role of Gli1 in CRC metastasis in vitro and vivo. We demonstrated that Gli1 was significantly overexpressed in colorectal cancer tissues and cells. Foxm1 level had a positive correlation with Gli1. Furthermore, we found that Gli1 promotes colorectal cancer cells metastasis in a Foxm1-dependent manner by activating EMT and PI3K-AKT signaling. Thus, we proved that Gli1 plays important role in CRC metastasis and provided a new visual field on the therapy of CRC metastasis.

Phytochemicals as potent modulators of autophagy for cancer therapy

The dysregulation of autophagy is involved in the pathogenesis of a broad range of diseases, and accordingly universal research efforts have focused on exploring novel compounds with autophagy-modulating properties. While a number of synthetic autophagy modulators have been identified as promising cancer therapy candidates, autophagy-modulating phytochemicals have also attracted attention as potential treatments with minimal side effects. In this review, we firstly highlight the importance of autophagy and its relevance in the pathogenesis and treatment of cancer. Subsequently, we present the data on common phytochemicals and their mechanism of action as autophagy modulators. Finally, we discuss the challenges associated with harnessing the autophagic potential of phytochemicals for cancer therapy.

The TRPV1 ion channel regulates thymocyte differentiation by modulating autophagy and proteasome activity

Autophagy and the ubiquitin-proteasome system (UPS) control thymus cell homeostasis under resting and endoplasmic reticulum (ER) stress conditions. Several evidence support a cross-talk between UPS and autophagy; abrogation of UPS responses stimulates autophagy, and vice versa the inhibition of autophagy alters the UPS functions.

Herein, we found that TRPV1 activation induces ER stress, proteasome dysfunction and autophagy in thymocytes by modulating the expression of UPR-related genes. The TRPV1-mediated autophagy prevents the UPR activation by inhibiting BiP, Grp94 and ERp57 chaperone protein expression.

Thymocytes from TRPV1 KO mice display both autophagy and proteasome dysfunctions, resulting in increased apoptotic cells and reduced total DP thymocyte number.

In addition, positive selection of thymocytes triggered by anti-TCRβ/CD2 Ab-mediated costimulation induces apoptosis in thymocytes from TRPV1 KO as compared with WT mice. Stimulation of TRPV1 KO thymocytes with anti-TCRβ/CD2 mAbs modulates the expression of CD4 antigen on purified DP thymocytes, with reduced number of mature, single positive (SP) CD4 and increased number of immature SP CD4^low and DP CD4^lowCD8⁺ thymocytes, further supporting the intrinsic role of TRPV1 in T cell maturation. Finally, a reduction in CD8⁺ and CD4⁺ T cells is evidenced in the peripheral blood and spleen of TRPV1 KO, as compared with WT mice. Therapeutic strategy by restraining or stimulating the TRPV1 expression and functions in thymocytes might represent a new pharmacological tool in the regulation of different inflammatory T cell responses.

The molecular mechanisms of chemoresistance in cancers

Overcoming intrinsic and acquired drug resistance is a major challenge in treating cancer patients because chemoresistance causes recurrence, cancer dissemination and death. This review summarizes numerous molecular aspects of multi-resistance, including transporter pumps, oncogenes (EGFR, PI3K/Akt, Erk and NF-κB), tumor suppressor gene (p53), mitochondrial alteration, DNA repair, autophagy, epithelial-mesenchymal transition (EMT), cancer stemness, and exosome. The chemoresistance-related proteins are localized to extracellular ligand, membrane receptor, cytosolic signal messenger, and nuclear transcription factors for various events, including proliferation, apoptosis, EMT, autophagy and exosome. Their cross-talk frequently appears, such as the regulatory effects of EGFR-Akt-NF-κB signal pathway on the transcription of Bcl-2, Bcl-xL and survivin or EMT-related stemness. It is essential for the realization of the target, individualized and combine therapy to clarify these molecular mechanisms, explore the therapy target, screen chemosensitive population, and determine the efficacy of chemoreagents by cell culture and orthotopic model.

Capsaicin Induces Autophagy and Apoptosis in Human Nasopharyngeal Carcinoma Cells by Downregulating the PI3K/AKT/mTOR Pathway

Capsaicin is a potential chemotherapeutic agent for different human cancers. In Southeast China, nasopharyngeal carcinoma (NPC) has the highest incidence of all cancers, but final treatment outcomes are unsatisfactory. However, there is a lack of information regarding the anticancer activity of capsaicin in NPC cells, and its effects on the signaling transduction pathways related to apoptosis and autophagy remain unclear. In the present study, the precise mechanisms by which capsaicin exerts anti-proliferative effects, cell cycle arrest, autophagy and apoptosis were investigated in NPC-TW01 cells. Exposure to capsaicin inhibited cancer cell growth and increased G1 phase cell cycle arrest. Western blotting and quantitative real-time reverse transcription polymerase chain reaction (qRT-PCR) were used to measure capsaicin-induced autophagy via involvement of the class III PI3K/Beclin-1/Bcl-2 signaling pathway. Capsaicin induced autophagy by increasing levels of the autophagy markers LC3-II and Atg5, enhancing p62 and Fap-1 degradation and increasing caspase-3 activity to induce apoptosis, suggesting a correlation of blocking the PI3K/Akt/mTOR pathway with the above-mentioned anticancer activities. Taken together, these data confirm that capsaicin inhibited the growth of human NPC cells and induced autophagy, supporting its potential as a therapeutic agent for cancer.

Matrine Suppresses the ER-positive MCF Cells by Regulating Energy Metabolism and Endoplasmic Reticulum Stress Signaling Pathway

Matrine (C₁₅ H₂₄ N₂ O), an alkaloid that is one of the main active components from Sophora flavescens. Matrine has been demonstrated to have therapeutic effects on various solid tumors, including breast cancer, but the mechanism still needs further study. Endoplasmic reticulum (ER)-positive Michigan Cancer Foundation cells were cultured, and matrine was added in various amounts to measure the dose-dependent and time-dependent cytotoxicity. Hoechst 33258 staining was used to observed nuclear morphological changes. Apoptosis was measured by AnnexinV/PI double staining assay kit. Intracellular adenosine triphosphate and glycometabolism were detected by assay kit. The protein levels GRP78, p-eIF2α, CHOP, cytochrome c, and HexokinaseII were analyzed. Mechanistic investigations revealed that matrine treatment causes ER dilation and up-regulated the expression of ER stress markers GRP78, eIF2α, and CHOP, increases the levels of apoptotic in Michigan Cancer Foundation cells, subsequently, blocking the ER stress-mediated apoptosis pathway, significantly decreased matrine-induced apoptotic but still has significant difference between control group. In addition, matrine not only promoted the occurrence of ER stress but also inhibited the expression of hexokinase II, down-regulated energy metabolism. In summary, the present study suggests that the induction of ER stress-mediated apoptosis by matrine and down-regulated energy metabolism may account for its cytotoxic effects in human breast cancer cells. Copyright © 2017 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.

GANT61, a GLI inhibitor, sensitizes glioma cells to the temozolomide treatment

BACKGROUND

The aim of this study was to investigate the effect of downregulating Hedgehog pathway by GANT61 on human glioma cells, examine the consequent changes of temozolomide (TMZ)-induced effects and explore the molecular mechanisms.

METHODS

The cytotoxicity of a Gli1/2 inhibitor, GANT61 was examined both alone and in combination with TMZ in human glioma cell lines. The mRNA and protein expression alterations were determined by quantitative real-time polymerase chain reaction (qRT-PCR) and Western blot, respectively. CCK-8 assay detected the cell proliferative capability. Apoptotic cell number was measured by flow cytometry. The transwell assay was used to test the cell invasive capability. DNA damage effect was identified by COMET assay and γH2AX expression.

RESULTS

Proliferation of tumor cells treated with GANT61 in combination with TMZ was significantly suppressed compared with those treated with either drug used alone. The combination treatment induced a higher rate of apoptosis, DNA damage and reduced the invasive capability of glioma cells. DNA damage repair enzyme MGMT and the Notch1 pathway increased in the cells treated by TMZ treatment. However, GANT61 could abrogated the protein increasing.

CONCLUSIONS

GANT61 sensitizes glioma cells to TMZ treatment by enhancing DNA damage effect, decreasing MGMT expression and the Notch1 pathway.