Therapeutic Strategies and Potential Actions of Female Sex Steroid Hormones and Their Receptors in Colon Cancer Based on Preclinical Studies

Sex Differences in Colon Cancer: Genomic and Nongenomic Signalling of Oestrogen

Colon cancer (CRC) is a prevalent malignancy that exhibits distinct differences in incidence, prognosis, and treatment responses between males and females. These disparities have long been attributed to hormonal differences, particularly the influence of oestrogen signalling. This review aims to provide a comprehensive analysis of recent advances in our understanding of the molecular mechanisms underlying sex differences in colon cancer and the protective role of membrane and nuclear oestrogen signalling in CRC development, progression, and therapeutic interventions. We discuss the epidemiological and molecular evidence supporting sex differences in colon cancer, followed by an exploration of the impact of oestrogen in CRC through various genomic and nongenomic signalling pathways involving membrane and nuclear oestrogen receptors. Furthermore, we examine the interplay between oestrogen receptors and other signalling pathways, in particular the Wnt/β-catenin proliferative pathway and hypoxia in shaping biological sex differences and oestrogen protective actions in colon cancer. Lastly, we highlight the potential therapeutic implications of targeting oestrogen signalling in the management of colon cancer and propose future research directions to address the current gaps in our understanding of this complex phenomenon.

Upregulated estrogen receptors impairs myogenesis and elevates adipogenesis related factor levels in the paravertebral muscles of patients with idiopathic scoliosis

The prevalence of idiopathic scoliosis (IS) is 2-3% worldwide and is more common in girls. Estrogen receptors (ERs) is supposed to be related to sex differences and development of IS. Meanwhile, paravertebral muscle (PVM) abnormalities play important roles in the pathogenesis of IS. But the changes of ERs between the PVMs from IS patients and controls, and the mechanism by which ERs may affect IS patients remain unclear. Thus, the expression levels of ERs, myogenesis regulator (MYOG) and adipogenesis related factors (CEBPA, PPARγ, FABP4), as well as morphological changes in the PVMs and primary skeletal muscle mesenchymal progenitor cells (hSM-MPCs) of IS patients and controls were investigated. Increased expression levels of ERs and CEBPA, PPARγ, FABP4, together with severe myofiber necrosis and fat infiltration, were found in the PVMs of IS patients. Meanwhile, upregulated ERs, FABP4 and CEBPA, downregulated MYOG and impaired myogenesis were also revealed in the hSM-MPCs of IS patients compared with those of controls. Upregulation of ERs inhibited myogenesis but increased expression of CEBPA and FABP4 in C2C12 myoblasts. Nevertheless, treatment of ER antagonist increased expression of MYOG, enhanced myogenesis and decreased expression of CEBPA and FABP4 in skeletal muscle cells of IS patients. Therefore, our study suggested that PVMs specific upregulation of ERs could impair myogenesis and increase the expression of adipogenesis related factors, further leading to PVMs abnormalities in IS patients.

Anticancer activity and metabolic alteration in colon and prostate cancer cells by novel moxifloxacin conjugates with fatty acids

The positive and pro-economic trend in the management of cancer treatment is the search for the antineoplastic potential of known, widely used and safe drugs with a different clinical purpose. A good candidate seems to be moxifloxacin with broad-spectrum antibacterial activity, which as the member of the fourth generation fluoroquinolone is known to affect not only bacterial but also eukaryotic DNA topoisomerases, however at high concentration. Due to the fact that the modification of parent drug with lipid component can improve anticancer potential by increasing of bioavailability, selectivity, and cytotoxic efficiency, we evaluated the mechanisms of cytotoxic activity of novel moxifloxacin conjugates with fatty acids and verified metabolic profile in SW480, SW620 and PC3 cell lines. Our study revealed that cytotoxic potential of moxifloxacin conjugates was stronger than free moxifloxacin, moreover, they remained non-toxic to normal HaCaT cells. PC3 were more sensitive to MXF conjugates than colon cancer cells. The most promising cytotoxic activity exhibited conjugate 4m and 16m with oleic and stearic acid reducing viability of PC3 and SW620 cells. Tested conjugates activated caspases 3/7 and induced late-apoptosis, mainly in PC3 and SW620 cells. However, the most pronounced inhibition of NF-κB activation and IL-6 secretion was observed in SW480. Metabolomic analysis indicated influence of the moxifloxacin conjugates on intensity of lipid derivatives with the most successful metabolite profile in PC3. Our findings suggested the cytotoxic potential of moxifloxacin conjugates, especially with oleic and stearic acid can be beneficial in oncological therapy, including their possible anti-inflammatory and known antibacterial effect.

17β-estradiol Enhances 5-Fluorouracil Anti-Cancer Activities in Colon Cancer Cell Lines

BACKGROUND

5-Fluorouracil (5-FU) represents one of the major constituents of chemotherapy combination regimens in colon cancer (CRC) treatments; however, this regimen is linked with severe adverse effects and chemoresistance. Thus, developing more efficient approaches for CRC is urgently needed to overcome these problems and improve the patient survival rate. Currently, 17β-estradiol (E2) has gained greater attention in colon carcinogenesis, significantly lowering the incidence of CRC in females at reproductive age compared with age-matched males.

AIMS

This study measured the effects of E2 and/or 5-FU single/dual therapies on cell cycle progression and apoptosis against human HT-29 female and SW480 male primary CRC cells versus their impact on SW620 male metastatic CRC cells.

METHODS

The HT-29, SW480, and SW620 cells were treated with IC₅₀ of E2 (10 nM) and 5-FU (50 μM), alone or combined (E+F), for 48 h before cell cycle and apoptosis analyses using flow cytometry.

RESULTS

The data here showed that E2 monotherapy has great potential to arrest the cell cycle and induce apoptosis in all the investigated colon cancer cells, with the most remarkable effects on metastatic cells (SW620). Most importantly, the dual therapy (E+F) has exerted anti-cancer activities in female (HT-29) and male (SW480) primary CRC cells by inducing apoptosis, which was preferentially provoked in the sub-G₁ phase. However, the dual treatment showed the smallest effect in SW620 metastatic cells.

CONCLUSION

this is the first study that demonstrated that the anti-cancer actions of 17β-estradiol and 5-Fluorouracil dual therapy were superior to the monotherapies in female and male primary CRC cells; it is proposed that this treatment strategy could be promising for the early stages of CRC. At the same time, 17β-estradiol monotherapy could be a better approach for treating the metastatic forms of the disease. Nevertheless, additional investigations are still required to determine their precise therapeutic values in CRC.