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Alessandro SD, Paradiso E, Lazzaretti C, Sperduti S, Perri C, Antoniani F, Righi S, Simoni M, Brigante G, Casarini L. Intracellular cGMP increase is not involved in thyroid cancer cell death. PLoS One 2023; 18:e0283888. [PMID: 36996255 PMCID: PMC10062617 DOI: 10.1371/journal.pone.0283888] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 10/27/2022] [Accepted: 03/20/2023] [Indexed: 04/01/2023] Open
Abstract
INTRODUCTION Type 5 phosphodiesterase (PDE5) inhibitors (PDE5i) lead to intracellular cyclic-guanosine monophosphate (cGMP) increase and are used for clinical treatment of erectile dysfunction. Studies found that cGMP may up/downregulate the growth of certain endocrine tumor cells, suggesting that PDE5i could impact cancer risk. AIM We evaluated if PDE5i may modulate thyroid cancer cell growth in vitro. MATERIALS AND METHODS We used malignant (K1) and benign (Nthy-ori 3-1) thyroid cell lines, as well as the COS7 cells as a reference model. Cells were treated 0-24 h with the PDE5i vardenafil or the cGMP analog 8-br-cGMP (nM-μM range). cGMP levels and caspase 3 cleavage were evaluated by BRET, in cGMP or caspase 3 biosensor-expressing cells. Phosphorylation of the proliferation-associated extracellularly-regulated kinases 1 and 2 (ERK1/2) was evaluated by Western blotting, while nuclear fragmentation by DAPI staining. Cell viability was investigated using 3-(4,5-dimethylthiazol-2-yl)-2,5-diphenyltetrazolium bromide (MTT) assay. RESULTS Both vardenafil and 8-br-cGMP effectively induced dose-dependent cGMP BRET signals (p≤0.05) in all the cell lines. However, no differences in caspase 3 activation occurred comparing PDE5i-treated vs untreated cells, at all concentrations and time-points tested (p>0.05). These results match those obtained upon cell treatment with 8-br-cGMP, which failed in inducing caspase 3 cleavage in all the cell lines (p>0.05). Moreover, they reflect the lack of nuclear fragmentation. Interestingly, the modulation of intracellular cGMP levels with vardenafil or the analog did not impact cell viability of both malignant and benign thyroid tumor cell lines, nor the phosphorylation of ERK1/2 (p>0.05). CONCLUSIONS This study demonstrates that increased cGMP levels are not linked to cell viability or death in K1 and Nthy-ori 3-1 cell lines, suggesting that PDE5i do not impact the growth of thyroid cancer cells. Since different results were previously published, further investigations are recommended to clarify the impact of PDE5i on thyroid cancer cells.
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Affiliation(s)
- Sara D' Alessandro
- Unit of Endocrinology, Department of Biomedical, Metabolic and Neural Sciences, University of Modena and Reggio Emilia, Modena, Italy
- International PhD School in Clinical and Experimental Medicine (CEM), University of Modena and Reggio Emilia, Modena, Italy
| | - Elia Paradiso
- Unit of Endocrinology, Department of Biomedical, Metabolic and Neural Sciences, University of Modena and Reggio Emilia, Modena, Italy
| | - Clara Lazzaretti
- Unit of Endocrinology, Department of Biomedical, Metabolic and Neural Sciences, University of Modena and Reggio Emilia, Modena, Italy
| | - Samantha Sperduti
- Unit of Endocrinology, Department of Biomedical, Metabolic and Neural Sciences, University of Modena and Reggio Emilia, Modena, Italy
- Center for Genomic Research, University of Modena and Reggio Emilia, Modena, Italy
| | - Carmela Perri
- Unit of Endocrinology, Department of Biomedical, Metabolic and Neural Sciences, University of Modena and Reggio Emilia, Modena, Italy
| | - Francesco Antoniani
- Unit of Endocrinology, Department of Biomedical, Metabolic and Neural Sciences, University of Modena and Reggio Emilia, Modena, Italy
| | - Sara Righi
- Unit of Endocrinology, Department of Biomedical, Metabolic and Neural Sciences, University of Modena and Reggio Emilia, Modena, Italy
| | - Manuela Simoni
- Unit of Endocrinology, Department of Biomedical, Metabolic and Neural Sciences, University of Modena and Reggio Emilia, Modena, Italy
- Center for Genomic Research, University of Modena and Reggio Emilia, Modena, Italy
- Unit of Endocrinology, Department of Medical Specialties, Azienda Ospedaliero-Universitaria di Modena, Modena, Italy
| | - Giulia Brigante
- Unit of Endocrinology, Department of Biomedical, Metabolic and Neural Sciences, University of Modena and Reggio Emilia, Modena, Italy
- Unit of Endocrinology, Department of Medical Specialties, Azienda Ospedaliero-Universitaria di Modena, Modena, Italy
| | - Livio Casarini
- Unit of Endocrinology, Department of Biomedical, Metabolic and Neural Sciences, University of Modena and Reggio Emilia, Modena, Italy
- Center for Genomic Research, University of Modena and Reggio Emilia, Modena, Italy
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Quadri M, Comitato A, Palazzo E, Tiso N, Rentsch A, Pellacani G, Marconi A, Marigo V. Activation of cGMP-Dependent Protein Kinase Restricts Melanoma Growth and Invasion by Interfering with the EGF/EGFR Pathway. J Invest Dermatol 2021; 142:201-211. [PMID: 34265328 DOI: 10.1016/j.jid.2021.06.011] [Citation(s) in RCA: 14] [Impact Index Per Article: 4.7] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 01/14/2021] [Revised: 05/07/2021] [Accepted: 06/18/2021] [Indexed: 12/16/2022]
Abstract
Drug resistance mechanisms still characterize metastatic melanoma, despite the new treatments that have been recently developed. Targeting of the cGMP/protein kinase G pathway is emerging as a therapeutic approach in cancer research. In this study, we evaluated the anticancer effects of two polymeric-linked dimeric cGMP analogs able to bind and activate protein kinase G, called protein kinase G activators (PAs) 4 and 5. PA5 was identified as the most effective compound on melanoma cell lines as well as on patient-derived metastatic melanoma cells cultured as three-dimensional spheroids and in a zebrafish melanoma model. PA5 was able to significantly reduce cell viability, size, and invasion of melanoma spheroids. Importantly, PA5 showed a tumor-specific outcome because no toxic effect was observed in healthy melanocytes exposed to the cGMP analog. We defined that by triggering protein kinase G, PA5 interfered with the EGF pathway as shown by lower EGFR phosphorylation and reduction of activated, phosphorylated forms of protein kinase B and extracellular signal‒regulated kinase 1/2 in melanoma cells. Finally, PA5 significantly reduced the metastatic process in zebrafish. These studies open future perspectives for the cGMP analog PA5 as a potential therapeutic strategy for melanoma.
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Affiliation(s)
- Marika Quadri
- DermoLab, Department of Surgical, Medical, Dental and Morphological Science, University of Modena and Reggio Emilia, Modena, Italy; Department of Life Sciences, University of Modena and Reggio Emilia, Modena, Italy
| | - Antonella Comitato
- Department of Life Sciences, University of Modena and Reggio Emilia, Modena, Italy
| | - Elisabetta Palazzo
- DermoLab, Department of Surgical, Medical, Dental and Morphological Science, University of Modena and Reggio Emilia, Modena, Italy
| | - Natascia Tiso
- Laboratory of Developmental Genetics, Department of Biology, University of Padua, Padua, Italy
| | - Andreas Rentsch
- BIOLOG Life Science Institute. Forschungslabor und Biochemica-Vertrieb, Bremen, Germany
| | - Giovanni Pellacani
- DermoLab, Department of Surgical, Medical, Dental and Morphological Science, University of Modena and Reggio Emilia, Modena, Italy
| | - Alessandra Marconi
- DermoLab, Department of Surgical, Medical, Dental and Morphological Science, University of Modena and Reggio Emilia, Modena, Italy.
| | - Valeria Marigo
- Department of Life Sciences, University of Modena and Reggio Emilia, Modena, Italy
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Cheng T, Wang Y, Lu M, Zhan X, Zhou T, Li B, Zhan X. Quantitative Analysis of Proteome in Non-functional Pituitary Adenomas: Clinical Relevance and Potential Benefits for the Patients. Front Endocrinol (Lausanne) 2019; 10:854. [PMID: 31920968 PMCID: PMC6915109 DOI: 10.3389/fendo.2019.00854] [Citation(s) in RCA: 11] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.2] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Submit a Manuscript] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 10/01/2018] [Accepted: 11/21/2019] [Indexed: 12/26/2022] Open
Abstract
Background: Non-functional pituitary adenoma (NFPA) is a common tumor that occurs in the pituitary gland, and generally without any symptoms at its early stage and without clinical elevation of hormones, which is commonly diagnosed when it grows up to compress its surrounding tissues and organs. Currently, the pathogenesis of NFPA has not been clarified yet. It is necessary to investigate molecular alterations in NFPA, and identify reliable biomarkers and drug therapeutic targets for effective treatments. Methods: Tandem mass tags (TMT)-based quantitative proteomics was used to identify and quantify proteins in NFPAs. GO and KEGG enrichment analyses were used to analyze the identified proteins. Differentially expressed genes (DEGs) between NFPA and control tissues were obtained from GEO datasets. These two sets of protein and gene data were analyzed to obtain overlapped molecules (genes; proteins), followed by further GO and KEGG pathway analyses of these overlapped molecules, and molecular network analysis to obtain the hub molecules with Cytoscape. Two hub molecules (SRC and AKT1) were verified with Western blotting. Results: Totally 6076 proteins in NFPA tissues were identified, and 3598 DEGs between NFPA and control tissues were identified from GEO database. Overlapping analysis of 6076 proteins and 3598 DEGs obtained 1088 overlapped molecules (DEGs; proteins). KEGG pathway analysis of 6076 proteins obtained 114 statistically significant pathways, including endocytosis, and spliceosome signaling pathways. KEGG pathway analysis of 1088 overlapped molecules obtained 52 statistically significant pathways, including focal adhesion, cGMP-PKG pathway, and platelet activation signaling pathways. These pathways play important roles in cell energy supply, adhesion, and maintenance of the tumor microenvironment. According to the association degree in Cytoscape, ten hub molecules (DEGs; proteins) were identified, including GAPDH, ALB, ACACA, SRC, ENO2, CALM1, POTEE, HSPA8, DECR1, and AKT1. Western-blotting analysis confirmed the upregulated expressions of SRC and PTMScan experiment confirmed the increased levels of pAKT1, in NFPAs compared to controls. Conclusions: This study established the large-scale quantitative protein profiling of NFPA tissue proteome. It offers a basis for subsequent in-depth proteomics analysis of NFPAs, and insight into the molecular mechanism of NFPAs. It also provided the basic data to discover reliable biomarkers and therapeutic targets for NFPA patients.
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Affiliation(s)
- Tingting Cheng
- Key Laboratory of Cancer Proteomics of Chinese Ministry of Health, Xiangya Hospital, Central South University, Changsha, China
- Hunan Engineering Laboratory for Structural Biology and Drug Design, Xiangya Hospital, Central South University, Changsha, China
- State Local Joint Engineering Laboratory for Anticancer Drugs, Xiangya Hospital, Central South University, Changsha, China
| | - Ya Wang
- Key Laboratory of Cancer Proteomics of Chinese Ministry of Health, Xiangya Hospital, Central South University, Changsha, China
- Hunan Engineering Laboratory for Structural Biology and Drug Design, Xiangya Hospital, Central South University, Changsha, China
- State Local Joint Engineering Laboratory for Anticancer Drugs, Xiangya Hospital, Central South University, Changsha, China
| | - Miaolong Lu
- Key Laboratory of Cancer Proteomics of Chinese Ministry of Health, Xiangya Hospital, Central South University, Changsha, China
- Hunan Engineering Laboratory for Structural Biology and Drug Design, Xiangya Hospital, Central South University, Changsha, China
- State Local Joint Engineering Laboratory for Anticancer Drugs, Xiangya Hospital, Central South University, Changsha, China
| | - Xiaohan Zhan
- Key Laboratory of Cancer Proteomics of Chinese Ministry of Health, Xiangya Hospital, Central South University, Changsha, China
- Hunan Engineering Laboratory for Structural Biology and Drug Design, Xiangya Hospital, Central South University, Changsha, China
- State Local Joint Engineering Laboratory for Anticancer Drugs, Xiangya Hospital, Central South University, Changsha, China
| | - Tian Zhou
- Key Laboratory of Cancer Proteomics of Chinese Ministry of Health, Xiangya Hospital, Central South University, Changsha, China
- Hunan Engineering Laboratory for Structural Biology and Drug Design, Xiangya Hospital, Central South University, Changsha, China
- State Local Joint Engineering Laboratory for Anticancer Drugs, Xiangya Hospital, Central South University, Changsha, China
| | - Biao Li
- Key Laboratory of Cancer Proteomics of Chinese Ministry of Health, Xiangya Hospital, Central South University, Changsha, China
- Hunan Engineering Laboratory for Structural Biology and Drug Design, Xiangya Hospital, Central South University, Changsha, China
- State Local Joint Engineering Laboratory for Anticancer Drugs, Xiangya Hospital, Central South University, Changsha, China
| | - Xianquan Zhan
- Key Laboratory of Cancer Proteomics of Chinese Ministry of Health, Xiangya Hospital, Central South University, Changsha, China
- Hunan Engineering Laboratory for Structural Biology and Drug Design, Xiangya Hospital, Central South University, Changsha, China
- State Local Joint Engineering Laboratory for Anticancer Drugs, Xiangya Hospital, Central South University, Changsha, China
- Department of Oncology, Xiangya Hospital, Central South University, Changsha, China
- National Clinical Research Center for Geriatric Disorders, Xiangya Hospital, Central South University, Changsha, China
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Active PKG II inhibited the growth and migration of ovarian cancer cells through blocking Raf/MEK and PI3K/Akt signaling pathways. Biosci Rep 2019; 39:BSR20190405. [PMID: 31350342 PMCID: PMC6692568 DOI: 10.1042/bsr20190405] [Citation(s) in RCA: 10] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 02/15/2019] [Revised: 07/11/2019] [Accepted: 07/25/2019] [Indexed: 02/07/2023] Open
Abstract
Despite advances in chemotherapy, ovarian cancer (OC) is still the most lethal gynecologic malignancy. So, it is imperative to explore its mechanism and find novel targets to improve the outcome. Type II cyclic guanosine 3′,5′-monophosphate (cGMP)-dependent protein kinase (PKG II) has been recently reported to inhibit proliferation and metastasis in several tumors. The present study is to clarify the effect of PKG II combined with l-arginine (l-Arg) on OC cells. SKOV3 and A2780 cells were infected with adenovirus coding cDNA of PKG II to increase PKG II expression and l-Arg was applied to activate this kinase. CCK8 assay, Transwell migration and TUNEL assay were applied to detect the proliferation, migration and apoptosis of the OC cells, respectively. Western blotting was used to detect the level of total and phosphorylated proteins. Our results showed that co-treatment with PKG II and l-Arg inhibited EGF-induced proliferation and the expression of Proliferating Cell Nuclear Antigen (PCNA), Cyclin E and N-Cadherin, whereas up-regulated the expression of E-Cadherin, abolished the anti-apoptotic effect of EGF, prevented the process of epithelial-to-mesenchymal transition (EMT) as well as blocked EGF-triggered Raf-MEK and phosphatidylinositol 3-kinase (PI3K)/Akt signaling pathways. Our results suggested that PKG II activated by l-Arg could inhibit proliferation and migration and promote the apoptosis of OC cells. Based on the above results and our previous data, it is speculated that PKG II is an inhibitor of cancer with extensive effects.
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Soni UK, Chadchan SB, Kumar V, Ubba V, Khan MTA, Vinod BSV, Konwar R, Bora HK, Rath SK, Sharma S, Jha RK. A high level of TGF-B1 promotes endometriosis development via cell migration, adhesiveness, colonization, and invasiveness†. Biol Reprod 2018; 100:917-938. [DOI: 10.1093/biolre/ioy242] [Citation(s) in RCA: 16] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.7] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 08/29/2017] [Revised: 12/29/2017] [Accepted: 11/12/2018] [Indexed: 12/24/2022] Open
Affiliation(s)
- Upendra Kumar Soni
- Endocrinology Division, CSIR-Central Drug Research Institute, Lucknow, India
| | | | - Vijay Kumar
- Endocrinology Division, CSIR-Central Drug Research Institute, Lucknow, India
| | - Vaibhave Ubba
- Endocrinology Division, CSIR-Central Drug Research Institute, Lucknow, India
| | | | | | - Rituraj Konwar
- Endocrinology Division, CSIR-Central Drug Research Institute, Lucknow, India
| | - Himangsu Kousik Bora
- Animal Laboratory Division, CSIR-Central Drug Research Institute, Lucknow, India
| | - Srikanta Kumar Rath
- Toxicology and Experimental Medicine Division, CSIR-Central Drug Research Institute, Lucknow, India
| | - Sharad Sharma
- Toxicology and Experimental Medicine Division, CSIR-Central Drug Research Institute, Lucknow, India
| | - Rajesh Kumar Jha
- Endocrinology Division, CSIR-Central Drug Research Institute, Lucknow, India
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Zhang Y, Zhang J, Shen Q, Yin W, Huang H, Liu Y, Ni Q. High expression of Nectin-4 is associated with unfavorable prognosis in gastric cancer. Oncol Lett 2018; 15:8789-8795. [PMID: 29805618 DOI: 10.3892/ol.2018.8365] [Citation(s) in RCA: 18] [Impact Index Per Article: 3.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 08/03/2016] [Accepted: 01/08/2018] [Indexed: 12/27/2022] Open
Abstract
Nectins are Ca2+-independent immunoglobulin-like cell adhesion molecules that belong to a family of four members that function in a number of biological cellular activities. Nectin-4 is overexpressed in several types of human cancer; however, the functional and prognostic significance of Nectin-4 in gastric cancer (GC) remains unclear. In the present study, the reverse transcription-quantitative polymerase chain reaction and tissue microarray immunohistochemical analysis were used to investigate the expression of Nectin-4 in GC as well as its function in the prognosis of patients with GC. The results indicated that mRNA and protein expression of Nectin-4 were increased in tumor tissues compared with the matched non-tumor tissues. Expression of Nectin-4 was closely associated with differentiation (P=0.004), primary tumor (P=0.001), lymph node metastasis (P<0.001) and tumor-node-metastasis (TNM) stage (P<0.001). Positive Nectin-4 expression (P=0.001) and advanced TNM stage (P<0.001) were demonstrated to be associated with overall survival time in multivariate analyses. These results suggest that Nectin-4 may serve a significant function in GC and may serve as a novel clinic pathological biomarker and therapeutic target in GC.
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Affiliation(s)
- Yan Zhang
- Department of Oncology, Affiliated Hospital of Nantong University, Nantong, Jiangsu 226001, P.R. China
| | - Jiaxuan Zhang
- Department of General Surgery, Affiliated Hospital of Nantong University, Nantong, Jiangsu 226001, P.R. China
| | - Qin Shen
- Medical College, Nantong University, Nantong, Jiangsu 226001, P.R. China
| | - Wei Yin
- Department of General Surgery, Affiliated Hospital of Nantong University, Nantong, Jiangsu 226001, P.R. China
| | - Hua Huang
- Department of Pathology, Affiliated Hospital of Nantong University, Nantong, Jiangsu 226001, P.R. China
| | - Yifei Liu
- Department of Pathology, Affiliated Hospital of Nantong University, Nantong, Jiangsu 226001, P.R. China
| | - Qingfeng Ni
- Department of General Surgery, Affiliated Hospital of Nantong University, Nantong, Jiangsu 226001, P.R. China
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New cGMP analogues restrain proliferation and migration of melanoma cells. Oncotarget 2017; 9:5301-5320. [PMID: 29435180 PMCID: PMC5797051 DOI: 10.18632/oncotarget.23685] [Citation(s) in RCA: 16] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 05/04/2017] [Accepted: 12/18/2017] [Indexed: 12/14/2022] Open
Abstract
Melanoma is one of the most aggressive cancers and displays high resistance to conventional chemotherapy underlining the need for new therapeutic strategies. The cGMP/PKG signaling pathway was detected in melanoma cells and shown to reduce migration, proliferation and to increase apoptosis in different cancer types. In this study, we evaluated the effects on cell viability, cell death, proliferation and migration of novel dimeric cGMP analogues in two melanoma cell lines (MNT1 and SkMel28). These new dimeric cGMP analogues, by activating PKG with limited effects on PKA, significantly reduced proliferation, migration and increased cell death. No decrease in cell viability was observed in non-tumor cells suggesting a tumor-specific effect. These effects observed in melanoma are possibly mediated by PKG2 activation based on the decreased toxic effects in tumor cell lines not expressing PKG2. Finally, PKG-associated phosphorylation of vasodilator-stimulated-phosphoprotein (VASP), linked to cell death, proliferation and migration was found increased and with a change of subcellular localization. Increased phosphorylation of RhoA induced by activation of PKG may also contribute to reduced migration ability of the SkMel28 melanoma cell line when treated with cGMP analogues. These findings suggest that the cGMP/PKG pathway can be envisaged as a therapeutic target of novel dimeric cGMP analogues for the treatment of melanoma.
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