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Jiang G, Zhou X, Hu Y, Tan X, Wang D, Yang L, Zhang Q, Liu S. The antipsychotic drug pimozide promotes apoptosis through the RAF/ERK pathway and enhances autophagy in breast cancer cells. Cancer Biol Ther 2024; 25:2302413. [PMID: 38356266 PMCID: PMC10878017 DOI: 10.1080/15384047.2024.2302413] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 09/14/2023] [Accepted: 01/03/2024] [Indexed: 02/16/2024] Open
Abstract
The antipsychotic drug pimozide has been demonstrated to inhibit cancer. However, the precise anti-cancer mechanism of pimozide remains unclear. The purpose of this study was to investigate the effects of pimozide on human MCF-7 and MDA-MB-231 breast cancer cell lines, and the potential involvement in the RAF/ERK signaling. The effects of pimozide on cells were examined by 4,5-dimethylthiazol-2-yl-3,5-diphenylformazan, wound healing, colony formation, transwell assays, and caspase activity assay. Flow cytometry and acridine orange and ethidium bromide staining were performed to assess changes in cells. Transmission electron microscopy and monodansylcadaverine staining were used to observe autophagosomes. The cyclic adenosine monophosphate was evaluated using the FRET system. Immunohistochemistry, immunofluorescence, RNA interference, and western blot investigated the expression of proteins. Mechanistically, we focus on the RAF1/ERK signaling. We detected pimozide was docked to RAF1 by Schrodinger software. Pimozide down-regulated the phosphorylation of RAF1, ERK 1/2, Bcl-2, and Bcl-xl, up-regulated Bax, and cleaved caspase-9 to induce apoptosis. Pimozide might promote autophagy by up-regulating cAMP. The enhancement of autophagy increased the conversion of LC3-I to LC3-II and down-regulated p62 expression. But mTOR signaling was not involved in promoting autophagy. The knockdown of RAF1 expression induced autophagy and apoptosis in breast cancer cells, consistent with the results of pimozide or sorafenib alone. Blocked autophagy by chloroquine resulted in the impairment of pimozide-induced apoptosis. These data showed that pimozide inhibits breast cancer by regulating the RAF/ERK signaling pathway and might activate cAMP-induced autophagy to promote apoptosis and it may be a potential drug for breast cancer treatment.
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Affiliation(s)
- Ge Jiang
- Chronic Disease Research Center, Medical College, Dalian University, Dalian, Liaoning, China
- Department of Biology, Life Science and Technology College, Dalian University, Dalian, Liaoning, China
| | - Xingzhi Zhou
- Chronic Disease Research Center, Medical College, Dalian University, Dalian, Liaoning, China
| | - Ye Hu
- Chronic Disease Research Center, Medical College, Dalian University, Dalian, Liaoning, China
| | - Xiaoyu Tan
- Department of Clinical Laboratory, Xin Hua Hospital Affiliated to Dalian University, Dalian, China
| | - Dan Wang
- Chronic Disease Research Center, Medical College, Dalian University, Dalian, Liaoning, China
| | - Lina Yang
- Chronic Disease Research Center, Medical College, Dalian University, Dalian, Liaoning, China
| | - Qinggao Zhang
- Chronic Disease Research Center, Medical College, Dalian University, Dalian, Liaoning, China
| | - Shuangping Liu
- Chronic Disease Research Center, Medical College, Dalian University, Dalian, Liaoning, China
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Guo W, Xu B, Wang X, Zheng B, Du J, Liu S. The Analysis of the Anti-Tumor Mechanism of Ursolic Acid Using Connectively Map Approach in Breast Cancer Cells Line MCF-7. Cancer Manag Res 2020; 12:3469-3476. [PMID: 32523377 PMCID: PMC7237111 DOI: 10.2147/cmar.s241957] [Citation(s) in RCA: 13] [Impact Index Per Article: 3.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 12/11/2019] [Accepted: 04/23/2020] [Indexed: 12/22/2022] Open
Abstract
BACKGROUND Ursolic acid (UA), a primary bioactive triterpenoid, was reported as an anti-cancer agent. However, the current knowledge of UA and its potential anti-cancer mechanisms and targets in breast cancer cells are limited. In this study, we aimed to illustrate the potential mechanisms and targets of UA in breast cancer cells MCF-7. METHODS The effect of UA on cell growth was determined in MCF-7 cells by MTT assay. The anti-tumor mechanism of UA was evaluated by microarray, CAMP, and Western blot. Moreover, the molecular docking between UA and potential receptors were predicted by iGEMDOCK software. RESULTS The result of MTT assay demonstrated that UA could inhibit MCF-7 cell growth with IC50 values of 20 μM. Microarray and CMAP analysis, validated by Western blot, indicated that UA significantly modulated IKK/NF-κB, RAF/ERK pathways, and down-regulated the phosphorylation level of PLK1 in MCF-7 cells. CONCLUSION Our data indicated that the anti-tumor effects of UA are due to the inhibited RAF/ERK pathway and IKK/NF-κB pathway. It could also be explained by the reduced phosphorylation of PLK1 in MCF-7 cells. This study provides a new insight for deep understanding of the new anti-cancer mechanisms of UA in MCF-7 breast cancer cells.
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Affiliation(s)
- Weiqiang Guo
- School of Chemistry, Biology and Material Engineering, Suzhou University of Science and Technology, Suzhou215009, People’s Republic of China
| | - Bin Xu
- School of Chemistry, Biology and Material Engineering, Suzhou University of Science and Technology, Suzhou215009, People’s Republic of China
| | - Xiaoxiao Wang
- Suzhou Key Laboratory for Medical Biotechnology, Suzhou Vocational Health College, Suzhou215009, People’s Republic of China
| | - Bo Zheng
- School of Chemistry, Biology and Material Engineering, Suzhou University of Science and Technology, Suzhou215009, People’s Republic of China
| | - Jiahui Du
- Suzhou Key Laboratory for Medical Biotechnology, Suzhou Vocational Health College, Suzhou215009, People’s Republic of China
| | - Songbai Liu
- Suzhou Key Laboratory for Medical Biotechnology, Suzhou Vocational Health College, Suzhou215009, People’s Republic of China
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Zhang X, Qin J, Xie Z, Liu C, Su Y, Chen Z, Zhou Q, Ma C, Liu G, Paus R, Guo J, Wu X. Y-27632 preserves epidermal integrity in a human skin organ-culture (hSOC) system by regulating AKT and ERK signaling pathways. J Dermatol Sci 2019; 96:99-109. [PMID: 31718896 DOI: 10.1016/j.jdermsci.2019.10.006] [Citation(s) in RCA: 7] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.4] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 06/18/2019] [Revised: 10/24/2019] [Accepted: 10/28/2019] [Indexed: 02/07/2023]
Abstract
BACKGROUND The human skin organ culture (hSOC) developed a century ago has been widely used to study various aspects of human skin development, differentiation, function, disease as well as skin appendages biology, however, maintaining the integrity of epidermal structure in long-term culture, has remained a challenge. OBJECTIVES Here we tried to establish a culture system using supplemented William's E medium in the presence of a ROCK inhibitor Y-27632 to maintain epidermal architecture in the long-term hSOC and to investigate the underlying mechanisms. METHODS Human breast skins, cut into 5 mm × 5 mm pieces, were cultured in supplemented William's E medium in the presence of 30μM Y-27632. The cultured skin tissues were collected at different time points for analysis of epidermal cell proliferation and differentiation by real time qRT-PCR and immunofluorescence (IF) staining. The keratinocyte suspension assay and in vivo treatment of Y-27632 on mouse were also carried out to study that the regulation of Y-27632 on keratinocyte proliferation and differentiation. RESULTS We found Y-27632 not only enhanced both basal cell proliferation and expression of suprabasal cell differentiation markers, but also maintained the balance of keratinocyte proliferation and differentiation through activation of AKT pathways on one hand and inhibition of ERK pathways on the other hand. The AKT inhibitor MK-2206 blocked the epidermal preservation effect of Y-27632, while the MEK/ERK inhibitor U0126 enhanced the preservation of epidermal structure in the hSOC. CONCLUSIONS Y-227632 can maintain skin epidermal integrity through regulation of AKT and ERK activity in the hSOC.
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Affiliation(s)
- Xuan Zhang
- Department of Tissue Engineering and Regeneration, School and Hospital of Stomatology, Shandong University & Shandong Provincial Key Laboratory of Oral Tissue Regeneration & Shandong Engineering Laboratory for Dental Materials and Oral Tissue Regeneration, Jinan, China; Department of Stomatology, The Second Hospital of Shandong University, Jinan, China
| | - Jing Qin
- Department of Tissue Engineering and Regeneration, School and Hospital of Stomatology, Shandong University & Shandong Provincial Key Laboratory of Oral Tissue Regeneration & Shandong Engineering Laboratory for Dental Materials and Oral Tissue Regeneration, Jinan, China
| | - Zhiwei Xie
- Department of Tissue Engineering and Regeneration, School and Hospital of Stomatology, Shandong University & Shandong Provincial Key Laboratory of Oral Tissue Regeneration & Shandong Engineering Laboratory for Dental Materials and Oral Tissue Regeneration, Jinan, China; Department of Stomatology, Shengli Oilfield Central Hospital, Dongying, Shandong, China
| | - Chang Liu
- Department of Tissue Engineering and Regeneration, School and Hospital of Stomatology, Shandong University & Shandong Provincial Key Laboratory of Oral Tissue Regeneration & Shandong Engineering Laboratory for Dental Materials and Oral Tissue Regeneration, Jinan, China
| | - Yiqun Su
- Department of Tissue Engineering and Regeneration, School and Hospital of Stomatology, Shandong University & Shandong Provincial Key Laboratory of Oral Tissue Regeneration & Shandong Engineering Laboratory for Dental Materials and Oral Tissue Regeneration, Jinan, China
| | - Zhihong Chen
- Department of Urinary Surgery, Qilu Children's Hospital of Shandong University, Jinan, Shandong, China
| | - Qian Zhou
- Department of Tissue Engineering and Regeneration, School and Hospital of Stomatology, Shandong University & Shandong Provincial Key Laboratory of Oral Tissue Regeneration & Shandong Engineering Laboratory for Dental Materials and Oral Tissue Regeneration, Jinan, China
| | - Chuan Ma
- Department of Tissue Engineering and Regeneration, School and Hospital of Stomatology, Shandong University & Shandong Provincial Key Laboratory of Oral Tissue Regeneration & Shandong Engineering Laboratory for Dental Materials and Oral Tissue Regeneration, Jinan, China
| | - Guanyi Liu
- Department of Tissue Engineering and Regeneration, School and Hospital of Stomatology, Shandong University & Shandong Provincial Key Laboratory of Oral Tissue Regeneration & Shandong Engineering Laboratory for Dental Materials and Oral Tissue Regeneration, Jinan, China
| | - Ralf Paus
- Department of Dermatology & Cutaneous Surgery, University of Miami Miller School of Medicine, Miami, FL, USA; Centre for Dermatology Research, University of Manchester and NIHR Biomedical Research Centre, Manchester, UK
| | - Jing Guo
- Department of Tissue Engineering and Regeneration, School and Hospital of Stomatology, Shandong University & Shandong Provincial Key Laboratory of Oral Tissue Regeneration & Shandong Engineering Laboratory for Dental Materials and Oral Tissue Regeneration, Jinan, China.
| | - Xunwei Wu
- Department of Tissue Engineering and Regeneration, School and Hospital of Stomatology, Shandong University & Shandong Provincial Key Laboratory of Oral Tissue Regeneration & Shandong Engineering Laboratory for Dental Materials and Oral Tissue Regeneration, Jinan, China.
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