Enhanced cancer metastasis after monocrotaline-induced lung injury

Stimuli-induced organ-specific injury enhancement of organotropic metastasis in a spatiotemporal regulation

The relationship between inflammation and tumorigenesis has been established. Recently, inflammation is also reported to be a drive force for cancer metastasis. Further evidences show that various stimuli directly induced-injury in a specific organ can also promote metastasis in this organ, which include epidemiological reports, clinical series and experimental studies. Each type of cancer has preferential sites for metastasis, which is also due to inflammatory factors that are released by primary cancer to act on these sites and indirectly induce injuries on them. Host factors such as stress,fever can also influence distant metastasis in a specific site through stimulation of immune and inflammatory effects. The five aspects support an idea that specific-organ injury directly induced by various stimuli or indirectly induced by primary tumor or host factors activation of proinflammatory modulators can promote metastasis in this organ through a spatiotemporal regulation, which has important implications for personalized prediction, prevention and management of cancer metastasis.

Glucuronidation, a new metabolic pathway for pyrrolizidine alkaloids

Pyrrolizidine alkaloids (PAs) possess significant hepatotoxicity to humans and animals after metabolic activation by liver P450 enzymes. Metabolism pathways of PAs have been studied for several decades, including metabolic activation, hydroxylation, N-oxidation, and hydrolysis. However, the glucuronidation of intact PAs has not been investigated, although glucuronidation plays an important role in the elimination and detoxication of xenobiotics. In this study, PAs glucuronidation was investigated, and three important points were found. First, we demonstrated that senecionine (SEN)-a representative hepatotoxic PA-could be conjugated by glucuronic acid via an N-glucuronidation reaction catalyzed by uridine diphosphate glucuronosyl transferase in human liver microsomes. Second, glucuronidation of SEN was catalyzed not only by human but also other animal species and showed significant species differences. Rabbits, cattle, sheep, pigs, and humans showed the significantly higher glucuronidation activity than mice, rats, dogs, and guinea pigs on SEN. Kinetics of SEN glucuronidation in humans, pigs, and rabbits followed the one-site binding model of the Michaelis-Menten equation, while cattle and sheep followed the two-sites binding model of the Michaelis-Menten equation. Third, besides SEN, other hepatotoxic PAs including monocrotaline, adonifoline, and isoline also underwent N-glucuronidation in humans and several animal species such as rabbits, cattle, sheep, and pigs.

Interactions between cancer cells and the endothelium in metastasis

The haematogenous phase of cancer metastasis facilitates the transport of metastatic cells within the blood and incorporates a sequence of interactions between circulating intravascular cancer cells and the endothelium of blood vessels at the sites of tumour cell arrest. Initial interactions involve mechanical contact and transient adhesion, mediated by endothelial selectins and their ligands on the neoplastic cells. This contact initiates a sequence of activation pathways that involves cytokines, growth factors, bioactive lipids, and reactive oxygen species produced by either the cancer cell or the endothelium. These molecules elicit expression of integrin adhesion molecules in cancer cells and the endothelium, matrix metalloproteinases, and chemotactic factors that promote the attachment of tumour cells to the vessel wall and/or transvascular penetration. Induction of endothelial free radicals can be cytotoxic to cancer cells. Collectively, the sum of these interactions constitutes an interdependent relationship, the outcome of which determines the fate of the metastatic process.

Chronic pulmonary hypertension--the monocrotaline model and involvement of the hemostatic system

Monocrotaline (MCT) is a toxic pyrrolizidine alkaloid of plant origin. Administration of small doses of MCT or its active metabolite, monocrotaline pyrrole (MCTP), to rats causes delayed and progressive lung injury characterized by pulmonary vascular remodeling, pulmonary hypertension, and compensatory right heart hypertrophy. The lesions induced by MCT(P) administration in rats are similar to those observed in certain chronic pulmonary vascular diseases of people. This review begins with a synopsis of the hemostatic system, emphasizing the role of endothelium since endothelial cell dysfunction likely underlies the pathogenesis of MCT(P)-induced pneumotoxicity. MCT toxicology is discussed, focusing on morphologic, pulmonary mechanical, hemodynamic, and biochemical and molecular alterations that occur after toxicant exposure. Fibrin and platelet thrombosis of the pulmonary microvasculature occurs after administration of MCT(P) to rats, and several investigators have hypothesized that thrombi contribute to the lung injury and pulmonary hypertension. The evidence for involvement of the various components of the hemostatic system in MCT(P)-induced vascular injury and remodeling is reviewed. Current evidence is consistent with involvement of platelets and an altered fibrinolytic system, yet much remains to be learned about specific events and signals in the vascular pathogenesis.

Adhesion molecules and their role in cancer metastasis

This article describes various adhesion molecules and reviews evidence to support a mechanistic role for adhesion molecules in the process of cancer metastasis. A variety of evidence supports the involvement of specific adhesion molecules in metastasis. 1. For example, some cancer cells metastasize to specific organs, irrespective of the first organ encountered by the circulating cancer cells. This ability to colonize a specific organ has been correlated with the preferential adhesion of the cancer cells to endothelial cells derived from the target organ. This suggests that cancer cell/endothelial cell adhesion is involved in cancer cell metastasis and that adhesion molecules are expressed on the endothelium in an organ-specific manner. 2. Further, inclusion of peptides that inhibit cell adhesion, such as the YIGSR- or RGD-containing peptides, is capable of inhibiting experimental metastasis. 3. Metastasis can be enhanced by acute or chronic inflammation of target vessels, or by treatment of animals with inflammatory cytokines, such as interleukin-1. In vitro, cancer cell/endothelial cell adhesion can be enhanced by pretreating the endothelial cell monolayer with cytokines, such as interleukin-1 or tumor necrosis factor-alpha. This suggests that, in addition to organ-specific adhesion molecules, a population of inducible endothelial adhesion molecules is involved and is relevant to metastasis. 4. Further support for this model is found in the comparison to leukocyte/endothelial adhesion during leukocyte trafficking. Convincing evidence exists, both in vivo and in vitro, to demonstrate an absolute requirement for leukocyte/endothelial adhesion before leukocyte extravasation can occur. The relevance of this comparison to metastasis is reinforced by the observation that some of the adhesion molecules involved in leukocyte/endothelial adhesion are also implicated in cancer cell/endothelial adhesion. The involvement of adhesion molecules suggests a potential therapy for metastasis based on interrupting adhesive interactions that would augment other treatments for primary tumors.

Cancer cell interactions with injured or activated endothelium

Blood vessels and lymphatics are the most important pathways for dissemination of cancer cells but the entry and exit of these cells into and from the vasculature requires that they pass through barriers formed by the endothelium and its basement membrane. This review summarizes evidence that this step in metastasis can be regulated by microenvironmental influences which alter the properties of this barrier. These phenomena can be attributed to both 'passive' and 'active' responses of the endothelium. The microvasculature is susceptible to perturbation from environmental agents, host cells and cancer cells. There is clinical and experimental evidence that this can upregulate the metastatic process. Using established animal models of pulmonary microvascular injury it has been shown that endothelial damage promotes the localization and metastasis of circulating cancer cells to the lung and that this effect is lost after endothelial repair. Oxidative stress is an effector of vascular damage in several of the experimental models. While endothelial cells appear to be directly susceptible to free radical attack, basement membranes are not. However, oxidative injury of endothelial cells causes release of proteases which can then degrade the basement membrane. This event is associated with generation of tumor cell chemoattractants and enhances cancer cell invasion of vascular basement membranes in vitro. Vascular endothelial cells are also susceptible to stimulation by systemic mediators including cytokines, thrombin, or endotoxin which induce a series of active responses in the vessel wall. These perturbed endothelial cells synthesize and express cell surface adhesion molecules which can interact with cancer cells. They also release chemoattractants which stimulate cancer cell motility. We postulate that such responses endow the vessel wall with the potential to act as a determinant of metastatic rate.

Early indications of monocrotaline pyrrole-induced lung injury in rats

Monocrotaline pyrrole (MCTP), a putative metabolite of the naturally occurring plant toxin, monocrotaline (MCT), causes lung injury, pulmonary hypertension, and right cardioventricular hypertrophy when administered intravenously to rats. The lesions caused by MCTP administration are similar to those caused by MCT but appear to occur on a slightly accelerated time course. To explore the onset and development of lung lesions, male Sprague-Dawley rats were treated with a single, intravenous injection of MCTP, and several markers of lung injury were evaluated at early times after administration. Rats received 3.5 mg MCTP/kg or an equal volume of the vehicle, N,N-dimethylformamide (DMF), via the tail vein at time 0 and were killed at 4, 12, 24, 48, 72, or 120 hr after treatment. Beginning at 4 hr, MCTP-treated rats had increased wet lung-to-body-weight ratios (LW/BW). The LW/BW remained elevated at 12 hr, returned to baseline at 24 hr, then increased steadily over the next few days. At 24 hr, the protein concentration of cell-free bronchoalveolar lavage fluid (BALF) was slightly elevated. Lactate dehydrogenase activity in cell-free BALF samples was moderately increased 48 hr after MCTP. Changes in these markers were modest initially but became much more pronounced by 120 hr. Total nucleated cell counts in BALF were variable but were moderately elevated at 120 hr. Cytologic examination of the BALF samples revealed small but significant infiltrates of segmented neutrophils at 4 hr and relatively large infiltrates of segmented neutrophils and small lymphocytes at 120 hr post-treatment. Mature neutrophils had degenerate cytomorphologic characteristics at both 4 and 120 hr. These results confirm that pronounced lung injury is delayed for several days after a single, intravenous administration of MCTP, but they also indicate that subtle lung injury can be detected using quantitative markers quite early after MCTP administration.

Lung vascular injury from monocrotaline pyrrole, a putative hepatic metabolite

The pyrrolizidine alkaloid, monocrotaline (MCT), is a plant toxin that causes injury to the vasculature of the lungs and pulmonary hypertension in animals. To produce lung injury, MCT is bioactivated in the liver by cytochrome P450 monooxygenases to pyrrolic metabolites which travel via the circulation to the lungs, where they cause injury by unknown mechanisms. One putative metabolite of MCT is monocrotaline pyrrole (dehydromonocrotaline, MCTP), a moderately reactive, bifunctional alkylating agent. A single, iv injection of chemically synthesized MCTP into rats causes delayed and progressive lung vascular injury and pulmonary hypertension similar to that caused by MCT itself. Since pulmonary vascular endothelium is likely an important target of MCTP in vivo, the effects of MCTP on cultured endothelium were studied. A single application of MCTP to confluent monolayers of cultured endothelium from bovine pulmonary artery results in release of lactate dehydrogenase, some cell detachment from the growth surface and markedly altered morphology of remaining viable cells. These effects are dose-dependent and, as in vivo, are delayed in onset (1-2 days) and progressive. In endothelial cells of porcine origin, these particular responses to MCTP are also apparent but much less pronounced. Inhibition of proliferation of cells plated at low density occurred in both cell types at nominal MCTP concentrations (0.5 micrograms/ml) that were not overtly cytotoxic. These results indicate that MCTP causes a direct, dose-dependent injury to pulmonary vascular endothelium in culture that is delayed and progressive and suggest a mechanism by which MCT may act in vivo to cause lung injury and pulmonary hypertension.