Crossroad between the Heat Shock Protein and Inflammation Pathway in Acquiring Drug Resistance: A Possible Target for Future Cancer Therapeutics

Fatty acid synthase inhibitor cerulenin attenuates glioblastoma progression by reducing EMT and stemness phenotypes, inducing oxidative and ER stress response, and targeting PI3K/AKT/NF-κB axis

Targeting cellular metabolism is becoming a critical approach for stopping cancer progression. Limited information is available regarding the effects of inhibiting the lipogenic enzyme fatty acid synthase (FASN) in glioblastoma (GB) cells (grade-IV-astrocytoma), which have high invasion and low response to standard treatments. Herein, we used cerulenin (CER) to inhibit FASN. CER treatments (3.6 μg/mL/48 h and 5.55 μg/mL/48 h indicate IC20 and IC50 values, respectively) led to a dose- and time-dependent decrease in the viability of the U-87MG human GB cells. A significant decrease was detected in the levels of fatty acids, including palmitic acid, determined by GS-MS analysis. FASN inhibition attenuated cell motility, 2D and 3D-clonogenic survival, and cell differentiation characteristics (related markers of epithelial-mesenchymal transition/EMT and stemness). Moreover, treatments caused mitochondrial membrane potential (MMP) collapse and increased intracellular reactive oxygen species (ROS) levels. Protein aggregates and ER stress in the cells also increased. Remarkably, despite increased Hsp70 and p-HSF1 levels against induced cellular stress, CER promoted markedly autophagy and apoptosis. The network pharmacology approach revealed that protein and lipid kinases are crucial targets in cell signaling, and PI3K, AKT, and NF-κB levels were confirmed by immunoblotting. The results demonstrated for the first time that inhibiting FA production and FASN function induces cell death through ROS generation and ER stress while simultaneously reducing the motility and aggressiveness of U-87MG human glioblastoma cells by attenuating EMT and stemness phenotypes. Therefore, blocking lipid metabolism using CER may be considered as a good candidate for GB therapeutic option.

Antibacterial carbon dots

Bacterial infections significantly threaten human health, leading to severe diseases and complications across multiple systems and organs. Antibiotics remain the primary treatment strategy for these infections. However, the growing resistance of bacteria to conventional antibiotics underscores the urgent need for safe and effective alternative treatments. In response, several approaches have been developed, including carbon dots (CDs), antimicrobial peptides, and antimicrobial polymers, all of which have proven effective in combating bacterial resistance. Among these, CDs stand out due to their unique advantages, including low preparation cost, stable physicochemical properties, high biocompatibility, tunable surface chemistry, strong photoluminescence, and efficient generation of reactive oxygen species. These features make CDs highly promising in antibacterial applications. This review explores the development of antibacterial CDs, focusing on their mechanisms of action-physical destroy, biochemical damage, and synergistic effects-while highlighting their potential for clinical use as antibacterial agents.

The Interplay between Heat Shock Proteins and Cancer Pathogenesis: A Novel Strategy for Cancer Therapeutics

Heat shock proteins (HSPs) are developmentally conserved families of protein found in both prokaryotic and eukaryotic organisms. HSPs are engaged in a diverse range of physiological processes, including molecular chaperone activity to assist the initial protein folding or promote the unfolding and refolding of misfolded intermediates to acquire the normal or native conformation and its translocation and prevent protein aggregation as well as in immunity, apoptosis, and autophagy. These molecular chaperonins are classified into various families according to their molecular size or weight, encompassing small HSPs (e.g., HSP10 and HSP27), HSP40, HSP60, HSP70, HSP90, and the category of large HSPs that include HSP100 and ClpB proteins. The overexpression of HSPs is induced to counteract cell stress at elevated levels in a variety of solid tumors, including anticancer chemotherapy, and is closely related to a worse prognosis and therapeutic resistance to cancer cells. HSPs are also involved in anti-apoptotic properties and are associated with processes of cancer progression and development, such as metastasis, invasion, and cell proliferation. This review outlines the previously mentioned HSPs and their significant involvement in diverse mechanisms of tumor advancement and metastasis, as well as their contribution to identifying potential targets for therapeutic interventions.