Disruption of Glycogen Utilization Markedly Improves the Efficacy of Carboplatin against Preclinical Models of Clear Cell Ovarian Carcinoma

Retinol dehydrogenase 10 contributes to cancer stemness and intracellular carbohydrate storage in ovarian clear cell carcinomas

BACKGROUND

Ovarian clear cell carcinomas (OCCCs) have been recurrent and refractory among the present treatments, so novel therapeutics are urgently needed.

OBJECTIVE

The present study accumulates the proof of concept to examine the feasibility of RDH10 as a therapeutic target for treating OCCCs.

METHODS

Immunohistochemically, RDH10 expression was evaluated in 111 primary epithelial ovarian cancers, including 55 OCCCs, 31 ovarian endometrioid carcinomas and 25 ovarian serous carcinomas. The spherogenecity provoked by RDH10 was evaluated in OCCC cells. To analyze whether RDH10 promotes carbohydrate storage via the vitamin A-gluconeogenesis pathway, phosphoenolpyruvate carboxykinase 1 (PCK1) protein levels and intracellular carbohydrate content were measured in response to modified RDH10 expression.

RESULTS

Abundant RDH10 was expressed specifically in OCCCs. RDH10 promoted spherogenecity and intracellular carbohydrate storage via modulation of PCK1 expression in OCCC cells.

CONCLUSIONS

In the present study, abundant RDH10 contributed to cancer cell stemness and intracellular carbohydrate storage in OCCCs. RDH10 is a potentially, new therapeutic candidate for treating OCCC cases.

In Silico Evaluation of Binding of 2-Deoxy-D-Glucose with Mpro of nCoV to Combat COVID-19

COVID-19 has threatened the existence of humanity andthis infection occurs due to SARS-CoV-2 or novel coronavirus, was first reported in Wuhan, China. Therefore, there is a need to find a promising drug to cure the people suffering from the infection. The second wave of this viral infection was shaking the world in the first half of 2021. Drugs Controllers of India has allowed the emergency use of 2-deoxy-D-glucose (2DG) in 2021 for patients suffering from this viral infection. The potentiality of 2-deoxy-D-glucose to intervene in D-glucose metabolism exists and energy deprivation is an effective parameter to inhibit cancer cell development. Once 2DG arrives in the cells, it becomes phosphorylated to 2-deoxy-D-glucose-6-phosphate (2-DG6P), a charged molecule expressively captured inside the cells. On the other hand, 2DG lacks the ability to convert into fructose-6-phosphate, resulting in a hampering of the activity of both glucose-6-phosphate isomerase and hexokinase, and finally causing cell death. Hence, the potential and effectiveness of 2DG with the main protease (Mpro) of novel coronavirus (nCoV) should be investigated using the molecular docking and molecular dynamics (MD) simulations. The ability of 2DG to inhibit the Mpro of nCoV is compared with 2-deoxyglucose (2DAG), an acyclic molecule, and 2-deoxy-D-ribose (2DR). The binding energy of the molecules with the Mpro of nCoV is calculated using molecular docking and superimposed analysis data is obtained. The binding energy of 2DG, 2DR and 2DAG was −2.40, −2.22 and −2.88 kcal/mol respectively. Although the molecular docking does not provide reliable information, therefore, the binding affinity can be confirmed by molecular dynamics simulations. Various trajectories such as Rg, RMSD, RMSF, and hydrogen bonds are obtained from the molecular dynamics (MD) simulations. 2DG was found to be a better inhibitor than the 2DAG and 2DR based on the results obtained from the MD simulations at 300 K. Furthermore, temperature-dependent MD simulations of the Mpro of nCoV with promising 2DG was performed at 295, 310 and 315 K, and the effective binding with the Mpro of nCoV occurred at 295 K. With the use of DFT calculations, optimized geometry and localization of electron density of the frontier molecular orbitals were calculated.

Cell Metabolism and DNA Repair Pathways: Implications for Cancer Therapy

DNA repair and metabolic pathways are vital to maintain cellular homeostasis in normal human cells. Both of these pathways, however, undergo extensive changes during tumorigenesis, including modifications that promote rapid growth, genetic heterogeneity, and survival. While these two areas of research have remained relatively distinct, there is growing evidence that the pathways are interdependent and intrinsically linked. Therapeutic interventions that target metabolism or DNA repair systems have entered clinical practice in recent years, highlighting the potential of targeting these pathways in cancer. Further exploration of the links between metabolic and DNA repair pathways may open new therapeutic avenues in the future. Here, we discuss the dependence of DNA repair processes upon cellular metabolism; including the production of nucleotides required for repair, the necessity of metabolic pathways for the chromatin remodeling required for DNA repair, and the ways in which metabolism itself can induce and prevent DNA damage. We will also discuss the roles of metabolic proteins in DNA repair and, conversely, how DNA repair proteins can impact upon cell metabolism. Finally, we will discuss how further research may open therapeutic avenues in the treatment of cancer.

Targeting the tumour microenvironment in platinum-resistant ovarian cancer

Ovarian cancer typically presents at an advanced stage, and although the majority of cases initially respond well to platinum-based therapies, chemoresistance almost always occurs leading to a poor long-term prognosis. While various cellular autonomous mechanisms contribute to intrinsic or acquired platinum resistance, the tumour microenvironment (TME) plays a central role in resistance to therapy and disease progression by providing cancer stem cell niches, promoting tumour cell metabolic reprogramming, reducing chemotherapy drug perfusion and promoting an immunosuppressive environment. As such, the TME is an attractive therapeutic target which has been the focus of intense research in recent years. This review provides an overview of the unique ovarian cancer TME and its role in disease progression and therapy resistance, highlighting some of the latest preclinical and clinical data on TME-targeted therapies. In particular, it focuses on strategies targeting cancer-associated fibroblasts, tumour-associated macrophages, cancer stem cells and cancer cell metabolic vulnerabilities.

Revisiting Glycogen in Cancer: A Conspicuous and Targetable Enabler of Malignant Transformation

Once thought to be exclusively a storage hub for glucose, glycogen is now known to be essential in a range of physiological processes and pathological conditions. Glycogen lies at the nexus of diverse processes that promote malignancy, including proliferation, migration, invasion, and chemoresistance of cancer cells. It is also implicated in processes associated with the tumor microenvironment such as immune cell effector function and crosstalk with cancer-associated fibroblasts to promote metastasis. The enzymes of glycogen metabolism are dysregulated in a wide variety of malignancies, including cancers of the kidney, ovary, lung, bladder, liver, blood, and breast. Understanding and targeting glycogen metabolism in cancer presents a promising but under-explored therapeutic avenue. In this review, we summarize the current literature on the role of glycogen in cancer progression and discuss its potential as a therapeutic target for cancer treatment.