Effect of TIEG1 on apoptosis and expression of Bcl-2/Bax and Pten in leukemic cell lines

A New Benzo[6,7]oxepino[3,2-b] Pyridine Derivative Induces Apoptosis in Canine Mammary Cancer Cell Lines

CMC is the most frequently diagnosed cancer and one of the leading causes of death in non-spayed female dogs. Exploring novel therapeutic agents is necessary to increase the survival rate of dogs with CMC. MPOBA is a BZOP derivative that has a significant anticancer effect in a human cell line. The main goal of this study was to investigate the anticancer properties of MPOBA against two CMC cell lines (REM134 and CMGT071020) using a 3-(4,5-Dimethyl-2-thiazolyl)-2,5-diphenyl-2H-tetrazolium bromide (MTT) assay, a wound healing assay, a transwell migration assay, an Annexin V-FITC apoptosis assay with a flow cytometry analysis, a mRNA expression analysis using quantitative real-time PCR (qRT-PCR), and an immunohistochemistry (IHC). According to the accumulated studies, MPOBA caused significant concentration- and time-dependent reductions in cell proliferation and cell migration and induced apoptosis in both CMC cell lines. In gene expression analysis, nine canine genes, including TP53, BCL-2, BAX, epidermal growth factor receptor (EGFR), snail transcription factor (SNAIL), snail-related zinc-finger transcription factor (SLUG), TWIST, E-cadherin, and N-cadherin, were investigated. The mRNA expression results revealed that MPOBA induced upregulation of TP53 and overexpression of the pro-apoptotic gene BAX, together with an inhibition of BCL-2. Moreover, MPOBA also suppressed the mRNA expression levels of SNAIL, EGFR, and N-cadherin and induced upregulation of E-cadherin, crucial genes related to the epithelial-to-mesenchymal transition (EMT). However, there was no significant difference in the IHC results of the expression patterns of vimentin (VT) and cytokeratin (CK) between MPOBA-treated and control CMC cells. In conclusion, the results of the present study suggested that MPOBA exhibited significant anticancer activity by inducing apoptosis in both CMCs via upregulation of TP53 and BAX and downregulation of BCL-2 relative mRNA expression. MPOBA may prove to be a potential candidate drug to be further investigated as a therapeutic agent for CMC.

Bovine Dialyzable Leukocyte Extract IMMUNEPOTENT-CRP Induces Selective ROS-Dependent Apoptosis in T-Acute Lymphoblastic Leukemia Cell Lines

Immunotherapies strengthen the immune system to fight multiple diseases such as infections, immunodeficiencies, and autoimmune diseases, and recently, they are being used as an adjuvant in cancer treatment. IMMUNEPOTENT-CRP (I-CRP) is an immunotherapy made of bovine dialyzable leukocyte extract (bDLE) that has chemoprotective and immunomodulatory effects in different cellular populations of the immune system and antitumor activity in different cancer cell lines. Our recent results suggest that the antineoplastic effect of I-CRP is due to the characteristics of cancer cells. To confirm, we evaluated whether the selectivity is due to cell lineage or characteristics of cancer cells, testing cytotoxicity in T-acute lymphoblastic leukemia cells and their cell death mechanism. Here, we assessed the effect of I-CRP on cell viability and cell death. To determine the mechanism of cell death, we tested cell cycle, mitochondrial and nuclear alterations, and caspases and reactive oxygen species (ROS) and their role in cell death mechanism. Our results show that I-CRP does not affect cell viability in noncancer cells and induces selective cytotoxicity in a dose-dependent manner in leukemic cell lines. I-CRP also induces mitochondrial damage through proapoptotic and antiapoptotic protein modulation (Bax and Bcl-2) and ROS production, nuclear alterations including DNA damage (γ-H2Ax), overexpression of p53, cell cycle arrest, and DNA degradation. I-CRP induced ROS-dependent apoptosis in leukemic cells. Overall, here, we show that I-CRP cytotoxicity is selective to leukemic cells, inducing ROS-dependent apoptosis. This research opens the door to further exploration of their role in the immune system and the cell death mechanism that could potentially work in conjunction with other therapies including hematological malignances.

Ozone alleviates ischemia/reperfusion injury by inhibiting mitochondrion-mediated apoptosis pathway in SH-SY5Y cells

Cerebral ischemia/reperfusion (I/R) injuries are common and often cause severe complications. Ozone has been applied for protecting I/R injury in animal models of several organs including cerebra, but the detailed mechanism remains unclear. 3-(4,5-Dimethylthiazol-2-yl)-2,5-diphenyltetrazolium bromide (MTT) assay and lactate dehydrogenase measurement were used to determine the influence of ozone on cell activity and damage of SH-SY5Y cells. Some redox items such as catalase (CAT), malondialdehyde (MDA), glutathione peroxidase (GSH-Px), and superoxide dismutase (SOD) were measured by enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay. The mitochondrial membrane potential (ΔΨ_m ) was determined by JC-1 assay. Cytochrome-c (cyt-c) level in the cytoplasm and mitochondrion was measured by western blotting. Apoptosis was determined by flow cytometry, and some apoptosis-related molecules were detected by quantitative real-time polymerase chain reaction and western blotting. Ozone alleviated oxidative damage by increasing GSH-Px, SOD, CAT, and decreasing MDA. Ozone decreased mitochondrial damage caused by I/R injury and inhibited the release of cyt-c from mitochondrion to cytoplasm in SH-SY5Y cells. The cell apoptosis caused by I/R was inhibited by ozone, and ozone could decrease apoptosis by increasing the ratio of Bcl-2/Bax and inhibiting caspase signaling pathway in SH-SY5Y cells. Ozone has the ability of maintaining redox homeostasis, decreasing mitochondrion damage, and inhibiting neurocytes apoptosis induced by I/R. Therefore, ozone may be a promising protective strategy against cerebral I/R injury.

Long noncoding RNA OIP5-AS1 in cancer

Long noncoding RNAs (lncRNAs) can be over two hundred nucleotides in length and lack an obvious open reading frame (ORF). Interestingly, these RNAs form a group of nucleic acids involved in a variety of diverse cellular mechanisms involving proliferation, differentiation, apoptosis,and senescence. Given these characteristics, it is not unexpected that the aberrant expression of certain lncRNAs is strongly linked to oncogenesis and tumor advancement. OIP5-AS1, a prominent tumor-associated lncRNA, contributes to intricate cellular mechanisms during the evolution of malignant tumors. For example, it not only represses cyclin G-associated kinase (GAK) expression thus impacting mitosis, but also regulates cell proliferation and apoptosis in many cancers, including lung adenocarcinoma, breast, glioma and hepatoblastoma. In this paper, we review our current understanding of OIP5-AS1 in carcinogenesis and its potential application as a clinical biomarker or therapeutic target in malignancy.

Evaluation of BAX and BCL-2 Gene Expression and Apoptosis Induction in Acute Lymphoblastic Leukemia Cell Line CCRFCEM after High- Dose Prednisolone Treatment

Objective: Glucocorticoids are one of the most important drugs in the treatment of acute lymphoblastic leukemia for children. It is very important to response to glucocorticoid in the prognosis of these patients. Therefore, resistance to treatment is a major problem in lymphoid leukemia cases. In, this study, CCRF-CEM cell line was selected as a chemotherapy-resistant model. The aim of this study was to evaluate the effect of high dose prednisolone on induction of apoptosis and changes in BAX and BCL-2 gene expression at different times. Methods: CCRF-CEM cell lines were grown in standard conditions. Based on previous studies, a dose of 700 μM as subtoxic dose was selected. Changes in gene expression of BAX and BCL-2 were evaluated by using real time PCR techniques. Also stained with annexin V and the induction of apoptosis was assessed by FACS machine. Results: In this study it was found that prednisolone in high doses at different times significantly increased the gene expression of BAX and on the other hand the amount of BCL-2 expression was reduced. Cells that treated for 48 hours had more significant changes in gene expression. Based on flowcytometry data, prednisolone can induce apoptosis in a time dependent manner on this cancerous resistant cell line. Conclusions: Apoptosis induced by high-dose prednisolone in the CCRF-CEM cells, which is almost resistant, and possibly mediated by reducing the expression of BCL-2 and BAX up-regulation.

LncRNA OIP5-AS1 loss-induced microRNA-410 accumulation regulates cell proliferation and apoptosis by targeting KLF10 via activating PTEN/PI3K/AKT pathway in multiple myeloma

Numerous studies confirmed that aberrant miRNAs expression contributes to multiple myeloma (MM) development and progression. However, the roles of specific miRNAs in MM remain to be investigated. In present study, we demonstrated that miR-410 expression was increased in MM newly diagnosed and relapsed tissues and cell lines. Clinical analysis revealed that miR-410 was positively correlated with advanced ISS stage. Moreover, high miR-410 expression in MM patients showed an obvious shorter overall survival and progression-free survival. Gain- and loss-of function experiments indicated that miR-410 promoted cell proliferation, cell cycle progression and apoptosis inhibition both in vitro and in vivo. Moreover, KLF10 was identified as a direct downstream target of miR-410 in MM cells, and mediated the functional influence of miR-410 in MM, resulting in PTEN/AKT activation. In clinical samples of MM, miR-410 inversely correlated with KLF10. Alteration of KLF10 expression or AKT inhibitor at least partially abolished the biological effects of miR-410 on MM cells. Furthermore, downregulated expression of lncRNA OIP5-AS1 was inversely correlated with miR-410 expression in MM tissues. LncRNA OIP5-AS1 could modulate the miR-410 expression and regulate its target KLF10/PTEN/AKT-mediated cellular behaviors. Taken together, this research supports the first evidence that lncRNA OIP5-AS1 loss-induced miR-410 accumulation facilitates cell proliferation, cycle progression and apoptosis inhibition by targeting KLF10 via activating PTEN/PI3K/AKT pathway in MM.

TIEG1 deficiency confers enhanced myocardial protection in the infarcted heart by mediating the Pten/Akt signalling pathway

The transforming growth factor (TGF)-β-inducible early gene-1 (TIEG1) plays a crucial role in modulating cell apoptosis and proliferation in a number of diseases, including pancreatic cancer, leukaemia and osteoporosis. However, the functional role of TIEG1 in the heart has not been fully defined. In this study, we first investigated the role of TIEG1 in ischaemic heart disease. For in vitro experiments, cardiomyocytes were isolated from both TIEG1 knockout (KO) and wile-type (WT) mice, and the apoptotic ratios were evaluated after a 48-h ischaemic insult. A cell proliferation assay was performed after 7 days of incubation under normoxic conditions. In addition, the angiogenic capacity of endothelial cells was determined by tube formation assay. For in vivo experiments, a model of myocardial infarction (MI) was established using both TIEG1 KO and WT mice. Echocardiography was performed at 3 and 28 days post-MI, whereas the haemodynamics test was performed 28 days post-MI. Histological analyses of apoptosis, proliferation, angiogenesis and infarct zone assessments were performed using terminal deoxynucleotidyltransferase-mediated dUTP nick-end labelling (TUNEL) staining, BrdU immunostaining, α-smooth muscle actin (α-SMA)/CD31 immunostaining and Masson's trichrome staining, respectively. Changes in the expression of related proteins caused by TIEG1 deficiency were confirmed using both reverse transcription-quantitative polymerase chain reaction (RT-qPCR) and western blot analysis. Our results demonstrated that the absence of TIEG1 prevented cardiomyocytes from undergoing apoptosis and promoted higher proliferation; it stimulated the proliferation of endothelial cells in vitro and in vivo. Improved cardiac function and less scar formation were observed in TIEG1 KO mice, and we also observed the altered expression of phosphatase and tensin homolog (Pten), Akt and Bcl-2/Bax, as well as vascular endothelial growth factor (VEGF). On the whole, our findings indicate that the absence of TIEG1 plays a cardioprotective role in ischaemic heart disease by promoting changes in Pten/Akt signalling.

Gene silencing of USP1 by lentivirus effectively inhibits proliferation and invasion of human osteosarcoma cells

Osteosarcoma is the most frequent malignant bone tumor, affecting the extremities of adolescents and young adults. Ubiquitin-specific protease 1 (USP1) plays a critical role in many cellular processes including proteasome degradation, chromatin remodeling and cell cycle regulation. In the present study, we discovered that USP1 was overexpressed in 26 out of 30 osteosarcoma tissues compared to cartilage tumor tissues and normal bone tissues. We then constructed a lentiviral vector mediating RNA interference (RNAi) targeting USP1 and demonstrated that it significantly suppressed the mRNA and protein expression of the USP1 gene in U2OS cells. Knockdown of USP1 inhibited the growth and colony-forming, as well as significantly reduced the invasiveness of U2OS cells. Western blot analysis indicated that suppression of USP1 downregulated the expression of many proteins including SIK2, MMP-2, GSK-3β, Bcl-2, Stat3, cyclin E1, Notch1, Wnt-1 and cyclin A1. Most of these proteins are associated with tumor genesis and development. RNAi of SIK2 significantly decreased SIK2 protein expression and inhibited the ability of forming colonies, as well as induced apoptosis and reduced the invasiveness of U2OS cells. Collectively, our results suggest that silencing USP1 inhibits cell proliferation and invasion in U2OS cells. Therefore, USP1 may provide a novel therapeutic target for the treatment of osteosarcoma.

Onco-microRNA miR-130b promoting cell growth in children APL by targeting PTEN

OBJECTIVE

To study the expression of microRNA-130b (miR-130b) in children acute promyelocytic leukemia (APL) and its role for regulating PTEN expression.

METHODS

A total of 50 children APL marrow tissues and 15 normal marrow tissues between January and December in 2012 were collected into our study. The expression of miR-130b in APL and normal marrow tissues were detected by quantitative real-time polymerase chain reaction. MiR-130b inhibitor was transfected into HL-60 cells. Cell Counting Kit-8 assay and flow cytometry were used to measure cell proliferation and apoptosis, respectively. The expression of PTEN, a potential target of miR-130b, and its downstream genes, Bcl-2 and Bax, in transformed cells were detected by quantitative real-time polymerase chain reaction and western-blot.

RESULTS

The expression of miR-130b was significantly higher in children APL marrow tissues than in normal marrow tissues (P < 0.05). Down-regulation of miR-130b could significantly suppress cell proliferation and induce apoptosis in HL-60 cells (P < 0.05). PTEN expression was upregulated when miR-130b was knocking-down (P < 0.05). As downstream genes of PTEN, the expression of Bcl-2 and Bax were regulated as well.

CONCLUSIONS

MiR-130b is overexpressed in children APL marrow tissues and associated with cell growth. MiR-130b may promote children APL progression by inducing cell proliferation and inhibiting apoptosis.