Chlorogenic acid depresses cellular bioenergetics to suppress pancreatic carcinoma through modulating c-Myc-TFR1 axis

Chlorogenic Acid: A Systematic Review on the Biological Functions, Mechanistic Actions, and Therapeutic Potentials

Chlorogenic acid (CGA) is a type of polyphenol compound found in rich concentrations in many plants such as green coffee beans. As an active natural substance, CGA exerts diverse therapeutic effects in response to a variety of pathological challenges, particularly conditions associated with chronic metabolic diseases and age-related disorders. It shows multidimensional functions, including neuroprotection for neurodegenerative disorders and diabetic peripheral neuropathy, anti-inflammation, anti-oxidation, anti-pathogens, mitigation of cardiovascular disorders, skin diseases, diabetes mellitus, liver and kidney injuries, and anti-tumor activities. Mechanistically, its integrative functions act through the modulation of anti-inflammation/oxidation and metabolic homeostasis. It can thwart inflammatory constituents at multiple levels such as curtailing NF-kB pathways to neutralize primitive inflammatory factors, hindering inflammatory propagation, and alleviating inflammation-related tissue injury. It concurrently raises pivotal antioxidants by activating the Nrf2 pathway, thus scavenging excessive cellular free radicals. It elevates AMPK pathways for the maintenance and restoration of metabolic homeostasis of glucose and lipids. Additionally, CGA shows functions of neuromodulation by targeting neuroreceptors and ion channels. In this review, we systematically recapitulate CGA's pharmacological activities, medicinal properties, and mechanistic actions as a potential therapeutic agent. Further studies for defining its specific targeting molecules, improving its bioavailability, and validating its clinical efficacy are required to corroborate the therapeutic effects of CGA.

Dysregulation of iron homeostasis by TfR-1 renders EZH2 wild type diffuse large B-cell lymphoma resistance to EZH2 inhibition

EZH2 has been regarded as an efficient target for diffuse large B-cell lymphoma (DLBCL), but the clinical benefits of EZH2 inhibitors (EZH2i) are limited. To date, only EPZ-6438 has been approved by FDA for the treatment of follicular lymphoma and epithelioid sarcoma. We have discovered a novel EZH1/2 inhibitor HH2853 with a better antitumor effect than EPZ-6438 in preclinical studies. In this study we explored the molecular mechanism underlying the primary resistance to EZH2 inhibitors and sought for combination therapy strategy to overcome it. By analyzing EPZ-6438 and HH2853 response profiling, we found that EZH2 inhibition increased intracellular iron through upregulation of transferrin receptor 1 (TfR-1), ultimately triggered resistance to EZH2i in DLBCL cells. We demonstrated that H3K27ac gain by EZH2i enhanced c-Myc transcription, which contributed to TfR-1 overexpression in insensitive U-2932 and WILL-2 cells. On the other hand, EZH2i impaired the occurrence of ferroptosis by upregulating the heat shock protein family A (Hsp70) member 5 (HSPA5) and stabilizing glutathione peroxidase 4 (GPX4), a ferroptosis suppressor; co-treatment with ferroptosis inducer erastin effectively overrode the resistance of DLBCL to EZH2i in vitro and in vivo. Altogether, this study reveals iron-dependent resistance evoked by EZH2i in DLBCL cells, and suggests that combination with ferroptosis inducer may be a promising therapeutic strategy.

Chlorogenic Acid Inhibits Epithelial-Mesenchymal Transition and Invasion of Breast Cancer by Down-Regulating LRP6

Epithelial-mesenchymal transition (EMT) is a crucial biologic process for breast cancer metastasis, and inhibition of EMT could be an effective approach to suppress metastatic potential of mammary cancer. High expression of low-density lipoprotein receptor-related protein 6 (LRP6) is usually observed in breast carcinoma and predicts poor prognosis. In the present study, we investigated whether chlorogenic acid (CA) can inhibit the EMT of breast cancer cells and underlying molecular mechanism. We found that CA treatment transformed MCF-7 cell morphology from spindle shape (mesenchymal phenotype) to spherical shape (epithelial phenotype). CA clearly increased epithelial biomarkers' expression (E-cadherin and ZO-1) but decreased mesenchymal proteins' expression (ZEB1, N-cadherin, vimentin, snail, and slug). In addition, CA attenuated MMP-2 and MMP-9 activities and inhibited cell migration and invasion. CA downregulated the expression of LRP6 in MCF-7 cells. Knockdown LRP6 with siRNA repressed cell mobility and invasion, wheras overexpression of LRP6 promoted EMT and antagonized the EMT inhibitory effect of CA on MCF-7 cells. Furthermore, CA directly interacted with Wnt/β-catenin signaling coreceptor LRP6 and reduced LRP6, p-LRP6, and β-catenin expression levels in MCF-7 cells. In vivo study revealed that CA notably reduced tumor volume and tumor weight. CA decreased the expression of LRP6, N-cadherin, ZEB1, vimentin, MMP2, MMP9, and increased the expression of E-cadherin and ZO-1. In conclusion, CA inhibited EMT and invasion of breast cancer by targeting LRP6. SIGNIFICANCE STATEMENT: CA, the familiar polyphenol compound in traditional Chinese medicine, repressed EMT and weakened cellular mobility and invasion in MCF-7 cells. The mechanism studies demonstrated that CA could inhibit EMT and invasion of MCF-7 cells via targeting LRP6. Additionally, CA restrained tumor growth and xenograft tumor EMT in vivo. The EMT inhibitory property of CA warrants further studies of CA as a drug candidate for the therapy of metastatic breast carcinoma.

A synthesized olean-28,13β-lactam targets YTHDF1-GLS1 axis to induce ROS-dependent metabolic crisis and cell death in pancreatic adenocarcinoma

Background

Pancreatic adenocarcinoma (PAAD) is a severe malignant with a 5-year survival rate of approximately 9%. Oleanolic acid is a well-known natural triterpenoid which exhibits pharmacological activities. We previously synthesized a series of oleanolic acid derivatives and evaluated the tumor-suppressive activity of olean-28,13β-lactam (B28) in prostate cancer. However, the detailed mechanism remains to be understood.

Methods

The anti-tumor activity of B28 in PAAD was confirmed by RTCA, colony formation assay and flow cytometry. GO and KEGG enrichment analyses were performed to analyze the differentially expressed genes (DEGs) obtained by RNA sequencing. The effects of B28 on cell bioenergetics were evaluated by seahorse analyzer. Lenti-virus packaged plasmids were performed to knockdown or overexpress target genes. Alteration of mitochondrial membrane potential, ROS and GSH/GSSG were measured by corresponding detection kits according to the manufacturer's protocol.

Results

We evaluated and confirmed the promising anti-tumor activity of B28 in vitro. RNA-seq profile indicated that multiple metabolic pathways were interrupted in B28 treated PAAD cells. Next, we demonstrated that B28 induces cellular bioenergetics crisis to inhibit PAAD cells growth and induce cell death. We further validated that cell cycle arrest, inhibition of cell growth, cell apoptosis and cell bioenergetics disruption were functionally rescued by ROS scavenger NAC. Mechanistically, we found glutamine metabolism was inhibited due to B28 administration. Moreover, we validated that down-regulation of GLS1 contributes to ROS generation and bioenergetics interruption induced by B28. Furthermore, we elucidated that YTHDF1-GLS1 axis is the potential downstream target of B28 to induce PAAD cell metabolic crisis and cell death. Finally, we also confirmed the anti-tumor activity of B28 in vivo.

Conclusions

Current study demonstrates B28 disrupts YTDFH1-GLS1 axis to induce ROS-dependent cell bioenergetics crisis and cell death which finally suppress PAAD cell growth, indicating that this synthesized olean-28,13β-lactam maybe a potent agent for PAAD intervention.

Supplementary Information

The online version contains supplementary material available at 10.1186/s12935-022-02562-6.

The Role of Iron in Cancer Progression

Iron is an essential trace element for the human body, and its deficiency or excess can induce a variety of biological processes. Plenty of evidences have shown that iron metabolism is closely related to the occurrence and development of tumors. In addition, iron plays an important role in cell death, which is very important for the development of potential strategies for tumor treatment. Here, we reviewed the latest research about iron metabolism disorders in various types of tumors, the functions and properties of iron in ferroptosis and ferritinophagy, and new opportunities for iron-based on treatment methods for tumors, providing more information regarding the prevention and treatment of tumors.

Seven Glycolysis-Related Genes Predict the Prognosis of Patients With Pancreatic Cancer

Objectives

To identify the key glycolysis-related genes (GRGs) in the occurrence and development of pancreatic ductal carcinoma (PDAC), and to construct a glycolysis-related gene model for predicting the prognosis of PDAC patients.

Methodology

Pancreatic ductal carcinoma (PDAC) data and that of normal individuals were downloaded from the TCGA database and Genotype-Tissue Expression database, respectively. GSEA analysis of glycolysis-related pathways was then performed on PDAC data to identify significantly enriched GRGs. The genes were combined with other patient’s clinical information and used to construct a glycolysis-related gene model using cox regression analysis. The model was further evaluated using data from the validation group. Mutations in the model genes were subsequently identified using the cBioPortal. In the same line, the expression levels of glycolysis related model genes in PDAC were analyzed and verified using immunohistochemical images. Model prediction for PDAC patients with different clinical characteristics was then done and the relationship between gene expression level, clinical stage and prognosis further discussed. Finally, a nomogram map of the predictive model was constructed to evaluate the prognosis of patients with PDAC.

Results

GSEA results of the training set revealed that genes in the training set were significantly related to glycolysis pathway and iconic glycolysis pathway. There were 108 differentially expressed GRGs. Among them, 29 GRGs were closely related to prognosis based on clinical survival time. Risk regression analysis further revealed that there were seven significantly expressed glycolysis related genes. The genes were subsequently used to construct a predictive model. The model had an AUC value of more than 0.85. It was also significantly correlated with survival time. Further expression analysis revealed that CDK1, DSC2, ERO1A, MET, PYGL, and SLC35A3 were highly expressed in PDAC and CHST12 was highly expressed in normal pancreatic tissues. These results were confirmed using immunohistochemistry images of normal and diseases cells. The model could effectively evaluate the prognosis of PDAC patients with different clinical characteristics.

Conclusion

The constructed glycolysis-related gene model effectively predicts the occurrence and development of PDAC. As such, it can be used as a prognostic marker to diagnose patients with PDAC.

Extracts of Phyllostachys pubescens Leaves Represses Human Steroid 5-Alpha Reductase Type 2 Promoter Activity in BHP-1 Cells and Ameliorates Testosterone-Induced Benign Prostatic Hyperplasia in Rat Model

Benign prostatic hyperplasia (BPH) is the most common symptomatic abnormality of the human prostate characterized by uncontrolled proliferation of the prostate gland. In this study, we investigated the effect of bamboo, Phyllostachys pubescens, leaves extract (PPE) on human 5α-reductase type 2 (SRD5A2) gene promoter activity in human prostate cell lines and the protective effect of PPE on a testosterone-induced BPH rat model. PPE repressed human SRD5A2 promoter activity and its mRNA expression. The rats treated with PPE for 4 weeks showed a significantly attenuated prostate weight compared to vehicle control. PPE-treated rats also showed reduced serum dihydrotestosterone, testosterone, prostate-specific antigen, and SRD5A2 levels by testosterone injection. Quantitative real-time polymerase chain reaction showed that PPE treatment significantly decreased mRNA expression of SRD5A2, androgen receptor (AR), proliferating cell nuclear antigen (PCNA), and fibroblast growth factor 2 compared with the vehicle-treated, testosterone-injected rats in the prostate. Furthermore, PPE treatment showed reduced AR, PCNA, and tumor necrosis factor alpha expression in the prostate via immunohistofluorescence staining. In conclusion, oral administration of PPE prevented and inhibited the development and progression of enlarged prostate lesions in testosterone-induced animal models through various anti-proliferative and anti-inflammatory pharmacological effects and induced suppression of SRD5A2 gene expression.