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Wu Y, Li CS, Meng RY, Jin H, Chai OH, Kim SM. Regulation of Hippo-YAP/CTGF signaling by combining an HDAC inhibitor and 5-fluorouracil in gastric cancer cells. Toxicol Appl Pharmacol 2024; 482:116786. [PMID: 38086440 DOI: 10.1016/j.taap.2023.116786] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 09/07/2023] [Revised: 12/02/2023] [Accepted: 12/06/2023] [Indexed: 12/18/2023]
Abstract
Histone deacetylase (HDAC) inhibitors diminish carcinogenesis, metastasis, and cancer cell proliferation by inducing death in cancer cells. Tissue regeneration and organ development are highly dependent on the Hippo signaling pathway. Targeting the dysregulated hippo pathway is an excellent approach for cancer treatment. According to the results of this study, the combination of panobinostat, a histone deacetylase inhibitor, and 5-fluorouracil (5-FU), a chemotherapy drug, can act synergistically to induce apoptosis in gastric cancer cells. The combination of panobinostat and 5-FU was more effective in inhibiting cell viability than either treatment alone by elevating the protein levels of cleaved PARP and cleaved caspase-9. By specifically targeting E-cadherin, vimentin, and MMP-9, the combination of panobinostat and 5-FU significantly inhibited cell migration. Additionally, panobinostat significantly increased the anticancer effects of 5-FU by activating Hippo signaling (Mst 1 and 2, Sav1, and Mob1) and inhibiting the Akt signaling pathway. As a consequence, there was a decrease in the amount of Yap protein. The combination therapy of panobinostat with 5-FU dramatically slowed the spread of gastric cancer in a xenograft animal model by deactivating the Akt pathway and supporting the Hippo pathway. Since combination treatment exhibits much higher anti-tumor potential than 5-FU alone, panobinostat effectively potentiates the anti-tumor efficacy of 5-FU. As a result, it is believed that panobinostat and 5-FU combination therapy will be useful as supplemental chemotherapy in the future.
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Affiliation(s)
- Yanling Wu
- Department of Physiology, Institute for Medical Sciences, Jeonbuk National University Medical School, Jeonju, 54907, Republic of Korea
| | - Cong Shan Li
- Department of Physiology, Institute for Medical Sciences, Jeonbuk National University Medical School, Jeonju, 54907, Republic of Korea
| | - Ruo Yu Meng
- Department of Physiology, Institute for Medical Sciences, Jeonbuk National University Medical School, Jeonju, 54907, Republic of Korea; Department of Oncology, Shandong Provincial Hospital Affiliated to Shandong First Medical University, Shandong 250021, China
| | - Hua Jin
- School of Pharmaceutical Sciences, Tsinghua University, Beijing 100084, China
| | - Ok Hee Chai
- Department of Anatomy, Institute for Medical Sciences, Jeonbuk National University Medical School, Jeonju, 54907, Republic of Korea
| | - Soo Mi Kim
- Department of Physiology, Institute for Medical Sciences, Jeonbuk National University Medical School, Jeonju, 54907, Republic of Korea.
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Meng RY, Li CS, Hu D, Kwon SG, Jin H, Chai OH, Lee JS, Kim SM. Inhibition of the interaction between Hippo/YAP and Akt signaling with ursolic acid and 3'3-diindolylmethane suppresses esophageal cancer tumorigenesis. Korean J Physiol Pharmacol 2023; 27:493-511. [PMID: 37641811 PMCID: PMC10466072 DOI: 10.4196/kjpp.2023.27.5.493] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 06/06/2023] [Revised: 08/04/2023] [Accepted: 08/10/2023] [Indexed: 08/31/2023]
Abstract
Hippo/YAP signaling hinders cancer progression. Inactivation of this pathway contributes to the development of esophageal cancer by activation of Akt. However, the possible interaction between Akt and Hippo/YAP pathways in esophageal cancer progression is unclear. In this study, we found that ursolic acid (UA) plus 3'3-diindolylmethane (DIM) efficiently suppressed the oncogenic Akt/Gsk-3β signaling pathway while activating the Hippo tumor suppressor pathway in esophageal cancer cells. Moreover, the addition of the Akt inhibitor LY294002 and the PI3K inhibitor 3-methyladenine enhanced the inhibitory effects of UA plus DIM on Akt pathway activation and further stimulated the Hippo pathway, including the suppression of YAP nuclear translocation in esophageal cancer cells. Silencing YAP under UA plus DIM conditions significantly increased the activation of the tumor suppressor PTEN in esophageal cancer cells, while decreasing p-Akt activation, indicating that the Akt signaling pathway could be down-regulated in esophageal cancer cells by targeting PTEN. Furthermore, in a xenograft nude mice model, UA plus DIM treatment effectively diminished esophageal tumors by inactivating the Akt pathway and stimulating the Hippo signaling pathway. Thus, our study highlights a feedback loop between the PI3K/Akt and Hippo signaling pathways in esophageal cancer cells, implying that a low dose of UA plus DIM could serve as a promising chemotherapeutic combination strategy in the treatment of esophageal cancer.
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Affiliation(s)
- Ruo Yu Meng
- Department of Physiology, Institute for Medical Sciences, Jeonbuk National University Medical School, Jeonju 54907, Korea
| | - Cong Shan Li
- Department of Physiology, Institute for Medical Sciences, Jeonbuk National University Medical School, Jeonju 54907, Korea
| | - Dan Hu
- Department of Physiology, Institute for Medical Sciences, Jeonbuk National University Medical School, Jeonju 54907, Korea
| | - Soon-Gu Kwon
- Department of Oral Physiology, School of Dentistry, Kyung Hee University, Seoul 02447, Korea
| | - Hua Jin
- School of Pharmaceutical Sciences, Tsinghua University, Beijing 100084, China
| | - Ok Hee Chai
- Department of Anatomy, Institute for Medical Sciences, Jeonbuk National University Medical School, Jeonju 54907, Korea
| | - Ju-Seog Lee
- Department of Systems Biology, The University of Texas MD Anderson Cancer Center, Houston, TX 77030, USA
| | - Soo Mi Kim
- Department of Physiology, Institute for Medical Sciences, Jeonbuk National University Medical School, Jeonju 54907, Korea
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Meng RY, Jin H, Nguyen TV, Chai OH, Park BH, Kim SM. Ursolic Acid Accelerates Paclitaxel-Induced Cell Death in Esophageal Cancer Cells by Suppressing Akt/FOXM1 Signaling Cascade. Int J Mol Sci 2021; 22:11486. [PMID: 34768915 PMCID: PMC8584129 DOI: 10.3390/ijms222111486] [Citation(s) in RCA: 7] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 08/04/2021] [Revised: 09/17/2021] [Accepted: 10/20/2021] [Indexed: 12/29/2022] Open
Abstract
Ursolic acid (UA), a pentacyclic triterpenoid extracted from various plants, inhibits cell growth, metastasis, and tumorigenesis in various cancers. Chemotherapy resistance and the side effects of paclitaxel (PTX), a traditional chemotherapy reagent, have limited the curative effect of PTX in esophageal cancer. In this study, we investigate whether UA promotes the anti-tumor effect of PTX and explore the underlying mechanism of their combined effect in esophageal squamous cell carcinoma (ESCC). Combination treatment with UA and PTX inhibited cell proliferation and cell growth more effectively than either treatment alone by inducing more significant apoptosis, as indicated by increased sub-G1 phase distribution and protein levels of cleaved-PARP and cleaved caspase-9. Similar to the cell growth suppressive effect, the combination of UA and PTX significantly inhibited cell migration by targeting uPA, MMP-9, and E-cadherin in ESCC cells. In addition, combination treatment with UA and PTX significantly activated p-GSK-3β and suppressed the activation of Akt and FOXM1 in ESCC cells. Those effects were enhanced by the Akt inhibitor LY2940002 and inverted by the Akt agonist SC79. In an in vivo evaluation of a murine xenograft model of esophageal cancer, combination treatment with UA and PTX suppressed tumor growth significantly better than UA or PTX treatment alone. Thus, UA effectively potentiates the anti-tumor efficacy of PTX by targeting the Akt/FOXM1 cascade since combination treatment shows significantly more anti-tumor potential than PTX alone both in vitro and in vivo. Combination treatment with UA and PTX could be a new strategy for curing esophageal cancer patients.
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Affiliation(s)
- Ruo Yu Meng
- Department of Physiology, Institute for Medical Sciences, Jeonbuk National University Medical School, Jeonju 54907, Korea;
| | - Hua Jin
- School of Pharmaceutical Sciences, Tsinghua University, Beijing 100084, China;
| | - Thi Van Nguyen
- Department of Anatomy, Institute for Medical Sciences, Jeonbuk National University Medical School, Jeonju 54907, Korea; (T.V.N.); (O.-H.C.)
| | - Ok-Hee Chai
- Department of Anatomy, Institute for Medical Sciences, Jeonbuk National University Medical School, Jeonju 54907, Korea; (T.V.N.); (O.-H.C.)
| | - Byung-Hyun Park
- Department of Biochemistry, Jeonbuk National University Medical School, Jeonju 54907, Korea;
| | - Soo Mi Kim
- Department of Physiology, Institute for Medical Sciences, Jeonbuk National University Medical School, Jeonju 54907, Korea;
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Lee NR, Meng RY, Rah SY, Jin H, Ray N, Kim SH, Park BH, Kim SM. Reactive Oxygen Species-Mediated Autophagy by Ursolic Acid Inhibits Growth and Metastasis of Esophageal Cancer Cells. Int J Mol Sci 2020; 21:E9409. [PMID: 33321911 PMCID: PMC7764507 DOI: 10.3390/ijms21249409] [Citation(s) in RCA: 14] [Impact Index Per Article: 3.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 10/21/2020] [Revised: 11/30/2020] [Accepted: 12/07/2020] [Indexed: 12/13/2022] Open
Abstract
Ursolic acid (UA) possesses various pharmacological activities, such as antitumorigenic and anti-inflammatory effects. In the present study, we investigated the mechanisms underlying the effects of UA against esophageal squamous cell carcinoma (ESCC) (TE-8 cells and TE-12 cells). The cell viability assay showed that UA decreased the viability of ESCC in a dose-dependent manner. In the soft agar colony formation assay, the colony numbers and size were reduced in a dose-dependent manner after UA treatment. UA caused the accumulation of vacuoles and LC3 puncta, a marker of autophagosome, in a dose-dependent manner. Autophagy induction was confirmed by measuring the expression levels of LC3 and p62 protein in ESCC cells. UA increased LC3-II protein levels and decreased p62 levels in ESCC cells. When autophagy was hampered using 3-methyladenine (3-MA), the effect of UA on cell viability was reversed. UA also significantly inhibited protein kinase B (Akt) activation and increased p-Akt expression in a dose-dependent manner in ESCC cells. Accumulated LC3 puncta by UA was reversed after wortmannin treatment. LC3-II protein levels were also decreased after treatment with Akt inhibitor and wortmannin. Moreover, UA treatment increased cellular reactive oxygen species (ROS) levels in ESCC in a time- and dose-dependent manner. Diphenyleneiodonium (an ROS production inhibitor) blocked the ROS and UA induced accumulation of LC3-II levels in ESCC cells, suggesting that UA-induced cell death and autophagy are mediated by ROS. Therefore, our data indicate that UA inhibits the growth of ESCC cells by inducing ROS-dependent autophagy.
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Affiliation(s)
- Na-Ri Lee
- Division of Hematology and Oncology, Jeonbuk National University Medical School, Jeonju 54907, Korea;
- Department of Internal Medicine, Jeonbuk National University Medical School, Jeonju 54907, Korea;
- Research Institute of Clinical Medicine, Biomedical Research Institute of Jeonbuk National University Medical School, Jeonju 54907, Korea
| | - Ruo Yu Meng
- Department of Physiology and Institute of Medical Science, Jeonbuk National University Medical School, Jeonju 54907, Korea; (R.Y.M.); (N.R.)
| | - So-Young Rah
- Department of Biochemistry, Jeonbuk National University Medical School, Jeonju 54907, Korea; (S.-Y.R.); (B.H.P.)
| | - Hua Jin
- School of Pharmaceutical Sciences, Tsinghua University, Beijing 100084, China;
| | - Navin Ray
- Department of Physiology and Institute of Medical Science, Jeonbuk National University Medical School, Jeonju 54907, Korea; (R.Y.M.); (N.R.)
| | - Seong-Hun Kim
- Department of Internal Medicine, Jeonbuk National University Medical School, Jeonju 54907, Korea;
| | - Byung Hyun Park
- Department of Biochemistry, Jeonbuk National University Medical School, Jeonju 54907, Korea; (S.-Y.R.); (B.H.P.)
| | - Soo Mi Kim
- Department of Physiology and Institute of Medical Science, Jeonbuk National University Medical School, Jeonju 54907, Korea; (R.Y.M.); (N.R.)
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Kim SH, Jin H, Meng RY, Kim DY, Liu YC, Chai OH, Park BH, Kim SM. Activating Hippo Pathway via Rassf1 by Ursolic Acid Suppresses the Tumorigenesis of Gastric Cancer. Int J Mol Sci 2019; 20:E4709. [PMID: 31547587 PMCID: PMC6801984 DOI: 10.3390/ijms20194709] [Citation(s) in RCA: 31] [Impact Index Per Article: 6.2] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 08/27/2019] [Revised: 09/16/2019] [Accepted: 09/18/2019] [Indexed: 12/16/2022] Open
Abstract
The Hippo pathway is often dysregulated in many carcinomas, which results in various stages of tumor progression. Ursolic acid (UA), a natural compound that exists in many herbal plants, is known to obstruct cancer progression and exerts anti-carcinogenic effect on a number of human cancers. In this study, we aimed to examine the biological mechanisms of action of UA through the Hippo pathway in gastric cancer cells. MTT assay showed a decreased viability of gastric cancer cells after treatment with UA. Following treatment with UA, colony numbers and the sizes of gastric cancer cells were significantly diminished and apoptosis was observed in SNU484 and SNU638 cells. The invasion and migration rates of gastric cancer cells were suppressed by UA in a dose-dependent manner. To further determine the gene expression patterns that are related to the effects of UA, a microarray analysis was performed. Gene ontology analysis revealed that several genes, such as the Hippo pathway upstream target gene, ras association domain family (RASSF1), and its downstream target genes (MST1, MST2, and LATS1) were significantly upregulated by UA, while the expression of YAP1 gene, together with oncogenes (FOXM1, KRAS, and BATF), were significantly decreased. Similar to the gene expression profiling results, the protein levels of RASSF1, MST1, MST2, LATS1, and p-YAP were increased, whereas those of CTGF were decreased by UA in gastric cancer cells. The p-YAP expression induced in gastric cancer cells by UA was reversed with RASSF1 silencing. In addition, the protein levels in the Hippo pathway were increased in the UA-treated xenograft tumor tissues as compared with that in the control tumor tissues; thus, UA significantly inhibited the tumorigenesis of gastric cancer in vivo in xenograft animals. Collectively, UA diminishes the proliferation and metastasis of gastric cancer via the regulation of Hippo pathway through Rassf1, which suggests that UA can be used as a potential chemopreventive and therapeutic agent for gastric cancer.
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Affiliation(s)
- Seong-Hun Kim
- Department of Internal Medicine, Chonbuk National University Medical School, Jeonju 54907, Korea.
| | - Hua Jin
- Department of Physiology, Chonbuk National University Medical School, Jeonju 54907, Korea.
| | - Ruo Yu Meng
- Department of Physiology, Chonbuk National University Medical School, Jeonju 54907, Korea.
| | - Da-Yeah Kim
- Department of Physiology, Chonbuk National University Medical School, Jeonju 54907, Korea.
| | - Yu Chuan Liu
- Department of Physiology, Chonbuk National University Medical School, Jeonju 54907, Korea.
| | - Ok Hee Chai
- Department of Anatomy and Institute for Medical Sciences, Chonbuk National University Medical School, Jeonju 54907, Korea.
| | - Byung Hyun Park
- Department of Biochemistry, Chonbuk National University Medical School, Jeonju 54907, Korea.
| | - Soo Mi Kim
- Department of Physiology, Chonbuk National University Medical School, Jeonju 54907, Korea.
- Research Institute of Clinical Medicine of Chonbuk National University, Jeonju 54907, Korea.
- Biomedical Research Institute of Chonbuk National University Hospital, Jeonju 54907, Korea.
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Meng RY, Kim SM. Ursolic acid potentiates paclitaxel induced antitumor effects on esophageal squamous cell carcinoma cell through the Akt signaling pathway. FASEB J 2018. [DOI: 10.1096/fasebj.2018.32.1_supplement.610.7] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/11/2022]
Affiliation(s)
- Ruo Yu Meng
- Department of PhysiologyInstitute of Medical SciencesChonbuk National University Medical SchoolJeonjuRepublic of Korea
| | - Soo Mi Kim
- Department of PhysiologyInstitute of Medical SciencesChonbuk National University Medical SchoolJeonjuRepublic of Korea
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