What to feed or what not to feed-that is still the question

INTRODUCTION

This review addresses metabolic diversities after grain feeding of cattle using artificial total mixed ration (TMR), in place of pasture-based feeding.

OBJECTIVES

To determine how grain feeding impairs the deuterium-depleting functions of the anaplerotic mitochondrial matrix during milk and meat production.

METHODS

Based on published data we herein evaluate how grain-fed animals essentially follow a branched-chain amino acid and odd-chain fatty acid-based reductive carboxylation-dependent feedstock, which is also one of the mitochondrial deuterium-accumulating dysfunctions in human cancer.

RESULTS

It is now evident that food-based intracellular deuterium exchange reactions, especially that of glycogenic substrate oxidation, are significant sources of deuterium-enriched (²H; D) metabolic water with a significant impact on animal and human health. The burning of high deuterium nutritional dairy products into metabolic water upon oxidation in the human body may contribute to similar metabolic conditions and diseases as described in state-of-the-art articles for cows. Grain feeding also limits oxygen delivery to mitochondria for efficient deuterium-depleted metabolic water production by glyphosate herbicide exposure used in genetically modified crops of TMR constituents.

CONCLUSION

Developments in medical metabolomics, biochemistry and deutenomics, which is the science of biological deuterium fractionation and discrimination warrant urgent critical reviews in order to control the epidemiological scale of population diseases such as diabetes, obesity and cancer by a thorough understanding of how the compromised metabolic health of grain-fed dairy cows impacts human consumers.

Deuterium Depletion Inhibits Cell Proliferation, RNA and Nuclear Membrane Turnover to Enhance Survival in Pancreatic Cancer

The effects of deuterium-depleted water (DDW) containing deuterium (D) at a concentration of 25 parts per million (ppm), 50 ppm, 105 ppm and the control at 150 ppm were monitored in MIA-PaCa-2 pancreatic cancer cells by the real-time cell impedance detection xCELLigence method. The data revealed that lower deuterium concentrations corresponded to lower MiA PaCa-2 growth rate. Nuclear membrane turnover and nucleic acid synthesis rate at different D-concentrations were determined by targeted [1,2-13C2]-D-glucose fate associations. The data showed severely decreased oxidative pentose cycling, RNA ribose 13C labeling from [1,2-13C2]-D-glucose and nuclear membrane lignoceric (C24:0) acid turnover. Here, we treated advanced pancreatic cancer patients with DDW as an extra-mitochondrial deuterium-depleting strategy and evaluated overall patient survival. Eighty-six (36 male and 50 female) pancreatic adenocarcinoma patients were treated with conventional chemotherapy and natural water (control, 30 patients) or 85 ppm DDW (56 patients), which was gradually decreased to preparations with 65 ppm and 45 ppm deuterium content for each 1 to 3 months treatment period. Patient survival curves were calculated by the Kaplan-Meier method and Pearson correlation was taken between medial survival time (MST) and DDW treatment in pancreatic cancer patients. The MST for patients consuming DDW treatment (n = 56) was 19.6 months in comparison with the 6.36 months' MST achieved with chemotherapy alone (n = 30). There was a strong, statistically significant Pearson correlation (r = 0.504, p < 0.001) between survival time and length and frequency of DDW treatment.

Structural homologies between phenformin, lipitor and gleevec aim the same metabolic oncotarget in leukemia and melanoma

Phenformin's recently demonstrated efficacy in melanoma and Gleevec's demonstrated anti-proliferative action in chronic myeloid leukemia may lie within these drugs' significant pharmacokinetics, pharmacodynamics and structural homologies, which are reviewed herein. Gleevec's success in turning a fatal leukemia into a manageable chronic disease has been trumpeted in medical, economic, political and social circles because it is considered the first successful targeted therapy. Investments have been immense in omics analyses and while in some cases they greatly helped the management of patients, in others targeted therapies failed to achieve clinically stable recurrence-free disease course or to substantially extend survival. Nevertheless protein kinase controlling approaches have persisted despite early warnings that the targeted genomics narrative is overblown. Experimental and clinical observations with Phenformin suggest an alternative explanation for Gleevec's mode of action. Using ¹³C-guided precise flux measurements, a comparative multiple cell line study demonstrated the drug's downstream impact on submolecular fatty acid processing metabolic events that occurred independent of Gleevec's molecular target. Clinical observations that hyperlipidemia and diabetes are both reversed in mice and in patients taking Gleevec support the drugs' primary metabolic targets by biguanides and statins. This is evident by structural data demonstrating that Gleevec shows pyridine- and phenyl-guanidine homology with Phenformin and identical phenylcarbamoyl structural and ligand binding homology with Lipitor. The misunderstood mechanism of action of Gleevec is emblematic of the pervasive flawed reasoning that genomic analysis will lead to targeted, personalized diagnosis and therapy. The alternative perspective for Gleevec's mode of action may turn oncotargets towards metabolic channel reaction architectures in leukemia and melanoma, as well as in other cancers.

Submolecular regulation of cell transformation by deuterium depleting water exchange reactions in the tricarboxylic acid substrate cycle

The naturally occurring isotope of hydrogen ((1)H), deuterium ((2)H), could have an important biological role. Deuterium depleted water delays tumor progression in mice, dogs, cats and humans. Hydratase enzymes of the tricarboxylic acid (TCA) cycle control cell growth and deplete deuterium from redox cofactors, fatty acids and DNA, which undergo hydride ion and hydrogen atom transfer reactions. A model is proposed that emphasizes the terminal complex of mitochondrial electron transport chain reducing molecular oxygen to deuterium depleted water (DDW); this affects gluconeogenesis as well as fatty acid oxidation. In the former, the DDW is thought to diminish the deuteration of sugar-phosphates in the DNA backbone, helping to preserve stability of hydrogen bond networks, possibly protecting against aneuploidy and resisting strand breaks, occurring upon exposure to radiation and certain anticancer chemotherapeutics. DDW is proposed here to link cancer prevention and treatment using natural ketogenic diets, low deuterium drinking water, as well as DDW production as the mitochondrial downstream mechanism of targeted anti-cancer drugs such as Avastin and Glivec. The role of (2)H in biology is a potential missing link to the elusive cancer puzzle seemingly correlated with cancer epidemiology in western populations as a result of excessive (2)H loading from processed carbohydrate intake in place of natural fat consumption.

Metabolic fate of fructose in human adipocytes: a targeted 13C tracer fate association study

The development of obesity is becoming an international problem and the role of fructose is unclear. Studies using liver tissue and hepatocytes have contributed to the understanding of fructose metabolism. Excess fructose consumption also affects extra hepatic tissues including adipose tissue. The effects of fructose on human adipocytes are not yet fully characterized, although in vivo studies have noted increased adiposity and weight gain in response to fructose sweetened-beverages. In order to understand and predict the metabolic responses of adipocytes to fructose, this study examined differentiating and differentiated human adipocytes in culture, exposed to a range of fructose concentrations equivalent to that reported in blood after consuming fructose. A stable isotope based dynamic profiling method using [U-¹³C₆]-d-fructose tracer was used to examine the metabolism and fate of fructose. A targeted stable isotope tracer fate association method was used to analyze metabolic fluxes and flux surrogates with exposure to escalating fructose concentration. This study demonstrated that fructose stimulates anabolic processes in adipocytes robustly, including glutamate and de novo fatty acid synthesis. Furthermore, fructose also augments the release of free palmitate from fully differentiated adipocytes. These results imply that in the presence of fructose, the metabolic response of adipocytes in culture is altered in a dose dependent manner, particularly favoring increased glutamate and fatty acid synthesis and release, warranting further in vivo studies.

Abstract 1426: Fumarate hydratase and deuterium depletion control oncogenesis via NADPH-dependent reductive synthesis: mitochondrial matrix water, DNA deuteration and epigenetic events

Clear cell kidney tumors become exclusively oxidative pentose cycle, hence cytoplasmic free water dependent by fumarate hydratase mutations, which disrupts the use of low deuterium containing metabolic water of the mitochondrial matrix and consumes pentose cycle-derived NADPH for reductive carboxylation [Yang Y., et al. PLoS One 8: e72179 (2013); Mullen AR, et al. Nature 481: 385-8, (2011)]. Metabolic water by complete fat oxidation, coupled with cytochrome-c, contains low average ∼115 ppm (parts per million) deuterium due to deuterium discrimination by plant lipogenic enzymes during photosynthesis. We herein report that mono-deuterated, 100 ppm, 50 ppm and 25 ppm extracellular (free) water treatment significantly decrease nucleotide and nuclear membrane behenic- and lignoceric acid synthesis in comparison with natural 150 ppm deuterium containing water via the oxidative branch of the pentose cycle in breast (MCF7) and lung (H441) cancer cell cultures, which recapitulates metabolism after genetically restored mitochondrial fumarate hydratase function in clear cell kidney tumors. Targeted [1,2-13C2]-D-glucose to [1-13C1]-D-ribose and 13C-glutamate fate associations indicate that the serine synthesis, one-carbon (folate) metabolism and the glycine cleavage (SOGC) pathway [Tedeschi PM, et al. Cell Death Dis 4: e877, (2013)] also mediates the metabolic control of deuterium depletion in MIA-PaCa pancreatic adenocarcinoma cells. We conclude that impaired mitochondria are involved in cell transformation by limiting the low natural deuterium containing complete fatty acid oxidation product, metabolic water, to enter nuclear membranes and nucleotides via reductive synthesis. In turn, “heavy” natural water and sugar dependent NADPH production taken over by the oxidative branch of the pentose cycle, as well as the SOGC-pathway, are deuterium loading “ticking time bombs” with a strong isotope effect and thus oncogenic epigenetic events that include unstable hydrogen bonds, aneuploidy in DNA structures and chemically altered methylation sites with severely disrupted gene expression patterns. Nevertheless, extra-mitochondrial NADPH synthesis opens a therapeutic window for deuterium depleted water to maintain and/or restore normal cellular functions. Our study provides a novel mechanism regarding lipid based ketogenic diets in the presence of hyperbaric oxygen treatment to decrease metastasis formation by producing low deuterium metabolic water via complete oxidation to prevent DNA, histone and nuclear membrane deuteration during NADPH dependent reductive synthesis.

Citation Format: László G. Boros, Emmanuelle J. Meuillet, Ildikó Somlyai, Gábor Jancsó, György Jákli, Krisztina Krempels, László G. Puskás, István L. Nagy, Miklós Molnár, Keith R. Laderoute, Patricia A. Thompson, Gábor Somlyai. Fumarate hydratase and deuterium depletion control oncogenesis via NADPH-dependent reductive synthesis: mitochondrial matrix water, DNA deuteration and epigenetic events. [abstract]. In: Proceedings of the 105th Annual Meeting of the American Association for Cancer Research; 2014 Apr 5-9; San Diego, CA. Philadelphia (PA): AACR; Cancer Res 2014;74(19 Suppl):Abstract nr 1426. doi:10.1158/1538-7445.AM2014-1426

Contextual inhibition of fatty acid synthesis by metformin involves glucose-derived acetyl-CoA and cholesterol in pancreatic tumor cells

Metformin, a generic glucose lowering drug, inhibits cancer growth expressly in models that employ high fat/cholesterol intake and/or low glucose availability. Here we use a targeted tracer fate association study (TTFAS) to investigate how cholesterol and metformin administration regulates glucose-derived intermediary metabolism and macromolecule synthesis in pancreatic cancer cells. Wild type K-ras BxPC-3 and HOM: GGT(Gly) → TGT(Cys) K12 transformed MIA PaCa-2 adenocarcinoma cells were cultured in the presence of [1,2-¹³C₂]-d-glucose as the single tracer for 24 h and treated with either 100 μM metformin (MET), 1 mM cholesteryl hemisuccinate (CHS), or the dose matching combination of MET and CHS (CHS-MET). Wild type K-ras cells used 11.43 % (SD = ±0.32) of new acetyl-CoA for palmitate synthesis that was derived from glucose, while K-ras mutated MIA PaCa-2 cells shuttled less than half as much, 5.47 % [SD = ±0.28 (P < 0.01)] of this precursor towards FAS. Cholesterol treatment almost doubled glucose-derived acetyl-CoA enrichment to 9.54 % (SD = ±0.24) and elevated the fraction of new palmitate synthesis by over 2.5-fold in MIA PaCa-2 cells; whereby 100 μM MET treatment resulted in a 28 % inhibitory effect on FAS. Therefore, acetyl-CoA shuttling towards its carboxylase, from thiolase, produces contextual synthetic inhibition by metformin of new palmitate production. Thereby, metformin, mutated K-ras and high cholesterol each contributes to limit new fatty acid and potentially cell membrane synthesis, demonstrating a previously unknown mechanism for inhibiting cancer growth during the metabolic syndrome.

Acidosis induces reprogramming of cellular metabolism to mitigate oxidative stress

Background

A variety of oncogenic and environmental factors alter tumor metabolism to serve the distinct cellular biosynthetic and bioenergetic needs present during oncogenesis. Extracellular acidosis is a common microenvironmental stress in solid tumors, but little is known about its metabolic influence, particularly when present in the absence of hypoxia. In order to characterize the extent of tumor cell metabolic adaptations to acidosis, we employed stable isotope tracers to examine how acidosis impacts glucose, glutamine, and palmitate metabolism in breast cancer cells exposed to extracellular acidosis.

Results

Acidosis increased both glutaminolysis and fatty acid β-oxidation, which contribute metabolic intermediates to drive the tricarboxylic acid cycle (TCA cycle) and ATP generation. Acidosis also led to a decoupling of glutaminolysis and novel glutathione (GSH) synthesis by repressing GCLC/GCLM expression. We further found that acidosis redirects glucose away from lactate production and towards the oxidative branch of the pentose phosphate pathway (PPP). These changes all serve to increase nicotinamide adenine dinucleotide phosphate (NADPH) production and counter the increase in reactive oxygen species (ROS) present under acidosis. The reduced novel GSH synthesis under acidosis may explain the increased demand for NADPH to recycle existing pools of GSH. Interestingly, acidosis also disconnected novel ribose synthesis from the oxidative PPP, seemingly to reroute PPP metabolites to the TCA cycle. Finally, we found that acidosis activates p53, which contributes to both the enhanced PPP and increased glutaminolysis, at least in part, through the induction of G6PD and GLS2 genes.

Conclusions

Acidosis alters the cellular metabolism of several major metabolites, which induces a significant degree of metabolic inflexibility. Cells exposed to acidosis largely rely upon mitochondrial metabolism for energy generation to the extent that metabolic intermediates are redirected away from several other critical metabolic processes, including ribose and glutathione synthesis. These alterations lead to both a decrease in cellular proliferation and increased sensitivity to ROS. Collectively, these data reveal a role for p53 in cellular metabolic reprogramming under acidosis, in order to permit increased bioenergetic capacity and ROS neutralization. Understanding the metabolic adaptations that cancer cells make under acidosis may present opportunities to generate anti-tumor therapeutic agents that are more tumor-specific.

Contribution of serine, folate and glycine metabolism to the ATP, NADPH and purine requirements of cancer cells

Recent observations on cancer cell metabolism indicate increased serine synthesis from glucose as a marker of poor prognosis. We have predicted that a fraction of the synthesized serine is routed to a pathway for ATP production. The pathway is composed by reactions from serine synthesis, one-carbon (folate) metabolism and the glycine cleavage system (SOG pathway). Here we show that the SOG pathway is upregulated at the level of gene expression in a subset of human tumors and that its level of expression correlates with gene signatures of cell proliferation and Myc target activation. We have also estimated the SOG pathway metabolic flux in the NCI60 tumor-derived cell lines, using previously reported exchange fluxes and a personalized model of cell metabolism. We find that the estimated rates of reactions in the SOG pathway are highly correlated with the proliferation rates of these cell lines. We also observe that the SOG pathway contributes significantly to the energy requirements of biosynthesis, to the NADPH requirement for fatty acid synthesis and to the synthesis of purines. Finally, when the PC-3 prostate cancer cell line is treated with the antifolate methotrexate, we observe a decrease in the ATP levels, AMP kinase activation and a decrease in ribonucleotides and fatty acids synthesized from [1,2-¹³C₂]-D-glucose as the single tracer. Taken together our results indicate that the SOG pathway activity increases with the rate of cell proliferation and it contributes to the biosynthetic requirements of purines, ATP and NADPH of cancer cells.

Impact of the solvent capacity constraint on E. coli metabolism

Background

Obtaining quantitative predictions for cellular metabolic activities requires the identification and modeling of the physicochemical constraints that are relevant at physiological growth conditions. Molecular crowding in a cell's cytoplasm is one such potential constraint, as it limits the solvent capacity available to metabolic enzymes.

Results

Using a recently introduced flux balance modeling framework (FBAwMC) here we demonstrate that this constraint determines a metabolic switch in E. coli cells when they are shifted from low to high growth rates. The switch is characterized by a change in effective optimization strategy, the excretion of acetate at high growth rates, and a global reorganization of E. coli metabolic fluxes, the latter being partially confirmed by flux measurements of central metabolic reactions.

Conclusion

These results implicate the solvent capacity as an important physiological constraint acting on E. coli cells operating at high metabolic rates and for the activation of a metabolic switch when they are shifted from low to high growth rates. The relevance of this constraint in the context of both the aerobic ethanol excretion seen in fast growing yeast cells (Crabtree effect) and the aerobic glycolysis observed in rapidly dividing cancer cells (Warburg effect) should be addressed in the future.

Increased glucose disposal and AMP-dependent kinase signaling in a mouse model of hemochromatosis

Hereditary hemochromatosis is an inherited disorder of increased iron absorption that can result in cirrhosis, diabetes, and other morbidities. We have investigated the mechanisms underlying supranormal glucose tolerance despite decreased insulin secretion in a mouse model of hemochromatosis with deletion of the hemochromatosis gene (Hfe(-/-)). Hfe(-/-) mice on 129Sv or C57BL/6J backgrounds have decreased glucose excursions after challenge compared with controls. In the C57BL/6J/ Hfe(-/-), for example, incremental area under the glucose curve is reduced 52% (p < 0.001) despite decreased serum insulin, and homeostasis model assessment insulin resistance is decreased 50% (p < 0.05). When studied by the euglycemic clamp technique 129Sv/Hfe(-/-) mice exhibit a 20% increase in glucose disposal (p < 0.05) at submaximal insulin but no increase at maximal insulin compared with wild types. [1,2-(13)C]D-glucose clearance from plasma is significantly increased in Hfe(-/-) mice (19%, p < 0.05), and lactate derived from glycolysis is elevated 5.1-fold in Hfe(-/-) mice (p < 0.0001). Basal but not insulin-stimulated glucose uptake is elevated in isolated soleus muscle from Hfe(-/-) mice (p < 0.03). Compared with controls Hfe(-/-) mice exhibit no differences in serum lipid, insulin, glucagon, or thyroid hormone levels; adiponectin levels are elevated 41% (p < 0.05), and the adiponectin message in adipocytes is increased 83% (p = 0.04). Insulin action measured by phosphorylation of Akt is not enhanced in muscle, but phosphorylation of AMP-dependent kinase is increased. We conclude that supranormal glucose tolerance in iron overload is characterized by increased glucose disposal that does not result from increased insulin action. Instead, the Hfe(-/-) mice demonstrate increased adiponectin levels and activation of AMP-dependent kinase.

PNU-91325 increases fatty acid synthesis from glucose and mitochondrial long chain fatty acid degradation: a comparative tracer-based metabolomics study with rosiglitazone and pioglitazone in HepG2 cells

The mitochondrial membrane protein termed "mitoNEET," is a putative secondary target for insulin-sensitizing thiazolidinedione (TZD) compounds but its role in regulating metabolic flux is not known. PNU-91325 is a thiazolidinedione derivative which exhibits high binding affinity to mitoNEET and lowers cholesterol, fatty acid and blood glucose levels in animal models. In this study we report the stable isotope-based dynamic metabolic profiles (SIDMAP) of rosiglitazone, pioglitazone and PNU-91325 in a dose-matching, dose-escalating study. One and 10 μM concentrations 1 and 10 μM drug concentrations were introduced into HepG2 cells in the presence of either [1,2-13C2]-D-glucose or [U-13C18]stearate, GC/MS used to determine positional tracer incorporation (mass isotopomer analysis) into multiple metabolites produced by the Krebs and pentose cycles, de novo fatty acid synthesis, long chain fatty acid oxidation, chain shortening and elongation. Rosiglitazone and pioglitazone (10 μM) increased pentose synthesis from [U-13C18]stearate by 127% and 185%, respectively, while PNU-91325 rather increased glutamate synthesis in the Krebs cycle by 113% as compared to control vehicle treated cells. PNU-91325 also increased stearate chain shortening into palmitate by 59%. Glucose tracer-derived de novo palmitate and stearate synthesis were increased by 1 and 10 μM rosiglitazone by 41% and 83%, respectively, and by 63% and 75% by PNU-91325. Stearate uptake was also increased by 10 μM PNU-91325 by 15.8%. We conclude that the entry of acetyl Co-A derived from long-chain fatty acid β-oxidation into the mitochondria is facilitated by the mitoNEET ligand PNU-91325, which increases glucose-derived long chain fatty acid synthesis and breakdown via β-oxidation and anaplerosis in the mitochondria.

Detection of resistance to imatinib by metabolic profiling: clinical and drug development implications

Acquired resistance to imatinib mesylate is an increasing and continued challenge in the treatment of BCR-ABL tyrosine kinase positive leukemias as well as gastrointestinal stromal tumors. Stable isotope-based dynamic metabolic profiling (SIDMAP) studies conducted in parallel with the development and clinical testing of imatinib revealed that this targeted drug is most effective in controlling glucose transport, direct glucose oxidation for RNA ribose synthesis in the pentose cycle, as well as de novo long-chain fatty acid synthesis. Thus imatinib deprives transformed cells of the key substrate of macromolecule synthesis, malignant cell proliferation, and growth. Tracer-based magnetic resonance spectroscopy studies revealed a restitution of mitochondrial glucose metabolism and an increased energy state by reversing the Warburg effect, consistent with a subsequent decrease in anaerobic glycolysis. Recent in vitro SIDMAP studies that involved myeloid cells isolated from patients who developed resistance against imatinib indicated that non-oxidative ribose synthesis from glucose and decreased mitochondrial glucose oxidation are reliable metabolic signatures of drug resistance and disease progression. There is also evidence that imatinib-resistant cells utilize alternate substrates for macromolecule synthesis to overcome limited glucose transport controlled by imatinib. The main clinical implications involve early detection of imatinib resistance and the identification of new metabolic enzyme targets with the potential of overcoming drug resistance downstream of the various genetic and BCR-ABL-expression derived mechanisms. Metabolic profiling is an essential tool used to predict, clinically detect, and treat targeted drug resistance. This need arises from the fact that targeted drugs are narrowly conceived against genes and proteins but the metabolic network is inherently complex and flexible to activate alternative macromolecule synthesis pathways that targeted drugs fail to control.

[1,2-13C2]-D-glucose profiles of the serum, liver, pancreas, and DMBA-induced pancreatic tumors of rats

OBJECTIVES

In vitro stable isotope glucose tracer studies indicate that undifferentiated cells of the pancreas use glucose primarily through the nonoxidative reactions of the pentose cycle for nucleic acid ribose synthesis, whereas normal or less transformed cells primarily use the oxidative branch of the cycle.

METHODS

The pancreatic heads of 4 groups (5/group) of male rats were implanted with time-release pellets designed to deliver placebo or 7,12-dimethylbenzanthracene (DMBA) at 11, 33, or 56 mg/d. Four weeks after pancreatic exposure to DMBA, [1,2-C2]-D-glucose tracer (1 g/kg) was injected intraperitoneally followed by sera collection at 1 and 2 hours and harvest of tumors, adjacent pancreatic tissue, and sera at 3 hours.

RESULTS

Tumors (2-9 mm) were found across DMBA groups, with the largest in the high-dose group (> or =5 mm). Selective monitoring by gas chromatography-mass spectrometry of the doubly-labeled [1,2-C2]-D-ribose of RNA, which requires nonoxidative synthesis in the pentose cycle, showed a 2.8-, 2.9-, and 5.7-fold increase in pancreatic tumors. Liver and adjacent pancreas preferentially produced [1-C1]-D-ribose through the oxidative reactions of the cycle. Tumor-bearing animals also cleared and recycled tracer glucose at a faster rate.

CONCLUSIONS

Simultaneous selective positional ion monitoring of C-labeled metabolites and their mass isotopomers in tissues and blood opens new avenues for the early detection and response to therapy testing of pancreatic cancer using GC-MS and/or magnetic resonance imaging-based methods. This study emphasizes the benefits of stable isotope-based dynamic metabolic profiling, when applied in vivo, and the several advantages it offers to positron emission tomography.

Metabolic sensitivity of pancreatic tumour cell apoptosis to glycogen phosphorylase inhibitor treatment

Inhibitors of glycogen breakdown regulate glucose homeostasis by limiting glucose production in diabetes. Here we demonstrate that restrained glycogen breakdown also inhibits cancer cell proliferation and induces apoptosis through limiting glucose oxidation, as well as nucleic acid and de novo fatty acid synthesis. Increasing doses (50-100 microM) of the glycogen phosphorylase inhibitor CP-320626 inhibited [1,2-(13)C(2)]glucose stable isotope substrate re-distribution among glycolysis, pentose and de novo fatty acid synthesis in MIA pancreatic adenocarcinoma cells. Limited oxidative pentose-phosphate synthesis, glucose contribution to acetyl CoA and de novo fatty acid synthesis closely correlated with decreased cell proliferation. The stable isotope-based dynamic metabolic profile of MIA cells indicated a significant dose-dependent decrease in macromolecule synthesis, which was detected at lower drug doses and before the appearance of apoptosis markers. Normal fibroblasts (CRL-1501) did not show morphological or metabolic signs of apoptosis likely due to their slow rate of growth and metabolic activity. This indicates that limiting carbon re-cycling and rapid substrate mobilisation from glycogen may be an effective and selective target site for new drug development in rapidly dividing cancer cells. In conclusion, pancreatic cancer cell growth arrest and death are closely associated with a characteristic decrease in glycogen breakdown and glucose carbon re-distribution towards RNA/DNA and fatty acids during CP-320626 treatment.

Medicinal Chemistry, Metabolic Profiling and Drug Target Discovery: A Role for Metabolic Profiling in Reverse Pharmacology and Chemical Genetics

Comprehensive analysis of the metabolome can contribute to mechanism of action studies for small molecules discovered in phenotypic screens. Examples are presented in this overview of the rapidly developing field of "metabolic profiling." These examples include the use of NMR in gene function analysis, GC-based studies on the identification of metabolic pathways affected by PPAR-gamma agonists, applications of Fourier-transform MS and the use of stable isotope-based metabolic profiling (SIDMAP) to investigate metabolic adaptive changes induced by effective anticancer agents.

Metabolic Biomarker and Kinase Drug Target Discovery in Cancer Using Stable Isotope-Based Dynamic Metabolic Profiling (SIDMAP)

Tumor cells respond to growth signals by the activation of protein kinases, altered gene expression and significant modifications in substrate flow and re-distribution among biosynthetic pathways. This results in a proliferating phenotype with altered cellular function. These transformed cells exhibit unique anabolic characteristics, which includes increased and preferential utilization of glucose through the non-oxidative steps of the pentose cycle for nucleic acid synthesis but limited de novo fatty acid synthesis and TCA cycle glucose oxidation. This primarily non-oxidative anabolic profile reflects an undifferentiated highly proliferative aneuploid cell phenotype and serves as a reliable metabolic biomarker to determine cell proliferation rate and the level of cell transformation/differentiation in response to drug treatment. Novel drugs effective in particular cancers exert their anti-proliferative effects by inducing significant reversions of a few specific non-oxidative anabolic pathways. Here we present evidence that cell transformation of various mechanisms is sustained by a unique disproportional substrate distribution between the two branches of the pentose cycle for nucleic acid synthesis, glycolysis and the TCA cycle for fatty acid synthesis and glucose oxidation. This can be demonstrated by the broad labeling and unique specificity of [1,2-(13)C(2)]glucose to trace a large number of metabolites in the metabolome. Stable isotope-based dynamic metabolic profiles (SIDMAP) serve the drug discovery process by providing a powerful new tool that integrates the metabolome into a functional genomics approach to developing new drugs. It can be used in screening kinases and their metabolic targets, which can therefore be more efficiently characterized, speeding up and improving drug testing, approval and labeling processes by saving trial and error type study costs in drug testing.

Defective RNA ribose synthesis in fibroblasts from patients with thiamine-responsive megaloblastic anemia (TRMA)

Fibroblasts from patients with thiamine-responsive megaloblastic anemia (TRMA) syndrome with diabetes and deafness undergo apoptotic cell death in the absence of supplemental thiamine in their cultures. The basis of megaloblastosis in these patients has not been determined. Here we use the stable [1,2-13C2]glucose isotope-based dynamic metabolic profiling technique to demonstrate that defective high-affinity thiamine transport primarily affects the synthesis of nucleic acid ribose via the nonoxidative branch of the pentose cycle. RNA ribose isolated from TRMA fibroblasts in thiamine-depleted cultures shows a time-dependent decrease in the fraction of ribose derived via transketolase, a thiamine-dependent enzyme in the pentose cycle. The fractional rate of de novo ribose synthesis from glucose is decreased several fold 2 to 4 days after removal of thiamine from the culture medium. No such metabolic changes are observed in wild-type fibroblasts or in TRMA mutant cells in thiamine-containing medium. Fluxes through glycolysis are similar in TRMA versus control fibroblasts in the pentose and TCA cycles. We conclude that reduced nucleic acid production through impaired transketolase catalysis is the underlying biochemical disturbance that likely induces cell cycle arrest or apoptosis in bone marrow cells and leads to the TRMA syndrome in patients with defective high-affinity thiamine transport.

GLP-1 stimulates glucose-derived de novo fatty acid synthesis and chain elongation during cell differentiation and insulin release

Glucagon-like peptide-1 (GLP-1, 7-36) is capable of restoring normal glucose tolerance in aging, glucose-intolerant Wistar rats and is a potent causal factor in differentiation of human islet duodenal homeobox-1-expressing cells into insulin-releasing beta cells. Here we report stable isotope-based dynamic metabolic profiles of rat pancreatic epithelial (ARIP) and human ductal tumor (PANC-1) cells responding to 10 nM GLP-1 treatment in 48 h cultures. Macromolecule synthesis patterns and substrate flow measurements using gas chromatography/mass spectrometry (MS) and the stable [1,2-13C2]glucose isotope as the tracer showed that GLP-1 induced a significant 20% and 60% increase in de novo fatty acid palmitate synthesis in ARIP and PANC-1 cells, respectively, and it also induced a significant increase in palmitate chain elongation into stearate utilizing glucose as the primary substrate. Distribution of 13C in other metabolites indicated no changes in the rates of nucleic acid ribose synthesis, glutamate oxidation, or lactate production. Tandem high-performance liquid chromatography-ion trap MS analysis of the culture media demonstrated mass insulin secretion by GLP-1-treated tumor cells. Metabolic profile changes in response to GLP-1-induced cell differentiation include selective increases in de novo fatty acid synthesis from glucose and consequent chain elongation, allowing increased membrane formation and greater insulin availability and release.

The stable isotope-based dynamic metabolic profile of butyrate-induced HT29 cell differentiation

Stable isotope-based dynamic metabolic profiling is applied in this paper to elucidate the mechanism by which butyrate induces cell differentiation in HT29 cells. We utilized butyrate-sensitive (HT29) cells incubated with [1,2-13C2]glucose or [1,2-13C2]butyrate as single tracers to observe the changes in metabolic fluxes in these cells. In HT29 cells, increasing concentrations of butyrate inhibited glucose uptake, glucose oxidation, and nucleic acid ribose synthesis in a dose-dependent fashion. Glucose carbon utilization for de novo fatty acid synthesis and tricarboxylic acid cycle flux was replaced by butyrate. We also demonstrated that these changes are not present in butyrate-resistant pancreatic adenocarcinoma MIA cells. The results suggest that the mechanism by which colon carcinoma cells acquire a differentiated phenotype is through a replacement of glucose for butyrate as the main carbon source for macromolecule biosynthesis and energy production. This provides a better understanding of cell differentiation through metabolic adaptive changes in response to butyrate in HT29 cells, demonstrating that variations in metabolic pathway substrate flow are powerful regulators of tumor cell proliferation and differentiation.

Cultured pancreatic ductal cells undergo cell cycle re-distribution and beta-cell-like differentiation in response to glucagon-like peptide-1

The intestinal hormone glucagon-like peptide-1 (GLP-1) has been shown to promote an increase in pancreatic beta-cell mass via proliferation of islet cells and differentiation of non-insulin-secreting cells. In this study, we have characterized some of the events that lead to the differentiation of pancreatic ductal cells in response to treatment with human GLP-1. Rat pancreatic ductal (ARIP) cells were cultured in the presence of GLP-1 and analyzed for cell counting, cell cycle distribution, expression of cyclin-dependent-kinase (Cdk) inhibitors, transcription of beta-cell-specific genes, loss of ductal-like phenotype and acquisition of beta-cell-like gene expression profile. Exposure of ARIP cells to 10 nM GLP-1 induced a significant reduction in the cell replication rate and a significant decrease in the percentage of cells in S phase of the cell cycle. This was associated with an increase in the number of cells in G0-G1 phase and a reduction of cells in G2-M phase. Western blot analysis for the Cdk inhibitors, kinase inhibitor protein 1 (p27(Kip1)) and Cdk-interacting protein 1 (p21(Cip1)), demonstrated a significant increase in p27(Kip1) and p21(Cip1) levels within the first 24 h from the beginning of GLP-1 treatment. As cells slowed down their proliferation rate, GLP-1 also induced a time-dependent expression of various beta-cell-specific mRNAs. The glucose transporter GLUT-2 was the first of those factors to be expressed (24 h treatment), followed by insulin (44 h) and finally by the enzyme glucokinase (56 h). In addition, immunocytochemistry analysis showed that GLP-1 induced a time-dependent down-regulation of the ductal marker cytokeratin-20 (CK-20) and a time-dependent induction of insulin expression. Finally, GLP-1 promoted a glucose-dependent secretion of insulin, as demonstrated by HPLC and RIA analyses of the cell culture medium. The present study has demonstrated that GLP-1 induces a cell cycle re-distribution with a decrease in cell proliferation rate prior to promoting the differentiation of cells towards an endocrine-like phenotype.

Oxygen-induced metabolic changes and transdifferentiation in immature fetal rat lung lipofibroblasts

Preterm infants lack adequate surfactant production and often require oxygen support for adequate oxygenation. Prolonged oxygen treatment leads to the development of bronchopulmonary dysplasia (BPD), a disease process characterized by the blunting of alveolarization and proliferation of myofibroblasts. In the present study, we investigated metabolic adaptive changes in cultured fibroblasts isolated from immature (d18) and near-term (d21), fetal rat lungs in response to normoxic (21%) and hyperoxic (95%) exposures. We used the [1,2-13C2]D-glucose tracer and gas chromatography/mass spectrometry to characterize glucose carbon redistribution between the nucleic acid ribose, lactate, and palmitate synthetic pathways, and reverse transcriptase-polymerase chain reaction to assess adipose differentiation related protein (ADRP) mRNA expression in response to hyperoxic exposure. Exposure to hyperoxia at each passage caused decrease (*, p<0.05 vs. 21% O2) in ADRP mRNA expression in the d18 fibroblasts. This passage-dependent transdifferentiation is accompanied by a moderate (9-20%) increase in the synthesis of nucleic acid ribose from glucose through the non-oxidative steps of the pentose cycle. In contrast, d18 fibroblasts showed over an 85% decrease in the de novo synthesis of palmitate from glucose, while d21 fibroblasts showed a less pronounced 32-38% decrease in de novo lipid synthesis in hyperoxia-exposed cultures. It can be concluded from these studies that: (1) there is a maturation dependent sensitivity to hyperoxia; (2) transdifferentiation of flbroblast as demonstrated by changes in ADRP expression is accompanied by metabolic enzymes changes affecting ribose acid synthesis from glucose, and (3) hyperoxia specifically inhibits lipogenesis from glucose. Hyperoxia-induced metabolic changes thus play a key role in the transdifferentiation of lung fibroblasts to myofibroblasts and the pathogenesis of BPD.

Metabolic profiling of cell growth and death in cancer: applications in drug discovery

Metabolic profiling using stable-isotope tracer technology enables the measurement of substrate redistribution within major metabolic pathways in living cells. This technique has demonstrated that transformed human cells exhibit profound metabolic shifts and that some anti-cancer drugs produce their effects by forcing the reversion of these metabolic changes. By revealing tumor-specific metabolic shifts in tumor cells, metabolic profiling enables drug developers to identify the metabolic steps that control cell proliferation, thus aiding the identification of new anti-cancer targets and screening of lead compounds for anti-proliferative metabolic effects.

Gleevec (STI571) influences metabolic enzyme activities and glucose carbon flow toward nucleic acid and fatty acid synthesis in myeloid tumor cells

Chronic myeloid leukemia cells contain a constitutively active Bcr-Abl tyrosine kinase, the target protein of Gleevec (STI571) phenylaminopyrimidine class protein kinase inhibitor. Here we provide evidence for metabolic phenotypic changes in cultured K562 human myeloid blast cells after treatment with increasing doses of STI571 using [1,2-13C2]glucose as the single tracer and biological mass spectrometry. In response to 0.68 and 6.8 microm STI571, proliferation of Bcr-Abl-positive K562 cells showed a 57% and 74% decrease, respectively, whereas glucose label incorporation into RNA decreased by 13.4% and 30.1%, respectively, through direct glucose oxidation, as indicated by the decrease in the m1/Sigma(m)n ratio in RNA. Based on the in vitro proliferation data, the IC50 of STI571 in K562 cultures is 0.56 microm. The decrease in 13C label incorporation into RNA ribose was accompanied by a significant fall in hexokinase and glucose-6-phosphate 1-dehydrogenase activities. The activity of transketolase, the enzyme responsible for nonoxidative ribose synthesis in the pentose cycle, was less affected, and there was a relative increase in glucose carbon incorporation into RNA through nonoxidative synthesis as indicated by the increase in the m2/Sigma(m)n ratio in RNA. The restricted use of glucose carbons for de novo nucleic acid and fatty acid synthesis by altering metabolic enzyme activities and pathway carbon flux of the pentose cycle constitutes the underlying mechanism by which STI571 inhibits leukemia cell glucose substrate utilization and growth. The administration of specific hexokinase/glucose-6-phosphate 1-dehydrogenase inhibitor anti-metabolite substrates or competitive enzyme inhibitor compounds, alone or in combination, should be explored for the treatment of STI571-resistant advanced leukemias as well as that of Bcr-Abl-negative human malignancies.

Isofenphos induced metabolic changes in K562 myeloid blast cells

The organophosphate pesticide, isofenphos, is associated with human myeloid leukemia. In this study we describe metabolic changes in K562 myeloid blast cells from exposure to varying concentrations of isofenphos using the stable [1,2-13C(2)]glucose isotope as the single tracer and biological mass spectrometry. Isofenphos (1, 10, 100 microg/ml/72 h) treated K562 cells showed increases of 10.7, 33.8 and 39.7% in lactate production as well as a 14.2% increase (1 microg/ml/72 h) in 13C incorporation into nucleic acid ribose from glucose. Concomitantly, we observed a decrease in glucose oxidation and the synthesis of glutamate, palmitate and stearate from glucose. Our results demonstrate that this organophosphate pesticide exerts a leukemogenic effect by the recruitment of glucose carbons for nucleic acid synthesis thus promoting proliferation simultaneous with poor differentiation. The imbalanced metabolic phenotype with a severe defect in glucose oxidation, lipid and amino acid synthesis concurrent with de novo synthesis of nucleic acids in response to isofenphos treatment conforms to the invasive proliferating phenotype observed in TGF-beta treated lung epithelial carcinoma cells.

The effect of thiamine supplementation on tumour proliferation. A metabolic control analysis study

Thiamine deficiency frequently occurs in patients with advanced cancer and therefore thiamine supplementation is used as nutritional support. Thiamine (vitamin B1) is metabolized to thiamine pyrophosphate, the cofactor of transketolase, which is involved in ribose synthesis, necessary for cell replication. Thus, it is important to determine whether the benefits of thiamine supplementation outweigh the risks of tumor proliferation. Using oxythiamine (an irreversible inhibitor of transketolase) and metabolic control analysis (MCA) methods, we measured an in vivo tumour growth control coefficient of 0.9 for the thiamine-transketolase complex in mice with Ehrlich's ascites tumour. Thus, transketolase enzyme and thiamine clearly determine cell proliferation in the Ehrlich's ascites tumour model. This high control coefficient allows us to predict that in advanced tumours, which are commonly thiamine deficient, supplementation of thiamine could significantly increase tumour growth through transketolase activation. The effect of thiamine supplementation on tumour proliferation was demonstrated by in vivo experiments in mice with the ascites tumour. Thiamine supplementation in doses between 12.5 and 250 times the recommended dietary allowance (RDA) for mice were administered starting on day four of tumour inoculation. We observed a high stimulatory effect on tumour growth of 164% compared to controls at a thiamine dose of 25 times the RDA. This growth stimulatory effect was predicted on the basis of correction of the pre-existing level of thiamine deficiency (42%), as assayed by the cofactor/enzyme ratio. Interestingly, at very high overdoses of thiamine, approximately 2500 times the RDA, thiamine supplementation had the opposite effect and caused 10% inhibition of tumour growth. This effect was heightened, resulting in a 36% decrease, when thiamine supplementation was administered from the 7th day prior to tumour inoculation. Our results show that thiamine supplementation sufficient to correct existing thiamine deficiency stimulates tumour proliferation as predicted by MCA. The tumour inhibitory effect at high doses of thiamine is unexplained and merits further study.

Wheat germ extract decreases glucose uptake and RNA ribose formation but increases fatty acid synthesis in MIA pancreatic adenocarcinoma cells

The fermented wheat germ extract with standardized benzoquinone composition has potent tumor propagation inhibitory properties. The authors show that this extract induces profound metabolic changes in cultured MIA pancreatic adenocarcinoma cells when the [1,2-13C2]glucose isotope is used as the single tracer with biologic gas chromatography-mass spectrometry. MIA cells treated with 0.1, 1, and 10 mg/mL wheat germ extract showed a dose-dependent decrease in cell glucose consumption. uptake of isotope into ribosomal RNA (2.4%, 9.4%, and 28.0%), and release of 13CO2. Conversely, direct glucose oxidation and ribose recycling in the pentose cycle showed a dose-dependent increase of 1.2%, 20.7%, and 93.4%. The newly synthesized fraction of cell palmitate and the 13C enrichment of acetyl units were also significantly increased with all doses of wheat germ extract. The fermented wheat germ extract controls tumor propagation primarily by regulating glucose carbon redistribution between cell proliferation-related and cell differentiation-related macromolecules. Wheat germ extract treatment is likely associated with the phosphorylation and transcriptional regulation of metabolic enzymes that are involved in glucose carbon redistribution between cell proliferation-related structural and functional macromolecules (RNA, DNA) and the direct oxidative degradation of glucose, which have devastating consequences for the proliferation and survival of pancreatic adenocarcinoma cells in culture.

Role of thiamin (vitamin B-1) and transketolase in tumor cell proliferation

Metabolic control analysis predicts that stimulators of transketolase enzyme synthesis such as thiamin (vitamin B-1) support a high rate of nucleic acid ribose synthesis necessary for tumor cell survival, chemotherapy resistance, and proliferation. Metabolic control analysis also predicts that transketolase inhibitor drugs will have the opposite effect on tumor cells. This may have important implications in the nutrition and future treatment of patients with cancer.

Genistein inhibits nonoxidative ribose synthesis in MIA pancreatic adenocarcinoma cells: a new mechanism of controlling tumor growth

Genistein is a plant isoflavonoid bearing potent tumor growth-regulating characteristics. This effect of genistein has been attributed partially to its tyrosine kinase-regulating properties, resulting in cell-cycle arrest and limited angiogenesis. Genistein has been used in chemotherapy-resistant cases of advanced leukemia with promising results. Here we demonstrate that genistein primarily affects nucleic acid synthesis and glucose oxidation in tumor cells using the [1,2-(13)C2]glucose isotope as the single tracer and gas chromatography/mass spectrometry to follow various intracellular glucose metabolites. The ribose fraction of RNA demonstrated a rapid 4.6%, 16.4%, and 46.3% decrease in isotope uptake through the nonoxidative branch of the pentose cycle and a sharp 4.8%. 24.6%, and 48% decrease in 13CO2 release from glucose after 2, 20, and 200 micromol/L genistein treatment, respectively. Fatty acid synthesis and the 13C enrichment of acetyl units were not significantly affected by genistein treatment. De novo glycogen synthesis from media glucose was not detected in cultured MIA cells. It can be concluded from these studies that genistein controls tumor growth primarily through the regulation of glucose metabolism, specifically targeting glucose carbon incorporation into nucleic acid ribose through the nonoxidative steps of the pentose cycle, which represents a new paradigm for the antiproliferative action of a plant phytochemical.

Loss of regulation of lipogenesis in the Zucker diabetic (ZDF) rat

We present here a study on the role of leptin in the regulation of lipogenesis by examining the effect of dietary macronutrient composition on lipogenesis in the leptin receptor-defective Zucker diabetic fatty rat (ZDF) and its lean litter mate (ZL). Animals were pair fed two isocaloric diets differing in their fat-to-carbohydrate ratio providing 10 and 30% energy as fat. Lipogenesis was measured in the rats using deuterated water and isotopomer analysis. From the deuterium incorporation into plasma palmitate, stearate, and oleate, we determined de novo synthesis of palmitate and synthesis of stearate by chain elongation and of oleate by desaturation. Because the macronutrient composition and the caloric density were controlled, changes in de novo lipogenesis under these dietary conditions represent adaptation to changes in the fat-to-carbohydrate ratio of the diet. De novo lipogenesis was normally suppressed in response to the high-fat diet in the ZL rat to maintain a relatively constant amount of lipids transported. The ZDF rat had a higher rate of lipogenesis, which was not suppressed by the high-fat diet. The results suggest an important hormonal role of leptin in the feedback regulation of lipogenesis.

Population thiamine status and varying cancer rates between western, Asian and African countries

The role of food supplements in the form of vitamins has not been extensively investigated in relation to varying cancer rates between populations of different geographical regions. New data indicate that thiamine (vitamin B1), a common food supplement in Western food products, is directly involved in nucleic acid ribose synthesis of tumor cells in its biologically activated form through the non-oxidative transketolase catalyzed pentose cycle reaction. Whether thiamine plays a role in increased cancer rates in the Western World by enhancing tumor cell proliferation, while increased consumption of thiaminase rich food limiting thiamine availability protects against common malignancies in Asia and Africa has not been evaluated. In the Western World, thiamine is a popular vitamin supplement in the form of tablets and it is also added to basic food items such as milled flour, cereals, peanut butter, refreshment drinks and pastas. On the contrary, thiaminase, the natural thiamine-degrading enzyme, is abundantly present in raw and fermented fish, certain vegetables and roasted insects consumed primarily in Africa and Asia. Excess thiamine supplementation in common food products may contribute to the increased cancer rates of the Western World.

Transforming growth factor beta2 promotes glucose carbon incorporation into nucleic acid ribose through the nonoxidative pentose cycle in lung epithelial carcinoma cells

The invasive transformation of A-459 lung epithelial carcinoma cells has been linked to the autocrine regulation of malignant phenotypic changes by transforming growth factor beta (TGF-beta). Here we demonstrate, using stable 13C glucose isotopes, that the transformed phenotype is characterized by decreased CO2 production via direct glucose oxidation but increased nucleic acid ribose synthesis through the nonoxidative reactions of the pentose cycle. Increased nucleic acid synthesis through the nonoxidative pentose cycle imparts the metabolic adaptation of nontransformed cells to the invasive phenotype that potentially explains the fundamental metabolic disturbance in tumor cells: highly increased nucleic acid synthesis despite hypoxia and decreased glucose oxidation.

Oxythiamine and dehydroepiandrosterone induce a G1 phase cycle arrest in Ehrlich's tumor cells through inhibition of the pentose cycle

Transketolase (TK) reactions play a crucial role in tumor cell nucleic acid ribose synthesis utilizing glucose carbons, yet, current cancer treatments do not target this central pathway. Experimentally, a dramatic decrease in tumor cell proliferation after the administration of the TK inhibitor oxythiamine (OT) was observed in several in vitro and in vivo tumor models. Here, we demonstrate that pentose cycle (PC) inhibitors, OT and dehydroepiandrosterone (DHEA), efficiently regulate the cell cycle and tumor proliferation processes. Increasing doses of OT or DHEA were administered by daily intraperitoneal injections to Ehrlich's ascites tumor hosting mice for 4 days. The tumor cell number and their cycle phase distribution profile were determined by DNA flow histograms. Tumors showed a dose dependent increase in their G0-G1 cell populations after both OT and DHEA treatment and a simultaneous decrease in cells advancing to the S and G2-M cell cycle phases. This effect of PC inhibitors was significant, OT was more effective than DHEA, both drugs acted synergistically in combination and no signs of direct cell or host toxicity were observed. Direct inhibition of PC reactions causes a G1 cell cycle arrest similar to that of 2-deoxyglucose treatment. However, no interference with cell energy production and cell toxicity is observed. PC inhibitors, specifically ones targeting TK, introduce a new target site for the development of future cancer therapies to inhibit glucose utilizing pathways selectively for nucleic acid production.

Gastrointestinal hormones as potential adjuvant treatment of exocrine pancreatic adenocarcinoma

CONCLUSION

Gastrointestinal hormones and their antagonists can alter the growth of pancreatic adenocarcinoma in vitro and in vivo. The potential clinical benefit of this approach deserves further study.

BACKGROUND

Epithelial cell growth is normally under hormonal control. Hormones also affect the growth of many epithelial cancers, and this fact is used to modify tumor growth. Pancreatic epithelial cell growth is under the influence of gastrointestinal hormones. This article reviews experiments designed to determine the effect of gastrointestinal hormones on the growth of pancreatic adenocarcinoma.

METHODS

Eighty-eight articles were identified from a Medline search using the terms pancreatic adenocarcinoma and the individual names of gastrointestinal hormones. The experimental design and results of these studies are reviewed.

RESULTS

In general, somatostatin, vasoactive intestinal polypeptide, pancreatic polypeptide, and pancreastatin inhibit pancreatic adenocarcinoma growth. Cholecystokinin, secretin, bombesin, gastrin, EGF, TGF-alpha, insulin, and IGF-1 have a growth-promoting effect.

Oral dehydroepiandrosterone inhibits the growth of human pancreatic cancer in nude mice

BACKGROUND

Dehydroepiandrosterone (DHEA), an androgen precursor, inhibits the induction of pancreatic cancer in some animal models. Our laboratory has previously demonstrated that the sulfated form of DHEA (DHAS), when administered by intraperitoneal injection, inhibits the growth of pancreatic cancer xenografts in nude mice. In the present study, we hypothesize that DHEA-mediated pancreatic cancer growth inhibition is associated with alterations in plasma sex hormone concentrations.

MATERIALS AND METHODS

Forty male, nude, athymic mice were fed either Teklad 22/5 rodent diet or diet supplemented with 0.6% DHEA ad libitum. Four weeks following the institution of the experimental diets, 1 x 10(6) MiaPaCa-2 cells were injected into the right flank of each animal. Tumor area was recorded weekly and tumor weights were measured after 5 weeks. Plasma DHAS, testosterone, and progesterone concentrations were determined by radioimmunoassay.

RESULTS

Plasma DHAS, testosterone, and progesterone concentrations were all significantly elevated in the DHEA-treated group. DHEA-treated mouse plasma DHAS concentrations were approximately 50-fold higher than controls. Mean tumor weight was significantly reduced in the DHEA group (68.9 +/- 39.1 vs 121.0 +/- 64.3). DHEA treatment did not result in significant animal weight reductions and toxic side effects were not observed.

CONCLUSIONS

Dietary supplementation with 0.6% DHEA causes significant elevations in plasma DHAS concentration. DHEA administration significantly inhibits pancreatic cancer cell growth at plasma concentrations 1 x 10(5)-fold lower than previously reported. The mechanism of action may involve elevated concentrations of sex hormones.

Inhibition of the oxidative and nonoxidative pentose phosphate pathways by somatostatin: a possible mechanism of antitumor action

Long-acting somatostatin analogs have recently become supplemental drugs in the treatment of neurofibroma because of their marked tumor growth inhibitory effect. Somatostatin is currently under extended evaluation in other cancers as a possible supplemental drug to the treatment protocols in use. The mode of action is not known. Somatostatin has been shown to cause glucose intolerance by inhibiting glucose-6-phosphate dehydrogenase (G6PD) in fish liver. Recent data generated in our laboratory indicate that it is this pathway and the transketolase reactions of the pentose cycle (PC) which are directly involved in the ribose synthesis process of pancreatic adenocarcinoma cells. In cell culture, somatostatin alone inhibited glucose carbon recycling through the PC by 5.7%, which was increased to 19.8% in combination with oxythiamine, a competitive inhibitor of transketolase. Oxythiamine produced strong apoptosis in in-vitro hosted tumor cells. We hypothesize that somatostatin- and oxythiamine-induced antiproliferative action is mediated by the inhibition of G6PD, transketolase, or both.

Mass isotopomer study of the nonoxidative pathways of the pentose cycle with [1,2-13C2]glucose

We present a single-tracer method for the study of the pentose phosphate pathway (PPP) using [1,2-13C2]glucose and mass isotopomer analysis. The metabolism of [1,2-13C2]glucose by the glucose-6-phosphate dehydrogenase, transketolase (TK), and transaldolase (TA) reactions results in unique pentose and lactate isotopomers with either one or two 13C substitutions. The distribution of these isotopomers was used to estimate parameters of the PPP using the model of Katz and Rognstad (J. Katz and R. Rognstad. Biochemistry 6: 2227-2247, 1967). Mass and position isotopomers of ribose, and lactate and palmitate (products from triose phosphate) from human hepatoma cells (Hep G2) incubated with 30% enriched [1,2-13C2]glucose were determined using gas chromatography-mass spectrometry. After 24-72 h incubation, 1.9% of lactate molecules in the medium contained one 13C substitution (m1) and 10% contained two 13C substitutions (m2). A similar m1-to-m2 ratio was found in palmitate as expected. Pentose cycle (PC) activity determined from incubation with [1,2-13C2]glucose was 5.73 +/- 0.52% of the glucose flux, which was identical to the value of PC (5.55 +/- 0.73%) determined by separate incubations with [1-13C] and [6-13C]glucose, 13C was found to be distributed in four ribose isotopomers ([1-13C]-, [5-13C]-, [1,2-13C2]-, and [4,5-13C2]ribose). The observed ribose isotopomer distribution was best matched with that provided from simulation by substituting 0.032 for TK and 0.85 for TA activity relative to glucose uptake into the model of Katz and Rognstad. The use of [1,2-13C2]glucose not only permits the determination of PC but also allows estimation of relative rates through the TK and TA reactions.

Variable effect of streptozotocin-diabetes on the growth of hamster pancreatic cancer (H2T) in the Syrian hamster and nude mouse

BACKGROUND

Streptozotocin-diabetes prevents induction of pancreatic tumors in several animal models and inhibits the growth of established human pancreatic cancer implants in nude mice. However, it also promotes growth of the hamster pancreatic cancer cell line, H2T, in the Syrian hamster. To test the hypothesis that these contradictory effects are due to tumor host differences, the growth of the H2T cell line was examined in the streptozotocin-diabetic nude mouse.

METHODS

H2T cells were implanted subcutaneously into streptozotocin-diabetic nude mice (n = 10) and untreated control mice (n = 10). After 21 days, tumors were excised and weighed. Plasma insulin and somatostatin were determined by radioimmunoassay.

RESULTS

After 3 weeks, tumors in the control group weighed 118 mg and tumors in the diabetic group weighed 28 mg (p < 0.001). Plasma insulin was significantly decreased in the streptozotocin-treated animals compared with control animals (insulin, 23 microU/ml vs 31 microU/ml; p < 0.001). In contrast, somatostatin was significantly elevated in the streptozotocin-diabetic group compared with the control group (somatostatin, 179 pg/ml versus 54 pg/ml, p < 0.001). Competitive binding studies revealed specific cell surface receptors for insulin (Kd, 15.5 nmol/L), and somatostatin (Kd, 2.5 nmol/L) on the H2T cells. In an in vitro cell proliferation assay, cell division was promoted by insulin (p < 0.01, maximum +11%) and inhibited by somatostatin (p < 0.01, maximum -18%).

CONCLUSIONS

The variable effect of streptozotocin-diabetes on pancreatic cancer growth is due to differences in the tumor host. The growth of pancreatic cancer, particularly in streptozotocin-diabetic nude mice, may be influenced by gut peptides in a receptor-dependent fashion.

Thiamine supplementation to cancer patients: a double edged sword

The objectives of this review are to (a) explain the mechanism by which thiamine (vitamin B1) promotes nucleic acid ribose synthesis and tumor cell proliferation via the nonoxidative transketolase (TK) pathway; (b) estimate the thiamine intake of cancer patients and (c) provide background information and to develop guidelines for alternative treatments with antithiamine transketolase inhibitors in the clinical setting. Clinical and experimental data demonstrate increased thiamine utilization of human tumors and its interference with experimental chemotherapy. Analysis of RNA ribose indicates that glucose carbons contribute to over 90% of ribose synthesis in cultured cervix und pancreatic carcinoma cells and that ribose is synthesized primarily through the thiamine dependent TK pathway (> 70%). Antithiamine compounds significantly inhibit nucleic acid synthesis and tumor cell proliferation in vitro and in vivo in several tumor models. The medical literature reveals little information regarding the role of the thiamine dependent TK reaction in tumor cell ribose production which is a central process in de novo nucleic acid synthesis and the salvage pathways for purines. Consequently, current thiamine administration protocols oversupply thiamine by 200% to 20,000% of the recommended dietary allowance, because it is considered harmless and needed by cancer patients. The thiamine dependent TK pathway is the central avenue which supplies ribose phosphate for nucleic acids in tumors and excessive thiamine supplementation maybe responsible for failed therapeutic attempts to terminate cancer cell proliferation. Limited administration of thiamine and concomitant treatment with transketolase inhibitors is a more rational approach to treat cancer.

Nonoxidative pentose phosphate pathways and their direct role in ribose synthesis in tumors: is cancer a disease of cellular glucose metabolism?

Pentose phosphate pathways (PPP) are considered important in tumor proliferation processes because of their role in supplying tumor cells with reduced NADP and carbons for intracellular anabolic processes. Direct involvement of PPP in tumor DNA/RNA synthesis is not considered as significant as in lipid and protein syntheses. Currently, PPP activity in tumor cells is measured by lactate production, which shows a moderate activity: about 4% to 7% compared with glycolysis. Recent data generated in our laboratory indicate that PPP are directly involved in ribose synthesis in pancreatic adenocarcinoma cells, through oxidative steps (< 31%) and transketolase reactions (69%). These findings raise serious questions about the adequacy of lactate in measuring PPP activity in tumors. We hypothesize that ribose, not lactate, is the major product of PPP in tumor cells. Control of both oxidative and nonoxidative PPP may be critical in the treatment of cancer. PPP are substantially involved in the proliferation of human tumors, which raises the prospect of new treatment strategies targeting specific biochemical reactions of PPP by hormones related to glucose metabolism, controlling thiamine intake, the cofactor of the nonoxidative transketolase PPP reaction, or treating cancer patients with antithiamine analogues.

Oxythiamine and dehydroepiandrosterone inhibit the nonoxidative synthesis of ribose and tumor cell proliferation

This study investigates the significance of the glucose-6-phosphate dehydrogenase (G6PD) catalyzed oxidative and the transketolase (TK) catalyzed nonoxidative pentose cycle (PC) reactions in the tumor proliferation process by characterizing tumor growth patterns and synthesis of the RNA ribose moiety in the presence of respective inhibitors of G6PD and TK. Mass spectra analysis of 13C-labeled carbons revealed that these PC reactions contribute to over 85% of de novo ribose synthesis in RNA from [1,2-(13)C]glucose in cultured Mia pancreatic adenocarcinoma cells, with the fraction synthesized through the TK pathway predominating (85%). Five days of treatment with the TK inhibitor oxythiamine (OT) and the G6PD inhibitor dehydroepiandrosterone-sulfate (0.5 microM each) exerted a 39 and a 23% maximum inhibitory effect on cell proliferation in culture, which was increased to 60% when the two drugs were administered in combination. In vivo testing of 400 mg/kg OT or dehydroepiandrosterone-sulfate in C57BL/6 mice hosting Ehrlich's ascitic tumor cells revealed a 90.4 and a 46% decrease in the final tumor mass after 3 days of treatment. RNA ribose fractional synthesis through the TK reaction using metabolites directly from glycolysis declined by 9.1 and 23.9% after OT or the combined treatment, respectively. Nonoxidative PC reactions play a central regulating role in the carbon-recruiting process toward de novo nucleic acid ribose synthesis and cell proliferation in vitro and in vivo. Therefore, enzymes or substrates regulating the nonoxidative synthesis of ribose could also be the sites to preferentially target tumor cell proliferation by new anticancer drugs.

Dehydroepiandrosterone-sulfate inhibits pancreatic carcinoma cell proliferation in vitro and in vivo

BACKGROUND

Dehydroepiandrosterone-sulfate (DHEA-S) is a potent inhibitor of glucose-6 phosphate dehydrogenase, the rate limiting enzyme of the hexose monophosphate shunt, a biochemical pathway that provides substrate for DNA synthesis in neoplastic tissue. DHEA-S has been shown to inhibit the growth of neoplasms arriving from human skin, lung, colon, and mammary tissue. This study evaluates the effect of DHEA-S on human pancreatic cancer cell lines in vitro and in vivo.

METHODS

In vitro, the human pancreatic adenocarcinoma cell lines MiaPaCa-2, Capan-1, Capan-2, CAV and Panc-1 were treated with concentrations of 1.9 mumol/L to 1000 mumol/L DHEA-S in 1% dimethylsulfoxide (DMSO) for 5 consecutive days. Cell proliferation was determined by a nonradioactive cell proliferation assay and compared with DMSO treated controls. In vivo testing was performed by inoculating two cell lines, MiaPaCa-2 and Panc-I, into the flank of 40 male nude athymic mice in four study groups. After 1 week of growth, 667 mg/kg DHEA-S in 1% DMSO or 0.2 ml 1% DMSO alone in the control group was administered by daily intraperitoneal injection. Body weight and tumor size was recorded weekly, and tumor weight was measured after 3 weeks of treatment.

RESULTS

In vitro cell proliferation was decreased in the five cell lines by 36% to 62% of controls (p < 0.001) at 500 mumol/L DHEA-S. In vivo, after 2 weeks, tumor size was only 76% (p < 0.008) and 67% (p < 0.005) of the controls. After 3 weeks of treatment, tumor size was 73% (p < 0.001) and 53% (p < 0.001) of controls, and tumor weight was decreased by 73% in MiaPaCa-2 (p < 0.001) and 66% in Panc-1 (p < 0.001). Radioimmunoassay measurements of DHEA-S and testosterone from DHEA-S treated mouse plasma showed a significant increase in circulating levels of these hormones.

CONCLUSIONS

DHEA-S achieves high serum levels after intraperitoneal injection without elevation of serum testosterone levels and produces no significant toxicity. Treatment with DHEA-S results in a significant reduction of proliferation of human pancreatic cancer cells in culture and when grown as subcutaneous tumors in athymic nude mice.

Insulin promotes pancreatic cancer: evidence for endocrine influence on exocrine pancreatic tumors

Type-II diabetes is a risk factor for pancreatic cancer. In addition, diabetic patients present with more advanced tumors and have shortened survival compared to stage-matched counterparts. We hypothesize that the diabetic endocrine milieu, particularly elevated plasma insulin, favors pancreatic cancer growth. This study examines six human pancreatic cancer cell lines for the presence of insulin receptors and the influence of insulin on tumor proliferation. Classical competitive binding assays are performed using [125I insulin. Cell proliferation assays are conducted over 3 days on cultured cell lines (n = 6 replicates) with increasing concentrations of insulin. Insulin receptors are demonstrated on all six cell lines and dose dependent increases in cell proliferation (15-120% of control) are demonstrated in response to insulin. Patients with type-II diabetes hypersecrete insulin. The presence of high-affinity insulin receptors and dose dependent increases in pancreatic cancer cell proliferation with insulin supports the hypothesis that insulin may be an important tumor growth promoter in diabetes, particularly if paracrine mechanisms are involved. Additional study is required to determine whether other islet peptides altered in diabetes influence tumor growth and whether elevated plasma insulin favors pancreatic cancer induction.

Characterization of a murine model of acute lung injury (ALI): a prominent role for interleukin-1

This report describes a model developed to study local and systemic events that occur as a result of acute lung injury (ALI). C57BL/6J mice were injected with a single intravenous dose (2, 4, and 6 micrograms) of 12-O-tetradecanoylphorbol-13-acetate (TPA). At 1, 2, 4, 12, 24, and 48 h, after injection, plasma was collected by sinus orbital puncture, bronchoalveolar lavage (BAL) was performed and cells and fluid were collected, lungs were perfused, and pulmonary tissue was isolated and processed for histological, immunochemical, and gene expression studies. The results indicate a dose-dependent increase in animal distress and a decrease in survival. TPA induced an early systemic response, reflected as an initial decrease in numbers of peripheral blood neutrophils at 1 h, followed at 2 h by a sustained increase. There was dose- and time-dependent increase in IL-1 beta mRNA synthesis, detected using RT-PCR, and in immunoreactive IL-1 alpha produced by both tissue-fixed pulmonary cells and cells within alveolar spaces. Infiltration of neutrophils into pulmonary tissue and increased protein content in BAL fluid was detected 2 h after injection of TPA. Disruptions in pulmonary architecture accompanied by the presence of highly vacuolated macrophages within the alveolar spaces and interstitial tissue were evident after IV injection of TPA. The study shows that injection of TPA induces reproducible dose- and time-dependent alterations in cell types, numbers, state of activation, and production of soluble mediators in the peripheral circulation within BAL and pulmonary tissue. Thus, this model offers a means to examine the cellular basis for the local and systemic alterations observed during ALI.

Interleukin-1alpha gene expression during wound healing

Interleukin-1alpha is known to be constitutively produced by epidermal keratinocytes under normal conditions, and injection of this cytokine enhances wound reepithelialization. However, no studies have characterized the temporal sequence of interleukin-1alpha gene expression over the time course of wound healing, and the cellular sources of this cytokine have not been identified. In the present studies, levels of interleukin-1alpha messenger RNA in wound tissue isolated from SKH-1 hairless mice were characterized and the cells that produced interleukin-1alpha immunoreactive protein over a 10-day time course of wound healing were defined. A time-dependent upregulation in interleukin-1alpha gene expression occurred immediately (4 hours) after a full-thickness wound was made, which represented a four-fold increase over levels of cytokine gene expression detected in nonwounded skin. Upregulation of cytokine gene expression correlated with an immediate increase in plasma interleukin-1alpha levels and was followed by an increase in interleukin-1alpha immunoreactive protein localized to keratinocytes within the leading edge of the wound and epidermis, as well as to neutrophils within the dermis. The rapid increase in local and systemic interleukin-1alpha levels correlated with the infiltration of a significant number of neutrophils into the wound site and with the proliferation of both basal keratinocytes and dermal fibroblasts. Given the known ability of interleukin-1alpha to regulate proliferation and migration of epidermal keratinocytes and to indirectly induce leukocyte chemotaxis, the results of the present studies suggest that interleukin-1alpha may be an important cytokine with both local and systemic actions that are linked to the initiation of critical cellular events early in wound healing.