A novel approach to anticancer therapies for prostate cancer: lipoxygenase as a new target in the treatment of prostate cancer

Abstract

Prostate cancer differs from other urinary tract tumors in that it is hormone-dependent, although angiogenic factors play a significant role in the metastasis of both prostate cancer and tumors of other organs. The metabolism of arachidonic acid (AA) by either a cyclooxygenase (COX) or lipoxygenase (LOX) pathway is considered an important factor in tumor promotion. In this review, we investigated the expression of COX and LOX (5- and 12-LOX) in prostate cancer and the effects of COX and LOX inhibitors. Our findings demonstrated that cell growth and apoptosis of human prostate cancer cells are regulated by LOX pathways. Inhibiting the growth of prostate cancer cells by blocking LOX pathways was associated with induction of apoptosis. Data also support the evidence that a 5-LOX inhibitor is significantly more effective than a 12-LOX inhibitor in preventing cancer cell growth in the prostate, as the 5-LOX pathway is more closely associated with carcinogenesis than the 12-LOX pathway. Downregulation of the AA-metabolizing LOX enzymes therefore provides a novel approach to anticancer therapy.