Decrease In Cyclin-dependent Kinase Research Articles

Inhibition of Heat Shock Protein 90 Function by 17-Allylamino-17-Demethoxy-Geldanamycin in Hodgkin's Lymphoma Cells Down-Regulates Akt Kinase, Dephosphorylates Extracellular Signal–Regulated Kinase, and Induces Cell Cycle Arrest and Cell Death

Heat shock protein 90 (HSP90) is a chaperone for several client proteins involved in transcriptional regulation, signal transduction, and cell cycle control. HSP90 is abundantly expressed by a variety of tumor types and has been recently targeted for cancer therapy. The objective of this study was to determine the role of HSP90 in promoting growth and survival of Hodgkin's lymphoma and to determine the molecular consequences of inhibiting HSP90 function by the small-molecule 17-allylamino-17-demethoxy-geldanamycin (17-AAG) in Hodgkin's lymphoma. HSP90 expression in Hodgkin's lymphoma cell lines was determined by Western blot and in primary lymph node sections from patients with Hodgkin's lymphoma by immunohistochemistry. Cell viability was determined by the 3-(4,5-dimethyl-thiazol-2yl)-5-(3-carboxymethoxyphenyl)-2-(4-sulfophenyl)-2H-tetrazolium (MTS) assay. Apoptosis and cell cycle fractions were determined by flow cytometry. Expression of intracellular proteins was determined by Western blot. HSP90 is overexpressed in primary and cultured Hodgkin's lymphoma cells. Inhibition of HSP90 function by 17-AAG showed a time- and dose-dependent growth inhibition of Hodgkin's lymphoma cell lines. 17-AAG induced cell cycle arrest and apoptosis, which were associated with a decrease in cyclin-dependent kinase (CDK) 4, CDK 6, and polo-like kinase 1 (PLK1), and induced apoptosis by caspase-dependent and caspase-independent mechanisms. Furthermore, 17-AAG depleted cellular contents of Akt, decreased extracellular signal-regulated kinase (ERK) phosphorylation, and reduced cellular FLICE-like inhibitory protein levels (FLIP), and thus enhanced the cytotoxic effect of doxorubicin and agonistic anti-tumor necrosis factor-related apoptosis-inducing ligand (TRAIL) death receptor antibodies. Inhibition of HSP90 function induces cell death and enhances the activity of chemotherapy and anti-tumor necrosis factor-related apoptosis-inducing ligand death receptor antibodies, suggesting that targeting HSP90 function might be of therapeutic value in Hodgkin's lymphoma.

Inositol Hexaphosphate Inhibits Growth and Induces G1 Arrest and Apoptotic Death of Androgen-Dependent Human Prostate Carcinoma LNCaP Cells

Prostate cancer (PCA) is the most common invasive malignancy and the second leading cause of cancerrelated deaths in the US male population. One approach to control this malignancy is its preventive intervention by dietary agents. Inositol hexaphosphate (IP6), a dietary constituent, has shown promising efficacy against various cancers; however, limited studies have been performed with IP6 against PCA. Here, we investigated the growth-inhibitory effect and associated mechanisms of IP6 in androgen-dependent human prostate carcinoma LNCaP cells. IP6 treatment of cells resulted in a strong growth inhibition and an increase in G1 cell population. In mechanistic studies, IP6 resulted in an increase in cyclin-dependent kinase inhibitors (CDKIs) Cipi/p21 and Kip1/p27 levels, together with a decrease in cyclin-dependent kinase (CDK) 4 and cyclin D1 protein levels. An increase in CDKI levels by IP6 also led to a concomitant increase in their interactions with CDK2 and CDK4, together with a strong decrease in the kinase activity of both CDKs. Downstream in CDKI-CDK-cyclin cascade, consistent with its inhibitory effect on CDK kinase activity, IP6 treatment of cells increased hypophosphorylated levels of retinoblastoma (Rb) with a decrease in Rb phosphorylation at serine 780, 807, and 811 sites, and caused a moderate to strong decrease in the levels of transcription factors E2F1, E2F4, and E2F5. In other studies, IP6 caused a dose- and a time-dependent apoptotic death of LNCaP cells, and a decrease in Bcl2 levels, causing a strong increase in Bax versus Bcl2 ratio, as well as an inhibition of constitutively active AKT phosphorylation. Taken together, these molecular alterations provide an insight into IP6-caused growth inhibition, G1 arrest, and apoptotic death of human prostate carcinoma LNCaP cells. Because early clinical PCA growth is an androgen-dependent response, the results of the present study employing androgendependent LNCaP cells suggest that IP6 has promise and potential to be effective against PCA.

Ninjurin1 increases p21 expression and induces cellular senescence in human hepatoma cells

Ninjurin1 is a novel adhesion molecule that has a role in promoting nerve regeneration. Although ninjurin1 is ubiquitously expressed in various human tissues, including the liver, the biologic functions of ninjurin1 in tissues other than the nervous system remain unknown. The aim of this study was to investigate the function of ninjurin1 in hepatocytes. The effect of ninjurin1 overexpression was examined in Huh-7 hepatoma cells. Ninjurin1 expression was examined by Western blot in human hepatocellular carcinoma tissues as well as their adjacent liver tissues. Ninjurin1-overexpressing clones exhibited strong growth inhibition due to G1 cell cycle arrest, which is associated with a posttranscriptional increase in p21WAF1/Cip1, a decrease of cyclin-dependent kinase 2 activity and the hypophosphorylation of Rb. The ninjurin1-overexpressing clones had increased senescence-associated beta-galactosidase activity and autofluorescent pigment, characteristic features of cellular senescence. The levels of ninjurin1 expression were higher in hepatocellular carcinoma tissues than those in adjacent liver tissues. The present study provides the first evidence that ninjurin1 is able to induce the senescence program. Ninjurin1 may be involved in the regulation of cellular senescence in the liver during carcinogenesis.

3-Hydroxy-3-methylglutaryl CoA reductase inhibitors prevent high glucose-induced proliferation of mesangial cells via modulation of Rho GTPase/ p21 signaling pathway: Implications for diabetic nephropathy.

Inhibitors of 3-hydroxy-3-methylglutaryl CoA (HMG-CoA) reductase, also known as statins, are lipid-lowering agents widely used in the prevention of coronary heart disease. Recent experimental and clinical data, however, indicate that the overall benefits of statin therapy may exceed its cholesterol-lowering properties. We postulate that statins may ameliorate the detrimental effects of high glucose (HG)-induced proliferation of mesangial cells (MCs), a feature of early stages of diabetic nephropathy, by preventing Rho isoprenylation. Rat MCs cultured in HG milieu were treated with and without simvastatin, an HMG-CoA reductase inhibitor. Simvastatin inhibited HG-induced MC proliferation as measured by [(3)H]thymidine incorporation. This inhibitory effect was reversed with geranylgeranyl pyrophosphate, an isoprenoid intermediate of the cholesterol biosynthetic pathway. At the cell-cycle level, the HG-induced proliferation of MCs was associated with a decrease in cyclin dependent kinase (CDK) inhibitor p21 protein expression accompanied by an increase in CDK4 and CDK2 kinase activities. Simvastatin reversed the down-regulation of p21 protein expression and decreased CDK4 and CDK2 kinase activities. Exposure of MCs to HG was associated with an increase in membrane-associated Ras and Rho GTPase protein expression. Cotreatment of MCs with simvastatin reversed HG-induced Ras and Rho membrane translocation. Immunofluorescence microscopy revealed that the overexpression of the dominant-negative RhoA led to a significant increase in p21 expression. Our data suggest that simvastatin represses the HG-induced Rho GTPase/p21 signaling in glomerular MCs. Thus, this study provides a molecular basis for the use of statins, independently of their cholesterol-lowering effect, in early stages of diabetic nephropathy.

Ultraviolet-B-Induced G1 Arrest is Mediated by Downregulation of Cyclin-Dependent Kinase 4 in Transformed Keratinocytes Lacking Functional p53

In order to identify potential novel targets for ultraviolet-B-induced skin tumorigenesis, we assessed the effect of ultraviolet-B exposure on cell cycle progression of transformed keratinocytes with mutant p53. We show that ultraviolet-B exposure of human epidermoid carcinoma A431 cells results in G1 cell cycle arrest in both asynchronously growing and synchronized cells. A significant increase in G1 cell population was observed following exposure to doses of ultraviolet-B as low as 10 mJ per cm2. When irradiated with ultraviolet-B, cells synchronized in G1 with mimosine did not exit G1. G1 cell cycle arrest was associated with a decrease in the hyperphosphorylated forms of retinoblastoma protein that was detectable within 4 h and gradually disappeared by 12 h. We also observed a decrease in cyclins D1, D2, and D3, and cyclin-dependent kinase 4 proteins, and a concomitant decrease in cyclin-dependent kinase 4/cyclin D1 associated kinase activity, whereas ultraviolet-B exposure had no effect on cyclin-dependent kinase 2 and cyclin-dependent kinase 6 levels during this time period. Incubation of cells with proteasome inhibitors MG-115 and MG-132 prevented the decrease in cyclin D1, D2, and D3, and cyclin-dependent kinase 4 protein. Taken together, our results suggest that ultraviolet-B-induced cell cycle arrest in A431 cells is mediated by cyclin-dependent kinase 4 downregulation. This identifies a novel pathway for G1 cell cycle arrest in transformed keratinocytes following ultraviolet-B irradiation.

Presenilin 1 overexpressions in Chinese hamster ovary (CHO) cells decreases the phosphorylation of retinoblastoma protein: relevance for neurodegeneration

Mutations in the presenilin 1 (PS1) gene have been associated to familial Alzheimer disease although the exact pathogenic mechanism is unclear. We report that stable overexpression of wild type PS1 led to a decrease in cyclin-dependent kinase 4 (CDK 4) activity and retinoblastoma tumor supressor protein (pRb) phosphorylation that correlated with decreased levels of β-catenin and cyclin D1. PS1 mutant D385A also precipitated a similar effect suggesting that γ-secretase cleavage is not essential for PS1-mediated CDK 4 inhibition. We postulate that PS1 overexpression may balance the hyperphosphorylation of pRb associated with death of post mitotic neurons after injury.

Differential Responses of Skin Cancer-Chemopreventive Agents Silibinin, Quercetin, and Epigallocatechin 3-Gallate on Mitogenic Signaling and Cell Cycle Regulators in Human Epidermoid Carcinoma A431 Cells

Silibinin, quercetin, and epigallocatechin 3-gallate (EGCG) have been shown to be skin cancer-preventive agents, albeit by several different mechanisms. Here, we assessed whether these agents show their cancer-preventive potential by a differential effect on mitogenic signaling molecules and cell cycle regulators. Treatment of human epidermoid carcinoma A431 cells with these agents inhibited the activation of the epidermal growth factor receptor and the downstream adapter protein Shc, but only silibinin showed a marked inhibition of mitogen-activated protein kinase-extracellular signal-regulated kinase-1 and -2 activation. In terms of cell cycle regulators, silibinin treatment showed an induction of Cip1/p21 and Kip1/p27 together with a significant decrease in cyclin-dependent kinase (CDK)-4, CDK2, and cyclin D1. Quercetin treatment, however, resulted in a moderate increase in Cip1/p21 with no change in Kip1/p27 and a decrease in CDK4 and cyclin D1. EGCG treatment also led to an induction of Cip1/p21 but no change in Kip1/p27, CDK2, and cyclin D1 and a decrease in CDK4 only at low doses. Treatment of cells with these agents resulted in a strong dose- and time-dependent cell growth inhibition. A high dose of silibinin and low and high doses of quercetin and EGCG also led to cell death by apoptosis, suggesting that a lack of their inhibitory effect on mitogen-activated protein kinase-extracellular signal-regulated kinase-1 and -2 activation possibly "turns on" an apoptotic cell death response associated with their cancer-preventive and anticarcinogenic effects. Together, these results suggest that silibinin, quercetin, and EGCG exert their cancer-preventive effects by differential responses on mitogenic signaling and cell cycle regulators.

Protection of normal proliferating cells against chemotherapy by staurosporine-mediated, selective, and reversible G(1) arrest.

A major limiting factor in human cancer chemotherapy is toxicity in normal tissues. Our goal was to determine whether normal proliferating cells could be protected from chemotherapeutic agents by taking advantage of the differential drug sensitivity of cell cycle G(1) checkpoint in normal and cancer cells. Normal mammary epithelial cells and mammary cancer cells were initially treated with staurosporine at a cytostatic (i.e., nonlethal) concentration, which preferentially arrests normal cells in the G(0)/G(1) phase of the cell cycle without affecting the proliferation of tumor cells. After the selective arrest of normal cells in G(0)/G(1), both normal and tumor cells were treated with doxorubicin or camptothecin, two cytotoxic (i.e., lethal) chemotherapeutic agents. Cells were then allowed to recover in drug-free medium for 12 days. After pretreatment of both normal and tumor cells with staurosporine followed by treatment with doxorubicin or camptothecin, tumor cells were selectively killed by chemotherapeutic agents, whereas normal cells resumed proliferation after the drugs were removed. Pretreatment with staurosporine also protected normal circulating lymphocytes that had been induced to proliferate in vitro with phytohemagglutinin from chemotherapeutic agents. Staurosporine-induced arrest of normal cells in G(0)/G(1) phase was reversible, and arrested cells tolerated doses of camptothecin that were more than 100-fold higher than necessary to eradicate all tumor cells in culture. Staurosporine-mediated G(0)/G(1) arrest targets the retinoblastoma protein (pRb) pathway and was accompanied by a rapid decrease in cyclin-dependent kinase (CDK) 4 protein levels, increased binding of CDK inhibitors p21 and p27 to CDK2, and inhibition of CDK2 activity in normal cells. Breast cancer cells with defective checkpoints regulated by the pRb pathway can be targeted specifically with chemotherapeutic agents, following staurosporine-mediated, selective and reversible G(0)/G(1) arrest in normal cells.

Inhibition of vascular smooth muscle cell proliferation by sodium salicylate mediated by upregulation of p21(Waf1) and p27(Kip1).

Salicylates may have direct vascular effects by mechanisms that are independent of platelet inhibition. We investigated the effect of salicylates on vascular smooth muscle cell (SMC) proliferation in response to platelet-derived growth factor (PDGF) in vitro. Salicylate concentrations of 5 and 10 mmol/L inhibited serum- or PDGF-induced SMC cell count and [(3)H]thymidine incorporation by 62% and 81%, respectively. There was no evidence of cellular toxicity or apoptosis as determined by trypan blue exclusion and FACS analyses. Because cell cycle progression is regulated by hyperphosphorylation of the retinoblastoma (Rb) protein, we examined the effects of salicylate on Rb hyperphosphorylation. Treatment with salicylate, but not indomethacin, inhibited nuclear factor-kappaB activation and completely abolished Rb hyperphosphorylation in PDGF-treated SMCs. This effect was associated with a decrease in cyclin-dependent kinase (Cdk)-2 and, to a lesser extent, Cdk-6, but not Cdk-4 activity, without changes in Cdk-2, -4, and -6 and cyclin D and E protein levels. Because Cdk-2 activity is regulated by the Cdk inhibitors p21(Waf1) and p27(Kip1), we studied the effects of salicylate on p21(Waf1) and p27(Kip1) expression. Treatment with salicylate prevented PDGF-induced downregulation of p21(Waf1) and p27(Kip1) but not of the Cdk-4/-6 inhibitor p16(Ink4). These findings indicate that high doses of salicylates inhibit SMC proliferation by cell cycle arrest at the G(1)-S phase and suggest a beneficial role for high-dose salicylates in the treatment of vascular proliferative disorders.

Cell signaling and regulators of cell cycle as molecular targets for prostate cancer prevention by dietary agents

Prostate cancer (PCA) is the most common invasive malignancy and leading cause (after lung) of cancer deaths in males. Since PCA is initially androgen-dependent, strategies are targeted toward androgen depletion for its control. However, tumor re-growth mostly occurs following this modality, and is androgen-independent. A loss of functional androgen receptor and an enhanced expression of growth factor receptors (e.g. erbB family members) and associated ligands have been shown to be the causal genetic events in PCA progression. These genetic alterations lead to an epigenetic mechanism where a feed-back autocrine loop between membrane receptor (e.g. epidermal growth factor receptor [erbB1] and associated ligand (e.g. transforming growth factor-α) results in an enhanced activation of extracellular signal-regulated protein kinase 1/2 (ERK1/2) as an essential component of the uncontrolled growth of PCA at an advanced and androgen-independent stage. Together, we rationalized that inhibiting these epigenetic events would be useful in controlling advanced PCA growth. Dietary polyphenolic flavonoids and isoflavones are being studied extensively as cancer-preventive and interventive agents. Therefore, we focused our attention on silymarin, genistein, and epigallocatechin 3-gallate (EGCG), present in milk thistle, soy beans, and green tea, respectively. The effect of these agents was assessed on the erbB1-Shc-ERK1/2 signal transduction pathway, cell cycle regulatory molecules, and cell growth and death. In androgen-independent human prostate carcinoma DU145 cells, silymarin, genistein, and EGCG resulted in a significant to complete inhibition of transforming growth factor-α-caused activation of membrane receptor erbB1 followed by inhibition of downstream cytoplasmic signaling target Shc activation and a decrease in its binding with erbB1, without an alteration in their protein expression. Silymarin and genistein also inhibited ERK1/2 activation, suggesting that these agents impair the activation of erbB1–Shc–ERK1/2 signaling in DU145 cells. In the case of EGCG, a further increase in ERK1/2 activation was observed that was related to its pro-oxidant and apoptotic activities. Silymarin, genistein, and EGCG also resulted in a significant induction of Cip1/p21 and Kip1/p27 and a decrease in cyclin-dependent kinase (CDK) 4, but a moderate inhibition of CDK2, cyclin D1, and cyclin E was observed. An enhanced level of Cip1/p21 and Kip1/27 also led to an increase in their binding to CDK4 and CDK2. Treatment of cells with silymarin, genistein, and EGCG also resulted in strong cell growth inhibition at lower doses, and complete inhibition at higher doses. In contrast to silymarin, higher doses of genistein also showed cell death. A more profound cytotoxic effect was observed in the case of EGCG, with strong cell death at lower doses and complete loss of viability at higher doses. Together, these results suggest that cell signaling and regulators of cell cycle are potential epigenetic molecular targets for prostate cancer prevention by dietary agents. More studies, therefore, are needed with these agents to explore their anticarcinogenic potential against human prostate cancer.

Anticarcinogenic effect of a polyphenolic fraction isolated from grape seeds in human prostate carcinoma DU145 cells: modulation of mitogenic signaling and cell-cycle regulators and induction of G1 arrest and apoptosis.

There is an increasing interest in identifying potent cancer preventive and therapeutic agents against prostate cancer (PCA). In a recent study, we showed that a polyphenolic fraction isolated from grape seeds (hereafter referred to as GSP) that is substantially rich in antioxidant procyanidins exerts exceptionally high preventive effects against tumorigenesis in a murine skin model. In the present study, we investigated the anticarcinogenic effect of GSP against PCA by employing DU145 human prostate carcinoma cells. GSP treatment (10-100 microg/mL doses for 2-6 d) of cells resulted in a highly significant (P < 0.01-0.001) inhibition of cell growth in both dose- and time-dependent manner. Compared with the vehicle, 2 d of GSP treatment resulted in 27, 39, and 76% growth inhibition at 50, 75, and 100 microg/mL doses, respectively, whereas 28-97% and 12-98% inhibition was evident at 10-100 microg/mL doses of GSP after 4 and 6 d of treatment, respectively. These doses of GSP also resulted in dose- and time-dependent cell death (6-50%, P <0.1-0. 001) that was later characterized as apoptotic death. In molecular mechanistic studies, treatment of DU145 cells with GSP at 25-75 microg/mL doses for 24, 48, and 72 h resulted in 77-88%, 65-93%, and 38-98% reduction, respectively (P < 0.001), in phospho-extracellular signal-regulated protein kinase (ERK) 1 and 78%, 19-76%, and 63-71% reduction (P < 0.1-0.001) in phospho-ERK2 levels, respectively. In other studies, similar doses of GSP showed up to 1.9-fold increases in Cip1/p21 and a significant (P < 0.001) decrease in cyclin-dependent kinase (CDK) 4 (up to 90% decrease), CDK2 (up to 50% decrease), and cyclin E (up to 60% decrease). GSP treatment of DU145 cells also resulted in a significant (P < 0.001) G1 arrest in cell-cycle progression in a dose-dependent manner. The growth-inhibitory and cell-death effects of GSP were also observed in another human PCA line, LNCaP. Together, these results suggest that GSP may exert strong anticarcinogenic effect against PCA and that this effect possibly involves modulation of mitogenic signaling and cell-cycle regulators and induction of G1 arrest, cell-growth inhibition, and apoptotic death. Mol. Carcinog. 28:129-138, 2000.

Butyrate Stimulates Cyclin D and p21 and Inhibits Cyclin-Dependent Kinase 2 Expression in HT-29 Colonic Epithelial Cells

Sodium butyrate, a product of colonic fermentation of dietary fiber, has been shown to inhibit cell proliferation by blocking the cells in the G1 phase of the cell cycle. However, its mechanism of action is still unknown. We found that butyrate strongly stimulated cyclin D and p21/WAF1/CIP1 expression in HT-29 human colonic adenocarcinoma cells, in a dose dependent manner. These stimulations were associated with a decrease in cyclin-dependent kinase (cdk) 2 level, whereas cdk4 and cdk6 remained unchanged. Our results suggest that the inhibition of cell cycle progression by sodium butyrate may be explained by a modulation of cell cycle regulatory proteins such as cyclin D and p21.