P53 In HCT116 Cells Research Articles

Slug promotes p53 and p21 protein degradation by inducing Mdm2 expression in HCT116 colon cancer cells

Our previous study revealed that the tumor suppressor/transcription factor p53 directly binds to its transcriptional target, p21, and that the p53/p21 complex binds to zinc finger protein SNAI2 (Slug), a tumor promoter/transcription factor; thereby promoting the degradation of Slug by Mdm2, an E3 ligase. The present study demonstrated that Slug reduced the cellular expression levels of p53 and p21 in HCT116 colon cancer by decreasing their protein stability. In parallel, Slug increased the mRNA and protein expression levels of Mdm2 in these cells. Moreover, knockdown of Mdm2 using specific small interfering RNAs abolished the ability of Slug to induce the degradation of p53 and p21. Considering the well-known function of Mdm2 in facilitating p53 and p21 degradation, these data suggested that Slug promoted p53 and p21 degradation by inducing Mdm2 expression. Moreover, Slug increased ubiquitination levels of p53 in HCT116 cells. This is consistent with the fact that Mdm2 induces p53 degradation by ubiquitinating p53, and further confirmed that Mdm2 acted downstream of Slug. Comparative studies using HCT116 cells and their p53- or p21-knockout variants have revealed that Slug requires p21 to induce p53 degradation. This result is consistent with our previous study, which revealed that Mdm2 acts more efficiently on p53 in the p53/p21 complex compared with on p53 alone. By contrast, Slug did not require p53 to induce p21 degradation, suggesting that p53 was dispensable in Mdm2-mediated p21 degradation. Notably, the ability of Slug to increase/decrease Mdm2/p53 and p21 levels, respectively, was not confined to HCT116 cells alone, but was also confirmed in A549 and H460 lung cancer cells. Collectively, the results of the present study suggested that Slug could counter p53 and p21. The balance between these two opposing groups (Slug vs. p53/p21) may depend on environmental stresses and the internal physiology of cells.

Activation of p53 by costunolide blocks glutaminolysis and inhibits proliferation in human colorectal cancer cells

Colorectal cancer is a leading cause of cancer-related death. Glutaminolysis has been suggested as a therapeutic target for cancer. Costunolide is a natural sesquiterpene lactone showing potent antitumor activity. Our studies were aimed at evaluating how costunolide affected glutaminolysis leading to proliferation inhibition in human colorectal cancer cells. Costunolide suppressed viability and proliferation of HCT116 cells concentration-dependently, but did not apparently affect human intestinal epithelial cells. Costunolide at 20 μM reduced viability and proliferation of HCT116 cells time-dependently. Costunolide also repressed phosphorylation of mTOR and its downstream kinases p70S6K and 4E-BP1. Examinations of glutaminolysis metabolites showed that costunolide increased intracellular glutamine levels, but decreased intracellular levels of glutamate, α-ketoglutarate (α-KG), and ATP in HCT116 cells, suggesting costunolide blockade of glutaminolysis. Furthermore, costunolide inhibited promoter activity of glutaminase 1 (GLS1), the first rate-limiting enzyme in glutaminolysis, and reduced mRNA and protein expression of GLS1 in HCT116 cells, The GLS1 inhibitor BPTES, similar to costunolide, significantly reduced intracellular levels of α-KG and ATP and inhibited proliferation in HCT116 cells. Finally, costunolide increased phosphorylation and nuclear translocation of p53 in HCT116 cells. Both p53 inhibitor pifithrin-α and p53 siRNA significantly rescued costunolide suppression of GLS1 promoter activity and expression in HCT116 cells. These data in aggregate suggested that activation of p53 was required for costunolide inhibition of GLS1 resulting in blockade of glutaminolysis and inhibition of proliferation in colorectal cancer cells, which was a novel mechanism underlying the antitumor activity of costunolide against colorectal cancer.

BMP7 mediates the anticancer effect of honokiol by upregulating p53 in HCT116 cells.

Colorectal cancer (CRC) is the second leading cause of cancer death. Hence, there is a great need to explore new efficacious drugs for the treatment of CRC. Honokiol (HNK), a natural product extracted from magnolia bark, processes various biological activities, including anticancer. In this study, we introduced cell viability assay, western blotting, real-time PCR and immunofluorescent staining to determine the anticancer effect of HNK, and the possible mechanism underlying this biological process. We found that HNK can inhibit the proliferation and induce apoptosis in HCT116 cells in a concentration- and time-dependent manner. HNK activates p53 in HCT116 and other colon cancer cells. Exogenous p53 potentiates the anticancer of HNK, while p53 inhibitor decreases this effect of HNK. Moreover, HNK upregulates the expression of bone morphogenetic protein7 (BMP7) in colon cancer cells; Exogenous BMP7 enhances the anticancer activity of HNK and BMP7 specific antibody reduces this effect of HNK. For mechanism, we found that HNK cannot increase the level of Smad1/5/8; Exogenous BMP7 potentiates the HNK-induced activation of p53. On the contrary, BMP7 specific antibody inhibits the HNK-induced activation of p53 in colon cancer cells and partly decreases the total level of p53. Our findings suggested that HNK may be a promising anticancer drug for CRC; activation of p53 plays an important role in the anticancer activity of HNK, which may be initialized partly by the HNK-induced upregulation of BMP7.

PGA2 induces the expression of HO-1 by activating p53 in HCT116 cells

Prostaglandin (PG) A2 which is a cytotoxic PG, was reported to induce the expression of heme oxygenase (HO)-1 via activation of p38MAPK to keep U2OS cells from cell cycle arrest in G2M phase. The expression of HO-1 is primarily regulated at the level of transcription. But the transcription factors that are responsible for PGA2-induced HO-1 expression were not clarified yet. Here, we report that PGA2-induced transcription of HO-1 is mediated by p53, a tumor suppressive transcription factor. In HCT116 cells, PGA2 treatment led to the phosphorylation of p53 and an increase of p21WAF1 transcription as well as the activation of HO-1 transcription. Knocking p53 down via RNA interference or inhibiting the p53’s transcriptional activity by pifithrin-α treatment led to suppression of the increase in the level of both HO-1 expression and activity of HO-1 promoter. Pretreatment of NU-7441, a chemical inhibitor of DNA-activated protein kinase (DNA-PK), prevented both the PGA2-induced phosphorylation of p53 and an increase of HO-1 transcription. In addition, N-acetyl-l-cysteine, a scavenger of reactive oxygen species (ROS), also mimicked the effect of NU-7441 on the PGA2-induced activation of p53 and HO-1 transcription. Collectively, these results suggest that PGA2 induces the expression of HO-1 via activation of p53, which is mediated by the ROS-DNA-PK pathway.

Downregulation of CDC27 inhibits the proliferation of colorectal cancer cells via the accumulation of p21Cip1/Waf1.

Dysregulated cell cycle progression has a critical role in tumorigenesis. Cell division cycle 27 (CDC27) is a core subunit of the anaphase-promoting complex/cyclosome, although the specific role of CDC27 in cancer remains unknown. In our study, we explored the biological and clinical significance of CDC27 in colorectal cancer (CRC) growth and progression and investigated the underlying molecular mechanisms. Results showed that CDC27 expression is significantly correlated with tumor progression and poor patient survival. Functional assays demonstrated that overexpression of CDC27 promoted proliferation in DLD1 cells, whereas knockdown of CDC27 in HCT116 cells inhibited proliferation both in vitro and in vivo. Further mechanistic investigation showed that CDC27 downregulation resulted in G1/S phase transition arrest via the significant accumulation of p21 in HCT116 cells, and the upregulation of CDC27 promoted G1/S phase transition via the attenuation of p21 in DLD1 cells. Furthermore, we also demonstrated that CDC27 regulated inhibitor of DNA binding 1 (ID1) protein expression in DLD1 and HCT116 cells, and rescue assays revealed that CDC27 regulated p21 expression through modulating ID1 expression. Taken together, our results indicate that CDC27 contributes to CRC cell proliferation via the modulation of ID1-mediated p21 regulation, which offers a novel approach to the inhibition of tumor growth. Indeed, these findings provide new perspectives for the future study of CDC27 as a target for CRC treatment.

Abstract 2556: Trifluridine induces p53-dependent sustained G2 phase arrest with its massive misincorporation into DNA and few DNA strand breaks

Abstract Background: TAS-102 is a combination of an antineoplastic thymidine-based nucleoside analogue, trifluridine (FTD), and a thymidine phosphorylase inhibitor, tipiracil (TPI), at a molar ratio of 1:0.5. FTD is the active antitumor component of TAS-102, and its triphosphate form is incorporated into the DNA in tumor cells. TPI, a potent inhibitor of the FTD-degrading enzyme thymidine phosphorylase, maintains adequate plasma concentrations of orally administered FTD, thereby potentiating its antitumor activity. In an international multicenter randomized double blind Phase III study (RECOURSE), TAS-102 administration resulted in a significant improvement in overall survival and progression-free survival and a favorable safety profile compared to placebo treatment in patients with metastatic colorectal cancer refractory to standard chemotherapies. In this study, we investigated the mechanism of FTD-induced cytotoxicity in colorectal cancer and other cell lines. Method: The colorectal cancer cell lines RKO and HCT-116, the subline HCT-116 p53−/−, and the lung adenocarcinoma cell line A549 were used. Cells were treated with FTD or FdUrd using the IC50 values for 12 to 72 h. Molecules involved in DNA damage and the cell cycle were evaluated by western blot and RT-PCR. Cell cycle analysis and DNA strand-breaks were evaluated by flow cytometry and alkaline- and neutral-comet assays. Results: FTD and FdUrd activated similar DNA damage response pathways via transient phosphorylation of Chk1 at Ser345, followed by accumulation of p53 and p21 in HCT-116 cells. A similar biochemical response was observed using the IC50 concentration of FdUrd or FTD in RKO and A549 cells. FTD repressed G2 to M phase progression and the cells accumulated in G2 phase 72 h after treatment, with a 35% and 29% decrease in the CDK1 and CCNB1 mRNA levels compared to the control. The G2 phase arrest by FTD was commonly induced in each p53 proficient cell lines (HCT-116, RKO, and A549). In contrast, FTD-induced G2 phase arrest was not observed when p53 expression was suppressed. Furthermore, the p53-dependent G2 phase arrest by FTD was associated with the downregulation of Cyclin B1, both through its transcriptional repression and proteasomal degradation. Although FdUrd induced numerous single- and double-strand DNA breaks, FTD did not induce detectable DNA strand breaks. FTD was massively incorporated into DNA (41.4 pmol/μg DNA), whereas less FdUrd was incorporated (0.6 pmol/μg DNA) 72 h after treatment. Conclusion: Our analyses revealed that FTD induced sustained G2 phase arrest and few DNA strand breaks, in spite of massive incorporation into DNA. These results suggest that the mechanism of FTD action is unique at the cellular level, resulting in the clinical efficacy of TAS-102. Citation Format: Kazuaki Matsuoka, Makoto Iimori, Shinichiro Niimi, Hiroshi Tsukihara, Sugiko Watanabe, Shinichi Kiyonari, Mamoru Kiniwa, Koji Ando, Eriko Tokunaga, Hiroshi Saeki, Eiji Oki, Hiroyuki Kitao, Yoshihiko Maehara. Trifluridine induces p53-dependent sustained G2 phase arrest with its massive misincorporation into DNA and few DNA strand breaks. [abstract]. In: Proceedings of the 106th Annual Meeting of the American Association for Cancer Research; 2015 Apr 18-22; Philadelphia, PA. Philadelphia (PA): AACR; Cancer Res 2015;75(15 Suppl):Abstract nr 2556. doi:10.1158/1538-7445.AM2015-2556

VEGFR2 Signaling Prevents Colorectal Cancer Cell Senescence to Promote Tumorigenesis in Mice With Colitis

Senescence prevents cellular transformation. We investigated whether vascular endothelial growth factor (VEGF) signaling via its receptor, VEGFR2, regulates senescence and proliferation of tumor cells in mice with colitis-associated cancer (CAC). CAC was induced in VEGFR2(ΔIEC) mice, which do not express VEGFR2 in the intestinal epithelium, and VEGFR2(fl/fl) mice (controls) by administration of azoxymethane followed by dextran sodium sulfate. Tumor development and inflammation were determined by endoscopy. Colorectal tissues were collected for immunoblot, immunohistochemical, and quantitative polymerase chain reaction analyses. Findings from mouse tissues were confirmed in human HCT116 colorectal cancer cells. We analyzed colorectal tumor samples from patients before and after treatment with bevacizumab. After colitis induction, VEGFR2(ΔIEC) mice developed significantly fewer tumors than control mice. A greater number of intestinal tumor cells from VEGFR2(ΔIEC) mice were in senescence than tumor cells from control mice. We found VEGFR2 to activate phosphatidylinositol-4,5-bisphosphate-3-kinase and AKT, resulting in inactivation of p21 in HCT116 cells. Inhibitors of VEGFR2 and AKT induced senescence in HCT116 cells. Tumor cell senescence promoted an anti-tumor immune response by CD8(+) T cells in mice. Patients whose tumor samples showed an increase in the proportion of senescent cells after treatment with bevacizumab had longer progression-free survival than patients in which the proportion of senescent tumor cells did not change before and after treatment. Inhibition of VEGFR2 signaling leads to senescence of human and mouse colorectal cancer cells. VEGFR2 interacts with phosphatidylinositol-4,5-bisphosphate-3-kinase and AKT to inactivate p21. Colorectal tumor senescence and p21 level correlate with patient survival during treatment with bevacizumab.

Peptides in common bean (Phaseolus vulgaris L.) non‐digestible fraction inhibit human colorectal cancer cell survival in vitro through oxidative stress injury: a comparative study (644.5)

The aim was to characterize peptides present in non‐digestible fraction (NDF) of common bean cultivars, Azufrado Higuera (AH) and Bayo Madero (BM), produced after pepsin‐pancreatin digestion, determine their antiproliferative action on human colorectal cancer cells and their mechanism of action. Five peptides represented 70% of total protein in both cultivars (GLTSK, LSGNK, GEGSGA, MPACGSS and MTEEY). HCT116 colorectal cancer cell line was most sensitive to bean AH (IC50=0.53 mg/mL), and RKO to BM (IC50=0.51 mg/mL) peptide extracts. Cultivars AH and BM increased significantly the expression of p53 in HCT116 cells by 76% and 68%, respectively. AH modified the expression of cell cycle regulation proteins p21 (64%) and cyclin B1 (‐45%). BM modified the expression of apoptosis‐related proteins BAD (22%); cytC (66%), c‐casp3 (115%); Bax (50%), Bcl‐x (‐41%); Livin (‐32%); Survivin (‐27%) and TNFR1 (‐51%). Moreover, peptide extracts of both cultivars modified the expression of oxidative stress response‐related genes. In HCT116, NRF2‐related antioxidant enzymes were up‐regulated. Glutathione redox‐related enzymes were down‐regulated in RKO, potentially causing reactive oxygen species imbalance. In conclusion, peptides in common bean NDF contributed to the antiproliferative effect on human colorectal cancer cells by modifying molecules involved in cell cycle progression and apoptosis.Grant Funding Source: Supported by University of Illinois‐University of Queretaro research grants

Local Depletion of DNA Methylation Identifies a Repressive p53 Regulatory Region in the NEK2 Promoter

Genome-scale mapping suggests that the function of DNA methylation varies with genomic context beyond transcriptional repression. However, the use of DNA-demethylating agents (e.g. 5-aza-2'-deoxycytidine (5aza-dC)) to study epigenetic regulation often focuses on gene activation and ignores repression elicited by 5aza-dC. Here, we show that repression of NEK2, which encodes the never in mitosis A (NIMA)-related kinase, by 5aza-dC is context-specific as NEK2 transcript levels were reduced in HCT116 colon cancer cells but not in isogenic p53(-/-) cells. Bisulfite sequencing showed that DNA methylation was restricted to the distal region of the NEK2 promoter. Demethylation by 5aza-dC was associated with increased accessibility to micrococcal nuclease, i.e. nucleosome depletion. Conversely, methyltransferase accessibility protocol for individual templates (MAPit) methylation footprinting showed that nucleosome occupancy and DNA methylation at the distal promoter were significantly increased in p53(-/-) cells, suggesting dynamic regulation of chromatin structure at this region by p53 in HCT116 cells. Stabilization of endogenous p53 by doxorubicin or ectopic expression of p53, but not a p53 DNA-binding mutant, decreased NEK2 expression. Chromatin immunoprecipitation demonstrated direct and specific association of p53 with the distal NEK2 promoter, which was enhanced by doxorubicin. Luciferase reporters confirmed that this region is required for p53-mediated repression of NEK2 promoter activity. Lastly, modulation of p53 abundance altered nucleosome occupancy and DNA methylation at its binding region. These results identify NEK2 as a novel p53-repressed gene, illustrate that its repression by 5aza-dC is specific and associated with nucleosome reorganization, and provide evidence that identification of partially methylated regions can reveal novel p53 target genes.

Transcriptional regulation of the legumain gene by p53 in HCT116 cells

Legumain (EC 3.4.22.34) is an asparaginyl endopeptidase. Strong legumain activity was observed in the mouse kidney, and legumain was found to be highly expressed in tumors. We previously reported that bovine kidney annexin A2 was co-purified with legumain and that legumain cleaved the N-terminal region of annexin A2 at an Asn residue in vitro and in vivo. In this study, we found a p53-binding site in intron 1 of the human legumain gene using computational analysis. To determine whether transcription of the legumain gene is regulated by p53, HCT116 cells were transfected with p53 siRNA and the effect of knockdown of p53 expression on legumain expression was examined. The results showed that expression levels of both legumain mRNA and protein were decreased in the siRNA-treated cells. Furthermore, enzyme activity of legumain was also increased by doxorubicin and its activity was reduced by knockdown of p53 in HCT116 cells. These results suggest that legumain expression and its enzyme activity are regulated by p53.

Degradation of NF-κB, p53 and other regulatory redox-sensitive proteins by thiol-conjugating and -nitrosylating drugs in human tumor cells

The ionized cysteines present on the surfaces of many redox-sensitive proteins play functionally essential roles and are readily targeted by the reactive oxygen and reactive nitrogen species. Using disulfiram (DSF) and nitroaspirin (NCX4016) as the model compounds that mediate thiol-conjugating and nitrosylating reactions, respectively, we investigated the fate of p53, nuclear factor-kappaB (NF-κB) and other redox-responsive proteins following the exposure of human cancer cell lines to the drugs. Both drugs induced glutathionylation of bulk proteins in tumor cells and cell-free extracts. A prominent finding of this study was a time- and dose-dependent degradation of the redox-regulated proteins after brief treatments of tumor cells with DSF or NCX4016. DSF and copper-chelated DSF at concentrations of 50-200 µM induced the disappearance of wild-type p53, mutant p53, NF-κB subunit p50 and the ubiquitin-activating enzyme E1 (UBE1) in tumor cell lines. DSF also induced the glutathionylation of p53. The recombinant p53 protein modified by DSF was preferentially degraded by rabbit reticulocyte lysates. The proteasome inhibitor PS341 curtailed the DSF-induced degradation of p53 in HCT116 cells. Further, the NCX4016 induced a dose-dependent disappearance of the UBE1 and NF-κB p50 proteins in cell lines, besides a time-dependent degradation of aldehyde dehydrogenase in mouse liver after a single injection of 150 mg/kg. The loss of p53 and NF-kB proteins correlated with decreases in their specific binding to DNA. Our results demonstrate the hitherto unrecognized ability of the non-toxic thiolating and nitrosylating agents to degrade regulatory proteins and highlight the exploitable therapeutic benefits.

P53/HMGB1 Complexes Regulate Autophagy and Apoptosis

The balance between apoptosis ("programmed cell death") and autophagy ("programmed cell survival") is important in tumor development and response to therapy. Here, we show that high mobility group box 1 (HMGB1) and p53 form a complex that regulates the balance between tumor cell death and survival. We show that knockout of p53 in HCT116 cells increases expression of cytosolic HMGB1 and induces autophagy. Conversely, knockout of HMGB1 in mouse embryonic fibroblasts increases p53 cytosolic localization and decreases autophagy. p53 is thus a negative regulator of the HMGB1/Beclin 1 complex, and HMGB1 promotes autophagy in the setting of diminished p53. HMGB1-mediated autophagy promotes tumor cell survival in the setting of p53-dependent processes. The HMGB1/p53 complex affects the cytoplasmic localization of the reciprocal binding partner, thereby regulating subsequent levels of autophagy and apoptosis. These insights provide a novel link between HMGB1 and p53 in the cross-regulation of apoptosis and autophagy in the setting of cell stress, providing insights into their reciprocal roles in carcinogenesis.

BCL11B tumor suppressor inhibits HDM2 expression in a p53-dependent manner

BCL11B is a C2H2 zinc finger transcription factor that acts as a haploinsufficient tumor suppressor. Mutations and deletion in the human orthologue BCL11B have been identified in human T-cell acute lymphoblastic leukemia (T-ALL) and a mouse model of thymic lymphomas. Bcl11bKO/+p53KO/+ doubly heterozygous mice, but not Bcl11bKO/+ heterozygous mice, spontaneously develop thymic lymphomas at a high frequency, suggesting cooperativity of BCL11B and p53 in cancer development. In this study, we have examined whether or not BCL11B directly affects the p53 signaling pathway including HDM2, a ubiquitin ligase for p53 degradation. The p53 pathway regulates cell proliferation and the response to DNA damages to maintain genome integrity. Here we show that BCL11B binds to human HDM2-P2 promoter by ChIP (chromatin immuno-precipitation) assay and inhibits HDM2 expression in a p53-dependent manner. Deletion of the distal p53 responsive element in HDM2 promoter region or the lack of p53 in HCT116 cells greatly reduced the repressive effect of BCL11B on HDM2-P2 promoter activity. The repressive activity was alleviated in γ-ray induced DNA damage conditions that activate p53, suggesting interaction between BCL11B and p53 for HDM2 expression. These date suggest that BCL11B affects the activity of the p53-HDM2 feedback loop in basal and irradiated conditions. This may be a mechanism underlying the leukemic transformation in T-ALL and in Bcl11bKO/+p53KO/+ mouse thymocytes.

Efficient synthesis of RITA and its analogues: derivation of analogues with improved antiproliferative activity via modulation of p53/miR-34a pathway

A novel approach to synthesize RITA by practical palladium-catalyzed C-C bond-forming Suzuki reactions at room temperature was developed, which was used for deriving a series of substituted tricyclic α-heteroaryl (furan/thiophene) analogues of RITA under mild conditions. These novel analogues showed notable antiproliferative activity against cancer cell lines with wild-type p53 (i.e., HCT116, A549, MCF-7 and K562), but much less activity in HCT116/p53(-/-) cells. In particular, compound 1f demonstrated promising antiproliferative activity compared to RITA, with IC(50) = 28 nM in MCF-7 vs. 54 nM for RITA, and cancer cell selectivity. Compound 1f markedly activated p53 in HCT116 cells at 100 nM, triggering apoptosis. Importantly, we found that both RITA and compound 1f induced G(0)/G(1) cell cycle arrest by up-regulating miR-34a, which in turn down-regulated the expression of cell cycle-related proteins CDK4 and E2F1. In summary, this study reports an effective synthetic approach for RITA and its analogues, and elucidates a novel antiproliferative mechanism of these compounds.

Role of p21 as a determinant of 1,6-Bis[4-(4-amino-3-hydroxyphenoxy)phenyl] diamantane response in human HCT-116 colon carcinoma cells

1,6-Bis[4-(4-amino-3-hydroxyphenoxy)phenyl]diamantane (DPD) induces growth inhibition in human cancer cells. In our previous study, we discovered that DPD irreversibly inhibits the growth of Colo 205 colon cancer cells at the G0/G1 phase and induces cell differentiation. However, the detailed mechanism is still unknown. In this study, we examined the functional importance of p21 and p53 in DPD-induced anticancer effects. We used three isogenic cell lines, HCT-116, HCT-116 p53-/- and HCT-116 p21-/-, to evaluate the roles of p21 and p53 in the invitro anticancer effects of DPD. The invivo anti-proliferative effect of DPD was demonstrated by HCT-116 and HCT-116 p21-/- xenograft models. DPD significantly inhibited the growth as well as increased the number of HCT-116 cells in the G0/G1 phase, but not in HCT-116 p53-/- and HCT-116 p21-/- cells examined by flow cytometry. Additionally, western blot analysis showed that DPD treatment induced p21, but not p53 protein expression in HCT-116 cells. The p21-associated cell cycle regulated proteins, such as cyclin D, CDK4 and pRb were decreased after DPD treatment in HCT-116 cells. The DPD-increased G0/G1 phase and induced cell cycle regulated protein expression were not observed in HCT-116 p21-/- and HCT-116 p53-/- cells. DPD decreased cell migration in HCT-116 and HCT-116 p53-/- but not in HCT-116 p21-/- cells. p21 was required for the DPD-induced invitro anti-colon cancer effect. The invivo study also showed that DPD significantly inhibited tumor growth through p21 signaling. Our results clearly demonstrate that DPD-induced invitro and invivo anticancer effects through the activation of p21 in HCT-116 cells.

PBK/TOPK interacts with the DBD domain of tumor suppressor p53 and modulates expression of transcriptional targets including p21

PBK/TOPK (PDZ-binding kinase, T-LAK-cell-originated protein kinase) is a serine-threonine kinase that is overexpressed in a variety of tumor cells but its role in oncogenesis remains unclear. Here we show, by co-immunoprecipitation experiments and yeast two-hybrid analysis, that PBK/TOPK physically interacts with the tumor suppressor p53 through its DNA-binding (DBD) domain in HCT116 colorectal carcinoma cells that express wild-type p53. PBK also binds to p53 mutants carrying five common point mutations in the DBD domain. The PBK-p53 interaction appears to downmodulate p53 transactivation function as indicated by PBK/TOPK knockdown experiments, which show upregulated expression of the key p53 target gene and cyclin-dependent kinase inhibitor p21 in HCT116 cells, particularly after genotoxic damage from doxorubicin. Furthermore, stable PBK/TOPK knockdown cell lines (derived from HCT116 and MCF-7 cells) showed increased apoptosis, G(2)/M arrest and slower growth as compared to stable empty vector-transfected control cell lines. Gene microarray studies identified additional p53 target genes involved in apoptosis or cell cycling, which were differentially regulated by PBK knockdown. Together, these data suggest that increased levels of PBK/TOPK may contribute to tumor cell development and progression through suppression of p53 function and consequent reductions in the cell-cycle regulatory proteins such as p21. PBK/TOPK may therefore be a valid target for antineoplastic kinase inhibitors to sensitize tumor cells to chemotherapy-induced apoptosis and growth suppression.

NADPH oxidase is involved in protein kinase CKII down-regulation-mediated senescence through elevation of the level of reactive oxygen species in human colon cancer cells

We have shown that protein kinase CKII (CKII) inhibition induces senescence through the p53-dependent pathway in HCT116 cells. Here we examined the molecular mechanism through which CKII inhibition activates p53 in HCT116 cells. CKII inhibition by treatment with CKII inhibitor or CKIIα small-interfering RNA (siRNA) increased intracellular hydrogen peroxide and superoxide anion levels. These effects were significantly blocked by pretreatment of cells with the antioxidant N-acetylcysteine. Additionally, NADPH oxidase (NOX) inhibitor apocynin and p22 phox siRNA significantly reduced p53 expression and suppressed the appearance of senescence markers. CKII inhibition did not affect mitochondrial superoxide generation. These data demonstrate that CKII inhibition induces superoxide anion generation via NOX activation, and subsequent superoxide-dependent activation of p53 acts as a mediator of senescence in HCT116 cells after down-regulation of CKII.

Pim-2 phosphorylation of p21 Cip1/WAF1 enhances its stability and inhibits cell proliferation in HCT116 cells

Pim-2 kinase is one of the three highly conserved Pim family members which are known to be involved in cell survival and cell proliferation. Here we demonstrate that like Pim-1, Pim-2 also phosphorylates the cell cycle inhibitor p21 Cip1/WAF1 (p21) on Thr145 in vitro and in vivo. Overexpression of Pim-2 in HCT116 cells leads to the increased stability of p21 and results in enhanced levels of both exogenous and endogenous p21 proteins. Knockdown of Pim-2 expression via siRNA results in reduced level of endogenous p21, indicating that like Pim-1, Pim-2 is another legitimate p21 kinase. However, Pim-2 has no influence on the nuclear localization of p21 in HCT116 cells. In addition, Pim-2 is able to arrest the cell cycle at G1/S phase and inhibit cell proliferation through phosphorylation of p21 in HCT116 cells. These data suggest that Pim-2 phosphorylation of p21 enhances p21's stability and inhibits cell proliferation in HCT116 cells.

E2F1 Induces Pituitary Tumor Transforming Gene (PTTG1) Expression in Human Pituitary Tumors

Rb/E2F is dysregulated in murine and human pituitary tumors. Pituitary tumor transforming gene (PTTG1), a securin protein, is required for pituitary tumorigenesis, and PTTG1 deletion attenuates pituitary tumor development in Rb(+/-) mice. E2F1 and PTTG1 were concordantly overexpressed in 29 of 46 Rb(+/-) murine pituitary tissues and also in 45 of 80 human pituitary tumors (P < 0.05). E2F1 specifically bound the hPTTG1 promoter as assessed by chromatin immunoprecipitation and biotin-streptavidin pull-down assay, indicating that hPTTG1 may act as a direct E2F1 target. Transfection of E2F1 and its partner DP1 dose-dependently activated hPTTG1 transcription up to 3-fold in p53-devoid H1299 cells but not in p53-replete HCT116 cells. E2F1 overexpression enhanced endogenous hPTTG1 mRNA and protein levels up to 3-fold in H1299 cells. The presence of endogenous p53/p21 constrained the induction, whereas knocking down either p53 or p21 in HCT116 cells restored E2F1-induced hPTTG1 transactivation and expression. Moreover, suppressing Rb by small interfering RNA concordantly elevated E2F1 and hPTTG1 protein levels. In contrast, transfection of E2F1 small interfering RNA lowered hPTTG1 levels 24 h later in HCT116 than in H1299 cells, indicating that p53 delays E2F1 action on hPTTG1. These results elucidate a mechanism for abundant tumor hPTTG1 expression, whereby Rb inactivation releases E2F1 to induce hPTTG1. This signaling pathway may underlie the requirement of PTTG1 for pituitary tumorigenesis.

A novel histone deacetylase inhibitor, CG0006, induces cell death through both extrinsic and intrinsic apoptotic pathways

Histone deacetylase inhibitors (HDACIs) are potent anticancer drugs, and suberoylanilide hydroxamic acid is used for the treatment of cutaneous T-cell lymphoma patients. We synthesized a novel hydroxamate-based HDACI, CG0006, and assessed its antiproliferative effects on the NCI-60 cancer cell panel and cell lines from liver and stomach cancers that are common in Korea. Micromolar levels of CG0006 induced cell death in several breast, central nervous system, colon, hematopoietic, lung, melanoma, ovarian, prostatic, renal, and stomach cancer cell lines. We further analyzed cell death mechanisms activated by CG0006 in HCT116 (colon cancer) and K562 (leukemia) cells. First, to test the activity of CG0006, we analyzed acetylation of substrates of HDACs and effect on gene expression. CG0006 increased acetylation of histone 3, histone 4, and tubulin in a time-dependent and dose-dependent manner in both HCT116 and K562 cells. Moreover, CG0006 increased the mRNA level of p21 and decreased that of Bcl-xl efficiently in HCT116 cells. Cell cycle analysis showed G2-M arrest, and increased apoptosis in populations of HCT116 and K562 cells treated with CG0006. Western blot analysis showed that CG0006 increased levels of p21 in HCT116 cells and of p21 and p27 in K562 cells. In addition, CG0006 activated caspase-9, caspase-3, and caspase-8. These results indicate that CG0006 induces death in HCT116 and K562 cells through both intrinsic and extrinsic apoptotic pathways. The HDACI CG0006 may be a potent anticancer drug for solid tumors and leukemia.