Antitumor effect of arsenic trioxide in human K562 and K562/ADM cells by autophagy

Arsenic trioxide (As₂O₃) has been reported to have potent antitumor effects in vitro and in vivo by inducing cell death via cell cycle arrest and apoptosis in leukemia cells, but the mechanisms of As₂O₃-mediated cell death are not fully understood. In this study, we provided in vitro evidence that As₂O₃ was a potent inducer of autophagy in leukemia K562 and its drug-resistant line K562/ADM cells. As₂O₃ significantly activated autophagic cell death (programmed cell death type II) in leukemia cell lines. Numerous large cytoplasmic inclusions, abundant autophagic vacuoles, phagocytizing cytoplasm and organelles were observed in As₂O₃-treated cells using electron microscope. MDC-labeled autophagic vacuoles were observed by fluorescent inverted phase contrast microscopy and the enhanced MDC fluorescent staining was detected by flow cytometry in As₂O₃-treated cells. Furthermore, real-time quantitative RT-PCR revealed that the expression levels of Beclin-1 and LC3 genes, which play key roles in autophagy, increased in As₂O₃ treated samples than in controls, indicating that autophagy can potentially be involved in the antitumor properties of As₂O₃. The expression level of Bcl-2 gene, an anti-apoptotic molecule, decreased in As₂O₃ treated samples than in controls, suggesting that Bcl-2 may be involved in accumulating Beclin-1 and triggering autophagic cell death in As₂O₃-treated leukemia cells. Western blotting also showed that As₂O₃ up-regulated Beclin-1. Altogether, our data provide direct evidence that autophagic cell death is critical for the effects of As₂O₃ on acute myelogenous leukemia cells.     

Contributions of autophagic and apoptotic mechanisms to CrTX-induced death of K562 cells.

Previous studies reported that the neurotoxin, Crotoxin, isolated from the venom of South American rattlesnake had potent anti-tumor activity. Here, we investigated the involvement of autophagy and apoptosis in the Crotoxin-induced death of chronic myeloid leukemia cell line K562 cells. The neurotoxin dose dependently inhibited the viability of K562 cells. Crotoxin stimulated the autophagic activity as evidenced by the appearance of punctuate monodansylcadaverine (MDC) fluorescence staining in the cytoplasm and increased the formation of autophagosomes. Crotoxin caused the collapse of the mitochondrial membrane potential, release of cytochrome c and activation of caspase-3. Caspase inhibitors attenuated Crotoxin-induced K562 cell death, while blockage of autophagy maturation with 3-methyladenine (3-MA) and NH4Cl potentiated the neurotoxin's cytotoxicity. These results suggest that an apoptotic mechanism contributes to the Crotoxin-induced death of K562 cells, while the activation of autophagy delays neurotoxin-induced apoptosis.     

Autophagic and apoptotic mechanisms of curcumin-induced death in K562 cells

Curcumin (1), a natural polyphenolic compound, has shown strong antioxidant and anticancer activities. Several molecular mechanisms have been attributed to its inhibitory effects on a wide range of tumor cells. In this study, the response of the chronic myeloid leukemia cell line K562 cells to 1 is investigated. Curcumin inhibited the viability of K562 cells in a dose- and time-dependent manner. Furthermore, curcumin-induced cell death was associated with the formation of the apoptosome complex, the collapse of the mitochondrial membrane potential, and caspase-3 activation. Curcumin treatment also induced Bid cleavage and downregulated the expression of Bcl-2 protein. Surprisingly, even with these molecular features of apoptosis, we showed that 1 stimulated autophagy, which was evidenced by microtubule-associated protein light chain 3 (LC3) immunoreactivty. Curcumin also increased the protein levels of beclin 1 and membrane form LC3 (LC3-II). Autophagy inhibitor bafilomycin A1 and the pan-caspase inhibitor Z-VAD-fmk suppressed curcumin-induced K562 cell death. Overall, these results suggest that curcumin induces autophagic and apoptotic death of K562 cells. These findings suggest that both apoptotic and autophagic mechanisms contribute to the curcumin-induced K562 cell death.     

黄芩苷元选择性诱导人白血病K562细胞凋亡

目的研究黄芩苷元诱导人白血病细胞凋亡的作用及机理。方法MTT法测细胞毒活性，Hoechst 33258荧光染色法观察凋亡小体形成，流式细胞仪Annexin V FITC-PI法检测细胞凋亡发生率，PI染色法检测凋亡峰及细胞周期，同时流式细胞仪检测细胞Bcl-2，Fas和Caspase 3蛋白表达情况。结果黄芩苷元能选择性抑制人白血病K562细胞生长且呈浓度依赖关系，并能诱导细胞凋亡，细胞增殖被阻滞于S期；同时细胞Fas和Caspase 3蛋白表达增高，而Bcl-2蛋白表达不变。结论黄芩苷元能激活Caspase 3蛋白表达，诱导人白血病K562细胞凋亡且呈时效量效关系，此作用与Fas蛋白表达上调有关，与Bcl-2蛋白表达无关。     

Activation of ERK-p53 and ERK-mediated phosphorylation of Bcl-2 are involved in autophagic cell death induced by the c-Met inhibitor SU11274 in human lung cancer A549 cells

SU11274, a small molecule inhibitor of c-Met, was reported to induce apoptosis in human non-small-cell lung cancer (NSCLC) cells. However, SU11274-mediated autophagy in NSCLC cells has rarely been reported. The aim of this study was to elucidate the molecular mechanisms mediating SU11274-induced autophagy in NSCLC A549 cells. Here we reported that SU11274-induced autophagy was accompanied with an increase in the conversion of LC3-I to LC3-II and up-regulation of Beclin-1 expression. Subsequently, we also found that small interfering RNA against c-Met induced A549 cell autophagy while promotion of c-Met by hepatocyte growth factor (HGF) suppressed A549 cell autophagy. Inhibition of autophagy by 3-methyladenine (3-MA) suppressed SU11274-induced cell death, suggesting that SU11274-induced autophagy caused cell death. Further study showed that ERK and p53 were activated after SU11274 treatment. Interruption of ERK and p53 activities decreased SU11274-induced autophagy, and blocking of ERK by the specific inhibitor PD98059 suppressed SU11274-induced p53 activation. Moreover, ERK activation upregulated Beclin-1 expression through induction of Bcl-2 phosphorylation, but p53 did not induce Bcl-2 phosphorylation. In conclusion, inhibition of c-Met induced autophagic cell death, which was associated with ERK-p53 activation and ERK-mediated Bcl-2 phosphorylation in A549 cells.     

Acquired multidrug resistance in human K562/ADM cells is associated with enhanced autophagy

Abstract

Autophagy, as a necessary process for survival in mammalian cells deprived of nutrients or growth factors, will be activated in many tumor cells while treated with chemotherapeutic drugs, but the role of autophagy in acquired multidrug resistance of human acute myelogenous leukemia to adriamycin-based chemotherapy remains to be clarified. Our aim was to address that question by surveying the autophagic activity in parental acute myelogenous leukemia cell line K562 and resistant sub cell line, K562/ADM, which were obtained by treating adriamycin with increasing concentrations. K562/ADM and K562 cells were exposed to PBS culture medium for 3 hours, then the stress-induced autophagy was measured. Real-time quantitative RT-PCR revealed the expression of LC3 mRNA was higher in K562/ADM than in K562 cells. LC3-II, as an autophagosomal marker, was more abundant in K562/ADM than in K562 cells measured by Western blotting. To determine the effect of 3-MA, a known specific inhibitor of autophagy, on overcoming acquired multidrug resistance induced by adriamycin, the MTT assay and flow cytometry were performed. We also found that 3-MA can enhance the growth inhibition and apoptotic effect of adriamycin in acquired resistant cells (K562/ADM). Collectively, our results provide evidence that the upregulation of autophagy plays a major role in multidrug resistance of K562/ADM cells induced by adriamycin.     

Gambogic acid induces G0/G1 arrest and apoptosis involving inhibition of SRC-3 and inactivation of Akt pathway in K562 leukemia cells

Gambogic acid (GA), a major active component of gamboge, exhibits potent anticancer activity in many kinds of cancer cells. However, the anticancer mechanism of GA is not clearly understood. Here we showed that GA could cause growth inhibition, induce the G0/G1 phase cell cycle arrest and apoptosis in human chronic myelogenous leukemia cell line K562 cells. Since steroid receptor coactivator-3 (SRC-3), overexpressed in many human malignancies including leukemia, is a central target for cancer therapy, we also explored the effects of GA on SRC-3 and SRC-3-regulated gene products in K562. GA treatment downregulated the expression of SRC-3 and then inhibited the activity of Akt kinase and its downstream targets p70 S6 kinase 1 (S6K1) and glycogen synthase kinase 3β (GSK3β) without changes in total protein levels of these three proteins, which thus influenced the expression of the apoptosis related gene Bcl-2 in K562 cells. These results suggest that GA might exhibit its strong antitumor effects via the interruption of SRC-3.     

Thapsigargin induces apoptosis when autophagy is inhibited in HepG2 cells and both processes are regulated by ROS-dependent pathway

Thapsigargin (TG), is widely used to induce endoplasmic reticular stress. Treated with TG for a long time, cells suffer the unfolded protein response (UPR) to elude apoptosis, but may activate autophagy. However, the switch between autophagy and apoptosis is unclear. To clarify the key signal for selection of these two protective responses, we studied the correlation of autophagy and apoptosis in HepG2 cells exposed to TG with time. TG induced apoptosis in HepG2 cells was evidenced by typical cell morphological changes and the activation of caspase-12, caspase-9 and caspase-3. Meanwhile, cytochrome c was released following with the dissipation of mitochondrial membrane potential (MMP), and the ratio of Bax/Bcl-2 was increased. TG-induced autophagy was confirmed by the accumulation of MDC, GFP-LC3 staining autophagic vacuoles, and the improved expression of LC3 II and Beclin-1. Additionally, inhibited autophagy via chloroquine (CQ) markedly enhanced the apoptosis induced by TG, which was linked to the Bcl-2 family. Furthermore, TG induced the generation of reactive oxygen species (ROS), and the ROS scavenger effectively suppressed TG-induced apoptosis and autophagy. All these results proved that restraint of autophagy may enhance TG-induced apoptosis through increasing the Bax/Bcl-2 ratio and both processes were regulated by ROS.     

Initiation of autophagy and apoptosis by sonodynamic therapy in murine leukemia L1210 cells

Sonodynamic therapy (SDT) has shown great potential in target cancer therapy, but it induced cell death modes has not been fully investigated. This study was to examine autophagic and apoptotic responses to protoporphyrin IX (PpIX) mediated SDT in murine leukemia L1210 cells. After SDT, the occurrence of autophagy was identified by morphological observation and biochemical analysis. Meanwhile, the mitochondria dependent apoptosis pathway was examined to participate in SDT induced cell death. The relationship between autophagy and apoptosis was further investigated by applying pharmacological inhibition studies, which indicated that impairment of autophagy enhanced the anti-tumor effect of SDT through induction of apoptosis and necrosis, while caspase inhibition did not affect autophagic vacuoles formation or protect SDT induced cytotoxicity. The findings supported that autophagic vacuoles formed upstream and independently from caspase-dependent cell death. Additionally, the possible mechanism of SDT-induced autophagy was evaluated by measurement of ROS (reactive oxygen species) formation. Result suggested ROS play important role in initiating autophagy, possibly through the sono-damaged mitochondria being enclosed by autophagic vacuoles. All together, these data indicate that autophagy may be cytoprotective in our experimental system, and point to an important insight into how autophagy inhibitors, in combination with SDT may contribute a regimen for cancer therapy.     

The regulatory mechanism of 4-phenylbutyric acid against ER stress-induced autophagy in human gingival fibroblasts

Endoplasmic reticulum (ER) stress is closely connected to autophagy. When cells are exposed to ER stress, cells exhibit enhanced protein degradation and form autophagosomes. In this study, we demonstrate that the chemical chaperone, 4-phenylbutyric acid (4-PBA), regulates ER stressinduced cell death and autophagy in human gingival fibroblasts. We found that 4-PBA protected cells against thapsigargin-induced apoptotic cell death but did not affect the reduced cell proliferation. ER stress induced by thapsigargin was alleviated by 4-PBA through the regulation of several ER stress-inducible, unfolded protein response related proteins including GRP78, GRP94, C/EBP homologous protein, phospho-eIF-2α, eIF-2α, phospho-JNK1 (p46) and phospho-JNK2/3 (p54), JNK1, IRE-1α, PERK, and sXBP-1. Compared with cells treated with thapsigargin alone, cells treated with both 4-PBA and thapsigargin showed lower levels of Beclin-1, LC-3II and autophagic vacuoles, indicating that 4-PBA also inhibited autophagy induced by ER stress. This study suggests that 4-PBA may be a potential therapeutic agent against ER stress-associated pathologic situations.     

去甲泽拉木醛通过调控细胞周期和自噬诱导的细胞凋亡抑制K562细胞生长的机制

目的研究去甲泽拉木醛(demethylzeylasteral,ZST93)在体外抑制慢性髓系白血病(chronic myeloid leukemia,CML)细胞的增殖作用,并初步探讨其可能的作用机制。方法以K562细胞为研究对象,采用CCK-8、细胞生长曲线和倒置显微镜检测ZST93对K562细胞增殖抑制作用;细胞转染和Western blot分析细胞自噬;PI染色、Annexin V-FITC/PI和流式细胞术检测细胞周期和细胞凋亡。结果ZST93对K562细胞株的生长呈剂量和时间依赖性的抑制作用,IC₅₀值为2.59μmol·L^-1,使细胞周期阻滞于G₁期。自噬检测中发现ZST93可诱导GFP-LC3积累、LC3-Ⅰ转化为LC3-Ⅱ以及p62表达水平降低。ZST93通过调控自噬激活caspase-8,诱导外部凋亡信号通路,促使caspase-9、caspase-3和PARP剪切而被激活,针对caspase-3的抑制剂Z-DEVD-FMK能够降低ZST93诱导的K562细胞凋亡。结论ZST93可有效抑制K562细胞增殖,促进细胞周期阻滞、细胞凋亡和自噬激活,可能与自噬激活/caspase-8/caspase-3凋亡信号通路有关。     

自噬水平与白血病K562/ADM细胞耐药的关系研究

目的采用阿霉素(adriamycin,ADM)“逐步提高药物浓度+间歇性诱导”的方式体外诱导建立稳定耐受15μmol·L^-1 ADM的白血病K562/ADM细胞,观察该细胞对其它化疗药物的敏感性以及细胞自噬水平与耐药的关系。方法MTT法检测细胞对几种化疗药物的敏感性;用透射电镜、荧光显微镜观察细胞自噬形态学改变;Annexin-V/PI双染流式细胞仪检测细胞凋亡;Western blot检测自噬和耐药相关蛋白的表达水平。结果K562/ADM细胞除了对ADM产生明显耐药外,还对多种化疗药物如:吡柔比星、柔红霉素、5-FU和长春新碱等有交叉耐药,但对三氧化二砷较敏感。K562/ADM细胞内自噬体数量、MDC荧光强度以及LC3Ⅰ/Ⅱ、Beclin-1蛋白表达水平均高于亲本细胞。用3-MA抑制自噬可明显增加K562/ADM细胞对ADM的敏感性,同时也能有效抑制K562/ADM细胞内耐药相关蛋白的表达。结论K562/ADM细胞出现多药耐药现象,且耐药性与细胞自噬水平有密切关系。     

锰超氧化物岐化酶模拟化合物诱导K562细胞凋亡的机制研究

目的观察锰超氧化物岐化酶模拟化合物(mimics of manganese superoxide dismutase,MnSODm)对人白血病K562细胞凋亡诱导作用,并探讨其分子机制。方法以人白血病K562细胞为靶细胞,四氮唑蓝比色法(MTT法)测定细胞增殖活性;Annexin V/PI双标记和细胞形态学法检测细胞凋亡;RT-PCR检测bcl-2和bax基因mRNA的表达水平;流式细胞术(FCM)测定Bcl-2和Bax蛋白表达水平、线粒体跨膜电位(Δψm)、细胞色素C(Cyt C)释放和Caspase-3活性变化。结果0.5~10mg·mL-1MnSODm明显抑制K562细胞增殖(P<0.01),Annexin V/PI染色显示凋亡细胞明显增多,光学显微镜和透射电镜观察呈现典型的凋亡形态改变;bcl-2基因mRNA和蛋白表达下调,bax基因mRNA和蛋白表达上调,线粒体Δψm降低,Cyt C释放增多,Caspase-3活性增强。结论MnSODm调控Bax/Bcl-2表达,通过线粒体途径诱导K562细胞凋亡。     

Polyphyllin D induces apoptosis and differentiation in K562 human leukemia cells

Polyphyllin D, a compound derived from Paris polyphylla rhizoma, demonstrated strong anticancer activities in a previous study. Our results demonstrated that polyphyllin D exerts a growth inhibitory effect by inducing apoptosis and differentiation in the human erythroleukemia cell line K562. Polyphyllin D induced apoptosis via the mitochondrial apoptotic pathway, as evidenced by the decreased Bcl-2 and Bcr/Abl expression levels, the disruption of MMP and increased Bax, cytochrome c and cleaved-caspase-3 levels. At a low dose, polyphyllin D increased CD14 expression on the surface of K562 cells and induced cells to differentiate into monocytes or mature macrophages. These data suggest that polyphyllin D has the potential to be a potent therapeutic agent for treating human chronic myelogenous leukemia.     

吴茱萸碱通过TRIB2/AKT信号通路诱导人白血病细胞K562凋亡

目的探讨吴茱萸碱(evodiamine,EVO)对人白血病细胞K562增殖与凋亡的影响,并初步探究其潜在的分子机制。方法以CCK-8法测定不同浓度的EVO处理K652细胞不同时间后的增殖抑制作用,流式细胞术检测细胞凋亡,qRT-PCR检测TRIB2 mRNA表达,Western blot检测TRIB2/AKT信号通路;以EVO作用于AKT激活剂SC79预处理后的K562细胞,流式细胞术检测细胞凋亡,Western blot检测TRIB2/AKT信号通路。以EVO作用于Wnt激活剂SKL2001预处理后的K562细胞,Western blot检测TRIB2/AKT信号通路。结果EVO对K562细胞的增殖抑制作用呈时间及浓度依赖性;流式结果显示EVO体外可促细胞凋亡且呈浓度依赖性;EVO处理后,TRIB2mRNA的表达降低,TRIB2/AKT信号通路被抑制;SC79削弱了由EVO诱导的K562细胞凋亡,且SC79和SKL2001均能逆转EVO对AKT信号通路的抑制作用。结论EVO可诱导人白血病细胞K562凋亡,从而抑制其增殖,其机制可能是通过抑制TRIB2的表达,进而抑制AKT的磷酸化,最终抑制下游基因NF-κB p65的磷酸化,从而诱导细胞凋亡并抑制其生长。     

Silibinin activated ROS-p38-NF-κB positive feedback and induced autophagic death in human fibrosarcoma HT1080 cells

Our previous results demonstrated that silibinin induced autophagic and apoptotic cell death dependent on reactive oxygen species (ROS especially H(2)O(2) and [image omitted] ) in HT1080 cells. In this study, we further show that p38-NF-κB pathway is involved in silibinin-induced ROS-mediated autophagy. Cells were pretreated with serum-free media for 24 h before being treated with silibinin. Generation of ROS and autophagy was detected in 15 min and 1 h, respectively. Development of autophagy was supported by an upregulated expression of Beclin-1 and conversion of light chain (LC3-I-LC3-II). Expression of p38/p-p38 and transposition of NF-κB from cytoplasm to nuclei were also increased. Inhibitors of p38 and NF-κB and scavengers of H(2)O(2) and O(2)(*-) reduced both generation of ROS and simultaneous occurrence of silibinin-induced autophagy. Besides, expression of p38/p-p38 and transposition of NF-κB from cytoplasm to nuclei were decreased by these two ROS scavengers. ROS and p38-NF-κB pathway were possibly cooperated in a positive feedback mechanism. Inhibition of p38, NF-κB, H(2)O(2), or O(2)(*-) rescued cells from silibinin-induced death in a long-term (12 h) manner. According to the previous study that silibinin-induced autophagy was a positive regulator of apoptotic cell death, it was possible that ROS and p38-NF-κB mediated silibinin-induced autophagy and eventually led to cell death.     

选择性COX-2抑制剂NS-398诱导白血病细胞凋亡的作用机制

目的探讨选择性环氧合酶-2(COX-2)抑制剂NS-398诱导白血病细胞系K562细胞凋亡的分子机制。方法采用流式细胞术检测细胞凋亡;采用蛋白印迹法(Western blot)检测凋亡相关蛋白Bcl-2、半胱氨酸酶-3(Caspase-3)的表达;并应用流式细胞术检测Caspase-3的活性。结果①NS-398作用K562细胞24h后,对照组未出现凋亡峰,各药物处理组(100~400μmol·L-1)均出现明显的凋亡峰,其凋亡率分别为(10.51±1.04)%、(27.79±2.40)%、(45.72±3.32)%和(60.22±2.03)%(P<0.01)。②不同浓度NS-398处理后,K562细胞中Bcl-2蛋白表达下降,而Caspase-3蛋白表达增加,与对照组相比差异具有显著性(P<0.05)。③NS-398能以剂量依赖方式促进Caspase-3活性的增加,表达活化Caspase-3的细胞百分率分别为(2.67±0.22)%、(9.53±0.15)%、(21.28±0.43)%、(39.63±0.8)%和(63.40±0.69)%(P<0.01)。结论选择性COX-2抑制剂NS-398可能通过调节Bcl-2蛋白表达、活化Caspase-3,从而诱导白血病K562细胞凋亡。     

Molecular mechanisms in C-Phycocyanin induced apoptosis in human chronic myeloid leukemia cell line-K562

C-Phycocyanin (C-PC), the major light harvesting biliprotein from Spirulina platensis is of greater importance because of its various biological and pharmacological properties. It is a water soluble, non-toxic fluorescent protein pigment with potent anti-oxidant, anti-inflammatory and anti-cancer properties. In the present study the effect of highly purified C-PC was tested on growth and multiplication of human chronic myeloid leukemia cell line (K562). The results indicate significant decrease (49%) in the proliferation of K562 cells treated with 50 microM C-PC up to 48 h. Further studies involving fluorescence and electron microscope revealed characteristic apoptotic features like cell shrinkage, membrane blebbing and nuclear condensation. Agarose electrophoresis of genomic DNA of cells treated with C-PC showed fragmentation pattern typical for apoptotic cells. Flow cytometric analysis of cells treated with 25 and 50 microM C-PC for 48 h showed 14.11 and 20.93% cells in sub-G0/G1 phase, respectively. C-PC treatment of K562 cells also resulted in release of cytochrome c into the cytosol and poly(ADP) ribose polymerase (PARP) cleavage. These studies also showed down regulation of anti-apoptotic Bcl-2 but without any changes in pro-apoptotic Bax and thereby tilting the Bcl-2/Bax ratio towards apoptosis. These effects of C-PC appear to be mediated through entry of C-PC into the cytosol by an unknown mechanism. The present study thus demonstrates that C-PC induces apoptosis in K562 cells by cytochrome c release from mitochondria into the cytosol, PARP cleavage and down regulation of Bcl-2.     

NF-κB activation was involved in reactive oxygen species-mediated apoptosis and autophagy in 1-oxoeudesm-11(13)-eno-12,8α-lactone-treated human lung cancer cells

1-oxoeudesm-11(13)-eno-12,8α-lactone (OEL), a novel eudesmane-type sesquiterpene compound, has been shown to inhibit the growth of some cancer cell lines and induce significant apoptosis. Here, we investigated the anti-cancer activities of OEL in human lung cancer cells. Our studies demonstrated that OEL induced both apoptosis and autophagy in A549 and H460 cells. OEL-induced autophagy was assessed by appearance of autophagic vacuoles, formation of acidic vesicular organelles, conversion of LC3-I to LC3-II, recruitment of LC3-II to the autophagosomes, and activation of autophagy genes. Furthermore, administration of autophagic inhibitor 3-methyladenine augments OEL-induced apoptotic cell death. The induction of autophagy and apoptosis by OEL links to NF-κB activation and the generation of reactive oxygen species (ROS). Interruption of NF-κB activation by specific inhibitor promotes apoptosis, but decreases autophagy. ROS antioxidants (N-acetylcysteine) attenuated both OEL-induced autophagy and apoptosis. Further experiments confirmed that OEL-induced activation of ROS was increased by NF-κB inhibitor whereas NF-κB activation was not affected by ROS inhibition. These findings suggest that OEL-elicited autophagic response plays a protective role that impedes cell death, and inhibition of autophagy could be an adjunctive strategy for enhancing the chemotherapeutic effect of OEL as an antitumor agent.     

Involvement of p38 MAPK- and JNK-modulated expression of Bcl-2 and Bax in Naja nigricollis CMS-9-induced apoptosis of human leukemia K562 cells

CMS-9, a phospholipase A₂ (PLA₂) isolated from Naja nigricollis venom, induced apoptosis of human leukemia K562 cells, characterized by mitochondrial depolarization, modulation of Bcl-2 family members, cytochrome c release and activation of caspases 9 and 3. Moreover, an increase in intracellular Ca²⁺ concentration and the production of reactive oxygen species (ROS) was noted. Pretreatment with BAPTA-AM (Ca²⁺ chelator) and N-acetylcysteine (NAC, ROS scavenger) proved that Ca²⁺ was an upstream event in inducing ROS generation. Upon exposure to CMS-9, activation of p38 MAPK and JNK was observed in K562 cells. BAPTA-AM or NAC abrogated CMS-9-elicited p38 MAPK and JNK activation, and rescued viability of CMS-9-treated K562 cells. SB202190 (p38 MAPK inhibitor) and SP600125 (JNK inhibitor) suppressed CMS-9-induced dissipation of mitochondrial membrane potential, Bcl-2 down-regulation, Bax up-regulation and increased mitochondrial translocation of Bax. Inactivation of PLA₂ activity reduced drastically the cytotoxicity of CMS-9, and a combination of lysophosphatidylcholine and stearic acid mimicked the cytotoxic effects of CMS-9. Taken together, our data suggest that CMS-9-induced apoptosis of K562 cells is catalytic activity-dependent and is mediated through mitochondria-mediated death pathway triggered by Ca²⁺/ROS-evoked p38 MAPK and JNK activation.