凋亡抑制蛋白XIAP和促凋亡因子Smac在胰腺癌化疗抵抗中的作用

目的探讨x-相关凋亡抑制蛋白（XIAP）和促凋亡因子Smac在胰腺癌细胞化疗抵抗中的作用，以及转染胞浆表达型Smac基因靶向下凋XIAP对化疗药物诱导的胰腺癌细胞凋亡的影响。方法应用流式细胞术检测顺铂、5-FU介导的Panc-1、BXPC-3的凋亡率及胞浆染色分析细胞XIAP表达变化，Western blot分析XIAP、Smac、Caspase-3表达水平；构建pEGFP-NI／Smac真核表达载体并转染胰腺癌Panc-1细胞，流式细胞术检测转染Smac基因前后Panc-1细胞的凋亡敏感性。结果与BXPC-3细胞相比，Panc-1对顺铂或5-FU介导的凋亡具有较强抵抗性，Western blot分析显示Panc-1细胞高表达XIAP，在化疗药物作用下化疗敏感细胞BXPC-3胞浆内XIAP水平下降明显多于Panc-1细胞，而且凋亡的BXPC-3细胞释放入胞浆内的成熟Smac蛋白水平明显高于Panc-1细胞。转染胞浆表达型Smac基因至化疗抵抗Panc-1细胞，可明显下调其XIAP表达水平，促进效应Caspase-3分子活化，显著提高顺铂、5-FU诱导的细胞凋亡率。结论胰腺癌细胞XIAP的表达水平下调与其化疗敏感性有关，XIAP是克服化疗抵抗的重要靶分子，而上调Smac活性蛋白的胞浆表达作为一种有效调节信号，通过拮抗XIAP的凋亡抑制作用协同化疗药物促进胰腺癌细胞凋亡。     

Immunohistochemical analysis of Smac/DIABLO expression in human carcinomas and sarcomas

Second mitochondria-derived activator of caspases (Smac/DIABLO) is released from mitochondria into the cytosol during apoptosis, promoting caspase activation by neutralizing the inhibition of inhibitor of apoptosis proteins (IAPs) on caspases. Alteration of apoptosis is essential for cancer development, and cancer cell death by radiation and chemotherapy is largely dependent upon apoptosis. In this study, archival tissues of 100 carcinomas and 50 sarcomas from various origins were analyzed by immunohistochemistry for the expression of Smac/DIABLO. Smac/DIABLO immunoreactivity was seen in 62 of 100 (62%) carcinomas, including 42 of 60 stomach carcinomas, 7 of 10 colorectal carcinomas, 4 of 10 lung carcinomas, 7 of 10 ovarian carcinomas, and 2 of 10 prostate carcinomas. Smac/DIABLO is expressed in 11 of 50 (22%) sarcomas, including 2 of 8 malignant schwannomas, 5 of 11 rhabdomyosarcomas, 2 of 7 malignant fibrous histiocytomas, 1 of 6 leiomyosarcomas, 0 of 8 angiosarcomas, 0 of 8 liposarcomas, and 1 of 2 Ewing's sarcomas. These data demonstrated that Smac/DIABLO expression levels vary depending on the individual cancer types. Furthermore, the present study showed that many human cancers do not express Smac/DIABLO, and suggest that lack of Smac/DIABLO expression in the cancer cells may inhibit apoptosis, thereby promoting their survival.     

Smac合成肽靶向下调凋亡抑制蛋白XIAP提高胰腺癌细胞化疗敏感性

目的:探讨包含目的蛋白功能结构域的Smac合成肽能否增强胰腺癌细胞的化疗药物敏感性及其作用机制.方法:化学合成SmacN7细胞可穿透融合多肽,共沉淀实验观察SmacN7细胞穿透肽与胰腺癌Panc-1细胞内的XIAP的相互作用,应用流式细胞术检测SmacN7细胞穿透肽与顺铂、5-FU联用对Panc-1细胞凋亡的影响,MTT法检测SmacN7细胞穿透肽应用前后Panc-1细胞的化疗药物敏感性.结果:SmacN7融合多肽能与内源性XIAP结合,明显下调Panc-1细胞XIAP表达水平,显著增强顺铂或5-FU诱导的Panc-1细胞凋亡,使其对顺铂、5-FU的药物半数抑制浓度(IC50)分别降低1.98倍、2.62倍.结论:应用包含目的蛋白功能结构域的Smac合成肽能靶向下调胰腺癌Panc-1细胞XIAP表达,显著提高其化疗敏感性,为胰腺癌的生物治疗协同化疗提供了新思路.     

Inhibitor of apoptosis proteins as targets for anticancer therapy

Cell death by apoptosis plays a critical role in regulating the subtle balance between cell death and proliferation to maintain tissue homeostasis. Accordingly, tipping the balance in either direction may cause human disease. Too little cell death may promote tumor formation and progression. In addition, killing of cancer cells by current therapies is largely due to induction of apoptosis in tumor cells. Since a hallmark of human cancers is their resistance to apoptosis, there is a demand to develop novel strategies that restore the apoptotic machinery in order to overcome cancer resistance. Inhibitor of apoptosis proteins (IAPs) block apoptosis at the core of the apoptotic machinery by inhibiting caspases. Elevated levels of IAPs are found in many human cancers and have been associated with poor prognosis. Recent insights into the role of IAPs have provided the basis for various exciting developments that aim to modulate the expression or function of IAPs in human cancers. Targeting IAPs (e.g., by antisense approaches or small-molecule inhibitors) presents a promising novel approach to either directly trigger apoptosis or to potentiate the efficacy of cytotoxic therapies in cancer cells. Thus, inhibition of IAPs such as X chromosome-linked IAP may prove to be a successful strategy to overcome apoptosis resistance of human cancers that deserves further exploitation.     

Differential role of RIP1 in Smac mimetic-mediated chemosensitization of neuroblastoma cells

We explored the potential of Smac mimetics, which antagonize Inhibitor of Apoptosis (IAP) proteins, for chemosensitization of neuroblastoma (NB). Here, we report that Smac mimetics, e.g. BV6, prime NB cells for chemotherapeutics including the topoisomerase II inhibitor doxorubicin (DOX) and vinca alkaloids such as Vincristine (VCR), Vinblastine (VBL) and Vinorelbine (VNR). Additionally, BV6 acts in concert with DOX or VCR to suppress long-term clonogenic growth. While BV6 causes rapid downregulation of cellular IAP (cIAP)1 protein and nuclear factor-kappaB (NF-κB) activation, DOX/BV6- or VCR/BV6-induced apoptosis occurs independently of NF-κB or TNFα signaling, since overexpression of dominant-negative IκBα superrepressor or the Tumor Necrosis Factor (TNF)α-blocking antibody Enbrel fail to block cell death. Mechanistic studies reveal that Receptor-interacting protein (RIP)1 is required for DOX/BV6-, but not for VCR/BV6-induced apoptosis, since transient or stable knockdown of RIP1 or the pharmacological RIP1 inhibitor necrostatin-1 significantly reduce apoptosis. By comparison, VCR/BV6-mediated apoptosis critically depends on the mitochondrial pathway. VCR/BV6 cotreatment causes phosphorylation of BCL-2 during mitotic arrest, enhanced activation of BAX and BAK and loss of mitochondrial membrane potential (MMP). Additionally, overexpression of BCL-2 profoundly suppresses VCR/BV6-induced apoptosis. Thus, BV6 sensitizes NB cells to chemotherapy-induced apoptosis via distinct initial signaling mechanisms depending on the chemotherapeutic drug. These findings provide novel mechanistic insights into Smac mimetic-mediated chemosensitization of NB.     

The role of NF-κB and Smac/DIABLO proteins in the treatment response and survival of acute myeloid leukemia patients

IntroductionThe misbalance between a family of inhibitor of apoptosis proteins (IAP), regulated by the nuclear factor kappa B (NF-κB) and their natural antagonist second mitochondrial-derived activator of caspases/direct IAP binding protein with low pI (Smac/DIABLO) are important to biology of acute myeloid leukemia (AML).Material and methodsThe aim of the study was to assess NF-κB and Smac/DIABLO proteins expression in blasts of 109 newly diagnosed AML patients using the multicolor flow cytometry and evaluate their influence on AML patients outcome.ResultsExpression of NF-κB and of Smac/DIABLO proteins were found in 95% and 98% of the patients, respectively. A negative correlation between Smac/DIABLO and NF-κB was observed. Age < 60 years old as well as higher Smac/DIABLO expression were associated with a higher probability of complete response achievement in the multivariate analysis. Longer overall survival (OS) in the univariate and multivariate analyses was influenced by age < 60 years old, a favorable or intermediate-risk karyotype and high Smac/DIABLO expression. Additionally, in the survival analysis of the subgroups, the patients aged < 60 years old, with high Smac/DIABLO expression, lower NF-κB expression and < 50% of bone marrow blasts who were treated with standard treatment had better OS.ConclusionsLower NF-κB and higher Smac/DIABLO expression may influence AML patients outcome.     

蟾蜍灵诱导HL-60细胞凋亡过程中对Bcl-2、Survivin、Smac/DIABLO表达的影响

目的 研究蟾蜍灵在诱导HL-60细胞凋亡过程中，对线粒体凋亡途径相关基因Bcl-2、Bax、Survivin及Smac／DIABLO表达的影响。方法 采用锥虫蓝拒染法检测细胞存活情况，细胞形态学观察及流式细胞术检测细胞凋亡，Western blot分析Bcl-2、Bax、Smac／DIABLO、Survivin及caspase-3蛋白表达，RT-PCR检测SurvivinmRNA表达。结果 蟾蜍灵抑制HL-60细胞增殖，24，48及72h的，IC50值分别为25．8，8．0及2．1nmol/L。蟾蜍灵大于50．0nmol/L时可明显诱导HL-60细胞凋亡。50．0nmol／L蟾蜍灵作用6，12，24及48h，Bcl-2蛋白表达分别下调至作用前的88．6％，53．3％，19．2％及9．5％，而Bax蛋白表达无明显变化，Bcl-2／Bax比值由2．0分别降至1．7，1．1，0．4及0．2。Survivin蛋白表达分别下调至作用前的75．2％，54．8％，37．5％及20．3％；Survivin mRNA表达在作用6，12和24h后分别下调至作用前的85．7％，39．4％和12．5％，在作用48h后几乎检测不到。50．0nmol／L蟾蜍灵作用12，24及48h，线粒体部分的Smac／DIABLO蛋白表达分别下调至作用前的77．5％，21．2％及15．3％，而胞浆部分的Smac／DIABLO蛋白表达分别上调至作用前的1．4，2．0．及3．5倍。蟾蜍灵作用8～48h可检测到caspase-3的活化亚基。结论 蟾蜍灵诱导的HL-60细胞凋亡与Bcl-2及Survivin表达下调、线粒体释放Smac／DIABLO及caspase-3活化有关。     

亚胺培南／西司他丁临床使用药物利用评价分析

目的：利用DUE模式,评价亚胺培南临床使用规范性、合理性,为临床规范合理使用提供参考。方法依据卫生部《2012年全国抗菌药物临床应用专项整治活动方案》、卫生部2012年《抗菌药物临床应用管理办法》、2011年《抗菌药物临床应用指导原则》、亚胺培南使用说明、有关文献等,制定“亚胺培南临床使用DUE标准”。并依据该标准对某医院2013年住院患者使用亚胺培南196例次病历进行抗菌药物管理、用药指征、用药过程、治疗结果4个方面进行回顾性分析、统计、总结。结果①管理项：微生物送检率70.4%（80%）;处方权限符合率91.3%（100%）;②用药指征：适合率85.2%（90%）;③用药过程：给药途径、溶媒选择、配伍禁忌正确率100%（100%）;滴注时间医嘱未注明无法评价;疗效监测项符合率52.0%（85%）;老人及肾功能损伤4例未进行剂量调整。④用药结果有效率73%（80%）。结论某医院亚胺培南临床使用与多项预期目标值存在一定差距。医院应针对存在问题进行干预和整改,确保抗菌药物的规范合理使用。认为“亚胺培南临床使用DUE标准”对临床规范、合理使用亚胺培南有一定促进作用。     

c-Jun NH2-terminal kinase-induced proteasomal degradation of c-FLIPL/S and Bcl2 sensitize prostate cancer cells to Fas- and mitochondria-mediated apoptosis by tetrandrine

Tetrandrine, a constituent of Chinese herb Stephania tetrandra, causes cell death in prostate cancer, but the molecular mechanisms leading to apoptosis is not known. Here we demonstrated that tetrandrine selectively inhibits the growth of prostate cancer PC3 and DU145 cells compared to normal prostate epithelial PWR-1E cells. Tetrandrine-induced cell death in prostate cancer cells is caused by reactive oxygen species (ROS)-mediated activation of c-Jun NH₂-terminal kinase (JNK1/2). JNK1/2-mediated proteasomal degradation of c-FLIP_L/S and Bcl₂ proteins are key events in the sensitization of prostate cancer cells to Fas- and mitochondria-mediated apoptosis by tetrandrine. Tetrandrine-induced JNK1/2 activation caused the translocation of Bax to mitochondria by disrupting its association with Bcl₂ which was accompanied by collapse of mitochondrial membrane potential (MMP), cytosolic release of cytochrome c and Smac, and apoptotic cell death. Additionally, tetrandrine-induced JNK1/2 activation increased the phosphorylation of Bcl₂ at Ser70 and facilitated its degradation via the ubiquitin-mediated proteasomal pathway. In parallel, tetrandrine-mediated ROS generation also caused the induction of ligand-independent Fas-mediated apoptosis by activating procaspase-8 and Bid cleavage. Inhibition of procaspase-8 activation attenuated the cleavage of Bid, loss of MMP and caspase-3 activation suggest that tetrandrine-induced Fas-mediated apoptosis is associated with the mitochondrial pathway. Furthermore, most of the signaling effects of tetrandrine on apoptosis were significantly attenuated in the presence of antioxidant N-acetyl-l-cysteine, thereby confirming the involvement of ROS in these events. In conclusion, the results of the present study indicate that tetrandrine-induced apoptosis in prostate cancer cells is initiated by ROS generation and that both intrinsic and extrinsic pathway contributes to cell death.