Gene/Protein Disease Symptom Drug Enzyme Compound
Pivot Concepts: Gene/Protein Disease Symptom Drug Enzyme Compound   Target Concepts: Gene/Protein Disease Symptom Drug Enzyme Compound

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Query: EC:2.7.10.2 (focal adhesion kinase)
44,029 document(s) hit in 31,850,051 MEDLINE articles (0.00 seconds)

We hypothesized that the tolerance for nutrient deprivation as well as angiogenesis might be an important factor for tumor progression under hypovascular conditions. When normal human fibroblasts were subjected to extreme nutrient starvation by culturing in a medium without serum, glucose, and amino acids, cells died within 24 h. When substituted with liver cancer cell lines HepG2, Hep3B, HLE, and HuH-7, cell death occurred within 36 h. In contrast, four of six pancreas cancer cell lines, PANC-1, AsPC-1, BxPC-1, and KP-3, survived for remarkably longer periods; >50% of the cells survived, even after starvation for 48 h. Among three gastric cancer cell lines, MKN28, MKN45, and MKN74, only the most poorly differentiated MKN45 cells survived >36 h. More than 50% of the cells in colon cancer cell lines SW480, WiDr, and DLD-1 survived after 36 h, and the most undifferentiated SW480 cell line survived longest. We examined the possible involvement of PKB/Akt expression in the survival of various cell lines under nutrient starvation conditions. High expression of PKB/Akt was found to be associated with tolerance for nutrient starvation. When Akt antisense RNA expression vectors were introduced into PANC-1 cells, the tolerance was partially but significantly diminished by vectors for Akt1 and Akt2 but not Akt3. Because elimination of the tolerance might serve as a new strategy for cancer therapy, several compounds were tested for this purpose, and troglitazone, an insulin sensitizer, as well as LY294002, a phosphatidylinositol 3-kinase inhibitor, were found to kill PANC-1 cells only under nutrient starvation conditions.
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PMID:Remarkable tolerance of tumor cells to nutrient deprivation: possible new biochemical target for cancer therapy. 1108 46

Dichloroacetate (DCA), a by-product of water chlorination, causes liver cancer in B6C3F1 mice. A hallmark response observed in mice exposed to carcinogenic doses of DCA is an accumulation of hepatic glycogen content. To distinguish whether the in vivo glycogenic effect of DCA was dependent on insulin and insulin signaling proteins, experiments were conducted in isolated hepatocytes where insulin concentrations could be controlled. In hepatocytes isolated from male B6C3F1 mice, DCA increased glycogen levels in a dose-related manner, independently of insulin. The accumulation of hepatocellular glycogen induced by DCA was not the result of decreased glycogenolysis, since DCA had no effect on the rate of glucagon-stimulated glycogen breakdown. Glycogen accumulation caused by DCA treatment was not hindered by inhibitors of extracellular-regulated protein kinase kinase (Erk1/2 kinase or MEK) or p70 kDa S6 protein kinase (p70(S6K)), but was completely blocked by the phosphatidylinositol 3-kinase (PI3K) inhibitors, LY294002 and wortmannin. Similarly, insulin-stimulated glycogen deposition was not influenced by the Erk1/2 kinase inhibitor, PD098509, or the p70(S6K) inhibitor, rapamycin. Unlike DCA-stimulated glycogen deposition, PI3K-inhibition only partially blocked the glycogenic effect of insulin. DCA did not cause phosphorylation of the downstream PI3K target protein, protein kinase B (PKB/Akt). The phosphorylation of PKB/Akt did not correlate to insulin-stimulated glycogenesis either. Similar to insulin, DCA in the medium decreased IR expression in isolated hepatocytes. The results indicate DCA increases hepatocellular glycogen accumulation through a PI3K-dependent mechanism that does not involve PKB/Akt and is, at least in part, different from the classical insulin-stimulated glycogenesis pathway. Somewhat surprisingly, insulin-stimulated glycogenesis also appears not to involve PKB/Akt in isolated murine hepatocytes.
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PMID:Dichloroacetate stimulates glycogen accumulation in primary hepatocytes through an insulin-independent mechanism. 1215 48

To determine the possible role of the epigenetic mechanisms in carcinogenesis of the hepatocellular carcinoma, we methylation-profiled the promoter CpG islands of twenty four genes both in HCC tumors and the neighboring non-cancerous tissues of twenty eight patients using the methylation-specific PCR (MSP) method in conjunction with the DNA sequencing. In comparison with the normal liver tissues from the healthy donors, it was found that while remained unmethylated the ABL, CAV, EPO, GATA3, LKB1, NEP, NFL, NIS and p27KIP1 genes, varying extents of the HCC specific hypermethylation were found associated with the ABO, AR, CSPG2, cyclin a1, DBCCR1, GALR2, IRF7, MGMT, MT1A, MYOD1, OCT6, p57KIP2, p73, WT1 genes, and demethylation with the MAGEA1 gene, respectively. Judged by whether the hypermethylated occurred in HCC more frequently than in their neighboring normal tissues, the hypermethylation status of the AR, DBCCR1, IRF7, OCT6, and p73 genes was considered as the event specific to the late stage, while that the rest that lacked such a distinguished contrast, as the event specific to the early stage of HCC carcinogenesis. Among all the clinical pathological parameters tested for the association with, the hypermethylation of the cyclin a1 gene was more prevalent in the non-cirrhosis group (P=0.021) while the hypermethylated p16INK4a gene was more common in the cirrhosis group (P=0.017). The concordant methylation behaviors of nineteen genes, including the four previously studied and their association with cirrhosis has been evaluated by the best subgroup selection method. The data presented in this report would enable us to shape our understanding of the mechanisms for the HCC specific loss of the epigenetic stability of the genome, as well as the strategy of developing the novel robust methylation based diagnostic and prognostic tools.
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PMID:Methylation profiling of twenty four genes and the concordant methylation behaviours of nineteen genes that may contribute to hepatocellular carcinogenesis. 1467 55

Multinucleated cells have been noted in pathophysiological states of the liver including infection with hepatitis B virus (HBV), the status of which is also closely associated with genomic instability in liver cancer. Here, we showed that hepatitis B virus X oncoprotein (HBx) expression in Chang cells results in a multinuclear phenotype and an abnormal number of centrosomes (n >or=3). Regulation of centrosome duplication in HBx-expressing ChangX-34 cells was defective and uncoupled from the cell cycle. HBx induced amplification of centrosomes, multipolar spindle formation, and chromosomal missegregation during mitosis and subsequently increased the generation of multinucleated cells and micronuclei formation. Treatment with PD98059, a mitogen-activated protein/extracellular signal-regulated kinase (MEK) 1/2 inhibitor, significantly reduced the number of cells with hyperamplified centrosomes and decreased the multinucleated cells and micronuclei formation. Consistently, the phospho-ERK level during cell progression was substantially higher in ChangX-34 cells than that of Chang cells. In contrast, neither wortmannin, an inhibitor of phosphoinositide-3 kinase, nor SB203589, an inhibitor of p38 mitogen-activated protein kinase (MAPK), showed any effects. Introduction of Ras dominant-negative (D/N) and MEK2 D/N genes into ChangX-34 cells significantly alleviated centrosome amplification, whereas introduction of the PKC D/N and PKB D/N genes did not. Thus, our results demonstrate that the HBx induced centrosome hyperamplification and mitotic aberration by activation of the Ras-MEK-MAPK. Intervention of this signaling pathway could suppress the centrosome amplification as well as mitotic aberration. These findings may provide a possible mechanism by which HBx promotes phenotypic progression by predisposing chromosomal alteration in HBV-infected liver.
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PMID:Mitotic aberration coupled with centrosome amplification is induced by hepatitis B virus X oncoprotein via the Ras-mitogen-activated protein/extracellular signal-regulated kinase-mitogen-activated protein pathway. 1503 55

To clarify the genetic aberrations involved in the development and progression of hepatitis C virus-associated hepatocellular carcinoma (HCV-HCC), we investigated DNA copy number aberrations (DCNAs) in 19 surgically resected HCCs by conventional CGH and array CGH. Conventional CGH revealed that increases of DNA copy number were frequent at 1q (79% of the cases), 8q (37%), 6p (32%), and 10p (32%) and that decreases were frequent at 17p (79%), 16q (58%), 4q (53%), 13q (42%), 10q (37%), 1p (32%), and 8p (32%). In general, genes that showed DCNAs by array CGH were usually located in chromosomal regions with DCNAs detected by conventional CGH analysis. Increases in copy numbers of the LAMC2, TGFB2, and AKT3 genes (located on 1q) and decreases in copy numbers of FGR/SRC2 and CYLD (located on 1p and 16q, respectively) were observed in more than 30% of tumors, including small, well-differentiated carcinomas. These findings suggest that these genes are associated with the development of HCV-HCC. Increases of MOS, MYC, EXT1, and PTK2 (located on 8q) were detected exclusively in moderately and poorly differentiated tumors, suggesting that these alterations contribute to tumor progression. In conclusion, chromosomal and array CGH technologies allow identification of genes involved in the development and progression of HCV-HCC.
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PMID:Analysis of DNA copy number aberrations in hepatitis C virus-associated hepatocellular carcinomas by conventional CGH and array CGH. 1513 72

Alternative promoters allow for increased spatial and temporal diversity in expression patterns for a single gene. The human SRC gene, encoding the non-receptor c-Src tyrosine kinase, is regulated by two alternative promoters separated by approximately 1 kb. The distal SRC1alpha promoter is tissue-restricted, while expression of the proximal SRC1A promoter appears to be ubiquitous. A barrier to elucidating the mechanisms of SRC transcriptional regulation has been the finding that the individual strengths of the SRC promoters in isolation do not match their relative strength of use seen in vivo. For example, in HepG2 hepatocellular carcinoma cells, SRC1A is significantly stronger in isolation than SRC1alpha, despite SRC1alpha being the predominant promoter used in this cell line. Previously, we have shown that HepG2 cells, as well as various colon cancer cell lines, display activated SRC transcription, which is linked to the elevated c-Src expression and activity necessary for growth and survival of these cells. These findings thus highlight the importance of understanding the mechanisms of SRC transcriptional regulation in human cancer. We hypothesize the discrepancy between individual SRC promoter strength and relative usage in vivo stems from a lack of linked promoter context. Therefore, we have developed and validated a novel dual SRC promoter reporter strategy to allow the simultaneous mechanistic study of both SRC promoters in their natural linked context. This approach has yielded evidence that SRC activation proceeds through genomic element(s) outside the promoter region in HepG2 cells. Therefore, we performed a preliminary study of DNaseI hypersensitive (DH) site composition within the SRC locus. This approach identified a HepG2-specific DH site that displayed activating potential towards the SRC1alpha promoter. These results thus provide important insight to the mechanism of SRC transcriptional activation in liver cancer cells.
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PMID:Regulation of alternative SRC promoter usage in HepG2 hepatocellular carcinoma cells. 1527 10

To disclose molecular mechanisms of cholangiocarcinogenesis and to search for novel diagnostic markers and therapeutic targets for cholangiocarcinoma, we previously analyzed gene-expression profiles of 25 intrahepatic cholangiocarcinomas (ICCs) by means of a cDNA microarray re-presenting 27,648 genes. Among the genes frequently up-regulated in the cancer cells, we focused on PSF2 (partner of SLD five 2), a component of the GINS multiprotein complex that plays a crucial role in initiation of DNA replication. Semi-quantitative RT-PCR analysis of clinical samples confirmed high levels of PSF2 expression in the cancer cells, but expression of this gene was barely detectable in normal vital organs. Transfection of ETK-1 and HuH28 cells with short-interfering RNA specific to PSF2 reduced the amount of transcript and suppressed cell growth, suggesting that PSF2 may play an important role in development of cholangio-carcinoma. The findings reported here provide new insights into human cholangiocarcinogenesis and may contribute to the development of novel therapeutic drugs for this type of liver cancer.
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PMID:Up-regulation of PSF2, a member of the GINS multiprotein complex, in intrahepatic cholangiocarcinoma. 1607 78

Protein kinase B (PKB or Akt) plays an essential role in the actions of insulin, cytokines, and growth factors, although the substrates for PKB that are relevant to many of its actions require identification. In this study, we have reported the identification of p122RhoGAP, a GTPase-activating protein selective for RhoA and rodent homologue of the tumor suppressor deleted in liver cancer (DLC1) as a novel insulin-stimulated phosphoprotein in primary rat adipocytes. We have demonstrated that Ser-322 is phosphorylated upon insulin stimulation of intact cells and that this site is directly phosphorylated in vitro by PKB and ribosomal S6 kinase, members of the AGC (protein kinases A, G, and C) family of insulin-stimulated protein kinases. Furthermore, expression of constitutively active mutants of PKB or mitogen-activated protein kinase/extracellular signal-regulated kinase kinase (MEK) stimulates Ser-322 phosphorylation in intact cells, demonstrating that activation of the PKB or MEK pathway is sufficient for Ser-322 phosphorylation in vivo. Indeed, in primary adipocytes, insulin-stimulated Ser-322 phosphorylation was almost exclusively regulated by the phosphatidylinositol 3-kinase/PKB pathway, whereas in immortalized cells, insulin-stimulated phosphorylation was predominantly regulated by the MEK/extracellular signal-regulated kinase/ribosomal S6 kinase pathway, with the phosphatidylinositol 3-kinase/PKB pathway playing a minor role. These results demonstrate that p122RhoGAP Ser-322 acts as an integrator of signal transduction in a manner dependent on the cellular context.
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PMID:Identification of p122RhoGAP (deleted in liver cancer-1) Serine 322 as a substrate for protein kinase B and ribosomal S6 kinase in insulin-stimulated cells. 1633 27

HAb18G/CD147 has been identified as a factor that induces MMPs production. SiRNA targeted against HAb18G/CD147 was transfected into FHCC-98 cells (a HCC cell line) to knockdown its expression. The results showed that downregulating HAb18G/CD147 decreased ERK1/2, MMP-2 and FAK levels and inhibited cell motility and invasion, together with rearranged actin stress fiber formation, while had no effects on integrin alpha3beta1 expression. MEK1/2 inhibitor, U0126, inhibited MMP-2, FAK and actin expression in FHCC-98 cell line. The findings indicate that si-HAb18G inhibits gelatinase production, actin and FAK expression in FHCC-98 via an ERK1/2 signaling pathway.
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PMID:siRNA targeted against HAb18G/CD147 inhibits MMP-2 secretion, actin and FAK expression in hepatocellular carcinoma cell line via ERK1/2 pathway. 1681 29

Alpha-lipoic acid (alpha-LA) is an antioxidant used for the treatment of a variety of diseases, including liver cirrhosis, heavy metal poisoining, and diabetic polyneuropathy. In addition to its protective effect against oxidative stress, alpha-LA induces apoptosis in different cancer cells types. However, whether alpha-LA acid induces apoptosis of hepatoma cells is unknown. Herein, we investigated whether alpha-LA induces apoptosis in two different hepatoma cell lines FaO and HepG2. The results showed that alpha-LA inhibits the growth of both cell lines as indicated by the reduction in cell number, the reduced expression of cyclin A and the increased levels of the cyclin/CDKs inhibitors, p27(Kip1) and p21(Cip1). Cell cycle arrest was associated with cell loss, and DNA laddering indicative of apoptosis. Apoptosis was preceded by increased generation of reactive oxygen species, and associated with p53 activation, increased expression of Bax, release of cytochrome c from mitochondria, caspases activation, decreased levels of survivin, induction of pro-apoptotic signaling (i.e JNK) and inhibition of anti-apoptotic signaling (i.e. PKB/Akt) pathways. In conclusion, this study provides evidence that alpha-LA induces apoptosis in hepatoma cells, describes a possible sequence of molecular events underlying its lethal effect, and suggests that it may prove useful in liver cancer therapy.
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PMID:Increased ROS generation and p53 activation in alpha-lipoic acid-induced apoptosis of hepatoma cells. 1713 95


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