Gene/Protein Disease Symptom Drug Enzyme Compound
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Query: EC:3.4.11.18 (MAP)
 7,412 document(s) hit in 31,850,051 MEDLINE articles (0.00 seconds)

The implication of MAP kinases in the proliferation control of pancreatic cancer cells is still unknown. This study was undertaken to examine the contribution of the p44/p42 and p38 MAP kinases in the mitogenic response to epidermal growth factor (EGF) and bombesin in human pancreatic cancer cells, MIA PaCa-2 and PANC-1. Data indicate that EGF and bombesin stimulated growth of both cell lines. In MIA PaCa-2 cells, EGF and bombesin stimulated the in gel activation of p38 while p44/p42 kinases exhibited high basal activity and no response to stimuli. Growth and p38 activation were inhibited by genistein, wortmannin, PD98059 and SB203580, specific inhibitors of tyrosine kinase, phosphatidylinositol 3-kinase, MEK-1 and p38 kinases, respectively. In PANC-1 cells, EGF and bombesin stimulated p42 in gel activation; p44 remained highly activated and unresponsive to stimuli and p38 did not respond. Stimulated growth and p42 activation were inhibited by genistein, wortmannin and PD98059. Estimation of MAPK activities with a specific anti-active MAP kinase antibody indicated, however, that EGF increased the intensity of the bands corresponding to p42 and p44 MAP kinases in both cell lines, indicating that the mitogenic factor can regulate MAP kinase activity. Data also pointed out that ATP is sufficient to increase MAP kinase activity within the in gel assay technique and may thus explain the discrepancies existing between the in gel assay data and those obtained with the anti-active MAP kinase antibody.
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PMID:Activation of MAP kinases in growth responsive pancreatic cancer cells. 1043 20

Pulmonary neuroendocrine cells function as hypoxia-sensitive chemoreceptors, and they release peptides and biogenic amines that are important mediators of pulmonary neonatal adaptation. Some of these products additionally act as autocrine growth factors. Increased numbers of pulmonary neuroendocrine cells have been observed in several smoking-associated pediatric lung disorders such as bronchopulmonary dysplasia, cystic fibrosis, sudden infant death syndrome, and asthma. Disturbed pulmonary neuroendocrine function has been implicated in the etiology of this disease complex. One of the most common smoking-associated lung cancer types, small cell lung carcinoma, expresses phenotypic and functional features of pulmonary neuroendocrine cells. We, as well as others, have shown that the release of the autocrine growth factors 5-hydroxytryptamine (5-HT, serotonin) and mammalian bombesin/gastrin releasing peptide (MB/GRP) by cell lines derived from human small cell lung carcinoma or fetal hamster pulmonary neuroendocrine cells are regulated by a neuronal nicotinic acetylcholine receptor comprised of alpha(7) subunits. In radio-receptor assays, nicotine and the nicotine-derived carcinogenic nitrosamines NNNN. Binding of nicotine or NNK to the alpha(7) receptor resulted in calcium influx and overexpression and activation of the serine-threonine protein kinase Raf-1. In turn, this event lead to overexpression and activation of the mitogen activated (MAP) kinases extracellular signal regulated kinase 1 (ERK1) and extracellular signal regulated kinase 2 (ERK2) and stimulation of DNA synthesis accompanied by an increase in cell numbers in fetal pulmonary neuroendocrine cells and small cell carcinoma cells. Exposure of fetal pulmonary neuroendocrine cells for 6 days to NNK caused a prominant up-regulation of Raf-1. Our findings suggest that chronic exposure to nicotine and NNK in pregnant women who smoke may up-regulate the alpha(7) nicotinic receptor as well as components of its associated mitogenic signal transduction pathway, thus increasing the susceptibilities of the infants for the development of pediatric lung disorders. Similarly, up-regulation of one or several components of this nicotinic receptor pathway in smokers may be an important factor for the development of small cell lung carcinoma.
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PMID:Interaction of tobacco-specific toxicants with the neuronal alpha(7) nicotinic acetylcholine receptor and its associated mitogenic signal transduction pathway: potential role in lung carcinogenesis and pediatric lung disorders. 1077 Oct 23

We have reported earlier a novel combination of four structurally designed synthetic neuropeptide analogs of vasoactive intestinal peptide (VIP), bombesin, substance P and somatostatin, code-named DRF 7295 which have anti-tumor efficacy for adenocarcinomas in vitro and in vivo (Jaggi et al., Invest New Drugs, 2008). The discovery, synthesis, in vitro and in vivo efficacy was reported (Jaggi et al., Invest New Drugs, 2008). Gastrointestinal tumor cells of the colon, pancreas and duodenum were found to most sensitive to DRF7295 in vitro and in vivo (Jaggi et al., Invest New Drugs, 2008). We have further investigated and report here the modulation of cellular signaling in gastrointestinal carcinomas by DRF 7295, which may be mediating its observed anticancer activity in these cancer types. DRF 7295 inhibits the binding of specific neuropeptides initiating a cascade of cellular signaling events leading to programmed cell death. It down regulates the second messenger cAMP, epidermal growth factor (EGF) dependent proliferation and the phosphorylated MAP Kinase pERK1/2 in gastrointestinal carcinomas, thus depriving the tumour cells of critical pro-proliferative cellular signals. It triggers bcl2 and Caspase 3 dependent apoptotic cell death and induces p53 tumor suppressor protein in the treated carcinoma cells in vitro. It has significant anti-angiogenic potential as reflected in the inhibition of tube like formation in the endothelial cells and down regulation of VEGF levels. Tumour xenograft studies confirmed the in vivo efficacy of DRF 7295 for gastrointestinal carcinomas (Jaggi et al., Invest New Drugs, 2008). The Phase I clinical trials have shown DRF 7295 to be well tolerated and devoid of systemic toxicities of the conventional cytotoxics (Mukherjee et al., Phase I dose escalating study of DRF7295: a new class of peptide based drugs. "Abstract" ASCO ID:948, 2003). The drug may have a promising role in disease stabilization in colorectal and other cancers. Thus DRF 7295 is a novel targeted drug in the class of signal transduction modulators, with potential for treatment of gastrointestinal carcinomas.
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PMID:Modulation of key signal transduction molecules by a novel peptide combination effective for the treatment of gastrointestinal carcinomas. 1832 52