Gene/Protein Disease Symptom Drug Enzyme Compound
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Query: EC:3.4.22.61 (caspase-8)
 6,833 document(s) hit in 31,850,051 MEDLINE articles (0.00 seconds)

Angiotensin II (Ang II) type 1 receptor blocking drugs have been shown to inhibit the growth of prostate cancer cells and delay the development of prostate cancer. Functional Ang II type 2 receptors (AT2R) are present in these cells and inhibit growth induced by epidermal growth factor. The present studies report apoptosis of prostate cancer cells induced by AT2R overexpression. A recombinant adenoviral vector expressing AT2R (Ad-G-AT2R-EGFP) was transduced into prostate cancer cells, including androgen-independent (DU145 and PC3) and androgen-dependent cell lines (LNCaP). Following AT2R transduction, apoptosis was analyzed by terminal deoxynucleotidyl transferase-mediated dUTP nick end labeling staining and caspase-3 activity assays. The results indicate that increased expression of AT2R alone induced apoptosis in the prostate cancer lines, an effect that did not require Ang II. AT2R overexpression in DU145 cells induced inhibition of proliferation, a significant reduction of S-phase cells, and an enrichment of G1-phase cells. The data also indicate that overexpression of AT2R led to apoptosis via an extrinsic cell death signaling pathway that is dependent on activation of p38 mitogen-activated protein kinase, caspase-8, and caspase-3. Finally, the apoptosis induced by AT2R overexpression is partially dependent on the activation of p53, but not on p21. The observations presented here suggest that the ability of increased AT2R expression to induce apoptosis in prostate cancer cells may have potential therapeutic implications for this disease, and suggest that AT2R is a promising novel target gene for prostate cancer gene therapy.
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PMID:Angiotensin type 2 receptor-mediated apoptosis of human prostate cancer cells. 1999 75

It is well known that Phellinus linteus has a variety of biological functions, such as antitumor and immunomodulating activities. In our previous studies, we developed a P. linteus grown on germinated brown rice (PBR) and found that organic solvent extracts of PBR possessed immunomodulating activity to regulate a balance of cytokine network in mice. The components of PBR are ergosterol peroxide, gamma-aminobutyric acid (GABA) and Beta-glucan. In this study, we demonstrate that an organic solvent extract of P. linteus grown on PBR induced apoptotic cell death through the induction of G(0)/G(1) arrest of cell cycle and the apoptosis via DNA fragmentation in human colon carcinoma HT-29 cells. Cell death induced by the extract of P. linteus grown on PBR was shown to be associated with the upregulation of p21(CIP1/WAF1), the downregulation of cyclin D1, anti-apoptotic protein, Bcl-2, the release of cytochrome c, and the activation of caspase-9, caspase-3 and caspase-8. This study suggests that the ethyl acetate extract of P. linteus grown on PBR induces apoptosis accompanied by cell cycle arrest at G(0)/G(1) phase and regulates apoptosis-regulatory proteins, which may be applicable to anticancer therapy.
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PMID:The ethyl acetate extract of Phellinus linteus grown on germinated brown rice induces G0/G1 cell cycle arrest and apoptosis in human colon carcinoma HT29 cells. 1999 18

Indole-3-carbinol (I3C) has anti-tumor effects in various cancer cell lines. However, the anti-tumor effect of I3C on human lung cancers has been rarely reported. We investigated the anti-tumor effects and its mechanism of I3C on human lung carcinoma A549 cell line. Treatment of the A549 cells with I3C significantly reduced cell proliferation, increased formations of fragmented DNA and apoptotic body, and induced cell cycle arrest at G0/G1 phase. I3C increased not only the protein levels of cyclin D1, phosphorylated p53, and p21 but also the expression of Fas mRNA. Cleavage of caspase-9, -8, -3 and PARP also was increased by I3C. Treatment with wortmannin significantly suppressed both I3C-induced Ser15 phosphorylation and accumulation of p53 protein. The inhibition of caspase-8 by z-IETD-FMK significantly decreased cleavage of procaspase-8,-3 and PARP in I3C-treated A549 cells. Taken together, these results demonstrate that I3C induces cell cycle arrest at G0/G1 through the activation of p-p53 at Ser 15 and induces caspase-8 mediated apoptosis via the Fas death receptor. This molecular mechanism for apoptotic effect of I3C on A549 lung carcinoma cells may be a first report and suggest that I3C may be a preventive and therapeutic agent against lung cancer.
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PMID:Indole-3-carbinol induces apoptosis through p53 and activation of caspase-8 pathway in lung cancer A549 cells. 2006 30

The antiproliferative and apoptotic effects of cucurbitacin E, a natural product isolated from Cucurbitaceae, were determined in human leukemia HL-60 cells. Cucurbitacin E at low concentrations (3-50 nmol/l) inhibited the growth of HL-60 cells, which was associated with G2/M cell-cycle arrest, decrease in the levels of cyclin-dependent kinase1, and increase in the levels of p21. Cucurbitacin E at high concentrations (1-10 mol/l) induced apoptosis of HL-60 cells and activation of caspase-3, caspase-8, and caspase-9. Jurkat leukemia cells with or without caspase-8 expression were nearly equally sensitive to cucurbitacin E-induced apoptosis. Cucurbitacin E did not increase the levels of reactive oxygen species and antioxidants, N-acetylcysteine and catalase, did not block cucurbitacin E-induced apoptosis. Cucurbitacin E decreased the levels of the antiapoptotic proteins XIAP, survivin, and Mcl-1, but increased the level of the proapoptotic protein, Bax. The levels of phosphorylated eukaryotic translation initiation factor 2 subunit (eIF2) were induced in cells undergoing both apoptosis and cell-cycle arrest. As phosphorylated eIF2 is an inhibitor of protein translation initiation, our data suggest that cucurbitacin E induces cell growth arrest and apoptosis through the induction of eIF2 phosphorylation, which leads to the inhibition of cyclin-dependent kinase 1, Mcl-1, survivin, and/or XIAP protein synthesis and that cucurbitacin E induces apoptosis mainly through a mitochondrial-mediated pathway.
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PMID:The induction of G2/M cell-cycle arrest and apoptosis by cucurbitacin E is associated with increased phosphorylation of eIF2alpha in leukemia cells. 2011 Aug 7

GCS-100 is a galectin-3 antagonist with an acceptable human safety profile that has been demonstrated to have an antimyeloma effect in the context of bortezomib resistance. In the present study, the mechanisms of action of GCS-100 are elucidated in myeloma cell lines and primary tumor cells. GCS-100 induced inhibition of proliferation, accumulation of cells in sub-G(1) and G(1) phases, and apoptosis with activation of both caspase-8 and -9 pathways. Dose- and time-dependent decreases in MCL-1 and BCL-X(L) levels also occurred, accompanied by a rapid induction of NOXA protein, whereas BCL-2, BAX, BAK, BIM, BAD, BID, and PUMA remained unchanged. The cell-cycle inhibitor p21(Cip1) was up-regulated by GCS-100, whereas the procycling proteins CYCLIN E2, CYCLIN D2, and CDK6 were all reduced. Reduction in signal transduction was associated with lower levels of activated IkappaBalpha, IkappaB kinase, and AKT as well as lack of IkappaBalpha and AKT activation after appropriate cytokine stimulation (insulin-like growth factor-1, tumor necrosis factor-alpha). Primary myeloma cells showed a direct reduction in proliferation and viability. These data demonstrate that the novel therapeutic molecule, GCS-100, is a potent modifier of myeloma cell biology targeting apoptosis, cell cycle, and intracellular signaling and has potential for myeloma therapy.
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PMID:GCS-100, a novel galectin-3 antagonist, modulates MCL-1, NOXA, and cell cycle to induce myeloma cell death. 2019 Jan 89

Cantharidin is an active constituent of mylabris, a traditional Chinese medicine. It is a potent and selective inhibitor of protein phosphatase 2A (PP2A) that plays an important role in control of cell cycle, apoptosis, and cell-fate determination. Owing to its antitumor activity, cantharidin has been frequently used in clinical practice. In the present study, we investigated the therapeutic potential of cantharidin in pancreatic cancer. Cantharidin efficiently inhibited the growth of pancreatic cancer cells, but presented a much lighter toxicity effect against normal pancreatic duct cells. It caused G2/M cell-cycle arrest that was accompanied by the down-regulation of cyclin-dependent kinase 1 (CDK1) and up-regulation of p21 expression. It induced apoptosis and elevated the expressions of pro-apoptotic factors tumor necrosis factor-alpha (TNF-alpha), TNF-related apoptosis inducing receptor 1 (TRAILR1), TRAILR2, Bad, Bak, and Bid, and decreased the expression of anti-apoptotic Bcl-2. Activation of caspase-8 and caspase-9 suggested that both extrinsic and intrinsic pathways are involved in the induction of apoptosis. Interestingly, unlike previous studies on other cancer cells, we found that the inhibitory role of cantharidin is independent of oxidative stress in pancreatic cancer cells. Mitogen-activated protein kinases (MAPKs), including ERK, JNK, and p38, were activated after treatment with cantharidin. Inhibition of JNK, but not ERK or p38, alleviated the cytotoxity effect of cantharidin, suggesting cantharidin exerted its anticancer effect through the JNK-dependent way. Hence, in addition to being an attractive candidate compound with therapeutic potential, cantharidin also highlighted the possibility of using PP2A as a therapeutic target for pancreatic cancer treatment.
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PMID:Cantharidin, a potent and selective PP2A inhibitor, induces an oxidative stress-independent growth inhibition of pancreatic cancer cells through G2/M cell-cycle arrest and apoptosis. 2033 21

The objectives of this study were to evaluate the antiproliferation effect of a synthetic quinone-containing compound bis-type triaziquone (BTZQ) on breast cancer cells BC-M1 and MCF-7. At a dose of 0.42 and 0.79 microM, BTZQ showed a 50% inhibition on BC-M1 and MCF-7 cell growth after 24 h treatment, respectively, but reduced to 0.2 and 0.61 microM after 48 h. A low toxic effect was observed for skin fibroblast cell after BTZQ treatment for 48 h at a dose from 0.0625-0.25 microM. BTZQ was more effective in inhibiting growth of breast cancer cells than tamoxifen. Additionally, BTZQ-treated BC-M1 cells under hypoxia condition for 48 h exhibited a higher cytotoxicity than under aerobic condition. Cell cycle analysis revealed the arrest of BC-M1 cells at G2/M phase, with accumulation of apoptotic cells at the sub-G1 phase being enhanced following a rise in dose. The expression levels of caspase-3, caspase-8 and caspase-9 were elevated in both dose- and time-dependent responses. Western blot analysis indicated that BTZQ may up-regulate expression of cyclin B, p21, p53 and cytochrome c, but down-regulate cdk1 expression in a dose-dependent manner, leading to apoptosis of BC-M1 cells. All these results suggested that BTZQ may be a potential anti-breast cancer drug.
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PMID:A study on inhibition mechanism of breast cancer cells by bis-type triaziquone. 2037 Dec 39

The purpose of this study was to evaluate the anticancer potency and mechanism of a novel difluorodiarylidenyl piperidone (H-4073) and its N-hydroxypyrroline modification (HO-3867) in human ovarian cancer. Studies were done using established human ovarian cancer cell lines (A2870, A2780cDDP, OV-4, SKOV3, PA-1, and OVCAR3) as well as in a murine xenograft tumor (A2780) model. Both compounds were comparably and significantly cytotoxic to A2780 cells. However, HO-3867 showed a preferential toxicity toward ovarian cancer cells while sparing healthy cells. HO-3867 induced G(2)-M cell cycle arrest in A2780 cells by modulating cell cycle regulatory molecules p53, p21, p27, cyclin-dependent kinase 2, and cyclin, and promoted apoptosis by caspase-8 and caspase-3 activation. It also caused an increase in the expression of functional Fas/CD95 and decreases in signal transducers and activators of transcription 3 (STAT3; Tyr705) and JAK1 phosphorylation. There was a significant reduction in STAT3 downstream target protein levels including Bcl-xL, Bcl-2, survivin, and vascular endothelial growth factor, suggesting that HO-3867 exposure disrupted the JAK/STAT3 signaling pathway. In addition, HO-3867 significantly inhibited the growth of the ovarian xenografted tumors in a dosage-dependent manner without any apparent toxicity. Western blot analysis of the xenograft tumor tissues showed that HO-3867 inhibited pSTAT3 (Tyr705 and Ser727) and JAK1 and increased apoptotic markers cleaved caspase-3 and poly ADP ribose polymerase. HO-3867 exhibited significant cytotoxicity toward ovarian cancer cells by inhibition of the JAK/STAT3 signaling pathway. The study suggested that HO-3867 may be useful as a safe and effective anticancer agent for ovarian cancer therapy.
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PMID:Anticancer efficacy of a difluorodiarylidenyl piperidone (HO-3867) in human ovarian cancer cells and tumor xenografts. 2044 15

Peroxisome proliferator-activated receptor-gamma (PPARgamma) is a member of the nuclear receptor (NR) family of transcription factors with important regulatory roles in cellular growth, differentiation, and apoptosis. Using proteomic analysis, we showed expression of PPARgamma protein in a series of 260 newly diagnosed primary acute myelogenous leukemia (AML) samples. Forced expression of PPARgamma enhanced the sensitivity of myeloid leukemic cells to apoptosis induced by PPARgamma agonists 2-cyano-3,12-dioxooleana-1,9-dien-28-oic acid (CDDO) and 15-deoxy-(12,14)-15DPGJ(2), through preferential cleavage of caspase-8. No effects on cell cycle distribution or differentiation were noted, despite prominent induction of p21 in PPARgamma-transfected cells. In turn, antagonizing PPARgamma function by small interfering RNA or pharmacologic PPARgamma inhibitor significantly diminished apoptosis induction by CDDO. Overexpression of coactivator protein DRIP205 resulted in enhanced differentiation induction by CDDO in AML cells through PPARgamma activation. Studies with DRIP205 deletion constructs showed that the NR boxes of DRIP205 are not required for this coactivation. In a phase I clinical trial of CDDO (RTA-401) in leukemia, CDDO induced an increase in PPARgamma mRNA expression in six of nine patient samples; of those, induction of differentiation was documented in four patients and that of p21 in three patients, all expressing DRIP205 protein. In summary, these findings suggest that cellular levels of PPARgamma regulate induction of apoptosis via caspase-8 activation, whereas the coactivator DRIP205 is a determinant of induction of differentiation, in response to PPARgamma agonists in leukemic cells.
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PMID:Role of peroxisome proliferator-activated receptor-gamma and its coactivator DRIP205 in cellular responses to CDDO (RTA-401) in acute myelogenous leukemia. 2050 50

p21-activated kinase 5 (PAK5) is a recently identified member of the group B PAK family. The PAK proteins are effectors of the small GTPase Cdc42 and Rac1 and are known to regulate cell motility and activate cell-survival signaling pathways. Especially, the mitochondrial localization of PAK5 is vital to its effects on apoptosis and cell survival. Previously, we demonstrated that PAK5 expression increased significantly during the malignant progression of colorectal carcinoma (CRC) and that PAK5 promoted CRC metastasis by regulating CRC cell adhesion and migration. In the present study, we aim to investigate the role of PAK5 in camptothecin-induced apoptosis and its potential mechanism of action. Our results showed that overexpression of PAK5 inhibited camptothecin-induced apoptosis by inhibiting the activity of caspase-8 in CRC cells. Accordingly, knockdown of PAK5 in LoVo cells resulted in increased apoptosis. Mechanistically, we found that PAK5 directly phosphorylated Bad on serine 112 and indirectly led to phosphorylation of serine 136 via the Akt pathway. In conclusion, our study revealed previously unappreciated inhibitory role of PAK5 in camptothecin-induced apoptosis, thus suggesting PAK5 as a novel therapeutic target in CRC.
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PMID:p21-activated kinase 5 inhibits camptothecin-induced apoptosis in colorectal carcinoma cells. 2056 54


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