Gene/Protein Disease Symptom Drug Enzyme Compound
Pivot Concepts:   Target Concepts:
Query: EC:5.99.1.2 (topoisomerase)
9,166 document(s) hit in 31,850,051 MEDLINE articles (0.00 seconds)

It has been reported that human promyelocytic leukemic HL-60 cells which undergo differentiation fail to respond by apoptosis when treated with antitumor drugs, predominantly DNA topoisomerase inhibitors. Because S phase cells are selectively sensitive to these drugs, and during differentiation there is a reduction in the proportion of cells in S phase, the reported decrease in the number of apoptotic cells could simply be a reflection of the paucity of sensitive cells in these cultures. Using cytometric methods which allow apoptosis to be related to cell cycle position, we have compared the apoptotic response of HL-60 cells growing exponentially and induced to myeloid differentiation by dimethyl sulfoxide (DMSO). The cells were treated with: (i) the DNA topoisomerase I inhibitor camptothecin (CAM), which selectively triggers apoptosis or S phase cells; (ii) the nucleoside antimetabolite 5-azacytidine (AZC) and hyperthermia, both of which preferentially affects G1 cells; and (iii) gamma radiation, which causes apoptosis predominantly of G2 + M cells. The cells exposed to 1.4% DMSO for 24 or 48 h were significantly more resistant to response by apoptosis, regardless of the nature of the agent and regardless of their position in the cell cycle. Thus, induction of differentiation lowers the cell's ability to respond to a variety of damaging agents by apoptosis and this effect is not correlated with cell cycle position. In addition, the difference in response was unrelated to expression of the apoptosis-modulating protein bcl-2, which appeared unchanged following 48 h exposure to DMSO. On the other hand, when the cells were pretreated with low concentrations of CAM or AZC, washed free of drug, and then treated with DMSO, the proportion of cells undergoing apoptosis was markedly increased, relative to drug-treated cells returned to DMSO-free medium. The present data may indicate that while the drug-induced damage screening mechanisms, which are linked to triggering apoptosis, may be more proficient in proliferating cells, the effectors of apoptosis are more expressed in cells undergoing differentiation. The data also suggest that the efficiency of chemotherapeutic agents or radiation may be reduced if a differentiating agent is used in combination therapy and is administered first. An enhancement of apoptosis, however, may be expected if the differentiating drug is administered in the reverse sequence.
...
PMID:Altered susceptibility of differentiating HL-60 cells to apoptosis induced by antitumor drugs. 750 35

Murine bone marrow-derived hemopoietic cells, dependent on interleukin (IL)-3 for their growth in culture, undergo programmed cell death, or apoptosis, upon cytokine withdrawal. The topoisomerase II inhibitor etoposide causes a more rapid onset of apoptosis in the IL-3-dependent cell line BAF3, deprived of IL-3. This acceleration of apoptosis by etoposide is prevented by inhibitors of RNA and protein synthesis and by the nucleases inhibitor aurintricarboxylic acid. The presence of IL-3 or overexpression of the oncogene bcl-2 caused a marked delay in the induction of apoptosis by etoposide, acting in a cooperative manner. The time at which the apoptotic program is irreversible is close to the induction of endonuclease activity as indicated by the effect of the delayed addition of either IL-3 or aurintricarboxylic acid on the onset of apoptosis, suggesting the importance of endonuclease activation in the development of apoptosis in hemopoietic cells.
...
PMID:Interleukin-3 and Bcl-2 cooperatively inhibit etoposide-induced apoptosis in a murine pre-B cell line. 751 Feb 34

The induction of apoptosis following topoisomerase inhibitors proceeds in at least three distinct steps: (1) induction of cleavable complexes (potentially lethal damage), (2) topoisomerase-induced DNA damage, and (3) a presently unknown sequence of events that must either lead to cell cycle arrest (G2-block, differentiation) or apoptosis. DNA degradation provides a convenient way to quantify apoptosis in HL-60 cells. Extensive apoptosis can be induced rapidly in undifferentiated HL-60 cells without prevention by cycloheximide or actinomycin D. Therefore, HL-60 cells appear to express constitutively the apoptotic machinery that may be kept under control of a yet unknown repressor. The absence of the tumor suppressor p53 and the presence of bcl-2 are in contrast with the sensitivity of these cells to apoptosis. Agents that modify chromatin structure (zinc, poly[ADPribose] inhibitors, spermine) can block DNA fragmentation without affecting cell survival. By contrast macrophage-like differentiation by phorbol esters suppresses apoptosis without affecting topoisomerase-induced DNA damage. Better understanding of the apoptotic regulation in the widely used and characterized HL-60 cell line should allow the identification of new mechanisms and parameters of cellular sensitivity and resistance to the cytotoxic activity of anticancer agents.
...
PMID:Apoptosis induced by DNA topoisomerase I and II inhibitors in human leukemic HL-60 cells. 785

Apoptotic cell death is physiological. Malignant cells often escape programmed cell death. Many genes that promote (p53) or antagonize (bcl-2, fes) apoptosis have been recognized. Apoptosis promoter genes can be activated by growth factor or hormone withdrawal in growth factor- or hormone-dependent tumor cells. Malignant cells acquiring apoptosis-resistance, still can be killed by cytotoxic lymphocytes releasing lymphotoxins. This phenomenon gives further support to the therapeutic use of activated and expanded lymphocyte populations and/or apoptosis-inducing cytokines. Chemotherapeutic agents (esp. topoisomerase inhibitors) frequently kill tumor cells by activating programmed cell death (PCD). Biologicals and chemotherapeutics may synergize in evoking apoptosis. We propose the cloning of apoptotic genes and their transfer by transfection in vivo into tumor cells. While transfection of genes into tumor cells in vitro is widely practiced, the lack of proper technology for transfection in vivo and the unknown aspects of apoptotic cell death are recognized.
...
PMID:Apoptosis by genetic engineering. 815 15

Previous studies have shown that bcl-2 overexpression can inhibit apoptosis induced by DNA-damaging agents widely used in cancer chemotherapy, including X-irradiation, alkylating agents (hydroperoxycyclophosphamide, etc.), and topoisomerase II inhibitors (etoposide, etc.). However, little is known about the mechanism by which bcl-2 overexpression inhibits apoptosis triggered by these agents. In this study, we examined whether bcl-2 overexpression could have effects on etoposide-induced DNA damage and its repair. For these experiments, we developed CH31 clones (mouse B-cells) stably transfected with human bcl-2 sense plasmids and compared these clones with a parental CH31 clone or CH31 clones with antisense plasmids. Overexpression of bcl-2 protein inhibited etoposide-induced apoptosis and cytotoxicity. However, there was no or little difference in the production and repair of DNA-protein cross-links, DNA single-strand breaks, and double-strand beaks among a parental CH31 clone and CH31 clones with human bcl-2 sense or antisense plasmids. These findings indicate that (a) apoptosis or cytotoxicity induced by etoposide can be separated into early events (formation of double-strand breaks, DNA single-strand breaks, and double-strand breaks) and later events (secondary DNA fragmentation or cell death) and (b) bcl-2 inhibits apoptosis and cytotoxicity induced by etoposide at some steps between these events.
...
PMID:bcl-2 protein inhibits etoposide-induced apoptosis through its effects on events subsequent to topoisomerase II-induced DNA strand breaks and their repair. 839 79

The Bcl-2 oncoprotein, which is expressed in a variety of human malignancies, blocks apoptosis induced by chemotherapeutic drugs, including the topoisomerase II inhibitor, etoposide. To determine the significance of Bcl-2 in etoposide-induced death of human epithelial tumor cells, HeLa S3 cells were transfected with human bcl-2 cDNA in the pSFFV expression vector, and stable Bcl-2-expressing clones established. In agreement with previous studies, Bcl-2 inhibited loss of cell viability (by trypan blue exclusion), the appearance of morphologically apoptotic cells, and the amount of low molecular weight DNA extracted after etoposide exposure (25 microns, 4 h). The degree of inhibition, compared to wild-type and vector control-transfected clones, differed according to the level of Bcl-2 protein expressed in the two clones studied. However, when cell survival was assessed by colony-forming assays, no significant differences were detected at any of the etoposide concentrations used. Although Bcl-2 inhibited etoposide-induced apoptosis, it had no effect on the formation of giant, multinucleated cells characteristic of mitotic catastrophe. Consequently, the ability of Bcl-2 to prevent apoptosis caused by chemotherapeutic drugs may not necessarily translate into increased survival of cells that express Bcl-2.
...
PMID:Dual modes of death induced by etoposide in human epithelial tumor cells allow Bcl-2 to inhibit apoptosis without affecting clonogenic survival. 875 71

The erbB-2 receptor plays an important role in the prognosis of breast cancer and is expressed at high levels in nearly 30% of tumors in breast cancer patients. While evidence accumulates to support the relationship between erbB-2 overexpression and poor overall survival in human breast cancer, understanding of the biological consequence(s) of erbB-2 overexpression remains elusive. The discovery of heregulin has allowed us to identify a number of related but distinct biological endpoints which appear responsive to signal transduction through the erbB-2/4 receptor. These endpoints of growth, invasiveness, and differentiation have clear implications for the emergence, maintenance, and/or control of malignancy, and represent established endpoints in the assessment of malignant progression in human breast cancer. Preliminary studies in vitro have shown that heregulin induces a biphasic growth effect on cells with erbB-2 overexpression. Interestingly, we observed that expression of heregulin correlates with a more aggressive/invasive, vimentin-positive phenotype in breast cancer cells lines. Therefore, we have postulated that heregulin is involved in breast cancer tumor progression. We have shown that heregulin induces in vitro chemoinvasion and chemotaxis of breast cancer cells as well as growth in an anchorage dependent and independent manner. Interestingly, a heregulin neutralizing antibody inhibits chemotaxis and results in cell growth inhibition and blockade of the invasive phenotype. Strikingly, genetically engineered cells which constitutively express heregulin demonstrate critical phenotypic changes that are associated with a more aggressive phenotype. Specifically, these cells are no longer dependent on estrogen for growth and are resistant to tamoxifen in vitro and in vivo, and moreover these cells metastasize to lymph nodes in athymic nude mice. These tumors appear to have lost bcl-2 expression as compared with the control tumors. In addition, presumably by activation/regulation of topoisomerase II, the heregulin-transfected cells become exquisitely sensitive to doxorubicin and VP-16. Clearly, mechanistic aspects of the erbB-2/4 and heregulin interaction need to be understood from a therapeutic standpoint which could provide additional insights into synergistic treatments for certain patients, or improve treatment regimens for a large number of women. The study of heregulin and its co-expression with erbB-2/4 receptor and the assessment of its involvement in the progression from the in situ stage of breast tumors to the invasive one will additionally increase the relevance of heregulin as a prognostic/diagnostic factor. We believe that our studies provide new insights into breast cancer diagnosis, prognosis, and treatment.
...
PMID:The significance of heregulin in breast cancer tumor progression and drug resistance. 882 23

Cytotoxic drugs currently remain as the basis for the chemotherapy of metastatic cancer. Why they fail to kill sufficient tumour cells in the major human solid cancers, such as the carcinomas, is suggested in this review to be due to the inherent inability of these cells to engage apoptosis after drug-induced damage. As a paradigm for drug resistant cancers, the resistance of bladder carcinoma cell lines to DNA damaging drugs is described here in terms of their response to the topoisomerase II poison etoposide. 60%-70% of bladder carcinomas have mutant p53; this can prevent the detection of and response to DNA damage. In vitro studies with a bladder carcinoma cell line containing a wild type p53 showed that it underwent a G1 checkpoint after etoposide, potentially allowing DNA damage repair, as well as apoptosis. In lines with mutant or non-functional p53 there is no checkpoint and no apoptosis. All lines showed constitutive expression of bcl-2 and bcl-XL (the suppressors of apoptosis) with low and non-inducible levels of bax (a promoter of apoptosis). Taken together, this menu of gene expression is more favourable to survival than apoptosis after the imposition of drug-induced DNA damage and may contribute to their inherent drug resistance.
...
PMID:Apoptosis and cancer chemotherapy. 895 Apr 79

A novel resistant variant of murine P388 leukaemia, P388/SPR, was identified by de novo resistance to doxorubicin (DOX) in vivo. This mutant displayed a similar level of cross-resistance to etoposide (VP-16) and other topoisomerase II (topo II) inhibitors. Further analysis of the phenotype revealed a broad cross-resistance to vinca alkaloids, alkylating agents, antimetabolites, aphidicolin and UV light. Low-level expression of mdr1 and P-glycoprotein (P-gp), as well as a modest impairment of cellular drug accumulation and partial reversion of resistance to DOX and VP-16 by cyclosporine, confirmed a moderate role of P-gp in conferring drug resistance in P388/SPR cells. Consistent changes in neither topo II expression or activity nor glutathione metabolism could be detected. Induction of apoptosis was significantly reduced in P388/SPR cells, as indicated by minimal DNA fragmentation. Analysis of oncogenes regulating apoptotic cell death revealed a marked decrease of bcl-2 in combination with a moderate reduction of bax protein, but a striking overexpression of the long form of the bcl-X protein. Transfection of human bcl-X-L into P388 cells conferred drug resistance similar to that of P388/SPR cells. The data suggest that overexpression of bcl-X-L results in an unusual phenotype with broad cross-resistance to non-MDR-related cytotoxins in vitro, and provide an interesting example of spontaneous overexpression of another member of the bcl-2 gene family in cancer.
...
PMID:Spontaneous overexpression of the long form of the Bcl-X protein in a highly resistant P388 leukaemia. 901 37

Apoptosis is a major determinant of the effectiveness of antitumor chemotherapy since most of the drugs used in cancer treatment provoke cell death by this process. We selected L1210/0.7R (7-fold) and L1210/3R (16-fold) murine leukemia cells resistant to cisplatin (CDDP) by adaptation of parental L1210/S cells to increasing drug concentration. L1210/0.7R exhibited a decreased apoptosis response to CDDP compared to parental L1210/S, while it was totally defective in L1210/3R as analyzed by cell morphology, DNA fragmentation, and poly(ADP-ribose) polymerase cleavage. This default in apoptosis did not result from differential expression of the antiapoptotic protein bcl-2 or from altered expression of p53. L1210/3R was resistant to other cross-linking agents and sensitive to topoisomerase II inhibitors and microtubule poisons. Whatever the drug sensitivity phenotype to these agents, L1210/3R was totally defective in apoptosis in response to drug treatment, showing that apoptosis control cannot be directly involved in the resistance process of these cell lines.
...
PMID:Deficient apoptotic process in cisplatin-resistant L1210 cells cannot account for the cellular response to various drug treatments. 917 54


1 2 3 4 Next >>