Gene/Protein Disease Symptom Drug Enzyme Compound
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Query: UMLS:C0017638 (glioma)
30,880 document(s) hit in 31,850,051 MEDLINE articles (0.00 seconds)

Radiosensitive cell lines derived from X-ray cross complementing group 5 (XRCC5), SCID mice and a human glioma cell line lack components of the DNA-dependent protein kinase, DNA-PK, suggesting that DNA-PK plays an important role in DNA double-strand break repair. Another enzyme implicated in DNA repair, poly(ADP-ribose) polymerase, is cleaved and inactivated during apoptosis, suggesting that some DNA repair proteins may be selectively targeted for destruction during apoptosis. Here we demonstrate that DNA-PKcs, the catalytic subunit of DNA-PK, is preferentially degraded after the exposure of different cell types to a variety of agents known to cause apoptosis. However, Ku, the DNA-binding component of the enzyme, remains intact. Degradation of DNA-PKcs was accompanied by loss of DNA-PK activity. One cell line resistant to etoposide-induced apoptosis failed to show degradation of DNA-PKcs. Protease inhibitor data implicated an ICE-like protease in the cleavage of DNA-PKcs, and it was subsequently shown that the cysteine protease CPP32, but not Mch2alpha, ICE or TX, cleaved purified DNA-PKcs into three fragments of comparable size with those observed in cells undergoing apoptosis. Cleavage sites in DNA-PKcs, determined by antibody mapping and microsequencing, were shown to be the same for CPP32 cleavage and for cleavage catalyzed by extracts from cells undergoing apoptosis. These observations suggest that DNA-PKcs is a critical target for proteolysis by an ICE-like protease during apoptosis.
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PMID:DNA-dependent protein kinase catalytic subunit: a target for an ICE-like protease in apoptosis. 867 Aug 24

Fas ligand is a potent inducer of apoptosis in human glioma cells by the Fas/Fas ligand pathway. With comparable efficiency, metalloprotease inhibitors including puromycin and bestatin induce apoptosis in glioma cells. To evaluate the involvement of potential components involved in Fas ligand- and metalloprotease inhibitor-induced apoptosis, we investigated the effect of anti human Fas antibody, soluble Fas ligand and puromycin on cultures of human malignant glioma cell lines (LN-18, LN-229, T98G). Stimulation with Fas ligand lead to apoptotic cell death within 16 h. Costimulation with the translational inhibitor cycloheximide and the transcription blocker actinomycin D did not reduce Fas ligand toxicity. In contrast, apoptosis induced by puromycin was blocked by cycloheximide and decreased by subtoxic doses of actinomycin D in all three gliomas. Whereas inhibition of caspase activity with the general inhibitor zVAD-fmk resulted in a complete block of Fas ligand-induced cell death, puromycin-mediated apoptosis was found to be unaffected by zVAD-fmk as well as by more specific inhibitors for caspase-1 (Interleukin-1 beta converting enzyme) and caspase-3 (CPP32/Yama). Other prominent components involved in many apoptotic pathways as bcl-2 and reactive oxygen intermediates were also examined. Bcl-2 which protects glioma cells from Fas ligand-induced cell death, was shown to have only a small protective effect on puromycin-induced apoptosis. The tested radical scavengers did not reduce Fas- or puromycin-mediated killing of human glioma cells.
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PMID:Differential activity of bcl-2 and ICE enzyme family protease inhibitors on Fas and puromycin-induced apoptosis of glioma cells. 940 14

Dolichyl phosphate, an essential carrier lipid in the biosynthesis of N-linked glycoprotein, has been found to induce apoptosis in rat glioma C6 cells and human monoblastic leukemia U937 cells. In the present study, dolichyl phosphate and structurally related compounds were examined regarding their apoptosis-inducing activities in U937 cells. Dihydroheptaprenyl and dihydrodecaprenyl phosphates, of which isoprene units are shorter than that of dolichyl phosphate, induced apoptosis in U937 cells. This phenomenon occurred in a dose- and time-dependent manner, as seen with dolichyl phosphate-induced apoptosis. Derivatives of the same isoprene units of dolichyl phosphate, such as dolichol, dolichal or dolichoic acid, did not induce DNA fragmentation. Farnesyl phosphate and geranylgeranyl phosphate also failed to induce apoptosis. During apoptosis, the caspase family of cysteine proteases play important roles. We observed that apoptosis induced by dihydroprenyl phosphate was mediated by caspase-3-like (CPP32-like) activation but not by caspase-1-like (ICE-like) activation. This caspase-3-like activation was inhibited by a specific inhibitor of caspase-3, DEVD-CHO, but not by an caspase-1 inhibitor YVAD-CHO. We interpret these results to mean that dihydroprenyl phosphates with more than seven isoprene units have apoptosis-inducing activity and that their signal is mediated by caspase-3-like activation.
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PMID:Dihydroheptaprenyl and dihydrodecaprenyl monophosphates induce apoptosis mediated by activation of caspase-3-like protease. 946 Dec 54

CD95 ligand (CD95L)-induced apoptosis is a novel immunotherapeutic approach to malignant glioma. Here, we report that interferon-alpha (IFN-alpha) sensitizes LN-229 and T98G human malignant glioma cells to CD95L-induced apoptosis. In contrast to the effects of IFN-gamma and TNF-alpha which sensitize glioma cells to CD95 antibody-induced apoptosis in part by enhancing CD95 expression, IFN-alpha has no effect on CD95 expression at the cell surface of LN-229 and T98G cells. To confirm that changes in CD95 expression are not required for the effects of IFN-alpha, we show that IFN-alpha enhances CD95L-induced apoptosis even in CD95-transfected LN-308 glioma cells. These LN-308 cells have little endogenous CD95 expression but express high levels of CD95 from a stably integrated CD95 expression plasmid. The sensitizing effects of IFN-alpha appear to be independent of cell cycle effects of IFN-alpha and are unaffected by ectopic expression of the bcl-2 proto-oncogene. IFN-alpha enhances CD95L-induced activation of caspase-3, a critical mediator of CD95L-induced cell death. IFN-alpha also increases the cytotoxic effects of BCNU, teniposide and cytarabine in both cell lines, and of vincristine in LN-229 cells. Doxorubicin and 5-fluorouracil toxicity are unaffected by IFN-alpha. IFN-alpha may be a useful adjunct to novel strategies of immunochemotherapy for malignant gliomas that target CD95-mediated apoptosis.
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PMID:Interferon-alpha enhances CD95L-induced apoptosis of human malignant glioma cells. 967 Aug 53

The proteasome inhibitors lactacystin and AcLLNal induced p53-independent apoptosis in two human glioma cell lines, and the apoptosis was accompanied by up-regulation of immunoreactive wild-type p53, p21Waf1, Mdm2, and p27Kip1. Pretreatment with cycloheximide decreased the induction of cell death independently of p53 protein status, suggesting that the up-regulation of short-lived proteins is associated with proteasome inhibitor-induced apoptosis. Caspase-3-like proteases were activated in the proteasome inhibitor-mediated apoptosis, and the induction of cell death was inhibited more effectively in the presence of z-VAD.fmk than in the presence of Ac-DEVD.fmk, suggesting that caspases other than caspase-3 are involved. Nonetheless, there were no significant alterations in levels of immunoreactive Bcl-2, Bcl-X(L), Bax, Bad, and Bak, nor any evidence of cytochrome c release into cytosol and dissipation of delta(psi)m. Thus, the proteasome inhibitor-induced apoptosis is mediated by a mitochondria-independent mechanism, and the once activated caspase-3 does not cause the cytochrome c release and the delta(psi)m disruption.
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PMID:Proteasome inhibitors induce mitochondria-independent apoptosis in human glioma cells. 998 1

Apoptosis was induced in human glioma cell lines by exposure to 100 nM calphostin C, a specific inhibitor of protein kinase C. Calphostin C-induced apoptosis was associated with synchronous down-regulation of Bcl-2 and Bcl-xL as well as activation of caspase-3 but not caspase-1. The exposure to calphostin C led to activation of stress-activated protein kinase/c-Jun NH2-terminal kinase (SAPK/JNK) and p38 kinase and concurrent inhibition of extracellular signal-regulated kinase (ERK). Upstream of ERK, Shc was shown to be activated, but its downstream Raf1 and ERK were inhibited. The pretreatment with acetyl-Tyr-Val-Ala-Asp-aldehyde, a relatively selective inhibitor of caspase-3, or benzyloxycarbonyl-Val-Ala-Asp-fluoromethylketone (z-VAD.fmk), a broad spectrum caspase inhibitor, similarly inhibited calphostin C-induced activation of SAPK/JNK and p38 kinase as well as apoptotic nuclear damages (chromatin condensation and DNA fragmentation) and cell shrinkage, suggesting that caspase-3 functions upstream of SAPK/JNK and p38 kinase, but did not block calphostin C-induced surface blebbing and cell death. On the other hand, the inhibition of SAPK/JNK by transfection of dominant negative SAPK/JNK and that of p38 kinase by SB203580 induced similar effects on the calphostin C-induced apoptotic phenotypes and cell death as did z-VAD.fmk and acetyl-Tyr-Val-Ala-Asp-aldehyde, but the calphostin C-induced PARP cleavage was not changed, suggesting that SAPK/JNK and p38 kinase are involved in the DNA fragmentation pathway downstream of caspase-3. The present findings suggest, therefore, that the activation of SAPK/JNK and p38 kinase is dispensable for calphostin C-mediated and z-VAD.fmk-resistant cell death.
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PMID:Activation of stress-activated protein kinase/c-Jun NH2-terminal kinase and p38 kinase in calphostin C-induced apoptosis requires caspase-3-like proteases but is dispensable for cell death. 1002 38

Glutathione (GSH) depletion caused by l-buthionine-(S,R)-sulfoximine (BSO) induced apoptosis that was recognized by terminal deoxynucleotidyl transferase-mediated dUTP-biotin nick endo-labeling (TUNEL), nuclear DNA staining with fluorescence dye, and internucleosomal DNA fragmentation in C6 rat glioma cells. The BSO-induced cell death was associated with caspase-3 activation. Lipid peroxidation and protein kinase C (PK-C) activation were observed during the apoptosis of C6 cells, and these events were inhibited by antioxidants and iron chelators without affecting BSO-induced GSH depletion. Furthermore, approximately 2 Mbp giant DNA fragments were observed in the BSO-treated cells. The giant DNA fragmentation were followed by approximately 30-700 kbp and then less than 100 kbp, including internucleosomal DNA fragmentations. Such serial DNA degradation was prevented by the antioxidants, the iron chelators, and the PK-C inhibitors. These results suggest that during apoptosis induced by GSH-depletion caused by BSO, reactive oxygen species endogenously produced cause lipid peroxidation and that the lipid peroxidation induced PK-C activation, processes which are thought to be involved in the giant DNA, high-molecular-weight DNA, and the internucleosomal DNA fragmentations.
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PMID:Glutathione depletion induces giant DNA and high-molecular-weight DNA fragmentation associated with apoptosis through lipid peroxidation and protein kinase C activation in C6 glioma cells. 1004 97

Impaired function of apoptosis-related genes is deeply involved in oncogenesis and the progression of cancers, and caspase-3 plays a critical role as an executioner of apoptosis. We introduced the caspase-3 gene via an adenovirus (Adv) vector into Alexander hepatoma cells, MCF-7 breast cancer cells, and U251 and U-373MG glioma cells which have different endogenous levels of caspase-3 expression. None of the cell lines underwent apoptosis by overexpression of caspase-3, indicating that induction of caspase-3 alone is not applicable for cancer gene therapy. Next, we investigated whether overexpression of caspase-3 could enhance Fas ligand-mediated apoptosis in these four cell lines. In U-373MG cells, which showed the highest level of expression of surface Fas among the four cell lines, coinfection of the Adv for caspase-3 (Adv-caspase-3) and the Adv for Fas ligand (Adv-FL) induced a remarkably increased degree of apoptosis compared with that induced by the single infection of either Adv-caspase-3 or Adv-FL. Similar results were obtained by cotreatment with anti-Fas antibody in U-373MG cells. These data suggest that when strong proapoptotic upstream stimuli are induced, the level of caspase-3 expression determines the degree of apoptosis in cancer cell lines. In conclusion, overexpression of caspase-3 alone did not induce apoptosis in cancer cells. Both a strong proapoptotic signal and a high expression of caspase-3 were required to induce drastic apoptosis in cancers. This strategy would be highly beneficial for selected cancer patients.
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PMID:Adenovirus-mediated transfer of caspase-3 with Fas ligand induces drastic apoptosis in U-373MG glioma cells. 1077 15

Calphostin C-mediated apoptosis in glioma cells was reported previously to be associated with down-regulation of Bcl-2 and Bcl-xL. In this study, we report that 100 nM calphostin C also induces translocation and integration of monomeric Bax into mitochondrial membrane, followed by cytochrome c release into cytosol and subsequent decrease of mitochondrial inner membrane potential (DeltaPsim) before activation of caspase-3. The integration of monomeric Bax was associated with acquirement of alkali-resistance. The translocated monomeric Bax was partly homodimerized after cytochrome c release and decrease of DeltaPsim. The translocation and homodimerization of Bax, cytochrome c release, and decrease of DeltaPsim were not blocked by 100 microM z-VAD.fmk, a pan-caspase inhibitor, but the homodimerization of Bax and decrease of DeltaPsim were inhibited by 10 microM oligomycin, a mitochondrial F0F1-ATPase inhibitor. Therefore, it would be assumed that mitochondrial release of cytochrome c results from translocation and integration of Bax and is independent of permeability transition of mitochondria and caspase activation, representing a critical step in calphostin C-induced cell death.
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PMID:Calphostin C-mediated translocation and integration of Bax into mitochondria induces cytochrome c release before mitochondrial dysfunction. 1082 74

Glioblastoma multiforme (GBM) is the most frequent malignant brain tumor in adults and is invariably fatal. We have investigated the effect of cyclo-(Arg-Gly-Asp-D-Phe-Val) (cRGDfV) peptide on survival of human malignant glioma cells in vitro and in vivo. Immunofluorescent analyses revealed the presence of alpha(v)beta3 integrin on U-87MG and U-373MG cells, but minimal expression on U-251MG cells. Treatment of U-87MG and U-373MG cells in vitro with cRGDfV (20 microg/ml), but not the linear peptide, resulted in the appearance of rounded and loosely attached cells with subsequent cell death. By comparison, neither this cyclic peptide nor its linear homolog had any significant effect on growth and morphology of U-251MG cells. The death of cRGDfV-treated (20 microg/ml) glioma cells was blocked by pretreatment (10 microM) of cells with DEVD-FMK and LEHD-FMK, inhibitors of caspase-3 and caspase-9, respectively. Moreover, when glioma cells grown as spheroids were treated with cRGDfV (50 microg/ml), spheroid formation was markedly reduced. Further, treatment of intracranial U-87MG tumors in scid mice with cyclic peptide significantly (p < 0.001) prolonged their survival. These results indicated (i) that cRGDfV induced apoptosis of human glioma cells by binding alpha(v)beta3 integrin expressed on their cell surfaces and (ii) that cRGDfV may be an effective and non-toxic direct anti-tumor therapy for alpha(v)beta3-expressing GBMs.
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PMID:Human malignant glioma therapy using anti-alpha(v)beta3 integrin agents. 1089 66


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