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)

Degradation of the extracellular matrix is a prerequisite for acquisition of the invasive phenotype. Several proteinases released by invading tumor cells appear to participate in the focal degradation of extracellular matrix proteins. Using an enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay, enzymatic assays, Western and Northern blotting techniques, we determined whether increased levels of the cysteine protease cathepsin B correlated with the progression and invasion of human gliomas. The amount of cathepsin B activity and protein content were highest in glioblastomas, lower in anaplastic astrocytomas and lowest in normal brain tissue and low-grade gliomas. There were significantly higher amounts of M(r) 25,000 and 26,000 bands in glioblastoma and anaplastic astrocytoma than in normal brain and low-grade glioma tissue extracts as determined by Western blotting with anti-cathepsin antibodies. In addition, cathepsin B transcripts were overexpressed in anaplastic astrocytoma (about two- to three-fold), in glioblastoma (about eight- to 10-fold), compared with normal brain tissue and low-grade glioma. Immunohistochemical staining for cathepsin B showed intense immunoreactivity in tumor and endothelial cells of glioblastomas and anaplastic astrocytomas but only weak immunoreactivity in low-grade glioma and normal brain tissues. Therefore, we conclude that cathepsin B expression is greatest in highly malignant astrocytomas, especially in glioblastomas, and is correlated with the malignant progression of astrocytomas.
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PMID:Overexpression and localization of cathepsin B during the progression of human gliomas. 782 Sep 56

Increased levels of human cysteine proteases have been implicated in the progression of tumors from the premalignant to the malignant state. The physiological activities of these proteases are regulated by their interactions with specific inhibitors. To our knowledge there have been no previous reports about the cysteine protease inhibitors (CPIs) in human brain tumors. In the study reported here, we determined CPI activity during glioma progression and compared that with normal human brain tissue. We also determined CPI activities in meningioma and glioblastoma cell lines in vitro. This activity was significantly higher in normal brain tissue and low-grade glioma than in anaplastic astrocytoma and glioblastoma. CPI activity was significantly higher in benign and atypical meningioma cell extracts in comparison with those from malignant meningiomas and with those from glioblastoma cell lines. After several passages, one benign meningioma cell line showed reduced levels of CPI and increased levels of cathepsin. Our results suggest that decreases in the activities of CPI may contribute to the malignant properties of brain tumors.
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PMID:Expression of cysteine protease inhibitors in human gliomas and meningiomas. 887 8

Acid proteinases of C6 rat glioma cells were analyzed by means of gelatine polyacrylamide electrophoresis with respect to their responses to stress (heat shock and butanol). Proteinase activities on gelatine gels were characterized by their molecular masses. pH-optima, isoelectric points and reactions to inhibitors. Four bands of 25, 35 and 65/85 kDa most probably represent active and proforms as well as precursor complexes of lysosomal cysteine proteinases with pH optima between 4.0 and 5.0. The 25-kDa band seems to contain cathepsin L and B, the 35-kDa band proforms of cathepsin L and B and the 65/85-kDa bands possibly precursor complexes of cathepsin L and B. After 30-min heat shocks of different temperatures (40-50 degrees C), the 35-kDa activity increased, whereas the 65/85-kDa activity decreased after exposure to 42 and 44 degrees C, which also caused a strong increase in the level of the inducible heat shock protein of 68 kDa (HSP 68). The alterations of the proteinase activities and the increases of the HSP 68 levels occur at heat shock treatments that cause cell death in about 25-40% of the population as determined by Trypan blue staining. HSP 68 induction and proteinase activity changes were also observed 12 hr after a 1-hr treatment with different butanol concentrations (0.14-0.16 M). Kinetics of the response to a 30-min heat shock (44 degrees C) revealed a maximal decrease of the 35-kDa and a maximal increase of the 65/85-kDa activities after 12 hr recovery. When cells were exposed to repeated heat shocks (44 degrees C) at 12-hr intervals, the HSP 68 level further increased, whereas the 35-kDa and 65/85-kDa proteinase activities did not change. This result indicates a role of HSP 68 (or other HSPs) in the processing or stability of the putative cathepsin precursors (65/85-kDa complexes).
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PMID:Stress response of lysosomal cysteine proteinases in rat C6 glioma cells. 922 78

Thrombin (THR) plays a key role in the brain under physiological and pathological conditions. Several of the biological activities of thrombin have been shown to be mainly driven through activation of protease-activated receptor-1 (PAR-1)-type thrombin receptor. Here we have studied the effect of THR and PAR-1-activating peptide (PAR1-AP), SFLLRN, on cytokine-induced expression of inducible nitric oxide (iNOS), a prominent marker of astroglial activation using the rat C6 glioma cells. In this cell line, THR (1-10 U/mL) and PAR1-AP (1-100 microM) induced a significant concentration-dependent increase both of IFN-gamma- (250 U/mL) or TNF-alpha- (500 U/mL) induced NO release. The observed increase of NO production was related to an enhancement of iNOS expression as measured in cell lysates prepared from different treatments by using SDS-PAGE followed by western blot analysis. The effect of THR, but not that of PAR1-AP, was significantly inhibited by hirulog(TM) (60 microg/mL), a specific and stochiometric THR inhibitor or by cathepsin-G (40 mU/mL), an inhibitor of PAR-1. In conclusion our data suggest a role for THR through activation of PAR-1 in the induction of astroglial iNOS, and further support the hypothesis that THR may function as an important pathophysiological modulator of the inflammatory response.
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PMID:Thrombin and PAR-1 activating peptide increase iNOS expression in cytokine-stimulated C6 glioma cells. 1170 59

The expression patterns of different classes of peptidases in central nervous system (CNS) tumours have been most extensively studied in astrocytomas and meningiomas. Although the two types of tumours are very different in most respects, both may invade locally into normal brain. This process of invasion includes increased synthesis and secretion of lysosomal proteolytic enzymes - cathepsins. Aspartic endopeptidase cathepsin (Cat) D levels were found to be elevated in high-grade astrocytoma and partial inhibition of glioblastoma cell invasion by anti-Cat D antibody suggests that the enzyme activity is involved in the invasion process. Several studies on cysteine endopeptidase (CP) Cat B in gliomas agreed that transcript abundance, protein level and activity of Cat B increased in high-grade astrocytoma cultures compared with low-grade astrocytoma cultures and normal brain. Moreover, in glioma biopsies Cat B levels correlated with evidence of clinical invasion and it has been demonstrated that Cat B both in tumour cells and in endothelial cells can serve as a new biological marker for prognosis in glioblastoma patients. A high level of Cat B protein was also a diagnostic marker for invasive types of meningioma, distinguishing between histomorphologically benign, but invasive meningiomas and noninvasive, so-called clear-benign meningiomas. Cat L was also significantly increased in high-grade astrocytoma compared with low-grade astrocytoma and normal brain. Specific Cat L antibodies and antisense Cat L RNA transfection significantly lowered glioblastoma cell invasion. In meningioma, Cat L was a less-significant marker of invasion than Cat B. In contrast to cathepsins, the activities of endogenous cysteine peptidase inhibitors (CPIs), including stefins, cystatins and kininogens, were significantly higher in benign and atypical meningioma cell extracts than in malignant meningioma, and low-grade compared to high-grade astrocytoma. However, very low levels of stefins A and B were found in meningioma and glioblastoma tissues. Further studies on the expression levels and balance between cysteine endopeptidases (CPs) and CPIs would improve the clinical application of cathepsins in prognosis, which would lead to more-informed therapeutic strategies.
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PMID:Lysosomal enzymes, cathepsins in brain tumour invasion. 1216 Jan 37

Gliomas are often resistant to the induction of apoptotic cell death as a result of the development of survival mechanisms during astrocyte malignant transformation. In particular, the overexpression of Bcl-2-family members interferes with apoptosis initiation by DNA-damaging agents (e.g., cisplatin) or soluble death ligands (e.g., TRAIL). Using low-passage-number cultures of glioma cells, we have shown that parvovirus H-1 is able to induce death in cells resistant to TRAIL, cisplatin, or both, even when Bcl-2 is overexpressed. Parvovirus H-1 triggers cell death through both the accumulation of lysosomal cathepsins B and L in the cytosol of infected cells and the reduction of the levels of cystatin B and C, two cathepsin inhibitors. The impairment of either of these effects protects glioma cells from the viral lytic effect. In normal human astrocytes, parvovirus H-1 fails to induce a killing mechanism. In vivo, parvovirus H-1 infection of rat glioma cells intracranially implanted into recipient animals triggers cathepsin B activation as well. This report identifies for the first time cellular effectors of the killing activity of parvovirus H-1 against malignant brain cells and opens up a therapeutic approach which circumvents their frequent resistance to other death inducers.
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PMID:Cytosolic activation of cathepsins mediates parvovirus H-1-induced killing of cisplatin and TRAIL-resistant glioma cells. 1728 56

Cells that migrate away from a central tumour into brain tissue are responsible for inefficient glioblastoma treatment. This migratory behaviour depends partially on lysosomal cysteine cathepsins. Reportedly, the expression of cathepsins B, L and S gradually increases in the progression from benign astrocytoma to the malignant glioblastoma, although their specific roles in glioma progression have not been revealed. The aim of this study was to clarify their specific contribution to glioblastoma cell invasion. The differences between the matrix invading cells and non-invading core cells from spheroids derived from glioblastoma cell culture and from glioblastoma patients' biopsies, and embedded in type I collagen, have been studied at the mRNA, protein and cathepsin activity levels. Analyses of the two types of cells showed that the three cathepsins were up-regulated post-translationally, their specific activities increasing in the invading cells. The cystatin levels were also differentially altered, resulting in higher ratio of cathepsins B and L to stefin B in the invading cells. However, using specific synthetic inhibitors and silencing strategies revealed that only cathepsin B activity was involved in the invasion of glioblastoma cells, confirming previous notion of cathepsin B as tumour invasiveness biomarker. Our data support the concept of specific roles of cysteine cathepsins in cancer progression. Finally the study points out on the complexity of protease regulation and the need to include functional proteomics in the systems biology approaches to understand the processes associated with glioma invasion and progression.
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PMID:Post-translational regulation of cathepsin B, but not of other cysteine cathepsins, contributes to increased glioblastoma cell invasiveness in vitro. 1943 18

Microglia contributes significantly to brain tumor mass, particularly in astrocytic gliomas. Here, we examine the cytotoxic effects of soluble components secreted from microglia culture on glioma cells. Microglia conditioned culture medium (MCM) actively stimulated apoptotic death of glioma cells, and the effects of MCM prepared from LPS- or IFN-gamma-activated microglia were more pronounced. The cytotoxic effects were glioma-specific in that primary cultured rat astrocytes were not affected by MCM. A donor of peroxynitrite induced glioma-specific cell death. In addition, NO synthase inhibitor suppressed glioma cell death induced by activated MCM, indicating that NO is one of the key molecules responsible for glioma cytotoxicity mediated by activated MCM. However, since unstimulated resting microglia produces low or very limited level of NO, MCM may contain other critical molecule(s) that induce glioma apoptosis. To identify the proteins secreted in MCM, proteomic analysis was performed on control or activated medium. Among over 200 protein spots detected by Coomassie blue staining, we identified 26 constitutive and 28 LPS- or IFN-gamma-regulated MCM proteins. Several cathepsin proteases were markedly expressed, which were reduced upon activation. In particular, suppression of cathepsin B by the chemical inhibitors significantly reversed MCM-induced glioma cell death, implying a critical role of this protease in cytotoxicity. Our findings provide evidence on the functional implications of specific microglial-secreted proteins in glioma cytotoxicity, as well as a basis to develop a proteomic databank of both basal and activation-related proteins in microglia.
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PMID:Induction of glioma apoptosis by microglia-secreted molecules: The role of nitric oxide and cathepsin B. 1974 28

AMP-activated protein kinase (AMPK) is an evolutionarily conserved energy sensor important for cell growth, proliferation, survival, and metabolic regulation. Active AMPK inhibits biosynthetic enzymes like mTOR and acetyl CoA carboxylase (required for protein and lipid synthesis, respectively) to ensure that cells maintain essential nutrients and energy during metabolic crisis. Despite our knowledge about this incredibly important kinase, no specific chemical inhibitors are available to examine its function. However, one small molecule known as compound C (also called dorsomorphin) has been widely used in cell-based, biochemical, and in vivo assays as a selective AMPK inhibitor. In nearly all these reports including a recent study in glioma, the biochemical and cellular effects of compound C have been attributed to its inhibitory action toward AMPK. While examining the status of AMPK activation in human gliomas, we observed that glioblastomas express copious amount of active AMPK. Compound C effectively reduced glioma viability in vitro both by inhibiting proliferation and inducing cell death. As expected, compound C inhibited AMPK; however, all the antiproliferative effects of this compound were AMPK independent. Instead, compound C killed glioma cells by multiple mechanisms, including activation of the calpain/cathepsin pathway, inhibition of AKT, mTORC1/C2, cell-cycle block at G2-M, and induction of necroptosis and autophagy. Importantly, normal astrocytes were significantly less susceptible to compound C. In summary, compound C is an extremely potent antiglioma agent but we suggest that caution should be taken in interpreting results when this compound is used as an AMPK inhibitor.
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PMID:The AMPK inhibitor compound C is a potent AMPK-independent antiglioma agent. 2441 61

Proteases, including intracellular proteases, play roles at many different stages of malignant progression. Our focus here is cathepsin B, a lysosomal cysteine cathepsin. High levels of cathepsin B are found in a wide variety of human cancers, levels that often induce secretion and association of cathepsin B with the tumor cell membrane. In experimental models, such as transgenic models of murine pancreatic and mammary carcinomas, causal roles for cathepsin B have been demonstrated in initiation, growth/tumor cell proliferation, angiogenesis, invasion, and metastasis. Tumor growth in transgenic models is promoted by cathepsin B in tumor-associated cells, for example, tumor-associated macrophages, as well as in tumor cells. In transgenic models, the absence of cathepsin B has been associated with enhanced apoptosis, yet cathepsin B also has been shown to contribute to apoptosis. Cathepsin B is part of a proteolytic pathway identified in xenograft models of human glioma; targeting only cathepsin B in these tumors is less effective than targeting cathepsin B in combination with other proteases or protease receptors. Understanding the mechanisms responsible for increased expression of cathepsin B in tumors and association of cathepsin B with tumor cell membranes is needed to determine whether targeting cathepsin B could be of therapeutic benefit.
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PMID:Cathepsin B: multiple roles in cancer. 2467 70


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