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

The tumor suppressor gene PTEN (MMAC1, TEP1) encodes a dual-specificity phosphatase and is considered a progression-associated target of genetic alterations in human gliomas. Recently, it has been reported that the introduction of wild type PTEN into glioma cells containing endogenous mutant PTEN alleles (U87MG, LN-308), but not in those which retain wild-type PTEN (LN-18, LN-229), causes growth suppression and inhibits cellular migration, spreading and focal adhesion. Here, we show that PTEN gene transfer has no effect on the chemosensitivity of the four cell lines. Further, a correlational analysis of the endogenous PTEN status of 12 human glioma cell lines with their sensitivity to seven different cancer chemotherapy drugs reveals no link between PTEN and chemosensitivity. In contrast, ectopic expression of wild type PTEN, but not the PTEN(G129R) mutant, in PTEN-mutant gliomas markedly sensitizes these cells to irradiation and to CD95-ligand (CD95L)-induced apoptosis. PTEN-mediated facilitation of CD95L-induced apoptosis is associated with enhanced CD95L-evoked caspase 3 activity. Protein kinase B (PKB/Akt), previously shown to inhibit CD95L-induced apoptosis in nonglial COS7 cells, is inactivated by dephosphorylation. Interestingly, both PTEN-mutant U87MG and PTEN-wild-type LN-229 cells contain phosphorylated PKB constitutively. Wild-type PTEN gene transfer promotes dephosphorylation of PKB specifically in U87MG cells but not in LN-229 cells. Sensitization of U87MG cells to CD95L-apoptosis by wild-type PTEN is blocked by insulin-like growth factor-1 (IGF-1). The protection by IGF-1 is inhibited by the phosphoinositide 3-OH (PI 3) kinase inhibitor, wortmannin. Although PKB is a down-stream target of PI 3 kinase, the protection by IGF-1 was not associated with the reconstitution of PKB phosphorylation. Thus, PTEN may sensitize human malignant glioma cells to CD95L-induced apoptosis in a PI 3 kinase-dependent manner that may not require PKB phosphorylation.
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PMID:PTEN gene transfer in human malignant glioma: sensitization to irradiation and CD95L-induced apoptosis. 1043 16

Loss of the tumor suppressor MMAC1 has been shown to be involved in breast, prostate and brain cancer. Consistent with its identification as a tumor suppressor, expression of MMAC1 has been demonstrated to reduce cell proliferation, tumorigenicity, and motility as well as affect cell-cell and cell-matrix interactions of malignant human glioma cells. Subsequently, MMAC1 was shown to have lipid phosphatase activity towards PIP3 and protein phosphatase activity against focal adhesion kinase (FAK). The lipid phosphatase activity of MMAC1 results in decreased activation of the PIP3-dependent, anti-apoptotic kinase, AKT. It is thought that this inhibition of AKT culminates with reduced glioma cell proliferation. In contrast, MMAC1's effects on cell motility, cell - cell and cell - matrix interactions are thought to be due to its protein phosphatase activity towards FAK. However, recent studies suggest that the lipid phosphatase activity of MMAC1 correlates with its ability to be a tumor suppressor. The high rate of mutation of MMAC1 in late stage metastatic tumors suggests that effects of MMAC1 on motility, cell - cell and cell - matrix interactions are due to its tumor suppressor activity. Therefore the lipid phosphatase activity of MMAC1 may affect PIP3 dependent signaling pathways and result in reduced motility and altered cell - cell and cell - matrix interactions. We demonstrate here that expression of MMAC1 in human glioma cells reduced intracellular levels of inositol trisphosphate and inhibited extracellular Ca2+ influx, suggesting that MMAC1 affects the phospholipase C signaling pathway. In addition, we show that MMAC1 expression inhibits integrin-linked kinase activity. Furthermore, we show that these effects require the catalytic activity of MMAC1. Our data thus provide a link of MMAC1 to PIP3 dependent signaling pathways that regulate cell - matrix and cell - cell interactions as well as motility. Lastly, we demonstrate that AKT3, an isoform of AKT highly expressed in the brain, is also a target for MMAC1 repression. These data suggest an important role for AKT3 in glioblastoma multiforme. We therefore propose that repression of multiple PIP3 dependent signaling pathways may be required for MMAC1 to act as a tumor suppressor.
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PMID:The MMAC1 tumor suppressor phosphatase inhibits phospholipase C and integrin-linked kinase activity. 1064 97

Mutations of the tumor suppressor PTEN, a phosphatase with specificity for 3-phosphorylated inositol phospholipids, accompany progression of brain tumors from benign to the most malignant forms. Tumor progression, particularly in aggressive and malignant tumors, is associated with the induction of angiogenesis, a process termed the angiogenic switch. Therefore, we tested whether PTEN regulates tumor progression by modulating angiogenesis. U87MG glioma cells stably reconstituted with PTEN cDNA were tested for growth in a nude mouse orthotopic brain tumor model. We observed that the reconstitution of wild-type PTEN had no effect on in vitro proliferation but dramatically decreased tumor growth in vivo and prolonged survival in mice implanted intracranially with these tumor cells. PTEN reconstitution diminished phosphorylation of AKT within the PTEN-reconstituted tumor, induced thrombospondin 1 expression, and suppressed angiogenic activity. These effects were not observed in tumors reconstituted with a lipid phosphatase inactive G129E mutant of PTEN, a result that provides evidence that the lipid phosphatase activity of PTEN regulates the angiogenic response in vivo. These data provide evidence that PTEN regulates tumor-induced angiogenesis and the progression of gliomas to a malignant phenotype via the regulation of phosphoinositide-dependent signals.
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PMID:PTEN controls tumor-induced angiogenesis. 1127 65

Irradiation is one of the cornerstones used in the treatment of malignant glioma. However, the effect is modest and glioma cells generally display a pronounced radio-resistance. In this study, the effect of irradiation, alone and in combination with the antimicrotubule drug estramustine (EaM), was investigated in vitro using the BT4C rat glioma cell line, and in vivo the BT4C rat intracerebral glioma model was used. Apoptosis was detected by analysing DNA laddering, in situ end labelling (ISEL) and Annexin V reactivity. In addition, phosphorylation status of MAPK, JNK, p38, and AKT, proteins involved in pro- and anti-apoptotic signalling pathways was analysed by Western blotting. Irradiation did not induce apoptosis, neither in vitro nor in vivo. EaM, however, induced apoptosis in vivo and in vitro, regardless of whether EaM was given alone, before or after irradiation. When BT4C cells were treated with the caspase-3 inhibitor Ac-DEVD-CHO prior to EaM, the number of apoptotic cells was decreased, indicating an involvement of caspase-3. The signalling pathways regulating apoptosis are complex and involve kinases such as MAPK, JNK, p38 and AKT. Irradiation did not induce any changes in the expression levels or phosphorylation status of these proteins. On the other hand, the phosphorylation level of AKT was reduced after EaM treatment, which might, in part, propose how EaM induces apoptosis in glioma cells.
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PMID:The antimicrotubule drug estramustine but not irradiation induces apoptosis in malignant glioma involving AKT and caspase pathways. 1199 15

Previous molecular analyses of human astrocytomas have identified many genetic changes associated with astrocytoma formation and progression. In an effort to identify novel gene expression changes associated with astrocytoma formation, which might reveal new potential targets for glioma therapeutic drug design, we used the B8-RAS-transgenic mouse astrocytoma model. Using multiplex gene expression profiling, we found that growth-associated protein 43 (GAP43) RNA and protein expression were lost in select human and mouse glioma cell lines. In this study, we demonstrate that re-expression of GAP43 in deficient C6 glioma cells results in growth suppression in clonogenic assays, as well as in multiple independently derived C6 glioma cell lines in vitro. GAP43-expressing C6 cells also exhibit reduced tumor growth as s.c. explants in immunocompromised mice in vivo. In addition, GAP43-expressing C6 clones demonstrate impaired cell motility and increased homophilic aggregation. GAP43 re-expression is also associated with reduced mitogen-activated protein kinase and AKT activation in C6 cells, suggesting that GAP43 functions as a novel glioma growth suppressor by modulating mitogenic signaling pathways.
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PMID:The 43000 growth-associated protein functions as a negative growth regulator in glioma. 1278

Previous work from our laboratory demonstrated that PTEN regulates tumor-induced angiogenesis and thrombospondin 1 expression in malignant glioma. Herein, we demonstrated the first evidence that the systemic administration of a phosphatidylinositol 3'-kinase (PI3K) inhibitor (LY294002) has antitumor and antiangiogenic activity in vivo. We show that PTEN reconstitution diminished phosphorylation of AKT, induced the transactivation of p53 (7.5-fold induction) and increased the expression of p53 target genes, p21(waf-1) and insulin-like growth factor binding protein 3 in glioma cells. PTEN and LY294002 induced p53 activity in human brain endothelial cells, suggesting that PTEN and PI3K pathways can suppress the progression of cancer through direct actions on tumor and endothelial cells. The capacity of PTEN and LY294002 to inhibit U87MG or U373MG glioma growth was tested in an ectopic skin and orthotopic brain tumor model. LY294002 inhibited glioma tumor growth in vivo, induced tumor regression, decreased the incidence of brain tumors, and blocked the tumor-induced angiogenic response of U87MG cells in vivo. These data provide evidence that both PTEN and PI3K inhibitors regulate p53 function and display in vivo antiangiogenic and antitumor activity. These results provide evidence that the two tumor suppressor genes, PTEN and p53, act together to block tumor progression in vivo. Our data provide the first preclinical evidence for the in vivo efficacy for LY294002 in the treatment of malignant gliomas.
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PMID:PTEN and phosphatidylinositol 3'-kinase inhibitors up-regulate p53 and block tumor-induced angiogenesis: evidence for an effect on the tumor and endothelial compartment. 1283 45

The constitutively active, truncated epidermal growth factor receptor EGFRvIII lacks the ability of EGF binding due to a deletion of the NH(2)-terminal domain. EGFRvIII confers increased tumorigenicity, is coexpressed with EGFR wild type (wt) in human carcinoma and malignant glioma cells when grown as xenografts, but is not expressed in vitro. The effects of EGFRvIII expression on cellular radiation responses were studied in Chinese hamster ovary (CHO) cells transfected with plasmids expressing EGFRvIII (CHO.EGFRvIII) or EGFRwt (CHO.EGFRwt). CHO cells expressing similar levels of either receptor were employed to define their roles in response to EGF and ionizing radiation. EGF activated EGFRwt with no effect on EGFRvIII. In contrast, a single radiation exposure of 2 Gy resulted in a 2.8- and 4.3-fold increase in Tyr phosphorylation of EGFRwt and EGFRvIII, respectively. Downstream consequences of this radiation-induced activation were examined by inhibiting EGFRwt and EGFRvIII with AG1478 (kinase inhibitor). The radiation-induced 8.5-fold activation of the pro-proliferative mitogen-activated protein kinase and the 3.2-fold stimulation of the antiapoptotic AKT/phosphatidylinositol-3-kinase pathways by EGFRvIII far exceeded that in CHO.EGFR wt cells. Thus, based on colony formation and apoptosis assays, EGFRvIII expression conferred a stronger cytoprotective response to radiation than EGFRwt, resulting in relative radioresistance. Therefore, disabling EGFRvIII in addition to EGFRwt needs to be considered in any therapeutic approach aimed at targeting EGFR for tumor cell radiosensitization.
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PMID:EGFRvIII-mediated radioresistance through a strong cytoprotective response. 1294 1

Epidermal growth factor (EGF) receptor (EGFR) is commonly amplified and/or mutated in high-grade gliomas. Abnormal signaling from this receptor tyrosine kinase is believed to contribute to the malignant phenotypes seen in these tumors. Highly specific small molecule inhibitors of this receptor tyrosine kinase have been developed and may potentially improve the treatment of these highly aggressive brain tumors. A glioma cell line overexpressing EGFR was developed to mimic the situation of a malignant glioma with amplified EGFR, and this line was used to characterize the response to specific EGFR inhibitors. Treatment of our in vitro glioma model with the EGFR kinase inhibitors ZD1839 (Iressa) or PD153035, synthetic anilinoquinazolines with high specificity for EGFR, resulted in significant suppression of EGFR autophosphorylation even with very low levels of drug. However, significantly higher levels of drug were required to fully inhibit signaling through the phosphatidylinositol 3'-kinase/AKT and mitogen-activated protein kinase kinase/extracellular signal-regulated kinase (ERK) pathways. Interestingly, not all downstream signaling pathways displayed this resistance to inhibition. EGF-dependent activation of signal transducers and activators of transcription-3 occurred at low doses of EGFR inhibitors. The uncoupling of EGFR autophosphorylation and signaling through AKT and ERK was not dependent on EGFR overexpression. In addition, although this response was seen in other glioma and the SK-BR3 breast cancer cell lines, it was not universally present. The SQ20B head and neck squamous carcinoma cell line demonstrated loss of EGF-dependent AKT and ERK activation even at low doses of inhibitor. Despite significant loss of EGF-dependent autophosphorylation, the inability of low levels of EGFR inhibitor to suppress some downstream signaling pathways in our model glioma cell line permitted continued EGF-responsive decreases in the expression of the cyclin-dependent kinase inhibitor p27KIP and EGF-dependent proliferation/cell cycle progression. Although the mechanism responsible for the differential sensitivity of the various signal transduction pathways to EGFR inhibitors remains unclear, signaling through erbB2 does not appear to be involved. The ability of certain tumor cells to maintain signaling through AKT and ERK under EGFR inhibition may represent a potential mechanism of resistance by which a tumor cell may escape the antiproliferative activity of this new class of drugs.
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PMID:Resistance to small molecule inhibitors of epidermal growth factor receptor in malignant gliomas. 1461 44

Gliomas take a number of different genetic routes in the progression to glioblastoma multiforme, a highly invasive variant that is mostly unresponsive to current therapies. Gliomas express elevated levels of matrix metalloproteinases (MMPs), which have been implicated in the control of proliferation and invasion as well as neovascularization. Progressive loss of LGI1 expression has been associated with the development of high grade gliomas. We have shown previously that the forced re-expression of LGI1 in different glioma cells inhibits proliferation, invasiveness, and anchorage-independent growth in cells null for its expression. Here, using Affymetrix gene chip analysis, we show that reexpression of LGI1 in T98G cells results in the down-regulation of several MMP genes, in particular MMP1 and MMP3. LGI1 expression also results in the inhibition of ERK1/2 phosphorylation but not p38 phosphorylation. Inhibition of the MAPK pathway using the pharmacological inhibitors PD98059, U0126, and SB203580 in T98G LGI1-null cells inhibits MMP1 and MMP3 production in an ERK1/2-dependent manner. Treatment of LGI1-expressing cells with phorbol myristate acetate prevents the inhibition of MMP1/3 and restores invasiveness and ERK1/2 phosphorylation, suggesting that LGI1 acts through the ERK/MAPK pathway. Furthermore, LGI1 expression promotes phosphorylation of AKT, which leads to phosphorylation of Raf1(Ser-259), an event shown previously to negatively regulate ERK1/2 signaling. These data suggest that LGI1 plays a major role in suppressing the production of MMP1/3 through the phosphatidylinositol 3-kinase/ERK pathway. Loss of LGI1 expression, therefore, may be an important event in the progression of gliomas that leads to a more invasive phenotype in these cells.
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PMID:LGI1, a putative tumor metastasis suppressor gene, controls in vitro invasiveness and expression of matrix metalloproteinases in glioma cells through the ERK1/2 pathway. 1504 12

Gliomas are the most common primary neoplasm of the brain. Unfortunately, they are often refractory to treatment and portend a poor prognosis. However, recent discoveries have shed light on the molecular events driving glioma growth, including abnormalities of three major molecular pathways: extracellular growth factors and their receptors (eg, EGF/EGFR and PDGF/PDGFR), signal transduction cascades (eg, RAS and AKT), and cell proliferation controls (eg, INK4A-ARF). Each of these abnormalities is described in detail. Efforts to inhibit abnormally activated pathways are underway through multi-institutional clinical trials.
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PMID:Molecular biology of gliomas. 1510 49


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