Gene/Protein Disease Symptom Drug Enzyme Compound
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Query: UMLS:C0023418 (leukemia)
 93,477 document(s) hit in 31,850,051 MEDLINE articles (0.00 seconds)

Cytosine arabinoside is usually considered to be lethal by incorporation into DNA followed by chain termination. Recently, we have reported that the radical scavenger N-acetyl-cysteine (NAC) protects cultured clonogenic AML blast cells from the lethal affects of Ara-C if given before the drug. This observation provides indirect evidence that toxic reactive oxygen intermediates (ROI) are generated in AML blast cells following Ara-C-induced damage to DNA. In the present paper we present evidence in support of this hypothesis. Using flow cytometry and multiple fluorescent probes for live cell function, we have mapped a sequence of discrete stages that occur during Ara-C cytotoxicity. An early event was the increased generation of ROI. Initially this oxidative stress was countered by an increase in the cellular content of reduced glutathione (GSH), but cells then underwent an abrupt transition to a state characterized by low GSH and very high ROI generation indicative of collapse of cellular redox balance. Next, the capacity to maintain low intracellular ionized calcium was lost, probably due to lipid peroxidation at membrane sites of calcium regulation. Finally, surface membrane integrity was lost. Concurrent measurements of clonogenic cell survival insured the relevance of these flow cytometry measurements to the stem cell population. We used OCI/AML-2 cells transfected with bcl-2 to look for the place in this sequence where bcl-2 protein protects cells against apoptosis; bcl-2 transfectants showed an increase in ROI generation similar to controls, but were able to maintain GSH levels in the face of this oxidative stress. We conclude that oxidative stress plays a major role in Ara-C toxicity, and that bcl-2 protein protects cells by maintaining cellular redox balance in a reducing state. These studies complement previous work showing how regulators of AML growth affect the sensitivity of blast cells to Ara-C by changing the concentration or stability of bcl-2 protein.
Leukemia 1996 Jul
PMID:Generation of reactive oxygen intermediates after treatment of blasts of acute myeloblastic leukemia with cytosine arabinoside: role of bcl-2. 868 94

Peripheral blood samples from 18 patients with chronic lymphocytic leukemias (CLL) who were either untreated but who were later sensitive to chlorambucil (CLL S) or resistant to a combination containing doxorubicin, vincristine, cyclophosphamide and prednisone (CLL R) were studied for glutathione system, P-glycoprotein, PCNA and topoisomerase II expression. P-glycoprotein expression detected by an immunocytochemical technique using MRK 16 antibody was present at the same level in CLL S and CLL R. The percentage of cells positive for P-gp was below 5% in all samples tested. Topoisomerase IIalpha level was quantified by Western blot analysis. None of the 18 CLL samples had detectable topoisomerase IIalpha protein. In addition, 12 CLL were tested for PCNA staining and no samples had more than 1% of positive cells at immunocytochemical detection indicating that CLL cells were not engaged in the cell cycle. Some differences were found between CLL S and CLL R in the glutathione system. Glutathione concentration (GSH) and GST activity was the same in CLL S and CLL R. The glutathione-S-transferase (GST) isoenzyme profile was different in the two CLL groups. The mean GST-pi and GST-alpha quantitation were twice as high as in CLL R compared to CLL S, but this difference did not reach statistical significance because of large variations between CLL samples. A significant correlation was observed between GST-pi expression and GST activity using CDNB as the substrate. GST-mu was detected in only one of seven CLL before therapy and in six of 11 resistant to chemotherapy. No correlation was found between P-glycoprotein expression, GST activity and the different GST isoenzymes studied. These results suggest that the glutathione system could play a role in the resistance of anticancer agents in chronic lymphocytic leukemia. The role of the other drug resistance mechanisms (P-glycoprotein and topoisomerase IIalpha) seems to be of limited importance.
Leukemia 1996 Dec
PMID:Drug resistance mechanisms in chronic lymphocytic leukemia. 894 35

In AIDS patients, chronic inflammation and elevated levels of cytokines seem to be associated with reduced levels of glutathione (GSH). GSH has been proposed to inhibit the activation of NF-kB, which results in the inhibition of HIV-1 replication. Here, we show the evidence that GSH and N-acetylcysteine, but not L-cysteine or dithiothreitol, could inhibit the reverse transcriptase (RT) process of HIV-1. Such inhibition was not observed with the RT of murine leukemia virus.
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PMID:Intracellular glutathione as a possible direct blocker of HIV type 1 reverse transcription. 894 99

Chronic lymphocytic leukemia (CLL) is the most common leukemia in Western countries but the clinical presentation and rate of disease progression are highly variable. When treatment is required the most commonly used therapy is the nitrogen mustard alkylating agent, chlorambucil (CLB), with or without prednisone. Although CLB has been used in the treatment of CLL for forty years the exact mechanism of action of this agent in CLL is still unclear. Studies in proliferating model tumor systems have demonstrated that CLB can bind to a variety of cellular structures such as membranes, RNA, proteins and DNA; however, DNA crosslinking appears to be most important for antitumor activity in these systems. In addition, a number of different mechanisms can contribute to CLB resistance in these tumor models including increased drug metabolism, DNA repair and CLB detoxification resulting from elevated levels of glutathione (GSH) and glutathione S-transferase (GST) activity. However, unlike tumor models in vitro, CLL cells are generally not proliferating and studies in CLL cells have raised questions about the hypothesis that DNA crosslinking is the major mechanism of antitumor action for CLB in this disease. CLB induces apoptosis in CLL cells and this appears to correlate with the clinical effects of this agent. Thus, alkylation of cellular targets other than DNA, which can also induce apoptosis, may contribute to the activity of CLB. Alterations in genes such as p53, mdm-2, bcl-2 and bax which control entry into apoptosis may cause drug resistance. Loss of wild-type p53 by mutation or deletion occurs in 10 to 15% of CLL patients and appears to correlate strongly with poor clinical response to CLB. The induction of apoptosis by CLB is paralleled by an increase in P53 and Mdm-2 but this increase in not observed in patients with p53 mutations indicating that with high drug concentrations CLB can produce cell death through P53 independent pathways. The level of Mdm-2 mRNA in the CLL cells is not a useful predictor of drug sensitivity. In addition, although Bax and Bcl-2 are important regulators of apoptosis and the levels of these proteins are elevated in CLL cells compared with normal B cells, the levels of Bax and Bcl-2, or the Bax:Bcl-2 ratio, are not important determinants of drug sensitivity in this leukemia. Finally, whereas CLB and nucleoside analogs may produce cell death in CLL by a P53 dependent pathway other agents, such as dexamethasone or vincristine, may act through P53-independent pathways.
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PMID:Chlorambucil in chronic lymphocytic leukemia: mechanism of action. 903 Oct 99

Ethyldeshydroxy-sparsomycin (EdSm) is a ribosomal protein synthesis inhibitor which synergistically enhances the antitumor activity of cisplatin against L1210 leukemia in vivo. Because cellular glutathione (GSH) and glutathione S-transferases (GST) are reported to interfere with the antitumor activity of cisplatin, we analyzed the effect of EdSm and cisplatin on GSH and GST activity in selected tumor cells. For this purpose we used three murine leukemia tumors with different sensitivities towards EdSm and cisplatin: L1210-WT, sensitive to both drugs, L1210-Sm, resistant to EdSm, and L1210-CDDP, resistant to cisplatin. No significant differences were detectable between these three cell lines regarding the population doubling time, the cell size, and the cellular level of protein and glutathione. Neither of the resistant L1210 subclones showed P-glycoprotein expression. Drug exposure, however, changed the intracellular dynamics. Exposure to EdSm strongly decreased the amount of cellular protein, decreased the overall GST activity and led to GSH depletion, whereas exposure to cisplatin induced a rise in the amount of protein, in GSH, and in the total GST activity. These effects are dose-dependent and correlate well with the sensitivity of the tumor cells for EdSm or cisplatin. In addition, exposure to EdSm lowered the V(max) of GST in L1210-WT and L1210-Sm; however, in L1210-CDDP both the V(max) and the K(m) were increased. That this was not a direct effect of EdSm on GST was shown in a cell-free system, where EdSm did not influence the GST activity nor could it act as a substrate for GST. Our results suggest that the synergistic combination of EdSm and cisplatin might be explained by EdSm switching off the cellular detoxification mechanism for cisplatin, i.e. by inhibition of de novo synthesis and subsequent depletion of GSH and GST.
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PMID:The effect of ethyldeshydroxy-sparsomycin and cisplatin on the intracellular glutathione level and glutathione S-transferase activity. 918 Mar 88

The molecular basis of the differential sensitivity of normal hematopoietic stem cells and of leukemia, lymphoma, and neuroblastoma cells to merocyanine 540 (MC540)-mediated photodynamic therapy (PDT) is not yet completely understood. While the capacity to bind dye molecules appears to be the major determinant of a cell's susceptibility of MC540-mediated PDT, we here present evidence that under certain experimental conditions a cell's capacity to repair MC540-mediated photodynamic damage is also an important factor. Two parameters, temperature and intracellular glutathione (GSH) content, were varied to investigate the role of cellular defense mechanisms in the dye-sensitized photoinactivation of normal murine granulocyte/macrophage progenitors (CFU-GM) and K562, L1210, and melphalan-resistant L1210/L-PAM1 leukemia cells. When exposed to MC540 and light at room temperature, the three leukemia cell lines bound similar amounts of dye and accumulated similar amounts of lipid hydroperoxide (LOOH) but differed markedly in their sensitivity to MC540-mediated PDT. Performing MC540-mediated PDT at 4 degrees C instead of at room temperature reduced dye binding and LOOH generation and enhanced cytotoxicity in some but not all cell lines. A brief (< or = 120 minutes) incubation at 37 degrees C immediately following MC540-mediated PDT accelerated the decay of LOOH in all leukemic cell lines and reduced cell kill by about 2 log in both CFU-GM and leukemia cells. The effect of post-PDT incubation at 37 degrees C on LOOH decay was most pronounced in K562 and least pronounced in L1210/L-PAM1 cells, whereas its effect on cell survival was less pronounced in L1210 cells than in the remaining cell types. L1210/L-PAM1 cells whose GSH content had been reduced from 8.2 to 1.6 micrograms/mg protein by incubation with buthionine sulfoximine recovered from potentially lethal photodynamic damage as rapidly as untreated L1210/L-PAM1 cells and more rapidly than wild-type L1210 cells with a GSH content of 4.5 micrograms/mg protein. Thus, with regard to capacity of L1210/L-PAM1 cells to recover from photodynamic damage, the cells' enhanced capacity to synthesize GSH appeared more decisive than intracellular GSH levels per se. Taken together, these data suggest that temperature-dependent cellular defense mechanisms are significant determinants of a cell's susceptibility to MC540-mediated PDT. The data emphasize the need for temperature control during and immediately after the photochemical purging of autologous bone marrow or peripheral blood stem cells.
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PMID:Role of cytoprotective mechanisms in the photochemical purging of autologous bone marrow grafts. 921 39

Arachidonate lipoxygenases (LOX) and their products play an important role in mediating growth factor-supported tumor cell proliferation and growth. The LOX pathway may also be critical in regulating tumor cell survival and apoptosis. Blocking the 12-LOX gene expression with sequence-specific antisense oligos or its activity with general or isoform-specific LOX inhibitors induces a strong apoptotic response in rat W256 carcinosarcoma cells of the monocytoid origin (Tang et al., 1996, Proc. Natl. Acad. Sci. U.S.A., 93:5241-5246). In the present study, several molecular approaches confirmed the predominant expression of platelet-type 12-LOX in W256 cells, with no or little expression of 5- and 15-LOX. NDGA, a general LOX inhibitor and BHPP, a 12-LOX-selective inhibitor, induced rapid and dose-dependent apoptosis of serum-cultured W256 cells as well as several other tumor (in particular leukemia) cell lines, thus suggesting a potential role for LOX in mediating serum-supported tumor cell survival. The molecular mechanism of NDGA-induced W256 cell death was subsequently investigated. NDGA-induced apoptosis could be significantly postponed by overexpression of 12-LOX, thus suggesting that the NDGA effect is, at least partly, dependent on its inhibition of LOX (i.e., 12-LOX). W256 cell apoptosis induced by NDGA could also be effectively inhibited by GSH-elevating or thiol agents as well as by lipid peroxidation inhibitors and an inhibitor of mitochondria respiratory chain rotenone. Further experiments demonstrated that NDGA treatment triggered rapid lipid peroxidation leading to the depletion of cytosolic and mitochondrial GSH pools. Interestingly, the lipid peroxidation induced by NDGA could not be inhibited by conventional free radical scavengers nor by cyclooxygenase or cytochrome P-450 monooxygenase inhibitors. In summary, the present work suggests a role of 12-LOX in regulating serum (growth factor)-supported survival of certain tumor cells.
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PMID:Apoptosis of W256 carcinosarcoma cells of the monocytoid origin induced by NDGA involves lipid peroxidation and depletion of GSH: role of 12-lipoxygenase in regulating tumor cell survival. 925 37

Analysis of rat, pre-T cell 'Nb2 lymphoma' sublines, manifesting different degrees of malignant progression, can indicate phenotypic changes potentially useful as therapeutic targets. In this study, the prolactin (cytokine)-dependent Nb2-11 and autonomous Nb2-SFJCD1 sublines were compared for in vitro thiol growth requirements. Whereas Nb2-11 culture growth depended on 2-mercaptoethanol (2-ME; 33-100 microM), Nb2-SFJCD1 cells were 2-ME-independent. This difference stemmed from differential uptake of exogenous L-cystine, critically required for proliferation. Uptake of 35S-L-cystine (10 microCi/ml; 40 microM) showed Nb2-11 cells had low cystine uptake capability; 2-ME enhanced cystine uptake to growth-sustaining levels. Nb2-SFJCD1 cells did not require 2-ME due to intrinsic, 11-fold higher cystine uptake via the x(c)- cystine/glutamate transport system. In absence of 2-ME, monosodium glutamate abrogated Nb2-SFJCD1 proliferation by specifically inhibiting cystine uptake (85% at 10 mM). Elevated glutathione (GSH) levels were not essential for growth of either line as shown with L-buthionine-(S,R)-sulfoximine (0.1-4 mM) treatment. The cyst(e)ine requirement therefore did not primarily involve maintenance of normal GSH levels, reported critical for T lymphocyte replication. These and other results suggest increased cystine uptake capability constitutes another potential step in progression of T cell cancers which is not coupled to cytokine autonomy or metastatic ability development. The x(c)- transport system apparently provides a novel target for T cell cancer therapy. Its inhibition would suppress cystine uptake by certain progressed cells, and also interfere with cystine uptake, and subsequent cysteine release, by eg macrophages, thought to have a role in cysteine delivery to lymphoid cells.
Leukemia 1997 Aug
PMID:Increased cystine uptake capability associated with malignant progression of Nb2 lymphoma cells. 926 89

Glutathione S transferase theta 1 (GSTT1) is implicated in the detoxification of different substances, including carcinogens. Recently, an increased incidence of GSTT1 null genotype was found in myelodysplastic syndromes (MDS) by comparison with a control population. We analyzed GSTT1 gene by PCR in 174 MDS cases and 100 controls. The incidence of GSTT1 null genotype was 22% in MDS in 19% in controls (P = 0.53). The incidence of GSTT1 null genotype in MDS did not differ according to gender, FAB classification, karyotype and whether MDS were therapy related or 'de novo'. In 86 of the de novo cases, data on previous occupational and environmental exposure to a list of 170 substances were available. In those MDS patients, a significantly lower frequency of GSTT1 null genotype was seen in cases with previous jobs exposed to chemicals, and with previous exposure to mineral dusts and exhaust gases. A lower frequency (but with only borderline significance) was seen in MDS patients who had been coal miners and those who had been exposed to any of the 70 substances analyzed. Overall, GSTT1 null genotype occurred at a similar incidence (19%) in controls and in MDS cases previously exposed to any substance, but tended to be higher in unexposed MDS patients (40%, P = 0.07). Our results do not confirm the higher incidence of GSTT1 null genotype observed in MDS. The lower incidence of GSTT1 null genotype in MDS cases exposed to some compounds previously found associated with MDS is apparently unexpected. However, it could be explained by the fact that GSTT1 enzyme, which has a detoxification role for some compounds, could also have an activating role for other substances, including solvents.
Leukemia 1997 Sep
PMID:Glutathione S transferase theta 1 gene defects in myelodysplastic syndromes and their correlation with karyotype and exposure to potential carcinogens. 930 16

Naphthoquinone compounds have various pharmacological effects such as antiviral, antifungal and anticancer activities. We demonstrated the differentiation of the inducing effect of a naphthoquinone derivative, 2-chloro-3-amino-1,4-nahpthoquinone (NQCA) on the human leukemia cell line U-937. When U-937 cells were treated with NQCA for 4 days, phenotypes indicative of differentiation such as nitroblue tetrazolium (NBT)-reducing activity and phagocytosis were induced. To evaluate the route of differentiation of U-937 cells induced by NQCA, we determined naphthol AS-D chloroacetate esterase and alpha-naphthyl acetate esterase activities. Four days treatment of U-937 cells with NQCA increased alpha-naphthyl acetate esterase activity about 63.5% but naphthol AS-D chloroacetate esterase was not detected. These results indicate that NQCA caused differentiation of U-937 cells into macrophage-like cells. Since protein kinase C (PKC) and protein kinase A (PKA) have important roles in cell-differentiation and proliferation, we employed a PKC inhibitor NA-382 and a PKA inhibitor H-89 to examine the effects of each kinase on the differentiation of U-937 cells. The PKC inhibitor NA-382 decreased the effect of NQCA on U-937 cells, while the PKA inhibitor H-89 did not. Also glutathione (GSH) inhibited the effect of NQCA. It is concluded that the differentiation-inducing effect of NQCA on U-937 cells may be attributed to PKC activation followed by production of free radicals.
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PMID:Induction of differentiation of U-937 cells by 2-chloro-3-amino-1,4-naphthoquinone. 934 33


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