Gene/Protein Disease Symptom Drug Enzyme Compound
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Query: UMLS:C0699790 (colon cancer)
 28,837 document(s) hit in 31,850,051 MEDLINE articles (0.00 seconds)

A unique feature of p21 that distinguishes it from the other cyclin-dependent kinase (CDK) inhibitors is its ability to associate with the proliferating cell nuclear antigen (PCNA), an auxiliary factor for DNA polymerases delta and epsilon. While it is now well established that inhibition of cyclin/CDK complexes by p21 can result in G1 cell cycle arrest, the consequences of p21/PCNA interaction on cell cycle progression have not yet been determined. Here, we show, using a tetracycline-regulated system, that expression of wild-type p21 in p53-deficient DLD1 human colon cancer cells inhibits DNA synthesis and causes G1 and G2 cell cycle arrest. Similar effects are observed in cells expressing p21CDK-, a mutant impaired in the interaction with CDKs, but not in cells expressing p21PCNA-, a mutant deficient for the interaction with PCNA. Analysis of cells treated with a p21-derived PCNA-binding peptide provides additional evidence that the growth inhibitory effects of p21 and p21CDK result from their ability to bind to PCNA. Our results suggest that p21 might inhibit cell cycle progression by two independent mechanisms, inhibition of cyclin/CDK complexes, and inhibition of PCNA function resulting in both G1 and G2 arrest.
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PMID:p21 binding to PCNA causes G1 and G2 cell cycle arrest in p53-deficient cells. 946 56

The cellular mechanisms regulating intestinal proliferation and differentiation remain largely undefined. Previously, we showed an early induction of the cyclin-dependent kinase (CDK) inhibitor p21(Waf1/Cip1) in Caco-2 cells, a human colon cancer line that spontaneously differentiates into a small bowel phenotype. The purpose of our present study was to assess the timing of cell cycle arrest in relation to differentiation in Caco-2 cells and to examine the mechanisms responsible for CDK inactivation. Caco-2 cells undergo a relative G1/S block and cease to proliferate at day 3 postconfluency; an increase in the activity of terminally differentiated brush-border enzymes (sucrase and alkaline phosphatase) was noted at day 6 postconfluency. Cell cycle block was associated with suppression of both CDK2 and CDK4 activities, which are important for G1/S progression. Treatment of the CDK immune complexes with the detergent deoxycholate (DOC) resulted in restoration of CDK2, but not CDK4, activity at day 3 postconfluency, suggesting the presence of inhibitory protein(s) binding to the cyclin/CDK2 complex at this time point. An increased binding of p21(Waf1/Cip1) to CDK2 complexes at day 3 postconfluency was noted, suggesting a potential role for p21(Waf1/Cip1) in CDK2 inactivation; however, immunodepletion of p21(Waf1/Cip1) from Caco-2 protein extracts demonstrated that p21(Waf1/Cip1) is only partially responsible for CDK2 suppression at day 3 postconfluency. A decrease in the cyclin E/CDK2 complex appears to contribute to the CDK2 inactivation noted at days 6 and 12 postconfluency. Taken together, our results suggest that multiple mechanisms contribute to CDK suppression during Caco-2 cell differentiation. Inhibition of CDK2 and CDK4 leads to G1 arrest and inhibition of proliferation that precede Caco-2 cell differentiation.
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PMID:Caco-2 intestinal cell differentiation is associated with G1 arrest and suppression of CDK2 and CDK4. 981 65

p53 tumor suppression is deficient in the majority of human cancers. Efforts to understand this pathway have identified cyclin-dependent kinase (CDK) inhibitors and suggested a potential for their replacement in human cancer. In the present studies, expression of a C-terminal deletion mutant of the human p21(WAF1/CIP1) CDK inhibitor completely suppressed the growth of colon cancer cells, whereas full-length p21 only partially suppressed growth. We prepared a replication-deficient adenoviral recombinant which expresses the p21 C-terminal mutant (Ad-WAF1-341) and compared its tumor suppressive abilities with Ad-p53 and Ad-LacZ. Ad-WAF1-341- and Ad-p53-infected cancer cells, but not Ad-LacZ-infected cancer cells, expressed a nuclear protein recognized by anti-p21 antibody and were deficient in cell cycle progression. The exogenous p21 mutant interacted with CDK2 but not proliferating cell nuclear antigen following infection of p21-/- cancer cells. Ad-WAF1-341 was more potent than Ad-p53 in inhibiting DNA synthesis in human papillomavirus 16 E6-expressing cancer cells. Most importantly, the Ad-WAF1-341-infected E6-expressing cells died, whereas most of the Ad-p53-infected cells continued to proliferate. Endonucleolytic cleavage of DNA was observed in Ad-WAF1-341-infected cancer cells. These observations suggest that Ad-WAF1-341 should be evaluated in the treatment of human papillomavirus-associated neoplasia and other neoplasias resistant to p53.
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PMID:Suppression of cancer cell growth by adenovirus expressing p21(WAF1/CIP1) deficient in PCNA interaction. 981 91

Sodium butyrate causes alteration of colon cancer cell morphology and biology towards that of a more differentiated phenotype. The retinoblastoma gene encodes a nuclear phosphoprotein (pRb) present in a wide range of human cancer cell lines including colon cancer cell lines. pRB is synthesized throughout the cell cycle and phosphorylated in a phase specific manner: the predominant proteins in G0/G1 are the unphosphorylated species (110 kD) whereas phosphorylated pRb (112-114 kD) are in S and G2. 110 kD pRb binds transcription factors and prevents transcription of responsive genes such as the gene for thymidine kinase, which are expressed in late G1. The precise mechanisms controlling cell arrest are unknown, but recent data suggest that cyclin-dependent kinase inhibitors such as p16 may play a role. The aim of the present study was to assess the effect of sodium butyrate on cell cycle staging, thymidine kinase activity, phosphorylation of the pRb protein and expression of p16. We show that sodium butyrate treatment induces differentiation of LS174T colon cancer cells, inhibits thymidine kinase activity concomitantly with induction of pRb dephosphorylation, p16 transcription and cell cycle arrest at G0/G1. Initial dephosphorylation was observed 24 h after treatment of LS174T cells with sodium butyrate, whereas complete shift to the dephosphorylated form was observed 3 days after treatment. Induction of pRb dephosphorylation by sodium butyrate preceded inhibition of growth and the specific cell cycle arrest. RNase protection assay with a p16 specific riboprobe showed undetectable levels in proliferating cells to several fold increase in differentiated colonocytes. In conclusion, the results provide evidence for a specific cellular mechanism of butyrate induced growth arrest and differentiation of a colon cancer cell line.
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PMID:Sodium butyrate induces retinoblastoma protein dephosphorylation, p16 expression and growth arrest of colon cancer cells. 982 7

The cyclin-dependent kinase (CDK) inhibitor p21(Cip1/Waf1) plays an essential role in the control of cell proliferation by modulating the activity of cyclin/CDK complexes in response to various intracellular or extracellular signals. Small variations in p21 expression levels may determine whether it acts as an inhibitor or an assembly factor for cyclin/CDK complexes. It is therefore critical to better characterize the mechanisms regulating p21 abundance. Here, we show, using a tetracycline-regulated system in p53-deficient DLD-1 human colon cancer cells, that p21 protein levels and stability are regulated by the proteasome-dependent degradation pathway and by association with its partners, CDKs and PCNA. A p21 mutant deficient for interaction with CDKs, p21CDK-, displayed an enhanced stability and greatly reduced sensitivity to proteasome-mediated proteolysis, indicating that association with cyclin/CDK complexes may trigger p21 degradation. In contrast, a p21 mutant impaired in the interaction with PCNA, p21PCNA-, exhibited a decreased stability, suggesting that association with PCNA protects p21 from proteasome-dependent degradation. Furthermore, the abundance of p21 itself, in addition to protein-protein interactions, may also modulate p21 stability since we found that high levels of p21 expression overcome proteasome-dependent regulation of p21 accumulation.
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PMID:Interaction with cyclin-dependent kinases and PCNA modulates proteasome-dependent degradation of p21. 982 54

Progression of cells through the G1 phase of the cell cycle requires the assembly and activation of specific cyclin:cyclin-dependent kinase (cdk) complexes in a tightly regulated, sequential fashion. To more clearly define the temporal events leading to the G1/S transition, sequential changes in the expression of cyclin E and cdks 2, 4, and 6, as well as the phosphorylation of the retinoblastoma protein (pRb), were assayed in RA28 cells, a variant of human colon cancer RKO cells which were modified by transfection of an ecdysone-inducible antisense (AS) CD1 expression system. Induction of cyclin D1 antisense mRNA by the ecdysteroid, ponasterone A, resulted in a 55% decrease in cyclin D1 mRNA and a 58% decrease in CD1 protein levels. There was a 2.4-fold decrease in the ratio of hyperphosphorylated pRb (ppRb) to hypophosphorylated pRb, as well as a 60-75% decrease in cdk 2- and cdk 4-specific phosphorylated pRb proteins. Of interest, cyclin E-dependent phosphorylation (cdk2) decreased 2.5-fold at 3 h despite only a 30% decrease in cyclin E protein level. Levels of cdk 2, cdk 4, and cdk 6 decreased 40-70%, while levels of cyclin A and B were unaffected by induction of CD1 antisense. Induction of a CD1 antisense gene in a human colon cancer cell line resulted in rapid, concomitant changes in CD1 mRNA and protein, cyclin E, cdk2, cdk4, and cdk6, as well as the ratio of ppRb to pRb. In this system, growth regulatory events are tightly regulated and the perturbed expression of a single protein, CD1, rapidly alters expression of multiple regulatory proteins involved in the G1/S transition phase of cell cycle progression.
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PMID:Downregulation of cyclin D1 alters cdk 4- and cdk 2-specific phosphorylation of retinoblastoma protein. 1103 57

Previous studies by our laboratory have shown that a noncalcemic fluorinated analog of 1alpha,25-dihydroxyvitamin D3, 1alpha,25-dihydroxy-16-ene-23-yne-26,27-hexafluorocholcal ciferol (F6-D3), significantly reduced the frequency of colonic adenomas and completely abolished the development of colonic adenocarcinomas in rats treated with azoxymethane. The mechanisms involved in this analog's chemopreventive actions, however, remain unclear. In the present study, we now show that although both 1alpha,25-dihydroxyvitamin D3 and F6-D3 inhibited the proliferation of CaCo-2 cells, a human colonic adenocarcinoma cell line, by increasing their doubling times, only F6-D3 caused an arrest of these cells in the G1 phase of their cell cycle. This arrest was accompanied by an increase in the expression of the cyclin-dependent kinase (cdk) inhibitor proteins, p2Waf1 and p27Kip1, which served to decrease the activity of cyclin-dependent kinase 2 and cyclin-dependent kinase 6, whereas the expression and phosphorylation of pRB were unchanged. In contrast to the increased expression of these cdk inhibitors, the expression of cyclin E was decreased, which further inhibited the activity of cyclin-dependent kinase 2. Collectively, the inhibition of these cyclin-dependent kinases served to arrest the CaCo-2 cells, independent of changes in pRB. Furthermore, antibody neutralization studies suggest that transforming growth factor-beta may mediate the coassociations between cdk2 and p27Kip1 and cyclin E induced by F6-D3. These data indicate that cell cycle arrest may, at least in part, underlie the chemopreventive actions of F6-D3 observed in the azoxymethane model of colon cancer. Furthermore, if the antiproliferative action observed in CaCo-2 cells also occurs in human colonic epithelium, F6-D3 may have chemopreventive potential against human colon cancer, as well.
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PMID:A vitamin D3 analog induces a G1-phase arrest in CaCo-2 cells by inhibiting cdk2 and cdk6: roles of cyclin E, p21Waf1, and p27Kip1. 1108 22

Previous studies have shown that dexamethasone, a synthetic glucocorticoid, can induce a G1 arrest, however, genistein, a natural isoflavonoid phytoestrogen, induces a G2/M arrest in the cell cycle progression in various cancer cell lines. A block of cell cycle checkpoint by dexamethasone and genistein correlates with a selective induction of cyclin-dependent kinase (Cdk) inhibitor p21WAF1/CIP1 in a tumor suppressor p53-independent manner and abolishment of Cdk2 phosphorylation. In the present study, the effects of dexamethasone and genistein (both singly and combined) on the expression of p21 in human hepatocellular Hep G2 and colorectal Colo320 HSR carcinoma cells were evaluated. Whereas dexamethasone mildly induced the level of p21 protein, genistein strongly increased the expression of p21 protein in our experimental condition. Both compounds also activated p21 promoter reporter constructs. The combined effects of dexamethasone and genistein on the induction of p21 protein and activation of p21 promoter were synergistic in both cell lines. These findings indicate that dexamethasone and genistein act in a synergistic fashion and have potential for combination chemotherapy for the treatment of liver and colon cancer.
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PMID:Synergistic effects of dexamethasone and genistein on the expression of Cdk inhibitor p21WAF1/CIP1 in human hepatocellular and colorectal carcinoma cells. 1129 47

The differential expression of hundreds of tightly, transcriptionally controlled genes in isolated human colorectal cancer and respective normal mucosa from two patients was analyzed by the cDNA macroarray technique. mRNA prepared from the colorectal cancer tumors was compared with 588 genes spotted onto the filter. Case A showed down-regulation of the expression of cell-cycle-related genes including cyclins, cyclin-dependent kinase (CDK) 2, and CDK-activating kinase, as compared with normal mucosa from the same patient. The tumors showed up-regulation of expression of angiogenesis-related genes such as type II cytoskeletal 8 keratin, metalloproteinase subtypes, VEGF, and bFGF, to over 5-fold the levels in normal mucosa. Thus, colorectal carcinoma tissues are characterized by the upregulation of molecules related with angiogenesis. These results suggest that angiogenesis-related molecules are suitable candidates for target-based therapies for colorectal cancer patients. In case B, the largest difference in expression between the tumor and mucosal tissues was observed in the MMP-1 gene. In contrast to the first case, there was no increase in expression of angiogenesis-related molecules or decrease in expression of cell-cycle-regulatory molecules. The expression profile was quite different between these two patients. This approach may eventually provide a mean of selecting target-based drugs in individual colon cancer patients.
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PMID:Upregulated expression of angiogenesis genes and down regulation of cell cycle genes in human colorectal cancer tissue determined by cDNA macroarray. 1129 27

The polyamines spermidine and spermine and their precursor, putrescine, are required for the growth and proliferation of eukaryotic cells. This study compares and contrasts growth arrest caused by polyamine depletion in the untransformed IEC-6 cell line with that in the p53-mutated colon cancer Caco-2 cell line. Cells were grown in the presence or absence of alpha-difluoromethylornithine (DFMO), a specific inhibitor of ornithine decarboxylase, the first rate-limiting enzyme in the synthesis of polyamines. Depletion of polyamines inhibited the growth of both cell lines equally and over the same time frame. However, whereas IEC-6 cells were arrested in the G(1) phase of the cell cycle, there was no accumulation of Caco-2 cells in any particular phase. In IEC-6 cells, growth arrest was accompanied by elevated levels of p53 and p21(Waf1/Cip1) (p21). There were no changes in p53 levels in Caco-2 cells. Levels of p21 increased in Caco-2 cells on day 2 without any effect on cell cycle progression. The amount of cyclin-dependent kinase (Cdk)2 protein was unchanged by polyamine depletion in both cell lines. However, the activity of Cdk2 was significantly inhibited by DFMO in IEC-6 cells. These data suggest that in the untransformed IEC-6 cells the regulation of Cdk2 activity and progression through the cell cycle are p53- and p21 dependent. Growth arrest in the p53-mutated Caco-2 line after polyamine depletion occurs by a different, yet unknown, mechanism.
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PMID:Polyamine depletion arrests growth of IEC-6 and Caco-2 cells by different mechanisms. 1140 53


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