Gene/Protein Disease Symptom Drug Enzyme Compound
Pivot Concepts:   Target Concepts:
Query: UNIPROT:P10415 (Bcl-2)
 33,771 document(s) hit in 31,850,051 MEDLINE articles (0.00 seconds)

Ara-C has been shown to induce apoptosis of human acute myelogenous leukemia HL-60 cells. The DNA repair enzyme poly(ADP-ribose) polymerase (PARP) is known to be degraded during apoptosis. PARP as a substrate is cleaved by the Yama protease, encoded by the CPP32beta/Yama gene. Yama belongs to the interleukin 1beta converting enzyme/ced-3 family of cysteine proteases that are activated as a cascade, producing proteolytic cleavage of specific substrates that results in the morphological and biochemical features of apoptosis. In the present studies, we determined the effect of high intracellular levels of the antiapoptosis Bcl-2 or Bcl-xL protein on Yama protease activation and PARP degradation during Ara-C-induced apoptosis. For this, we utilized HL-60/Bcl-2, HL-60/Bcl-xL, or control HL-60/neo cells, which were created by transfection of the cDNA of the bcl-2, bcl-xL, or the neomycin-resistant genes, respectively. As compared to HL-60/neo, HL-60/Bcl-2 and HL-60/Bcl-xL cells have 5-fold greater expression of Bcl-2 and Bcl-xL, respectively. However, these cell lines have similar levels of p32Yama and PARP. Treatment with 10 or 100 microM Ara-C for 4 h produced DNA fragmentation and morphological features of apoptosis in HL-60/neo cells. This was associated with the cleavage and activation of p32Yama and PARP degradation but not with the induction of Yama mRNA. In contrast, in HL-60/Bcl-2 and HL-60/ Bcl-xL cells, Ara-C-induced p32Yama activation by its cleavage, PARP degradation and apoptosis were significantly inhibited. High Bcl-2 and Bcl-xL levels in these cells also inhibited Yama protease activity, PARP degradation, and apoptosis due to clinically relevant concentrations of etoposide and mitoxantrone. These results suggest that the activation of the Yama protease and PARP degradation are involved in Ara-C-, etoposide-, or mitoxantrone-induced apoptosis. In addition, they suggest that Bcl-2 and Bcl-xL antagonize drug-induced apoptosis by a mechanism that interferes in the activity of a key cysteine protease that is involved in the execution of apoptosis.
 ...
PMID:Overexpression of Bcl-2 or Bcl-xL inhibits Ara-C-induced CPP32/Yama protease activity and apoptosis of human acute myelogenous leukemia HL-60 cells. 884 Sep 93

Recent data in cell culture has shown that brain neurons are particularly vulnerable to degeneration by apoptosis. Further the inducers that activate the program (e.g. beta-amyloid, oxidatative damage, low energy metabolism) correspond to conditions present in the Alzheimer's disease (AD) brain. This suggests the possibility that apoptosis may be one of the mechanisms contributing to neuronal loss in this disease. Indeed, some neurons in vulnerable regions of the AD brain show evidence of DNA damage, nuclear apoptotic bodies, chromatin condensation, and the induction of select genes characteristic of apoptosis in cell culture and animal models. This suggests the existence of apoptosis in the AD brain, a hypothesis also consistent with evolving research in one of the regulatory functions of the presenilin genes. On the other hand, DNA damage is present in the majority of neurons in vulnerable regions in early and mild cases. In most tissues, cells in fully activated apoptosis degenerate and are removed within hours to days and thus it seems all DNA damage is unlikely to signify terminal apoptosis. The presence of extensive DNA damage suggests an acceleration of damage, faulty repair process, loss of protective mechanisms, or an activation and arrest of aspects of the apoptotic program. DNA damage is unlikely to be an artifact of postmortem delay or agonal state. The existence of protective mechanisms for neurons may exist as these cells are nondividing and essential. In this context it is interesting that Bcl-2 is upregulated in most neurons with DNA damage. Further, at least one DNA repair enzyme is also upregulated. Thus it appears as if neurons are in a struggle between degeneration and repair. As research advances it is critical to reduce the stimuli that cause the neuronal damage and discover the key intervention points to assist neurons in the repair processes.
 ...
PMID:Mechanisms of neuronal death in Alzheimer's disease. 894 19

Recent studies indicate that arsenic may generate reactive oxygen species to exert its toxicity. However, the mechanism is still unclear. In this study, we demonstrate that arsenite is able to induce apoptosis in a concentration- and time-dependent manner; however, arsenate is unable to do so. An increase of intracellular peroxide levels was accompanied with arsenite-induced apoptosis, as demonstrated by flow cytometry using DCFH-DA. N-Acetyl-L-cysteine (a thiol-containing antioxidant), diphenylene iodonium (an inhibitor of NADPH oxidase), 4,5-dihydro-1,3-benzene disulfonic acid (a selective scavenger of O2-), and catalase significantly inhibit arsenite-induced apoptosis and intracellular fluorescence intensity. In contrast, allopurinol (an inhibitor of xanthine oxidase), indomethacin (an inhibitor of cyclooxygenase), superoxide dismutase, or PDTC had no effect on arsenite-induced cell death. Activation of CPP32 activity, PARP (a DNA repair enzyme) degradation, and release of cytochrome c from mitochondria to the cytosol are involved in arsenite-induced apoptosis, and Bcl-2 antagonize arsenite-induced apoptosis by a mechanism that interferes in the activity of CPP32. These results lead to a working hypothesis that arsenite-induced apoptosis is triggered by the generation of hydrogen peroxide through activation of flavoprotein-dependent superoxide-producing enzymes (such as NADPH oxidase), and hydrogen peroxide might play a role as a mediator to induce apoptosis through release of cytochrome c to cytosol, activation of CPP32 protease, and PARP degradation.
 ...
PMID:Involvement of reactive oxygen species and caspase 3 activation in arsenite-induced apoptosis. 976 29

Rabies virus has been shown to induce apoptosis in infected cells, but the intracellular pathway of cell killing is unknown. In this report, we show that rabies virus infected mouse neuroblastoma cells underwent chromatin condensation and DNA fragmentation within 48 h post-infection. An increased level of the apoptotic enhancer, Bax, was detected within 24 h after infection. In contrast to Bax, the production of the apoptotic antagonist, Bcl-2, remained unchanged. Shortly after detection of Bax, caspase 1 (ICE) was upregulated. Reduction of DNA fragmentation in rabies virus infected cultures pretreated with YVAD and DEVD suggested that more than one subfamily of caspase functioned in the death process. Significant degradation of the DNA repair enzyme, poly ADP-ribose polymerase (PARP), was revealed after caspase upregulation. This study showed that replication of rabies viruses in mouse neuroblastoma cells induced the Bax-related death program leading to destruction of the DNA repair system probably by caspase activity.
 ...
PMID:Rabies virus replication induces Bax-related, caspase dependent apoptosis in mouse neuroblastoma cells. 978 70

Shiga-like toxin-producing Escherichia coli causes hemorrhagic colitis and hemolytic-uremic syndrome in association with the production of Shiga-like toxins, which induce cell death via either necrosis or apoptosis. However, the abilities of different Shiga-like toxins to trigger apoptosis and the sequence of intracellular signaling events mediating the death of epithelial cells have not been completely defined. Fluorescent dye staining with acridine orange and ethidium bromide showed that Shiga-like toxin 1 (Stx1) induced apoptosis of HEp-2 cells in a dose- and time-dependent manner. Stx2 also induced apoptosis in a dose-dependent manner. Apoptosis induced by Stx1 (200 ng/ml) and apoptosis induced by Stx2 (200 ng/ml) were maximal following incubation with cells for 24 h (94.3% +/- 1.8% and 81.7% +/- 5.2% of the cells, respectively). Toxin-treated cells showed characteristic features of apoptosis, including membrane blebbing, DNA fragmentation, chromatin condensation, cell shrinkage, and the formation of apoptotic bodies, as assessed by transmission electron microscopy. Stx2c induced apoptosis weakly even at a high dose (1,000 ng/ml for 24 h; 26.7% +/- 1.3% of the cells), whereas Stx2e did not induce apoptosis of HEp-2 cells. Thin-layer chromatography confirmed that HEp-2 cells express the Stx1-Stx2-Stx2c receptor, globotriaosylceramide (Gb3), but not the Stx2e receptor, globotetraosylceramide (Gb4). Western blot analysis of poly(ADP-ribose) polymerase (PARP), a DNA repair enzyme, demonstrated that incubation with Stx1 and Stx2 induced cleavage, whereas incubation with Stx2e did not result in cleavage of PARP. A pan-caspase inhibitor (Z-VAD-FMK) and a caspase-8-specific inhibitor (Z-IETD-FMK) eliminated, in a dose-dependent fashion, the cleavage of PARP induced by Shiga-like toxins. Caspase-8 activation was confirmed by detection of cleavage of this enzyme by immunoblotting. Cleavage of caspase-9 and the proapoptotic member of the Bcl-2 family BID was also induced by Stx1, as determined by immunoblot analyses. We conclude that different Shiga-like toxins induce different degrees of apoptosis that correlates with toxin binding to the glycolipid receptor Gb3 and that caspases play an integral role in the signal transduction cascade leading to toxin-mediated programmed cell death.
 ...
PMID:Escherichia coli shiga-like toxins induce apoptosis and cleavage of poly(ADP-ribose) polymerase via in vitro activation of caspases. 1211 81

Long-term experimental diabetes may best model the prominent and irreversible sensory deficits of chronic human diabetic polyneuropathy. Whereas irretrievable loss of sensory neurons, if present, would be an unfortunate feature of the disease, systematic unbiased counting has indicated that sensory neurons survive long-term experimental diabetes. In this study, we examined whether incipient cell loss from apoptosis in chronic experimental diabetes might nonetheless be in process, or whether neurons somehow adapt to their chronic insults. We examined sensory neurons in L4 and L5 dorsal root ganglia of long-term experimental streptozotocin-induced diabetic rats using transferase-mediated dUTP nick-end labeling (TUNEL), 4',6-diamidino-2-phenylindole (DAPI) staining of nuclear morphology, and electron microscopic appraisal of cell morphology. None provided any evidence for ongoing apoptosis. Despite this confirmation that sensory neurons survive, neurons had elevated expression of activated caspase-3 in unique patterns that included their nuclei, cytoplasm, and proximal axonal segments. Bcl-2 expression, a marker of antiapoptosis signaling, was observed in similar numbers of diabetic and nondiabetic neurons. In contrast, diabetic sensory neurons had elevated expression of the DNA repair enzyme poly(ADP-ribose) polymerase (PARP) in their nuclei, cytoplasm, and proximal axonal segments not overlapping with caspase-3 localization. Diabetic sensory neurons also had an apparent rise in cytoplasmic labeling of nitrotyrosine, a marker of peroxynitrite toxicity reported to activate PARP.
 ...
PMID:Sensory neurons with activated caspase-3 survive long-term experimental diabetes. 1294 77

Although cardiac myocyte apoptosis has been detected in explanted hearts from patients with end-stage dilated and ischemic cardiomyopathy, the relative contribution of apoptotic cell death to left ventricular (LV) remodeling and cardiac decompensation is not known. To determine whether progressive cardiac myocyte apoptosis contributes to the transition from a hypertrophic to a dilated cardiac phenotype that is observed in transgenic myosin heavy chain secreted TNF (MHCsTNF) mice with cardiac restricted overexpression of tumor necrosis factor (TNF), we assessed cardiac myocyte apoptosis (using a DNA ligase technique) in MHCsTNF mice and littermate control mice in relation to serial changes in LV structure, which was assessed using MRI. The prevalence of cardiac myocyte apoptosis increased progressively from 4 to 12 wk as the hearts of the MHCsTNF mice underwent the transition from a concentric hypertrophic to a dilated cardiac phenotype. Treatment of the MHCsTNF mice with the broad-based caspase inhibitor N-[(1,3-dimethylindole-2-carbonyl)-valinyl]-3-amino4-oxo-5-fluoropentanoic acid significantly decreased cardiac myocyte apoptosis and significantly attenuated LV wall thinning and adverse cardiac remodeling. Additional studies suggested that the TNF-induced decrease in Bcl-2 expression and activation of the intrinsic mitochondrial death pathway were responsible for the cardiac myocyte apoptosis observed in the MHCsTNF mice. These studies show that progressive cardiac myocyte apoptosis is sufficient to contribute to adverse cardiac remodeling in the adult mammalian heart through progressive LV wall thinning.
 ...
PMID:Cardiac myocyte apoptosis provokes adverse cardiac remodeling in transgenic mice with targeted TNF overexpression. 1531 79

Multiple myeloma (MM) accounts for 1 % of all cancer deaths. Although treated aggressively, almost all myelomas eventually recur and become resistant to treatment. Atiprimod (2-(3-Diethylaminopropyl)-8,8-dipropyl-2-azaspiro[4,5] decane dimaleate) has exerted anti-inflammatory activities and inhibited oeteoclast-induced bone resorption in animal models and been well tolerated in patients with rheumatoid arthritis in phase I clinical trials. Therefore, we investigated its activity in MM cells and its mechanism of action. We found that Atiprimod inhibited proliferation of the myeloma cell lines U266-B1, OCI-MY5, MM-1, and MM-1R in a time- and dose-dependent manner. Atiprimod blocked U266-B1 myeloma cells in the G(0)/G(1) phase, preventing cell cycle progression. Furthermore, Atiprimod inhibited signal transducer and activator of transcription (STAT) 3 activation, blocking the signalling pathway of interleukin-6, which contributes to myeloma cell proliferation and survival, and downregulated the antiapoptotic proteins Bcl-2, Bcl-X(L), and Mcl-1. Incubation of U266-B1 myeloma cells with Atiprimod induced apoptosis through the activation of caspase 3 and subsequent cleavage of the DNA repair enzyme poly(adenosine diphosphate-ribose) polymerase. Finally, Atiprimod suppressed myeloma colony-forming cell proliferation in fresh marrow cells from five patients with newly diagnosed MM in a dose-dependent fashion. These data suggest that Atiprimod has a role in future therapies for MM.
 ...
PMID:Atiprimod blocks STAT3 phosphorylation and induces apoptosis in multiple myeloma cells. 1597 Sep 28

The human homologue of the yeast DNA repair enzyme 8-oxoguanine DNA glycosylase (hOGG1) repairs oxidatively damaged guanosine nucleotides in DNA. This enzyme is highly expressed in reactive germinal centers, where lymphoid cells are under oxidative stress, and has been thought to protect lymphocytes from mutation. As a first step to investigate the role of hOGG1 in lymphomagenesis, we evaluated hOGG1 expression in follicular lymphoma. Immunohistochemistry was performed on formalin-fixed paraffin-embedded tissue of 28 follicular lymphoma cases (16 grade 1, seven grade 2, and five grade 3) to evaluate the expression of hOGG1 in neoplastic follicles. Reactive germinal centers of non-neoplastic tonsil and lymph node tissue were also examined. Fluorescent-in-situ hybridization (FISH) was performed using a DNA probe from BAC clone RP11-266J6 corresponding to 3p25, where the hOGG1 gene resides, to evaluate for the presence or absence of a deletion. In reactive germinal centers, the majority of centroblasts and centrocytes were positive for hOGG1. In contrast, the majority (21 of 28 or 75%) of follicular lymphoma cases showed absent/minimal expression of hOGG1. Only four of 28 (14%) follicular lymphoma cases revealed the same levels of hOGG1 expression as reactive germinal centers. There was no correlation between hOGG1 expression and histologic grade. None of the 16 cases evaluated by FISH showed a deletion of hOGG1. Furthermore, absent/minimal hOGG1 expression was observed in four of six Bcl-2-negative follicular lymphoma cases. Our findings suggest that absent/minimal hOGG1 expression occurs in the majority of follicular lymphomas. The downregulation of hOGG1 does not appear to be due to a deletion of the hOGG1 locus. Additionally, finding absent/minimal hOGG1 expression in a subset of Bcl-2-negative follicular lymphomas suggests that hOGG1 may have utility in diagnosing Bcl-2-negative follicular lymphomas.
 ...
PMID:Expression of human 8-oxoguanine DNA glycosylase (hOGG1) in follicular lymphoma. 1605 51

We have recently shown that thymoquinone (TQ) is an antineoplastic drug that induces p53-dependent apoptosis in human colon cancer cells. This study evaluated the antiproliferative and pro-apoptotic effects of TQ in two human osteosarcoma cell lines with different p53 mutation status. TQ decreased cell survival dose-dependently and, more significantly, in p53-null MG63 cells (IC(50) = 17 muM) than in p53-mutant MNNG/HOS cells (IC(50) = 38 muM). Cell viability was reduced more selectively in MG63 tumor cells than in normal human osteoblasts. Flow cytometric analysis showed that TQ induced a much greater increase in the PreG(1) (apoptotic) cell population, but no cell cycle arrest in MG63. G(2)/M arrest in MNNG/HOS cells was associated with p21(WAF1) upregulation. Using three DNA damage assays, TQ was confirmed to result in a significantly greater extent of apoptosis in p53 null MG63 cells. Although the Bax/Bcl-2 ratios were not differentially modulated in both cell lines, the mitochondrial pathway appeared to be involved in TQ-induced apoptosis in MG63 by showing the cleavage of caspases-9 and -3. Oxidative stress and mitochondrial O(2)(*-) generation in isolated rat mitochondria were enhanced by TQ as measured by the dose-dependent reduction in aconitase enzyme activity and Amplex Red oxidation respectively. TQ-induced oxidative damage, reflected by an increase in gamma-H2AX foci and increased protein expression levels of gamma-H2AX and the DNA repair enzyme, NBS1, was more pronounced in MNNG/HOS than in MG63. We suggest that the resistance of MNNG/HOS cells to drug-induced apoptosis is caused by the up-regulation of p21(WAF1) by the mutant p53 (transcriptional activity was shown by p53 siRNA treatment) which induces cell cycle arrest and allows to repair DNA damage. Collectively, these findings show that TQ induces p53-independent apoptosis in human osteosarcoma cells. As the loss of p53 function is frequently observed in osteosarcoma patients, our data suggest the potential clinical usefulness of TQ for the treatment of these malignancies.
 ...
PMID:Lack of p53 augments thymoquinone-induced apoptosis and caspase activation in human osteosarcoma cells. 1721 78


1 2 Next >>