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

Lipotropes, a methyl group containing nutrients, including choline, methionine, folic acid, and vitamin B(12), are essential nutrients for humans. They are important methyl donors that interact in the metabolism of one-carbon units and are essential for the synthesis and methylation of deoxyribonucleic acid. The purpose of this study was to examine the effects of excess lipotropes on the growth of a human breast cancer cell line, MCF-7, and normal mammary cells, MCF-10A, in culture. Both cell lines were grown in basal culture medium for 24 h and then switched to medium supplemented with 50 times the amount of each lipotrope as basal culture medium (control). Although there were no significant differences in growth between treatments in either cell line, gene array and Northern analysis revealed that expression of bcl-2 was decreased in lipotrope-treated MCF-7 cells. The ability to induce tumor cell death could have many uses in the prevention and treatment of cancer. Bcl-2 regulates apoptosis and has been shown to directly affect the sensitivity of cancer cells to chemotherapy agents, and it is suggested that strategies designed to block Bcl-2 might prove useful in sensitizing tumor cells to chemotherapy-induced apoptosis. This study shows that although excess lipotropes do not inhibit the growth of breast cancer cells, they can down-regulate the bcl-2 gene, suggesting that lipotropes may increase the susceptibility of breast cancer cells to anticancer drugs.
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PMID:Lipotropes regulate bcl-2 gene expression in the human breast cancer cell line, MCF-7. 1219 71

Our previous studies showed that S-adenosyl-methionine (SAM) induced Parkinson's disease-like changes in rat. It caused death to dopamine neurons in the substantia nigra, which appeared shrunken and fragmented, indicative of apoptosis-like changes (Charlton and Crowell [1995] Mol. Chem. Neuropathol. 26:269-284; Charlton [1997] Life Sci. 61:495-502). In this study, we investigated whether SAM causes apoptosis in both undifferentiated PC12 (PC12) cells and nerve growth factor (NGF)-differentiated PC12 (D-PC12) cells. S-adenosyl-homocysteine (SAH), the nonmethyl analog of SAM, was also tested. SAM and SAH (1.0 nM to 10.0 microM) caused lactate dehydrogenase (LDH) release from the PC12 cells and D-PC12 cells; cells with morphological changes and fluorescent DNA fragmentation staining were detected among both PC12 cell and D-PC12 cell. Compared with the PC12 cell, the D-PC12 cell, a postmitotic cell, was more sensitive to the toxic effects of SAM or SAH and presented much greater LDH release, suggesting a lethal effect; surprisingly, the amounts of apoptotic cells did not differ significantly between the two kinds of cells. In medium deprived of exogenous methionine, a decline in LDH release was observed in PC12 and D-PC12 cells. Also, lower levels of intracellular SAM and SAH were observed in the methionine-deleted media, which were reversed by the addition of either SAM or SAH. An antivitamin B(12) monoclonal antibody was added to methionine-depleted medium, resulting in deficiency of both endogenous and exogenous methionine, which caused further decreases in LDH release and reduction in the levels of intracellular SAM and SAH. The preliminary data showed different sensitivities to SAM or SAH between PC12 cell and D-PC12 cells, which suggests that PC12 cell may be more stable as a metabolic model. Apoptosis of PC12 cells was also assessed by PARP cleavage detection, Western blot analysis of Bax and Bcl-2 proteins, and DNA laddering on agarose gel electrophoresis. The proapoptoic protein Bax was dominantly expressed, whereas Bcl-2 was slightly down-regulated by SAM. SAH weakly induced the expression of Bax and slightly decreased Bcl-2 levels. The effects of SAM and its analog, SAH, were demonstrated conclusively to induce apoptosis in PC12 cells.
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PMID:S-adenosyl-methionine-induced apoptosis in PC12 cells. 1221 Aug 45

Tumor cells are more sensitive to methionine restriction than normal tissues, a phenomenon known as methionine auxotrophy. Previous studies have demonstrated that methionine restriction causes tumor cell growth arrest and eventually apoptosis. The current studies were undertaken to elucidate the molecular pathways leading to apoptosis induced by methionine restriction. We found that methionine restriction induced formation of oligonucleosomal DNA fragment and cytochrome c release from mitochondria in methionine-dependent PC3 and Hela cells. Methionine restriction also led to cleavage and activation of initiator and effector caspases in Hela cells but not PC3 cells. Furthermore, methionine restriction resulted in cleavage of BID and reduction in Bcl-2 levels in both cell lines. These data suggest that apoptosis induced by methionine restriction is mitochondria-dependent. Methionine restriction induced caspase-independent cell death in PC3 cells, whereas it stimulated caspase-dependent cell death in Hela cells. Cleavage of BID and decreased expression of Bcl-2 upon methionine deprivation may be the underlying mechanism to stimulate release of cytochrome c from mitochondria.
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PMID:Induction of caspase-dependent and -independent apoptosis in response to methionine restriction. 1252 42

Activation signals from bacterial stimuli set into motion a series of events that alter the abbreviated lifespan of neutrophils. These studies show that the bacterial chemoattractant, formyl-Met-Leu-Phe (fMLP), promotes the phosphorylation/inactivation of the FOXO subfamily of forkhead transcription factors (FKHR, FKHR-L1, and AFX) through the phosphatidylinositol-3-kinase/Akt (protein kinase B) and the RAS mitogen-activated protein kinase pathways. Furthermore, fMLP stimulation causes the inducible expression of the prosurvival Bcl-2 family member Mcl-1, which then binds to a complex containing FKHR. These studies show that fMLP-stimulated neutrophils coordinate the regulation of FOXO transcription factors and the survival factor Mcl-1, a mechanism that may allow neutrophils to alter their survival.
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PMID:Neutrophil activation by fMLP regulates FOXO (forkhead) transcription factors by multiple pathways, one of which includes the binding of FOXO to the survival factor Mcl-1. 1296 Feb 71

Cell-cycle deregulation is an early event of hepatocarcinogenesis. We evaluated the role of changes in activity of nuclear factor kappaB (NF-kappaB) and some related pathways in this alteration, and the interference of N-(4-hydroxyphenyl)retinamide (HPR), a retinoid chemopreventive for various cancer types, with these molecular mechanisms and the evolution of preneoplastic liver to cancer. Male F344 rats, initiated according to the 'resistant hepatocyte' model of liver carcinogenesis, received weekly 840 nmol of liposomal HPR (SL-HPR)/100 g body wt or empty liposomes, between 5 and 25 weeks after initiation. Inhibition of DNA synthesis and induction of apoptosis occurred in pre-cancerous lesions, 7-147 days after starting SL-HPR, and a decrease in carcinoma incidence and multiplicity was observed 25 weeks after arresting treatment. An increase in NF-kappaB expression and binding activity, and under-expression of the inhibitor kappaB-alpha (IkappaB-alpha) were found in preneoplastic liver and neoplastic nodules, 5 and 25 weeks after initiation, respectively. These lesions also showed low expression of Mat1A and low activity of methionine adenosyltransferase I/III, whose reaction product, S-adenosyl-l-methionine, enhances IkappaB-alpha expression. SL-HPR prevented these changes and induced a decrease in expression of iNos, c-myc, cyclin D1 and Vegf-A genes, that were over-expressed in preneoplastic liver and nodules, and a decrease in Bcl-2/Bax, Bcl-2/Bad and Bcl-xL/Bax mRNA ratios with respect to the lesions of control rats. Liposomes alone did not influence the parameters tested. These results indicate that signal transduction pathways controlled by NF-kappaB, nitric oxide and S-adenosyl-l-methionine are deregulated in pre-cancerous lesions. Recovery from these alterations by SL-HPR is associated with chemoprevention of hepatocarcinogenesis. Overall, these studies elucidate some molecular changes, in early stages of hepatocarcinogenesis, and underline their pathogenetic role. Moreover, they demonstrate a partially new mechanism of HPR chemopreventive effect and indicate the potential clinical relevance of this compound for prevention of hepatocellular carcinoma.
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PMID:Chemopreventive N-(4-hydroxyphenyl)retinamide (fenretinide) targets deregulated NF-{kappa}B and Mat1A genes in the early stages of rat liver carcinogenesis. 1549 86

Highly metastatic B16 melanoma (B16M)-F10 cells, as compared with the low metastatic B16M-F1 line, have higher GSH content and preferentially overexpress BCL-2. In addition to its anti-apoptotic properties, BCL-2 inhibits efflux of GSH from B16M-F10 cells and thereby may facilitate metastatic cell resistance against endothelium-induced oxidative/nitrosative stress. Thus, we investigated in B16M-F10 cells which molecular mechanisms channel GSH release and whether their modulation may influence metastatic activity. GSH efflux was abolished in multidrug resistance protein 1 knock-out (MRP-/-1) B16M-F10 transfected with the Bcl-2 gene or in MRP-/-1 B16M-F10 cells incubated with l-methionine, which indicates that GSH release from B16M-F10 cells is channeled through MRP1 and a BCL-2-dependent system (likely related to an l-methionine-sensitive GSH carrier previously detected in hepatocytes). The BCL-2-dependent system was identified as the cystic fibrosis transmembrane conductance regulator, since monoclonal antibodies against this ion channel or H-89 (a protein kinase A-selective inhibitor)-induced inhibition of cystic fibrosis transmembrane conductance regulator gene expression completely blocked the BCL-2-sensitive GSH release. By using a perifusion system that mimics in vivo conditions, we found that GSH depletion in metastatic cells can be achieved by using Bcl-2 antisense oligodeoxynucleotide- and verapamil (an MRP1 activator)-induced acceleration of GSH efflux, in combination with acivicin-induced inhibition of gamma-glutamyltranspeptidase (which limits GSH synthesis by preventing cysteine generation from extracellular GSH). When applied under in vivo conditions, this strategy increased tumor cytotoxicity (up to approximately 90%) during B16M-F10 cell adhesion to the hepatic sinusoidal endothelium.
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PMID:Acceleration of glutathione efflux and inhibition of gamma-glutamyltranspeptidase sensitize metastatic B16 melanoma cells to endothelium-induced cytotoxicity. 1556 10

Hypoxia-inducible factor (HIF)-1, a heterodimeric transcription factor composed of HIF-1alpha and HIF-1beta subunits coordinates pathophysiologic responses toward decreased oxygen availability. It is now appreciated that enhanced protein translation of HIF-1alpha under normoxia accounts for an alternative regulatory circuit to activate HIF-1 by hormones, growth factors, or cytokines such as tumor necrosis factor alpha (TNF-alpha). Here, we aimed at understanding molecular details of HIF-1alpha translation in response to TNF-alpha. In tubular LLC-PK(1) cells, activation of nuclear factor kappaB (NFkappaB) by TNF-alpha resulted in HIF-1alpha protein synthesis as determined by [(35)S]methionine pulse experiments. Protein synthesis was attenuated by blocking NFkappaB, phosphatidylinositol 3'-kinase (PI3k), and mitogen-activated protein kinase (MAPK). Use of a dicistronic reporter with the HIF-1alpha 5'-untranslated region (5'UTR) between two coding regions indicated that TNF-alpha promoted an internal ribosome entry site (IRES) rather than a cap-dependent translation. IRES-mediated translation required the functional integrity of the NFkappaB, PI3k, and MAPK signaling pathways. Although no signal cross-talk was noticed between NFkappaB, PI3k, and MAPK signaling, these pathways are needed to up-regulate the anti-apoptotic target protein Bcl-2 by TNF-alpha. Expression of Bcl-2 provoked not only IRES-dependent translation but also HIF-1alpha protein synthesis. We conclude that Bcl-2 functions as an important determinant in facilitating HIF-1alpha protein expression by TNF-alpha via an IRES-dependent translational mechanism. These observations suggest a link between Bcl-2 and HIF-1alpha expression, a situation with potential relevance to cancer biology.
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PMID:Functional integrity of nuclear factor kappaB, phosphatidylinositol 3'-kinase, and mitogen-activated protein kinase signaling allows tumor necrosis factor alpha-evoked Bcl-2 expression to provoke internal ribosome entry site-dependent translation of hypoxia-inducible factor 1alpha. 1560 70

An Escherichia coli plasmid vector for the high-level expression of hydrophobic membrane proteins is described. The plasmid, pBCL, directs the expression of a target polypeptide fused to the C terminus of a mutant form of the anti-apoptotic Bcl-2 family protein, Bcl-XL, where the hydrophobic C terminus has been deleted, and Met residues have been mutated to Leu to facilitate CNBr cleavage after a single Met inserted at the beginning of the target sequence. Fusion protein expression is in inclusion bodies, simplifying the protein purification steps. Here we report the high-level production of PLM, a membrane protein that is a member of the FXYD family of tissue-specific and physiological-state-specific auxiliary subunits of the Na,K-ATPase, expressed abundantly in heart and skeletal muscle. We demonstrate that milligram quantities of pure, isotopically labeled protein can be obtained easily and in little time with this system.
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PMID:Bcl-XL as a fusion protein for the high-level expression of membrane-associated proteins. 1574 45

Mitochondrial glutathione (mtGSH) depletion increases sensitivity of Bcl-2-overexpressing B16 melanoma (B16M)-F10 cells (high metastatic potential) to tumor necrosis factor-alpha (TNF-alpha)-induced oxidative stress and death in vitro. In vivo, mtGSH depletion in B16M-F10 cells was achieved by feeding mice (where the B16M-F10 grew as a solid tumor in the footpad) with an L-glutamine (L-Gln)-enriched diet, which promoted in the tumor cells an increase in glutaminase activity, accumulation of cytosolic L-glutamate, and competitive inhibition of GSH transport into mitochondria. L-Gln-adapted B16M-F10 cells, isolated using anti-Met-72 monoclonal antibodies and flow cytometry-coupled cell sorting, were injected into the portal vein to produce hepatic metastases. In l-Gln-adapted invasive (iB16M-Gln+) cells, isolated from the liver by the same methodology and treated with TNF-alpha and an antisense Bcl-2 oligodeoxynucleotide, viability decreased to approximately 12%. iB16M-Gln+ cell death associated with increased generation of O2*- and H2O2, opening of the mitochondrial permeability transition pore complex, and release of proapoptotic molecular signals. Activation of cell death mechanisms was prevented by GSH ester-induced mtGSH replenishment. The oxidative stress-resistant survivors showed an adaptive response that includes overexpression of manganese-containing superoxide dismutase (Mn-SOD) and catalase activities. By treating iB16M-Gln+ cells with a double anti- antisense therapy (Bcl-2 and SOD2 antisense oligodeoxynucleotides) and TNF-alpha, metastatic cell survival decreased to approximately 1%. Chemotherapy (taxol plus daunorubicin) easily removed this minimum percentage of survivors. This contribution identifies critical molecules that can be sequentially targeted to facilitate elimination of highly resistant metastatic cells.
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PMID:Bcl-2 and Mn-SOD antisense oligodeoxynucleotides and a glutamine-enriched diet facilitate elimination of highly resistant B16 melanoma cells by tumor necrosis factor-alpha and chemotherapy. 1626 11

Relative specific amino acid dependency is one of the metabolic abnormalities of cancer cells, and restriction of specific amino acids induces apoptosis of prostate cancer cells. This study shows that restriction of tyrosine and phenylalanine (Tyr/Phe), glutamine (Gln), or methionine (Met), modulates Raf and Akt survival pathways and affects the function of mitochondria in DU145 and PC3, in vitro. These three restrictions inhibit energy production (ATP synthesis) and induce generation of reactive oxygen species (ROS). Restriction of Tyr/Phe or Met in DU145 and Met in PC3 reduces mitochondrial membrane potential (DeltaPsim) and induces caspase-dependent and -independent apoptosis. In DU145, Tyr/Phe or Met restriction reduces activity of Akt, mitochondrial distribution of phosphorylated Raf and apoptosis inducing factor (AIF), and increases mitochondrial distribution of Bak. Mitochondrial Bcl-XL is increased in Tyr/Phe-restricted but decreased in Met-restricted cells. Under Tyr/Phe or Met restriction, reduced mitochondrial Raf does not inactivate the pro-apoptotic function of Bak. Tyr/Phe restriction also inhibits Bcl-2 and Met restriction inhibits Bcl-XL in mitochondria. These comprehensive actions damage the integrity of the mitochondria and induce apoptosis of DU145. In PC3, apoptosis induced by Met restriction was not associated with alterations in intracellular distribution of Raf, Bcl-2 family proteins, or AIF. All of the amino acid restrictions inhibited Akt activity in this cell line. We conclude that specific amino acid restriction differentially interferes with homeostasis/balance between the Raf and Akt survival pathways and with the interaction of Raf and Bcl-2 family proteins in mitochondria to induce apoptosis of DU145 and PC3 cells.
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PMID:Selective amino acid restriction targets mitochondria to induce apoptosis of androgen-independent prostate cancer cells. 1689 57


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