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)

TGF-beta1 is a multifunctional regulatory peptide (25 kDa) inducing growth arrest and apoptosis in many normal and neoplastic cells. In the present study, the involvement of proapoptotic (bax) and antiapoptotic (bcl-2) genes in the molecular mechanism of TGF-beta1-induced apoptosis of L1210 leukemic cells was investigated. Bax transcript was measured using the RT-PCR method with GAPDH as a "housekeeping gene" control, whereas Bcl-2 protein was determined using flow cytometry (FITC-conjugated monoclonal anti-Bcl-2 antibody and FITC-conjugated mouse anti-IgG1 antibody as a negative control). Apoptosis was evaluated using fluorescence microscopy and flow cytometry after cell staining with DAPI and sulforhodamine or propidium iodide and Hoechst 33342. ROS generation was assessed by flow cytometry using the oxidation-sensitive fluorescent marker C-DCDHF-DA. The response of L1210 leukemic cells to TGF-beta1 was two-directional: 1) partial arrest of the cell cycle at G1-S transition, and 2) induction of apoptotic cell death. TGF-beta1 increased the number of leukemic cells with typical morphological features of apoptosis: cell shrinkage, condensation of chromatin, pyknosis and fragmentation of nuclei, followed by secondary necrosis. DNA cleavage led to a decrease of the nuclear DNA content and the appearance of a hypodiploid peak sub-G1 in the DNA histogram. The extraction of low-molecular weight DNA fragments from apoptotic cells showed that TGF-beta1-induced apoptosis concerned first of all the cells from G1 phase. Two phases of intracellular ROS generation in TGF-beta1-treated cultures were observed: the first (rapid, 60 min after TGF-beta1 administration), and the second (slow, occurring between 24 and 48h of experiment, respectively). The increase of apoptotic cell number in TGF-beta1-treated cultures (2% FCS/RPMI 1640) was associated with the decrease of cell number expressing bcl-2, and with a significant drop of Bcl-2 level in the remaining cells after 24 h. The dose-dependent relationship between TGF-beta1 concentration and Bcl-2 level was nonlinear and described by power series regression. The lowest Bcl-2 level was noted at 1 ng/ml of TGF-beta1 concentration. The increase of Bax mRNA:GAPDH mRNA ratio was observed 3h after TGF-beta1 (1 ng/ml) administration to both the maintenance (2% FCS/RPMI) and growth promoting (10% FCS/RPMI) medium. Regardless of TGF-beta1 treatment, the quantity of Bax transcript was dependent on FCS concentration, being higher in the growth promoting medium. The results of this study indicate that bax may function as a primary response gene and together with lowered Bcl-2 level may determine the induction of apoptotic process in L1210 leukemic cells exposed to TGF-beta1.
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PMID:Expression of bcl-2 and bax in TGF-beta 1-induced apoptosis of L1210 leukemic cells. 962 23

Thioredoxin (Trx) is a ubiquitous protein disulfide oxidoreductase with antioxidant, cytokine, and chemotactic properties. Previously, we showed that Trx, in synergy with interleukin 1 (IL-1), IL-2, IL-4, tumor necrosis factor alpha (TNF-alpha), and CD40-ligation induced S-phase entry and mitosis in normal B cells and B-type chronic lymphocytic leukemia (B-CLL) cells. The viability of B-CLL cells stimulated by these protocols is high, and it has been hypothesized that the overexpression of Bcl-2 found in B-CLL protects the cells from apoptosis in vitro and in vivo. In this study, we have analyzed the response of cells derived from 12 samples of patients with B-CLL to recombinant human Trx in spontaneous apoptosis, with special reference to the Bcl-2 expression. Long-term cultures of B-CLL clones showed significantly higher viability when supplemented with human Trx (P =.031), also exemplified with clones surviving more than 2 months. Short-term cultures of B-CLL cells exposed to 1 microg/mL of Trx for 1, 5, or 12 days maintained expression or delayed down-regulation of Bcl-2 compared with control cultures containing RPMI 1640 medium and 10% fetal calf serum only (P =.032,. 002,.026, respectively). All B-CLL cells expressed constitutive Trx at varying but low levels, in contrast to adult T-cell leukemias, which overexpress Trx, as previously reported. We found that Trx added to B-CLL cells increased in a dose-dependent fashion the release of TNF-alpha, which has been suggested to be an autocrine growth factor for these cells. In conclusion, we have found that human recombinant Trx induced TNF-alpha secretion, maintained Bcl-2, and reduced apoptosis in B-CLL cells. (Blood. 2000;95:1420-1426)
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PMID:Thioredoxin prolongs survival of B-type chronic lymphocytic leukemia cells. 1066 20

The luteal phase in the normal human menstrual cycle is known to be about 14 days. The physiological mechanisms that regulate the corpus luteum remain to be clarified, although apoptosis is reported to be involved. This study was undertaken to investigate the regulation of luteal function by gonadotropins, cytokines, and PGs, concentrating attention on the incidence of apoptosis and its molecular mechanisms in cultured human luteinized granulosa cells collected at oocyte pick-up from patients undergoing in vitro fertilization and embryo transfer. Clusters of granulosa cells were pipetted in 0.1% hyaluronidase in phosphate-buffered saline. After cell separation by centrifugation using Ficoll-Paque, 1 x 104 viable cells/mL in RPMI 1640 medium with 10% FCS were used for experimentation. Substances added were FSH (100 ng/mL), hCG (100 ng/mL), LH (100 ng/mL), interleukin-1beta (IL-1beta; 10 ng/mL), transforming growth factor-beta1 (TGFbeta1; 10 ng/mL), macrophage colony-stimulating factor (MCSF; 10 ng/mL), tumor necrosis factor-alpha (TNFalpha; 10 ng/mL), and PGF2alpha (10 ng/mL). After 24-h culture at 37 C under 5% CO2 and air, cells were fixed with 4% neutral buffered formalin and stained with Hoechst 33258. Apoptotic bodies were counted under a fluorescence microscope, and immunostaining was performed using anti-Fas, Fas ligand, Bcl-2, Bax, and p53 antibodies. Incidences of apoptotic bodies in the group without substance addition were 0.7 +/- 0.2% (0 h), 5.9 +/-0.6% (24 h), and 7.9 +/- 1.2% (48 h); spontaneous increase was significant at the latter time points. Defining the incidence at 24 h as 100%, values after treatment were: FSH, 57%; LH, 84%; hCG, 44%; IL-1beta, 76%; TGFbeta1, 52%; M-CSF, 50%; TNFalpha, 177%; and PGF2alpha, 147%. Significant suppression was observed with FSH, hCG, TGFbeta1, and M-CSF (P < 0.01). On the other hand, significant induction occurred with TNFalpha and PGF2alpha (P < 0.01). On immunostaining, the incidence of stained cells with anti-Fas, Fas ligand, Bax, and p53 antibody was increased after 24-h incubation without addition. This was reduced by hCG, TGFbeta1, and M-CSF. No stained cells were observed with anti-Bcl-2 antibody before or after incubation. In conclusion, our results suggest that both gonadotropins (FSH and hCG) and cytokines (TGFbeta1 and M-CSF) may be involved in the support of luteal function via suppression of apoptosis, and that TNFalpha and PGF2alpha may contribute to ovarian dysfunction and/or luteal regression via its induction in human luteinized granulosa cells. Our results also suggest that Fas, Fas ligand, p53, and Bax may play roles in this apoptosis controlled by hCG, TGFbeta1, and M-CSF.
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PMID:Gonadotropins and cytokines affect luteal function through control of apoptosis in human luteinized granulosa cells. 1077 Feb 7

CD95 (Fas/APO-1) is a member of the TNFR superfamily that induces apoptosis following cross-linking with its cognate ligand, CD95L (FasL/APO-1L) or agonist antibody. The human myeloma cell line, RPMI 8226, has limited sensitivity to CD95-mediated apoptosis, with a maximum of 65% of the population responding. To determine the source of the limited sensitivity to CD95-mediated apoptosis, we isolated multiple clones from the RPMI-8226 cell line by limiting dilution. Analysis of these clones demonstrated that sensitivity to CD95-mediated cell death directly correlated with CD95 expression. Clones with high levels of CD95 expression had greater than 90% cell death, whereas cells with low levels of expression had less than 10% cell death. In contrast, no correlative differences were identified for other members of the DISC complex, or for members of the anti-apoptotic Bcl-2 family. We further examined the sensitivity of the 8226 clones to various cytotoxic agents. Although modest clonal variability was demonstrated in response to the chemotherapeutic drugs, doxorubicin, etoposide (VP-16), and vincristine, there was no correlation between CD95 function and sensitivity to chemotherapeutic drugs. These results indicate that in this cell line, receptor expression is rate limiting in CD95-mediated apoptosis, whereas CD95 expression was not a determinant in drug-induced programmed cell death.
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PMID:Clonal variability in CD95 expression is the major determinant in Fas-medicated, but not chemotherapy-medicated apoptosis in the RPMI 8226 multiple myeloma cell line. 1080 14

Bone morphogenetic proteins (BMPs), members of the transforming growth factor (TGF)-beta superfamily, are a group of related proteins that are capable of inducing the formation of cartilage and bone but are now regarded as multifunctional cytokines. We show in this report a novel function of BMPs in hematopoietic cells: BMP-2 induces apoptosis not only in human myeloma cell lines (U266, RPMI 8226, HS-Sultan, IM-9, OPM-2, and KMS-12 cells), but also in primary samples from patients with multiple myeloma. The mechanism of BMP-2-induced apoptosis was investigated with the use of U266 cells, which are dependent on the interleukin-6 autocrine loop. We showed that BMP-2 caused cell-cycle arrest in the G1 phase and the subsequent apoptosis of myeloma cells. BMP-2 up-regulated the expression of cyclin-dependent kinase inhibitors (p21(CIP1/WAF1) and p27(KIP1)) and caused hypophosphorylation of retinoblastoma (Rb) protein. In studies of apoptosis-associated proteins, BMP-2 was seen to down-regulate the expression of Bcl-x(L); however, BMP-2 had no effects on the expression of Bcl-2, Bax, or Bad. Therefore, BMP-2 induces apoptosis in various human myeloma cells by means of the down-regulation of Bcl-x(L) and by cell-cycle arrest through the up-regulation of p21(CIP1/WAF1) and p27(KIP1) and by the hypophosphorylation of Rb. Further analysis showed that the signal transducer and activator of transcription 3 (STAT3) was inactivated immediately after BMP-2 treatment. We conclude that BMP-2 would be useful as a novel therapeutic agent in the treatment of multiple myeloma both by means of its antitumor effect of inducing apoptotis and through its original bone-inducing activity, because bone lesions are frequently seen in myeloma patients.
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PMID:Bone morphogenetic protein-2 induces apoptosis in human myeloma cells with modulation of STAT3. 1097 40

Fas transduces apoptotic signals upon cross-linking with the Fas ligand (FasL), which is experimentally replaced by agonistic anti-Fas monoclonal antibodies (mAb). Of eight human malignant hematopoietic cell lines (HL-60, KG-1, THP-1, K562, U937, Jurkat, IM-9, RPMI-8226) examined by flow cytometric analysis, all, except K562, were found to be positive for surface Fas antigen. However, despite surface Fas expression, the agonistic anti-Fas mAb (7C11) induced apoptosis in only three of seven Fas-expressing cell lines (KG-1, Jurkat and IM-9). This Fas-resistance did not correlated with high levels of mRNA either for DcR3, a decoy receptor for FasL, or for FAP-1, a Fas-associated phosphatase that can block the apoptotic function of Fas. Reverse transcriptase-polymerase chain reaction (RT-PCR) analysis did not show consistent differences in the expression of Bcl-2 and Bax between Fas-sensitive and Fas-resistant cell lines examined. These findings indicated that the presence or absence of mRNA expression of DcR3, FAP-1, Bcl-2 and Bax did not always correlate with relative sensitivity to Fas-mediated apoptosis. Treatment of cells with cycloheximide converted the phenotype of resistant cell lines from Fas-resistant to Fas-sensitive, and enhanced the sensitivity of Fas-sensitive cell lines. These results suggest that the Fas-resistance is dependent on the presence of labile proteins that determine resistance to Fas-mediated apoptosis and the apoptotic machinery is already in place in Fas-resistant cell lines.
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PMID:Fas-mediated apoptosis and expression of related genes in human malignant hematopoietic cells. 1119 Feb 79

It has been reported that interferons (IFNs) may have antitumor activity in multiple myeloma (MM). The mechanism for their effect on MM, however, remains elusive. This study shows that IFN-alpha and -beta, but not -gamma, induce apoptosis characterized by Annexin V positivity, nuclear fragmentation and condensation, and loss of clonogenicity in 3 MM cell lines (U266, RPMI-8266, and NCI-H929), and in plasma cells from 10 patients with MM. Apo2 ligand (Apo2L, also TRAIL) induction was one of the earliest events following IFN administration in U266 cells. Treatment of these cells with TRAIL, but not with Fas agonistic antibodies, induces apoptosis. Cell death induced by IFNs and Apo2L in U266 cells was partially blocked by a dominant-negative Apo2L receptor, DR5, demonstrating the functional significance of Apo2L induction. This study shows that IFNs activate caspases and the mitochondrial-dependent apoptotic pathway, possibly mediated by Apo2L production. Thus, IFN-alpha and -beta induce cytochrome c release from mitochondria starting at 12 hours, with an amplified release seen at 48 hours. Moreover, Bid cleavage precedes the initial cytochrome c release, whereas the late, amplified cytochrome c release coincides with changes in levels of Bcl-2, Bcl-X(L), and reduction of mitochondrial membrane potential. These results link the Apo2L induction and modulation of Bcl-2 family proteins to mitochondrial dysfunction. Furthermore, IFNs and Apo2L induce cell death of CD38(+)/CD45(-/dim) plasma cells, without significant effect on nonplasma blood cells, in a caspase and Bcl-2 cleavage-dependent manner. These results warrant further clinical studies with IFNs and Apo2L in MM.
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PMID:Apo2L/TRAIL and Bcl-2-related proteins regulate type I interferon-induced apoptosis in multiple myeloma. 1156 6

Although myeloma shows responsiveness in intensive chemotherapy, overall survival remains less than 40% at 2 years. Since myeloma appears to be dependent on cytokines, such as IL-6, we hypothesized that targeting signal transduction molecules could effectively treat myeloma. Two myeloma cell lines U266 and RPMI-8226 and CD38+ myeloma cells were studied by immune complex kinase assay or anti-phosphotyrosine blot for evidence of constitutive activation of tyrosine kinases. Growth arrest and apoptosis were evaluated in these two cell lines following their treatment with specific kinase inhibitors. We found that a variety of Src and Janus kinases were present and constitutively active in U266 and RPMI-8226 cells. Inhibitors of both Src and Janus kinases were inferior to the cyclin-dependent kinase inhibitor, flavopiridol, in inducing both growth arrest with GI50 of 100 nM and apoptosis in both cell lines and CD38+ myeloma cells. Although, flavopiridol did not affect cyclin D1 and cyclin A levels, it inhibited Mcl-1 and Bcl-2 protein levels and cyclin-dependent kinase 2 activity. Flavopiridol is a well-tolerated drug, currently in phase I-II trials for a variety of tumors. A clinical trial using flavopiridol should be performed in patients with myeloma. Its mechanism of action may involve targets other than the cyclin-dependent kinases.
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PMID:Growth inhibition and apoptosis of myeloma cells by the CDK inhibitor flavopiridol. 1179 16

AIM:To study the expression of Fas and Bcl-2 proteins in BEL-7404 human hepatoma cells in order to analyze the possible relationship between cell growth regulation by alpha-fetoprotein(AFP) and Fas/Bcl-2 proteins.METHODS:BEL-7404 human hepatoma cells were maintained in RPMI 1640 medium supplemented with 10% new-born calf serum. Cells adhered to coverslips were used to detect Fas and Bcl-2 protein expression by the avidin-biotin complex (ABC) immunocytochemical assay.RESULTS: Immunocytochemical study showed that essentially all the BEL-7404 human hepatoma cells could express Fas and Bcl-2 proteins, although in various amount. No positive staining for Fas and Bcl-2 proteins was observed when cells were incubated with non-relevant sera, to establish the specificity.CONCLUSION:Fas apoptosis signals and Bcl-2 rescue/survival signals from apoptosis are expressed in BEL-7404 human hepatoma cells. The finding strongly implys that AFP-mediated cell apoptosis and growth enhancement are potentially associated with Fas and Bcl-2 proteins present in those cells.
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PMID:Presence of Fas and Bcl-2 proteins in BEL-7404 human hepatoma cells. 1181 66

The aim of this study was to explore the dose- and time-dependent effects of hydrophilic peroxyl radical initiator 2,2'azobis(2amidinopropane)dihydrochloride (AAPH) on apoptosis, and on expression of Bcl-2 in L1210 leukaemic cells. We observed a progressive increase of intracellular concentration of oxygen free radicals (OFR), manifested by the rise of 6-carboxy-2', 7'-dichlorodihydrofluorescein diacetate, di(acetoxymethyl ester) oxidation, during 24 h of cells exposure to AAPH. Oxidative stress was associated with peroxidation of cellular lipids, which was demonstrated by the measurement of thiobarbituric acid-reactive substances and conjugated dienes. Analysis of cell viability by the use of trypan blue exclusion method revealed that AAPH reduced the ability of L1210 cells to multiply or survive. AAPH increased the number of leukaemic cells with typical features of apoptosis like condensation of chromatin, pyknosis and fragmentation of nucleus, followed by secondary necrosis. A characteristic internucleosomal DNA cleavage, visualized as a DNA 'ladder' consisting of fragments that are multiples of 180-200 bp was also observed. The intensity of apoptosis was dependent on AAPH concentration, time of cell exposure and the availability of growth factors and nutrients in extracellular environment (FCS concentration). The novel observation is the increase of Bcl-2 level in L1210 leukaemic cells surviving an oxidative stress. The level of Bcl-2 protein significantly rose with increasing AAPH concentration, and time of cell exposure to this oxidant. This phenomenon could be the result of: (1) negative selection of cells with the lowest expression of bcl-2, being more susceptible to oxidative stress and (2) increased synthesis and/or decreased degradation of Bcl-2 protein as an adaptation to continuous OFR loading. In contrast to growth-promoting medium (10% FCS/RPMI), the maintenance medium (2% FCS/RPMI) did not cover cell requirements for progressive Bcl-2 increase at the highest AAPH concentration (2 mM) applied in this study. Several observations indicate that the increased Bcl-2 level in surviving L1210 leukaemic cells exposed to oxidative stress is a symptom of their natural defence against cellular lipids peroxidation and apoptosis.
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PMID:Apoptosis and Bcl-2 protein changes in L1210 leukaemic cells exposed to oxidative stress. 1464 24


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