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)

Chronic contractile activity of skeletal muscle induces an increase in mitochondria located in proximity to the sarcolemma [subsarcolemmal (SS)] and in mitochondria interspersed between the myofibrils [intermyofibrillar (IMF)]. These are energetically favorable metabolic adaptations, but because mitochondria are also involved in apoptosis, we investigated the effect of chronic contractile activity on mitochondrially mediated apoptotic signaling in muscle. We hypothesized that chronic contractile activity would provide protection against mitochondrially mediated apoptosis despite an elevation in the expression of proapoptotic proteins. To induce mitochondrial biogenesis, we chronically stimulated (10 Hz; 3 h/day) rat muscle for 7 days. Chronic contractile activity did not alter the Bax/Bcl-2 ratio, an index of apoptotic susceptibility, and did not affect manganese superoxide dismutase levels. However, contractile activity increased antiapoptotic 70-kDa heat shock protein and apoptosis repressor with a caspase recruitment domain by 1.3- and 1.4-fold (P<0.05), respectively. Contractile activity elevated SS mitochondrial reactive oxygen species (ROS) production 1.4- and 1.9-fold (P<0.05) during states IV and III respiration, respectively, whereas IMF mitochondrial state IV ROS production was suppressed by 28% (P<0.05) and was unaffected during state III respiration. Following stimulation, exogenous ROS treatment produced less cytochrome c release (25-40%) from SS and IMF mitochondria, and also reduced apoptosis-inducing factor release (approximately 30%) from IMF mitochondria, despite higher inherent cytochrome c and apoptosis-inducing factor expression. Chronic contractile activity did not alter mitochondrial permeability transition pore (mtPTP) components in either subfraction. However, SS mitochondria exhibited a significant increase in the time to Vmax of mtPTP opening. Thus, chronic contractile activity induces predominantly antiapoptotic adaptations in both mitochondrial subfractions. Our data suggest the possibility that chronic contractile activity can exert a protective effect on mitochondrially mediated apoptosis in muscle.
 ...
PMID:Effect of chronic contractile activity on SS and IMF mitochondrial apoptotic susceptibility in skeletal muscle. 1710 65

Arsenic trioxide (As2O3) has been approved for the treatment of acute promyelocytic leukemia (APML) and it is a promising candidate for the treatment of patients with lymphoproliferative disorders, such as relapsed or refractory multiple myeloma and myelodysplastic syndromes. The effects of As2O3 on B cells, specifically which do not express Bcl-2, have not been studied. In this study, we have demonstrated that As2O3, at clinically achievable therapeutic concentrations, induces apoptosis in Bcl-2 negative human B cell line Ramos. As2O3-induced apoptosis is associated with reduced mitochondrial transmembrane potential (delta psi), enhanced generation of intracellular reactive oxygen species (ROS), release of cytochrome c and apoptosis-inducing factor (AIF) from mitochondria into cytoplasm, activation of caspases, and upregulation of Bax and Bim expression. Exogenous glutathione (GSH) reverses the As2O3-induced apoptosis in a dose-dependent manner. Altogether, these data indicate that As2O3 induces apoptosis in B cells, regardless of Bcl-2 expression, via the mitochondrial pathway by enhancing oxidative stress.
 ...
PMID:Arsenic trioxide induces apoptosis via the mitochondrial pathway by upregulating the expression of Bax and Bim in human B cells. 1720 11

Meclizine (MEC), a histamine H1 antagonist, is used for the treatment of motion sickness and vertigo. In this study, we demonstrate that MEC dose-dependently induced apoptosis in human colon cancer cell lines (COLO 205 and HT 29 cells). Results of a DNA ladder assay revealed that DNA ladders appeared with MEC treatment in COLO 205 cells at dosage of >50 microM. In addition, the total cell number decreased dose-dependently after treatment with MEC in COLO 205 and HT 29 cells. Using flow cytometry, the percentage of COLO 205 cells arrested at G0/G1 phase increased dose-dependently. Analysis of changes in cell-cycle arrest-associated proteins with Western blotting showed that p53 and p21 were upregulated after treatment with MEC. The kinase activities of cyclin-dependent kinase 2 (CDK2) and CDK4 were suppressed in MEC-treated cells. As for apoptosis, MEC may induce upregulation of p53 and downregulation of Bcl-2, thus causing the release of cytochrome C from mitochondria and the translocation of apoptosis-inducing factor (AIF) to the nucleus. This resulted in the activation of caspase 3, 8, and 9. Our results provide the molecular basis of MEC-induced apoptosis and cell-cycle arrest in human colon cancer cells.
 ...
PMID:Induction of apoptosis and cell-cycle arrest in human colon cancer cells by meclizine. 1722 94

Cerebral ischemia (stroke) triggers a complex series of biochemical and molecular mechanisms that impairs the neurologic functions through breakdown of cellular integrity mediated by excitotoxic glutamatergic signalling, ionic imbalance, free-radical reactions, etc. These intricate processes lead to activation of signalling mechanisms involving calcium/calmodulin-dependent kinases (CaMKs) and mitogen-activated protein kinases (MAPKs) such as extracellular signal-regulated kinase (ERK), p38, and c-Jun N-terminal kinase (JNK). The distribution of these transducers bring them in contact with appropriate molecular targets leading to altered gene expression, e.g. ERK and JNK mediated early gene induction, responsible for activation of cell survival/damaging mechanisms. Moreover, inflammatory reactions initiated at the neurovascular interface and alterations in the dynamic communication between the endothelial cells, astrocytes and neurons are thought to substantially contribute to the pathogenesis of the disease. The damaging mechanisms may proceed through rapid nonspecific cell lysis (necrosis) or by active form of cell demise (apoptosis or necroptosis), depending upon the severity and duration of the ischemic insult. A systematic understanding of these molecular mechanisms with prospect of modulating the chain of events leading to cellular survival/damage may help to generate the potential strategies for neuroprotection. This review briefly covers the current status on the molecular mechanisms of stroke pathophysiology with an endeavour to identify potential molecular targets such as targeting postsynaptic density-95 (PSD-95)/N-methyl-d-aspartate (NMDA) receptor interaction, certain key proteins involved in oxidative stress, CaMKs and MAPKs (ERK, p38 and JNK) signalling, inflammation (cytokines, adhesion molecules, etc.) and cell death pathways (caspases, Bcl-2 family proteins, poly (ADP-ribose) polymerase-1 (PARP-1), apoptosis-inducing factor (AIF), inhibitors of apoptosis proteins (IAPs), heat shock protein 70 (HSP70), receptor interacting protein (RIP), etc., besides targeting directly the genes itself. However, selecting promising targets from various signalling cascades, for drug discovery and development is very challenging, nevertheless such novel approaches may lead to the emergence of new avenues for therapeutic intervention in cerebral ischemia.
 ...
PMID:Molecular targets in cerebral ischemia for developing novel therapeutics. 1722 14

Atiprimod is a novel cationic amphiphilic compound and has been shown to exert antimyeloma effects both in vitro and in mouse experiments. This study was undertaken to evaluate the therapeutic efficacy of atiprimod on mantle cell lymphoma (MCL) and elucidate the mechanism by which it induces cell apoptosis. Atiprimod inhibited the growth and induced apoptosis of MCL cell lines and freshly isolated primary tumor cells in vitro. More importantly, atiprimod significantly inhibited tumor growth in vivo and prolonged the survival of tumor-bearing mice. However, atiprimod also exhibited lower cytotoxicity toward normal lymphocytes. Atiprimod activated c-Jun N-terminal protein kinases (JNK) and up-regulated the level of Bax, Bad, and phosphorylated Bcl-2, resulting in release of apoptosis-inducing factor (AIF) and cytochrome c from mitochondria and activation and cleavage of caspase-9, caspase-3, and PARP. However, AIF, but not activation of caspases or PARP, was responsible for apoptosis in MCL cells because an AIF inhibitor, but not pan-caspase or paspase-9 inhibitors, completely abrogated atiprimod-induced apoptosis. Taken together, our results demonstrate that atiprimod displays a strong anti-MCL activity. Cell apoptosis was induced mainly via activation of the AIF pathway. These results support the use of atiprimod as a potential agent in MCL chemotherapy.
 ...
PMID:Atiprimod inhibits the growth of mantle cell lymphoma in vitro and in vivo and induces apoptosis via activating the mitochondrial pathways. 1731 53

Glioblastoma is the most common astrocytic brain tumor in humans. Current therapies for this malignancy are mostly ineffective. Photodynamic therapy (PDT), an exciting treatment strategy based on activation of a photosensitizer, has not yet been extensively explored for treating glioblastoma. We used 5-aminolevulinic acid (5-ALA) as a photosensitizer for PDT to induce apoptosis in human malignant glioblastoma U87MG cells and to understand the underlying molecular mechanisms. Trypan blue dye exclusion test showed a decrease in cell viability after exposure to increasing doses of 5-ALA for 4h followed by PDT with a broad spectrum blue light (400-550 nm) at a dose of 18J/cm(2) for 1h and then incubation at 37 degrees C for 4h. Following 0.5 and 1mM 5-ALA-based PDT (5-ALA-PDT), Wright staining and ApopTag assay showed occurrence of apoptosis morphologically and biochemically, respectively. After 5-ALA-PDT, down regulation of nuclear factor kappa B (NFkappaB) and baculovirus inhibitor-of-apoptosis repeat containing-3 (BIRC-3) protein indicated inhibition of survival signals. Besides, 5-ALA-PDT caused increase in Bax:Bcl-2 ratio and mitochondrial release of cytochrome c and apoptosis-inducing factor (AIF). Activation of calpain, caspase-9, and caspase-3 occurred in course of apoptosis. Calpain and caspase-3 activities cleaved alpha-spectrin at specific sites generating 145kD spectrin breakdown product (SBDP) and 120kD SBDP, respectively. The results suggested that 5-ALA-PDT induced apoptosis in U87MG cells by suppression of survival signals and activation of proteolytic pathways. Thus, 5-ALA-PDT can be an effective strategy for inducing apoptosis in glioblastoma.
 ...
PMID:5-Aminolevulinic acid-based photodynamic therapy suppressed survival factors and activated proteases for apoptosis in human glioblastoma U87MG cells. 1733 70

Flavonoids have antioxidant and antitumor promoting effects. Rhus verniciflua Stokes (RVS) is a flavonoid-rich herbal medicine that has long been used in Korea as both a food additive and antitumor agent. It was previous reported that a purified flavonoid fraction prepared from RVS, herein named RCMF (the RVS chloroform-methanol fraction), inhibited the proliferation and induced apoptosis in human osteosarcoma (HOS) cells. This study examined the mechanisms involved in the RCMF-mediated apoptosis in HOS cells. RCMF was shown to be capable of inducing apoptosis in HOS cells by inducing p53 in the cells resulting in the decrease in Bcl-2 level, activation of Bax, and cytoplasmic release of cytochrome c, which led to the translocation of apoptosis-inducing factor (AIF) and endonuclease G (EndoG) into the nucleus. However, the RCMF-induced apoptosis was suppressed by transfecting the cells with antisense p53 oligonucleotides but not by treating them with a MAPK or caspase inhibitor. This suppression occurred through the regulation of Bcl-2 members as well as by preventing the nuclear translocation of the mitochondrial apoptogenic factors. Overall, it appears that p53-mediated mitochondrial stress and the nuclear translocation of AIF and EndoG are mainly required for the apoptosis induced by RCMF.
 ...
PMID:Caspase-independent death of human osteosarcoma cells by flavonoids is driven by p53-mediated mitochondrial stress and nuclear translocation of AIF and endonuclease G. 1735 95

Here we investigated the cytotoxicity of JS-K, a prodrug designed to release nitric oxide (NO(*)) following reaction with glutathione S-transferases, in multiple myeloma (MM). JS-K showed significant cytotoxicity in both conventional therapy-sensitive and -resistant MM cell lines, as well as patient-derived MM cells. JS-K induced apoptosis in MM cells, which was associated with PARP, caspase-8, and caspase-9 cleavage; increased Fas/CD95 expression; Mcl-1 cleavage; and Bcl-2 phosphorylation, as well as cytochrome c, apoptosis-inducing factor (AIF), and endonuclease G (EndoG) release. Moreover, JS-K overcame the survival advantages conferred by interleukin-6 (IL-6) and insulin-like growth factor 1 (IGF-1), or by adherence of MM cells to bone marrow stromal cells. Mechanistic studies revealed that JS-K-induced cytotoxicity was mediated via NO(*) in MM cells. Furthermore, JS-K induced DNA double-strand breaks (DSBs) and activated DNA damage responses, as evidenced by neutral comet assay, as well as H2AX, Chk2 and p53 phosphorylation. JS-K also activated c-Jun NH(2)-terminal kinase (JNK) in MM cells; conversely, inhibition of JNK markedly decreased JS-K-induced cytotoxicity. Importantly, bortezomib significantly enhanced JS-K-induced cytotoxicity. Finally, JS-K is well tolerated, inhibits tumor growth, and prolongs survival in a human MM xenograft mouse model. Taken together, these data provide the preclinical rationale for the clinical evaluation of JS-K to improve patient outcome in MM.
 ...
PMID:JS-K, a GST-activated nitric oxide generator, induces DNA double-strand breaks, activates DNA damage response pathways, and induces apoptosis in vitro and in vivo in human multiple myeloma cells. 1738 1

Norcantharidin (NCTD) is known to have anti-cancer potentials. The aim of this study was to assess the apoptosis-inducing effect of NCTD on human leukemic Jurkat cells. We found that NCTD preferentially inhibited the growth of Jurkat cells in a dose- and time-dependent manner, but not the growth of normal blood mononuclear cells (MNC). Pretreatment with agonistic (CH-11) and antagonistic (ZB4) Fas antibodies on Jurkat cells showed that NCTD-induced apoptosis might not involve Fas-FasL signaling. Flow cytometric assay of Jurkat cells treated with NCTD showed a markedly increased sub-G1 DNA phase and cell cycle arrest at S phase. Western blot analysis of NCTD-treated cells showed increased expressions of cytochrome c, active caspase-9 and -3, and cleavage of poly(ADP-ribose) polymerase (PARP), but the expressions of Bcl-2, Bax and apoptosis-inducing factor were not increased. The transcription factor STAT1 was translocated from cytosol to nucleus. Pancaspase inhibitor z-VAD-FMK not only limited the level of sub-G1 phase, but also prevented the degradation of PARP in NCTD-treated cells. The NCTD-induced cell cycle arrest and apoptosis were mediated through the regulation of ataxia-telangiectasia mutated (ATM), rather than P63 protein. The conditioned medium produced from human MNC (NCTD-MNC-CM) increased the percentage of apoptotic cells and the expression of PARP cleavage in Jurkat cells. Protein array assay of NCTD-MNC-CM showed 32.4- and 6.2-folds increases in TNF-alpha and GM-CSF, respectively, and the expression of MCP-1, GRO, RANTES and IL-10 was decreased. We conclude that NCTD can induce apoptosis in human leukemic Jurkat cells via a caspase-dependent pathway without affecting the viability of normal MNC, and that the apoptosis-inducing effect of NCTD can also be achieved by soluble cytokines produced from peripheral MNC.
 ...
PMID:Norcantharidin preferentially induces apoptosis in human leukemic Jurkat cells without affecting viability of normal blood mononuclear cells. 1744 74

Alkylating DNA damage induces a necrotic type of programmed cell death through the poly(ADP-ribose) polymerases (PARP) and apoptosis-inducing factor (AIF). Following PARP activation, AIF is released from mitochondria and translocates to the nucleus, where it causes chromatin condensation and DNA fragmentation. By employing a large panel of gene knockout cells, we identified and describe here two essential molecular links between PARP and AIF: calpains and Bax. Alkylating DNA damage initiated a p53-independent form of death involving PARP-1 but not PARP-2. Once activated, PARP-1 mediated mitochondrial AIF release and necrosis through a mechanism requiring calpains but not cathepsins or caspases. Importantly, single ablation of the proapoptotic Bcl-2 family member Bax, but not Bak, prevented both AIF release and alkylating DNA damage-induced death. Thus, Bax is indispensable for this type of necrosis. Our data also revealed that Bcl-2 regulates N-methyl-N'-nitro-N'-nitrosoguanidine-induced necrosis. Finally, we established the molecular ordering of PARP-1, calpains, Bax, and AIF activation, and we showed that AIF downregulation confers resistance to alkylating DNA damage-induced necrosis. Our data shed new light on the mechanisms regulating AIF-dependent necrosis and support the notion that, like apoptosis, necrosis could be a highly regulated cell death program.
 ...
PMID:Sequential activation of poly(ADP-ribose) polymerase 1, calpains, and Bax is essential in apoptosis-inducing factor-mediated programmed necrosis. 1747 May 54


<< Previous 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10