RESUMEN
Metastasis is the complex process by which primary tumor cells migrate and establish secondary tumors in an adjacent or distant location in the body. Early detection of metastatic disease and effective therapeutic options for targeting these detected metastases remain impediments to effectively treating patients with advanced cancers. If metastatic lesions are identified early, patients might maximally benefit from effective early therapeutic interventions. Further, monitoring patients whose primary tumors are effectively treated for potential metastatic disease onset is also highly valuable. Finally, patients with metastatic disease can be monitored for efficacy of specific therapeutic interventions through effective metastatic detection techniques. Thus, being able to detect and visualize metastatic lesions is key and provides potential to greatly improve overall patient outcomes. In order to achieve these objectives, researchers have endeavored to mechanistically define the steps involved in the metastatic process as well as ways to effectively detect metastatic progression. We presently overview various preclinical and clinical in vitro and in vivo assays developed to more efficiently detect tumor metastases, which provides the foundation for developing more effective therapies for this invariably fatal component of the cancerous process.
Asunto(s)
Antineoplásicos/uso terapéutico , Neoplasias/tratamiento farmacológico , Neoplasias/patología , Animales , Progresión de la Enfermedad , Humanos , Metástasis de la NeoplasiaRESUMEN
Since its original discovery in 2002, AEG-1/MTDH/LYRIC has emerged as a primary regulator of several diseases including cancer, inflammatory diseases, and neurodegenerative diseases. AEG-1/MTDH/LYRIC has emerged as a key contributory molecule in almost every aspect of cancer progression, including uncontrolled cell growth, evasion of apoptosis, increased cell migration and invasion, angiogenesis, chemoresistance, and metastasis. Additionally, recent studies highlight a seminal role of AEG-1/MTDH/LYRIC in neurodegenerative diseases and obesity. By interacting with multiple protein partners, AEG-1/MTDH/LYRIC plays multifaceted roles in the pathogenesis of a wide variety of diseases. This review discusses the current state of understanding of AEG-1/MTDH/LYRIC regulation and function in cancer and other diseases with a focus on its association/interaction with several pivotal protein partners.
Asunto(s)
Moléculas de Adhesión Celular/metabolismo , Enfermedades del Sistema Nervioso Central/fisiopatología , Regulación Neoplásica de la Expresión Génica , Neoplasias/fisiopatología , Obesidad/fisiopatología , Humanos , Proteínas de la Membrana , Proteínas de Unión al ARNRESUMEN
Cancer is a multifactor and multistep process that is affected intrinsically by the genetic and epigenetic makeup of tumor cells and extrinsically by the host microenvironment and immune system. A key component of cancer involves a unique subpopulation of highly malignant cancerous cells referred to as cancer stem cells (CSCs). CSCs are positioned at the apex of the tumor hierarchy with an ability to both self-renew and also generate non-CSC/differentiated progeny, which contribute to the majority of the tumor mass. CSCs undergo functional changes and show plasticity that is stimulated by specific microenvironmental cues and interactions in the tumor niche, which contribute to the complexity and heterogeneity of the CSC population. The prognostic value of CSCs in the clinic is evident since there are many examples in which CSCs serve as markers for poor patient prognosis. CSCs are innately resistant to many standard therapies and they display anoikis resistance, immune evasion, tumor dormancy, and field cancerization, which may result in metastasis and relapse. Many academic laboratories and biotechnology companies are currently focusing on strategies that target CSCs. Combination therapies, epigenetic modifiers, stemness inhibitors, CSC surface marker-based therapies, and immunotherapy-based CSC-targeting drugs are currently undergoing clinical trials. Potential new targets/strategies in CSC-targeted therapy include MDA-9/Syntenin (SDCBP), Patched (PTCH), epigenetic targets, noncoding RNAs, and differentiation induction. Defining ways of targeting and destroying CSCs holds potential to impact significantly on cancer therapy, including prevention of metastasis and cancer recurrence.
Asunto(s)
Antineoplásicos/uso terapéutico , Sistemas de Liberación de Medicamentos , Inmunoterapia , Terapia Molecular Dirigida , Neoplasias/tratamiento farmacológico , Células Madre Neoplásicas/efectos de los fármacos , Animales , Humanos , Neoplasias/metabolismo , Neoplasias/patología , Células Madre Neoplásicas/metabolismo , Células Madre Neoplásicas/patologíaRESUMEN
Conditionally replication competent adenoviruses (Ads) that selectively replicate in cancer cells and simultaneously express a therapeutic cytokine, such as melanoma differentiation associated gene- 7/Interleukin-24 (mda-7/IL-24), a Cancer Terminator Virus (CTV-M7), hold potential for treating human cancers. To enhance the efficacy of the CTV-M7, we generated a chimeric Ad.5 and Ad.3 modified fiber bipartite CTV (Ad.5/3-CTV-M7) that can infect tumor cells in a Coxsackie Adenovirus receptor (CAR) independent manner, while retaining high infectivity in cancer cells containing high CAR. Although mda-7/IL-24 displays broad-spectrum anticancer properties, pancreatic ductal adenocarcinoma (PDAC) cells display an intrinsic resistance to mda-7/IL-24-mediated killing due to an mda-7/IL-24 mRNA translational block. However, using a chemoprevention gene therapy (CGT) approach with perillyl alcohol (POH) and a replication incompetent Ad to deliver mda-7/IL-24 (Ad.mda-7) there is enhanced conversion of mda-7/IL-24 mRNA into protein resulting in pancreatic cancer cell death in vitro and in vivo in nude mice containing human PDAC xenografts. This combination synergistically induces mda-7/IL-24-mediated cancer-specific apoptosis by inhibiting anti-apoptotic Bcl-xL and Bcl-2 protein expression and inducing an endoplasmic reticulum (ER) stress response through induction of BiP/GRP-78, which is most evident in chimeric-modified non-replicating Ad.5/3- mda-7- and CTV-M7-infected PDAC cells. Moreover, Ad.5/3-CTV-M7 in combination with POH sensitizes therapy-resistant MIA PaCa-2 cell lines over-expressing either Bcl-2 or Bcl-xL to mda-7/IL-24-mediated apoptosis. Ad.5/3-CTV-M7 plus POH also exerts a significant antitumor 'bystander' effect in vivo suppressing both primary and distant site tumor growth, confirming therapeutic utility of Ad.5/3-CTV-M7 plus POH in PDAC treatment, where all other current treatment strategies in clinical settings show minimal efficacy.
Asunto(s)
Adenoviridae/genética , Antineoplásicos/administración & dosificación , Vectores Genéticos/genética , Monoterpenos/administración & dosificación , Neoplasias Pancreáticas/genética , Neoplasias Pancreáticas/terapia , Animales , Apoptosis/efectos de los fármacos , Apoptosis/genética , Línea Celular Tumoral , Supervivencia Celular/efectos de los fármacos , Supervivencia Celular/genética , Quimioprevención , Modelos Animales de Enfermedad , Estrés del Retículo Endoplásmico , Expresión Génica , Terapia Genética , Vectores Genéticos/administración & dosificación , Humanos , Interleucinas/genética , Ratones , Especificidad de Órganos/genética , Neoplasias Pancreáticas/patología , Proteínas Proto-Oncogénicas c-bcl-2/genética , Especies Reactivas de Oxígeno/metabolismo , Ensayos Antitumor por Modelo de Xenoinjerto , Proteína bcl-X/genéticaRESUMEN
Pancreatic cancer remains one of the deadliest of all cancers despite aggressive surgical treatment combined with adjuvant radiotherapy and chemotherapy. Chemoresistance and radioresistance are the principal causes of failure of pancreatic cancer patients to respond to therapy. Conditionally replication competent adenovirus (CRCA)-based cancer gene therapy is an innovative strategy for treating cancers displaying inherent resistance to treatment. Limitations of current adenovirus (Ad)-based gene therapies for malignant tumors include lack of cancer-specificity, and effective and targeted delivery. To remedy this situation, CRCAs have been designed that express E1A, necessary for Ad replication, under the control of a cancer-specific progression elevated gene-3 promoter (PEG-Prom) with concomitant expression of an immunomodulatory cytokine, such as mda-7/IL-24 or interferon-γ (IFN-γ), under the control of a ubiquitous and strong cytomegalovirus promoter (CMV-Prom) from the E3 region. These bipartite CRCAs, when armed with a transgene, are called cancer terminator viruses (CTVs), i.e., Ad.PEG-E1A-CMV-mda-7 (CTV-M7) and Ad.PEG-E1A-CMV-IFN-γ (CTV-γ), because of their universal effectiveness in cancer treatment irrespective of p53/pRb/p16 or other genetic alterations in tumor cells. In addition to their selective oncolytic effects in tumor cells, the potent 'bystander antitumor' properties of MDA-7/IL-24 and IFN-γ embody the CTVs with expanded treatment properties for both primary and distant cancers. Pancreatic cancer cells display a "translational block" of mda-7/IL-24 mRNA, limiting production of MDA-7/IL-24 protein and cancer-specific apoptosis. Specific chemopreventive agents abrogate this "translational block" resulting in pancreatic cancer-specific killing. This novel chemoprevention gene therapy (CGT) strategy holds promise for both prevention and treatment of pancreatic cancers where all other strategies have proven ineffective.
Asunto(s)
Quimioprevención , Terapia Genética , Neoplasias Pancreáticas/tratamiento farmacológico , Adenoviridae , Animales , Apoptosis/genética , Línea Celular Tumoral , Humanos , Ratones , Neoplasias Pancreáticas/genética , Neoplasias Pancreáticas/patología , Regiones Promotoras Genéticas , Neoplasias PancreáticasRESUMEN
High-grade gliomas are among the most lethal of all cancers. Despite considerable advances in multimodality treatment, including surgery, radiotherapy and chemotherapy, the overall prognosis for patients with this disease remains dismal. Currently available treatments necessitate the development of more effective tumor-selective therapies. The use of gene therapy for malignant gliomas is promising, as it allows in situ delivery and selectively targets brain tumor cells while sparing the adjacent normal brain tissue. Viral vectors that deliver proapoptotic genes to malignant glioma cells have been investigated. Although tangible results on patients' survival remain to be further documented, significant advances in therapeutic gene transfer strategies have been made. Recently, cell-based gene delivery has been sought as an alternative method. In this paper, we report the proapoptotic effects of embryonic stem cell (ESC)-mediated mda-7/IL-24 delivery to malignant glioma cell lines. Our data show that these are similar to those observed using a viral vector. In addition, acknowledging the heterogeneity of malignant glioma cells and their signaling pathways, we assessed the effects of conventional treatment for high-grade gliomas, ionizing radiation and temozolomide, when combined with ESC-mediated transgene delivery. This combination resulted in synergistic effects on tumor cell death. The mechanisms involved in this beneficial effect included activation of both apoptosis and autophagy. Our in vitro data support the concept that ESC-mediated gene delivery might offer therapeutic advantages over standard approaches to malignant gliomas. Our results corroborate the theory that combined treatments exploiting different signaling pathways are needed to succeed in the treatment of malignant gliomas.
Asunto(s)
Apoptosis , Dacarbazina/análogos & derivados , Resistencia a Antineoplásicos/genética , Células Madre Embrionarias/fisiología , Glioma/patología , Interleucinas/genética , Fármacos Sensibilizantes a Radiaciones , Animales , Antineoplásicos Alquilantes/uso terapéutico , Western Blotting , Neoplasias Encefálicas/tratamiento farmacológico , Neoplasias Encefálicas/patología , Neoplasias Encefálicas/radioterapia , Proliferación Celular , Células Cultivadas , Terapia Combinada , Dacarbazina/uso terapéutico , Sistemas de Liberación de Medicamentos , Ensayo de Inmunoadsorción Enzimática , Femenino , Técnicas de Transferencia de Gen , Terapia Genética , Vectores Genéticos/uso terapéutico , Glioma/tratamiento farmacológico , Glioma/radioterapia , Humanos , Técnicas para Inmunoenzimas , Ratones , Ratones Desnudos , ARN Mensajero/genética , Radiación Ionizante , Reacción en Cadena de la Polimerasa de Transcriptasa Inversa , Temozolomida , Transgenes/fisiología , Ensayo de Tumor de Célula MadreRESUMEN
Astrocyte elevated gene-1 (AEG-1) displays oncogenic properties. Its expression is elevated in diverse neoplastic states and it cooperates with Ha-ras to promote cellular transformation. Overexpression of AEG-1 augments invasion and anchorage-independent growth of transformed cells, while AEG-1 siRNA inhibits Ha-ras-mediated colony formation, supporting a potential functional role in tumorigenesis. Additionally, oncogenic Ha-ras induces AEG-1 expression through the phosphatidylinositol 3-kinase (PI3K)-Akt signaling pathway. In the present study, we investigated whether AEG-1 could induce serum-independent cell growth, another property of oncogenes. Overexpression of AEG-1 inhibited serum starvation-induced apoptosis through activation of PI3K-Akt signaling, one of the effector pathways induced by activated Ras. AEG-1 also affected the phosphorylation state of Akt substrates that are implicated in apoptosis suppression, including glycogen synthase kinase 3beta, c-Myc, murine double minute 2, p53, p21/mda-6 and Bad. Additionally, AEG-1 blocked the activity of serum starvation-induced caspases. Taken together, these observations provide evidence that AEG-1 is an oncogene cooperating with Ha-ras as well as functioning as a downstream target gene of Ha-ras and may perform a central role in Ha-ras-mediated carcinogenesis. Activation of survival pathways may be one mechanism by which AEG-1 exerts its oncogenic properties.
Asunto(s)
Astrocitos/enzimología , Moléculas de Adhesión Celular/fisiología , Proteínas de la Membrana/fisiología , Fosfatidilinositol 3-Quinasas/fisiología , Proteínas Proto-Oncogénicas c-akt/fisiología , Transducción de Señal/fisiología , Animales , Muerte Celular/fisiología , Línea Celular Transformada , Supervivencia Celular/fisiología , Marcación de Gen , Genes ras/fisiología , Humanos , Ratones , Proteínas de Unión al ARN , Ratas , Proteínas ras/fisiologíaRESUMEN
Melanoma differentiation-associated gene-7/interleukin-24 (mda-7/IL-24) is a cancer-specific, growth-suppressing and apoptosis-inducing gene with broad-spectrum antitumor activity. However, when administered by means of a replication-incompetent adenovirus, Ad.mda-7, several colorectal carcinoma cell lines are resistant to its antiproliferative and antisurvival effects. We have presently endeavored to determine if K-ras mutations, present in approximately 40-50% of colorectal cancers and which may mediate resistance to chemotherapy and radiotherapy, represent a predisposing genetic factor mitigating reduced sensitivity to Ad.mda-7. To suppress ras expression, three structurally different replication-incompetent adenoviral vectors were engineered that express (1) an intracellular, neutralizing single-chain antibody (scAb) to p21 ras (Ad.K-ras scAb), (2) an antisense (AS) K-ras gene (Ad.K-ras AS) or (3) both mda-7/IL-24 and a K-ras AS gene in a single bipartite virus (Ad.m7.KAS). Simultaneous inhibition of K-ras and expression of mda-7/IL-24 enhanced killing of colorectal carcinoma cells with mutated K-ras, but not with wild-type K-ras. The extent of killing depended on the degree of K-ras downregulation, with Ad.K-ras AS being generally more efficient than Ad.K-ras scAb in combination with Ad.mda-7. These findings support an effective dual-combinatorial approach for the therapy of colorectal cancers that employs a unique cancer-specific suppressor gene (mda-7/IL-24) with targeted inhibition of oncogene (ras) expression.
Asunto(s)
Apoptosis , Neoplasias Colorrectales/patología , Genes ras/fisiología , Interleucinas/metabolismo , Mutación/genética , Adenoviridae , Adyuvantes Inmunológicos , Northern Blotting , Western Blotting , Ciclo Celular , Diferenciación Celular , Proliferación Celular , Neoplasias Colorrectales/genética , Neoplasias Colorrectales/metabolismo , Terapia Genética , Vectores Genéticos , Humanos , Interleucinas/genética , Necrosis , Proteínas Proto-Oncogénicas c-bcl-2/metabolismo , Transducción Genética , Células Tumorales Cultivadas , Proteína X Asociada a bcl-2/metabolismo , Proteína bcl-X/metabolismoRESUMEN
Subtraction hybridization applied to terminally differentiating human melanoma cells identified mda-7/IL-24, a cytokine belonging to the IL-10 gene superfamily. Adenoviral-mediated delivery of mda-7/IL-24 (Ad.mda-7) provokes apoptosis selectively in a wide spectrum of cancers in vitro in cell culture, in vivo in human tumor xenograft animal models and in patients with advanced carcinomas and melanomas. In human prostate cancer cells, a role for mitochondrial dysfunction and induction of reactive oxygen species in the apoptotic process has been established. Ectopic overexpression of bcl-xL and bcl-2 prevents these changes including apoptosis induction in prostate tumor cells by Ad.mda-7. We now document that this resistance to apoptosis can be reversed by treating bcl-2 family overexpressing prostate tumor cells with ionizing radiation in combination with Ad.mda-7 or purified GST-MDA-7 protein. Additionally, radiation augments apoptosis induction by mda-7/IL-24 in parental and neomycin-resistant prostate tumor cells. Radiosensitization to mda-7/IL-24 is dependent on JNK signaling, as treatment with the JNK 1/2/3 inhibitor SP600125 abolishes this effect. Considering that elevated expression of bcl-xL and bcl-2 are frequent events in prostate cancer development and progression, the present studies support the use of ionizing radiation in combination with mda-7/IL-24 as a means of augmenting the therapeutic benefit of this gene in prostate cancer, particularly in the context of tumors displaying resistance to radiation therapy owing to bcl-2 family member overexpression.
Asunto(s)
Terapia Genética , Interleucinas/genética , Neoplasias de la Próstata/terapia , Proteínas Proto-Oncogénicas c-bcl-2/análisis , Tolerancia a Radiación , Proteína bcl-X/análisis , Apoptosis , Línea Celular Tumoral , Terapia Combinada , Humanos , Proteínas Quinasas JNK Activadas por Mitógenos/fisiología , Sistema de Señalización de MAP Quinasas , Masculino , Fosforilación , Neoplasias de la Próstata/química , Neoplasias de la Próstata/patologíaRESUMEN
Remodeling of gap-junctional organization in hypertrophied left ventricle (LV) in response to pressure overload in rats induced by abdominal aorta banding was investigated by immunoconfocal and electron microscopy. Eight to 12 weeks after banding, rats developed significant LV hypertrophy. In contrast to control LV myocytes, which showed connexin43 (Cx43) labeling largely confined to the intercalated disks, LV myocytes from aortic-banded rats showed dispersion of punctate Cx43 labeling over the entire cell surface. In LV tissues sectioned longitudinally, the proportion of Cx43 label at the intercalated disk decreased significantly (control, 0.87 v aortic-banded, 0.62). En-face views of intercalated disks of hypertrophied myocardium revealed a reduction of Cx43 gap junctions in the disk center, giving rise to a significant decrease in the proportion of the disk occupied by gap-junctional membrane (control, 0.32 v aortic-banded, 0.24). Electron microscopy of hypertrophied LV tissue revealed that Cx43-containing gap junctions were frequently displaced from their usual locations to form side-to-side contacts distant from the disk, and also appeared as annular profiles. In aortic-banded rats treated with the angiotensin II (AII) type 1 receptor (AT1) antagonist, losartan (10 mg/kg/day, 11 weeks) not only LV hypertrophy, but also the gap junction disorganization was markedly reduced. These results suggest that LV hypertrophy induced by pressure overload is associated with Cx43 gap junction disorganization and that AII may play an important role either directly or indirectly in gap-junctional remodeling.
Asunto(s)
Aorta/metabolismo , Hipertrofia Ventricular Izquierda/metabolismo , Receptores de Angiotensina/metabolismo , Antagonistas de Receptores de Angiotensina , Animales , Antiarrítmicos/farmacología , Western Blotting , Conexina 43/biosíntesis , Desmosomas/metabolismo , Uniones Comunicantes/patología , Uniones Comunicantes/ultraestructura , Immunoblotting , Inmunohistoquímica , Losartán/farmacología , Masculino , Microscopía Confocal , Microscopía Electrónica , Ratas , Ratas Sprague-Dawley , Factores de TiempoRESUMEN
The present study investigates the remodeling of gap junctional organization in relation to changes in anisotropic conduction properties in hypertrophied right ventricles (RVs) of rats with monocrotaline (MCT)-induced pulmonary hypertension. In contrast to controls that showed immunolocalization of connexin43 (Cx43) labeling largely confined to the intercalated disks, RV myocytes from MCT-treated rats showed dispersion of Cx43 labeling over the entire cell surface. The disorganization of Cx43 labeling became more pronounced with the progression of hypertrophy. Desmoplakin remained localized to the intercalated disks, as in controls. In RV tissues, the proportion of Cx43 label at the intercalated disk progressively decreased. Quantitative analysis of en face views of intercalated disks revealed a significant decrease in the disk gap junctional density in RV tissues of MCT-treated rats (control, 0.18 versus MCT-treated, 0.14 at 2 weeks; control, 0.16 versus MCT-treated, 0.11 at 4 weeks). Conduction velocity in RVs parallel to the fiber orientation was significantly lower (30.2% [n=9]) in MCT-treated rats at 4 weeks than in control rats, whereas there was no significant difference observed in the conduction velocity across the fiber orientation between control and MCT-treated rats. The anisotropic ratio of MCT-treated rats (1.38+/-0.10) was significantly lower than that of control rats (1.98+/-0.12). These results suggest that RV hypertrophy induced by pressure overload is associated with both disorganization of gap junction distribution and alteration of anisotropic conduction properties.