Radiation up-regulates the expression of VEGF in a canine oral melanoma cell line.

To evaluate radiosensitivity and the effects of radiation on the expression of vascular endothelial growth factor (VEGF) and VEGF receptors in the canine oral melanoma cell line, TLM 1, cells were irradiated with doses of 0, 2, 4, 6, 8 and 10 Gray (Gy). Survival rates were then determined by a MTT assay, while vascular endothelial growth factor receptor (VEGFR)-1 and -2 expression was measured by flow cytometry and apoptotic cell death rates were investigated using an Annexin assay. Additionally, a commercially available canine VEGF ELISA kit was used to measure VEGF. Radiosensitivity was detected in TLM 1 cells, and mitotic and apoptotic cell death was found to occur in a radiation dose dependent manner. VEGF was secreted constitutively and significant up-regulation was observed in the 8 and 10 Gy irradiated cells. In addition, a minor portion of TLM 1 cells expressed vascular endothelial growth factor receptor (VEGFR)-1 intracellularly. VEGFR-2 was detected in the cytoplasm and was down-regulated following radiation with increasing dosages. In TLM 1 cells, apoptosis plays an important role in radiation induced cell death. It has also been suggested that the significantly higher VEGF production in the 8 and 10 Gy group could lead to tumour resistance.

Activation of VEGFR-2 signaling in response to moderate dose of ultraviolet B promotes survival of normal human keratinocytes.

Mounting evidence indicates that signaling via VEGF receptors (VEGFRs) extends beyond blood vessel formation. Recently, VEGFRs are also found to be constitutively expressed in keratinocytes and epidermal appendages. Here, we show that the expression of VEGFRs (including VEGFR-1, VEGFR-2, and NRP-1) was significantly enhanced by moderate dose of ultraviolet B (UVB) in normal human keratinocytes and epidermis. The elevated expression of VEGFRs by UVB was independent of autocrine stimulation by their natural ligand, VEGF, but mainly mediated through hypoxia and oxidative stress. Moderate dose UVB also promoted tyrosine phosphorylation of VEGFR-1 and VEGFR-2, this effect was again VEGF independent. Both α and δ isoforms of protein kinase C (PKC) were required for UVB-induced phosphorylation of VEGFR-1, but only the δ isoform was required for VEGFR-2 phosphorylation. The phosphorylation of VEGFRs or isoforms of PKC was completely inhibited by PP2, a specific inhibitor for Src family kinases (SFKs), indicating that SFKs are upstream of PKC and VEGFRs. Moderate dose UVB-induced VEGF exerted an anti-apoptotic effect for keratinocytes, whereas high dose UVB-induced VEGF played as an inflammatory factor. Of note, neutralization of VEGFR-2 but not VEGFR-1 exacerbated UVB-induced cell death and reduced survival of keratinocytes. Furthermore, VEGFR-2 neutralization inhibited the activation of ERK1/2 and Akt by UVB, suggesting that VEGFR-2 signaling was involved in the pro-survival mechanism via ERK1/2 and PI3-K/Akt pathway. Taken together, we demonstrate for the first time that VEGFR-2 signaling is activated and promotes survival of keratinocytes under moderate dose of UVB irradiation.

Potent and selective photo-inactivation of proteins with peptoid-ruthenium conjugates.

Advances in high-throughput screening now enable the rapid discovery of bioactive small molecules, but these primary hits almost always exhibit modest potency. We report a strategy for the transformation of these hits into much more potent inhibitors without compound optimization. Appending a derivative of Ru(II)(tris-bipyridyl)(2+), an efficient photosensitizer of singlet oxygen production, to synthetic protein-binding compounds results in highly potent and specific target protein inactivation upon irradiation with visible light.

Correlation between tumor growth delay and expression of cancer and host VEGF, VEGFR2, and osteopontin in response to radiotherapy.

PURPOSE: To determine the late effects of radiotherapy (RT) on vascular endothelial growth factor (VEGF), VEGF receptor-2 (VEGFR2), and osteopontin (OPN) expression in cancer and stromal cells. METHODS AND MATERIALS: LS174T xenografted athymic mice were used as a tumor model. Radiation was delivered in two equivalent fractionation schemes: 5 x 7 Gy and 1 x 20 Gy, the latter at two dose rates. RESULTS: Tumor growth arrest was similar in all treatment groups, with the exception of a better response of small-size tumors in the 5 x 7-Gy group. The host VEGF and OPN levels were directly proportional to the tumor doubling time and were independent of the fractionation scheme. The host and cancer cell VEGFR2 levels in tumor were also directly related to the tumor response to RT. CONCLUSION: Upregulated VEGFR2 in cancer cells suggest paracrine signaling in the VEGFR2 pathway of cancer cells as the factor contributing to RT failure. The transient activation of the host VEGF/VEGFR2 pathway in tumor supports the model of angiogenic regeneration and suggests that radiation-induced upregulation of VEGF, VEGFR2, and downstream proteins might contribute to RT failure by escalating the rate of vascular repair. Coexpression of host OPN and VEGF, two factors closely associated with angiogenesis, indicate that OPN can serve as a surrogate marker of tumor recovery after RT. Taken together, these results strongly support the notion that to achieve optimal therapeutic outcomes, the scheduling of RT and antiangiogenic therapies will require patient-specific post-treatment monitoring of the VEGF/VEGFR2 pathway and that tumor-associated OPN can serve as an indicator of tumor regrowth.