Specific protein interacting with a tumor promoter, debromoaplysiatoxin, in bovine serum is alpha 1-acid glycoprotein.

Aplysiatoxin and debromoaplysiatoxin, a debrominated form of aplysiatoxin, have both been shown to be potent tumor promoters in a two-stage carcinogenesis experiment on mouse skin. However, debromoaplysiatoxin did not behave like aplysiatoxin in most of the biological assay systems using cultured cells. The discrepancy was supposed to be due to a factor in the bovine serum used for culture, a similar factor not being present in sera of eight other animal species examined. The factor was purified to homogeneity from bovine serum by ammonium sulfate fractionation and chromatographies on DEAE-cellulose, Sephadex G-150, hydroxyapatite, and a reversed-phase HPLC column. The factor was a 40-kDa protein, and partial amino-acid sequencing of its tryptic peptides indicated that the factor is alpha 1-acid glycoprotein. Both the purified factor and the commercially available bovine alpha 1-acid glycoprotein abolished in vitro the activation of protein kinase C by debromoaplysiatoxin but not that by aplysiatoxin. Debromoaplysiatoxin induced differentiation of HL-60 cells into macrophages at a comparable concentration to aplysiatoxin, when serum-free medium was used. These results suggest that alpha 1-acid glycoprotein, which interacts specifically with debromoaplysiatoxin, contained in bovine serum must have masked the in vitro properties of the tumor promoter in the biological assay systems.

Anticarcinogenic activity of green tea polyphenols.

The main physiologically active polyphenol in green tea extract is (-)-epigallocatechin gallate (EGCG). Green tea extract has an advantage over EGCG as a cancer chemopreventive agent for humans, as is apparent from the Japanese custom of injesting green tea on a daily basis. Green tea extract similarly inhibited protein kinase C activation by teleocidin, a tumor promoter, as did EGCG. In addition, EGCG and green tea extract showed inhibitory effects on the growth of lung and mammary cancer cell lines with similar potencies. An experiment using the estrogen-dependent MCF-7 cell line showed the mechanisms of action of these compounds to be inhibiting the interaction of estrogen with its receptors. Considering our previous results of a single application of EGCG to mouse skin inhibiting the specific binding of 3H-12-0-tetradecanoylphorbol-13-acetate (3H-TPA) and 3H-okadaic acid, we postulated that EGCG and compounds in green tea extracts would block the interaction of tumor promoters, hormones and growth factors with their receptors: a kind of sealing effect. The sealing effect would account for reversible growth arrest, and may be induced by various kinds of compound.

Thapsigargin, an inhibitor of endoplasmic reticulum Ca(2+)-ATPase, enhances c-fos expression but antagonizes vacuole formation of human hepatoma cells induced by teleocidin.

Teleocidin, a phorbol ester-type tumor promoter, enhanced actin redistribution, vacuole formation and c-fos expression of PLC/PRF/5 hepatoma cells. This tumor promoter also inhibited calcium mobilization induced by epidermal growth factor (EGF). Thapsigargin, a specific inhibitor of endoplasmic reticulum Ca(2+)-ATPase, elevated cytosolic calcium, enhanced c-fos expression and antagonized the vacuole formation induced by teleocidin without interfering with actin redistribution and Lucifer yellow uptake. On the other hand, a calcium ionophore ionomycin elevated both cytosolic Ca2+ and c-fos mRNA but could not antagonize the vacuole formation induced by teleocidin. From these results it was speculated that the Ca2+ leak from the endoplasmic reticulum rather than the elevation of cytosolic Ca2+ appeared to be responsible for the specific inhibition of vacuole formation by thapsigargin.

Sarcophytols A and B inhibit tumor promotion by teleocidin in two-stage carcinogenesis in mouse skin.

Sarcophytols A and B, isolated from a soft coral, Sarcophyton glaucum, are cembrane-type diterpenes with different numbers of hydroxyl groups. Sarcophytols A and B inhibited tumor promotion by teleocidin in two-stage carcinogenesis experiments on mouse skin. The inhibitory effect of sarcophytol A was demonstrated with two different initiating doses of 7,12-dimethylbenz[a]anthracene (DMBA): 50 micrograms (experiment 1) and 100 micrograms (experiment 2). In experiment 1, three groups of mice were treated with DMBA, and then twice a week with doses (1.6 micrograms, 16 micrograms, and 82 micrograms) of sarcophytol A followed by 2.5 micrograms teleocidin. In week 25, the incidences of tumors in these groups were only 7.1%, 20.0%, and 13.3%, respectively, whereas that in the control group treated with DMBA plus teleocidin was 53.3%. Moreover, at this time, the average numbers of tumors per mouse in these groups were 0.1, 0.3, and 0.3, respectively, while that in the control group was 2.1. In experiment 2 an amount of sarcophytol A (1.6 micrograms) or B (1.7 micrograms) equimolar to 2.5 micrograms teleocidin was applied twice a week, as in experiment 1, and results showed that sarcophytol B also inhibited tumor promotion by teleocidin. Both sarcophytols A and B caused delay in onset of tumor formation, and reduced the percentage of tumor-bearing mice and the average number of tumors per mouse. The effective concentrations of sarcophytols A and B were in the microgram range with an equimolar amount of teleocidin.

Inhibitory effects of 12-O-tetradecanoylphorbol-13-acetate and teleocidin B induced Epstein-Barr virus by saponin and its related compounds.

The inhibitory effects of triterpene glycosides and monoterpene glycosides on 12-O-tetradecanoylphorbol-13-acetate (TPA) and teleocidin B in the Epstein-Barr virus (EBV) activation in Raji cells were studied. Concomitant treatment of Raji cells with TPA or Teleocidin B and these glycosides showed the inhibition of EBV activation. We herein report in vitro structure-activity studies using a biological test system on a variety of triterpene glycosides having 1 sugar chain (monodesmoside), 2 sugar chain (bisdesmoside) and an acyl side-chain. Among these glycosides, triterpene 3-O-glycosides and acylated saponin exhibited an effective inhibition of EBV activation; therefore, the sugar chain at C-3 of the triterpene and/or the acyl side-chain were determined to be essential to the inhibitory activities in this test system. The data suggested that these triterpenoid glycosides which were originally used as herbal drugs and folk remedies in many areas of the world, were in fact inhibitory compounds, thus explaining the EBV activation in the in vitro test system.

Search for possible antitumor promoters by inhibition of 12-O-tetradecanoylphorbol-13-acetate-induced Epstein-Barr virus activation; ursolic acid and oleanolic acid from an anti-inflammatory Chinese medicinal plant, Glechoma hederaceae L.

From an anti-inflammatory Chinese medicinal plant, Glechoma hederaceae L., two triterpene carboxylic acids, ursolic acid (UA) and oleanolic acid (OA) have been isolated as inhibitors of 12-O-tetradecanoylphorbol-13-acetate (TPA) induced Epstein-Barr virus (EBV) activation in Raji cells. Both acids significantly inhibited the activation at a 1000-fold molar ratio to TPA, and also teleocidin B-4. The dose responses of the acids were very similar to those of the antitumor promoters, retinoic acid (RA) and glycyrrhetinic acid (GA). However, a characteristic property that UA and OA possess, far higher cell viability to the Raji cells than RA to the Raji cells, has been pointed out. Furthermore, enhancement of the inhibitory activity was found in 3-keto derivatives of UA and OA, while either loss of oxygen functionality at C-3 position of UA or oxidation at C-3 of GA led to reduction of the activity. Binding assay suggested that the inhibitory activity should be exhibited by some event caused after binding of TPA to the receptor in the cells.

Berberine sulfate inhibits tumor-promoting activity of teleocidin in two-stage carcinogenesis on mouse skin.

Berberine sulfate, an isoquinoline alkaloid isolated from Hydrastis canadensis L., inhibited the effects of the tumor promoters 12-O-tetradecanoylphorbol-13-acetate and teleocidin, such as increased 32Pi-incorporation into phospholipids of cell membrane and hexose transport. Berberine sulfate also markedly suppressed the promoting effect of teleocidin on skin tumor formation in mice initiated with 7,12-dimethylbenz[a]anthracene.

Inhibition of teleocidin-caused epidermal ornithine decarboxylase induction by phospholipase A2-, cyclooxygenase- and lipoxygenase-inhibitors.

Teleocidin (5 micrograms/mouse), a potent tumor promoting indole alkaloid from Streptomyces, induced epidermal ornithine decarboxylase (ODC) in CD-1 mice. Teleocidin-caused ODC induction was inhibited by the treatment of indomethacin (2 mumol/mouse), a selective cyclooxygenase inhibitor, and p-bromophenacyl bromide (BPB) (30 mumol/mouse), a phospholipase A2 inhibitor. Teleocidin-caused ODC induction inhibited by indomethacin was completely restored by concurrent application of prostaglandin E2 (PGE2) (140 nmol/mouse). On the other hand, teleocidin-caused ODC induction inhibited by BPB was not restored by the treatment of mice with PGE2, but partially restored by the treatment with arachidonic acid (1 mumol/mouse). Treatment of mice with lipoxygenase inhibitors such as BW755C (30 mumol/mouse), nordihydroguaiaretic acid (NDGA) (30 mumol/mouse), quercetin (10 mumol/mouse), and 2,3,5-trimethyl-6-(12-hydroxy-5,10-dodecadiynyl)-1,4-benzoquinone (AA861) (10 mumol/mouse) clearly suppressed ODC induction by teleocidin. Moreover, both NDGA (30 mumol/mouse) and quercetin (10 mumol/mouse) inhibited the restoring effect of PGE2. Therefore, our present results suggest that arachidonate metabolites, i.e., not only cyclooxygenase product(s) but also lipoxygenase product(s), are involved in the mechanism of ODC induction by teleocidin.