The ability of living cells to exert physical forces upon their surrounding is a necessary prerequisite for diverse biological processes, such as local cellular migrations in wound healing to metastatic-invasion of cancer. How forces are coopted in metastasis has remained unclear, however, because the mechanical interplay between cancer cells and the various stromal components has not been experimentally accessible. Current dogma implicates inflammation in these mechanical processes. Using Fourier transform traction microscopy, we measured the force-generating capacity of human breast cancer cells occupying a spectrum of invasiveness as well as basal and inducible COX-2 expression (MCF-7
Autophagy has been implicated in the progression and chemoresistance of various cancers. In this study, we have shown that osteosarcoma Saos-2 cells lacking ATG4B, a cysteine proteinase that activates LC3B, are defective in autophagy and fail to form tumors in mouse models. By combining in silico docking with in vitro and cell-based assays, we identified small compounds that suppressed starvation-induced protein degradation, LC3B lipidation, and formation of autophagic vacuoles. NSC185058 effectively inhibited ATG4B activity in vitro and in cells while having no effect on MTOR and PtdIns3K activities. In addition, this ATG4B antagonist had a negative impact on the development of Saos-2 osteosarcoma tumors in vivo. We concluded that tumor suppression was due to a reduction in ATG4B activity, since we found autophagy suppressed within treated tumors and the compound had no effects on oncogenic protein kinases. Our findings demonstrate that ATG4B is a suitable anti-autophagy target and a promising therapeutic target to treat osteosarcoma.
He HL, Lee YE, Shiue YL, et al.
PLA2G2A overexpression is associated with poor therapeutic response and inferior outcome in rectal cancer patients receiving neoadjuvant concurrent chemoradiotherapy.Histopathology. 2015; 66(7):991-1002 [
PubMed]
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AIMS: The aim of this study was to investigate the prognostic impact of group IIA phospholipase A2 (PLA2G2A) expression and its role in predicting the response to neoadjuvant concurrent cheomoradiotherapy (CCRT) in rectal cancer.
METHODS AND RESULTS: Through analysing a public transcriptome of rectal cancers, the PLA2G2A gene was identified as a significant predictor for CCRT response. We validated the expression of PLA2G2A using immunohistochemistry in the pretreatment tumour specimens from 172 patients with rectal cancer. The results were correlated with clinicopathological features, tumour regression grade, overall survival (OS), disease-free survival (DFS) and local recurrence-free survival (LRFS). High expression of PLA2G2A was associated with advanced pretreatment tumour status (P = 0.001), advanced pretreatment nodal status (P = 0.010), advanced post-treatment tumour status (P = 0.002) and lower tumour regression grade (P = 0.006). Furthermore, PLA2G2A expression was correlated negatively with gamma H2A histone family, member X (γ-H2AX) expression (P < 0.001, r = -0.580). More importantly, high expression of PLA2G2A emerged as an adverse prognostic factor for OS (P = 0.0190), DFS (P < 0.0001) and LRFS (P < 0.0001). In multivariate analysis, it remained independently prognostic for shorter DFS (P = 0.014) and LRFS (P = 0.012).
CONCLUSIONS: High expression of PLA2G2A was associated with poor therapeutic response and worse survival in patients with rectal cancer receiving neoadjuvant CCRT, justifying PLA2G2A as an important marker to predict CCRT response and outcome.
Kocbek V, Bersinger NA, Brglez V, et al.
Phospholipase A2 group IIA is elevated in endometriomas but not in peritoneal fluid and serum of ovarian endometriosis patients.Gynecol Endocrinol. 2015; 31(3):214-8 [
PubMed]
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Our previous gene expression analysis identified phospholipase A2 group IIA (PLA2G2A) as a potential biomarker of ovarian endometriosis. The aim of this study was to evaluate PLA2G2A mRNA and protein levels in tissue samples (endometriomas and normal endometrium) and in serum and peritoneal fluid of ovarian endometriosis patients and control women. One-hundred and sixteen women were included in this study: the case group included 70 ovarian endometriosis patients, and the control group included 38 healthy women and 8 patients with benign ovarian cysts. We observed 41.6-fold greater PLA2G2A mRNA levels in endometrioma tissue, compared to normal endometrium tissue. Using Western blotting, PLA2G2A was detected in all samples of endometriomas, but not in normal endometrium, and immunohistochemistry showed PLA2G2A-specific staining in epithelial cells of endometrioma paraffin sections. However, there were no significant differences in PLA2G2A levels between cases and controls according to ELISA of peritoneal fluid (6.0 ± 4.4 ng/ml, 6.6 ± 4.3 ng/ml; p = 0.5240) and serum (2.9 ± 2.1 ng/ml, 3.1 ± 2.2 ng/ml; p = 0.7989). Our data indicate that PLA2G2A is implicated in the pathophysiology of ovarian endometriosis, but that it cannot be used as a diagnostic biomarker.
Tuberous sclerosis syndrome (TSC) is an autosomal dominant tumor suppressor gene syndrome affecting multiple organs, including renal angiomyolipomas and pulmonary lymphangioleiomyomatosis (LAM). LAM is a female-predominant interstitial lung disease characterized by the progressive cyst formation and respiratory failure, which is also seen in sporadic patients without TSC. Mutations in TSC1 or TSC2 cause TSC, result in hyperactivation of mammalian target of rapamycin (mTOR), and are also seen in LAM cells in sporadic LAM. We recently reported that prostaglandin biosynthesis and cyclooxygenase-2 were deregulated in TSC and LAM. Phospholipase A2 (PLA2) is the rate-limiting enzyme that catalyzes the conversion of plasma membrane phospholipids into prostaglandins. In this study, we identified upregulation of adipocyte AdPLA2 (PLA2G16) in LAM nodule cells using publicly available expression data. We showed that the levels of AdPLA2 transcript and protein were higher in LAM lungs compared with control lungs. We then showed that TSC2 negatively regulates the expression of AdPLA2, and loss of TSC2 is associated with elevated production of prostaglandin E2 (PGE2) and prostacyclin (PGI2) in cell culture models. Mouse model studies also showed increased expression of AdPLA2 in xenograft tumors, estrogen-induced lung metastatic lesions of Tsc2 null leiomyoma-derived cells, and spontaneous renal cystadenomas from Tsc2+/- mice. Importantly, rapamycin treatment did not affect the expression of AdPLA2 and the production of PGE2 by TSC2-deficient mouse embryonic fibroblast (Tsc2-/-MEFs), rat uterine leiomyoma-derived ELT3 cells, and LAM patient-associated renal angiomyolipoma-derived "mesenchymal" cells. Furthermore, methyl arachidonyl fluorophosphate (MAFP), a potent irreversible PLA2 inhibitor, selectively suppressed the growth and induced apoptosis of TSC2-deficient LAM patient-derived cells relative to TSC2-addback cells. Our findings suggest that AdPLA2 plays an important role in promoting tumorigenesis and disease progression by modulating the production of prostaglandins and may serve as a potential therapeutic target in TSC and LAM.
Wang M, Hao FY, Wang JG, Xiao W
Group IIa secretory phospholipase A2 (sPLA2IIa) and progression in patients with lung cancer.Eur Rev Med Pharmacol Sci. 2014; 18(18):2648-54 [
PubMed]
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OBJECTIVE: Group IIa secretory phospholipase A2 (sPLA2 IIa) plays a role in the malignant potential of several epithelial cancers. It is overexpressed in many cancer specimens and its elevated levels are correlated with high tumor grade and metastasis. Here, we evaluate the clinical significance of sPLA2 IIa in lung adenocarcinoma and the role of sPLA2 IIa in the process of cancer cell invasion and metastasis.
PATIENTS AND METHODS: Immunohistochemistry was used to investigate sPLA2 IIa in surgically resected lung adenocarcinoma of 180 patients and its correlation with survival. We overexpressed sPLA2 IIa in a lung adenocarcinoma cell line with very low sPLA2 IIa levels and investigated the in vitro and in vivo effects of sPLA2 IIa expression.
RESULTS: High expression of sPLA2 IIa in lung cancer tissue was significantly associated with clinical stage, metastasis, postoperative relapse and shorter patient survival. The overexpression of sPLA2 IIa enhanced xenograft tumor growth and invasion in vitro.
CONCLUSIONS: sPLA2 IIa expression can predict the clinical outcome of lung adenocarcinoma patients. sPLA2 IIa is a novel invasion-promoting gene in lung adenocarcinoma.
Tumorigenicity studies often employ outbred nude mice, in the absence of direct evidence that this mixed genetic background will negatively affect experimental outcome. Here we show that outbred nude mice carry two different alleles of Pla2g2a, a genetic modifier of intestinal tumorigenesis in mice. Here, we identify previous unreported linked polymorphisms in the promoter, noncoding and coding sequences of Pla2g2a and show that outbred nude mice from different commercial providers are heterogeneous for this polymorphic Pla2g2a allele. This heterogeneity even extends to mice obtained from a single commercial provider, which display mixed Pla2g2a genotypes. Notably, we demonstrated that the polymorphic Pla2g2a allele affects orthotopic xenograft establishment of human colon cancer cells in outbred nude mice. This finding establishes a non-cell-autonomous role for Pla2g2a in suppressing intestinal tumorigenesis. Using in vitro reporter assays and pharmacological inhibitors, we show promoter polymorphisms and nonsense-mediated RNA decay (NMD) as underlying mechanisms that lead to low Pla2g2a mRNA levels in tumor-sensitive mice. Together, this study provides mechanistic insight regarding Pla2g2a polymorphisms and demonstrates a non-cell-autonomous role for Pla2g2a in suppressing tumors. Moreover, our direct demonstration that mixed genetic backgrounds of outbred nude mice can significantly affect baseline tumorigenicity cautions against future use of outbred mice for tumor xenograft studies.
Lung cancer is the leading cause of cancer death worldwide. There is an urgent need for early diagnostic tools and novel therapies in order to increase lung cancer survival. Secretory phospholipase A2 group IIa (sPLA2-IIa) is involved in inflammation, tumorigenesis and metastasis. We were the first to uncover that cancer cells secrete sPLA2‑IIa. sPLA2‑IIa is overexpressed in almost all specimens of human lung cancers examined and is significantly elevated in the plasma of lung cancer patients. High levels of plasma sPLA2-IIa are significantly associated with advanced stage and decreased overall cancer survival. In this study, we further showed that elevated HER/HER2‑PI3K-Akt-NF-κB signaling contributes to sPLA2-IIa overexpression in lung cancer cells. sPLA2-IIa in turn phosphorylates and activates HER2 and HER3 in a time- and dose‑dependent manner in lung cancer cells. The structure and sequence‑based docking analysis revealed that sPLA2-IIa β hairpin shares structural similarity with the corresponding EGF hairpin. sPLA2-IIa forms an extensive interface with EGFR and brings the two lobes of EGFR into an active conformation. sPLA2-IIa also enhances the NF-κB promoter activity. Anti-sPLA2-IIa antibody, but not the small molecule sPLA2-IIa inhibitor LY315920, significantly inhibits sPLA2‑IIa-induced activation of NF-κB promoter. Our findings support the notion that sPLA2-IIa functions as a ligand for the EGFR family of receptors leading to an elevated HER/HER2-elicited signaling. Plasma sPLA2-IIa can potentially serve as lung cancer biomarker and sPLA2‑IIa is a potential therapeutic target against lung cancer.
Ojetti V, Persiani R, Cananzi FC, et al.
cDNA-microarray analysis as a new tool to predict lymph node metastasis in gastric cancer.World J Surg. 2014; 38(8):2058-64 [
PubMed]
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BACKGROUND: The aim of the present study was to investigate whether microarray gene expression analysis can be used to predict lymph node status in gastric cancer.
METHODS: Twenty-nine patients undergoing gastrectomy for cancer were enrolled and subdivided according to the pathologic nodal involvement of their disease (N+ vs. N0). Molecular profiling was performed by cDNA microarray on tumor tissue and healthy mucosa. Data were processed to identify differently expressed genes. Selected genes were categorized with gene ontology.
RESULTS: Compared to healthy gastric mucosa, 52 genes were differently expressed in N+ patients, and 50 genes in N0 patients. Forty-five genes were similarly regulated in N+ and N0 patients, whereas 12 genes were differently expressed between N+ and N0 patients. Seven genes were exclusively expressed in N+ patients: Egr-1 was upregulated; Claudin-18, AKR1C2, Cathepsin E, CA II, TFF 1, and progastricsin were downregulated. Five genes were exclusively expressed in N0 patients: Complement C5 receptor 1, PLA2/VII, and MMP- 9 were upregulated; MAO-A and ID-4 were downregulated.
CONCLUSIONS: Microarray analysis could be a valuable tool to identify genes associated with lymph node metastasis in gastric cancer. This technique could improve the selection of patients with locally advanced disease who are candidates for extended lymph node dissection, multimodal treatment options, or alternative therapeutic strategies.
Hagelgans A, Nacke B, Zamaraeva M, et al.
Silibinin down-regulates expression of secreted phospholipase A2 enzymes in cancer cells.Anticancer Res. 2014; 34(4):1723-9 [
PubMed]
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BACKGROUND: Silibinin, a naturally-occurring flavonoid produced by milk thistle, possesses antioxidant, anti-inflammatory and cancer-preventive activities. In the current study, we examined the effects of silibinin on the expression of secreted phospholipase A2 (sPLA2) enzymes, especially those of group IIA (hGIIA), which play a crucial role in inflammation and carcinogenesis.
MATERIALS AND METHODS: The effects of silibinin on sPLA2 expressions in human HepG2 hepatoma and PC-3 prostate cancer cells were analyzed using quantitative reverse transcription-polymerase chain reaction and enzyme linked immunosorbent assay technique.
RESULTS: Silibinin inhibited the expression of hGIIA in unstimulated and cytokine-primed HepG2 and PC-3 cells. The mRNA levels of sPLA2 of groups IB, III and V were also significantly decreased by silibinin. Analyses of transcription factor activation suggest that nuclear factor-κB, but not specificity protein 1 (SP1) is implicated in the silibinin-mediated down-regulation of hGIIA.
CONCLUSION: Silibinin exhibits inhibitory effects on basal and cytokine-induced expression of sPLA2s in cancer cells and therefore, may have the potential to protect against up-regulation of hGIIA and other sPLA2 isoforms during inflammation and cancer.
Bernard D, Vindrieux D
PLA2R1: expression and function in cancer.Biochim Biophys Acta. 2014; 1846(1):40-4 [
PubMed]
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The phospholipase A2 receptor 1 (PLA2R1 or PLA2R) was isolated twenty years ago for its ability to bind several secretory phospholipase A2 proteins (sPLA2). Since its identification, it has attracted only a limited interest, mainly in the sPLA2 biology field, as it is viewed uniquely as a regulator of sPLA2 activities. Recent discoveries outline novel important functions of this gene in cancer biology. Indeed, PLA2R1 gain or loss of function experiments in vitro and in vivo shows that this receptor promotes several tumor suppressive responses including senescence, apoptosis and inhibition of transformation. Supporting a tumor suppressive role of PLA2R1, its expression decreases in numerous cancers, and known oncogenes such as HIF2α and c-MYC repress its expression. PLA2R1 promoter methylation, a classical way to repress tumor suppressive gene expression in cancer cells, is observed in leukemia, in kidney and in breast cancer cells. Mechanistically, PLA2R1 activates the kinase JAK2 and orients its activity towards a tumor suppressive one. PLA2R1 also promotes accumulation of reactive oxygen species which induce cell death and senescence. This review compiles recent data demonstrating an unexpected tumor suppressive role of PLA2R1 and outlines the future work needed to improve our knowledge of the functions of this gene in cancer.
Liu F, Wei WQ, Cormier RT, et al.
Association of single nucleotide polymorphisms in the prostaglandin-endoperoxide synthase 2 (PTGS2) and phospholipase A₂ group IIA (PLA2G2A) genes with susceptibility to esophageal squamous cell carcinoma.Asian Pac J Cancer Prev. 2014; 15(4):1797-802 [
PubMed]
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BACKGROUND: The prostaglandin-endoperoxide synthase 2 (PTGS2) and phospholipase A2 group IIA (PLA2G2A) genes encode enzymes that are involved in arachidonic acid and prostaglandin biosynthesis. Dysregulation of both genes is associated with inflammation and carcinogenesis, including esophageal squamous cell carcinoma (ESCC). We therefore hypothesized that there is an association between single nucleotide polymorphisms (SNPs) in these genes and susceptibility to ESCC.
METHODS: We performed a gene-wide tag SNP-based association study to examine the association of SNPs in PTGS2 and PLA2G2A with ESCC in 269 patients and 269 healthy controls from Taihangshan Mountain, Henan and Hebei Provinces, the rural area of China which has the highest incidence of esophageal cancer in the world. Thirteen tag SNPs in PLA2G2A and 4 functional SNPs in PTGS2 were selected and genotyped using a high-throughput Mass Array genotyping platform.
RESULTS: We found a modest increased risk of ESCC in subjects with the PTGS2 rs12042763 AA genotype (OR=1.23; 95% CI, 1.00- 3.04) compared with genotype GG. For PLA2G2A, a decreased risk of ESCC was observed in subjects with the rs11677 CT (OR=0.51, 95%CI, 0.29-0.85) or TT genotype (OR=0.51, 95%CI, 0.17-0.96) or the T carriers (CT+TT) (OR=0.52, 95%CI, 0.31-0.85) when compared with the CC genotype. Also for PLA2G2A, rs2236771 C allele carriers were more frequent in the control group (P=0.02). Subjects with the GC (OR=0.55, 95%CI, 0.33-0.93) or CC genotype (OR=0.38, 95% CI, 0.16-0.94) or the C carriers (GC+CC) (OR=0.52, 95%CI, 0.32- 0.85) showed a negative association with ESCC susceptibility.
CONCLUSIONS: Our results suggest that PTGS2 and PLA2G2A gene polymorphisms may modify the risk of ESCC development.
Zhu C, Sun Z, Li C, et al.
Urocortin affects migration of hepatic cancer cell lines via differential regulation of cPLA2 and iPLA2.Cell Signal. 2014; 26(5):1125-34 [
PubMed]
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Urocortin (UCN) is a member of corticotrophin-releasing factor (CRF) family, which has been reported to play a role in many biological processes, including inflammation and cancer development. Growing evidence shows that PLA2 (phospholipase A2) enzymes also participate in inflammation and tumor development. The primary aim of the present study was to identify a novel signaling pathway of CRF receptor activation leading to migration of two kinds of hepatoma carcinoma cell lines, HepG2 and SMMC-7721, linking the stimulation of PLA2 expression by UCN to UCN-induced tumor cell migration. Pharmacological inhibitors and genetic approaches (such as stable transfection and siRNAs) were used in this study. Unlike HepG2 cells which express both CRF receptors themselves, SMMC-7721 cells which hardly express these two CRF receptors needed stable transfection with CRFR1 or CRFR2 to observe the effect of UCN. Two types of PLA2 enzymes, cPLA2 and iPLA2, were found to be regulated by UCN. Our data showed that UCN raised cPLA2 expression but lowered iPLA2 expression. Moreover, UCN was found to act on the certain region of iPLA2 promoter to reduce its transcription. UCN promoted tumor cell migration by up-regulating cPLA2 expression via CRFR1 whereas it suppressed tumor cell migration by down-regulating iPLA2 expression via CRFR2. These results indicate the dual roles for UCN in the hepatoma carcinoma cell migration, which involve the regulation of both cPLA2and iPLA2.
Brglez V, Pucer A, Pungerčar J, et al.
Secreted phospholipases A₂are differentially expressed and epigenetically silenced in human breast cancer cells.Biochem Biophys Res Commun. 2014; 445(1):230-5 [
PubMed]
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Secreted phospholipases A2 (sPLA2s) have recently been associated with several cancers, but their role in breast cancer is unknown. Here we demonstrate that mRNA expression of group IIA, III and X sPLA2s differs both in vivo in tumour biopsies and in breast cancer cells in vitro. Their expression is differentially regulated by DNA methylation and histone acetylation and, significantly, all three genes are silenced in aggressive triple negative cells due to both mechanisms. The transcription start site promoter region and the upstream CpG islands, exclusive to the group X sPLA2 gene, have variable roles in the regulation of sPLA2 expression. Our results suggest that the differential expression of hGIIA, hGIII and hGX sPLA2s in breast cancer cells is a consequence of various degrees of epigenetic silencing due to DNA hypermethylation and histone deacetylation.
BACKGROUND: Alterations in lipid metabolism are inherent to the metabolic transformations that support tumorigenesis. The relationship between the synthesis, storage and use of lipids and their importance in cancer is poorly understood. The human group X secreted phospholipase A2 (hGX sPLA2) releases fatty acids (FAs) from cell membranes and lipoproteins, but its involvement in the regulation of cellular FA metabolism and cancer is not known.
RESULTS: Here we demonstrate that hGX sPLA2 induces lipid droplet (LD) formation in invasive breast cancer cells, stimulates their proliferation and prevents their death on serum deprivation. The effects of hGX sPLA2 are shown to be dependent on its enzymatic activity, are mimicked by oleic acid and include activation of protein kinase B/Akt, a cell survival signaling kinase. The hGX sPLA2-stimulated LD biogenesis is accompanied by AMP-activated protein kinase (AMPK) activation, up-regulation of FA oxidation enzymes and the LD-coating protein perilipin 2, and suppression of lipogenic gene expression. Prolonged activation of AMPK inhibited hGX sPLA2-induced LD formation, while etomoxir, an inhibitor of FA oxidation, abrogated both LD formation and cell survival. The hGX sPLA2-induced changes in lipid metabolism provide a minimal immediate proliferative advantage during growth under optimal conditions, but they confer to the breast cancer cells a sustained ability to resist apoptosis during nutrient and growth factor limitation.
CONCLUSION: Our results identify hGX sPLA2 as a novel modulator of lipid metabolism that promotes breast cancer cell growth and survival by stimulating LD formation and FA oxidation.
Mercader AG, Pomilio AB
Naturally-occurring dimers of flavonoids as anticarcinogens.Anticancer Agents Med Chem. 2013; 13(8):1217-35 [
PubMed]
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Biflavonoids are dimers of flavonoid moieties linked by a C-C or C-O-C bond. Simple, complex, rearranged, natural and ketalized Diels-Alder adducts, benzofuran derivatives, and spirobiflavonoids are some of the structural groups of biflavonoids. These compounds are mainly distributed in the Gymnosperms, Angiosperms (monocots and dicots), ferns (Pteridophyta), and mosses (Bryophyta). Biflavonoids have shown a variety of biological activities, including anticancer, antibacterial, antifungal, antiviral, antiinflammatory, analgesic, antioxidant, vasorelaxant, anticlotting, among others. This work is focused on probably the most potentially relevant biological activity of biflavonoids, the anticancer activity and the involved mechanisms of action, such as induction of apoptosis [inhibition of cyclic nucleotide phosphodiesterases; effects on NF-κB family of transcription factors; activation of caspase(s); inhibition effects on bcl-2 expression, and upregulation of p53 and caspase-3 gene expression]; inhibition of angiogenesis [anti-proliferative effects; activation of Rho-GTPases and ERK signaling pathways; inhibition of FASN activity]; inhibition of pre-mRNA splicing; inhibition of human DNA topoisomerases I and II-α; anti-inflammatory/ immunoregulatory effects [inhibition of XO; inhibition of proinflammatory enzymes, such as PLA2 and COX; effects on cytokines mediated COX-2 and iNOS expression]; modulation of immune response; inhibition of protein tyrosine phosphorylation; antioxidant and analgesic activities in relation to the anticarcinogen behavior. For that reason the structures and anticarcinogenic activities of 83 biflavonoids are thoroughly discussed. The results of this work indicate that biflavonoids strongly affect the cancer cells with little effect on normal cell proliferation, suggesting a therapeutic potential against cancer.
Li Y, Zhao H, Wang Y, et al.
Isoliquiritigenin induces growth inhibition and apoptosis through downregulating arachidonic acid metabolic network and the deactivation of PI3K/Akt in human breast cancer.Toxicol Appl Pharmacol. 2013; 272(1):37-48 [
PubMed]
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Arachidonic acid (AA)-derived eicosanoids and its downstream pathways have been demonstrated to play crucial roles in growth control of breast cancer. Here, we demonstrate that isoliquiritigenin, a flavonoid phytoestrogen from licorice, induces growth inhibition and apoptosis through downregulating multiple key enzymes in AA metabolic network and the deactivation of PI3K/Akt in human breast cancer. Isoliquiritigenin diminished cell viability, 5-bromo-2'-deoxyuridine (BrdU) incorporation, and clonogenic ability in both MCF-7 and MDA-MB-231cells, and induced apoptosis as evidenced by an analysis of cytoplasmic histone-associated DNA fragmentation, flow cytometry and hoechst staining. Furthermore, isoliquiritigenin inhibited mRNA expression of multiple forms of AA-metabolizing enzymes, including phospholipase A2 (PLA2), cyclooxygenases (COX)-2 and cytochrome P450 (CYP) 4A, and decreased secretion of their products, including prostaglandin E2 (PGE2) and 20-hydroxyeicosatetraenoic acid (20-HETE), without affecting COX-1, 5-lipoxygenase (5-LOX), 5-lipoxygenase activating protein (FLAP), and leukotriene B4 (LTB4). In addition, it downregulated the levels of phospho-PI3K, phospho-PDK (Ser(241)), phospho-Akt (Thr(308)), phospho-Bad (Ser(136)), and Bcl-xL expression, thereby activating caspase cascades and eventually cleaving poly(ADP-ribose) polymerase (PARP). Conversely, the addition of exogenous eicosanoids, including PGE2, LTB4 and a 20-HETE analog (WIT003), and caspase inhibitors, or overexpression of constitutively active Akt reversed isoliquiritigenin-induced apoptosis. Notably, isoliquiritigenin induced growth inhibition and apoptosis of MDA-MB-231 human breast cancer xenografts in nude mice, together with decreased intratumoral levels of eicosanoids and phospho-Akt (Thr(308)). Collectively, these data suggest that isoliquiritigenin induces growth inhibition and apoptosis through downregulating AA metabolic network and the deactivation of PI3K/Akt in human breast cancer.
Li S, Zhao X, Wu Z, et al.
Polymorphisms in arachidonic acid metabolism-related genes and the risk and prognosis of colorectal cancer.Fam Cancer. 2013; 12(4):755-65 [
PubMed]
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Cyclooxygenase-2 (COX-2), 12-lipoxygenase (12-LOX) and phospholipaseA2 (PLA2) played important roles in the modulation of apoptosis, angiogenesis, carcinogenesis and invasion of colorectal cancer (CRC). The polymorphisms in COX-2, 12-LOX and PLA2 may affect their roles. Therefore, we investigated if COX-2 -1195G > A, 12-LOX 261Arg > Gln and PLA2 c.349 + 191A > G polymorphisms were associated with risk and prognosis of CRC as well as possible interactions with the environmental factors on the risk of CRC in Northeast of China. A case-control study with 451 cases and 631 controls were carried out, a cohort with 386 patients were followed up. Genotypes were determined by polymerase chain reaction-restriction fragment length polymorphism (PCR-RFLP). Compared with the 261Arg/Arg genotype, 12-LOX 261Arg/Gln genotype and 261Arg/Gln + Gln/Gln genotypes reduced the risk of rectal cancer by 33% (adjusted OR = 0.67, 95% CI 0.47-0.97, p = 0.03) and 32% (adjusted OR = 0.68, 95% CI 0.49-0.96, p = 0.03), respectively. The adjusted HR for the association between 12-LOX 261Gln/Gln genotype and overall survival in patients with CRC was 1.68 (95% CI 1.06-2.68, p = 0.03). There was also evidence of an interaction between the PLA2 c.349 + 191 A > G genotypes and the overnight food consumption (adjusted ORi = 1.92, 95% CI 1.14-3.25, P(interaction) = 0.01). These observations indicate that 12-LOX 261Arg > Gln polymorphism may affect risk of rectal cancer, and it may be a potential predictive marker for prognosis of CRC.
Wang X, Huang CJ, Yu GZ, et al.
Expression of group IIA phospholipase A2 is an independent predictor of favorable outcome for patients with gastric cancer.Hum Pathol. 2013; 44(10):2020-7 [
PubMed]
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Growing evidence suggests that phospholipase A2 (PLA2) plays a pivotal role in tumorigenesis in human gastrointestinal cancer. One of the well-studied isoforms of PLA2, group IIA PLA2 (PLA2G2A), appears to exert its protumorigenic or antitumorigenic effects in a tissue-specific manner. The present study was designed to determine the expression profile and prognostic value of PLA2G2A in gastric cancer in a large Chinese cohort. By using real-time polymerase chain reaction, the amount of PLA2G2A messenger RNA in 60 pairs of fresh gastric tumors and adjacent noncancerous mucosa was measured. The immunostaining of PLA2G2A in 866 gastric cancers with paired noncancerous tissues was assayed. No expression of PLA2G2A was found in normal gastric mucosa, and focal expression of PLA2G2A was noticed in intestinal metaplasia, whereas significantly increased expression of PLA2G2A was observed in the cytoplasm of gastric cancer cells. Furthermore, the extent of PLA2G2A expression was associated with tumor size (P < .001), tumor differentiation (P = .001), T class (P < .001), N class (P < .001), and TNM stage (P < .001) of gastric cancer. Multivariate analysis showed that PLA2G2A expression was an independent predictor of survival for patients with gastric cancer (P = .024). Expression of PLA2G2A seems to be protective for patients with gastric cancer (hazard ratio, 1.423; 95% confidence interval, 1.047-1.935), and it may be a target for achieving better treatment outcomes.