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ABSTRACT: Gimeracil, an inhibitor of dihydropyrimidine dehydrogenase (DPYD), partially inhibits homologous recombination (HR) repair and has a radiosensitizing effect as well as enhanced sensitivity to Camptothecin (CPT). DPYD is the target protein for radiosensitization by Gimeracil. We investigated the mechanisms of sensitization of radiation and CPT by DPYD inhibition using DLD-1 cells treated with siRNA for DPYD. We investigated the focus formation of various kinds of proteins involved in HR and examined the phosphorylation of RPA by irradiation using Western blot analysis. DPYD depletion by siRNA significantly restrained the formation of radiation-induced foci of Rad51 and RPA, whereas it increased the number of foci of NBS1. The numbers of colocalization of NBS1 and RPA foci in DPYD-depleted cells after radiation were significantly smaller than in the control cells. These results suggest that DPYD depletion is attributable to decreased single-stranded DNA generated by the Mre11/Rad50/NBS1 complex-dependent resection of DNA double-strand break ends. The phosphorylation of RPA by irradiation was partially suppressed in DPYD-depleted cells, suggesting that DPYD depletion may partially inhibit DNA repair with HR by suppressing phosphorylation of RPA. DPYD depletion showed a radiosensitizing effect as well as enhanced sensitivity to CPT. The radiosensitizing effect of DPYD depletion plus CPT was the additive effect of DPYD depletion and CPT. DPYD depletion did not have a cell-killing effect, suggesting that DPYD depletion may not be so toxic. Considering these results, the combination of CPT and drugs that inhibit DPYD may prove useful for radiotherapy as a method of radiosensitization.
Journal of Radiation Research 01/2012; 53(2):250-6. · 1.68 Impact Factor
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ABSTRACT: Trifluorothymidine (TFT) is well known to be converted to TFT-monophosphate by thymidine kinase and to inhibit thymidylate synthase. In addition, TFT-triphosphate (TFT-TP) is also incorporated into DNA, resulting in cytocidal effects. However, the precise mechanism of TFT-induced DNA damage is still unclear. Therefore, we investigated the modes of action of TFT against DNA replication and repair enzymes, as compared with those of 5FU and FdUrd. When HeLa cells were treated with TFT at a concentration of 1 µM (IC50 value), the concentration of TFT in the DNA was calculated as 62.2±0.9 pmol/1x106 cells for 4 h. On the other hand, following treatment of the cells with FdUrd (0.5 µM) and 5FU (10 µM) at their IC50 doses, the drug concentrations in the DNA were 7.53, and 0.17 pmol/1 x 10⁶ cells for 4 h, respectively. These results show the markedly greater degree of incorporation of TFT into the DNA of the HeLa cells compared with that of 5FU (approximately more than 300-fold for 4 h) or FdUrd (approximately more than 8-fold for 4 h). The primer extension assay demonstrated that TFT-TP was also incorporated into the T-sites of the growing DNA strand, however, it competed only weakly with thymidine triphosphate. The DNA glycosylase assay was performed using commercially available DNA glycosylase and fractionated HeLa cell extracts obtained by gel filtration. There was no detectable excision of the TFT pairing to adenine by uracil DNA glycosylase (UDG), thymine DNA glycosylase (TDG), methyl-CpG binding domain 4 (MBD4) or the fractionated HeLa cell extracts, however, TDG and MBD4 were able to excise the TFT pairing to guanine. Additional data indicate that small-interfering RNA-mediated knockdown of TDG or MBD4 significantly increased the resistance to the cytotoxic effects of FdUrd, but not to that of TFT. These studies show the greater degree of incorporation of TFT into the DNA than that of 5FU or FdUrd, and that such a high degree of incorporation of TFT residues into the DNA might be related to exhibit potent cytotoxic activity to be refractory to cleavage by these DNA glycosylases; thus, the DNA-directed cytotoxic effect of the compound is quite different from that of 5FU.
International Journal of Oncology 07/2011; 39(1):263-70. · 2.40 Impact Factor
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ABSTRACT: Gimeracil (5-chloro-2, 4-dihydroxypyridine) is an inhibitor of dihydropyrimidine dehydrogenase (DPYD), which degrades pyrimidine including 5-fluorouracil in the blood. Gimeracil was originally added to an oral fluoropyrimidine derivative S-1 to yield prolonged 5-fluorouracil concentrations in serum and tumor tissues. We have already reported that gimeracil had radiosensitizing effects by partially inhibiting homologous recombination (HR) in the repair of DNA double strand breaks. We investigated the mechanisms of gimeracil radiosensitization. Comet assay and radiation-induced focus formation of various kinds of proteins involved in HR was carried out. siRNA for DPYD were transfected to HeLa cells to investigate the target protein for radiosensitization with gimeracil. SCneo assay was carried out to examine whether DPYD depletion by siRNA inhibited HR repair of DNA double strand breaks. Tail moments in neutral comet assay increased in gimeracil-treated cells. Gimeracil restrained the formation of foci of Rad51 and replication protein A (RPA), whereas it increased the number of foci of Nbs1, Mre11, Rad50, and FancD2. When HeLa cells were transfected with the DPYD siRNA before irradiation, the cells became more radiosensitive. The degree of radiosensitization by transfection of DPYD siRNA was similar to that of gimeracil. Gimeracil did not sensitize DPYD-depleted cells. Depletion of DPYD by siRNA significantly reduced the frequency of neopositive clones in SCneo assay. Gimeracil partially inhibits the early step in HR. It was found that DPYD is the target protein for radiosensitization by gimeracil. The inhibitors of DPYD, such as gimeracil, could enhance the efficacy of radiotherapy through partial suppression of HR-mediated DNA repair.
Cancer Science 06/2011; 102(9):1712-6. · 3.33 Impact Factor
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ABSTRACT: Combined chemotherapy with 5-fluorouracil and leucovorin (LV) has been widely used for the treatment of patients with colorectal cancer. Given that LV effects are attributable to increased levels of reduced folate in cancer cells, we attempted here to show the in vivo role of folylpolyglutamate synthetase (FPGS), which stabilizes intracellular reduced folate, in the anticancer activities of oral fluoropyrimidines, UFT or S-1, combined with LV. To this end, HCT-15 human colon cancer cells were knocked down for FPGS expression by RNA interference. The cell line stably expressing FPGS shRNA (FPGS shRNA HCT-15) was cloned and transferred subcutaneously into nude mice fed a low-folate diet. FPGS shRNA HCT-15 tumors expressed a significantly lower level of FPGS at protein and mRNA levels than parental HCT-15 cells, and the levels of reduced folate in FPGS shRNA HCT-15 tumors became 57% of those in parent after a single administration of 10 mg/kg of LV. Notably, FPGS downregulation did not affect the tumor growth or sensitivity to fluoropyrimidine. Importantly, we observed that LV given for 14 days failed to enhance the anticancer effects of UFT and S-1 in FPGS shRNA HCT-15. This was in keeping with the results that LV did not increase the ternary complex of TS, FdUMP and reduced folate. In conclusion, the present results provide in vivo evidence that intratumor FPGS plays an important role in the efficacy of oral fluoropyrimidine plus LV therapy for colorectal cancer.
Oncology Reports 03/2011; 25(5):1407-12. · 1.84 Impact Factor
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ABSTRACT: Triple-negative type breast cancer (TNBC) is a challenge for today's clinical practice. To evaluate the efficacy of anticancer drugs and their combination for the treatment of patients with metastatic TNBC, an appropriate tumor model of metastatic TNBC is required. We developed a breast cancer model in mice that highly metastasizes to lung tissue using an established human TNBC cell line, MDA-MB-231. MDA-MB-231 was implanted intravenously, and lung metastasis nodes were collected. The lung metastasis nodes were then implanted into the mammary fat pad of female SCID mice, followed by surgical extraction. This procedure was repeated an additional two times, and the highly metastatic cell line, MDA-MB-231LLM, was established. After orthotropic implantation and surgical extraction, MDA-MB-231LLM selectively metastasized to the lung, and all of the mice died as a result of lung dysfunction. We then evaluated the anti-metastatic effects and survival period after treatment with S-1, a fluoropyrimidine derivative using this model. Mice were randomized into three groups on day 0. On day 29, lung metastasis was observed in all of the control mice, and the mean lung weight was 2.5 times greater than that of normal mice (P<0.01). However, after 28 days of consecutive treatment with S-1 at a dosage of 10 mg/kg with no apparent toxicity, the lung metastasis nodes were apparently fewer, and the lung weight was significantly (P<0.01) lower than that of the control. In another experiment, the survival period after treatment with S-1 was evaluated. All of the mice in the control group died as a result of lung dysfunction, and the median survival period was 35 days. However, after 28 days of consecutive treatment with S-1 (10 mg/kg), the median survival period was prolonged to 55 days (P<0.01). These results suggest that this new model will be useful for evaluating the anti-metastatic effects of chemotherapeutic agents and the survival period after chemotherapy.
Experimental and therapeutic medicine 01/2011; 2(1):69-72.
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ABSTRACT: TAS-102 is an oral anticancer drug composed of trifluorothymidine (TFT) and TPI (an inhibitor of thymidine phosphorylase that strongly inhibits the biodegradation of TFT). Similar to 5-fluorouracil (5FU) and 5-fluoro-2'-deoxyuridine (FdUrd), TFT also inhibits thymidylate synthase (TS), a rate-limiting enzyme of DNA biosynthesis, and is incorporated into DNA. TFT exhibits an anticancer effect on colorectal cancer cells that have acquired 5FU and/or FdUrd resistance as a result of the overexpression of TS. Therefore, we examined the mode of action of TFT-induced DNA damage after its incorporation into DNA. When HeLa cells were treated with TFT, the number of ring-open aldehyde forms at apurinic/apyrimidinic sites increased in a dose-dependent manner, although we previously reported that no detectable excisions of TFT paired to adenine were observed using uracil DNA glycosylases, thymine DNA glycosylase or methyl-CpG binding domain 4 and HeLa whole cell extracts. To investigate the functional mechanism of TFT-induced DNA damage, we measured the phosphorylation of ATR, ATM, BRCA2, chk1 and chk2 in nuclear extracts of HeLa cells after 0, 24, 48 or 72 h of exposure to an IC(50) concentration of TFT, FdUrd or 5FU using Western blot analysis or an enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay (ELISA). Unlike FdUrd and 5FU, TFT resulted in an earlier phosphorylation of ATR and chk1 proteins after only 24 h of exposure, while phosphorylated ATM, BRCA2 and chk2 proteins were detected after more than 48 h of exposure to TFT. These results suggest that TFT causes single-strand breaks followed by double-strand breaks in the DNA of TFT-treated cells. TFT (as TAS-102) showed a more potent antitumor activity than oral 5FU on CO-3 colon cancer xenografts in mice, and such antitumor potency was supported by the increased number of double-strand breaks occurring after single-strand breaks in the DNA of the TFT-treated tumors. These results suggest that TFT causes single-strand breaks after its incorporation into DNA followed by double-strand breaks, resulting in DNA damage. This effect of TFT on DNA may explain its potent anticancer activity in cancer therapy.
Experimental and therapeutic medicine 01/2011; 2(3):393-397.
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ABSTRACT: Chemoradiotherapy is a useful treatment strategy in patients with locally advanced cancers. In particular, combination of 5-fluorouracil (5-FU) with X-ray irradiation is effective for the treatment of some types of gastrointestinal cancers. We investigated the antitumor effects of combination treatment with X-ray and S-1, a unique formulation of 5-FU, on human cancer xenografts in nude mice and compared the efficacy of this treatment to that of radiotherapy combined with cisplatin, UFT, another oral 5-FU prodrug, and intravenous 5-FU. Tumors implanted into the left hind legs of mice were treated with a dose of 2 or 5 Gy X-ray irradiation on days 1 and 8, and S-1, UFT and 5-FU were administered for 14 days. The efficacy of combined treatment with 8.3 mg/kg S-1 and 2 Gy X-ray irradiation in treating non-small cell lung cancer xenografts (Lu-99 and LC-11) was significantly higher than that of treatment with S-1 alone or 2 Gy X-ray irradiation alone, and the antitumor activity of combined treatment was similar to that of 5 Gy X-ray irradiation alone. Although 8.3 mg/kg S-1 and 17.5 mg/kg UFT had equivalent antitumor activity; the antitumor efficacy of combination treatment with S-1 and 2 Gy X-ray irradiation on LC-11 tumors was significantly higher than that of combination treatment with UFT and 2 Gy X-ray irradiation. Combination treatment with S-1 and X-ray irradiation was also more effective against pancreatic tumors than combination treatment with intravenous 5-FU and X-ray irradiation. To elucidate the reason for the increased antitumor efficacy of combination treatment with S-1 and X-ray irradiation, the antitumor effect of gimeracil, one of the components of S-1, was tested in combination with 2 Gy X-ray irradiation. These experiments demonstrated that gimeracil enhanced the efficacy of X-ray irradiation against lung as well as head and neck cancer xenografts in a dose-dependent manner. Furthermore, we observed decreased expression of γ-H2AX protein, a marker of DNA repair, in LC-11 tumors treated with X-ray irradiation and gimeracil compared to that observed in tumors treated with X-ray irradiation alone, suggesting that gimeracil may inhibit rapid repair of X-ray-induced DNA damage in tumors. The present study suggests that chemoradiotherapy using S-1 acts through a novel mechanism and may prove useful in treating patients with locally advanced cancers whose disease progression is difficult to control using chemotherapy alone.
Oncology Reports 11/2010; 24(5):1307-13. · 1.84 Impact Factor
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Akira Sato,
Tomoharu Naito,
Akiko Hiramoto,
Kazato Goda,
Takuya Omi,
Yukio Kitade,
Takuma Sasaki,
Akira Matsuda, Masakazu Fukushima,
Yusuke Wataya,
Hye-Sook Kim
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ABSTRACT: Mammalian intracellular ribonuclease L (RNase L) is a latent endoribonuclease that functions against viral infections as an apoptosis-inducing protein, and its activity requires intracellular 5'-end-triphosphorylated-2',5' oligoadenylates (2-5A) as an activator. Previously, we showed that RNase L can be activated in human cancer cell line HT1080 by an RNA polymerase I inhibitor, 1-(3-C-ethynyl-β-D-ribo-pentofuranosyl)cytosine (3'-ethynylcytidine; ECyd). In ECyd-treated cells, knockdown of the RNase L resulted in a marked decrease in c-jun N-terminal kinase (JNK) phosphorylation, thereby inhibiting apoptosis. We investigate RNase L binding partners by focused proteomic approach using immunoprecipitation with anti-RNase L IgG and mass spectrometry. We found that the IQ motif-containing Ras GTPase-activating-like protein 1 (IQGAP1) can associate with RNase L, and that phosphorylation occurs on the IQGAP1. ECyd-induced JNK phosphorylation and apoptosis were inhibited when IQGAP1 was knocked down with a small interfering RNA. These results raise the interesting possibility that the RNase L-IQGAP1 association may regulate JNK phosphorylation in RNase L-madiated apoptosis. It is likely IQGAP1 works as a regulator in apoptosis.
FEBS Journal 11/2010; 277(21):4464-73. · 3.79 Impact Factor
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ABSTRACT: To investigate the mechanism of trifluorothymidine (TFT)-induced DNA damage, we developed an enzymatic method for the synthesis of single-strand oligonucleotides containing TFT-monophosphate residues. Sixteen-mer oligonucleotides and 14-mer 5'-phosphorylated oligonucleotides were annealed to the template of 25-mer, so as to empty one nucleotide site. TFT-triphosphate was incorporated into the site by DNA polymerase and then ligated to 5'-phosphorylated oligonucleotides by DNA ligase. The synthesized 31-mer oligonucleotides containing TFT residues were isolated from the 25-mer complementary template by denaturing polyacrylamide electrophoresis. Using these single-strand oligonucleotides containing TFT residues, the cleavage of TFT residues from DNA, using mismatch uracil-DNA glycosylase (MUG) of E.coli origin, was compared with that of 5-fluorouracil (5FU) and 5-bromodeoxyuridine (BrdU). The TFT/A pair was not cleaved by MUG, while the other pairs, namely, 5FU/A, 5FU/G, BrdU/A, BrdU/G, and TFT/G, were easily cleaved from each synthesized DNA. Thus, this method is useful for obtaining some site-specifically modified oligonucleotides.
Nucleosides Nucleotides & Nucleic Acids 11/2010; 29(11):896-904. · 0.90 Impact Factor
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Hiroaki Tsujimoto,
Sayaka Tsukioka,
Satoru Ono,
Etsuko Sakamoto,
Kazuki Sakamoto,
Kohji Tsuta,
Fumio Nakagawa,
Hitoshi Saito,
Junji Uchida,
Mamoru Kiniwa, Masakazu Fukushima
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ABSTRACT: The combination of oral tegafur-uracil (UFT) with leucovorin (LV) is used to treat patients with stage II to III colon cancer based on the results of postoperative randomized studies in which UFT/LV treatment showed an equivalent efficacy to intravenous 5-FU plus LV therapy. However, whether the addition of LV to UFT can elevate the antitumor activity of UFT in colorectal tumors with high expression levels of thymidylate synthase (TS), which affects 5-FU efficacy, remains to be clarified. This study investigated the effect of LV on the antitumor activity of UFT and/or 5-FU prodrugs in low folate diet-fed nude mice using human colorectal cancer xenografts with various expression levels of TS. The addition of LV to UFT resulted in a 55-79% inhibition of tumor growth among 11 types of colorectal tumor xenograft, whereas UFT alone showed 23-67% antitumor activity. Although there was an inverse relationship between the antitumor effect of UFT alone and UFT plus LV and tumoral TS activity, UFT plus LV appeared to have a more potent antitumor effect than UFT alone on colorectal tumors such as Co-3 and KM12C/5-FU with high expression levels of TS. This finding was confirmed by the significant positive correlation between the relative inhibition ratio of UFT/LV to UFT alone and TS levels in tumors. To investigate the reason for the higher efficacy of UFT/LV on colorectal cancer xenografts with high TS activity, intratumoral levels of reduced folates and a ternary complex of TS after oral UFT with or without LV were measured using Co-3 xenografts. Elevated levels of reduced folates and an increased ternary complex of TS in LV-treated tumors were noted. Our results indicate that a combined therapy of UFT with LV may contribute to the treatment of colorectal cancer patients with low and high expression levels of tumoral TS by increased formation of the ternary complex of TS leading to potentiated antitumor efficacy of UFT.
Oncology letters 11/2010; 1(6):973-980. · 0.11 Impact Factor
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ABSTRACT: To clarify the molecular interaction of irinotecan (CPT-11) and oxaliplatin (l-OHP) in combination with 5-fluorouracil (5-FU), the antitumor effects of CPT-11 and l-OHP combined with the oral 5-FU prodrug, S-1 composed by tegafur, gimeracil and potassium oteracil, were investigated on human colon cancer KM12C xenografts sensitive or resistant to 5-FU in nude mice. In parental KM12C tumor xenografts, combined treatment of CPT-11 with oral S-1 significantly augmented the antitumor activity compared with those of CPT-11 and S-1 alone. Interestingly, combined therapy of CPT-11 with S-1 was markedly effective with almost 90% of inhibition of tumor growth on 5-FU-resistant tumors (KM12C/ 5-FU), and its potency likely corresponded to that in parental tumors. In contrast, combined administration of l-OHP with S-1 did not shown an effect on KM12C/5-FU tumor xenografts. To investigate why only CPT-11 potentiated the anti-tumor activity in combination with 5-FU pro-drugs against 5-FU-resistant colon tumors, the activities or expression levels of thymidylate synthase (TS), ribonucleotide reductase (RNR) and other enzymes in 5-FU-metabolism in both tumors were measured following administration of CPT-11 and/or l-OHP. CPT-11, but not l-OHP, induced a decrease in activities and protein levels of TS and an increase in those of RNR in KM12C/5-FU tumors only, which was likely related to decreased expressions of several proteins in G1/S phase of the cells including CDK4, pRB, and E2F1 in these tumors. These findings suggest that CPT-11, but not l-OHP, would overcome the resistance to 5-FU in combination with 5-FU pro-drugs on 5-FU-resistant colon tumors.
Oncology Reports 10/2010; 24(4):835-42. · 1.84 Impact Factor
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ABSTRACT: 5-Chloro-2,4-dihydroxypyridine (Gimeracil) is a component of an oral fluoropyrimidine derivative S-1. Gimeracil is originally added to S-1 to yield prolonged 5-FU concentrations in tumor tissues by inhibiting dihydropyrimidine dehydrogenase, which degrades 5-FU. We found that Gimeracil by itself had the radiosensitizing effect.
We used various cell lines deficient in non-homologous end-joining (NHEJ) or homologous recombination (HR) as well as DLD-1 and HeLa in clonogenic assay. gamma-H2AX focus formation and SCneo assay was performed to examine the effects of Gimeracil on DNA double strand break (DSB) repair mechanisms.
Results of gamma-H2AX focus assay indicated that Gimeracil inhibited DNA DSB repair. It did not sensitize cells deficient in HR but sensitized those deficient in NHEJ. In SCneo assay, Gimeracil reduced the frequency of neo-positive clones. Additionally, it sensitized the cells in S-phase more than in G0/G1.
Gimeracil inhibits HR. Because HR plays key roles in the repair of DSBH caused by radiotherapy, Gimeracil may enhance the efficacy of radiotherapy through the suppression of HR-mediated DNA repair pathways.
Radiotherapy and Oncology 08/2010; 96(2):259-66. · 5.58 Impact Factor
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Olaf H Temmink,
Irene V Bijnsdorp,
Henk-Jan Prins,
Nienke Losekoot,
Auke D Adema,
Kees Smid,
Richard J Honeywell,
Bauke Ylstra,
Paul P Eijk, Masakazu Fukushima,
Godefridus J Peters
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ABSTRACT: Trifluorothymidine (TFT) is part of the novel oral formulation TAS-102, which is currently evaluated in phase II studies. Drug resistance is an important limitation of cancer therapy. The aim of the present study was to induce resistance to TFT in H630 colon cancer cells using two different schedules and to analyze the resistance mechanism. Cells were exposed either continuously or intermittently to TFT, resulting in H630-cTFT and H630-4TFT, respectively. Cells were analyzed for cross-resistance, cell cycle, protein expression, and activity of thymidine phosphorylase (TP), thymidine kinase (TK), thymidylate synthase (TS), equilibrative nucleoside transporter (hENT), gene expression (microarray), and genomic alterations. Both cell lines were cross-resistant to 2'-deoxy-5-fluorouridine (>170-fold). Exposure to IC(75)-TFT increased the S/G(2)-M phase of H630 cells, whereas in the resistant variants, no change was observed. The two main target enzymes TS and TP remained unchanged in both TFT-resistant variants. In H630-4TFT cells, TK protein expression and activity were decreased, resulting in less activated TFT and was most likely the mechanism of TFT resistance. In H630-cTFT cells, hENT mRNA expression was decreased 2- to 3-fold, resulting in a 5- to 10-fold decreased TFT-nucleotide accumulation. Surprisingly, microarray-mRNA analysis revealed a strong increase of secretory phospholipase-A2 (sPLA2; 47-fold), which was also found by reverse transcription-PCR (RT-PCR; 211-fold). sPLA2 inhibition reversed TFT resistance partially. H630-cTFT had many chromosomal aberrations, but the exact role of sPLA2 in TFT resistance remains unclear. Altogether, resistance induction to TFT can lead to different mechanisms of resistance, including decreased TK protein expression and enzyme activity, decreased hENT expression, as well as (phospho)lipid metabolism. Mol Cancer Ther; 9(4); 1047-57. (c)2010 AACR.
Molecular Cancer Therapeutics 04/2010; 9(4):1047-57. · 5.23 Impact Factor
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ABSTRACT: Trifluorothymidine (TFT) is part of the oral drug formulation TAS-102. Both 5-fluorouracil (5-FU) and TFT can inhibit thymidylate synthase and be incorporated into DNA. TFT shows only moderate cross-resistance to 5-FU. Therefore, we examined whether mechanistic differences in cell death could underlie their different modes of action in colorectal cancer cell lines (WiDR, Lovo92 and Colo320). Drug cytotoxicity was determined by SRB- and clonogenic assays, cell death by flow cytometry (PI and annexin V), caspase cleavage by Western blotting and activity assays and in vivo activity in the hollow fiber assay. The IC(50) values of TFT were 1-6 fold lower than for 5-FU, and clonogenic survival was less than 0.9% at 3 muM TFT, while 2-20% of the cells still survived after 20 muM 5-FU. In general, TFT was a more potent inducer of apoptosis than 5-FU, although the contribution of caspases varied between the used cell lines and necrosis-like cell death was detected. Accordingly, both drugs induced caspase (Z-VAD) independent cell death and lysosomal cathepsin B was involved. Activation of autophagy recovery mechanisms was only triggered by 5-FU, but not by TFT as determined by LC3B expression and cleavage. Inhibition of autophagy by 3-MA in 5-FU exposed cells reduced cell survival. Also, in vivo TFT (as TAS-102) caused more cell death than a 5-FU formulation. We conclude that TFT and 5-FU induce cell death via both caspase-dependent and independent mechanisms. The TFT was more potent than 5-FU, because it induces higher levels of cell death and does not elicit an autophagic survival response in the cancer cell lines. This provides a strong molecular basis for further application of TFT in cancer therapy.
International Journal of Cancer 10/2009; 126(10):2457-68. · 5.44 Impact Factor
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ABSTRACT: We have previously reported the synergistic cytotoxic effects of Docetaxel (TXT) and S-1 in gastric cancer in vitro and in vivo, and the combination regimen is now under phase III clinical trail. In this study, to elucidate whether the rapamycin, the inhibitor of the mTOR (mammalian target of rapamaycin), can enhance the potentiation of TXT and 5-fluorouracil (5-Fu) in gastric carcinoma cells. Rapamycin inhibited the growth of TMK-1, MKN-28, MKN-45 and MKN-74 cell lines by MTT assay, and it demonstrated the cytostatic effects as G1 arrest shown by flowcytometry. However, the cytotoxic effects of 5-Fu, TXT and cisplatin were enhanced by 2 to 4 times with the concomitant administration of rapamycin. To clarify the mechanism of the potentiation, the expression changes of the enzymes relating DNA metabolism and cell growth signal transduction pathways were examined by western blot analysis. Interestingly, the expression of thymidilate synthase was markedly decreased by the administration of rapamycin in TMK-1 cells in a time- and dose-dependent manner. Moreover, rapamycin decreased the phosphorylation of 4E-BP1, the phosphorylation of ERK1/2 and enhanced the phosphorylation of c-Jun NH2-terminal kinase, and the activation of caspase of apoptotic pathways in combination with TXT. These results strongly indicate that the mTOR inhibitor can enhance the potentiation of TXT and 5-Fu or S-1 and can serve as a new therapeutic tool for advanced and recurrent gastric cancer patients.
International Journal of Cancer 10/2009; 126(11):2716-25. · 5.44 Impact Factor
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ABSTRACT: The pyrimidine trifluorothymidine (TFT) inhibits thymidylate synthase (TS) and can be incorporated into the DNA. TFT, as part of TAS-102, is clinically evaluated in phase II studies as an oral chemotherapeutic agent. Erlotinib is a tyrosine kinase inhibitor of the epidermal growth factor receptor (EGFR) that is often deregulated in colorectal cancer. This study investigated molecular mechanisms underlying the cytotoxic actions of the combination of an EGFR-tyrosine kinase inhibitor with TFT in colorectal cancer cells Caco2, WiDR, Lovo92, and Colo320. Drug interactions were examined by the sulforhodamine B assay and subsequent combination index (CI) analyses, cell cycle effects by FACS analysis of propidium iodide stained cells, Akt, MAPK and EGFR phosphorylation and expression levels by Western blotting and TS activity by the TS in situ assay. All combination schedules were synergistic in wt-EGFR expressing (but with mutated downstream pathways) WiDR and Lovo92 (CI 0.4-0.8) and very synergistic in Caco2 cells (with wt-EGFR and functional downstream pathways; CI 0.1-0.3), but in EGFR-lacking Colo320 cells, no additional activity was found (CI 1.0-1.2). Synergism was mostly related to the induction of cell cycle arrest and an erlotinib-mediated inhibition of the pro-survival signaling through Akt and MAPK that was activated (phosphorylated) by TFT. Erlotinib inhibited TS activity in EGFR-expressing cell lines, probably due to cell cycle arrest in the G(1) phase. TS activity was slightly lower in the combinations, probably due to cell cycle interference. Taken together, the combination of erlotinib with TFT seems to present a potential strategy in the field of molecular therapeutics.
Cancer Science 09/2009; 101(2):440-7. · 3.33 Impact Factor
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ABSTRACT: 1-(3-C-Ethynyl-beta-D-ribo-pentofuranosyl)cytosine (ECyd, TAS-106) is a novel antitumor ribonucleoside that inhibits RNA polymerase. In the present study, we investigated the cellular and molecular interactions between TAS-106 and cisplatin (CDDP) in vitro using A549 human lung cancer cells and the in vivo antitumor effect of combined treatment using OCC-1 and LX-1 human tumor xenografts. The treatment effects were determined by evaluating cytotoxicity, the cell cycle distribution, apoptosis induction and the expression of checkpoint-associated proteins. In vitro, the combination of TAS-106 and CDDP synergistically inhibited the growth of A549 cells, as determined using isobologram analysis. TAS-106 potently inhibited the expression of Chk1 protein and the phosphorylation of Chk1 and Chk2. Moreover, based on the inhibition of checkpoint-associated protein, TAS-106 abrogated the CDDP-induced S- and G2M-checkpoints and induced apoptosis in A549 cells. In vivo, TAS-106 alone showed antitumor activity; however, its combination with CDDP significantly enhanced the growth inhibition of OCC-1 and LX-1 tumors. Moreover, combination therapy with TAS-106 and CDDP in the OCC-1 xenograft model resulted in significant life-prolongation. These findings provide a rationale for combination chemotherapy using TAS-106 and CDDP in clinical settings.
International Journal of Oncology 06/2009; 34(5):1373-80. · 2.40 Impact Factor
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ABSTRACT: To elucidate the mechanism of resistance to 5-fluorouracil (5-FU) in human gastric cancer cells, we established a cell line MKN45/F2R, which acquired 5-FU resistance as a result of continuous exposure to increasing dosages of 5-FU over a year. The cell line showed 157-fold elevated 5-FU resistance compared to the MKN45 human gastric cancer parental cell line. Furthermore, the cells acquired crossresistance to paclitaxel and docetaxel. To identify the mechanism of 5-FU resistance, the expressions of 5-FU metabolic enzymes were examined. Although protein expression and activity of thymidylate synthase and dihydropyrimidine dehydrogenase did not change, orotate phosphoribosyl-transferase (OPRT) protein expression and activity significantly decreased in the 5-FU resistant MKN45/F2R cells. Interestingly, expression of proteins related to taxane resistance including P-glycoprotein, class III beta-tubulin and Bcl-2 increased in MKN45/F2R cells. OPRT-knockout MKN45 parent cells using small interfering RNA demonstrated 15.8-fold increased resistance to 5-FU compared to the control cells. However, resistance to paclitaxel and docetaxel was not observed. These results strongly indicate that decreased activity of OPRT plays an important role in the acquired resistance of gastric cancer cells towards 5-FU; however, it does not play a direct role in paclitaxel and docetaxel resistance. Further studies are now underway to identify genes related to crossresistance to these chemotherapeutic agents.
Oncology Reports 01/2009; 20(6):1545-51. · 1.84 Impact Factor
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ABSTRACT: It has been reported that the expression of thymidylate synthase (TS), dihydropyrimidine dehydrogenase (DPD) and orotate phosphoribosyltransferase (OPRT) may predict the clinical efficacy of 5-fluorouracil (5-FU)-based therapy in cancer patients. We investigated the differences in the mRNA and protein expression of these enzymes in various tumor tissues. A total of 17,613 specimens of head and neck, gastric, colorectal, breast, lung and pancreatic cancer were collected from multiple facilities in Japan, and the mRNA and protein expression levels of the above enzymes were examined in 4,830 and 12,783 of these specimens, respectively. The mRNA levels were analyzed using RT-PCR in laser-captured microdissected formalin-fixed paraffin-embedded specimens, while the protein levels were analyzed by enzyme-linked immunosorbent assays. The median values of the relative TS, DPD and OPRT mRNA levels were 2.06, 0.803 and 1.17, respectively, while the median protein levels were 22.1, 134.8 and 3.81 ng enzyme/mg protein, respectively. The carcinomas were classified into two sets of four groups each using the overall median levels of TS and DPD or TS and OPRT as cutoff values. Approximately 60% of the gastric cancers exhibited elevated mRNA and protein expression levels of DPD, while >65% of the colorectal cancers showed low levels of DPD expression. Overall, 75% of the head and neck cancers exhibited high expression levels of DPD. Among the lung and pancreatic cancers, 50-74% showed low TS/high DPD expression. In conclusion, the mRNA expression and protein levels of TS, DPD and OPRT differed according to the type of cancer. The results of this large-scale population analysis are expected to be useful as reference data for predicting the relationship between the respective enzyme levels and the efficacy of 5-FU-based chemotherapy.
International Journal of Molecular Medicine 01/2009; 22(6):709-16. · 1.98 Impact Factor
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ABSTRACT: 1-(3-C-Ethynyl-beta-D-ribo-pentofuranosyl)cytosine (3'-Ethynylcytidine; ECyd), a ribonucleoside analog, has a potent cytotoxic activity against cancer cells. We have investigated the cancer-cell death induced by ECyd, focusing on its molecular mechanisms. In ECyd-treated cells, RNase L is activated and involved in c-jun NH(2)-terminal kinase (JNK) phosphorylation, followed by induction of mitochondria-dependent apoptosis. The mechanism of JNK phophorylation by RNase L was unknown. To investigate the mechanism, we performed the identification of RNase L-binding partners by proteomic approach using co-immunoprecipitation and mass spectrometry. We found that RNase L was associated with a protein (we named it Protein-190). At the same time, we observed that Protein-190 was amply phosphorylated. Furthermore, the participation of Protein-190 in the ECyd-induced apoptosis was supported by a knockdown experiment using small interfering RNA (siRNA). Thus, the number of ECyd-induced apoptotic cells was drastically decreased when Protein-190 was knocked-down. These results indicated Protein-190 as a regulator in apoptosis, and provide the possibility for a new clinical target in cancer chemotherapy.
Nucleic Acids Symposium Series 01/2009;
