Yasushi Sawai

Kyoto Prefectural University of Medicine, Kyoto, Kyoto-fu, Japan

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Publications (4)6.07 Total impact

  • Article: Effectiveness of sulforaphane as a radiosensitizer for murine osteosarcoma cells.
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    ABSTRACT: Sulforaphane (SFN), a naturally occurring member of the isothiocyanate family, is effective against various types of malignant tumor cells. We studied whether the combination of SFN and radiation would be more effective against osteosarcoma cells when compared to these treatments alone. LM8 murine osteosarcoma cells were cultured with various concentrations of SFN for 24 h and/or 2 Gy X-irradiation. The effects of individual and combination treatments on the number of cells, the cell cycle, cell proliferation-related factors and apoptosis were analyzed. The combination of SFN plus radiation had significantly greater antitumor effects than either treatment alone. Exposure to SFN increased the population of cells in the G2/M phase. Combination treatment resulted in a higher percentage of cells being in sub-G1 than did SFN alone. In addition, the combination of SFN and radiation effectively induced nuclear fragmentation and apoptotic bodies, as shown by DAPI staining. The combination of SFN and 2 Gy radiation increased the cleavage and activation of caspase-3 compared with SFN or radiation alone, as shown by western blotting. Although radiation alone increased the phosphorylation of ERK and Akt proteins, the combination of SFN and radiation induced suppression of ERK and Akt phosphorylation when compared with radiation alone. We found that SFN enhanced the radiosensitivity of LM8 murine osteosarcoma cells by inducing apoptosis through G2/M-phase arrest and by inhibiting ERK and Akt activation. These findings suggest that SFN can be used as a radiosensitizer for osteosarcomas.
    Oncology Reports 12/2012; · 1.84 Impact Factor
  • Article: Zoledronic acid significantly enhances radiation‑induced apoptosis against human fibrosarcoma cells by inhibiting radioadaptive signaling.
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    ABSTRACT: Zoledronic acid (ZOL), a third-generation bisphosphonate, inhibits bone resorption, as well as exhibiting direct antitumor activity. To date, however, the combined effects of ZOL and ionizing radiation (IR) have not been assessed in patients with soft tissue sarcoma. We have, therefore, assessed the combined effects of ZOL and IR in fibrosarcoma cells. HT1080 fibrosarcoma cells were treated with ZOL and/or IR, together or sequentially and the antitumor effects were assessed. We found that ZOL significantly enhanced IR-induced apoptosis, especially when cells were treated with ZOL followed by IR. We, therefore, assessed the detailed mechanism of sequential treatment with ZOL and IR. Cells in G2 and M phases, the most radiosensitive phases of the cell cycle, were not increased by low concentrations of ZOL. However, the levels of expression of Akt, ERK1/2 and NF-κB proteins, all of which are related to radioadaptive resistance, were increased within a short time after irradiation with 3 Gy, and this expression was inhibited by a low concentration of ZOL, which blocked the prenylation of small GTPases. This sequential treatment also increased the generation of reactive oxygen species (ROS). These results suggest that the combination of ZOL with IR may be beneficial in treating patients with soft tissue sarcoma.
    International Journal of Oncology 12/2012; · 2.40 Impact Factor
  • Article: Effects of low-intensity pulsed ultrasound on osteosarcoma and cancer cells.
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    ABSTRACT: Metastatic bone tumors cause pain and pathological fractures due to bone destruction. If we could enhance new osteogenic activities and prevent progression of osteolytic change by malignant cells, patients could achieve satisfactory activity of daily living. Low-intensity pulsed ultrasound (LIPUS), which leads to bone formation by osteoblasts, has been used for the treatment of fractures. LIPUS has been reported to enhance the effect of an anticancer drug on lymphoma and liver cancer cells. However, there have been no reports of proliferation, vascularization and migration effects on cancer cells. In this study, we investigated the effects of LIPUS treatment on cancer and osteosarcoma cells and specifically whether it promotes bone formation without accelerating proliferation of tumor cells. We used MC3T3-E1 cells, a mouse osteoblast cell line, LM8, a mouse osteosarcoma cell line, SaOS2, a human osteosarcoma cell line, 786-O, a human renal cancer cell line, PC-3, a human prostate cancer cell line, and A549, a human lung cancer cell line. The expression of extracellular signal-regulated kinase (ERK1/2), Akt, β-catenin, vascular endothelial growth factor (VEGF), and cell migration were analyzed. LIPUS stimulation did not affect proliferation of all the cells examined. The phosphorylation of ERK1/2 and Akt was induced by LIPUS stimulation in MC3T3-E1, LM8, SaOS2 and A549 cells, but not in PC-3 and 786-O cells. LIPUS stimulation did not significantly increase β-catenin. VEGF protein levels and cell migration were significantly increased only in MC3T3-E1 cells. It may be concluded that LIPUS stimulation on metastatic bone tumors induces differentiation of osteoblasts without proliferation of tumor cells. Our study suggests that LIPUS may be a new method of treatment without surgery for metastatic bone tumors.
    Oncology Reports 05/2012; 28(2):481-6. · 1.84 Impact Factor
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    Article: High Efficacy of Preoperative Low-Dose Radiotherapy with Sanazole (AK-2123) for Extraskeletal Ewing's Sarcoma: A Case Report.
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    ABSTRACT: Extraskeletal Ewing's sarcoma is a rare soft tissue tumor that is morphologically indistinguishable from Ewing's sarcoma of bone. We report a case of extraskeletal Ewing's sarcoma with several systemic problems. A 69-year-old man presented with a 5-month history of a rapidly enlarging mass in the right thigh. Because preoperative radiotherapy with sanazole (AK-2123) contributed the tumor mass reduction down to 40% in size, the tumor was successfully resected with clear surgical margins and repaired with a musculocutaneous flap. The high efficacy of pre-operative low-dose radiotherapy with sanazole was histologically confirmed that the resected tumor specimen involved no viable tumor cells and showed 100% necrosis. Based on clinical outcomes in this case, the combined modality of pre-operative low-dose radiotherapy with hypoxic cell radiosensitizer and adequate surgical resection might provide for the useful clinical application of extraskeletal Ewing's sarcoma treatment.
    Sarcoma 01/2011; 2011.