Loss of the vitamin D receptor in human breast and prostate cancers strongly induces cell apoptosis through downregulation of Wnt/β-catenin signaling

Vitamin D co-regulates cell proliferation, differentiation and apoptosis in numerous tissues, including cancers. The known anti-proliferative and pro-apoptotic actions of the active metabolite of vitamin D, 1,25-dihydroxy-vitamin D [1,25（OH）2D] are mediated through binding to the vitamin D receptor （VDR）. Here, we report on the unexpected finding that stable knockdown of VDR expression in the human breast and prostate cancer cell lines, MDA-MB-231 and PC3, strongly induces cell apoptosis and inhibits cell proliferation in vitro. Implantation of these VDR knockdown cells into the mammary fat pad （MDA-MB-231）, subcutaneously （PC3） or intra-tibially （both cell lines） in immune-incompetent nude mice resulted in reduced tumor growth associated with increased apoptosis and reduced cell proliferation compared with controls. These growth-retarding effects of VDR knockdown occur in the presence and absence of vitamin D and are independent of whether cells were grown in bone or soft tissues. Transcriptome analysis of VDR knockdown and non-target control cell lines demonstrated that loss of the VDR was associated with significant attenuation in the Wnt/0-catenin signaling pathway. In particular, cytoplasmic and nuclear β-catenin protein levels were reduced with a corresponding downregulation of downstream genes such as Axin2, Cyclin D1, interleukin-6 （IL-6）, and IL-8. Stabilization of 0-catenin using the GSK-3β inhibitor BIO partly reversed the growth-retarding effects of VDR knockdown. Our results indicate that the unliganded VDR possesses hitherto unknown functions to promote breast and prostate cancer growth, which appear to be operational not only within but also outside the bone environment. These novel functions contrast with the known anti-proliferative nuclear actions of the liganded VDR and may represent targets for new diagnostic and therapeutic approaches in breast and prostate cancer.

Effects of Estradiol and Tamoxifen on Proliferation of Human Breast Cancer Cells and Human Endometrial Cells

The effects of estradiol and tamoxifen on the proliferation of estrogen receptor positive cells and the relationship between the tamoxifen tolerance and cell origin were investigated The tissues of human endometrium and breast cancer were randomly selected following dissection for primary cell culture After the breast cancer cells and endometrial cells were treated with 1×10 -8 mol/L estradiol and/or 1 ×10 -6 tamoxifen, 3H-labelled thymine nucleotide was used to trace the kinetics of cell proliferation There was no significant difference in the inhibition on the human endometrial cells between tamoxifen-treated group (6 3%) and control group (6 4%), but tamoxifen could significantly inhibit the proliferation of the human breast cancer cells (45 84%) as compared with control group (52 72%) Moreover, tamoxifen could significantly stimulate the proliferation of tamoxifen resistant breast cancer cells (9 64%) as compared with control group (6 32%) Estradiol could significantly stimulate the proliferation of all the three kinds of cells as compared with control group The combined use of estradiol and tamoxifen could inhibit the proliferation of the endometrial cells and breast cancer cells as compared with estradiol used alone, but on the tamoxifen resistant breast cancer cells, they could more significantly stimulate the proliferation than E2 It was concluded that E2 could stimulate the proliferation of these three kinds of cells However, the inhibitive effects of tamoxifen on the proliferation of these cells were dependent on the estradiol

EGFR antisense RNA blocks expression of the epidermal growth factor receptor and partially reverse the malignant phenotype of human breast cancer MDA-MB-231 cells

The effects of human EGFR to the malignant phenotype of human breast cancer cell line MDA-MB-231 were investigated experimentally. A retroviral vector containing a 5’1350bp fragment of the human EGFR cDNA in the antisense orientation was transfected into targeted cells by lipofectamine. The effects on cell proliferation, cell cycle and adherent ability to extracellular matrix (ECM) components were studied after the expression of antisense transcripts to EGFR 5’1350bp fragment in target cells. In vitro studies showed that the growth ability of the transfected cells was partialy inhibited in comparison to parental cells and to cells transfected with the plasmid containing the neomycin resistance gene only. It was found that EGF (10ng/ml) had an augmenation effect on the growth of transfected MDA-AS10 cells but not MDA-MB-231 cells.Flow cytometric analysis showed that the cell cycle of the transfected cells was abnormal with a decrease of cells in G2/M and S phases and an increase of cells in G1 phase,indicating a blockage in phase G1. Immunofluorescence of EGFR expression in transfectants stained with an antiEGFR antibody was decreased and their growth in soft agarose was also severely impaired. The transfected cells showed less adherence to laminin (LN) and fibronectin (FN). In short, EGFR antisense RNA decreases the expression of EGFR on MDA-MB-231 cells and partially reverses their malignant phenotype as well.Effects of antisense EGFR on human breast cancer MDA-MB-231

Effects of bisphenol compounds on the growth and epithelial mesenchymal transition of MCF-7 CV human breast cancer cells

Bisphenol-A（BPA） has been considered as an endocrine disrupting chemical（EDC） because it can exert estrogenic properties.For bisphenol-S（BPS） and bisphenol-F（BPF） that are BPA analogs and substitutes,their risk to estrogendependent cancer has been reported rarely compared with the numerous cases of BPA.In this study,we examined whether BPA,BPS,and BPF can lead to the proliferation,migration,and epithelial mesenchymal transition（EMT） of MCF-7 clonal variant（MCF-7 CV） breast cancer cells expressing estrogen receptors（ERs）.In a cell viability assay,BPA,BPS,and BPF significantly increased proliferation of MCF-7 CV cells compared to control（DMSO） as did17β-estradiol（E2）.In Western blotting assay,BPA,BPS,and BPF enhanced the protein expression of cell cycle progression genes such as cyclin D1 and E1.In addition,MCF-7 CV cells lost cell to cell contacts and acquired fibroblast-like morphology by the treatment of BPA,BPS,or BPF for 24 hours.In cell migration assay,BPA,BPS,and BPF accelerated the migration capability of MCF-7 CV cells as did E2.In relation with the EMT process,BPA,BPS,and BPF increased the protein expression of N-cadherin,while they decreased the protein expression of Ecadherin.When BPA,BPS,and BPF were co-treated with ICI 182,780,an ER antagonist,proliferation effects were reversed,the expression of cyclin D1 and cyclin E1 was downregulated,and the altered cell migration and expression of N-cadherin and E-cadherin by BPA,BPS,and BPF were restored to the control level.Thus,these results imply that BPS and BPF also have the risk of breast cancer progression as much as BPA in the induction of proliferation and migration of MCF-7 CV cells by regulating the protein expression of cell cycle-related genes and EMT markers via the ER-dependent pathway.

QCM Detection of Adhesion, Spreading and Proliferation of Human Breast Cancer Cells (MCF-7) on a Gold Surface

The quartz crystal microbalance （QCM） was used to monitor the one-day incubation of human breast cancer cells （MCF-7） on the gold electrode. In combination with an optical microscope simulation experiment, the cell-population pictures at various stages, the QCM responses to the cells＇ adhesion, spreading and proliferation on the electrode surface were discussed. The △f0 and △R1 responses were found mainly from mixed effects of viscodensity and surface stress, and in proportion to the cell coverage, rather than to the number of cells at the electrode. The significant fore-and-aft changes in cyclic voltammetry and electrochemical impedance spectroscopy of the ferri-ferrocyanide redox couple also proved that the cells were adhesion to the gold surface.

ANTI-HUMAN LUNG GIANT CELL CANCER (PG) EFFECT OF HUMAN LAK CELLS IN VITRO AND IN NUDE MICE

Human LAK cells were prepared by culturing normal human peripheral blood mononuclear cells (PBMC) with or without rIL-2 and assayed for T cell surface markers as well as anti-tumor activity against PC in vitro and in nude mice. Although the percentages of T3, T4, and T8 positive cells in rIL-2-activated cells did not differ significantly from those of control cells in vitro, the former showed stronger cytotoxicity than control cells to PG tumor cells in vitro. In vivo, LAK cells completely inhibited the growth of PG tumor in nude mice, whereas PBMC control cells were to be of no effect. The anti-tumor effect of human LAK cells in nude mice may offer a useful model to study the role of human LAK cells against human tumor in vivo.

Sensitivity Evaluation of Two Human Breast Cancer Cell Lines to Tamoxifen through Apoptosis Induction

Tamoxifen citrate (TAM) has been used to treat breast cancer in women for many years. The com-parative effects of TAM in inducing apoptosis were evaluated in estrogen receptor-positive (ER- positive MCF-7) and estrogen receptor-negative (ER-negative MDA-MB-231) human breast cancer cell lines in vitro in order to determine if these two cell lines differ in their sensitivity to TAM. Mi-tochondrial membrane permeability potential disruption was assessed in both cell lines by a lip-ophilic cationic dye (DePsipher assay, Trevigen, Inc.) utilizing fluorescence microscopy. Using this specific fluorochrome, we were able to associate mitochondrial membrane disruption to early, mid-, and late apoptotic cells. TAM induced cell death via apoptosis in both ER-positive and ER- negative cells, however, apoptosis induction was more pronounced in ER-positive MCF-7 compared to ER-negative MDA-MB-231 breast cancer cells. These findings may have some therapeutic use in the treatment of estrogen dependent and estrogen independent breast cancer.

Human adipose tissue-derived stem cells in breast reconstruction following surgery for cancer: A controversial issue

Breast cancer is the most common cancer in women. Patients, in particular young women, after surgical removal of the tumor have a poorer quality of life and psychological problems. Plastic surgery procedures for breast reconstruction, including autologous fat grafting, concur to reduce cosmetic and psychological problems. The maintenance of the transplanted fat is partially due to the presence of resident adipose derived-stem cells (ASCs). The latter can be isolated by digestion and centrifugation from the stromal vascular fraction (SVF) of subcutaneous adipose tissue. Intraoperatory SVF/ASC enrichment has been proposed to stabilize and optimalize autologous fat engraftment for breast reconstructive surgery after mastectomy, but the safety of these procedures is still uncertain. Although the literature offers contrasting opinions concerning the effects of ASCs on cancer growth according to the tumor type, at the present time ASC implementation for regenerative medicine therapies should be carefully considered in patients previously treated for breast cancer. At the present, reconstructive therapy utilizing ASC-enriched fat grafting should be postponed until there is no evidence of active disease.

A STUDY OF DECREASING DRUG-RESISTANCE OF HUMAN OVARIAN CANCER CELLS IN VITRO

A chemosensitivity test for ovarian cancer using tritiated thymidine incorporation assay was carried out. A dose-response relationship for cisplatin and potentiation of verapamil in increasing vincristine inhibition to ovarian cancer were investigated. A 5- fold increase of cisplatin density converted the tumors which were initially resistance to standard-dose cisplatin Into drug-sensitive ones. Vera-pamil was found to be able to overcome vincristine-resistance of some tumors in vitro. These results suggest that using high dose cisplatin therapy or increasing local drug concentration by using other administration way, we could expect some ovarian cancers that had failed to standard dose cisplatin therapy to be effective. Combination of vincristine with verapamll may be helpful in treating some vincristineresistant cases.

Effects of Volatile Oils of Sichuan Citrisarcodactylis fructus on Proliferation and Apoptosis of MCF-7 Human Breast Cancer Cells

[Objectives] To study the effects of volatile oils of Sichuan Citrisarcodactylis fructus on proliferation and apoptosis of MCF-7human breast cancer cells.[Methods]CCK-8 method was used to measure the cell proliferation,the flow cytometry was used to measure changes in cell cycle,Western blot was used to detect p53 and cyclin D1 activity changes,TUNEL method was used to measure percentage of apoptotic cells,inverted phase contrast microscope and transmission electron microscope were used to observe morphology of MCF-7 cells treated with different concentrations.[Results]When the concentration was 5-50 μmol/L,the cell proliferation inhibition rate increased significantly(P <0. 05),G2/M phase decreased significantly( P < 0. 05),eventually disappeared completely,G1 phase significantly increased with time and concentration( P < 0. 05),finally reached 90. 0%; the activity of cyclin D1 significantly declined( P < 0. 05),while the activity of p53 had no significant change( P > 0. 05). The apoptotic rate of MCF-7 cells significantly increased with the extension of time( P < 0. 05). At6 h,12 h and 24 h of action time,the apoptotic rate of MCF-7 cells significantly increased with the increase in volatile oil concentration(P <0. 05). Morphological observation showed that the apoptosis of MCF-7 cells was obvious.[Conclusions]The volatile oils of Citrisarcodactylis fructus have obvious inhibition of proliferation of MCF-7 cells and function of inducing apoptosis,and the effects took on the dose and time dependent. 5-50 μmol/L volatile oil of Sichuan Citrisarcodactylis fructus can inhibit the proliferation of MCF-7 cells and induce the apoptosis of MCF-7 cells through inhibiting the cyclin D1.

The establishment of stable transfection of human breast cancer cell line MDA-MD-468 with exogenous PTEN gene

To investigate exogenous PTEN gene transfected human breast cancer cell line MDA-MD-468.Methods Using the lipofectamine 2000 transfection technique,wild type PTEN gene was transducted into an in vitro cultured highly metastatic breast cancer cell line MDA-MD-468.After transfection,the cells were selected by G418.The resistant clones were chosen and expanded in DMEM culture medium.RT-PCR,immunohistochemical method and western blot were used to determine the expression of target genes.Results An anti-G418 cell clone was established and expanded in culture.The transfected PTEN gene MDA-MD-468 cells showed expression of PTEN mRNA and PTEN protein.Conclusion Human breast cancer cell line MDA-MB-468 established in this study expresses consistently exogenous PTEN genes.4 refs,6 figs.

Lymphocyte subsets predictive value and possible involvement of human papilloma virus infection on breast cancer molecular subtypes

AIM To detect human papilloma virus(HPV) presence and to characterize cellular immune response in breast cancer patients. METHODS A total of 74 women were included, of which 48 samples were from patients diagnosed with breast cancer and 26 patients with benign pathology of the breast. Molecular subtype classification was performed based on the immunohistochemical reports of the tumor piece. HPV genome detection and genotyping from fresh breast biopsies was performed using the INNO-LIPA HPV Genotyping Extra test(Innogenetics, Ghent, Belgium). CD3+, CD4+, CD8+ and natural killer(NK)+ cells levels from peripheral blood samples from patients with breast cancer and benign pathology were measured by flow cytometry. RESULTS Luminal A was the most frequent breast cancer molecular subtype(33.33%). HPV was detected in 25% of the breast cancer patients, and genotype 18 was the most frequent in the studied population. The mean of CD3+, CD4+ and CD8+ subpopulations were decreased in patients with breast cancer, in relation to those with benign pathology, with a statistically significant difference in CD8+ values(P = 0.048). The mean of NK+ cells was increased in the benign pathology group. The average level of CD3+, CD4+, CD8+ and NK+ cells decreased as the disease progressed. HER2+ and Luminal B HER2+ tumors had the lowest counts of cell subsets. HPV breast cancer patients had elevated counts of cellular subsets. CONCLUSION Determining level changes in cellular subsets in breast cancer patients is a useful tool to evaluate treatment response.

Inhibitory Effects of Mild Hyperthermia plus Docetaxel Therapy on ER(+/–) Breast Cancer Cells and Action Mechanisms

Summary： The purpose of this study was to verify that a combination of mild hyperthermia and do- cetaxel chemotherapy produces synergistic antitumor effects and to explore the action mechanisms of this treatment approach. The effects of docetaxel on the proliferation of cells from the estrogen receptor （ER）-positive human breast cancer cell line MCF-7 and the ER-negative human breast cancer cell line MDA-MB-453 were examined by 3-（4,5-dimethylthiazol-2-yl）-2,5-diphenyltetrazolium bromide （MTT） assay, and effective experimental concentrations of docetaxel were determined. The effects of mild hy- perthermia plus docetaxel therapy on apoptosis rate in the MCF-7 and MDA-MB-453 human breast cancer cell lines were analyzed by using flow cytometry with Annexin-V fluorescein isothiocyanate （FITC）/propidium iodide （PI） staining. The effects of these combined treatments on cell cycle progres- sion in the MCF-7 and MDA-MB-453 human breast cancer cell lines were examined by using flow cy- tometry. The effects of these combined treatments on the expression of apoptosis-related proteins and proteins in the mitogen-activated protein kinase （MAPK） pathways were analyzed by using Western blotting. The effects of these combined treatments on the expression of the heat shock protein 70 （HSP70） and the multi-drug resistance （MDR） gene product P-glycoprotein （Pgp） were examined by using Western blotting. The results showed that the half-maximal inhibitory concentration （IC50） of do- cetaxel for MCF-7 and MDA-MB-453 cells was 19.57±1.12 and 21.64±2.31 gmol/L respectively. Mild hyperthermia with docetaxel therapy could increase apoptosis rate in the MCF-7 and MDA-MB-453 cells. Apoptosis rate in MCF-7 and MDA-MB-453 cells was increased from （23.66±3.59）% and （18.51±3.17）% in docetaxel treatment group to （47.12±6.73）% and （55.16±7.42）% in mild hyperthermia plus docetaxel group, indicating that the mild hyperthermia and docetaxel therapeutic approaches exhib- ited significant synergistic antitumor effects. Treatments of mild hyperthermia plus docetaxel induced G2/M cell cycle arrest in the MCF-7 and MDA-MB-453 cells. Western blotting demonstrated that pro- teins in the MAPK pathway were expressed at higher levels in docetaxel-treated cells following mild hypothermia than those in cells treated with docetaxel alone. As compared with blank control group, cells from the mild hyperthermia plus docetaxel group exhibited significantly decreased B-cell lym- phoma 2 （Bcl-2） protein expression but slightly increased Bcl-2-associated X protein （Bax） expression. Western blotting results revealed that HSP70 and Pgp expression levels were significantly increased following mild hypothermia. It was concluded that treatments of mild hyperthermia plus docetaxel in- hibited the proliferation of human breast cancer cells, promoted apoptosis of breast cancer cells, and produced synergistic antitumor effects.

Epithelial-mesenchymal transition status of circulating tumor cells in breast cancer and its clinical relevance

Objective:Circulating tumor cells(CTCs)play a critical role in cancer metastasis,but their prevalence and significance remain unclear.This study attempted to track the epithelial-mesenchymal transition(EMT)status of CTCs in breast cancer patients and investigate their clinical relevance.Methods:In this study,the established negFACS-IF:E/M platform was applied to isolate rare CTCs and characterize their EMT status in breast cancer.A total of 89 breast cancer patients were recruited,including stage 0–III(n=60)and late stage(n=29)cases.Results:Using the negFACS-IF:E/M platform,it was found that in human epidermal growth factor receptor 2(HER2)+patients,mesenchymal CTCs usually exhibited a high percentage of HER2+cells.Stage IV breast cancer patients had considerably more CTCs than stage 0–III patients.Among stage 0–III breast cancers,the HER2 subtype included a significantly higher percentage of mesenchymal and biphenotypic(epithelial and mesenchymal)CTCs than the luminal A or B subtypes.Among stage IV patients,CTCs were predominantly epithelial in cases with local recurrence and were more mesenchymal in cases with distant metastasis.By applying a support vector machine(SVM)algorithm,the EMT status of CTCs could distinguish between breast cancer cases with metastasis/local recurrence and those without recurrence.Conclusions:The negFACS-IF:E/M platform provides a flexible and generally acceptable method for the highly sensitive and specific detection of CTCs and their EMT traits in breast cancer.This study demonstrated that the EMT status of CTCs had high clinical relevance in breast cancer,especially in predicting the distant metastasis or local recurrence of breast cancer.

Isolation and identification of adipose-derived stromal/stem cells from breast cancer patients after exposure neoadjuvant chemotherapy

BACKGROUND With recent research advances,adipose-derived stromal/stem cells(ASCs)have been demonstrated to facilitate the survival of fat grafts and thus are increasingly used for reconstructive procedures following surgery for breast cancer.Unfortunately,in patients,following radiation and chemotherapy for breast cancer suggest that these cancer treatment therapies may limit stem cell cellular functions important for soft tissue wound healing.For clinical translation to patients that have undergone cancer treatment,it is necessary to understand the effects of these therapies on the ASC's ability to improve fat graft survival in clinical practice.AIM To investigate whether the impact on ASCs function capacity and recovery in cancer patients may be due to the chemotherapy.METHODS ASCs were isolated from the cancerous side and noncancerous side of the breast from the same patients with receiving neoadjuvant chemotherapy(NAC)or notreceiving NAC.ASCs were in vitro treated with 5-fluorouracil(5-FU),doxorubicin(DXR),and cyclophosphamide(Cytoxan)at various concentrations.The stem cells yield,cell viability,and proliferation rates were measured by growth curves and MTT assays.Differentiation capacity for adipogenesis was determined by qPCR analysis of the specific gene markers and histological staining.RESULTS No significant differences were observed between the yield of ASCs in patients receiving NAC treatment and not-receiving NAC.ASCs yield from the cancerous side of the breast showed lower than the noncancerous side of the breast in both patients receiving NAC and not-receiving NAC.The proliferation rates of ASCs from patients didn’t differ much before and after NAC upon in vitro culture,and these cells appeared to retain the capacity to acquire adipocyte traits simile to the ASCs from patients not-receiving NAC.After cessation and washout of the drugs for another a week of culturing,ASCs showed a slow recovery of cell growth capacity in 5-FU-treated groups but was not observed in ASCs treated with DXR groups.CONCLUSION Neoadjuvant therapies do not affect the functioning capacity of ASCs.ASCs may hold great potential to serve as a cell source for fat grafting and reconstruction in patients undergoing chemotherapy.

Meclizine Chloridrate and Methyl-β-Cyclodextrin Associated with Monophosphoester Synthetic Phosphoethanolamine Modulating Proliferative Potential in Triple-Negative Breast Cancer Cells

Synthetic phosphoethanolamine(Pho-s)is a monophosphoester ester with anti-inflammatory and pro-apoptotic properties.Meclizine chloridrate(MC)is a histamine H1 receptor blocker that is also able to inhibit cellular respiration.However,MC does not inhibit cellular respiration in isolated mitochondria such as antimycin and rotenone.Methyl-β-cyclodextrin(MβCD)belongs to theβ-cyclodextrin family,which is capable of removing cholesterol from the plasma membrane.The aim of this study was to evaluate the proliferative effects of meclizine chloridrate and methyl-β-cyclodextrin compounds associated with synthetic phosphoethanolamine in a triple-negative human breast tumor line,MDA-MB-231 Cell viability of the tumor line and normal cells FN1 was evaluated by MTT colorimetric test;the production of free radicals was determined by lipoperoxidation(LPO)test;and the percentage of cell cycle phases and proliferative index was evaluated by flow cytometry.Cell viability demonstrated a significant decrease with the treatments of MβCD,MC and Pho-s associated with MC.The production of free radicals decreases significantly in all treatments.In addition,a significant increase of DNA fragment and decrease in G0/G1 cell cycle phase were observed in cellular percentage with concentrations of 20 and 30 mM of Pho-s in association with MC and MβCD,respectively.

Differentiation of human osteosarcoma 3AB-OS stem-like cells in derivatives of the three primary germ layers as a useful <i>in vitro</i>model to develop several purposes

A number of solid tumors contain a distinct subpopulation of cells, termed cancer stem cells (CSCs) which represent the source for tissue renewal and hold malignant potential and which would be responsible for therapy resistance. Today, the winning goal in cancer research would be to find drugs to kill both cancer cells and cancer stem cells, while sparing normal cells. Osteosarcoma is an aggressive pediatric tumor of growing bones that, despite surgery and chemotherapy, is prone to relapse. We have recently selected from human osteosarcoma MG63 cells a cancer stem-like cell line (3AB-OS), which has unlimited proliferative potential, high levels of stemness-related markers, and in vivo tumorforming capacity in xenograft assays. Here, we have shown that 3AB-OS cells can differentiate in vitro into endoderm-, mesoderm-and ectoderm-derived lineages. Cell differentiation is morphological, molecular and functional. We propose that this model system of 3AB-OS differentiation in vitro might have a number of useful purposes, among which the study of molecular mechanisms of osteosarcoma origin, and the analysis of factors involved in specification of the various cell lineages. We still do not know either what are the shared and distinguishing characters between CSCs and normal stem cells, or what is the reason why the cancer stem cells, like the normal stem cells, have the ability to differentiate toward the derivatives of the primary germ layers. It is possible that each of the differentiation capability may be exploited by CSCs to supply their needs of growing and surviving in hostile microenvironment.

REVERSION OF MULTIDRUG RESISTANCE IN THE P-GLYCOPROTEIN POSITIVE BREAST CANCER CELL LINE(MCF-7/ADR) BY INTRODUCTION OF HAMMERHEAD RIBOZYME

A hammerhead ribozyme which site-specifically cleaved the GUC position in canon 880 of the mdr1 mRNA was designed. The target site was chosen between the two ATP binding sites, which may be important for the function of the P-Gp as an ATP-dependent pump. A DNA sequence encoding the ribozyme gene was then incorporated into a eukaryotic expression vector (pH Apr-1 neo) and transfected into the breast cancer cell line MCF-7/Adr, which is resistant to adriamycin and expresses the MDR phenotype. The ribozyme was stably expressed in the cell line by the RNA dot blotting assay. The result of Northern blot assay showed that the expressed ribozyme could decrease the level of mdrl mRNA expression by 83. 5 %; and the expressed ribozyme could inhibite the formation of p-glycoprotein detected by immuno- cy-tochemistry assay and could reduce the cell’s resistance to adrimycin; this means that the resistant cells were 1 000-fold more resistant than the parental cell line(MCF-7), whereas those cell clones that showed ribozyme expression were only 6-fold more resistant than the parental cell line. These results show that a potentially useful tool is at hand which may inactivate MDR1 mRNA and revert the multidrug resistance phenotype.

Fermented Herbal Decoction Selectively Targeting Human Cancer Cell Line and Human Pathogenic Microorganism

Introduction: Prolonged immuno-suppressed status promised to induce internal growth of malignant cell and infectious agent, yet, only a small part of affected individuals seek medical attention or berried by commercially over-flowed fake information. Several studies have described complementary and alternative medicine as effective strategies for improving anti-infectious agent including malignant cell. The purpose of this study was to investigate the effect of a fermented herbal decoction (FHD) both in vitro and in vivo to malignant cells and microorganism by regulating leukocyte subset proportioning FHD as dietary material. Methods: In this approach of alternative study, selective anti-cancer effect by fermented decoction was tried to show first in vitro system both, cancer cell and virus strain. The fermented herbal decoction consisting of 80 sorts of herbs and fruits. The selective toxicity was set up and then for immunological factors in animal and human. The most important factor is to reduce side effect for a normal cell. Results: First, FHD was proved as safe by animal test. FHD regulated also the proportion of granulocyte and lymphocyte ratio both animal and human. In vitro culture showed selective toxicity by FHD against human melanoma and leukemia cell line but reduced toxicity was showed by normal cell line. As for the anti-virus activity, anti-virus effect was tested on the feeder layer of human fibroblast cell, after 9 days of culture. Second, FHD inhibits colon cancer growth in 3-methylholanthrene induced cancer in rat. Conclusion: The present results suggest that our fermented herbal decoction showed selective anti-cancer activities and anti-virus activities, together with the regulative effect on the immune system.

毛酸浆内酯通过抑制STAT3诱导人乳腺癌MCF-7细胞凋亡

[目的]旨在探讨信号转导和转录激活因子3(STAT3)在毛酸浆内酯(PPB)诱导人乳腺癌MCF-7细胞凋亡中发挥的作用。[方法]采用荧光染色法分析PPB诱导MCF-7细胞凋亡;使用生物信息学方法预测PPB抗乳腺癌的潜在机制;采用噻唑蓝(MTT)法考察STAT3抑制剂S3I-201以及STAT3小干扰RNA(siRNA)对PPB抑制MCF-7细胞生长的作用;采用蛋白免疫印迹(Western Blot)法考察PPB单独处理或STAT3 siRNA预处理后对MCF-7细胞中STAT3、B淋巴细胞瘤-2(Bcl-2)、Bcl-2相关X蛋白(Bax)、半胱氨酸天冬氨酸蛋白酶8(Caspase8)、半胱氨酸天冬氨酸蛋白酶9(Caspase9)、细胞色素c(Cytochrome c)以及多聚ADP核糖聚合酶(PARP)蛋白表达的影响。[结果]MCF-7细胞经PPB作用后凋亡形态特征明显,凋亡比例上升;生物信息学结果显示PPB与乳腺癌疾病的共同靶点STAT3在乳腺癌组织中高表达,单基因GSEA结果提示STAT3高表达与凋亡信号通路呈负相关;Western Blot法检测结果显示PPB能够抑制STAT3的磷酸化;S3I-201抑制剂或siRNA敲降STAT3均能进一步促进PPB抑制MCF-7细胞生长;此外,敲降STAT3进一步增加PPB对促凋亡蛋白Bax、Cytochrome c、裂解的Caspase8(Cleaved-Caspase8)、裂解的Caspase9(Cleaved-Caspase9)以及裂解的PARP(Cleaved-PARP)的促进作用,并增加PPB对抗凋亡蛋白Bcl-2的抑制作用。[结论]PPB通过抑制STAT3诱导人乳腺癌MCF-7细胞凋亡。