Phenethyl isothiocyanate as an anti-nutritional factor attenuates deoxynivalenol-induced IPEC-J2 cell injury through inhibiting ROSmediated autophagy

Deoxynivalenol(DON)is considered to be the most harmful mycotoxin that affects the intestinal health of animals and humans.Phenethyl isothiocyanate(PEITC)in feedstuff is an anti-nutritional factor and impairs nutrient digestion and absorption in the animal intestinal.In the current study,we aimed to explore the effects of PEITC on DON-induced apoptosis,intestinal tight junction disorder,and its potential molecular mechanism in the porcine jejunum epithelial cell line(IPEC-J2).Our results indicated that PEITC treatment markedly alleviated DON-induced cytotoxicity,decreasing the apoptotic cell percentage and pro-apoptotic mRNA/protein levels,and increasing zonula occludens-1(ZO-1),occludin and claudin-1 mRNA/protein expression.Meanwhile,PEITC treatment ameliorated DON-induced an increase of the inducible nitric oxide synthase(iNOS)and cyclooxygenase 2(COX-2)mRNA levels and intracellular reactive oxygen species(ROS)level,and a decrease of glutathione peroxidase 1(GPx1),superoxide dismutase 2(SOD2),catalase(CAT)and heme oxygenase 1(HO-1)mRNA levels.Additionally,PEITC treatment significantly down-regulated autophagy-related protein 5(ATG5),beclin-1 and microtubuleassociated protein 1 light chain 3B(LC3-II)mRNA/protein levels,decreased the number of green fluorescent protein-microtubule-associated protein 1 light-chain 3(GFP-LC3)puncta and phosphatidylinositol 3 kinase(PI3K)protein expression,and up-regulated phospho-protein kinase B(p-Akt)and phospho-mammalian target of rapamycin(p-mTOR)protein expression against DON.However,the activation of autophagy by rapamycin,an autophagy agonist,abolished the protective effects of PEITC against DON-induced cytotoxicity,apoptosis and intestinal tight junction disorder.Collectively,PEITC could confer protection against DON-induced porcine intestinal epithelial cell injury by suppressing ROSmediated autophagy.

Role of autophagic response induced by major phytochemicals in cancer prevention and treatment

Phytochemicals derived from dietary sources and natural products have gained significant attention in the scientific community due to their ability to modulate various pharmacological and biological activities.Understanding the molecular mechanisms by which natural products protect against various diseases including cancer will provide the basis for both clinical use and further chemical modification to develop targeted therapy.Autophagy,an evolutionarily conserved self-digestion process that employs lysosomal-mediated enzymatic degradation has a functional role in a wide range of pathological disorders,and has attracted oncology scientists over the past two decades.Studies employing natural products have shown that induction of autophagy may be either cytoprotective or cytotoxic governed by different molecular pathways.In this review,we summarize four major phytochemicals namely phenethyl isothiocyanate,capsaicin,withaferin A,genistein and their association with autophagy in cancer chemoprevention.We also discuss ideas for further investigation essential to understanding their mechanisms,which will guide their clinical applications for cancer prevention and treatment.