RESUMO
OBJECTIVE: Our goal was to evaluate the effects of simvastatin on endometrial cancer cell lines and primary cultures of endometrial cancer cells. METHODS: Cell proliferation in the ECC-1 and Ishikawa endometrial cancer cell lines and primary cultures of endometrial cancer cells was assessed by MTT assay. Apoptosis and cell cycle were detected by Annexin V assay and propidium iodide staining, respectively. Reactive oxygen species and cell adhesion were assessed using ELISA assays. Invasion was analyzed using a transwell invasion assay. Mitochondrial DNA damage was confirmed using qPCR. The effects of simvastatin on the AKT/mTOR and MAPK pathways were determined by Western blotting. RESULTS: Simvastatin inhibited cell proliferation in a dose-dependent manner in both endometrial cancer cell lines and 5/8 primary cultures of endometrial cancer cells. Simvastatin treatment resulted in G1 cell cycle arrest, a reduction in the enzymatic activity of HMG-CoA, induction of apoptosis as well as DNA damage and cellular stress. Treatment with simvastatin resulted in inhibition of the MAPK pathway and exhibited differential effects on the AKT/mTOR pathway in the ECC-1 and Ishikawa cells. Minimal change in AKT phosphorylation was seen in both cell lines. An increase in phosphorylated S6 was seen in ECC-1 and a decrease was seen in Ishikawa. Treatment with simvastatin reduced cell adhesion and invasion (p<0.01) in both cell lines. CONCLUSION: Simvastatin had significant anti-proliferative and anti-metastatic effects in endometrial cancer cells, possibly through modulation of the MAPK and AKT/mTOR pathways, suggesting that statins may be a promising treatment strategy for endometrial cancer.
Assuntos
Neoplasias do Endométrio/tratamento farmacológico , Inibidores de Hidroximetilglutaril-CoA Redutases/uso terapêutico , Sinvastatina/uso terapêutico , Apoptose/efeitos dos fármacos , Adesão Celular/efeitos dos fármacos , Proliferação de Células/efeitos dos fármacos , Neoplasias do Endométrio/patologia , Feminino , Humanos , Invasividade Neoplásica , Metástase Neoplásica/tratamento farmacológico , Células Tumorais CultivadasRESUMO
Ovarian cancer is the 5th leading cause of cancer death among women in the United States. The mevalonate pathway is thought to be a potential oncogenic pathway in the pathogenesis of ovarian cancer. Simvastatin, a 3-hydroxy-3-methyl-glutaryl-CoA reductase (HMGCR) inhibitor, is a widely used drug for inhibiting the synthesis of cholesterol and may also have anti-tumorigenic activity. Our goal was to evaluate the effects of simvastatin on ovarian cancer cell lines, primary cultures of ovarian cancer cells and in an orthotopic ovarian cancer mouse model. Simvastatin significantly inhibited cellular proliferation, induced cell cycle G1 arrest and apoptosis, and caused cellular stress via reduction in the enzymatic activity of HMGCR and inhibition of the MAPK and mTOR pathways in ovarian cancer cells. Furthermore, simvastatin induced DNA damage and reduced cell adhesion and invasion. Simvastatin also exerted anti-proliferative effects on primary cell cultures of ovarian cancer. Treatment with simvastatin in an orthotopic mouse model reduced ovarian tumor growth, coincident with decreased Ki-67, HMGCR, phosphorylated-Akt and phosphorylated-p42/44 protein expression. Our findings demonstrate that simvastatin may have therapeutic benefit for ovarian cancer treatment and be worthy of further exploration in clinical trials.
Assuntos
Hidroximetilglutaril-CoA Redutases/metabolismo , Inibidores de Hidroximetilglutaril-CoA Redutases/farmacologia , Neoplasias Ovarianas/tratamento farmacológico , Sinvastatina/farmacologia , Ensaios Antitumorais Modelo de Xenoenxerto , Animais , Apoptose/efeitos dos fármacos , Adesão Celular/efeitos dos fármacos , Linhagem Celular Tumoral , Proliferação de Células/efeitos dos fármacos , Dano ao DNA , Feminino , Pontos de Checagem da Fase G1 do Ciclo Celular/efeitos dos fármacos , Humanos , Immunoblotting , Camundongos Knockout , Proteínas Quinases Ativadas por Mitógeno/metabolismo , Metástase Neoplásica , Neoplasias Ovarianas/metabolismo , Neoplasias Ovarianas/patologia , Espécies Reativas de Oxigênio/metabolismo , Transdução de Sinais/efeitos dos fármacos , Serina-Treonina Quinases TOR/metabolismoRESUMO
High rates of aerobic glycolysis represent a key mechanism by which endometrial cancer cells consume glucose as its primary energy source. The up-regulated glycolytic pathway is a common therapeutic target whose inhibition has implications for anti-tumor activity in cancer cells. The present study was aimed at evaluating the potential of a novel lactate dehydrogenase (LDH) inhibitor, Galloflavin, as a therapeutic agent for endometrial cancer. Our results revealed that Galloflavin effectively inhibited cell growth in endometrial cancer cell lines and primary cultures of human endometrial cancer through its involvement in multiple signaling pathways that regulate metabolism, cell cycle, apoptosis, cell stress and metastasis.