Peripheral opioid antagonist enhances the effect of anti-tumor drug by blocking a cell growth-suppressive pathway in vivo.
PLoS One
; 10(4): e0123407, 2015.
Article
em En
| MEDLINE
| ID: mdl-25853862
ABSTRACT
The dormancy of tumor cells is a major problem in chemotherapy, since it limits the therapeutic efficacy of anti-tumor drugs that only target dividing cells. One potential way to overcome chemo-resistance is to "wake up" these dormant cells. Here we show that the opioid antagonist methylnaltrexone (MNTX) enhances the effect of docetaxel (Doc) by blocking a cell growth-suppressive pathway. We found that PENK, which encodes opioid growth factor (OGF) and suppresses cell growth, is predominantly expressed in diffuse-type gastric cancers (GCs). The blockade of OGF signaling by MNTX releases cells from their arrest and boosts the effect of Doc. In comparison with the use of Doc alone, the combined use of Doc and MNTX significantly prolongs survival, alleviates abdominal pain, and diminishes Doc-resistant spheroids on the peritoneal membrane in model mice. These results suggest that blockade of the pathways that suppress cell growth may enhance the effects of anti-tumor drugs.
Texto completo:
1
Base de dados:
MEDLINE
Assunto principal:
Neoplasias Gástricas
/
Receptores Opioides
/
Taxoides
/
Naltrexona
Tipo de estudo:
Prognostic_studies
Limite:
Animals
/
Humans
Idioma:
En
Revista:
PLoS One
Assunto da revista:
CIENCIA
/
MEDICINA
Ano de publicação:
2015
Tipo de documento:
Article
País de afiliação:
Japão