Identification of chlorprothixene as a potential drug that induces apoptosis and autophagic cell death in acute myeloid leukemia cells.

Although acute myeloid leukemia (AML) is a highly heterogeneous malignance, the common molecular mechanisms shared by different AML subtypes play critical roles in AML development. It is possible to identify new drugs that are effective for various AML subtypes based on the common molecular mechanisms. Therefore, we developed a hypothesis-driven bioinformatic drug screening framework by integrating multiple omics data. In this study, we identified that chlorprothixene, a dopamine receptor antagonist, could effectively inhibit growth of AML cells from different subtypes. RNA-seq analysis suggested that chlorprothixene perturbed a series of crucial biological processes such as cell cycle, apoptosis, and autophagy in AML cells. Further investigations indicated that chlorprothixene could induce both apoptosis and autophagy in AML cells, and apoptosis and autophagy could act as partners to induce cell death cooperatively. Remarkably, chlorprothixene was found to inhibit tumor growth and induce in situ leukemic cell apoptosis in the murine xenograft model. Furthermore, chlorprothixene treatment could reduce the level of oncofusion proteins PML-RARα and AML1-ETO, thus elevate the expression of apoptosis-related genes, and lead to AML cell death. Our results provided new insights for drug repositioning of AML therapy and confirmed that chlorprothixene might be a potential candidate for treatment of different subtypes of AML by reducing expression of oncofusion proteins. DATABASE: RNA-seq data are available in GEO database under the accession number GSE124316.

Proteomic Assessment of iTRAQ-Based NaoMaiTong in the Treatment of Ischemic Stroke in Rats.

BACKGROUND: NaoMaiTong (NMT) is widely used in the treatment of cerebral ischemia but the molecular details of its beneficial effects remain poorly characterized. MATERIALS AND METHODS: In this study, we used iTRAQ using 2D LC-MS/MS technology to investigate the cellular mechanisms governing the protective effects of NMT. The transient middle cerebral artery occlusion (MCAO) rat model was established and evaluated. The degree of cerebral ischemia was assessed through scoring for nerve injury symptoms and through the assessment of the areas of cerebral infarction. Brain tissues were subjected to analysis by iTRAQ. High-pH HPLC and RSLC-MS/MS analysis were performed to detect differentially expressed proteins (DEPs) between the treatment groups (Sham, MCAO, and NMT). Bioinformatics were employed for data analysis and DEPs were validated by western blot. RESULTS: The results showed that NMT offers protection to the neurological damage caused by MCAO and was found to reduce the areas of cerebral infarction. We detected 3216 DEPs via mass spectrometry. Of these proteins, 21 displayed altered expression following NMT intervention. These included DEPs involved in translation, cell cycle regulation, cellular nitrogen metabolism, and stress responses. Pathway analysis revealed seven key DEPs that were enriched in ribosomal synthesis pathways, tight junction formation, and regulation of the actin cytoskeleton. According to protein-protein interaction analysis, RPL17, Tuba, and Rac1 were affected by NMT treatment, which was validated by western blot analysis. DISCUSSION: We therefore identify new pharmacodynamic mechanisms of NMT for the prevention and treatment of ischemic stroke. These DEPs reveal new targets to prevent ischemic stroke induced neuronal damage.

[Effects of Renshenjian decoction on pancreatic metabonomic profiles in insulin resistance rats based on ¹H-NMR metabonomics].

Pancreas metabonomic profiles of the type 2 diabetic rats' induced by streptozotocin(STZ) and high-sugar, high fat diet on the treatment of Renshenjian decoction(RSJD) after 8 weeks were investigated.In this study, 48 Rats were randomly divided into four groups: normal control (NC), Pathological model (PM), Renshenjian decoction(RSJD 3.76 g·kg⁻¹) and glimepiride control (GC 0.04 mg·kg⁻¹). They are induced insulin resistance model of type 2 diabetes mellitus by streptozotocin(STZ) after 4 weeks' high-sugar, high fat diet except for NC. After sucessful modeling, they are given intragastric administration respectively with same amount of saline, RSJD and glimepiride in 4 weeks. At the end of the 8th week, the pancreatic tissue of rats in each group was collected, and the ¹H-NMR spectrum was collected after being treated by certain method, and analyzed by principal component analysis (PCA). Compared with NC's rats, we found PM's a significant elevation in the level of leucine/isoleucine, valine, lactic acid, creatine but reduction in the level of inose and less obvious changes in the level of creatine, cholic acid, taurine in pancreatic extract. After having been recieved RSJD, reduction level in leucine/isoleucine, valine, alanine, creatine, choline, taurine are also found in pancreatic extract of RSJD's rats, together with the increase of creatinine and tryptophan levels. The results showed that RSJD could regulate the level of amino acids in pancreas of IR rats, promoting a recovery in the process of metabolism. It's helpful to simulate the metabolic changes of IR rats via ¹H-NMR for a further understanding to study the mechanism how RSJD treat IR rats.