Phytoestrogens selective for the estrogen receptor beta exert anti-androgenic effects in castration resistant prostate cancer.

Prostate cancer is the leading cause of cancer death in men of the Western world. A castration-resistant prostate cancer (CRPC) eventually will arise when a local restricted prostate carcinoma was not cured duly by radical prostatectomy or radiation therapy. Although androgen ablation therapies are considered the gold standard for treatments of advanced prostate cancer there is no curative therapy available at present. In previous pre-clinical and clinical trials several phytoestrogens were investigated for their anticancer potential in various models for prostate cancer. Phytoestrogens feature tumour preventive characteristics and most probably are involved in the low incidence rate of hormone related cancers in Asian countries. Phytoestrogens such as isoflavones can have a marked impact on the most essential therapy target of CRPC i.e. the androgen receptor. Furthermore, functional analyses solidified the notion of such drugs as androgen antagonistic. Phytoestrogens commonly feature low toxicity combined with a potential of targeted therapy. Thus, these drugs qualify for conceivable implementation in prostate cancer patients under active surveillance. In addition, relapse prevention with these drugs after radical prostatectomy or radiation therapy might be considered. This article is part of a Special Issue entitled 'Phytoestrogens'.

Phytoestrogens regulate the proliferation and expression of stem cell factors in cell lines of malignant testicular germ cell tumors.

Phytoestrogens have been shown to exert anti-proliferative effects on different cancer cells. In addition it could be demonstrated that inhibition of proliferation is associated with downregulation of the known stem cell factors NANOG, POU5F1 and SOX2 in tumor cells. We demonstrate the potential of Belamcanda chinensis extract (BCE) and tectorigenin as anticancer drugs in cell lines of malignant testicular germ cell tumor cells (TGCT) by inhibition of proliferation and regulating the expression of stem cell factors. The TGCT cell lines TCam-2 and NTera-2 were treated with BCE or tectorigenin and MTT assay was used to measure the proliferation of tumor cells. In addition, the expression of stem cell factors was analyzed by quantitative PCR and western blot analysis. Furthermore, global expression analysis was performed by microarray technique. BCE and tectorigenin inhibited proliferation and downregulated the stem cell factors NANOG and POU5F1 in TGCT cells. In addition, gene expression profiling revealed induction of genes important for the differentiation and inhibition of oncogenes. Utilizing connectivity map in an attempt to elucidate mechanism underlying BCE treatments we found highly positive association to histone deacetylase inhibitors (HDACi) amongst others. Causing no histone deacetylase inhibition, the effects of BCE on proliferation and stem cell factors may be based on histone-independent mechanisms such as direct hyperacetylation of transcription factors. Based on these findings, phytoestrogens may be useful as new agents in the treatment of TGCT.

The relevance of estrogen receptor-beta expression to the antiproliferative effects observed with histone deacetylase inhibitors and phytoestrogens in prostate cancer treatment.

In the prostate, estrogen receptor beta (ERbeta), the preferred receptor for phytoestrogens, has features of a tumor suppressor. To investigate the mechanisms underlying the beneficial effects on prostate cancer of histone deacetylase inhibitor valproic acid (VPA) and phytoestrogen tectorigenin, we analyzed the expression of ERbeta after tectorigenin or VPA treatment. For further functional analysis, we knocked down ERbeta expression by RNA interference. LNCaP prostate cancer cells were treated with 5 mmol/L VPA or 100 micromol/L tectorigenin and transfected with small interfering RNA (siRNA) against ERbeta. Control transfections were done with luciferase (LUC) siRNA. Expression of ERbeta was assessed by Western blot. mRNA expression was quantitated by real-time reverse transcription-PCR. Expression of ERbeta mRNA and protein markedly increased after VPA or tectorigenin treatment. When ERbeta was knocked down by siRNA, the expression of prostate-derived Ets factor, prostate-specific antigen, prostate cancer-specific indicator gene DD3(PCA3), insulin-like growth factor-1 receptor, the catalytic subunit of the telomerase, and ERalpha was up-regulated and the tectorigenin effects were abrogated. ERbeta levels were diminished in prostate cancer and loss of ERbeta was associated with proliferation. Here, we show that siRNA-mediated knockdown of ERbeta increases the expression of genes highly relevant to tumor cell proliferation. In addition, we show that one prominent result of treatment with VPA or tectorigenin is the up-regulation of ERbeta resulting in antiproliferative effects. Thus, these drugs, by restoring the regulatory function of ERbeta in tumor cells, could become useful in the intervention of prostate cancer.

Phytoestrogens from Belamcanda chinensis regulate the expression of steroid receptors and related cofactors in LNCaP prostate cancer cells.

OBJECTIVE: To investigate the changes in expression underlying the marked reduction of tumour growth in vivo, by analysing the effect of Belamcanda chinensis extract (BCE) on LNCaP cells in vitro, as phytoestrogens are chemopreventive in prostate cancer, and in previous studies we examined the effects of the isoflavone tectorigenin isolated from B. chinensis on LNCaP prostate cancer cells, and a BCE consisting of 13 phytoestrogenic compounds on tumour-bearing nude mice. MATERIALS AND METHODS: LNCaP cells were treated with 100, 400 or 1400 microg/mL BCE; proliferation was assessed with an Alamar Blue assay. We used real-time reverse transcription-polymerase chain reaction to quantify mRNA expression of the androgen receptor (AR), the AR coactivator prostate derived Ets transcription factor (PDEF), NKX3.1, prostate specific antigen (PSA) and oestrogen receptor-beta (ER-beta) compared with the expression of the housekeeping gene porphobilinogen deaminase (PBGD). PSA secretion from LNCaP cells was measured and protein expression of the AR investigated by Western blot analysis. RESULTS: Concomitant with a marked decrease of tumour cell proliferation BCE down-regulated the expression of the AR, PDEF, NKX3.1 and PSA. In the same experiments, the expression of PBGD was unaltered, whereas ER-beta expression increased. Furthermore, AR protein and PSA secretion were markedly diminished after treatments with the BCE. CONCLUSION: BCE, comprising 13 different phytoestrogens, decreases the expression of the AR and its co-activator PDEF concomitant with diminished cell proliferation and PSA secretion. NKX3.1 expression was also reduced by BCE. We hypothesise that the positive effects of BCE are initiated by up-regulation of the ER-beta, a putative tumour-suppressor gene.

Inhibitory effects of a black cohosh (Cimicifuga racemosa) extract on prostate cancer.

The Cimicifuga racemosa extract BNO 1055 (CR) inhibits proliferation of human prostate cancer-derived LNCaP cells. Therefore, we tested the capability of this extract to inhibit formation and/or proliferation of tumors induced by subcutaneous ( s. c.) inoculation of LNCaP cells in immunodeficient nu/nu mice. After inoculation of 1 million cells, 12 of 18 animals developed solid tumors while tumor development was seen in only 5 of 18 CR-treated animals and the size of the latter at termination of the experiments 10 weeks after inoculation was significantly smaller than in the control animals. Upon histological inspection, the amount of tumor tissue in the control animals was significantly larger than in the CR-treated animals while in the latter connective tissue was predominant. The CR treatment did not affect serum testosterone levels significantly regardless of whether the animals developed tumors or not. It is concluded that compounds in CR inhibit tumor development, proliferation and dignity of the tumors following s. c. inoculation of LNCaP cells. Hence, the CR extract may prove to be efficient in preventing and treatment of prostate cancer.

Tectorigenin and other phytochemicals extracted from leopard lily Belamcanda chinensis affect new and established targets for therapies in prostate cancer.

Isoflavones have been shown to exert antiproliferative effects on cancer cells by steroid receptor signaling. In this study, we demonstrate the potential of plant constituents extracted from Belamcanda chinensis as anticancer drugs, which regulate the aberrant expression of genes relevant in proliferation, invasion, immortalization and apoptosis. LNCaP cells were treated with B.chinensis extract, tectorigenin or other isoflavones and mRNA expression was quantified by using real time RT-PCR. In addition, ELISA, TRAP assays and western blots were used to measure protein expression or activity. Male nude mice (n=18) were injected subcutaneously with LNCaP cells and were fed with extracts from B.chinensis, and tumor development was monitored versus a control animal group (n=18). Tectorigenin and several other phytochemicals downregulated PDEF, PSA and IGF-1 receptor mRNA expression in vitro. Furthermore, PSA secretion and IGF-1 receptor protein expression were diminished, and hTERT mRNA expression and telomerase activity decreased after tectorigenin treatments. However, TIMP-3 mRNA was upregulated on tectorigenin treatment. Growth of subcutaneous tumors in nude mice was delayed and diminished in animals fed with extracts from B.chinensis. The downregulation of PDEF, PSA, hTERT and IGF-1 receptor gene expression by tectorigenin demonstrates the antiproliferative potential of these agents. The upregulation of TIMP-3 gene expression indicates a pro-apoptotic function of the drug and a reduction of the invasiveness of tumors. The animal experiments demonstrate that B.chinensis markedly inhibited the development of tumors in vivo. Thus, these compounds may be useful for the prevention or treatment of human prostate cancer.

Silibinin down-regulates prostate epithelium-derived Ets transcription factor in LNCaP prostate cancer cells.

The androgen-sensitive human prostate cancer cell line LNCaP expresses the estrogen receptor beta and androgen receptor and can be stimulated by androgens to secrete prostate-specific antigen (PSA). In this study we demonstrate the cancer protective potential of silibinin, a flavolignan derived from the fruits of Silybum marianum, which down-regulates the co-activator of the androgen receptor, the prostate epithelium-derived Ets transcription factor (PDEF) and consequently the secretion of PSA. LNCaP cells were treated with various concentrations of silibinin in the presence or in the absence of 5alpha-dihydrotestosterone (DHT). We used real-time RT-PCR to quantify mRNA expression of PDEF and PSA with gene-specific dual-labelled fluorescence probes. PSA secretion from LNCaP cells in conditioned media was measured with the Elecsys System 2010. Silibinin down-regulated PSA mRNA expression and PSA secretion in conditioned medium under basal and DHT (10(-8) M) stimulated conditions, which was paralleled by PDEF down-regulation. DHT alone stimulated PDEF and PSA gene expression and PSA secretion. The down-regulation of basal as well as DHT stimulated PDEF and PSA by silibinin demonstrates the antiproliferative potential of this agent. These effects underline the possible therapeutic use of silibinin in the management of prostate cancer.