RESUMO
Here we sought to determine the relationship between STAT3 activity and Galectin-3 (Gal-3) and to investigate the cytotoxic effect of PectaSol-C Modified Citrus Pectin (Pect-MCP) as a specific competitive inhibitor of Galectin-3 (Gal-3) in combination with Paclitaxel (PTX) to kill the ovarian cancer cell SKOV-3 multicellular tumor spheroid (MCTS). To this order, SKOV-3 cells in 2D and 3D cultures were treated with exogenous Gal-3 for the assessment of STAT3 activity. Two-way ANOVA main effect and IC50 of each drug Paclitaxel (PTX) and Pect-MCP or in combination were obtained from MTT assay results. The phosphorylated STAT3 levels, migration, invasion, integrin mRNA and p-AKTser473 levels were assessed in the absence or presence of each drug alone or in combination. Gal-3 expression levels were assessed in human serous ovarian cancer (SOC) specimens and its correlation with different integrin mRNA levels was further assessed. Our results showed that Gal-3 expression level was significantly increased in MCTS compared to monolayer SKOV-3 cells which triggered STAT3 phosphorylation. Moreover, Pect-MCP synergized with PTX to kill SKOV3 MCTS through abrogation of STAT3 activity and reduced expression of its downstream target HIF-1α, reduced integrin mRNA levels, and subsequently decreased AKT activity. There were higher expression levels of Gal-3 in human high-grade SOC specimens compared to the normal ovary and borderline SOC which positively and significantly correlated with α5, ß2 and ß6 integrin mRNA levels. Together, these results revealed for the first time that Pect-MCP could be considered as a potential drug to enhance the PTX effect on ovarian cancer cells MCTS through inhibition of STAT3 activity.
Assuntos
Cistadenocarcinoma Seroso/metabolismo , Galectina 3/metabolismo , Neoplasias Ovarianas/metabolismo , Paclitaxel/farmacologia , Pectinas/farmacologia , Fator de Transcrição STAT3/metabolismo , Proteínas Sanguíneas , Técnicas de Cultura de Células , Linhagem Celular Tumoral , Proliferação de Células/efeitos dos fármacos , Sobrevivência Celular/efeitos dos fármacos , Cistadenocarcinoma Seroso/tratamento farmacológico , Cistadenocarcinoma Seroso/genética , Cistadenocarcinoma Seroso/patologia , Sinergismo Farmacológico , Feminino , Galectinas , Regulação Neoplásica da Expressão Gênica/efeitos dos fármacos , Humanos , Integrinas/genética , Gradação de Tumores , Neoplasias Ovarianas/tratamento farmacológico , Neoplasias Ovarianas/genética , Neoplasias Ovarianas/patologia , Fosforilação/efeitos dos fármacos , Transdução de Sinais/efeitos dos fármacos , Esferoides Celulares/citologia , Esferoides Celulares/efeitos dos fármacos , Células Tumorais CultivadasRESUMO
Galectin-3 (Gal-3) is a carbohydrate-binding protein which is thought to be involved in cancer progression but its contribution to epithelial ovarian cancer (EOC) remains unclear. The present study sought to determine the role of Gal-3 in chemoresistance of the human SKOV-3 ovarian cancer cell line to paclitaxel (PTX) using recombinant human Gal-3 (rhGal-3) and PectaSol-C modified citrus pectin (Pect-MCP) as a specific Gal-3 competitive inhibitor. Our results showed 41% increased cell proliferation, 36% decreased caspase-3 activity and 33.6% increased substrate-dependent adhesion in the presence of rhGal-3 compared to the control case (p<0.001). Treatment of cells with a non-effective dose of PTX (100nM) and 0.1% Pect-MCP in combination revealed synergistic cytotoxic effects with 75% reduced cell viability and subsequent 3.9-fold increase in caspase-3 activity. Moreover, there was 39% decrease in substrate-dependent adhesion compared to control (p<0.001). These results suggest that inhibition of Gal-3 could be a useful therapeutic tool for combination therapy of ovarian cancer.