RESUMO
Tumor necrosis factor (TNF)-related apoptosis-inducing ligand (TRAIL) induces apoptosis in many transformed cells but not in normal cells and, hence, has emerged as a novel anticancer agent. Previously, we showed that although most adult T-cell leukemia/lymphoma (ATLL) cells express the TRAIL death receptor DR4 (TRAIL-R1) or DR5 (TRAIL-R2), they are resistant to TRAIL. Thus, in this study, we tried to find natural products that can overcome TRAIL resistance. Among more than 150 materials screened, a dihydroflavonol that was extracted from Blumea balsamifera (BB-1) exhibited the most striking synergism with TRAIL. Treatment of the TRAIL-resistant ATLL cell line KOB, with a combination of BB-1 and TRAIL, resulted in apparent apoptosis that was not observed on treatment with either agent alone. Furthermore, pretreatment with BB-1 followed by TRAIL further augmented the synergism. BB-1 increased the level of TRAIL-R2 promoter activity and surface protein expression in a p53-independent manner. TRAIL-R2 siRNA inhibited the synergism, indicating that sensitization was caused by the increase of TRAIL-R2 expression. More interestingly, similar effects were observed in other leukemia cell lines by exactly the same mechanisms. These results suggest that combined treatment with BB-1 and TRAIL may be a new strategy for cancer therapy.
Assuntos
Antineoplásicos/uso terapêutico , Proteínas Reguladoras de Apoptose/uso terapêutico , Apoptose/efeitos dos fármacos , Asteraceae/química , Resistencia a Medicamentos Antineoplásicos , Flavonóis/uso terapêutico , Leucemia/tratamento farmacológico , Glicoproteínas de Membrana/uso terapêutico , Fator de Necrose Tumoral alfa/uso terapêutico , Sinergismo Farmacológico , Quimioterapia Combinada , Flavonóis/isolamento & purificação , Humanos , Leucemia-Linfoma de Células T do Adulto , Extratos Vegetais/uso terapêutico , Regiões Promotoras Genéticas/genética , RNA Interferente Pequeno/farmacologia , Receptores do Ligante Indutor de Apoptose Relacionado a TNF , Receptores do Fator de Necrose Tumoral/antagonistas & inibidores , Receptores do Fator de Necrose Tumoral/genética , Receptores do Fator de Necrose Tumoral/metabolismo , Transdução de Sinais/efeitos dos fármacos , Ligante Indutor de Apoptose Relacionado a TNF , Células Tumorais Cultivadas , Proteína Supressora de Tumor p53/metabolismoRESUMO
Human T-cell leukemia virus type I (HTLV-I) is the etiologic agent of adult T-cell leukemia (ATL) and of tropical spastic paraparesis/HTLV-I-associated myelopathy. Infiltration of various tissues by circulating leukemic cells is a characteristic of ATL. Matrix metalloproteinases (MMPs), which mediate the degradation of the basement membrane and extracellular matrix, play an important role in metastasis and tumor cell dissemination. The aim of this study was to explore whether expression of MMP-2 and MMP-9 was deregulated by HTLV-I infection. The data showed that HTLV-I-infected T-cell lines expressed high levels of MMP-9 compared with uninfected T-cell lines. In contrast, the levels of the related MMP-2 were not significantly altered by HTLV-I infection. In addition, the elevated expression of MMP-9 in HTLV-I-infected cells was attributable to the action of the viral transactivator protein Tax. The results show that Tax can activate the MMP-9 promoter and induce MMP-9 expression in T cells, indicating that the constitutive expression of MMP-9 in virus-infected cell lines is at least in part mediated by Tax. Activation of the MMP-9 promoter by Tax occurs mainly through the action of NF-kappaB and SP-1. The biologic significance of these observations was validated by the following 2 findings: MMP-9 expression was increased in primary ATL cells, and plasma MMP-9 levels were elevated in ATL patients. In addition, plasma levels of MMP-9 correlated with organ involvement in ATL patients. Together these data suggest that overexpression of MMP-9 in HTLV-I- infected cells may be in part responsible for the invasiveness of ATL cells.