Immunoglobulin G from breast cancer patients in stage I stimulates muscarinic acetylcholine receptors in MCF7 cells and induces proliferation. Participation of nitric oxide synthase-derived nitric oxide.

INTRODUCTION: Muscarinic acetylcholine receptors (mAChR) belong to the G-protein-coupled receptor family and are extensively expressed in most cells in mammals. We had reported the expression of mAChR in murine and human breast tumors. METHODS: The presence of antibodies in the sera of patients with different tumors directed against self-proteins has been recently described. In this work, we investigated the presence of autoantibodies against mAChR in the sera of breast cancer patients in stage I (T1N0Mx-IgG). IgG purification was performed by affinity chromatography in protein G-agarose. We also studied the ability of these antibodies to modulate the proliferation of MCF-7 breast tumor cells by the MTS colorimetric assay. The ability of T1N0Mx-IgG to stimulate muscarinic signaling pathway via nitric oxide synthase was tested by Griess reaction. RESULTS: We demonstrated M(3) and M(4) receptors expression in MCF-7 cells. T1N0Mx-IgG promotes cell proliferation, mimicking the action of the muscarinic agonist carbachol. This effect was preferentially due to M(3) receptor activation in tumor cells via phospholipase C-induced nitric oxide liberation by calcium-dependent nitric oxide synthases. IgG from control patients was unable to produce this effect. DISCUSSION: IgG from patients with breast cancer in early stages could be promoting tumor progression by muscarinic activation, and its presence could be determining the prognosis of this illness.

The metronomic combination of paclitaxel with cholinergic agonists inhibits triple negative breast tumor progression. Participation of M2 receptor subtype.

Triple negative tumors are more aggressive than other breast cancer subtypes and there is a lack of specific therapeutic targets on them. Since muscarinic receptors have been linked to tumor progression, we investigated the effect of metronomic therapy employing a traditional anti-cancer drug, paclitaxel plus muscarinic agonists at low doses on this type of tumor. We observed that MDA-MB231 tumor cells express muscarinic receptors, while they are absent in the non-tumorigenic MCF-10A cell line, which was used as control. The addition of carbachol or arecaidine propargyl ester, a non-selective or a selective subtype 2 muscarinic receptor agonist respectively, plus paclitaxel reduces cell viability involving a down-regulation in the expression of ATP "binding cassette" G2 drug transporter and epidermal growth factor receptor. We also detected an inhibition of tumor cell migration and anti-angiogenic effects produced by those drug combinations in vitro and in vivo (in NUDE mice) respectively. Our findings provide substantial evidence about subtype 2 muscarinic receptors as therapeutic targets for the treatment of triple negative tumors.

Role of Muscarinic Acetylcholine Receptors in Breast Cancer: Design of Metronomic Chemotherapy.

BACKGROUND: muscarinic acetylcholine receptors (mAChRs) have attracted interest as targets for therapeutic interventions in different illnesses like Alzheimer´s disease, viral infections and different tumors. Regarding the latter, many authors have studied each subtype of mAChRs, which seem to be involved in the progression of distinct types of malignancies. METHODS: We carefully revised research literature focused on mAChRs expression and signaling as well as in their involvement in cancer progression and treatment. The characteristics of screened papers were described using the mentioned conceptual framework. RESULTS: Muscarinic antagonists and agonists have been assayed for the treatment of tumors established in lung, brain and breast with beneficial effects. We described an up-regulation of mAChRs in mammary tumors and the lack of expression in non-tumorigenic breast cells and normal mammary tissues. We and others demonstrated that muscarinic agonists can trigger anti-tumor actions in a dose-dependent manner on tumors originated in different organs like brain or breast. At pharmacological concentrations, they exert similar effects to traditional chemotherapeutic agents. Metronomic chemotherapy refers to the administration of anti-cancer drugs at low doses with short intervals among them, and it is a different regimen applied in cancer treatment reducing malignant growth and angiogenesis, and very low incidence of adverse effects. CONCLUSION: The usage of subthreshold concentrations of muscarinic agonists combined with conventional chemotherapeutic agents could be a promising tool for breast cancer therapy.

Activation of muscarinic cholinergic receptors induces MCF-7 cells proliferation and angiogenesis by stimulating nitric oxide synthase activity.

Muscarinic acetylcholine receptors (mAChR) are members of the G-protein coupled receptor family. These receptors play key physiological roles and changes in their expression and/or function are involved in several diseases. We had previously demonstrated that mAChR expression is up regulated in three different cell lines derived from distinct murine mammary adenocarcinomas that spontaneously arose in BALB/c female mice, in comparison with normal murine mammary cells. Stimulation of mAChR with the muscarinic agonist carbachol (CARB) potentiated different steps of tumor progression. We here evidence that similarly to previous results obtained in mice, human breast tumor homogenates over expressed mAChR in comparison with normal breast tissue. Thus, to test the muscarinic actions on human breast adenocarcinoma cells we investigate the effect of CARB on MCF-7 cells proliferation and neovascular response. Particularly we observe that: CARB stimulates tumor cells proliferation, being 10(-9) M the maximal effective dose for the muscarinic agonist. This action was due to M3 and M1 receptors activation being nitric oxide synthase (NOS) its effector enzyme via phospholipase C and protein kinase C signaling pathway. NOS1 and NOS3 isoforms are expressed in MCF-7 cells and its activation by CARB triggers nitric oxide synthesis and vascular endothelial growth factor expression increasing blood vessels formation induced by mammary tumor cells in vivo. We can conclude that nonneuronal cholinergic system activation stimulates MCF-7 tumor cells growth and neovascular response promoting tumor progression.

Role of non-neuronal cholinergic system in breast cancer progression.

We have previously reported the expression of functional muscarinic acetylcholine receptors (mAChR) in two different murine mammary adenocarcinoma cell lines LM2 and LM3. Activation of mAChR with carbachol (CARB) increased proliferation in both tumor cell lines in a concentration-dependent manner. In LM3 cells CARB promoted proliferation via M(3) receptor activation by inositol 1,4,5-triphosphate and nitric oxide (NO) production. CARB-induced LM2 cells proliferation needed both M(2) and M(1) receptor activation increasing prostaglandin E(2) liberation and arginase catabolism respectively. Our present results indicate that CARB stimulates LM2 and LM3-induced angiogenesis and tumor growth. This activation follows different patterns. In LM2 tumor, M(1) and M(2) receptors activation stimulates neovascularization by arginase II and cyclooxygenase-2 (COX-2)-derived products while M(1) and M(3) receptors mediate CARB-induced tumor growth by the same effector enzymes. In LM3 tumor, we observe that M(1) and M(2) receptors are involved in agonist-stimulated angiogenesis by COX and NOS1-derived products while tumor growth is stimulated by M(3) and M(2) receptors activation and COX-2-derived prostanoids. Taken together these data present, at least in part, a picture of the regulation that different mAChR subtypes activation exerts on angiogenesis and growth of two different murine mammary adenocarcinomas.

Different muscarinc receptors are involved in the proliferation of murine mammary adenocarcinoma cell lines.

We described that two different murine mammary adenocarcinoma cell lines, LM3 and LM2 constitutively expressed muscarinic acetylcholine receptors (mAchR). We here demonstrate, by competitive binding experiments with the tritiated muscarinic antagonist quinuclidinyl benzilate that M2 subtype predominates in both tumor cell lines. Concordantly immunoblotting assays indicate that mAchR exhibit the following order of expression: M2 > M4 > M3 > M1 >> M5 in both tumor cell lines. Activation of mAchR with carbachol (CARB) increased proliferation in both tumor cell lines in a concentration dependent manner. In LM3 cells CARB promoted proliferation via M3 receptor activation via inositol 1,4,5-triphosphate and nitric oxide production. CARB-induced LM2 cells proliferation needed both M2 and M1 receptor activation, promoting prostaglandin E2 liberation and arginase catabolism respectively, both of them involved in tumor cell growth.

Parasympathetic modulation of local acute inflammation in murine submandibular glands.

The parasympathetic nervous system controls submandibular glands (SMG) functions in physiological and pathological conditions via muscarinic acetylcholine receptors (mAchR). We had previously demonstrated that IFNgamma and carbachol stimulate amylase secretion in normal murine SMG by mAchR activation. While the cytokine action depended on nitric oxide synthase activation, the effect of the agonist was mediated by prostaglandin E2 (PGE2) production. Both IFNgamma and carbachol triggered IFNgamma secretion in SMG. We here show that during local acute inflammation (LAI) induced by intraglandular injection of bacterial endotoxin, lypopolisaccharide (LPS), amylase secretion is decreased in comparison to control glands. We also observed that the muscarinic agonist carbachol stimulates in a dose-dependent manner amylase activity by M2 and M3 mAchR activation. Moreover, cyclooxygenase-2 (COX-2) activation and subsequent PGE2 liberation, in a nitric oxide independent manner, seem to be involved in M3 and M2 receptor activation by carbachol. In contrast, the addition of exogenous IFNgamma or carbachol inhibits the cytokine liberation in LAI glands.