Aging Additively Influences Insulin- and Insulin-Like Growth Factor-1-Mediated Endothelial Dysfunction and Antioxidant Deficiency in Spontaneously Hypertensive Rats.

This study aimed to investigate the aging-related endothelial dysfunction mediated by insulin and insulin-like growth factor-1 (IGF-1) and antioxidant deficiency in hypertension. Male spontaneously hypertensive rats (SHRs) and age-matched normotensive Wistar-Kyoto rats (WKYs) were randomly divided into 24-week-old (younger) and 48-week-old (older) groups, respectively. The endothelial function was evaluated by the insulin- and IGF-1-mediated vasorelaxation of aortic rings via the organ bath system. Serum levels of nitric oxide (NO), malondialdehyde (MDA), catalase, and total antioxidant capacity (TAC) were examined. The insulin- and IGF-1-mediated vasorelaxation was significantly impaired in both 24- and 48-week-old SHRs compared with age-matched WKYs and was significantly worse in the 48-week-old SHR than the 24-week-old SHR. After pretreatments of phosphoinositide 3-kinase (PI3K) or NO synthase (NOS) inhibitors, the insulin- and IGF-1-mediated vasorelaxation became similar among four groups. The serum level of MDA was significantly increased, while the NO, catalase, and TAC were significantly reduced in the 48-week-old SHR compared with the 24-week-old SHR. This study demonstrated that the process of aging additively affected insulin- and IGF-1-mediated endothelial dysfunction in SHRs, which could be partly attributed to the reduced NO production and antioxidant deficiency.

AC-93253 iodide, a novel Src inhibitor, suppresses NSCLC progression by modulating multiple Src-related signaling pathways.

BACKGROUND: The tyrosine kinase Src is involved in the progression of many cancers. Moreover, inhibiting Src activity has been shown to obstruct several signaling pathways regulated by the EGFR. Thus, Src is a valuable target molecule in drug development. The purpose of this study was to identify compounds that directly or indirectly modulate Src to suppress lung cancer cell growth and motility and to investigate the molecular mechanisms underlying the effects of these compounds. METHODS: Human non-small cell lung cancer (NSCLC) cell lines (PC9, PC9/gef, A549, and H1975) with different EGFR statuses were tested by cytotoxicity and proliferation assays after AC-93253 iodide treatment. Src and Src-related protein expression in AC-93253 iodide-treated PC9, PC9/gef, and A549 cells were assessed by western blotting. The effects of AC-93253 iodide on cancer cell colony formation, invasion, and migration were assessed in PC9 and PC9/gef cells. The synergistic effects of gefitinib and AC-93253 iodide were evaluated by combination index (CI)-isobologram analysis in gefitinib-resistant cell lines. The efficacy of AC-93253 iodide in vivo was determined using nude mice treated with either the compound or the vehicle. RESULTS: Among the compounds, AC-93253 iodide exhibited the most potent dose-independent inhibitory effects on the activity of Src as well as on that of the Src-related proteins EGFR, STAT3, and FAK. Furthermore, AC-93253 iodide significantly suppressed cancer cell proliferation, colony formation, invasion, and migration in vitro and tumor growth in vivo. AC-93253 iodide sensitized tumor cells to gefitinib treatment regardless of whether the cells were gefitinib-sensitive (PC9) or resistant (H1975 and PC9/gef), indicating that it may exert synergistic effects when used in combination with established therapeutic agents. Our findings also suggested that the inhibitory effects of AC-93253 iodide on lung cancer progression may be attributable to its ability to modulate multiple proteins, including Src, PI3K, JNK, Paxillin, p130cas, MEK, ERK, and EGFR. CONCLUSIONS: Our data suggest that AC-93253 iodide inhibits NSCLC cell growth and motility by regulating multiple Src-related pathways. Our findings may facilitate the development of therapeutic strategies and anti-tumor drugs that may be useful for treating lung cancer in the future.

Rhodomycin A, a novel Src-targeted compound, can suppress lung cancer cell progression via modulating Src-related pathways.

Src activation is involved in cancer progression and the interplay with EGFR. Inhibition of Src activity also represses the signalling pathways regulated by EGFR. Therefore, Src has been considered a target molecule for drug development. This study aimed to identify the compounds that target Src to suppress lung cancer tumourigenesis and metastasis and investigate their underlying molecular mechanisms. Using a molecular docking approach and the National Cancer Institute (NCI) compound dataset, eight candidate compounds were selected, and we evaluated their efficacy. Among them, rhodomycin A was the most efficient at reducing the activity and expression of Src in a dose-dependent manner, which was also the case for Src-associated proteins, including EGFR, STAT3, and FAK. Furthermore, rhodomycin A significantly suppressed cancer cell proliferation, migration, invasion, and clonogenicity in vitro and tumour growth in vivo. In addition, rhodomycin A rendered gefitinib-resistant lung adenocarcinoma cells more sensitive to gefitinib treatment, implying a synergistic effect of the combination therapy. Our data also reveal that the inhibitory effect of rhodomycin A on lung cancer progression may act through suppressing the Src-related multiple signalling pathways, including PI3K, JNK, Paxillin, and p130cas. These findings will assist the development of anti-tumour drugs to treat lung cancer.