The checkpoint 1 kinase inhibitor LY2603618 induces cell cycle arrest, DNA damage response and autophagy in cancer cells.

Chemotherapy- or radiotherapy-induced DNA damage activates the Chk1-dependent DNA damage response (DDR) and cell cycle checkpoints to facilitate cell survival. Numerous attempts have been made to identify specific Chk1 inhibitors to enhance the efficiency of chemotherapy or radiotherapy. In this study, we investigated the molecular mechanisms underlying the antitumor activity of LY2603618, a potent and selective small molecule inhibitor of Chk1 protein kinase, in human lung cancer cells. Treatment of cancer cells with LY2603618 caused cell cycle arrest in the G2/M phase. A marked induction of DDR, including the phosphorylation of ATM, Chk2, p53 and histone H2AX, was observed after LY2603618 treatment. LY2603618 inhibited Chk1 autophosphorylation (S296 Chk1) and increased DNA damage-mediated Chk1 phosphorylation (S345 Chk1). In addition, LY2603618-treated lung cancer cells transitioned from LC3-I to LC3-II, a hallmark of autophagy. Blocking autophagy with chloroquine (CQ) further enhanced LY2603618's inhibitory effect on cell viability/proliferation. LY2603618 also significantly increased p38 and c-Jun N-terminal kinase (JNK) phosphorylation. Pretreatment with the JNK inhibitor reduced cleavage of caspase-3 and PARP levels in LY2603618-treated cells. These results suggest the following: (i) the biological consequences of LY2603618 in lung cancer cells is associated with both inhibition of Chk1 phosphorylation on S296 and activation of the DNA damage response network; and (ii) the anticancer property of LY2603618 might be increased by inhibiting autophagy.

Ongoing spillover of Hantaan and Gou hantaviruses from rodents is associated with hemorrhagic fever with renal syndrome (HFRS) in China.

BACKGROUND: Longquan City, Zhejiang province, China, has been seriously affected by hemorrhagic fever with renal syndrome (HFRS) since the first cases were registered in 1974. To understand the epidemiology and emergence of HFRS in Longquan, which may be indicative of large parts of rural China, we studied long-term incidence patterns and performed a molecular epidemiological investigation of the causative hantaviruses in human and rodent populations. METHOD/PRINCIPAL FINDINGS: During 1974-2011, 1866 cases of HFRS were recorded in Longquan, including 20 deaths. In 2011, the incidence of HFRS remained high, with 19.61 cases/100,000 population, despite the onset of vaccination in 1997. During 1974-1998, HFRS cases in Longquan occurred mainly in winter, while in the past decade the peak of HFRS has shifted to the spring. Notably, the concurrent prevalence of rodent-borne hantaviruses in the region was also high. Phylogenetic analyses of viral sequences recovered from rodents in Longquan revealed the presence of novel genetic variants of Gou virus (GOUV) in Rattus sp. rats and Hantaan virus (HTNV) in the stripe field mice, respectively. Strikingly, viral sequences sampled from infected humans were very closely related to those from rodents. CONCLUSIONS/SIGNIFICANCE: HFRS represents an important public health problem in Longquan even after years of preventive measures. Our data suggest that continual spillover of the novel genetic variant of GOUV and the new genetic lineage of HTNV are responsible for the high prevalence of HFRS in humans. In addition, this is the first report of GOUV associated with human HFRS cases, and our data suggest that GOUV is now the major cause of HFRS in this region.