RESUMEN
AICAR (5-Aminoimidazole-4-carboxamide riboside or acadesine) is an AMP-activated protein kinase (AMPK) agonist, its activity in human gallbladder cancer cells was evaluated here. We show that AICAR provoked significant apoptosis in human gallbladder cancer cell lines (Mz-ChA-1, QBC939 and GBC-SD) and primary gallbladder cancer cells. AICAR-induced cytotoxicity in gallbladder cancer cells appears independent of AMPK activation. Inhibition of AMPK, via AMPKα shRNA knockdown or dominant negative mutation (T172A), failed to rescue GBC-SD cells from AICAR. Further, forced-activation of AMPK, by adding two other AMPK activators (A769662 and Compound 13), or expressing a constitutively-active mutant AMPKα (T172D), didn't induce GBC-SD cell death. Remarkably, AICAR treatment in gallbladder cancer cells induced endoplasmic reticulum (ER) stress activation, the latter was tested by caspase-12 activation, C/EBP homologous protein (CHOP) expression and IRE1/PERK phosphorylation. Contrarily, salubrinal (the ER stress inhibitor), z-ATAD-fmk (the caspase-12 inhibitor) or CHOP shRNAs significantly attenuated AICAR-induced gallbladder cancer cell apoptosis. Together, we conclude that AICAR-induced gallbladder cancer cell apoptosis requires ER stress activation, but is independent of AMPK.
Asunto(s)
Proteínas Quinasas Activadas por AMP/metabolismo , Aminoimidazol Carboxamida/análogos & derivados , Apoptosis/efectos de los fármacos , Estrés del Retículo Endoplásmico/efectos de los fármacos , Neoplasias de la Vesícula Biliar/tratamiento farmacológico , Neoplasias de la Vesícula Biliar/patología , Ribonucleótidos/metabolismo , Proteínas Quinasas Activadas por AMP/efectos de los fármacos , Aminoimidazol Carboxamida/metabolismo , Antineoplásicos/administración & dosificación , Línea Celular Tumoral , Activación Enzimática/efectos de los fármacos , Neoplasias de la Vesícula Biliar/enzimología , Humanos , Resultado del TratamientoRESUMEN
In the current study, we examined the potential effect of Ginsenoside Rg3 against gallbladder cancer cells, the underlying signaling mechanisms were also studied. We demonstrated that Rg3 exerted potent cytotoxic and pro-apoptotic activity against established and primary human gallbladder cancer cells. Yet it was safe to non-cancerous gallbladder epithelial cells. At the molecular level, we showed that Rg3 induced endoplasmic reticulum (ER) stress activation, the latter was evidenced by C/EBP homologous protein (CHOP) upregulation, inositol-requiring enzyme 1 (IRE1)/PKR-like endoplasmic reticulum kinase (PERK) phosphorylations, and caspase-12 activation in gallbladder cancer cells. Reversely, the ER stress inhibitor salubrinal, the caspase-12 inhibitor z-ATAD-fmk as well as CHOP shRNA knockdown significantly attenuated Rg3-induced cytotoxicity against gallbladder cancer cells. In vivo, we showed that Rg3 oral administration significantly inhibited GBC-SD gallbladder cancer xenograft growth in nude mice, its activity was, however, compromised with co-administration of the ER stress inhibitor salubrinal. Thus, we suggest that ER stress activation mediates Ginseng Rg3-induced anti-gallbladder cancer cell activity in vitro and in vivo.