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The family of 14-3-3 proteins has emerged as critical regulators of diverse cellular responses under both physiological and pathological conditions. Here, we report an important role of 14-3-3 in tumorigenesis through a mechanism that involves anoikis resistance. 114-3-3 zeta is up-regulated in a number of cancer types, including lung cancer. Through an RNAi approach using human lung adenocarcinoma-derived A549 cells as a model system, we have found that knockdown of a single zeta isoform of 14-3-3 is sufficient to restore the sensitivity of cancer cells to anoikis and impair their anchorage-independent growth. Enhanced anoikis appears to be mediated in part by upregulated BH3-only proteins, Bad and Bim, coupled with decreased Mcl-1, resulting in the subsequent activation of Bax. This study suggests a model in which anchorage-independent growth of lung cancer cells requires the presence of 14-3-3 zeta. This work not only reveals a critical role of 14-3-3 zeta in anoikis suppression in lung cancer cells, but also identifies and validates 114-3-3 zeta as a potential molecular target for anticancer therapeutic development.

The NF-κB pathways have been implicated in tumorigenesis in several lymphoid malignancies, including non-Hodgkin's and Hodgkin's lymphomas. However, the antiapoptotic functions and the mechanism responsible for signaling through each NF-κB pathway remain to be elucidated. In the current study, lymphoma cell lines with constitutively active NF-κB were found to be resistant to inducers of the extrinsic and intrinsic apoptosis pathways. Resistance to cell death resulted from blocks early and late in the apoptosis cascade. Several NF-κB target genes were overexpressed in these cell lines, including Bcl-xL, Fas-associated death domain-like IL-1β-converting enzyme inhibitor protein, cellular inhibitor of apoptosis, and X inhibitor of apoptosis. Inhibition of the canonical or noncanonical NF-κB pathways with small interfering RNAs or adenovirus expressing a stable form of inhibitor of NF-κB (IκB) enhanced sensitivity to apoptosis inducers and resulted in lower levels of Bcl-xL or Fas-associated death domain-like IL-1β-converting enzyme inhibitor protein, cellular inhibitor of apoptosis, and X inhibitor of apoptosis. These findings demonstrate an important role of both NF-κB pathways in mediating resistance to apoptosis and distinctive antiapoptotic downstream target gene profiles responsible for this effect.