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Homoharringtonine (HHT) is an ester of cephalotaxine (CET), both of which derive from the Chinese coniferous tree Cephalotaxus hainanensis. HHT inhibited tumor cell growth at molar ranges comparable to established cytostatic drugs, whereas CET was 3–4 orders of magnitude less active. Inhibition concentration 50% (IC50) values of CET and HHT were significantly correlated to doxorubicin, vincristine, methotrexate, cisplatin, or camptothecin in 55 cell lines of the Developmental Therapeutics Program of the National Cancer Institute (NCI, Bethesda, Md., USA). We tested both drugs for resistance of cell lines which selectively overexpress the multidrug resistance (MDR)-conferring genes P-glycoprotein/MDR1 (CEM/ADR5000), MDR-related protein 1 MRP1 (HL60/AR), and breast cancer resistance protein BCRP (MDA-MB-231-BCRP). A threefold and ninefold resistance to HHT and CET, respectively, was found in CEM/ADR5000 cells, while the other MDR cell lines did not show cross-resistance compared to their drug-sensitive counterparts. As the tumor suppressor p53 is another important factor of chemoresistance, we also analyzed the possibility that p53 affects the response of tumor cells to CET and HHT. Comparing the p53 mutational status of the 55 NCI cell lines (http://dtp.nci.nih.gov) with the IC50 values showed a significant correlation. Thus, CET and HHT were more active in cell lines without p53 mutation. We correlated the IC50 values of CET and HHT with the cell doubling times of the 55 NCI cell lines as proliferation parameter and observed that rapidly growing cells were more susceptible than slowly growing cell lines. We conducted a search mining the NCI's database for the mRNA expression of 465 genes in 55 cell lines and correlated the data with the IC50 values for CET and HHT. Of these genes 61 (=13%) correlated with the IC50 values for CET and 122 (=26%) with the IC50 values for HHT indicating the multifactorial mode of action of these drugs in cancer cells. We have chosen one example from these genes to test a causative role for drug response. U-87MG.ΔEGFR cells transfected with an epidermal growth factor receptor (EGFR) gene truncated in its extracellular domain through a deletion of exons 2–7 (ΔEGFR) were 14-fold more resistant to HHT than control cells transfected with mock expression vector or non-transfected cells. The present investigation presents a starting point to dissect the genes and molecular pathways involved in the tumor cells' response to CET and HHT in greater detail. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Background: Human cancer cell lines grown in the presence of the cytotoxic agent mitoxantrone frequently develop resistance associated with a reduction in intracellular drug accumulation without increased expression of the known drug resistance transporters P-glycoprotein and multidrug resistance protein (also known as multidrug resistance-associated protein). Breast cancer resistance protein (BCRP) is a recently described adenosine triphosphate-binding cassette transporter associated with resistance to mitoxantrone and anthracyclines. This study was undertaken to test the prevalence of BCRP overexpression in cell lines selected for growth in the presence of mitoxantrone.Methods: Total cellular RNA or poly A+ RNA and genomic DNA were isolated from parental and drug-selected cell lines. Expression of BCRP messenger RNA (mRNA) and amplification of the BCRP gene were analyzed by northern and Southern blot hybridization, respectively.Results: A variety of drug-resistant human cancer cell lines derived by selection with mitoxantrone markedly overexpressed BCRP mRNA; these cell lines included sublines of human breast carcinoma (MCF-7), colon carcinoma (S1 and HT29), gastric carcinoma (EPG85-257), fibrosarcoma (EPF86-079), and myeloma (8226) origins. Analysis of genomic DNA from BCRP-overexpressing MCF-7/MX cells demonstrated that the BCRP gene was also amplified in these cells.Conclusions: Overexpression of BCRP mRNA is frequently observed in multidrug-resistant cell lines selected with mitoxantrone, suggesting that BCRP is likely to be a major cellular defense mechanism elicited in response to exposure to this drug. It is likely that BCRP is the putative "mitoxantrone transporter" hypothesized to be present in these cell lines. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Simple Summary: In the present study, we sought to determine whether a commonly used oral drug to treat adult-onset diabetes, metformin, which has a longstanding clinical history and known safety and tolerability profile, can improve the anti-cancer effects of two well-established oral agents currently in use to treat advanced prostate cancer, abiraterone and enzalutamide. We used androgen-sensitive cell culture models of human prostate cancer to test our hypothesis. We found that metformin and the oral anti-prostate cancer agents together are more effective in inhibiting prostate cancer cell growth and inducing prostate cancer cell death than when used alone. We identified new pathways by which the enhanced anti-cancer effects occur with the combination treatments. The present work suggests that incorporating metformin with abiraterone or enzalutamide may improve treatment outcomes in hormone sensitive prostate cancer. We explored whether the anti-prostate cancer (PC) activity of the androgen receptor-axis-targeted agents (ARATs) abiraterone and enzalutamide is enhanced by metformin. Using complementary biological and molecular approaches, we determined the associated underlying mechanisms in pre-clinical androgen-sensitive PC models. ARATs increased androgren receptors (ARs) in LNCaP and AR/ARv7 (AR variant) in VCaP cells, inhibited cell proliferation in both, and induced poly(ADP-ribose) polymerase-1 (PARP-1) cleavage and death in VCaP but not LNCaP cells. Metformin decreased AR and ARv7 expression and induced cleaved PARP-1-associated death in both cell lines. Metformin with abiraterone or enzalutamide decreased AR and ARv7 expression showed greater inhibition of cell proliferation and greater induction of cell death than single agent treatments. Combination treatments led to increased cleaved PARP-1 and enhanced PARP-1 activity manifested by increases in poly(ADP-ribose) (PAR) and nuclear accumulation of apoptosis inducing factor (AIF). Enhanced annexin V staining occurred in LNCaP cells only with metformin/ARAT combinations, but no caspase 3 recruitment occurred in either cell line. Finally, metformin and metformin/ARAT combinations increased lysosomal permeability resulting in cathepsin G-mediated PARP-1 cleavage and cell death. In conclusion, metformin enhances the efficacy of abiraterone and enzalutamide via two PARP-1-dependent, caspase 3-independent pathways, providing a rationale to evaluate these combinations in castration-sensitive PC. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The association of transporter proteins and cancer drug resistance has been known for approximately 25 years, with recent discoveries pointing to an ever-increasing number of ATP binding cassette (ABC) transporter proteins involved with the response of cancer cells to pharmacotherapy. As reported in this issue of Cancer Cell, Szakács et al. couple quantitative, real-time PCR assays for all 48 human ABC transporters with chemosensitivity information mined from the NCI-60 cancer cell line database. Predictions of transporter involvement in drug effect were validated in selected cases, and furthermore produced novel leads relating ABC transporter expression and chemoresistance or chemosensitivity. [Copyright &y& Elsevier]

In this study, we have evaluated the cytotoxic effect of combining two HDAC inhibitors, SAHA and TSA, with TRAIL in human multiple myeloma cell lines. Low doses of SAHA or TSA enhanced the cytotoxic and apoptotic effects of TRAIL and upregulated the surface expression of TRAIL death receptors (DR4 and/or DR5). SAHA and TSA induced G1 phase cell cycle growth arrest by upregulating p21WAF1 and p27Kip1 expression and by inhibiting E2F transcriptional activity. The enhanced TRAIL effect after pretreatment with HDAC inhibitors was consistent with the upregulation of the proapoptotic Bcl-2 family members (Bim, Bak, Bax, Noxa, and PUMA), the downregulation of the antiapoptotic members of the Bcl-2 family (Bcl-2 and Bcl-XL), and IAPs. SAHA and TSA dissipated the mitochondrial membrane potential and enhanced the release of Omi/HtrA2 and AIF from the mitochondria to the cytosol. The cytotoxic effect of both SAHA and TSA was caspase- and calpain-independent. Inhibition of NFκB activation by the proteasome inhibitor, MG132, enhanced the apoptotic effect of TSA. Our study demonstrated the enhancing effects of HDAC inhibitors on apoptosis when combined with TRAIL and, for the first time, emphasized the role of AIF in mediating the cytotoxic effects of HDAC inhibitors. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]