Cancer stem cells (CSCs) pose a serious obstacle to cancer therapy as they can be responsible for poor prognosis and tumour relapse. In this study, we have investigated inhibitory activity of the ginger-derived compound 6-shogaol against breast cancer cells both in monolayer and in cancer-stem cell-like spheroid culture. The spheroids were generated from adherent breast cancer cells. 6-shogaol was effective in killing both breast cancer monolayer cells and spheroids at doses that were not toxic to noncancerous cells. The percentages of CD44+CD24-/low cells and the secondary sphere content were reduced drastically upon treatment with 6-shogaol confirming its action on CSCs. Treatment with 6-shogaol caused cytoplasmic vacuole formation and cleavage of microtubule associated protein Light Chain3 (LC3) in both monolayer and spheroid culture indicating that it induced autophagy. Kinetic analysis of the LC3 expression and a combination treatment with chloroquine revealed that the autophagic flux instigated cell death in 6-shogaol treated breast cancer cells in contrast to the autophagy inhibitor chloroquine. Furthermore, 6-shogaol-induced cell death got suppressed in the presence of chloroquine and a very low level of apoptosis was exhibited even after prolonged treatment of the compound, suggesting that autophagy is the major mode of cell death induced by 6-shogaol in breast cancer cells. 6-shogaol reduced the expression levels of Cleaved Notch1 and its target proteins Hes1 and Cyclin D1 in spheroids, and the reduction was further pronounced in the presence of a γ-secretase inhibitor. Secondary sphere formation in the presence of the inhibitor was also further reduced by 6-shogaol. Together, these results indicate that the inhibitory action of 6-shogaol on spheroid growth and sustainability is conferred through γ-secretase mediated down-regulation of Notch signaling. The efficacy of 6-shogaol in monolayer and cancer stem cell-like spheroids raise hope for its therapeutic benefit in breast cancer treatment.
Several sulfonamides have antitumor activities and are currently undergoing clinical evaluation for the treatment of cancer. In this study, we have elucidated the antiproliferative mechanism of action of five indole sulfonamides. The indole sulfonamides inhibited the polymerization of microtubule protein into microtubules in vitro. In addition, three representative derivatives, ER-68378 (2), ER-68384 (4) and ER-68394 (5), suppressed the dynamic instability behavior at the plus ends of individual steady-state microtubules in vitro. The analogues inhibited HeLa cell proliferation with half-maximal inhibitory concentrations in the range of 6-17 microM. The compounds blocked cell cycle progression at mitosis. At their lowest effective antimitotic concentrations, they depolymerized the spindle microtubules and disorganized the chromosomes but did not affect the microtubules in interphase cells. However, at relatively high concentrations, interphase microtubules were also depolymerized by these sulfonamides. Furthermore, all five compounds were found to induce apoptosis in the cells in association with the phosphorylation of bcl-2. The results suggest that the indole sulfonamides inhibit cell proliferation at mitosis by perturbing the assembly dynamics of spindle microtubules and that they can kill cancer cells by inducing apoptosis through the bcl-2-dependent pathway.
The hedgehog (Hh) pathway has been shown to be activated in numerous malignancies as well as in cancer stem cells. We sought to determine the importance of the Hh pathway in regulating growth and development of ovarian cancer spheroid-forming cells (SFCs). Ovarian cancer cell lines (ES2, TOV112D, OV90, and SKOV3) as well as a normal ovarian epithelial cell line (IOSE80) were grown in non-adherent growth conditions to form SFCs. Western blot analysis was used to determine the expression of Hh pathway proteins SMOH, PTCH, GLI1. SFCs were treated with Hh agonists (SHH and IHH) as well as an Hh inhibitor (cyclopamine) to determine changes in spheroid growth and survival. All ovarian cancer cell lines readily formed spheroids in non-adherent growth conditions while IOSE80 failed to form SFCs. Compared to IOSE80, ovarian cancer cell lines demonstrated significant activation of the Hh pathway as defined by increased expression of intranuclear GLI1. Both Hh agonists demonstrated significant increases in spheroid volume of at least 42-fold for SHH-treated cells and 46-fold for IHH-treated cells. With regard to survival, SFCs were 30-50% more resistant to cyclopamine than their corresponding monolayer cells. Despite this resistance, inhibition of the Hh pathway with cyclopamine prevented further growth of SFCs with a 10-, 5-, and 4-fold restriction in growth for ES2, SKOV3, and TOV112D, respectively. The hedgehog pathway appears to be important in regulating growth of ovarian cancer spheroid-forming cells. The activation and inhibition of this pathway demonstrates significant correlation to enhanced growth and growth restriction, respectively.
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