[Abstract unavailable

It is well-established that cannabinoids exert palliative effects on some cancer-associated symptoms. In addition evidences obtained during the last fifteen years support that these compounds can reduce tumor growth in animal models of cancer. Cannabinoids have been shown to activate an ER-stress related pathway that leads to the stimulation of autophagy-mediated cancer cell death. In addition, cannabinoids inhibit tumor angiogenesis and decrease cancer cell migration. The mechanisms of resistance to cannabinoid anticancer action as well as the possible strategies to develop cannabinoid-based combinational therapies to fight cancer have also started to be explored. In this review we will summarize these observations (that have already helped to set the bases for the development of the first clinical studies to investigate the potential clinical benefit of using cannabinoids in anticancer therapies) and will discuss the possible future avenues of research in this area.

Disturbances in cellular ion gradients by excitotoxicity promote apoptosis through activation of the Bcl-2 family member Bim.

Autophagy is considered primarily a cell survival process, although it can also lead to cell death. However, the factors that dictate the shift between these 2 opposite outcomes remain largely unknown. In this work, we used Δ9-tetrahydrocannabinol (THC, the main active component of marijuana, a compound that triggers autophagy-mediated cancer cell death) and nutrient deprivation (an autophagic stimulus that triggers cytoprotective autophagy) to investigate the precise molecular mechanisms responsible for the activation of cytotoxic autophagy in cancer cells. By using a wide array of experimental approaches we show that THC (but not nutrient deprivation) increases the dihydroceramide:ceramide ratio in the endoplasmic reticulum of glioma cells, and this alteration is directed to autophagosomes and autolysosomes to promote lysosomal membrane permeabilization, cathepsin release and the subsequent activation of apoptotic cell death. These findings pave the way to clarify the regulatory mechanisms that determine the selective activation of autophagy-mediated cancer cell death.

Oxidative stress kills neurons by stimulating FOXO3, a transcription factor whose activity is inhibited by insulin-like growth factor I (IGF-I), a wide-spectrum neurotrophic signal. Because recent evidence has shown that oxidative stress blocks neuroprotection by IGF-I, we examined whether attenuation of IGF-I signaling is linked to neuronal death by oxidative stress, as both events may contribute to neurodegeneration. We observed that in neurons, activation of FOXO3 by a burst of oxidative stress elicited by 50 muM hydrogen peroxide (H(2)O(2)) recruited a two-pronged pathway. A first, rapid arm attenuated AKT inhibition of FOXO3 through p38 MAPK-mediated blockade of IGF-I stimulation of AKT. A second delayed arm involved activation of FOXO3 by Jun-kinase 2 (JNK2). Notably, blockade of IGF-I signaling through p38 MAPK was necessary for JNK2 to activate FOXO3, unveiling a competitive regulatory interplay between the two arms onto FOXO3 activity. Therefore, an abrupt rise in oxidative stress activates p38 MAPK to tilt the balance in a competitive AKT/JNK2 regulation of FOXO3 toward its activation, eventually leading to neuronal death. In view of previous observations linking attenuation of IGF-I signaling to other causes of neuronal death, these findings suggest that blockade of trophic input is a common step in neuronal death.

Whether insulin-like growth factor I (IGF-I) signaling in Alzheimer's disease (AD) is beneficial or detrimental remains controversial. We now show that a competitive regulation by IGF-I of the phosphatase calcineurin in reactive, but not in quiescent astrocytes drives Alzheimer's pathology. Calcineurin de-phosphorylates the transcription factor Foxo3 in response to tumor necrosis factor-α (TNFα), an inflammatory cytokine increased in AD, activating nuclear factor-κB (NFκB) inflammatory signaling in astrocytes. In turn, IGF-I inactivates and displaces Foxo3 from calcineurin in TNFα-stimulated astrocytes by recruiting the transcription factor peroxisome proliferator-activated receptor-γ, and NFκB signaling is inhibited. This antagonistic mechanism reversibly drives the course of the disease in AD mice, even at advanced stages. As hallmarks of this calcineurin/Foxo3/NFκB pathway are present in human AD brains, treatment with IGF-I may be beneficial by antagonizing it.

Tribbles pseudokinase-3 (TRIB3) has been proposed to act as an inhibitor of AKT although the precise molecular basis of this activity and whether the loss of TRIB3 contributes to cancer initiation and progression remain to be clarified. In this study, by using a wide array of in vitro and in vivo approaches, including a Trib3 knockout mouse, we demonstrate that TRIB3 has a tumorsuppressing role. We also find that the mechanism by which TRIB3 loss enhances tumorigenesis relies on the dysregulation of the phosphorylation of AKT by the mTORC2 complex, which leads to an enhanced phosphorylation of AKT on Ser473 and the subsequent hyperphosphorylation and inactivation of the transcription factor FOXO3. These observations support the notion that loss of TRIB3 is associated with a more aggressive phenotype in various types of tumors by enhancing the activity of the mTORC2/AKT/FOXO axis. Pseudokinases constitute a group of proteins that have a kinase-like domain that lacks at least one of the conserved catalytic residues. 1,2 Different studies have shown that some pseudokinases can exhibit low levels of kinase activity, while others have critical roles as activators of their specific targets. 1,2 Moreover, aberrant regulation of pseudokinases has been implicated in the etiology and progression of a variety of diseases, including cancer. 3 The Tribbles family of pseudokinases was first described in Drosophila as a negative regulator of cell division in early embryogenesis. [4][5][6][7] There are three mammalian Tribbles isoforms (Trib1, Trib2 and Trib3), homologs to the Drosophila tribbles proteins, and they all share a highly conserved central kinase-like domain, which lacks catalytic residues, and a 'tribbles specific' C-terminal domain, which has been proposed to participate in the binding to different Tribbles partners. 8 Tribbles pseudokinase-3 (TRIB3; also named TRB3, NIPK and SKIP3) has been proposed to interact with several proteins, including the transcription factors activating transcription factor 4 (ATF-4) and CHOP 9 as well as with several MAPKs. 10 TRIB3 has also been shown to interact and inhibit AKT, 11 which has been suggested to suppress insulin signaling. 11,12 In addition, administration of different anticancer agents promotes cancer cell death via TRIB3 upregulation and the subsequent inhibition of Akt. [13][14][15][16][17][18][19] However, the precise molecular basis of the regulation of Akt by TRIB3 and whether loss of this pseudokinase may contribute to cancer initiation and progression remains to be clarified.In this study, we investigated the effect of the genetic inactivation of TRIB3 in several cellular and animal models of cancer. Our findings indicate that genetic inhibition of TRIB3 enhances tumorigenesis and that this effect is due -at least primarily -to a selective inactivation of the transcription factor FOXO by the mammalian target of rapamycin complex 2 (mTORC2)/AKT axis. ResultsGenetic inhibition of TRIB3 facilitates oncogene transformation and enhances the tumorigenicity of cancer c...

Oxidative stress is a proposed mechanism in brain aging, making the study of its regulatory processes an important aspect of current neurobiological research. In this regard, the role of the aging regulator insulin-like growth factor I (IGF-I) in brain responses to oxidative stress remains elusive as both beneficial and detrimental actions have been ascribed to this growth factor. Because astrocytes protect neurons against oxidative injury, we explored whether IGF-I participates in astrocyte neuroprotection and found that blockade of the IGF-I receptor in astrocytes abrogated their rescuing effect on neurons. The protection mediated by IGF-I against oxidative stress (H 2O 2) in astrocytes is probably needed for these cells to provide adequate neuroprotection. Indeed, in astrocytes but not in neurons, IGF-I helps decrease the pro-oxidant protein thioredoxin-interacting protein 1 and normalizes the levels of reactive oxygen species. Furthermore, IGF-I cooperates with trophic signals produced by astrocytes in response to H 2O 2 such as stem cell factor (SCF) to protect neurons against oxidative insult. After stroke, a condition associated with brain aging where oxidative injury affects peri-infarcted regions, a simultaneous increase in SCF and IGF-I expression was found in the cortex, suggesting that a similar cooperative response takes place in vivo. Cell-specific modulation by IGF-I of brain responses to oxidative stress may contribute in clarifying the role of IGF-I in brain aging.