Lectins are widely existed in marine bioresources, and some purified marine lectins were found toxic to cancer cells. In this report, genes encoding Dicentrarchus labrax fucose-binding lectin (DlFBL) and Strongylocentrotus purpuratus rhamnose-binding lectin (SpRBL) were inserted into an adenovirus vector to form Ad.FLAG-DlFBL and Ad.FLAG-SpRBL, which elicited significant in vitro suppressive effect on a variety of cancer cells. Anti-apoptosis factors Bcl-2 and XIAP were determined to be downregulated by Ad.FLAG-DlFBL and Ad.FLAG-SpRBL. Subcellular localization studies showed that DlFBL but not SpRBL widely distributed in membrane systems. Both DlFBL and SpRBL were shown associated with protein arginine methyltransferase 5 (PRMT5), and PRMT5-E2F-1 pathway was suggested to be responsible for the DlFBL and SpRBL induced apoptosis. Further investigations revealed that PRMT5 acted as a common binding target for various exogenous lectin and non-lectin proteins, suggesting a role of PRMT5 as a barrier for foreign gene invasion. The cellular response to exogenous lectins may provide insights into a novel way for cancer gene therapy.
Lectins exist widely in marine bioresources such as bacteria, algae, invertebrate animals and fishes. Some purified marine lectins have been found to elicit cytotoxicity to cancer cells. However, there are few reports describing the cytotoxic effect of marine lectins on cancer cells through virus-mediated gene delivery. We show here that a replication-deficient adenovirus-carrying gene encoding Haliotis discus discus sialic acid binding lectin (Ad.FLAG-HddSBL) suppressed cancer cell proliferation by inducing apoptosis, as compared to the control virus Ad.FLAG. A down-regulated level of anti-apoptosis factor Bcl-2 was suggested to be responsible for the apoptosis induced by Ad.FLAG-HddSBL infection. Further subcellular localization studies revealed that HddSBL distributed in cell membrane, ER, and the nucleus, but not in mitochondria and Golgi apparatus. In contrast, a previously reported mannose-binding lectin Pinellia pedatisecta agglutinin entered the nucleus as well, but did not distribute in inner membrane systems, suggesting differed intracellular sialylation and mannosylation, which may provide different targets for lectin binding. Further cancer-specific controlling of HddSBL expression and animal studies may help to provide insights into a novel way of anti-cancer marine lectin gene therapy. Lectins may provide a reservoir of anti-cancer genes.
Using multiple interactions, a simple self-assembly based on a Zn(ii) coordination compound and squaraine () demonstrated a selective turn-on fluorescence response to ATP in the near infrared (NIR) region. More importantly, the self-assembly has been successfully applied to ATP imaging in the mitochondria of the gastric cancer cell line SGC-7901 and monitoring of level fluctuation of ATP during the mitotic period.
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