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Cellular Oncology
Published in: Cellular Oncology 6/2015

01-12-2015 | Original Paper

Role of JNK and NF-κB in mediating the effect of combretastatin A-4 and brimamin on endothelial and carcinoma cells

Authors: Katharina Mahal, Aamir Ahmad, Seema Sethi, Marcus Resch, Ralf Ficner, Fazlul H. Sarkar, Rainer Schobert, Bernhard Biersack

Published in: Cellular Oncology | Issue 6/2015

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Abstract

Purpose

The 4,5-diarylimidazole brimamin is an analog of the natural vascular-disrupting agent combretastatin A-4 (CA-4) with improved water solubility, tolerance by animals and efficacy in multidrug-resistant tumors. Here, we aimed at identifying the major mechanisms underlying the in vitro and in vivo actions of brimamin on endothelial and carcinoma cells, including vascularization.

Methods

The contribution of specific signaling kinases to the effects of brimamin on cytoskeleton organization and the viability and differentiation of endothelial cells was assessed by MTT and tube formation assays in the presence or absence of specific kinase inhibitors. Changes in DNA affinity and expression of NF-κB in endothelial and carcinoma-derived cells and their solid tumors (xenografts) treated with brimamin were ascertained by electrophoretic mobility shift assays and Western blotting. The anti-vascular effect of brimamin in solid tumors was verified by CD31 immunostaining.

Results

We found that brimamin can inhibit tubulin polymerization and cause a reorganization of F-actin in Ea.hy926 endothelial cells. Its inhibitory effect on tube formation was found to depend on functional Rho kinase and JNK. JNK inhibition was found to suppress the induction of endothelial cell apoptosis by brimamin. In CA-4-refractory human BxPC-3 pancreas carcinoma-derived and triple-negative MDA-MB-231 breast carcinoma-derived cells brimamin was found to inhibit growth and to induce apoptosis at low nanomolar concentrations by blocking NF-κB activation in a dose-dependent manner. Brimamin was also found to reduce the in vivo growth rate and vascularization of MDA-MB-231 xenografts in mice. Residual tumor cells of these treated xenografts showed a relatively low expression of the p65 subunit of NF-κB.

Conclusions

Our data indicate that cellular JNK and Rho kinase activities are crucial for the cytotoxic and cytoskeleton reorganizing effects of brimamin on endothelial cells. In addition, we found that in resistant carcinoma cells and xenografts brimamin can induce down-regulation of anti-apoptotic NF-κB expression and signaling. Its chemical properties and efficacy against clinically relevant cancer entities make brimamin a promising candidate vascular-disrupting agent.
Appendix
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Metadata
Title
Role of JNK and NF-κB in mediating the effect of combretastatin A-4 and brimamin on endothelial and carcinoma cells
Authors
Katharina Mahal
Aamir Ahmad
Seema Sethi
Marcus Resch
Ralf Ficner
Fazlul H. Sarkar
Rainer Schobert
Bernhard Biersack
Publication date
01-12-2015
Publisher
Springer Netherlands
Published in
Cellular Oncology / Issue 6/2015
Print ISSN: 2211-3428
Electronic ISSN: 2211-3436
DOI
https://doi.org/10.1007/s13402-015-0243-7

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