The role of NLRP3 inflammasome in 5-fluorouracil resistance of oral squamous cell carcinoma

5-Fluorouracil (5-FU) is a widely used drug for the therapy of cancer. However, the chemoresistance of tumor cells to 5-FU usually limits its clinical effectiveness. In this study, we explored the role of NLRP3 inflammasome in 5-FU resistance of oral squamous cell carcinoma (OSCC).

The mRNA and protein expression levels of NLRP3, Caspase1 and IL-1β in resected OSCC specimens or cell lines were measured respectively by quantitative real time-PCR (qRT-PCR) and western blot. NLRP3 and Ki-67 expression in paraffin-embedded OSCC tissues was determined by immunohistochemistry. The correlation between 5-FU treatment and the expression and activation of NLRP3 inflammasome was further examined by evaluating NLRP3 and IL-1β expression in OSCC cell lines without or with NLRP3 knocked down. Cell viabilities of OSCC cells were determined by the MTT assay. Apoptosis and intracellular reactive oxygen species (ROS) of OSCC cells induced by 5-FU were measured by the flow cytometer. The carcinogen-induced tongue squamous carcinoma mice model was established by continuous oral administration of 4-nitroquinoline 1-oxide in wild-type BALB/c, Nlrp3 ^−/− and Caspase1 ^−/− mice. Tumor incidence were observed and tumor area were evaluated.

In the clinical analysis, expression and activation of NLRP3 inflammasome was clearly increased in OSCC tissues of patients who received 5-FU-based chemotherapy. Multivariate Cox regression analysis revealed that this high expression was significantly correlated with tumor stage and differentiation, and was associated with poor prognosis. Moreover, 5-FU treatment increased expression and activation of NLRP3 inflammasome in OSCC cells in a cell culture system and xenograft mouse model. Silencing of NLRP3 expression significantly inhibited OSCC cell proliferation and enhanced 5-FU-induced apoptosis of OSCC cells. Further investigation showed that intracellular ROS induced by 5-FU promoted the expression and activation of NLRP3 inflammasome and increased the production of interleukin (IL)-1β, which then mediated the chemoresistance. With the carcinogen-induced OSCC model, we found less and later tumor incidence in Nlrp3 ^−/− and Caspase1 ^−/− mice than wild-type mice. And greater decrease of tumor area was observed in the gene deficient mice treated with 5-FU.

Our findings suggest that NLRP3 inflammasome promoted 5-FU resistance of OSCC both in vitro and in vivo, and targeting the ROS/NLRP3 inflammasome/IL-1β signaling pathway may help 5-FU-based adjuvant chemotherapy of OSCC.