• BMB Reports
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• 제54권11호
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• pp.563-568
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• 2021

Cancer cells predominantly generate energy via glycolysis, even in the presence of oxygen, to support abnormal cell proliferation. Suppression of PDHA1 by PDK1 prevents the conversion of cytoplasmic pyruvate into Acetyl-CoA. Several PDK inhibitors have been identified, but their clinical applications have not been successful for unclear reasons. In this study, endogenous PDHA1 in A549 cells was silenced by the CRISPR/Cas9 system, and PDHA1^WT and PDHA1^3SD were transduced. Since PDHA1^3SD cannot be phosphorylated by PDKs, it was used to evaluate the specific activity of PDK inhibitors. This study highlights that PDHA1^WT and PDHA1^3SD A549 cells can be used as a cell-based PDK inhibitor-distinction system to examine the relationship between PDH activity and cell death by established PDK inhibitors. Leelamine, huzhangoside A and otobaphenol induced PDH activity-dependent apoptosis, whereas AZD7545, VER-246608 and DCA effectively enhanced PDHA1 activity but little toxic to cancer cells. Furthermore, the activity of phosphomimetic PDHA1 revealed the complexity of its regulation, which requires further in-depth investigation.

• Molecules and Cells
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• 제45권7호
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• pp.454-464
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• 2022

DJ-1 is one of the causative genes of early-onset familial Parkinson's disease (PD). As a result, DJ-1 influences the pathogenesis of sporadic PD. DJ-1 has various physiological functions that converge to control the levels of intracellular reactive oxygen species (ROS). Based on genetic analyses that sought to investigate novel antioxidant DJ-1 downstream genes, pyruvate dehydrogenase (PDH) kinase (PDK) was demonstrated to increase survival rates and decrease dopaminergic (DA) neuron loss in DJ-1 mutant flies under oxidative stress. PDK phosphorylates and inhibits the PDH complex (PDC), subsequently downregulating glucose metabolism in the mitochondria, which is a major source of intracellular ROS. A loss-of-function mutation in PDK was not found to have a significant effect on fly development and reproduction, but severely ameliorated oxidative stress resistance. Thus, PDK plays a critical role in the protection against oxidative stress. Loss of PDH phosphatase (PDP), which dephosphorylates and activates PDH, was also shown to protect DJ-1 mutants from oxidative stress, ultimately supporting our findings. Further genetic analyses suggested that DJ-1 controls PDK expression through hypoxia-inducible factor 1 (HIF-1), a transcriptional regulator of the adaptive response to hypoxia and oxidative stress. Furthermore, CPI-613, an inhibitor of PDH, protected DJ-1 null flies from oxidative stress, suggesting that the genetic and pharmacological inhibition of PDH may be a novel treatment strategy for PD associated with DJ-1 dysfunction.

• 한국응용과학기술학회지
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• 제35권4호
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• pp.1386-1392
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• 2018

시스플라틴은 지난 몇 십년간 가장 많이 사용되고 있는 항암제 중 하나이다. 2가의 시스플라틴의 가장 큰 단점은 암세포 뿐만 아니라 정상세포도 공격하여 부작용을 나타낸다. 본 연구에서는 이러한 단점을 줄이기 위해 목표로 한 타겟을 공격하여 빠른 시간 내에 암세포를 죽일 수 있는 4가의 백금화합물 3과 4를 합성하였다. 합성된 $Pt(IV)-Bu_2$ 3 and $Pt(IV)-Val_2$ 4는 NMR과 질량분석기를 통하여 구조를 확인하였다. 합성된 Pt(IV) 화합물 3과 4는 위암세포주인 MCF-7을 대상으로 한 MTT assay를 통해 항암효과를 조사하였다. 그 결과 시스플라틴은 39%, $Pt(IV)-Bu_2$ 3와 $Pt(IV)-Val_2$ 4는 $50{\mu}M$ 농도에서 각각 54%와 84%의 세포사멸을 보였다.

• 생명과학회지
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• 제28권12호
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• pp.1469-1476
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• 2018

Warburg 효과의 발생은 고형암에서 화학적 항암제의 내성을 발생시킨다. 따라서 호기성 해당과정과 같은 에너지 대사과정은 암 치료의 중요한 표적으로 알려져 있다. Pyruvate dehydrogenase kinase (PDK) 활성 억제물질로 알려진 dichloroacetate (DCA)는 많은 암세포에서 포도당의 호기성 해당과정을 산화적인산화 과정으로 전환시킬 수 있음이 보고되었다. 이 연구는 치료가 매우 어렵다고 알려진 인간 역분화 갑상선 암세포주인 8505C의 성장에 미치는 DCA효과를 조사하였다. DCA는 정상 갑상선 세포주의 성장에는 영향을 주지 않은 반면 8505C 세포주의 성장을 특이적으로 저해하였다. DCA의 처리에 의해 8505C 세포주는 $HIF1{\alpha}$, PDK1, Bcl-2와 같은 항-세포자살 관련 단백질들의 발현이 감소하고, Bax와 p21과 같은 세포자살 유도 단백질과 세포주기 억제 단백질의 증가로 인하여 세포주기 정지와 세포자살 유도에 의해 성장이 억제되었다. 이런 세포의 변화는 DCA 처리에 의한 활성산소족의 생산이 증가하고, 포도당 대사가 호기성 해당과정에서 산화적인산화 과정으로 전환되었기 때문이란 것을 확인하였다. 흥미롭게도, DCA는 포도당 대사과정의 변화뿐만 아니라 sodium/iodine symporter (NIS)의 발현양도 증가시킨다는 것을 확인하였다. 이 연구의 결과로 PDK 활성 저해제는 치료하기 힘든 역분화 갑상선 암 치료제로 이용할 수 있고, 또한 역분화 갑상선 암에 대한 방사능 치료의 효능을 높일 수 있을 것으로 기대된다.

• Biomolecules & Therapeutics
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• 제29권5호
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• pp.506-518
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• 2021

The imprinted tumour suppressor NOEY2 is downregulated in various cancer types, including ovarian cancers. Recent data suggest that NOEY2 plays an essential role in regulating the cell cycle, angiogenesis and autophagy in tumorigenesis. However, its detailed molecular function and mechanisms in ovarian tumours remain unclear. In this report, we initially demonstrated the inhibitory effect of NOEY2 on tumour growth by utilising a xenograft tumour model. NOEY2 attenuated the cell growth approximately fourfold and significantly reduced tumour vascularity. NOEY2 inhibited the phosphorylation of the signalling components downstream of phosphatidylinositol-3'-kinase (PI3K), including phosphoinositide-dependent protein kinase 1 (PDK-1), tuberous sclerosis complex 2 (TSC-2) and p70 ribosomal protein S6 kinase (p70S6K), during ovarian tumour progression via direct binding to vascular endothelial growth factor receptor-2 (VEGFR-2). Particularly, the N-terminal domain of NOEY2 (NOEY2-N) had a potent anti-angiogenic activity and dramatically downregulated VEGF and hypoxia-inducible factor-1α (HIF-1α), key regulators of angiogenesis. Since no X-ray or nuclear magnetic resonance structures is available for NOEY2, we constructed the three-dimensional structure of this protein via molecular modelling methods, such as homology modelling and molecular dynamic simulations. Thereby, Lys15 and Arg16 appeared as key residues in the N-terminal domain. We also found that NOEY2-N acts as a potent inhibitor of tumorigenesis and angiogenesis. These findings provide convincing evidence that NOEY2-N regulates endothelial cell function and angiogenesis by interrupting the VEGFR-2/PDK-1/GSK-3β signal transduction and thus strongly suggest that NOEY2-N might serve as a novel anti-tumour and anti-angiogenic agent against many diseases, including ovarian cancer.

• BMB Reports
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• 제46권1호
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• pp.47-52
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• 2013

Intestinal epithelial cell (IEC) apoptosis induced by hypoxia compromise intestinal epithelium barrier function. Both Akt and Hsp90 have cytoprotective function. However, the specific role of Akt and $Hsp90{\beta}$ in IEC apoptosis induced by hypoxia has not been explored. We confirmed that hypoxia-induced apoptosis was reduced by $Hsp90{\beta}$ overexpression but enhanced by decreasing $Hsp90{\beta}$ expression. $Hsp90{\beta}$ overexpression enhanced BAD phosphorylation and thus reduced mitochondrial release of cytochrome C. Reducing $Hsp90{\beta}$ expression had opposite effects. The protective effect of $Hsp90{\beta}$ against apoptosis was negated by LY294002, an Akt inhibitor. Further study showed that Akt phosphorylation was enhanced by $Hsp90{\beta}$, which was not due to the activation of upstream PI3K and PDK1 but because of stabilization of pAkt via direct interaction between $Hsp90{\beta}$ and pAkt. These results demonstrate that $Hsp90{\beta}$ may play a significant role in protecting IECs from hypoxia-induced apoptosis via stabilizing pAkt to phosphorylate BAD and reduce cytochrome C release.

• BMB Reports
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• 제45권10호
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• pp.583-588
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• 2012

Leukotactin(Lkn)-1 is a CC chemokine and is upregulated in macrophages in response to Mycobacterium tuberculosis (MTB) infection. We investigated whether mitogen-activated protein kinases (MAPKs) are involved in MTB-induced expression of Lkn-1. The up-regulation of Lkn-1 by infection with MTB was inhibited in cells treated with inhibitors specific for JNK (SP600125) or p38 MAPK (SB202190). Since the up-regulation of Lkn-1 by MTB has been reported to be mediated by the PI3-K/PDK1/Akt signaling, we examined whether JNK and/or p38 MAPK are also involved in this signal pathway. MTB-induced Akt phosphorylation was blocked by treatment with JNK- or p38 MAPK-specific inhibitors implying that p38 and JNK are upstream of Akt. In addition, treatment with the PI3-K-specific inhibitor inhibited MTB-stimulated activation of JNK or p38 MAPK implying that PI3-K is upstream of JNK and p38 MAPK. These results collectively suggest that JNK and p38 MAPK are involved in the signal pathway responsible for MTB-induced up-regulation of Lkn-1.