Blocking autophagy enhances the apoptotic effect of 18β-glycyrrhetinic acid on human sarcoma cells via endoplasmic reticulum stress and JNK activation.

ABSTRACT: Sarcoma, a rare form of cancer, is unlike the much more common carcinomas as it occurs in a distinct type of tissue. The potent antitumor effects of 18β-glycyrrhetinic acid (GA), a novel naturally derived agent, have been demonstrated in various cancers. However, the effect of GA on human sarcoma, and the underlying mechanisms, remain to be elucidated. In the current study, we show that GA inhibits sarcoma cell proliferation by inducing G0/G1-phase arrest. Exposure to GA resulted in the activation of caspase-3, -8, and -9, indicating that GA induced apoptosis through both extrinsic and intrinsic pathways. In addition, the autophagy pathway, characterized by the conversion of LC3-I to LC3- II, was activated, resulting in increased Beclin-1 protein levels, decreased p62 expression, and stimu

SUBMITTER: Shen S 

PROVIDER: S-EPMC5636985 | biostudies-literature | 2017 Sep

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature