Punicalagin promotes autophagic degradation of human papillomavirus E6 and E7 proteins in cervical cancer through the ROS-JNK-BCL2 pathway.

ABSTRACT: Punicalagin, which is derived from pomegranate peel, is reported to exert growth-inhibitory effects against various cancers. However, the underlying mechanisms have not been elucidated. Human papillomavirus (HPV), a major oncovirus, utilizes the host autophagic machinery to support its replication. Here, punicalagin markedly downregulated the levels of the major HPV oncoproteins E6 and E7 in cervical cancer cells through the autophagy-lysosome system. Additionally, punicalagin activated the reactive oxygen species (ROS)-JNK pathway and promoted the phosphorylation of BCL2, which led to the dissociation of BCL2 from BECN1 and the induction of autophagy. Treatment with autophagy and JNK inhibitors or ROS scavengers mitigated the punicalagin-induced degradation of E6 and E7. Moreover, the kno

SUBMITTER: Xie X 

PROVIDER: S-EPMC8904240 | biostudies-literature | 2022 May

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature