• Molecules and Cells
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• v.43 no.1
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• pp.1-9
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• 2020

The first step in treating lung cancer is to establish the stage of the disease, which in turn determines the treatment options and prognosis of the patient. Many factors are involved in lung cancer staging, but all involve anatomical information. However, new approaches, mainly those based on the molecular biology of cancer, have recently changed the paradigm for lung cancer treatment and have not yet been incorporated into staging. In a group of patients of the same stage who receive the same treatment, some may experience unexpected recurrence or metastasis, largely because current staging methods do not reflect the findings of molecular biological studies. In this review, we provide a brief summary of the latest research on lung cancer staging and the molecular events associated with carcinogenesis. We hope that this paper will serve as a bridge between clinicians and basic researchers and aid in our understanding of lung cancer.

• Journal of Physiology & Pathology in Korean Medicine
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• v.18 no.4
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• pp.1102-1106
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• 2004

To investigate the anti-proliferative effects of an aqueous extract of Cordyceps militaris (AECM) on the growth of human lung carcinoma cell line A549, we performed various biochemical experiments such as the effects of AECM on the cell proliferation and viability, the morphological changes, the effects on expression of apoptosis and cell growth-regulatory gene products. Results obtained are as follow; AECM treatment declined the cell viability and proliferation of A549 cells in a concentration-dependent manner. The anti-proliferative effect by AECM treatment in A549 cells was associated with morphological changes such as membrane shrinking and cell rounding up. Taken together, these findings suggest that AECM-induced inhibition of human lung cancer cell proliferation is associated with the induction of apoptotic cell death via regulation of several major growth regulatory gene products, and C. militaris may have therapeutic potential in human lung cancer.

• The Korean Journal of Physiology and Pharmacology
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• v.5 no.2
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• pp.177-181
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• 2001

Recently, nonsteroidal anti-inflammatory drugs (NSAIDs) have been found to be useful in the chemoprevention of colon cancer. To investigate whether indomethacin, an NSAIDs, induces apoptosis and thus assess the possibility of its application in the chemoprevention of human lung cancer, we have performed MTT assay, TUNEL assay, DAPI staining, and flow cytometric analysis using human lung carcinoma cell line NCI-H1299. Through morphological and biochemical analyses, it was demonstrated that NCI-H1299 cells treated with indomethacin (0.5 mM) exhibit classical apoptotic features. These results suggest that indomethacin induces apoptosis in NCI-H1299 cells and that NSAIDs, including indomethacin, may be a useful tool for the chemoprevention of human lung cancer.

• Asian Pacific Journal of Cancer Prevention
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• v.16 no.7
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• pp.3035-3042
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• 2015

Background: Isorhamnetin (Iso), a novel and essential monomer derived from total flavones of Hippophae rhamnoides that has long been used as a traditional Chinese medicine for angina pectoris and acute myocardial infarction, has also shown a spectrum of antitumor activity. However, little is known about the mechanisms of action Iso on cancer cells. Objectives: To investigate the effects of Iso on A549 lung cancer cells and underlying mechanisms. Materials and Methods: A549 cells were treated with $10{\sim}320{\mu}g/ml$ Iso. Their morphological and cellular characteristics were assessed by light and electronic microscopy. Growth inhibition was analyzed by MTT, clonogenic and growth curve assays. Apoptotic characteristics of cells were determined by flow cytometry (FCM), DNA fragmentation, single cell gel electrophoresis (comet) assay, immunocytochemistry and terminal deoxynucleotidyl transferase nick end labeling (TUNEL). Tumor models were setup by transplanting Lewis lung carcinoma cells into C57BL/6 mice, and the weights and sizes of tumors were measured. Results: Iso markedly inhibited the growth of A549 cells with induction of apoptotic changes. Iso at $20{\mu}g/ml$, could induce A549 cell apoptosis, up-regulate the expression of apoptosis genes Bax, Caspase-3 and P53, and down-regulate the expression of Bcl-2, cyclinD1 and PCNA protein. The tumors in tumor-bearing mice treated with Iso were significantly smaller than in the control group. The results of apoptosis-related genes, PCNA, cyclinD1 and other protein expression levels of transplanted Lewis cells were the same as those of A549 cells in vitro. Conclusions: Iso, a natural single compound isolated from total flavones, has antiproliferative activity against lung cancer in vitro and in vivo. Its mechanisms of action may involve apoptosis of cells induced by down-regulation of oncogenes and up-regulation of apoptotic genes.

• Journal of Physiology & Pathology in Korean Medicine
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• v.31 no.2
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• pp.111-117
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• 2017

The anti-cancer effects of Astragalus membranaceus (AM) and Adenophora triphylla var. japonica (AT) have been described. Each of their effects mainly focused on the immunopotentiating and apoptosis inducing-ability in several cancer cell lines. Although the combination of AM and AT is occasionally used in Chinese medicine to treat lung cancers, their synergistic effect has not been proved yet. This study was designed to verify whether AM combined with AT exhibits a synergistic anti-cancer effect in H1299 human lung carcinoma cells. The ethanol extracts of AM (EAM) and AT (EAT) showed only slight cytotoxicity in H1299 cells when treated alone. However, the combination of EAM and EAT markedly suppressed the cell growth measured by MTT assay and trypan blue counting assay. In addition, co-treatment of EAM with EAT significantly reduced the colony-forming ability compared with single treatment of EAM or EAT in H1299 cells. We demonstrated that the synergistic effect of AM and AT was related with apoptosis induction proved by an accumulation of chromatin condensation, annexin V-positive cells, sub-G1 phase population, and cleaved-PARP expression, which were not observed by single treatment of EAM or EAT. In conclusion, the combination of EAM and EAT exhibited superior anti-cancer activity in H1299 cells than single treatment of EAM or EAT. We suggest that EAM combined with EAT might be a novel therapeutic option for lung cancer patients, and provide a reference for the development of more effective combination of Chinese herbs to treat lung cancer.

• Tuberculosis and Respiratory Diseases
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• v.46 no.3
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• pp.327-337
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• 1999

Background: Reactive oxygen species are involved in multi-stage process of carcinogenesis. The moot of cancer cell lines and cancer cells in tumor tissue produce reactive oxygen species and on the other hand, the activities of catalase, Mn- and CuZn-superoxide dismutase in tumor cells are usually low. These persistent oxidative stress in tumor tissue facilitates tumor invasion and metastasis. 12-kDa thioredoxin, which regulates the intracellular redox potential with glutathione and glutaredoxin is involved in cell activation, proliferation, differentiation and redox-mediated apoptosis. It is also purified as 14-kDa and 10-kDa eooinophilic cytotoxic enhancing factor(ECEF) from human histiocytic cell(U937) and 10-kDa ECEF has more than 20 times eosinophilic stimulation activity than 14-kDa ECEF. It has been reported that adult T-cell leukemia, squamous cell carcinoma of uterine cervix, and hepatocellular carcinoma show increased amounts of human thioredoxin and thioredoxin mRNA is increased in lung cancer. In this study, we investigated the expression of conventional antioxidant enzymes such as catalase, CuZn-SOD, and glutathione peroxidase and thioredoxin in lung cancer tissue compared to adjacent normal lung tissue and the induction of thioredoxin in macrophage cells after treatment of oxidative stress and endotoxin Methods: We measured the amount of conventional antioxidant enzymes such as catalase, CuZn-SOD, and glutathione peroxidase and thioredoxin in lung cancer tissue compared to adjacent normal lung tissue by immunoblot analysis and the induction of thioredoxin in mouse monocyte-macrophage cells(RAW 264.7) by treatment of 5 ${\mu}M$ menadione and 1 ${\mu}g/ml$ endotoxin Results: On immunoblot analysis, the expression of 12-kDa thioredoxin was increased in lung cancer tissue compared to paired normal lung tissue. but the expression of catalase and CuZn-SOD were decreased in lung cancer tissue compared to paired normal tissue and the expression of glutathione peroxidase in lung cancer was variable. The expression of truncated thioredoxin was also increased in lung cancer. When mouse monocyte-macrophage cells were treated with 5 ${\mu}M$ menadione and 1 ${\mu}g/ml$ endotoxin, the expression of thioredoxin was peaked at 12 hrs and sustained to 48 hrs. Conclusion: In contrast with other conventional antioxidants, the expression of 12-kDa and truncated thioredoxin in lung cancer were increased and it is closely associated with persistent oxidative stress in tumor microenvironment. Considering especially the biological functions of truncated thioredoxin, the increased amount of truncated thioredoxin has significant role in tumor growth through cell proliferation.

• Asian Pacific Journal of Cancer Prevention
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• v.14 no.10
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• pp.5725-5730
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• 2013

Cancer patients often suffer from local tumor recurrence after radiation therapy. Cell cycling, an intricate sequence of events which guarantees high genomic fidelity, has been suggested to affect DNA damage responses and eventual radioresistant characteristics of cancer cells. Here, we established a radioresistant lung cancer cell line, A549R, by exposing the parental A549 cells to repeated ${\gamma}$-ray irradiation with a total dose of 60 Gy. The radiosensitivity of A549 and A549R was confirmed using colony formation assays. We then focused on examination of the cell cycle distribution between A549 and A549R and found that the proportion of cells in the radioresistant S phase increased, whereas that in the radiosensitive G1 phase decreased. When A549 and A549R cells were exposed to 4 Gy irradiation the total differences in cell cycle redistribution suggested that G2-M cell cycle arrest plays a predominant role in mediating radioresistance. In order to further explore the possible mechanisms behind the cell cycle related radioresistance, we examined the expression of Cdc25 proteins which orchestrate cell cycle transitions. The results showed that expression of Cdc25c increased accompanied by the decrease of Cdc25a and we proposed that the quantity of Cdc25c, rather than activated Cdc25c or Cdc25a, determines the radioresistance of cells.

• Journal of Life Science
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• v.25 no.12
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• pp.1439-1444
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• 2015

Steroid receptor coactivators (SRC) are transcriptional coactivators. Among SRCs, SRC-3 is the most studied in relation to different types of tumors. However, the role of SRC-3 in early lung development and lung cancer has not been well studied. The expression profiles of SRC-3 showed that SRC-3 contributed to bronchial and alveolar development in embryonic lung development. SRC-3 was strongly expressed in Clara cells and type II alveolar cells during fetal lung development (E17.5- E18.5), and SRC-3 was expressed in both cell types in the adult lung. TTF-1 was expressed in the lungs of heterozygote SRC-3 mice and Clara cell-specific-CCSP-TAg tumor mice, along with SRC-3 expression. The expression of TTF-1 was localized at transformed Clara cells and multifocal adenocarcinomas in lung cancer mice. However, SRC-3 was not expressed in the multifocal adenocarcinomas, suggesting that SRC-3 might not be involved in the invasiveness of lung cancer. Cotransfection of TTF-1 in Clara cell-specific mtCC cell lines resulted in significant activation of CCSP expression. However, cotransfection of SRC-3 had no significant effects on transient transfection. These in vivo and in vitro results suggest that SRC-3 does not play a significant role in lung tumor progression. In conclusion, SRC-3 is involved in bronchial and alveolar development in fetal and adult lungs, but it does not play an important role in the progression of Clara cell-derived lung cancer.

• Asian Pacific Journal of Cancer Prevention
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• v.14 no.6
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• pp.3975-3978
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• 2013

Background: Proteases play a regulatory role in a variety of pathologies including cancer, pancreatitis, thromboembolic disorders, viral infections and many others. One of the possible strategies to combat these pathologies seems to be the use of protease inhibitors. LC-pi I, II, III and IV (Lavatera cashmerian-protease inhibitors) have been found in vitro to strongly inhibit trypsin, chymotrypsin and elastase, proteases contributing to tumour invasion and metastasis, indicated possible anticancer effects. The purpose of this study was to check in vitro anticancer activity of these four inhibitors on human lung cancer cell lines. Material and Methods: In order to assess whether these inhibitors induced in vitro cytoxicity, SRB assay was conducted with THP-1 (leukemia), NCIH322 (lung) and Colo205, HCT-116 (colon) lines. Results: LC-pi I significantly inhibited the cell proliferation of all cells tested and also LC-pi II was active in all except HCT-116. Inhibition of cell growth by LC-pi III and IV was negligible. $IC_{50}$ values of LC-pi I and II for NCIH322, were less compared to other cell lines suggesting that lung cancer cells are more inhibited. Conclusion: These investigations might point to future preventive as well as curative solutions using plant protease inhibitors for various cancers, especially in the lung, hence warranting their further investigation.

• Asian Pacific Journal of Cancer Prevention
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• v.16 no.11
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• pp.4781-4786
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• 2015

Siberian ginseng (Eleutherococcus senticosus) is used primarily as an adaptogen herb and also for its immune stimulant properties in Western herbal medicine. Another closely related species used in East Asian medicine systems i.e. Kampo, TCM (Manchuria, Korea, Japan and Ainu of Hokkaido) and also called Siberian ginseng (Acanthopanax senticosus) also displays immune-stimulant and anti-cancer properties. These may affect tumour growth and also provide an anti-fatigue effect for cancer patients, in particular for those suffering from lung cancer. There is some evidence that a carbohydrate in Siberian ginseng may possess not only immune stimulatory but also anti-tumour effects and also display other various anti-cancer properties. Our study aimed to determine the inhibitory and also proliferative effects of a methanol plant extract of Siberan ginseng (E. senticosus) on various cancer and normal cell lines including: A-549 (small cell lung cancer), XWLC-05 (Yunnan lung cancer cell line), CNE (human nasopharyngeal carcinoma cell line), HCT-116 (human colon cancer) and Beas-2b (human lung epithelial). These cell lines were treated with an extract from E. senticosus that was evaporated and reconstituted in DMSO. Treatment of A-549 (small cell lung cancer) cells with E. senticosus methanolic extract showed a concentration-dependent inhibitory trend from $12.5-50{\mu}g/mL$, and then a plateau, whereas at 12.5 and $25{\mu}g/mL$, there is a slight growth suppression in QBC-939 cells, but then a steady suppression from 50, 100 and $200{\mu}g/mL$. Further, in XWLC-05 (Yunnan lung cancer cell line), E. senticosus methanolic extract displayed an inhibitory effect which plateaued with increasing dosage. Next, in CNE (human nasopharyngeal carcinoma cell line) there was a dose dependent proliferative response, whereas in Beas-2 (human lung epithelial cell line), an inhibitory effect. Finally in colon cancer cell line (HCT-116) we observed an initially weak inhibitory effect and then plateau.