Mitocurcumin utilizes oxidative stress to upregulate JNK/p38 signaling and overcomes Cytarabine resistance in acute myeloid leukemia

Cell Signal. 2023 Dec 2:111004. doi: 10.1016/j.cellsig.2023.111004. Online ahead of print.ABSTRACTAcute myeloid leukemia (AML) is a type of blood cancer that is characterized by the rapid growth of abnormal myeloid cells. The goal of AML treatment is to eliminate the leukemic blasts, which is accomplished through intensive chemotherapy. Cytarabine is a key component of the standard induction chemotherapy regimen for AML. However, despite a high remission rate, 70-80% of AML patients relapse and develop resistance to Cytarabine, leading to poor clinical outcomes. Mitocurcumin (MitoC), a derivative of curcumin that enters mitochondria, leading to a drop in mitochondrial membrane potential and mitophagy induction. Further, it activates oxidative stress-mediated JNK/p38 signaling to induce apoptosis. MitoC demonstrated a preferential ability to kill leukemic cells from AML cell lines and patient-derived leukemic blasts. RNA sequencing data suggests perturbation of DNA damage response and cell proliferation pathways in MitoC-treated AML. Elevated reactive oxygen species (ROS) in MitoC-treated AML cells resulted in significant DNA damage and cell cycle arrest. Further, MitoC treatment resulted in ROS-mediated enhanced levels of p21, which leads to suppression of CHK1, RAD51, Cyclin-D and c-Myc oncoproteins, potentially contributing to cytarabine resistance. Combinatorial treatment of MitoC and Cytarabine has shown synergism, increased apoptosis, and enhanced DNA damage. Using AML x...
Source: Cellular Signalling - Category: Cytology Authors: Source Type: research