Non-thermal atmospheric pressure plasma induces apoptosis in oral cavity squamous cell carcinoma: Involvement of DNA-damage-triggering sub-G1 arrest via the ATM/p53 pathway.

In this study, we report for the first time that NTP led to apoptotic cell death in oral cavity squamous cell carcinoma (OSCC). Interestingly, NTP induced a sub-G1 arrest in p53 wild-type OSCCs, but not in p53-mutated OSCCs. In addition, NTP increased the expression levels of ATM, p53 (Ser 15, 20 and 46), p21, and cyclin D1. A comet assay, Western blotting and immunocytochemistry of γH2AX suggested that NTP-induced apoptosis and sub-G1 arrest were associated with DNA damage and the ATM/p53 signaling pathway in SCC25 cells. Moreover, ATM knockdown using siRNA attenuated the effect of NTP on cell death, sub-G1 arrest and related signals. Taken together, these results indicate that NTP induced apoptotic cell death in p53 wild-type OSCCs through a novel mechanism involving DNA damage and triggering of sub-G1 arrest via the ATM/p53 pathway. These findings show the therapeutic potential of NTP in OSCC. PMID: 24486404 [PubMed - as supplied by publisher]
Source: Archives of Biochemistry and Biophysics - Category: Biochemistry Authors: Tags: Arch Biochem Biophys Source Type: research