화학공학소재연구정보센터
International Journal of Molecular Sciences, Vol.14, No.8, 16617-16637, 2013
Glycogen Synthase Kinase 3 beta Inhibition as a Therapeutic Approach in the Treatment of Endometrial Cancer
Alternative strategies beyond current chemotherapy and radiation therapy regimens are needed in the treatment of advanced stage and recurrent endometrial cancers. There is considerable promise for biologic agents targeting the extracellular signal-regulated kinase (ERK) pathway for treatment of these cancers. Many downstream substrates of the ERK signaling pathway, such as glycogen synthase kinase 3 (GSK3), and their roles in endometrial carcinogenesis have not yet been investigated. In this study, we tested the importance of GSK3 inhibition in endometrial cancer cell lines and in vivo models. Inhibition of GSK3 by either lithium chloride (LiCl) or specific GSK3 inhibitor VIII showed cytostatic and cytotoxic effects on multiple endometrial cancer cell lines, with little effect on the immortalized normal endometrial cell line. Flow cytometry and immunofluorescence revealed a G2/M cell cycle arrest in both type I (AN3CA, KLE, and RL952) and type II (ARK1) endometrial cancer cell lines. In addition, LiCl pre-treatment sensitized AN3CA cells to the chemotherapy agent paclitaxel. Administration of LiCl to AN3CA tumor-bearing mice resulted in partial or complete regression of some tumors. Thus, GSK3 activity is associated with endometrial cancer tumorigenesis and its pharmacologic inhibition reduces cell proliferation and tumor growth.