title: Influence of ethacrynic acid on glutathione S-transferase pi transcript and protein half-lives in human colon cancer cells.
abstract: Ethacrynic acid (EA) is a plant phenolic acid that is both an inhibitor and an inducer of glutathione S-transferase (GST) activity. To determine contributory factors in the increased GST activity caused by EA treatment, human colon carcinoma HT29 cells were compared with a cloned EA-resistant population (HT6-8) maintained in medium containing 72 microM EA. Several factors are involved in the increased expression of GST pi in HT6-8. For example, nuclear run-on experiments showed an approximately 2-fold increase in the rate of transcription of GST pi. In addition, the half-life of GST pi transcript was increased from 4.1 (wild type, HT29, HT4-1) to 8.4 hr. The half-life of GST pi protein was 1-2 hr in HT4-1 cells versus 8-9 hr in HT6-8 cells. When either human ovarian carcinoma cells (SKOV3) or human prostatic carcinoma cells (DU145) were treated with EA, the half-life of the GST pi transcript was also increased. The transcript half-lives of another thiol-metabolism enzyme, gamma-glutamylcysteine synthetase (gamma-GCS), and a phase II detoxification enzyme, dihydrodiol dehydrogenase (DDH), were also increased in HT6-8, SKOV3 and DU145 cells treated with EA. However, the half-lives of transcripts from "housekeeping genes," such as glyceraldehyde 3-phosphate dehydrogenase (G3PDH), beta-actin and beta-tubulin, were not changed in these cell lines following EA. Apparently, a number of coordinated factors are involved in EA-enhanced expression of GST pi and other detoxification enzymes.
mesh_terms: D003110:Colonic Neoplasms / Q000201:enzymology*; D004976:Ethacrynic Acid / Q000494:pharmacology*; D005721:Glutamate-Cysteine Ligase / Q000235:genetics; D005982:Glutathione Transferase / Q000235:genetics*; D006207:Half-Life; D006801:Humans; D010088:Oxidoreductases / Q000235:genetics; D013997:Time Factors; D014158:Transcription, Genetic / Q000187:drug effects; D014407:Tumor Cells, Cultured
chemical_list: D010088:Oxidoreductases; C048338:trans-1,2-dihydrobenzene-1,2-diol dehydrogenase; D005982:Glutathione Transferase; D005721:Glutamate-Cysteine Ligase; D004976:Ethacrynic Acid