title: Activation of the CPP32 protease in apoptosis induced by 1-beta-D-arabinofuranosylcytosine and other DNA-damaging agents.
abstract: The response of human myeloid leukemia cells to treatment with 1-beta-arabinofuranosylcytosine (ara-C) includes the induction of apoptosis. Ara-C induced apoptosis is associated with proteolytic cleavage of poly(ADP-ribose) polymerase (PARP) and protein kinase C (PKC) delta. However, the signals involved in this response are unknown. The present studies show that ara-C treatment of U-937 cells is associated with induction of a protease activity that cleaves the tetrapeptides Ac-DEVD-pNA and Ac-DMOD-pNA found at the cleavage sites of PARP and PKC delta, respectively. The ara-C-induced protease activity was sensitive to overexpression of the anti-apoptotic protein Bcl-xL and the baculovirus protein p35. By contrast, overexpression of the cowpox virus protein CrmA blocked apoptosis induced by engagement of the Fas receptor but not that induced by ara-C. CrmA overexpression also had no detectable effect on ara-C-induced cleavage of PKC delta. The results further show that ara-C induces activation of the CPP32 protease by a CrmA-insensitive and p35-sensitive mechanism. Similar results were obtained with cisplatinum, etoposide, and camptothecin. These findings indicate that ara-C and other DNA-damaging agents activate a CrmA-insensitive apoptotic pathway involving CPP32 and that these signals differ from those associated with apoptosis induced by the Fas receptor.
authors.affiliation: Division of Cancer Pharmacology, Dana-Farber Cancer Institute, Harvard Medical School, Boston, MA 02115, USA.
authors.forename: R
authors.initials: R
authors.lastname: Datta
authors.forename: D
authors.initials: D
authors.lastname: Banach
authors.forename: H
authors.initials: H
authors.lastname: Kojima
authors.forename: R V
authors.initials: RV
authors.lastname: Talanian
authors.forename: E S
authors.initials: ES
authors.lastname: Alnemri
authors.forename: W W
authors.initials: WW
authors.lastname: Wong
authors.forename: D W
authors.initials: DW
authors.lastname: Kufe
mesh_terms: D000964:Antimetabolites, Antineoplastic / Q000494:pharmacology*; D017209:Apoptosis; D053148:Caspase 3; D020169:Caspases; D003546:Cysteine Endopeptidases / Q000378:metabolism*; D003561:Cytarabine / Q000494:pharmacology*; D004249:DNA Damage; D004789:Enzyme Activation; D006801:Humans; D051034:Inhibitor of Apoptosis Proteins; D007527:Isoenzymes / Q000378:metabolism; D011480:Protease Inhibitors / Q000494:pharmacology; D011493:Protein Kinase C / Q000378:metabolism; D051745:Protein Kinase C-delta; D015843:Serpins / Q000494:pharmacology; D014407:Tumor Cells, Cultured; D014764:Viral Proteins / Q000494:pharmacology
chemical_list: D000964:Antimetabolites, Antineoplastic; D051034:Inhibitor of Apoptosis Proteins; D007527:Isoenzymes; D011480:Protease Inhibitors; D015843:Serpins; D014764:Viral Proteins; C086430:inhibitor of apoptosis, Nucleopolyhedrovirus; D003561:Cytarabine; C074641:interleukin-1beta-converting enzyme inhibitor; C497258:PRKCD protein, human; D011493:Protein Kinase C; D051745:Protein Kinase C-delta; C505407:CASP3 protein, human; D053148:Caspase 3; D020169:Caspases; D003546:Cysteine Endopeptidases