Glucocorticoids, oxysterols, and cAMP with glucocorticoids each cause apoptosis of CEM cells and suppress c-myc.
In clones of the CEM human acute lymphoblastic leukemic cell line, glucocorticoids, oxysterols and activators of the cAMP pathway acting synergistically with glucocorticoids, each can cause apoptotic cell death. Morphologically and kinetically, these deaths resemble one another. The kinetics are striking: in each case, after addition of the lethal compound(s), an interval of approximately 24 h follows, during which cell growth continues unabated. During this "prodromal" period, removal of the apoptotic agent leaves the cells fully viable. We hypothesize that a sequence of biochemical events occurs during the prodrome which eventually results in the triggering of the full apoptotic response as evidenced by the activation of caspases and DNA fragmentation. At some point, the process is irreversible and proceeds relatively rapidly to cell death. Suppression of c-Myc seems a universal early event evoked by each of these lethal compounds or combinations, and we conclude that the negative regulation of this proto-oncogene is an important aspect of the critical pre-apoptotic events in these cells.
The Department of Human Biological Chemistry and Genetics, The University of Texas Medical Branch, Galveston 77555-0645, USA. bthompso@utmb.edu
E B
EB
Thompson
R D
RD
Medh
F
F
Zhou
S
S
Ayala-Torres
N
N
Ansari
W
W
Zhang
B H
BH
Johnson
D017209:Apoptosis / Q000187:drug effects*; D002460:Cell Line; D000242:Cyclic AMP / Q000494:pharmacology*; D005786:Gene Expression Regulation / Q000187:drug effects*; D005938:Glucocorticoids / Q000494:pharmacology*; D006801:Humans; D000090063:Proto-Oncogene Mas; D016271:Proto-Oncogene Proteins c-myc / Q000235:genetics*; D013261:Sterols / Q000494:pharmacology*
D005938:Glucocorticoids; C000715470:MAS1 protein, human; D000090063:Proto-Oncogene Mas; D016271:Proto-Oncogene Proteins c-myc; D013261:Sterols; D000242:Cyclic AMP