title: 3-m-bromoacetylamino benzoic acid ethyl ester: a new cancericidal agent that activates the apoptotic pathway through caspase-9.
abstract: The mechanism underlying the cancericidal activity of 3-m-bromoacetylamino benzoic acid ethyl ester (3-BAABE) was investigated. 3-BAABE exerted a strong cancericidal effect on human leukemia and lymphoma cells (IC(50) < 0.2 microgram/mL) and on cell lines of prostate, colon, ductal, and kidney cancer (IC(50) 0.8 to 0.88 microgram/mL). Multiple drug resistance (MDR) had no effect on the susceptibility of human lymphoma cells to 3-BAABE, since Daudi/MDR(20) and wild-type Daudi cells had a similar susceptibility to the cytotoxic effect of 3-BAABE. The cancericidal effect of 3-BAABE, which was not associated with changes in the cell cycle, was mediated by apoptosis. Thus, cells exposed to 3-BAABE displayed the DNA fragmentation ladder characteristic for apoptosis, associated with a marked increase of the activity of apoptosis effector caspases-3 and -6, which was followed by proteolytic cleavage of DNA fragmentation factor (DFF) and poly(ADP-ribose) polymerase (PARP). Exposure of tumor cells to 3-BAABE increased the activity of apical caspase-9, but had no effect on caspase-8. Complete inhibition of 3-BAABE-induced apoptosis was exerted by LEHD-FMK, a caspase-9 inhibitor. DEVD-FMK, a caspase-3 inhibitor, and VEID-FMK, a caspase-6 inhibitor, partially inhibited 3-BAABE-induced apoptosis, whereas exposure to IETD-FMK, a caspase-8 inhibitor, had no effect. The fragmentation and elevated activity of caspase-9 in 3-BAABE-treated cells and the fact that only an inhibitor of caspase-9 abrogated 3-BAABE-induced apoptosis indicate that 3-BAABE is a distinctive compound that elicits apoptosis through a pathway that is limited specifically to activation of apical caspase-9.
authors.affiliation: T.J. Martell Laboratory for Leukemia, Cancer and AIDS Research, Department of Medicine, Mount Sinai School of Medicine-NYU, 10029, USA.
authors.forename: M
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Schlesinger
authors.forename: J D
authors.initials: JD
authors.lastname: Jiang
authors.forename: J P
authors.initials: JP
authors.lastname: Roboz
authors.forename: L
authors.initials: L
authors.lastname: Denner
authors.forename: Y H
authors.initials: YH
authors.lastname: Ling
authors.forename: J F
authors.initials: JF
authors.lastname: Holland
authors.forename: J G
authors.initials: JG
authors.lastname: Bekesi
mesh_terms: D000818:Animals; D000970:Antineoplastic Agents / Q000494:pharmacology*; D017209:Apoptosis / Q000502:physiology; D001565:Benzoates; D019817:Benzoic Acid / Q000494:pharmacology*; D053453:Caspase 9; D020169:Caspases / Q000378:metabolism*; D002453:Cell Cycle / Q000187:drug effects; D053938:DNA Fragmentation / Q000187:drug effects*; D004952:Esters / Q000494:pharmacology*; D006801:Humans; D051379:Mice; D008870:Microtubules / Q000378:metabolism; D011065:Poly(ADP-ribose) Polymerases / Q000378:metabolism; D014407:Tumor Cells, Cultured; D062368:meta-Aminobenzoates
chemical_list: C416782:3-bromoacetylamino benzoic acid ethyl ester; D000970:Antineoplastic Agents; D001565:Benzoates; D004952:Esters; D062368:meta-Aminobenzoates; D019817:Benzoic Acid; D011065:Poly(ADP-ribose) Polymerases; C506433:CASP9 protein, human; C506434:Casp9 protein, mouse; D053453:Caspase 9; D020169:Caspases