title: Involvement of protein kinase C and phosphatidylinositol 3-kinase pathways in the survival of B-cell chronic lymphocytic leukemia cells.
abstract: B-cell chronic lymphocytic leukemia (B-CLL) is characterized by the accumulation of long-lived CD5(+) B lymphocytes. TPA (12-O-tetradecanoylphorbol 13- acetate) and interleukin-4 (IL-4) inhibit apoptosis of B-CLL lymphocytes ex vivo. We used specific inhibitors of protein kinase C (PKC), extracellular-regulated kinase (ERK), and phosphatidylinositol 3-kinase (PI3-kinase) to study their involvement in TPA- and IL-4-induced survival of B-CLL lymphocytes. BisI, a specific inhibitor of PKC, induced apoptosis and inhibited the antiapoptotic activity of TPA and IL-4. B-CLL cells have a basal PKC activity that was increased by TPA but not by IL-4. TPA, but not IL-4, induced ERK activation. However, the inhibition of ERK activation did not affect the viability of B-CLL lymphocytes, demonstrating that this pathway is not involved in their survival. Inhibition of PI3-kinase by LY294002 induced apoptosis of B-CLL cells and inhibited the survival effect of IL-4 and TPA. In addition, Akt, a downstream effector of PI3-kinase activity, was phosphorylated by TPA and IL-4 in B-CLL cells, though PI3-kinase had no effect on PKC-dependent phosphorylation of Akt. Furthermore, the inhibition of PKC or PI3-kinase increased dexamethasone- and fludarabine-induced apoptosis ex vivo in the presence of survival factors. These results demonstrate that PKC and PI3-kinase are involved in the survival of B-CLL cells and suggest that inhibitors of these pathways could be combined with the drugs used in the treatment of B-CLL.
authors.affiliation: Unitat de Bioquímica, Departament de Ciències Fisioliques II, Universitat de Barcelona, Spain.
authors.forename: Montserrat
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Barragán
authors.forename: Beatriz
authors.initials: B
authors.lastname: Bellosillo
authors.forename: Clara
authors.initials: C
authors.lastname: Campàs
authors.forename: Dolors
authors.initials: D
authors.lastname: Colomer
authors.forename: Gabriel
authors.initials: G
authors.lastname: Pons
authors.forename: Joan
authors.initials: J
authors.lastname: Gil
mesh_terms: D000368:Aged; D000369:Aged, 80 and over; D002470:Cell Survival / Q000187:drug effects; D004791:Enzyme Inhibitors / Q000494:pharmacology; D005260:Female; D006801:Humans; D015847:Interleukin-4 / Q000494:pharmacology; D015451:Leukemia, Lymphocytic, Chronic, B-Cell / Q000473:pathology*; D008297:Male; D008875:Middle Aged; D020928:Mitogen-Activated Protein Kinases / Q000037:antagonists & inhibitors / Q000378:metabolism / Q000502:physiology; D019869:Phosphatidylinositol 3-Kinases / Q000378:metabolism / Q000502:physiology*; D000081082:Phosphoinositide-3 Kinase Inhibitors; D010766:Phosphorylation; D011493:Protein Kinase C / Q000037:antagonists & inhibitors / Q000378:metabolism / Q000502:physiology*; D015398:Signal Transduction; D013755:Tetradecanoylphorbol Acetate / Q000494:pharmacology; D014407:Tumor Cells, Cultured / Q000187:drug effects
chemical_list: D004791:Enzyme Inhibitors; D015847:Interleukin-4; D020928:Mitogen-Activated Protein Kinases; D019869:Phosphatidylinositol 3-Kinases; D000081082:Phosphoinositide-3 Kinase Inhibitors; D011493:Protein Kinase C; D013755:Tetradecanoylphorbol Acetate