title: Caspase-8-mediated BID cleavage and release of mitochondrial cytochrome c during Nomega-hydroxy-L-arginine-induced apoptosis in MDA-MB-468 cells. Antagonistic effects of L-ornithine.
abstract: We have previously reported that N(omega)-hydroxy-l-arginine (NOHA), a stable intermediate product formed during the conversion of l-arginine to nitric oxide, induced apoptosis in MDA-MB-468 cells, and this action was antagonized in the presence of l-ornithine. We also reported that apoptosis induced by NOHA in this cell line could not be explained on the basis of a reduction of intracellular polyamines. In the current study, we investigated other potential mechanism(s) by which NOHA may have induced apoptosis in this cell line. We observed that NOHA initially activated caspase-8 and induced cleavage of BH(3) interacting domain. This was followed by release of cytochrome c and subsequently, activation of downstream caspases-9 and -3 to cleave poly(ADP-ribose) polymerase. We also observed that NOHA induced a rapid and persistent hyperpolarization of the mitochondrial membrane potential rather than depolarization indicating that the release of cytochrome c by NOHA was by a mechanism independent of the mitochondrial transition pore. Exogenous l-ornithine did not inhibit NOHA-induced caspase-8 activation and cleavage of BH(3) interacting domain but acted at the mitochondrial level and inhibited the NOHA-induced cytochrome c release and apoptosis.
authors.affiliation: Department of Obstetrics and Gynecology, David Geffen School of Medicine at UCLA, Los Angeles, California 90095-1740, USA.
authors.forename: Rajan
authors.initials: R
authors.lastname: Singh
authors.forename: Shehla
authors.initials: S
authors.lastname: Pervin
authors.forename: Gautam
authors.initials: G
authors.lastname: Chaudhuri
mesh_terms: D017209:Apoptosis / Q000187:drug effects / Q000502:physiology*; D001120:Arginine / Q000031:analogs & derivatives* / Q000494:pharmacology*; D051023:BH3 Interacting Domain Death Agonist Protein; D001943:Breast Neoplasms; D002352:Carrier Proteins / Q000378:metabolism*; D053181:Caspase 8; D053453:Caspase 9; D020169:Caspases / Q000378:metabolism*; D003574:Cytochrome c Group / Q000378:metabolism*; D005260:Female; D006801:Humans; D007425:Intracellular Membranes / Q000187:drug effects / Q000502:physiology; D007700:Kinetics; D008564:Membrane Potentials / Q000187:drug effects / Q000502:physiology; D008928:Mitochondria / Q000502:physiology*; D014407:Tumor Cells, Cultured
chemical_list: D051023:BH3 Interacting Domain Death Agonist Protein; C494814:BID protein, human; D002352:Carrier Proteins; D003574:Cytochrome c Group; C068309:N(omega)-hydroxyarginine; D001120:Arginine; C505530:CASP8 protein, human; C506433:CASP9 protein, human; D053181:Caspase 8; D053453:Caspase 9; D020169:Caspases