title: IL-6 induces neuroendocrine dedifferentiation and cell proliferation in non-small cell lung cancer cells.
abstract: Interleukin-6 (IL-6) has been identified as an important growth regulator of lung cancer cells. Elevation of serum levels of IL-6 has been found in a subpopulation of lung cancer patients, but rarely in patients with benign lung diseases. Approximately 15% of non-small cell lung cancer (NSCLC) tumors exhibit neuroendocrine (NE) properties (NSCLC-NE) and have been suggested to have the biological characteristics similar to small cell lung cancer (SCLC) with early metastasis and initial responsiveness to chemotherapy. We recently showed that IL-6 promotes cell proliferation and downregulates the expression of neuron-specific enolase (NSE, one of the major NE markers) in NSCLC-NE cells. In this study, we show that IL-6 stimulates a transient increase of tyrosine phosphorylation of STAT3 in a dose-dependent fashion. Inhibition of STAT3 signaling pathway by either AG-490 (JAK2-specific inhibitor) or overexpression of STAT3Y705F (a dominant-negative STAT3) reverses NSE expression in IL-6- treated NSCLC-NE cells. In addition, IL-6 induces phosphorylation and activation of p38 MAPK. SB-203580, a p38 MAPK-specific inhibitor, inhibits IL-6-induced p38 MAPK phosphorylating activity and suppresses IL-6-stimulated cell proliferation. Together, our results indicate that STAT3 signaling pathway is involved in IL-6-induced NE differentiation and that p38 MAPK is associated with IL-6-stimulated growth regulation in NSCLC-NE cells. These data suggest that both kinase pathways play critical roles in the pathogenesis of NSCLC-NE malignancies, providing new molecular targets for future therapeutic approaches.
authors.affiliation: Graduate Institute of Life Sciences, National Defense Medical Center, Taipei, Taiwan.
authors.forename: Kuo-Ting
authors.initials: KT
authors.lastname: Chang
authors.forename: Chun-Ming
authors.initials: CM
authors.lastname: Tsai
authors.forename: Yih-Chy
authors.initials: YC
authors.lastname: Chiou
authors.forename: Chao-Hua
authors.initials: CH
authors.lastname: Chiu
authors.forename: King-Song
authors.initials: KS
authors.lastname: Jeng
authors.forename: Chi-Ying F
authors.initials: CY
authors.lastname: Huang
mesh_terms: D002289:Carcinoma, Non-Small-Cell Lung / Q000378:metabolism / Q000473:pathology*; D002454:Cell Differentiation / Q000187:drug effects; D045744:Cell Line, Tumor; D049109:Cell Proliferation / Q000187:drug effects; D004268:DNA-Binding Proteins / Q000378:metabolism*; D015536:Down-Regulation; D004789:Enzyme Activation; D006801:Humans; D015850:Interleukin-6 / Q000494:pharmacology*; D008175:Lung Neoplasms / Q000378:metabolism / Q000473:pathology*; D009490:Neurosecretory Systems / Q000473:pathology*; D010751:Phosphopyruvate Hydratase / Q000378:metabolism; D010766:Phosphorylation; D011994:Recombinant Proteins / Q000494:pharmacology; D050796:STAT3 Transcription Factor; D015398:Signal Transduction; D015534:Trans-Activators / Q000378:metabolism*; D048051:p38 Mitogen-Activated Protein Kinases / Q000378:metabolism*
chemical_list: D004268:DNA-Binding Proteins; D015850:Interleukin-6; D011994:Recombinant Proteins; D050796:STAT3 Transcription Factor; C494086:STAT3 protein, human; D015534:Trans-Activators; D048051:p38 Mitogen-Activated Protein Kinases; D010751:Phosphopyruvate Hydratase