title: Ferulic Acid Exerts Anti-Angiogenic and Anti-Tumor Activity by Targeting Fibroblast Growth Factor Receptor 1-Mediated Angiogenesis.
abstract: Most anti-angiogenic therapies currently being evaluated target the vascular endothelial growth factor (VEGF) pathway; however, the tumor vasculature can acquire resistance to VEGF-targeted therapy by shifting to other angiogenesis mechanisms. Therefore, other therapeutic agents that block non-VEGF angiogenic pathways need to be evaluated. Here, we identified ferulic acid as a novel fibroblast growth factor receptor 1 (FGFR1) inhibitor and a novel agent with potential anti-angiogenic and anti-cancer activities. Ferulic acid demonstrated inhibition of endothelial cell proliferation, migration and tube formation in response to basic fibroblast growth factor 1 (FGF1). In ex vivo and in vivo angiogenesis assays, ferulic acid suppressed FGF1-induced microvessel sprouting of rat aortic rings and angiogenesis. To understand the underlying molecular basis, we examined the effects of ferulic acid on different molecular components and found that ferulic acid suppressed FGF1-triggered activation of FGFR1 and phosphatidyl inositol 3-kinase (PI3K)-protein kinase B (Akt) signaling. Moreover, ferulic acid directly inhibited proliferation and blocked the PI3K-Akt pathway in melanoma cell. In vivo, using a melanoma xenograft model, ferulic acid showed growth-inhibitory activity associated with inhibition of angiogenesis. Taken together, our results indicate that ferulic acid targets the FGFR1-mediated PI3K-Akt signaling pathway, leading to the suppression of melanoma growth and angiogenesis.
authors.affiliation: Department of Vascular Surgery, Zhejiang Provincial People's Hospital, Hangzhou 310003, China. guang2015nor@sina.com.
authors.forename: Guang-Wei
authors.initials: GW
authors.lastname: Yang
authors.affiliation: Department of Vascular Surgery, Zhejiang Provincial People's Hospital, Hangzhou 310003, China. jinsong@163.com.
authors.forename: Jin-Song
authors.initials: JS
authors.lastname: Jiang
authors.affiliation: Department of Vascular Surgery, Zhejiang Provincial People's Hospital, Hangzhou 310003, China. wqlnorthern@sina.com.
authors.forename: Wei-Qin
authors.initials: WQ
authors.lastname: Lu
mesh_terms: D020533:Angiogenesis Inhibitors / Q000494:pharmacology*; D000818:Animals; D000970:Antineoplastic Agents / Q000494:pharmacology*; D045744:Cell Line, Tumor; D002465:Cell Movement / Q000187:drug effects; D049109:Cell Proliferation / Q000187:drug effects; D002642:Chick Embryo; D003373:Coumaric Acids / Q000494:pharmacology*; D004789:Enzyme Activation / Q000187:drug effects; D005260:Female; D016220:Fibroblast Growth Factor 1 / Q000494:pharmacology*; D061307:Human Umbilical Vein Endothelial Cells / Q000378:metabolism; D006801:Humans; D020778:Matrix Metalloproteinase 2 / Q000378:metabolism; D020780:Matrix Metalloproteinase 9 / Q000378:metabolism; D008545:Melanoma / Q000188:drug therapy / Q000473:pathology*; D051379:Mice; D008810:Mice, Inbred C57BL; D009389:Neovascularization, Pathologic / Q000473:pathology*; D058539:Phosphatidylinositol 3-Kinase / Q000378:metabolism; D000081082:Phosphoinositide-3 Kinase Inhibitors; D010766:Phosphorylation / Q000187:drug effects; D051057:Proto-Oncogene Proteins c-akt / Q000037:antagonists & inhibitors / Q000378:metabolism; D051381:Rats; D017207:Rats, Sprague-Dawley; D051496:Receptor, Fibroblast Growth Factor, Type 1 / Q000037:antagonists & inhibitors* / Q000378:metabolism; D015398:Signal Transduction / Q000187:drug effects; D023041:Xenograft Model Antitumor Assays
chemical_list: D020533:Angiogenesis Inhibitors; D000970:Antineoplastic Agents; D003373:Coumaric Acids; D000081082:Phosphoinositide-3 Kinase Inhibitors; D016220:Fibroblast Growth Factor 1; C004999:ferulic acid; D058539:Phosphatidylinositol 3-Kinase; C496348:FGFR1 protein, human; D051496:Receptor, Fibroblast Growth Factor, Type 1; D051057:Proto-Oncogene Proteins c-akt; C522361:MMP2 protein, human; D020778:Matrix Metalloproteinase 2; C579270:MMP9 protein, human; D020780:Matrix Metalloproteinase 9
keywords: Akt; FGFR1; angiogenesis; ferulic acid; melanoma