title: Plumbagin exerts an immunosuppressive effect on human T-cell acute lymphoblastic leukemia MOLT-4 cells.
abstract: Of the hematological disorders typified by poor prognoses and survival rates, T-cell acute lymphoblastic leukemia (T-ALL) is one of the most commonly diagnosed. Despite the development of new therapeutic agents, the treatment options for this cancer remain limited. In this manuscript, we investigated the anti-proliferative effects of plumbagin, mediated by the activation of mitogen-activated protein kinase (MAPK) pathways, and inhibition of NF-κB signaling; the human T-ALL MOLT-4 cell line was used as our experimental system. Plumbagin is a natural, plant derived compound, which exerts an anti-proliferative activity against many types of human cancer. Our experiments confirm that plumbagin induces a caspase-dependent apoptosis of MOLT-4 cells, with no significant cytotoxicity seen for normal peripheral blood mononuclear cells (PBMCs). Plumbagin also inhibited LPS-induced phosphorylation of p65, and the transcription of NF-κB target genes. Our results now show that plumbagin is a potent inhibitor of the NF-κB signaling pathway, and suppressor of T-ALL cell proliferation.
authors.affiliation: Department of Biomedical Laboratory Science, Daejeon 34824, Republic of Korea.
authors.forename: Kyoung Jun
authors.initials: KJ
authors.lastname: Bae
authors.affiliation: Department of Biomedical Laboratory Science, Daejeon 34824, Republic of Korea.
authors.forename: Yura
authors.initials: Y
authors.lastname: Lee
authors.affiliation: Department of Pharmacology, School of Medicine, Daejeon 34824, Republic of Korea.
authors.forename: Soon Ae
authors.initials: SA
authors.lastname: Kim
authors.affiliation: Department of Biomedical Laboratory Science, Daejeon 34824, Republic of Korea. Electronic address: yeon@eulji.ac.kr.
authors.forename: Jiyeon
authors.initials: J
authors.lastname: Kim
mesh_terms: D000972:Antineoplastic Agents, Phytogenic / Q000737:chemistry; D017209:Apoptosis; D020169:Caspases / Q000378:metabolism; D045744:Cell Line, Tumor / Q000187:drug effects; D049109:Cell Proliferation; D002470:Cell Survival; D016207:Cytokines / Q000378:metabolism; D017931:DNA Primers; D005434:Flow Cytometry; D006801:Humans; D007166:Immunosuppressive Agents / Q000737:chemistry*; D007963:Leukocytes, Mononuclear / Q000166:cytology; D008070:Lipopolysaccharides / Q000737:chemistry; D016328:NF-kappa B / Q000378:metabolism; D009285:Naphthoquinones / Q000737:chemistry*; D010766:Phosphorylation; D054218:Precursor T-Cell Lymphoblastic Leukemia-Lymphoma / Q000378:metabolism*; D015398:Signal Transduction; D014158:Transcription, Genetic; D048051:p38 Mitogen-Activated Protein Kinases / Q000378:metabolism
chemical_list: D000972:Antineoplastic Agents, Phytogenic; D016207:Cytokines; D017931:DNA Primers; D007166:Immunosuppressive Agents; D008070:Lipopolysaccharides; D016328:NF-kappa B; D009285:Naphthoquinones; D048051:p38 Mitogen-Activated Protein Kinases; D020169:Caspases; C014758:plumbagin
keywords: Apoptosis; MAPK; MOLT-4; NF-κB; Plumbagin; T-ALL