Apoptosis in cancer: from pathogenesis to treatment

Abstract

Apoptosis is an ordered and orchestrated cellular process that occurs in physiological and pathological conditions. It is also one of the most studied topics among cell biologists. An understanding of the underlying mechanism of apoptosis is important as it plays a pivotal role in the pathogenesis of many diseases. In some, the problem is due to too much apoptosis, such as in the case of degenerative diseases while in others, too little apoptosis is the culprit. Cancer is one of the scenarios where too little apoptosis occurs, resulting in malignant cells that will not die. The mechanism of apoptosis is complex and involves many pathways. Defects can occur at any point along these pathways, leading to malignant transformation of the affected cells, tumour metastasis and resistance to anticancer drugs. Despite being the cause of problem, apoptosis plays an important role in the treatment of cancer as it is a popular target of many treatment strategies. The abundance of literature suggests that targeting apoptosis in cancer is feasible. However, many troubling questions arise with the use of new drugs or treatment strategies that are designed to enhance apoptosis and critical tests must be passed before they can be used safely in human subjects.

Continuous overexpression of thioredoxin 1 enhances cancer development and does not extend maximum lifespan in male C57BL/6 mice

“…Trx is well-known for its anti-apoptotic effects by the inhibition of the ASK1 pathway [14,20,43–45], and reduced apoptosis could be one of the contributing factors for cancer onset/progression [46]. Our current and previous studies also show that Trx1 overexpression in mice inhibits the ASK1 pathway, which could facilitate cancer growth in old animals.…”

In vitro and In vivo Antitumor Activity of Tiliacorinine in Human Cholangiocarcinoma

“…The abundance of literature suggests that defects along apoptotic pathways play a crucial role in carcinogenesis and that many new treatment strategies targeting apoptosis are feasible for the treatment of various cancers (Wong, 2011;Sankari et al, 2012). Additionally, almost clinically used anticancer drugs are aimed to activate apoptosis of tumor cells (Hadi et al, 2000).…”

Mitochondrial outer membrane permeabilization: a focus on the role of mitochondrial membrane structural organization

“…As a result, the cell forms into small apoptotic bodies which are then engulfed by phagocytosis (Elmore 2007;Fulda and Debatin 2006;Ichim and Tait 2016). These pathways are not completely independent of each other, and often activation via one pathway will induce the other (Chen et al 2015;Kaufmann and Hengartner 2001;Wong 2011).…”