Poly (ADP-ribose) polymerases (PARP) are a family of nuclear protein enzymes involved in the DNA damage response. The role of PARP-1 in base excisional repair has been extensively characterized. More recent in vitro studies additionally implicate a role for PARP-1 in facilitating homologous recombination and nonhomologous end-joining. The more faithful process of homologous recombination repair...

Human P-glycoprotein (P-gp), an integral membrane transport protein, is responsible for the efflux of various drugs, including cytostatics from cancer cells leading to multidrug resistance. P-gp is composed of two homologous half domains, each carrying one nucleotide binding site. The drug extrusion is ATP-dependent and can be inhibited by chemosensitizers, such as the dihydropyridine derivativ...

Prostate cancer is the most common cancer of men in the Western world, and novel approaches for prostate cancer risk reduction are needed. Plant-derived phenolic compounds attenuate prostate cancer growth in preclinical models by several mechanisms, which is in line with epidemiological findings suggesting that consumption of plant-based diets is associated with low risk of prostate cancer. The...

ATP-binding cassette (ABC) proteins were first recognized for their role in multidrug resistance (MDR) in chemotherapeutic treatments, which is a major impediment for the successful treatment of many forms of malignant tumors in humans. These proteins, highly conserved throughout vertebrate species, were later related to cellular detoxification and accounted as responsible for protecting aquati...

Purpose: Second mitochondria-derived activator of caspase (Smac) regulates chemotherapy-induced apoptosis. Smac mimetics have been tested in clinical trials as chemosensitizers. We determined the role of Smac in modulating the chemosensitivity of esophageal squamous cell carcinoma (ESCC). Experimental Design: Smac expression was evaluated in tissues from ESCC patients with differential chemothe...

Background: Conventional cancer treatment is associated with resistant cancer development, treatment and quality of life limiting adverse effects, and patients’ inability to complete intended treatment plans. Conventional cancer treatment’s adverse effects lead 36.1% of cancer patients to seek integrative cancer treatments, which can provide a 15 percentage-point improvement in their health sta...

Indole-3-carbinol (I3C) and diindolylmethane (DIM), found in cruciferous vegetables, have chemopreventive and anticancer properties. In the present study, 14 substituted indoles were tested for activity against SW480 colon cancer cells. Among these, 3-(2-bromoethyl)-indole, named BEI-9, showed the greatest inhibition. The effects of BEI-9 on cancer cells were analyzed by MTS and CellTiter-Glo a...

We have previously shown that phenothiazines sensitize multidrug resistant (MDR) cells to chemotherapeutic drugs in a manner related to specific structural features, and have identified structurally related thioxanthenes with increased anti-MDR activity. We have now studied the structure-activity relationships of 16 thioxanthenes in the human breast cancer line MCF-7 Adr". rra/is-Thioxanthene s...

We have previously shown that phenothiazines sensitize multidrug resistant (MDR) cells to chemotherapeutic drugs in a manner related to specific structural features, and have identified structurally related thioxanthenes with increased anti-MDR activity. We have now studied the structure-activity relationships of 16 thioxanthenes in the human breast cancer line MCF-7 Adr". rra/is-Thioxanthene s...

The chemosensitizing effects of cyclosporin A and verapamil on the cytotoxicity of adriamycin were investigated using MTT assay against two human retinoblastoma cell lines, Y79 and WERI-Rb-1. Y79 and WERI-Rb-1 were totally resistant to doses up to 5.0 micrograms/ml of verapamil. Cyclosporin A inhibited the survival of Y79 and WERI-Rb-1 dose-dependently, however, the maximum inhibition at the hi...