TRAIL-induced survival and proliferation of SCLC cells is mediated by ERK and dependent on TRAIL-R2/DR5 expression in the absence of caspase-8.

Small cell lung cancer (SCLC) is characterized by an aggressive phenotype and acquired resistance to a broad spectrum of anticancer agents. TNF-related apoptosis-inducing ligand (TRAIL) has been considered as a promising candidate for safe and selective induction of tumor cell apoptosis without toxicity to normal tissues. Here we report that TRAIL failed to induce apoptosis in SCLC cells and instead resulted in an up to 40% increase in proliferation.

Human agonistic TRAIL receptor antibodies Mapatumumab and Lexatumumab induce apoptosis in malignant mesothelioma and act synergistically with cisplatin.

Background: The incidence of malignant pleural mesothelioma (MPM) is associated with exposure to asbestos, and projections suggest that the yearly number of deaths in Western Europe due to MPM will increase until 2020. Despite progress in chemo- and in multimodality therapy, MPM remains a disease with a poor prognosis. Inducing apoptosis by tumor necrosis factor-related apoptosis-inducing ligand (TRAIL) or agonistic monoclonal antibodies which target TRAIL-receptor 1 (TRAIL-R1) or TRAIL-R2 has been thought to be a promising cancer therapy.

p53-induced apoptosis occurs in the absence of p14(ARF) in malignant pleural mesothelioma.

Malignant pleural mesotheliomas (MPMs) are usually wild type for the p53 gene but contain homozygous deletions in the INK4A locus that encodes p14(ARF), an inhibitor of p53-MDM2 interaction. Previous findings suggest that lack of p14(ARF) expression and the presence of SV40 large T antigen (L-Tag) result in p53 inactivation in MPM. We did not detect SV40 L-Tag mRNA in either MPM cell lines or primary cultures, and treatment of p14(ARF)-deficient cells with cisplatin (CDDP) increased both total and phosphorylated p53 and enhanced p53 DNA-binding activity.

Cisplatin activates Akt in small cell lung cancer cells and attenuates apoptosis by survivin upregulation.

The inhibitor of apoptosis protein (IAP) survivin is overexpressed in many tumors but is absent in most normal adult tissues. We report high levels of survivin expression in small cell lung cancer (SCLC), and describe the role of the phosphatidylinositol 3-kinase (PI3K)/Akt pathway in survivin upregulation. Moreover, the cytoprotective function of survivin in response to the anti-cancer agent cisplatin (CDDP) was investigated.

Expression and subcellular localization of Ewing sarcoma (EWS) protein is affected by the methylation process.

Ewing sarcoma (EWS) protein contains an N-terminal transcriptional activation domain (EAD) and a C-terminal RNA-binding domain (RBD). Recently, we had shown that EWS protein is not only localized in the nucleus and cytosol, but also on the surface of T cells and that its RBD is extensively asymmetrically dimethylated on arginine residues. Here we show that stimulation of T cells with phytohemagglutinin (PHA) caused a time-dependent 10-fold increase in expression of methylated EWS protein on the cell surface and a sixfold increase in the nuclei of peripheral blood mononuclear cells (PBMC).