Combining mTOR inhibition with radiation improves antitumor activity in bladder cancer cells in vitro and in vivo: a novel strategy for treatment.

Purpose: Radiation therapy for invasive bladder cancer allows for organ preservation but toxicity and local control remain problematic. As such, improving efficacy of treatment requires radiosensitization of tumor cells. The aim of study is to investigate if the mammalian Target of Rapamycin (mTOR), a downstream kinase of the phosphatidylinositol 3-kinase (PI3K)/AKT survival pathway, may be a target for radiation sensitization.

A novel mechanism of PPAR gamma induction via EGFR signalling constitutes rational for combination therapy in bladder cancer.

Background: Two signalling molecules that are attractive for targeted therapy are the epidermal growth factor receptor (EGFR) and the peroxisome proliferator-activated receptor gamma (PPARγ). We investigated possible crosstalk between these 2 pathways, particularly in light of the recent evidence implicating PPARγ for anticancer therapy.

Principal Findings: As evaluated by MTT assays, gefitinib (EGFR inhibitor) and DIM-C (PPARγ agonist) inhibited growth of 9 bladder cancer cell lines in a dose-dependent manner but with variable sensitivity.

Inhibition of mammalian target of rapamycin as a therapeutic strategy in the management of bladder cancer.

We examined whether mTOR inhibition by RAD001 (Everolimus) could be therapeutically efficacious in the treatment of bladder cancer. RAD001 markedly inhibited proliferation of nine human urothelial carcinoma cell lines in dose- and sensitivity-dependent manners in vitro. FACS analysis showed that treatment with RAD001 for 48 h induced a cell cycle arrest in the G(0)/G(1) phase in all cell lines, without eliciting apoptosis.

Peroxisome proliferator-activated receptor gamma in bladder cancer: a promising therapeutic target.

Peroxisome Proliferator-Activated Receptors (PPARs) are ligand-activated intracellular transcription factors, members of the nuclear hormone receptor superfamily. The PPAR subfamily consist of three subtypes encoded by distinct genes denoted PPARalpha, PPARbeta/delta, and PPARgamma. The peroxisome proliferator-activated receptor gamma (PPARgamma) is the most extensively studied subtype of the PPARs.