ROS Function in Redox Signaling and Oxidative Stress

Tumors reprogram pathways of nutrient acquisition and metabolism to meet the bioenergetic, biosynthetic, and redox demands of malignant cells. These reprogrammed activities are now recognized as hallmarks of cancer, and recent work has uncovered remarkable flexibility in the specific pathways activated by tumor cells to support these key functions. In this perspective, we provide a conceptual framework to understand how and why metabolic reprogramming occurs in tumor cells, and the mechanisms linking altered metabolism to tumorigenesis and metastasis. Understanding these concepts will progressively support the development of new strategies to treat human cancer.

Fundamentals of cancer metabolism

Oxidative stress is a phenomenon caused by an imbalance between production and accumulation of oxygen reactive species (ROS) in cells and tissues and the ability of a biological system to detoxify these reactive products. ROS can play, and in fact they do it, several physiological roles (i.e., cell signaling), and they are normally generated as by-products of oxygen metabolism; despite this, environmental stressors (i.e., UV, ionizing radiations, pollutants, and heavy metals) and xenobiotics (i.e., antiblastic drugs) contribute to greatly increase ROS production, therefore causing the imbalance that leads to cell and tissue damage (oxidative stress). Several antioxidants have been exploited in recent years for their actual or supposed beneficial effect against oxidative stress, such as vitamin E, flavonoids, and polyphenols. While we tend to describe oxidative stress just as harmful for human body, it is true as well that it is exploited as a therapeutic approach to treat clinical conditions such as cancer, with a certain degree of clinical success. In this review, we will describe the most recent findings in the oxidative stress field, highlighting both its bad and good sides for human health.

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Oxidative Stress: Harms and Benefits for Human Health

Reactive oxygen species (ROS), which were originally characterized in terms of their harmful effects on cells and invading microorganisms, are increasingly implicated in various cell fate decisions and signal transduction pathways. The mechanism involved in ROS-dependent signalling involves the reversible oxidation and reduction of specific amino acids, with crucial reactive Cys residues being the most frequent target. In this Review, we discuss the sources of ROS within cells and what is known regarding how intracellular oxidant levels are regulated. We further discuss the recent observations that reduction-oxidation (redox)-dependent regulation has a crucial role in an ever-widening range of biological activities - from immune function to stem cell self-renewal, and from tumorigenesis to ageing.

Cellular mechanisms and physiological consequences of redox-dependent signalling

Understanding the Intersections between Metabolism and Cancer Biology

Metformin is widely used to reduce the high blood sugar levels caused by diabetes. Recently, several studies have suggested that patients taking metformin who also develop cancer have tumors that grow more slowly than average. As clinical trials have already started to investigate if metformin is an effective anti-cancer treatment, it is important to understand how it might restrict tumor growth. Researchers have proposed two ways that metformin could affect tumors. First, insulin is known to prompt cancer cells to divide, so the slower rate of tumor growth could just be a side-effect of the metformin reducing the amount of insulin in the blood. Alternatively, metformin could target cancer cells more directly by cutting the energy supply produced by their mitochondria. Metformin has been shown to disrupt complex I of the electron transport chain that is used by cells to generate energy. However, it is not known if disrupting complex I would actually stop cells dividing because they can generate energy in other ways. Wheaton, Weinberg et al. have now demonstrated that metformin does target complex I in cancer cells, and that its effects depend on the amount of glucose available for cells to convert, without involving mitochondria, into energy. When there is plenty of glucose, metformin slows down the rate at which cancer cells divide, which slows down tumor growth. When the cells are deprived of glucose, metformin kills the cells instead. Metformin also inhibits the pathways that regulate hypoxia inducible factors (HIFs), which are part of a system that helps cells to survive low-oxygen conditions, a prominent feature of many tumors. This means that metformin may combat cancer more effectively if used alongside other treatments that reduce the availability of both oxygen and glucose inside cells. Metformin could also potentially treat conditions that are linked to overactive HIFs, such as pulmonary hypertension.

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Metformin inhibits mitochondrial complex I of cancer cells to reduce tumorigenesis

Targeting antioxidants for cancer therapy.

Proper regulation of keratinocyte differentiation within the epidermis and follicular epithelium is essential for maintenance of epidermal barrier function and hair growth. The signaling intermediates that regulate the morphological and genetic changes associated with epidermal and follicular differentiation remain poorly understood. We tested the hypothesis that reactive oxygen species (ROS) generated by mitochondria are an important regulator of epidermal differentiation by generating mice with a keratinocyte-specific deficiency in mitochondrial transcription factor A (TFAM), which is required for the transcription of mitochondrial genes encoding electron transport chain subunits. Ablation of TFAM in keratinocytes impaired epidermal differentiation and hair follicle growth and resulted in death 2 weeks after birth. TFAM-deficient keratinocytes failed to generate mitochondria-derived ROS, a deficiency that prevented the transmission of Notch and β-catenin signals essential for epidermal differentiation and hair follicle development, respectively. In vitro keratinocyte differentiation was inhibited in the presence of antioxidants, and the decreased differentiation marker abundance in TFAM-deficient keratinocytes was partly rescued by application of exogenous hydrogen peroxide. These findings indicate that mitochondria-generated ROS are critical mediators of cellular differentiation and tissue morphogenesis.

Mitochondrial reactive oxygen species promote epidermal differentiation and hair follicle development.

Approximately 85% of lung cancers are non–small-cell lung cancers (NSCLCs), which are often diagnosed at an advanced stage and associated with poor prognosis. Currently, there are very few therapies available for NSCLCs due to the recalcitrant nature of this cancer. Mutations that activate the small GTPase KRAS are found in 20% to 30% of NSCLCs. Here, we report that inhibition of superoxide dismutase 1 (SOD1) by the small molecule ATN-224 induced cell death in various NSCLC cells, including those harboring KRAS mutations. ATN-224–dependent SOD1 inhibition increased superoxide, which diminished enzyme activity of the antioxidant glutathione peroxidase, leading to an increase in intracellular hydrogen peroxide (H2O2) levels. We found that ATN-224–induced cell death was mediated through H2O2-dependent activation of P38 MAPK and that P38 activation led to a decrease in the antiapoptotic factor MCL1, which is often upregulated in NSCLC. Treatment with both ATN-224 and ABT-263, an inhibitor of the apoptosis regulators BCL2/BCLXL, augmented cell death. Furthermore, we demonstrate that ATN-224 reduced tumor burden in a mouse model of NSCLC. Our results indicate that antioxidant inhibition by ATN-224 has potential clinical applications as a single agent, or in combination with other drugs, for the treatment of patients with various forms of NSCLC, including KRAS-driven cancers.

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Andrea Glasauer

Papers

Metformin inhibits mitochondrial complex I of cancer cells to reduce tumorigenesis

Targeting antioxidants for cancer therapy.

Mitochondrial reactive oxygen species promote epidermal differentiation and hair follicle development.

Targeting SOD1 reduces experimental non–small-cell lung cancer

Author response: Metformin inhibits mitochondrial complex I of cancer cells to reduce tumorigenesis