Erxi Wu, assistant professor of pharmaceutical sciences, and Fengfei Wang, research associate of pharmaceutical sciences, co-wrote the article, "β2-adrenoceptor blocker synergizes with gemcitabine to inhibit the proliferation of pancreatic cancer cells via apoptosis induction,” which will be published by the European Journal of Pharmacology.
According to the authors, stimulation of β2-adrenoceptor, which is major mediator for chronic stress-induced cancers, has been associated with the progression in the number of cancer cells. This includes pancreatic cancer, which remains one of the most aggressive and lethal diseases worldwide. Whether β- adrenoceptor rivals potentiate gemcitabine, a standard first-line treatment for advanced pancreatic cancer that offers only modest benefit due to acquired chemoresistance, has not been revealed. Wu and Wang studied the antiproliferative and apoptotic effects and the underlying mechanisms of gemcitabine combined with the β2-adrenoceptor blocker ICI 118551 (1-[2,3-(dihydro-7-methyl-1H-iden-4-yl)oxy]-3-[(1-methylethyl)amino]-2-butanol), in human pancreatic cancer BxPC-3 and MIA PaCa-2 cells. Results show that ICI 118551 significantly synergized the antiproliferative and pro-apoptotic effects induced by gemcitabine in both BxPC-3 and MIA PaCa-2 cells (p < 0.05 combination vs. gemcitabine or ICI 118551 alone). When cells were treated with the combination of gemcitabine and ICI 118551, NF-kB activation was blocked; the expression of Bax protein was substantially increased; and Bcl-2 protein was downregulated.
"In this study, our data suggest ICI 118551 potentiates the antiproliferative effects of gemcitabine by inducing apoptosis in pancreatic cancer cells. The study implies that this combination may be an effective therapeutic strategy for pancreatic cancer,” Wu said, “Collaborating with Qingyong Ma’s laboratory at Xi’an Jiaotong University, China, we have published four papers together during the last two months. We aim to elucidate the mechanisms of the targeted therapy for pancreatic cancer, a fatal disease.”
According to the Elsevier website, The European Journal of Pharmacology publishes full-length papers on the mechanisms of action of chemical substances affecting biological systems.
Wu laboratory research interests include tumor therapeutic targets, drug discovery, drug targets and biomarkers.