The anti-tumor effect of HDAC inhibition in a human pancreas cancer model is significantly improved by the simultaneous inhibition of cyclooxygenase 2

PLoS One. 2013 Sep 11;8(9):e75102. doi: 10.1371/journal.pone.0075102. eCollection 2013.

Abstract

Pancreatic ductal adenocarcinoma is the fourth leading cause of cancer death worldwide, with no satisfactory treatment to date. In this study, we tested whether the combined inhibition of cyclooxygenase-2 (COX-2) and class I histone deacetylase (HDAC) may results in a better control of pancreatic ductal adenocarcinoma. The impact of the concomitant HDAC and COX-2 inhibition on cell growth, apoptosis and cell cycle was assessed first in vitro on human pancreas BxPC-3, PANC-1 or CFPAC-1 cells treated with chemical inhibitors (SAHA, MS-275 and celecoxib) or HDAC1/2/3/7 siRNA. To test the potential antitumoral activity of this combination in vivo, we have developed and characterized, a refined chick chorioallantoic membrane tumor model that histologically and proteomically mimics human pancreatic ductal adenocarcinoma. The combination of HDAC1/3 and COX-2 inhibition significantly impaired proliferation of BxPC-3 cells in vitro and stalled entirely the BxPC-3 cells tumor growth onto the chorioallantoic membrane in vivo. The combination was more effective than either drug used alone. Consistently, we showed that both HDAC1 and HDAC3 inhibition induced the expression of COX-2 via the NF-kB pathway. Our data demonstrate, for the first time in a Pancreatic Ductal Adenocarcinoma (PDAC) model, a significant action of HDAC and COX-2 inhibitors on cancer cell growth, which sets the basis for the development of potentially effective new combinatory therapies for pancreatic ductal adenocarcinoma patients.

Publication types

  • Research Support, Non-U.S. Gov't

MeSH terms

  • Animals
  • Antineoplastic Agents / pharmacology*
  • Apoptosis / drug effects
  • Cell Cycle / drug effects
  • Cell Line, Tumor
  • Cell Proliferation / drug effects
  • Chorioallantoic Membrane / cytology
  • Chorioallantoic Membrane / drug effects
  • Cyclooxygenase 2 / metabolism*
  • Cyclooxygenase 2 Inhibitors / pharmacology*
  • Drug Synergism
  • Gene Expression Regulation, Neoplastic / drug effects
  • Histone Deacetylase 1 / antagonists & inhibitors*
  • Histone Deacetylase Inhibitors / pharmacology*
  • Humans
  • Pancreatic Neoplasms / pathology*
  • Tumor Burden / drug effects

Substances

  • Antineoplastic Agents
  • Cyclooxygenase 2 Inhibitors
  • Histone Deacetylase Inhibitors
  • Cyclooxygenase 2
  • Histone Deacetylase 1

Grants and funding

This work was supported by the Belgium National Fund for Scientific Research (http://www.frs-fnrs.be) and Télévie; the Centre Anti-Cancéreux près de l’Université de Liège (http://www.cac.ulg.ac.be). The funders had no role in study design, data collection and analysis, decision to publish, or preparation of the manuscript. A. Gonzalez is a Télévie fellow. A. Turtoi and D. Mottet are respectively Postdoctoral Researcher and Research Associate at the Belgium National Fund for Scientific Research.