Therapeutic significance of elevated tissue transglutaminase expression in pancreatic cancer

Amit Verma, Sushovan Guha, Parmeswaran Diagaradjane, Ajaikumar B. Kunnumakkara, Angela M. Sanguino, Gabriel Lopez-Berestein, Anil K. Sood, Bharat B. Aggarwal, Sunil Krishnan, Juri G. Gelovani, Kapil Mehta

Research output: Contribution to journalArticlepeer-review

88 Scopus citations

Abstract

Purpose: Tissue transglutaminase (TG2) is a multifunctional protein that is implicated in development of drug resistance and metastasis. Therefore, we examined therapeutic targeting of TG2 for inhibiting growth and metastasis of in vivo growing pancreatic ductal adenocarcinoma (PDAC) in nude mice. Experimental Design: We implanted Panc-28 pancreatic cancer cells to induce orthotopic PDAC tumors in nude mice and determined the efficacy of liposomal TG2 small interfering RNA (siRNA) either alone or in combination with gemcitabine. Results: We show that down-regulation of endogenous TG2 by siRNA could effectively block the growth of PDAC. Moreover, down-regulation of TG2 significantly enhanced the therapeutic efficacy of gemcitabine against PDAC and inhibited metastatic spread of the disease. The antitumor activity was related to inhibition of proliferation, angiogenesis, and Akt phosphorylation. Conclusion: siRNA-mediated down-regulation of TG2 represents a promising therapeutic approach for improved treatment of PDAC.

Original languageEnglish (US)
Pages (from-to)2476-2483
Number of pages8
JournalClinical Cancer Research
Volume14
Issue number8
DOIs
StatePublished - Apr 15 2008

ASJC Scopus subject areas

  • Oncology
  • Cancer Research

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