Investigation of cytotoxic and apoptotic effects of disodium pentaborate decahydrate on ovarian cancer cells and assessment of gene profiling

• Published in: Medical oncology (Northwood, London, England) Vol. 40; no. 1; p. 8
• Main Authors: Gunel, Nur Selvi, Yildirim, Nuri, Ozates, Neslihan Pinar, Oktay, Latife Merve, Bagca, Bakiye Goker, Sogutlu, Fatma, Ozsaran, Aydin, Korkmaz, Mehmet, Biray Avci, Cigir
• Format: Journal Article
• Language: English
• Published: New York Springer US 29.10.2022; Springer Nature B.V
• Subjects: Antigens, Neoplasm; Antineoplastic Agents - pharmacology; Antineoplastic Agents - therapeutic use; Apoptosis; Apoptosis Regulatory Proteins - pharmacology; Apoptosis Regulatory Proteins - therapeutic use; Boron; Boron - pharmacology; Boron - therapeutic use; Carcinoma, Ovarian Epithelial - drug therapy; Carcinoma, Ovarian Epithelial - genetics; Carcinoma, Ovarian Epithelial - metabolism; Cell Line, Tumor; Cell Proliferation; Chemotherapy; Cytotoxicity; Female; Genes; Hematology; Humans; Internal Medicine; Medicine; Medicine & Public Health; Oncology; Original Paper; Ovarian cancer; Ovarian Neoplasms - drug therapy; Ovarian Neoplasms - genetics; Ovarian Neoplasms - metabolism; Pathology; Phosphatidylinositol 3-Kinases - metabolism; Proto-Oncogene Proteins c-akt - metabolism; Signal Transduction; TOR Serine-Threonine Kinases - genetics; TOR Serine-Threonine Kinases - metabolism; mTOR pathway; Boron compound; Disodium pentaborate decahydrate; Ovarian cancer
• ISSN: 1559-131X; 1357-0560; 1559-131X
• DOI: 10.1007/s12032-022-01870-1

After revealing the anti-cancer properties of boron, which is included in the category of essential elements for human health by the World Health Organization, the therapeutic potential of boron compounds has been begun to be evaluated, and its molecular effect mechanisms have still been among the research subjects. In ovarian cancer, mutations or amplifications frequently occur in the PI3K/Akt/mTOR pathway components, and dysregulation of this pathway is shown among the causes of treatment failure. In the present study, it was aimed to investigate the anti-cancer properties of boron-containing DPD in SKOV3 cells, which is an epithelial ovarian cancer model, through PI3K/AKT/mTOR pathway. The cytotoxic activity of DPD in SKOV3 cells was evaluated by WST-1 test, apoptotic effect by Annexin V and JC-1 test. The gene expressions associated with PI3K/AKT/mTOR pathway were determined by real-time qRT-PCR. In SKOV3 cells, the IC 50 value of DPD was found to be 6.7 mM, 5.6 mM, and 5.2 mM at 24th, 48th and 72nd hour, respectively. Compared with the untreated control group, DPD treatment was found to induce apoptosis 2.6-fold and increase mitochondrial membrane depolarization 4.5-fold. DPD treatment was found to downregulate PIK3CA , PIK3CG , AKT2 , IGF1 , IRS1 , MAPK3 , HIF-1 , VEGFC , CAB39 , CAB39L , STRADB , PRKAB2 , PRKAG3 , TELO2 , RICTOR , MLST8 , and EIF4B genes and upregulate TP53 , GSK3B , FKBP8 , TSC2 , ULK1 , and ULK2 genes. These results draw attention to the therapeutic potential of DPD, which is frequently exposed in daily life, in epithelial ovarian cancer and show that it can be a candidate compound in combination with chemotherapeutics.