Ethanol extract of Vanilla planifolia stems reduces PAK6 expression and induces cell death in glioblastoma cells.

in Journal of cellular and molecular medicine by Hui Hua Chang, Alice Y W Chang, Bing-Chen Tsai, Yu-Ju Chen, Sung-Ghun Wu, Li-Jyun Chen, Yi-Xuan Lin, Yuan-Shuo Hsueh

TLDR

  • The study demonstrated that the ethanol extract of Vanilla planifolia stem significantly reduced the viability and colony formation of GBM cells and identified PAK6 as a potential therapeutic target.

Abstract

Glioblastoma multiforme (GBM) is a malignant tumour with a poor prognosis. Therefore, potential treatment strategies and novel therapeutic targets have gained increased attention. Our data showed that the ethanol extract of Vanilla planifolia stem (VAS) significantly decreased the viability and the colony formation of GBM cells. Moreover, VAS induced the cleavage of MAP1LC3, a marker of autophagy. Further RNA-seq and bioinformatic analysis revealed 4248 differentially expressed genes (DEGs) between VAS-treated GBM cells and the control cells. Protein-protein interactions between DEGs with fold changes less than -3 and more than 5 were further analysed, and we found that 16 and 9 hub DEGs, respectively, were correlated with other DEGs. Further qPCR experiments confirmed that 14 hub DEGs was significantly downregulated and 9 hub DEGs was significantly upregulated. In addition, another significantly downregulated DEG, p21-activated kinase 6 (PAK6), was correlated with the overall survival of GBM patients. Further validation experiments confirmed that VAS significantly reduced the mRNA and protein expression of PAK6, which led to the abolition of cell viability and colony formation. These findings demonstrated that VAS reduced cell viability, suppressed colony formation and induced autophagy and revealed PAK6 and other DEGs as potential therapeutic targets for GBM treatment.

Overview

  • The study aimed to investigate the potential therapeutic effects of the ethanol extract of Vanilla planifolia stem (VAS) on Glioblastoma multiforme (GBM) cells.
  • The study employed RNA-seq and bioinformatic analysis to identify differentially expressed genes (DEGs) between VAS-treated GBM cells and control cells.
  • The primary objective of the study was to identify novel therapeutic targets and to explore the molecular mechanisms underlying the anti-tumor effects of VAS.

Comparative Analysis & Findings

  • VAS significantly decreased the viability and colony formation of GBM cells, indicating its anti-tumor effect.
  • VAS induced the cleavage of MAP1LC3, a marker of autophagy, suggesting that autophagy may be involved in the anti-tumor effects of VAS.
  • Further analysis revealed 4248 DEGs between VAS-treated GBM cells and control cells, including hub DEGs that were correlated with other DEGs.

Implications and Future Directions

  • The study's findings suggest that VAS and its targeted DEGs, including PAK6, may be potential therapeutic targets for GBM treatment.
  • Future studies could investigate the mechanisms underlying the anti-tumor effects of VAS and explore its potential application in clinical trials.
  • The study's findings highlight the importance of autophagy in the anti-tumor effects of VAS and suggest that modulating autophagy may be a novel therapeutic strategy for GBM treatment.
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