Targeting autophagy using natural compounds for cancer prevention and therapy

Autophagy is the engulfment of cytosol and organelles by double-membrane vesicles termed autophagosomes. Autophagosome formation is known to require phosphatidylinositol 3-phosphate (PI(3)P) and occurs near the endoplasmic reticulum (ER), but the exact mechanisms are unknown. We show that double FYVE domain–containing protein 1, a PI(3)P-binding protein with unusual localization on ER and Golgi membranes, translocates in response to amino acid starvation to a punctate compartment partially colocalized with autophagosomal proteins. Translocation is dependent on Vps34 and beclin function. Other PI(3)P-binding probes targeted to the ER show the same starvation-induced translocation that is dependent on PI(3)P formation and recognition. Live imaging experiments show that this punctate compartment forms near Vps34-containing vesicles, is in dynamic equilibrium with the ER, and provides a membrane platform for accumulation of autophagosomal proteins, expansion of autophagosomal membranes, and emergence of fully formed autophagosomes. This PI(3)P-enriched compartment may be involved in autophagosome biogenesis. Its dynamic relationship with the ER is consistent with the idea that the ER may provide important components for autophagosome formation.

Macroautophagy (autophagy) is a regulated catabolic pathway to degrade cellular organelles and macromolecules. The role of autophagy in cancer is complex and may differ depending on tumor type or context. Here we show that pancreatic cancers have a distinct dependence on autophagy. Pancreatic cancer primary tumors and cell lines show elevated autophagy under basal conditions. Genetic or pharmacologic inhibition of autophagy leads to increased reactive oxygen species, elevated DNA damage, and a metabolic defect leading to decreased mitochondrial oxidative phosphorylation. Together, these ultimately result in significant growth suppression of pancreatic cancer cells in vitro. Most importantly, inhibition of autophagy by genetic means or chloroquine treatment leads to robust tumor regression and prolonged survival in pancreatic cancer xenografts and genetic mouse models. These results suggest that, unlike in other cancers where autophagy inhibition may synergize with chemotherapy or targeted agents by preventing the up-regulation of autophagy as a reactive survival mechanism, autophagy is actually required for tumorigenic growth of pancreatic cancers de novo, and drugs that inactivate this process may have a unique clinical utility in treating pancreatic cancers and other malignancies with a similar dependence on autophagy. As chloroquine and its derivatives are potent inhibitors of autophagy and have been used safely in human patients for decades for a variety of purposes, these results are immediately translatable to the treatment of pancreatic cancer patients, and provide a much needed, novel vantage point of attack.

Chemoprevention refers to the use of agents to inhibit, reverse or retard tumorigenesis. Numerous phytochemicals derived from edible plants have been reported to interfere with a specific stage of the carcinogenic process. Many mechanisms have been shown to account for the anticarcinogenic actions of dietary constituents, but attention has recently been focused on intracellular-signalling cascades as common molecular targets for various chemopreventive phytochemicals.