Increased manganese superoxide dismutase (SOD-2) is part of the mechanism for prostate tumor suppression by Mac25/insulin-like growth factor binding-protein-related protein-1.

Increased expression of mac25/insulin-like growth factor binding-protein related protein-1 (IGFBP-rP1) in human breast and prostate epithelial cell lines results in the suppression of tumor growth. CDNA expression array analysis revealed increased manganese superoxide dismutase (SOD-2) expression in the mac25/IGFBP-rP1-transfected M12 human prostate cancer cell line compared to M12 control cells. SOD-2 has been postulated to be a tumor suppressor. SOD-2 was also increased in LNCaP cells stably transfected with mac25/IGFBP-rP1, but not in mac25/IGFBP-rP1-transfected PC-3 cells. Mac25 LNCaP cells had a marked decrease in tumor growth in nude mice compared to controls, but there was no difference in tumor growth in mac25 PC-3 cells compared to control. Phosphorylated Erk and Akt were increased in the M12 and LNCaP transfected mac25/IGFBP-rP1 cells but not PC-3 mac25. Inhibition of PI-3 kinase results in a marked decrease in viability of the M12-mac25 cells compared to M12 controls. Cells treated with H(2)O(2) result in an increase in phospho-ERK. Transfection of SOD-2 in M12 cells markedly decreased tumor growth, apoptosis, G1 delay in the cell cycle, and expression of senescence associated beta-galactosidase. These results suggest that one of the downstream mediators of the senescence-associated tumor suppression effect of mac25/IGFBP-rP1 is SOD-2.