A novel monocarbonyl analogue of curcumin, (1E,4E)-1,5-bis(2,3-dimethoxyphenyl)penta-1,4-dien-3-one, induced cancer cell H460 apoptosis via activation of endoplasmic reticulum stress signaling pathway.

Endoplasmic reticulum (ER) stress-induced cancer cell apoptosis has become a novel signaling target for development of cancer therapeutic drugs. Curcumin exhibits growth-suppressive activity against a variety of cancer cells. We previously synthesized a series of monocarbonyl analogues of curcumin with strong cytotoxicity against tumor cells. In this study, we found that only compound 19 [(1E,4E)-1,5-bis(2,3-dimethoxyphenyl)penta-1,4-dien-3-one] can induce C/EBP-homologous protein (CHOP) expression in human lung cancer H460 cells. Treatment with 19 induced H460 cell apoptosis in a dose-responsive manner, and this effect was associated with corresponding increases in a series of key components in ER stress-mediated apoptosis pathway, followed by caspase cleavage and activation. However, curcumin at the same concentrations does not display such properties. CHOP knockdown by specific siRNA attenuated 19-induced cell apoptosis, further indicating that the apoptotic pathway is ER stress-dependent. In vivo, 19 showed a dramatic 53.5% reduction in H460 xenograft tumor size after 22 days of treatment. Taken together, these mechanistic insights on the novel compound 19, with nontoxicity, may provide us with a novel anticancer candidate.