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J. Biol. Chem., Vol. 282, Issue 27, 19273-19281, July 6, 2007

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Survivin Down-regulation Plays a Crucial Role in 3-Hydroxy-3-methylglutaryl Coenzyme A Reductase Inhibitor-induced Apoptosis in Cancer^*

From the Department of Clinical Laboratory Medicine, Sapporo Medical University School of Medicine, Sapporo 060-8543, Japan

3-Hydroxy-3-methylglutaryl coenzyme A reductase inhibitors (HRIs) are widely used to reduce serum cholesterol in patients with hypercholesterolemia. Previous studies have shown that HRIs can induce apoptosis in colon cancer cells. In this study, we investigated the mechanisms underlying the apoptosis-inducing effect of HRIs in greater detail. The HRI lovastatin induced apoptosis in the human colon cancer cell line SW480 by blocking the cholesterol synthesis pathway. Immunoblot analysis of antiapoptotic molecules, including survivin, XIAP, cIAP-1, cIAP-2, Bcl-2, and Bcl-X_L, revealed that only survivin expression was decreased by lovastatin. Survivin down-regulation by RNA interference induced apoptosis, and survivin overexpression rendered the cells resistant to lovastatin-induced growth inhibition. These results indicate that survivin down-regulation contributes substantially to the proapoptotic properties of lovastatin. Farnesyl pyrophosphate and geranylgeranyl pyrophosphate, two downstream intermediates in the cholesterol synthesis pathway, simultaneously reversed survivin down-regulation and the blocking of Ras isoprenylation by lovastatin. Ras isoprenylation is important for the activation of Ras-mediated signaling, including the activation of the phosphatidylinositol 3-kinase (PI3-kinase)/Akt pathway. The PI3-kinase inhibitor down-regulated survivin in SW480 cells. In addition, lovastatin blocked Ras activation and Akt phosphorylation. We conclude that survivin down-regulation is crucial in lovastatin-induced apoptosis in cancer cells and that lovastatin decreases survivin expression by inhibiting Ras-mediated PI3-kinase activation via the blocking of Ras isoprenylation.

Received for publication, November 7, 2006 , and in revised form, April 13, 2007.

^* The costs of publication of this article were defrayed in part by the payment of page charges. This article must therefore be hereby marked "advertisement" in accordance with 18 U.S.C. Section 1734 solely to indicate this fact.

¹ Both authors contributed equally to this work.

² To whom correspondence should be addressed: Dept. of Clinical Laboratory Medicine, Sapporo Medical University, School of Medicine, South-1, West-16, Chuo-ku, Sapporo 060-8543, Japan. Tel.: 81-11-611-2111 (Ext. 3640); Fax: 81-11-622-7502; E-mail: watanabn{at}sapmed.ac.jp.

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