The androgen receptor (AR) plays an important role in the pathogenesis and development of prostate cancer (PCa). Mostly, PCa progresses to androgen-independent PCa, which has activated AR signaling from androgen-dependent PCa. Thus, inhibition of AR signaling may be an important therapeutic target in androgen-dependent and castration-resistant PCa. In this study, we determined the anticancer effect of a newly found natural compound, sakurasosaponin (S-saponin), using androgen-dependent and castration-resistant PCa cell lines. S-saponin induces mitochondrial-mediated cell death in both androgen-dependent (LNCaP) and castration-resistant (22Rv1 and C4-2) PCa cells, via AR expression. S-saponin treatment induces a decrease in AR expression in a time- and dose-dependent manner and a potent decrease in the expression of its target genes, including prostate-specific antigen (PSA), transmembrane protease, serin 2 (TMPRSS2), and NK3 homeobox 1 (NKX3.1). Furthermore, S-saponin treatment decreases B-cell lymphoma-extra large (Bcl-xL) and mitochondrial membrane potential, thereby increasing the release of cytochrome c into the cytosol. Moreover, Bcl-xL inhibition and subsequent mitochondria-mediated cell death caused by S-saponin were reversed by Bcl-xL or AR overexpression. Interestingly, S-saponin-mediated cell death was significantly reduced by a reactive oxygen species (ROS) scavenger, N-acetylcystein. Animal xenograft experiments showed that S-saponin treatment significantly reduced tumor growth of AR-positive 22Rv1 xenografts but not AR-negative PC-3 xenografts. Taken together, for the first time, our results revealed that S-saponin induces mitochondrial-mediated cell death in androgen-dependent and castration-resistant cells through regulation of AR mechanisms, including downregulation of Bcl-xL expression and induction of ROS stress by decreasing mitochondrial membrane potential.
Keywords: Androgen receptor; Bcl-xL; Prostate cancer; Sakurasosaponin.