Date of Award
2013
Document Type
Honors Thesis (Open Access)
Department
Colby College. Chemistry Dept.
Advisor(s)
Kevin P. Rice
Second Advisor
Ethan Kohn
Abstract
Laromustine is a sulfonylhydrazine anticancer prodrug whose cytotoxicity results from the formation of interstrand cross-links caused by the synergistic action of co- generated 2-chloroethylating and carbamoylating species. The cytotoxic activities of Laromustine involve the induction of apoptosis. Described herein is an investigation into this drug’s effects on apoptotic gene expression in HL-60 cells using qRT-PCR. Significant changes in the expression levels of 13 genes were observed, most dramatically in the upregulation of the bcl2-associated athanogene 3 (BAG3) gene. Given the pro-survival role of BAG3 in the cell, this investigation sought to decrease BAG3 mRNA levels in HL-60 cells using transient shRNA transfections in conjunction with qRT-PCR analysis and cell death assays to assess the effect of BAG3 knockdown on sensitizing cancerous cells to Laromustine-induced cell death.
Keywords
BAG3, Laromustine, Leukemia, Apoptosis
Recommended Citation
Gross, Kayla, "Investigating the effects of BAG3 knockdown on the cytotoxicity of the anticancer drug Laromustine" (2013). Honors Theses. Paper 676.https://digitalcommons.colby.edu/honorstheses/676
Multimedia URL
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