Inhibition of gamma-secretase affects proliferation of leukemia and hepatoma cell lines through Notch signaling

Notch signaling is a well-conserved pathway playing crucial roles in regulating cell fate decision, proliferation, and apoptosis during the development of multiple cell lineages. Aberration in Notch signaling is associated with tumorigenesis of tissues from various origins. To investigate the role Notch signaling plays in the proliferation of cancer cell lines, the expression profiles of Notch1 in six human cancer cell lines (Jurkat, HepG2, SW620, KATOIII, A375, BT474) were examined. All cell lines differentially expressed Notch1, and only Jurkat and SW620 expressed cleaved Notch1 (Val1744). Among the six cell lines tested, only Jurkat and HepG2 showed a decrease in cell proliferation during 4 days of treatment with a gamma-secretase inhibitor (GSI). This is the first report on the anti-proliferative effects of GSI on a human hepatoma cell line. These two cell lines expressed Notch1-3, Jagged1, Jagged2, Dik1 and Hes1. GSI treatment led to a decrease in Hes1 expression in both cell lines. Surprisingly, GSI treatment resulted in the accumulation of Notch1 protein upon treatment. During this period, GSI treatment did not induce apoptosis, but caused cell cycle arrest in both cell lines. This was also correlated with decreased c-myc expression. Forced expression of activated intracellular Notch1 completely abrogated GSI sensitivity in both cell lines. These results clearly demonstrate that Notch signaling positively regulates cell proliferation in Jurkat and HepG2 cell lines and that GSI treatment inhibits tumor cell proliferation through the suppression of Notch signaling.