Na,K-ATPase is a target of cigarette smoke and reduced expression predicts poor patient outcome of smokers with lung cancer.

Abstract

Diminished Na,K-ATPase expression has been reported in several carcinomas and has been linked to tumor progression. However, few studies have determined whether Na,K-ATPase function and expression are altered in lung malignancies. Because cigarette smoke (CS) is a major factor underlying lung carcinogenesis and progression, we investigated whether CS affects Na,K-ATPase activity and expression in lung cell lines. Cells exposed to CS in vitro showed a reduction of Na,K-ATPase activity. We detected the presence of reactive oxygen species (ROS) in cells exposed to CS before Na,K-ATPase inhibition, and neutralization of ROS restored Na,K-ATPase activity. We further determined whether Na,K-ATPase expression correlated with increasing grades of lung adenocarcinoma and survival of patients with smoking history. Immunohistochemical analysis of lung adenocarcinoma tissues revealed reduced Na,K-ATPase expression with increasing tumor grade. Using tissue microarray containing lung adenocarcinomas of patients with known smoking status, we found that high expression of Na,K-ATPase correlated with better survival. For the first time, these data demonstrate that CS is associated with loss of Na,K-ATPase function and expression in lung carcinogenesis, which might contribute to disease progression.

EDRN PI Authors
Medline Author List
  • Alavi M
  • Chia D
  • Dubinett SM
  • Fishbein MC
  • Goodglick L
  • Harper J
  • Horvath S
  • Huynh TP
  • Langhans SA
  • Mah V
  • Rajasekaran AK
  • Sampson VB
  • Sarafian T
  • Wu DC
PubMed ID
Appears In
Am J Physiol Lung Cell Mol Physiol, 2012 Jun, volume 302 (issue 11)