[en] PTEN (Phosphatase and Tensin homolog deleted on chromosome Ten) negatively regulates PI3K/Akt signaling, which is one of the most important pathways for cell survival and inhibition of apoptosis. PTEN tumor suppressor gene is dual phosphates with lipid and protein phosphates activities and antagonizes phosphoinositide 3-kinase (PI3K) by dephosphorylating phos-phatidylinositol-3, 4, 5-triphosphate (PIP3). The inactivation of PTEN function results in increased Akt activity and development of various cancers including breast, endometrial, prostate, giloblastoma and lung cancer. In this study, we have exploited novel mechanism of PTEN that inhibit the PI3K/Akt pathway as molecular targets of radiation sensitization for cancer treatment. Our data suggested that combined treatment of PTEN and radiation enhanced G2/M phase accumulation of cell cycle through Akt inactivation and regulation of p21 and activity of CDK1

[en] Purpose: To identify the role of phosphatase and tensin homolog deleted on chromosome 10 (PTEN) during γ-ionizing radiation (γ-IR) treatment for non-small-cell lung cancer cells. Methods and Materials: Wild-type PTEN or mutant forms of PTEN plasmids were transfected to construct stable transfectants of the NCI-H1299 non-small-cell lung cancer cell line. Combined effects of PTEN expression and IR treatment were tested using immunoblot, clonogenic, and cell-counting assays. Related signaling pathways were studied with immunoblot and kinase assays. Results: At steady state, stable transfectants showed almost the same proliferation rate but had different AKT phosphorylation patterns. When treated with γ-IR, wild-type PTEN transfectants showed higher levels of cell death compared with mock vector or mutant transfectants, and showed increased G₂/M cell-cycle arrest accompanied by p21 induction and CDK1 inactivation. NCI-H1299 cells were treated with phosphosinositide-3 kinase (PI3K)/AKT pathway inhibitor (LY29002), resulting in reduced AKT phosphorylation levels. Treatment of NCI-H1299 cells with LY29002 and γ-IR resulted in increased cell-cycle arrest and p21 induction. Endogenous wild-type PTEN-containing NCI-H460 cells were treated with PTEN-specific siRNA and then irradiated with γ-IR: however reduced PTEN levels did not induce cell-cycle arrest or p21 expression. Conclusions: Taken together, these findings indicate that PTEN may modulate cell death or the cell cycle via AKT inactivation by PTEN and γ-IR treatment. We also propose that a PTEN-PI3K/AKT-p21-CDK1 pathway could regulate cell death and the cell cycle by γ-IR treatment