Skip to main page content
U.S. flag

An official website of the United States government

Dot gov

The .gov means it’s official.
Federal government websites often end in .gov or .mil. Before sharing sensitive information, make sure you’re on a federal government site.

Https

The site is secure.
The https:// ensures that you are connecting to the official website and that any information you provide is encrypted and transmitted securely.

Access keys NCBI Homepage MyNCBI Homepage Main Content Main Navigation
Review
. 2013 Feb 14;19(6):813-28.
doi: 10.3748/wjg.v19.i6.813.

Current evidence for histone deacetylase inhibitors in pancreatic cancer

Ioannis Koutsounas  1 , Constantinos Giaginis, Efstratios Patsouris, Stamatios Theocharis
Affiliations
Review

Current evidence for histone deacetylase inhibitors in pancreatic cancer

Ioannis Koutsounas et al. World J Gastroenterol. .

Abstract

Pancreatic cancer is one of the most aggressive human cancers, with more than 200 000 deaths worldwide every year. Despite recent efforts, conventional treatment approaches, such as surgery and classic chemotherapy, have only slightly improved patient outcomes. More effective and well-tolerated therapies are required to reverse the current poor prognosis of this type of neoplasm. Among new agents, histone deacetylase inhibitors (HDACIs) are now being tested. HDACIs have multiple biological effects related to acetylation of histones and many non-histone proteins that are involved in regulation of gene expression, apoptosis, cell cycle progression and angiogenesis. HDACIs induce cell cycle arrest and can activate the extrinsic and intrinsic pathways of apoptosis in different cancer cell lines. In the present review, the main mechanisms by which HDACIs act in pancreatic cancer cells in vitro, as well as their antiproliferative effects in animal models are presented. HDACIs constitute a promising treatment for pancreatic cancer with encouraging anti-tumor effects, at well-tolerated doses.

Keywords: Experimental studies; Histone deacetylase inhibitors; Histone deacetylases; Pancreatic cancer.

PubMed Disclaimer

References

    1. Raimondi S, Maisonneuve P, Lowenfels AB. Epidemiology of pancreatic cancer: an overview. Nat Rev Gastroenterol Hepatol. 2009;6:699–708. - PubMed
    1. Hidalgo M. Pancreatic cancer. N Engl J Med. 2010;362:1605–1617. - PubMed
    1. Ries LAG, Eisner MP, Kosary CL, Hankey BF, Miller BA, Clegg L, Mariotto A, Fay MP, Feuer EJ, Edwards BK. SEER Cancer Statistics Review, 1975-2000. National Cancer Institute. 2003.
    1. Micke O, Hesselmann S, Bruns F, Horst E, Devries A, Schüller P, Willich N, Schäfer U. Results and follow-up of locally advanced cancer of the exocrine pancreas treated with radiochemotherapy. Anticancer Res. 2005;25:1523–1530. - PubMed
    1. Riess H, Helm A, Niedergethmann M, Schmidt-Wolf I, Moik M, Hammer C, Zippel K. A randomised, prospective, multicenter, phase iii trial of gemcitabine, 5-fluorouracil (5-fu), folinic acid vs. gemcitabine alone in patients with advanced pancreatic cancer. J Clin Oncol. 2005;23:4009. - PubMed

MeSH terms

Substances