Related Experiment Video

Updated: Jun 24, 2026

Knockdown of FAM83A to Verify Its Role in Cervical Cancer Cell Growth and Cisplatin Sensitivity
04:20

Knockdown of FAM83A to Verify Its Role in Cervical Cancer Cell Growth and Cisplatin Sensitivity

Published on: February 9, 2024

FAPP2 gene downregulation increases tumor cell sensitivity to Fas-induced apoptosis

Richard Tritz1, Michelle J Hickey, Amy H Lin

  • 1Brain Tumor Research Program, Sidney Kimmel Cancer Center, San Diego, CA 92121, USA.

Biochemical and Biophysical Research Communications
|April 4, 2009
PubMed

Insights

Phosphatidylinositol-4-phosphate adaptor-2 (FAPP2) promotes cancer cell survival. Inhibiting FAPP2 gene expression can induce apoptosis in tumor cells, suggesting FAPP2 as a potential cancer therapy target.

Area of Science:

  • Molecular and Cellular Biology
  • Cancer Research
  • Cell Signaling

Background:

  • Phosphatidylinositol-4-phosphate adaptor-2 (FAPP2) is a cytoplasmic lipid transferase involved in vesicle transport.
  • FAPP2's role in cancer cell survival and apoptosis resistance was previously uncharacterized.

Purpose of the Study:

  • To investigate the role of FAPP2 in tumor cell apoptosis.
  • To evaluate FAPP2 as a potential therapeutic target for cancer treatment.

Main Methods:

  • Quantitative PCR (qPCR) to measure FAPP2 gene expression.
  • Small interfering RNA (siRNA) to specifically target and reduce FAPP2 expression in various human tumor cells (colon carcinoma, glioma, breast cancer).
  • Treatment with Fas agonistic antibody or soluble Fas Ligand (FasL) to induce apoptosis.
  • Assessment of cell viability and apoptosis rates.

Main Results:

  • siRNA-mediated knockdown of FAPP2 significantly reduced FAPP2 gene expression in tumor cells.
  • FAPP2 siRNA transfection led to increased apoptosis in colon carcinoma cells treated with Fas antibody.
  • FAPP2 siRNA transfection significantly increased apoptosis in glioma and breast tumor cells upon FasL stimulation, independent of Fas expression levels.

Conclusions:

  • FAPP2 plays a critical role in conferring resistance to apoptosis in cancer cells.
  • Targeting FAPP2, for instance, through siRNA, represents a promising strategy for cancer therapy.
  • FAPP2 is identified as a novel therapeutic target for enhancing cancer cell apoptosis.

More Related Videos

Identification of Transcription Factor Regulators using Medium-Throughput Screening of Arrayed Libraries and a Dual-Luciferase-Based Reporter11:32

Identification of Transcription Factor Regulators using Medium-Throughput Screening of Arrayed Libraries and a Dual-Luciferase-Based Reporter

Published on: March 27, 2020

The Soft Agar Colony Formation Assay08:01

The Soft Agar Colony Formation Assay

Published on: October 27, 2014

Related Concept Videos

The Extrinsic Apoptotic Pathway01:17

The Extrinsic Apoptotic Pathway

The extrinsic apoptotic pathway is initiated when extracellular death-inducing signals, such as specific cytokines, activate the death receptors expressed on the cell surface. The immune cells involved in this pathway are natural killer cells (NK cells) and cytotoxic T-lymphocytes. NK cells are critical in innate immune response, while cytotoxic T-lymphocytes are associated with adaptive immune response. These cells recognize specific receptors expressed on the altered cells and activate...
Abnormal Proliferation02:23

Abnormal Proliferation

Under normal conditions, most adult cells remain in a non-proliferative state unless stimulated by internal or external factors to replace lost cells. Abnormal cell proliferation is a condition in which the cell's growth exceeds and is uncoordinated with normal cells. In such situations, cell division persists in the same excessive manner even after cessation of the stimuli, leading to persistent tumors. The tumor arises from the damaged cells that replicate to pass the damage to the daughter...
The Intrinsic Apoptotic Pathway01:31

The Intrinsic Apoptotic Pathway

Internal cellular stress, such as cellular injury or hypoxia, triggers intrinsic apoptosis. The B-cell lymphoma 2 (Bcl-2) family of proteins are the primary regulators of the intrinsic apoptotic pathway. For example, during DNA damage, checkpoint proteins, such as Ataxia Telangiectasia Mutated (ATM protein) and Checkpoints Factor-2 (Chk2) proteins, are activated. These proteins phosphorylate p53 which further activates pro-apoptotic proteins, such as Bax, Bak, PUMA, and Noxa, and inhibits...
Interactions Between Signaling Pathways01:19

Interactions Between Signaling Pathways

Signaling cascades usually lack linearity. Multiple pathways interact and regulate one another, allowing cells to integrate and respond to diverse environmental stimuli.
Convergence and divergence, and cross-talk between signaling pathways
Two distinct signaling pathways can converge on a single functional unit, which may either be a single protein or a complex of proteins. The response is either functionally distinct or synergistic between the two pathways but different from the response...
mTOR Signaling and Cancer Progression03:03

mTOR Signaling and Cancer Progression

The mammalian target of rapamycin or mTOR protein was discovered in 1994 due to its direct interaction with rapamycin. The protein gets its name from a yeast homolog called TOR. The mTOR protein complex in mammalian cells plays a major role in balancing anabolic processes such as the synthesis of proteins, lipids, and nucleotides and catabolic processes, such as autophagy in response to environmental cues, such as availability of nutrients and growth factors.
The mTOR pathway or the...
Cancer-Critical Genes II: Tumor Suppressor Genes01:05

Cancer-Critical Genes II: Tumor Suppressor Genes

Genes usually encode proteins necessary for the proper functioning of a healthy cell. Mutations can often cause changes to the gene expression pattern, thereby altering the phenotype.
When the function of certain critical genes, especially those involved in cell cycle regulation and cell growth signaling cascades, gets disrupted, it upsets the cell cycle progression. Such cells with unchecked cell cycles start proliferating uncontrollably and eventually develop into tumors.
Such genes that act...