CF₃DODA-Me induces apoptosis, degrades Sp1, and blocks the transformation phase of the blebbishield emergency program

Cancer stem cells are capable of undergoing cellular transformation after commencement of apoptosis through the blebbishield emergency program in a VEGF-VEGFR2-dependent manner. Development of therapeutics targeting the blebbishield emergency program would thus be important in cancer therapy. Specificity protein 1 (Sp1) orchestrates the transcription of both VEGF and VEGFR2; hence, Sp1 could act as a therapeutic target. Here, we demonstrate that CF₃DODA-Me induced apoptosis, degraded Sp1, inhibited the expression of multiple drivers of the blebbishield emergency program such as VEGFR2, p70S6K, and N-Myc through activation of caspase-3, inhibited reactive oxygen species; and inhibited K-Ras activation to abolish transformation from blebbishields as well as transformation in soft agar. These findings confirm CF₃DODA-Me as a potential therapeutic candidate that can induce apoptosis and block transformation from blebbishields.