Related Experiment Video
Updated: Feb 7, 2026

Evaluating Cell Death Using Cell-Free Supernatant of Probiotics in Three-Dimensional Spheroid Cultures of Colorectal Cancer Cells
Published on: June 13, 2020
Hypertonicity-imposed BCL-XL addiction primes colorectal cancer cells for death
Sina Heimer1, Gertrud Knoll2, Charlotte Steixner2
1Department of Oral and Maxillofacial Surgery, University Hospital Regensburg, Franz-Josef-Strauss-Allee 11, 93053, Regensburg, Germany.
Abstract:
Induction of mitochondria-controlled (intrinsic) apoptosis is a mainstay of current anti-neoplastic chemotherapies. Activation of this death pathway is counteracted by BCL-2-like proteins, which functionally set the threshold for apoptosis and determine whether malignant cells are sensitive or resistant to anti-cancer treatments. Hence, unlocking the intrinsic apoptotic cascade and promoting the cell's commitment to undergo apoptosis concordantly promotes efficacy of anti-cancer treatments. Here, we show that hyperosmotic stress enforces addiction of colorectal cancer cells to BCL-XL, thereby exhausting the protective capacity of BCL-2-like proteins and priming mitochondria for death. Our work identifies osmotic pressure as a cell extrinsic factor that modulates responsiveness of colorectal cancer cells to therapy.
Related Concept Videos
Autophagic Cell Death
Autophagy and Apoptosis
Autophagy can activate apoptosis. In normal conditions, the autophagy activating protein Beclin-1 and...
Overview of Cell Death
Cell death was observed in the early 19th century, but there was no experimental evidence to prove it. In 1842, Carl Vogt first discovered cell death in a metamorphic toad; however, it was not termed ‘cell death.’ Scientists discovered different cell death pathways only in the...
Drug Abuse and Addiction: Pharmacological Phenomena
Cancer Cell Migration through Invadopodia
Adaptive Mechanisms in Cancer Cells
Some of the advantages that cancer cells have on normal cells include - enhanced ability to divide without terminally differentiating, induce new blood vessel formation,...
Cancer Stem Cells and Tumor Maintenance
Cancer stem cells are thought to originate from tissue-specific normal stem cells or progenitor cells. The normal stem cells usually reside in...

