Celastrol mediates CAV1 to attenuate pro-tumorigenic effects of senescent cells

Cellular senescence is an emerging hallmark of cancers, primarily fuels cancer progression by expressing senescence-associated secretory phenotype (SASP). Caveolin-1 (CAV1) is a key mediator of cell senescence. Previous studies from our group have evidenced that the expression of CAV1 is downregulated by Celastrol (CeT).

To investigate the impact of CeT on cellular senescence and its subsequent influence on post-senescence-driven invasion, migration, and stemness of clear cell renal cell carcinoma (ccRCC).

The expression levels of CAV1, canonical senescence markers, and markers associated with epithelial-mesenchymal transition (EMT) and stemness in clinical samples were assessed through Pearson correlation analysis. Senescent cell models were induced using DOX, and their impact on migration, invasion, and stemness was evaluated. The effects of CeT treatment on senescent cells and their pro-tumorigenic effects were examined. Subsequently, the underlying mechanism of CeT were explored using lentivirus transfection and CRISPR/Cas9 technology to silence CAV1.

In human ccRCC clinical samples, the expression of the canonical senescence markers p53, p21, and p16 are associated with ccRCC progression. Senescent cells facilitated migration, invasion, and enhanced stemness in both ccRCC cells and ccRCC tumor-bearing mice. As expected, CeT treatment reduced senescence markers (p16, p53, p21, SA-β-gal) and SASP factors (IL6, IL8, CXCL12), alleviating cell cycle arrest. However, it did not restore the proliferation of senescent cells. Additionally, CeT suppressed senescence-driven migration, invasion, and stemness. Further investigations into the underlying mechanism demonstrated that CAV1 is a critical mediator of cell senescence and represents a potential target for CeT to attenuate cellular senescence.

This study presents a pioneering investigation into the intricate interplay between cellular senescence and ccRCC progression. We unveil a novel mechanism of CeT to mitigate cellular senescence by downregulating CAV1, thereby inhibiting the migration, invasion and stemness of ccRCC driven by senescent cells. These findings provide valuable insights into the underlying mechanisms of CeT and its potential as a targeted therapeutic approach for alleviating the aggressive phenotypes associated with senescent cells in ccRCC.