Ovarian tumor derived-exosomes augment the expression of the nuclear factor NF-κB in human umbilical vein endothelial cells

Purpose: Ovarian cancer is one of the most common gynecologic malignancies and the fifth most common cause of cancer death in women. Since the development of cancer cells is a complex process, one of the major concerns is the existence of intercellular communication especially by cancer cells and their non-cancerous cells (e.g. endothelial cells). Exosomes are lipid-bilayer-enclosed extracellular nano-sized (<100 nm) vesicles released by most types of cells and function in intercellular communication .As activation of the nuclear factor NF-κB has been found to control cellular process in cancer, we aim to identify the effects of ovarian tumor-derived exosomes on NF-κB expression in human umbilical vein endothelial cells (HUVECs).Materials and methods: Exosome derived from ovarian tumor cells (SKOV3) were purified by ExoSpin kit and characterized by scanning electron microscopy analyses and dynamic light scattering measurements. HUVECs were treated with exosomes (100 µg/ml) or vehicle control (PBS). The effect of tumor-derived exosomes on NF-κB expression was accessed by western blot analysis.Results and Discussion: Scanning electron microscopic examination revealed that all exosomes had a spherical shape with a diameter of ~50–200 nm. Exosome size measurements by DLS indicated a single bell-shaped size distribution with a peak at ~90 nm. We found that ovarian tumor-derived exosomes augment the protein expression levels of NF-κB in exosome-treated HUVECs compared with that of cells treated with vehicle control (PBS). This data is consistent with the previously suggested role for NF-κB signaling in tumor angiogenesis.

Keywords:

Ovarian cancer , NF-κB expression , Exosomes