Plasma Nanomedicine CSIRO Materials Science and Engineering, North Ryde, PO Box 52, NSW 1670, Australia; Plasma Nanoscience, CSIRO Materials Science and Engineering, PO Box 218, Lindfield 2070, NSW, Australia.
Int J Cancer. 2014 Apr 1;134(7):1517-28. doi: 10.1002/ijc.28323. Epub 2013 Sep 19.
Cancer is one of the most life-threatening diseases with many forms still regarded as incurable. The conventional cancer treatments have unwanted side effects such as the death of normal cells. A therapy that can accurately target and effectively kill tumor cells could address the inadequacies of the available therapies. Atmospheric gas plasmas (AGP) that are able to specifically kill cancerous cells offer a promising alternative approach compared to conventional therapies. AGP have been shown to exploit tumor-specific genetic defects and a recent trial in mice has confirmed its antitumor effects. The mechanism by which the AGP act on tumor cells but not normal cells is not fully understood. A review of the current literature suggests that reactive oxygen species (ROS) generated by AGP induce death of cancer cells by impairing the function of intracellular regulatory factors. The majority of cancer cells are defective in tumor suppressors that interfere normal cell growth pathways. It appears that pro-oncogene or tumor suppressor-dependent regulation of antioxidant/or ROS signaling pathways may be involved in AGP-induced cancer cell death. The toxic effects of ROS are mitigated by normal cells by adjustment of their metabolic pathways. On the other hand, tumor cells are mostly defective in several regulatory signaling pathways which lead to the loss of metabolic balance within the cells and consequently, the regulation of cell growth. This review article evaluates the impact of AGP on the activation of cellular signaling and its importance for exploring mechanisms for safe and efficient anticancer therapies.
癌症是一种最具威胁生命的疾病，其中许多形式仍被认为是不可治愈的。传统的癌症治疗方法有不良的副作用，如正常细胞死亡。一种能够精确靶向并有效杀死肿瘤细胞的疗法可以解决现有疗法的不足。与传统疗法相比，能够特异性杀死癌细胞的大气压气体等离子体（AGP）提供了一种很有前途的替代方法。AGP 已被证明可以利用肿瘤特异性遗传缺陷，最近在小鼠中的一项试验已经证实了其抗肿瘤作用。AGP 作用于肿瘤细胞而不是正常细胞的机制尚未完全了解。对当前文献的综述表明，AGP 产生的活性氧（ROS）通过损害细胞内调节因子的功能来诱导癌细胞死亡。大多数癌细胞都存在肿瘤抑制因子缺陷，这些缺陷干扰了正常细胞的生长途径。似乎依赖原癌基因或肿瘤抑制因子的抗氧化剂/ROS 信号通路的调节可能参与了 AGP 诱导的癌细胞死亡。ROS 的毒性作用通过正常细胞对其代谢途径的调节而减轻。另一方面，肿瘤细胞在多个调节信号通路中大多存在缺陷，这导致细胞内代谢失衡，并最终导致细胞生长的调节失控。本文综述评估了 AGP 对细胞信号激活的影响及其在探索安全有效的抗癌治疗机制方面的重要性。
