Cinnamtannin D1 from Rhododendron formosanum induces autophagy via the inhibition of Akt/mTOR and activation of ERK1/2 in non-small cell lung carcinoma cells.

In our previous study, ursolic acid present in the leaves of Rhododendron formosanum was found to possess antineoplastic activity. We further isolated and unveiled a natural product, cinnamtannin D1 (CNT D1), an A-type procyanidin trimer in R formosanum also exhibiting anticancer efficacy that induced G1 arrest (83.26 +/- 3.11% for 175 CNT D1 vs 69.28 +/- 1.15% for control, p < 0.01) and autophagy in non-small-cell lung carcinoma (NSCLC) cells. We found that CNT D1-mediated autophagy was via the noncanonical pathway, being beclin-1-independent but Atg5 (autophagy-related genes 5)-dependent. Inhibition of autophagy with a specific inhibitor enhanced cell death, suggesting a cytoprotective function for autophagy in CNT D1-treated NSCLC cells. Moreover, CNT D1 inhibited the Akt/mammalian target of the rapamycin (mTOR) pathway and activated the extracellular signal-regulated ldnases 1/2 (ERK1/2) pathway, resulting in induction of autophagy.