TY - JOUR AB - Poor prognosis and chemotherapy tolerance are the main obstacles encountered in the treatment of cholangiocarcinoma. Chloroquine (CQ), an antimalarial agent, is able to induce sustained endoplasmic reticulum (ER) stress by functioning as an autophagy inhibitor. The present study indicated that CQ had the ability to induce apoptosis in QBC939 cholangiocarcinoma cells. Furthermore, using western blotting, Hoechst staining and flow cytometry, it was demonstrated that CQ induced the apoptosis of QBC939 cholangiocarcinoma cells. Analysis by a polymerase chain reaction (PCR) array and confirmation via quantitative PCR technology indicated that the expression levels of growth arrest and DNA damage 153 [C/EBP homologous protein (CHOP)], a key molecule involved in ER stress‑induced apoptosis, and its downstream death receptors were increased following CQ stimulation. It was considered that the upregulation of CHOP may mediate CQ‑induced extrinsic pathways and autophagy‑dependent apoptosis; therefore, the role of autophagy in cholangiocarcinoma treatment was elucidated based on the data demonstrating that CQ regulates the ER‑autophagy network in tumor cells. Furthermore, it was considered that CQ may become a novel and effective strategy for the treatment of cholangiocarcinoma. AD - Department of Pathophysiology, College of Basic Medical Sciences, Jilin University, Changchun, Jilin 130021, P.R. China Department of Dermatology, Jilin Province People's Hospital, Changchun, Jilin 130021, P.R. China Department of Hepatobiliary and Pancreatic Surgery, The First Hospital of Jilin University, Changchun, Jilin 130021, P.R. China AU - Jia,Baoxing AU - Xue,Yanan AU - Yan,Xiaoyu AU - Li,Jiuling AU - Wu,Yao AU - Guo,Rui AU - Zhang,Juanjuan AU - Zhang,Lichao AU - Li,Yaping AU - Liu,Yahui AU - Sun,Liankun DA - 2018/09/01 DO - 10.3892/ol.2018.9131 EP - 3516 IS - 3 JO - Oncol Lett KW - chloroquine cholangiocarcinoma autophagy endoplasmic reticulum stress PY - 2018 SN - 1792-1074 1792-1082 SP - 3509 ST - Autophagy inhibitor chloroquine induces apoptosis of cholangiocarcinoma cells via endoplasmic reticulum stress T2 - Oncology Letters TI - Autophagy inhibitor chloroquine induces apoptosis of cholangiocarcinoma cells via endoplasmic reticulum stress UR - https://doi.org/10.3892/ol.2018.9131 VL - 16 ER -