Expression and clinical significance of CRABP1 and CRABP2 in non-small cell lung cancer

The impairment of retinoic acid (RA)-dependent signaling is a frequent event during carcinogenesis. Cellular retinoic acid-binding proteins (CRABP1 and CRABP2) are important modulators of RA activity. Up to date, the role of these proteins in cancer progression remains poorly investigated. Here, we studied for the first time the simultaneous messenger RNA (mRNA) and protein expression of CRABPs in non-small cell lung cancer (NSCLC) samples. CRABP1 and CRABP2 mRNA levels were elevated in 42 and 56 % of NSCLC samples, respectively. Decrease of CRABP2 mRNA expression was significantly associated with the presence of lymph node metastases. Protein expression of CRABP1 and CRABP2 was detected in 50 and 56 % of tumor samples, respectively. We also found a positive correlation between CRABP1 and CRABP2 expression. Taken together, we demonstrated significant changes in CRABP expression in NSCLC samples. Importantly, the presented data provide the first evidence of potential involvement of CRABP2 in lung cancer metastasis.     

CXCL10 mRNA expression predicts response to neoadjuvant chemoradiotherapy in rectal cancer patients

Chemoradiotherapy has been commonly used as neoadjuvant therapy for rectal cancer to allow for less aggressive surgical approaches and to improve quality of life. In cancer, it has been reported that CXCL10 has an anti-tumor function. However, the association between CXCL10 and chemoradiosensitivity has not been fully investigated. We performed this study to investigate the relationship between CXCL10 expression and chemoradiosensitivity in rectal cancer patients. Ninety-five patients with rectal cancer who received neoadjuvant chemoradiotherapy (NCRT) were included. Clinical parameters were compared with the outcome of NCRT and CXCL10 messenger RNA (mRNA) expression between the pathological complete response (pCR) group and non-pathological complete response (npCR) group. CXCL10 mRNA and protein expressions between groups were analyzed using the Student’s t test and chi-square test. The mean mRNA level of CXCL10 in the pCR group was significantly higher than that in the npCR group (p?=?0.010). In the pCR group, 73.7 % of the patients had high CXCL10 mRNA expression, and 61.4 % of the patients in the npCR group had low CXCL10 mRNA expression. Subjects with high CXCL10 mRNA expression demonstrated a higher sensitivity to NCRT (p?=?0.011). The receiver operating characteristic curve showed that the diagnostic performance of CXCL10 mRNA expression had an area under the curve of 0.720 (95 % confidence interval, 0.573–0.867). There were no differences between the pCR and npCR groups in CXCL10 protein expression (p?>?0.05). High CXCL10 mRNA expression is associated with a better tumor response to NCRT in rectal cancer patients and may predict the outcome of NCRT in this malignancy.     

Acriflavine suppresses the growth of human osteosarcoma cells through apoptosis and autophagy

The aim of this study was to investigate the effects of acriflavine on viability and induction of apoptosis and autophagy in human osteosarcoma cell lines MG63. Inhibition of cell proliferation by acriflavine was determined using MTT assay. Induction of apoptosis was examined by measuring the changes in expression of Bcl-2 and Bax in messenger RNA (mRNA) and protein levels. Identification of the proteolytic cleavage of poly (ADP)-ribose polymerase (PARP) and caspase-3 and caspase-9 was carried out to study apoptotic cell death. Autophagic effects were examined by quantitation of mRNA expression of autophagy protein 5 (Atg5) and Beclin1 and identifying accumulation of microtubule-associated protein 1 light chain 3 (LC3)-II. The results showed acriflavine inhibited cell proliferation of osteosarcoma cells in dose-dependent fashion. Acriflavine-induced cell death was attributed to both apoptosis and autophagy. Moreover, it was associated with changes in the levels of Bcl-2 and Bax in the osteosarcoma cells. The antiseptic agent, acriflavine, has anticancer potential through synergistic activity of apoptosis and autophagy.     

Expression and clinicopathological significance of Mel-18 mRNA in colorectal cancer

Mel-18 is a member of the polycomb group (PcG) of proteins, which are chromatin regulatory factors that play an important role in oncogenesis. This study was designed to investigate the clinical and prognostic significance of Mel-18 in colorectal cancer (CRC) patients. For this purpose, expression of Mel-18 mRNA was evaluated in 82 primary CRC and paired noncancerous mucosa samples by qRT-PCR and Western blotting. We found that overall Mel-18 mRNA expression in the CRC tissue was significantly lower than in the noncancerous mucosal tissue (p?=?0.007, Wilcoxon matched-pairs signed-ranks test). Mel-18 was conversely correlated with the pathological classifications (p?=?0.003 for T, p?p?=?0.015 for M classifications, respectively) and clinical AJCC stage (p?Mel-18 showed prolonged disease-free survivals (DFS) (p?Mel-18 expression may be a risk factor for the patients’ 3-year DFS (HR?=?1.895; 95 % CI 1.032, 3.477; p?=?0.039). It was therefore concluded that the lower Mel-18 expression might contribute to the CRC development/progression.     

Phyllodes tumor of the breast: role of Axl and ST6GalNAcII in the development of mammary phyllodes tumors

Phyllodes tumor exhibits an aggressive growth. The expression of many biological markers has been explored to discriminate between different grades of phyllodes tumor and to predict their behavior. The purpose of this study was to evaluate the implications of Axl and ST6GalNAcII in phyllodes tumors. Real-time PCR, Western blot, and immunohistochemical were used to analyze differential expression of ST6GalNAcII and Axl in phyllodes tumor (PT) cell lines and tissue specimens. RNAi assay, ECM invasion assay, and tumorigenicity assay were used to analyze the altered expression of ST6GalNAcII gene effects on the expression of Axl and invasive ability of phyllodes tumor cells in vitro and in vivo. Compared to benign tumors, borderline and malignant ones showed a remarkable increase in mRNA levels of Axl and ST6GalNAcII gene, and it was higher in malignant tumor cells than in borderline tumor cells. When ST6GalNAcII was silenced, compared to the control, the expression level of Axl was significantly reduced in malignant tumor cell transfectants and knockdown of ST6GalNAcII gene significantly inhibited invasive activity in malignant tumor cells. The high expression of ST6GalNAcII and Axl was significantly correlated with tumor grade and distance metastasis by immunohistochemical analysis. Axl and ST6GalNAcII expression increases with increasing tumor grade in mammary phyllodes tumors. ST6GalNAc II might be participated in the glycosylation of Axl, and this Axl glycosylation may mediate the tumorigenicity, invasion, and distant metastasis of PT cells.     

Epidermal growth factor induces FoxO1 nuclear exclusion to activate MMP7-mediated metastasis of larynx carcinoma

The molecular mechanism underlying cancer invasiveness and metastasis of larynx carcinoma remains elusive. Here we reported a strong correlation between phosphorylated epidermal growth factor receptor (EGFR) and matrix metalloproteinase-7 (MMP7) levels in larynx carcinoma patients. To examine whether a causal link exists, we used a human larynx carcinoma line, Hep-2, to study the molecular basis of EGFR signaling and MMP7 activation. We found that EGF-induced EGFR phosphorylation in Hep-2 cells resulted in activation of MMP7 and, consequently, an increase in cancer invasiveness. An EGFR inhibitor efficiently blocked this EGF-induced activation of MMP7. Moreover, an inhibitor for PI3 kinase (PI3K)/Akt, but not an inhibitor for mitogen-activated protein kinase (MAPK) or an inhibitor for c-Jun N-terminal kinase (JNK), significantly inhibited the EGF-induced activation of MMP7, suggesting that PI3K/Akt signaling cascades may be responsible for EGF-activated MMP7. Further dissection of the pathway revealed that nuclear exclusion of Akt downstream target, FoxO1, was induced by EGF-induced Akt activation and could be inhibited by either the EGFR inhibitor or by the PI3K/Akt inhibitor. Expression of a constitutive nuclear form of FoxO1 significantly inhibited MMP7 activation induced by EGF. Taken together, these findings suggest that EGF/EGFR signaling activates downstream PI3K/Akt to induce FoxO1 nuclear exclusion, which activates MMP7 to promote larynx carcinoma metastasis. Thus, Akt and FoxO1 appear to be promising therapeutic targets for preventing the metastasis of larynx carcinoma.     

Development of a robust RNA-based classifier to accurately determine ER,PR, and HER2 status in breast cancer clinical samples

Breast cancers are categorized into three subtypes based on protein expression of estrogen receptor (ER), progesterone receptor (PR), and human epidermal growth factor receptor-2 (HER2/ERBB2). Patients enroll onto experimental clinical trials based on ER, PR, and HER2 status and, as receptor status is prognostic and defines treatment regimens, central receptor confirmation is critical for interpreting results from these trials. Patients enrolling onto experimental clinical trials in the metastatic setting often have limited available archival tissue that might better be used for comprehensive molecular profiling rather than slide-intensive reconfirmation of receptor status. We developed a Random Forests-based algorithm using a training set of 158 samples with centrally confirmed IHC status, and subsequently validated this algorithm on multiple test sets with known, locally determined IHC status. We observed a strong correlation between target mRNA expression and IHC assays for HER2 and ER, achieving an overall accuracy of 97 and 96 %, respectively. For determining PR status, which had the highest discordance between central and local IHC, incorporation of expression of co-regulated genes in a multivariate approach added predictive value, outperforming the single, target gene approach by a 10 % margin in overall accuracy. Our results suggest that multiplexed qRT-PCR profiling of ESR1, PGR, and ERBB2 mRNA, along with several other subtype associated genes, can effectively confirm breast cancer subtype, thereby conserving tumor sections and enabling additional biomarker data to be obtained from patients enrolled onto experimental clinical trials.     

Imbalance between MMP-2, 9 and TIMP-1 promote the invasion and metastasis of renal cell carcinoma via SKP2 signaling pathways

S-phase kinase-associated protein-2 (Skp2) is overexpressed in human cancers and acted as an oncogenic protein associated with poor prognosis by enhancing tumor metastasis. The present study has demonstrated that Skp2 overexpresses stable transfectants from 786-0 human renal cancer cells. We found that these stable transfectants exhibited increased migratory and invasive abilities. In addition, expression of matrix metalloproteinase-2 (MMP-2) and MMP-9 was upregulated and tissue inhibitor of matrix metalloproteinase-1 (TIMP-1) was downregulated. In contrast, RNA interference-mediated knockdown Skp2 expression suppressed the ability of ACHN cells to migratory and invasive. Skp2 depletion increased P27 and decreased cyclin E activity, and then induced cell cycle arrest in the G0/G1 phase. Skp2 depletion also downregulated MMP-2 and MMP-9, while upregulated the TIMP-1 activity and expression. The results suggest that Skp2 signaling pathways promoted the ability to metastasize, by stimulating cell proliferation and increasing the ratio of MMP-2 and MMP-9/TIMP-1. So, in conclusion, we provide the first evidence that the imbalance of MMP/TIMP, including upregulation of MMP-2 and MMP-9 and downregulation of TIMP-1, is one of the mechanisms by which Skp2 promotes cell invasion.     

Use of risk-reducing surgeries in a prospective cohort of 1,499 BRCA1 and BRCA2 mutation carriers

Inherited mutations in BRCA1 or BRCA2 (BRCA1/2) confer very high risk of breast and ovarian cancers. Genetic testing and counseling can reduce risk and death from these cancers if appropriate preventive strategies are applied, including risk-reducing salpingo-oophorectomy (RRSO) or risk-reducing mastectomy (RRM). However, some women who might benefit from these interventions do not take full advantage of them. We evaluated RRSO and RRM use in a prospective cohort of 1,499 women with inherited BRCA1/2 mutations from 20 centers who enrolled in the study without prior cancer or RRSO or RRM and were followed forward for the occurrence of these events. We estimated the age-specific usage of RRSO/RRM in this cohort using Kaplan–Meier analyses. Use of RRSO was 45 % for BRCA1 and 34 % for BRCA2 by age 40, and 86 % for BRCA1 and 71 % for BRCA2 by age 50. RRM usage was estimated to be 46 % by age 70 in both BRCA1 and BRCA2 carriers. BRCA1 mutation carriers underwent RRSO more frequently than BRCA2 mutation carriers overall, but the uptake of RRSO in BRCA2 was similar after mutation testing and in women born since 1960. RRM uptake was similar for both BRCA1 and BRCA2. Childbearing influenced the use of RRSO and RRM in both BRCA1 and BRCA2. Uptake of RRSO is high, but some women are still diagnosed with ovarian cancer before undergoing RRSO. This suggests that research is needed to understand the optimal timing of RRSO to maximize risk reduction and limit potential adverse consequences of RRSO.     

MiRNA-34a inhibits EGFR-signaling-dependent MMP7 activation in gastric cancer

The molecular mechanism underlying cancer invasiveness and metastasis of gastric carcinoma remains elusive. Here, we reported significant decrease in microRNA (miRNA)-34a and significant increase in phosphorylated epidermal growth factor receptor (EGFR) and matrix metalloproteinase-7 (MMP7) in the resected gastric carcinoma from the patients, compared with adjacent normal tissue. Moreover, strong correlation was detected among these three factors. To examine whether a causal link exists, we used two human gastric carcinoma lines, SNU-5 and HGC27, to study the molecular basis of miRNA-34a, EGFR signaling, and MMP7 activation. We found that EGF-induced EGFR phosphorylation in SNU-5 or HGC27 cells activated MMP7 and consequently cancer invasiveness. Both an inhibitor for EGFR and an inhibitor for Akt significantly inhibited the EGF-induced activation of MMP7, suggesting a phosphatidylinositol 3-kinase (PI3K) signaling cascade dependent pathway. Moreover, miRNA-34a levels were not affected by EGF-induced EGFR phosphorylation. However, overexpression of miRNA-34a antagonized EGF-induced MMP7 activation without affecting EGFR phosphorylation in SNU-5 or HGC27 cells. Taken together, our data suggest that miRNA-34 inhibits EGFR signaling via downstream PI3K signaling cascades to regulate MMP7 expression in gastric carcinoma. Thus, miRNA-34a, EGFR, and MMP7 appear to be promising therapeutic targets for preventing the metastasis of gastric carcinoma.     

Addition of bevacizumab enhances antitumor activity of erlotinib against non-small cell lung cancer xenografts depending on VEGF expression

Purpose

Erlotinib, an epidermal growth factor receptor (EGFR) tyrosine kinase inhibitor (TKI), and bevacizumab, an anti-vascular endothelial growth factor (VEGF) agent, are promising therapies for advanced non-small cell lung cancer (NSCLC). Our study was aimed to determine whether there were conditions under which the addition of bevacizumab would enhance the antitumor activity of erlotinib against NSCLC tumors in vitro and in vivo.

Methods

MTS was for NSCLC cell (PC9, 11–18, H1975, H157, H460 and A549) growth assay in vitro. ELISA was for VEGF protein assay in cells and tumor tissues. Mouse xenograft models were established with H157, H460 and A549 with primary resistance to erlotinib and treated with erlotinib plus bevacizumab or each agent alone. Erlotinib concentrations in tumors were determined by high-performance liquid chromatography.

Results

Bevacizumab alone did not inhibit NSCLC cell growth in vitro. In primarily erlotinib-resistant NSCLC cells, the levels of VEGF protein were highest in H157 cell followed in order by H460 and A549 cells. In vivo, bevacizumab alone significantly inhibited tumor growth only in xenograft models with high (H157) and/or moderate (H460) levels of VEGF protein. A combination of erlotinib and bevacizumab partially reversed resistance to erlotinib in H157 xenografts (high VEGF level) with increasing intratumoral erlotinib concentrations, but not in H460 (moderate) or A549 (low) xenografts.

Conclusions

These results support that combined with anti-VEGF therapy could enhance antitumor activity of anti-EGFR therapy and/or partially reverse resistance to EGFR TKI, by increasing EGFR TKI concentration in specific tumors that express high levels of VEGF protein.     

Interaction of PTPRO and TLR4 signaling in hepatocellular carcinoma

Protein tyrosine phosphatase receptor type O (PTPRO) has been identified as a tumor suppressor in a number of cancers including hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC). Toll-like receptor 4 (TLR4) plays diverse roles in HCC tumorigenesis and progression. The association between PTPRO and TLR4 signaling in HCC remains largely unknown. We aimed to clarify the interaction between PTPRO and TLR4 in HCC. Surprisingly, we found reduced and positive-related expression of TLR4 and PTPRO in 84 human HCC specimens. Increased TLR4 expression and activity was found in PTPRO-overexpressed HCC cells stimulated with lipopolysaccharide (LPS). The feedback regulation of PTPRO and TLR4 was dependent on nuclear factor-κB (NF-κB) activation, as suggested by NF-κB inhibition and luciferase reporter assay. Our study suggests that the effect of PTPRO on TLR4 signaling is dependent on NF-κB pathway, suggesting an interesting PTPRO/TLR4/NF-κB signaling feedback loop in HCC carcinogenesis and progression.     

Racial disparities in risk of second breast tumors after ductal carcinoma in situ

The purpose of the study was to examine the impact of race/ethnicity on second breast tumors among women with ductal carcinoma in situ (DCIS). We identified 102,489 women diagnosed with primary DCIS between 1988 and 2009 from the 18 NCI-SEER Registries. Cox proportional hazard regression was used to estimate race/ethnicity-associated relative risks (RRs) and their 95 % confidence intervals (CI) of ipsilateral breast tumors (IBT; defined as DCIS or invasive carcinoma in the ipsilateral breast) and contralateral breast tumors (CBT; defined as DCIS or invasive carcinoma in the contralateral breast). Overall, 2,925 women had IBT and 3,723 had CBT. Compared with white women, black (RR 1.46; 95 % CI 1.29–1.65), and Hispanic (RR 1.18; 95 % CI 1.03–1.36) women had higher IBT risk, which was similar for invasive IBT and ipsilateral DCIS. A significant increase in IBT risk among black women persisted, regardless of age at diagnosis, treatment, tumor grade, tumor size, and histology. The CBT risk was significantly increased among black (RR 1.21; 95 % CI 1.08–1.36) and Asian/PI (RR 1.16; 95 % CI 1.02–1.31) women compared with white women. The association was stronger for invasive CBT among black women and for contralateral DCIS among Asian/PI women (P _{heterogeneity} < 0.0001). The black race-associated CBT risk was more pronounced among women ≥50 years at diagnosis and those with comedo DCIS; in contrast, a significant increase in risk among Asian/PI women was restricted to those <50 years and those with noncomedo DCIS. Racial/ethnic differences in risks of second breast tumors after DCIS could not be explained by pathologic features and treatment.     

Impact of estrogen receptor (ER) and human epidermal growth factor receptor-2 (HER2) co-expression on breast cancer disease characteristics: implications for tumor biology and research

ER and HER2 are critical drivers of breast cancer biology and can interact when co-expressed, but less data describe the impact of ER/HER2 co-expression on clinical disease characteristics. We studied the impact of ER and HER2 (co)-expression in a cohort of 1,187 patients with invasive breast cancer and compared disease characteristics among different groups according to ER and HER2 status. Age, tumor size, grade, nodal status, TNM stage, and metastatic sites were compared and significance determined using the appropriate t tests. All p values were two-tailed. Compared to ER-negative/HER2-negative disease as the control group, ER expression was associated with older age, smaller tumors, lower grade, earlier TNM stage, and increased bone involvement in de novo metastasis, while HER2 had no significant impact on these characteristics. ER and HER2 co-expression was associated with lower grade and higher bone involvement in de novo metastasis, reflecting a retained impact for ER. HER2 impact on ER-positive disease was reflected by younger age, higher grade and TNM stage, and increased frequency of visceral involvement in de novo metastasis. Within the ER-positive/HER2-positive group, triple positive breast cancer (ER+/PgR+/HER2+) was associated with younger age compared to ER+/PgR?/HER2+ disease (mean age of 50.8 vs. 56 years, p = 0.0226). PgR was also associated with younger age in ER+/HER2? disease with a mean age of 57.6 years in ER+/PgR+/HER2? disease vs. 63.4 years in ER+/PgR?/HER2? disease (p < 0.0001). In conclusion, ER has a profound impact on breast cancer characteristics, including a retained impact when co-expressed with HER2. Similarly, HER2 dramatically modulates ER-positive breast cancer making it more aggressive. PgR association with young age may be related to hormonal levels of the premenopausal state, with HER2 providing an earlier growth advantage in triple positive disease, suggesting a specific dependence for this subset on high estrogen levels.     

Secreted protein acidic and rich in cysteine inhibits the growth of human pancreatic cancer cells with G1 arrest induction

Aberrant secreted protein acidic and rich in cysteine (SPARC) expression has been reported to play an important role in the tumor development. However, the pattern and the role of SPARC in pancreatic cancer remain largely unknown. Therefore, we further deciphered the role of SPARC played in pancreatic cancer. We first evaluated the SPARC expression in human pancreatic cancer tissues and pancreatic cancer cells. Then we forced expression and silenced SPARC expression in pancreatic cancer cell lines MIA PaCa2 and PANC-1, respectively, using lentivirus vectors. We characterized the stable cells in vitro. In this study, we found that SPARC expression was weak in cancer cells in specimens which negatively correlated with the expression level of phosphorylated pRB and poorer outcome. Moreover, our results demonstrated that SPARC negatively regulated pancreatic cell growth in vitro. Furthermore, we disclosed that the activation of p53 and p27^Kip1 may involve in the effect of SPARC on pancreatic cancer cells. SPARC is downregulated in pancreatic cancer cells and retards the growth of pancreatic cancer cell. Taken together, these results indicate SPARC may be a potential target for pancreatic cancer therapy.