Analysis of the macrophage scavenger receptor 1 gene in Swedish hereditary and sporadic prostate cancer

Blood-Derived Biomarkers of Diagnosis, Prognosis and Therapy Response in Prostate Cancer Patients

Prostate cancer is among the most frequent cancers in men worldwide. Despite the fact that multiple therapeutic alternatives are available for its treatment, it is often discovered in an advanced stage as a metastatic disease. Prostate cancer screening is based on physical examination of prostate size and prostate-specific antigen (PSA) level in the blood as well as biopsy in suspect cases. However, these markers often fail to correctly identify the presence of cancer, or their positivity might lead to overdiagnosis and consequent overtreatment of an otherwise silent non-progressing disease. Moreover, these markers have very limited if any predictive value regarding therapy response or individual risk for therapy-related toxicities. Therefore, novel, optimally liquid biopsy-based (blood-derived) markers or marker panels are needed, which have better prognostic and predictive value than the ones currently used in the everyday routine. In this review the role of circulating tumour cells, extracellular vesicles and their microRNA content, as well as cellular and soluble immunological and inflammation- related blood markers for prostate cancer diagnosis, prognosis and prediction of therapy response is discussed. A special emphasis is placed on markers predicting response to radiotherapy and radiotherapy-related late side effects.

Function of macrophage scavenger receptor 1 gene polymorphisms in chronic obstructive pulmonary disease with and without lung cancer in China

The present study assessed the association between the variants of macrophage scavenger receptor (MSR)1 and chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD), with or without lung cancer in China. COPD and lung cancer were previously regarded as two separate diseases. However, it has since been reported that there are close associations between COPD and lung cancer. Lung cancer may be an outcome of COPD. COPD may also coexist with lung cancer, and patients with COPD with lung cancer tend to have increased mortality. It is important to have a better understanding of the pathogenesis of COPD and the reason why it develops into lung cancer. MSR1 serves a crucial function in phagocytosis, which may be associated with the pathogenesis of COPD and lung cancer in patients with COPD. From 1 July 2015 to 20 February 2016, 100 patients with COPD and lung cancer, 100 patients with COPD without lung cancer and 100 healthy smokers were enrolled at the Shanghai Ruijin Hospital (Shanghai, China) for the genotyping of eight single-nucleotide polymorphisms (SNPs; ex3P36A_C>G, ex3S41Y_C>A, ex4V113A_T>C, ex4P174Y_G>T, ex6P275A_C>G, ex6R293×_C>T, ex10G369S_G>A and ex11H441R_A>G) via gene sequencing. The genotype frequencies of these SNPs did not significantly differ between patients with COPD with and without lung cancer, and the healthy controls. However, during DNA sequencing, the SNP rs13306550 (IVS4+3A>G) was identified in the splice donor site and was significantly associated with an increased risk of COPD compared with the healthy smokers (P=0.0053). The present study demonstrated that the variant rs13306550 was a risk factor for COPD susceptibility, but that did not influence lung cancer pathogenesis in patients with COPD. However, the mechanisms underlying the influence of rs13306550 on COPD development and progression remain to be elucidated and require further study.

The P275A Polymorphism in the Macrophage Scavenger Receptor 1 Gene and Prostate Cancer Risk: a Meta-Analysis

BACKGROUND

Published data regarding associations between the P275A polymorphism in the macrophage scavenger receptor 1 (MSR1) gene and prostate cancer (PCa) risk are inconclusive. The aim of this study was to comprehensively evaluate the genetic risk of P275A polymorphism in MSR1 gene for PCa.

MATERIALS AND METHODS

A systematic literature search was carried out in Pubmed, Medline (Ovid), Embase, CBM, CNKI, Weipu, and Wanfang databases, covering all available publications (last search was performed on Apr 27, 2015). Statistical analysis was performed using Revman 5.2 and STATA 10.1 software.

RESULTS

A total of 5,017 cases and 4,869 controls in 12 case-control studies were included in this meta-analysis. When all groups were pooled, there was no evidence that the P275A polymorphism had a significant association with PCa under dominant (OR=0.93, 95%CI=0.81-1.06, and p=0.28), co-dominant (homogeneous OR=0.97, 95%CI=0.56-1.68, and p=0.92; heterogeneous OR=0.93, 95%CI=0.74-1.15, and p=0.49), recessive (OR=1.10, 95%CI=0.65-1.87, and p=0.73), over-dominant (OR=0.93, 95%CI=0.75-1.15, and p=0.50), and allelic (OR=0.95, 95%CI=0.77-1.16, and p=0.61) genetic models. For stratified analyses by ethnicity and study design, no significant associations were found in the white race, the yellow race, the black race and mixed ethnicity, and the population-based case-control (PCC) and hospital-based case-control (HCC) studies under all genetic models.

CONCLUSIONS

Based on our meta-analysis, the P275A polymorphism in the MSR1 gene is unlikely to be a risk factor for PCa.

Association of the innate immunity and inflammation pathway with advanced prostate cancer risk

Prostate cancer is the most frequent and second most lethal cancer in men in the United States. Innate immunity and inflammation may increase the risk of prostate cancer. To determine the role of innate immunity and inflammation in advanced prostate cancer, we investigated the association of 320 single nucleotide polymorphisms, located in 46 genes involved in this pathway, with disease risk using 494 cases with advanced disease and 536 controls from Cleveland, Ohio. Taken together, the whole pathway was associated with advanced prostate cancer risk (P = 0.02). Two sub-pathways (intracellular antiviral molecules and extracellular pattern recognition) and four genes in these sub-pathways (TLR1, TLR6, OAS1, and OAS2) were nominally associated with advanced prostate cancer risk and harbor several SNPs nominally associated with advanced prostate cancer risk. Our results suggest that the innate immunity and inflammation pathway may play a modest role in the etiology of advanced prostate cancer through multiple small effects.

Association between genetic polymorphisms of macrophage scavenger receptor 1 gene and risk of prostate cancer in the health professionals follow-up study

BACKGROUND

Macrophage scavenger receptor 1 (MSR1) is involved in chronic inflammation, which is a risk factor for prostate cancer. Association studies assessing the relationship between sequence variants of MSR1 and prostate cancer are inconsistent. We hypothesized that sequence variants of MSR1 were associated with prostate cancer risk.

METHODS

In a nested case-control design within the Health Professionals Follow-up Study, we identified 700 participants with prostate cancer diagnosed after they had provided a blood specimen in 1993 and before January 2000. Controls were 700 age-matched men without prostate cancer who had had a prostate-specific antigen test after providing a blood specimen. We genotyped three common (>5%) single nucleotide polymorphisms (SNP) that have been reported previously to be associated with risk of prostate cancer.

RESULTS

None of these MSR1 SNPs nor estimated haplotypes were associated with prostate cancer risk (P for the global test for haplotypes = 0.89). These MSR1 SNPs also did not appear to be associated with higher-grade or advanced-stage prostate cancer.

CONCLUSION

The association between these sequence variants of MSR1 and the risk of prostate cancer was null. Further study of aggressive prostate cancer may be warranted, as we had limited power to assess these.

Analysis of the RNASEL/HPC1, and macrophage scavenger receptor 1 in Asian-Indian advanced prostate cancer

OBJECTIVES

Prostate cancer (PC) varies widely by geographic location and ethnicity. American men have a high PC risk but most have localized disease. In contrast, Asian Indians have a low PC risk but most are diagnosed with metastatic disease. Epidemiological and genetic data suggest an important role of genetic susceptibility in PC. Most studies were performed in whites. Substantially less is known about gene variation-associated PC in low-risk populations. The objective of this study was to investigate the role of RNASEL and MSR1 in Asian-Indian men with advanced PC.

METHODS

We genotyped DNA samples obtained from 113 cases and 245 age-matched controls (Northern India).

RESULTS

For RNASEL, we identified 8 variants (7 novel and 1 previously published, D541E), including 4 exonic, 3 intronic, and 1 change in the 3'-noncoding region. Of these, we detected a novel 4-bp truncation mutation (Val51ArgfsX2) in 2 controls. For MSR1, we identified 4 novel variants (2 intronic and 2 exonic) and 2 previously reported variants (P275A and promoter -4,637 A>G). We also genotyped 3 common MSR1 variations (promoter -14,742 A>G, IVS5-59 C>A, and IVS7 delinsTTA). We found no associations among any of the sequence variations and PC. Three major haplotypes account for most of all MSR1 haplotypes in Asian Indians. Haplotype frequencies were not significantly different between cases and controls.

CONCLUSIONS

Our results do not support a role for RNASEL, or MSR1 mutations in advanced Asian-Indian PC. This study warrants additional investigations of these genes in etiology particularly among individuals from diverse ethnic and geographic groups.

DNA variation in MSR1, RNASEL and E-cadherin genes and prostate cancer in Poland

INTRODUCTION

We investigated whether or not inherited variation in MSR1, RNASEL and E-cadherin contribute to prostate cancer risk in Poland.

MATERIAL AND METHODS

We sequenced the coding region of these three genes in individuals from Poland and identified five common DNA variants (R462Q and D541E in RNASEL, R293X and P275A in MSR1, and 2076C>T (A692A) in E-cadherin). These five variants and the -160C>A promoter change in E-cadherin were genotyped in 737 prostate cancer cases and 511 controls.

RESULTS

The frequencies of genotyped variants in MSR1, RNASEL and E-cadherin genes in cases and controls were similar. We did not see any association for the studied variants when cases were stratified by age of diagnosis, by family history, by prostate-specific antigen level at the time of diagnosis, by Gleason sore or by tumor stage.

CONCLUSIONS

Inherited variation in RNASEL, MSR1 and E-cadherin genes do not seem to contribute to prostate cancer development in Poland.

GHR exon 3 polymorphism: association with type 2 diabetes mellitus and metabolic disorder

Growth hormone (GH) signaling via the growth hormone receptor (GHR) forms a major part of the GH-IGF-I axis, which is crucial for controlling metabolism and anabolism. Two common variants of the GHR differ by the presence (full length or GHR(fl)) or absence of exon 3 (exon 3 deleted or GHR(d3)), the function of which is unknown. However, differential response to GH treatment has been observed with carriers of the GHR(d3) variant conferring a greater growth rate. This study investigates these GHR variants in subjects with normal glucose tolerance (NGT) and impaired glucose tolerance (IGT), including Type 2 diabetes mellitus (T2DM). DNA was extracted from blood samples from subjects with NGT (n=158), IGT (n=116) and T2DM (n=194). The T2DM subjects in set 1 (n= 39) were newly diagnosed, whilst those in set 2 (n=155) had a mean duration of 7 years. Set 1 also included NGT and IGT subjects. Genotyping by standard PCR and gel electrophoresis were carried out. A significant difference was observed between T2DM and NGT (p<0.0001) with a significantly lower frequency of GHR(d3) in T2DM (3.6% compared to 17% in NGT). Both sets of T2DM subjects with at least one GHR(d3) allele had significantly higher BMI. In the larger subset of T2DM, GHR(d3) was associated with higher CRP levels as well as age adjusted IGF-I, with a trend of higher C-peptide secretion and impaired lipid levels, indicating a phenotype with metabolic disorder when compared to the GHR(fl/fl) T2DM subjects. In conclusion, homozygosity for the GHR(d3) allele appears to be preventive of T2DM. However, when other factors cause overt T2DM, the GHR(d3) allele confers a phenotype indicative of metabolic disorder. This study supports the hypothesis that the two GHR alleles by their inclusion or exclusion of exon 3 are functionally different.

Genetic variability in inflammation pathways and prostate cancer risk

Genetic susceptibility to prostate cancer has been consistently observed by a large number of studies. Recently, several pieces of evidence obtained from epidemiological and pathological studies support that chronic inflammation in prostate tissues may play a role in prostate cancer development. Multiple genes that play critical roles in inflammatory pathways have been associated with prostate cancer risk. In this article we review the key genetic findings of the associated genes. This includes 2 genes identified through family studies, ribonuclease L (RNASEL) and macrophage scavenger receptor 1 (MSR1), as well as a number of genes suggested by case-control studies, such as macrophage inhibitory cytokine-1 (MIC-1), interleukins (IL-8, IL-10), vascular endothelial growth factor (VEGF), intercellular adhesion molecule (ICAM), and Toll-like receptors (TLR-4, TLR-1-6-10 gene cluster). Overall, recent studies seem to suggest multiple genes work together to increase prostate risk, and this is consistent with the reality that inflammation is a very complex process. Thus, future studies are expected to place an emphasis on the study of gene-gene interactions. Advances in high throughput genotyping, data mining, and algorithm development are needed in order to produce interpretable results.

Inflammation in prostate carcinogenesis

About 20% of all human cancers are caused by chronic infection or chronic inflammatory states. Recently, a new hypothesis has been proposed for prostate carcinogenesis. It proposes that exposure to environmental factors such as infectious agents and dietary carcinogens, and hormonal imbalances lead to injury of the prostate and to the development of chronic inflammation and regenerative 'risk factor' lesions, referred to as proliferative inflammatory atrophy (PIA). By developing new experimental animal models coupled with classical epidemiological studies, genetic epidemiological studies and molecular pathological approaches, we should be able to determine whether prostate cancer is driven by inflammation, and if so, to develop new strategies to prevent the disease.

Germline mutations of the MSR1 gene in prostate cancer families from Germany

The MSR1 gene at 8p22 has been suggested as a candidate gene for hereditary prostate cancer because germline variants have been found to be associated with the disease. Aside from a single nonsense mutation (R293X) that was found repeatedly at low frequencies in several samples, little evidence has been gained by follow-up studies to confirm the gene's relevance for prostate cancer. Prompted by reasonable support for a linkage to 8p22, we sought to determine the mutation spectrum of MSR1 in our family sample. Screening of 139 probands (representing 139 prostate cancer families) revealed 15 novel and a total of 20 sequence variants within the 10 coding exons and their intronic proximities. Aside from the known mutation c.877C>T (R293X) present in two of our families, we identified a second nonsense allele (c.251C>G; S84X) and a splice-site mutation (c.818-1G>A) that results in mRNA instability (each in a single pedigree). The novel missense alleles were c.703C>T (H235Y), c.856C>T (P286S), c.905C>T (P302L), c.1193C>G (A398G), and c.1289A>G (K430R). Of the eight variants that affect the encoded protein (splice site, nonsense, and missense), only R293X as well as the polymorphism c.823C>G (P275A) were additionally present at remarkable frequencies in further samples of sporadic prostate cancer and controls. Of note, carriers of R293X were equally frequent in 367 sporadic prostate cancer cases (1.9%) and in 197 controls (2.0%). To our knowledge, our study is the first to demonstrate further loss of function variants of MSR1 apart from R293X. Nevertheless, the low frequencies of deleterious alleles, in addition to an apparently moderate penetrance, does not support MSR1 as a major susceptibility gene in this family sample.

Meta-analysis of association of rare mutations and common sequence variants in the MSR1 gene and prostate cancer risk

BACKGROUND

MSR1 has been reported to be associated with increased risk of prostate cancer (PCa).

METHODS

We performed a meta-analysis of all eight published studies to evaluate the pooled effect of three rare mutations (R293X, S41T, and D174Y) and five common sequence variants (PRO3, INDEL1, IVS5-59, P275A, and INDEL7), stratified by race and sporadic/hereditary cancer.

RESULTS

Several variants were significantly or marginally significantly associated with sporadic, not hereditary PCa risk, including R293X in white men (random effect OR = 1.34, P = 0.09) and D174Y in black men (random effect OR = 2.41, P = 0.04). The associations were not significant when the initial study was excluded. However, the frequency of the D174Y mutation was consistently higher among cases in all three studies that examined black men.

CONCLUSIONS

Overall, this meta-analysis suggests the MSR1 gene does not independently confer a major risk to PCa but may confer a moderate risk to PCa, especially in black men.

Association of hereditary prostate cancer gene polymorphic variants with sporadic aggressive prostate carcinoma

BACKGROUND

ELAC2, MSR1, and RNASEL are candidate genes for hereditary prostate carcinoma (HPC). While, studies have demonstrated that single nucleotide polymorphisms (SNPs) in these genes are associated with sporadic disease as well as HPC, these results are often not replicated in follow-up studies. Given that the majority of patients studied had localized disease and up to 50% of localized prostate cancer is clinically insignificant, the inability to replicate the initial findings may reflect that some subjects had indolent tumors. Herein, we examine patients with metastatic disease to determine if an association exists between HPC SNPs and unambiguously significant prostate cancer.

METHODS

We examined polymorphisms within ELAC2 (S217L, A541T, E622V), MSR1 (P275A, R293X, aIVS5-59c), and RNASEL (E265X, R462Q, D541E) in 150 European-Americans with metastatic prostate cancer and 170 prostate cancer-free controls using pyrosequencing assays.

RESULTS

Only ELAC2 217L (37% cases vs. 29% controls (P=0.034)) and RNASEL 541E (61% cases vs. 53% controls (P=0.045)) were over-represented. Analysis of genotypes revealed that presence of the leucine ELAC2 allele (OR 1.54: 95% CI=0.99-2.41, SS vs. SL, LL) and homozygosity for the glutamic acid RNASEL allele (OR 1.68: 95% CI=1.04-2.70, EE vs. DE, DD) were associated with increased risk. Patients with both genotypes were of particularly high-risk (OR 2.66: 95% CI=1.36-5.19).

CONCLUSIONS

These results suggest that, in a European-American population, ELAC2 217L and RNASEL 541E are associated with metastatic sporadic disease. ELAC2 and RNASEL SNP analysis may prove useful in determining which patients are at risk for developing clinically significant prostate carcinoma.

A genomewide linkage analysis for prostate cancer susceptibility genes in families from Germany

Prostate cancer is a complex disease with a substantial genetic contribution involved in the disease risk. Several genomewide linkage studies conducted so far have demonstrated a strong heterogeneity of susceptibility. In order to assess candidate regions that are particularly relevant for the German population, we performed a genomewide linkage search on 139 prostate cancer families. A nonparametric method (Zlr scores), using GENEHUNTERPLUS, was applied at 500 markers (panel P1400, deCODE), with an average spacing of 7.25 cM. In the entire family collection, linkage was most evident at 8p22 (Zlr=2.47, P=0.0068), close to the previously identified susceptibility gene MSR1. Further local maxima with Zlr>2 (P<0.025) were observed at 1q, 5q and 15q. In a subgroup of 47 families, which matched the Johns Hopkins criteria of hereditary prostate cancer, suggestive linkage was found on 1p31 (Zlr=3.37, P=0.00038), a previously not described candidate region. The remaining 92 pedigrees, with no strong disease history, revealed a maximum Zlr=3.15 (P=0.00082) at 8q13, possibly indicating a gene with reduced penetrance or recessive inheritance. Our results suggest pronounced locus heterogeneity of prostate cancer susceptibility in Germany. In the present study population, the MSR1 gene could play a significant role. Other conspicuous loci, like 1p31 and 8q13, need further investigation in order to verify their relevance and to identify candidate genes.

Association of susceptibility alleles in ELAC2/HPC2, RNASEL/HPC1, and MSR1 with prostate cancer severity in European American and African American men

Reported associations of ELAC2/HPC2, RNASEL/HPC1, and MSR1 with prostate cancer have been inconsistent and understudied in African Americans. We evaluated the role of 16 sequence variants in these genes with prostate cancer using 888 European American and 131 African American cases, and 473 European American and 163 African American, controls. We observed significant differences in ELAC2, RNASEL, and MSR1 allele frequencies by race. However, we did not observe significant associations between prostate cancer and any variants examined for both races combined. Associations were observed when stratified by race, family history, or disease severity. European American men homozygous for MSR1 IVS7delTTA had an elevated risk for localized stage [odds ratio, (OR), 3.5; 95% confidence interval (95% CI), 1.4-6.9], low-grade (OR, 3.2; 95% CI, 1.4-7.3) disease overall, and with low-grade (OR, 2.9; 95% CI, 1.2-7.2) or late-stage disease (OR, 5.2; 95% CI, 1.1-25.7) in family history-negative African Americans. MSR1 Arg293X was associated with family history-negative high-grade disease (OR, 4.0; 95% CI, 1.1-14.1) in European Americans. RNASEL Arg462Gln was associated with low-grade (OR, 1.5; 95% CI, 1.04-2.2) and early-stage (OR, 1.5; 95% CI, 1.02-2.1) disease in family history-negative European Americans. In family history-positive individuals, Arg462Gln was inversely associated with low-grade (OR, 0.43; 95% CI, 0.21-0.88) and low-stage (OR, 0.46; 95% CI, 0.22-0.95) disease. In African Americans, Arg462Gln was associated with positive family history high-stage disease (OR, 14.8; 95% CI, 1.6-135.7). Meta-analyses revealed significant associations of prostate cancer with MSR1 IVS7delTTA, -14,742 A>G, and Arg293X in European Americans; Asp174Tyr in African Americans; RNASEL Arg462Gln in European American's overall and in family history-negative disease; and Glu265X in family history-positive European Americans. Therefore, MSR1 and RNASEL may play a role in prostate cancer progression and severity.

Prostate carcinogenesis and inflammation: emerging insights

Prostate cancer remains a significant health concern for men throughout the world. Recently, there has developed an expanding multidisciplinary body of literature suggesting a link between chronic inflammation and prostate cancer. In support of this hypothesis, population studies have found an increased relative risk of prostate cancer in men with a prior history of certain sexually transmitted infections or prostatitis. Furthermore, genetic epidemiological data have implicated germline variants of several genes associated with the immunological aspects of inflammation in modulating prostate cancer risk. The molecular pathogenesis of prostate cancer has been characterized by somatic alterations of genes involved in defenses against inflammatory damage and in tissue recovery. A novel putative prostate cancer precursor lesion, proliferative inflammatory atrophy, which shares some molecular traits with prostate intraepithelial neoplasia and prostate cancer, has been characterized. Here, we review the evidence associating chronic inflammation and prostate cancer and consider a number of animal models of prostate inflammation that should allow the elucidation of the mechanisms by which prostatic inflammation could lead to the initiation and progression of prostate cancer. These emerging insights into chronic inflammation in the etiology of prostate carcinogenesis hold the promise of spawning new diagnostic and therapeutic modalities for men with prostate cancer.