The assessment of cell proliferation during 9,10-dimethyl-1,2-benzanthracene-induced hamster tongue carcinogenesis by means of histone H3 mRNA in situ hybridization

Paradoxical Roles of Desmosomal Components in Head and Neck Cancer

Desmosomes are intercellular adhesion complexes involved in various aspects of epithelial pathophysiology, including tissue homeostasis, morphogenesis, and disease development. Recent studies have reported that the abnormal expression of various desmosomal components correlates with tumor progression and poor survival. In addition, desmosomes have been shown to act as a signaling platform to regulate the proliferation, invasion, migration, morphogenesis, and apoptosis of cancer cells. The occurrence and progression of head and neck cancer (HNC) is accompanied by abnormal expression of desmosomal components and loss of desmosome structure. However, the role of desmosomal components in the progression of HNC remains controversial. This review aims to provide an overview of recent developments showing the paradoxical roles of desmosomal components in tumor suppression and promotion. It offers valuable insights for HNC diagnosis and therapeutics development.

Identification of Significant Pathways Induced by PAX5 Haploinsufficiency Based on Protein-Protein Interaction Networks and Cluster Analysis in Raji Cell Line

PAX5 encodes a transcription factor essential for B-cell differentiation, and PAX5 haploinsufficiency is involved in tumorigenesis. There were few studies on how PAX5 haploinsufficiency regulated genes expression to promote tumorigenesis. In this study, we constructed the cell model of PAX5 haploinsufficiency using gene editing technology in Raji cells, detected differentially expressed genes in PAX5 haploinsufficiency Raji cells, and used protein-protein interaction networks and cluster analysis to comprehensively investigate the cellular pathways involved in PAX5 haploinsufficiency. The clusters of gene transcription, inflammatory and immune response, and cancer pathways were identified as three important pathways associated with PAX5 haploinsufficiency in Raji cells. These changes hinted that the mechanism of PAX5 haploinsufficiency promoting tumorigenesis may be related to genomic instability, immune tolerance, and tumor pathways.

HIST1H3D: A promising therapeutic target for lung cancer

HIST1H3D gene encodes histone H3.1 and is involved in gene-silencing and heterochromatin formation. HIST1H3D expression is upregulated in primary gastric cancer tissue. In this study, we explored the effects of HIST1H3D expression on lung cancer, and its mechanisms. HIST1H3D expression was measured by immunohistochemistry and RT-PCR in lung cancer tissues and human lung cancer cell lines. Cell proliferation was assessed by MTT assay. Flow cytometric analysis was used to determine cell cycle distribution and apoptosis. Levels of related proteins were detected by western blotting. Bioinformatics analysis was performed to investigate related signaling pathways. cDNA microarray analysis was performed to identify differentially expressed genes following HIST1H3D knockdown. HIST1H3D expression was upregulated in lung cancer tissue samples and the H1299 human lung cancer cell line (P<0.01). Regulation of HIST1H3D expression in nucleus of cells in lung cancer tissues was significant associated with tumor stage (P=0.02) and lymph node metastases (P=0.04). Downregulation of HIST1H3D expression led to suppression of proliferation and colony forming ability, cell cycle arrest at the G0/G1 phase, and promotion of cell apoptosis. The microarray data revealed 522 genes that were differentially expressed after HIST1H3D knockdown in H1299 cells. These genes were shown to be linked to numerous pathways, including the cell cycle, p53 signaling, and MCM. Western blot analysis confirmed upregulated expression of the THBS1 and TP53I3 genes, and downregulated expression of the CDK6, CDKN1 and CCNE2 genes. In conclusion, our results suggest that HIST1H3D is highly expressed in lung cancer cell lines and tissues. Furthermore, HIST1H3D may be important in cell proliferation, apoptosis and cell cycle progression, and is implicated as a potential therapeutic target for lung cancer.

Combinations of gene ontology and pathway characterize and predict prognosis genes for recurrence of gastric cancer after surgery

Gastric cancer (GC) is the second leading cause of death from cancer globally. The most common cause of GC is the infection of Helicobacter pylori, but ∼11% of cases are caused by genetic factors. However, recurrences occur in approximately one-third of stage II GC patients, even if they are treated with adjuvant chemotherapy or chemoradiotherapy. This is potentially due to expression variation of genes; some candidate prognostic genes were identified in patients with high-risk recurrences. The objective of this study was to develop an effective computational method for meaningfully interpreting these GC-related genes and accurately predicting novel prognostic genes for high-risk recurrence patients. We employed properties of genes (gene ontology [GO] and KEGG pathway information) as features to characterize GC-related genes. We obtained an optimal set of features for interpreting these genes. By applying the minimum redundancy maximum relevance algorithm, we predicted the GC-related genes. With the same approach, we further predicted the genes for the prognostic of high-risk recurrence. We obtained 1104 GO terms and KEGG pathways and 530 GO terms and KEGG pathways, respectively, that characterized GC-related genes and recurrence-related genes well. Finally, three novel prognostic genes were predicted to help supplement genetic markers of high-risk GC patients for recurrence after surgery. An in-depth text mining indicated that the results are quite consistent with previous knowledge. Survival analysis of patients confirmed the novel prognostic genes as markers. By analyzing the related genes, we developed a systematic method to interpret the possible underlying mechanism of GC. The novel prognostic genes facilitate the understanding and therapy of GC recurrences after surgery.

Contrasting expression patterns of histone mRNA and microRNA 760 in patients with gastric cancer

PURPOSE

Recent studies revealed that both disseminated tumor cells and noncancerous cells contributed to cancer progression cooperatively in the bone marrow. Here, RNA-seq analysis of bone marrow from gastric cancer patients was performed to identify prognostic markers for gastric cancer.

EXPERIMENTAL DESIGN

Bone marrow samples from eight gastric cancer patients (stages I and IV: n = 4 each) were used for RNA-seq analysis. Results were validated through quantitative real-time PCR (qRT-PCR) analysis of HIST1H3D expression in 175 bone marrow, 92 peripheral blood, and 115 primary tumor samples from gastric cancer patients. miR-760 expression was assayed using qRT-PCR in 105 bone marrow and 96 primary tumor samples. Luciferase reporter assays were performed to confirm whether histone mRNAs were direct targets of miR-760. miR-760 expression was also evaluated in noncancerous cells from gastric cancer patients.

RESULTS

RNA-seq analysis of bone marrow samples from gastric cancer patients revealed higher expression of multiple histone mRNAs in stage IV patients. HIST1H3D expression in the bone marrow, peripheral blood, and primary tumor of stage IV patients was higher than that in stage I patients (P = 0.0284, 0.0243, and 0.0006, respectively). In contrast, miR-760 was downregulated in the bone marrow and primary tumor of stage IV patients compared with stage I patients (P = 0.0094 and 0.0018, respectively). Histone mRNA and miR-760 interacted directly. Furthermore, miR-760 was downregulated in noncancerous mucosa in stage IV gastric cancer patients.

CONCLUSION

Histone mRNA was upregulated, whereas miR-760 was downregulated in the bone marrow and primary tumor of advanced gastric cancer patients, suggesting that the histone mRNA/miR-760 axis had a crucial role in the development of gastric cancer.

Morphological changes in the lingual papillae and their connective tissue cores on the 7,12-dimethylbenz[alpha]anthracene (DMBA) stimulated rat experimental model

The aim of the study was to analyze morphological changes of the epithelial surface and underlying connective tissue cores (CTCs) of the lingual mucosa in the rat using a DMBA induced pre-cancerous experimental model. Lightmicroscopically, initially DMBA treated sections exhibited infiltration of chronic inflammatory cells. At 16 weeks, aldehyde-fuchsin (AF) positive elastic fibers decreased and were scanty in the juxtaepithelium. On the other hand, rather densely packed thick bundles of AF positive fibers were observable in the deep layers of lamina propria. Carcinomas were not found at any stage, however, epithelial dysplasia was observed at 24 weeks post-treatment with DMBA. Scanning electron microscopy revealed an irregular arrangement of filiform papillae 4-12 weeks following DMBA stimulation. Patchy degenerated areas were observed especially at 16-24 weeks post-treatment and filiform papillae were totally attenuated on the central part of the degenerated areas. After removal of the epithelium, attenuated CTCs were observed from 4-8 weeks. Morphology of CTCs seemed to be gradually remodeled and severely altered in the later stage. The CTCs were however attenuated and exhibited a patchy distribution. The animal experimental model in this study revealed degenerative morphological changes of CTCs of the lingual papillae in the precancerous stage induced by DMBA.

Evaluation of intestinal trophism: review of current methods and techniques

PURPOSE OF REVIEW

This review aims to cover the methods and techniques currently used by researchers to evaluate intestinal trophism.

RECENT FINDINGS

Although subjected to criticisms, conventional gut trophism evaluation by both morphological and histological parameters continues to be largely reported. The metaphase arrest technique and the detection of H-tymidine have been used less frequently in recent years due to increasing interest in the immunohistochemical methods such as 5-bromo-2'deoxy-uridine, Ki-67, and proliferating cell nuclear antigen. Along with common techniques for the evaluation of intestinal trophism, the combination of methods that includes a measurement of cell proliferation and an apoptotic index in the same study are most valuable and are increasing in the current literature.

SUMMARY

Evaluation of intestinal trophism is an important issue for both clinical and experimental nutritional studies. The immunohistochemical techniques are the gold standard to access cell proliferation. Evaluation of proliferation and apoptosis at the same time may offer a more reliable evaluation of the actual status of gut trophism.

H3 and H3.3 histone mRNA amounts and ratio in oral squamous cell carcinoma and leukoplakia

Histone variants (e.g. H3) play an important role in chromatin structure and gene expression regulation of normal cells. Aims of this study were to: (1) estimate H3 and H3.3 histone mRNA expressions and their ratio in oral squamous cell carcinoma (OSCC) and oral leukoplakia (OL); (2) investigate whether H3 and H3.3 variants could play a role in the pathogenesis of OSCC and OL, also conditionally to HPV infection, age, gender, and main habits (tobacco smoking and alcohol drinking) in human beings studied. Twenty-three cases of OSCC and 20 cases of OL were examined in lesion site (LS) and juxtaposed clinically undamaged site (JUS) by RT-PCR for H3 and H3.3 histone mRNA; 13 healthy oral mucosa samples (HS) were investigated in a single site as controls. HPV DNA presence was investigated in the respective exfoliated oral mucosa cells by nested PCR (nPCR: MY09-MY11/GP5-GP6). The data showed that both H3 and H3.3 histone mRNA crude concentrations are higher in OSCC (LS = 2901 +/- 459 ng of H3; JUS = 2699 +/- 658 ng of H3; LS = 3190 +/- 411 ng of H3.3; JUS = 2596 +/- 755 ng of H3.3) than those in OL (LS = 2095 +/- 349 ng of H3; JUS = 2192 +/- 897 ng of H3; LS = 2076 +/- 911 ng of H3.3; JUS = 1880 +/- 654 ng of H3.3) and in HS (2579 +/- 959 ng of H3; 2300 +/- 758 ng of H3.3), although not reaching any statistical significance. Interestingly, ratio of H3/H3.3 mRNA amounts decrease both in OSCC (0.99) and OL (1.009) vs HS (1.121). No association was found for H3 and H3.3 histone mRNA expressions in OSCC and OL with respect to HPV infection and the social-demographical variables considered (P > 0.2). The overall higher expression of H3.3 in damaged tissues up to the ratio inversion in OSCC especially in HPV+ alcohol drinkers (60.0%) represents the most interesting finding, in consideration of the proven ability of alcohol to act as permeability enhancer of human oral mucosa, to alter the mucosal structure and by this dynamics could favour the penetration through the epithelial layers of HPV.