Expression of epithelial cell adhesion molecule associated with elevated ductular reactions in hepatocellar carcinoma

Detection of Hepatocellular Carcinoma in an Orthotopic Patient-Derived Xenograft with an Epithelial Cell Adhesion Molecule-Specific Peptide

Hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC) has emerged as a major contributor to the worldwide cancer burden. Improved methods are needed for early cancer detection and image-guided surgery. Peptides have small dimensions that can overcome delivery challenges to achieve high tumor concentrations and deep penetration. We used phage display methods to biopan against the extra-cellular domain of the purified EpCAM protein, and used IRDye800 as a near-infrared (NIR) fluorophore. The 12-mer sequence HPDMFTRTHSHN was identified, and specific binding to EpCAM was validated with HCC cells in vitro. A binding affinity of kd = 67 nM and onset of k = 0.136 min-1 (7.35 min) were determined. Serum stability was measured with a half-life of T1/2 = 2.6 h. NIR fluorescence images showed peak uptake in vivo by human HCC patient-derived xenograft (PDX) tumors at 1.5 h post-injection. Also, the peptide was able to bind to foci of local and distant metastases in liver and lung. Peptide biodistribution showed high uptake in tumor versus other organs. No signs of acute toxicity were detected during animal necropsy. Immunofluorescence staining of human liver showed specific binding to HCC compared with cirrhosis, adenoma, and normal specimens.

The Role of Epithelial Cell Adhesion Molecule Cancer Stem Cell Marker in Evaluation of Hepatocellular Carcinoma

Background and Objectives: Hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC) is a prevalent form of malignancy that is characterized by high mortality rates and prognosis that remain suboptimal, largely due to treatment resistance mechanisms. Recent studies have implicated cancer stem cells (CSCs), particularly those expressing epithelial cell adhesion molecule (EpCAM), in HCC progression and resistance. In the present study, we sought to assess EpCAM expression in HCC patients and its correlation with various clinicopathological parameters. Materials and Methods: Tissue samples from 42 HCC patients were subjected to immunohistochemical staining to evaluate EpCAM expression. Clinicopathological data were obtained including the size, grade and stage of tumors, vascular invasion status, alpha-fetoprotein levels, and cirrhosis status. The Chi square and Fisher's exact tests were employed to assess the association between categorical groups. Independent Student-t test or Mann-Whitney U test was used to investigate the association between continuous patient characteristics and survival. Results: Immunohistochemical analysis revealed EpCAM expression in 52.5% of HCC cases. EpCAM-positive tumors exhibited characteristics indicative of aggressive disease, including larger tumor sizes (p = 0.006), greater tumor multiplicity (p = 0.004), higher grades (p = 0.002), more advanced stages (p = 0.003), vascular invasion (p = 0.023), elevated alpha-fetoprotein levels (p = 0.013), and cirrhosis (p = 0.052). Survival analysis demonstrated that EpCAM expression was significantly associated with lower overall rates of survival and higher rates of recurrence in HCC patients. Conclusions: Our findings suggest that EpCAM expression may serve as a prognostic biomarker for HCC with a potential role in patient management. Targeting EpCAM-positive CSCs may represent a promising approach to overcome treatment resistance and improve clinical outcomes in HCC. However, further investigation into the molecular mechanisms underlying EpCAM's role in HCC progression is warranted to facilitate the development of personalized therapeutic interventions.

Clinicopathological and prognostic value of epithelial cell adhesion molecule in solid tumours: a meta-analysis

Background

Malignant tumors, mainly solid tumors, are a significant obstacle to the improvement of life expectancy at present. Epithelial cell adhesion molecule (EpCAM), a cancer stem cell biomarker, showed widespread expression in most normal epithelial cells and most cancers. Although the clinical significance of EpCAM in various malignant solid tumors has been studied extensively, the latent relationships between EpCAM and pathological and clinical characteristics in solid tumors and differences in the roles of EpCAM among tumors have not been clearly determined. The destination point of this study was to analyze the value of EpCAM in solid tumors in clinicopathological and prognostic dimension using a meta-analysis approach.

Method and materials

A comprehensive and systematic search of the researches published up to March 7th, 2022, in PubMed, EMBASE, Web of Science, Cochrane library and PMC databases was performed. The relationships between EpCAM overexpression, clinicopathological characteristics, and survival outcomes were analyzed. Pooled hazard ratios (HRs) with 95% confidence intervals (CIs) and odds ratios (ORs) were estimated as indicators of the degree of correlation. This research was registered on PROSPERO (International prospective register of systematic reviews), ID: CRD42022315070.

Results

In total, 57 articles and 14184 cases were included in this study. High EpCAM expression had a significant coherence with a poorer overall survival (OS) (HR: 1.30, 95% CI: 1.08-1.58, P < 0.01) and a worse disease-free survival (DFS) (HR: 1.58, 95% CI: 1.28-1.95, P < 0.01), especially of gastrointestinal tumors' OS (HR: 1.50, 95% CI: 1.15-1.95, P < 0.01), and DFS (HR: 1.84, 95% CI: 1.52-2.33, P < 0.01). The DFS of head and neck tumors (HR: 2.33, 95% CI: 1.51-3.61, P < 0.01) was also associated with the overexpression of EpCAM. There were no positive relationships between the overexpression of EpCAM and sex (RR: 1.03, 95% CI: 0.99-1.07, P = 0.141), T classification (RR: 0.93, 95% CI: 0.82-1.06, P = 0.293), lymph node metastasis (RR: 0.85, 95% CI: 0.54-1.32, P = 0.461), distant metastasis (RR: 0.97, 95% CI: 0.84-1.10, P = 0.606), vascular infiltration (RR: 1.05, 95% CI: 0.85-1.29, P = 0.611), and TNM stage (RR: 0.93, 95% CI: 0.83-1.04, P = 0.187). However, the overexpression of EpCAM exhibited a significant association with the histological grades (RR: 0.88, 95% CI: 0.80-0.97, P < 0.01).

Conclusion

Based on pooled HRs, the positive expression of EpCAM was totally correlated to a worse OS and DFS in solid tumors. The expression of EpCAM was related to a worse OS in gastrointestinal tumors and a worse DFS in gastrointestinal tumors and head and neck tumors. Moreover, EpCAM expression was correlated with the histological grade. The results presented pointed out that EpCAM could serve as a prognostic biomarker for gastrointestinal and head and neck tumors.

Systematic review registration

https://www.crd.york.ac.uk/prospero, identifier CRD42022315070.

Hepatocellular carcinoma: Intratumoral EpCAM-positive cancer stem cell heterogeneity identifies high-risk tumor subtype

BACKGROUND

The translational interest in the intratumoral heterogeneity of hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC) has been increasing. The dismal prognosis of this pathology is linked to the features of the HCC harbouring cancer stem cells (CSC), represented by EpCAM-expression. However, the extent of the impact of intratumoral distribution of CSC-features, both on the recurrence after curative resection and on clinical outcome, remains unknown. To address this, we investigated the spatial heterogeneity of CSC-features with the aim of identifying the unique HCC patient subgroups amenable to adjuvant treatment.

METHODS

We designed a tissue microarray (TMA) from patients who had received liver resection between 2011 and 2017. Tumor specimens were sampled at multiple locations (n = 3-8). EpCAM-positivity was assessed for intensity and proportion by applying a score dividing three groups: (i) negative (E-/-); (ii) heterogeneous (E-/+); and (iii) homogeneous (E+/+). The groups were further analysed with regard to time-to-recurrence (TTR) and recurrence-free-survival (RFS).

RESULTS

We included 314 tumor spots from 69 patients (76.8% male, median age 66, liver cirrhosis/fibrosis 75.8%). The risk factors were alcohol abuse (26.2%), NASH (13.1%), HBV (15.5%), HCV (17.9%) and others (27.4%), representative of a typical Western cohort. E+/+ patients experienced significantly shorter TTR and RFS compared to E+/- and E-/- patients (TTR 5 vs. 19 months, p = 0.022; RFS 5 vs. 14 vs. 21 months, p = 0.016). Only homogeneous EpCAM-positivity correlated with higher AFP levels (> 400 ng/ml, p = 0.031).

CONCLUSIONS

Spatial heterogeneity of EpCAM-expression was markedly present in the cohort. Of note, only homogeneous EpCAM-expression correlated significantly with early recurrence, whereas heterogeneous EpCAM-expression was associated with clinical endpoints comparable to EpCAM-negativity. We identified a unique HCC subtype associated with a high risk of tumor recurrence.

ST6GAL2 Downregulation Inhibits Cell Adhesion and Invasion and is Associated with Improved Patient Survival in Breast Cancer

OBJECTIVE

Breast cancer is one of the most common and serious types of cancer, with a particularly unfavorable prognosis. Although dysregulation of β-galactoside α 2,6-sialyltransferase 2 (ST6GAL2) has been observed in multiple cancers, the mechanism involved remains to be clarified. In this study, we focused on the potential function of ST6GAL2 in the regulation of breast cancer.

METHODS

Flow cytometry and CCK-8 were used to measure markers of the cell cycle proliferation, adhesion, and invasion. Real-time PCR and immunohistochemistry analysis were used to detect the expression levels of ST6GAL2 in breast cancer tissues. Western blot was used to analyze the expression level of genes correlated with focal adhesion and metastasis pathways in breast cancer cells.

RESULTS

ST6GAL2 expression levels were higher in breast cancer tissues as compared to healthy tissues. ST6GAL2 expression was associated with tumor stage, survival time, and estrogen receptor (ER)/progesterone receptor (PR)/human epidermal growth factor receptor 2 (HER2) status of breast cancer patients. Silence of ST6GAL2 inhibited cancer progression by arresting cell cycle progression at G0/G1 phase and inhibiting cell adhesion and invasion. ST6GAL2 was positively correlated with focal adhesion and metastasis pathways, and its downregulation inhibited the expression of ICAM-1, VCAM-1, CD24, MMP2, MMP9, and CXCR4.

CONCLUSION

These findings indicated that ST6GAL2 might serve as a useful potential target for treatment of breast cancer.

Hypoxia modulates stem cell properties and induces EMT through N-glycosylation of EpCAM in breast cancer cells

Epithelial cell adhesion molecule (EpCAM), which is a transmembrane glycoprotein, is related to tumor progression. We demonstrated that EpCAM plays important roles in proliferation, apoptosis, and metastasis during breast cancer (BC) progression. But the role of N-glycosylation in EpCAM in tumor aggressiveness is not clear. Here, we evaluated the role of N-glycosylation of EpCAM in stemness and epithelial-mesenchymal transition (EMT) characteristics. EpCAM overexpression increases the expression of stemness markers (NANOG，SOX2, and OCT4) and EMT markers (N-cadherin and vimentin) under the condition of hypoxia in BC. Knockdown of EpCAM and mutation of N-glycosylation of EpCAM maintained in severe hypoxia lead to a significant reduction of stemness/EMT markers. In addition, we found that N-glycosylation of EpCAM is a crucial factor during this process. This demonstrates that EpCAM has a novel regulatory role in stemness/EMT dependence of hypoxia-inducible factor 1-alpha via regulating nuclear factor kappa B in BC cells. Hence, our study reveals EpCAM glycosylation modification as a new regulator of stemness/EMT under hypoxic in BC and points out EpCAM as a potential therapeutic target.

2,3,5,4‑tetrahydroxy diphenylethylene‑2‑O‑glucoside inhibits the adhesion and invasion of A549 human lung cancer cells

Lung cancer is considered to be a serious disease that poses a significant threat to human health. 2,3,5,4‑tetrahydroxy diphenylethylene‑2‑O‑glucoside (THSG) is a bioactive compound derived from Polygonum multiflorum Thunb. That has been demonstrated to possess antioxidative, anti‑inflammatory and antitumor activities. However, little is currently known regarding the potential anticancer effects of this compound in lung cancer. Therefore, the present study aimed to investigate the effects of THSG on the adhesion and invasion of A549 human lung cancer cells in vitro, and to identify the putative mechanisms involved. Cell Counting kit‑8 assay was performed to determine A549 cell viability following treatment with various doses (0, 5, 10, 25, 50, 100, 150 and 200 µM) of THSG for 12, 24 and 48 h. In addition, cell adhesion and invasion were determined following treatment of A549 cells with 0, 10, 25 or 50 µM THSG for 1, 2 or 3 h, respectively. Reverse transcription‑quantitative polymerase chain reaction analysis was performed to examine the mRNA expression levels of Snail, E‑cadherin, vimentin, matrix metalloproteinase (MMP) 2 and MMP9 following THSG treatment for 12 h. Western blot analysis was conducted to detect the protein expression levels of Snail, E‑cadherin, vimentin, MMP2 and MMP9 following THSG treatment for 24 h. Treatment with THSG (10, 25 and 50 µM) significantly suppressed the adhesion and invasion of A549 human lung cancer cells in a dose‑dependent manner. In addition, the mRNA and protein expression levels of adhesion and invasion‑associated factors were decreased significantly in A549 cells treated with THSG. In conclusion, THSG effectively suppressed the adhesion and invasion of human lung cancer cells potentially by inhibiting the expression of adhesion and invasion‑related genes.

By inhibiting Ras/Raf/ERK and MMP-9, knockdown of EpCAM inhibits breast cancer cell growth and metastasis

Epithelial cell adhesion molecule (EpCAM) is a type I transmembrane protein that is expressed in the majority of normal epithelial tissues and is overexpressed in most epithelial cancers including breast cancer, where it plays an important role in cancer progression. However, the mechanism by which EpCAM promotes the progression of breast cancer is not understood. In this study, we found that EpCAM expression was increased in tumor tissue from breast cancer patients compared to healthy patients. Overexpression of EpCAM in breast cancer cells enhanced tumor cell growth in vitro and increased invasiveness, whereas small interfering RNA-mediated silencing of EpCAM (si-EpCAM) had the opposite effect. EpCAM knockdown led to decreased phosphorylation of Raf and ERK, suppression of malignant behavior of breast cancer cells, and inhibition of the Ras/Raf/ERK signaling pathway. Furthermore, si-EpCAM-mediated invasion and metastasis of breast carcinoma cells required the downregulation of matrix metalloproteinase-9 (MMP-9) through inhibition of this signaling pathway. In conclusion, our data show that knockdown of EpCAM can inhibition breast cancer cell growth and metastasis via inhibition of the Ras/Raf/ERK signaling pathway and MMP-9.

Heterophyllin B inhibits the adhesion and invasion of ECA-109 human esophageal carcinoma cells by targeting PI3K/AKT/β-catenin signaling

The present study aimed to measure the effect of heterophyllin B (HB) on the adhesion and invasion of ECA-109 human esophageal carcinoma cells, and examine the possible mechanism involved. A Cell Counting kit 8 assay was performed to determine the cell viability. Cell adhesion and invasion were determined following treatment of the ECA-109 cells with HB (0, 10, 25 and 50 µM) for 24 h. The levels of phosphorylated (p-)ATK and p-phosphoinositide 3-kinase (PI3K), and the protein levels of β-catenin were measured using western blot analysis. The mRNA and protein expression levels of E-cadherin, vimentin, snail, matrix metalloproteinase (MMP)2 and MMP9 were detected using reverse transcription-quantitative polymerase chain reaction and western blot analyses, respectively. HB (10, 25 and 50 µM) significantly suppressed the adhesion and invasion of the ECA-109 human esophageal carcinoma cells in a dose-dependant manner. The expression levels of p-ATK, p-PI3K and β-catenin were markedly decreased. The expression of E-cadherin was promoted, whereas the expression levels of snail, vimentin, MMP 2 and MMP 9 were decreased significantly in the ECA-109 cells treated with HB. In addition, HB inhibited the adhesion and invasion induced by PI3K activating peptide in the ECA-109 cells, and the protein expression levels were also adjusted. These results suggested that HB effectively suppressed the adhesion and invasion of the human esophageal carcinoma cells by mediating the PI3K/AKT/β-catenin pathways and regulating the expression levels of adhesion- and invasion-associated genes.

Association Between Expression of Cancer Stem Cell Markers and Poor Differentiation of Hepatocellular Carcinoma: A Meta-Analysis (PRISMA)

The role of cancer stem cell (CSC) markers in differentiation of hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC) remains uncertain. We conducted a meta-analysis to first investigate the association between expression of CSC markers (CD133, CD90, CD44, and EpCAM) and poor differentiation of HCC, and second, to determine if these CSC markers can be classified as biomarkers for patient classification and HCC differentiated therapy.The relevant literature was searched using PubMed, EMBASE, Elsevier, and Chinese Biological Medicine databases for association between CSC markers and HCC from January 1, 2000 to June 30, 2014. Data were synthesized using random-effect or fixed-effect models. The effect sizes were estimated by measuring odds ratios (OR) with 95% confidence interval (CI).The meta-analysis included 27 studies consisting of 2897 patients with HCC. The positive expression of CSC markers was associated with poor differentiation (OR = 2.37, 95% CI = 2.03-2.77, P < 0.00001). Similarly, the positive expression of CSC markers was only associated with HCC tissues compared with noncancerous liver tissues (OR = 9.26, 95% CI = 3.10-27.65, P < 0.0001). CD90 has a specificity of 91.9% for HCC and a sensitivity of 48.22% in predicting poor differentiation.The positive expression of CSC markers is associated with poor differentiation and aggressive phenotype of patients with HCC. The CD90 marker might be a promising target for patient with HCC classification and differentiation therapy.