Endoplasmic reticulum protein 29 (ERp29) as a novel prognostic marker and tumor suppressor in osteosarcoma

The role of ERp29/FOS/EMT pathway in excessive apoptosis of placental trophoblast cells in intrahepatic cholestasis of pregnancy

BACKGROUND

Abnormal bile acid metabolism leading to changes in placental function during pregnancy. To determine whether endoplasmic reticulum protein 29 (ERp29) can mediate the pregnancy effects of cholestasis by altering the level of trophoblast cell apoptosis.

METHODS

ERp29 in serum of 66 intrahepatic cholestasis of pregnancy (ICP) pregnant women and 74 healthy were detected by ELISA. Subcutaneous injection of ethinyl estradiol (E2) was used to induce ICP in pregnant rats. Taurocholic acid (TCA) was used to simulate the ICP environment, and TGF-β1 was added to induce the epithelial mesenchymal transformation (EMT) process. The scratch, migration, and invasion test were used to detect the EMT process. ERp29 overexpression/knockdown vector were constructed and transfected to verify the role of ERp29 in the EMT process. Downstream gene was obtained through RNA-seq.

RESULTS

Compared with the healthy pregnant women, the expression levels of ERp29 in serum of ICP pregnancy women were significantly increased (P < 0.001). ERp29 in the placenta tissue of the ICP pregnant rats increased significantly, and the level of apoptosis increased. The placental tissues of the ICP had high expression of E-cadherin and low expression of N-cadherin, snail1, vimentin. After HTR-8/SVneo cells were induced by TCA, EMT was inhibited, while the ERp29 increased. Cell and animal experiments showed that, knockdown of ERp29 reduced the inhibition of EMT, the ICP progress was alleviated. Overexpression of FOS salvaged the inhibitory effects of ERp29 on cell EMT.

DISCUSSION

The high level of ERp29 in placental trophoblast cells reduced FOS mRNA levels, inhibited the EMT process and aggravated the occurrence and development of ICP.

Euchromatic histone lysine methyltransferase 2 facilitates radioresistance in prostate cancer by repressing endoplasmic reticulum protein 29 transcription

Prostate cancer is one of the most common cancers in men. This study was conducted to investigate the role of euchromatic histone lysine methyltransferase 2 (EHMT2) and endoplasmic reticulum protein 29 (ERP29) in the progression of radioresistance in prostate cancer. The expression of EHMT2 and ERP29 in prostate cancer cells and during the progression of radioresistance was detected using quantitative reverse transcription-polymerase chain reaction and western blotting, and the interaction between EHMT2 and ERP29 was investigated. The proliferation of transfected cells under x-ray irradiation was determined using the methyl thiazolyl tetrazolium and colony formation assays. Flow cytometry was used to analyze the apoptosis of the transfected cells under x-ray irradiation. Nude mice were subcutaneously injected with prostate cancer (DU145) cells stably transfected with sh-ERP29 or sh-NC. The effect of ERP29 expression on radioresistance in nude mice was assessed by x-ray irradiation. The expression of EHMT2 was upregulated and that of ERP29 was downregulated in prostate cancer cells during radioresistance progression. EHMT2 downregulation suppressed radioresistance in DU145 and androgen-sensitive prostate cancer (LNCaP) cells. In irradiated DU145 cells, EHMT2 inhibition decreased the number of colonies and accelerated apoptosis. The transcription of ERP29 was suppressed by EHMT2 by upregulating H3K9me2 and downregulating H3K4me3, thereby regulating radioresistance in prostate cancer cells. In addition, the downregulation of ERP29 promoted the progression of radioresistance in prostate cancer cells in nude mice. EHMT2 promotes radioresistance in prostate cancer cells by repressing ERP29 transcription.

Peri-osteosarcoma adipose computed tomography attenuation and volume for predicting chemotherapy response in pediatric patients

BACKGROUND

The chemosensitivity of osteosarcoma patients to MTX is closely related to prognosis. There is currently a lack of advance prediction methods for MTX sensitivity.

OBJECTIVE

We proposed novel peri-osteosarcoma fat parameters based on computed tomography (CT) to evaluate the chemotherapy response preoperatively and calculate the correlation between image characteristics and methotrexate (MTX) blood concentration and systemic inflammation.

MATERIALS AND METHODS

Pediatric patients with osteosarcoma (OS) who were treated with high-dose MTX were retrospectively studied and grouped according to postoperative Huvos classification. Clinical data were collected and reviewed. Image characteristics including peri-osteosarcoma fat volume and fat attenuation index were measured using the threshold method based on CT images. Statistical significance, correlation and prediction performance were performed.

RESULTS

Eighteen patients (good response (GR) group/poor response (PR) group: 10/8) was enrolled. MTX peak value at 6 h differed significantly between the two groups which was significantly higher in GR group (745.1 μmol/L vs 529.0 μmol/L p = 0.001). Peri-osteosarcoma fat attenuation index was significantly lower in GR group compared with that in PR group (- 104.90 vs. - 97.19, p < 0.0001). MTX blood concentration at 6 h negatively correlated with peri-osteosarcoma fat attenuation index (R = - 0.519, p = 0.027). In addition, 6 h MTX blood concentration (OR 0.974; 95% CI 0.951-0.998, p = 0.037) and FAI (OR 2.108; 95% CI 1.047-4.243, p = 0.037) were, respectively, independently related to good response to chemotherapy. The prediction performance on chemotherapy response of peri-osteosarcoma fat attenuation index and 6 h MTX blood concentration were both good with the comparable area under the ROC curve (0.950, 95% CI 0.856-1.000 and 0.963, 95% CI 0.878-1.00).

CONCLUSIONS

Peri-osteosarcoma fat parameters based on CT were associated with the chemotherapy response and the MTX blood concentration, but not with the systemic inflammation. Combined with the requirement of current clinical practice, peri-osteosarcoma fat parameters may have the potential to be valuable image characteristics for monitoring chemotherapy response in OS pediatric patients.

Osteosarcoma-Specific Genes as a Diagnostic Tool and Clinical Predictor of Tumor Progression

Simple Summary

The standard method for the diagnosis and monitoring of osteosarcoma is biopsy and tumor imaging, which causes discomfort to patients and is difficult to repeat. A blood sample can be used as a non-invasive method for monitoring tumor material. Vimentin and ezrin show clinical significance in samples obtained from OS patients but need circulating tumor cell purification, since they are expressed in leukocytes. Due to the low-temperature storage of the samples, it proved impossible to perform purification to remove the contamination. We propose that novel or OS-specific biomarkers using differential gene expression from the Gene Expression Omnibus (GEO) database is a promising approach for developing diagnostic and tumor progression strategies. Seven genes from the database showed significant expression in OS cell lines/primary cells compared to a normal blood donor, together with ezrin and VIM. The expression of the five candidate genes together with ezrin and vimentin were quantified by qRT-PCR and analyzed using a mathematical model with high efficiency to discriminate between OS patients and normal samples, resulting in the selection of three candidate genes: COL5A2 (one of the five from the database) as well as ezrin and VIM. Our study demonstrates that these genes in retrospective samples could serve as tools of OS detection and predictors of disease progression.

Abstract

A liquid biopsy is currently an interesting tool for measuring tumor material with the advantage of being non-invasive. The overexpression of vimentin and ezrin genes was associated with epithelial-mesenchymal transition (EMT), a key process in metastasis and progression in osteosarcoma (OS). In this study, we identified other OS-specific genes by calculating differential gene expression using the Gene Expression Omnibus (GEO) database, confirmed by using quantitative reverse transcription-PCR (qRT-PCR) to detect OS-specific genes, including VIM and ezrin in the buffy coat, which were obtained from the whole blood of OS patients and healthy donors. Furthermore, the diagnostic model for OS detection was generated by utilizing binary logistic regression with a multivariable fractional polynomial (MFP) algorithm. The model incorporating VIM, ezrin, and COL5A2 genes exhibited outstanding discriminative ability, as determined by the receiver operating characteristic curve (AUC = 0.9805, 95% CI 0.9603, 1.000). At the probability cut-off value of 0.3366, the sensitivity and the specificity of the model for detecting OS were 98.63% (95% CI 90.5, 99.7) and 94.94% (95% CI 87.5, 98.6), respectively. Bioinformatic analysis and qRT-PCR, in our study, identified three candidate genes that are potential diagnostic and prognostic genes for OS.

A Novel Apoptosis-Related Gene Signature Predicts Biochemical Recurrence of Localized Prostate Cancer After Radical Prostatectomy

Background: Nowadays, predictions of biochemical recurrence (BCR) in localized prostate cancer (PCa) patients after radical prostatectomy (RP) are mainly based on clinical parameters with a low predictive accuracy. Given the critical role of apoptosis in PCa occurrence and progression, we aimed to establish a novel predictive model based on apoptosis-related gene signature and clinicopathological parameters that can improve risk stratification for BCR and assist in clinical decision-making. Methods: Expression data and corresponding clinical information were obtained from four public cohorts, one from The Cancer Genome Atlas (TCGA) dataset and three from the Gene Expression Omnibus (GEO) dataset. Weighted gene co-expression network analysis (WGCNA) was performed to identify candidate modules closely correlated to BCR, and univariate and multivariate Cox regression analyses were utilized to build the gene signature. Time-dependent receiver operating curve (ROC) and Kaplan-Meier (KM) survival analysis were used to assess the prognostic value. Finally, we analyzed the expression of genes in the signature and validated the results using quantitative real-time PCR (qRT-PCR). Results: The novel gene signature we established exhibited a high prognostic value and was able to act as an independent risk factor for BCR [Training set: P < 0.001, hazard ratio (HR) = 7.826; Validation set I: P = 0.006, HR = 2.655; Validation set II: P = 0.003, HR = 4.175; Validation set III: P < 0.001, HR = 3.008]. Nomogram based on the gene signature and clinical parameters was capable of distinguishing high-risk BCR patients. Additionally, functional enrichment analysis showed several enriched pathways and biological processes, which might help reveal the underlying mechanism. The expression results of qRT-PCR were consistent with TCGA results. Conclusion: The apoptosis-related gene signature could serve as a powerful predictor and risk factor for BCR in localized PCa patients after RP.

Expression profiling of DNA methyl transferase I (DNMT1) and efficacy of a DNA-hypomethylating agent (decitabine) in combination with chemotherapy in osteosarcoma

Background

Abnormality in the DNA methylation process is one of the hallmarks of cancer. Emerging evidence strongly supports the idea that defects in DNA methyl transferases (DNMTs) are involved in tumor development and progression. This alteration has major effects at the transcription level of various cancer-associated genes.

Methods

Expression profiles of DNMT1 were investigated in fresh frozen tissues, patient-derived cells, and formalin-fixed paraffin-embedded tissues using immunoblotting and immunohistochemistry analysis. We also examined an anti-tumor effect of single DNA-hypomethylating agent (decitabine) and a combination of decitabine and chemotherapy in osteosarcoma cell lines.

Results

The results showed an overexpression of DNMT1 in most cases compared to normal cells and tissue samples. DNMT1 was also expressed at the same levels in paired primary cells derived from biopsy and post-chemotherapy tissues. Expression patterns of DNMT1 were examined in 77 osteosarcoma patients of whom 82% had positive DNMT1 with an IRS score > 0. Most of the cases expressed low to moderate levels of DNMT1 (IRS range 1-8, median = 2.0). Furthermore, we found that a combination of decitabine and chemotherapy had a synergistic effect in most of the tested osteosarcoma cells at a low dose therapeutic range of decitabine.

Conclusions

Our study revealed DNMT1 expression patterns that indicated potential roles of DNMT1 in osteosarcoma transformation and progression. This finding also suggests the efficacy of a combination therapy of decitabine with chemotherapy for osteosarcoma treatment.

The potential of micelleplexes as a therapeutic strategy for osteosarcoma disease

Osteosarcoma (OS) is a rare aggressive bone, presenting low patient survival rate, high metastasis and relapse occurrence, mostly due to multi-drug resistant cells. To surpass that, the use of nanomedicine for the targeted delivery of genetic material, drugs or both have been extensively researched. In this review, we address the current situation of the disorder and some gene therapy options in the nanomedicine field that have been investigated. Among them, polymeric micelles (PM) are an advantageous therapeutic alternative highly explored for OS, as they allow for the targeted transportation of poorly water-soluble drugs to cancer cells. In addition, micelleplexes are PMs with cationic properties with promising features, such as the possibility for a dual therapy, which have made them an attractive research subject. The aim of this review article is to elucidate the application of a micelleplex formulation encapsulating the underexpressed miRNA145 to achieve an active targeting to OS cells and overcome multi-drug resistance, as a new and viable therapeutic strategy.