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Zou Z, Luo T, Wang X, Wang B, Li Q. Exploring the interplay between triple-negative breast cancer stem cells and tumor microenvironment for effective therapeutic strategies. J Cell Physiol 2024; 239:e31278. [PMID: 38807378 DOI: 10.1002/jcp.31278] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 02/26/2024] [Revised: 03/28/2024] [Accepted: 04/05/2024] [Indexed: 05/30/2024]
Abstract
Triple-negative breast cancer (TNBC) is a highly aggressive and metastatic malignancy with poor treatment outcomes. The interaction between the tumor microenvironment (TME) and breast cancer stem cells (BCSCs) plays an important role in the development of TNBC. Owing to their ability of self-renewal and multidirectional differentiation, BCSCs maintain tumor growth, drive metastatic colonization, and facilitate the development of drug resistance. TME is the main factor regulating the phenotype and metastasis of BCSCs. Immune cells, cancer-related fibroblasts (CAFs), cytokines, mesenchymal cells, endothelial cells, and extracellular matrix within the TME form a complex communication network, exert highly selective pressure on the tumor, and provide a conducive environment for the formation of BCSC niches. Tumor growth and metastasis can be controlled by targeting the TME to eliminate BCSC niches or targeting BCSCs to modify the TME. These approaches may improve the treatment outcomes and possess great application potential in clinical settings. In this review, we summarized the relationship between BCSCs and the progression and drug resistance of TNBC, especially focusing on the interaction between BCSCs and TME. In addition, we discussed therapeutic strategies that target the TME to inhibit or eliminate BCSCs, providing valuable insights into the clinical treatment of TNBC.
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Affiliation(s)
- Zhuoling Zou
- Queen Mary College, Nanchang University, Nanchang, Jiangxi, China
| | - Tinglan Luo
- Department of Oncology, The Seventh People's Hospital of Chongqing (Affiliated Central Hospital of Chongqing University of Technology), Chongqing, China
| | - Xinyuan Wang
- Department of Clinical Medicine, The Second Clinical College of Chongqing Medicine University, Chongqing, China
| | - Bin Wang
- Department of Oncology, The Seventh People's Hospital of Chongqing (Affiliated Central Hospital of Chongqing University of Technology), Chongqing, China
| | - Qing Li
- Department of Oncology, The Second Affiliated Hospital of Nanchang University, Nanchang, Jiangxi, China
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Eiro N, Fraile M, Escudero-Cernuda S, Sendon-Lago J, Gonzalez LO, Fernandez-Sánchez ML, Vizoso FJ. Synergistic effect of human uterine cervical mesenchymal stem cell secretome and paclitaxel on triple negative breast cancer. Stem Cell Res Ther 2024; 15:121. [PMID: 38664697 PMCID: PMC11044487 DOI: 10.1186/s13287-024-03717-0] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 09/01/2023] [Accepted: 04/07/2024] [Indexed: 04/28/2024] Open
Abstract
BACKGROUND Triple-negative breast cancer (TNBC) is the most lethal subtype of breast cancer and, despite its adverse effects, chemotherapy is the standard systemic treatment option for TNBC. Since, it is of utmost importance to consider the combination of different agents to achieve greater efficacy and curability potential, MSC secretome is a possible innovative alternative. METHODS In the present study, we proposed to investigate the anti-tumor effect of the combination of a chemical agent (paclitaxel) with a complex biological product, secretome derived from human Uterine Cervical Stem cells (CM-hUCESC) in TNBC. RESULTS The combination of paclitaxel and CM-hUCESC decreased cell proliferation and invasiveness of tumor cells and induced apoptosis in vitro (MDA-MB-231 and/or primary tumor cells). The anti-tumor effect was confirmed in a mouse tumor xenograft model showing that the combination of both products has a significant effect in reducing tumor growth. Also, pre-conditioning hUCESC with a sub-lethal dose of paclitaxel enhances the effect of its secretome and in combination with paclitaxel reduced significantly tumor growth and even allows to diminish the dose of paclitaxel in vivo. This effect is in part due to the action of extracellular vesicles (EVs) derived from CM-hUCESC and soluble factors, such as TIMP-1 and - 2. CONCLUSIONS In conclusion, our data demonstrate the synergistic effect of the combination of CM-hUCESC with paclitaxel on TNBC and opens an opportunity to reduce the dose of the chemotherapeutic agents, which may decrease chemotherapy-related toxicity.
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Affiliation(s)
- Noemi Eiro
- Research Unit, Hospital de Jove Foundation, Gijón, Spain.
| | - Maria Fraile
- Research Unit, Hospital de Jove Foundation, Gijón, Spain
| | - Sara Escudero-Cernuda
- Department of Physical and Analytical Chemistry, University of Oviedo, Oviedo, Spain
| | - Juan Sendon-Lago
- Experimental Biomedicine Centre (CEBEGA), University of Santiago de Compostela, Santiago de Compostela, Spain
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Ali K, Nabeel M, Mohsin F, Iqtedar M, Islam M, Rasool MF, Hashmi FK, Hussain SA, Saeed H. Recent developments in targeting breast cancer stem cells (BCSCs): a descriptive review of therapeutic strategies and emerging therapies. Med Oncol 2024; 41:112. [PMID: 38592510 DOI: 10.1007/s12032-024-02347-z] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 01/12/2024] [Accepted: 02/27/2024] [Indexed: 04/10/2024]
Abstract
Despite recent advancements in the diagnosis and treatment of breast cancer (BC), patient outcomes in terms of survival, recurrence, and disease progression remain suboptimal. A significant factor contributing to these challenges is the cellular heterogeneity within BC, particularly the presence of breast cancer stem cells (BCSCs). These cells are thought to serve as the clonogenic nexus for new tumor growth, owing to their hierarchical organization within the tumor. This descriptive review focuses on the evolving strategies to target BCSCs, which have become a pivotal aspect of therapeutic development. We explore a variety of approaches, including targeting specific tumor surface markers (CD133 and CD44), transporters, heat shock proteins, and critical signaling pathways like Notch, Akt, Hedgehog, KLF4, and Wnt/β-catenin. Additionally, we discuss the modulation of the tumor microenvironment through the CXCR-12/CXCR4 axis, manipulation of pH levels, and targeting hypoxia-inducible factors, vascular endothelial growth factor, and CXCR1/2 receptors. Further, this review focuses on the roles of microRNA expression, strategies to induce apoptosis and differentiation in BCSCs, dietary interventions, dendritic cell vaccination, oncolytic viruses, nanotechnology, immunotherapy, and gene therapy. We particularly focused on studies reporting identification of BCSCs, their unique properties and the efficacy of various therapeutic modalities in targeting these cells. By dissecting these approaches, we aim to provide insights into the complex landscape of BC treatment and the potential pathways for improving patient outcomes through targeted BCSC therapies.
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Affiliation(s)
- Khubaib Ali
- Department of Clinical Pharmacy, Akhtar Saeed College of Pharmaceutical Sciences, Bahria Town, Lahore, Pakistan
- Department Clinical Oncology Pharmacy, Cancer Care Hospital & Research Centre, Lahore, Pakistan
| | - Muhammad Nabeel
- Department of Clinical Pharmacy, Akhtar Saeed College of Pharmaceutical Sciences, Bahria Town, Lahore, Pakistan
- Department Clinical Oncology Pharmacy, Cancer Care Hospital & Research Centre, Lahore, Pakistan
| | - Fatima Mohsin
- Department of Biological Sciences, KAM School of Life Sciences, Forman Christian College (A Chartered University), Lahore, Pakistan
| | - Mehwish Iqtedar
- Department of Bio-Technology, Lahore College for Women University, Jail Road, Lahore, Pakistan
| | - Muhammad Islam
- Department of Pharmaceutics, College of Pharmacy, University of the Punjab, Allama Iqbal Campus, Lahore, Pakistan
| | | | - Furqan K Hashmi
- Department of Pharmaceutics, College of Pharmacy, University of the Punjab, Allama Iqbal Campus, Lahore, Pakistan
| | | | - Hamid Saeed
- Department of Pharmaceutics, College of Pharmacy, University of the Punjab, Allama Iqbal Campus, Lahore, Pakistan.
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Zhou L, Peng X, Zeng L, Peng L. Finding potential lncRNA-disease associations using a boosting-based ensemble learning model. Front Genet 2024; 15:1356205. [PMID: 38495672 PMCID: PMC10940470 DOI: 10.3389/fgene.2024.1356205] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 12/18/2023] [Accepted: 02/01/2024] [Indexed: 03/19/2024] Open
Abstract
Introduction: Long non-coding RNAs (lncRNAs) have been in the clinical use as potential prognostic biomarkers of various types of cancer. Identifying associations between lncRNAs and diseases helps capture the potential biomarkers and design efficient therapeutic options for diseases. Wet experiments for identifying these associations are costly and laborious. Methods: We developed LDA-SABC, a novel boosting-based framework for lncRNA-disease association (LDA) prediction. LDA-SABC extracts LDA features based on singular value decomposition (SVD) and classifies lncRNA-disease pairs (LDPs) by incorporating LightGBM and AdaBoost into the convolutional neural network. Results: The LDA-SABC performance was evaluated under five-fold cross validations (CVs) on lncRNAs, diseases, and LDPs. It obviously outperformed four other classical LDA inference methods (SDLDA, LDNFSGB, LDASR, and IPCAF) through precision, recall, accuracy, F1 score, AUC, and AUPR. Based on the accurate LDA prediction performance of LDA-SABC, we used it to find potential lncRNA biomarkers for lung cancer. The results elucidated that 7SK and HULC could have a relationship with non-small-cell lung cancer (NSCLC) and lung adenocarcinoma (LUAD), respectively. Conclusion: We hope that our proposed LDA-SABC method can help improve the LDA identification.
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Affiliation(s)
- Liqian Zhou
- School of Computer Science, Hunan University of Technology, Zhuzhou, Hunan, China
| | - Xinhuai Peng
- School of Computer Science, Hunan University of Technology, Zhuzhou, Hunan, China
| | - Lijun Zeng
- School of Computer Science, Hunan Institute of Technology, Hengyang, China
| | - Lihong Peng
- School of Computer Science, Hunan University of Technology, Zhuzhou, Hunan, China
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Bao H, Li J, Zhao Q, Yang Q, Xu Y. Circular RNAs in Breast Cancer: An Update. Biomolecules 2024; 14:158. [PMID: 38397395 PMCID: PMC10887059 DOI: 10.3390/biom14020158] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 12/14/2023] [Revised: 01/14/2024] [Accepted: 01/24/2024] [Indexed: 02/25/2024] Open
Abstract
Breast cancer (BC), characterized by high heterogeneity, is the most commonly reported malignancy among females across the globe. Every year, many BC patients die owing to delayed diagnosis and treatment. Increasing researches have indicated that aberrantly expressed circular RNAs (circRNAs) are implicated in the tumorigenesis and progression of various tumors, including BC. Hence, this article provides a summary of the biogenesis and functions of circRNAs, as well as an examination of how circRNAs regulate the progression of BC. Moreover, circRNAs have aroused incremental attention as potential diagnostic and prognostic biomarkers for BC. Exosomes enriched with circRNAs can be secreted into the tumor microenvironment to mediate intercellular communication, affecting the progression of BC. Detecting the expression levels of exosomal circRNAs may provide reference for BC diagnosis and prognosis prediction. Illuminating insights into the earlier diagnosis and better treatment regimens of BC will be potentially available following elucidation of deeper regulatory mechanisms of circRNAs in this malignancy.
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Affiliation(s)
- Haolin Bao
- Department of Hepatopancreatobiliary Surgery, The Second Affiliated Hospital of Harbin Medical University, Harbin 150086, China
| | - Jiehan Li
- Department of Hepatopancreatobiliary Surgery, The Second Affiliated Hospital of Harbin Medical University, Harbin 150086, China
| | - Qihang Zhao
- Department of Mammary Surgery, The Second Affiliated Hospital of Harbin Medical University, Harbin 150086, China
| | - Qingling Yang
- Anhui Province Key Laboratory of Cancer Translational Medicine, Bengbu Medical University, Bengbu 233030, China
| | - Yi Xu
- Department of Hepatopancreatobiliary Surgery, The Second Affiliated Hospital of Harbin Medical University, Harbin 150086, China
- Anhui Province Key Laboratory of Cancer Translational Medicine, Bengbu Medical University, Bengbu 233030, China
- State Key Laboratory of Oncology in South China, Cancer Center of Sun Yat-Sen University, Guangzhou 510060, China
- Shanghai Key Laboratory of Molecular Imaging, Shanghai University of Medicine and Health Sciences, Shanghai 201318, China
- Department of Pathology, Li Ka Shing Faculty of Medicine, The University of Hong Kong, Hong Kong SAR 999077, China
- Research of Zhejiang Province, The First Affiliated Hospital of Wenzhou Medical University, Wenzhou 325000, China
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Abasi M, Ranjbari J, Ghanbarian H. 7SK small nuclear RNA (Rn7SK) induces apoptosis through intrinsic and extrinsic pathways in human embryonic kidney cell line. Mol Biol Rep 2024; 51:96. [PMID: 38193993 DOI: 10.1007/s11033-023-08934-z] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 09/10/2023] [Accepted: 11/06/2023] [Indexed: 01/10/2024]
Abstract
BACKGROUND Rn7SK, a highly conserved small nuclear non-coding RNA, controls Polymerase II transcription machinery by activating of the Positive Transcriptional Elongation Factor b (P-TEFb). Apart from its role in transcriptional regulation, the potential functions of Rn7SK in cell apoptosis are poorly understood. In a previous study, we demonstrated that overexpression of 7SK induces apoptosis in HEK cells. However, it remains unclear whether 7SK-mediated apoptosis induction is exerted through the intrinsic or extrinsic pathways. METHODS AND RESULTS Rn7SK was overexpressed in HEK 293T cell line using Lipofectamine 2000 reagent to investigate its potential apoptotic functions. The overexpression of Rn7SK resulted in reduced cell viability through the induction of apoptosis, as evidenced by MTT assay and Annexin V/PI staining. Concurrently, alterations in the expression levels of key apoptosis-related genes were observed, as determined by quantitative RT-PCR. Furthermore, Rn7SK overexpression led to a decrease in cell proliferation, as assessed by colony formation assay and growth curve analysis. This reduction was associated with downregulated expression of key proliferative-related genes. Additionally, the migration and invasion capabilities of cells were significantly inhibited upon upregulation of Rn7SK, as demonstrated by transwell assays. CONCLUSIONS This study suggests the apoptotic role of 7SK through both intrinsic and extrinsic pathways, necessitating further investigation into its underlying mechanisms.
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Affiliation(s)
- Mozhgan Abasi
- Immunogenetics Research Center, Department of Tissue Engineering and Applied Cell Sciences, Faculty of Advanced Technologies in Medicine, Mazandaran University of Medical Sciences, Sari, Iran
- Molecular and Cell Biology Research Center, Mazandaran University of Medical Sciences, Sari, Iran
| | - Javad Ranjbari
- Department of Medical Biotechnology, School of Advanced Technologies in Medicine, Shahid Beheshti University of Medical Sciences, Tehran, Iran
| | - Hossein Ghanbarian
- Cellular and Molecular Biology Research Center, Shahid Beheshti University of Medical Sciences, Tehran, Iran.
- Department of Medical Biotechnology, School of Advanced Technologies in Medicine, Shahid Beheshti University of Medical Sciences, Tehran, Iran.
- Urogenital Stem Cell Research Center, Shahid Beheshti University of Medical Sciences, Tehran, Iran.
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Wu Y, Shum HCE, Wu K, Vadgama J. From Interaction to Intervention: How Mesenchymal Stem Cells Affect and Target Triple-Negative Breast Cancer. Biomedicines 2023; 11:1182. [PMID: 37189800 PMCID: PMC10136169 DOI: 10.3390/biomedicines11041182] [Citation(s) in RCA: 4] [Impact Index Per Article: 4.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 03/28/2023] [Revised: 04/11/2023] [Accepted: 04/12/2023] [Indexed: 05/17/2023] Open
Abstract
Triple-negative breast cancer (TNBC) lacks estrogen receptor, progesterone receptor, and human epidermal growth factor receptor 2 expressions, making targeted therapies ineffective. Mesenchymal stem cells (MSCs) have emerged as a promising approach for TNBC treatment by modulating the tumor microenvironment (TME) and interacting with cancer cells. This review aims to comprehensively overview the role of MSCs in TNBC treatment, including their mechanisms of action and application strategies. We analyze the interactions between MSC and TNBC cells, including the impact of MSCs on TNBC cell proliferation, migration, invasion, metastasis, angiogenesis, and drug resistance, along with the signaling pathways and molecular mechanisms involved. We also explore the impact of MSCs on other components of the TME, such as immune and stromal cells, and the underlying mechanisms. The review discusses the application strategies of MSCs in TNBC treatment, including their use as cell or drug carriers and the advantages and limitations of different types and sources of MSCs in terms of safety and efficacy. Finally, we discuss the challenges and prospects of MSCs in TNBC treatment and propose potential solutions or improvement methods. Overall, this review provides valuable insights into the potential of MSCs as a novel therapeutic approach for TNBC treatment.
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Affiliation(s)
- Yong Wu
- Division of Cancer Research and Training, Department of Internal Medicine, Charles R. Drew University of Medicine and Science, David Geffen UCLA School of Medicine and UCLA Jonsson Comprehensive Cancer Center, Los Angeles, CA 90095, USA
| | - Hang Chee Erin Shum
- Li Ka Shing Faculty of Medicine, The University of Hong Kong, Hong Kong, China
| | - Ke Wu
- Division of Cancer Research and Training, Department of Internal Medicine, Charles R. Drew University of Medicine and Science, David Geffen UCLA School of Medicine and UCLA Jonsson Comprehensive Cancer Center, Los Angeles, CA 90095, USA
| | - Jaydutt Vadgama
- Division of Cancer Research and Training, Department of Internal Medicine, Charles R. Drew University of Medicine and Science, David Geffen UCLA School of Medicine and UCLA Jonsson Comprehensive Cancer Center, Los Angeles, CA 90095, USA
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