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Wang Y, Niu Z, Zhou L, Zhou Y, Ma Q, Zhu Y, Liu M, Shi Y, Tai Y, Shao Q, Ge J, Hua J, Gao L, Huang H, Jiang H, Sun Q. Subtype-Based Analysis of Cell-in-Cell Structures in Esophageal Squamous Cell Carcinoma. Front Oncol 2021; 11:670051. [PMID: 34178655 PMCID: PMC8231019 DOI: 10.3389/fonc.2021.670051] [Citation(s) in RCA: 12] [Impact Index Per Article: 4.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 02/20/2021] [Accepted: 05/19/2021] [Indexed: 11/29/2022] Open
Abstract
Cell-in-cell (CIC) structures are defined as the special structures with one or more cells enclosed inside another one. Increasing data indicated that CIC structures were functional surrogates of complicated cell behaviors and prognosis predictor in heterogeneous cancers. However, the CIC structure profiling and its prognostic value have not been reported in human esophageal squamous cell Carcinoma (ESCC). We conducted the analysis of subtyped CIC-based profiling in ESCC using "epithelium-macrophage-leukocyte" (EML) multiplex staining and examined the prognostic value of CIC structure profiling through Kaplan-Meier plotting and Cox regression model. Totally, five CIC structure subtypes were identified in ESCC tissue and the majority of them was homotypic CIC (hoCIC) with tumor cells inside tumor cells (TiT). By univariate and multivariate analyses, TiT was shown to be an independent prognostic factor for resectable ESCC, and patients with higher density of TiT tended to have longer post-operational survival time. Furthermore, in subpopulation analysis stratified by TNM stage, high TiT density was associated with longer overall survival (OS) in patients of TNM stages III and IV as compared with patients with low TiT density (mean OS: 51 vs 15 months, P = 0.04) and T3 stage (mean OS: 57 vs 17 months, P=0.024). Together, we reported the first CIC structure profiling in ESCC and explored the prognostic value of subtyped CIC structures, which supported the notion that functional pathology with CIC structure profiling is an emerging prognostic factor for human cancers, such as ESCC.
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Affiliation(s)
- Yuqi Wang
- College of Life Science and Bioengineering, School of Science, Beijing Jiaotong University, Beijing, China
- Research Unit of Cell Death Mechanism, Institute of Biotechnology, Chinese Academy of Medical Science, Beijing, China
| | - Zubiao Niu
- Research Unit of Cell Death Mechanism, Institute of Biotechnology, Chinese Academy of Medical Science, Beijing, China
| | - Lulin Zhou
- Research Unit of Cell Death Mechanism, Institute of Biotechnology, Chinese Academy of Medical Science, Beijing, China
- School of Medicine, Nankai University, Tianjin, China
| | - Yongan Zhou
- Department of Thoracic Surgery, The Second Affiliated Hospital of Air Force Military Medical University, Xi’an, China
| | - Qunfeng Ma
- Department of Thoracic Surgery, The Fifth Medical Center of Chinese PLA General Hospital, Beijing, China
| | - Yichao Zhu
- Research Unit of Cell Death Mechanism, Institute of Biotechnology, Chinese Academy of Medical Science, Beijing, China
| | - Mengzhe Liu
- College of Life Science and Bioengineering, School of Science, Beijing Jiaotong University, Beijing, China
| | - Yinan Shi
- College of Life Science and Bioengineering, School of Science, Beijing Jiaotong University, Beijing, China
- Institute of Acupuncture and Moxibustion, China Academy of Chinese Medical Sciences, Beijing, China
| | - Yanhong Tai
- Department of Pathology, The Fifth Medical Center of Chinese PLA General Hospital, Beijing, China
| | - Qiuju Shao
- Department of Radiotherapy, The Second Affiliated Hospital of Air Force Military Medical University, Xi’an, China
| | - Jianlin Ge
- College of Life Science and Bioengineering, School of Science, Beijing Jiaotong University, Beijing, China
| | - Jilei Hua
- College of Life Science and Bioengineering, School of Science, Beijing Jiaotong University, Beijing, China
| | - Lihua Gao
- Research Unit of Cell Death Mechanism, Institute of Biotechnology, Chinese Academy of Medical Science, Beijing, China
| | - Hongyan Huang
- Department of Oncology, Beijing Shijitan Hospital of Capital Medical University, Beijing, China
| | - Hong Jiang
- College of Life Science and Bioengineering, School of Science, Beijing Jiaotong University, Beijing, China
| | - Qiang Sun
- Research Unit of Cell Death Mechanism, Institute of Biotechnology, Chinese Academy of Medical Science, Beijing, China
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