Urinary pS2/TFF1 levels in the management of hormonodependent breast carcinomas

Unveiling the Dichotomy of Urinary Proteins: Diagnostic Insights into Breast and Prostate Cancer and Their Roles

This review covers the diagnostic potential of urinary biomarkers, shedding light on their linkage to cancer progression. Urinary biomarkers offer non-invasive avenues for detecting cancers, potentially bypassing the invasiveness of biopsies. The investigation focuses primarily on breast and prostate cancers due to their prevalence among women and men, respectively. The intricate interplay of urinary proteins is explored, revealing a landscape where proteins exhibit context-dependent behaviors. The review highlights the potential impact of physical activity on urinary proteins, suggesting its influence on tumorigenic behaviors. Exercise-conditioned urine may emerge as a potential diagnostic biomarker source. Furthermore, treatment effects, notably after lumpectomy and prostatectomy, induce shifts in the urinary proteome, indicating therapeutic impacts rather than activating oncogenic signaling. The review suggests further investigations into the double-sided, context-dependent nature of urinary proteins, the potential role of post-translational modifications (PTM), and the integration of non-protein markers like mRNA and metabolites. It also discusses a linkage of urinary proteomes with secretomes from induced tumor-suppressing cells (iTSCs). Despite challenges like cancer heterogeneity and sample variability due to age, diet, and comorbidities, harnessing urinary proteins and proteoforms may hold promise for advancing our understanding of cancer progressions, as well as the diagnostic and therapeutic role of urinary proteins.

Trefoil factor family peptides – friends or foes?

Trefoil factor family (TFF) peptides are a group of molecules bearing a characteristic three-loop trefoil domain. They are mainly secreted in mucous epithelia together with mucins but are also synthesized in the nervous system. For many years, TFF peptides were only known for their wound healing and protective function, e.g. in epithelial protection and restitution. However, experimental evidence has emerged supporting a pivotal role of TFF peptides in oncogenic transformation, tumorigenesis and metastasis. Deregulated expression of TFF peptides at the gene and protein level is obviously implicated in numerous cancers, and opposing functions as oncogenes and tumor suppressors have been described. With regard to the regulation of TFF expression, epigenetic mechanisms as well as the involvement of various miRNAs are new, promising aspects in the field of cancer research. This review will summarize current knowledge about the expression and regulation of TFF peptides and the involvement of TFF peptides in tumor biology and cancerogenesis.

Quantitative measurements of trefoil factor family peptides: possibilities and pitfalls

The trefoil factor family (TFF) peptides TFF1, TFF2, and TFF3 are produced and secreted by mucous membranes throughout the body. Their importance for the protection and repair of epithelial surfaces is well established, and the three peptides are present in various amounts in mucosal secretions as well as in the circulation. They have been linked to both inflammatory diseases and to various types of cancer, and serum concentrations of TFF3 show a more than 47-fold increase during pregnancy. Several both commercial and in-house immunoassays exist, but a number of methodological issues remain unresolved. This review describes methodological challenges in the measurement of the peptides in humans, and summarizes current knowledge concerning the occurrence and possible significance of the peptides in human health and disease.

Deficiency in trefoil factor 1 (TFF1) increases tumorigenicity of human breast cancer cells and mammary tumor development in TFF1-knockout mice

Although trefoil factor 1 (TFF1; previously named pS2) is abnormally expressed in about 50% of human breast tumors, its physiopathological role in this disease has been poorly studied. Moreover, controversial data have been reported. TFF1 function in the mammary gland therefore needs to be clarified. In this study, using retroviral vectors, we performed TFF1 gain- or loss-of-function experiments in four human mammary epithelial cell lines: normal immortalized TFF1-negative MCF10A, malignant TFF1-negative MDA-MB-231 and malignant TFF1-positive MCF7 and ZR75.1. The expression of TFF1 stimulated the migration and invasion in the four cell lines. Forced TFF1 expression in MCF10A, MDA-MB-231 and MCF7 cells did not modify anchorage-dependent or -independent cell proliferation. By contrast, TFF1 knockdown in MCF7 enhanced soft-agar colony formation. This increased oncogenic potential of MCF7 cells in the absence of TFF1 was confirmed in vivo in nude mice. Moreover, chemically induced tumorigenesis in TFF1-deficient (TFF1-KO) mice led to higher tumor incidence in the mammary gland and larger tumor size compared with wild-type mice. Similarly, tumor development was increased in the TFF1-KO ovary and lung. Collectively, our results clearly show that TFF1 does not exhibit oncogenic properties, but rather reduces tumor development. This beneficial function of TFF1 is in agreement with many clinical studies reporting a better outcome for patients with TFF1-positive breast primary tumors.

Trefoil factor: implications for clinical laboratory diagnostics

Trefoil factors (TFF), expressed physiologically in the secretory cells of gastrointestinal mucosa and other mucosal tissues, compose a unique peptide family with important biologic functions. Aberrant expression and/or continued secretion of TFF might exist concurrently with the processes of digestive system inflammation, tumor or other related pathological changes. Previous pathological studies have shown that the abnormal expression of TFF is associated with the prognosis of digestive system diseases. The results obtained from gene expression profiling, tumor secretomics and bioinformatic analysis have positively confirmed that clinical detection of TFF peptides or mRNAs has an excellent diagnostic performance to detect digestive system diseases, especially for the monitoring of recurrence or metastasis of tumors and for the estimation of therapeutic efficacy and prognosis. Therefore, TFF is a potential biomarker for diagnosis, treatment and prognosis of digestive system diseases.

Synthesis and localization of trefoil factor family (TFF) peptides in the human urinary tract and TFF2 excretion into the urine

Trefoil factor family (TFF) peptides promote regeneration and repair processes of mucous epithelia. They also probably play a key role in the remarkable regenerative capacity of the urinary tract epithelia. We have localized TFF1, TFF2, and TFF3 expression systematically in surgical specimens from the urinary tract by reverse transcription with the polymerase chain reaction, Western blot analysis, and immunohistochemistry. Urine samples from patients suffering from nephrolithiasis have been investigated and compared with those of healthy controls. TFF synthesis is detectable along the entire urinary tract epithelia. TFF3 synthesis is the most pronounced followed by TFF1, whereas TFF2 synthesis is occasionally detectable but only in trace amounts. In contrast, TFF2 is the predominant TFF peptide excreted into the urine, and significantly increased urinary TFF2 levels (together with occasionally raised TFF3 levels) have been observed in patients suffering from nephrolithiasis. Thus, we consider that TFF3 plays a major part in regeneration and restitution processes in urinary tract epithelia. TFF2 and probably also TFF3 are candidate biomarkers for nephrolithiasis and possibly other inflammatory conditions of the urinary tract.

Trefoil factor-1 (TFF1) enhances oncogenicity of mammary carcinoma cells

The functional role of autocrine trefoil factor-1 (TFF1) in mammary carcinoma has not been previously elucidated. Herein, we demonstrate that forced expression of TFF1 in mammary carcinoma cells resulted in increased total cell number as a consequence of increased cell proliferation and survival. Forced expression of TFF1 enhanced anchorage-independent growth and promoted scattered cell morphology with increased cell migration and invasion. Moreover, forced expression of TFF1 increased tumor size in xenograft models. Conversely, RNA interference-mediated depletion of TFF1 in mammary carcinoma cells significantly reduced anchorage-independent growth and migration. Furthermore, neutralization of secreted TFF1 protein by polyclonal antibody decreased mammary carcinoma cell viability in vitro and resulted in regression of mammary carcinoma xenografts. We have therefore demonstrated that TFF1 possesses oncogenic functions in mammary carcinoma cells. Functional antagonism of TFF1 can therefore be considered as a novel therapeutic strategy for mammary carcinoma.

Urinary trefoil factor 1 is a novel potent inhibitor of calcium oxalate crystal growth and aggregation

PURPOSE

Crystal growth and aggregation are the important mechanisms of calcium oxalate stone formation in the kidney. Recently we successfully purified trefoil factor 1 from human urine and used an oxalate depletion assay to indirectly infer its inhibitory activity against calcium oxalate crystal growth. We searched for direct evidence to define the inhibitory activity of urinary trefoil factor 1 against calcium oxalate crystal growth. Moreover, we also evaluated whether urinary trefoil factor 1 has any effects on calcium oxalate crystal aggregation and transformation.

MATERIALS AND METHODS

Isolated and aggregated forms of calcium oxalate monohydrate crystals were produced in the absence or presence of 7, 70 and 700 ng/ml urinary trefoil factor 1, nephrocalcin as a positive control or lysozyme (Sigma-Aldrich) as a negative control.

RESULTS

The data clearly indicated that urinary trefoil factor 1 and nephrocalcin at physiological levels could effectively inhibit calcium oxalate monohydrate crystal growth and aggregation, whereas lysozyme did not affect the growth and aggregation of calcium oxalate monohydrate crystals. At a supraphysiological concentration of 4 microg/ml urinary trefoil factor 1 and nephrocalcin could transform calcium oxalate monohydrate crystals to the dihydrate type, which has much less adsorptive capability.

CONCLUSIONS

To our knowledge these data provide the first direct evidence that urinary trefoil factor 1 is a novel potent inhibitor of calcium oxalate crystal growth and aggregation, and can transform calcium oxalate monohydrate crystals to the dihydrate type.

[Circulating proteinic biomarkers and breast cancer]

Circulating proteinic biomarkers are secreted by tumor cells or by their environmental cells and they have a variable specificity. In case of breast cancer, carcino-embryonic antigen (CEA) was for a long time the only circulating biomarker used. Nowadays, the most useful biomarkers measure circulating levels of fragments of MUC1-polymorphic epithelial mucin (MUC1-PEM): cancer antigen (CA) 15.3, mucin-like carcinoma-associated antigen (MCA), CA 27-29, CA 549... They are useful for general disease follow-up. Other circulating markers belonging to keratins (tissue polypeptide antigen, TPA, TPS or Cyfra 21.1) are correlated with proliferative activity of breast tumors. More recently, the measure of the c-erb B2 circulating part (extra cellular domain, ECD) was proposed as a prognostic biomarker for breast tumors with c-erb B2 overexpression. Moreover, the determination of urinary level of trefoil factor1 (PS2-TFF1) might be useful for the follow-up of hormonodependent breast cancers. The present review describes the clinical interest of these different circulating biomarkers in case of breast cancer, emphasizing their biological characteristics.

Identification of human urinary trefoil factor 1 as a novel calcium oxalate crystal growth inhibitor

Previous research on proteins that inhibit kidney stone formation has identified a relatively small number of well-characterized inhibitors. Identification of additional stone inhibitors would increase understanding of the pathogenesis and pathophysiology of nephrolithiasis. We have combined conventional biochemical methods with recent advances in mass spectrometry (MS) to identify a novel calcium oxalate (CaOx) crystal growth inhibitor in normal human urine. Anionic proteins were isolated by DEAE adsorption and separated by HiLoad 16/60 Superdex 75 gel filtration. A fraction with potent inhibitory activity against CaOx crystal growth was isolated and purified by anion exchange chromatography. The protein in 2 subfractions that retained inhibitory activity was identified by matrix-assisted laser desorption/ionization-time-of-flight MS and electrospray ionization-quadrupole-time-of-flight tandem MS as human trefoil factor 1 (TFF1). Western blot analysis confirmed the mass spectrometric protein identification. Functional studies of urinary TFF1 demonstrated that its inhibitory potency was similar to that of nephrocalcin. The inhibitory activity of urinary TFF1 was dose dependent and was inhibited by TFF1 antisera. Anti-C-terminal antibody was particularly effective, consistent with our proposed model in which the 4 C-terminal glutamic residues of TFF1 interact with calcium ions to prevent CaOx crystal growth. Concentrations and relative amounts of TFF1 in the urine of patients with idiopathic CaOx kidney stone were significantly less (2.5-fold for the concentrations and 5- to 22-fold for the relative amounts) than those found in controls. These data indicate that TFF1 is a novel potent CaOx crystal growth inhibitor with a potential pathophysiological role in nephrolithiasis.