Chromosome DNA imbalances in human astrocytic tumors: A comparative genomic hybridization study of 63 Chinese patients

PDIA3 correlates with clinical malignant features and immune signature in human gliomas

Since therapeutic strategies are limited in gliomas, new molecules or biomarkers are essential for diagnosis and therapy. Here, we investigated expression of protein disulfide isomerase family A member 3 (PDIA3) in gliomas to evaluate its potential as a promising immune target or biomarker. Transcriptome level, genomic profiles and its association with clinical practice from TCGA and CGGA databases were analyzed. All statistical analyses were performed using R project. In gliomas with high PDIA3 expression, somatic mutations showed the correlation with loss of PTEN and amplification of EGFR; meanwhile, in PDIA3 low gliomas, mutations in isocitrate dehydrogenase (IDH) took 80%. Moreover, PDIA3 was found to positively correlate with ESTIMATE scores and diverse infiltrating immune and stromal cell types localizing in tumor microenvironment. PDIA3 was found to be highly correlated with macrophage and T cells based on single cell sequencing. Additionally, PDIA3 was also involved in suppression of anti-tumor immunity via multiple immune regulatory processes. Finally, PDIA3 was observed to correlate with other immune checkpoint inhibitors and associated with inflammation. Our findings identified the significance of PDIA3 in the process of gliomas and demonstrated the potential of PDIA3 as a molecular target in prognosis and immune related treatment of gliomas

Reductions in the expression of miR-124-3p, miR-128-1, and miR-221-3p in pediatric astrocytomas are related to high-grade supratentorial, and recurrent tumors in Mexican children

PURPOSE

Astrocytomas are the most frequent type of tumor of the central nervous system in children. Hence, it is important to describe markers that may improve our understanding of their behavior. Mature microRNAs (miRNAs) may be such biological markers. They are small molecules of RNA that regulate gene expression post-transcriptionally. Due to their importance in cancer, the objective of the present study was to determine the profile of expression of precursor and mature forms of miR-124-3p, miR-128-1, and miR-221-3p using RT-qPCR in pediatric samples.

METHODS

A total of 57 astrocytomas embedded in paraffin were selected. As controls, the study included 13 samples of normal brain tissue.

RESULTS

Three of eight miRNAs were selected after a preliminary screening. All the miRNAs showed higher levels of expression in normal brain tissue. The expression of miR-124-3p and miR-128-1 decreased in astrocytomas than in normal brain tissue in all grades (p < 0.05 in both cases), and this reduction was most evident in GIV (407- and 1,469-fold, respectively); however, the expression of the precursor forms pre-miR-128-1 and pre-miR-221 was higher in GIV (3.5-fold) than in GI. The levels of miR-128-1 were higher in infratentorial tumors than in supratentorial cases (p = 0.006). Finally, the expression of miR-221-3p was higher in non-recurrent tumors and live patients (p = 0.0185 and p = 0.0004, respectively).

CONCLUSIONS

The low expression of these miRNAs may constitute a potential marker of astrocytomas that correlates with localization, possibly due to alterations in the maturation processes of these miRNAs that produced low mature forms in patients with recurrent pediatric astrocytomas.

miR-146b-5p inhibits glioma migration and invasion by targeting MMP16

miR-146b-5p is frequently down-regulated in solid tumours, including prostate cancer, pancreatic cancer, and glioblastoma. However, the tumour-suppressive effects of miR-146b-5p in malignant gliomas have not been investigated thoroughly. Here, we found that decreased miR-146b-5p expression was strongly correlated with chromosome 10q loss in gliomas, especially glioblastomas. The overexpression of miR-146b-5p in glioblastoma cell lines led to MMP16 mRNA silencing, MMP2 inactivation, and the inhibition of tumour cell migration and invasion. Our results suggest that the restoration of miR-146b-5p expression may be a feasible approach for inhibiting the migration and invasion of malignant gliomas.