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Koukourakis IM, Platoni K, Kouloulias V, Arelaki S, Zygogianni A. Prostate Cancer Stem Cells: Biology and Treatment Implications. Int J Mol Sci 2023; 24:14890. [PMID: 37834336 PMCID: PMC10573523 DOI: 10.3390/ijms241914890] [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: 09/06/2023] [Revised: 09/30/2023] [Accepted: 10/01/2023] [Indexed: 10/15/2023] Open
Abstract
Stem cells differentiate into mature organ/tissue-specific cells at a steady pace under normal conditions, but their growth can be accelerated during the process of tissue healing or in the context of certain diseases. It is postulated that the proliferation and growth of carcinomas are sustained by the presence of a vital cellular compartment resembling stem cells residing in normal tissues: 'stem-like cancer cells' or cancer stem cells (CSCs). Mutations in prostate stem cells can lead to the formation of prostate cancer. Prostate CSCs (PCSCs) have been identified and partially characterized. These express surface markers include CD44, CD133, integrin α2β1, and pluripotency factors like OCT4, NANOG, and SOX2. Several signaling pathways are also over-activated, including Notch, PTEN/Akt/PI3K, RAS-RAF-MEK-ERK and HH. Moreover, PCSCs appear to induce resistance to radiotherapy and chemotherapy, while their presence has been linked to aggressive cancer behavior and higher relapse rates. The development of treatment policies to target PCSCs in tumors is appealing as radiotherapy and chemotherapy, through cancer cell killing, trigger tumor repopulation via activated stem cells. Thus, blocking this reactive stem cell mobilization may facilitate a positive outcome through cytotoxic treatment.
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Affiliation(s)
- Ioannis M. Koukourakis
- Radiation Oncology Unit, 1st Department of Radiology, Aretaieion Hospital, School of Medicine, National and Kapodistrian University of Athens (NKUOA), 11528 Athens, Greece; (I.M.K.); (A.Z.)
| | - Kalliopi Platoni
- Medical Physics Unit, 2nd Department of Radiology, Attikon University Hospital, School of Medicine, National and Kapodistrian University of Athens (NKUOA), 12462 Athens, Greece
| | - Vassilis Kouloulias
- Radiation Oncology Unit, 2nd Department of Radiology, School of Medicine, National and Kapodistrian University of Athens (NKUOA), 12462 Athens, Greece;
| | - Stella Arelaki
- Translational Functional Cancer Genomics, National Center for Tumor Diseases, German Cancer Research Center, 69120 Heidelberg, Germany;
| | - Anna Zygogianni
- Radiation Oncology Unit, 1st Department of Radiology, Aretaieion Hospital, School of Medicine, National and Kapodistrian University of Athens (NKUOA), 11528 Athens, Greece; (I.M.K.); (A.Z.)
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Lodewijk I, Dueñas M, Paramio JM, Rubio C. CD44v6, STn & O-GD2: promising tumor associated antigens paving the way for new targeted cancer therapies. Front Immunol 2023; 14:1272681. [PMID: 37854601 PMCID: PMC10579806 DOI: 10.3389/fimmu.2023.1272681] [Citation(s) in RCA: 1] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 08/04/2023] [Accepted: 09/14/2023] [Indexed: 10/20/2023] Open
Abstract
Targeted therapies are the state of the art in oncology today, and every year new Tumor-associated antigens (TAAs) are developed for preclinical research and clinical trials, but few of them really change the therapeutic scenario. Difficulties, either to find antigens that are solely expressed in tumors or the generation of good binders to these antigens, represent a major bottleneck. Specialized cellular mechanisms, such as differential splicing and glycosylation processes, are a good source of neo-antigen expression. Changes in these processes generate surface proteins that, instead of showing decreased or increased antigen expression driven by enhanced mRNA processing, are aberrant in nature and therefore more specific targets to elicit a precise anti-tumor therapy. Here, we present promising TAAs demonstrated to be potential targets for cancer monitoring, targeted therapy and the generation of new immunotherapy tools, such as recombinant antibodies and chimeric antigen receptor (CAR) T cell (CAR-T) or Chimeric Antigen Receptor-Engineered Natural Killer (CAR-NK) for specific tumor killing, in a wide variety of tumor types. Specifically, this review is a detailed update on TAAs CD44v6, STn and O-GD2, describing their origin as well as their current and potential use as disease biomarker and therapeutic target in a diversity of tumor types.
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Affiliation(s)
- Iris Lodewijk
- Biomedical Research Institute I+12, University Hospital “12 de Octubre”, Madrid, Spain
- Molecular Oncology Unit, CIEMAT (Centro de Investigaciones Energéticas, Medioambientales y Tecnológicas), Madrid, Spain
- Biomedical Research Networking Center on Oncology-CIBERONC, ISCIII, Madrid, Spain
| | - Marta Dueñas
- Biomedical Research Institute I+12, University Hospital “12 de Octubre”, Madrid, Spain
- Molecular Oncology Unit, CIEMAT (Centro de Investigaciones Energéticas, Medioambientales y Tecnológicas), Madrid, Spain
- Biomedical Research Networking Center on Oncology-CIBERONC, ISCIII, Madrid, Spain
| | - Jesus M. Paramio
- Biomedical Research Institute I+12, University Hospital “12 de Octubre”, Madrid, Spain
- Molecular Oncology Unit, CIEMAT (Centro de Investigaciones Energéticas, Medioambientales y Tecnológicas), Madrid, Spain
- Biomedical Research Networking Center on Oncology-CIBERONC, ISCIII, Madrid, Spain
| | - Carolina Rubio
- Biomedical Research Institute I+12, University Hospital “12 de Octubre”, Madrid, Spain
- Molecular Oncology Unit, CIEMAT (Centro de Investigaciones Energéticas, Medioambientales y Tecnológicas), Madrid, Spain
- Biomedical Research Networking Center on Oncology-CIBERONC, ISCIII, Madrid, Spain
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Ramakrishnan A, Datta I, Panja S, Patel H, Liu Y, Craige MW, Chu C, Jean-Marie G, Oladoja AR, Kim I, Mitrofanova A. Tissue-specific biological aging predicts progression in prostate cancer and acute myeloid leukemia. Front Oncol 2023; 13:1222168. [PMID: 37746266 PMCID: PMC10512286 DOI: 10.3389/fonc.2023.1222168] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 05/16/2023] [Accepted: 08/08/2023] [Indexed: 09/26/2023] Open
Abstract
Introduction Chronological aging is a well-recognized diagnostic and prognostic factor in multiple cancer types, yet the role of biological aging in manifesting cancer progression has not been fully explored yet. Methods Given the central role of chronological aging in prostate cancer and AML incidence, here we investigate a tissue-specific role of biological aging in prostate cancer and AML progression. We have employed Cox proportional hazards modeling to associate biological aging genes with cancer progression for patients from specific chronological aging groups and for patients with differences in initial cancer aggressiveness. Results Our prostate cancer-specific investigations nominated four biological aging genes (CD44, GADD45B, STAT3, GFAP) significantly associated with time to disease progression in prostate cancer in Taylor et al. patient cohort. Stratified survival analysis on Taylor dataset and validation on an independent TCGA and DKFZ PRAD patient cohorts demonstrated ability of these genes to predict prostate cancer progression, especially for patients with higher Gleason score and for patients younger than 60 years of age. We have further tested the generalizability of our approach and applied it to acute myeloid leukemia (AML). Our analysis nominated three AML-specific biological aging genes (CDC42EP2, CDC42, ALOX15B) significantly associated with time to AML overall survival, especially for patients with favorable cytogenetic risk score and for patients older than 56 years of age. Discussion Comparison of the identified PC and AML markers to genes selected at random and to known markers of progression demonstrated robustness of our results and nominated the identified biological aging genes as valuable markers of prostate cancer and AML progression, opening new avenues for personalized therapeutic management and potential novel treatment investigations.
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Affiliation(s)
- Anitha Ramakrishnan
- Department of Biomedical and Health Informatics, School of Health Professions, Rutgers, The State University of New Jersey, Newark, NJ, United States
| | - Indrani Datta
- Department of Biomedical and Health Informatics, School of Health Professions, Rutgers, The State University of New Jersey, Newark, NJ, United States
| | - Sukanya Panja
- Department of Biomedical and Health Informatics, School of Health Professions, Rutgers, The State University of New Jersey, Newark, NJ, United States
| | - Harmony Patel
- Department of Biomedical and Health Informatics, School of Health Professions, Rutgers, The State University of New Jersey, Newark, NJ, United States
- Department of Health Informatics and Information Management, College of Applied and Natural Sciences, Louisiana Tech University, Ruston, LA, United States
| | - Yingci Liu
- Department of Biomedical and Health Informatics, School of Health Professions, Rutgers, The State University of New Jersey, Newark, NJ, United States
- New Jersey Medical School, Rutgers, The State University of New Jersey, Newark, NJ, United States
| | - Michael W. Craige
- Department of Biomedical and Health Informatics, School of Health Professions, Rutgers, The State University of New Jersey, Newark, NJ, United States
| | - Cassandra Chu
- Department of Biomedical and Health Informatics, School of Health Professions, Rutgers, The State University of New Jersey, Newark, NJ, United States
| | - Giselle Jean-Marie
- Department of Biomedical and Health Informatics, School of Health Professions, Rutgers, The State University of New Jersey, Newark, NJ, United States
- Rutgers Youth Enjoy Science Program, Rutgers Cancer Institute of New Jersey, New Brunswick, NJ, United States
| | - Abdur-Rahman Oladoja
- Department of Biomedical and Health Informatics, School of Health Professions, Rutgers, The State University of New Jersey, Newark, NJ, United States
- Rutgers Youth Enjoy Science Program, Rutgers Cancer Institute of New Jersey, New Brunswick, NJ, United States
| | - Isaac Kim
- Department of Urology, Yale School of Medicine, New Haven, CT, United States
| | - Antonina Mitrofanova
- Department of Biomedical and Health Informatics, School of Health Professions, Rutgers, The State University of New Jersey, Newark, NJ, United States
- Rutgers Cancer Institute of New Jersey, Rutgers, The State University of New Jersey, New Brunswick, NJ, United States
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Zhou Z, Li C, Wang Z, Haybaeck J, Zhang C. Cd44v6 acts as a directional responding factor in the process of transcoelomic metastasis from gastric carcinoma to Krukenberg tumor. Expert Rev Mol Diagn 2023; 23:583-588. [PMID: 37409376 DOI: 10.1080/14737159.2023.2223981] [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: 03/11/2023] [Accepted: 06/06/2023] [Indexed: 07/07/2023]
Abstract
INTRODUCTION Due to the limited number of studies focusing on the optimal treatment of multiple Krukenberg tumor (KT)-gastric carcinoma (KT - GC), it is necessary to conduct large-scale studies to confirm the definite role of serum tumor markers in the diagnosis and prognosis of KT. Moreover, the clinical significance of variant 6 of CD44 (CD44v6) in transcoelomic metastasis should be considered. AREAS COVERED This review covers molecular pre-cancer diagnosis, gastric carcinoma metastasis, and anti-cancer treatments. Additionally, gastrointestinal cancer metastasis is a key area for improvement. EXPERT OPINION The detection of CD44v6 differs in the World Health Organization Classification of Gastric Adenocarcinoma, the Lauren Classification of Gastric Adenocarcinoma, and the anatomic location of gastric adenocarcinoma. The results were compared among the three groups. The mechanism of gastric adenocarcinoma metastasis still requires further elucidation. CD44v6 molecular detection helps clarify the pre-cancer diagnosis of KT before seeding. If subsequent studies confirm its role as a signaling molecule, it could pave the way for new research directions in clinical practice; however, additional academic confirmation is necessary.
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Affiliation(s)
- Ziqi Zhou
- Department of Pathology, The Affiliated Hospital of Southwest Medical University, Luzhou, Sichuan, P.R. China
- Faculty of Clinical Medicine, Southwest Medical University, Luzhou, Sichuan, P.R. China
| | - Can Li
- Faculty of Clinical Medicine, Southwest Medical University, Luzhou, Sichuan, P.R. China
| | - Zhiyu Wang
- Faculty of Clinical Medicine, Southwest Medical University, Luzhou, Sichuan, P.R. China
| | - Johannes Haybaeck
- Institute of Pathology, Neuropathology and Molecular Pathology, Medical University of Innsbruck, Innsbruck, Austria
- Diagnostic and Research Center for Molecular Biomedicine, Institute of Pathology, Medical University of Graz, Graz, Austria
| | - Cuiwei Zhang
- Department of Pathology, The Affiliated Hospital of Southwest Medical University, Luzhou, Sichuan, P.R. China
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Vasilatis DM, Lucchesi CA, Ghosh PM. Molecular Similarities and Differences between Canine Prostate Cancer and Human Prostate Cancer Variants. Biomedicines 2023; 11:biomedicines11041100. [PMID: 37189720 DOI: 10.3390/biomedicines11041100] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 03/01/2023] [Revised: 03/26/2023] [Accepted: 03/28/2023] [Indexed: 05/17/2023] Open
Abstract
Dogs are one of few species that naturally develop prostate cancer (PCa), which clinically resembles aggressive, advanced PCa in humans. Moreover, PCa-tumor samples from dogs are often androgen receptor (AR)-negative and may enrich our understanding of AR-indifferent PCa in humans, a highly lethal subset of PCa for which few treatment modalities are available This narrative review discusses the molecular similarities between dog PCa and specific human-PCa variants, underscoring the possibilities of using the dog as a novel pre-clinical animal model for human PCa, resulting in new therapies and diagnostics that may benefit both species.
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Affiliation(s)
- Demitria M Vasilatis
- Department of Urologic Surgery, School of Medicine, University of California Davis, Sacramento, CA 95718, USA
- Veterans Affairs (VA)-Northern California Healthcare System, Mather, CA 95655, USA
| | | | - Paramita M Ghosh
- Department of Urologic Surgery, School of Medicine, University of California Davis, Sacramento, CA 95718, USA
- Veterans Affairs (VA)-Northern California Healthcare System, Mather, CA 95655, USA
- Department of Biochemistry and Molecular Medicine, School of Medicine, University of California Davis, Sacramento, CA 95718, USA
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Nascente EDP, Amorim RL, Fonseca-Alves CE, de Moura VMBD. Comparative Pathobiology of Canine and Human Prostate Cancer: State of the Art and Future Directions. Cancers (Basel) 2022; 14:2727. [PMID: 35681707 PMCID: PMC9179314 DOI: 10.3390/cancers14112727] [Citation(s) in RCA: 1] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 03/17/2022] [Revised: 05/14/2022] [Accepted: 05/15/2022] [Indexed: 02/01/2023] Open
Abstract
First described in 1817, prostate cancer is considered a complex neoplastic entity, and one of the main causes of death in men in the western world. In dogs, prostatic carcinoma (PC) exhibits undifferentiated morphology with different phenotypes, is hormonally independent of aggressive character, and has high rates of metastasis to different organs. Although in humans, the risk factors for tumor development are known, in dogs, this scenario is still unclear, especially regarding castration. Therefore, with the advent of molecular biology, studies were and are carried out with the aim of identifying the main molecular mechanisms and signaling pathways involved in the carcinogenesis and progression of canine PC, aiming to identify potential biomarkers for diagnosis, prognosis, and targeted treatment. However, there are extensive gaps to be filled, especially when considering the dog as experimental model for the study of this neoplasm in humans. Thus, due to the complexity of the subject, the objective of this review is to present the main pathobiological aspects of canine PC from a comparative point of view to the same neoplasm in the human species, addressing the historical context and current understanding in the scientific field.
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Affiliation(s)
- Eduardo de Paula Nascente
- School of Veterinary Medicine and Animal Science, Federal University of Goiás, Goiânia 74001-970, Brazil;
| | - Renée Laufer Amorim
- Veterinary Clinic Department, School of Veterinary Medicine and Animal Science, São Paulo State University (UNESP), Botucatu 18618-970, Brazil;
| | - Carlos Eduardo Fonseca-Alves
- Department of Veterinary Surgery and Anesthesiology, School of Veterinary Medicine and Animal Science, São Paulo State University (UNESP), Botucatu 18618-970, Brazil;
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Zhao Y, Li D, Wei M, Du R, Yan Z. The ester derivatives obtained by C-ring modification of podophyllotoxin induce apoptosis and inhibited proliferation in PC-3M cells via down-regulation of PI3K/Akt signaling pathway. Bioorg Med Chem Lett 2021; 46:128174. [PMID: 34098082 DOI: 10.1016/j.bmcl.2021.128174] [Citation(s) in RCA: 9] [Impact Index Per Article: 3.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 03/24/2021] [Revised: 05/03/2021] [Accepted: 06/01/2021] [Indexed: 10/21/2022]
Abstract
Podophyllotoxin (PPT) has been reported to have many pharmacological activities, especially its anti-tumor effects. To improve the cytotoxicity and selective effect of PPT, in this study, we have designed and synthesized 20 ester derivatives by introducing Boc-amino acids or organic acids at the C-4 position of PPT. The cytotoxicity of these compounds was evaluated with PC-3M, HemECs, A549, MCF-7 and HepG2 cells. We observed that the proliferation of PC-3M cells was inhibited by all 20 ester derivatives in the largest degree, comparing to the other cell lines. Comparing to PPT (IC50 = 234.90 ± 20.7 nM), eight derivatives had better performance in inhabiting proliferation of PC-3M cells, six of them belong to Boc-amino acid ester derivatives, and the derivative named V-05 (IC50 = 1.28 ± 0.1 nM) had the strongest inhibitation effect. Changes in cell proliferation and apoptotic signaling pathways were studied by DAPI staining, colony formation assay, migration assay, flow cytometry and western blot analysis. We found that V-05 were able to inhibit PC-3M cells proliferation and migration, and induced apoptosis by downregualting p-PI3K, p-Akt and Bcl-2, and upregulating Cleaved caspase-3 and Bax. Our research provides the first insight for the application of PPT derivatives in PC-3M cells, which may offer information to the effective medicine development for human prostate cancer treatment.
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Affiliation(s)
- Yan Zhao
- College of Chinese Medicinal Materials, Jilin Agricultural University, Changchun 130118, China
| | - Danyao Li
- College of Chinese Medicinal Materials, Jilin Agricultural University, Changchun 130118, China
| | - Minggang Wei
- The First Affiliated Hospital of Soochow University, Suzhou 215006, China
| | - Rui Du
- College of Chinese Medicinal Materials, Jilin Agricultural University, Changchun 130118, China.
| | - Zhaowei Yan
- The First Affiliated Hospital of Soochow University, Suzhou 215006, China.
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