Yangfei Kongliu Formula, a compound Chinese herbal medicine, combined with cisplatin, inhibits growth of lung cancer cells through transforming growth factor-β1 signaling pathway

Synergic effects of DL-limonene, R-limonene, and cisplatin on AKT, PI3K, and mTOR gene expression in MDA-MB-231 and 5637 cell lines

The anticancer and cytotoxic effects of DL-Limonene and R-Limonene are well-documented. However, the role of natural compounds in enhancing the efficacy of platinum-based drugs like Cisplatin (CisPt) remains debated. This study aims to boost Cisplatin's impact on breast (MDA-MB-231) and bladder (5637) cancer cells using DL-Limonene and R-Limonene. Different concentrations of DL-Limonene, R-Limonene, and Cisplatin, combined, were used to treat MDA-MB-231 and 5637 cells in this experimental study. The cell's viability was evaluated using an MTT assay. AnnexinV- PI staining was applied to evaluate the percentage of apoptotic cells. Cytotoxicity results showed that combining DL-Limonene, R-Limonene, and Cisplatin significantly improved outcomes in MDA-MB-231 cells (P < 0.05). Annexin/PI staining revealed apoptosis rates of 74 %, 28 %, 43 %, 81 %, and 91 % for Cisplatin40, R-Limonen1000, DL-Limonen1000, R-Limonen1000/DL-Limonen1000, and the combined treatment, respectively, versus 13 % in the control. The combination also resulted in the greatest reduction of AKT, PI3K, and mTOR gene expression. Our results show that R-Limonene and DL-Limonene enhance Cisplatin's cancer-inhibiting effects in breast and bladder cancer cell lines. These compounds may be promising for combination therapy, potentially allowing for lower doses of chemotherapy and reducing side effects like nephrotoxicity.

Synergistic and Additive Effects of Herbal Medicines in Combination with Chemotherapeutics: A Scoping Review

BACKGROUND

Natural products are increasingly gaining interest as potential new drug candidates for cancer treatment. Herbal formula, which are combinations of several herbs, are primarily used in East Asia and have a long history of use that continues today. Recently, research exploring the combination of herbal formulas and chemotherapy for cancer treatment has been on the rise.

METHODS

This study reviewed research on the co-administration of herbal formulas and chemotherapy for cancer treatment. The databases PubMed, Embase, and Cochrane Library were used for article searches. The following keywords were employed: "Antineoplastic agents," "Chemotherapy," "Phytotherapy," "Herbal medicine," "Drug synergism," and "Synergistic effect." The selection process focused on studies that investigated the synergistic interaction between herbal formulas and chemotherapeutic agents.

RESULTS

Among the 30 studies included, 25 herbal formulas and 7 chemotherapies were used. The chemotherapy agents co-administered included cisplatin, 5-fluorouracil, docetaxel, doxorubicin, oxaliplatin, irinotecan, and gemcitabine. The types of cancer most frequently studied were lung, breast, and colon cancers. Most studies evaluating the anticancer efficacy of combined herbal formula and chemotherapy treatment were conducted in vitro or in vivo.

DISCUSSION

Most studies reported synergistic effects on cytotoxicity, apoptosis, and tumor growth inhibition. These effects were found to be associated with cell cycle arrest, anti-angiogenesis, and gene expression regulation. Further studies leading to clinical trials are required. Clinical experiences in East Asian countries could provide insights for future research.

The Mechanism Exploration of Follicular Fluids on Granulose Cell Apoptosis in Endometriosis-Associated Infertility

Objective

To explore the mechanisms of follicular fluids (FFs) on granulose cell (GC) apoptosis in endometriosis-associated infertility.

Materials and Methods

60 infertile women were enrolled. The FFs from 30 endometriosis-associated infertility (EI) patients were collected and processed by ELISA hormone assay and proteomic profiling. The ovary GCs collected from 30 tubal-associated infertility (TI) patients were cultured in follicular fluids of endometriosis-associated infertility patients (EI-FFs), and the apoptosis mechanisms were explored by flow cytometry assay, real-time PCR, Western blotting, and protein-protein interaction (PPI) network analysis.

Results

Our results showed that the expression of 22 specific proteins was significantly different in the FFs from EI and TI patients, and the level of testosterone and anti-Müllerian hormone was not obviously different between the two groups. EI-FFs could accelerate the apoptosis process of granulose cells of tubal-associated infertility patients (TI-GCs) by regulating the expression of 5 apoptosis-related proteins including BCL2, BAX, CASP3, CASP9, and TP53. The correlation of these 22 specific proteins and 5 apoptosis-related proteins was analyzed by PPI, and 5 protein biomarkers (INS, CXCL10, ICAM1, WIF1, and TNFRSF13C) and 5 signaling pathways (cytokine-cytokine receptor interaction, apoptosis, regulation of actin cytoskeleton, MAPK, and p53 signaling pathway) were predicted.

Conclusion

This research clarified the effect and explored the mechanisms of EI-FFs on the apoptosis of TI-GCs and indicated the protein biomarkers and signaling pathways for further study.

Identification of the Active Compounds and Significant Pathways of Artemisia Annua in the Treatment of Non-Small Cell Lung Carcinoma based on Network Pharmacology

Background

Artemisia annua exerts powerful effects in non-small cell lung carcinoma (NSCLC). Some studies have shown that Artemisia annua possesses the characteristics of new therapeutic drugs for NSCLC patients. However, the underlying molecular mechanism of Artemisia annua anti-NSCLC is not yet fully elucidated because Artemisia annua contains hundreds of ingredients. This study aimed to conduct network pharmacological analysis on the mechanism of action of Artemisia annua against NSCLC.

Material/Methods

The active ingredients and corresponding potential targets of Artemisia annua were searched and screened in the Traditional Chinese Medicine Systems Pharmacology Database and Analysis Platform (TCMSP). Then through The Cancer Genome Atlas (TCGA) and the National Center for Biotechnology Information (NCBI) databases to establish NSCLC related targets. Based on the matching results of Artemisia annua potential targets and NSCLC targets, a protein–protein interaction (PPI) network was constructed to analyze the interactions between these targets and topologically screen the central targets. Furthermore, Gene Ontology (GO) biological functions analysis and Kyoto Encyclopedia of Genes and Genomes (KEGG) signal pathways enrichment were carried out.

Results

There were 19 main active ingredients of Artemisia annua screened for target prediction; 40 NSCLC-related common targets were identified via multiple NSCLC databases. The node area and corresponding degree value of AKT1, MYC, CCND1, VEGFA, JUN, MAPK1, EGFR, and ESR1 were large and could be easily found in the PPI network. The aforementioned results were further verified by the analysis of GO biological function and KEGG enrichment analysis.

Conclusions

The network pharmacology analysis reveals the molecular biological mechanism of Artemisia annua anti-NSCLC via multiple active components, multi-channels, and multi-targets. This suggests that Artemisia annua might be developed as a promising anti-NSCLC drug.

Fuzheng Kang-Ai decoction enhances the effect of Gefitinib-induced cell apoptosis in lung cancer through mitochondrial pathway

Background

Our previous clinical study has shown that Chinese herbal medicine (CHM) Fuzheng Kang-Ai (FZKA) decoction is effective in treating advanced lung cancer patients through prolonging the drug resistance to Gefitinib (GFTN). Our basic study found that FZKA decoction could enhance the inhibition effect of GFTN in lung cancer by inactivating PI3K/Akt pathway. Moreover, our recent work showed that FZKA induced lung cancer cell apoptosis via STAT3/Bcl-2/Caspase-3 pathway. Thus in this study, we aim to elucidate how FZKA enhances the effect of GFTN in lung cancer from the perspective of cell apoptosis.

Methods

Cell proliferation and colony formation assay were performed to detect the cell growth inhibition. Flow cytometry and TUNEL assay were carried out to test the cell apoptosis. Mitochondrial membrane potential (MMP) assay was done to measure the alteration of MMP. Caspase-3/-9 activity assay was used to test the activity of caspase-3/-9. Western blot and qRT-PCR were done to detect the expression of STAT3 and Bcl-2 family as well as Caspase-3/-9 and Cyt-C at protein and mRNA levels, respectively. Transient transfection was performed to silence STAT3 using siSTAT3. Animal model was done to validate the molecular mechanisms in vivo and immunohistochemistry was done to detect the expression of Bax and Caspase-3.

Results

Firstly, our results showed that FZKA enhanced the inhibition effect of GFTN in lung cancer both in vitro and in vivo. Secondly, cell apoptosis was enhanced when treating lung cancer cells with both FZKA and GFTN, a process involving the mitochondria and the Bcl-2 family. And Bcl-2 family was involved in this process. Interestingly, STAT3 plays a critical role on mediating the above process. Last but not the least, the enhanced effect of cell apoptosis induction of GFTN by FZKA was validated in animal model.

Conclusion

Our findings conclude that Fuzheng Kang-Ai decoction enhances the effect of GFTN-induced cell apoptosis in lung cancer through the mitochondrial pathway, providing a novel molecular mechanism by which FZKA sensitizes to GFTN by delaying drug resistance in treating lung cancer patients.

Efficacy of an Oncolytic Adenovirus Driven by a Chimeric Promoter and Armed with Decorin Against Renal Cell Carcinoma

Virus-targeted therapy for tumors can effectively prolong the survival rate of patients and has become a new trend for cancer biotherapy. Oncolytic adenovirus (OAd) can specifically replicate in tumor cells, allowing the therapeutic genes carried to be rapidly copied. As known, solid tumors are always hypoxic, and researchers often overlook a key point, the replication of OAd depends not only on its own activity but also on the cellular hypoxic environment in which the virus replicates. In this study, we constructed an OAd carrying Decorin, HRE-Ki67-Decorin, combining the Ki67 promoter upstreamed with hypoxia-response element (HRE) sequences to drive adenoviral E1A. The OAd HRE-Ki67-Decorin had better replication ability under hypoxic conditions, downregulated cellular immunosuppressed growth factor TGF-β. In addition, HRE-Ki67-Decorin was potent in suppressing tumor growth and participated in the assembly of tumor extracellular matrix by expressing Decorin in subcutaneous renal cancer cell tumor models. Tumor sections from HRE-Ki67-Decorin-treated tissues had less collagen fibers and more spread of virus among tumor tissues. These results indicated that chimeric HRE-Ki67 promoter-regulated OAd carrying Decorin might be an effective anticancer treatment strategy.

MSTN Mutant Promotes Myogenic Differentiation by Increasing Demethylase TET1 Expression via the SMAD2/SMAD3 Pathway

Myostatin (MSTN) is mostly expressed in skeletal muscle and plays crucial roles in the negative regulation of muscle mass development. The methylation and demethylation of myogenesis-specific genes are major regulatory factors in muscle satellite cell differentiation. The present study was designed to investigate the mechanism of myogenic differentiation regulated by MSTN mutation (MT) and the methylation/demethylation state of downstream genes. The results showed that, in the MSTN^-/+ satellite cells, a higher myotube fusion index and a larger myotube length were observed compared to the wild type controls; the genes associated with myogenesis were all up-regulated compared to the WT controls. The methylation of the promoters and gene bodies of PAX3, PAX7, MyoD, and MyoG were all down-regulated, while the expression of the key demethylase TET1 was significantly promoted. ChIP-qPCR was used to demonstrate that the SMAD2/SMAD3 complex combined with the promoter of TET1 to inhibit the activity of TET1 promoter, indicating that MSTN may regulate TET1 via SMAD2/SMAD3. The overexpression of TET1 in wild type cells promoted myogenic differentiation, increased the myotube index, and reduced the methylation of the associated genes. On the contrary, the knockdown of TET1 in the MSTN mutant cells resulted in the opposite phenomena as in the overexpressed cells. In conclusion, the myostatin mutant showed an increased transcriptional activity of TET1, inducing higher levels of demethylation and improving the transcriptional activity levels of myogenic differentiation-associated genes. The binding of SMAD2/SMAD3 directly to the TET1 promoter region indicated that the MSTN mutant demethylated the myogenesis-specific genes by up-regulating TET1, which is directly controlled by SMAD2/SMAD3.

Differences in the Expression Pattern of mRNA Protein SEMA3F in Endometrial Cancer in vitro under Cisplatin Treatment

BACKGROUND

Semaphorin 3F (SEMA3F) plays a substantial role in carcinogenesis, because of its role in inducing angiogenesis, and creating a microenvironment for the developing tumor.

OBJECTIVE

The purpose of this work was to assess the impact of cisplatin, depending on the concentration and exposure time on the expression pattern of SEMA3F in an endometrial cancer cell line.

MATERIALS AND METHODS

Cultures of the Ishikawa endometrial cancer cells were incubated with cisplatin with the following concentrations: 2.5μM; 5μM; and 10μM and for the following periods of time: 12; 24; and 48 hours. Cells not incubated with the drug constituted the control in the experiment. To determine the effect of cisplatin on the expression of SEMA3F, the real-time quantitative reverse transcription reaction (RtqPCR; mRNA) was used, as well as the ELISA assay (protein). The statistical analysis was done with the admission of p<0.05.

RESULTS

The silencing of SEMA3F expression on the transcriptome and proteome levels in a culture unexposed to the effects of cisplatin in comparison to endometrial cancer cells under the influence of cisplatin (p<0.05) were noted. Along with an increase in the concentration of the drug used, the number of copies of the gene transcript, during the shortest incubation period had a gradual increase. Only for the highest concentration of the drug, substantial statistical differences in the expression of the SEMA3F protein between 24 and 48 hour incubation periods (p<0.05) were determined.

CONCLUSION

Using cisplatin in an endometrial cancer cell culture results in an increased expression of SEMA3F, which advantageously affects the normalization of the neoplastic angiogenic process and lowers the proliferation of the cells making up the mass of the tumor.

Identification and analysis of survival-associated ceRNA triplets in prostate adenocarcinoma

Prostate adenocarcinoma (PRAD) is one of the most common causes of cancer-associated mortality worldwide. Recent evidence has emphasized the role of competitive endogenous RNAs (ceRNA) in prostate cancer. However, the current understanding of the roles that ceRNAs play in survival-associated PRAD remains in its infancy. In the present study, a PRAD-specific ceRNA network was constructed by integrating long non-coding RNA (lncRNA)-microRNA (miRNA)-gene interactions using experimental and computational methods, as well as expression correlations from The Cancer Genome Atlas database. The topological features of the ceRNA network were then analyzed and the PRAD-risk lncRNAs were compared with non-risk lncRNAs within this network. It was revealed that PRAD-risk lncRNAs had a higher degree, closeness and betweenness centrality, but also had the shortest path length. Finally, 42 significant PRAD-survival-associated triplets were identified. Notably, these triplets may form a compacted subnetwork composed of only 25 nodes (5 miRNAs, 4 lncRNAs and 16 genes) and 32 edges, indicating that some nodes were involved in many triplets. Among this subnetwork, mir-21 indicated the highest degree centrality and was demonstrated to exert its oncogenic effects in prostate tumors by downregulating transforming growth factor β receptor 2 (TGFBR2). Two triplets (MIR22HG_hsa-mir-21_TGFBR2 and MIR22HG_hsa-mir-21_BCL2) were finally identified; not only were they significantly associated with PRAD survival but they also had the highest average degree in the identified subnetwork. The results from the present study provide further insights into the understanding of the potential roles and interactions of ceRNA triplets and potential prognosis markers for PRAD.

Pathological analysis of the superior mesenteric artery boundary in preoperative computed tomography of resectable pancreatic head adenocarcinoma

The aim of the present study was to evaluate the biological and prognostic implications of the superior mesenteric artery (SMA) boundary on preoperative abdominal contrast-enhanced computed tomography (CE-CT) for resectable adenocarcinoma of the pancreatic head. A total of 121 patients treated over a 6-year period at Peking University Third Hospital (Beijing, China) were included in the present study. The pattern of the SMA boundary was investigated on preoperative CE-CT and detailed pathological analysis of the extrapancreatic plexus [the pancreatic head plexus II (PLX-II) located on the right edge of the SMA] was performed. The results revealed that the radiological SMA boundary was associated with the grade of parasympathetic neurogenesis (P=0.014) in PLX-II, and was predictive of postoperative disease-free survival (P=0.014) and liver metastasis (P=0.013). Therefore, it was proposed that extrapancreatic parasympathetic neurogenesis may account for the different patterns of the SMA boundary on preoperative abdominal CE-CT, and affect the prognosis, particularly for liver metastasis in resectable pancreatic head adenocarcinoma.

Anti-tumor Drug THZ1 Suppresses TGFβ2-mediated EMT in Lens Epithelial Cells via Notch and TGFβ/Smad Signaling Pathway

Selective covalent CDK7 inhibitor THZ1 is a promising potential anti-tumor drug in many kinds of cancers. Epithelial-mesenchymal Transition (EMT) is highly related to cancer initiation, development, invasion and metastasis and other pathogenesis processes. We treated cancer cell line Hela229 and three retinoblastoma cell lines so-RB50, WERI-Rb-1, Y79 with gradient concentration of THZ1, and found that THZ1 could inhibit cell viability and EMT, suggesting that THZ1 may be a promising drug for human cervical cancer and retinoblastoma treatment. Our results verified the role of THZ1 in EMT for the first time, however, the mechanism needs further study. Here we report that THZ1 suppresses the TGFβ2 induced EMT in human SRA01/04 lens epithelial cells (LECs), rabbit primary lens epithelial cells, and whole rat lens culture semi-in vivo model. RNA-sequencing and KEGG analysis revealed that the THZ1 inhibits EMT by down-regulating phosphorylate Smad2 and Notch signaling pathway. On the other hand, we found that THZ1 could strongly inhibit LECs proliferation through G2/M phase arrest as well as attenuating of MAPK, PI3K/AKT signaling pathway. Our results uncovered the function and underlying mechanism of THZ1 in regulation of EMT, which provides a new perspective of the anti-tumor effect by THZ1 and may offer a novel treatment for PCO.

Nodal increases the malignancy of childhood neuroblastoma cells via regulation of Zeb1

Neuroblastoma (NB) is one of the most common malignant tumors derived from pluripotent cells of the neural crest. Nodal is an important embryonic morphogen which can re-express in cancer cells. The roles of Nodal in the progression of NB are not illustrated. Our present study reveals that Nodal is upregulated in NB cells and tissues. Targeted inhibition of Nodal can suppress the in vitro migration and invasion of NB cells while increase its chemo-sensitivity to doxorubicin (Dox) treatment. Nodal positively regulates the expression of Zeb1, one well-known transcription factors of epithelial to mesenchymal transition (EMT) of cancer cells. Knockdown of Zeb1 can attenuate Nodal-induced malignancy of NB cells. Mechanistically, Nodal increases the protein stability of Zeb1 while has no effect on its mRNA expression. It is due to that Nodal can increase the expression of Ataxia telangiectasia mutated kinase (ATM), which can phosphorylate and stabilize Zeb1 in cancer cells. Collectively, our data revealed that Nodal can increase the malignancy of NB cells via increasing the expression of Zeb1. It suggests that targeted inhibition of Nodal might be a potential therapy approach for NB treatment. © 2019 BioFactors, 45(3):355-363, 2019.

Effects of Huanglian-Renshen-Decoction, a Fixed Mixture of Traditional Chinese Medicine, on the Improvement of Glucose Metabolism by Maintenance of Pancreatic β Cell Identity in db/db Mice

Huanglian-Renshen-Decoction (HRD) is widely used to treat type 2 diabetes mellitus (T2DM) in China. However, the underlying mechanism is unclear. We aimed to investigate the mechanism by which HRD regulates the glucose level. Forty 7-8-week-old db/db (BSK) mice were randomly assigned to the following four groups: model, low dose HRD (LHRD), high dose HRD (HHRD), and saxagliptin (SAX). Additionally, 10 db/m mice were assigned to control group. The experimental mice were administered 3.03g/kg/d and 6.06g/kg/d of HRD in the LHRD and HHRD groups, respectively, and 10mg/kg/d saxagliptin in the SAX group for 8 weeks. The control and model groups were supplied with distilled water. After the intervention, the pancreas and blood were collected and tested. Compared with that of model group, the fasting blood glucose (FBG) was significantly decreased in all intervention groups (p < 0.05 or 0.01), whereas fasting serum insulin (FINS) was increased significantly in both HHRD and SAX groups. The immunofluorescence images showed that the mass of insulin⁺ cells was increased and that of glucagon⁺ cells was reduced obviously in experimental groups compared to those of the model group. In addition, the coexpression of insulin, glucagon, and PDX1 was decreased in HHRD group, and the level of caspase 12 in islet was decreased significantly in all intervention groups. However, little difference was found in the number and morphology of islet, and the expression of ki67, bcl2, bax, caspase 3, and cleaved-caspase 3 in the pancreas among groups. Interestingly, the cleaved-Notch1 level was increased and the Ngn3 level in islet was decreased significantly in HHRD group. The HRD showed dose-dependent effects on glucose metabolism improvement through maintenance of β cell identity via a mechanism that might involve the Notch1/Ngn3 signal pathway in db/db mice.

Effect of asiatic acid on epithelial-mesenchymal transition of human alveolar epithelium A549 cells induced by TGF-β1

Asiatic acid (AA) is a pentacyclic triterpenoid isolated from Centella asiatica (L.) Urban that possesses significant antitumor activities. In the present study, the mechanism of AA on transforming growth factor-β1 (TGF-β1)-induced epithelial-mesenchymal transition (EMT) was investigated in the lung cancer cell line A549. To do so, cell morphological alterations were observed and recorded at different time periods. Cells treated with TGF-β1 were spindle-shaped and characterized as stromal cells, whereas AA-treated cells exhibited epithelial cell characteristics and increased intercellular adhesion. The MTT assay demonstrated that the high concentration of AA inhibited the viability of A549 cells treated with TGF-β. In addition, the wound healing and Transwell assays revealed that AA inhibited TGF-β1-induced invasion and migration of A549 cells. Furthermore, AA treatment increased the mRNA and protein expression levels of E-cadherin, and decreased the expression levels of snail family transcriptional repressor (Snail), N-cadherin, vimentin and β-catenin in TGF-β1-treated A549 cells. In conclusion, these results suggested that AA may inhibit TGF-β1-induced EMT in lung cancer through increased expression of E-cadherin, and inhibition of Snail, N-cadherin and vimentin expression.

miR-125a restrains cell migration and invasion by targeting STAT3 in gastric cancer cells

BACKGROUND

Recently, many microRNAs have been found to be involved in the cancer progression including miR-125a. However, the underlying mechanisms of miR-125a in gastric cancer (GC) remain to be completely elucidated.

OBJECTIVE

The study was to investigate the functional role of miR-125a and the expression relevance of signal transducer and activator of transcription 3 (STAT3) and hyaluronan synthase 1 (HAS1).

METHOD

CCK-8 assay, scratch wound healing and transwell assay were conducted to identify the functional role of miR-125a in GC. In addition, using bioinformatics analysis, the target regulation relationship was found in STAT3 and miR-125a. To confirm the relationship, luciferase reporter assay was performed. More importantly, quantitative polymerase chain reaction and western blot assay were carried out to determine the association among miR-125a, STAT3 and HAS1 in GC cells.

RESULTS

Overexpressed miR-125a inhibited the migration and invasion of GC cells through scratch wound healing and transwell assay, and its knockdown displayed adverse effects, but the viability of GC cells did not show significant difference using CCK-8 assay. In addition, we identified that the knockdown of STAT3 or HAS1 remarkably suppressed the migration and invasion abilities of GC cells. Using bioinformatics analysis, miRTar, in particular, indicated that the 3'-untranslated region of STAT3 binds to miR-125a with a high score. Subsequently, we also verified that STAT3 was a target of miR-125a via luciferase reporter assay. Furthermore, we found that upregulated miR-125a expression could conspicuously constrain STAT3 expression at both protein and mRNA levels in MKN45 and NCI-N87 cells using quantitative polymerase chain reaction and Western blot assay, but no significant difference had been found in SGC 7901 cells. To further identify the regulatory relationship between miR-125a and STAT3, downregulation of miR-125a in MKN45 and NCI-N87 cells was carried out, which showed that the protein and mRNA expression levels of STAT3 were declined in two cell lines. Finally, we observed that upregulated miR-125a could lead to the decrease of HAS1 at protein and mRNA levels, whereas its knockdown revealed opposite effects. Meanwhile, we noticed that overexpression of STAT3 could induce the escalation of HAS1 at protein and mRNA expression levels and its knockdown exhibited the adverse outcomes.

CONCLUSION

These findings indicated that miR-125a may control the HAS1 expression in GC progression by targeting STAT3, which is likely to facilitate a better understanding of the regulation mechanisms of miR-125a in GC.

Tumor microenvironment classification based on T-cell infiltration and PD-L1 in patients with mismatch repair-proficient and -deficient colorectal cancer

The classification of tumor microenvironments according to the presence or absence of tumor infiltrating lymphocytes (TILs) and programmed death ligand-1 (PD-L1) expression has been used to predict the efficacy of immune checkpoint inhibitor antibodies in several cancer types, not including colorectal cancer (CRC). The current study investigated the TIL/PD-L1 status of patients with CRC, particularly patients who presented as mismatch repair-proficient (pMMR) and mismatch repair-deficient (dMMR). A total of 243 patients with CRC were enrolled and defined as pMMR (121 patients) or dMMR (122 patients). Using Pearson's χ² test and multivariable multinomial logistic regression analysis, the associations between MMR status, TIL presence and PD-L1 expression were investigated, in addition to the association between TIL/PD-L1 status and clinicopathological features. The results demonstrated that the dMMR group more frequently exhibited TIL⁺ (85/122 vs. 61/121) and PD-L1⁺ (49/122 vs. 32/121) phenotypes compared with the pMMR group. PD-L1⁺ expression was identified in 42.4% of TIL⁺ cases in the dMMR group, while only 18.0% of TIL⁺ cases were PD-L1⁺ in the pMMR group. High programmed death-1 expression and dMMR status were revealed as two independent risk factors for TIL⁺ PD-L1⁺ status. In conclusion, compared with the pMMR group, the dMMR group was more likely to present with a TIL⁺ PD-L1⁺ status, which suggests that a TIL⁺ PD-L1⁺ tumor microenvironment may partly contribute to the improved response of dMMR patients to anti-PD-1/L1 therapy.

Identification of Key Potential Targets and Pathway for Arsenic Trioxide by Systemic Bioinformatics Analysis in Pancreatic Cancer

Arsenic trioxide is an approved chemotheraputic agent for the treatment of acute promyelocytic leukemia (APL). Recently, numerous studies suggested that arsenic trioxide acts as anti-cancer roles in various human malignancies. However, the molecular mechanisms are not fully elucidated. In this study, we explored the critical targets of arsenic trioxide and their interaction network systematically by searching the publicly available published database like DrugBank (DB) and STRING. Seven direct protein targets (DPTs) and 111 DPT-associated genes were identified. The enrichment analysis of arsenic trioxide associated genes/proteins revealed 10 Kyoto Encyclopedia of Genes and Genomes (KEGG) pathways. Among these pathways, phosphatidylinositol-4,5-bisphosphate-3-kinase -Akt (PI3K-Akt) single pathway and pancreatic cancer pathway are highly correlated with arsenic trioxide and have 5 overlapped targets. Then we investigated the gene alternation of selected critical genes in pancreatic cancer studies using cBio portal. These results indicated that arsenic trioxide could act anti-tumor function through PI3K-Akt single pathway and identified critical genes might be therapeutic targets for pancreatic cancer.

Omega 3 polyunsaturated fatty acids inhibit cell proliferation by regulating cell cycle in fad3b transgenic mouse embryonic stem cells

Background

The consumption of omega 3 polyunsaturated fatty acids (PUFAs) is important for human health and is closely associated with cell proliferation and differentiation. This study aimed to investigate the influence of omega 3 PUFAs on embryonic stem cell (ESC) proliferation and explore potential mechanisms that mediate these effects.

Methods

In this study, we isolated ESCs from fad3b-expressing transgenic mice. We detected the fatty-acid composition of ESCs using gas chromatography-mass spectroscopy, analyzed cell-cycle phases using flow cytometry, and detected gene expression using real-time polymerase chain reaction (PCR) and western blots.

Results

The amount of omega 3 PUFAs significantly increased in fad3b versus control ESCs. However, the growth of fad3b ESCs was slower than that of control cells, and most fad3b ESCs were in a prolonged G0/G1 phase after being passaged for 18 h. Therefore, we hypothesized that fad3b expression inhibited the cell cycle in ESCs by increasing the expression of P21, which then decreased the expression of cyclin-dependent kinase 4 (Cdk4). We found that pretreatment of fad3b ESCs with PD0325901, a P21 inhibitor, clearly attenuated the inhibitory effects of P21 on Cdk4, and resumed the cell cycle.

Conclusions

Expression of the fad3b gene in ESCs increased the omega 3 PUFA content, which inhibited cell proliferation by prolonging the G1 phase but did not arrest the G0-to-G1 or G1-to-S transitions. The prolonged G1 phase in fad3b ESCs was probably induced by downregulation of Cdk4 expression via p21 upregulation. These results suggest that accumulation of omega 3 PUFAs in vivo may beneficially affect ESC differentiation and that fad3b ESCs may be a useful tool for investigating related mechanisms.

Electronic supplementary material

The online version of this article (10.1186/s12944-018-0862-x) contains supplementary material, which is available to authorized users.

Traditional Chinese Medicine Integrated with Chemotherapy for Stage II-IIIA Patients with Non-Small-Cell Lung Cancer after Radical Surgery: A Retrospective Clinical Analysis with Small Sample Size

Objective

This study was designed to evaluate the clinical efficacy of combined traditional Chinese medicine (TCM) and conventional chemotherapy versus conventional chemotherapy in patients with stage II-IIIA non-small-cell lung cancer (NSCLC) after radical surgery.

Methods

A retrospective cohort study was conducted in patients with stage II-IIIA NSCLC from Subei People's Hospital and Yangzhou Traditional Chinese Medicine Hospital in Yangzhou City of Jiangsu Province from 2012 to 2016. Patients were divided into two groups: the TCM user group (patients receiving treatment with integrated TCM and conventional chemotherapy) and the non-TCM user group (patients receiving conventional chemotherapy only). The two groups were compared for their median disease-free survival (DFS) and median overall survival (OS).

Results

A total of 67 patients with stage II-IIIA NSCLC were enrolled between January 2012 and December 2016. The median DFS for the non-TCM user group was 601 days (95% confidence interval [CI], 375.7-826.3). The median DFS for TCM user group could not be calculated. However, log-rank analysis showed that the median survival time in the TCM user group was significantly longer than that of the non-TCM user group (P < 0.05). In addition, several significant risk factors were detected for predicting disease prognosis in patients with NSCLC, such as age, ECOG, lymphatic metastasis, and body mass index (BMI). For patients harboring these independent risk factors, the DFS of TCM user group was much longer than that of non-TCM user group (P < 0.05).

Conclusion

Adjuvant therapy with TCM may reduce the rate of tumor recurrence and metastasis and prolong DFS of patients with stage II-IIIA NSCLC.

SIK1-LNC represses the proliferative, migrative, and invasive abilities of lung cancer cells

Background

Discussions regarding the correlations between long non-coding RNAs (lncRNAs) and cancers have dominated research in recent years. SIK1-LNC, a type of lncRNA and adjacent to salt-inducible kinases 1 (SIK1), has been found aberrantly expressed in lung cancer. However, its functional role in lung cancer remains largely unknown.

Purpose

In this study, we aimed to explore the association between SIK1-LNC expression and SIK1 in lung cancer cells and further identify the impact of SIK1-LNC on the proliferation, migration invasion of lung cancer cells.

Patients and methods

Of the 30 patients with non-small-cell lung carcinoma from Zhongnan Hospital of Wuhan University, RT-qPCR was performed to detect SIK1 and SIK1-LNC expressions in patients’ samples. Overexpression and knockdown experiments were conducted to analyze the SIK1 and SIK1-LNC expressions in lung cancer cell lines. CCK-8, Brdu, scratch wound-healing, and Transwell assays were respectively employed to evaluate the proliferative, migrative, and invasive abilities of lung cancer cells.

Results

Both SIK1-LNC and SIK1 expression levels were evidently downregulated in 30 lung cancer tissues. SIK1-LNC expression was bound up with clinicopathologic features, including lymph node metastasis and distant metastasis. SIK1 expression showed a positive tendency with SIK1-LNC expression in lung cancer cells. SIK1-LNC exerted a significant repression on cell proliferatiive, miogrative and invasive abilities of lung cancer cells.

Conclusion

Our findings suggested that SIK1-LNC may act as a novel biomarker and therapeutic target for lung cancer.

Decoction of Chinese Herbal Medicine Fuzheng Kang-Ai Induces Lung Cancer Cell Apoptosis via STAT3/Bcl-2/Caspase-3 Pathway

Decoction of Chinese herbal medicine (CHM) Fuzheng Kang-Ai (FZKA for short) has been applied as adjuvant treatment strategy in advanced lung cancer patients for decades. We previously showed that FZKA decoction inhibited proliferation of non-small cell lung cancer (NSCLC) cells through activation of AMP-activated protein kinase alpha (AMPKα) signaling pathway, followed by inducing insulin-like growth factor (IGF) binding protein 1 (IGFBP1) and forkhead homeobox type O3a (FOXO3a) proteins, and enhanced the inhibition effect of gefitinib in lung cancer cell growth via inactivating PI3-K/Akt-mediated suppressing of cell surface-associated mucin-1 (MUC1) expression. In this study, we investigated the molecular mechanism by which FZKA decoction affected cell apoptosis in lung cancer cells. Our results show that FZKA induced apoptosis in lung cancer cells. Mechanistically, FZKA activated the caspase-3, PARP, and caspase-9 activities. Both antiapoptotic and proapoptotic proteins from Bcl-2 family were deregulated by FZKA exposure in lung cancer cells. In addition, FZKA reduced protein expressions of signal transducer and activator of transcription 3 (STAT3) and Jun activation domain-binding protein 1 (Jab1), while it concomitantly increased p21 protein. Moreover, the inhibitor of caspase-3 resisted the effect of FZKA on induction of apoptosis. Finally, exogenous overexpression of STAT3 overcame FZKA-inhibited protein expressions of Bcl-2 and myeloid cell leukemia-1 (Mcl-1) as well as Bax and blocked FZKA-induced activities of caspase-3 and caspase-9. Our results show that FZKA decoction promotes lung cancer cell apoptosis through STAT3/Bcl-2/caspase-3 signaling pathways. This study unveils potential novel molecular mechanism by which FZKA controls growth of human lung cancer cells.

lincROR influences the stemness and crizotinib resistance in EML-ALK+ non-small-cell lung cancer cells

Introduction

Echinoderm microtubule-associated protein-like 4-anaplastic lymphoma kinase (EML4-ALK) is identified as an important pathogenic factor in patients with non-small-cell lung cancer (NSCLC) and could induce a stem-like phenotype in NSCLC cells. Crizotinib is commonly used for EML4-ALK⁺ NSCLC treatment, but its acquired resistance results in tumor recurrence. Long intergenic noncoding RNA, regulator of reprogramming (lincROR) is related to the acquisition and maintenance of self-renewal and stemness features of cancer stem cells. It has been documented that lincROR is implicated in chemoresistance. However, the correlations of lincROR and EML4-ALK in stem cell-like properties and of lincROR and crizotinib resistance in NSCLC cells are yet to be elucidated.

Patients and methods

In the present study, we investigated the expression profile of lincROR in EML-ALK NSCLC tissues, and the potential role of lincROR in prognosis was then analyzed. Subsequently, its association with stem cell-like properties of EML-ALK⁺ NSCLC cells was determined. Furthermore, the correlation of lincROR with crizotinib and the effects of lincROR and crizotinib on cell viability of EML4-ALK⁺ NSCLC cells were all explored.

Results

The results showed that lincROR expression was upregulated in EML4-ALK⁺ NSCLC tissues relative to EML4-ALK^- NSCLC tissues. Low-expressed lincROR was related to a favorable prognosis of patients with EML-ALK NSCLC. lincROR overexpression could enhance the stemness features of EML-ALK⁺ NSCLC cells which were repressed by ALK knockdown.

Conclusion

We found that lincROR expression was significantly inhibited because of the increased concentration of crizotinib in EML4-ALK⁺ NSCLC cells. Furthermore, lincROR overexpression increased cell viability of EML4-ALK⁺ NSCLC cells, which was impaired by crizotinib. Conjointly, these results suggested the important role of lincROR in EML-ALK⁺ NSCLC. lincROR may serve as a potential therapeutic target to overcome chemotherapy resistance in EML-ALK⁺ NSCLC.

PKR inhibition mediates endotoxin tolerance in macrophages through inactivation of PI3K/AKT signaling

Following long‑term exposure to endotoxins, macrophages enter an immunosuppressive state that renders them unable respond to subsequent exposures to endotoxin, a phenomenon that is termed 'endotoxin tolerance'. Endotoxin tolerance increases the risks of secondary infection and mortality in patients with sepsis. In endotoxin‑tolerant macrophages, the mixed variation of gene transcription is referred to as macrophage reprogramming. The mechanisms underlying macrophage reprogramming remain unclear at present. Interferon‑induced double‑stranded RNA‑dependent protein kinase (PKR) is a widely expressed serine/threonine protein kinase. In addition to antiviral effects, PKR regulates the transcription of inflammatory cytokines by affecting transcription factors. However, the role of PKR in macrophage reprogramming remains to be elucidated. In the present study, the expression of inflammatory cytokines differed in lipopolysaccharide (LPS)‑tolerant RAW264.7 macrophages compared with LPS‑activated macrophages. Specifically, reverse transcription‑quantitative polymerase chain reaction results demonstrated that the mRNA levels of tumor necrosis factor‑α, interleukin‑1β (IL‑1β), C‑X‑C motif chemokine ligand 11, C‑C motif chemokine ligand (CCL17), CCL22 and suppressor of cytokine signaling 3 were decreased, and mRNAs levels of arginase‑1 (Arg1) and nitric oxide synthase 2 (iNOS) were increased, in LPS‑tolerant macrophages compared with LPS‑activated macrophages. Furthermore, western blot analysis demonstrated that the protein levels of phosphorylated (p)‑PKR were significantly decreased in the LPS‑tolerant cells. PKR activation with rotenone (10 µM) abrogated endotoxin tolerance by increasing the levels of the IL‑1β, CCL17 and CCL22 mRNAs and decreasing the levels of the Arg1 and iNOS mRNAs. Furthermore, western blotting demonstrated that AKT was markedly inactivated in endotoxin‑tolerant cells, as indicated by reduced p‑AKT levels. However, levels of p‑AKT were markedly increased following rotenone‑induced PKR activation in endotoxin‑tolerant cells. Ly294002 (10 µM), a phosphatidylinositol‑4,5‑bisphosphate 3‑kinase (PI3K)/AKT signaling inhibitor, partially reversed the rotenone‑induced alleviation of endotoxin tolerance. These results demonstrated that PKR inhibition mediated endotoxin tolerance in macrophages, and these effects were partially mediated by PI3K/AKT signaling. PKR may be a potential target for the treatment of endotoxin tolerance in patients with sepsis.