Non-proteolytic calpain-6 interacts with VEGFA and promotes angiogenesis by increasing VEGF secretion

KEAP1/NFE2L2 Pathway Signature Outperforms KEAP1/NFE2L2 Mutation Status and Reveals Alternative Pathway-Activating Mutations in NSCLC

INTRODUCTION

Activation of the antioxidant KEAP1/NFE2L2 (NRF2) pathway leads to increased glutamine dependence and an aggressive phenotype in NSCLC. Because this pathway has been explored as a clinical target, we developed a transcriptomic signature for identifying KEAP1/NFE2L2-activated tumors.

METHODS

A total of 971 NSCLC samples were used to train an expression signature (K1N2-score) to predict KEAP1/NFE2L2 mutations. There were 348 in-house NSCLCs that were analyzed using a NanoString expression panel for validation.

RESULTS

The 46-gene K1N2 score robustly predicted KEAP1/NFE2L2 mutations in the validation set irrespective of histology and mutation (area under the curve: 89.5, sensitivity: 90.2%), suggesting that approximately 90% of KEAP1/NFE2L2 mutations are pathway-activating. The K1N2-score outperformed KEAP1/NFE2L2 mutational status when predicting patient survival (score p = 0.047; mutation p = 0.215). In K1N2 score-positive but KEAP1/NFE2L2 wild-type samples, enrichment testing identified SMARCA4/BRG1 and CUL3 mutations as mimics of KEAP1/NFE2L2 mutations.

CONCLUSIONS

The K1N2-score identified KEAP1/NFE2L2-activated NSCLC by robustly detecting KEAP1/NFE2L2mut cases and discovering alternative genomic activators. It is a potential means for selecting patients with a constitutively active KEAP1/NFE2L2 pathway.

2'-Fucosyllactose Suppresses Angiogenesis and Alleviates Toxic Effects of 5-Fu in a HCT116 Colon Tumor-Bearing Model

The present study was aimed at examining the anti-tumor effects and molecular mechanisms of 2'-fucosyllactose (2'-FL). At the beginning, the viabilities of four types of colon cancer cells were analyzed after exposure to increasing concentrations of 2'-FL, and HCT116 cells were selected as the sensitive ones, which were applied in the further experiments; then, interestingly, 2'-FL (102.35 µM) was found to induce apoptosis of HCT116 cells, which coincides with significant changes in VEGFA/VEGFR2/p-PI3K/p-Akt/cleaved Caspase3 proteins. Next, in a tumor-bearing nude mouse model, HCT116 was chosen as the sensitive cell line, and 5-fluorouracil (5-Fu) was chosen as the positive medicine. It was noteworthy that both 2'-FL group (2.41 ± 0.57 g) and 2'FL/5-Fu group (1.22 ± 0.35 g) had a significantly lower tumor weight compared with the control (3.87 ± 0.79 g), suggesting 2'-FL could inhibit colon cancer. Since 2'-FL reduced the number of new blood vessels and the malignancy of tumors, we confirmed that 2'-FL effectively inhibited HCT116 tumors, and its mechanism was achieved by regulating the VEGFA/VEGFR2/PI3K/Akt/Caspase3 pathway. Moreover, though HE staining and organ index measurement, 2'-FL was validated to alleviate toxic effects on liver and kidney tissue when combining with 5-Fu. In conclusion, 2'-FL had certain anti-tumor and detoxification effects.

Comprehensive analysis of prognostic value and immune infiltration of calpains in pancreatic cancer

BACKGROUND

Calpains (CAPNs) are intracellular calcium-activated neutral cysteine proteinases involved in cancer initiation, progression, and metastasis. However, its role in pancreatic cancer (PC) is still unclear. This study aims to identify the prognostic value and immune infiltration of CAPNs for PC patients using comprehensive bioinformatics analyzes.

METHODS

We analyzed the transcription levels of CAPNs in different cancers from Oncomine, differential gene expression in tumor/normal tissues and pathological stage through GEPIA database, the prognostic value of the mRNA expression of CAPNs by Kaplan-Meier plotter, the protein expression comparison of different CAPNs in human tumor/normal tissues from The Human Protein Atla, the CAPNs gene alterations through cBioPortal, the prediction of protein-protein interactions by STRING and GeneMANIA, the functional enrichment of discrepant CAPNs by GO and KEGG, and the immune infiltration of CAPNs by ssGSEA.

RESULTS

Our results showed that CAPN1, 2, 4, 5, 6, 8, 9, 10, and 12 were highly expressed in PC. CAPN1, 5, 8, and 12 expression levels were positively correlated with individual cancer stages. Furthermore, CAPN1, 2, 5, and 8 expression levels were negatively correlated with overall survival (OS) and recurrence-free survival (RFS), while CAPN10 was positively correlated with OS and RFS. We found that CAPN1, 2, 5, and 8 were correlated with tumor-infiltrating T follicular helper cells and CAPN10 with tumor-infiltrating T helper 2 cells. Functional enrichment analysis showed that differentially expressed CAPNs (CAPN1, 2, 5, 8, and 10) are involved in axonogenesis, cell-substrate adhesion, immune response-activating cell surface receptor signaling pathway, and cell junction organization in PC.

CONCLUSIONS

These results suggested that CAPN1, 2, 5, 8, and 10 could be used as prognostic biomarkers in PC and improve individualized treatment strategies.

Combination of Danshen and ligustrazine has dual anti-inflammatory effect on macrophages and endothelial cells

ETHNOPHARMACOLOGICAL RELEVANCE

Salvia Miltiorrhiza Radix et Rhizoma (Danshen) and Chuanxiong Rhizoma (Chuanxiong) are both traditional Chinese medicines with vascular protective effects, and their combination is widely used in China to treat occlusive or ischemic diseases of the cerebrovascular or cardiovascular system. Although it is widely accepted that these diseases have high relevance to inflammation, little is known about the anti-inflammatory effect of Danshen, Chuanxiong, and their combination.

AIM OF STUDY

We aimed to investigate the complex mode of action of Danshen, Chuanxiong, and their combination and the molecular mechanisms underlying their anti-inflammatory activity. Specifically, toll-like receptor (TLR1/2, 3, and 4)-triggered macrophages and endothelial cells, the two major cell players in atherosclerosis as well as in related cardiovascular and cerebrovascular injuries, were emphasized.

METHODS

TLR1/2-, TLR3-, and TLR4-induced bone marrow macrophages (BMMs) and human umbilical vein endothelial cells (HUVECs) were treated with Danshen extract (S. miltiorrhiza extract, SME), ligustrazine (2, 3, 5, 6-tetramethylpyrazine, TMP), and their combination (S. miltiorrhiza and TMP injection, SLI), respectively. The proinflammatory cytokines interleukin 6 (IL-6), IL-12, and tumor necrosis factor alpha (TNF-α) were detected as the preliminary indicators of inflammation. In addition, RNA sequencing (RNA-seq)-based transcriptional profiling analyses were conducted for TLR2-activated BMMs to determine the molecular mode of action of SLI as well as the contribution of SME to SLI activity.

RESULTS

SLI mitigated inflammation in both BMMs and HUVECs. Refer to the combination, SME had pronounced anti-inflammatory effect on BMMs but had only a slight effect on HUVECs. In contrast, TMP had considerable anti-inflammatory effect on HUVECs but not on BMMs. Bioinformatic analysis identified a broad spectrum of regulatory genes, in addition to IL-6 gene, and C-X-C motif chemokine ligand 10 (CXCL10) appeared to be another key molecule involved in the mechanism underlying SLI and SME effects. At the molecular level, SME was a major contributor of the anti-inflammatory activity of SLI.

CONCLUSIONS

In TLR-activated inflammation, SLI exhibits a "multiple ingredient-multiple target" effect, with SME primarily affecting macrophages and TMP affecting HUVECs. Our study provides evidence for the clinical application of SLI in treating complex diseases involving inflammation-induced injury of both macrophages and epithelial cells. Further bioinformatics studies are required to reveal the entire molecular network involved in TMP, SME, and SLI activity.

Chemically Modified SDF-1α mRNA Promotes Random Flap Survival by Activating the SDF-1α/CXCR4 Axis in Rats

Random skin flaps are frequently applied in plastic and reconstructive surgery for patients suffering from soft tissue defects caused by congenital deformities, trauma and tumor resection. However, ischemia and necrosis in distal parts of random skin flaps remains a common challenge that limits the clinical application of this procedure. Recently, chemically modified mRNA (modRNA) was found to have great therapeutic potential. Here, we explored the potential of fibroblasts engineered to express modified mRNAs encoding the stromal cell-derived factor-1α (SDF-1α) to improve vascularization and survival of therapeutic random skin flaps. Our study showed that fibroblasts pre-treated with SDF-1α modRNA have the potential to salvage ischemic skin flaps. Through a detailed analysis, we revealed that a fibroblast SDF-1α modRNA combinatorial treatment dramatically reduced tissue necrosis and significantly promoted neovascularization in random skin flaps compared to that in the control and vehicle groups. Moreover, SDF-1α modRNA transcription in fibroblasts promoted activation of the SDF-1α/CXCR4 pathway, with concomitant inactivation of the MEK/ERK, PI3K/AKT, and JAK2/STAT3 signaling pathways, indicating a possible correlation with cell proliferation and migration. Therefore, fibroblast-mediated SDF-1α modRNA expression represents a promising strategy for random skin flap regeneration.

CAPN6 in disease: An emerging therapeutic target (Review)

As a member of the calpain protein family, calpain6 (CAPN6) is highly expressed mainly in the placenta and embryos. It plays a number of important roles in cellular processes, such as the stabilization of microtubules, the main-tenance of cell stability, the control of cell movement and the inhibition of apoptosis. In recent years, various studies have found that CAPN6 is one of the contributing factors associated with the tumorigenesis of uterine tumors and osteosarcoma, and that CAPN6 participates in the development of tumors by promoting cell proliferation and angiogenesis, and by inhibiting apoptosis, which is mainly regulated by the phosphatidylinositol 3 kinase (PI3K)/protein kinase B (Akt) pathway. Due to its abnormal cellular expression, CAPN6 has also been found to be associated with a number of diseases, such as white matter damage and muscular dystrophy. Therefore, CAPN6 may be a novel therapeutic target for these diseases. In the present review, the role of CAPN6 in disease and its possible use as a target in various therapies are discussed.

Homeoprotein Msx1-PIASy Interaction Inhibits Angiogenesis

Previously, we demonstrated that the homeoprotein Msx1 interaction with p53 inhibited tumor growth by inducing apoptosis. However, Msx1 can exert its tumor suppressive effect through the inhibition of angiogenesis since growth of the tumor relies on sufficient blood supply from the existing vessels to provide oxygen and nutrients for tumor growth. We hypothesized that the inhibition of tumor growth by Msx1 might be due to the inhibition of angiogenesis. Here, we explored the role of Msx1 in angiogenesis. Overexpression of Msx1 in HUVECs inhibited angiogenesis, and silencing of Msx1 by siRNA abrogated its anti-angiogenic effects. Furthermore, forced expression of Msx1 in mouse muscle tissue inhibited vessel sprouting, and application of an Ad-Msx1-transfected conditioned medium onto the chicken chorioallantoic membrane (CAM) led to a significant inhibition of new vessel formation. To explore the underlying mechanism of Msx1-mediated angiogenesis, yeast two-hybrid screening was performed, and we identified PIASy (protein inhibitor of activated STAT Y) as a novel Msx1-interacting protein. We mapped the homeodomain of Msx1 and the C-terminal domain of PIASy as respective interacting domains. Consistent with its anti-angiogenic function, overexpression of Msx1 suppressed the reporter activity of VEGF. Interestingly, PIASy stabilized Msx1 protein, whereas deletion of the Msx1-interacting domain in PIASy abrogated the inhibition of tube formation and the stabilization of Msx1 protein. Our findings suggest the functional importance of PIASy-Msx1 interaction in Msx1-mediated angiogenesis inhibition.