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Choi KM, Kim B, Lee SM, Han J, Bae HS, Han SB, Lee D, Ham IH, Hur H, Kim E, Kim JY. Characterization of gastric cancer-stimulated signaling pathways and function of CTGF in cancer-associated fibroblasts. Cell Commun Signal 2024; 22:8. [PMID: 38167009 PMCID: PMC10763493 DOI: 10.1186/s12964-023-01396-7] [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: 05/25/2023] [Accepted: 11/12/2023] [Indexed: 01/05/2024] Open
Abstract
BACKGROUND Cancer-associated fibroblasts (CAFs) are key components of the tumor microenvironment (TME) that play an important role in cancer progression. Although the mechanism by which CAFs promote tumorigenesis has been well investigated, the underlying mechanism of CAFs activation by neighboring cancer cells remains elusive. In this study, we aim to investigate the signaling pathways involved in CAFs activation by gastric cancer cells (GC) and to provide insights into the therapeutic targeting of CAFs for overcoming GC. METHODS Alteration of receptor tyrosine kinase (RTK) activity in CAFs was analyzed using phospho-RTK array. The expression of CAFs effector genes was determined by RT-qPCR or ELISA. The migration and invasion of GC cells co-cultured with CAFs were examined by transwell migration/invasion assay. RESULTS We found that conditioned media (CM) from GC cells could activate multiple receptor tyrosine kinase signaling pathways, including ERK, AKT, and STAT3. Phospho-RTK array analysis showed that CM from GC cells activated PDGFR tyrosine phosphorylation, but only AKT activation was PDGFR-dependent. Furthermore, we found that connective tissue growth factor (CTGF), a member of the CCN family, was the most pronouncedly induced CAFs effector gene by GC cells. Knockdown of CTGF impaired the ability of CAFs to promote GC cell migration and invasion. Although the PDGFR-AKT pathway was pronouncedly activated in CAFs stimulated by GC cells, its pharmacological inhibition affected neither CTGF induction nor CAFs-induced GC cell migration. Unexpectedly, the knockdown of SRC and SRC-family kinase inhibitors, dasatinib and saracatinib, significantly impaired CTGF induction in activated CAFs and the migration of GC cells co-cultured with CAFs. SRC inhibitors restored the reduced expression of epithelial markers, E-cadherin and Zonula Occludens-1 (ZO-1), in GC cells co-cultured with CAFs, as well as CAFs-induced aggregate formation in a 3D tumor spheroid model. CONCLUSIONS This study provides a characterization of the signaling pathways and effector genes involved in CAFs activation, and strategies that could effectively inhibit it in the context of GC. Video Abstract.
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Affiliation(s)
- Kyoung-Min Choi
- Graduate School of Analytical Science and Technology (GRAST), Chungnam National University, Daejeon, South Korea
| | - Boram Kim
- Graduate School of Analytical Science and Technology (GRAST), Chungnam National University, Daejeon, South Korea
| | - Su-Min Lee
- Graduate School of Analytical Science and Technology (GRAST), Chungnam National University, Daejeon, South Korea
| | - Jisoo Han
- Graduate School of Analytical Science and Technology (GRAST), Chungnam National University, Daejeon, South Korea
| | - Ha-Song Bae
- Graduate School of Analytical Science and Technology (GRAST), Chungnam National University, Daejeon, South Korea
| | - Su-Bhin Han
- Graduate School of Analytical Science and Technology (GRAST), Chungnam National University, Daejeon, South Korea
| | - Dagyeong Lee
- Department of Surgery, Ajou University School of Medicine, Suwon, South Korea
- Inflamm-Aging Translational Research Center, Ajou University School of Medicine, Suwon, South Korea
- AI-Super Convergence KIURI Translational Research Center, Suwon, South Korea
| | - In-Hye Ham
- Department of Surgery, Ajou University School of Medicine, Suwon, South Korea
- Inflamm-Aging Translational Research Center, Ajou University School of Medicine, Suwon, South Korea
| | - Hoon Hur
- Department of Surgery, Ajou University School of Medicine, Suwon, South Korea
- Inflamm-Aging Translational Research Center, Ajou University School of Medicine, Suwon, South Korea
| | - Eunjung Kim
- Natural Product Informatics Center, Korea Institute of Science and Technology (KIST), Gangneung, South Korea
| | - Jae-Young Kim
- Graduate School of Analytical Science and Technology (GRAST), Chungnam National University, Daejeon, South Korea.
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Hochi H, Kubota S, Takigawa M, Nishida T. Dual roles of cellular communication network factor 6 (CCN6) in the invasion and metastasis of oral cancer cells to bone via binding to BMP2 and RANKL. Carcinogenesis 2023; 44:695-707. [PMID: 37590989 PMCID: PMC10692700 DOI: 10.1093/carcin/bgad057] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 03/10/2023] [Revised: 06/28/2023] [Accepted: 08/16/2023] [Indexed: 08/19/2023] Open
Abstract
The acquisition of motility via epithelial-mesenchymal transition (EMT) and osteoclast induction are essential for the invasion and metastasis of oral squamous cell carcinoma (OSCC) to bone. However, the molecule suppressing both EMT and osteoclastogenesis is still unknown. In this study, we found that cellular communication network factor 6 (CCN6) was less produced in a human OSCC cell line, HSC-3 with mesenchymal phenotype, than in HSC-2 cells without it. Notably, CCN6 interacted with bone morphogenetic protein 2 (BMP2) and suppressed the cell migration of HSC-3 cells stimulated by BMP2. Moreover, knockdown of CCN6 in HSC-2 cells led to the promotion of EMT and enhanced the effect of transforming growth factor-β (TGF-β) on the promotion of EMT. Furthermore, CCN6 combined with BMP2 suppressed EMT. These results suggest that CCN6 strongly suppresses EMT in cooperation with BMP2 and TGF-β. Interestingly, CCN6 combined with BMP2 increased the gene expression of receptor activator of nuclear factor-κB ligand (RANKL) in HSC-2 and HSC-3 cells. Additionally, CCN6 interacted with RANKL, and CCN6 combined with RANKL suppressed RANKL-induced osteoclast formation. In metastatic lesions, increasing BMP2 due to the bone destruction led to interference with binding of CCN6 to RANKL, which results in the promotion of bone metastasis of OSCC cells due to continuous osteoclastogenesis. These findings suggest that CCN6 plays dual roles in the suppression of EMT and in the promotion of bone destruction of OSCC in primary and metastatic lesions, respectively, through cooperation with BMP2 and interference with RANKL.
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Affiliation(s)
- Hiroaki Hochi
- Department of Biochemistry and Molecular Dentistry, Okayama University Graduate School of Medicine, Dentistry, and Pharmaceutical Sciences, Okayama 700-8525, Japan
| | - Satoshi Kubota
- Department of Biochemistry and Molecular Dentistry, Okayama University Graduate School of Medicine, Dentistry, and Pharmaceutical Sciences, Okayama 700-8525, Japan
| | - Masaharu Takigawa
- Advanced Research Center for Oral and Craniofacial Sciences, Okayama University Faculty of Medicine, Dentistry, and Pharmaceutical Sciences, Okayama 700-8525, Japan
| | - Takashi Nishida
- Department of Biochemistry and Molecular Dentistry, Okayama University Graduate School of Medicine, Dentistry, and Pharmaceutical Sciences, Okayama 700-8525, Japan
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Xiang W, Li L, Hong F, Zeng Y, Zhang J, Xie J, Shen G, Wang J, Fang Z, Qi W, Yang X, Gao G, Zhou T. N-cadherin cleavage: A critical function that induces diabetic retinopathy fibrosis via regulation of β-catenin translocation. FASEB J 2023; 37:e22878. [PMID: 36939278 DOI: 10.1096/fj.202201664rr] [Citation(s) in RCA: 2] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 10/13/2022] [Revised: 02/15/2023] [Accepted: 03/02/2023] [Indexed: 03/21/2023]
Abstract
Retinal fibrosis is a severe pathological change in the late stage of diabetic retinopathy and is also the leading cause of blindness. We have previously revealed that N-cadherin was significantly increased in type 1 and type 2 diabetic mice retinas and the fibrovascular membranes from proliferative diabetic retinopathy (PDR) patients. However, whether N-cadherin directly induces retinal fibrosis in DR and the related mechanism is unknown. Here, we investigated the pathogenic role of N-cadherin in mediating retinal fibrosis and further explored the relevant therapeutic targets. We found that the level of N-cadherin was significantly increased in PDR patients and STZ-induced diabetic mice and positively correlated with the fibrotic molecules Connective Tissue Growth Factor (CTGF) and fibronectin (FN). Moreover, intravitreal injection of N-cadherin adenovirus significantly increased the expression of FN and CTGF in normal mice retinas. Mechanistically, overexpression of N-cadherin promotes N-cadherin cleavage, and N-cadherin cleavage can further induce translocation of non-p-β-catenin in the nucleus and upregulation of fibrotic molecules. Furthermore, we found a novel N-cadherin cleavage inhibitor, pigment epithelial-derived factor (PEDF), which ameliorated the N-cadherin cleavage and subsequent retinal fibrosis in diabetic mice. Thus, our findings provide novel evidence that elevated N-cadherin level not only acts as a classic EMT maker but also plays a causative role in diabetic retinal fibrosis, and targeting N-cadherin cleavage may provide a strategy to inhibit retinal fibrosis in DR patients.
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Affiliation(s)
- Wei Xiang
- Department of Biochemistry and Molecular Biology, Zhongshan School of Medicine, Sun Yat-sen University, Guangzhou, China
- Department of Clinical Laboratory Medicine, Guangdong Provincial People's Hospital (Guangdong Academy of Medical Sciences), Southern Medical University, Guangzhou, China
| | - Longhui Li
- State Key Laboratory of Ophthalmology, Zhongshan Ophthalmic Center, Sun Yat-sen University, Guangzhou, China
| | - Fuyan Hong
- Department of Biochemistry and Molecular Biology, Zhongshan School of Medicine, Sun Yat-sen University, Guangzhou, China
| | - Yongcheng Zeng
- Department of Biochemistry and Molecular Biology, Zhongshan School of Medicine, Sun Yat-sen University, Guangzhou, China
| | - Jin Zhang
- Department of Biochemistry and Molecular Biology, Zhongshan School of Medicine, Sun Yat-sen University, Guangzhou, China
| | - Jinye Xie
- Department of Biochemistry and Molecular Biology, Zhongshan School of Medicine, Sun Yat-sen University, Guangzhou, China
| | - Gang Shen
- Department of Biochemistry and Molecular Biology, Zhongshan School of Medicine, Sun Yat-sen University, Guangzhou, China
| | - Jinhong Wang
- Department of Biochemistry and Molecular Biology, Zhongshan School of Medicine, Sun Yat-sen University, Guangzhou, China
| | - Zhenzhen Fang
- Department of Biochemistry and Molecular Biology, Zhongshan School of Medicine, Sun Yat-sen University, Guangzhou, China
| | - Weiwei Qi
- Department of Biochemistry and Molecular Biology, Zhongshan School of Medicine, Sun Yat-sen University, Guangzhou, China
- Guangdong Province Key Laboratory of Brain Function and Disease, Zhongshan School of Medicine, Sun Yat-Sen University, Guangzhou, China
| | - Xia Yang
- Department of Biochemistry and Molecular Biology, Zhongshan School of Medicine, Sun Yat-sen University, Guangzhou, China
- Guangdong Province Key Laboratory of Brain Function and Disease, Zhongshan School of Medicine, Sun Yat-Sen University, Guangzhou, China
| | - Guoquan Gao
- Department of Biochemistry and Molecular Biology, Zhongshan School of Medicine, Sun Yat-sen University, Guangzhou, China
- Guangdong Engineering & Technology Research Center for Gene Manipulation and Biomacromolecular Products, Sun Yat-Sen University, Guangzhou, China
| | - Ti Zhou
- Department of Biochemistry and Molecular Biology, Zhongshan School of Medicine, Sun Yat-sen University, Guangzhou, China
- Advanced Medical Technology Center, The First Affiliated Hospital, Zhongshan School of Medicine, Sun Yat-sen University, Guangzhou, China
- China Key Laboratory of Tropical Disease Control (Sun Yat-sen University), Ministry of Education, Guangzhou, China
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Cao HJ, Jiang H, Ding K, Qiu XS, Ma N, Zhang FK, Wang YK, Zheng QW, Xia J, Ni QZ, Xu S, Zhu B, Ding XF, Chen TW, Qiu L, Chen W, Li ZG, Zhou B, Feng WM, Xie D, Li JJ. ARID2 mitigates hepatic steatosis via promoting the ubiquitination of JAK2. Cell Death Differ 2023; 30:383-396. [PMID: 36396719 PMCID: PMC9950479 DOI: 10.1038/s41418-022-01090-0] [Citation(s) in RCA: 3] [Impact Index Per Article: 3.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 04/08/2022] [Revised: 10/25/2022] [Accepted: 11/04/2022] [Indexed: 11/18/2022] Open
Abstract
Non-alcoholic fatty liver disease (NAFLD) has become a growing public health problem. However, the complicated pathogenesis of NAFLD contributes to the deficiency of effective clinical treatment. Here, we demonstrated that liver-specific loss of Arid2 induced hepatic steatosis and this progression could be exacerbated by HFD. Mechanistic study revealed that ARID2 repressed JAK2-STAT5-PPARγ signaling pathway by promoting the ubiquitination of JAK2, which was mediated by NEDD4L, a novel E3 ligase for JAK2. ChIP assay revealed that ARID2 recruited CARM1 to increase H3R17me2a level at the NEDD4L promoter and activated the transcription of NEDD4L. Moreover, inhibition of Jak2 by Fedratinib in liver-specific Arid2 knockout mice alleviated HFD-induced hepatic steatosis. Downregulation of ARID2 and the reverse correlation between ARID2 and JAK2 were also observed in clinical samples. Therefore, our study has revealed an important role of ARID2 in the development of NAFLD and provided a potential therapeutic strategy for NAFLD.
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Affiliation(s)
- Hui-Jun Cao
- CAS Key Laboratory of Nutrition, Metabolism and Food Safety, Shanghai Institute of Nutrition and Health, University of Chinese Academy of Sciences, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Shanghai, 200031, China
| | - Hao Jiang
- CAS Key Laboratory of Nutrition, Metabolism and Food Safety, Shanghai Institute of Nutrition and Health, University of Chinese Academy of Sciences, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Shanghai, 200031, China
- Department of Biomedical Informatics, School of Life Sciences, Central South University, Changsha, 410013, China
| | - Kai Ding
- CAS Key Laboratory of Nutrition, Metabolism and Food Safety, Shanghai Institute of Nutrition and Health, University of Chinese Academy of Sciences, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Shanghai, 200031, China
| | - Xiao-Song Qiu
- CAS Key Laboratory of Nutrition, Metabolism and Food Safety, Shanghai Institute of Nutrition and Health, University of Chinese Academy of Sciences, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Shanghai, 200031, China
- School of Life Science and Technology, ShanghaiTech University, Shanghai, 201210, China
| | - Ning Ma
- CAS Key Laboratory of Nutrition, Metabolism and Food Safety, Shanghai Institute of Nutrition and Health, University of Chinese Academy of Sciences, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Shanghai, 200031, China
- Department of Thoracic Surgery, Section of Esophageal Surgery, Shanghai Chest Hospital, Shanghai Jiao Tong University, Shanghai, 200030, China
| | - Feng-Kun Zhang
- CAS Key Laboratory of Nutrition, Metabolism and Food Safety, Shanghai Institute of Nutrition and Health, University of Chinese Academy of Sciences, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Shanghai, 200031, China
| | - Yi-Kang Wang
- CAS Key Laboratory of Nutrition, Metabolism and Food Safety, Shanghai Institute of Nutrition and Health, University of Chinese Academy of Sciences, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Shanghai, 200031, China
| | - Qian-Wen Zheng
- CAS Key Laboratory of Nutrition, Metabolism and Food Safety, Shanghai Institute of Nutrition and Health, University of Chinese Academy of Sciences, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Shanghai, 200031, China
- School of Life Science and Technology, ShanghaiTech University, Shanghai, 201210, China
| | - Ji Xia
- CAS Key Laboratory of Nutrition, Metabolism and Food Safety, Shanghai Institute of Nutrition and Health, University of Chinese Academy of Sciences, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Shanghai, 200031, China
| | - Qian-Zhi Ni
- CAS Key Laboratory of Nutrition, Metabolism and Food Safety, Shanghai Institute of Nutrition and Health, University of Chinese Academy of Sciences, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Shanghai, 200031, China
- Department of Hepatic Surgery VI, Eastern Hepatobiliary Surgery Hospital, Naval Medical University, Shanghai, 200433, China
| | - Sheng Xu
- CAS Key Laboratory of Nutrition, Metabolism and Food Safety, Shanghai Institute of Nutrition and Health, University of Chinese Academy of Sciences, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Shanghai, 200031, China
| | - Bing Zhu
- CAS Key Laboratory of Nutrition, Metabolism and Food Safety, Shanghai Institute of Nutrition and Health, University of Chinese Academy of Sciences, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Shanghai, 200031, China
| | - Xu-Fen Ding
- CAS Key Laboratory of Nutrition, Metabolism and Food Safety, Shanghai Institute of Nutrition and Health, University of Chinese Academy of Sciences, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Shanghai, 200031, China
| | - Tian-Wei Chen
- CAS Key Laboratory of Nutrition, Metabolism and Food Safety, Shanghai Institute of Nutrition and Health, University of Chinese Academy of Sciences, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Shanghai, 200031, China
| | - Lin Qiu
- CAS Key Laboratory of Nutrition, Metabolism and Food Safety, Shanghai Institute of Nutrition and Health, University of Chinese Academy of Sciences, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Shanghai, 200031, China
| | - Wei Chen
- Cancer Institute of Integrated Traditional Chinese and Western Medicine, Tongde Hospital of Zhejiang Province, Hangzhou, 310012, Zhejiang, China
| | - Zhi-Gang Li
- Department of Thoracic Surgery, Section of Esophageal Surgery, Shanghai Chest Hospital, Shanghai Jiao Tong University, Shanghai, 200030, China
| | - Bin Zhou
- State Key Laboratory of Cell Biology, Shanghai Institute of Biochemistry and Cell Biology, Center for Excellence in Molecular Cell Science, Chinese Academy of Sciences, University of Chinese Academy of Sciences, Shanghai, 200031, China
| | - Wen-Ming Feng
- Department of Surgery, The First Affiliated Hospital of Huzhou University, Huzhou, 313000, Zhejiang, China
| | - Dong Xie
- CAS Key Laboratory of Nutrition, Metabolism and Food Safety, Shanghai Institute of Nutrition and Health, University of Chinese Academy of Sciences, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Shanghai, 200031, China.
- School of Life Science and Technology, ShanghaiTech University, Shanghai, 201210, China.
- NHC Key Laboratory of Food Safety Risk Assessment, China National Center for Food Safety Risk Assessment, Beijing, 100022, China.
| | - Jing-Jing Li
- CAS Key Laboratory of Nutrition, Metabolism and Food Safety, Shanghai Institute of Nutrition and Health, University of Chinese Academy of Sciences, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Shanghai, 200031, China.
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Lee SY. Endothelial cell‑derived connective tissue growth factor stimulates fibroblast differentiation into myofibroblasts through integrin αVβ3. Exp Ther Med 2022; 25:30. [PMID: 36561611 PMCID: PMC9748665 DOI: 10.3892/etm.2022.11730] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 07/15/2022] [Accepted: 10/17/2022] [Indexed: 11/27/2022] Open
Abstract
Connective tissue growth factor (CTGF) is expressed at high levels in blood vessels, where it functions as a regulator of a number of physiological processes, such as cell proliferation, angiogenesis and wound healing. In addition, CTGF has been reported to be involved in various pathological processes, such as tumor development and tissue fibrosis. However, one of the main roles of CTGF is to promote the differentiation of fibroblasts into myofibroblasts, a process that is involved in disease progression. Therefore, the present study aimed to investigate the possible mechanism by which pathological changes in the microvasculature can direct the activation of fibroblasts into myofibroblasts in the context of hypoxia/reoxygenation (H/R). Human umbilical vein endothelial cells (HUVECs) and normal human dermal fibroblasts were used in the present study. The expression levels of CTGF were determined by western blot analysis and reverse transcription-semi-quantitative PCR. To analyze the paracrine effect of HUVECs on fibroblasts, HUVECs were infected with CTGF-expressing adenovirus and then the culture supernatant of HUVECs was collected to treat fibroblasts. The formation of α-smooth muscle actin (α-SMA) stress fibers in fibroblasts were observed by immunofluorescence staining. It was found that H/R significantly increased CTGF expression in HUVECs. CTGF was also able to directly induce the differentiation of fibroblasts into myofibroblasts. In addition, the culture supernatant from CTGF-overexpressing HUVECs stimulated the formation of α-SMA stress fibers in fibroblasts, which was inhibited by treatment with a functional blocking antibody against integrin αVβ3 and to a lesser degree by a blocking antibody against α6 integrin. The mechanism of CTGF upregulation by H/R in HUVECs was then evaluated, where it was found that the CTGF protein was more stable in the H/R group compared with that in the normoxic control group. These findings suggest that CTGF expressed and secreted by vascular endothelial cells under ischemia/reperfusion conditions can exert a paracrine influence on neighboring fibroblasts, which may in turn promote myofibroblast-associated diseases. This association may hold potential as a therapeutic target.
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Affiliation(s)
- Seo-Yeon Lee
- Department of Pharmacology, Wonkwang University School of Medicine, Iksan, Jeollabuk-do 54538, Republic of Korea,Department of Biomedical Science, Wonkwang University School of Medicine, Iksan, Jeollabuk-do 54538, Republic of Korea,Correspondence to: Professor Seo-Yeon Lee, Department of Pharmacology, Wonkwang University School of Medicine, 460 Iksan-daero, Iksan, Jeollabuk-do 54538, Republic of Korea
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Systematic Pan-Cancer Analysis and Experimental Verification Identify FOXA1 as an Immunological and Prognostic Biomarker in Epithelial Ovarian Cancer. DISEASE MARKERS 2022; 2022:9328972. [DOI: 10.1155/2022/9328972] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 04/30/2022] [Accepted: 09/17/2022] [Indexed: 11/06/2022]
Abstract
Background. Epithelial ovarian cancer (EOC) has the lowest survival rate among female reproductive cancers present with symptoms of aggressive malignancies, poor prognosis, drug resistance and postoperative recurrence. The majority of patients with EOC are diagnosed at an advanced stage due to the therapeutic challenges including lack of early diagnosis and effective therapeutic targets for EOC. Methods. Pan-cancer analyses were performed to explore the features of forkhead-box (FOX) A1 (FOXA1) using data from TCGA and GTEx databases. R package “clusterprofiler” was used to perform the enrichment analysis of FOXA1 in EOC. Data downloaded from Drug Sensitivity in Cancer (GDSC) database were used to evaluate the association between FOXA1 and antitumor drug sensitivity. In experimental verification, FOXA1 expression was detected using qRT-PCR and western blot assays. Western blot, immunofluorescence staining, and Transwell assays were used to assess the influence of FOXA1 silencing on epithelial-mesenchymal transition (EMT) of EOC cells. Results. We found that FOXA1 was highly expressed in EOC and predicted poorer survival of EOC patients. We observed that FOXA1 expression was positively correlated EMT-related pathways. Through experimental verification, we found the underlying function of FOXA1 to promote EMT in ovarian cancers. The results from western blot, immunofluorescence staining, and Transwell assays showed that FOXA1 silencing impeded the progression of EMT and invasiveness of the cancer cells. Furthermore, CCK-8 and invasion assays suggested that siRNA-FOXA1 attenuated the ability of cancer cells to metastasize and proliferate. Dual-luciferase reporter assays confirmed the binding activity of FOXA1 to the promoter of connective tissue growth factor (CTGF). In addition, we found that FOXA1 was closely correlated immunosuppressive microenvironment of EOC. High FOXA1 expression may contribute to the resistance of many anticancer drugs. Conclusions. Our results predict and validate the function of FOXA1 in promoting EMT and the progression of disease in EOC. Targeting FOXA1 may improve the sensitivity of EOC treatment.
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Xu QR, Du XH, Huang TT, Zheng YC, Li YL, Huang DY, Dai HQ, Li EM, Fang WK. Role of Cell-Cell Junctions in Oesophageal Squamous Cell Carcinoma. Biomolecules 2022; 12:biom12101378. [PMID: 36291586 PMCID: PMC9599896 DOI: 10.3390/biom12101378] [Citation(s) in RCA: 1] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 08/25/2022] [Revised: 09/20/2022] [Accepted: 09/21/2022] [Indexed: 02/05/2023] Open
Abstract
Cell-cell junctions comprise various structures, including adherens junctions, tight junctions, desmosomes, and gap junctions. They link cells to each other in tissues and regulate tissue homeostasis in critical cellular processes. Recent advances in cell-cell junction research have led to critical discoveries. Cell-cell adhesion components are important for the invasion and metastasis of tumour cells, which are not only related to cell-cell adhesion changes, but they are also involved in critical molecular signal pathways. They are of great significance, especially given that relevant molecular mechanisms are being discovered, there are an increasing number of emerging biomarkers, targeted therapies are becoming a future therapeutic concern, and there is an increased number of therapeutic agents undergoing clinical trials. Oesophageal squamous cell carcinoma (ESCC), the most common histological subtype of oesophageal cancer, is one of the most common cancers to affect epithelial tissue. ESCC progression is accompanied by the abnormal expression or localisation of components at cell-cell junctions. This review will discuss the recent scientific developments related to the molecules at cell-cell junctions and their role in ESCC to offer valuable insights for readers, provide a global view of the relationships between position, construction, and function, and give a reference for future mechanistic studies, diagnoses, and therapeutic developments.
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Affiliation(s)
| | | | | | | | | | | | | | - En-Min Li
- Correspondence: (E.-M.L.); (W.-K.F.)
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Yu X, Mao R, Feng W, Zhao Y, Qin J, Yang Y, Wang A, Shi Z. WISP3 suppresses ESCC progression by inhibiting the IGF-2-IGF1R-AKT signaling cascade. Exp Cell Res 2021; 409:112871. [PMID: 34672999 DOI: 10.1016/j.yexcr.2021.112871] [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: 04/04/2021] [Revised: 09/06/2021] [Accepted: 10/07/2021] [Indexed: 11/19/2022]
Abstract
Esophageal squamous cell carcinoma (ESCC) is a major health problem worldwide, especially in the Chinese population. However, the intrinsic molecular mechanisms of ESCC progression are largely unclear, thus there is an unmet need to identify essential genes governing this disease. Here, we discovered WISP3, an important member of the CCN family, is markedly downregulated in ESCC tissues compared to the normal esophageal epithelium. Downregulation of WISP3 in cancer tissue correlates with worse overall survival of ESCC patients. Using ESCC cell lines as models, we found that forced expression of WISP3 not only suppressed proliferation and migration of cancer cells in vitro, but also inhibited ESCC tumor growth and metastasis in vivo. On the contrary, WISP3 depletion strongly promoted the tumorigenicity of ESCC cells. Mechanistically, we found that WISP3 negates the activity of AKT via inhibiting the IGF-2-IGF1R signaling cascade, which mediates the tumor-suppressive function of WISP3 in esophageal cancers. Together, we identified a novel factor driving the development of ESCC, and revealed a potential therapeutic target for ESCC treatment.
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Affiliation(s)
- Xiaofu Yu
- Department of Radiation Oncology, The Cancer Hospital of the University of Chinese Academy of Sciences (Zhejiang Cancer Hospital), Institute of Basic Medicine and Cancer (IBMC), Chinese Academy of Sciences, Hangzhou, Zhejiang, 310022, China
| | - Ruoying Mao
- The First Hospital of Zhejiang Province, Hangzhou, Zhejiang, 310000, China
| | - Wei Feng
- Department of Radiation Oncology, The Cancer Hospital of the University of Chinese Academy of Sciences (Zhejiang Cancer Hospital), Institute of Basic Medicine and Cancer (IBMC), Chinese Academy of Sciences, Hangzhou, Zhejiang, 310022, China
| | - Yazhen Zhao
- Department of Medical Oncology, The Cancer Hospital of the University of Chinese Academy of Sciences (Zhejiang Cancer Hospital), Institute of Basic Medicine and Cancer (IBMC), Chinese Academy of Sciences, Hangzhou, Zhejiang, 310022, China
| | - Jing Qin
- Department of Medical Oncology, The Cancer Hospital of the University of Chinese Academy of Sciences (Zhejiang Cancer Hospital), Institute of Basic Medicine and Cancer (IBMC), Chinese Academy of Sciences, Hangzhou, Zhejiang, 310022, China
| | - Yunshan Yang
- Department of Medical Oncology, The Cancer Hospital of the University of Chinese Academy of Sciences (Zhejiang Cancer Hospital), Institute of Basic Medicine and Cancer (IBMC), Chinese Academy of Sciences, Hangzhou, Zhejiang, 310022, China
| | - Ansheng Wang
- Department of Thoracic Surgery, The First Affiliated Hospital of Bengbu Medical College, 233004, China
| | - Zhong Shi
- Department of Medical Oncology, The Cancer Hospital of the University of Chinese Academy of Sciences (Zhejiang Cancer Hospital), Institute of Basic Medicine and Cancer (IBMC), Chinese Academy of Sciences, Hangzhou, Zhejiang, 310022, China.
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9
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Zheng QW, Ding XF, Cao HJ, Ni QZ, Zhu B, Ma N, Zhang FK, Wang YK, Xu S, Chen TW, Xia J, Qiu XS, Yu DZ, Xie D, Li JJ. Ochratoxin A Induces Steatosis via PPARγ-CD36 Axis. Toxins (Basel) 2021; 13:toxins13110802. [PMID: 34822586 PMCID: PMC8620754 DOI: 10.3390/toxins13110802] [Citation(s) in RCA: 9] [Impact Index Per Article: 3.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 10/13/2021] [Revised: 11/08/2021] [Accepted: 11/09/2021] [Indexed: 12/17/2022] Open
Abstract
Ochratoxin A(OTA) is considered to be one of the most important contaminants of food and feed worldwide. The liver is one of key target organs for OTA to exert its toxic effects. Due to current lifestyle and diet, nonalcoholic fatty liver disease (NAFLD) has been the most common liver disease. To examine the potential effect of OTA on hepatic lipid metabolism and NAFLD, C57BL/6 male mice received 1 mg/kg OTA by gavage daily. Compared with controls, OTA increased lipid deposition and TG accumulation in mouse livers. In vitro OTA treatment also promoted lipid droplets accumulation in primary hepatocytes and HepG2 cells. Mechanistically, OTA prevented PPARγ degradation by reducing the interaction between PPARγ and its E3 ligase SIAH2, which led to activation of PPARγ signaling pathway. Furthermore, downregulation or inhibition of CD36, a known of PPARγ, alleviated OTA-induced lipid droplets deposition and TG accumulation. Therefore, OTA induces hepatic steatosis via PPARγ-CD36 axis, suggesting that OTA has an impact on liver lipid metabolism and may contribute to the development of metabolic diseases.
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Affiliation(s)
- Qian-Wen Zheng
- CAS Key Laboratory of Nutrition, Metabolism and Food Safety, Shanghai Institute of Nutrition and Health, University of Chinese Academy of Sciences, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Shanghai 200031, China; (Q.-W.Z.); (X.-F.D.); (H.-J.C.); (Q.-Z.N.); (B.Z.); (N.M.); (F.-K.Z.); (Y.-K.W.); (S.X.); (T.-W.C.); (J.X.); (X.-S.Q.); (D.-Z.Y.)
- School of Life Science and Technology, ShanghaiTech University, Shanghai 201210, China
| | - Xu-Fen Ding
- CAS Key Laboratory of Nutrition, Metabolism and Food Safety, Shanghai Institute of Nutrition and Health, University of Chinese Academy of Sciences, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Shanghai 200031, China; (Q.-W.Z.); (X.-F.D.); (H.-J.C.); (Q.-Z.N.); (B.Z.); (N.M.); (F.-K.Z.); (Y.-K.W.); (S.X.); (T.-W.C.); (J.X.); (X.-S.Q.); (D.-Z.Y.)
| | - Hui-Jun Cao
- CAS Key Laboratory of Nutrition, Metabolism and Food Safety, Shanghai Institute of Nutrition and Health, University of Chinese Academy of Sciences, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Shanghai 200031, China; (Q.-W.Z.); (X.-F.D.); (H.-J.C.); (Q.-Z.N.); (B.Z.); (N.M.); (F.-K.Z.); (Y.-K.W.); (S.X.); (T.-W.C.); (J.X.); (X.-S.Q.); (D.-Z.Y.)
| | - Qian-Zhi Ni
- CAS Key Laboratory of Nutrition, Metabolism and Food Safety, Shanghai Institute of Nutrition and Health, University of Chinese Academy of Sciences, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Shanghai 200031, China; (Q.-W.Z.); (X.-F.D.); (H.-J.C.); (Q.-Z.N.); (B.Z.); (N.M.); (F.-K.Z.); (Y.-K.W.); (S.X.); (T.-W.C.); (J.X.); (X.-S.Q.); (D.-Z.Y.)
| | - Bing Zhu
- CAS Key Laboratory of Nutrition, Metabolism and Food Safety, Shanghai Institute of Nutrition and Health, University of Chinese Academy of Sciences, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Shanghai 200031, China; (Q.-W.Z.); (X.-F.D.); (H.-J.C.); (Q.-Z.N.); (B.Z.); (N.M.); (F.-K.Z.); (Y.-K.W.); (S.X.); (T.-W.C.); (J.X.); (X.-S.Q.); (D.-Z.Y.)
| | - Ning Ma
- CAS Key Laboratory of Nutrition, Metabolism and Food Safety, Shanghai Institute of Nutrition and Health, University of Chinese Academy of Sciences, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Shanghai 200031, China; (Q.-W.Z.); (X.-F.D.); (H.-J.C.); (Q.-Z.N.); (B.Z.); (N.M.); (F.-K.Z.); (Y.-K.W.); (S.X.); (T.-W.C.); (J.X.); (X.-S.Q.); (D.-Z.Y.)
| | - Feng-Kun Zhang
- CAS Key Laboratory of Nutrition, Metabolism and Food Safety, Shanghai Institute of Nutrition and Health, University of Chinese Academy of Sciences, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Shanghai 200031, China; (Q.-W.Z.); (X.-F.D.); (H.-J.C.); (Q.-Z.N.); (B.Z.); (N.M.); (F.-K.Z.); (Y.-K.W.); (S.X.); (T.-W.C.); (J.X.); (X.-S.Q.); (D.-Z.Y.)
| | - Yi-Kang Wang
- CAS Key Laboratory of Nutrition, Metabolism and Food Safety, Shanghai Institute of Nutrition and Health, University of Chinese Academy of Sciences, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Shanghai 200031, China; (Q.-W.Z.); (X.-F.D.); (H.-J.C.); (Q.-Z.N.); (B.Z.); (N.M.); (F.-K.Z.); (Y.-K.W.); (S.X.); (T.-W.C.); (J.X.); (X.-S.Q.); (D.-Z.Y.)
| | - Sheng Xu
- CAS Key Laboratory of Nutrition, Metabolism and Food Safety, Shanghai Institute of Nutrition and Health, University of Chinese Academy of Sciences, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Shanghai 200031, China; (Q.-W.Z.); (X.-F.D.); (H.-J.C.); (Q.-Z.N.); (B.Z.); (N.M.); (F.-K.Z.); (Y.-K.W.); (S.X.); (T.-W.C.); (J.X.); (X.-S.Q.); (D.-Z.Y.)
| | - Tian-Wei Chen
- CAS Key Laboratory of Nutrition, Metabolism and Food Safety, Shanghai Institute of Nutrition and Health, University of Chinese Academy of Sciences, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Shanghai 200031, China; (Q.-W.Z.); (X.-F.D.); (H.-J.C.); (Q.-Z.N.); (B.Z.); (N.M.); (F.-K.Z.); (Y.-K.W.); (S.X.); (T.-W.C.); (J.X.); (X.-S.Q.); (D.-Z.Y.)
| | - Ji Xia
- CAS Key Laboratory of Nutrition, Metabolism and Food Safety, Shanghai Institute of Nutrition and Health, University of Chinese Academy of Sciences, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Shanghai 200031, China; (Q.-W.Z.); (X.-F.D.); (H.-J.C.); (Q.-Z.N.); (B.Z.); (N.M.); (F.-K.Z.); (Y.-K.W.); (S.X.); (T.-W.C.); (J.X.); (X.-S.Q.); (D.-Z.Y.)
| | - Xiao-Song Qiu
- CAS Key Laboratory of Nutrition, Metabolism and Food Safety, Shanghai Institute of Nutrition and Health, University of Chinese Academy of Sciences, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Shanghai 200031, China; (Q.-W.Z.); (X.-F.D.); (H.-J.C.); (Q.-Z.N.); (B.Z.); (N.M.); (F.-K.Z.); (Y.-K.W.); (S.X.); (T.-W.C.); (J.X.); (X.-S.Q.); (D.-Z.Y.)
- School of Life Science and Technology, ShanghaiTech University, Shanghai 201210, China
| | - Dian-Zhen Yu
- CAS Key Laboratory of Nutrition, Metabolism and Food Safety, Shanghai Institute of Nutrition and Health, University of Chinese Academy of Sciences, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Shanghai 200031, China; (Q.-W.Z.); (X.-F.D.); (H.-J.C.); (Q.-Z.N.); (B.Z.); (N.M.); (F.-K.Z.); (Y.-K.W.); (S.X.); (T.-W.C.); (J.X.); (X.-S.Q.); (D.-Z.Y.)
| | - Dong Xie
- CAS Key Laboratory of Nutrition, Metabolism and Food Safety, Shanghai Institute of Nutrition and Health, University of Chinese Academy of Sciences, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Shanghai 200031, China; (Q.-W.Z.); (X.-F.D.); (H.-J.C.); (Q.-Z.N.); (B.Z.); (N.M.); (F.-K.Z.); (Y.-K.W.); (S.X.); (T.-W.C.); (J.X.); (X.-S.Q.); (D.-Z.Y.)
- School of Life Science and Technology, ShanghaiTech University, Shanghai 201210, China
- NHC Key Laboratory of Food Safety Risk Assessment, China National Center for Food Safety Risk Assessment, Beijing 100022, China
- Correspondence: (D.X.); (J.-J.L.); Tel.: +86-21-5492-0655 (J.-J.L.)
| | - Jing-Jing Li
- CAS Key Laboratory of Nutrition, Metabolism and Food Safety, Shanghai Institute of Nutrition and Health, University of Chinese Academy of Sciences, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Shanghai 200031, China; (Q.-W.Z.); (X.-F.D.); (H.-J.C.); (Q.-Z.N.); (B.Z.); (N.M.); (F.-K.Z.); (Y.-K.W.); (S.X.); (T.-W.C.); (J.X.); (X.-S.Q.); (D.-Z.Y.)
- Correspondence: (D.X.); (J.-J.L.); Tel.: +86-21-5492-0655 (J.-J.L.)
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10
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Mickle M, Adhikary G, Shrestha S, Xu W, Eckert RL. VGLL4 inhibits YAP1/TEAD signaling to suppress the epidermal squamous cell carcinoma cancer phenotype. Mol Carcinog 2021; 60:497-507. [PMID: 34004031 PMCID: PMC8243851 DOI: 10.1002/mc.23307] [Citation(s) in RCA: 7] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 03/26/2021] [Revised: 04/30/2021] [Accepted: 05/04/2021] [Indexed: 12/29/2022]
Abstract
Epidermal squamous cell carcinoma (SCC) develops in response to ultraviolet light exposure and is among the most common cancers. The transglutaminase 2 cancer cell survival protein stimulates the activity of the YAP1/TEAD transcription complex to drive the expression of genes that promote aggressive epidermal SCC cell invasion, migration, and tumor formation. Therefore, we are interested in mechanisms that may inhibit these events. Vestigial-like protein-4 (VGLL4) is a transcription cofactor/tumor suppressor that inhibits several pro-cancer pathways including YAP1 signaling. Our present studies show that VGLL4 inhibits YAP1/TEAD-dependent transcription to reduce the expression of YAP1 target genes (CCND1, CYR61, and CTGF) and pro-cancer collagen genes (COL1A2 and COL3A1). We further show that loss of these YAP1 regulated genes is required for VGLL4 suppression of the cancer cell phenotype, as forced CCND1 or COL1A2 expression partially restores the aggressive cancer phenotype in VGLL4 expressing cells. Consistent with these findings, VGLL4 expression reduces tumor formation, and this is associated with reduced CCND1, CYR61, CTGF, COL1A2, and COL1A3 mRNA and protein levels, and reduced EMT marker expression. These findings indicate that VGLL4 suppresses the malignant epidermal SCC cancer phenotype by inhibiting YAP1/TEAD-dependent pro-cancer signaling.
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Affiliation(s)
- McKayla Mickle
- Department of Biochemistry and Molecular Biology, University of Maryland School of Medicine, Baltimore, Maryland, 21201
| | - Gautam Adhikary
- Department of Biochemistry and Molecular Biology, University of Maryland School of Medicine, Baltimore, Maryland, 21201
| | - Suruchi Shrestha
- Department of Biochemistry and Molecular Biology, University of Maryland School of Medicine, Baltimore, Maryland, 21201
| | - Wen Xu
- Department of Biochemistry and Molecular Biology, University of Maryland School of Medicine, Baltimore, Maryland, 21201
| | - Richard L. Eckert
- Department of Biochemistry and Molecular Biology, University of Maryland School of Medicine, Baltimore, Maryland, 21201
- Department of Dermatology, University of Maryland School of Medicine, Baltimore, Maryland, 21201
- Department of Marlene and Stewart Greenebaum Comprehensive Cancer, University of Maryland School of Medicine, Baltimore, Maryland, 21201
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11
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Bao WD, Pang P, Zhou XT, Hu F, Xiong W, Chen K, Wang J, Wang F, Xie D, Hu YZ, Han ZT, Zhang HH, Wang WX, Nelson PT, Chen JG, Lu Y, Man HY, Liu D, Zhu LQ. Loss of ferroportin induces memory impairment by promoting ferroptosis in Alzheimer's disease. Cell Death Differ 2021; 28:1548-1562. [PMID: 33398092 PMCID: PMC8166828 DOI: 10.1038/s41418-020-00685-9] [Citation(s) in RCA: 303] [Impact Index Per Article: 101.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 02/06/2020] [Revised: 11/09/2020] [Accepted: 11/13/2020] [Indexed: 01/29/2023] Open
Abstract
Iron homeostasis disturbance has been implicated in Alzheimer's disease (AD), and excess iron exacerbates oxidative damage and cognitive defects. Ferroptosis is a nonapoptotic form of cell death dependent upon intracellular iron. However, the involvement of ferroptosis in the pathogenesis of AD remains elusive. Here, we report that ferroportin1 (Fpn), the only identified mammalian nonheme iron exporter, was downregulated in the brains of APPswe/PS1dE9 mice as an Alzheimer's mouse model and Alzheimer's patients. Genetic deletion of Fpn in principal neurons of the neocortex and hippocampus by breeding Fpnfl/fl mice with NEX-Cre mice led to AD-like hippocampal atrophy and memory deficits. Interestingly, the canonical morphological and molecular characteristics of ferroptosis were observed in both Fpnfl/fl/NEXcre and AD mice. Gene set enrichment analysis (GSEA) of ferroptosis-related RNA-seq data showed that the differentially expressed genes were highly enriched in gene sets associated with AD. Furthermore, administration of specific inhibitors of ferroptosis effectively reduced the neuronal death and memory impairments induced by Aβ aggregation in vitro and in vivo. In addition, restoring Fpn ameliorated ferroptosis and memory impairment in APPswe/PS1dE9 mice. Our study demonstrates the critical role of Fpn and ferroptosis in the progression of AD, thus provides promising therapeutic approaches for this disease.
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Affiliation(s)
- Wen-Dai Bao
- Department of Pathophysiology, Key Lab of Neurological Disorder of Education Ministry, School of Basic Medicine, Tongji Medical College, Huazhong University of Science and Technology, Wuhan, 430030, PR China
- The Institute of Brain Research, Collaborative Innovation Center for Brain Science, Huazhong University of Science and Technology, Wuhan, 430030, PR China
| | - Pei Pang
- Department of Pathophysiology, Key Lab of Neurological Disorder of Education Ministry, School of Basic Medicine, Tongji Medical College, Huazhong University of Science and Technology, Wuhan, 430030, PR China
- The Institute of Brain Research, Collaborative Innovation Center for Brain Science, Huazhong University of Science and Technology, Wuhan, 430030, PR China
| | - Xiao-Ting Zhou
- Department of Pathophysiology, Key Lab of Neurological Disorder of Education Ministry, School of Basic Medicine, Tongji Medical College, Huazhong University of Science and Technology, Wuhan, 430030, PR China
- The Institute of Brain Research, Collaborative Innovation Center for Brain Science, Huazhong University of Science and Technology, Wuhan, 430030, PR China
| | - Fan Hu
- Department of Pathophysiology, Key Lab of Neurological Disorder of Education Ministry, School of Basic Medicine, Tongji Medical College, Huazhong University of Science and Technology, Wuhan, 430030, PR China
- The Institute of Brain Research, Collaborative Innovation Center for Brain Science, Huazhong University of Science and Technology, Wuhan, 430030, PR China
| | - Wan Xiong
- Department of Pathophysiology, Key Lab of Neurological Disorder of Education Ministry, School of Basic Medicine, Tongji Medical College, Huazhong University of Science and Technology, Wuhan, 430030, PR China
- The Institute of Brain Research, Collaborative Innovation Center for Brain Science, Huazhong University of Science and Technology, Wuhan, 430030, PR China
| | - Kai Chen
- Department of Pathophysiology, Key Lab of Neurological Disorder of Education Ministry, School of Basic Medicine, Tongji Medical College, Huazhong University of Science and Technology, Wuhan, 430030, PR China
- The Institute of Brain Research, Collaborative Innovation Center for Brain Science, Huazhong University of Science and Technology, Wuhan, 430030, PR China
| | - Jing Wang
- Department of Radiology, Union Hospital, Tongji Medical College, Huazhong University of Science and Technology, Wuhan, Hubei, PR China
| | - Fudi Wang
- Department of Nutrition, School of Public Health, Zhejiang University, Hangzhou, Zhejiang, 310058, PR China
| | - Dong Xie
- Institute of Nutritional Science, Shanghai Institutes for Biological Sciences, Chinese Academy of Sciences, 320 Yueyang Road, Shanghai, 200031, PR China
| | - Ya-Zhuo Hu
- Beijing Key Laboratory of Aging and Geriatrics, National Clinical Research Center for Geriatric Disease, Institute of Geriatrics, Chinese PLA General Hospital and Chinese PLA Medical Academy, Beijing, PR China
| | - Zhi-Tao Han
- Beijing Key Laboratory of Aging and Geriatrics, National Clinical Research Center for Geriatric Disease, Institute of Geriatrics, Chinese PLA General Hospital and Chinese PLA Medical Academy, Beijing, PR China
| | - Hong-Hong Zhang
- Beijing Key Laboratory of Aging and Geriatrics, National Clinical Research Center for Geriatric Disease, Institute of Geriatrics, Chinese PLA General Hospital and Chinese PLA Medical Academy, Beijing, PR China
| | - Wang-Xia Wang
- Sanders Brown Center on Aging, Pathology and Laboratory Medicine, University of Kentucky, Lexington, KY, 40536, USA
| | - Peter T Nelson
- Sanders Brown Center on Aging, Pathology and Laboratory Medicine, University of Kentucky, Lexington, KY, 40536, USA
| | - Jian-Guo Chen
- The Institute of Brain Research, Collaborative Innovation Center for Brain Science, Huazhong University of Science and Technology, Wuhan, 430030, PR China
| | - Youming Lu
- The Institute of Brain Research, Collaborative Innovation Center for Brain Science, Huazhong University of Science and Technology, Wuhan, 430030, PR China
| | - Heng-Ye Man
- Department of Biology, Boston University, Boston, MA, 02215, USA
| | - Dan Liu
- The Institute of Brain Research, Collaborative Innovation Center for Brain Science, Huazhong University of Science and Technology, Wuhan, 430030, PR China.
| | - Ling-Qiang Zhu
- Department of Pathophysiology, Key Lab of Neurological Disorder of Education Ministry, School of Basic Medicine, Tongji Medical College, Huazhong University of Science and Technology, Wuhan, 430030, PR China.
- The Institute of Brain Research, Collaborative Innovation Center for Brain Science, Huazhong University of Science and Technology, Wuhan, 430030, PR China.
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12
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Chen ZH, Ni QZ, Zhang XP, Ma N, Feng JK, Wang K, Li JJ, Xie D, Ma XY, Cheng SQ. NET1 promotes HCC growth and metastasis in vitro and in vivo via activating the Akt signaling pathway. Aging (Albany NY) 2021; 13:10672-10687. [PMID: 33839702 PMCID: PMC8064201 DOI: 10.18632/aging.202845] [Citation(s) in RCA: 5] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.7] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 06/01/2020] [Accepted: 02/13/2021] [Indexed: 01/22/2023]
Abstract
Neuroepithelial cell transforming gene 1 (NET1), a member of the guanine nucleotide exchange factor family, is involved in various cancers, including gastric cancer, breast cancer and glioma. However, the role of NET1 in hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC) remains largely uncovered. In this study, we found that NET1 expression was upregulated in HCC, and that upregulated NET1 expression was closely associated with poor prognosis and some clinical characteristics in HCC patients. Whilst forced expression of NET1 in HCC cells was observed to significantly promote cell growth and metastasis in vitro and in vivo; downregulation of NET1 was shown to exhibit an opposite inhibitory effect. RNA-seq analysis and gene set enrichment analysis demonstrated that knockdown of NET1 significantly suppressed the level of Akt phosphorylation level and the expression of Akt downstream genes in HCC cells. Moreover, MK2206, a potent Akt inhibitor was shown to block the NET1-induced effects in HCC. Taken together, this study demonstrated that, through the Akt signaling pathway, NET1 plays an oncogenic role in HCC progression and metastasis. Hence, NET1 may potentially be used as a potential therapeutic target and prognostic marker of HCC.
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Affiliation(s)
- Zhen-Hua Chen
- Department of Hepatic Surgery VI, Eastern Hepatobiliary Surgery Hospital, Second Military Medical University, Shanghai 200433, China.,Department of General Surgery, Zhejiang Provincial Armed Police Corps Hospital, Hangzhou 310051, Zhejiang Province, China
| | - Qian-Zhi Ni
- Department of Hepatic Surgery VI, Eastern Hepatobiliary Surgery Hospital, Second Military Medical University, Shanghai 200433, China.,State Key Laboratory of Bioreactor Engineering, East China University of Science and Technology, Shanghai 200237, China
| | - Xiu-Ping Zhang
- Department of Hepatic Surgery VI, Eastern Hepatobiliary Surgery Hospital, Second Military Medical University, Shanghai 200433, China
| | - Ning Ma
- CAS Key Laboratory of Nutrition, Metabolism and Food Safety, Shanghai Institute of Nutrition and Health, Shanghai Institutes for Biological Sciences, University of Chinese Academy of Sciences, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Shanghai 200031, China
| | - Jing-Kai Feng
- Department of Hepatic Surgery VI, Eastern Hepatobiliary Surgery Hospital, Second Military Medical University, Shanghai 200433, China
| | - Kang Wang
- Department of Hepatic Surgery VI, Eastern Hepatobiliary Surgery Hospital, Second Military Medical University, Shanghai 200433, China
| | - Jing-Jing Li
- CAS Key Laboratory of Nutrition, Metabolism and Food Safety, Shanghai Institute of Nutrition and Health, Shanghai Institutes for Biological Sciences, University of Chinese Academy of Sciences, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Shanghai 200031, China
| | - Dong Xie
- CAS Key Laboratory of Nutrition, Metabolism and Food Safety, Shanghai Institute of Nutrition and Health, Shanghai Institutes for Biological Sciences, University of Chinese Academy of Sciences, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Shanghai 200031, China
| | - Xing-Yuan Ma
- State Key Laboratory of Bioreactor Engineering, East China University of Science and Technology, Shanghai 200237, China
| | - Shu-Qun Cheng
- Department of Hepatic Surgery VI, Eastern Hepatobiliary Surgery Hospital, Second Military Medical University, Shanghai 200433, China
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13
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Jia Q, Xu B, Zhang Y, Ali A, Liao X. CCN Family Proteins in Cancer: Insight Into Their Structures and Coordination Role in Tumor Microenvironment. Front Genet 2021; 12:649387. [PMID: 33833779 PMCID: PMC8021874 DOI: 10.3389/fgene.2021.649387] [Citation(s) in RCA: 10] [Impact Index Per Article: 3.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 01/04/2021] [Accepted: 03/03/2021] [Indexed: 12/19/2022] Open
Abstract
The crosstalk between tumor cells and the tumor microenvironment (TME), triggers a variety of critical signaling pathways and promotes the malignant progression of cancer. The success rate of cancer therapy through targeting single molecule of this crosstalk may be extremely low, whereas co-targeting multiple components could be complicated design and likely to have more side effects. The six members of cellular communication network (CCN) family proteins are scaffolding proteins that may govern the TME, and several studies have shown targeted therapy of CCN family proteins may be effective for the treatment of cancer. CCN protein family shares similar structures, and they mutually reinforce and neutralize each other to serve various roles that are tightly regulated in a spatiotemporal manner by the TME. Here, we review the current knowledge on the structures and roles of CCN proteins in different types of cancer. We also analyze CCN mRNA expression, and reasons for its diverse relationship to prognosis in different cancers. In this review, we conclude that the discrepant functions of CCN proteins in different types of cancer are attributed to diverse TME and CCN truncated isoforms, and speculate that targeting CCN proteins to rebalance the TME could be a potent anti-cancer strategy.
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Affiliation(s)
- Qingan Jia
- Institute of Medical Research, Northwestern Polytechnical University, Xi'an, China
| | - Binghui Xu
- Institute of Medical Research, Northwestern Polytechnical University, Xi'an, China
| | - Yaoyao Zhang
- Institute of Medical Research, Northwestern Polytechnical University, Xi'an, China
| | - Arshad Ali
- School of Life Sciences, Northwestern Polytechnical University, Xi'an, China
| | - Xia Liao
- Department of Nutrition, First Affiliated Hospital of Xi'an Jiaotong University, Xi'an, China
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14
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Constitutive androstane receptor induced-hepatomegaly and liver regeneration is partially via yes-associated protein activation. Acta Pharm Sin B 2021; 11:727-737. [PMID: 33777678 PMCID: PMC7982502 DOI: 10.1016/j.apsb.2020.11.021] [Citation(s) in RCA: 8] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.7] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 06/10/2020] [Revised: 09/09/2020] [Accepted: 09/14/2020] [Indexed: 12/15/2022] Open
Abstract
The constitutive androstane receptor (CAR, NR3I1) belongs to nuclear receptor superfamily. It was reported that CAR agonist TCPOBOP induces hepatomegaly but the underlying mechanism remains largely unknown. Yes-associated protein (YAP) is a potent regulator of organ size. The aim of this study is to explore the role of YAP in CAR activation-induced hepatomegaly and liver regeneration. TCPOBOP-induced CAR activation on hepatomegaly and liver regeneration was evaluated in wild-type (WT) mice, liver-specific YAP-deficient mice, and partial hepatectomy (PHx) mice. The results demonstrate that TCPOBOP can increase the liver-to-body weight ratio in wild-type mice and PHx mice. Hepatocytes enlargement around central vein (CV) area was observed, meanwhile hepatocytes proliferation was promoted as evidenced by the increased number of KI67+ cells around portal vein (PV) area. The protein levels of YAP and its downstream targets were upregulated in TCPOBOP-treated mice and YAP translocation can be induced by CAR activation. Co-immunoprecipitation results suggested a potential protein–protein interaction of CAR and YAP. However, CAR activation-induced hepatomegaly can still be observed in liver-specific YAP-deficient (Yap–/–) mice. In summary, CAR activation promotes hepatomegaly and liver regeneration partially by inducing YAP translocation and interaction with YAP signaling pathway, which provides new insights to further understand the physiological functions of CAR.
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Key Words
- ALB, albumin
- ALP, alkaline phosphatase
- ALT, alanine aminotransferase
- ANKRD1, ankyrin repeat domain 1
- AST, aspartate transaminase
- AhR, aryl hydrocarbon receptor
- CAR, constitutive androstane receptor
- CCNA1, cyclin A1
- CCND1, cyclin D1
- CCNE1, cyclin E1
- CITCO, 6-(4-chlorophenyl)imidazo[2,1-b][1,3]thiazole-5-carbaldehyde O-(3,4-dichlorobenzyl)oxime
- CTGF, connective tissue growth factor
- CTNNB1, β-catenin
- CV, central vein
- CYR61, cysteine-rich angiogenic inducer 61
- Co-IP, co-immunoprecipitation
- Constitutive androstane receptor
- EGFR, epidermal growth factor receptor
- FOXM1, forkhead box M1
- FXR, farnesoid X receptor
- H&E, haematoxylin and eosin
- Hepatomegaly
- Liver enlargement
- Liver regeneration
- Nuclear receptors
- PHx, partial hepatectomy
- PPARα, peroxisome proliferators-activated receptor alpha
- PV, portal vein
- Partial hepatectomy
- Protein–protein interaction
- TBA, total bile acid
- TBIL, total bilirubin
- TCPOBOP, 1,4-bis[2-(3,5-dichloropyridyloxy)]benzene
- TEAD, TEA domain family member
- YAP, yes-associated protein
- Yes-associated protein
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15
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Wang R, Cai J, Xie S, Zhao C, Wang Y, Cao D, Li G. T Cell Factor 4 Is Involved in Papillary Thyroid Carcinoma via Regulating Long Non-Coding RNA HCP5. Technol Cancer Res Treat 2020; 19:1533033820983290. [PMID: 33371788 PMCID: PMC7780308 DOI: 10.1177/1533033820983290] [Citation(s) in RCA: 2] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 12/28/2022] Open
Abstract
The annual incidence of papillary thyroid carcinoma has increased dramatically. T cell factor 4 (TCF4) is an important component of Wnt signaling pathway.However, the role of TCF4 in PTC remains unknown. In this study, TCF4 was observed to overexpress in PTC patients and cells by qRT-PCR assay. The colony formation assay, Edu staining and transwell assay indicated thatoverexpression of TCF4 promoted cell proliferation and invasion of TCP-1 cells, whereas knockdown of TCF4 inhibited cell proliferation and invasion of IHH-4 cells. To investigate the mechanism of TCF4 in PTC cells, the luciferase assay demonstrated that TCF4 could modulate HCP5 expression. Besides, GLuc-ON promoter reporter assayproved that TCF4 could bind to HCP5 promoter. Further, knockdown of HCP5 could significantly up-regulated miR-15a, miR-216a-5p, miR-22-3p, miR-139-5p, miR-203, miR-27a-3p and miR-320, and down-regulated miR-186-5p in IHH-4 cells, which might be potential downstream of TFC4/HCP5 axis. In conclusion, up-regulation TCF4 can promote HCP5 expression via binding to HCP5 promoter. It may be the first time to prove that TCF4 regulates HCP5 in PTC, which provides a novel sight for treatment of PTC.
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Affiliation(s)
- Rui Wang
- Surgical Oncology, Hangzhou Cancer Hospital, Hangzhou City, Zhejiang Province, China
| | - Jidong Cai
- Surgical Oncology, Hangzhou Cancer Hospital, Hangzhou City, Zhejiang Province, China
| | - Shangnao Xie
- Surgical Oncology, Hangzhou Cancer Hospital, Hangzhou City, Zhejiang Province, China
| | - Chunlei Zhao
- Department of Nuclear Medicine, Hangzhou Cancer Hospital, Hangzhou City, Zhejiang Province, China
| | - Yi Wang
- Surgical Oncology, Hangzhou Cancer Hospital, Hangzhou City, Zhejiang Province, China
| | - Deming Cao
- Surgical Oncology, Hangzhou Cancer Hospital, Hangzhou City, Zhejiang Province, China
| | - Gang Li
- Surgical Oncology, Hangzhou Cancer Hospital, Hangzhou City, Zhejiang Province, China
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Chen Z, Zhang N, Chu HY, Yu Y, Zhang ZK, Zhang G, Zhang BT. Connective Tissue Growth Factor: From Molecular Understandings to Drug Discovery. Front Cell Dev Biol 2020; 8:593269. [PMID: 33195264 PMCID: PMC7658337 DOI: 10.3389/fcell.2020.593269] [Citation(s) in RCA: 74] [Impact Index Per Article: 18.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 08/20/2020] [Accepted: 10/09/2020] [Indexed: 01/18/2023] Open
Abstract
Connective tissue growth factor (CTGF) is a key signaling and regulatory molecule involved in different biological processes, such as cell proliferation, angiogenesis, and wound healing, as well as multiple pathologies, such as tumor development and tissue fibrosis. Although the underlying mechanisms of CTGF remain incompletely understood, a commonly accepted theory is that the interactions between different protein domains in CTGF and other various regulatory proteins and ligands contribute to its variety of functions. Here, we highlight the structure of each domain of CTGF and its biology functions in physiological conditions. We further summarized main diseases that are deeply influenced by CTGF domains and the potential targets of these diseases. Finally, we address the advantages and disadvantages of current drugs targeting CTGF and provide the perspective for the drug discovery of the next generation of CTGF inhibitors based on aptamers.
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Affiliation(s)
- Zihao Chen
- School of Chinese Medicine, Faculty of Medicine, The Chinese University of Hong Kong, Hong Kong, China
| | - Ning Zhang
- School of Chinese Medicine, Faculty of Medicine, The Chinese University of Hong Kong, Hong Kong, China
| | - Hang Yin Chu
- Law Sau Fai Institute for Advancing Translational Medicine in Bone and Joint Diseases, School of Chinese Medicine, Hong Kong Baptist University, Hong Kong, China
| | - Yuanyuan Yu
- Law Sau Fai Institute for Advancing Translational Medicine in Bone and Joint Diseases, School of Chinese Medicine, Hong Kong Baptist University, Hong Kong, China
| | - Zong-Kang Zhang
- School of Chinese Medicine, Faculty of Medicine, The Chinese University of Hong Kong, Hong Kong, China
| | - Ge Zhang
- Law Sau Fai Institute for Advancing Translational Medicine in Bone and Joint Diseases, School of Chinese Medicine, Hong Kong Baptist University, Hong Kong, China
| | - Bao-Ting Zhang
- School of Chinese Medicine, Faculty of Medicine, The Chinese University of Hong Kong, Hong Kong, China
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Khosravi A, Jafari SM, Asadi J. Knockdown of TAZ decrease the cancer stem properties of ESCC cell line YM-1 by modulation of Nanog, OCT-4 and SOX2. Gene 2020; 769:145207. [PMID: 33031893 DOI: 10.1016/j.gene.2020.145207] [Citation(s) in RCA: 6] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 05/20/2020] [Revised: 08/07/2020] [Accepted: 09/29/2020] [Indexed: 12/23/2022]
Abstract
Cancer stem cells are a rare population in tumors with high metastatic potential and resistance to treatment. Recent strategies in cancer treatment have focused on targeting important signaling pathways that have an important role in maintaining CSC populations. TAZ (transcriptional co-activator with PDZ-binding motif) is a key downstream of the Hippo pathway which plays a fundamental role in the survival of CSCs from different origins, however, no data on the role of TAZ in esophageal cancer are available. Our findings showed that esophageal CSCs enriched from the YM-1 cell line have stemness properties. We found that TAZ was strongly expressed in esophageal CSCs and knockdown of TAZ in esophageal CSCs results in reduced colony formation and cell migration. Moreover, this data indicated that TAZ knockdown reduces the expression of SOX-2, OCT-4, and Nanong in esophageal CSCs. Taken together, the results of the current study suggested that TAZ has a crucial role in the biology of esophageal CSCs.
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Affiliation(s)
- Ayyoob Khosravi
- Stem Cell Research Center, Golestan University of Medical Sciences, Gorgan, Iran; Department of Molecular Medicine, Faculty of Advanced Medical Technologies, Golestan University of Medical Sciences, Gorgan, Iran
| | - Seyyed Mehdi Jafari
- Metabolic Disorders Research Center, Golestan University of Medical Sciences, Gorgan, Iran; Department of Biochemistry and Biophysics, School of Medicine, Golestan University of Medical Sciences, Gorgan, Iran
| | - Jahanbakhsh Asadi
- Metabolic Disorders Research Center, Golestan University of Medical Sciences, Gorgan, Iran.
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Identification and Characterization of Copy Number-Associated Driver Genes in Esophageal Squamous Cell Carcinoma. BIOMED RESEARCH INTERNATIONAL 2020; 2020:6387519. [PMID: 32908901 PMCID: PMC7463369 DOI: 10.1155/2020/6387519] [Citation(s) in RCA: 1] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 06/15/2020] [Accepted: 07/17/2020] [Indexed: 12/11/2022]
Abstract
Background Esophageal squamous cell carcinoma (ESCC) is a leading malignancy with both high incidence and mortality worldwide. However, the molecular mechanisms of the poor prognosis in ESCC are still unclear. Methods We conducted differential expression analysis between ESCC and normal tissues and between ESCC samples with and without CNAs in a given gene. Overrepresentation enrichment and gene set enrichment analyses were used to identify the oncogenic pathways and abnormal transcription factors (TFs). The survival analysis was employed to identify the genes associated with overall survival. Results In this study, we aimed to identify and interpret the driver genes triggered by the copy number alterations (CNAs), including CCND1, TEAD4, EIF4EBP1, EGFR, FGFR3, and FZD6. Furthermore, we identified oncogenic pathways, including RTK-RAS, WNT, PI3K, Hippo, and cell cycle, and key TFs including TEAD4, a transcription factor in the Hippo signaling pathway, and LEF1 in the WNT signaling pathway. Furthermore, we observed that upregulations of FGFR3 and EIF4EBP1 were significantly associated with shorter overall survival in ESCC. Conclusion In conclusion, the driver genes triggered by CNAs not only exhibited critical functionality but also were clinically relevant in ESCC, which greatly improved our understanding of the molecular mechanisms in ESCC.
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19
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Zhou B, Chen TW, Jiang YB, Wei XB, Lu CD, Li JJ, Xie D, Cheng SQ. Scinderin suppresses cell proliferation and predicts the poor prognosis of hepatocellular carcinoma. Oncol Lett 2020; 19:2011-2020. [PMID: 32194697 DOI: 10.3892/ol.2020.11262] [Citation(s) in RCA: 1] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 03/19/2019] [Accepted: 11/26/2019] [Indexed: 12/20/2022] Open
Abstract
Hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC) remains an intractable disease despite numerous advancements made in the available treatments over recent decades. Therefore, investigation of the underlying pathogenesis of HCC is urgently required. Our previous microarray result showed that SCIN was generally downregulated in 23 paired tumor/normal tissues. Reverse transcription-quantitative PCR, western blotting and immunohistochemistry were performed in the present study in order to detect the expression of scinderin (SCIN). Lentivirus-mediated gene delivery was used in order to produce SCIN-manipulated cell lines. MTT and crystal violet assays were performed in order to investigate cell growth, and fluorescence-activated cell sorting analysis was used in order to determine cell cycle distribution. SCIN was downregulated in HCC samples, and low SCIN expression predicted the poor prognosis of patients with HCC. Notably, SCIN may have the potential to serve as an independent risk factor for overall survival (3-year overall survival rate of 28.6 and 10.3% in high SCIN expression and low SCIN expression groups, respectively) and disease-free survival (3-year recurrence rate of 71.4 and 84.6% in high SCIN expression and low SCIN expression groups, respectively) in HCC. SCIN inhibited HCC cell proliferation both in vitro and in subcutaneous tumor formation assay. Furthermore, SCIN decreased the levels of phosphorylated STAT3, thereby downregulating cyclin A1 levels in HCC cells. The results of the present study demonstrate the tumor suppressive role of SCIN in HCC, providing a candidate strategy to treat this disease.
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Affiliation(s)
- Bin Zhou
- Department of Hepatic Surgery VI, Eastern Hepatobiliary Surgery Hospital, Second Military Medical University, Shanghai 200438, P.R. China
| | - Tian-Wei Chen
- Laboratory of Molecular Oncology, Institute for Nutritional Sciences, Shanghai Institutes for Biological Sciences, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Shanghai 200031, P.R. China
| | - Ya-Bo Jiang
- Department of Hepatic Surgery VI, Eastern Hepatobiliary Surgery Hospital, Second Military Medical University, Shanghai 200438, P.R. China
| | - Xu-Biao Wei
- Department of Hepatic Surgery VI, Eastern Hepatobiliary Surgery Hospital, Second Military Medical University, Shanghai 200438, P.R. China
| | - Chong-De Lu
- Department of Hepatic Surgery VI, Eastern Hepatobiliary Surgery Hospital, Second Military Medical University, Shanghai 200438, P.R. China
| | - Jing-Jing Li
- Laboratory of Molecular Oncology, Institute for Nutritional Sciences, Shanghai Institutes for Biological Sciences, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Shanghai 200031, P.R. China
| | - Dong Xie
- Laboratory of Molecular Oncology, Institute for Nutritional Sciences, Shanghai Institutes for Biological Sciences, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Shanghai 200031, P.R. China
| | - Shu-Qun Cheng
- Department of Hepatic Surgery VI, Eastern Hepatobiliary Surgery Hospital, Second Military Medical University, Shanghai 200438, P.R. China
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Li XT, Li JY, Zeng GC, Lu L, Jarrett MJ, Zhao Y, Yao QZ, Chen X, Yu KJ. Overexpression of connective tissue growth factor is associated with tumor progression and unfavorable prognosis in endometrial cancer. Cancer Biomark 2020; 25:295-302. [PMID: 31306107 DOI: 10.3233/cbm-190099] [Citation(s) in RCA: 4] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 12/29/2022]
Abstract
OBJECTIVES This study was to explore the prognostic value of connective tissue growth factor (CTGF) expression in endometrial cancer (EC). METHODS We compared CTGF expression in 198 samples from patients with endometrial cancer and 50 samples from patients with healthy endometrial tissues as determined by immunohistochemistry. RESULTS Expression of CTGF was significantly higher in endometrial cancers as compared to normal endometrial tissues. Positive CTGF expression displayed a strong association with CA125 level, histological grade, depth of myometrial invasion and the International Federation of Gynecology and Obstetrics (FIGO) stage. Our findings revealed histological grade, depth of myometrial invasion, FIGO stage, vascular/lymphatic invasion, and the CTGF expression are related to 5-year survival in patients with endometrial cancer. Positive CTGF expression, lymph node status, as well as vascular/lymphatic invasion, were identified as independent prognostic factors in endometrial cancer. CONCLUTIONS Over-expression of CTGF is an independent prognostic factor that will allow the successful differentiation of high-risk population from the group of patients with stage III-IV endometrial cancer. The up-regulation of CTGF may contribute to the progression of endometrial cancer and serve as a new prognostic biomarker in patients with endometrial cancer survival.
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Affiliation(s)
- Xue-Ting Li
- Department of Intensive Care Unit, Harbin Medical University Cancer Hospital, Harbin Medical University, Harbin, Heilongjiang 150081, China
| | - Jia-Yu Li
- Department of Intensive Care Unit, Harbin Medical University Cancer Hospital, Harbin Medical University, Harbin, Heilongjiang 150081, China
| | - Guang-Chun Zeng
- Department of Pathology, Harbin Medical University Cancer Hospital, Harbin Medical University, Harbin, Heilongjiang 150081, China
| | - Li Lu
- Department of Urology, The Sixth Affiliated Hospital, Sun Yat-Sen University, Guangzhou, Guangdong, China
| | - Michael J Jarrett
- Department of Cardiothoracic Surgery, University of Colorado Denver, Denver, CO 80045, USA
| | - Ye Zhao
- Department of Pathology, Zhuhai Hospital of Integrated Traditional Chinese and Western Medicine, Zhuhai, Guangdong, 519020, China
| | - Qing-Zhou Yao
- Department of Cardiothoracic Surgery, University of Colorado Denver, Denver, CO 80045, USA
| | - Xiuwei Chen
- Department of Gynecology, Harbin Medical University Cancer Hospital, Harbin Medical University, Harbin, Heilongjiang, 150081, China
| | - Kai-Jiang Yu
- Department of Intensive Care Unit, Harbin Medical University Cancer Hospital, Harbin Medical University, Harbin, Heilongjiang 150081, China
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Mao L, Liu L, Zhang T, Wu X, Zhang T, Xu Y. MKL1 mediates TGF-β-induced CTGF transcription to promote renal fibrosis. J Cell Physiol 2019; 235:4790-4803. [PMID: 31637729 DOI: 10.1002/jcp.29356] [Citation(s) in RCA: 22] [Impact Index Per Article: 4.4] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 04/04/2019] [Accepted: 09/30/2019] [Indexed: 12/20/2022]
Abstract
Aberrant fibrogenesis impairs the architectural and functional homeostasis of the kidneys. It also predicts poor diagnosis in patients with end-stage renal disease (ESRD). Renal tubular epithelial cells (RTEC) can trans-differentiate into myofibroblasts to produce extracellular matrix proteins and contribute to renal fibrosis. Connective tissue growth factor (CTGF) is a cytokine upregulated in RTECs during renal fibrosis. In the present study, we investigated the regulation of CTGF transcription by megakaryocytic leukemia 1 (MKL1). Genetic deletion or pharmaceutical inhibition of MKL1 in mice mitigated renal fibrosis following the unilateral ureteral obstruction procedure. Notably, MKL1 deficiency in mice downregulated CTGF expression in the kidneys. Likewise, MKL1 knockdown or inhibition in RTEs blunted TGF-β induced CTGF expression. Further, it was discovered that MKL1 bound directly to the CTGF promoter by interacting with SMAD3 to activate CTGF transcription. In addition, MKL1 mediated the interplay between p300 and WDR5 to regulate CTGF transcription. CTGF knockdown dampened TGF-β induced pro-fibrogenic response in RTEs. MKL1 activity was reciprocally regulated by CTGF. In conclusion, we propose that targeting the MKL1-CTGF axis may generate novel therapeutic solutions against aberrant renal fibrogenesis.
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Affiliation(s)
- Lei Mao
- Department of Pathophysiology, Key Laboratory of Targeted Intervention of Cardiovascular Disease and Collaborative Innovation Center for Cardiovascular Translational Medicine, Nanjing Medical University, Nanjing, China
| | - Li Liu
- Department of Pathophysiology, Key Laboratory of Targeted Intervention of Cardiovascular Disease and Collaborative Innovation Center for Cardiovascular Translational Medicine, Nanjing Medical University, Nanjing, China
| | - Tianyi Zhang
- Department of Pathophysiology, Key Laboratory of Targeted Intervention of Cardiovascular Disease and Collaborative Innovation Center for Cardiovascular Translational Medicine, Nanjing Medical University, Nanjing, China
| | - Xiaoyan Wu
- Department of Pathophysiology, Key Laboratory of Targeted Intervention of Cardiovascular Disease and Collaborative Innovation Center for Cardiovascular Translational Medicine, Nanjing Medical University, Nanjing, China.,The Laboratory Center for Basic Medical Sciences, Nanjing Medical University, Nanjing, China
| | - Tao Zhang
- Department of Geriatric Nephrology, Jiangsu Province Hospital, First Affiliated Hospital of Nanjing Medical University, Nanjing, China
| | - Yong Xu
- Department of Pathophysiology, Key Laboratory of Targeted Intervention of Cardiovascular Disease and Collaborative Innovation Center for Cardiovascular Translational Medicine, Nanjing Medical University, Nanjing, China.,Institute of Biomedical Research, Liaocheng University, Liaocheng, China
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22
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BMP10 suppresses hepatocellular carcinoma progression via PTPRS-STAT3 axis. Oncogene 2019; 38:7281-7293. [PMID: 31417183 DOI: 10.1038/s41388-019-0943-y] [Citation(s) in RCA: 10] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 01/08/2019] [Revised: 06/03/2019] [Accepted: 06/22/2019] [Indexed: 02/07/2023]
Abstract
Bone morphogenetic protein 10 (BMP10), one member of the BMP family, is involved in various development events. Dysregulation of BMP10 has been observed in several diseases, including hypertensive cardiac hypertrophy, Hirschsprung disease and blood vessel formation. However, its role in liver cancer remains largely unknown. In this study, we reported that BMP10 was significantly downregulated in HCC at both mRNA and protein level. Decreased BMP10 was associated with bigger tumor size, worse TNM stage, earlier recurrence and poorer survival. BMP10 negatively regulated HCC cell proliferation in vitro and in vivo. Mechanism study revealed that BMP10 suppressed tumor cell growth by inhibiting STAT3 signaling. Interestingly, we found that cytoplasmic BMP10 interacted with both receptor protein tyrosine phosphatase sigma (PTPRS) and STAT3, which facilitated dephosphorylation of STAT3 by PTPRS. Altogether, our study has revealed the clinical significance of BMP10 in HCC, and suppression of HCC cell growth by BMP10 via PTPRS-STAT3 axis, providing a potential therapeutic strategy for targeting STAT3 signaling in HCC.
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Abstract
The CCN protein family is composed of six matricellular proteins, which serve regulatory roles rather than structural roles in the extracellular matrix. First identified as secreted proteins which are induced by oncogenes, the acronym CCN came from the names of the first three members: CYR61, CTGF, and NOV. All six members of the CCN family consist of four cysteine-rich modular domains. CCN proteins are known to regulate cell adhesion, proliferation, differentiation, and apoptosis. In addition, CCN proteins are associated with cardiovascular and skeletal development, injury repair, inflammation, and cancer. They function either through binding to integrin receptors or by regulating the expression and activity of growth factors and cytokines. Given their diverse roles related to the pathology of certain diseases such as fibrosis, arthritis, atherosclerosis, diabetic nephropathy, retinopathy, and cancer, there are many emerging studies targeting CCN protein signaling pathways in attempts to elucidate their potentials as therapeutic targets. [BMB Reports 2018; 51(10): 486-493].
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Affiliation(s)
- Hyungjoo Kim
- Department of Life Science, Hanyang University, Seoul 04763, Korea
| | - Seogho Son
- Department of Life Science, Hanyang University, Seoul 04763, Korea
| | - Incheol Shin
- Department of Life Science, Hanyang University, Seoul 04763, and Natural Science Institute, Hanyang University, Seoul 04763, Korea
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Hiyama A, Morita K, Sakai D, Watanabe M. CCN family member 2/connective tissue growth factor (CCN2/CTGF) is regulated by Wnt-β-catenin signaling in nucleus pulposus cells. Arthritis Res Ther 2018; 20:217. [PMID: 30268161 PMCID: PMC6162946 DOI: 10.1186/s13075-018-1723-8] [Citation(s) in RCA: 5] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.8] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 07/21/2018] [Accepted: 09/11/2018] [Indexed: 12/15/2022] Open
Abstract
Background The aims of this study were to investigate the gene expression of CCN family members in rat intervertebral disc (IVD) cells and to examine whether Wnt–β-catenin signaling regulates the expression of CCN family 2 (CCN2)/connective tissue growth factor (CTGF) in rat nucleus pulposus (NP) cells. Methods The gene expression of CCN family members were assessed in rat IVD cells using real-time reverse transcription polymerase chain reaction (RT-PCR). The expression pattern of CCN2 was also assessed in rat IVD cells using western blot and immunohistochemical analyses. Gain-of-function and loss-of-function experiments were performed to identify the mechanisms by which Wnt–β-catenin signaling influences the activity of the CCN2 promoter. To further determine if the mitogen-activated protein kinase (MAPK) pathway is required for the Wnt–β-catenin signaling-induced regulation of CCN2 expression in the NP cells, CCN2 expression was analyzed by reporter assay, RT-PCR and western blot analysis. Results CCN2 messenger RNA (mRNA) and protein were expressed in rat IVDs. Expression of CCN2 was significantly higher than for mRNA of other CCN family members in both rat NP and annulus fibrosus (AF) cells. The relative activity of the CCN2 promoter decreased 24 h after treatment with 6-bromoindirubin-3′-oxime (1.0 μM) (0.773 (95% 0.735, 0.812) P = 0.0077) in NP cells. In addition, treatment with the WT–β-catenin vector (500 ng) significantly decreased CCN2 promoter activity (0.688 (95% 0.535, 0.842) P = 0.0063), whereas β-catenin small interfering RNA (500 ng) significantly increased CCN2 promoter activity (1.775 (95% 1.435, 2.115) P < 0.001). Activation of Wnt–β-catenin signaling decreased the expression of CCN2 mRNA and protein by NP cells. Regulation of CCN2 by Wnt–β-catenin signaling involved the MAPK pathway in rat NP cells. Conclusions This study shows that Wnt–β-catenin signaling regulates the expression of CCN2 through the MAPK pathway in NP cells. Understanding the balance between Wnt–β-catenin signaling and CCN2 is necessary for developing therapeutic alternatives for the treatment of IVD degeneration. Electronic supplementary material The online version of this article (10.1186/s13075-018-1723-8) contains supplementary material, which is available to authorized users.
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Affiliation(s)
- Akihiko Hiyama
- Department of Orthopaedic Surgery, Surgical Science, Tokai University School of Medicine, 143 Shimokasuya, Isehara, Kanagawa, 259-1193, Japan. .,Research Center for Regenerative Medicine, Tokai University School of Medicine, 143 Shimokasuya, Isehara, Kanagawa, 259-1193, Japan.
| | - Kosuke Morita
- Department of Orthopaedic Surgery, Surgical Science, Tokai University School of Medicine, 143 Shimokasuya, Isehara, Kanagawa, 259-1193, Japan.,Research Center for Regenerative Medicine, Tokai University School of Medicine, 143 Shimokasuya, Isehara, Kanagawa, 259-1193, Japan
| | - Daisuke Sakai
- Department of Orthopaedic Surgery, Surgical Science, Tokai University School of Medicine, 143 Shimokasuya, Isehara, Kanagawa, 259-1193, Japan.,Research Center for Regenerative Medicine, Tokai University School of Medicine, 143 Shimokasuya, Isehara, Kanagawa, 259-1193, Japan
| | - Masahiko Watanabe
- Department of Orthopaedic Surgery, Surgical Science, Tokai University School of Medicine, 143 Shimokasuya, Isehara, Kanagawa, 259-1193, Japan.,Research Center for Regenerative Medicine, Tokai University School of Medicine, 143 Shimokasuya, Isehara, Kanagawa, 259-1193, Japan
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25
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Chen Y, Huang Q, Liu W, Zhu Q, Cui CP, Xu L, Guo X, Wang P, Liu J, Dong G, Wei W, Liu CH, Feng Z, He F, Zhang L. Mutually exclusive acetylation and ubiquitylation of the splicing factor SRSF5 control tumor growth. Nat Commun 2018; 9:2464. [PMID: 29942010 PMCID: PMC6018636 DOI: 10.1038/s41467-018-04815-3] [Citation(s) in RCA: 63] [Impact Index Per Article: 10.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 05/11/2017] [Accepted: 05/18/2018] [Indexed: 12/30/2022] Open
Abstract
Most tumor cells take up more glucose than normal cells. Splicing dysregulation is one of the molecular hallmarks of cancer. However, the role of splicing factor in glucose metabolism and tumor development remains poorly defined. Here, we show that upon glucose intake, the splicing factor SRSF5 is specifically induced through Tip60-mediated acetylation on K125, which antagonizes Smurf1-mediated ubiquitylation. SRSF5 promotes the alternative splicing of CCAR1 to produce CCAR1S proteins, which promote tumor growth by enhancing glucose consumption and acetyl-CoA production. Conversely, upon glucose starvation, SRSF5 is deacetylated by HDAC1, and ubiquitylated by Smurf1 on the same lysine, resulting in proteasomal degradation of SRSF5. The CCAR1L proteins accumulate to promote apoptosis. Importantly, SRSF5 is hyperacetylated and upregulated in human lung cancers, which correlates with increased CCAR1S expression and tumor progression. Thus, SRSF5 responds to high glucose to promote cancer development, and SRSF5-CCAR1 axis may be valuable targets for cancer therapeutics.
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Affiliation(s)
- Yuhan Chen
- State Key Laboratory of Proteomics, Beijing Proteome Research Center, National Center of Protein Sciences (Beijing), Beijing Institute of Lifeomics, Beijing, 100850, China.,Department of Genomics and Proteomics, Beijing Institute of Radiation Medicine, Beijing, 100850, China.,Affiliated BaYi Children's Hospital, PLA Army General Hospital, National Engineering Laboratory for Birth Defects Prevention and Control of Key Technology, Beijing Key Laboratory of Pediatric Organ Failure, Beijing, 100700, China
| | - Qingyang Huang
- State Key Laboratory of Proteomics, Beijing Proteome Research Center, National Center of Protein Sciences (Beijing), Beijing Institute of Lifeomics, Beijing, 100850, China.,Department of Genomics and Proteomics, Beijing Institute of Radiation Medicine, Beijing, 100850, China
| | - Wen Liu
- State Key Laboratory of Proteomics, Beijing Proteome Research Center, National Center of Protein Sciences (Beijing), Beijing Institute of Lifeomics, Beijing, 100850, China.,Department of Genomics and Proteomics, Beijing Institute of Radiation Medicine, Beijing, 100850, China
| | - Qiong Zhu
- State Key Laboratory of Proteomics, Beijing Proteome Research Center, National Center of Protein Sciences (Beijing), Beijing Institute of Lifeomics, Beijing, 100850, China.,Department of Genomics and Proteomics, Beijing Institute of Radiation Medicine, Beijing, 100850, China
| | - Chun-Ping Cui
- State Key Laboratory of Proteomics, Beijing Proteome Research Center, National Center of Protein Sciences (Beijing), Beijing Institute of Lifeomics, Beijing, 100850, China.,Department of Genomics and Proteomics, Beijing Institute of Radiation Medicine, Beijing, 100850, China
| | - Liang Xu
- Department of Genomics and Proteomics, Beijing Institute of Radiation Medicine, Beijing, 100850, China.,Department of Biochemistry and Molecular Biology, Anhui Medical University, Hefei, 230032, Anhui, China
| | - Xing Guo
- Department of Genomics and Proteomics, Beijing Institute of Radiation Medicine, Beijing, 100850, China.,Department of Neurobiology, Key Laboratory of Human Functional Genomics of Jiangsu Province, Nanjing Medical University, Nanjing, 211166, Jiangsu, China
| | - Ping Wang
- Department of Central Laboratory, Shanghai Tenth People's Hospital, School of Life Science and Technology, Tongji University, Shanghai, 200072, China
| | - Jingwen Liu
- Department of General Surgery, Chinese People's Liberation Army General Hospital, Beijing, 100853, China
| | - Guanglong Dong
- Department of General Surgery, Chinese People's Liberation Army General Hospital, Beijing, 100853, China
| | - Wenyi Wei
- Department of Pathology, Beth Israel Deaconess Medical Center, Harvard Medical School, Boston, MA, 02115, USA
| | - Cui Hua Liu
- CAS Key Laboratory of Pathogenic Microbiology and Immunology, Institute of Microbiology, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Beijing, 100101, China
| | - Zhichun Feng
- Affiliated BaYi Children's Hospital, PLA Army General Hospital, National Engineering Laboratory for Birth Defects Prevention and Control of Key Technology, Beijing Key Laboratory of Pediatric Organ Failure, Beijing, 100700, China
| | - Fuchu He
- State Key Laboratory of Proteomics, Beijing Proteome Research Center, National Center of Protein Sciences (Beijing), Beijing Institute of Lifeomics, Beijing, 100850, China. .,Department of Genomics and Proteomics, Beijing Institute of Radiation Medicine, Beijing, 100850, China.
| | - Lingqiang Zhang
- State Key Laboratory of Proteomics, Beijing Proteome Research Center, National Center of Protein Sciences (Beijing), Beijing Institute of Lifeomics, Beijing, 100850, China. .,Department of Genomics and Proteomics, Beijing Institute of Radiation Medicine, Beijing, 100850, China. .,School of Life Science, Jiangsu Normal University, Xuzhou, 221116, Jiangsu, China.
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26
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Ji P, Fan X, Ma X, Wang X, Zhang J, Mao Z. Krüppel-like factor 9 suppressed tumorigenicity of the pancreatic ductal adenocarcinoma by negatively regulating frizzled-5. Biochem Biophys Res Commun 2018; 499:815-821. [PMID: 29621541 DOI: 10.1016/j.bbrc.2018.03.229] [Citation(s) in RCA: 8] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 03/28/2018] [Accepted: 03/31/2018] [Indexed: 12/28/2022]
Abstract
Krüppel-like factor 9 (KLF9) has been implicated in mediating a diverse range of biological processes. However, the expression pattern and biological functions of KLF9 in pancreatic ductal adenocarcinoma (PDAC) are still unknown. Here, we evaluated the role of KLF9 in pancreatic ductal adenocarcinoma (PDAC). Overexpression of KLF9 significantly inhibited proliferation and clone formation in PDAC cells, while silencing KLF9 expression dramatically promoted this effect in vitro. Knocking down the expression of KLF9 also promoted the tumorigenesis in the PDAC mouse xneograft model. In in vitro mechanism study, KLF9 negatively regulated the activity of wnt/beta-catenin pathway in Top/Fop reporter assay. Frizzled-5, a key component involving in this pathway, was sharp inhibited by KLF9 both in mRNA and protein level. Furthermore, a KLF9-binding site (BTE) was identified in the promoter region of Frizzled-5. Mutation or deletion of this BTE strongly disrupted the KLF9's regulatory effect on Frizzled-5. More importantly, the expression level of KLF9 was significantly lower in clinical PDAC tissue compared to matched normal tissues and inversely associated with survival of the patients. Together, our findings indicated that KLF9 suppressed tumorigenicity of the pancreatic ductal adenocarcinoma by negatively regulating frizzled-5.
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Affiliation(s)
- Peiyu Ji
- College of Medical School, Jiangsu University, Zhenjiang, Jiangsu, PR China
| | - Xin Fan
- Department of General Surgery, Affiliated Hospital of Jiangsu University, Zhenjiang, Jiangsu, PR China
| | - Xiaoyan Ma
- Department of Gynecology and Obstetrics, Affiliated Hospital of Jiangsu University, Zhenjiang, Jiangsu, PR China
| | - Xuqing Wang
- Department of General Surgery, Affiliated Hospital of Jiangsu University, Zhenjiang, Jiangsu, PR China
| | - Jianxin Zhang
- Department of General Surgery, Affiliated Hospital of Jiangsu University, Zhenjiang, Jiangsu, PR China.
| | - Zhengfa Mao
- Department of General Surgery, Affiliated Hospital of Jiangsu University, Zhenjiang, Jiangsu, PR China.
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TGF-β and CTGF are Mitogenic Output Mediators of Wnt/β-Catenin Signaling in Desmoid Fibromatosis. Appl Immunohistochem Mol Morphol 2018; 25:559-565. [PMID: 26894649 DOI: 10.1097/pai.0000000000000340] [Citation(s) in RCA: 6] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 01/10/2023]
Abstract
Desmoid fibromatosis is a locally aggressive clonal fibroblastic proliferation with high recurrence rates and no metastatic potential. Implicated molecular aberrations occur within the Wnt/β-catenin pathway (APC and β-catenin gene mutations). Transforming growth factor-β (TGF-β) and connective tissue growth factor (CTGF) are profibrotic growth factors, downstream from nuclear translocation of β-catenin, that lead to increased fibrogenesis. CTGF (a downstream effector of TGF-β) is a matricellular protein that modulates the activity of growth factors, adhesion molecules, integrins, and extracellular matrix thus playing a central role in tissue remodeling and fibrosis. Recently there has been growing interest in use of extracellular matrix inhibitors for treatment of various fibrogenic diseases. Desmoid fibromatosis samples (n=15) were evaluated for expression of β-catenin, TGF-β, and CTGF using immunohistochemistry on formalin paraffin-embedded material. A control group comprising scar tissue and adjacent normal skin (n=10) were simultaneously immunostained with above mentioned markers. Real-time polymerase chain reaction was performed on frozen specimens of desmoid fibromatosis (n=6) and normal skin (n=2). All 15 desmoid tumors were positive for β-catenin (surrogate marker of Wnt/β-catenin pathway dysregulation) which was negative in control normal skin and scar samples. TGF-β and CTGF were negative in 9 of 10 normal skin controls. TGF-β and CTGF were positive in all cases of scar tissue. All 15 cases of desmoid tumors were positive for TGF-β and CTGF. The real-time polymerase chain reaction showed higher expression levels of TGF-β and CTGF in desmoid fibromatosis compared with normal skin. The high constitutive expression of β-catenin downstream effectors; TGF-β, CTGF has the potential for enabling targeted therapy.
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Microrna-26b attenuates monocrotaline-induced pulmonary vascular remodeling via targeting connective tissue growth factor (CTGF) and cyclin D1 (CCND1). Oncotarget 2018; 7:72746-72757. [PMID: 27322082 PMCID: PMC5341941 DOI: 10.18632/oncotarget.10125] [Citation(s) in RCA: 18] [Impact Index Per Article: 3.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 12/05/2015] [Accepted: 05/17/2016] [Indexed: 12/19/2022] Open
Abstract
MicroRNAs are involved in the control of cell growth, and deregulated pulmonary artery smooth muscle cell proliferation plays an essential role in the development of pulmonary hypertension. The objective of this study was to identify differentially expressed microRNA(s) and explore its therapeutic role in treatment of the disease. MicroRNA expression profile analysis showed microRNA-26b was differentially expressed in pulmonary artery smooth muscle cells harvested from monocrotaline-treated rats, and we validated microRNA-26b targets, in vitro and in vivo, CTGF and CCND1, both of which have been shown, in our previous work, to be involved in the pathogenesis of pulmonary hypertension. In vivo experiments demonstrated monocrotaline-induced pulmonary artery remodeling could be almost completely abolished by administration of microRNA-26b, while CTGF or CCND1 shRNA significantly, but only partially, attenuated the remodeling by silencing the designed target. Additionally, exogenous expression of the microRNA-26b substantially downregulated CTGF and CCND1 in human pulmonary artery smooth muscle cells. MicroRNA-26b might be a potent therapeutic tool to treat pulmonary hypertension.
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Thongon N, Castiglioni I, Zucal C, Latorre E, D'Agostino V, Bauer I, Pancher M, Ballestrero A, Feldmann G, Nencioni A, Provenzani A. The GSK3β inhibitor BIS I reverts YAP-dependent EMT signature in PDAC cell lines by decreasing SMADs expression level. Oncotarget 2018; 7:26551-66. [PMID: 27034169 PMCID: PMC5041998 DOI: 10.18632/oncotarget.8437] [Citation(s) in RCA: 14] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 08/28/2015] [Accepted: 03/06/2016] [Indexed: 12/16/2022] Open
Abstract
The Yes-associated protein, YAP, is a transcriptional co-activator, mediating the Epithelial to Mesenchymal Transition program in pancreatic ductal adenocarcinoma (PDAC). With the aim to identify compounds that can specifically modulate YAP functionality in PDAC cell lines, we performed a small scale, drug-based screening experiment using YAP cell localization as the read-out. We identified erlotinib as an inducer of YAP cytoplasmic localization, an inhibitor of the TEA luciferase reporter system and the expression of the bona fide YAP target gene, Connective Tissue Growth Factor CTGF. On the other hand, BIS I, an inhibitor of PKCδ and GSK3β, caused YAP accumulation into the nucleus. Activation of β-catenin reporter and interfering experiments show that inhibition of the PKCδ/GSK3β pathway triggers YAP nuclear accumulation inducing YAP/TEAD transcriptional response. Inhibition of GSK3β by BIS I reduced the expression levels of SMADs protein and reduced YAP contribution to EMT. Notably, BIS I reduced proliferation, migration and clonogenicity of PDAC cells in vitro, phenocopying YAP genetic down-regulation. As shown by chromatin immunoprecipitation experiments and YAP over-expressing rescue experiments, BIS I reverted YAP-dependent EMT program by modulating the expression of the YAP target genes E-cadherin, vimentin, CTGF and of the newly identified target, CD133. In conclusion, we identified two different molecules, erlotinib and BIS I, modulating YAP functionality although via different mechanisms of action, with the second one specifically inhibiting the YAP-dependent EMT program in PDAC cell lines.
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Affiliation(s)
- Natthakan Thongon
- Laboratory of Genomic Screening, Centre for Integrative Biology, University of Trento, Trento, Italy
| | - Ilaria Castiglioni
- Laboratory of Gene Expression and Muscular Dystrophy, San Raffaele Scientific Institute, Milan, Italy
| | - Chiara Zucal
- Laboratory of Genomic Screening, Centre for Integrative Biology, University of Trento, Trento, Italy
| | - Elisa Latorre
- Laboratory of Genomic Screening, Centre for Integrative Biology, University of Trento, Trento, Italy
| | - Vito D'Agostino
- Laboratory of Genomic Screening, Centre for Integrative Biology, University of Trento, Trento, Italy
| | - Inga Bauer
- Department of Internal Medicine, University of Genoa, Genoa, Italy
| | - Michael Pancher
- High Throughput Screening Facility, Centre for Integrative Biology, University of Trento, Trento, Italy
| | | | - Georg Feldmann
- Laboratory of Pancreatic Cancer Translational Research, Clinic University of Bonn, Bonn, Germany
| | - Alessio Nencioni
- Department of Internal Medicine, University of Genoa, Genoa, Italy
| | - Alessandro Provenzani
- Laboratory of Genomic Screening, Centre for Integrative Biology, University of Trento, Trento, Italy
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Deng YZ, Cai Z, Shi S, Jiang H, Shang YR, Ma N, Wang JJ, Guan DX, Chen TW, Rong YF, Qian ZY, Zhang EB, Feng D, Zhou QL, Du YN, Liu DP, Huang XX, Liu LM, Chin E, Li DS, Wang XF, Zhang XL, Xie D. Cilia loss sensitizes cells to transformation by activating the mevalonate pathway. J Exp Med 2018; 215:177-195. [PMID: 29237705 PMCID: PMC5748847 DOI: 10.1084/jem.20170399] [Citation(s) in RCA: 36] [Impact Index Per Article: 6.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 03/02/2017] [Revised: 09/11/2017] [Accepted: 10/23/2017] [Indexed: 01/12/2023] Open
Abstract
Although cilia loss and cell transformation are frequently observed in the early stage of tumorigenesis, the roles of cilia in cell transformation are unknown. In this study, disrupted ciliogenesis was observed in cancer cells and pancreatic cancer tissues, which facilitated oncogene-induced transformation of normal pancreatic cells (HPDE6C7) and NIH3T3 cells through activating the mevalonate (MVA) pathway. Disruption of ciliogenesis up-regulated MVA enzymes through β catenin-T cell factor (TCF) signaling, which synchronized with sterol regulatory element binding transcription factor 2 (SREBP2), and the regulation of MVA by β-catenin-TCF signaling was recapitulated in a mouse model of pancreatic ductal adenocarcinoma (PDAC) and human PDAC samples. Moreover, disruption of ciliogenesis by depleting Tg737 dramatically promoted tumorigenesis in the PDAC mouse model, driven by KrasG12D , which was inhibited by statin, an inhibitor of the MVA pathway. Collectively, this study emphasizes the crucial roles of cilia in governing the early steps of the transformation by activating the MVA pathway, suggesting that statin has therapeutic potential for pancreatic cancer treatment.
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Affiliation(s)
- Yue-Zhen Deng
- Key Laboratory of Nutrition and Metabolism, Institute for Nutritional Sciences, Shanghai Institutes for Biological Sciences, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Shanghai, China
- Center for Molecular Medicine, Xiangya Hospital, Central South University, Changsha, China
| | - Zhen Cai
- Key Laboratory of Nutrition and Metabolism, Institute for Nutritional Sciences, Shanghai Institutes for Biological Sciences, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Shanghai, China
| | - Shuo Shi
- Key Laboratory of Nutrition and Metabolism, Institute for Nutritional Sciences, Shanghai Institutes for Biological Sciences, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Shanghai, China
| | - Hao Jiang
- Key Laboratory of Nutrition and Metabolism, Institute for Nutritional Sciences, Shanghai Institutes for Biological Sciences, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Shanghai, China
| | - Yu-Rong Shang
- Key Laboratory of Nutrition and Metabolism, Institute for Nutritional Sciences, Shanghai Institutes for Biological Sciences, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Shanghai, China
| | - Ning Ma
- Key Laboratory of Nutrition and Metabolism, Institute for Nutritional Sciences, Shanghai Institutes for Biological Sciences, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Shanghai, China
| | - Jing-Jing Wang
- Key Laboratory of Nutrition and Metabolism, Institute for Nutritional Sciences, Shanghai Institutes for Biological Sciences, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Shanghai, China
| | - Dong-Xian Guan
- Key Laboratory of Nutrition and Metabolism, Institute for Nutritional Sciences, Shanghai Institutes for Biological Sciences, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Shanghai, China
| | - Tian-Wei Chen
- Key Laboratory of Nutrition and Metabolism, Institute for Nutritional Sciences, Shanghai Institutes for Biological Sciences, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Shanghai, China
| | - Ye-Fei Rong
- Pancreatic Cancer Group, General Surgery Department, Zhongshan Hospital, Fudan University, Shanghai, China
| | - Zhen-Yu Qian
- Key Laboratory of Nutrition and Metabolism, Institute for Nutritional Sciences, Shanghai Institutes for Biological Sciences, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Shanghai, China
| | - Er-Bin Zhang
- Key Laboratory of Nutrition and Metabolism, Institute for Nutritional Sciences, Shanghai Institutes for Biological Sciences, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Shanghai, China
| | - Dan Feng
- Key Laboratory of Nutrition and Metabolism, Institute for Nutritional Sciences, Shanghai Institutes for Biological Sciences, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Shanghai, China
| | - Quan-Li Zhou
- Institute of Health Sciences, Shanghai Institutes for Biological Sciences, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Shanghai Jiaotong University School of Medicine, Shanghai, China
| | - Yi-Nan Du
- School of Life Science and Technology, Shanghai Tech University, Shanghai, China
| | - Dong-Ping Liu
- Key Laboratory of Nutrition and Metabolism, Institute for Nutritional Sciences, Shanghai Institutes for Biological Sciences, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Shanghai, China
| | - Xing-Xu Huang
- School of Life Science and Technology, Shanghai Tech University, Shanghai, China
| | - Lu-Ming Liu
- Department of Oncology, Shanghai Medical College, Fudan University, Shanghai, China
| | - Eugene Chin
- Institute of Health Sciences, Shanghai Institutes for Biological Sciences, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Shanghai Jiaotong University School of Medicine, Shanghai, China
| | - Dang-Sheng Li
- Shanghai Institute of Biochemistry and Cell Biology, Shanghai Institutes for Biological Sciences, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Shanghai, China
| | - Xiao-Fan Wang
- Department of Pharmacology and Cancer Biology, Duke University Medical Center, Durham, NC
| | - Xue-Li Zhang
- Department of General Surgery, Fengxian Hospital Affiliated to Southern Medical University, Shanghai, China
| | - Dong Xie
- Key Laboratory of Nutrition and Metabolism, Institute for Nutritional Sciences, Shanghai Institutes for Biological Sciences, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Shanghai, China
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Cheng JC, Chang HM, Leung PCK. TGF-β1 Inhibits Human Trophoblast Cell Invasion by Upregulating Connective Tissue Growth Factor Expression. Endocrinology 2017; 158:3620-3628. [PMID: 28977597 DOI: 10.1210/en.2017-00536] [Citation(s) in RCA: 29] [Impact Index Per Article: 4.1] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Submit a Manuscript] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 06/06/2017] [Accepted: 07/18/2017] [Indexed: 11/19/2022]
Abstract
Appropriate trophoblast invasion into the maternal endometrium is essential for successful human implantation and placentation. Connective tissue growth factor (CTGF), also known as CCN2, is a matricellular protein that is expressed in the placenta. Interestingly, the CTGF expression levels in the placenta and serum from patients with severe preeclampsia or fetal growth restriction are higher than those from healthy controls. However, to date, the role of CTGF in the regulation of trophoblast cell invasion remains unclear. Transforming growth factor-β1 (TGF-β1) is a potent stimulator of CTGF expression and has been shown to inhibit trophoblast cell invasiveness. However, whether CTGF mediates TGF-β1-inhibited human trophoblast cell invasion is unknown. In the present study, we show that treatment with TGF-β1 upregulates CTGF expression in a human trophoblast cell line, HTR-8/SVneo, and in primary human trophoblast cells. Our results also demonstrate that the SMAD2/3 signaling pathways are required for TGF-β1-induced upregulation of CTGF. Importantly, CTGF knockdown attenuates TGF-β1-inhibited cell invasion. Furthermore, cell invasiveness is decreased by treatment with recombinant CTGF. These results provide evidence that CTGF mediates TGF-β1-inhibited human trophoblast cell invasion.
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Affiliation(s)
- Jung-Chien Cheng
- Department of Obstetrics and Gynaecology, BC Children's Hospital Research Institute, University of British Columbia, Vancouver, British Columbia V5Z 4H4, Canada
| | - Hsun-Ming Chang
- Department of Obstetrics and Gynaecology, BC Children's Hospital Research Institute, University of British Columbia, Vancouver, British Columbia V5Z 4H4, Canada
| | - Peter C K Leung
- Department of Obstetrics and Gynaecology, BC Children's Hospital Research Institute, University of British Columbia, Vancouver, British Columbia V5Z 4H4, Canada
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Wu YL, Li HY, Zhao XP, Jiao JY, Tang DX, Yan LJ, Wan Q, Pan CB. Mesenchymal stem cell-derived CCN2 promotes the proliferation, migration and invasion of human tongue squamous cell carcinoma cells. Cancer Sci 2017; 108:897-909. [PMID: 28208216 PMCID: PMC5448615 DOI: 10.1111/cas.13202] [Citation(s) in RCA: 31] [Impact Index Per Article: 4.4] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 09/27/2016] [Revised: 02/03/2017] [Accepted: 02/12/2017] [Indexed: 01/08/2023] Open
Abstract
Recent studies have demonstrated that mesenchymal stem cells (MSC) exhibit a tropism to tumors and form the tumor stroma. In addition, we found that MSC can secrete different types of factors. However, the involvement of MSC‐derived factors in human tongue squamous cell carcinoma (TSCC) growth has not been clearly addressed. The CCN family includes multifunctional signaling molecules that affect the initiation and development events of various tumors. In our study, we report that CCN2/connective tissue growth factor (CTGF) was the most highly induced among the CCN family members in MSC that were co‐cultured with TSCC cells. To evaluate the relationship between CCN2 and TSCC growth, we downregulated MSC‐derived CCN2 expression with shRNA targeting CCN2 and found that MSC‐secreted CCN2 promotes TSCC cell proliferation, migration and invasion. We also confirmed that MSC‐derived CCN2 partially accelerated tumor growth in vitro. Taken together, these results suggest that MSC‐derived CCN2 contributes to the promotion of proliferation, migration and invasion of TSCC cells and may be a possible therapy target in the future.
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Affiliation(s)
- Yu-Ling Wu
- Department of Oral & Maxillofacial Surgery, Sun Yat-sen Memorial Hospital, Guangzhou, China
| | - Hong-Yu Li
- Department of Oral & Maxillofacial Surgery, Sun Yat-sen Memorial Hospital, Guangzhou, China.,Zhongshan School of Medicine, Sun Yat-sen University, Guangzhou, China
| | - Xiao-Peng Zhao
- Department of Oral & Maxillofacial Surgery, Sun Yat-sen Memorial Hospital, Guangzhou, China
| | - Jiu-Yang Jiao
- Department of Oral & Maxillofacial Surgery, Sun Yat-sen Memorial Hospital, Guangzhou, China
| | - Dong-Xiao Tang
- Department of Oral & Maxillofacial Surgery, Sun Yat-sen Memorial Hospital, Guangzhou, China
| | - Ling-Jian Yan
- Department of Oral & Maxillofacial Surgery, Sun Yat-sen Memorial Hospital, Guangzhou, China
| | - Quan Wan
- Department of Oral & Maxillofacial Surgery, Sun Yat-sen Memorial Hospital, Guangzhou, China
| | - Chao-Bin Pan
- Department of Oral & Maxillofacial Surgery, Sun Yat-sen Memorial Hospital, Guangzhou, China
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Han Q, Zhang HY, Zhong BL, Wang XJ, Zhang B, Chen H. MicroRNA-145 Inhibits Cell Migration and Invasion and Regulates Epithelial-Mesenchymal Transition (EMT) by Targeting Connective Tissue Growth Factor (CTGF) in Esophageal Squamous Cell Carcinoma. Med Sci Monit 2016; 22:3925-3934. [PMID: 27771733 PMCID: PMC5081241 DOI: 10.12659/msm.897663] [Citation(s) in RCA: 24] [Impact Index Per Article: 3.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 02/04/2023] Open
Abstract
Background This study investigated the mechanism of miR-145 in targeting connective tissue growth factor (CTGF), which affects the proliferation, migration, invasion, and epithelial-mesenchymal transition (EMT) of ESCC cells. Material/Methods A total of 50 ESCC tissues and their corresponding normal adjacent esophageal tissue samples were collected. Then, miR-145 expression in both ESCC clinical specimens and cell lines was detected using quantitative real-time PCR. CTGF protein was detected using immunohistochemistry. Dual luciferase reporter gene assay was employed to assess the effect of miR-145 on the 3′UTR luciferase activity of CTGF. Eca109 cells were transfected with miR-145 mimics and CTGF siRNA, respectively, and changes in cellular proliferation, migration, and invasion were detected via MTT assay, wound-healing assay, and Transwell assay, respectively. Western blotting assay was used to detect the expression of marker genes related to EMT. Results MiR-145 was significantly down-regulated in ESCC tissues and cell lines compared with normal tissues and cell lines (P<0.05). We found significantly more positively expressed CTGF protein in ESCC tissues was than in normal adjacent esophageal tissues (P<0.01). Dual luciferase reporter gene assay showed that miR-145 can specifically bind with the 3′UTR of CTGF and significantly inhibit the luciferase activity by 55% (P<0.01). Up-regulation of miR-145 or down-regulation of CTGF can suppress the proliferation, migration, invasion, and EMT process of ESCC cells. Conclusions MiR-145 was significantly down-regulated in ESCC tissues and cell lines, while the protein expression of CTGF exhibited the opposite trend. MiR-145 inhibited the proliferation, migration, invasiveness, and the EMT process of ESCC cells through targeted regulation of CTGF expression.
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Affiliation(s)
- Qiang Han
- Department of Thoracic and Cardiovascular Surgery, Fifth Affiliated Hospital of Sun Yat-Sen University, Zhuhai, Guangdong, China (mainland)
| | - Hua-Yong Zhang
- Department of Thoracic and Cardiovascular Surgery, Fifth Affiliated Hospital of Sun Yat-Sen University, Zhuhai, Guangdong, China (mainland)
| | - Bei-Long Zhong
- Department of Thoracic and Cardiovascular Surgery, Fifth Affiliated Hospital of Sun Yat-Sen University, Zhuhai, Guangdong, China (mainland)
| | - Xiao-Jing Wang
- Department of Thoracic and Cardiovascular Surgery, Fifth Affiliated Hospital of Sun Yat-Sen University, Zhuhai, Guangdong, China (mainland)
| | - Bing Zhang
- Department of Thoracic and Cardiovascular Surgery, Fifth Affiliated Hospital of Sun Yat-Sen University, Zhuhai, Guangdong, China (mainland)
| | - Hua Chen
- Department of Thoracic and Cardiovascular Surgery, Fifth Affiliated Hospital of Sun Yat-Sen University, Zhuhai, Guangdong, China (mainland)
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Li J, Gao X, Ji K, Sanders AJ, Zhang Z, Jiang WG, Ji J, Ye L. Differential expression of CCN family members CYR611, CTGF and NOV in gastric cancer and their association with disease progression. Oncol Rep 2016; 36:2517-2525. [PMID: 27633176 PMCID: PMC5055206 DOI: 10.3892/or.2016.5074] [Citation(s) in RCA: 5] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.6] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 04/06/2016] [Accepted: 05/30/2016] [Indexed: 12/15/2022] Open
Abstract
CCN is an acronym for cysteine-rich protein 61 (CYR61), connective tissue growth factor (CTGF) and nephroblastoma overexpressed (NOV). Aberrations of certain CCN members including CYR61, CTGF, Wnt1-inducible signalling pathway protein (WISP)-1 and -3 have been reported in gastric cancer. The present study aimed to examine the clinical relevance of NOV along with CYR61 and CTGF in gastric cancer by analysing their transcript levels. CYR61, CTGF and NOV transcript expression in 324 gastric cancer samples with paired adjacent normal gastric tissues were determined using real-time quantitative PCR and the results were statistically analysed against patient clinicopathological data using SPSS software. NOV mRNA levels in gastric cancer tissues were significantly elevated when compared with levels in their paired adjacent non-cancerous tissues. Local advanced tumours with invasive expansion (T3 and T4) expressed higher levels of NOV (p=0.013) compared with the less invasive tumours (T1 and T2). CYR61 transcript levels were also significantly increased in gastric cancers compared with levels in the adjacent non-cancerous tissues. Kaplan-Meier survival curves revealed that patients with CYR61-low transcript levels had longer overall survival (OS) (p=0.018) and disease-free survival (DFS) (p=0.015). NOV overexpression promoted the in vitro proliferation of AGS cells while the knockdown resulted in a reduced proliferation of HGC27 cells. A similar effect was observed for the invasion of these two gastric cancer cell lines. NOV expression was increased in gastric cancer which was associated with local invasion and distant metastases. Taken together, the expression of NOV and CYR61 was increased in gastric cancer. The elevated expression of CYR61 was associated with poorer survival. NOV promoted proliferation and invasion of gastric cancer cells. Further investigations may highlight their predictive and therapeutic potential in gastric cancer.
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Affiliation(s)
- Jun Li
- Department of General Surgery, Beijing Friendship Hospital, Capital Medical University, Beijing Key Laboratory of Cancer Invasion and Metastasis Research and National Clinical Research Center for Digestive Diseases, Xi-Cheng, Beijing 100050, P.R. China
| | - Xiangyu Gao
- Cardiff China Medical Research Collaborative, Division of Cancer and Genetics, Cardiff University School of Medicine, Heath Park, Cardiff CF14 4XN, UK
| | - Ke Ji
- Cardiff China Medical Research Collaborative, Division of Cancer and Genetics, Cardiff University School of Medicine, Heath Park, Cardiff CF14 4XN, UK
| | - Andrew J Sanders
- Cardiff China Medical Research Collaborative, Division of Cancer and Genetics, Cardiff University School of Medicine, Heath Park, Cardiff CF14 4XN, UK
| | - Zhongtao Zhang
- Department of General Surgery, Beijing Friendship Hospital, Capital Medical University, Beijing Key Laboratory of Cancer Invasion and Metastasis Research and National Clinical Research Center for Digestive Diseases, Xi-Cheng, Beijing 100050, P.R. China
| | - Wen G Jiang
- Cardiff China Medical Research Collaborative, Division of Cancer and Genetics, Cardiff University School of Medicine, Heath Park, Cardiff CF14 4XN, UK
| | - Jiafu Ji
- Key Laboratory of Carcinogenesis and Translational Research (Chinese Ministry of Education), Department of GI Surgery, Peking University Cancer Hospital and Institute, Beijing 100142, P.R. China
| | - Lin Ye
- Cardiff China Medical Research Collaborative, Division of Cancer and Genetics, Cardiff University School of Medicine, Heath Park, Cardiff CF14 4XN, UK
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Chang CH, Ou TT, Yang MY, Huang CC, Wang CJ. Nelumbo nucifera Gaertn leaves extract inhibits the angiogenesis and metastasis of breast cancer cells by downregulation connective tissue growth factor (CTGF) mediated PI3K/AKT/ERK signaling. JOURNAL OF ETHNOPHARMACOLOGY 2016; 188:111-122. [PMID: 27178635 DOI: 10.1016/j.jep.2016.05.012] [Citation(s) in RCA: 39] [Impact Index Per Article: 4.9] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 02/05/2016] [Revised: 04/07/2016] [Accepted: 05/06/2016] [Indexed: 06/05/2023]
Abstract
ETHNOPHARMACOLOGICAL RELEVANCE Nelumbo nucifera Gaertn (Nymphaeaceae) has been recognized as a medicinal plant, which was distributed throughout the Asia. The aqueous extract of Nelumbo nucifera leaves extract (NLE) has various biologically active components such as polyphenols, flavonoids, oligomeric procyanidines. However, the role of NLE in breast cancer therapy is poorly understood. THE AIM OF THIS STUDY The purpose of this study was to identify the hypothesis that NLE can suppress tumor angiogenesis and metastasis through CTGF (connective tissue growth factor), which has been implicated in tumor angiogenesis and progression in breast cancer MDA-MB-231 cells. RESULTS We examined the effects of NLE on angiogenesis in the chicken chorioallantoic membrane (CAM) model. The data showed that NLE could reduce the chorionic plexus at day 17 in CAM and the duration of this inhibition was dose-dependent. In Xenograft model, NLE treatment significantly reduced tumor weight and CD31 (capillary density) over control, respectively. We examined the role of angiogenesis involved restructuring of endothelium using human umbilical vein endothelial cell (HUVEC) in Matrigel angiogenesis model. The results indicated that vascular-like structure formation was further blocked by NLE treatment. Moreover, knockdown of CTGF expression markedly reduced the expression of MMP2 as well as VEGF, and attenuated PI3K-AKT-ERK activation, indication that these signaling pathways are crucial in mediating CTGF function. CONCLUSION The present results suggest that NLE might be useful for treatment in therapy-resistance triple negative breast cancer.
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Affiliation(s)
- Chun-Hua Chang
- Institute of Biochemistry, Microbiology and Immunology, Chung-Shan Medical University, No. 110, Section 1, Jiankuo North Road, Taichung 40201, Taiwan
| | - Ting-Tsz Ou
- Institute of Biochemistry, Microbiology and Immunology, Chung-Shan Medical University, No. 110, Section 1, Jiankuo North Road, Taichung 40201, Taiwan
| | - Mon-Yuan Yang
- Institute of Biochemistry, Microbiology and Immunology, Chung-Shan Medical University, No. 110, Section 1, Jiankuo North Road, Taichung 40201, Taiwan
| | - Chi-Chou Huang
- School of Medicine, Chung Shan Medical University, No. 110, Section 1, Jiankuo North Road, Taichung 40201, Taiwan; Department of Surgery, Division of Colon and Rectum, Chung Shan Medical University Hospital, No. 110, Sec. 1, Jianguo N. Road, Taichung 40201, Taiwan
| | - Chau-Jong Wang
- Institute of Biochemistry, Microbiology and Immunology, Chung-Shan Medical University, No. 110, Section 1, Jiankuo North Road, Taichung 40201, Taiwan; Department of Medical Research, Chung Shan Medical University Hospital, No. 110, Sec. 1, Jianguo N. Road, Taichung 40201, Taiwan.
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Inhibition of β-catenin signaling protects against CTGF-induced alveolar and vascular pathology in neonatal mouse lung. Pediatr Res 2016; 80:136-44. [PMID: 26991260 DOI: 10.1038/pr.2016.52] [Citation(s) in RCA: 12] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Submit a Manuscript] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 09/25/2015] [Accepted: 12/23/2015] [Indexed: 12/13/2022]
Abstract
BACKGROUND Bronchopulmonary dysplasia (BPD) is the most common and serious chronic lung disease of premature infants. Connective tissue growth factor (CTGF) plays an important role in tissue development and remodeling. We have previously shown that targeted overexpression of CTGF in alveolar type II epithelial cells results in BPD-like pathology and activates β-catenin in neonatal mice. METHODS Utilizing this transgenic mouse model and ICG001, a specific pharmacological inhibitor of β-catenin, we tested the hypothesis that β-catenin signaling mediates the effects of CTGF in the neonatal lung. Newborn CTGF mice and control littermates received ICG001 (10 mg/kg/dose) or placebo (dimethyl sulfoxide, equal volume) by daily i.p. injection from postnatal day 5 to 15. Alveolarization, vascular development, and pulmonary hypertension (PH) were analyzed. RESULTS Administration of ICG001 significantly downregulated expression of cyclin D1, collagen 1a1, and fibronectin, which are the known target genes of β-catenin signaling in CTGF lungs. Inhibition of β-catenin signaling improved alveolar and vascular development and decreased pulmonary vascular remodeling. More importantly, the improved vascular development and vascular remodeling led to a decrease in PH. CONCLUSION β-Catenin signaling mediates the autocrine and paracrine effects of CTGF in the neonatal lung. Inhibition of CTGF-β-catenin signaling may provide a novel therapy for BPD.
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Bao WD, Fan Y, Deng YZ, Long LY, Wang JJ, Guan DX, Qian ZY, An P, Feng YY, He ZY, Wang XF, Phillip Koeffler H, Hu R, Wang J, Wang X, Wang F, Li JJ, Xie D. Iron overload in hereditary tyrosinemia type 1 induces liver injury through the Sp1/Tfr2/hepcidin axis. J Hepatol 2016; 65:137-145. [PMID: 27013087 DOI: 10.1016/j.jhep.2016.03.007] [Citation(s) in RCA: 20] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Submit a Manuscript] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 07/08/2015] [Revised: 02/25/2016] [Accepted: 03/10/2016] [Indexed: 12/04/2022]
Abstract
BACKGROUND & AIMS Iron is an essential metal for fundamental metabolic processes, but little is known regarding the involvement of iron in other nutritional disorders. In the present study, we investigated disordered iron metabolism in a murine model of hereditary tyrosinemia type I (HT1), a disease of the tyrosine degradation pathway. METHODS We analysed the status of iron accumulation following NTBC withdrawal from Fah(-/-) mice, a murine model for HT1. Liver histology and serum parameters were used to assess the extent of liver injury and iron deposition. To determine the physiological significance of iron accumulation, mice were subjected to a low-iron food intake to reduce the iron accumulation. Mechanistic studies were performed on tissues and cells using immunoblotting, qRT-PCR, adenovirus transfection and other assays. RESULTS Severe iron overload was observed in the murine model of HT1 with dramatically elevated hepatic and serum iron levels. Mechanistic studies revealed that downregulation and dysfunction of Tfr2 decreased hepcidin, leading to iron overload. The Fah(-/-) hepatocytes lost the ability of transferrin-sensitive induction of hepcidin. Forced expression of Tfr2 in the murine liver reduced the iron accumulation. Moreover, transcription factor Sp1 was downregulated and identified as a new regulator of Tfr2 here. Additionally, low-iron food intake effectively reduced the iron deposits, protected the liver and prolonged the survival in these mice. CONCLUSIONS Iron was severely overloaded in the HT1 mice via the Sp1/Tfr2/Hepcidin axis. The iron overload induced liver injury in the HT1 mice, and reduction of the iron accumulation ameliorated liver injury. LAY SUMMARY Primary and secondary iron overload is an abnormal status affecting millions of people worldwide. Here, we reported severe iron overload in a murine model of HT1, a disease of the tyrosine degradation pathway, and elucidated the mechanistic basis and the physiological significance of iron overload in HT1. These studies are of general interest not only with respect to secondary iron-induced liver injury in HT1 but also are important to elucidate the crosstalk between the two metabolic pathways.
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Affiliation(s)
- Wen-Dai Bao
- Institute of Nutrition Science, Shanghai Institutes for Biological Sciences, Chinese Academy of Sciences, 320 Yueyang Road, Shanghai 200031, China
| | - Yao Fan
- Institute of Nutrition Science, Shanghai Institutes for Biological Sciences, Chinese Academy of Sciences, 320 Yueyang Road, Shanghai 200031, China
| | - Yue-Zhen Deng
- Institute of Nutrition Science, Shanghai Institutes for Biological Sciences, Chinese Academy of Sciences, 320 Yueyang Road, Shanghai 200031, China
| | - Ling-Yun Long
- Institute of Nutrition Science, Shanghai Institutes for Biological Sciences, Chinese Academy of Sciences, 320 Yueyang Road, Shanghai 200031, China
| | - Jing-Jing Wang
- Institute of Nutrition Science, Shanghai Institutes for Biological Sciences, Chinese Academy of Sciences, 320 Yueyang Road, Shanghai 200031, China
| | - Dong-Xian Guan
- Institute of Nutrition Science, Shanghai Institutes for Biological Sciences, Chinese Academy of Sciences, 320 Yueyang Road, Shanghai 200031, China
| | - Zhen-Yu Qian
- Institute of Nutrition Science, Shanghai Institutes for Biological Sciences, Chinese Academy of Sciences, 320 Yueyang Road, Shanghai 200031, China
| | - Peng An
- Institute of Nutrition Science, Shanghai Institutes for Biological Sciences, Chinese Academy of Sciences, 320 Yueyang Road, Shanghai 200031, China
| | - Yuan-Yuan Feng
- Institute of Nutrition Science, Shanghai Institutes for Biological Sciences, Chinese Academy of Sciences, 320 Yueyang Road, Shanghai 200031, China
| | - Zhi-Ying He
- Eastern Hepatobiliary Surgery Hospital, Second Military Medical University, 225 Changhai Road, Shanghai 200438, China
| | - Xiao-Fan Wang
- Department of Pharmacology and Cancer Biology, Duke University Medical Center, Durham, NC, USA
| | - H Phillip Koeffler
- Cancer Science Institute of Singapore, National University of Singapore, 14 Medical Drive, 12-01, Singapore 117599, Singapore; Cedars-Sinai Medical Center, Division of Hematology/Oncology, UCLA School of Medicine, Los Angeles, CA 90048, USA
| | - Ronggui Hu
- State Key Laboratory of Molecular Biology, Chinese Academy of Sciences, 320 Yue-yang Road, Shanghai 200031, China
| | - Jianshe Wang
- Center for Pediatric Liver Diseases, Children's Hospital of Fudan University, 399 Wanyuan Road, Minhang District, Shanghai 201102, PR China
| | - Xin Wang
- Department of Laboratory Medicine and Pathology, University of Minnesota, Minneapolis, Minnesota, MN 55455, USA
| | - Fudi Wang
- Department of Nutrition, School of Public Health, Zhejiang University, Hangzhou, Zhejiang 310058, PR China
| | - Jing-Jing Li
- Institute of Nutrition Science, Shanghai Institutes for Biological Sciences, Chinese Academy of Sciences, 320 Yueyang Road, Shanghai 200031, China
| | - Dong Xie
- Institute of Nutrition Science, Shanghai Institutes for Biological Sciences, Chinese Academy of Sciences, 320 Yueyang Road, Shanghai 200031, China.
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Sun D, Han S, Liu C, Zhou R, Sun W, Zhang Z, Qu J. Microrna-199a-5p Functions as a Tumor Suppressor via Suppressing Connective Tissue Growth Factor (CTGF) in Follicular Thyroid Carcinoma. Med Sci Monit 2016; 22:1210-7. [PMID: 27062921 PMCID: PMC4830201 DOI: 10.12659/msm.895788] [Citation(s) in RCA: 29] [Impact Index Per Article: 3.6] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 12/17/2022] Open
Abstract
Background The objective of this study was to explore the role of miR-199a-5p in the development of thyroid cancer, including its anti-proliferation effect and downstream signaling pathway. Material/Methods We conducted qRT-PCR analysis to detect the expressions of several microRNAs in 42 follicular thyroid carcinoma patients and 42 controls. We identified CTGF as target of miR-491, and viability and cell cycle status were determined in FTC-133 cells transfected with CTGF siRNA, miR-199a mimics, or inhibitors. Results We identified an underexpression of miR-199a-5p in follicular thyroid carcinoma tissue samples compared with controls. Then we confirmed CTGF as a target of miR-199a-5p thyroid cells by using informatics analysis and luciferase reporter assay. Additionally, we found that mRNA and protein expression levels of CTGF were both clearly higher in malignant tissues than in benign tissues. miR-199a-5p mimics and CTGF siRNA similarly downregulated the expression of CTGF, and reduced the viability of FTC-133 cells by arresting the cell cycle in G0 phase. Transfection of miR-199a-5p inhibitors increased the expression of CTGF and promoted the viability of the cells by increasing the fraction of cells in G2/M and S phases. Conclusions Our study proves that the CTGF gene is a target of miR-199a-5p, demonstrating the negatively related association between CTGF and miR-199a. These findings suggest that miR-199a-5p might be a novel therapeutic target in the treatment of follicular thyroid carcinoma.
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Affiliation(s)
- Dawei Sun
- Thyroid Department of Affiliated Hospital of Qingdao University, Qingdao Key Laboratory of Thyroid Diseases, Qingdao, Shandong, China (mainland)
| | - Shen Han
- , Guizhou Tongren Vocational and Technical College of Pharmaceutical Sciences, Guizhou, China (mainland)
| | - Chao Liu
- Department of General Surgery, People's Hospital of Zhangqiu City, Jinan, Shandong, China (mainland)
| | - Rui Zhou
- , Teaching and Research Section of Medicine and Health Management of Medical College of Qingdao University, Qingdao, Shandong, China (mainland)
| | - Weihai Sun
- Thyroid Department of Affiliated Hospital of Qingdao University, Qingdao Key Laboratory of Thyroid Diseases, Qingdao, Shandong, China (mainland)
| | - Zhijun Zhang
- , Linzi District of Zibo City People's Hospital of Hepatobiliary Surgery, Zibo, Shangdong, China (mainland)
| | - Jianjun Qu
- Department of Oncology, Weifang People's Hospital, Weifang, Shandong, China (mainland)
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FOXC2 is up-regulated in pancreatic ductal adenocarcinoma and promotes the growth and migration of cancer cells. Tumour Biol 2016; 37:8579-85. [PMID: 26733175 DOI: 10.1007/s13277-015-4607-4] [Citation(s) in RCA: 8] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 10/10/2015] [Accepted: 12/07/2015] [Indexed: 12/25/2022] Open
Abstract
The transcriptional factor Forkhead box protein C2 (FOXC2) was recently demonstrated to be up-regulated in various cancer types. However, its expression profile and the biological functions in pancreatic cancer remain unknown. In this study, we examined the expression pattern of FOXC2 in pancreatic ductal adenocarcinoma (PDAC) tissues and investigated the functions of FOXC2 in the progression of PDAC. It was found that the expression of FOXC2 was up-regulated in PDAC samples. Forced expression of FOXC2 promoted the growth and migration of the PDAC cells, while knocking down the expression of FOXC2 inhibited the growth and migration of the PDAC cells. Moreover, FOXC2 was found to interact with beta-catenin and promote cell growth by activating beta-catenin/TCF signaling. Taken together, this study demonstrated the oncogenic roles of FOXC2 in PDAC, and FOXC2 might be a therapeutic target for PDAC.
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Liu H, Hu X, Zhu Y, Jiang G, Chen S. Up-regulation of SRPK1 in non-small cell lung cancer promotes the growth and migration of cancer cells. Tumour Biol 2015; 37:7287-93. [PMID: 26666824 DOI: 10.1007/s13277-015-4510-z] [Citation(s) in RCA: 18] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 09/15/2015] [Accepted: 11/25/2015] [Indexed: 12/15/2022] Open
Abstract
Dys-regulation of serine-arginine protein kinase 1 (SRPK1) has been reported in non-small cell lung cancer (NSCLC). However, its functions in the progression of NSCLC remain poorly understood. In this study, the expression of SRPK1 in NSCLC tissues was determined using real-time PCR, and the roles of SRPK1 in the progression of NSCLC were investigated. It was found that both the mRNA level and the protein level of SRPK1 were up-regulated in NSCLC tissues. Forced expression of SRPK1 promoted the growth and migration of NSCLC cells, while knocking down the expression of SRPK1 inhibited the growth, migration, and tumorigenicity of NSCLC cells. Mechanism studies showed that SRPK1 activated the transcriptional activity of beta-catenin/T-cell factor (TCF) complex, and knocking down the expression of SRPK1 attenuated the expression of target genes of beta-catenin/T-cell factor (TCF) complex. In addition, silencing the expression of SRPK1 down-regulated the phosphorylation of GSK3beta. Taken together, SRPK1 might play an oncogenic role in NSCLC, and SRPK1 might be a therapeutic target for NSCLC.
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Affiliation(s)
- Hongcheng Liu
- Department of Thoracic Surgery, Shanghai Pulmonary Hospital, School of Medicine, Tongji University, 507 Zhengmin Road, Shanghai, 200433, China.
| | - Xuefei Hu
- Department of Thoracic Surgery, Shanghai Pulmonary Hospital, School of Medicine, Tongji University, 507 Zhengmin Road, Shanghai, 200433, China
| | - Yuming Zhu
- Department of Thoracic Surgery, Shanghai Pulmonary Hospital, School of Medicine, Tongji University, 507 Zhengmin Road, Shanghai, 200433, China
| | - Gening Jiang
- Department of Thoracic Surgery, Shanghai Pulmonary Hospital, School of Medicine, Tongji University, 507 Zhengmin Road, Shanghai, 200433, China
| | - Sheng Chen
- Department of Thoracic Surgery, Huai'an First People's Hospital, Huai'an, China.
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Li J, Ye L, Owen S, Weeks HP, Zhang Z, Jiang WG. Emerging role of CCN family proteins in tumorigenesis and cancer metastasis (Review). Int J Mol Med 2015; 36:1451-63. [PMID: 26498181 PMCID: PMC4678164 DOI: 10.3892/ijmm.2015.2390] [Citation(s) in RCA: 85] [Impact Index Per Article: 9.4] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 04/07/2015] [Accepted: 10/07/2015] [Indexed: 12/28/2022] Open
Abstract
The CCN family of proteins comprises the members CCN1, CCN2, CCN3, CCN4, CCN5 and CCN6. They share four evolutionarily conserved functional domains, and usually interact with various cytokines to elicit different biological functions including cell proliferation, adhesion, invasion, migration, embryonic development, angiogenesis, wound healing, fibrosis and inflammation through a variety of signalling pathways. In the past two decades, emerging functions for the CCN proteins (CCNs) have been identified in various types of cancer. Perturbed expression of CCNs has been observed in a variety of malignancies. The aberrant expression of certain CCNs is associated with disease progression and poor prognosis. Insight into the detailed mechanisms involved in CCN-mediated regulation may be useful in understanding their roles and functions in tumorigenesis and cancer metastasis. In this review, we briefly introduced the functions of CCNs, especially in cancer.
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Affiliation(s)
- Jun Li
- Department of General Surgery, Beijing Friendship Hospital, Capital Medical University, Beijing 100050, P.R. China
| | - Lin Ye
- Cardiff China Medical Research Collaborative, Institute of Cancer and Genetics, Cardiff University School of Medicine, Heath Park, Cardiff, CF14 4XN, UK
| | - Sioned Owen
- Cardiff China Medical Research Collaborative, Institute of Cancer and Genetics, Cardiff University School of Medicine, Heath Park, Cardiff, CF14 4XN, UK
| | - Hoi Ping Weeks
- Cardiff China Medical Research Collaborative, Institute of Cancer and Genetics, Cardiff University School of Medicine, Heath Park, Cardiff, CF14 4XN, UK
| | - Zhongtao Zhang
- Department of General Surgery, Beijing Friendship Hospital, Capital Medical University, Beijing 100050, P.R. China
| | - Wen G Jiang
- Cardiff China Medical Research Collaborative, Institute of Cancer and Genetics, Cardiff University School of Medicine, Heath Park, Cardiff, CF14 4XN, UK
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Du ZP, Wu BL, Xie YM, Zhang YL, Liao LD, Zhou F, Xie JJ, Zeng FM, Xu XE, Fang WK, Li EM, Xu LY. Lipocalin 2 promotes the migration and invasion of esophageal squamous cell carcinoma cells through a novel positive feedback loop. BIOCHIMICA ET BIOPHYSICA ACTA 2015; 1853:2240-50. [PMID: 26190820 DOI: 10.1016/j.bbamcr.2015.07.007] [Citation(s) in RCA: 24] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.7] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 03/12/2015] [Revised: 06/30/2015] [Accepted: 07/15/2015] [Indexed: 02/05/2023]
Abstract
Lipocalin 2 (LCN2) is a poor prognostic factor in esophageal squamous cell carcinoma (ESCC), however its functional roles and molecular mechanisms of action remain to be clarified. Here, we described the functions and signaling pathways for LCN2 in ESCC. Overexpression of LCN2 in ESCC cells accelerated cell migration and invasion in vitro, and promoted lung metastasis in vivo. Blocking LCN2 expression inhibited its pro-oncogenic effect. Either overexpression of LCN2 or treatment with recombinant human LCN2 protein enhanced the activation of MEK/ERK pathway, which in turn increases endogenous LCN2 to increase MMP-9 activity. The decreased p-cofilin and increased p-ERM induced by pERK1/2 cause the cytoskeleton F-actin rearrangement and alter the behavior of ESCC cells mediated by LCN2. As a consequence, activation of MMP-9 and the rearrangement of F-actin throw light on the mechanisms for LCN2 in ESCC. These results imply that LCN2 promotes the migration and invasion of ESCC cells through a novel positive feedback loop.
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Affiliation(s)
- Ze-Peng Du
- The Key Laboratory of Molecular Biology for High Cancer Incidence Coastal Chaoshan Area, Shantou University Medical College, Shantou 515041, China; Institute of Oncologic Pathology, Shantou University Medical College, Shantou 515041, China; Department of Pathology, Shantou Central Hospital, Affiliated Shantou Hospital of Sun Yat-sen University, Shantou 515041, Guangdong Province 515041, China
| | - Bing-Li Wu
- The Key Laboratory of Molecular Biology for High Cancer Incidence Coastal Chaoshan Area, Shantou University Medical College, Shantou 515041, China; Department of Biochemistry and Molecular Biology, Shantou University Medical College, Shantou 515041, China
| | - Yang-Min Xie
- The Key Laboratory of Molecular Biology for High Cancer Incidence Coastal Chaoshan Area, Shantou University Medical College, Shantou 515041, China; Department of Experimental Animal Center, Shantou University Medical College, Shantou 515041, China
| | - Ying-Li Zhang
- The Key Laboratory of Molecular Biology for High Cancer Incidence Coastal Chaoshan Area, Shantou University Medical College, Shantou 515041, China; Department of Biochemistry and Molecular Biology, Shantou University Medical College, Shantou 515041, China
| | - Lian-Di Liao
- The Key Laboratory of Molecular Biology for High Cancer Incidence Coastal Chaoshan Area, Shantou University Medical College, Shantou 515041, China; Institute of Oncologic Pathology, Shantou University Medical College, Shantou 515041, China
| | - Fei Zhou
- The Key Laboratory of Molecular Biology for High Cancer Incidence Coastal Chaoshan Area, Shantou University Medical College, Shantou 515041, China; Department of Experimental Animal Center, Shantou University Medical College, Shantou 515041, China
| | - Jian-Jun Xie
- The Key Laboratory of Molecular Biology for High Cancer Incidence Coastal Chaoshan Area, Shantou University Medical College, Shantou 515041, China; Department of Biochemistry and Molecular Biology, Shantou University Medical College, Shantou 515041, China
| | - Fa-Min Zeng
- The Key Laboratory of Molecular Biology for High Cancer Incidence Coastal Chaoshan Area, Shantou University Medical College, Shantou 515041, China; Department of Biochemistry and Molecular Biology, Shantou University Medical College, Shantou 515041, China
| | - Xiu-E Xu
- The Key Laboratory of Molecular Biology for High Cancer Incidence Coastal Chaoshan Area, Shantou University Medical College, Shantou 515041, China; Institute of Oncologic Pathology, Shantou University Medical College, Shantou 515041, China
| | - Wang-Kai Fang
- The Key Laboratory of Molecular Biology for High Cancer Incidence Coastal Chaoshan Area, Shantou University Medical College, Shantou 515041, China; Department of Biochemistry and Molecular Biology, Shantou University Medical College, Shantou 515041, China
| | - En-Min Li
- The Key Laboratory of Molecular Biology for High Cancer Incidence Coastal Chaoshan Area, Shantou University Medical College, Shantou 515041, China; Department of Biochemistry and Molecular Biology, Shantou University Medical College, Shantou 515041, China.
| | - Li-Yan Xu
- The Key Laboratory of Molecular Biology for High Cancer Incidence Coastal Chaoshan Area, Shantou University Medical College, Shantou 515041, China; Institute of Oncologic Pathology, Shantou University Medical College, Shantou 515041, China.
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Expression variations of connective tissue growth factor in pulmonary arteries from smokers with and without chronic obstructive pulmonary disease. Sci Rep 2015; 5:8564. [PMID: 25708588 PMCID: PMC4338434 DOI: 10.1038/srep08564] [Citation(s) in RCA: 17] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.9] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 05/20/2014] [Accepted: 01/19/2015] [Indexed: 12/19/2022] Open
Abstract
Cigarette smoking contributes to the development of pulmonary hypertension (PH) complicated with chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD), and the pulmonary vascular remodeling, the structural basis of PH, could be attributed to abnormal proliferation of pulmonary artery smooth muscle cells (PASMCs).In this study, morphometrical analysis showed that the pulmonary vessel wall thickness in smoker group and COPD group was significantly greater than in nonsmokers. In addition, we determined the expression patterns of connective tissue growth factor (CTGF) and cyclin D1 in PASMCs harvested from smokers with normal lung function or mild to moderate COPD, finding that the expression levels of CTGF and cyclin D1 were significantly increased in smoker group and COPD group. In vitro experiment showed that the expression of CTGF, cyclin D1 and E2F were significantly increased in human PASMCs (HPASMCs) treated with 2% cigarette smoke extract (CSE), and two CTGF siRNAs with different mRNA hits successfully attenuated the upregulated cyclin D1 and E2F, and significantly restored the CSE-induced proliferation of HPASMCs by causing cell cycle arrest in G0. These findings suggest that CTGF may contribute to the pathogenesis of abnormal proliferation of HPASMCs by promoting the expression of its downstream effectors in smokers with or without COPD.
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He G, Guan X, Chen X, Wang Y, Luo C, Zhang B. Expression and Splice Variant Analysis of Human TCF4 Transcription Factor in Esophageal Cancer. J Cancer 2015; 6:333-41. [PMID: 25767603 PMCID: PMC4349873 DOI: 10.7150/jca.10565] [Citation(s) in RCA: 6] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.7] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 09/16/2014] [Accepted: 12/21/2014] [Indexed: 12/18/2022] Open
Abstract
Objective: The human T cell transcription factor-4 (TCF4) interacts functionally with β-catenin in the Wnt signaling pathway, whose deregulation is involved in the tumorigenesis of various types of cancers. Recent studies showed that TCF4 mRNAs were subject to alternative splicing, which was proposed to be important in regulating transactivational properties of the corresponding protein isoforms. Here we investigated the splicing isoforms and the roles of TCF4 in human esophageal squamous cell carcinoma. Methods: RT-PCR and subsequent cloning and sequencing were applied to identify the splicing isoforms. Western blotting and realtime PCR were used to analyze the expression of TCF4. Knockdown of TCF4 was achieved with siRNA and stable transfection of expression vectors was performed. Results: Our results showed there were a lot of different isoforms of TCF4 mRNA both in human esophageal cancers and cell line. Further, knockdown of TCF4E isoform expression in EC109 cells inhibited the cell growth, while overexpression of TCF4M isoform did not alter its transcription activity. Moreover, sixteen potential binding proteins of TCF4 were preliminarily identified by mass spectrometry. Conclusions: Our data suggested that deregulation of TCF4 isoforms may contribute to the tumorigenesis of ESCC.
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Affiliation(s)
- Gang He
- Department of Medical Genetics, Third Military Medical University, Chongqing 400038, China
| | - Xingying Guan
- Department of Medical Genetics, Third Military Medical University, Chongqing 400038, China
| | - Xuedan Chen
- Department of Medical Genetics, Third Military Medical University, Chongqing 400038, China
| | - Yan Wang
- Department of Medical Genetics, Third Military Medical University, Chongqing 400038, China
| | - Chao Luo
- Department of Medical Genetics, Third Military Medical University, Chongqing 400038, China
| | - Bo Zhang
- Department of Medical Genetics, Third Military Medical University, Chongqing 400038, China
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Ahmad A, Askari S, Befekadu R, Hahn-Strömberg V. Investigating the association between polymorphisms in connective tissue growth factor and susceptibility to colon carcinoma. Mol Med Rep 2014; 11:2493-503. [PMID: 25502877 PMCID: PMC4337474 DOI: 10.3892/mmr.2014.3083] [Citation(s) in RCA: 4] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.4] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 03/04/2014] [Accepted: 07/25/2014] [Indexed: 01/01/2023] Open
Abstract
There have been numerous studies on the gene expression of connective tissue growth factor (CTGF) in colorectal cancer, however very few have investigated polymorphisms in this gene. The present study aimed to determine whether single nucleotide polymorphisms (SNPs) in the CTGF gene are associated with a higher susceptibility to colon cancer and/or an invasive tumor growth pattern. The CTGF gene was genotyped for seven SNPs (rs6918698, rs1931002, rs9493150, rs12526196, rs12527705, rs9399005 and rs12527379) by pyrosequencing. Formalin-fixed paraffin-embedded tissue samples (n=112) from patients diagnosed with colon carcinoma, and an equal number of blood samples from healthy controls, were selected for genomic DNA extraction. The complexity index was measured using images of tumor samples (n=64) stained for cytokeratin-8. The images were analyzed and correlated with the identified CTGF SNPs and clinicopathological parameters of the patients, including age, gender, tumor penetration, lymph node metastasis, systemic metastasis, differentiation and localization of tumor. It was demonstrated that the frequency of the SNP rs6918698 GG genotype was significantly associated (P=0.05) with an increased risk of colon cancer, as compared with the GC and CC genotypes. The other six SNPs (rs1931002, rs9493150, rs12526196, rs12527705, rs9399005 and rs12527379) exhibited no significant difference in the genotype and allele frequencies between patients diagnosed with colon carcinoma and the normal healthy population. A trend was observed between genotype variation at rs6918698 and the complexity index (P=0.052). The complexity index and genotypes for any of the studied SNPs were not significantly correlated with clinical or pathological parameters of the patients. These results indicate that the rs6918698 GG genotype is associated with an increased risk of developing colon carcinoma, and genetic variations at the rs6918698 are associated with the growth pattern of the tumor. The present results may facilitate the identification of potential biomarkers of the disease in addition to drug targets.
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Affiliation(s)
- Abrar Ahmad
- Department of Clinical Medicine, Örebro University, Örebro 701 81, Sweden
| | - Shlear Askari
- Department of Clinical Medicine, Örebro University, Örebro 701 81, Sweden
| | - Rahel Befekadu
- Department of Laboratory Medicine, Section for Transfusion Medicine, Örebro University Hospital, Örebro 701 85, Sweden
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GUO YIHANG, LI XIAORONG, LIN CHANGWEI, ZHANG YI, HU GUI, ZHOU JIANYU, DU JUAN, GAO KAI, GAN YI, DENG HAO. MicroRNA-133b inhibits connective tissue growth factor in colorectal cancer and correlates with the clinical stage of the disease. Mol Med Rep 2014; 11:2805-12. [DOI: 10.3892/mmr.2014.3075] [Citation(s) in RCA: 16] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.6] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 02/19/2014] [Accepted: 11/14/2014] [Indexed: 01/15/2023] Open
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Jiang W, Yao F, He J, Lv B, Fang W, Zhu W, He G, Chen J, He J. Downregulation of VGLL4 in the progression of esophageal squamous cell carcinoma. Tumour Biol 2014; 36:1289-97. [PMID: 25352025 DOI: 10.1007/s13277-014-2701-7] [Citation(s) in RCA: 20] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 07/05/2014] [Accepted: 10/01/2014] [Indexed: 02/06/2023] Open
Abstract
VGLL4, a member of the Vestigial-like (VGLL) proteins, has been reported to be dysregulated in several cancer types. However, its function in esophageal squamous cell carcinoma (ESCC) remains poorly understood. Here, it was found that the expression level of VGLL4 was decreased in ESCC tissues. Moreover, forced expression of VGLL4 in ESCC cells inhibited cell growth and migration, while knockdown of VGLL4 expression promoted the tumorigenecity of ESCC cells. Mechanistically, VGLL4 regulated the growth and motility of ESCC cells through downregulating the expression of connective tissue growth factor (CTGF), a known oncogene in the progression of ESCC. Taken together, our study suggested that downregulation of VGLL4 was very important in the progression of ESCC, and restoring the function of VGLL4 might be a promising therapeutic strategy for ESCC.
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Affiliation(s)
- Wei Jiang
- Department of Thoracic Surgery, Taixing People's Hospital of Jiangsu Province, 1 of Changzheng Rd, Taixing City, Jiangsu Province, 225400, China
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BCLAF1 and its splicing regulator SRSF10 regulate the tumorigenic potential of colon cancer cells. Nat Commun 2014; 5:4581. [PMID: 25091051 DOI: 10.1038/ncomms5581] [Citation(s) in RCA: 130] [Impact Index Per Article: 13.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 01/24/2014] [Accepted: 07/02/2014] [Indexed: 12/31/2022] Open
Abstract
Bcl-2-associated transcription factor 1 (BCLAF1) is known to be involved in multiple biological processes. Although several splice variants of BCLAF1 have been identified, little is known about how BCLAF1 splicing is regulated or the contribution of alternative splicing to its developmental functions. Here we find that inclusion of alternative exon5a was significantly increased in colorectal cancer (CRC) samples. Knockdown of the BCLAF1 protein isoform resulting from exon5a inclusion inhibited growth and that its overexpression increased tumorigenic potential. We also found that the splicing factor SRSF10 stimulates inclusion of exon5a and has growth-inducing activity. Importantly, the upregulation of SRSF10 expression observed in clinical CRC samples parallels the increased inclusion of BCLAF1 exon5a, both of which are associated with higher tumour grade. These findings identify SRSF10 as a key regulator of BCLAF1 pre-mRNA splicing and the maintenance of oncogenic features in human colon cancer cells.
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Mao Z, Ma X, Fan X, Cui L, Zhu T, Qu J, Zhang J, Wang X. Secreted protein acidic and rich in cysteine inhibits the growth of human pancreatic cancer cells with G1 arrest induction. Tumour Biol 2014; 35:10185-93. [PMID: 25027401 DOI: 10.1007/s13277-014-2315-0] [Citation(s) in RCA: 8] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.8] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 06/10/2014] [Accepted: 07/04/2014] [Indexed: 02/04/2023] Open
Abstract
Aberrant secreted protein acidic and rich in cysteine (SPARC) expression has been reported to play an important role in the tumor development. However, the pattern and the role of SPARC in pancreatic cancer remain largely unknown. Therefore, we further deciphered the role of SPARC played in pancreatic cancer. We first evaluated the SPARC expression in human pancreatic cancer tissues and pancreatic cancer cells. Then we forced expression and silenced SPARC expression in pancreatic cancer cell lines MIA PaCa2 and PANC-1, respectively, using lentivirus vectors. We characterized the stable cells in vitro. In this study, we found that SPARC expression was weak in cancer cells in specimens which negatively correlated with the expression level of phosphorylated pRB and poorer outcome. Moreover, our results demonstrated that SPARC negatively regulated pancreatic cell growth in vitro. Furthermore, we disclosed that the activation of p53 and p27(Kip1) may involve in the effect of SPARC on pancreatic cancer cells. SPARC is downregulated in pancreatic cancer cells and retards the growth of pancreatic cancer cell. Taken together, these results indicate SPARC may be a potential target for pancreatic cancer therapy.
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Affiliation(s)
- Zhengfa Mao
- Department of General Surgery, Affiliated Hospital of Jiangsu University, Zhenjiang, Jiangsu Province, People's Republic of China
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Cytokines association with clinical and pathological changes in esophageal squamous cell carcinoma. DISEASE MARKERS 2014; 35:883-93. [PMID: 24427776 PMCID: PMC3877595 DOI: 10.1155/2013/302862] [Citation(s) in RCA: 17] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.7] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 02/06/2023]
Abstract
Carcinogenic transformation of cells in esophageal squamous cell carcinoma (ESCC) is characterized on molecular level by, among other things, changes in protein expression. Among all proteins related to inflammation, cytokines may be implicated as possible biological markers of esophageal cancer. These biomarkers, near imaging techniques, may be helpful in diagnosis and monitoring therapy in ESCC patients. This review demonstrates findings of researches on dysregulation of cytokines in ESCC and their clinical and pathological implications. Articles on cytokines were selected according to the following criteria: (i) the study was performed at protein level, (ii) the differences in cytokines expression or concentration were detected in tissues or serum from ESCC patients, (iii) the alterations of cytokines levels were detected by: immunohistochemistry (IHC), western blot (WB) and enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay (ELISA). Members of VEGF family seem to play an essential role as potential markers in ESCC. The results of all cytokines researches are promising but further studies are necessary to establish the biological significance of these peptydes in ESCC, their potential usefulness for early diagnosis, pre- and postoperative prognosis and monitoring of the respond to chemo- and radiotherapy of cancer patients.
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