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Wang D, Zhang J, Wang J, Cai Z, Jin S, Chen G. Identification of collagen subtypes of gastric cancer for distinguishing patient prognosis and therapeutic response. CANCER INNOVATION 2024; 3:e125. [PMID: 38948250 PMCID: PMC11212290 DOI: 10.1002/cai2.125] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 10/26/2023] [Revised: 01/30/2024] [Accepted: 02/21/2024] [Indexed: 07/02/2024]
Abstract
Background Gastric cancer is a highly heterogeneous disease, presenting a major obstacle to personalized treatment. Effective markers of the immune checkpoint blockade response are needed for precise patient classification. We, therefore, divided patients with gastric cancer according to collagen gene expression to indicate their prognosis and treatment response. Methods We collected data for 1250 patients with gastric cancer from four cohorts. For the TCGA-STAD cohort, we used consensus clustering to stratify patients based on expression levels of 44 collagen genes and compared the prognosis and clinical characteristics between collagen subtypes. We then identified distinct transcriptomic and genetic alteration signatures for the subtypes. We analyzed the associations of collagen subtypes with the responses to chemotherapy, immunotherapy, and targeted therapy. We also established a platform-independent collagen-subtype predictor. We verified the findings in three validation cohorts (GSE84433, GSE62254, and GSE15459) and compared the collagen subtyping method with other molecular subtyping methods. Results We identified two subtypes of gastric adenocarcinoma: a high-expression collagen subtype (CS-H) and a low-expression collagen subtype (CS-L). Collagen subtype was an independent prognostic factor, with better overall survival in the CS-L subgroup. The inflammatory response, angiogenesis, and phosphoinositide 3-kinase (PI3K)/Akt pathways were transcriptionally active in the CS-H subtype, while DNA repair activity was significantly greater in the CS-L subtype. PIK3CA was frequently amplified in the CS-H subtype, while PIK3C2A, PIK3C2G, and PIK3R1 were frequently deleted in the CS-L subtype. CS-H subtype tumors were more sensitive to fluorouracil, while CS-L subtype tumors were more sensitive to immune checkpoint blockade. CS-L subtype was predicted to be more sensitive to HER2-targeted drugs, and CS-H subtype was predicted to be more sensitive to vascular endothelial growth factor and PI3K pathway-targeting drugs. Collagen subtyping also has the potential to be combined with existing molecular subtyping methods for better patient classification. Conclusions We classified gastric cancers into two subtypes based on collagen gene expression and validated these subtypes in three validation cohorts. The collagen subgroups differed in terms of prognosis, clinical characteristics, transcriptome, and genetic alterations. The subtypes were closely related to patient responses to chemotherapy, immunotherapy, and targeted therapy.
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Affiliation(s)
- Di Wang
- Department of Molecular Pathology, Clinical Oncology School of Fujian Medical UniversityFujian Cancer HospitalFuzhouChina
| | - Jing Zhang
- Department of Pathology, Clinical Oncology School of Fujian Medical UniversityFujian Cancer HospitalFuzhouChina
| | - Jianchao Wang
- Department of Pathology, Clinical Oncology School of Fujian Medical UniversityFujian Cancer HospitalFuzhouChina
| | - Zhonglin Cai
- Department of UrologyGongli Hospital of Shanghai Pudong New AreaShanghaiChina
| | - Shanfeng Jin
- Department of Molecular Pathology, Clinical Oncology School of Fujian Medical UniversityFujian Cancer HospitalFuzhouChina
| | - Gang Chen
- Department of Pathology, Clinical Oncology School of Fujian Medical UniversityFujian Cancer HospitalFuzhouChina
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Lin X, Yang P, Wang M, Huang X, Wang B, Chen C, Xu A, Cai J, Khan M, Liu S, Lin J. Dissecting gastric cancer heterogeneity and exploring therapeutic strategies using bulk and single-cell transcriptomic analysis and experimental validation of tumor microenvironment and metabolic interplay. Front Pharmacol 2024; 15:1355269. [PMID: 38962317 PMCID: PMC11220201 DOI: 10.3389/fphar.2024.1355269] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 12/13/2023] [Accepted: 04/15/2024] [Indexed: 07/05/2024] Open
Abstract
Gastric cancer, the fifth most prevalent cancer worldwide, is often diagnosed in advanced stages with limited treatment options. Examining the tumor microenvironment (TME) and its metabolic reprogramming can provide insights for better diagnosis and treatment. This study investigates the link between TME factors and metabolic activity in gastric cancer using bulk and single-cell RNA-sequencing data. We identified two molecular subtypes in gastric cancer by analyzing the distinct expression patterns of 81 prognostic genes related to the TME and metabolism, which exhibited significant protein-level interactions. The high-risk subtype had increased stromal content, fibroblast and M2 macrophage infiltration, elevated glycosaminoglycans/glycosphingolipids biosynthesis, and fat metabolism, along with advanced clinicopathological features. It also exhibited low mutation rates and microsatellite instability, associating it with the mesenchymal phenotype. In contrast, the low-risk group showed higher tumor content and upregulated protein and sugar metabolism. We identified a 15-gene prognostic signature representing these characteristics, including CPVL, KYNU, CD36, and GPX3, strongly correlated with M2 macrophages, validated through single-cell analysis and an internal cohort. Despite resistance to immunotherapy, the high-risk group showed sensitivity to molecular targeted agents directed at IGF-1R (BMS-754807) and the PI3K-mTOR pathways (AZD8186, AZD8055). We experimentally validated these promising drugs for their inhibitory effects on MKN45 and MKN28 gastric cells. This study unveils the intricate interplay between TME and metabolic pathways in gastric cancer, offering potential for enhanced diagnosis, patient stratification, and personalized treatment. Understanding molecular features in each subtype enriches our comprehension of gastric cancer heterogeneity and potential therapeutic targets.
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Affiliation(s)
- XianTao Lin
- Department of Radiation Oncology, Affiliated Cancer Hospital and Institute of Guangzhou Medical University, Guangzhou, China
| | - Ping Yang
- Department of Radiation Oncology, Affiliated Cancer Hospital and Institute of Guangzhou Medical University, Guangzhou, China
| | - MingKun Wang
- Department of Radiation Oncology, Affiliated Cancer Hospital and Institute of Guangzhou Medical University, Guangzhou, China
| | - Xiuting Huang
- Department of Radiotherapy, The First Affiliated Hospital of Hainan Medical University, Haikou, China
| | - Baiyao Wang
- Department of Radiotherapy, The First Affiliated Hospital of Hainan Medical University, Haikou, China
| | - Chengcong Chen
- Department of Radiotherapy, The First Affiliated Hospital of Hainan Medical University, Haikou, China
| | - Anan Xu
- Department of Radiotherapy, The First Affiliated Hospital of Hainan Medical University, Haikou, China
| | - Jiazuo Cai
- Department of Radiotherapy, The First Affiliated Hospital of Hainan Medical University, Haikou, China
| | - Muhammad Khan
- Department of Radiotherapy, The First Affiliated Hospital of Hainan Medical University, Haikou, China
| | - Sha Liu
- Department of Radiation Oncology, Affiliated Cancer Hospital and Institute of Guangzhou Medical University, Guangzhou, China
| | - Jie Lin
- Department of Radiotherapy, The First Affiliated Hospital of Hainan Medical University, Haikou, China
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Rhodes JD, Goldenring JR, Lee SH. Regulation of metaplasia and dysplasia in the stomach by the stromal microenvironment. Exp Mol Med 2024; 56:1322-1330. [PMID: 38825636 PMCID: PMC11263556 DOI: 10.1038/s12276-024-01240-z] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 11/30/2023] [Revised: 03/03/2024] [Accepted: 03/03/2024] [Indexed: 06/04/2024] Open
Abstract
Research on the microenvironment associated with gastric carcinogenesis has focused on cancers of the stomach and often underestimates premalignant stages such as metaplasia and dysplasia. Since epithelial interactions with T cells, macrophages, and type 2 innate lymphoid cells (ILC2s) are indispensable for the formation of precancerous lesions in the stomach, understanding the cellular interactions that promote gastric precancer warrants further investigation. Although various types of immune cells have been shown to play important roles in gastric carcinogenesis, it remains unclear how stromal cells such as fibroblasts influence epithelial transformation in the stomach, especially during precancerous stages. Fibroblasts exist as distinct populations across tissues and perform different functions depending on the expression patterns of cell surface markers and secreted factors. In this review, we provide an overview of known microenvironmental components in the stroma with an emphasis on fibroblast subpopulations and their roles during carcinogenesis in tissues including breast, pancreas, and stomach. Additionally, we offer insights into potential targets of tumor-promoting fibroblasts and identify open areas of research related to fibroblast plasticity and the modulation of gastric carcinogenesis.
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Affiliation(s)
- Jared D Rhodes
- Program in Cancer Biology, Nashville, TN, USA
- Epithelial Biology Center, Vanderbilt University School of Medicine, Nashville, TN, USA
| | - James R Goldenring
- Program in Cancer Biology, Nashville, TN, USA.
- Epithelial Biology Center, Vanderbilt University School of Medicine, Nashville, TN, USA.
- Section of Surgical Sciences, Nashville, TN, USA.
- Department of Cell and Developmental Biology, Nashville, TN, USA.
- Nashville VA Medical Center, Nashville, TN, USA.
| | - Su-Hyung Lee
- Epithelial Biology Center, Vanderbilt University School of Medicine, Nashville, TN, USA.
- Section of Surgical Sciences, Nashville, TN, USA.
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Lior C, Barki D, Halperin C, Iacobuzio-Donahue CA, Kelsen D, Shouval RS. Mapping the tumor stress network reveals dynamic shifts in the stromal oxidative stress response. Cell Rep 2024; 43:114236. [PMID: 38758650 PMCID: PMC11156623 DOI: 10.1016/j.celrep.2024.114236] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 10/17/2023] [Revised: 04/02/2024] [Accepted: 04/30/2024] [Indexed: 05/19/2024] Open
Abstract
The tumor microenvironment (TME) presents cells with challenges such as variable pH, hypoxia, and free radicals, triggering stress responses that affect cancer progression. In this study, we examine the stress response landscape in four carcinomas-breast, pancreas, ovary, and prostate-across five pathways: heat shock, oxidative stress, hypoxia, DNA damage, and unfolded protein stress. Using a combination of experimental and computational methods, we create an atlas of stress responses across various types of carcinomas. We find that stress responses vary within the TME and are especially active near cancer cells. Focusing on the non-immune stroma we find, across tumor types, that NRF2 and the oxidative stress response are distinctly activated in immune-regulatory cancer-associated fibroblasts and in a unique subset of cancer-associated pericytes. Our study thus provides an interactome of stress responses in cancer, offering ways to intersect survival pathways within the tumor, and advance cancer therapy.
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Affiliation(s)
- Chen Lior
- Department of Biomolecular Sciences, The Weizmann Institute of Science, Rehovot, Israel
| | - Debra Barki
- Department of Biomolecular Sciences, The Weizmann Institute of Science, Rehovot, Israel
| | - Coral Halperin
- Department of Biomolecular Sciences, The Weizmann Institute of Science, Rehovot, Israel
| | - Christine A Iacobuzio-Donahue
- Rubenstein Center for Pancreatic Cancer Research and Department of Pathology, Memorial Sloan Kettering Cancer Center, New York, NY, USA
| | - David Kelsen
- Gastrointestinal Oncology Service, Memorial Sloan Kettering Cancer Center, Weill Cornell Medical College, New York, NY, USA
| | - Ruth Scherz- Shouval
- Department of Biomolecular Sciences, The Weizmann Institute of Science, Rehovot, Israel.
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Dhamdhere MR, Spiegelman VS. Extracellular vesicles in neuroblastoma: role in progression, resistance to therapy and diagnostics. Front Immunol 2024; 15:1385875. [PMID: 38660306 PMCID: PMC11041043 DOI: 10.3389/fimmu.2024.1385875] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 02/13/2024] [Accepted: 03/22/2024] [Indexed: 04/26/2024] Open
Abstract
Neuroblastoma (NB) is the most common extracranial solid pediatric cancer, and is one of the leading causes of cancer-related deaths in children. Despite the current multi-modal treatment regimens, majority of patients with advanced-stage NBs develop therapeutic resistance and relapse, leading to poor disease outcomes. There is a large body of knowledge on pathophysiological role of small extracellular vesicles (EVs) in progression and metastasis of multiple cancer types, however, the importance of EVs in NB was until recently not well understood. Studies emerging in the last few years have demonstrated the involvement of EVs in various aspects of NB pathogenesis. In this review we summarize these recent findings and advances on the role EVs play in NB progression, such as tumor growth, metastasis and therapeutic resistance, that could be helpful for future investigations in NB EV research. We also discuss different strategies for therapeutic targeting of NB-EVs as well as utilization of NB-EVs as potential biomarkers.
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Affiliation(s)
| | - Vladimir S. Spiegelman
- Division of Pediatric Hematology and Oncology, Department of Pediatrics, The Pennsylvania State University College of Medicine, Hershey, PA, United States
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Liu S, Zhang Z, Jiang L, Zhang M, Zhang C, Shen L. Claudin-18.2 mediated interaction of gastric Cancer cells and Cancer-associated fibroblasts drives tumor progression. Cell Commun Signal 2024; 22:27. [PMID: 38200591 PMCID: PMC10777637 DOI: 10.1186/s12964-023-01406-8] [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: 06/29/2023] [Accepted: 11/23/2023] [Indexed: 01/12/2024] Open
Abstract
BACKGROUND Claudin-18.2 (CLDN18.2) has emerged as an alluring therapeutic target against gastrointestinal tumors in recent years. However, a thorough understanding of its regulatory mechanism in gastric cancer remains elusive. METHODS We presented a comprehensive study comprising 185 gastric cancer patients, which included 112 cases with high CLDN18.2 expression and 73 cases with low CLDN18.2 expression as determined by immunohistochemistry. After overdressed CLDN18.2 in AGS and NUGC4 cell lines, we elucidated the functions of CLDN18.2 in connecting gastric cancer cells and cancer-associated fibroblasts (CAFs) through an in vitro adhesion models and in vivo lung colonization models. The molecular mechanism underlying CLDN18.2-mediated interaction between gastric cancer cells and CAFs was identified through RNA sequencing and protein-proximity labeling techniques in vivo. RESULTS In our own cohort, a correlation was observed between high levels of CLDN18.2 expression and advanced cancer stage, poor prognosis, and heightened infiltration of CAFs. We elucidated a pivotal role of CLDN18.2 in mediating adhesion between gastric cancer cells and CAFs, which leads to the adhesion of cancer cells to stroma tissue and facilitates the clustering of cancer cells and CAFs into embolus, enhancing gastric cancer's metastatic progression and the risk of embolic death. Mechanistically, it was discovered that CAFs can activate adhesion and metastasis-related signaling pathways in CLDN18.2-positive gastric cancer cells. Furthermore, using an in vivo protein-proximity labeling approach, we identified S100 calcium binding protein A4 (S100A4) as a distinctive marker of CAFs that interacts with CLDN18.2 to enhance gastric cancer progression. CONCLUSIONS Our findings illuminated the role of the CLDN18.2-mediated interaction between cancer cells and CAFs in promoting gastric cancer progression and embolism, thereby providing insight into potential therapeutic avenues for CLDN18.2 positive cancers. Video Abstract.
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Affiliation(s)
- Shengde Liu
- Key laboratory of Carcinogenesis and Translational Research (Ministry of Education/Beijing), Department of Gastrointestinal Oncology, Peking University Cancer Hospital & Institute, Beijing, 100142, China
| | - Zizhen Zhang
- Key laboratory of Carcinogenesis and Translational Research (Ministry of Education/Beijing), Department of Gastrointestinal Oncology, Peking University Cancer Hospital & Institute, Beijing, 100142, China
| | - Lei Jiang
- Key laboratory of Carcinogenesis and Translational Research (Ministry of Education/Beijing), Department of Gastrointestinal Oncology, Peking University Cancer Hospital & Institute, Beijing, 100142, China
| | - Miao Zhang
- Key laboratory of Carcinogenesis and Translational Research (Ministry of Education/Beijing), Department of Gastrointestinal Oncology, Peking University Cancer Hospital & Institute, Beijing, 100142, China
| | - Cheng Zhang
- Key laboratory of Carcinogenesis and Translational Research (Ministry of Education/Beijing), Department of Gastrointestinal Oncology, Peking University Cancer Hospital & Institute, Beijing, 100142, China.
| | - Lin Shen
- Key laboratory of Carcinogenesis and Translational Research (Ministry of Education/Beijing), Department of Gastrointestinal Oncology, Peking University Cancer Hospital & Institute, Beijing, 100142, China.
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7
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Wang T, Chen P, Li T, Li J, Zhao D, Meng F, Zhao Y, Zheng Z, Liu X. A Five-gene Signature based on MicroRNA for Predicting Prognosis and Immunotherapy in Stomach Adenocarcinoma. Curr Med Chem 2024; 31:2378-2399. [PMID: 38310388 DOI: 10.2174/0109298673281631231127051017] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 09/27/2023] [Revised: 11/10/2023] [Accepted: 11/16/2023] [Indexed: 02/05/2024]
Abstract
AIMS We aimed to classify molecular subtypes and establish a prognostic gene signature based on miRNAs for the prognostic prediction and therapeutic response in Stomach adenocarcinoma (STAD). BACKGROUND STAD is a common diagnosed gastrointestinal malignancy and its heterogeneity is a big challenge that influences prognosis and precision therapies. Present study was designed to classify molecular subtypes and construct a prognostic gene signature based on miRNAs for the prognostic prediction and therapeutic response in STAD. OBJECTIVE The objective of this study is to investigate the molecular subtypes and prognostic model for STAD. METHODS A STAD specific miRNA-messenger RNA (mRNA) competing endogenous RNA (ceRNA) network was generated using the RNA-Seq and miRNA expression profiles from The Cancer Genome Atlas (TCGA) database, in which miRNA-related mRNAs were screened. Molecular subtypes were then determined using miRNA-related genes. Through univariate Cox analysis and multivariate regression analysis, a prognostic model was established in GSE84437 Train dataset and validated in GSE84437 Test, TCGA, GSE84437 and GSE66229 datasets. Immunotherapy datasets were employed for assessing the performance of the risk model. Finally, quantitative reverse transcription-polymerase chain reaction (qRT-PCR) was applied to validate the expression of hub genes used for the risk score signature. RESULTS We constructed a ceRNA network containing 84 miRNAs and 907 mRNAs and determined two molecular subtypes based on 26 genes from the intersection of TCGASTAD and GSE84437 datasets. Subtype S2 had poor prognosis, lower tumor mutational burden, higher immune score and lower response to immunotherapy. Subtype S1 was more sensitive to Sorafenib, Pyrimethamine, Salubrinal, Gemcitabine, Vinorelbine and AKT inhibitor VIII. Next, a five-gene signature was generated and its robustness was validated in Test and external datasets. This risk model also had a good prediction performance in immunotherapy datasets. CONCLUSION This study promotes the underlying mechanisms of miRNA-based genes in STAD and offers directions for classification. A five-gene signature accurately predicts the prognosis and helps therapeutic options.
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Affiliation(s)
- Tianwei Wang
- Department of Radiology, China-Japan Union Hospital of Jilin University, Changchun, 13000, China
| | - Piji Chen
- Department of Clinical Laboratory, Yantian People's Hospital of Southern University of Science and Technology, Shenzhen, 518083, China
| | - Tingting Li
- Department of Oncology, Northern Theater Command General Hospital, Shenyang, 110015, China
| | - Jianong Li
- Department of Oncology, Northern Theater Command General Hospital, Shenyang, 110015, China
| | - Dong Zhao
- Department of Oncology, Northern Theater Command General Hospital, Shenyang, 110015, China
| | - Fanfei Meng
- Department of Translational Medicine, YuceBio Technology Co., Ltd, Shenzhen, 518035, China
| | - Yujie Zhao
- Shenzhen Engineering Center for Translational Medicine of Precision Cancer Immunodiagnosis, YuceBio Technology Co., Ltd, Shenzhen, 518035, China
| | - Zhendong Zheng
- Department of Oncology, Northern Theater Command General Hospital, Shenyang, 110015, China
- People's Hospital of Huzhu Tu Autonomous County, Haidong, Qinghai Province, 810500, China
| | - Xuefei Liu
- Department of Oncology, Northern Theater Command General Hospital, Shenyang, 110015, China
- People's Hospital of Huzhu Tu Autonomous County, Haidong, Qinghai Province, 810500, China
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Kong RJ, Li YM, Huang JQ, Yan N, Wu YY, Cheng H. Self-Delivery Photodynamic Re-educator Enhanced Tumor Treatment by Inducing Immunogenic Cell Death and Improving Immunosuppressive Microenvironments. ACS APPLIED MATERIALS & INTERFACES 2023; 15:59165-59174. [PMID: 38100370 DOI: 10.1021/acsami.3c13188] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 12/17/2023]
Abstract
Immunotherapy is known to be a promising strategy in the clinical treatment of malignant tumors, but it has received generally low response rates in various tumors because of the poor immunogenicity and multiple immunosuppressive microenvironments. A self-delivery photodynamic re-educator, denoted as CCXB, is synthesized through the self-assembly of chlorine e6 (Ce6) and celecoxib (CXB). As a carrier-free nanomedicine, CCXB shows a high drug loading rate, improved water stability, superior cellular uptake, and tumor accumulation capability. In comparison with free Ce6, CCXB triggers much stronger photodynamic therapy (PDT) to reduce the proliferation of breast cancer cells and activates robust immune responses via the induction of immunogenic cell death (ICD). Better yet, CXB-mediated cyclooxygenase 2 (COX-2) inhibition can decrease the level of synthesis of prostaglandin E2 (PGE2) to further improve immunosuppressive microenvironments. With the increase of cytotoxic T lymphocytes (CTLs) and decrease of regulatory T cells (Tregs) in tumor, in vivo antitumor immunity is significantly amplified to inhibit the metastasis of breast cancer. This study sheds light on developing drug codelivery systems with collaborative mechanisms for immunotherapy of metastatic tumors.
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Affiliation(s)
- Ren-Jiang Kong
- School of Biomedical Engineering & Guangdong Provincial Key Laboratory of Construction and Detection in Tissue Engineering, Southern Medical University, Guangzhou 510515, P. R. China
| | - Yan-Mei Li
- School of Biomedical Engineering & Guangdong Provincial Key Laboratory of Construction and Detection in Tissue Engineering, Southern Medical University, Guangzhou 510515, P. R. China
| | - Jia-Qi Huang
- School of Biomedical Engineering & Guangdong Provincial Key Laboratory of Construction and Detection in Tissue Engineering, Southern Medical University, Guangzhou 510515, P. R. China
| | - Ni Yan
- School of Biomedical Engineering & Guangdong Provincial Key Laboratory of Construction and Detection in Tissue Engineering, Southern Medical University, Guangzhou 510515, P. R. China
| | - Ye-Yang Wu
- School of Biomedical Engineering & Guangdong Provincial Key Laboratory of Construction and Detection in Tissue Engineering, Southern Medical University, Guangzhou 510515, P. R. China
| | - Hong Cheng
- School of Biomedical Engineering & Guangdong Provincial Key Laboratory of Construction and Detection in Tissue Engineering, Southern Medical University, Guangzhou 510515, P. R. China
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Zhang D, Sun R, Di C, Li L, Zhao F, Han Y, Zhang W. Microdissection of cancer-associated fibroblast infiltration subtypes unveils the secreted SERPINE2 contributing to immunosuppressive microenvironment and immuotherapeutic resistance in gastric cancer: A large-scale study integrating bulk and single-cell transcriptome profiling. Comput Biol Med 2023; 166:107406. [PMID: 37729702 DOI: 10.1016/j.compbiomed.2023.107406] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 03/14/2023] [Revised: 07/23/2023] [Accepted: 08/26/2023] [Indexed: 09/22/2023]
Abstract
In the era of immunotherapy, the suboptimal response rate and the development of acquired resistance among the initial beneficiaries continue to present significant challenges across multiple malignancies, including gastric cancer (GC). Considering that the interactions of tumor stroma, especially the cancer-associated fibroblasts (CAFs), with immune and tumor cells, play indispensable roles in tumor progression, tumor microenvironment remodeling and therapeutic responsiveness, in-depth exploration on the roles of CAFs and pivotal mediators of their functions may provide novel clues to increase the effectiveness of current immunotherapeutic drugs and further achieve synergistic antitumor response. Herein, through the consensus clustering of canonical biomarkers, three GC subclasses with different abundance of CAFs were virtually microdissected in four integrated bulk cohorts encompassing 2148 GC patients from 11 independent datasets. An extensive immunogenomic analysis revealed that tumors with high CAFs infiltration were characterized with unfavorable outcomes, aggressive phenotypes, decreased tumor immunogenicity, high risk of immune evasion and thus immunotherapeutic resistance. By leveraging large-scale single-cell transcriptomic profiling, a series of CAF-secreted proteins were identified, among which the SERPINE2 was confirmed to be restrictively enriched in stromal fibroblasts of GC tissues and contribute to promoting a protumor milieu and fostering an immunosuppressive microenvironment via bioinformatics computations and tissue microarray analysis. Moreover, pan-cancer investigations generalized the immunological roles of SERPINE2, especially in pan-gastrointestinal malignancies, with multiple real-world immunotherapy cohorts further confirming its implications on predicting immunotherapeutic efficacy. In conclusion, these findings suggest that the CAF-derived SERPINE2 is a promising immune-oncology target with therapeutic implications to further synergize the immunotherapeutic combinations.
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Affiliation(s)
- Dong Zhang
- Department of Breast and Thyroid Surgery, General Surgery, Shandong Provincial Hospital Affiliated to Shandong First Medical University, Jinan, Shandong, 250021, China; Department of Breast and Thyroid Surgery, General Surgery, Shandong Provincial Hospital Affiliated to Shandong University, Cheeloo College of Medicine, Shandong University, Jinan, Shandong, 250021, China; Department of Breast Surgery, General Surgery, Qilu Hospital of Shandong University, Jinan, Shandong, 250012, China; Department of Clinical Medicine, The First Clinical College, Shandong University, Jinan, Shandong, 250012, China.
| | - Rui Sun
- Department of Clinical Medicine, The First Clinical College, Shandong University, Jinan, Shandong, 250012, China; Department of Obstetrics and Gynecology, Qilu Hospital of Shandong University, Jinan, Shandong, 250012, China
| | - Chenyu Di
- Department of Breast Surgery, General Surgery, Qilu Hospital of Shandong University, Jinan, Shandong, 250012, China; Department of Clinical Medicine, The First Clinical College, Shandong University, Jinan, Shandong, 250012, China
| | - Lin Li
- Department of Anesthesiology and Perioperative Medicine, The First Affiliated Hospital of Shandong First Medical University, Jinan, Shandong, 250000, China
| | - Faming Zhao
- Key Laboratory of Environmental Health, Ministry of Education & Ministry of Environmental Protection, School of Public Health, Tongji Medical College, Huazhong University of Science and Technology, Wuhan, 430030, China
| | - Yu Han
- Department of Pathology, Shengli Oilfield Central Hospital, Dongying, Shandong, 257000, China
| | - Wenjie Zhang
- Department of General Surgery, The First Affiliated Hospital of Shandong First Medical University, Jinan, Shandong, 250011, China; Department of General Surgery, Shandong Provincial Qianfoshan Hospital, Shandong University, Jinan, Shandong, 250011, China.
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Xia B, Gu X, Xu T, Yan M, Huang L, Jiang C, Li M, Zhai G, Zhang G, Wu J, Zhou Y, Sun C, Liang W. Exosomes-mediated transfer of LINC00691 regulates the formation of CAFs and promotes the progression of gastric cancer. BMC Cancer 2023; 23:928. [PMID: 37784036 PMCID: PMC10544540 DOI: 10.1186/s12885-023-11373-5] [Citation(s) in RCA: 2] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 03/01/2023] [Accepted: 09/04/2023] [Indexed: 10/04/2023] Open
Abstract
OBJECTIVE Gastric cancer (GC) is one of the malignant tumors with the highest mortality worldwide. Our previous studies have revealed that LINC00691 is up-regulated in serum of GC patients as a novel potential biomarker for GC diagnosis and prognosis. However, the roles of serum exosomal LINC00691 in GC has not been clarified. This study aimed to find the expression pattern of serum exosomal LINC00691 in GC patients and the correlation between the level of serum exosomal LINC00691 and the pathology of gastric cancer patients. METHODS We collected the serum of 94 GC patients before surgery and extracted exosomes to detect the expression level of exosomal LINC00691, with 21 healthy volunteers and 17 patients with benign gastric diseases as controls. Surgical GC tissues and paired healthy tissues were collected to culture primary cancer-associated fibroblasts (CAFs) and normal fibroblasts (NFs). We then treated NFs with LINC00691-rich GC cell culture supernatant or exosomes and detected the activation markers and biological functions of the fibroblasts. RESULTS The results of real-time qPCR indicated that the serum exosomal LINC00691 of GC patients was significantly higher than that of healthy subjects and patients with benign gastric diseases, and was associated with the clinicopathology of GC patients. More interestingly, when the NFs were treated with GC exosomes, the level of LINC00691 was significantly increased, the cell proliferation and migration were noticeably enhanced, and the ability to accelerate GC cell proliferation and invasion was promoted, which means that the induced fibroblasts gained the properties of CAFs. In addition, we found that knockdown of LINC00691 and the use of the JAK2/STAT3 signaling pathway inhibitor ruxolitinib effectively deprived exosome-containing GC cell supernatants of the effects on NFs. CONCLUSION Our study suggested that exosomal LINC00691 promoted NFs to gained the properties of CAFs depending on JAK2/STAT3 signaling pathway as a potential diagnostic biomarker for GC.
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Affiliation(s)
- Bin Xia
- Department of Laboratory Medicine, Suzhou Hospital, Affiliated Hospital of Medical School, Nanjing University, Suzhou, 215153, China
| | - Xiuyu Gu
- Department of Laboratory Medicine, Gusu School, The Affiliated Suzhou Hospital of Nanjing Medical University, Suzhou Municipal Hospital, Nanjing Medical University, Suzhou, 215008, China
| | - Tingting Xu
- Department of Laboratory Medicine, Suzhou Hospital, Affiliated Hospital of Medical School, Nanjing University, Suzhou, 215153, China
| | - Meina Yan
- Department of Laboratory Medicine, Gusu School, The Affiliated Suzhou Hospital of Nanjing Medical University, Suzhou Municipal Hospital, Nanjing Medical University, Suzhou, 215008, China
| | - Lan Huang
- Department of Laboratory Medicine, Gusu School, The Affiliated Suzhou Hospital of Nanjing Medical University, Suzhou Municipal Hospital, Nanjing Medical University, Suzhou, 215008, China
| | - Chun Jiang
- Department of Laboratory Medicine, Gusu School, The Affiliated Suzhou Hospital of Nanjing Medical University, Suzhou Municipal Hospital, Nanjing Medical University, Suzhou, 215008, China
| | - Meifen Li
- Department of Laboratory Medicine, Gusu School, The Affiliated Suzhou Hospital of Nanjing Medical University, Suzhou Municipal Hospital, Nanjing Medical University, Suzhou, 215008, China
| | - Guanghua Zhai
- Department of Laboratory Medicine, Gusu School, The Affiliated Suzhou Hospital of Nanjing Medical University, Suzhou Municipal Hospital, Nanjing Medical University, Suzhou, 215008, China
| | - Guoping Zhang
- Department of Laboratory Medicine, Gusu School, The Affiliated Suzhou Hospital of Nanjing Medical University, Suzhou Municipal Hospital, Nanjing Medical University, Suzhou, 215008, China
| | - Jian Wu
- Department of Laboratory Medicine, Gusu School, The Affiliated Suzhou Hospital of Nanjing Medical University, Suzhou Municipal Hospital, Nanjing Medical University, Suzhou, 215008, China
| | - Yu Zhou
- Department of General Surgery, Gusu School, The Affiliated Suzhou Hospital of Nanjing Medical University, Suzhou Municipal Hospital, Nanjing Medical University, Suzhou, 215008, China.
| | - Chunrong Sun
- Department of General Surgery, Gusu School, The Affiliated Suzhou Hospital of Nanjing Medical University, Suzhou Municipal Hospital, Nanjing Medical University, Suzhou, 215008, China.
| | - Wei Liang
- Department of Laboratory Medicine, Gusu School, The Affiliated Suzhou Hospital of Nanjing Medical University, Suzhou Municipal Hospital, Nanjing Medical University, Suzhou, 215008, China.
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11
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Zhang H, Yue X, Chen Z, Liu C, Wu W, Zhang N, Liu Z, Yang L, Jiang Q, Cheng Q, Luo P, Liu G. Define cancer-associated fibroblasts (CAFs) in the tumor microenvironment: new opportunities in cancer immunotherapy and advances in clinical trials. Mol Cancer 2023; 22:159. [PMID: 37784082 PMCID: PMC10544417 DOI: 10.1186/s12943-023-01860-5] [Citation(s) in RCA: 1] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 06/19/2023] [Accepted: 09/13/2023] [Indexed: 10/04/2023] Open
Abstract
Despite centuries since the discovery and study of cancer, cancer is still a lethal and intractable health issue worldwide. Cancer-associated fibroblasts (CAFs) have gained much attention as a pivotal component of the tumor microenvironment. The versatility and sophisticated mechanisms of CAFs in facilitating cancer progression have been elucidated extensively, including promoting cancer angiogenesis and metastasis, inducing drug resistance, reshaping the extracellular matrix, and developing an immunosuppressive microenvironment. Owing to their robust tumor-promoting function, CAFs are considered a promising target for oncotherapy. However, CAFs are a highly heterogeneous group of cells. Some subpopulations exert an inhibitory role in tumor growth, which implies that CAF-targeting approaches must be more precise and individualized. This review comprehensively summarize the origin, phenotypical, and functional heterogeneity of CAFs. More importantly, we underscore advances in strategies and clinical trials to target CAF in various cancers, and we also summarize progressions of CAF in cancer immunotherapy.
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Affiliation(s)
- Hao Zhang
- Department of Neurosurgery, The Second Affiliated Hospital, Chongqing Medical University, Chongqing, China
| | - Xinghai Yue
- Department of Neurosurgery, The Second Affiliated Hospital, Chongqing Medical University, Chongqing, China
- Department of Urology, The Second Affiliated Hospital, Chongqing Medical University, Chongqing, China
| | - Zhe Chen
- Department of Neurosurgery, The Second Affiliated Hospital, Chongqing Medical University, Chongqing, China
| | - Chao Liu
- Department of Neurosurgery, Central Hospital of Zhuzhou, Zhuzhou, China
| | - Wantao Wu
- Department of Oncology, Xiangya Hospital, Central South University, Changsha, China
| | - Nan Zhang
- College of Life Science and Technology, Huazhong University of Science and Technology, Wuhan, China
| | - Zaoqu Liu
- Department of Interventional Radiology, The First Affiliated Hospital of Zhengzhou University, Zhengzhou, China
| | - Liping Yang
- Department of Laboratory Medicine, The Second Affiliated Hospital, Chongqing Medical University, Chongqing, China
| | - Qing Jiang
- Department of Urology, The Second Affiliated Hospital, Chongqing Medical University, Chongqing, China
| | - Quan Cheng
- Department of Neurosurgery, Xiangya Hospital, Central South University, Changsha, China.
- National Clinical Research Center for Geriatric Disorders, Xiangya Hospital, Central South University, Changsha, China.
| | - Peng Luo
- Department of Neurosurgery, The Second Affiliated Hospital, Chongqing Medical University, Chongqing, China.
- Department of Oncology, Zhujiang Hospital, Southern Medical University, Guangzhou, China.
| | - Guodong Liu
- Department of Neurosurgery, The Second Affiliated Hospital, Chongqing Medical University, Chongqing, China.
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12
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Tan XY, Li YT, Li HH, Ma LX, Zeng CM, Zhang TT, Huang TX, Zhao XD, Fu L. WNT2-SOX4 positive feedback loop promotes chemoresistance and tumorigenesis by inducing stem-cell like properties in gastric cancer. Oncogene 2023; 42:3062-3074. [PMID: 37634009 DOI: 10.1038/s41388-023-02816-1] [Citation(s) in RCA: 5] [Impact Index Per Article: 5.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 11/16/2022] [Revised: 08/14/2023] [Accepted: 08/18/2023] [Indexed: 08/28/2023]
Abstract
Gastric cancer (GC) is characterized by its vigorous chemoresistance to current therapies, which is attributed to the highly heterogeneous and immature phenotype of cancer stem cells (CSCs) during tumor initiation and progression. The secretory WNT2 ligand regulates multiple cancer pathways and has been demonstrated to be a potential therapeutic target for gastrointestinal tumors; however, its role involved in gastric CSCs (GCSCs) remains unclear. Here, we found that overexpression of WNT2 enhanced stemness properties to promote chemoresistance and tumorigenicity in GCSCs. Mechanistically, WNT2 was positively regulated by its transcription factor SOX4, and in turn, SOX4 was upregulated by the canonical WNT2/FZD8/β-catenin signaling pathway to form an auto-regulatory positive feedback loop, resulting in the maintenance of GCSCs self-renewal and tumorigenicity. Furthermore, simultaneous overexpression of both WNT2 and SOX4 was correlated with poor survival and reduced responsiveness to chemotherapy in clinical GC specimens. Blocking WNT2 using a specific monoclonal antibody significantly disrupted the WNT2-SOX4 positive feedback loop in GCSCs and enhanced the chemotherapeutic efficacy when synergized with the chemo-drugs 5-fluorouracil and oxaliplatin in a GCSC-derived mouse xenograft model. Overall, this study identified a novel WNT2-SOX4 positive feedback loop as a mechanism for GCSCs-induced chemo-drugs resistance and suggested that the WNT2-SOX4 axis may be a potential therapeutic target for gastric cancer treatment.
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Affiliation(s)
- Xiang-Yu Tan
- Guangdong Province Key Laboratory of Regional Immunity and Diseases, Department of Pharmacology and International Cancer Center, Shenzhen University Medical School, Shenzhen University, Shenzhen, 518055, Guangdong, China
| | - Yu-Ting Li
- Guangdong Province Key Laboratory of Regional Immunity and Diseases, Department of Pharmacology and International Cancer Center, Shenzhen University Medical School, Shenzhen University, Shenzhen, 518055, Guangdong, China
- Shenzhen University-Friedrich Schiller Universität Jena Joint PhD Program in Biomedical Sciences, Shenzhen University Medical School, Shenzhen University, Shenzhen, 518055, Guangdong, China
| | - Hua-Hui Li
- Guangdong Province Key Laboratory of Regional Immunity and Diseases, Department of Pharmacology and International Cancer Center, Shenzhen University Medical School, Shenzhen University, Shenzhen, 518055, Guangdong, China
- Shenzhen University-Friedrich Schiller Universität Jena Joint PhD Program in Biomedical Sciences, Shenzhen University Medical School, Shenzhen University, Shenzhen, 518055, Guangdong, China
| | - Li-Xiang Ma
- Guangdong Province Key Laboratory of Regional Immunity and Diseases, Department of Pharmacology and International Cancer Center, Shenzhen University Medical School, Shenzhen University, Shenzhen, 518055, Guangdong, China
| | - Chui-Mian Zeng
- Department of Endocrinology and Diabetes Center, The First Affiliated Hospital of Sun Yat-sen University, Guangzhou, 510080, Guangdong, China
| | - Tian-Tian Zhang
- Guangdong Province Key Laboratory of Regional Immunity and Diseases, Department of Pharmacology and International Cancer Center, Shenzhen University Medical School, Shenzhen University, Shenzhen, 518055, Guangdong, China
| | - Tu-Xiong Huang
- Guangdong Province Key Laboratory of Regional Immunity and Diseases, Department of Pharmacology and International Cancer Center, Shenzhen University Medical School, Shenzhen University, Shenzhen, 518055, Guangdong, China
| | - Xiao-Di Zhao
- Xijing Hospital of Digestive Diseases, Fourth Military Medical University, Xi'an, 710032, Shaanxi, China
| | - Li Fu
- Guangdong Province Key Laboratory of Regional Immunity and Diseases, Department of Pharmacology and International Cancer Center, Shenzhen University Medical School, Shenzhen University, Shenzhen, 518055, Guangdong, China.
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13
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Jia D, Huan Z, Han J, Xu C, Sui L, Ge X. HSF1 enhances the attenuation of exosomes from mesenchymal stem cells to hemorrhagic shock induced lung injury by altering the protein profile of exosomes. Int Immunopharmacol 2023; 123:110693. [PMID: 37506505 DOI: 10.1016/j.intimp.2023.110693] [Citation(s) in RCA: 1] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 04/09/2023] [Revised: 07/18/2023] [Accepted: 07/19/2023] [Indexed: 07/30/2023]
Abstract
Severe hemorrhagic shock (HS) leads to lung injury, resulting in respiratory insufficiency. Mesenchymal stem cell (MSC)-derived exosomes have therapeutic effects on the organ injury. HSF1 has been reported to protect the lung against injury. In this study, the role of exosomes from HSF1-overexpressed MSCs (HSF1-EVs) in HS-induced lung injury was investigated. We constructed a mouse model of lung injury by induction with HS and pre-treated it with HSF1-EVs. It was clarified that HSF1-EVs manifested better protective effects on HS-induced lung injury compared with the exosomes derived from control MSCs. Inhalation of HSF1-EVs declined the ratio of wet to dry and total protein concentration in bronchoalveolar lavage fluids. Besides, HSF1-EVs greatly inhibited the production of inflammatory cytokines (IL-1β, IL-6, MCP-1 and HMGB1), and constrained the pulmonary neutrophilic infiltration induced by HS. A reduction of oxidative stress was observed in HSF1-EV-treated mice. HSF1-EVs suppressed the HS-induced apoptosis of lung cell and downregulated Bcl-2 expression, while promoting Bax expression. The key proteins of pulmonary epithelial barrier, E-cadherin, ZO-1 and Occludin, were all upregulated in HS-treated mice after HSF1-EV inhalation, suggesting that HSF1-EVs played a protective role in the epithelial barrier of lung. Additionally, the results of proteomics showed that HSF1 overexpression altered the protein profile of MSC-derived exosomes, which might explain the more significant relief effect of HSF1-EVs on lung injury compared with that of Plasmid-EVs. These new findings demonstrated that the exosomes secreted by HSF1-overexpressed MSCs can be an effective precautionary measure for lung injury induced by HS.
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Affiliation(s)
- Di Jia
- Department of Critical Care Medicine, Wuxi 9th People's Hospital Affiliated to Soochow University, Wuxi, Jiangsu 214000, People's Republic of China
| | - Zhirong Huan
- Department of Critical Care Medicine, Wuxi 9th People's Hospital Affiliated to Soochow University, Wuxi, Jiangsu 214000, People's Republic of China
| | - Jiahui Han
- Department of Critical Care Medicine, Wuxi 9th People's Hospital Affiliated to Soochow University, Wuxi, Jiangsu 214000, People's Republic of China
| | - Ce Xu
- Department of Critical Care Medicine, Wuxi 9th People's Hospital Affiliated to Soochow University, Wuxi, Jiangsu 214000, People's Republic of China
| | - Lijun Sui
- Department of Cardiology, Wuxi 9th People's Hospital Affiliated to Soochow University, Wuxi, Jiangsu 214000, People's Republic of China.
| | - Xin Ge
- Department of Critical Care Medicine, Wuxi 9th People's Hospital Affiliated to Soochow University, Wuxi, Jiangsu 214000, People's Republic of China; Orthopedic Institution of Wuxi City, Wuxi, Jiangsu 214000, People's Republic of China.
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14
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Ren Y, Wang R, Weng S, Xu H, Zhang Y, Chen S, Liu S, Ba Y, Zhou Z, Luo P, Cheng Q, Dang Q, Liu Z, Han X. Multifaceted role of redox pattern in the tumor immune microenvironment regarding autophagy and apoptosis. Mol Cancer 2023; 22:130. [PMID: 37563639 PMCID: PMC10413697 DOI: 10.1186/s12943-023-01831-w] [Citation(s) in RCA: 2] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 05/29/2023] [Accepted: 07/26/2023] [Indexed: 08/12/2023] Open
Abstract
The reversible oxidation-reduction homeostasis mechanism functions as a specific signal transduction system, eliciting related physiological responses. Disruptions to redox homeostasis can have negative consequences, including the potential for cancer development and progression, which are closely linked to a series of redox processes, such as adjustment of reactive oxygen species (ROS) levels and species, changes in antioxidant capacity, and differential effects of ROS on downstream cell fate and immune capacity. The tumor microenvironment (TME) exhibits a complex interplay between immunity and regulatory cell death, especially autophagy and apoptosis, which is crucially regulated by ROS. The present study aims to investigate the mechanism by which multi-source ROS affects apoptosis, autophagy, and the anti-tumor immune response in the TME and the mutual crosstalk between these three processes. Given the intricate role of ROS in controlling cell fate and immunity, we will further examine the relationship between traditional cancer therapy and ROS. It is worth noting that we will discuss some potential ROS-related treatment options for further future studies.
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Affiliation(s)
- Yuqing Ren
- Department of Interventional Radiology, The First Affiliated Hospital of Zhengzhou University, Zhengzhou, 450052, Henan, China
- Department of Respiratory and Critical Care Medicine, The First Affiliated Hospital of Zhengzhou University, Zhengzhou, 450052, Henan, China
| | - Ruizhi Wang
- Department of Interventional Radiology, The First Affiliated Hospital of Zhengzhou University, Zhengzhou, 450052, Henan, China
| | - Siyuan Weng
- Department of Interventional Radiology, The First Affiliated Hospital of Zhengzhou University, Zhengzhou, 450052, Henan, China
| | - Hui Xu
- Department of Interventional Radiology, The First Affiliated Hospital of Zhengzhou University, Zhengzhou, 450052, Henan, China
| | - Yuyuan Zhang
- Department of Interventional Radiology, The First Affiliated Hospital of Zhengzhou University, Zhengzhou, 450052, Henan, China
| | - Shuang Chen
- Center of Reproductive Medicine, The First Affiliated Hospital of Zhengzhou University, Zhengzhou, Henan, 450052, China
| | - Shutong Liu
- Department of Interventional Radiology, The First Affiliated Hospital of Zhengzhou University, Zhengzhou, 450052, Henan, China
| | - Yuhao Ba
- Department of Interventional Radiology, The First Affiliated Hospital of Zhengzhou University, Zhengzhou, 450052, Henan, China
| | - Zhaokai Zhou
- Department of Pediatric Urology, The First Affiliated Hospital of Zhengzhou University, Zhengzhou, 450052, Henan, China
| | - Peng Luo
- Department of Oncology, Zhujiang Hospital, Southern Medical University, Guangzhou, Guangdong, 510282, China
| | - Quan Cheng
- Department of Neurosurgery, Xiangya Hospital, Central South University, Changsha, Hunan, 410008, China
| | - Qin Dang
- Department of Colorectal Surgery, The First Affiliated Hospital of Zhengzhou University, Zhengzhou, 450052, Henan, China
| | - Zaoqu Liu
- Department of Interventional Radiology, The First Affiliated Hospital of Zhengzhou University, Zhengzhou, 450052, Henan, China.
| | - Xinwei Han
- Department of Interventional Radiology, The First Affiliated Hospital of Zhengzhou University, Zhengzhou, 450052, Henan, China.
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15
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Huang J, Tsang WY, Li ZH, Guan XY. The Origin, Differentiation, and Functions of Cancer-Associated Fibroblasts in Gastrointestinal Cancer. Cell Mol Gastroenterol Hepatol 2023; 16:503-511. [PMID: 37451403 PMCID: PMC10462789 DOI: 10.1016/j.jcmgh.2023.07.001] [Citation(s) in RCA: 7] [Impact Index Per Article: 7.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Submit a Manuscript] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 02/22/2023] [Revised: 07/06/2023] [Accepted: 07/06/2023] [Indexed: 07/18/2023]
Abstract
Emerging evidence has shown the importance of the tumor microenvironment in tumorigenesis and progression. Cancer-associated fibroblasts (CAFs) are one of the most infiltrated stroma cells of the tumor microenvironment in gastrointestinal tumors. CAFs play crucial roles in tumor development and therapeutic response by biologically secreting soluble factors or structurally remodeling the extracellular matrix. Conceivably, CAFs may become excellent targets for tumor prevention and treatment. However, the limited knowledge of the heterogeneity of CAFs represents a huge challenge for clinically targeting CAFs. In this review, we summarize the newest understanding of gastrointestinal CAFs, with a special focus on their origin, differentiation, and function. We also discuss the current understanding of CAF subpopulations as shown by single-cell technologies.
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Affiliation(s)
- Jiao Huang
- Department of Clinical Oncology, Li Ka Shing Faculty of Medicine, The University of Hong Kong, Hong Kong, China; State Key Laboratory for Liver Research, Li Ka Shing Faculty of Medicine, The University of Hong Kong, Hong Kong, China
| | - Wai-Ying Tsang
- Department of Clinical Oncology, Li Ka Shing Faculty of Medicine, The University of Hong Kong, Hong Kong, China
| | - Zhi-Hong Li
- Department of Clinical Oncology, Li Ka Shing Faculty of Medicine, The University of Hong Kong, Hong Kong, China
| | - Xin-Yuan Guan
- Department of Clinical Oncology, Li Ka Shing Faculty of Medicine, The University of Hong Kong, Hong Kong, China; State Key Laboratory for Liver Research, Li Ka Shing Faculty of Medicine, The University of Hong Kong, Hong Kong, China; Department of Clinical Oncology, The University of Hong Kong, Shenzhen Hospital, Shenzhen, China; Advanced Energy Science and Technology Guangdong Laboratory, Huizhou, China.
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16
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He JZ, Chen Y, Zeng FM, Huang QF, Zhang HF, Wang SH, Yu SX, Pang XX, Liu Y, Xu XE, Wu JY, Shen WJ, Li ZY, Li EM, Xu LY. Spatial analysis of stromal signatures identifies invasive front carcinoma-associated fibroblasts as suppressors of anti-tumor immune response in esophageal cancer. J Exp Clin Cancer Res 2023; 42:136. [PMID: 37254126 DOI: 10.1186/s13046-023-02697-y] [Citation(s) in RCA: 1] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Grants] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 01/12/2023] [Accepted: 05/03/2023] [Indexed: 06/01/2023] Open
Abstract
BACKGROUND Increasing evidence indicates that the tumor microenvironment (TME) is a crucial determinant of cancer progression. However, the clinical and pathobiological significance of stromal signatures in the TME, as a complex dynamic entity, is still unclear in esophageal squamous cell carcinoma (ESCC). METHODS Herein, we used single-cell transcriptome sequencing data, imaging mass cytometry (IMC) and multiplex immunofluorescence staining to characterize the stromal signatures in ESCC and evaluate their prognostic values in this aggressive disease. An automated quantitative pathology imaging system determined the locations of the lamina propria, stroma, and invasive front. Subsequently, IMC spatial analyses further uncovered spatial interaction and distribution. Additionally, bioinformatics analysis was performed to explore the TME remodeling mechanism in ESCC. To define a new molecular prognostic model, we calculated the risk score of each patient based on their TME signatures and pTNM stages. RESULTS We demonstrate that the presence of fibroblasts at the tumor invasive front was associated with the invasive depth and poor prognosis. Furthermore, the amount of α-smooth muscle actin (α-SMA)+ fibroblasts at the tumor invasive front positively correlated with the number of macrophages (MØs), but negatively correlated with that of tumor-infiltrating granzyme B+ immune cells, and CD4+ and CD8+ T cells. Spatial analyses uncovered a significant spatial interaction between α-SMA+ fibroblasts and CD163+ MØs in the TME, which resulted in spatially exclusive interactions to anti-tumor immune cells. We further validated the laminin and collagen signaling network contributions to TME remodeling. Moreover, compared with pTNM staging, a molecular prognostic model, based on expression of α-SMA+ fibroblasts at the invasive front, and CD163+ MØs, showed higher accuracy in predicting survival or recurrence in ESCC patients. Regression analysis confirmed this model is an independent predictor for survival, which also identifies a high-risk group of ESCC patients that can benefit from adjuvant therapy. CONCLUSIONS Our newly defined biomarker signature may serve as a complement for current clinical risk stratification approaches and provide potential therapeutic targets for reversing the fibroblast-mediated immunosuppressive microenvironment.
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Affiliation(s)
- Jian-Zhong He
- Guangdong Provincial Key Laboratory of Infectious Diseases and Molecular Immunopathology, Institute of Oncologic Pathology, Shantou University Medical College, Shantou, 515041, Guangdong, People's Republic of China
- Department of Pathology, The Fifth Affiliated Hospital, Sun Yat-Sen University, Zhuhai, 519000, Guangdong Province, People's Republic of China
| | - Yang Chen
- Guangdong Provincial Key Laboratory of Infectious Diseases and Molecular Immunopathology, Institute of Oncologic Pathology, Shantou University Medical College, Shantou, 515041, Guangdong, People's Republic of China
- Department of Pathology, First People's Hospital of Yunnan Province, Kunming, 650032, Yunnan Province, China
| | - Fa-Min Zeng
- Department of Pathology, The Fifth Affiliated Hospital, Sun Yat-Sen University, Zhuhai, 519000, Guangdong Province, People's Republic of China
| | - Qing-Feng Huang
- Guangdong Provincial Key Laboratory of Infectious Diseases and Molecular Immunopathology, Institute of Oncologic Pathology, Shantou University Medical College, Shantou, 515041, Guangdong, People's Republic of China
- Cancer Research Center, Shantou University Medical College, Shantou, 515041, Guangdong, People's Republic of China
| | - Hai-Feng Zhang
- Department of Pathology and Laboratory Medicine, University of British Columbia, Vancouver, British Columbia, V5Z 1L3, Canada
| | - Shao-Hong Wang
- Departments of Pathology, Shantou Central Hospital, Shantou, 515041, Guangdong, People's Republic of China
| | - Shuai-Xia Yu
- Guangdong Provincial Key Laboratory of Infectious Diseases and Molecular Immunopathology, Institute of Oncologic Pathology, Shantou University Medical College, Shantou, 515041, Guangdong, People's Republic of China
- Department of Pathology, Sichuan Academy of Medical Sciences and Sichuan Provincial People's Hospital, Chinese Academy of Sciences Sichuan Translational Medicine Research Hospital, Chengdu, 610072, China
| | - Xiao-Xiao Pang
- Guangdong Provincial Key Laboratory of Infectious Diseases and Molecular Immunopathology, Institute of Oncologic Pathology, Shantou University Medical College, Shantou, 515041, Guangdong, People's Republic of China
- Cancer Research Center, Shantou University Medical College, Shantou, 515041, Guangdong, People's Republic of China
| | - Ye Liu
- Department of Pathology, The Fifth Affiliated Hospital, Sun Yat-Sen University, Zhuhai, 519000, Guangdong Province, People's Republic of China
| | - Xiu-E Xu
- Guangdong Provincial Key Laboratory of Infectious Diseases and Molecular Immunopathology, Institute of Oncologic Pathology, Shantou University Medical College, Shantou, 515041, Guangdong, People's Republic of China
- Cancer Research Center, Shantou University Medical College, Shantou, 515041, Guangdong, People's Republic of China
| | - Jian-Yi Wu
- Guangdong Provincial Key Laboratory of Infectious Diseases and Molecular Immunopathology, Institute of Oncologic Pathology, Shantou University Medical College, Shantou, 515041, Guangdong, People's Republic of China
- Key Laboratory of Molecular Biology for High Cancer Incidence Coastal Chaoshan Area, Department of Biochemistry and Molecular Biology, Shantou University Medical College, Shantou, 515041, Guangdong, People's Republic of China
| | - Wen-Jun Shen
- Guangdong Provincial Key Laboratory of Infectious Diseases and Molecular Immunopathology, Institute of Oncologic Pathology, Shantou University Medical College, Shantou, 515041, Guangdong, People's Republic of China.
- Department of Bioinformatics, Shantou University Medical College, Shantou, 515041, Guangdong, People's Republic of China.
| | - Zhan-Yu Li
- Department of Pathology, The Fifth Affiliated Hospital, Sun Yat-Sen University, Zhuhai, 519000, Guangdong Province, People's Republic of China.
| | - En-Min Li
- Guangdong Provincial Key Laboratory of Infectious Diseases and Molecular Immunopathology, Institute of Oncologic Pathology, Shantou University Medical College, Shantou, 515041, Guangdong, People's Republic of China.
- Key Laboratory of Molecular Biology for High Cancer Incidence Coastal Chaoshan Area, Department of Biochemistry and Molecular Biology, Shantou University Medical College, Shantou, 515041, Guangdong, People's Republic of China.
| | - Li-Yan Xu
- Guangdong Provincial Key Laboratory of Infectious Diseases and Molecular Immunopathology, Institute of Oncologic Pathology, Shantou University Medical College, Shantou, 515041, Guangdong, People's Republic of China.
- Cancer Research Center, Shantou University Medical College, Shantou, 515041, Guangdong, People's Republic of China.
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17
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Mercanti L, Sindaco M, Mazzone M, Di Marcantonio MC, Piscione M, Muraro R, Mincione G. PDAC, the Influencer Cancer: Cross-Talk with Tumor Microenvironment and Connected Potential Therapy Strategies. Cancers (Basel) 2023; 15:cancers15112923. [PMID: 37296886 DOI: 10.3390/cancers15112923] [Citation(s) in RCA: 8] [Impact Index Per Article: 8.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 04/08/2023] [Revised: 05/18/2023] [Accepted: 05/24/2023] [Indexed: 06/12/2023] Open
Abstract
Pancreatic ductal adenocarcinoma (PDAC) is among the leading causes of death by cancer in the world. What makes this pathological condition particularly lethal is a combination of clinical and molecular heterogeneity, lack of early diagnostic indexes, and underwhelming results from current therapeutic protocols. A major cause of PDAC chemoresistance seems to lie in the ability of cancer cells to spread out and fill the pancreatic parenchyma, exchanging nutrients, substrates, and even genetic material with cells from the surrounding tumor microenvironment (TME). Several components can be found in the TME ultrastructure, including collagen fibers, cancer-associated fibroblasts, macrophages, neutrophils, mast cells, and lymphocytes. Cross-talk between PDAC and TME cells results in the latter being converted into cancer-favoring phenotypes; this behavior could be compared to an influencer guiding followers into supporting his activity. Moreover, TME could be a potential target for some of the newest therapeutic strategies; these include the use of pegvorhyaluronidase-α and CAR-T lymphocytes against HER2, FAP, CEA, MLSN, PSCA, and CD133. Other experimental therapy options are being currently studied, aiming to interfere with the KRAS pathway, DNA-repairing proteins, and apoptosis resistance in PDAC cells. Hopefully these new approaches will grant better clinical outcomes in future patients.
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Affiliation(s)
- Leonardo Mercanti
- Department of Innovative Technologies in Medicine & Dentistry, University "G. d'Annunzio" of Chieti-Pescara, 66100 Chieti, Italy
| | - Maria Sindaco
- Department of Innovative Technologies in Medicine & Dentistry, University "G. d'Annunzio" of Chieti-Pescara, 66100 Chieti, Italy
| | - Mariangela Mazzone
- Department of Innovative Technologies in Medicine & Dentistry, University "G. d'Annunzio" of Chieti-Pescara, 66100 Chieti, Italy
| | - Maria Carmela Di Marcantonio
- Department of Innovative Technologies in Medicine & Dentistry, University "G. d'Annunzio" of Chieti-Pescara, 66100 Chieti, Italy
| | | | - Raffaella Muraro
- Department of Innovative Technologies in Medicine & Dentistry, University "G. d'Annunzio" of Chieti-Pescara, 66100 Chieti, Italy
| | - Gabriella Mincione
- Department of Innovative Technologies in Medicine & Dentistry, University "G. d'Annunzio" of Chieti-Pescara, 66100 Chieti, Italy
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18
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Tian Y, Chen X, Wang X, Song Y. Podoplanin promotes the carcinogenicity of gastric cancer by activating ezrin and mediating the crosstalk between tumour cells and cancer-associated fibroblasts. Exp Physiol 2023; 108:740-751. [PMID: 36156321 PMCID: PMC10988511 DOI: 10.1113/ep090172] [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: 11/09/2021] [Accepted: 09/20/2022] [Indexed: 11/08/2022]
Abstract
NEW FINDINGS What is the central question of this study? To reveal the role and biological mechanism of PDPN in the progression of gastric cancer. What is the main finding and its importance? This study focused on a prognostic predictor, PDPN, which acted as a promoter in the progression of gastric cancer through the activation of Ezrin expression and CAFs. This finding may expand a new route for the gene-targeted therapy in gastric cancer. ABSTRACT Gastric cancer (GC) is a frequent malignant disease and the main cause of cancer-related death in the world. Podoplanin (PDPN) has been proved to be involved in the progression of various cancers. However, the role and biological mechanism of PDPN in GC are still vague. In our study, we detected the expression of PDPN in GC tissues and cell lines using RT-qPCR, western blot and datasets. The overall survival of GC patients was analysed with a Kaplan-Meier plot. The effects of PDPN overexpression and silencing on GC cell progression were assessed by Cell Counting Kit-8, flow cytometry and a wound healing assay. Besides, the modulation of PDPN on ezrin activation was investigated. We further explored the role of PDPN in the crosstalk between GC cells and cancer associated fibroblasts (CAFs). Results showed that PDPN was upregulated in GC tissues and cell lines. High expression of PDPN was correlated with poor prognosis of GC patients. PDPN positively regulated the viability, migration and invasion, but inhibited apoptosis, of GC cells by mediating the activation of ezrin. Meanwhile, the change in PDPN in GC cells activated CAFs and promoted the production of cytokines secreted by CAFs, which induced the progression of GC cells. These findings may provide a novel target for GC therapy.
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Affiliation(s)
- Yueli Tian
- Gastroenteric Medicine and Digestive Endoscopy CenterThe Second Hospital of Jilin UniversityChangchunJilinChina
| | - Xin Chen
- Gastroenteric Medicine and Digestive Endoscopy CenterThe Second Hospital of Jilin UniversityChangchunJilinChina
| | - Xiaodong Wang
- Gastroenteric Medicine and Digestive Endoscopy CenterThe Second Hospital of Jilin UniversityChangchunJilinChina
| | - Ying Song
- Gastroenteric Medicine and Digestive Endoscopy CenterThe Second Hospital of Jilin UniversityChangchunJilinChina
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19
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Arpinati L, Scherz-Shouval R. From gatekeepers to providers: regulation of immune functions by cancer-associated fibroblasts. Trends Cancer 2023; 9:421-443. [PMID: 36870916 DOI: 10.1016/j.trecan.2023.01.007] [Citation(s) in RCA: 16] [Impact Index Per Article: 16.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 12/19/2022] [Revised: 01/25/2023] [Accepted: 01/31/2023] [Indexed: 03/06/2023]
Abstract
Cancer-associated fibroblasts (CAFs) are major protumorigenic components of the tumor microenvironment in solid cancers. CAFs are heterogeneous, consisting of multiple subsets that display diverse functions. Recently, CAFs have emerged as major promoters of immune evasion. CAFs favor T cell exclusion and exhaustion, promote recruitment of myeloid-derived suppressor cells, and induce protumoral phenotypic shifts in macrophages and neutrophils. With the growing appreciation of CAF heterogeneity came the understanding that different CAF subpopulations may be driving distinct immune-regulatory effects, interacting with different cell types, and perhaps even driving opposing effects on malignancy. In this review we discuss the current understanding of CAF-immune interactions, their effect on tumor progression and therapeutic response, and the possibility of exploiting CAF-immune interactions as potential targets for cancer therapy.
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Affiliation(s)
- Ludovica Arpinati
- Department of Biomolecular Sciences, The Weizmann Institute of Science, Rehovot, Israel
| | - Ruth Scherz-Shouval
- Department of Biomolecular Sciences, The Weizmann Institute of Science, Rehovot, Israel.
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20
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Chin Y, Gumilar KE, Li XG, Tjokroprawiro BA, Lu CH, Lu J, Zhou M, Sobol RW, Tan M. Targeting HSF1 for cancer treatment: mechanisms and inhibitor development. Theranostics 2023; 13:2281-2300. [PMID: 37153737 PMCID: PMC10157728 DOI: 10.7150/thno.82431] [Citation(s) in RCA: 8] [Impact Index Per Article: 8.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 01/06/2023] [Accepted: 04/06/2023] [Indexed: 05/10/2023] Open
Abstract
Heat Shock Factor 1 (HSF1) is a master regulator of heat shock responsive signaling. In addition to playing critical roles in cellular heat shock response, emerging evidence suggests that HSF1 also regulates a non-heat shock responsive transcriptional network to handle metabolic, chemical, and genetic stress. The function of HSF1 in cellular transformation and cancer development has been extensively studied in recent years. Due to important roles for HSF1 for coping with various stressful cellular states, research on HSF1 has been very active. New functions and molecular mechanisms underlying these functions have been continuously discovered, providing new targets for novel cancer treatment strategies. In this article, we review the essential roles and mechanisms of HSF1 action in cancer cells, focusing more on recently discovered functions and their underlying mechanisms to reflect the new advances in cancer biology. In addition, we emphasize new advances with regard to HSF1 inhibitors for cancer drug development.
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Affiliation(s)
- Yeh Chin
- Graduate Institute of Biomedical Sciences and Research Center for Cancer Biology, China Medical University, Taichung, Taiwan, R.O.C
| | - Khanisyah E Gumilar
- Graduate Institute of Biomedical Sciences and Research Center for Cancer Biology, China Medical University, Taichung, Taiwan, R.O.C
- The Department of Obstetrics and Gynecology, Medical Faculty, Universitas Airlangga, Surabaya, Indonesia
| | - Xing-Guo Li
- Graduate Institute of Biomedical Sciences and Research Center for Cancer Biology, China Medical University, Taichung, Taiwan, R.O.C
- Institute of Biochemistry & Molecular Biology, China Medical University, Taichung, Taiwan, R.O.C
| | - Brahmana A. Tjokroprawiro
- The Department of Obstetrics and Gynecology, Medical Faculty, Universitas Airlangga, Surabaya, Indonesia
| | - Chien-Hsing Lu
- Department of Gynecology and Obstetrics, Taichung Veterans General Hospital, Taichung, Taiwan, R.O.C
| | - Jianrong Lu
- Department of Biochemistry and Molecular Biology, College of Medicine, University of Florida, Gainesville, USA
| | - Ming Zhou
- Cancer Research Institute and School of Basic Medical Sciences, Central South University, Changsha, China
| | - Robert W. Sobol
- Department of Pathology and Laboratory Medicine, Warren Alpert Medical School & Legorreta Cancer Center, Brown University, Providence, USA
| | - Ming Tan
- Graduate Institute of Biomedical Sciences and Research Center for Cancer Biology, China Medical University, Taichung, Taiwan, R.O.C
- Institute of Biochemistry & Molecular Biology, China Medical University, Taichung, Taiwan, R.O.C
- ✉ Corresponding author: Ming Tan, Institute of Biochemistry and Molecular Biology, China Medical University (Taiwan), E-mail:
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21
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Tao G, Jiao C, Wang Y, Zhou Q. Comprehensive analysis of hypoxia-related genes for prognosis, immune features, and drugs treatment strategy in gastric cancer using bulk and single-cell RNA-sequencing. Sci Rep 2022; 12:21739. [PMID: 36526698 PMCID: PMC9758178 DOI: 10.1038/s41598-022-26395-5] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 05/25/2022] [Accepted: 12/14/2022] [Indexed: 12/23/2022] Open
Abstract
Hypoxia is one of the malignant characteristics of solid tumors and is related to the multiple malignant characteristics of the tumor. No study has not yet reported a systematical analysis of the characteristics of hypoxia from single-cell resolution in gastric cancer. In our research, we investigated the hypoxia features of various types of cells in single-cell resolution, identified hypoxia-related genes by the weighted gene co-expression network analysis method. Through the hypoxia-related genes from single-cell levels, we screened out 13 genes and established a prognostic model. This model performs well in the training dataset and multiple independent verification data sets. We thought that tumor hypoxia might affect the DNA methylation of cells and promote the transcription of genes associated with malignant features, thereby promoting tumor progression. We found that the more tumor associated genes in the high-risk group showed hypomethylation and high hypoxia-risk score group have more tumor-related genes, more immunosuppressive immune cells and more enrichment of cancer -related pathways. The lower risk group is more sensitive to three chemotherapy drugs for gastric cancer. Our study illustrates the crucial role of hypoxia in gastric cancer. Hypoxia-related gene prognostic model has been established and has good performance. Hypoxia-related risk score can also be used to guide a patient's drug treatment strategy.
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Affiliation(s)
- Guoqiang Tao
- grid.459502.fDepartment of General Surgery, Shanghai Punan Hospital, NO. 279 Linyi Road, Pudong New District, Shanghai, China
| | - Chengwen Jiao
- grid.459502.fDepartment of General Surgery, Shanghai Punan Hospital, NO. 279 Linyi Road, Pudong New District, Shanghai, China
| | - Yong Wang
- grid.459502.fDepartment of General Surgery, Shanghai Punan Hospital, NO. 279 Linyi Road, Pudong New District, Shanghai, China
| | - Qi Zhou
- grid.459502.fDepartment of General Surgery, Shanghai Punan Hospital, NO. 279 Linyi Road, Pudong New District, Shanghai, China
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22
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Diao FY. The Most Comprehensive Study at Single-Cell Resolution: A Giant Step toward Understanding Gastric Cancer. Glob Med Genet 2022; 9:265-267. [DOI: 10.1055/s-0042-1758763] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 12/13/2022] Open
Affiliation(s)
- Fei-Yu Diao
- Department of General Surgery, Sun Yat-sen Memorial Hospital, Sun Yat-sen University, Guangzhou, People's Republic of China
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23
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Roos-Mattjus P, Sistonen L. Interplay between mammalian heat shock factors 1 and 2 in physiology and pathology. FEBS J 2022; 289:7710-7725. [PMID: 34478606 DOI: 10.1111/febs.16178] [Citation(s) in RCA: 8] [Impact Index Per Article: 4.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 06/18/2021] [Revised: 08/17/2021] [Accepted: 09/02/2021] [Indexed: 01/14/2023]
Abstract
The heat-shock factors (HSFs) belong to an evolutionary conserved family of transcription factors that were discovered already over 30 years ago. The HSFs have been shown to a have a broad repertoire of target genes, and they also have crucial functions during normal development. Importantly, HSFs have been linked to several disease states, such as neurodegenerative disorders and cancer, highlighting their importance in physiology and pathology. However, it is still unclear how HSFs are regulated and how they choose their specific target genes under different conditions. Posttranslational modifications and interplay among the HSF family members have been shown to be key regulatory mechanisms for these transcription factors. In this review, we focus on the mammalian HSF1 and HSF2, including their interplay, and provide an updated overview of the advances in understanding how HSFs are regulated and how they function in multiple processes of development, aging, and disease. We also discuss HSFs as therapeutic targets, especially the recently reported HSF1 inhibitors.
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Affiliation(s)
- Pia Roos-Mattjus
- Faculty of Science and Engineering, Biochemistry, Åbo Akademi University, Turku, Finland.,Turku Bioscience Centre, University of Turku and Åbo Akademi University, Turku, Finland
| | - Lea Sistonen
- Turku Bioscience Centre, University of Turku and Åbo Akademi University, Turku, Finland.,Faculty of Science and Engineering, Cell Biology, Åbo Akademi University, Turku, Finland
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24
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Fang Z, Meng Q, Xu J, Wang W, Zhang B, Liu J, Liang C, Hua J, Zhao Y, Yu X, Shi S. Signaling pathways in cancer-associated fibroblasts: recent advances and future perspectives. CANCER COMMUNICATIONS (LONDON, ENGLAND) 2022; 43:3-41. [PMID: 36424360 PMCID: PMC9859735 DOI: 10.1002/cac2.12392] [Citation(s) in RCA: 56] [Impact Index Per Article: 28.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 05/31/2022] [Revised: 09/20/2022] [Accepted: 11/04/2022] [Indexed: 11/26/2022]
Abstract
As a critical component of the tumor microenvironment (TME), cancer-associated fibroblasts (CAFs) play important roles in cancer initiation and progression. Well-known signaling pathways, including the transforming growth factor-β (TGF-β), Hedgehog (Hh), Notch, Wnt, Hippo, nuclear factor kappa-B (NF-κB), Janus kinase (JAK)/signal transducer and activator of transcription (STAT), mitogen-activated protein kinase (MAPK), and phosphoinositide 3-kinase (PI3K)/AKT pathways, as well as transcription factors, including hypoxia-inducible factor (HIF), heat shock transcription factor 1 (HSF1), P53, Snail, and Twist, constitute complex regulatory networks in the TME to modulate the formation, activation, heterogeneity, metabolic characteristics and malignant phenotype of CAFs. Activated CAFs remodel the TME and influence the malignant biological processes of cancer cells by altering the transcriptional and secretory characteristics, and this modulation partially depends on the regulation of signaling cascades. The results of preclinical and clinical trials indicated that therapies targeting signaling pathways in CAFs demonstrated promising efficacy but were also accompanied by some failures (e.g., NCT01130142 and NCT01064622). Hence, a comprehensive understanding of the signaling cascades in CAFs might help us better understand the roles of CAFs and the TME in cancer progression and may facilitate the development of more efficient and safer stroma-targeted cancer therapies. Here, we review recent advances in studies of signaling pathways in CAFs and briefly discuss some future perspectives on CAF research.
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Affiliation(s)
- Zengli Fang
- Department of Pancreatic SurgeryFudan University Shanghai Cancer CenterShanghai200032P. R. China,Department of OncologyShanghai Medical CollegeFudan UniversityShanghai200032P. R. China,Shanghai Pancreatic Cancer InstituteShanghai200032P. R. China,Pancreatic Cancer InstituteFudan UniversityShanghai200032P. R. China
| | - Qingcai Meng
- Department of Pancreatic SurgeryFudan University Shanghai Cancer CenterShanghai200032P. R. China,Department of OncologyShanghai Medical CollegeFudan UniversityShanghai200032P. R. China,Shanghai Pancreatic Cancer InstituteShanghai200032P. R. China,Pancreatic Cancer InstituteFudan UniversityShanghai200032P. R. China
| | - Jin Xu
- Department of Pancreatic SurgeryFudan University Shanghai Cancer CenterShanghai200032P. R. China,Department of OncologyShanghai Medical CollegeFudan UniversityShanghai200032P. R. China,Shanghai Pancreatic Cancer InstituteShanghai200032P. R. China,Pancreatic Cancer InstituteFudan UniversityShanghai200032P. R. China
| | - Wei Wang
- Department of Pancreatic SurgeryFudan University Shanghai Cancer CenterShanghai200032P. R. China,Department of OncologyShanghai Medical CollegeFudan UniversityShanghai200032P. R. China,Shanghai Pancreatic Cancer InstituteShanghai200032P. R. China,Pancreatic Cancer InstituteFudan UniversityShanghai200032P. R. China
| | - Bo Zhang
- Department of Pancreatic SurgeryFudan University Shanghai Cancer CenterShanghai200032P. R. China,Department of OncologyShanghai Medical CollegeFudan UniversityShanghai200032P. R. China,Shanghai Pancreatic Cancer InstituteShanghai200032P. R. China,Pancreatic Cancer InstituteFudan UniversityShanghai200032P. R. China
| | - Jiang Liu
- Department of Pancreatic SurgeryFudan University Shanghai Cancer CenterShanghai200032P. R. China,Department of OncologyShanghai Medical CollegeFudan UniversityShanghai200032P. R. China,Shanghai Pancreatic Cancer InstituteShanghai200032P. R. China,Pancreatic Cancer InstituteFudan UniversityShanghai200032P. R. China
| | - Chen Liang
- Department of Pancreatic SurgeryFudan University Shanghai Cancer CenterShanghai200032P. R. China,Department of OncologyShanghai Medical CollegeFudan UniversityShanghai200032P. R. China,Shanghai Pancreatic Cancer InstituteShanghai200032P. R. China,Pancreatic Cancer InstituteFudan UniversityShanghai200032P. R. China
| | - Jie Hua
- Department of Pancreatic SurgeryFudan University Shanghai Cancer CenterShanghai200032P. R. China,Department of OncologyShanghai Medical CollegeFudan UniversityShanghai200032P. R. China,Shanghai Pancreatic Cancer InstituteShanghai200032P. R. China,Pancreatic Cancer InstituteFudan UniversityShanghai200032P. R. China
| | - Yingjun Zhao
- Department of OncologyShanghai Medical CollegeFudan UniversityShanghai200032P. R. China,Institutes of Biomedical SciencesShanghai Medical CollegeFudan UniversityShanghai200032P. R. China
| | - Xianjun Yu
- Department of Pancreatic SurgeryFudan University Shanghai Cancer CenterShanghai200032P. R. China,Department of OncologyShanghai Medical CollegeFudan UniversityShanghai200032P. R. China,Shanghai Pancreatic Cancer InstituteShanghai200032P. R. China,Pancreatic Cancer InstituteFudan UniversityShanghai200032P. R. China
| | - Si Shi
- Department of Pancreatic SurgeryFudan University Shanghai Cancer CenterShanghai200032P. R. China,Department of OncologyShanghai Medical CollegeFudan UniversityShanghai200032P. R. China,Shanghai Pancreatic Cancer InstituteShanghai200032P. R. China,Pancreatic Cancer InstituteFudan UniversityShanghai200032P. R. China
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25
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Naito Y, Yoshioka Y, Ochiya T. Intercellular crosstalk between cancer cells and cancer-associated fibroblasts via extracellular vesicles. Cancer Cell Int 2022; 22:367. [PMID: 36424598 PMCID: PMC9686122 DOI: 10.1186/s12935-022-02784-8] [Citation(s) in RCA: 8] [Impact Index Per Article: 4.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 06/07/2022] [Accepted: 10/20/2022] [Indexed: 11/25/2022] Open
Abstract
Intercellular communication plays an important role in cancer initiation and progression through direct contact and indirect interactions, such as via secretory molecules. Cancer-associated fibroblasts (CAFs) are one of the principal components of such communication with cancer cells, modulating cancer metastasis and tumour mechanics and influencing angiogenesis, the immune system, and therapeutic resistance. Over the past few years, there has been a significant increase in research on extracellular vesicles (EVs) as regulatory agents in intercellular communication. EVs enable the transfer of functional molecules, including proteins, mRNAs and microRNAs (miRNAs), to recipient cells. Cancer cells utilize EVs to dictate the specific characteristics of CAFs within the tumour microenvironment, thereby promoting cancer progression. In response to such "education" by cancer cells, CAFs contribute to cancer progression via EVs. In this review, we summarize experimental data indicating the pivotal roles of EVs in intercellular communication between cancer cells and CAFs.
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Affiliation(s)
- Yutaka Naito
- grid.410821.e0000 0001 2173 8328Department of Bioregulation, Institute for Advanced Medical Sciences, Nippon Medical School, 1-1-5, Sendagi, Bunkyo-Ku, Tokyo, 113-8602 Japan
| | - Yusuke Yoshioka
- grid.410793.80000 0001 0663 3325Department of Molecular and Cellular Medicine, Institute of Medical Science, Tokyo Medical University, 6-7-1, Nishishinjuku, Shinjuku-Ku, Tokyo, 160-0023 Japan
| | - Takahiro Ochiya
- grid.410793.80000 0001 0663 3325Department of Molecular and Cellular Medicine, Institute of Medical Science, Tokyo Medical University, 6-7-1, Nishishinjuku, Shinjuku-Ku, Tokyo, 160-0023 Japan
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26
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Cheng T, Jiang B, Xu M, Yuan C, Tai M, Wu H, Lu B, Sun P, Jiang X, Zhang X. NDUFS4 promotes tumor progression and predicts prognosis in gastric cancer. Carcinogenesis 2022; 43:980-987. [PMID: 36044738 DOI: 10.1093/carcin/bgac074] [Citation(s) in RCA: 1] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 04/11/2022] [Revised: 08/10/2022] [Accepted: 08/30/2022] [Indexed: 01/13/2023] Open
Abstract
Gastric cancer ranked third worldwide in terms of mortality. The immediate priority is to search for new prognosticative or therapeutic targets. This research aims to examine the function of the NADH:ubiquinone oxidoreductase subunit S4 (NDUFS4) in the malignant phenotype of gastric carcinoma. We analyzed the correlation between NDUFS4 expression and gastric cancer via bioinformatics analysis and cancer tissue microarray via immunohistochemistry. Also, we detected the phenotype change in gastric cancer cells after NDUFS4 was downregulated. NDUFS4's high expression in gastric cancer tissues showed an association with terminal TNM stage and unfavorable survival. Furthermore, downregulation of NDUFS4 decreased gastric cancer cell proliferation, migration and invasion. Nude mouse models revealed that NDUFS4 promotes tumor growth. This investigation highlights the prognostic role of NDUFS4 in gastric cancer. Our results also creatively ascertained NDUFS4 as a candidate for gastric cancer therapeutic targets.
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Affiliation(s)
- Tong Cheng
- Department of Clinical Biobank, Affiliated Hospital of Nantong University & Medical school of Nantong University, Jiangsu 226001, China
| | - Boxuan Jiang
- Department of Clinical Biobank, Affiliated Hospital of Nantong University & Medical school of Nantong University, Jiangsu 226001, China
| | - Manyu Xu
- Department of Clinical Biobank, Affiliated Hospital of Nantong University & Medical school of Nantong University, Jiangsu 226001, China
| | - Chengzhe Yuan
- Department of Clinical Biobank, Affiliated Hospital of Nantong University & Medical school of Nantong University, Jiangsu 226001, China
| | - Mingliang Tai
- Department of Clinical Biobank, Affiliated Hospital of Nantong University & Medical school of Nantong University, Jiangsu 226001, China
| | - Han Wu
- Department of Clinical Biobank, Affiliated Hospital of Nantong University & Medical school of Nantong University, Jiangsu 226001, China
| | - Bing Lu
- Department of Clinical Biobank, Affiliated Hospital of Nantong University & Medical school of Nantong University, Jiangsu 226001, China
| | - Pingping Sun
- Department of Clinical Biobank, Affiliated Hospital of Nantong University & Medical school of Nantong University, Jiangsu 226001, China
| | - Xiaohui Jiang
- Department of General Surgery, Nantong Tumor Hospital, Nantong, Jiangsu 226361, China
| | - Xiaojing Zhang
- Department of Clinical Biobank, Affiliated Hospital of Nantong University & Medical school of Nantong University, Jiangsu 226001, China
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27
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Halperin C, Hey J, Weichenhan D, Stein Y, Mayer S, Lutsik P, Plass C, Scherz-Shouval R. Global DNA Methylation Analysis of Cancer-Associated Fibroblasts Reveals Extensive Epigenetic Rewiring Linked with RUNX1 Upregulation in Breast Cancer Stroma. Cancer Res 2022; 82:4139-4152. [PMID: 36287637 DOI: 10.1158/0008-5472.can-22-0209] [Citation(s) in RCA: 10] [Impact Index Per Article: 5.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 01/22/2022] [Revised: 08/10/2022] [Accepted: 09/14/2022] [Indexed: 12/14/2022]
Abstract
Cancer cells recruit and rewire normal fibroblasts in their microenvironment to become protumorigenic cancer-associated fibroblasts (CAF). These CAFs are genomically stable, yet their transcriptional programs are distinct from those of their normal counterparts. Transcriptional regulation plays a major role in this reprogramming, but the extent to which epigenetic modifications of DNA also contribute to the rewiring of CAF transcription is not clear. Here we address this question by dissecting the epigenetic landscape of breast CAFs. Applying tagmentation-based whole-genome bisulfite sequencing in a mouse model of breast cancer, we found that fibroblasts undergo massive DNA methylation changes as they transition into CAFs. Transcriptional and epigenetic analyses revealed RUNX1 as a potential mediator of this process and identified a RUNX1-dependent stromal gene signature. Coculture and mouse models showed that both RUNX1 and its stromal signature are induced as normal fibroblasts transition into CAFs. In breast cancer patients, RUNX1 was upregulated in CAFs, and expression of the RUNX1 signature was associated with poor disease outcome, highlighting the relevance of these findings to human disease. This work presents a comprehensive genome-wide map of DNA methylation in CAFs and reveals a previously unknown facet of the dynamic plasticity of the stroma. SIGNIFICANCE The first genome-wide map of DNA methylation in breast cancer-associated fibroblasts unravels a previously unknown facet of the dynamic plasticity of the stroma, with far-reaching therapeutic implications.
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Affiliation(s)
- Coral Halperin
- Department of Biomolecular Sciences, The Weizmann Institute of Science, Rehovot, Israel
| | - Joschka Hey
- Division of Cancer Epigenomics, German Cancer Research Center (DKFZ), Heidelberg, Germany
- Faculty of Biosciences, Ruprecht Karl University of Heidelberg, Heidelberg, Germany
| | - Dieter Weichenhan
- Division of Cancer Epigenomics, German Cancer Research Center (DKFZ), Heidelberg, Germany
| | - Yaniv Stein
- Department of Biomolecular Sciences, The Weizmann Institute of Science, Rehovot, Israel
| | - Shimrit Mayer
- Department of Biomolecular Sciences, The Weizmann Institute of Science, Rehovot, Israel
| | - Pavlo Lutsik
- Division of Cancer Epigenomics, German Cancer Research Center (DKFZ), Heidelberg, Germany
| | - Christoph Plass
- Division of Cancer Epigenomics, German Cancer Research Center (DKFZ), Heidelberg, Germany
| | - Ruth Scherz-Shouval
- Department of Biomolecular Sciences, The Weizmann Institute of Science, Rehovot, Israel
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28
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Wang SE. Extracellular vesicles in cancer therapy. Semin Cancer Biol 2022; 86:296-309. [PMID: 35688334 PMCID: PMC10431950 DOI: 10.1016/j.semcancer.2022.06.001] [Citation(s) in RCA: 26] [Impact Index Per Article: 13.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 04/26/2022] [Revised: 06/02/2022] [Accepted: 06/03/2022] [Indexed: 12/11/2022]
Abstract
Extracellular vesicles (EVs), including a variety of membrane-enclosed nanosized particles carrying cell-derived cargo, mediate a major type of intercellular communication in physiological and pathological processes. Both cancer and non-cancer cells secrete EVs, which can travel to and influence various types of cells at the primary tumor site as well as in distant organs. Tumor-derived EVs contribute to cancer cell plasticity and resistance to therapy, adaptation of tumor microenvironment, local and systemic vascular remodeling, immunomodulation, and establishment of pre-metastatic niches. Therefore, targeting the production, uptake, and function of tumor-derived EVs has emerged as a new strategy for stand-alone or combinational therapy of cancer. On the other hand, as EV cargo partially reflects the genetic makeup and phenotypic properties of the secreting cell, EV-based biomarkers that can be detected in biofluids are being developed for cancer diagnosis and for predicting and monitoring tumor response to therapy. Meanwhile, EVs from presumably safe sources are being developed as delivery vehicles for anticancer therapeutic agents and as anticancer vaccines. Numerous reviews have discussed the biogenesis and characteristics of EVs and their functions in cancer. Here, I highlight recent advancements in translation of EV research outcome towards improved care of cancer, including developments of non-invasive EV-based biomarkers and therapeutic agents targeting tumor-derived EVs as well as engineering of therapeutic EVs.
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Affiliation(s)
- Shizhen Emily Wang
- Department of Pathology, University of California, San Diego, CA 92093, USA.
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29
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Shaashua L, Ben-Shmuel A, Pevsner-Fischer M, Friedman G, Levi-Galibov O, Nandakumar S, Barki D, Nevo R, Brown LE, Zhang W, Stein Y, Lior C, Kim HS, Bojmar L, Jarnagin WR, Lecomte N, Mayer S, Stok R, Bishara H, Hamodi R, Levy-Lahad E, Golan T, Porco JA, Iacobuzio-Donahue CA, Schultz N, Tuveson DA, Lyden D, Kelsen D, Scherz-Shouval R. BRCA mutational status shapes the stromal microenvironment of pancreatic cancer linking clusterin expression in cancer associated fibroblasts with HSF1 signaling. Nat Commun 2022; 13:6513. [PMID: 36316305 PMCID: PMC9622893 DOI: 10.1038/s41467-022-34081-3] [Citation(s) in RCA: 18] [Impact Index Per Article: 9.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 04/06/2022] [Accepted: 10/13/2022] [Indexed: 11/12/2022] Open
Abstract
Tumors initiate by mutations in cancer cells, and progress through interactions of the cancer cells with non-malignant cells of the tumor microenvironment. Major players in the tumor microenvironment are cancer-associated fibroblasts (CAFs), which support tumor malignancy, and comprise up to 90% of the tumor mass in pancreatic cancer. CAFs are transcriptionally rewired by cancer cells. Whether this rewiring is differentially affected by different mutations in cancer cells is largely unknown. Here we address this question by dissecting the stromal landscape of BRCA-mutated and BRCA Wild-type pancreatic ductal adenocarcinoma. We comprehensively analyze pancreatic cancer samples from 42 patients, revealing different CAF subtype compositions in germline BRCA-mutated vs. BRCA Wild-type tumors. In particular, we detect an increase in a subset of immune-regulatory clusterin-positive CAFs in BRCA-mutated tumors. Using cancer organoids and mouse models we show that this process is mediated through activation of heat-shock factor 1, the transcriptional regulator of clusterin. Our findings unravel a dimension of stromal heterogeneity influenced by germline mutations in cancer cells, with direct implications for clinical research.
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Affiliation(s)
- Lee Shaashua
- grid.13992.300000 0004 0604 7563Department of Biomolecular Sciences, The Weizmann Institute of Science, Rehovot, Israel
| | - Aviad Ben-Shmuel
- grid.13992.300000 0004 0604 7563Department of Biomolecular Sciences, The Weizmann Institute of Science, Rehovot, Israel
| | - Meirav Pevsner-Fischer
- grid.13992.300000 0004 0604 7563Department of Biomolecular Sciences, The Weizmann Institute of Science, Rehovot, Israel
| | - Gil Friedman
- grid.13992.300000 0004 0604 7563Department of Biomolecular Sciences, The Weizmann Institute of Science, Rehovot, Israel
| | - Oshrat Levi-Galibov
- grid.13992.300000 0004 0604 7563Department of Biomolecular Sciences, The Weizmann Institute of Science, Rehovot, Israel
| | - Subhiksha Nandakumar
- grid.51462.340000 0001 2171 9952Human Oncology and Pathogenesis Program, Memorial Sloan Kettering Cancer Center, New York, NY USA
| | - Debra Barki
- grid.13992.300000 0004 0604 7563Department of Biomolecular Sciences, The Weizmann Institute of Science, Rehovot, Israel
| | - Reinat Nevo
- grid.13992.300000 0004 0604 7563Department of Biomolecular Sciences, The Weizmann Institute of Science, Rehovot, Israel
| | - Lauren E. Brown
- grid.189504.10000 0004 1936 7558Department of Chemistry and Center for Molecular Discovery (BU-CMD), Boston University, Boston, MA USA
| | - Wenhan Zhang
- grid.189504.10000 0004 1936 7558Department of Chemistry and Center for Molecular Discovery (BU-CMD), Boston University, Boston, MA USA
| | - Yaniv Stein
- grid.13992.300000 0004 0604 7563Department of Biomolecular Sciences, The Weizmann Institute of Science, Rehovot, Israel
| | - Chen Lior
- grid.13992.300000 0004 0604 7563Department of Biomolecular Sciences, The Weizmann Institute of Science, Rehovot, Israel
| | - Han Sang Kim
- grid.5386.8000000041936877XChildren’s Cancer and Blood Foundation Laboratories, Departments of Pediatrics, and Cell and Developmental Biology, Drukier Institute for Children’s Health, Meyer Cancer Center, Weill Cornell Medicine, New York, NY USA ,grid.15444.300000 0004 0470 5454Yonsei Cancer Center, Division of Medical Oncology, Department of Internal Medicine, Graduate School of Medical Science, Brain Korea 21 Project, Severance Biomedical Science Institute, Yonsei University College of Medicine, Seoul, Korea
| | - Linda Bojmar
- grid.5386.8000000041936877XChildren’s Cancer and Blood Foundation Laboratories, Departments of Pediatrics, and Cell and Developmental Biology, Drukier Institute for Children’s Health, Meyer Cancer Center, Weill Cornell Medicine, New York, NY USA ,grid.5640.70000 0001 2162 9922Department of Biomedical and Clinical Sciences, Linköping University, Linköping, Sweden
| | - William R. Jarnagin
- grid.51462.340000 0001 2171 9952Hepatopancreatobiliary Service, Department of Surgery, Memorial Sloan Kettering Cancer Center, New York, NY USA
| | - Nicolas Lecomte
- grid.51462.340000 0001 2171 9952David M. Rubenstein Center for Pancreatic Cancer Research, Memorial Sloan Kettering Cancer Center, New York, NY USA
| | - Shimrit Mayer
- grid.13992.300000 0004 0604 7563Department of Biomolecular Sciences, The Weizmann Institute of Science, Rehovot, Israel
| | - Roni Stok
- grid.13992.300000 0004 0604 7563Department of Biomolecular Sciences, The Weizmann Institute of Science, Rehovot, Israel
| | - Hend Bishara
- grid.13992.300000 0004 0604 7563Department of Biomolecular Sciences, The Weizmann Institute of Science, Rehovot, Israel
| | - Rawand Hamodi
- grid.13992.300000 0004 0604 7563Department of Biomolecular Sciences, The Weizmann Institute of Science, Rehovot, Israel
| | - Ephrat Levy-Lahad
- grid.415593.f0000 0004 0470 7791The Fuld Family Medical Genetics Institute, Shaare Zedek Medical Center, Jerusalem, Faculty of Medicine, The Hebrew University of Jerusalem, Jerusalem, Israel
| | - Talia Golan
- grid.12136.370000 0004 1937 0546Oncology Institute, Sheba Medical Center at Tel-Hashomer, Tel Aviv University, Tel Aviv, Israel
| | - John A. Porco
- grid.189504.10000 0004 1936 7558Department of Chemistry and Center for Molecular Discovery (BU-CMD), Boston University, Boston, MA USA
| | - Christine A. Iacobuzio-Donahue
- grid.51462.340000 0001 2171 9952David M. Rubenstein Center for Pancreatic Cancer Research, Memorial Sloan Kettering Cancer Center, New York, NY USA
| | - Nikolaus Schultz
- grid.51462.340000 0001 2171 9952Human Oncology and Pathogenesis Program, Memorial Sloan Kettering Cancer Center, New York, NY USA
| | - David A. Tuveson
- grid.225279.90000 0004 0387 3667Cancer Center, Cold Spring Harbor Laboratory, Cold Spring Harbor, New York, NY USA
| | - David Lyden
- grid.5386.8000000041936877XChildren’s Cancer and Blood Foundation Laboratories, Departments of Pediatrics, and Cell and Developmental Biology, Drukier Institute for Children’s Health, Meyer Cancer Center, Weill Cornell Medicine, New York, NY USA
| | - David Kelsen
- grid.5386.8000000041936877XGastrointestinal Oncology Service, Memorial Sloan Kettering Cancer Center, Weill Cornell Medical College, New York, NY USA
| | - Ruth Scherz-Shouval
- grid.13992.300000 0004 0604 7563Department of Biomolecular Sciences, The Weizmann Institute of Science, Rehovot, Israel
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Yu Q, Jiang M, Wu L. Spatial transcriptomics technology in cancer research. Front Oncol 2022; 12:1019111. [PMID: 36313703 PMCID: PMC9606570 DOI: 10.3389/fonc.2022.1019111] [Citation(s) in RCA: 20] [Impact Index Per Article: 10.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 08/14/2022] [Accepted: 09/21/2022] [Indexed: 08/25/2023] Open
Abstract
In recent years, spatial transcriptomics (ST) technologies have developed rapidly and have been widely used in constructing spatial tissue atlases and characterizing spatiotemporal heterogeneity of cancers. Currently, ST has been used to profile spatial heterogeneity in multiple cancer types. Besides, ST is a benefit for identifying and comprehensively understanding special spatial areas such as tumor interface and tertiary lymphoid structures (TLSs), which exhibit unique tumor microenvironments (TMEs). Therefore, ST has also shown great potential to improve pathological diagnosis and identify novel prognostic factors in cancer. This review presents recent advances and prospects of applications on cancer research based on ST technologies as well as the challenges.
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Affiliation(s)
- Qichao Yu
- Beijing Genomics Institute (BGI)-Shenzhen, Shenzhen, China
- College of Life Sciences, University of Chinese Academy of Sciences, Beijing, China
| | - Miaomiao Jiang
- Beijing Genomics Institute (BGI)-Shenzhen, Shenzhen, China
| | - Liang Wu
- Beijing Genomics Institute (BGI)-Shenzhen, Shenzhen, China
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31
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Pariollaud M, Ibrahim LH, Irizarry E, Mello RM, Chan AB, Altman BJ, Shaw RJ, Bollong MJ, Wiseman RL, Lamia KA. Circadian disruption enhances HSF1 signaling and tumorigenesis in Kras-driven lung cancer. SCIENCE ADVANCES 2022; 8:eabo1123. [PMID: 36170373 PMCID: PMC9519049 DOI: 10.1126/sciadv.abo1123] [Citation(s) in RCA: 22] [Impact Index Per Article: 11.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 01/31/2022] [Accepted: 08/12/2022] [Indexed: 05/04/2023]
Abstract
Disrupted circadian rhythmicity is a prominent feature of modern society and has been designated as a probable carcinogen by the World Health Organization. However, the biological mechanisms that connect circadian disruption and cancer risk remain largely undefined. We demonstrate that exposure to chronic circadian disruption [chronic jetlag (CJL)] increases tumor burden in a mouse model of KRAS-driven lung cancer. Molecular characterization of tumors and tumor-bearing lung tissues revealed that CJL enhances the expression of heat shock factor 1 (HSF1) target genes. Consistently, exposure to CJL disrupted the highly rhythmic nuclear trafficking of HSF1 in the lung, resulting in an enhanced accumulation of HSF1 in the nucleus. HSF1 has been shown to promote tumorigenesis in other systems, and we find that pharmacological or genetic inhibition of HSF1 reduces the growth of KRAS-mutant human lung cancer cells. These findings implicate HSF1 as a molecular link between circadian disruption and enhanced tumorigenesis.
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Affiliation(s)
- Marie Pariollaud
- Department of Molecular Medicine, Scripps Research Institute, La Jolla, CA 92037, USA
| | - Lara H. Ibrahim
- Department of Molecular Medicine, Scripps Research Institute, La Jolla, CA 92037, USA
- Department of Chemistry, Scripps Research Institute, La Jolla, CA 92037, USA
| | - Emanuel Irizarry
- Department of Molecular Medicine, Scripps Research Institute, La Jolla, CA 92037, USA
| | - Rebecca M. Mello
- Department of Molecular Medicine, Scripps Research Institute, La Jolla, CA 92037, USA
| | - Alanna B. Chan
- Department of Molecular Medicine, Scripps Research Institute, La Jolla, CA 92037, USA
| | - Brian J. Altman
- Department of Biomedical Genetics and Wilmot Cancer Institute, University of Rochester Medical Center, Rochester, NY 14642, USA
| | - Reuben J. Shaw
- Molecular and Cell Biology Laboratory, Salk Institute for Biological Studies, La Jolla, CA 92037, USA
| | - Michael J. Bollong
- Department of Chemistry, Scripps Research Institute, La Jolla, CA 92037, USA
| | - R. Luke Wiseman
- Department of Molecular Medicine, Scripps Research Institute, La Jolla, CA 92037, USA
| | - Katja A. Lamia
- Department of Molecular Medicine, Scripps Research Institute, La Jolla, CA 92037, USA
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Li J, Han T, Wang X, Wang Y, Chen X, Chen W, Yang Q. H19 may regulate the immune cell infiltration in carcinogenesis of gastric cancer through miR-378a-5p/SERPINH1 signaling. World J Surg Oncol 2022; 20:295. [PMID: 36104825 PMCID: PMC9472414 DOI: 10.1186/s12957-022-02760-6] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 05/31/2022] [Accepted: 09/02/2022] [Indexed: 11/10/2022] Open
Abstract
Background Increasing studies have indicated that noncoding RNA (ncRNA)-mediated competing endogenous RNA (ceRNA) network serves as a significant role in cancer progression, but the underlying regulatory mechanisms of which in gastric cancer (GC) remain largely unclear. Methods Based on Gene Expression Omnibus and The Cancer Genome Atlas datasets, potential biomarkers for GC were screened and validated by machine learning. Then, upstream regulatory ncRNA of potential biomarkers was identified to construct a novel ceRNA network in GC through means of stepwise reverse prediction and validation. Ultimately, tumor immune cell infiltration analysis was performed based on the EPIC algorithm. Results A total of 188 differentially expressed genes (DEGs) were screened, and three candidate diagnostic biomarkers (FAP, PSAPL1, and SERPINH1) for GC were identified and validated. Subsequently, H19 and miR-378a-5p were identified as upstream regulatory ncRNAs that could potentially bind SERPINH1 in GC. Moreover, Immune infiltration analysis revealed that each component in the ceRNA network (H19/miR-378a-5p/SERPINH1) was significantly correlated with the infiltration abundances of diverse tumor-infiltrating immune cells. Conclusions H19 may regulate the immune cell infiltration in carcinogenesis of GC through miR-378a-5p/SERPINH1 signaling. Supplementary Information The online version contains supplementary material available at 10.1186/s12957-022-02760-6.
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Yang S, Zou X, Li J, Yang H, Zhang A, Zhu Y, Zhu L, Zhang L. Immunoregulation and clinical significance of neutrophils/NETs-ANGPT2 in tumor microenvironment of gastric cancer. Front Immunol 2022; 13:1010434. [PMID: 36172371 PMCID: PMC9512293 DOI: 10.3389/fimmu.2022.1010434] [Citation(s) in RCA: 7] [Impact Index Per Article: 3.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 08/03/2022] [Accepted: 08/24/2022] [Indexed: 11/13/2022] Open
Abstract
Although significant progress has been made in the study of gastric cancer (GC), clinicians lack reliable protein markers for accurate diagnosis and tumor stratification. Neutrophil extracellular traps (NETs) are networks of extracellular fibers composed of DNA from neutrophils. We have previously reported that abundant NETs are deposited in GC, damaging human umbilical vein endothelial cells (HUVECs) and triggering the release of tissue factors, leading to a hypercoagulable state in GC. However, the specific effects of NETs on HUVECs are unclear. We aimed to explore the functional changes caused by NETs on HUVECs, providing evidence that NETs may fuel GC progression. Through quantitative proteomics, we identified 6182 differentially expressed proteins in NET-stimulated HUVECs by TMT. The reliability of the TMT technique was confirmed by parallel reaction monitoring (PRM) analysis of 17 differentially expressed proteins. Through bioinformatics analysis, we found that NETs upregulate ANGPT2 in HUVECs. We comprehensively analyzed the prognosis, biological function, immune response, and therapeutic value of ANGPT2 in GC. We found that overexpression of ANGPT2 in GC is associated with poor prognosis and potentially regulates multiple biological functions. At the same time, ANGPT2 also predicted immunotherapeutic and chemotherapeutic responses in GC. In conclusion, NETs promoted ANGPT2 overexpression in the GC microenvironment. In the future, the neutrophil/NETs-ANGPT2 axis may provide a new target for the treatment of GC.
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Affiliation(s)
- Shifeng Yang
- Department of Gastrointestinal Surgery, The Second Affiliated Hospital of Harbin Medical University, Harbin, China
- The Key Laboratory of Myocardial Ischemia, Ministry of Education, Harbin, China
| | - Xiaoming Zou
- Department of Gastrointestinal Surgery, The Second Affiliated Hospital of Harbin Medical University, Harbin, China
- *Correspondence: Xiaoming Zou, ; Jiacheng Li,
| | - Jiacheng Li
- Department of General Surgery, The First Affiliated Hospital of Jiamusi University, Jiamusi, China
- *Correspondence: Xiaoming Zou, ; Jiacheng Li,
| | - Hao Yang
- Department of Gastrointestinal Surgery, The Second Affiliated Hospital of Harbin Medical University, Harbin, China
| | - Ange Zhang
- Department of Gastrointestinal Surgery, The Second Affiliated Hospital of Harbin Medical University, Harbin, China
- The Key Laboratory of Myocardial Ischemia, Ministry of Education, Harbin, China
| | - Yanli Zhu
- Key laboratory of Microecology-immune Regulatory Network and Related Diseases School of Basic Medicine, Jiamusi University, Jiamusi, China
| | - Lei Zhu
- Department of Gastrointestinal Surgery, The Second Affiliated Hospital of Harbin Medical University, Harbin, China
| | - Lisha Zhang
- Department of Gastrointestinal Surgery, The Second Affiliated Hospital of Harbin Medical University, Harbin, China
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Lopatina T, Sarcinella A, Brizzi MF. Tumour Derived Extracellular Vesicles: Challenging Target to Blunt Tumour Immune Evasion. Cancers (Basel) 2022; 14:cancers14164020. [PMID: 36011012 PMCID: PMC9406972 DOI: 10.3390/cancers14164020] [Citation(s) in RCA: 5] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 07/19/2022] [Revised: 08/12/2022] [Accepted: 08/18/2022] [Indexed: 11/16/2022] Open
Abstract
Simple Summary Tumour onset and development occur because of specific immune support. The immune system, which is originally able to perceive and eliminate incipient cancer cells, becomes suppressed and hijacked by cancer. For these purposes, tumour cells use extracellular vesicles (TEVs). Specific molecular composition allows TEVs to reprogram immune cells towards tumour tolerance. Circulating TEVs move from their site of origin to other organs, preparing “a fertile soil” for metastasis formation. This implies that TEV molecular content can provide a valuable tool for cancer biomarker discovery and potential targets to reshape the immune system into tumour recognition and eradication. Abstract Control of the immune response is crucial for tumour onset and progression. Tumour cells handle the immune reaction by means of secreted factors and extracellular vesicles (EV). Tumour-derived extracellular vesicles (TEV) play key roles in immune reprogramming by delivering their cargo to different immune cells. Tumour-surrounding tissues also contribute to tumour immune editing and evasion, tumour progression, and drug resistance via locally released TEV. Moreover, the increase in circulating TEV has suggested their underpinning role in tumour dissemination. This review brings together data referring to TEV-driven immune regulation and antitumour immune suppression. Attention was also dedicated to TEV-mediated drug resistance.
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Sang Q, Dai W, Yu J, Chen Y, Fan Z, Liu J, Li F, Li J, Wu X, Hou J, Yu B, Feng H, Zhu ZG, Su L, Li YY, Liu B. Identification of prognostic gene expression signatures based on the tumor microenvironment characterization of gastric cancer. Front Immunol 2022; 13:983632. [PMID: 36032070 PMCID: PMC9411533 DOI: 10.3389/fimmu.2022.983632] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 07/01/2022] [Accepted: 07/20/2022] [Indexed: 12/02/2022] Open
Abstract
Increasing evidence has elucidated that the tumor microenvironment (TME) shows a strong association with tumor progression and therapeutic outcome. We comprehensively estimated the TME infiltration patterns of 111 gastric cancer (GC) and 21 normal stomach mucosa samples based on bulk transcriptomic profiles based on which GC could be clustered as three subtypes, TME-Stromal, TME-Mix, and TME-Immune. The expression data of TME-relevant genes were utilized to build a GC prognostic model—GC_Score. Among the three GC TME subtypes, TME-Stomal displayed the worst prognosis and the highest GC_Score, while TME-Immune had the best prognosis and the lowest GC_Score. Connective tissue growth factor (CTGF), the highest weighted gene in the GC_Score, was found to be overexpressed in GC. In addition, CTGF exhibited a significant correlation with the abundance of fibroblasts. CTGF has the potential to induce transdifferentiation of peritumoral fibroblasts (PTFs) to cancer-associated fibroblasts (CAFs). Beyond characterizing TME subtypes associated with clinical outcomes, we correlated TME infiltration to molecular features and explored their functional relevance, which helps to get a better understanding of carcinogenesis and therapeutic response and provide novel strategies for tumor treatments.
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Affiliation(s)
- Qingqing Sang
- Department of General Surgery, Ruijin Hospital, Shanghai Jiao Tong University School of Medicine, Shanghai, China
| | - Wentao Dai
- NHC Key Lab of Reproduction Regulation (Shanghai Institute for Biomedical and Pharmaceutical Technologies), Fudan University, Shanghai, China
- Shanghai Engineering Research Center of Pharmaceutical Translation, Shanghai, China
| | - Junxian Yu
- Department of General Surgery, Ruijin Hospital, Shanghai Jiao Tong University School of Medicine, Shanghai, China
| | - Yunqin Chen
- NHC Key Lab of Reproduction Regulation (Shanghai Institute for Biomedical and Pharmaceutical Technologies), Fudan University, Shanghai, China
| | - Zhiyuan Fan
- Department of General Surgery, Ruijin Hospital, Shanghai Jiao Tong University School of Medicine, Shanghai, China
| | - Jixiang Liu
- NHC Key Lab of Reproduction Regulation (Shanghai Institute for Biomedical and Pharmaceutical Technologies), Fudan University, Shanghai, China
| | - Fangyuan Li
- Department of General Surgery, Ruijin Hospital, Shanghai Jiao Tong University School of Medicine, Shanghai, China
| | - Jianfang Li
- Department of General Surgery, Ruijin Hospital, Shanghai Jiao Tong University School of Medicine, Shanghai, China
| | - Xiongyan Wu
- Department of General Surgery, Ruijin Hospital, Shanghai Jiao Tong University School of Medicine, Shanghai, China
| | - Junyi Hou
- Department of General Surgery, Ruijin Hospital, Shanghai Jiao Tong University School of Medicine, Shanghai, China
| | - Beiqin Yu
- Department of General Surgery, Ruijin Hospital, Shanghai Jiao Tong University School of Medicine, Shanghai, China
| | - Haoran Feng
- Department of General Surgery, Ruijin Hospital, Shanghai Jiao Tong University School of Medicine, Shanghai, China
| | - Zheng-Gang Zhu
- Department of General Surgery, Ruijin Hospital, Shanghai Jiao Tong University School of Medicine, Shanghai, China
| | - Liping Su
- Department of General Surgery, Ruijin Hospital, Shanghai Jiao Tong University School of Medicine, Shanghai, China
| | - Yuan-Yuan Li
- NHC Key Lab of Reproduction Regulation (Shanghai Institute for Biomedical and Pharmaceutical Technologies), Fudan University, Shanghai, China
- Shanghai Engineering Research Center of Pharmaceutical Translation, Shanghai, China
- *Correspondence: Bingya Liu, ; Yuan-Yuan Li,
| | - Bingya Liu
- Department of General Surgery, Ruijin Hospital, Shanghai Jiao Tong University School of Medicine, Shanghai, China
- *Correspondence: Bingya Liu, ; Yuan-Yuan Li,
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Chen S, Su X, Wang J, Zheng N, Tang Y, Peng G, Dong R, Lu F, Liu M, Zhao Y, Wu H. Identification and Validation of METTL3-Related Molecules for Predicting Prognosis and Efficacy of Immunotherapy in Gastric Cancer Based on m6A Methylome and Transcriptome Sequencing Analysis. Front Oncol 2022; 12:935239. [PMID: 35965524 PMCID: PMC9373839 DOI: 10.3389/fonc.2022.935239] [Citation(s) in RCA: 3] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 05/03/2022] [Accepted: 06/22/2022] [Indexed: 12/24/2022] Open
Abstract
Abnormal N6-methyladenosine (m6A) modification levels caused by METTL3 have been identified to be a critical regulator in human cancers, and its roles in the immune microenvironment and the relationship between targeted therapy and immunotherapy sensitivity in gastric cancer (GC) remain poorly understood. In this study, we assessed the transcriptome-wide m6A methylation profile after METTL3 overexpression by m6A sequencing and RNA sequencing in BGC-823 cells. Gene Ontology (GO) and Kyoto Encyclopedia of Genes and Genomes (KEGG) analyses were performed to analyze the function of core targets of METTL3. Eighteen methylation core molecules were identified in GC patients by combining transcriptome and methylome sequencing. GC patients can be separated into two subtypes based on the expression of 18 methylation core molecules. Furthermore, subgroup analysis showed that patients with different subtypes had a different OS, PFS, stage, grade, and TMB. Gene set enrichment analysis (GSEA) showed that immune-related pathways were enriched among subtype A. The ESTIMATE analysis suggested that the extent of infiltration of immune cells was different in two subtypes of GC patients. Tumor Immune Dysfunction and Exclusion (TIDE) and The Cancer Immunome Atlas (TCIA) database also showed that there were significant differences in the efficacy of immunotherapy among different types of GC patients. Altogether, our results reveal that METTL3-mediated m6A methylation modification is associated with the immune microenvironment and the effects of immunotherapy in GC patients. Our findings provide novel insights for clinicians in the diagnosis and optimal treatment of GC patients.
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Affiliation(s)
- Shuran Chen
- Department of Gastrointestinal Surgery, Anhui Province Key Laboratory of Translational Cancer Research, First Affiliated Hospital of Bengbu Medical College, Bengbu, China
| | - Xu Su
- School of Life Science, Anhui Province Key Laboratory of Translational Cancer Research, Bengbu Medical College, Bengbu, China
| | - Jing Wang
- School of Life Science, Anhui Province Key Laboratory of Translational Cancer Research, Bengbu Medical College, Bengbu, China
| | - Ni Zheng
- School of Life Science, Anhui Province Key Laboratory of Translational Cancer Research, Bengbu Medical College, Bengbu, China
| | - Yuan Tang
- Department of Gastrointestinal Surgery, Anhui Province Key Laboratory of Translational Cancer Research, First Affiliated Hospital of Bengbu Medical College, Bengbu, China
| | - Guisen Peng
- School of Life Science, Anhui Province Key Laboratory of Translational Cancer Research, Bengbu Medical College, Bengbu, China
| | - Rui Dong
- Department of Gastrointestinal Surgery, Anhui Province Key Laboratory of Translational Cancer Research, First Affiliated Hospital of Bengbu Medical College, Bengbu, China
| | - Fei Lu
- Department of Gastrointestinal Surgery, Anhui Province Key Laboratory of Translational Cancer Research, First Affiliated Hospital of Bengbu Medical College, Bengbu, China
| | - Mulin Liu
- Department of Gastrointestinal Surgery, Anhui Province Key Laboratory of Translational Cancer Research, First Affiliated Hospital of Bengbu Medical College, Bengbu, China
- *Correspondence: Mulin Liu, ; Yunli Zhao, ; Huazhang Wu,
| | - Yunli Zhao
- School of Public Health, Bengbu Medical College, Bengbu, China
- *Correspondence: Mulin Liu, ; Yunli Zhao, ; Huazhang Wu,
| | - Huazhang Wu
- School of Life Science, Anhui Province Key Laboratory of Translational Cancer Research, Bengbu Medical College, Bengbu, China
- *Correspondence: Mulin Liu, ; Yunli Zhao, ; Huazhang Wu,
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Lavie D, Ben-Shmuel A, Erez N, Scherz-Shouval R. Cancer-associated fibroblasts in the single-cell era. NATURE CANCER 2022; 3:793-807. [PMID: 35883004 PMCID: PMC7613625 DOI: 10.1038/s43018-022-00411-z] [Citation(s) in RCA: 154] [Impact Index Per Article: 77.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Figures] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 09/09/2021] [Accepted: 06/14/2022] [Indexed: 01/28/2023]
Abstract
Cancer-associated fibroblasts (CAFs) are central players in the microenvironment of solid tumors, affecting cancer progression and metastasis. CAFs have diverse phenotypes, origins and functions and consist of distinct subpopulations. Recent progress in single-cell RNA-sequencing technologies has enabled detailed characterization of the complexity and heterogeneity of CAF subpopulations in multiple tumor types. In this Review, we discuss the current understanding of CAF subsets and functions as elucidated by single-cell technologies, their functional plasticity, and their emergent shared and organ-specific features that could potentially be harnessed to design better therapeutic strategies for cancer.
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Affiliation(s)
- Dor Lavie
- Department of Pathology, Sackler Faculty of Medicine, Tel Aviv University, Tel Aviv, Israel
| | - Aviad Ben-Shmuel
- Department of Biomolecular Sciences, the Weizmann Institute of Science, Rehovot, Israel
| | - Neta Erez
- Department of Pathology, Sackler Faculty of Medicine, Tel Aviv University, Tel Aviv, Israel.
| | - Ruth Scherz-Shouval
- Department of Biomolecular Sciences, the Weizmann Institute of Science, Rehovot, Israel.
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Gao J, Zhang X, Jiang L, Li Y, Zheng Q. Tumor endothelial cell-derived extracellular vesicles contribute to tumor microenvironment remodeling. Cell Commun Signal 2022; 20:97. [PMID: 35752798 PMCID: PMC9233793 DOI: 10.1186/s12964-022-00904-5] [Citation(s) in RCA: 16] [Impact Index Per Article: 8.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 01/21/2022] [Accepted: 05/22/2022] [Indexed: 11/12/2022] Open
Abstract
Cancer progression involves several biological steps where angiogenesis is a key tumorigenic phenomenon. Extracellular vesicles (EVs) derived from tumor cells and other cells in the tumor microenvironment (TME) help modulate and maintain favorable microenvironments for tumors. Endothelial cells (ECs) activated by cancer-derived EVs have important roles in tumor angiogenesis. Interestingly, EVs from ECs activate tumor cells, i.e. extracellular matrix (ECM) remodeling and provide more supplements for tumor cells. Thus, EV communications between cancer cells and ECs may be effective therapeutic targets for controlling cancer progression. In this review, we describe the current knowledge on EVs derived from ECs and we examine how these EVs affect TME remodeling. Video abstract
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Affiliation(s)
- Jian Gao
- Department of Pathophysiology, College of Basic Medical Science, China Medical University, Shenyang, 110122, China.,Science Experiment Center of China Medical University, Shenyang, 110122, China
| | - Xiaodong Zhang
- Department of General Surgery, Beijing Friendship Hospital, Capital Medical University, Beijing, 100000, China.,National Clinical Research Center for Digestive Diseases, Beijing, 100000, China
| | - Lei Jiang
- Department of General Surgery, Affiliated Hospital of Jinzhou Medical University, Jinzhou, 121000, China
| | - Yan Li
- Department of Radiotherapy, The First Affiliated Hospital of Jinzhou Medical University, Jinzhou, 121000, China.
| | - Qianqian Zheng
- Department of Pathophysiology, College of Basic Medical Science, China Medical University, Shenyang, 110122, China.
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Ucaryilmaz Metin C, Ozcan G. Comprehensive bioinformatic analysis reveals a cancer-associated fibroblast gene signature as a poor prognostic factor and potential therapeutic target in gastric cancer. BMC Cancer 2022; 22:692. [PMID: 35739492 PMCID: PMC9229147 DOI: 10.1186/s12885-022-09736-5] [Citation(s) in RCA: 28] [Impact Index Per Article: 14.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 02/07/2022] [Accepted: 06/03/2022] [Indexed: 12/14/2022] Open
Abstract
BACKGROUND Gastric cancer is one of the deadliest cancers, currently available therapies have limited success. Cancer-associated fibroblasts (CAFs) are pivotal cells in the stroma of gastric tumors posing a great risk for progression and chemoresistance. The poor prognostic signature for CAFs is not clear in gastric cancer, and drugs that target CAFs are lacking in the clinic. In this study, we aim to identify a poor prognostic gene signature for CAFs, targeting which may increase the therapeutic success in gastric cancer. METHODS We analyzed four GEO datasets with a network-based approach and validated key CAF markers in The Cancer Genome Atlas (TCGA) and The Asian Cancer Research Group (ACRG) cohorts. We implemented stepwise multivariate Cox regression guided by a pan-cancer analysis in TCGA to identify a poor prognostic gene signature for CAF infiltration in gastric cancer. Lastly, we conducted a database search for drugs targeting the signature genes. RESULTS Our study revealed the COL1A1, COL1A2, COL3A1, COL5A1, FN1, and SPARC as the key CAF markers in gastric cancer. Analysis of the TCGA and ACRG cohorts validated their upregulation and poor prognostic significance. The stepwise multivariate Cox regression elucidated COL1A1 and COL5A1, together with ITGA4, Emilin1, and TSPAN9 as poor prognostic signature genes for CAF infiltration. The search on drug databases revealed collagenase clostridium histolyticum, ocriplasmin, halofuginone, natalizumab, firategrast, and BIO-1211 as the potential drugs for further investigation. CONCLUSIONS Our study demonstrated the central role of extracellular matrix components secreted and remodeled by CAFs in gastric cancer. The gene signature we identified in this study carries high potential as a predictive tool for poor prognosis in gastric cancer patients. Elucidating the mechanisms by which the signature genes contribute to poor patient outcomes can lead to the discovery of more potent molecular-targeted agents and increase the therapeutic success in gastric cancer.
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Affiliation(s)
| | - Gulnihal Ozcan
- Department of Medical Pharmacology, Koc University School of Medicine, 34450, Istanbul, Turkey.
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40
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Helicobacter pylori promotes gastric cancer progression through the tumor microenvironment. Appl Microbiol Biotechnol 2022; 106:4375-4385. [PMID: 35723694 DOI: 10.1007/s00253-022-12011-z] [Citation(s) in RCA: 13] [Impact Index Per Article: 6.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 10/22/2021] [Revised: 05/26/2022] [Accepted: 06/01/2022] [Indexed: 02/05/2023]
Abstract
Gastric cancer (GC) is a leading type of cancer. Although immunotherapy has yielded important recent progress in the treatment of GC, the prognosis remains poor due to drug resistance and frequent recurrence and metastasis. There are multiple known risk factors for GC, and infection with Helicobacter pylori is one of the most significant. The mechanisms underlying the associations of H. pylori and GC remain unclear, but it is well known that infection can alter the tumor microenvironment (TME). The TME and the tumor itself constitute a complete ecosystem, and the TME plays critical roles in tumor progression, metastasis, and drug resistance. H. pylori infection can act synergistically with the TME to cause DNA damage and abnormal expression of multiple genes and activation of signaling pathways. It also modulates the host immune system in ways that enhance the proliferation and metastasis of tumor cells, promote epithelial-mesenchymal transition, inhibit apoptosis, and provide energy support for tumor growth. This review elaborates myriad ways that H. pylori infections promote the occurrence and progression of GC by influencing the TME, providing new directions for immunotherapy treatments for this important disease. KEY POINTS: • H. pylori infections cause DNA damage and affect the repair of the TME to DNA damage. • H. pylori infections regulate oncogenes or activate the oncogenic signaling pathways. • H. pylori infections modulate the immune system within the TME.
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41
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Dohmen J, Baranovskii A, Ronen J, Uyar B, Franke V, Akalin A. Identifying tumor cells at the single-cell level using machine learning. Genome Biol 2022; 23:123. [PMID: 35637521 PMCID: PMC9150321 DOI: 10.1186/s13059-022-02683-1] [Citation(s) in RCA: 21] [Impact Index Per Article: 10.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 11/23/2021] [Accepted: 05/06/2022] [Indexed: 12/15/2022] Open
Abstract
Tumors are complex tissues of cancerous cells surrounded by a heterogeneous cellular microenvironment with which they interact. Single-cell sequencing enables molecular characterization of single cells within the tumor. However, cell annotation—the assignment of cell type or cell state to each sequenced cell—is a challenge, especially identifying tumor cells within single-cell or spatial sequencing experiments. Here, we propose ikarus, a machine learning pipeline aimed at distinguishing tumor cells from normal cells at the single-cell level. We test ikarus on multiple single-cell datasets, showing that it achieves high sensitivity and specificity in multiple experimental contexts.
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Affiliation(s)
- Jan Dohmen
- Bioinformatics and Omics Data Science Platform, Berlin Institute For Medical Systems Biology, Max Delbrück Center for Molecular Medicine in the Helmholtz Association (MDC), Hannoversche Str.28, 10115, Berlin, Germany
| | - Artem Baranovskii
- Non-coding RNAs and Mechanisms of Cytoplasmic Gene Regulation Lab, Berlin Institute for Medical Systems Biology, Hannoversche Str. 28, 10115, Berlin, Germany.,Free University Berlin, Kaiserswerther Str. 16-18, 14195, Berlin, Germany
| | - Jonathan Ronen
- Bioinformatics and Omics Data Science Platform, Berlin Institute For Medical Systems Biology, Max Delbrück Center for Molecular Medicine in the Helmholtz Association (MDC), Hannoversche Str.28, 10115, Berlin, Germany
| | - Bora Uyar
- Bioinformatics and Omics Data Science Platform, Berlin Institute For Medical Systems Biology, Max Delbrück Center for Molecular Medicine in the Helmholtz Association (MDC), Hannoversche Str.28, 10115, Berlin, Germany
| | - Vedran Franke
- Bioinformatics and Omics Data Science Platform, Berlin Institute For Medical Systems Biology, Max Delbrück Center for Molecular Medicine in the Helmholtz Association (MDC), Hannoversche Str.28, 10115, Berlin, Germany.
| | - Altuna Akalin
- Bioinformatics and Omics Data Science Platform, Berlin Institute For Medical Systems Biology, Max Delbrück Center for Molecular Medicine in the Helmholtz Association (MDC), Hannoversche Str.28, 10115, Berlin, Germany.
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Liu M, Zhou X, Tang J. Non-Coding RNAs Delivery by Small Extracellular Vesicles and Their Applications in Ovarian Cancer. Front Bioeng Biotechnol 2022; 10:876151. [PMID: 35662846 PMCID: PMC9161355 DOI: 10.3389/fbioe.2022.876151] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 02/17/2022] [Accepted: 04/26/2022] [Indexed: 11/30/2022] Open
Abstract
Ovarian cancer (OC) is the most fatal gynecological malignancy because of its early asymptomatic nature and acquired resistance to chemotherapy. Small extracellular vesicles (sEVs) are a heterogeneous group of biological vesicles with a diameter <200 nm released by cells under physiological or pathological conditions. sEVs-derived non-coding RNAs (ncRNAs) are the essential effectors in the biological environment. sEVs-ncRNAs have critical roles in tumor progression via regulating mRNA expression of target cells to affect cell signaling. In addition, the status of parental cells can be disclosed via analyzing the composition of sEVs-ncRNAs, and their “cargoes” with specific changes can be used as key biomarkers for the diagnosis and prognosis of OC. Accumulating evidence has demonstrated that sEVs-ncRNAs are involved in multiple key processes that mediate the development of metastasis and chemotherapeutic resistance in OC: epithelial–mesenchymal transition; tumorigenicity of mesenchymal stem cells; immune evasion; angiogenesis. The nanomedicine delivery system based on engineering sEVs is expected to be a novel therapeutic strategy for OC. Insights into the biological roles of sEVs-ncRNAs in the invasion, metastasis, immune regulation, and chemoresistance of OC will contribute to discovery of novel biomarkers and molecular targets for early detection and innovative therapy. In this review, we highlight recent advances and applications of sEVs-ncRNAs in OC diagnosis and treatment. We also outline current challenges and knowledge gaps.
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Affiliation(s)
- Mu Liu
- Department of Gynecologic Oncology, Hunan Cancer Hospital, The Affiliated Cancer Hospital of Xiangya School of Medicine, Central South University, Changsha, China
| | - Xiaofang Zhou
- Department of Gynecologic Oncology, Hunan Cancer Hospital, The Affiliated Cancer Hospital of Xiangya School of Medicine, Central South University, Changsha, China
| | - Jie Tang
- Department of Gynecologic Oncology, Hunan Cancer Hospital, The Affiliated Cancer Hospital of Xiangya School of Medicine, Central South University, Changsha, China
- Department of Gynecologic Oncology, Hunan Gynecologic Cancer Research Center, Hunan Cancer Hospital, The Affiliated Cancer Hospital of Xiangya School of Medicine, Central South University, Changsha, China
- *Correspondence: Jie Tang,
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Chen Y, Sun Z, Wan L, Chen H, Xi T, Jiang Y. Tumor Microenvironment Characterization for Assessment of Recurrence and Survival Outcome in Gastric Cancer to Predict Chemotherapy and Immunotherapy Response. Front Immunol 2022; 13:890922. [PMID: 35572498 PMCID: PMC9101297 DOI: 10.3389/fimmu.2022.890922] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 03/07/2022] [Accepted: 04/11/2022] [Indexed: 12/24/2022] Open
Abstract
Background The tumor microenvironment (TME) is crucial for tumor recurrence, prognosis, and therapeutic responses. We comprehensively investigated the TME characterization associated with relapse and survival outcomes of gastric cancer (GC) to predict chemotherapy and immunotherapy response. Methods A total of 2,456 GC patients with complete gene-expression data and clinical annotations from twelve cohorts were included. The TME characteristics were evaluated using three proposed computational algorithms. We then developed a TME-classifier, a TME-cluster, and a TME-based risk score for the assessment of tumor recurrence and prognosis in patients with GC to predict chemotherapy and immunotherapy response. Results Patients with tumor recurrence presented with inactive immunogenicity, namely, high infiltration of tumor-associated stromal cells, low infiltration of tumor-associated immunoactivated lymphocytes, high stromal score, and low immune score. The TME-classifier of 4 subtypes with distinct clinicopathology, genomic, and molecular characteristics was significantly associated with tumor recurrence (P = 0.002), disease-free survival (DFS, P <0.001), and overall survival (OS, P <0.001) adjusted by confounding variables in 1,193 stage I–III GC patients who underwent potential radical surgery. The TME cluster and TME-based risk score can also predict DFS (P <0.001) and OS (P <0.001). More importantly, we found that patients in the TMEclassifier-A, TMEclassifier-C, and TMEclassifier-D groups benefited from adjuvant chemotherapy, and patients in the TMEclassifier-B group without chemotherapy benefit responded best to pembrolizumab treatment (PD-1 inhibitor), followed by patients in the TMEclassifier-A, while patients in the C and D groups of the TMEclassifier responded poorly to immunotherapy. Conclusion We determined that TME characterization is significantly associated with tumor recurrence and prognosis. The TME-classifier we proposed can guide individualized chemotherapy and immunotherapy decision-making.
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Affiliation(s)
- Yan Chen
- Shatou Community Health Service Center, Shenzhen Hospital of Integrated Traditional Chinese and Western Medicine, The Second People’s Hospital of Bao’an Shenzhen (Group), Shenzhen Bao’an Shajing People’s Hospital, Guangzhou Medical University, Shenzhen, China
- *Correspondence: Yuming Jiang, ; Yan Chen,
| | - Zepang Sun
- Department of General Surgery, Nanfang Hospital, Southern Medical University, Guangzhou, Guangdong, China
| | - Li Wan
- Shatou Community Health Service Center, Shenzhen Hospital of Integrated Traditional Chinese and Western Medicine, The Second People’s Hospital of Bao’an Shenzhen (Group), Shenzhen Bao’an Shajing People’s Hospital, Guangzhou Medical University, Shenzhen, China
| | - Hongzhuan Chen
- Shatou Community Health Service Center, Shenzhen Hospital of Integrated Traditional Chinese and Western Medicine, The Second People’s Hospital of Bao’an Shenzhen (Group), Shenzhen Bao’an Shajing People’s Hospital, Guangzhou Medical University, Shenzhen, China
| | - Tieju Xi
- Shatou Community Health Service Center, Shenzhen Hospital of Integrated Traditional Chinese and Western Medicine, The Second People’s Hospital of Bao’an Shenzhen (Group), Shenzhen Bao’an Shajing People’s Hospital, Guangzhou Medical University, Shenzhen, China
| | - Yuming Jiang
- Department of General Surgery, Nanfang Hospital, Southern Medical University, Guangzhou, Guangdong, China
- Department of Radiation Oncology, Stanford University School of Medicine, Stanford, CA, United States
- *Correspondence: Yuming Jiang, ; Yan Chen,
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Kumar V, Ramnarayanan K, Sundar R, Padmanabhan N, Srivastava S, Koiwa M, Yasuda T, Koh V, Huang KK, Tay ST, Ho SWT, Tan ALK, Ishimoto T, Kim G, Shabbir A, Chen Q, Zhang B, Xu S, Lam KP, Lum HYJ, Teh M, Yong WP, So JBY, Tan P. Single-Cell Atlas of Lineage States, Tumor Microenvironment, and Subtype-Specific Expression Programs in Gastric Cancer. Cancer Discov 2022; 12:670-691. [PMID: 34642171 PMCID: PMC9394383 DOI: 10.1158/2159-8290.cd-21-0683] [Citation(s) in RCA: 176] [Impact Index Per Article: 88.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 05/28/2021] [Revised: 09/27/2021] [Accepted: 10/07/2021] [Indexed: 01/07/2023]
Abstract
Gastric cancer heterogeneity represents a barrier to disease management. We generated a comprehensive single-cell atlas of gastric cancer (>200,000 cells) comprising 48 samples from 31 patients across clinical stages and histologic subtypes. We identified 34 distinct cell-lineage states including novel rare cell populations. Many lineage states exhibited distinct cancer-associated expression profiles, individually contributing to a combined tumor-wide molecular collage. We observed increased plasma cell proportions in diffuse-type tumors associated with epithelial-resident KLF2 and stage-wise accrual of cancer-associated fibroblast subpopulations marked by high INHBA and FAP coexpression. Single-cell comparisons between patient-derived organoids (PDO) and primary tumors highlighted inter- and intralineage similarities and differences, demarcating molecular boundaries of PDOs as experimental models. We complemented these findings by spatial transcriptomics, orthogonal validation in independent bulk RNA-sequencing cohorts, and functional demonstration using in vitro and in vivo models. Our results provide a high-resolution molecular resource of intra- and interpatient lineage states across distinct gastric cancer subtypes. SIGNIFICANCE We profiled gastric malignancies at single-cell resolution and identified increased plasma cell proportions as a novel feature of diffuse-type tumors. We also uncovered distinct cancer-associated fibroblast subtypes with INHBA-FAP-high cell populations as predictors of poor clinical prognosis. Our findings highlight potential origins of deregulated cell states in the gastric tumor ecosystem. This article is highlighted in the In This Issue feature, p. 587.
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Affiliation(s)
- Vikrant Kumar
- Cancer and Stem Cell Biology Program, Duke-NUS Medical School, Singapore
| | | | - Raghav Sundar
- Cancer and Stem Cell Biology Program, Duke-NUS Medical School, Singapore.,Department of Haematology-Oncology, National University Cancer Institute, National University Health System, Singapore.,Yong Loo Lin School of Medicine, National University of Singapore, Singapore.,The N.1 Institute for Health, National University of Singapore, Singapore.,Singapore Gastric Cancer Consortium, Singapore
| | - Nisha Padmanabhan
- Cancer and Stem Cell Biology Program, Duke-NUS Medical School, Singapore
| | | | - Mayu Koiwa
- Gastrointestinal Cancer Biology, International Research Center for Medical Sciences (IRCMS), Kumamoto University, Kumamoto, Japan
| | - Tadahito Yasuda
- Gastrointestinal Cancer Biology, International Research Center for Medical Sciences (IRCMS), Kumamoto University, Kumamoto, Japan
| | - Vivien Koh
- Department of Haematology-Oncology, National University Cancer Institute, National University Health System, Singapore.,Cancer Science Institute of Singapore, National University of Singapore, Singapore
| | - Kie Kyon Huang
- Cancer and Stem Cell Biology Program, Duke-NUS Medical School, Singapore
| | - Su Ting Tay
- Cancer and Stem Cell Biology Program, Duke-NUS Medical School, Singapore
| | - Shamaine Wei Ting Ho
- Cancer and Stem Cell Biology Program, Duke-NUS Medical School, Singapore.,Cancer Science Institute of Singapore, National University of Singapore, Singapore
| | - Angie Lay Keng Tan
- Cancer and Stem Cell Biology Program, Duke-NUS Medical School, Singapore
| | - Takatsugu Ishimoto
- Gastrointestinal Cancer Biology, International Research Center for Medical Sciences (IRCMS), Kumamoto University, Kumamoto, Japan
| | - Guowei Kim
- Yong Loo Lin School of Medicine, National University of Singapore, Singapore.,Department of Surgery, University Surgical Cluster, National University Health System, Singapore
| | - Asim Shabbir
- Yong Loo Lin School of Medicine, National University of Singapore, Singapore.,Department of Surgery, University Surgical Cluster, National University Health System, Singapore
| | - Qingfeng Chen
- Institute of Molecular and Cell Biology, Agency for Science, Technology and Research, Singapore.,Department of Microbiology and Immunology, Yong Loo Lin School of Medicine, Singapore
| | - Biyan Zhang
- Singapore Immunology Network (SIgN), A*STAR, Singapore
| | - Shengli Xu
- Singapore Immunology Network (SIgN), A*STAR, Singapore.,Department of Physiology, National University of Singapore, Singapore
| | - Kong-Peng Lam
- Department of Microbiology and Immunology, Yong Loo Lin School of Medicine, Singapore.,Singapore Immunology Network (SIgN), A*STAR, Singapore.,School of Biological Sciences, Nanyang Technological University, Singapore
| | | | - Ming Teh
- Department of Pathology, National University Health System, Singapore
| | - Wei Peng Yong
- Department of Haematology-Oncology, National University Cancer Institute, National University Health System, Singapore.,Singapore Gastric Cancer Consortium, Singapore.,Cancer Science Institute of Singapore, National University of Singapore, Singapore
| | - Jimmy Bok Yan So
- Yong Loo Lin School of Medicine, National University of Singapore, Singapore.,Singapore Gastric Cancer Consortium, Singapore.,Department of Surgery, University Surgical Cluster, National University Health System, Singapore.,Division of Surgical Oncology, National University Cancer Institute, Singapore
| | - Patrick Tan
- Cancer and Stem Cell Biology Program, Duke-NUS Medical School, Singapore.,Singapore Gastric Cancer Consortium, Singapore.,Cancer Science Institute of Singapore, National University of Singapore, Singapore.,Department of Physiology, National University of Singapore, Singapore.,Genome Institute of Singapore, Agency for Science, Technology and Research, Singapore.,SingHealth/Duke-NUS Institute of Precision Medicine, National Heart Centre Singapore, Singapore.,Corresponding Author: Patrick Tan, Cancer and Stem Cell Biology Program, Duke-NUS Medical School, 8 College Road, Singapore 169857, Singapore. Phone: 65-6516-1783; Fax: 65-6221-2402; E-mail:
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Abstract
Gastric cancer (GC) is a leading contributor to global cancer incidence and mortality. Pioneering genomic studies, focusing largely on primary GCs, revealed driver alterations in genes such as ERBB2, FGFR2, TP53 and ARID1A as well as multiple molecular subtypes. However, clinical efforts targeting these alterations have produced variable results, hampered by complex co-alteration patterns in molecular profiles and intra-patient genomic heterogeneity. In this Review, we highlight foundational and translational advances in dissecting the genomic cartography of GC, including non-coding variants, epigenomic aberrations and transcriptomic alterations, and describe how these alterations interplay with environmental influences, germline factors and the tumour microenvironment. Mapping of these alterations over the GC life cycle in normal gastric tissues, metaplasia, primary carcinoma and distant metastasis will improve our understanding of biological mechanisms driving GC development and promoting cancer hallmarks. On the translational front, integrative genomic approaches are identifying diverse mechanisms of GC therapy resistance and emerging preclinical targets, enabled by technologies such as single-cell sequencing and liquid biopsies. Validating these insights will require specifically designed GC cohorts, converging multi-modal genomic data with longitudinal data on therapeutic challenges and patient outcomes. Genomic findings from these studies will facilitate 'next-generation' clinical initiatives in GC precision oncology and prevention.
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Affiliation(s)
- Khay Guan Yeoh
- Department of Medicine, Yong Loo Lin School of Medicine, National University of Singapore, Singapore, Singapore
- Department of Gastroenterology and Hepatology, National University Health System, Singapore, Singapore
- Singapore Gastric Cancer Consortium, Singapore, Singapore
| | - Patrick Tan
- Singapore Gastric Cancer Consortium, Singapore, Singapore.
- Cancer and Stem Cell Biology, Duke-NUS Medical School Singapore, Singapore, Singapore.
- Genome Institute of Singapore, Singapore, Singapore.
- Cancer Science Institute of Singapore, National University of Singapore, Singapore, Singapore.
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Delinassios JG, Hoffman RM. The cancer-inhibitory effects of proliferating tumor-residing fibroblasts. Biochim Biophys Acta Rev Cancer 2021; 1877:188673. [PMID: 34953931 DOI: 10.1016/j.bbcan.2021.188673] [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: 10/12/2021] [Revised: 12/09/2021] [Accepted: 12/17/2021] [Indexed: 11/19/2022]
Abstract
Initiation, local progression, and metastasis of cancer are associated with specific morphological, molecular, and functional changes in the extracellular matrix and the fibroblasts within the tumor microenvironment (TME). In the early stages of tumor development, fibroblasts are an obstacle that cancer cells must surpass or nullify to progress. Thus, in early tumor progression, specific signaling from cancer cells activates bio-pathways, which abolish the innate anticancer properties of fibroblasts and convert a high proportion of them to tumor-promoting cancer-associated fibroblasts (CAFs). Following this initial event, a wide spectrum of gene expression changes gradually leads to the development of a stromal fibroblast population with complex heterogeneity, creating fibroblast subtypes with characteristic profiles, which may alternate between being tumor-promotive and tumor-suppressive, topologically and chronologically in the TME. These fibroblast subtypes form the tumor's histological landscape including areas of cancer growth, inflammation, angiogenesis, invasion fronts, proliferating and non-proliferating fibroblasts, cancer-cell apoptosis, fibroblast apoptosis, and necrosis. These features reflect general deregulation of tissue homeostasis within the TME. This review discusses fundamental and current knowledge that has established the existence of anticancer fibroblasts within the various interacting elements of the TME. It is proposed that the maintenance of fibroblast proliferation is an essential parameter for the activation of their anticancer capacity, similar to that by which normal fibroblasts would be activated in wound repair, thus maintaining tissue homeostasis. Encouragement of research in this direction may render new means of cancer therapy and a greater understanding of tumor progression.
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Affiliation(s)
- John G Delinassios
- International Institute of Anticancer Research, 1(st) km Kapandritiou-Kalamou Rd., Kapandriti, 19014 Attica, Greece.
| | - Robert M Hoffman
- Department of Surgery, University of California, 9300 Campus Point Drive, La Jolla, CA 92037, USA; AntiCancer Inc., 7917 Ostrow St, San Diego, CA 92111, USA.
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47
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The Integrative Analysis of Thrombospondin Family Genes in Pan-Cancer Reveals that THBS2 Facilitates Gastrointestinal Cancer Metastasis. JOURNAL OF ONCOLOGY 2021; 2021:4405491. [PMID: 34804159 PMCID: PMC8598331 DOI: 10.1155/2021/4405491] [Citation(s) in RCA: 11] [Impact Index Per Article: 3.7] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 09/17/2021] [Accepted: 10/26/2021] [Indexed: 12/11/2022]
Abstract
Recent cancer studies have found that the thrombospondin (THBS) family, including THBS1, THBS2, THBS3, THBS4, and THBS5, play vital roles in the development and progression of human cancers. However, their relationships with tumor stage, prognosis, and tumor immunity in pan-cancer have not been systematically reported. In the present study, we employed versatile public databases to assess the expression and mutations of different THBSs in pan-cancer and performed functional experiments to analyze the roles of THBS2 in gastrointestinal cancer metastasis. Our findings indicate that THBS genes are frequently mutated in various cancers and the dysregulation of THBS family members is associated with the progression of some cancers such as gastric cancer, colon cancer, and lung cancer. Further analyses indicate that THBS genes are associated with cancer hallmarks such as cell cycle and epithelial-mesenchymal transition (EMT). Importantly, thrombospondins, especially THBS1 and THBS2, are correlated with the immune cell infiltration level in gastrointestinal cancers. Our experiments further verified that THBS2 participates in tumor metastasis by enhancing EMT. Therefore, the overall analyses reveal that THBSs might offer us potential chances for tumor diagnosis and therapy.
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48
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Lior C, Hodge F, De-Souza EA, Bourboulia D, Calderwood SK, David D, Allan Drummond D, Edkins A, Morimoto RI, Prahlad V, Rechavi O, Sistonen L, Wilson M, Wiseman RL, Zanetti M, Taylor R, Scherz-Shouval R, van Oosten-Hawle P. The 2021 FASEB Virtual Catalyst Conference on Extracellular and Organismal Proteostasis in Health and Disease, February 3-4, 2021. FASEB J 2021; 35:e21631. [PMID: 34046940 DOI: 10.1096/fj.202100566] [Citation(s) in RCA: 1] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 04/14/2021] [Accepted: 04/14/2021] [Indexed: 12/14/2022]
Affiliation(s)
- Chen Lior
- Department of Biomolecular Sciences, The Weizmann Institute of Science, Rehovot, Israel
| | - Francesca Hodge
- School of Molecular and Cell Biology, Astbury Centre for Structural Molecular Biology, University of Leeds, Leeds, UK
| | - Evandro A De-Souza
- Neurobiology Division, Medical Research Council Laboratory of Molecular Biology, Cambridge, UK
| | - Dimitra Bourboulia
- Department of Urology, Department of Biochemistry and Molecular Biology, Upstate Cancer Center, State University of New York Upstate Medical University, Syracuse, NY, USA
| | - Stuart K Calderwood
- Department of Radiation Oncology, Beth Israel Deaconess Medical Center, Harvard Medical School, Boston, MA, USA
| | - Della David
- German Center for Neurodegenerative Diseases (DZNE), University of Tübingen, Tübingen, Germany
| | - D Allan Drummond
- Department of Biochemistry and Molecular Biology, University of Chicago, Chicago, IL, USA
| | - Adrienne Edkins
- Biomedical Biotechnology Research Unit, Department of Biochemistry and Microbiology, Rhodes University, Grahamstown, South Africa
| | - Richard I Morimoto
- Department of Molecular Biosciences, Northwestern University, Evanston, IL, USA
| | - Veena Prahlad
- Department of Biology, Aging Mind and Brain Initiative, University of Iowa, Iowa City, IA, USA
| | - Oded Rechavi
- Department of Neurobiology, Wise Faculty of Life Sciences and Sagol School of Neuroscience, Tel Aviv University, Tel Aviv, Israel
| | - Lea Sistonen
- Department of Cell Biology, Åbo Akademi University, Turku, Finland.,Turku Bioscience Centre, University of Turku and Åbo Akademi University, Turku, Finland
| | - Mark Wilson
- Illawarra Health and Medical Research Institute, University of Wollongong, Wollongong, NSW, Australia
| | - R Luke Wiseman
- Department of Molecular Medicine, The Scripps Research Institute, La Jolla, CA, USA
| | - Maurizio Zanetti
- Laboratory of Immunology, Department of Medicine and Moores Cancer Center, University of California at San Diego, La Jolla, CA, USA
| | - Rebecca Taylor
- Neurobiology Division, Medical Research Council Laboratory of Molecular Biology, Cambridge, UK
| | - Ruth Scherz-Shouval
- Department of Biomolecular Sciences, The Weizmann Institute of Science, Rehovot, Israel
| | - Patricija van Oosten-Hawle
- School of Molecular and Cell Biology, Astbury Centre for Structural Molecular Biology, University of Leeds, Leeds, UK
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Jiang Y, Liang X, Han Z, Wang W, Xi S, Li T, Chen C, Yuan Q, Li N, Yu J, Xie Y, Xu Y, Zhou Z, Poultsides GA, Li G, Li R. Radiographical assessment of tumour stroma and treatment outcomes using deep learning: a retrospective, multicohort study. LANCET DIGITAL HEALTH 2021; 3:e371-e382. [PMID: 34045003 DOI: 10.1016/s2589-7500(21)00065-0] [Citation(s) in RCA: 8] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.7] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 12/15/2020] [Revised: 03/16/2021] [Accepted: 04/07/2021] [Indexed: 12/16/2022]
Abstract
BACKGROUND The tumour stroma microenvironment plays an important part in disease progression and its composition can influence treatment response and outcomes. Histological evaluation of tumour stroma is limited by access to tissue, spatial heterogeneity, and temporal evolution. We aimed to develop a radiological signature for non-invasive assessment of tumour stroma and treatment outcomes. METHODS In this multicentre, retrospective study, we analysed CT images and outcome data of 2209 patients with resected gastric cancer from five independent cohorts recruited from two centres (Nanfang Hospital of Southern Medical University [Guangzhou, China] and Sun Yat-sen University Cancer Center [Guangzhou, China]). Patients with histologically confirmed gastric cancer, at least 15 lymph nodes harvested, preoperative abdominal CT available, and complete clinicopathological and follow-up data were eligible for inclusion. Tumour tissue was collected for patients in the training cohort (321 patients), internal validation cohort one (246 patients), and external validation cohort one (128 patients). Four stroma classes were defined according to the protein expression of α-smooth muscle actin and periostin assessed by immunohistochemistry. The primary objective was to predict the histologically based stroma classes by using preoperative CT images. We trained a deep convolutional neural network model using the training cohort and tested the model in the internal and external validation cohort one. We evaluated the model's association with prognosis in the training cohort, two internal, and two external validation cohorts and compared outcomes of patients who received or did not receive adjuvant chemotherapy. FINDINGS The deep-learning model achieved a high diagnostic accuracy for assessing tumour stroma in both internal validation cohort one (area under the receiver operating characteristic curve [AUC] 0·96-0·98]) and external validation cohort one (AUC 0·89-0·94). The stromal imaging signature was significantly associated with disease-free survival and overall survival in all cohorts (p<0·0001). The predicted stroma classes remained an independent prognostic factor adjusting for clinicopathological variables including tumour size, stage, differentiation, and Lauren histology. In patients with stage II or III disease in predicted stroma classes one and two subgroups, patients who received adjuvant chemotherapy had improved survival compared with those who did not (in those with stage II disease hazard ratio [HR] 0·48 [95% CI 0·29-0·77], p=0·0021; and in those with stage III disease HR 0·70 [0·57-0·85], p=0·00042). However, in the other two subgroups adjuvant chemotherapy was not associated with survival and might even be detrimental in the predicted stroma class 4 subgroup (HR 1·48 [1·08-2·03], p=0·013). INTERPRETATION The deep-learning model could allow for accurate and non-invasive evaluation of tumour stroma from CT images in gastric cancer. The radiographical model predicted chemotherapy outcomes and could be used in combination with clinicopathological criteria to refine prognosis and inform treatment decisions of patients with gastric cancer. FUNDING None.
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Affiliation(s)
- Yuming Jiang
- Department of Radiation Oncology, Stanford University School of Medicine, Stanford, CA, USA
| | - Xiaokun Liang
- Department of Radiation Oncology, Stanford University School of Medicine, Stanford, CA, USA; Shenzhen Institutes of Advanced Technology, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Shenzhen, China; Shenzhen Colleges of Advanced Technology, University of Chinese Academy of Sciences, Shenzhen, China
| | - Zhen Han
- Department of General Surgery, Nanfang Hospital, Southern Medical University, Guangzhou, China; Guangdong Provincial Key Laboratory of Precision Medicine for Gastrointestinal Tumor, Guangzhou, China
| | - Wei Wang
- Department of Gastric Surgery, Sun Yat-sen University Cancer Center, Guangzhou, China
| | - Sujuan Xi
- The Reproductive Medical Center, The Seventh Affiliated Hospital of Sun Yat-sen University, Shenzhen, China
| | - Tuanjie Li
- Department of General Surgery, Nanfang Hospital, Southern Medical University, Guangzhou, China; Guangdong Provincial Key Laboratory of Precision Medicine for Gastrointestinal Tumor, Guangzhou, China
| | - Chuanli Chen
- Department of Medical Imaging Center, Nanfang Hospital, Southern Medical University, Guangzhou, China
| | - Qingyu Yuan
- Department of Medical Imaging Center, Nanfang Hospital, Southern Medical University, Guangzhou, China
| | - Na Li
- Shenzhen Institutes of Advanced Technology, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Shenzhen, China; Shenzhen Colleges of Advanced Technology, University of Chinese Academy of Sciences, Shenzhen, China
| | - Jiang Yu
- Department of General Surgery, Nanfang Hospital, Southern Medical University, Guangzhou, China; Guangdong Provincial Key Laboratory of Precision Medicine for Gastrointestinal Tumor, Guangzhou, China
| | - Yaoqin Xie
- Shenzhen Institutes of Advanced Technology, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Shenzhen, China; Shenzhen Colleges of Advanced Technology, University of Chinese Academy of Sciences, Shenzhen, China
| | - Yikai Xu
- Department of Medical Imaging Center, Nanfang Hospital, Southern Medical University, Guangzhou, China
| | - Zhiwei Zhou
- Department of Gastric Surgery, Sun Yat-sen University Cancer Center, Guangzhou, China
| | - George A Poultsides
- Department of Surgery, Stanford University School of Medicine, Stanford, CA, USA
| | - Guoxin Li
- Department of General Surgery, Nanfang Hospital, Southern Medical University, Guangzhou, China; Department of Gastric Surgery, Sun Yat-sen University Cancer Center, Guangzhou, China
| | - Ruijiang Li
- Department of Radiation Oncology, Stanford University School of Medicine, Stanford, CA, USA.
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Heat Shock Factor 1 as a Prognostic and Diagnostic Biomarker of Gastric Cancer. Biomedicines 2021; 9:biomedicines9060586. [PMID: 34064083 PMCID: PMC8224319 DOI: 10.3390/biomedicines9060586] [Citation(s) in RCA: 3] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 05/04/2021] [Revised: 05/18/2021] [Accepted: 05/19/2021] [Indexed: 01/09/2023] Open
Abstract
Identification of effective prognostic and diagnostic biomarkers is needed to improve the diagnosis and treatment of gastric cancer. Early detection of gastric cancer through diagnostic markers can help establish effective treatments. Heat shock factor 1 (HSF1), presented in this review, is known to be regulated by a broad range of transcription factors, including those characterized in various malignant tumors, including gastric cancer. Particularly, it has been demonstrated that HSF1 regulation in various cancers is correlated with different processes, such as cell death, proliferation, and metastasis. Due to the effect of HSF1 on the initiation, development, and progression of various tumors, it is considered as an important gene for understanding and treating tumors. Additionally, HSF1 exhibits high expression in various cancers, and its high expression adversely affects the prognosis of various cancer patients, thereby suggesting that it can be used as a novel, predictive, prognostic, and diagnostic biomarker for gastric cancer. In this review, we discuss the literature accumulated in recent years, which suggests that there is a correlation between the expression of HSF1 and prognosis of gastric cancer patients through public data. Consequently, this evidence also indicates that HSF1 can be established as a powerful biomarker for the prognosis and diagnosis of gastric cancer.
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