GPC3 reduces cell proliferation in renal carcinoma cell lines

Correlation of Glycolysis-immune-related Genes in the Follicular Microenvironment of Endometriosis Patients with ART Outcomes

Endometriosis (EMT) -related infertility has been a challenge for clinical research. Many studies have confirmed that abnormal alterations in the immune microenvironment and glycolysis are instrumental in causing EMT-related infertility. Recently, our research team identified several key glycolysis-immune-related genes in the endometrial cells of EMT patients. This study aimed to further investigate the expression patterns of pyruvate dehydrogenase kinase 3 (PDK3), glypican-3 (GPC3), and alcohol dehydrogenase 6 (ADH6), which are related to glycolysis and immunity, in the follicular microenvironment of infertile patients with EMT using enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay (ELISA) and quantitative real-time polymerase chain reaction (qRT-PCR) assays. According to the results, compared to the patients with tubal factor infertility, the concentrations of PDK3 and GPC3 were considerably increased in the follicular environment of EMT patients, while ADH6 expression was significantly reduced. The number of oocytes retrieved, the transferable embryo rate, and the cumulative clinical pregnancy rate of EMT patients were significantly reduced, and there was a correlation with the level of PDK3, GPC3, and ADH6 in Follicular Fluid (FF). The area under the receiver operating characteristic (ROC) curve for predicting clinical pregnancy in infertile patients with EMT for PDK3, GPC3, ADH6, and their combination was 0.732, 0.705, 0.855, and 0.879, respectively (P < 0.05). In conclusion, our research indicates that glycolysis-immune-related genes may contribute to infertility in EMT patients through immune infiltration, and disruption of mitochondrial and oocyte functions. The combined detection of PDK3, GPC3, and ADH6 in FF helps to predict clinical pregnancy outcomes in infertile patients with EMT.

A temporal extracellular transcriptome atlas of human pre-implantation development

Non-invasively evaluating gene expression products in human pre-implantation embryos remains a significant challenge. Here, we develop a non-invasive method for comprehensive characterization of the extracellular RNAs (exRNAs) in a single droplet of spent media that was used to culture human in vitro fertilization embryos. We generate the temporal extracellular transcriptome atlas (TETA) of human pre-implantation development. TETA consists of 245 exRNA sequencing datasets for five developmental stages. These data reveal approximately 4,000 exRNAs at each stage. The exRNAs of the developmentally arrested embryos are enriched with the genes involved in negative regulation of the cell cycle, revealing an exRNA signature of developmental arrest. Furthermore, a machine-learning model can approximate the morphology-based rating of embryo quality based on the exRNA levels. These data reveal the widespread presence of coding gene-derived exRNAs at every stage of human pre-implantation development, and these exRNAs provide rich information on the physiology of the embryo.

Biological and clinical significance of the glypican-3 gene in human lung adenocarcinoma: An in silico analysis

Glypican-3 (GPC3), a membrane-bound heparan sulfate proteoglycan, has long been found to be dysregulated in human lung adenocarcinomas (LUADs). Nevertheless, the function, mutational profile, epigenetic regulation, co-expression profile, and clinicopathological significance of the GPC3 gene in LUAD progression are not well understood. In this study, we analyzed cancer microarray datasets from publicly available databases using bioinformatics tools to elucidate the above parameters. We observed significant downregulation of GPC3 in LUAD tissues compared to their normal counterparts, and this downregulation was associated with shorter overall survival (OS) and relapse-free survival (RFS). Nevertheless, no significant differences in the methylation pattern of GPC3 were observed between LUAD and normal tissues, although lower promoter methylation was observed in male patients. GPC3 expression was also found to correlate significantly with infiltration of B cells, CD8+, CD4+, macrophages, neutrophils, and dendritic cells in LUAD. In addition, a total of 11 missense mutations were identified in LUAD patients, and ~1.4% to 2.2% of LUAD patients had copy number amplifications in GPC3. Seventeen genes, mainly involved in dopamine receptor-mediated signaling pathways, were frequently co-expressed with GPC3. We also found 11 TFs and 7 miRNAs interacting with GPC3 and contributing to disease progression. Finally, we identified 3 potential inhibitors of GPC3 in human LUAD, namely heparitin, gemcitabine and arbutin. In conclusion, GPC3 may play an important role in the development of LUAD and could serve as a promising biomarker in LUAD.

Glypican1: a potential cancer biomarker for nanotargeted therapy

Glypicans (GPCs) are generally involved in cellular signaling, growth and proliferation. Previous studies reported their roles in cancer proliferation. GPC1 is a co-receptor for a variety of growth-related ligands, thereby stimulating the tumor microenvironment by promoting angiogenesis and epithelial-mesenchymal transition (EMT). This work reviews GPC1-biomarker-assisted drug discovery by the application of nanostructured materials, creating nanotheragnostics for targeted delivery and application in liquid biopsies. The review includes details of GPC1 as a potential biomarker in cancer progression as well as a potential candidate for nano-mediated drug discovery.

Single-cell transcriptomic analysis identifies murine heart molecular features at embryonic and neonatal stages

Heart development is a continuous process involving significant remodeling during embryogenesis and neonatal stages. To date, several groups have used single-cell sequencing to characterize the heart transcriptomes but failed to capture the progression of heart development at most stages. This has left gaps in understanding the contribution of each cell type across cardiac development. Here, we report the transcriptional profile of the murine heart from early embryogenesis to late neonatal stages. Through further analysis of this dataset, we identify several transcriptional features. We identify gene expression modules enriched at early embryonic and neonatal stages; multiple cell types in the left and right atriums are transcriptionally distinct at neonatal stages; many congenital heart defect-associated genes have cell type-specific expression; stage-unique ligand-receptor interactions are mostly between epicardial cells and other cell types at neonatal stages; and mutants of epicardium-expressed genes Wt1 and Tbx18 have different heart defects. Assessment of this dataset serves as an invaluable source of information for studies of heart development.

Identification of a Hypoxia-Related Gene Model for Predicting the Prognosis and Formulating the Treatment Strategies in Kidney Renal Clear Cell Carcinoma

Purpose

The present study aimed to establish a hypoxia related genes model to predict the prognosis of kidney clear cell carcinoma (KIRC) patients using data accessed from The Cancer Genome Atlas (TCGA) database and International Cancer Genome Consortium (ICGC) database.

Methods

Patients’ data were downloaded from the TCGA and ICGC databases, and hypoxia related genes were accessed from the Molecular Signatures Database. The differentially expressed genes were evaluated and then the differential expressions hypoxia genes were screened. The TCGA cohort was randomly divided into a discovery TCGA cohort and a validation TCGA cohort. The discovery TCGA cohort was used for constructing the hypoxia genes risk model through Lasso regression, univariate and multivariate Cox regression analysis. Receiver operating characteristic (ROC) curves were used to assess the reliability and sensitivity of our model. Then, we established a nomogram to predict the probable one-, three-, and five-year overall survival rates. Lastly, the Tumor Immune Dysfunction and Exclusion (TIDE) score of patients was calculated.

Results

We established a six hypoxia-related gene prognostic model of KIRC patients in the TCGA database and validated in the ICGC database. The patients with high riskscore present poorer prognosis than those with low riskscore in the three TCGA cohorts and ICGC cohort. ROC curves show our six-gene model with a robust predictive capability in these four cohorts. In addition, we constructed a nomogram for KIRC patients in the TCGA database. Finally, the high risk-group had a high TIDE score than the patients with low riskscore.

Conclusions

We established a six hypoxia-related gene risk model for independent prediction of the prognosis of KIRC patients was established and constructed a robust nomogram. The different riskscores might be a biomarker for immunotherapy strategy.

Integrative Analysis of Epigenome and Transcriptome Data Reveals Aberrantly Methylated Promoters and Enhancers in Hepatocellular Carcinoma

DNA methylation is a key transcription regulator, whose aberration was ubiquitous and important in most cancers including hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC). Whole-genome bisulfite sequencing (WGBS) was conducted for comparison of DNA methylation in tumor and adjacent tissues from 33 HCC patients, accompanying RNA-seq to determine differentially methylated region-associated, differentially expressed genes (DMR-DEGs), which were independently replicated in the TCGA-LIHC cohort and experimentally validated via 5-aza-2-deoxycytidine (5-azadC) demethylation. A total of 9,867,700 CpG sites showed significantly differential methylation in HCC. Integrations of mRNA-seq, histone ChIP-seq, and WGBS data identified 611 high-confidence DMR-DEGs. Enrichment analysis demonstrated activation of multiple molecular pathways related to cell cycle and DNA repair, accompanying repression of several critical metabolism pathways such as tyrosine and monocarboxylic acid metabolism. In TCGA-LIHC, we replicated about 53% of identified DMR-DEGs and highlighted the prognostic significance of combinations of methylation and expression of nine DMR-DEGs, which were more efficient prognostic biomarkers than considering either type of data alone. Finally, we validated 22/23 (95.7%) DMR-DEGs in 5-azadC-treated LO2 and/or HepG2 cells. In conclusion, integration of epigenome and transcriptome data depicted activation of multiple pivotal cell cycle-related pathways and repression of several metabolic pathways triggered by aberrant DNA methylation of promoters and enhancers in HCC.

Genetic mapping of renal glutathione suggests a novel regulatory locus on the murine X chromosome and overlap with hepatic glutathione regulation

Glutathione (GSH) is a critical cellular antioxidant that protects against byproducts of aerobic metabolism and other reactive electrophiles to prevent oxidative stress and cell death. Proper maintenance of its reduced form, GSH, in excess of its oxidized form, GSSG, prevents oxidative stress in the kidney and protects against the development of chronic kidney disease. Evidence has indicated that renal concentrations of GSH and GSSG, as well as their ratio GSH/GSSG, are moderately heritable, and past research has identified polymorphisms and candidate genes associated with these phenotypes in mice. Yet those discoveries were made with in silico mapping methods that are prone to false positives and power limitations, so the true loci and candidate genes that control renal glutathione remain unknown. The present study utilized high-resolution gene mapping with the Diversity Outbred mouse stock to identify causal loci underlying variation in renal GSH levels and redox status. Mapping output identified a suggestive locus associated with renal GSH on murine chromosome X at 51.602 Mbp, and bioinformatic analyses identified apoptosis-inducing factor mitochondria-associated 1 (Aifm1) as the most plausible candidate. Then, mapping outputs were compiled and compared against the genetic architecture of the hepatic GSH system, and we discovered a locus on murine chromosome 14 that overlaps between hepatic GSH concentrations and renal GSH redox potential. Overall, the results support our previously proposed model that the GSH redox system is regulated by both global and tissue-specific loci, vastly improving our understanding of GSH and its regulation and proposing new candidate genes for future mechanistic studies.

Screening of MicroRNA Related to Irradiation Response and the Regulation Mechanism of miRNA-96-5p in Rectal Cancer Cells

Neoadjuvant chemoradiotherapy has been widely used in the treatment of locally advanced rectal cancer due to the excellent advantages of irradiation in cancer therapy. Unfortunately, not every patient can benefit from this treatment, therefore, it is of great significance to explore biomarkers that can predict irradiation sensitivity. In this study, we screened microRNAs (miRNAs) which were positively correlated with irradiation resistance and found that miRNA-552 and miRNA-183 families were positively correlated with the irradiation resistance of rectal cancer, and found that high expression of miRNA-96-5p enhanced the irradiation resistance of rectal cancer cells through direct regulation of the GPC3 gene and abnormal activation of the canonical Wnt signal transduction pathway. Based on the radioreactivity results of patient-derived xenograft models, this is the first screening report for radio-resistant biomarkers in rectal cancer. Our results suggest that miRNA-96-5p expression is an important factor affecting the radiation response of colorectal cancer cells.

Recombinant immunotoxin targeting GPC3 is cytotoxic to H446 small cell lung cancer cells

Glypican-3 (GPC3) is a cell membrane glycoprotein that regulates cell growth and proliferation. Aberrant expression or distribution of GPC3 underlies developmental abnormalities and the development of solid tumours. The strongest evidence for the participation of GPC3 in carcinogenesis stems from studies on hepatocellular carcinoma and lung squamous cell carcinoma. To the best of our knowledge, the role of the GPC3 protein and its potential therapeutic application have never been studied in small cell lung carcinoma (SCLC), despite the known involvement of associated pathways and the high mortality caused by this disease. Therefore, the aim of the present study was to examine GPC3 targeting for SCLC immunotherapy. An immunotoxin carrying an anti-GPC3 antibody (hGC33) and Pseudomonas aeruginosa exotoxin A 38 (PE38) was generated. This hGC33-PE38 protein was overexpressed in E. coli and purified. ADP-ribosylation activity was tested in vitro against eukaryotic translation elongation factor 2. Cell internalisation ability was confirmed by confocal microscopy. Cytotoxicity was analysed by treating liver cancer (HepG2, SNU-398 and SNU-449) and lung cancer (NCI-H510A, NCI-H446, A549 and SK-MES1) cell lines with hGC33-PE38 and estimating viable cells number. A BrdU assay was employed to verify anti-proliferative activity of hGC33-PE38 on treated cells. Fluorescence-activated cell sorting was used for the detection of cell membrane-bound GPC3. The hGC33-PE38 immunotoxin displayed enzymatic activity comparable to native PE38. The protein was efficiently internalised by GPC3-positive cells. Moreover, hGC33-PE38 was cytotoxic to HepG2 cells but had no effect on known GPC3-negative cell lines. The H446 cells were sensitive to hGC33-PE38 (IC₅₀, 70.6±4.6 ng/ml), whereas H510A cells were resistant. Cell surface-bound GPC3 was abundant on the membranes of H446 cells, but absent on H510A. Altogether, the present findings suggested that GPC3 could be considered as a potential therapeutic target for SCLC immunotherapy.

Prognostic value of Glypican family genes in early-stage pancreatic ductal adenocarcinoma after pancreaticoduodenectomy and possible mechanisms

Background

This study explored the prognostic significance of Glypican (GPC) family genes in patients with pancreatic ductal adenocarcinoma (PDAC) after pancreaticoduodenectomy using data from The Cancer Genome Atlas (TCGA) and Gene Expression Omnibus (GEO).

Methods

A total of 112 PDAC patients from TCGA and 48 patients from GEO were included in the analysis. The relationship between overall survival and the expression of GPC family genes as well as basic clinical characteristics was analyzed using the Kaplan-Meier method with the log-rank test. Joint effects survival analysis was performed to further examine the relationship between GPC genes and prognosis. A prognosis nomogram was established based on clinical characteristics and prognosis-related genes. Prognosis-related genes were investigated by genome-wide co-expression analysis and gene set enrichment analysis (GSEA) was carried out to identify potential mechanisms of these genes affecting prognosis.

Results

In TCGA database, high expression of GPC2, GPC3, and GPC5 was significantly associated with favorable survival (log-rank P = 0.031, 0.021, and 0.028, respectively; adjusted P value = 0.005, 0.022, and 0.020, respectively), and joint effects analysis of these genes was effective for prognosis prediction. The prognosis nomogram was applied to predict the survival probability using the total scores calculated. Genome-wide co-expression and GSEA analysis suggested that the GPC2 may affect prognosis through sequence-specific DNA binding, protein transport, cell differentiation and oncogenic signatures (KRAS, RAF, STK33, and VEGFA). GPC3 may be related to cell adhesion, angiogenesis, inflammatory response, signaling pathways like Ras, Rap1, PI3K-Akt, chemokine, GPCR, and signatures like cyclin D1, p53, PTEN. GPC5 may be involved in transcription factor complex, TFRC1, oncogenic signatures (HOXA9 and BMI1), gene methylation, phospholipid metabolic process, glycerophospholipid metabolism, cell cycle, and EGFR pathway.

Conclusion

GPC2, GPC3, and GPC5 expression may serve as prognostic indicators in PDAC, and combination of these genes showed a higher efficiency for prognosis prediction.

Heparan Sulfate Proteoglycan Signaling in Tumor Microenvironment

In the last few decades, heparan sulfate (HS) proteoglycans (HSPGs) have been an intriguing subject of study for their complex structural characteristics, their finely regulated biosynthetic machinery, and the wide range of functions they perform in living organisms from development to adulthood. From these studies, key roles of HSPGs in tumor initiation and progression have emerged, so that they are currently being explored as potential biomarkers and therapeutic targets for cancers. The multifaceted nature of HSPG structure/activity translates in their capacity to act either as inhibitors or promoters of tumor growth and invasion depending on the tumor type. Deregulation of HSPGs resulting in malignancy may be due to either their abnormal expression levels or changes in their structure and functions as a result of the altered activity of their biosynthetic or remodeling enzymes. Indeed, in the tumor microenvironment, HSPGs undergo structural alterations, through the shedding of proteoglycan ectodomain from the cell surface or the fragmentation and/or desulfation of HS chains, affecting HSPG function with significant impact on the molecular interactions between cancer cells and their microenvironment, and tumor cell behavior. Here, we overview the structural and functional features of HSPGs and their signaling in the tumor environment which contributes to tumorigenesis and cancer progression.

The Role of Glypicans in Cancer Progression and Therapy

Glypicans are a family of heparan sulfate proteoglycans that are attached to the cell membrane via a glycosylphosphatidylinositol anchor. Glypicans interact with multiple ligands, including morphogens, growth factors, chemokines, ligands, receptors, and components of the extracellular matrix through their heparan sulfate chains and core protein. Therefore, glypicans can function as coreceptors to regulate cell proliferation, cell motility, and morphogenesis. In addition, some glypicans are abnormally expressed in cancers, possibly involved in tumorigenesis, and have the potential to be cancer-specific biomarkers. Here, we provide a brief review focusing on the expression of glypicans in various cancers and their potential to be targets for cancer therapy.

Glypican-3 Expression in Patients with Oral Squamous Cell Carcinoma

STATEMENT OF THE PROBLEM

Oral squamous cell carcinoma (OSCC) is a malignant neoplasm that affects the structures or tissues of mouth. Early diagnosis of these tumors is important to improve the outcome of treatment. Therefore, using pathological techniques based on molecular markers may be useful for optimal diagnosis and treatment. Glypican-3 (GPC3) is involved in regulation of cell proliferation and morphogenesis and is abundant during embryogenesis and organogenesis but is limited in most of adult tissues. GPC3 overexpression has a role in carcinogenesis.

PURPOSE

The aim of the present study was to investigate GPC3 expression in the non-neoplastic oral epithelium and oral squamous cell carcinoma.

MATERIALS AND METHOD

In this cross-sectional study, 45 patients with OSCC (30 males and 15 females) with a mean age of 52.3 selected from Oral Pathology Department of Shiraz Dental School were enrolled. The control group was consisted of 15 cases of normal oral epithelium. Glypican-3 expression was assessed by using immunohistochemical methods.

RESULTS

Non neoplastic tissues were GPC3 negative. Frequency of GPC3 positivity in tumoral tissues was recorded as 73.3% (33 cases) which was significantly higher than non-neoplastic tissues (p< 0.001).The clinicopathologic features of GPC3 expression demonstrated no association with clinicopathologic parameters except tumor size.

CONCLUSION

GPC3 was over expressed at protein level in oral squamous cell carcinoma, but its potential use for diagnostic and therapeutic purposes requires further investigation.

MetaOmGraph: a workbench for interactive exploratory data analysis of large expression datasets

The diverse and growing omics data in public domains provide researchers with tremendous opportunity to extract hidden, yet undiscovered, knowledge. However, the vast majority of archived data remain unused. Here, we present MetaOmGraph (MOG), a free, open-source, standalone software for exploratory analysis of massive datasets. Researchers, without coding, can interactively visualize and evaluate data in the context of its metadata, honing-in on groups of samples or genes based on attributes such as expression values, statistical associations, metadata terms and ontology annotations. Interaction with data is easy via interactive visualizations such as line charts, box plots, scatter plots, histograms and volcano plots. Statistical analyses include co-expression analysis, differential expression analysis and differential correlation analysis, with significance tests. Researchers can send data subsets to R for additional analyses. Multithreading and indexing enable efficient big data analysis. A researcher can create new MOG projects from any numerical data; or explore an existing MOG project. MOG projects, with history of explorations, can be saved and shared. We illustrate MOG by case studies of large curated datasets from human cancer RNA-Seq, where we identify novel putative biomarker genes in different tumors, and microarray and metabolomics data from Arabidopsis thaliana. MOG executable and code: http://metnetweb.gdcb.iastate.edu/ and https://github.com/urmi-21/MetaOmGraph/.

Role of glypicans in regulation of the tumor microenvironment and cancer progression

Glypicans are evolutionary conserved, cell surface heparan sulfate (HS) proteoglycans that are attached to the cell membrane via a glycosylphosphatidylinositol (GPI) anchor. Glypicans interact with a broad class of soluble and insoluble ligands, such as morphogens, growth factors, chemokines, receptors and components of the extracellular matrix (ECM). Such versatility comes from their ability to interact through both their HS chains and core protein. Glypicans are involved in cellular and tissue development, morphogenesis and cell motility. They exhibit differential expression in several cancers, acting as both tumor promoters and inhibitors in a cancer type-specific manner. They also influence tumor stroma by facilitating angiogenesis, ECM remodeling and alteration of immune cell functions. Glypicans have emerged as a new therapeutic moiety, whose functions can be exploited in the field of targeted therapies and precision medicine in cancer. This is demonstrated by the emergence of several anti-glypican antibody-based immunologics that have been recently developed and are being evaluated in clinical trials. This review will focus on glypican structure and function with an emphasis on their expression in various cancers. Discussion will also center on the potential of glypicans to be therapeutic targets for inhibition of cancer cell growth.

Functional Long Noncoding RNAs (lncRNAs) in Clear Cell Kidney Carcinoma Revealed by Reconstruction and Comprehensive Analysis of the lncRNA-miRNA-mRNA Regulatory Network

BACKGROUND A variety of treatment strategies have been developed for clear cell kidney carcinoma (KIRC); however, there is still a need for effective therapeutic targets and prognostic molecular biomarkers. Given that long noncoding RNAs (lncRNAs) has been emerging as an important regulator in tumorigenesis, we explored potential functional lncRNAs in KIRC by comprehensively analyzing the lncRNA-miRNA-mRNA regulatory network with bioinformatics processing tools. MATERIAL AND METHODS RNA-seq/miRNA-seq data of KIRC in The Cancer Genome Atlas (TCGA) were obtained and analyzed. The "edgeR" package in R software was used to identify differentially expressed lncRNAs (DElncRNAs, differentially expressed long noncoding RNAs), miRNAs (DEmiRNAs, differentially expressed micro RNAs), and mRNAs (DEmRNAs, differentially expressed messenger RNAs) in KIRC and normal samples. A global triple network was conducted based on the competing endogenous RNA (ceRNA) theory, and survival analysis was conducted by "survival" package in R software. RESULTS A total of 4246 DElncRNAs, 179 DEmiRNAs, and 5758 DEmRNAs were identified, among which a subset of them (321 lncRNAs, 26 miRNAs, and 1068 mRNAs) were found to constitute a global ceRNA network in KIRC. Four lncRNAs (ENTPD3-AS1, FGD5-AS1, LIFR-AS1, and UBAC2-AS1) were revealed to be potential therapeutic targets as well as prognostic biomarkers of KIRC by our extensive functional analysis. CONCLUSIONS We reported here the identification of functional lncRNAs in KIRC via a TCGA data-based bioinformatics analysis. We believe that this study might contribute to improving the comprehension of the lncRNA-mediated ceRNA regulatory mechanisms in the tumorigenesis of KIRC. Meanwhile, our results suggested that 4 lncRNAs might act as potential therapeutic targets or candidate prognostic biomarkers in KIRC.

Signaling network involved in the GPC3-induced inhibition of breast cancer progression: role of canonical Wnt pathway

PURPOSE

We have shown that GPC3 overexpression in breast cancer cells inhibits in vivo tumor progression, by acting as a metastatic suppressor. GPC3-overexpressing cells are less clonogenic, viable and motile, while their homotypic adhesion is increased. We have presented evidences indicating that GPC3 inhibits canonical Wnt and Akt pathways, while non-canonical Wnt and p38MAPK cascades are activated. In this study, we aimed to investigate whether GPC3-induced Wnt signaling inhibition modulates breast cancer cell properties as well as to describe the interactions among pathways modulated by GPC3.

METHODS

Fluorescence microscopy, qRT-PCR microarray, gene reporter assay and Western blotting were performed to determine gene expression levels, signaling pathway activities and molecule localization. Lithium was employed to activate canonical Wnt pathway and treated LM3-GPC3 cell viability, migration, cytoskeleton organization and homotypic adhesion were assessed using MTS, wound healing, phalloidin staining and suspension growth assays, respectively.

RESULTS

We provide new data demonstrating that GPC3 blocks-also at a transcriptional level-both autocrine and paracrine canonical Wnt activities, and that this inhibition is required for GPC3 to modulate migration and homotypic adhesion. Our results indicate that GPC3 is secreted into the extracellular media, suggesting that secreted GPC3 competes with Wnt factors or interacts with them and thus prevents Wnt binding to Fz receptors. We also describe the complex network of interactions among GPC3-modulated signaling pathways.

CONCLUSION

GPC3 is operating through an intricate molecular signaling network. From the balance of these interactions, the inhibition of breast metastatic spread induced by GPC3 emerges.

Evaluation of Glypican-3 expression in benign and malignant salivary gland tumors

Introduction

Glypican-3 (GPC3) is involved in regulation of cell proliferation and morphogenesis. It is abundant in embryonic tissue, but limited in most adult tissues. GPC3 deletion or mutation can disturb the balance between cell apoptosis and proliferation, which may result in tumorigenesis. This study aimed to investigate the GPC3 expression in salivary gland tumors (SGTs) and the adjacent non-neoplastic tissues.

Methods

This study reviewed 50 samples of salivary tumors from the archive of Khalili Hospital, Shiraz, Iran, including 17 cases of pleomorphic adenoma (PA), 16 cases of mucoepidermoid carcinoma (MEC), and 17 cases of adenoid cystic carcinoma (ACC); as well as a control group of 23 cases of normal salivary gland tissues. GPC3 expression was investigated through immunohistochemistry.

Results

GPC3 expression was significantly higher in malignant tumors (MEC and ACC) than in PA, and higher in PA than in the normal salivary glands (P < 0.001). The expression intensity was moderate to strong in malignant tumors and weak to moderate in benign tumors. No strong positivity was observed in normal salivary gland tissues (P < 0.001). Nor was any association detected between the GPC3 expression and intensity with the clinicopathologic parameters.

Conclusion

Although GPC3 overexpression was observed at the protein level in SGTs, and its expression was not related with the clinicopathologic factors, the potential use of GPC3 for diagnostic, therapeutic, and prognostic purposes requires further investigations.

Elevated GPC3 level promotes cell proliferation in liver cancer

The aim of the present study was to investigate the biological role of glypican 3 (GPC3), and to identify its mechanism and clinical significance in the carcinogenesis of liver cancer. A total of 114 patients with liver cancer were involved. Their clinical data, hematoxylin and eosin-stained and Antigen Ki-67 protein (Ki-67) and GPC3 immunohistochemically-stained liver cancer tissue sections were analyzed to evaluate the correlation between the liver cancer proliferation, differentiation and GPC3 expression. Fluorescence microscopy, western blotting, MTT and reverse transcription quantitative polymerase chain reaction (RT-qPCR) assays were performed in HepG2 and HLE cell lines to investigate the potential mechanisms of action. Among the 114 patients with liver cancer enrolled in the present study, 12 exhibited well-differentiated liver cancer, of which 6 (50%) were positive for GPC3. A total of 30 cases exhibited poorly differentiated liver cancer; 26 (87%) of these expressed GPC3 and 11 cases (37%) demonstrated strong positive expression levels. The other 72 liver cancer cases were moderately differentiated; 75% (54/72) of these expressed GPC3 and 12.5% (9/72) exhibited strong positive expression levels. There was a significant association between the levels of GPC3 expression and liver cancer differentiation (χ²=16.306, P=0.008). Ki-67 staining as the criteria of the liver cancer cell proliferation index also indicated a cross correlation between liver cancer proliferation and GPC3 levels. Among the 39 liver cancer samples with a cell proliferation index <5%, only 2.6% (1/39) exhibited strong positive GPC3 staining, but of the 16 cases with a high cell proliferation index >50%, 6 exhibited strong GPC3 staining (37.5%). The difference of cell proliferation indexes between cancer cells were well, moderate and poorly differentiated, and was markedly significant (χ²=26.334, P=0.002), and suggested that liver cancer cell proliferation was positively correlated with GPC3 expression (r=0.316, P=0.001). Consistently, in vitro analysis indicated that GPC3 promoted HepG2 and HLE cell growth, which was more apparent in HepG2 cells. The RT-qPCR results indicated that GPC3 promoted proliferation through the Hedgehog (Hh) pathway in HepG2 cells, but not in HLE cells. In the present study, it was demonstrated that patients with liver cancer with higher GPC3 levels exhibited poorer differentiation and higher proliferation levels. In vitro GPC3 may promote liver cancer cell lines proliferation through the Hh pathway.

Glypican-3 induces a mesenchymal to epithelial transition in human breast cancer cells

Breast cancer is the disease with the highest impact on global health, being metastasis the main cause of death. To metastasize, carcinoma cells must reactivate a latent program called epithelial-mesenchymal transition (EMT), through which epithelial cancer cells acquire mesenchymal-like traits.Glypican-3 (GPC3), a proteoglycan involved in the regulation of proliferation and survival, has been associated with cancer. In this study we observed that the expression of GPC3 is opposite to the invasive/metastatic ability of Hs578T, MDA-MB231, ZR-75-1 and MCF-7 human breast cancer cell lines. GPC3 silencing activated growth, cell death resistance, migration, and invasive/metastatic capacity of MCF-7 cancer cells, while GPC3 overexpression inhibited these properties in MDA-MB231 tumor cell line. Moreover, silencing of GPC3 deepened the MCF-7 breast cancer cells mesenchymal characteristics, decreasing the expression of the epithelial marker E-Cadherin. On the other side, GPC3 overexpression induced the mesenchymal-epithelial transition (MET) of MDA-MB231 breast cancer cells, which re-expressed E-Cadherin and reduced the expression of vimentin and N-Cadherin. While GPC3 inhibited the canonical Wnt/β-Catenin pathway in the breast cancer cells, this inhibition did not have effect on E-Cadherin expression. We demonstrated that the transcriptional repressor of E-Cadherin - ZEB1 - is upregulated in GPC3 silenced MCF-7 cells, while it is downregulated when GPC3 was overexpressed in MDA-MB231 cells. We presented experimental evidences showing that GPC3 induces the E-Cadherin re-expression in MDA-MB231 cells through the downregulation of ZEB1.Our data indicate that GPC3 is an important regulator of EMT in breast cancer, and a potential target for procedures against breast cancer metastasis.

Proteoglycans remodeling in cancer: Underlying molecular mechanisms

Extracellular matrix is a highly dynamic macromolecular network. Proteoglycans are major components of extracellular matrix playing key roles in its structural organization and cell signaling contributing to the control of numerous normal and pathological processes. As multifunctional molecules, proteoglycans participate in various cell functions during morphogenesis, wound healing, inflammation and tumorigenesis. Their interactions with matrix effectors, cell surface receptors and enzymes enable them with unique properties. In malignancy, extensive remodeling of tumor stroma is associated with marked alterations in proteoglycans' expression and structural variability. Proteoglycans exert diverse functions in tumor stroma in a cell-specific and context-specific manner and they mainly contribute to the formation of a permissive provisional matrix for tumor growth affecting tissue organization, cell-cell and cell-matrix interactions and tumor cell signaling. Proteoglycans also modulate cancer cell phenotype and properties, the development of drug resistance and tumor stroma angiogenesis. This review summarizes the proteoglycans remodeling and their novel biological roles in malignancies with particular emphasis to the underlying molecular mechanisms.

Significance of Glypican-3 (GPC3) Expression in Hepatocellular Cancer Diagnosis

BACKGROUND Primary hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC) is a malignant tumor that is common China. Early diagnosis is of great significance for improving treatment efficiency. GPC3 level is closely related to HCC occurrence. This study investigated GPC3 expression in HCC patient serum and tissue, and assessed the significance of GPC3 combined AFP detection in HCC diagnosis. MATERIAL AND METHODS A total of 76 HCC patients in our hospital were enrolled. Immunohistochemistry was applied to test GPC3 expression in cancer tissue and para-carcinoma tissue. ELISA and RT-PCR were used to detect GPC3 and AFP level in serum. The significance of GPC3 single or combined AFP detection in HCC diagnosis was analyzed. RESULTS Immunohistochemistry showed that the GPC3 positive expression rate was obviously elevated in HCC tissue (P<0.01). Combination detection of AFP and GPC3 presented significantly higher sensitivity and specificity in HCC than single AFP or GPC3 detection. ELISA showed no significant difference in sensitivity, specificity, or accuracy compared with RT-PCR. CONCLUSIONS Serum GPC3 was overexpressed in HCC patients. Combination detection of serum AFP and GPC3 can enhance accuracy and efficacy of HCC diagnosis.

Biology and function of glypican-3 as a candidate for early cancerous transformation of hepatocytes in hepatocellular carcinoma (Review)

Glypican-3 (GPC-3), a transmembrane heparan sulfate proteoglycan (HSPG), has recently been investigated as a player in tissue-dependent cellular signaling, specifically as a regulator of growth. Noteworthy, the regulatory protein has been implicated in both stimulatory and inhibitory pathways involving cell growth. Initially, GPC-3 was thought to act as a cell cycle regulator, as a loss-of-function mutation in the gene caused a hyper-proliferative state known as Simpson-Golabi-Behmel (SGB) overgrowth syndrome. Additionally, certain cancer types have displayed a downregulation of GPC-3 expression. More recently, the protein has been evaluated as a useful marker for hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC) due to its increased expression in the liver during times of growth. In contrast, the GPC-3 marker is not detectable in normal adult liver. Immunotherapy that targets GPC-3 and its affiliated proteins is under investigation as these new biomarkers may hold potential for the detection and treatment of HCC and other diseases in which GPC-3 may be overexpressed. Studies have reported that an overexpression of GPC-3 in HCC predicts a poorer prognosis. This prognostic value further pushes the question regarding GPC-3's role in the regulation and progression of HCC. This review will summarize the current knowledge regarding the clinical aspects of GPC-3, while also synthesizing the current literature with the aim to better understand this molecule's biological interactions at a molecular level, not only in the liver, but in the rest of the body as well. Due to the existing gap in the literature surrounding GPC-3, we believe further investigation of function, structure and domains, cellular localization, and other subfields is warranted to evaluate the protein as a whole, as well as its part in the study of HCC.

Nrdp1-mediated degradation of BRUCE decreases cell viability and induces apoptosis in human 786-O renal cell carcinoma cells

Neuregulin receptor degradation protein-1 (Nrdp1) is involved in a plethora of cellular processes and plays an essential role in the development and progression of human cancers. However, its role in renal cell carcinoma (RCC) remains unclear. Therefore, the present study aimed to explore the biological significance of Nrdp1 in RCC. Western blot analyses of tissue samples from 24 patients with primary RCC revealed lower Nrdp1 and higher baculovirus inhibitor of apoptosis repeat-containing ubiquitin-conjugating enzyme (BRUCE) protein levels in RCC tissues compared with adjacent normal tissues. In addition, MTT and apoptosis assays demonstrated that Nrdp1 overexpression resulted in decreased cell viability and enhanced apoptosis in RCC 786-O cells; conversely, Nrdp1 knockdown increased 786-O cell viability and inhibited apoptosis. Further analysis showed that BRUCE downregulation partially attenuated the effects of Nrdp1 knockdown on RCC cell viability and apoptosis. Moreover, an inverse association was obtained between BRUCE and Nrdp1 protein levels. These findings suggest that Nrdp1-mediated degradation of BRUCE decreases cell viability and induces apoptosis in RCC cells, highlighting Nrdp1 as a potential target for RCC treatment.

Downregulation of glypican-3 expression increases migration, invasion, and tumorigenicity of human ovarian cancer cells

Glypican-3 (GPC3) is a membrane of heparan sulfate proteoglycan family involved in cell proliferation, adhesion, migration, invasion, and differentiation during the development of the majority of mesodermal tissues and organs. GPC3 is explored as a potential biomarker for hepatocellular carcinoma screening. However, as a tumor-associated antigen, its role in ovarian cancer remains elusive. In this report, the expression levels of GPC3 in the various ovarian cancer cells were determined with quantitative reverse transcription-polymerase chain reaction (qRT-PCR), and GPC3 expression in ovarian cancer UCI 101 and A2780 cells was knocked down by siRNA transfection, and the effects of GPC3 knockdown on in vitro cell proliferation, migration, and invasion were respectively analyzed by 3-[4, 5-dimethylthiazol-2-yl]-2, 5-diphenyltetrazolium bromide (MTT) assay and Transwell migration assay. Additionally, the effect of GPC3 knockdown on in vivo tumorigenesis were investigated in athymic nude mice. The results indicated that GPC3 knockdown significantly promoted cell proliferation and increased cell migration and invasion by upregulation of matrix metalloproteinase (MMP)-2 and MMP-9 expression and downregulation of tissue inhibitor of metalloproteinase-1 expression. Additionally, GPC3 knockdown also increased in vivo tumorigenicity of UCI 101 and A2780 cells and final tumor weights and volumes after subcutaneous cell injection in the nude mice. The results of immunohistochemical staining and Western blotting both demonstrated a lower expression of GPC3 antigen in the tumors of GPC3 knockdown groups than that of negative control groups. Moreover, transforming growth factor-β2 protein expression in the tumors of GPC3 knockdown groups was significantly increased, which at least contributed to tumor growth in the nude mice. Taken together, these findings suggest that GPC3 knockdown promotes the progression of human ovarian cancer cells by increasing their migration, invasion, and tumorigenicity, and suggest that GPC3 is a potential therapeutic target for ovarian cancer patients.