Difference of polymorphism VEGF-gene rs699947 in Indonesian chronic liver disease population

VEGF-2578C/A, -460T/C Polymorphisms and Gastrointestinal Tract Cancer Risk: An Updated Meta-Analysis

Functional polymorphisms in the vascular endothelial growth factor (VEGF) alter the susceptibility toward different gastrointestinal tract (GIT) cancers. In this study, we explored the association of VEGF-2578C/A and VEGF-460T/C polymorphisms with esophageal cancer (EC) risk. In total, 330 patients with EC and 330 controls for VEGF-2578C/A polymorphism and 316 patients with EC and 316 controls for VEGF-460T/C polymorphism were genotyped. AA genotype (p = 0.01) and A allele (p = 0.02) of VEGF-2578C/A and CC genotype (p = 0.04) and C allele (p = 0.04) of VEGF-460T/C polymorphism were significantly associated with an increased risk of EC. VEGF-2578C/A and VEGF-460T/C polymorphisms have been studied in different GIT cancers, but results are inconclusive. Therefore, we performed a meta-analysis to assess the association of these polymorphisms with the risk of GIT cancers. The PubMed, ScienceDirect, and Google Scholar databases were used to search the articles. Twenty-one studies on VEGF-2578C/A and 20 studies on VEGF-460T/C polymorphism were included in this meta-analysis. VEGF-2578C/A polymorphism was associated with the decreased risk of GIT cancer in the overall population under the overdominant model (p = 0.009). A significant association of VEGF-2578C/A polymorphism with GIT cancer risk has been observed in the middle easterners, Caucasians, and Asians under different genetic models. VEGF-460T/C polymorphism was significantly associated with an increased risk of GIT cancers in Caucasians. Stratification of the data on the basis of cancer type showed a significant association of VEGF-2578C/A polymorphism with the risk of gallbladder cancer, whereas VEGF-460T/C polymorphism was associated with the risk of hepatocellular cancer, gastric cancer, and colorectal cancer. Our meta-analysis suggested that VEGF-2578C/A and VEGF-460T/C polymorphisms were associated with GIT cancer risk.

Potential relative quantities of miR-122 and miR-150 to differentiate hepatocellular carcinoma from liver cirrhosis

Cirrhosis and hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC) are related to chronic liver diseases. Diagnostic algorithms are needed to discriminate HCC from cirrhosis for better patient management. This study aimed to determine the potential of miR-122 and miR-150 to differentiate HCC from liver cirrhosis. This study used a cross-sectional method involving 66 patients with liver cirrhosis, 27 subjects with HCC, and 29 healthy controls. Examination of miR-122 and miR-150 levels from blood plasma used real-time quantitative polymerase chain reaction and their relative expressions were calculated. Clinical and laboratory data were collected and graphed for the Area Under the Curve (AUC) and also for comparison using unpaired T-tests, Kruskal-Wallis, Mann-Whitney, and Chi-square tests with significance set as p < 0.05. The relative expressions of miR-122 and miR-150 could differentiate HCC from cirrhosis, with cut-off 9.11, AUC 53.84%, p = 0.2120, and cut-off 1.47, AUC 67.65%, p = 0.0001, respectively. Meanwhile, the combined relative expressions of miR-122 and miR-150 can distinguish HCC from cirrhosis, with AUC 71.94%, p = 0.0006. The combination of miR-122 and miR-150 has the potential as a biomarker to differentiate HCC from liver cirrhosis.

The Effects of Single Nucleotide Polymorphisms in Cancer RNAi Therapies

Tremendous progress in RNAi delivery methods and design has allowed for the effective development of siRNA-based therapeutics that are currently under clinical investigation for various cancer treatments. This approach has the potential to revolutionize cancer therapy by providing the ability to specifically downregulate or upregulate the mRNA of any protein of interest. This exquisite specificity, unfortunately, also has a downside. Genetic variations in the human population are common because of the presence of single nucleotide polymorphisms (SNPs). SNPs lead to synonymous and non-synonymous changes and they occur once in every 300 base pairs in both coding and non-coding regions in the human genome. Much less common are the somatic mosaicism variations associated with genetically distinct populations of cells within an individual that is derived from postzygotic mutations. These heterogeneities in the population can affect the RNAi's efficacy or more problematically, which can lead to unpredictable and sometimes adverse side effects. From a more positive viewpoint, both SNPs and somatic mosaicisms have also been implicated in human diseases, including cancer, and these specific changes could offer the ability to effectively and, more importantly, selectively target the cancer cells. In this review, we discuss how SNPs in the human population can influence the development and success of novel anticancer RNAi therapies and the importance of why SNPs should be carefully considered.

Associations between twelve common gene polymorphisms and susceptibility to hepatocellular carcinoma: evidence from a meta-analysis

Background

Associations between polymorphisms in vitamin D receptor (VDR)/vascular endothelial growth factor (VEGF)/interleukin-18 (IL-18)/mannose-binding lectin (MBL) and susceptibility to hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC) were already explored by many studies, yet the results of these studies were inconsistent. The aim of this meta-analysis was to better clarify associations between polymorphisms in VDR/VEGF/IL-18/MBL and HCC by combing the results of all relevant studies.

Methods

Eligible publications were searched from PubMed, Embase, WOS, and CNKI. We used Review Manager to combine the results of individual studies.

Results

Thirty studies were included in this study. Combined results revealed that VDR rs7975232, VDR rs2228570, VEGF rs699947, VEGF rs3025039, IL-18 rs1946518, and MBL rs7096206 polymorphisms were all significantly associated with HCC in the overall pooled population. We also obtained similar significant associations for VDR rs7975232, VDR rs2228570, IL-18 rs1946518, and MBL rs7096206 polymorphisms in Asians.

Conclusions

Collectively, this meta-analysis proved that VDR rs7975232, VDR rs2228570, VEGF rs699947, VEGF rs3025039, IL-18 rs1946518, and MBL rs7096206 polymorphisms may confer susceptibility to HCC in certain populations.