Tumor necrosis factor-alpha promoter polymorphism 308 G/A is not significantly associated with esophageal cancer risk: a meta-analysis

DETECTION OF TUMOR NECROSIS FACTOR- (TNF- ) GENE PROMOTERS POLYMORPHISM AMONG LIVER CIRRHOSIS PATIENTS WITH CHRONIC HEPATITIS B VIRUS (HBV) INFECTION IN SURABAYA, INDONESIA

Polymorphisms in TNF-α gene promoter region are known of its role in the production of TNF-α which may influences the pathogenesis of liver disease. SNPs in positions 238 and 308 of TNF-α gene promoters may affect the production of these cytokines. This study was aimed to detect Single Nucleotide Polymorphism (SNP) on -238 and -308 positions in the TNF-α gene promoter among liver cirrhosis patients with HBV infection in Surabaya, Indonesia. This was descriptive exploratory research with cross sectional study design using serum liver cirrhosis patients with HBV infection in Endoscopy Outpatient Clinic Dr. Soetomo General Hospital, Surabaya from April-May 2017. SNPs at -238 and -308 on TNF-α gene promoter (rs361525 and rs1800629 respectively) were detected using Polymerase Chain Reaction-Restriction Fragment Length Polymorphism (PCR-RFLP) with primers specific for the TNF-α promoter region and restriction enzymes NcoI and MspI. The genotypes of TNF-α gene promoter were assessed according to the length of the fragments produced in RFLP. Serum TNF-α levels was measured by commercial ELISA. In this study, as much as 149 positive HBsAg patients was found in Endoscopy Outpatient Clinic, Dr. Soetomo General Hospital, Surabaya. From those amount, as much as 30 liver cirrhosis patients with positive HBsAg were obtained. From 2/30 (6.7%) patients showed the GA heterozygote SNP either position -238 or -308. No patient had the AA genotype. Median blood TNF-α level in women (38 ng / L) was higher than in men (33 ng / L). TNF-α levels in patients with GA heterozygote genotype at -238 and -308 in this research was not different than wild-type (GG genotype). Among patients with liver cirrhosis due to chronic HBV infection in Surabaya, Indonesia, Surabaya, we found GA polymorphisms the TNF-α promoter gene at positions -238 and -308 in 6.7% patients, and did not find homozygous AA polymorphisms. Further studies including larger numbers of patients from various ethnic backgrounds in Indonesia are needed to provide robust data on TNF-α gene promoter polymorphisms and their role in the pathogenesis of liver cirrhosis with HBV infection in this country.

Cumulative evidence for association between genetic polymorphisms and esophageal cancer susceptibility: A review with evidence from meta-analysis and genome-wide association studies

An increasing number of publications had reported the association between single‐nucleotide polymorphisms (SNPs) and esophageal cancer (EC) risk in the past decades. Results from these publications were controversial. We used PubMed, Medline, and Web of Science to identify meta‐analysis articles published before 30 July 2018, that summarize a comprehensive investigation for cumulative evidence of genetic polymorphisms of EC and its subtype risk. Two methods, Venice criteria and false‐positive report probability (FPRP) tests, were used to assess cumulative evidence of significant associations. At last, 107 meta‐analyses were considered to be in conformity with the inclusion criteria, yielding 51 variants associated with EC or esophageal squamous cell carcinoma (ESCC). Thirty‐eight variants were considered to be nominally significant associated with risk of EC or ESCC, whereas the rest showed non‐association. In additional, five variants on five genes were rated as strong cumulative epidemiological evidence for a nominally significant association with EC and ESCC risk, including CYP1A1 rs1048943, EGF rs444903, HOTAIR rs920778, MMP2 rs243865, and PLCE1 rs2274223, 10 variants were rated as moderate, and 18 variants were rated as weak. Additionally, 17 SNPs were verified noteworthy in six genomewide association studies (GWAS) using FPRP methods. Collectively, this review offered a comprehensively referenced information with cumulative evidence of associations between genetic polymorphisms and EC and ESCC risk.

Extracellular galectins as controllers of cytokines in hematological cancer

Galectins and cytokines are both secreted proteins whose levels are prognosis factors for several cancers. Extracellular galectins bind to the glycans decorating glycoproteins and are overproduced in most cancers. Accumulative evidence shows that galectins regulate cytokines during cancer progression. Although galectins alter cytokine function by binding to the glycans decorating cytokines or their receptors, cytokines could also regulate galectin expression and function. This review revises these complex interactions and their clinical impact, particularly in hematological cancers.

Association between the ERCC2 Asp312Asn polymorphism and risk of cancer

Cancer is the leading cause of death in economically developed countries and the second leading cause of death in developing countries. The relationship between genetic polymorphisms and the risk of cancers has been widely researched. Excision repair cross-complementing group 2 (ERCC2) gene plays important roles in the nucleotide excision repair pathway. There is contrasting evidence on the association between the ERCC2 Asp312Asn polymorphism and the risk of cancer. We conducted a comprehensive meta-analysis in order to assess the correlation between these factors. We searched the PubMed, EMBASE, Science Direct, Web of Science, and CNKI databases for studies published from January 1, 2005 to January 1, 2016. Finally, 86 articles with 38,848 cases and 48,928 controls were included in the analysis. The overall analysis suggested a significant association between the ERCC2 Asp312Asn polymorphism and cancer risk. Furthermore, control source, ethnicity, genotyping method, and cancer type were used for subgroup analysis. The result of a trial sequential analysis indicated that the cumulative evidence is adequate; hence, further trials were unnecessary in the overall analysis for homozygote comparison. In summary, our results suggested that ERCC2 Asp312Asn polymorphism is associated with increased cancer risk. A significantly increased cancer risk was observed in Asian populations, but not in Caucasian populations. Furthermore, the ERCC2 Asp312Asn polymorphism is associated with bladder, esophageal, and gastric cancers, but not with breast, head and neck, lung, prostate, and skin cancers, and non-Hodgkin lymphoma. Further multi-center, well-designed studies are required to validate our results.

Response to TNF-α Is Increasing Along with the Progression in Barrett's Esophagus

BACKGROUND AND AIMS

Barrett's esophagus, a metaplasia resulting from a long-standing reflux disease, and its progression to esophageal adenocarcinoma (EAC) are characterized by activation of pro-inflammatory pathways, induced by cytokines.

METHODS

An in vitro cell culture system representing the sequence of squamous epithelium (EPC1 and EPC2), Barrett's metaplasia (CP-A), dysplasia (CP-B) to EAC (OE33 and OE19) was used to investigate TNF-α-mediated induction of interleukin-8 (IL-8).

RESULTS

IL-6 and IL-8 expressions are increasing with the progression of Barrett's esophagus, with the highest expression of both cytokines in the dysplastic cell line CP-B. IL-8 expression in EAC cells was approx. 4.4-fold (OE33) and eightfold (OE19) higher in EAC cells than in squamous epithelium cells (EPC1 and EPC2). The pro-inflammatory cytokine TNF-α increased IL-8 expression in a time-, concentration-, and stage-specific manner. Furthermore, TNF-α changed the EMT marker profile in OE33 cells by decreasing the epithelial marker E-cadherin and increasing the mesenchymal marker vimentin. The anti-inflammatory compound curcumin was able to repress proliferation and to activate apoptosis in both EAC cell lines.

CONCLUSION

The increased basal expression levels of IL-8 with the progression of Barrett's esophagus constrain NFκB activation and its contribution in the manifestation of Barrett's esophagus. An anti-inflammatory compound, such as curcumin, could create an anti-inflammatory microenvironment and thus potentially support an increase chemosensitivity in EAC cells.

The effect of pathological fractures on the prognosis of patients with osteosarcoma: a meta-analysis of 14 studies

Osteosarcoma is a leading cause of malignant tumor related death. We conducted a meta-analysis to evaluate the association between pathological fractures and prognosis in patients with osteosarcoma. We searched PubMed, Web of Science, and Embase for studies published until May 15, 2017. Crude and adjusted relative risk (RR) with 95% confidence intervals were used to compare data between the case and control groups. Fourteen studies and 3910 patients were included in the final meta-analysis. No statistically significant difference was detected between the pathological fracture and non-pathological fracture groups in local recurrences analysis (RR = 1.102, 95% CI: 0.813–1.495, P = 0.531); however, a statistically significant difference was found between group in distant metastasis (RR = 1.424, 95% CI: 1.089–1.862, P = 0.01). For survival rates, the following RRs were calculated: 3-year overall survival (OS) (RR = 0.736, 95% CI: 0.593–0.912, P = 0.005); 5-year OS (RR = 0.889, 95% CI: 0.791–0.999, P = 0.049); 3-year event-free survival (EFS) (RR = 0.812, 95% CI: 0.682–0.966, P = 0.018); and 5-year EFS (RR = 0.876, 95% CI: 0.785–0.978, P = 0.019). The pooled estimate of RR was 0.673 (95% CI: 0.364–1.244, P = 0.206) for local recurrence in the amputation and limb salvage groups. In conclusion, our analysis indicated that there were no differences in local recurrence and local recurrence after limb salvage between patients with or without a fracture. Additionally, the patients with pathological fracture had a higher risk of distant metastasis and lower 3-year OS, 5-year OS, 3-year EFS, and 5-year EFS. Considering the limitations of this study, we believe that future large-scale studies should be performed to confirm our conclusions.

Trends in esophageal and esophagogastric junction cancer research from 2007 to 2016: A bibliometric analysis

BACKGROUND

This study aimed to analyze the scientific outputs of esophageal and esophagogastric junction (EGJ) cancer and construct a model to quantitatively and qualitatively evaluate pertinent publications from the past decade.

METHODS

Publications from 2007 to 2016 were retrieved from the Web of Science Core Collection database. Microsoft Excel 2016 (Redmond, WA) and the CiteSpace (Drexel University, Philadelphia, PA) software were used to analyze publication outcomes, journals, countries, institutions, authors, research areas, and research frontiers.

RESULTS

A total of 12,978 publications on esophageal and EGJ cancer were identified published until March 23, 2017. The Journal of Clinical Oncology had the largest number of publications, the USA was the leading country, and the University of Texas MD Anderson Cancer Center was the leading institution. Ajani JA published the most papers, and Jemal A had the highest co-citation counts. Esophageal squamous cell carcinoma ranked the first in research hotspots, and preoperative chemotherapy/chemoradiotherapy ranked the first in research frontiers.

CONCLUSION

The annual number of publications steadily increased in the past decade. A considerable number of papers were published in journals with high impact factor. Many Chinese institutions engaged in esophageal and EGJ cancer research but significant collaborations among them were not noted. Jemal A, Van Hagen P, Cunningham D, and Enzinger PC were identified as good candidates for research collaboration. Neoadjuvant therapy and genome-wide association study in esophageal and EGJ cancer research should be closely observed.

Genetic association between TNF-α promoter polymorphism and susceptibility to squamous cell carcinoma, basal cell carcinoma, and melanoma: A meta-analysis

Tumor necrosis factor-alpha (TNF-α) is a multifunctional pro-inflammatory cytokine that plays an important role in cancer development. We performed a meta-analysis to assess the relationship between single nucleotide polymorphisms in the TNF-α promoter region (rs1800629 and rs361525) and susceptibility to squamous cell carcinoma (SCC), basal cell carcinoma (BCC) and melanoma. After database retrieval, article selection, data extraction, and quality assessment, 20 articles comprising 4865 cases and 6329 controls were included in this study. rs1800629 was associated with an increased overall risk of SCC, lung SCC, and oral SCC in the AA vs G and AA vs GG+GA genetic models (all OR>1, P_association<0.05). No increased risk of skin SCC, skin BCC or melanoma was observed (all P_association>0.05). Rs361525 was not associated with overall SCC risk in the allele, heterozygote, dominant, recessive, or carrier model (all P_association>0.05). Begg's and Egger's tests (P_Begg>0.05; P_Egger>0.05) demonstrated there was no significant publication bias. These data indicate that the AA genotype of TNF-α rs1800629, but not rs361525, is associated with an increased risk of SCC, suggesting it could potentially serve as a prognostic marker for predicting SCC risk.