Preventive and therapeutic effect of intraportal oridonin on BALb/c nude mice hemispleen model of colon cancer liver metastasis

Evaluation of Serum Fructosamine as Diagnostic Marker of Postoperative Recurrence in the Patients with Breast Cancer

Objectives

A series of laboratory parameters were screened to identify the proper serum markers that could be used to predict breast cancer recurrence at an early stage.

Methods

A case-control retrospective study on 224 patients without postoperative recurrence and 43 patients with postoperative recurrence of breast cancer was performed. The edgeR software package was used to identify the test indicators expressed differently between the two groups. Univariate analysis was used to screen for diagnostic marker that could predict postoperative recurrence of breast cancer. In addition, the differential test indicators at different time points from surgery to recurrence were collected in patients with postoperative recurrence of breast cancer as a verification database.

Results

We screened out three test indicators (TBA, GSP, and URBC) for differential expression, which were all expressed downregulated in the postoperative recurrence group of breast cancer. Univariate analysis suggested that only the difference in GSP levels between the two groups was statistically significant (P = 0.001). ROC curve analysis showed that the area under the curve of GSP was 0.662, while the area under the curve of GSP+AFP+CEA+CA125+CA153+age was increased to 0.828. In addition, serum GSP levels were significantly reduced after recurrence compared with before recurrence in breast cancer patients (P < 0.01).

Conclusions

In summary, GSP could be used for early diagnosis of breast cancer recurrence after surgery, and the predicted value of combining GSP, tumor markers, and age was better than that of individual indicators.

Recent advances in the development of transplanted colorectal cancer mouse models

Despite progress in prevention and treatment, colorectal cancer (CRC) remains the third most common malignancy worldwide and the second most common cause of cancer death in 2020. To evaluate various characteristics of human CRC, a variety of mouse models have been established. Transplant mouse models have distinct advantages in studying the clinical behavior and therapeutic progress of CRC. Host, xenograft, and transplantation routes are the basis of transplant mouse models. As the effects of the tumor microenvironment and the systemic environment on cancer cells are gradually revealed, 3 key elements of transplanted CRC mouse models have been revolutionized. This has led to the development of humanized mice, patient-derived xenografts, and orthotopic transplants that reflect the human systemic environment, patient's tumor of origin, and tumor growth microenvironments in immunodeficient mice, respectively. These milestone events have allowed for great progress in tumor biology and the treatment of CRC. This article reviews the evolution of these events and points out their strengths and weaknesses as innovative and useful preclinical tools to study CRC progression and metastasis and to exploit novel treatment schedules by establishing a testing platform. This review article depicts the optimal transplanted CRC mouse models and emphasizes the significance of surgical models in the study of CRC behavior and treatment response.

Extracellular Vesicles and the Inflammasome: An Intricate Network Sustaining Chemoresistance

Extracellular vesicles (EVs) are membrane enclosed spherical particles devoted to intercellular communication. Cancer-derived EVs (Ca-EVs) are deeply involved in tumor microenvironment remodeling, modifying the inflammatory phenotype of cancerous and non-cancerous residing cells. Inflammation plays a pivotal role in initiation, development, and progression of many types of malignancies. The key feature of cancer-related inflammation is the production of cytokines that incessantly modify of the surrounding environment. Interleukin-1β (IL-1β) is one of the most powerful cytokines, influencing all the initiation-to-progression stages of many types of cancers and represents an emerging critical contributor to chemoresistance. IL-1β production strictly depends on the activation of inflammasome, a cytoplasmic molecular platform sensing exogenous and endogenous danger signals. It has been recently shown that Ca-EVs can activate the inflammasome cascade and IL-1β production in tumor microenvironment-residing cells. Since inflammasome dysregulation has been established as crucial regulator in inflammation-associated tumorigenesis and chemoresistance, it is conceivable that the use of inflammasome-inhibiting drugs may be employed as adjuvant chemotherapy to counteract chemoresistance. This review focuses on the role of cancer-derived EVs in tuning tumor microenvironment unveiling the intricate network between inflammasome and chemoresistance.