1
|
Janciauskiene S, Lechowicz U, Pelc M, Olejnicka B, Chorostowska-Wynimko J. Diagnostic and therapeutic value of human serpin family proteins. Biomed Pharmacother 2024; 175:116618. [PMID: 38678961 DOI: 10.1016/j.biopha.2024.116618] [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: 01/11/2024] [Revised: 04/15/2024] [Accepted: 04/17/2024] [Indexed: 05/01/2024] Open
Abstract
SERPIN (serine proteinase inhibitors) is an acronym for the superfamily of structurally similar proteins found in animals, plants, bacteria, viruses, and archaea. Over 1500 SERPINs are known in nature, while only 37 SERPINs are found in humans, which participate in inflammation, coagulation, angiogenesis, cell viability, and other pathophysiological processes. Both qualitative or quantitative deficiencies or overexpression and/or abnormal accumulation of SERPIN can lead to diseases commonly referred to as "serpinopathies". Hence, strategies involving SERPIN supplementation, elimination, or correction are utilized and/or under consideration. In this review, we discuss relationships between certain SERPINs and diseases as well as putative strategies for the clinical explorations of SERPINs.
Collapse
Affiliation(s)
- Sabina Janciauskiene
- Department of Pulmonary and Infectious Diseases and BREATH German Center for Lung Research (DZL), Hannover Medical School, Hannover, Germany; Department of Genetics and Clinical Immunology, National Institute of Tuberculosis and Lung Diseases, 26 Plocka St, Warsaw 01-138, Poland
| | - Urszula Lechowicz
- Department of Genetics and Clinical Immunology, National Institute of Tuberculosis and Lung Diseases, 26 Plocka St, Warsaw 01-138, Poland
| | - Magdalena Pelc
- Department of Genetics and Clinical Immunology, National Institute of Tuberculosis and Lung Diseases, 26 Plocka St, Warsaw 01-138, Poland
| | - Beata Olejnicka
- Department of Pulmonary and Infectious Diseases and BREATH German Center for Lung Research (DZL), Hannover Medical School, Hannover, Germany
| | - Joanna Chorostowska-Wynimko
- Department of Genetics and Clinical Immunology, National Institute of Tuberculosis and Lung Diseases, 26 Plocka St, Warsaw 01-138, Poland.
| |
Collapse
|
2
|
Yuan F, Yong J, Liu X, Wang Y. Selinexor assists vorinostat in inhibiting HDAC activity via promoting the accumulation of maspin in the nucleus of oral tongue squamous cell carcinoma cells. Cytotechnology 2023; 75:1-16. [PMID: 36713062 PMCID: PMC9880106 DOI: 10.1007/s10616-022-00555-x] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 06/11/2022] [Accepted: 10/07/2022] [Indexed: 02/01/2023] Open
Abstract
Oral tongue squamous cell carcinoma (OTSCC) is the most common oral cancer with a low overall survival rate, necessitating effective treatments. This study reports the anti-OTSCC effect of vorinostat and selinexor. OTSCC cell lines SCC-4 and SCC-25 were cultured to determine the effects of vorinostat and/or selinexor on cell survival, invasion, migration, and apoptosis. The transplanted tumor model of SCC-25 in nude mice was established to observe the therapeutic effects of vorinostat and/or selinexor. Western blotting was used to determine protein expressions in tumor cells. The results showed that histone deacetylase 1 (HDAC1) and exportin 1 (XPO1) were highly expressed, while nuclear maspin was expressed at a low rate in SCC-4 and SCC-25 compared to the normal tongue tissue. In vitro, both vorinostat and selinexor effectively inhibited cell viability, invasion, and migration, promoted cell apoptosis, down-regulated HDAC1, Matrix Metalloproteinase 2 (MMP2), and B cell leukemia/lymphoma 2 (Bcl-2), and up-regulated nuclear maspin and cleaved caspase 3. In vivo, both vorinostat and selinexor inhibited the growth of SCC-25-bearing tumors, down-regulated the expression of Ki67, HDAC1, MMP2, and Bcl-2, and promoted the expression of nuclear maspin and cleaved caspase 3. The combination of these two drugs exhibited synergistic effects both in vivo and in vitro. Our evidence shows that vorinostat combined with selinexor is an effective treatment for OTSCC. The mechanism may be that selinexor promotes the accumulation of maspin in the nucleus, an endogenous HDAC1 inhibitory protein to inhibit the HDAC1 activity of vorinostat and exert a synergistic anti-OTSCC effect.
Collapse
Affiliation(s)
- Fenqian Yuan
- Department of Head and Neck Surgery, Jiangxi Cancer Hospital, The Second Affiliated Hospital of Nanchang Medical College, Jiangxi Clinical Research Center for Cancer, 519 East Beijing Road, Nanchang, 330029 Jiangxi China
| | - Jingkang Yong
- Department of Head and Neck Surgery, Jiangxi Cancer Hospital, The Second Affiliated Hospital of Nanchang Medical College, Jiangxi Clinical Research Center for Cancer, 519 East Beijing Road, Nanchang, 330029 Jiangxi China
| | - Xueming Liu
- Department of Head and Neck Surgery, Jiangxi Cancer Hospital, The Second Affiliated Hospital of Nanchang Medical College, Jiangxi Clinical Research Center for Cancer, 519 East Beijing Road, Nanchang, 330029 Jiangxi China
| | - Yifeng Wang
- Department of Head and Neck Surgery, Jiangxi Cancer Hospital, The Second Affiliated Hospital of Nanchang Medical College, Jiangxi Clinical Research Center for Cancer, 519 East Beijing Road, Nanchang, 330029 Jiangxi China
| |
Collapse
|
3
|
Tang S, Ling Z, Jiang J, Gu X, Leng Y, Wei C, Cheng H, Li X. Integrating the tumor-suppressive activity of Maspin with p53 in retuning the epithelial homeostasis: A working hypothesis and applicable prospects. Front Oncol 2022; 12:1037794. [DOI: 10.3389/fonc.2022.1037794] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 09/06/2022] [Accepted: 11/10/2022] [Indexed: 12/03/2022] Open
Abstract
Epithelial malignant transformation and tumorous development were believed to be closely associated with the loss of its microenvironment integrity and homeostasis. The tumor-suppressive molecules Maspin and p53 were demonstrated to play a crucial role in body epithelial and immune homeostasis. Downregulation of Maspin and mutation of p53 were frequently associated with malignant transformation and poor prognosis in various human cancers. In this review, we focused on summarizing the progress of the molecular network of Maspin in studying epithelial tumorous development and its response to clinic treatment and try to clarify the underlying antitumor mechanism. Notably, Maspin expression was reported to be transcriptionally activated by p53, and the transcriptional activity of p53 was demonstrated to be enhanced by its acetylation through inhibition of HDAC1. As an endogenous inhibitor of HDAC1, Maspin possibly potentiates the transcriptional activity of p53 by acetylating the p53 protein. Hereby, it could form a “self-propelling” antitumor mechanism. Thus, we summarized that, upon stimulation of cellular stress and by integrating with p53, the aroused Maspin played the epigenetic surveillant role to prevent the epithelial digressional process and retune the epithelial homeostasis, which is involved in activating host immune surveillance, regulating the inflammatory factors, and fine-tuning its associated cell signaling pathways. Consequentially, in a normal physiological condition, activation of the above “self-propelling” antitumor mechanism of Maspin and p53 could reduce cellular stress (e.g., chronic infection/inflammation, oxidative stress, transformation) effectively and achieve cancer prevention. Meanwhile, designing a strategy of mimicking Maspin’s epigenetic regulation activity with integrating p53 tumor-suppressive activity could enhance the chemotherapy efficacy theoretically in a pathological condition of cancer.
Collapse
|
4
|
Man YG, Mannion C, Jewett A, Hsiao YH, Liu A, Semczuk A, Zarogoulidis P, Gapeev AB, Cimadamore A, Lee P, Lopez-Beltran A, Montironi R, Massari F, Lu X, Cheng L. The most effective but largely ignored target for prostate cancer early detection and intervention. J Cancer 2022; 13:3463-3475. [PMID: 36313040 PMCID: PMC9608211 DOI: 10.7150/jca.72973] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 03/17/2022] [Accepted: 10/01/2022] [Indexed: 11/05/2022] Open
Abstract
Over the past two decades, the global efforts for the early detection and intervention of prostate cancer seem to have made significant progresses in the basic researches, but the clinic outcomes have been disappointing: (1) prostate cancer is still the most common non-cutaneous cancer in Europe in men, (2) the age-standardized prostate cancer rate has increased in nearly all Asian and African countries, (3) the proportion of advanced cancers at the diagnosis has increased to 8.2% from 3.9% in the USA, (4) the worldwide use of PSA testing and digital rectal examination have failed to reduce the prostate cancer mortality, and (5) there is still no effective preventive method to significantly reduce the development, invasion, and metastasis of prostate cancer… Together, these facts strongly suggest that the global efforts during the past appear to be not in a correlated target with markedly inconsistent basic research and clinic outcomes. The most likely cause for the inconsistence appears due to the fact that basic scientific studies are traditionally conducted on the cell lines and animal models, where it is impossible to completely reflect or replicate the in vivo status. Thus, we would like to propose the human prostate basal cell layer (PBCL) as “the most effective target for the early detection and intervention of prostate cancer”. Our proposal is based on the morphologic, immunohistochemical and molecular evidence from our recent studies of normal and cancerous human prostate tissues with detailed clinic follow-up data. We believe that the human tissue-derived basic research data may provide a more realistic roadmap to guide the clinic practice and to avoid the potential misleading from in vitro and animal studies.
Collapse
Affiliation(s)
- Yan-gao Man
- Department of Pathology, Hackensack Meridian School of Medicine, Nutley, NJ, USA,✉ Corresponding authors: Yan-gao Man., MD., PhD. E-mail: or or Liang Cheng., MD. E-mail: or
| | - Ciaran Mannion
- Department of Pathology, Hackensack Meridian School of Medicine, Nutley, NJ, USA
| | - Anahid Jewett
- Tumor Immunology Laboratory, Jonsson Comprehensive Cancer Center, UCLA School of Dentistry and Medicine, Los Angeles, CA, USA
| | - Yi-Hsuan Hsiao
- Department of Obstetrics and Gynecology, Changhua Christian Hospital, Changhua, Taiwan
| | - Aijun Liu
- Department of Pathology, Chinese PLA General Hospital 7 th Medical Center, Beijing, China
| | - Andrzej Semczuk
- II ND Department of Gynecology, Lublin Medical University, Lublin, Poland
| | - Paul Zarogoulidis
- Pulmonary-Oncology Department, "Theageneio" Cancer Hospital, Thessaloniki, Greece
| | - Andrei B. Gapeev
- Laboratory of Biological Effects of Non-Ionizing Radiation, Institute of Cell Biophysics, Russian Academy of Sciences, Russian Federation
| | - Alessia Cimadamore
- Section of Pathological Anatomy, Polytechnic University of the Marche Region, School of Medicine, United Hospitals, Ancona, Italy
| | - Peng Lee
- Department of Pathology, New York University School of Medicine, New York, NY, USA.,Department of Pathology, New York Harbor Healthcare System, New York, NY, USA
| | - Antonio Lopez-Beltran
- Department of Morphological Sciences, Cordoba University Medical School, Cordoba, Spain
| | - Rodolfo Montironi
- Molecular Medicine and Cell Therapy Foundation, Department of Clinical & Molecular Sciences, Polytechnic University of the Marche Region, Ancona, Italy
| | - Francesco Massari
- Medical Oncology, IRCCS Azienda Ospedaliero-Universitaria di Bologna, Bologna, Italy
| | - Xin Lu
- Department of Biological Sciences, Boler-Parseghian Center for Rare and Neglected Diseases, Harper Cancer Research Institute, University of Notre Dame, Notre Dame, IN, USA.,Tumor Microenvironment and Metastasis Program, Indiana University Melvin and Bren Simon Comprehensive Cancer Center, Indianapolis, IN, USA
| | - Liang Cheng
- Department of Pathology and Laboratory Medicine, Brown University Medical School
- Lifespan Academic Medical Center, RI, USA.,✉ Corresponding authors: Yan-gao Man., MD., PhD. E-mail: or or Liang Cheng., MD. E-mail: or
| |
Collapse
|
5
|
Miller KJ, Asim M. Unravelling the Role of Kinases That Underpin Androgen Signalling in Prostate Cancer. Cells 2022; 11:cells11060952. [PMID: 35326402 PMCID: PMC8946764 DOI: 10.3390/cells11060952] [Citation(s) in RCA: 2] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 01/31/2022] [Revised: 03/08/2022] [Accepted: 03/09/2022] [Indexed: 02/07/2023] Open
Abstract
The androgen receptor (AR) signalling pathway is the key driver in most prostate cancers (PCa), and is underpinned by several kinases both upstream and downstream of the AR. Many popular therapies for PCa that target the AR directly, however, have been circumvented by AR mutation, such as androgen receptor variants. Some upstream kinases promote AR signalling, including those which phosphorylate the AR and others that are AR-regulated, and androgen regulated kinase that can also form feed-forward activation circuits to promotes AR function. All of these kinases represent potentially druggable targets for PCa. There has generally been a divide in reviews reporting on pathways upstream of the AR and those reporting on AR-regulated genes despite the overlap that constitutes the promotion of AR signalling and PCa progression. In this review, we aim to elucidate which kinases—both upstream and AR-regulated—may be therapeutic targets and require future investigation and ongoing trials in developing kinase inhibitors for PCa.
Collapse
|
6
|
Tang S, Lian X, Cheng H, Guo J, Ni D, Huang C, Gu X, Meng H, Jiang J, Li X. Bacterial Lipopolysaccharide Augmented Malignant Transformation and Promoted the Stemness in Prostate Cancer Epithelial Cells. J Inflamm Res 2021; 14:5849-5862. [PMID: 34785925 PMCID: PMC8590462 DOI: 10.2147/jir.s332943] [Citation(s) in RCA: 6] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 08/09/2021] [Accepted: 10/15/2021] [Indexed: 12/29/2022] Open
Abstract
Purpose To study bacterial lipopolysaccharide (LPS)-induced cancer stem-like transformation and to investigate the inhibitory effect of Trichostatin A (TSA) on the malignant transformation through targeting p-Stat3 signaling. Methods 2D, 3D, and serum-free suspension culture system were used to study LPS-induced malignant transformation in series malignant grade of prostate cancer (PCa) epithelial cells. Flow cytometry assay and RT-PCR were utilized to evaluate the CD44+CD133+ stem cell population, the expression of inflammatory cytokines and series tumor stemness biomarkers. Meanwhile, Western blot was used to analyze the alteration of cell signaling associated-molecules by treatment with TSA, an original antifungal antibiotic and a panel inhibitor of histone deacetylase. Results Our study found that LPS promoted the migration, invasion and stem-like tumoroshpere forming in multiple PCa cell lines including DU145, PC3, 22RV1, LNCaP. LPS also enriched CD44+CD133+ stem cell population and increased the expression of series tumor stemness biomarkers (e.g., CD44, CD133, SOX-2, α-intergrin, Nestin, etc.). TSA was found to prevent tumor cell migration, invasion and tumorosphere forming in DU145 and PC3 cells with increasing tumor suppressive Maspin and reducing both phosphorylation of Stat3 (p-Stat3) and pro-oncogene c-Myc expression in LPS-treated DU145 cells. Furthermore, blocking Stat3 signaling pathway by treatment with TSA and/or small molecule compound Stattic of an p-Stat3 inhibitor effectively abrogated LPS-induced tumorosphere forming with decrease of IL-6, IL-8 and stemness biomarkers CD44, SOX-2 expression. Conclusion Our data demonstrated that the inflammatory agent of bacterial LPS augmented malignant transformation and promoted the cancerous stemness in PCa epithelial cells. TSA could prevent, at least in part, the LPS-induced malignant transformation by targeting p-Stat3/c-Myc signaling pathway and reducing inflammatory IL-6, IL-8. In addition, the assay of LPS-induced tumorosphere forming could serve as a simple and an easy handling method for targeting cancer stem cells drug screening in vitro in clinical practice.
Collapse
Affiliation(s)
- Sijie Tang
- The Aoyang Cancer Institute, Affiliated Aoyang Hospital of Jiangsu University, Zhangjiagang, Suzhou, 215600, People's Republic of China.,Department of Urology, the Affiliated Aoyang Hospital of Jiangsu University, Zhangjiagang, Suzhou, 215600, People's Republic of China
| | - Xueqi Lian
- The Aoyang Cancer Institute, Affiliated Aoyang Hospital of Jiangsu University, Zhangjiagang, Suzhou, 215600, People's Republic of China
| | - Huiying Cheng
- The Aoyang Cancer Institute, Affiliated Aoyang Hospital of Jiangsu University, Zhangjiagang, Suzhou, 215600, People's Republic of China
| | - Jiaqian Guo
- The Aoyang Cancer Institute, Affiliated Aoyang Hospital of Jiangsu University, Zhangjiagang, Suzhou, 215600, People's Republic of China
| | - Daguang Ni
- The Aoyang Cancer Institute, Affiliated Aoyang Hospital of Jiangsu University, Zhangjiagang, Suzhou, 215600, People's Republic of China
| | - Can Huang
- The Aoyang Cancer Institute, Affiliated Aoyang Hospital of Jiangsu University, Zhangjiagang, Suzhou, 215600, People's Republic of China
| | - Xiang Gu
- Department of Urology, the Affiliated Aoyang Hospital of Jiangsu University, Zhangjiagang, Suzhou, 215600, People's Republic of China
| | - Hong Meng
- Perinatology Research Branch, Eunice Kennedy Shriver National Institute of Child Health and Human Development, National Institutes of Health, Detroit, MI, 48201, USA
| | - Jiajia Jiang
- The Aoyang Cancer Institute, Affiliated Aoyang Hospital of Jiangsu University, Zhangjiagang, Suzhou, 215600, People's Republic of China
| | - Xiaohua Li
- The Aoyang Cancer Institute, Affiliated Aoyang Hospital of Jiangsu University, Zhangjiagang, Suzhou, 215600, People's Republic of China.,The Laboratory of Clinical Genomics, Hefei KingMed Diagnostics Ltd, Hefei, 230088, People's Republic of China.,National Center for Gene Testing Technology Application & Demonstration (Anhui), Hefei, 230088, People's Republic of China
| |
Collapse
|
7
|
Cheng H, Tang S, Lian X, Meng H, Gu X, Jiang J, Li X. The Differential Antitumor Activity of 5-Aza-2'-deoxycytidine in Prostate Cancer DU145, 22RV1, and LNCaP Cells. J Cancer 2021; 12:5593-5604. [PMID: 34405020 PMCID: PMC8364635 DOI: 10.7150/jca.56709] [Citation(s) in RCA: 4] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 12/02/2020] [Accepted: 07/12/2021] [Indexed: 12/24/2022] Open
Abstract
DNA methylation is a DNA methyltransferase-mediated epigenetic modification affecting gene expression. This process is involved in the initiation and development of malignant disease. 5-Aza-2'-deoxycytidine (5-Aza), a classic DNA methyltransferase inhibitor, possesses antitumor proliferation activity. However, whether 5-Aza induces cytotoxicity in solid tumors warrants further investigated. In this study, human prostate cancer (CaP) cells were treated with 5-Aza and subjected to cell viability and cytotoxicity analysis. Reverse transcription-polymerase chain reaction and methylation-specific polymerase chain reaction assay were utilized to test the gene expression and methylation status of the p53 and p21 gene promoters. The results showed that 5-Aza differentially inhibited spontaneous proliferation, arrested the cell cycle at S phase in DU145, at G1 phase in 22RV1 and LNCaP cells, and G2 phase in normal RWPE-1 cells, as well as induced the expression of phospho-H2A.X and tumor suppressive mammary serine protease inhibitor (maspin) in all three types of CaP cells. 5-Aza also increased p53 and p21 transcription through promoter demethylation, and decreased the expression of oncogene c-Myc in 22RV1 and LNCaP cells. Western blotting analysis showed that the poly (ADP-ribose) polymerase cleavage was detected in DU145 and 22RV1 cells. Moreover, there were no significant changes in p53, p21 and c-Myc expression in DU145 cells following treatment with 5-Aza. Thus, in responsible for its apoptotic induction and DNA damage, the mechanism of the antitumor activities of 5-Aza may involve in an increase of tumor suppressive maspin, upregulation of wild type p53-mediated p21 expression and a decrease of oncogene c-Myc level in 22RV1 and LNCaP cells, and enhancing the tumor suppressive maspin expression in DU145 cells. These results enriched our understanding of the multifaceted antitumor activity of 5-Aza, and provided the expression basis of biomarkers for its possible clinical application in prostate cancer.
Collapse
Affiliation(s)
- Huiying Cheng
- Aoyang Institute of Cancer, Affiliated Aoyang Hospital of Jiangsu University, 279 Jingang Blvd., Zhangjiagang, Suzhou, 215600, China
| | - Sijie Tang
- Aoyang Institute of Cancer, Affiliated Aoyang Hospital of Jiangsu University, 279 Jingang Blvd., Zhangjiagang, Suzhou, 215600, China.,Dept of Urology, the Affiliated Aoyang Hospital of Jiangsu University, 279 Jingang Blvd., Zhangjiagang, Suzhou, 215600, China
| | - Xueqi Lian
- Aoyang Institute of Cancer, Affiliated Aoyang Hospital of Jiangsu University, 279 Jingang Blvd., Zhangjiagang, Suzhou, 215600, China
| | - Hong Meng
- Perinatology Research Branch, Eunice Kennedy Shriver National Institute of Child Health and Human Development, National Institutes of Health, Detroit 48201, MI, USA
| | - Xiang Gu
- Dept of Urology, the Affiliated Aoyang Hospital of Jiangsu University, 279 Jingang Blvd., Zhangjiagang, Suzhou, 215600, China
| | - Jiajia Jiang
- Aoyang Institute of Cancer, Affiliated Aoyang Hospital of Jiangsu University, 279 Jingang Blvd., Zhangjiagang, Suzhou, 215600, China
| | - Xiaohua Li
- Aoyang Institute of Cancer, Affiliated Aoyang Hospital of Jiangsu University, 279 Jingang Blvd., Zhangjiagang, Suzhou, 215600, China.,The Laboratory of Clinical Genomics, Hefei KingMed Diagnostics Ltd., 2800 Chuangxin Blvd., Building H4, Hefei 230088, China.,National Center for Gene Testing Technology Application & Demonstration(Hefei), 2800 Chuangxin Blvd., Building H4, Hefei 230088, China
| |
Collapse
|
8
|
Cui Z, Bhandari R, Lei Q, Lu M, Zhang L, Zhang M, Sun F, Feng L, Zhao S. Identification and Exploration of Novel Macrophage M2-Related Biomarkers and Potential Therapeutic Agents in Endometriosis. Front Mol Biosci 2021; 8:656145. [PMID: 34295919 PMCID: PMC8290202 DOI: 10.3389/fmolb.2021.656145] [Citation(s) in RCA: 12] [Impact Index Per Article: 4.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 01/20/2021] [Accepted: 06/09/2021] [Indexed: 11/23/2022] Open
Abstract
Endometriosis (EM) is a chronic neuroinflammatory disorder that is associated with pain and infertility that affects ∼10% of reproductive-age women. The pathophysiology and etiology of EM remain poorly understood, and diagnostic delays are common. Exploration of the underlying molecular mechanism, as well as novel diagnostic biomarkers and therapeutic targets, is urgently needed. Inflammation is known to play a key role in the development of lesions, which are a defining feature of the disorder. In our research, the CIBERSORT and WGCNA algorithms were used to establish a weighted gene co-expression network and to identify macrophage-related hub genes using data downloaded from the GEO database (GSE11691, 7305). The analysis identified 1,157 differentially expressed genes (DEGs) in EM lesions, of which five were identified as being related to M2 macrophages and were validated as differentially expressed by qRT-PCR and immunohistochemistry (IHC). Of these putative novel biomarker genes, bridging integrator 2 (BIN2), chemokine receptor 5 (CCR5), and macrophage mannose receptor 1 (MRC1) were upregulated, while spleen tyrosine kinase (SYK) and metalloproteinase 12 (ADAM12) were downregulated in ectopic endometria vs. normal endometria. Meanwhile, 23 potentially therapeutic small molecules for EM were obtained from the cMAP database, among which topiramate, isoflupredone, adiphenine, dexverapamil, MS-275, and celastrol were the top six molecules with the highest absolute enrichment values. This is our first attempt to use the CIBERSORT and WGCNA algorithms for the identification of novel Mϕ2 macrophage-related biomarkers of EM. Our findings provide novel insights into the impact of immune cells on the etiology of EM; nevertheless, further investigation of these key genes and therapeutic drugs is needed to validate their effects on EM.
Collapse
Affiliation(s)
- Zhongqi Cui
- Department of Clinical Laboratory, Shanghai Tenth People's Hospital, Tongji University, Shanghai, China
| | - Ramesh Bhandari
- Department of Clinical Laboratory, Shanghai Tenth People's Hospital, Tongji University, Shanghai, China.,Department of Pathology, Universal College of Medical Sciences, Bhairahawa, Nepal
| | - Qin Lei
- Department of Clinical Laboratory, Shanghai Tenth People's Hospital, Tongji University, Shanghai, China
| | - Mingzhi Lu
- Department of Clinical Laboratory, Shanghai Tenth People's Hospital, Tongji University, Shanghai, China.,Anhui Medical University Shanghai Clinical College, Hefei, China
| | - Lei Zhang
- Department of Clinical Laboratory, Shanghai Tenth People's Hospital, Tongji University, Shanghai, China
| | - Mengmei Zhang
- Department of Clinical Laboratory, Shanghai Tenth People's Hospital, Tongji University, Shanghai, China.,Anhui Medical University Shanghai Clinical College, Hefei, China
| | - Fenyong Sun
- Department of Clinical Laboratory, Shanghai Tenth People's Hospital, Tongji University, Shanghai, China
| | - Lijin Feng
- Department of Pathology, Shanghai Tenth People's Hospital, Tongji University, Shanghai, China
| | - Shasha Zhao
- Department of Clinical Laboratory, Shanghai Tenth People's Hospital, Tongji University, Shanghai, China
| |
Collapse
|