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Pan Y, Wang Z, Yan Z, Sun H, Zhang L, Zhang W. Novel Strategy for Screening Target Proteins by the Common Drugs─Sofosbuvir-Specific Profiling of HCV Patient Serum. Anal Chem 2024; 96:9535-9543. [PMID: 38804236 DOI: 10.1021/acs.analchem.4c00993] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 05/29/2024]
Abstract
It is the scientific basis of precision medicine to study all of the targets of drugs based on the interaction between drugs and proteins. It is worth paying attention to unknown proteins that interact with drugs to find new targets for the design of new drugs. Herein, we developed a protein profiling strategy based on drug-protein interactions and drug-modified magnetic nanoparticles and took hepatitis C virus (HCV) and its corresponding drug sofosbuvir (SOF) as an example. A SOF-modified magnetic separation medium (Fe3O4@POSS@SOF) was prepared, and a gradient elution strategy was employed and optimized to profile specific proteins interacted with SOF. A series of proteomic analyses were performed to profile proteins based on SOF-protein interactions (SPIs) in the serum of HCV patients to evaluate the specificity of the profiling strategy. As a result, five proteins were profiled with strong SPIs and exhibited high relevance with liver tissue, which were potentially new drug targets. Among them, HSP60 was used to confirm the highly specific interactions between the SOF and its binding proteins by Western blotting analysis. Besides, 124 and 29 differential proteins were profiled by SOF material from three HCV patient serum and pooled 20 HCV patient serum, respectively, by comparing with healthy human serum. In comparison with those profiled by the polyhedral oligomeric silsesquioxane (POSS) material, differential proteins profiled by the SOF material were highly associated with liver diseases through GO analysis and pathway analysis. Furthermore, four common differential proteins profiled by SOF material but not by POSS material were found to be identical and expressed consistently in both pooled serum samples and independent serum samples, which might potentially be biomarkers of HCV infection. Taken together, our study proposes a highly specific protein profiling strategy to display distinctive proteomic profiles, providing a novel idea for drug design and development.
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Affiliation(s)
- Yini Pan
- Shanghai Key Laboratory of Functional Materials Chemistry, School of Chemistry & Molecular Engineering, East China University of Science and Technology, Shanghai 200237, P. R. China
| | - Zhenxin Wang
- Department of Laboratory Medicine, Zhongshan Hospital, Fudan University, Shanghai 200032, P. R. China
| | - Zhichao Yan
- Shanghai Key Laboratory of Functional Materials Chemistry, School of Chemistry & Molecular Engineering, East China University of Science and Technology, Shanghai 200237, P. R. China
| | - Haofan Sun
- State Key Laboratory of Proteomics, National Center for Protein Sciences Beijing, Beijing Institute of Lifeomics, Beijing Proteome Research Center, Beijing 102413, P. R. China
| | - Lingyi Zhang
- Shanghai Key Laboratory of Functional Materials Chemistry, School of Chemistry & Molecular Engineering, East China University of Science and Technology, Shanghai 200237, P. R. China
| | - Weibing Zhang
- Shanghai Key Laboratory of Functional Materials Chemistry, School of Chemistry & Molecular Engineering, East China University of Science and Technology, Shanghai 200237, P. R. China
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Zhang J, Zhang Q, Hu W, Liang Y, Jiang D, Chen H. A transcriptome-wide association study identified susceptibility genes for hepatocellular carcinoma in East Asia. Gastroenterol Rep (Oxf) 2024; 12:goae057. [PMID: 38846986 PMCID: PMC11153834 DOI: 10.1093/gastro/goae057] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Submit a Manuscript] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 07/25/2023] [Revised: 03/07/2024] [Accepted: 04/30/2024] [Indexed: 06/09/2024] Open
Abstract
Background Hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC) is one of the most common cancers worldwide and is prevalent in East Asia. Although genome-wide association studies (GWASs) of HCC have identified 23 risk regions, the susceptibility genes underlying these associations largely remain unclear. To identify novel candidate genes for HCC, we conducted liver single-tissue and cross-tissue transcriptome-wide association studies (TWASs) in two populations of East Asia. Methods GWAS summary statistics of 2,514 subjects (1,161 HCC cases and 1,353 controls) from the Chinese Qidong cohort and 161,323 subjects (2,122 HCC cases and 159,201 controls) from the BioBank Japan project were used to conduct TWAS analysis. The single-tissue and cross-tissue TWAS approaches were both used to detect the association between susceptible genes and the risk of HCC. TWAS identified genes were further annotated by Metascape, UALCAN, GEPIA2, and DepMap. Results We identified 22 novel genes at 16 independent loci significantly associated with HCC risk after Bonferroni correction. Of these, 13 genes were located in novel regions. Besides, we found 83 genes overlapped in the Chinese and Japanese cohorts with P < 0.05, of which, three genes (NUAK2, HLA-DQA1, and ATP6V1G2) were discerned by both single-tissue and cross-tissue TWAS approaches. Among the genes identified through TWAS, a significant proportion of them exhibit a credible role in HCC biology, such as FAM96B, HSPA5, POLRMT, MPHOSPH10, and RABL2A. HLA-DQA1, NUAK2, and HSPA5 associated with the process of carcinogenesis in HCC as previously reported. Conclusions Our findings highlight the value of leveraging the gene expression data to identify new candidate genes beyond the GWAS associations and could further provide a genetic insight for the biology of HCC.
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Affiliation(s)
- Jingjing Zhang
- School of Public Health (Shenzhen), Sun Yat-sen University, Guangzhou, Guangdong, P. R. China
- School of Public Health (Shenzhen), Shenzhen campus of Sun Yat-sen University, Shenzhen, Guangdong, P. R. China
| | - Qingrong Zhang
- School of Public Health (Shenzhen), Sun Yat-sen University, Guangzhou, Guangdong, P. R. China
- School of Public Health (Shenzhen), Shenzhen campus of Sun Yat-sen University, Shenzhen, Guangdong, P. R. China
| | - Wenyan Hu
- School of Public Health (Shenzhen), Sun Yat-sen University, Guangzhou, Guangdong, P. R. China
- School of Public Health (Shenzhen), Shenzhen campus of Sun Yat-sen University, Shenzhen, Guangdong, P. R. China
| | - Yuxuan Liang
- School of Public Health (Shenzhen), Sun Yat-sen University, Guangzhou, Guangdong, P. R. China
- School of Public Health (Shenzhen), Shenzhen campus of Sun Yat-sen University, Shenzhen, Guangdong, P. R. China
| | - Deke Jiang
- Department of Infectious Diseases and Hepatology Unit, Nanfang Hospital, Southern Medical University, Guangzhou, Guangdong, P. R. China
| | - Haitao Chen
- School of Public Health (Shenzhen), Sun Yat-sen University, Guangzhou, Guangdong, P. R. China
- School of Public Health (Shenzhen), Shenzhen campus of Sun Yat-sen University, Shenzhen, Guangdong, P. R. China
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Li G, Guo F, Liang J, Wan B, Liang J, Zhou Z. Sandwich-type supersensitive electrochemical aptasensor of glypican-3 based on PrGO-Hemin-PdNP and AuNP@PoPD. Mikrochim Acta 2024; 191:340. [PMID: 38787447 DOI: 10.1007/s00604-024-06419-9] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 01/22/2024] [Accepted: 05/05/2024] [Indexed: 05/25/2024]
Abstract
A new sandwich-type electrochemical biosensing platform was developed by gold @polyphthalenediamine nanohybrids (AuNP@PoPD) as the sensing platform and phosphorus doped reduced graphene oxide-hemin-palladium nanoparticles (PrGO-Hemin-PdNP) as the signal amplifier for phosphatidylinositol proteoglycan 3 (GPC3). AuNP@PoPD, co-electrodeposited into the screen printed electrode with high conductivity and stability, is dedicated to assembling the primary GPC3 aptamer (GPC3Apt). The second GPC3Apt immobilized on the high conductivity and large surface area of PrGO-Hemin-PdNP was utilized as an electrochemical signal reporter by hemin oxidation (PrGO-Hemin-PdNP-GPC3Apt). In the range 0.001-10.0 ng/mL, the hemin oxidation current signal of the electrochemical aptasensor increased log-linearly with the concentration of GPC3, the lowest detection limit was 0.13 pg/mL, and the sensitivity was 2.073 μA/μM/cm2. The aptasensor exhibited good sensing performance in a human serum sample with the relative error of 4.31-8.07%. The sandwich sensor showed good selectivity and stability for detection GPC3 in human serum samples, providing a new efficient and sensitive method for detecting HCC markers.
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Affiliation(s)
- Guiyin Li
- College of Chemistry, Guangdong University of Petrochemical Technology, Guandu Road, Maoming, Guangdong, 525000, People's Republic of China
- School of Life and Environmental Sciences, Guilin University of Electronic Technology, Guilin, Guangxi, 541004, People's Republic of China
| | - Fei Guo
- School of Life and Environmental Sciences, Guilin University of Electronic Technology, Guilin, Guangxi, 541004, People's Republic of China
| | - Jianlu Liang
- School of Life and Environmental Sciences, Guilin University of Electronic Technology, Guilin, Guangxi, 541004, People's Republic of China
| | - Bingbing Wan
- College of Chemistry, Guangdong University of Petrochemical Technology, Guandu Road, Maoming, Guangdong, 525000, People's Republic of China
- School of Life and Environmental Sciences, Guilin University of Electronic Technology, Guilin, Guangxi, 541004, People's Republic of China
| | - Jintao Liang
- School of Life and Environmental Sciences, Guilin University of Electronic Technology, Guilin, Guangxi, 541004, People's Republic of China.
| | - Zhide Zhou
- School of Life and Environmental Sciences, Guilin University of Electronic Technology, Guilin, Guangxi, 541004, People's Republic of China.
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Bitounis D, Jacquinet E, Rogers MA, Amiji MM. Strategies to reduce the risks of mRNA drug and vaccine toxicity. Nat Rev Drug Discov 2024; 23:281-300. [PMID: 38263456 DOI: 10.1038/s41573-023-00859-3] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Accepted: 11/30/2023] [Indexed: 01/25/2024]
Abstract
mRNA formulated with lipid nanoparticles is a transformative technology that has enabled the rapid development and administration of billions of coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) vaccine doses worldwide. However, avoiding unacceptable toxicity with mRNA drugs and vaccines presents challenges. Lipid nanoparticle structural components, production methods, route of administration and proteins produced from complexed mRNAs all present toxicity concerns. Here, we discuss these concerns, specifically how cell tropism and tissue distribution of mRNA and lipid nanoparticles can lead to toxicity, and their possible reactogenicity. We focus on adverse events from mRNA applications for protein replacement and gene editing therapies as well as vaccines, tracing common biochemical and cellular pathways. The potential and limitations of existing models and tools used to screen for on-target efficacy and de-risk off-target toxicity, including in vivo and next-generation in vitro models, are also discussed.
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Affiliation(s)
- Dimitrios Bitounis
- Department of Pharmaceutical Sciences, Northeastern University, Boston, MA, USA
- Moderna, Inc., Cambridge, MA, USA
| | | | | | - Mansoor M Amiji
- Departments of Pharmaceutical Sciences and Chemical Engineering, Northeastern University, Boston, MA, USA.
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Kozlova A, Sarygina E, Deinichenko K, Radko S, Ptitsyn K, Khmeleva S, Kurbatov L, Spirin P, Prassolov V, Ilgisonis E, Lisitsa A, Ponomarenko E. Comparison of Alternative Splicing Landscapes Revealed by Long-Read Sequencing in Hepatocyte-Derived HepG2 and Huh7 Cultured Cells and Human Liver Tissue. BIOLOGY 2023; 12:1494. [PMID: 38132320 PMCID: PMC10740679 DOI: 10.3390/biology12121494] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 10/27/2023] [Revised: 11/17/2023] [Accepted: 11/25/2023] [Indexed: 12/23/2023]
Abstract
The long-read RNA sequencing developed by Oxford Nanopore Technologies provides a direct quantification of transcript isoforms, thereby making it possible to present alternative splicing (AS) profiles as arrays of single splice variants with different abundances. Additionally, AS profiles can be presented as arrays of genes characterized by the degree of alternative splicing (the DAS-the number of detected splice variants per gene). Here, we successfully utilized the DAS to reveal biological pathways influenced by the alterations in AS in human liver tissue and the hepatocyte-derived malignant cell lines HepG2 and Huh7, thus employing the mathematical algorithm of gene set enrichment analysis. Furthermore, analysis of the AS profiles as abundances of single splice variants by using the graded tissue specificity index τ provided the selection of the groups of genes expressing particular splice variants specifically in liver tissue, HepG2 cells, and Huh7 cells. The majority of these splice variants were translated into proteins products and appeal to be in focus regarding further insights into the mechanisms underlying cell malignization. The used metrics are intrinsically suitable for transcriptome-wide AS profiling using long-read sequencing.
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Affiliation(s)
- Anna Kozlova
- Institute of Biomedical Chemistry, Pogodinskaya Street 10, 119121 Moscow, Russia (S.R.)
| | - Elizaveta Sarygina
- Institute of Biomedical Chemistry, Pogodinskaya Street 10, 119121 Moscow, Russia (S.R.)
| | - Kseniia Deinichenko
- Institute of Biomedical Chemistry, Pogodinskaya Street 10, 119121 Moscow, Russia (S.R.)
| | - Sergey Radko
- Institute of Biomedical Chemistry, Pogodinskaya Street 10, 119121 Moscow, Russia (S.R.)
| | - Konstantin Ptitsyn
- Institute of Biomedical Chemistry, Pogodinskaya Street 10, 119121 Moscow, Russia (S.R.)
| | - Svetlana Khmeleva
- Institute of Biomedical Chemistry, Pogodinskaya Street 10, 119121 Moscow, Russia (S.R.)
| | - Leonid Kurbatov
- Institute of Biomedical Chemistry, Pogodinskaya Street 10, 119121 Moscow, Russia (S.R.)
| | - Pavel Spirin
- Department of Cancer Cell Biology, Engelhardt Institute of Molecular Biology, Russian Academy of Sciences, Vavilova 32, 119991 Moscow, Russia; (P.S.); (V.P.)
| | - Vladimir Prassolov
- Department of Cancer Cell Biology, Engelhardt Institute of Molecular Biology, Russian Academy of Sciences, Vavilova 32, 119991 Moscow, Russia; (P.S.); (V.P.)
| | - Ekaterina Ilgisonis
- Institute of Biomedical Chemistry, Pogodinskaya Street 10, 119121 Moscow, Russia (S.R.)
| | - Andrey Lisitsa
- Institute of Biomedical Chemistry, Pogodinskaya Street 10, 119121 Moscow, Russia (S.R.)
| | - Elena Ponomarenko
- Institute of Biomedical Chemistry, Pogodinskaya Street 10, 119121 Moscow, Russia (S.R.)
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Mazidimoradi A, Sabet Birjandi S, Salehiniya H. Effect of coronavirus disease 2019 on diagnosis and treatment of hepatocellular carcinoma: a systematic review. EXPLORATION OF TARGETED ANTI-TUMOR THERAPY 2023; 4:1039-1058. [PMID: 38023991 PMCID: PMC10651356 DOI: 10.37349/etat.2023.00179] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 02/07/2023] [Accepted: 08/28/2023] [Indexed: 12/01/2023] Open
Abstract
Aim Changes in strategies in the coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) crisis and the imposing of restrictions have isolated many vulnerable patients including those with hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC) from routine medical care. This study investigated how the COVID-19 pandemic is affecting the diagnosis and treatment of HCC. Methods An extensive search was conducted in the PubMed, Scopus, and Web of Science databases by using the appropriate keywords: COVID-19, hepatocellular carcinoma, hepatocellular cancer, and MeSH. Studies in English related to the purpose of the study were included in the analysis, and review studies, case reports, letters to editors, comments, and reports were excluded. The quality of the studies was assessed by the "Adapted Newcastle-Ottawa Quality Assessment Scales" checklist. The Endnote X7 software has been used for managing items. Results The final qualitative analysis consisted of 27 articles. During the COVID-19 crisis, HCC diagnosis decreased from 20% to 34.13% compared to pre-crisis. The impact of the COVID-19 pandemic on HCC treatment encompasses a wide range of aspects. Generally, delays in treatment for patients with HCC ranged from more than one month for 21.5% of patients in France, to two months for 26% of patients in Italy, up to 30% in Austria, and 66.7% in Asia-Pacific countries. Conclusions According to the findings, developing and implementing appropriate diagnostic and therapeutic strategies and developing low-cost and high-precision screening programs among high-risk populations seem to be effective in reducing the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic on HCC management.
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Affiliation(s)
- Afrooz Mazidimoradi
- Student Research Committee, Shiraz University of Medical Sciences, Shiraz 71348-14336, Iran
| | - Samane Sabet Birjandi
- Department of Midwifery, Birjand Branch Islamic Azad University, Birjand 97178-11111, Iran
| | - Hamid Salehiniya
- Social Determinants of Health Research Center, Birjand University of Medical Sciences, Birjand 97178-53577, Iran
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Deng XS, Meng X, Fullerton D, Stone M, Iguidbashian J, Jaggers J. Complement Cross Talks With H-K-ATPase to Upregulate Runx2 in Human Aortic Valve Interstitial Cells. J Surg Res 2023; 286:118-126. [PMID: 36822134 PMCID: PMC10120867 DOI: 10.1016/j.jss.2022.12.028] [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: 06/15/2022] [Revised: 11/16/2022] [Accepted: 12/25/2022] [Indexed: 02/23/2023]
Abstract
INTRODUCTION Calcific aortic valve disease (CAVD) is a slowly progressive fibro-calcific valve leaflet disorder. The underlying pathophysiology is complex and not yet well understood. Complement is known to play a role in the pathogenesis of CAVD by upregulating Runx2 to induce profibrogenic change in human aortic valve interstitial cells (AVICs). Furthermore, H-K-ATPase has independently been shown to induce tissue calcification. Therefore, we hypothesized that complement cross talks with H-K-ATPase to upregulate Runx2 in human AVICs. MATERIALS AND METHODS Human AVICs were isolated from normal and calcified aortic valves. Cells were treated with a variation of complement, H-K-ATPase, or ERK1/2 inhibitors. H-K-ATPase and its association with complement in AVICs were investigated by reverse transcriptase-polymerase chain reaction, immunofluorescence, and Western blot. RESULTS Calcified human AVICs expressed significantly higher H-K-ATPase level than normal human AVICs. Presence of complement C3 with H-K-ATPase is found in AVICs after complement treatment. Complement induced both H-K-ATPase and Runx2 expression in AVICs, which was associated with increased phosphorylation of ERK1/2 and its downstream molecule p-70 S6. Pharmacological inhibition of either H-K-ATPase or Erk1/2 abolished complement-induced Runx2 expression. CONCLUSIONS These findings indicate that complement cross talks with H-K-ATPase to upregulate Runx2 in human AVICs by activation of ERK1/2 signaling pathways. The study revealed the potential role of H-K-ATPase in the pathogenesis of CAVD and therapeutically targeting either complement system or H-K-ATPase may limit the development of CAVD.
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Affiliation(s)
- Xin-Sheng Deng
- Cardiothoracic Surgery, University of Colorado, Children's Hospital Colorado, Aurora, Colorado; Cardiothoracic Surgery, University of Colorado Anschutz Medical Campus, Aurora, Colorado
| | - Xianzhong Meng
- Cardiothoracic Surgery, University of Colorado Anschutz Medical Campus, Aurora, Colorado
| | - David Fullerton
- Cardiothoracic Surgery, University of Colorado Anschutz Medical Campus, Aurora, Colorado
| | - Matthew Stone
- Cardiothoracic Surgery, University of Colorado Anschutz Medical Campus, Aurora, Colorado
| | - John Iguidbashian
- Cardiothoracic Surgery, University of Colorado Anschutz Medical Campus, Aurora, Colorado
| | - James Jaggers
- Cardiothoracic Surgery, University of Colorado, Children's Hospital Colorado, Aurora, Colorado; Cardiothoracic Surgery, University of Colorado Anschutz Medical Campus, Aurora, Colorado.
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Ye G, Zhang X, Li M, Lin Z, Xu Y, Dong H, Zhou J, Zhang J, Wang S, Zhu Y, Yu X, Qian X. Integrated analysis of circulating and tissue proteomes reveals that fibronectin 1 is a potential biomarker in papillary thyroid cancer. BMC Cancer 2023; 23:412. [PMID: 37158852 PMCID: PMC10165821 DOI: 10.1186/s12885-023-10839-w] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 03/30/2022] [Accepted: 04/12/2023] [Indexed: 05/10/2023] Open
Abstract
Papillary thyroid cancer (PTC) is the most frequent subtype of thyroid cancer, but 20% of cases are indeterminate (i.e., cannot be accurately diagnosed) based on preoperative cytology, which might lead to surgical removal of a normal thyroid gland. To address this concern, we performed an in-depth analysis of the serum proteomes of 26 PTC patients and 23 healthy controls using antibody microarrays and data-independent acquisition mass spectrometry (DIA-MS). We identified a total of 1091 serum proteins spanning 10-12 orders of magnitude. 166 differentially expressed proteins were identified that participate in complement activation, coagulation cascades, and platelet degranulation pathways. Furthermore, the analysis of serum proteomes before and after surgery indicated that the expression of proteins such as lactate dehydrogenase A and olfactory receptor family 52 subfamily B member 4, which participate in fibrin clot formation and extracellular matrix-receptor interaction pathways, were changed. Further analysis of the proteomes of PTC and neighboring tissues revealed integrin-mediated pathways with possible crosstalk between the tissue and circulating compartments. Among these cross-talk proteins, circulating fibronectin 1 (FN1), gelsolin (GSN) and UDP-glucose 4-epimerase (GALE) were indicated as promising biomarkers for PTC identification and validated in an independent cohort. In differentiating between patients with benign nodules or PTC, FN1 produced the best ELISA result (sensitivity = 96.89%, specificity = 91.67%). Overall, our results present proteomic landscapes of PTC before and after surgery as well as the crosstalk between tissue and the circulatory system, which is valuable to understand PTC pathology and improve PTC diagnostics in the future.
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Affiliation(s)
- Guochao Ye
- Department of General Surgery, Huzhou Central Hospital, Huzhou, 313000, P. R. China
| | - Xiaomei Zhang
- State Key Laboratory of Proteomics, Beijing Proteome Research Center, National Center for Protein Sciences-Beijing (PHOENIX Center), Beijing Institute of Lifeomics, Beijing, 102206, P. R. China
| | - Mansheng Li
- State Key Laboratory of Proteomics, Beijing Proteome Research Center, National Center for Protein Sciences-Beijing (PHOENIX Center), Beijing Institute of Lifeomics, Beijing, 102206, P. R. China
| | - Zixiang Lin
- School of Basic Medical Sciences, Peking University, Beijing, 100191, P. R. China
| | - Yongcan Xu
- Department of General Surgery, Huzhou Central Hospital, Huzhou, 313000, P. R. China
| | - Haoru Dong
- Department of Clinical Laboratory, Zhejiang Cancer Hospital, Institute of Basic Medicine and Cancer (IBMC), The Chinese Academy of Sciences, Hangzhou, 310022, P. R. China
| | - Jie Zhou
- Department of Clinical Laboratory, Zhejiang Cancer Hospital, Institute of Basic Medicine and Cancer (IBMC), The Chinese Academy of Sciences, Hangzhou, 310022, P. R. China
| | - Jiaqi Zhang
- State Key Laboratory of Proteomics, Beijing Proteome Research Center, National Center for Protein Sciences-Beijing (PHOENIX Center), Beijing Institute of Lifeomics, Beijing, 102206, P. R. China
| | - Sheng Wang
- Department of Clinical Laboratory, Zhejiang Cancer Hospital, Institute of Basic Medicine and Cancer (IBMC), The Chinese Academy of Sciences, Hangzhou, 310022, P. R. China
| | - Yunping Zhu
- State Key Laboratory of Proteomics, Beijing Proteome Research Center, National Center for Protein Sciences-Beijing (PHOENIX Center), Beijing Institute of Lifeomics, Beijing, 102206, P. R. China.
| | - Xiaobo Yu
- State Key Laboratory of Proteomics, Beijing Proteome Research Center, National Center for Protein Sciences-Beijing (PHOENIX Center), Beijing Institute of Lifeomics, Beijing, 102206, P. R. China.
| | - Xu Qian
- Department of Clinical Laboratory, Zhejiang Cancer Hospital, Institute of Basic Medicine and Cancer (IBMC), The Chinese Academy of Sciences, Hangzhou, 310022, P. R. China.
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Liu B, Wang S, Xu M, Ma Y, Sun R, Ding H, Li L. The double-edged role of hydrogen sulfide in the pathomechanism of multiple liver diseases. Front Pharmacol 2022; 13:899859. [PMID: 36588686 PMCID: PMC9800830 DOI: 10.3389/fphar.2022.899859] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 03/21/2022] [Accepted: 11/25/2022] [Indexed: 12/23/2022] Open
Abstract
In mammalian systems, hydrogen sulfide (H2S)-one of the three known gaseous signaling molecules in mammals-has been found to have a variety of physiological functions. Existing studies have demonstrated that endogenous H2S is produced through enzymatic and non-enzymatic pathways. The liver is the body's largest solid organ and is essential for H2S synthesis and elimination. Mounting evidence suggests H2S has essential roles in various aspects of liver physiological processes and pathological conditions, such as hepatic lipid metabolism, liver fibrosis, liver ischemia‒reperfusion injury, hepatocellular carcinoma, hepatotoxicity, and acute liver failure. In this review, we discuss the functions and underlying molecular mechanisms of H2S in multiple liver pathophysiological conditions.
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Affiliation(s)
- Bihan Liu
- Department of Hepatology and Gastroenterology, Beijing Youan Hospital, Capital Medical University, Beijing, China
| | - Shanshan Wang
- Department of Hepatology and Gastroenterology, Beijing Youan Hospital, Capital Medical University, Beijing, China,Beijing Institute of Hepatology, Beijing Youan Hospital, Capital Medical University, Beijing, China
| | - Ming Xu
- Brainnetome Center and National Laboratory of Pattern Recognition, Institute of Automation, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Beijing, China,School of Artificial Intelligence, University of Chinese Academy of Sciences, Beijing, China
| | - Yanan Ma
- Department of Hepatology and Gastroenterology, Beijing Youan Hospital, Capital Medical University, Beijing, China
| | - Rui Sun
- Department of Hepatology and Gastroenterology, Beijing Youan Hospital, Capital Medical University, Beijing, China
| | - Huiguo Ding
- Department of Hepatology and Gastroenterology, Beijing Youan Hospital, Capital Medical University, Beijing, China
| | - Lei Li
- Department of Hepatology and Gastroenterology, Beijing Youan Hospital, Capital Medical University, Beijing, China,*Correspondence: Lei Li,
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The Tumor Microenvironment of Hepatocellular Carcinoma: Untying an Intricate Immunological Network. Cancers (Basel) 2022; 14:cancers14246151. [PMID: 36551635 PMCID: PMC9776867 DOI: 10.3390/cancers14246151] [Citation(s) in RCA: 4] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 10/31/2022] [Revised: 12/06/2022] [Accepted: 12/11/2022] [Indexed: 12/23/2022] Open
Abstract
HCC, the most prevalent form of primary liver cancer, is prototypically an inflammation-driven cancer developing after years of inflammatory insults. Consequently, the hepatic microenvironment is a site of complex immunological activities. Moreover, the tolerogenic nature of the liver can act as a barrier to anti-tumor immunity, fostering cancer progression and resistance to immunotherapies based on immune checkpoint inhibitors (ICB). In addition to being a site of primary carcinogenesis, many cancer types have high tropism for the liver, and patients diagnosed with liver metastasis have a dismal prognosis. Therefore, understanding the immunological networks characterizing the tumor microenvironment (TME) of HCC will deepen our understanding of liver immunity, and it will underpin the dominant mechanisms controlling both spontaneous and therapy-induced anti-tumor immune responses. Herein, we discuss the contributions of the cellular and molecular components of the liver immune contexture during HCC onset and progression by underscoring how the balance between antagonistic immune responses can recast the properties of the TME and the response to ICB.
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11
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Shao X, Zhu J, Shi Y, Fang H, Chen J, Zhang Y, Wang J, Jian H, Lan S, Jiang F, Zhong F, Zhang Y, Cao C. Upregulated UBE4B expression correlates with poor prognosis and tumor immune infiltration in hepatocellular carcinoma. Aging (Albany NY) 2022; 14:9632-9646. [PMID: 36470669 PMCID: PMC9792214 DOI: 10.18632/aging.204414] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 10/17/2022] [Accepted: 11/23/2022] [Indexed: 12/11/2022]
Abstract
BACKGROUND Hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC) is a major human health concern. Increasing evidence has demonstrated that ubiquitin ligase E4B (UBE4B) may be involved in the occurrence and development of various human cancers and may affect prognosis. However, the specific role and mechanism of UBE4B in HCC is unclear. METHODS A pan-cancer analysis of UBE4B expression, clinicopathological features, and prognosis was performed using bioinformatics techniques. Subsequently, the expression, prognosis, and correlation of UBE4B and its upstream miRNAs and lncRNAs were analyzed. We investigated the relationship between UBE4B expression and immune cell infiltration, immunomodulatory factors, and chemokines in HCC. The expression levels of UBE4B and its upstream lncRNAs (FGD5-AS1, LINC00858, and SNHG16) and miRNAs (hsa-miR-22-3p) were evaluated in HCC cell lines using qRT-PCR. RESULTS UBE4B expression increased in HCC and was correlated with a poor survival rate in patients with HCC. A ceRNA network was established to identify the UBE4B-hsa-miR-22-3p-FGD5-AS1/LINC00858/SNHG16 regulatory axis in HCC. UBE4B expression was significantly associated with immune cell infiltration, immunomodulators, chemokines, and their receptors in HCC. The mRNA expression of FGD5-AS1, LINC00858, SNHG16, and UBE4B was higher in the HCC cell lines (7721 and HepG2) than in the normal hepatocyte line (LO2), and the expression of hsa-miR-22-3p mRNA showed a decreasing trend. CONCLUSIONS Our findings showed that upregulation of UBE4B was associated with poor prognosis and tumor immune infiltration in HCC. These findings will aid in understanding the relevant functions of UBE4B and provide new strategies for drug development and exploration of prognosis-related biomarkers.
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Affiliation(s)
- Xuyang Shao
- Graduate School of Bengbu Medical College, Bengbu 233000, Anhui Province, China,Department of General Surgery, The Second Affiliated Hospital of Jiaxing University, Jiaxing 314000, Zhejiang Province, China
| | - Jun Zhu
- Department of Oncology, Fuyang Hospital of Anhui Medical University, Fuyang 236000, Anhui Province, China
| | - Yanlong Shi
- Hepatopancreatobiliary Center, The Second Affiliated Hospital of Nanjing Medical University, Nanjing 210003, Jiangsu Province, China
| | - Hanlu Fang
- Institute of Medical and Health Science of HeBMU, Hebei Medical University, Shijiazhuang 050017, Hebei Province, China
| | - Jingsi Chen
- Department of Intensive Care Unit, Fuyang Women and Children’s Hospital, Fuyang 236000, Anhui Province, China
| | - Yixiao Zhang
- The First Clinical College of Zhejiang Chinese Medical University, Hangzhou 310053, Zhejiang Province, China
| | - Jingyan Wang
- Department of Anesthesia, Shaoxing People’s Hospital, Shaoxing 312000, Zhejiang Province, China
| | - Haokun Jian
- School of Basic Medical Sciences, Xinxiang Medical University, Xinxiang 453003, Henan Province, China
| | - Sheng Lan
- The Second Clinical College of Guangzhou Medical University, Guangzhou 510030, Guangdong Province, China
| | - Fei Jiang
- Department of General Surgery, Fuyang Hospital of Anhui Medical University, Fuyang 236000, Anhui Province, China
| | - Fei Zhong
- Department of Oncology, Fuyang Hospital of Anhui Medical University, Fuyang 236000, Anhui Province, China,Department of Oncology, The First Affiliated Hospital of Anhui Medical University, Hefei 230000, Anhui Province, China
| | - Yewei Zhang
- Hepatopancreatobiliary Center, The Second Affiliated Hospital of Nanjing Medical University, Nanjing 210003, Jiangsu Province, China
| | - Chenxi Cao
- Graduate School of Bengbu Medical College, Bengbu 233000, Anhui Province, China,Department of General Surgery, The Second Affiliated Hospital of Jiaxing University, Jiaxing 314000, Zhejiang Province, China
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12
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Zhang X, Wen J, Zhang G, Fan W, Tan J, Liu H, Li J. Identification and Validation of Novel Immunogenic Cell Death- and DNA Damage Response-Related Molecular Patterns Correlated with Immune Status and Prognosis in Hepatocellular Carcinoma. Transl Oncol 2022; 27:101600. [PMID: 36481605 PMCID: PMC9731848 DOI: 10.1016/j.tranon.2022.101600] [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: 08/29/2022] [Revised: 11/06/2022] [Accepted: 11/30/2022] [Indexed: 12/12/2022] Open
Abstract
Immunogenic cell death (ICD) and DNA damage response (DDR) are involved in cancer progression and prognosis. Currently, chemotherapy is the first-line treatment for intermediate or advanced hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC), which is mostly based on platinum and anthracyclines that induce DNA damage and ICD. With the treatment of HCC with immune checkpoint inhibitors (ICIs), it is important to understand the molecular characteristics and prognostic values of ICD and DDR-related genes (IDRGs). We aimed to explore the characteristics of ICD and DDR-related molecular patterns, immune status, and the association of immunotherapy and prognosis with IDRGs in HCC. We identified IDRGs in HCC and evaluated their differential expression, biological behaviors, molecular characteristics, immune cell infiltration, and prognostic value. Prognostic IDRGs and subtypes were identified and validated. FFAR3, DDX1, POLR3G, FANCL, ADA, PI3KR1, DHX58, TPT1, MGMT, SLAMF6, and EIF2AK4 were determined as risk factors for HCC, and the biological experiments indicated that high FANCL expression is harmful to the treatment and prognosis. HCC was classified into high- and low-risk groups based on the median values of the risk factors to construct a predictive nomogram. These findings provide novel insights into the treatment and prognosis of HCC and provide a new research direction for HCC.
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Affiliation(s)
| | | | | | | | | | | | - Jiaping Li
- Corresponding author at: Department of Interventional Oncology, The First Affiliated Hospital of Sun Yat-Sen University, No. 58 Zhongshan 2 Road, 510080, Guangzhou, PR China, Tel: +86-20-13352890908. Fax: +86-20-87755766.
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13
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Wang L, Geng G, Zhu T, Chen W, Li X, Gu J, Jiang E. Progress in Research on TLR4-Mediated Inflammatory Response Mechanisms in Brain Injury after Subarachnoid Hemorrhage. Cells 2022; 11:cells11233781. [PMID: 36497041 PMCID: PMC9740134 DOI: 10.3390/cells11233781] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 11/14/2022] [Accepted: 11/23/2022] [Indexed: 11/29/2022] Open
Abstract
Subarachnoid hemorrhage (SAH) is one of the common clinical neurological emergencies. Its incidence accounts for about 5-9% of cerebral stroke patients. Even surviving patients often suffer from severe adverse prognoses such as hemiplegia, aphasia, cognitive dysfunction and even death. Inflammatory response plays an important role during early nerve injury in SAH. Toll-like receptors (TLRs), pattern recognition receptors, are important components of the body's innate immune system, and they are usually activated by damage-associated molecular pattern molecules. Studies have shown that with TLR 4 as an essential member of the TLRs family, the inflammatory transduction pathway mediated by it plays a vital role in brain injury after SAH. After SAH occurrence, large amounts of blood enter the subarachnoid space. This can produce massive damage-associated molecular pattern molecules that bind to TLR4, which activates inflammatory response and causes early brain injury, thus resulting in serious adverse prognoses. In this paper, the process in research on TLR4-mediated inflammatory response mechanism in brain injury after SAH was reviewed to provide a new thought for clinical treatment.
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Affiliation(s)
- Lintao Wang
- Institute of Nursing and Health, Henan University, Kaifeng 475004, China
- School of Clinical Medicine, Henan University, Kaifeng 475004, China
- Department of Neurology, The First Affiliated Hospital of Henan University, Kaifeng 475001, China
| | - Guangping Geng
- Henan Technician College of Medicine and Health, Kaifeng 475000, China
| | - Tao Zhu
- Department of Geriatrics, Kaifeng Traditional Chinese Medicine Hospital, Kaifeng 475001, China
| | - Wenwu Chen
- Department of Neurology, The First Affiliated Hospital of Henan University, Kaifeng 475001, China
| | - Xiaohui Li
- Department of Neurology, The First Affiliated Hospital of Henan University, Kaifeng 475001, China
| | - Jianjun Gu
- Department of Neurosurgery, Henan Provincial People’s Hospital, Zhengzhou 450003, China
| | - Enshe Jiang
- Institute of Nursing and Health, Henan University, Kaifeng 475004, China
- Henan International Joint Laboratory for Nuclear Protein Regulation, Henan University, Kaifeng 475004, China
- Correspondence:
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14
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Circ_0003998 upregulates ARK5 expression to elevate 5-Fluorouracil resistance in hepatocellular carcinoma through binding to miR-513a-5p. Anticancer Drugs 2022; 33:1103-1113. [DOI: 10.1097/cad.0000000000001359] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/27/2022]
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15
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Xiao Z, Yeung CLS, Yam JWP, Mao X. An update on the role of complement in hepatocellular carcinoma. Front Immunol 2022; 13:1007382. [PMID: 36341431 PMCID: PMC9629811 DOI: 10.3389/fimmu.2022.1007382] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 07/30/2022] [Accepted: 09/26/2022] [Indexed: 11/13/2022] Open
Abstract
As a main producer of complement, the environment in the liver is greatly affected by the complement system. Although the complement system is considered to have the ability of nonself discrimination, remarkable studies have revealed the tight association between improper complement activation in tumour initiation and progression. As complement activation predominantly occurs within the liver, the protumourigenic role of the complement system may contribute to the development of hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC). Improvement in the understanding of the molecular targets involved in complement-mediated tumour development, metastasis, and tumour-promoting inflammation in HCC would certainly aid in the development of better treatments. This minireview is focused on recent findings of the protumourigenic role of the complement system in HCC.
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Affiliation(s)
- Zhijie Xiao
- Scientific Research Centre, The Seventh Affiliated Hospital, Sun Yat-sen University, Shenzhen, China
| | - Charlie Lot Sum Yeung
- Department of Pathology, School of Clinical Medicine, Faculty of Medicine, the University of Hong Kong, Hong Kong, Hong Kong SAR, China
| | - Judy Wai Ping Yam
- Department of Pathology, School of Clinical Medicine, Faculty of Medicine, the University of Hong Kong, Hong Kong, Hong Kong SAR, China
| | - Xiaowen Mao
- Department of Pathology, School of Clinical Medicine, Faculty of Medicine, the University of Hong Kong, Hong Kong, Hong Kong SAR, China
- *Correspondence: Xiaowen Mao,
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16
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Tumor Microenvironment of Hepatocellular Carcinoma: Challenges and Opportunities for New Treatment Options. Int J Mol Sci 2022; 23:ijms23073778. [PMID: 35409139 PMCID: PMC8998420 DOI: 10.3390/ijms23073778] [Citation(s) in RCA: 51] [Impact Index Per Article: 25.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 02/28/2022] [Revised: 03/25/2022] [Accepted: 03/26/2022] [Indexed: 02/06/2023] Open
Abstract
The prevalence of liver cancer is constantly rising, with increasing incidence and mortality in Europe and the USA in recent decades. Among the different subtypes of liver cancers, hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC) is the most commonly diagnosed liver cancer. Besides advances in diagnosis and promising results of pre-clinical studies, HCC remains a highly lethal disease. In many cases, HCC is an effect of chronic liver inflammation, which leads to the formation of a complex tumor microenvironment (TME) composed of immune and stromal cells. The TME of HCC patients is a challenge for therapies, as it is involved in metastasis and the development of resistance. However, given that the TME is an intricate system of immune and stromal cells interacting with cancer cells, new immune-based therapies are being developed to target the TME of HCC. Therefore, understanding the complexity of the TME in HCC will provide new possibilities to design novel and more effective immunotherapeutics and combinatorial therapies to overcome resistance to treatment. In this review, we describe the role of inflammation during the development and progression of HCC by focusing on TME. We also describe the most recent therapeutic advances for HCC and possible combinatorial treatment options.
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17
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Qian X, Yang Z, Gao L, Liu Y, Yan J. The role of complement in the clinical course of hepatocellular carcinoma. Immun Inflamm Dis 2022; 10:e569. [PMID: 34813686 PMCID: PMC8926509 DOI: 10.1002/iid3.569] [Citation(s) in RCA: 7] [Impact Index Per Article: 3.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 08/30/2021] [Revised: 11/06/2021] [Accepted: 11/10/2021] [Indexed: 01/10/2023] Open
Abstract
Background The complement system, an innate immune system, may either play an antitumor role, or promote tumorigenesis and cancer progression in different kinds of cancer. The function of complement in hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC) is unclear. Methods The gene expressions of the complement system were based on data obtained from TCGA and GEO. We explored gene expressions, mutation, enrichment analysis, clinicopathology, patients' outcome, and immune infiltration via Gepia2, cBioPortal, Metascape, UALCAN, Kaplan–Meier Plotter, and TIMER 2. Results Five complement genes, including C1R, C6, C7, CFP, and CFHR3, were not only found to be significantly downregulated in HCC samples compared with normal liver samples, but also found to be significantly associated with overall survival, disease‐free survival, and progress‐free survival in HCC patients. In addition, lower mRNA expression of C1R, C6, C7, and CFHR3 were found correlated with advanced cancer stages and higher tumor grades in HCC patients. Also, the expression levels of CFP were correlated with many sets of immune markers of tumor immune cells, such as those of CD8+ T cells, CD4+ T cells, B cells, M2 macrophages, neutrophils, DCs, Th1 cells, Th2 cells, and T cell exhaustion in HCC. Based on that, we developed a prognostic model for HCC patients—Riskscore = (−0.0053)*C6+(−0.0498)*C7+(−0.1045)*CFHR3. Conclusion C1R, C6, C7, CFP, and CFHR3 could be prognostic biomarkers for patients with HCC.
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Affiliation(s)
- Xinye Qian
- Center of Hepatobiliary Pancreatic Disease, Beijing Tsinghua Changgung Hospital, Tsinghua University, Beijing, China
| | - Zhoujing Yang
- Department of Anesthesiology, Huashan Hospital, Fudan University, Shanghai, China
| | - Lu Gao
- Center of Hepatobiliary Pancreatic Disease, Beijing Tsinghua Changgung Hospital, Tsinghua University, Beijing, China
| | - Yipiao Liu
- Center of Hepatobiliary Pancreatic Disease, Beijing Tsinghua Changgung Hospital, Tsinghua University, Beijing, China
| | - Jun Yan
- Center of Hepatobiliary Pancreatic Disease, Beijing Tsinghua Changgung Hospital, Tsinghua University, Beijing, China
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18
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Bao L, Wang M, Fan Q. Hsa_circ_NOTCH3 regulates ZNF146 through sponge adsorption of miR-875-5p to promote tumorigenesis of hepatocellular carcinoma. J Gastrointest Oncol 2021; 12:2388-2402. [PMID: 34790400 DOI: 10.21037/jgo-21-567] [Citation(s) in RCA: 2] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.7] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Submit a Manuscript] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 08/05/2021] [Accepted: 10/19/2021] [Indexed: 12/12/2022] Open
Abstract
Background To explore the specific mechanism of circular RNA (circRNA) in the occurrence and development of hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC), and provide new ideas for its diagnosis and treatment. Methods Reverse transcription-quantitative polymerase chain reaction (RT-qPCR) was for evaluating the expression of circ_NOTCH3 in liver cancer tissues and matched normal tissues and related cell lines. After overexpression or co-expression of circ_NOTCH3 or microRNA (miRNA) in cells, the changes in cell function were analyzed. Bioinformatics analysis and dual luciferase report analysis were utilized to predict and verify the binding site between circ_NOTCH3 and miRNA. Western blotting was applied to detect gene expression alterations. Additionally, in vivo tumor growth was also utilized to further assess the influence of knocking-down circ_NOTCH3 on the progression of HCC. Results It was confirmed circ_NOTCH3 was highly expressed in HCC specimens and cells. The proliferation, migration, invasion, and oxaliplatin-resistance potential of HCC could be restrained by silencing circ_NOTCH3 or by ectopic expression of miR-875-5p in vitro. In terms of mechanism, circ_NOTCH3 directly binds to miR-875-5p, regulating its activity by targeting the 3'-UTR of ZNF146. Overexpression of circ_NOTCH3 evidently overturned the diminishing influence of miR-875-5p mimics on HCC cells. Conclusions As an oncogene, circ_NOTCH3 can trigger the proliferation, invasion, migration, and oxaliplatin resistance of HCC cells through the miR-875-5p/ZNF146 axis, and may be a promising target for the treatment of HCC.
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Affiliation(s)
- Lei Bao
- Department of Pathology, The Affiliated Yantai Yuhuangding Hospital of Qingdao University, Yantai, China
| | - Min Wang
- Department of Pathology, Qishan (Infectious Disease) Hospital of Yantai, Yantai, China
| | - Qiqi Fan
- Department of Liver Disease, Qingdao No. 6 People's Hospital, Qingdao, China
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19
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Synthetic Tryptanthrin Derivatives Induce Cell Cycle Arrest and Apoptosis via Akt and MAPKs in Human Hepatocellular Carcinoma Cells. Biomedicines 2021; 9:biomedicines9111527. [PMID: 34829756 PMCID: PMC8615277 DOI: 10.3390/biomedicines9111527] [Citation(s) in RCA: 3] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 08/25/2021] [Revised: 10/12/2021] [Accepted: 10/20/2021] [Indexed: 12/20/2022] Open
Abstract
Trytanthrin, found in Ban-Lan-Gen, is a natural product containing an indoloquinazoline moiety and has been shown to possess anti-inflammatory and anti-viral activities. Chronic inflammation and hepatitis B are known to be associated with the progression of hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC). In this study, a series of tryptanthrin derivatives were synthesized to generate potent anti-tumor agents against HCC. This effort yielded two compounds, A1 and A6, that exhibited multi-fold higher cytotoxicity in HCC cells than the parent compound. Flow cytometric analysis demonstrated that A1 and A6 caused S-phase arrest and downregulated the expression of cyclin A1, B1, CDK2, and p-CDC2. In addition to inducing caspase-dependent apoptosis, A1 and A6 exhibited similar regulation of the phosphorylation or expression of multiple signaling targets, including Akt, NF-κB, and mitogen-activated protein kinases. The anti-tumor activities of A1 and A6 were also attributable to the generation of reactive oxygen species, accompanied by an increase in p-p53 levels. Therefore, A1 and A6 have potential clinical applications since they target diverse aspects of cancer cell growth in HCC.
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20
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Yu J, Ma S, Tian S, Zhang M, Ding X, Liu Y, Yang F, Hu Y, Xuan G, Zhou X, Wang J, Han Y. Systematic Construction and Validation of a Prognostic Model for Hepatocellular Carcinoma Based on Immune-Related Genes. Front Cell Dev Biol 2021; 9:700553. [PMID: 34671598 PMCID: PMC8520962 DOI: 10.3389/fcell.2021.700553] [Citation(s) in RCA: 2] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.7] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 04/26/2021] [Accepted: 09/08/2021] [Indexed: 01/10/2023] Open
Abstract
Hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC), a highly aggressive tumor, has high incidence and mortality rates. Recently, immunotherapies have been shown to be a promising treatment in HCC. The results of either the CheckMate-040 or IMbrave 150 trials demonstrate the importance of immunotherapy in the systemic treatment of liver cancer. Thus, in this study, we tried to establish a reliable prognostic model for liver cancer based on immune-related genes (IRGs) and to provide a new insight for immunotherapy of HCC. In this study, we used four datasets that incorporated 851 HCC samples, including 340 samples with complete clinical information from the cancer genome atlas (TCGA) database, to establish an effective model for predicting the prognosis of HCC patients based on the differential expression of IRGs and validated the prognostic model using the data from International Cancer Genome Consortium (ICGC). The top 6 characteristic IRGs identified by protein-protein interaction (PPI) network analysis, MMP9, FOS, CAT, ESR1, ANGPTL3, and KLKB1, were selected for further study. In addition, we assessed the correlations of the six characteristic IRGs with the tumor immune microenvironment, clinical stage, and sensitivity to anti-cancer drugs. We also explored whether the differential expression of the characteristic IRGs was specific to HCC or present in pan-cancer. The expression levels of the six characteristic IRGs were significantly different between most tumor tissues and adjacent normal tissues. In addition, these characteristic IRGs showed a strong association with immune cell infiltration in HCC patients. We found that MMP9 and ESR1 were independent prognostic factors for HCC, while CAT, ESR1, and KLKB1 were associated with the clinical stage. We collected HCC paraffin sections from 24 patients from Xijing hospital to identify the differential expression of the five genes (MMP9, ESR1, CAT, FOS, and KLKB1). Finally, the results of decision curve analysis (DCA) and nomogram revealed that our models provided a prognostic benefit for most HCC patients and the predicted overall survival (OS) was consistent with the actual OS. In conclusion, we systemically constructed a novel prognostic model that provides new insights into HCC.
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Affiliation(s)
- Jiahao Yu
- State Key Laboratory of Cancer Biology, Xijing Hospital of Digestive Diseases, The Fourth Military Medical University, Xi'an, China
| | - Shuoyi Ma
- State Key Laboratory of Cancer Biology, Xijing Hospital of Digestive Diseases, The Fourth Military Medical University, Xi'an, China
| | - Siyuan Tian
- State Key Laboratory of Cancer Biology, Xijing Hospital of Digestive Diseases, The Fourth Military Medical University, Xi'an, China
| | - Miao Zhang
- State Key Laboratory of Cancer Biology, Xijing Hospital of Digestive Diseases, The Fourth Military Medical University, Xi'an, China
| | - Xiaopeng Ding
- State Key Laboratory of Cancer Biology, Xijing Hospital of Digestive Diseases, The Fourth Military Medical University, Xi'an, China
| | - Yansheng Liu
- State Key Laboratory of Cancer Biology, Xijing Hospital of Digestive Diseases, The Fourth Military Medical University, Xi'an, China
| | - Fangfang Yang
- State Key Laboratory of Cancer Biology, Xijing Hospital of Digestive Diseases, The Fourth Military Medical University, Xi'an, China
| | - Yinan Hu
- State Key Laboratory of Cancer Biology, Xijing Hospital of Digestive Diseases, The Fourth Military Medical University, Xi'an, China
| | - Guoyun Xuan
- State Key Laboratory of Cancer Biology, Xijing Hospital of Digestive Diseases, The Fourth Military Medical University, Xi'an, China
| | - Xinmin Zhou
- State Key Laboratory of Cancer Biology, Xijing Hospital of Digestive Diseases, The Fourth Military Medical University, Xi'an, China
| | - Jingbo Wang
- State Key Laboratory of Cancer Biology, Xijing Hospital of Digestive Diseases, The Fourth Military Medical University, Xi'an, China
| | - Ying Han
- State Key Laboratory of Cancer Biology, Xijing Hospital of Digestive Diseases, The Fourth Military Medical University, Xi'an, China
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21
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ERRFI1 induces apoptosis of hepatocellular carcinoma cells in response to tryptophan deficiency. Cell Death Discov 2021; 7:274. [PMID: 34608122 PMCID: PMC8490388 DOI: 10.1038/s41420-021-00666-y] [Citation(s) in RCA: 1] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 07/06/2021] [Revised: 09/07/2021] [Accepted: 09/22/2021] [Indexed: 12/20/2022] Open
Abstract
Tryptophan metabolism is an essential regulator of tumor immune evasion. However, the effect of tryptophan metabolism on cancer cells remains largely unknown. Here, we find that tumor cells have distinct responses to tryptophan deficiency in terms of cell growth, no matter hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC) cells, lung cancer cells, or breast cancer cells. Further study shows that ERRFI1 is upregulated in sensitive HCC cells, but not in resistant HCC cells, in response to tryptophan deficiency, and ERRFI1 expression level positively correlates with HCC patient overall survival. ERRFI1 knockdown recovers tryptophan deficiency-suppressed cell growth of sensitive HCC cells. In contrast, ERRFI1 overexpression sensitizes resistant HCC cells to tryptophan deficiency. Moreover, ERRFI1 induces apoptosis by binding PDCD2 in HCC cells, PDCD2 knockdown decreases the ERRFI1-induced apoptosis in HCC cells. Thus, we conclude that ERRFI1-induced apoptosis increases the sensitivity of HCC cells to tryptophan deficiency and ERRFI1 interacts with PDCD2 to induce apoptosis in HCC cells.
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22
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Zhang X, Wang H, Lou L, Li Q, Zhang L, Ge Y. Transcript expression profiling of fibromelanosis-related genes in black-bone chickens. Br Poult Sci 2021; 63:133-141. [PMID: 34402346 DOI: 10.1080/00071668.2021.1966750] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 10/20/2022]
Abstract
1. The aim of the present study was to identify differentially expressed genes (DEGs) and metabolic pathways involved in this phenotype. Fibromelanosis is the most striking feature of black-bone chickens, such as the Silkie and Dongxiang indigenous breeds. Due to the accumulation of eumelanin in connective tissues, fibromelanosis manifests as black colouration of the skin, muscles, gut, and periosteum. Studies on fibromelanosis can provide useful information pertaining to human diseases and offer commercial value to the poultry industry. However, the genetic basis of fibromelanosis remains unclear.2. Digital gene expression analysis was performed on black and white skin samples collected from the HW1 black-bone chicken line to detect differences in genome-wide expression patterns. A total of >30 billion bp were sequenced, and 2,707,926,466 bp and 2,948,782,964 bp of clean data obtained for creation of libraries for black and white skin, respectively. In total, 252 DEGs from 15,508 mapped genes were identified with 83 up-regulated in white skin and 169 up-regulated in black skin.3. Gene ontology analysis highlighted that genes from the extracellular region and associated components were abundant among the DEGs. Pathway analysis revealed that many DEGs were linked to amino acid metabolism and the immune system. qRT-PCR validation using 14 genes showed good conformity with the sequence analysis of fibromelanosis-related genes.4. The results showed that L-dopachrometautomerase precursor (DCT), tyrosine aminotransferase (TAT), 4-hydroxyphenylpyruvate dioxygenase (HPD) from the tyrosine metabolism pathway, coagulation factor II (F2), fibrinogen beta chain (FGB), plasminogen (PLG) and complement component 7 (C7) from the complement and coagulation cascades were important genes in the fibromelanosis process in black-bone chickens. These candidate genes require further correlation analysis and functional verification.
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Affiliation(s)
- X Zhang
- Institute of Animal Husbandry, Hangzhou Academy of Agricultural Sciences, Hangzhou, China
| | - H Wang
- Institute of Animal Husbandry, Hangzhou Academy of Agricultural Sciences, Hangzhou, China
| | - L Lou
- Institute of Animal Husbandry, Hangzhou Academy of Agricultural Sciences, Hangzhou, China
| | - Q Li
- Institute of Animal Husbandry, Hangzhou Academy of Agricultural Sciences, Hangzhou, China
| | - L Zhang
- Institute of Animal Husbandry, Hangzhou Academy of Agricultural Sciences, Hangzhou, China
| | - Y Ge
- Institute of Animal Husbandry, Hangzhou Academy of Agricultural Sciences, Hangzhou, China
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Han J, Zhang X. Complement Component C3: A Novel Biomarker Participating in the Pathogenesis of Non-alcoholic Fatty Liver Disease. Front Med (Lausanne) 2021; 8:653293. [PMID: 34395461 PMCID: PMC8358116 DOI: 10.3389/fmed.2021.653293] [Citation(s) in RCA: 1] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 01/14/2021] [Accepted: 07/07/2021] [Indexed: 12/16/2022] Open
Abstract
Non-alcoholic fatty liver disease (NAFLD) is currently the most common cause of chronic liver disorder worldwide. The pathological spectrum of NAFLD ranges from simple steatosis to non-alcoholic steatohepatitis (NASH) that induces progressive liver cirrhosis and eventually hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC). However, the molecular mechanisms driving the transformation of NASH are obscure. There is a compelling need for understanding the pathogenic mechanisms of NASH, and thereby providing new insight into mechanism-based therapy. Currently, several studies reported that complement system, an innate immune system, played an important role in the pathogenesis of NAFLD, which was also proved by our recent study. Complement component 3 (C3), a protein of the innate immune system, plays a hub role in the complement system. Herein, we present a review on the role and molecular mechanism of C3 in NASH as well as its implication in NASH diagnosis and treatment.
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Affiliation(s)
- Juqiang Han
- Institute of Liver Disease, The 7th Medical Centre of Chinese People Liberation Army General Hospital, Beijing, China.,The Department of Medicine and Therapeutics, State Key Laboratory of Digestive Disease, Institute of Digestive Disease, Li Ka Shing Institute of Health Sciences, Chinese University of Hong Kong Shenzhen Research Institute, The Chinese University of Hong Kong, Hong Kong, China
| | - Xiang Zhang
- The Department of Medicine and Therapeutics, State Key Laboratory of Digestive Disease, Institute of Digestive Disease, Li Ka Shing Institute of Health Sciences, Chinese University of Hong Kong Shenzhen Research Institute, The Chinese University of Hong Kong, Hong Kong, China
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Blidisel A, Marcovici I, Coricovac D, Hut F, Dehelean CA, Cretu OM. Experimental Models of Hepatocellular Carcinoma-A Preclinical Perspective. Cancers (Basel) 2021; 13:3651. [PMID: 34359553 PMCID: PMC8344976 DOI: 10.3390/cancers13153651] [Citation(s) in RCA: 21] [Impact Index Per Article: 7.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 06/27/2021] [Revised: 07/16/2021] [Accepted: 07/17/2021] [Indexed: 02/06/2023] Open
Abstract
Hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC), the most frequent form of primary liver carcinoma, is a heterogenous and complex tumor type with increased incidence, poor prognosis, and high mortality. The actual therapeutic arsenal is narrow and poorly effective, rendering this disease a global health concern. Although considerable progress has been made in terms of understanding the pathogenesis, molecular mechanisms, genetics, and therapeutical approaches, several facets of human HCC remain undiscovered. A valuable and prompt approach to acquire further knowledge about the unrevealed aspects of HCC and novel therapeutic candidates is represented by the application of experimental models. Experimental models (in vivo and in vitro 2D and 3D models) are considered reliable tools to gather data for clinical usability. This review offers an overview of the currently available preclinical models frequently applied for the study of hepatocellular carcinoma in terms of initiation, development, and progression, as well as for the discovery of efficient treatments, highlighting the advantages and the limitations of each model. Furthermore, we also focus on the role played by computational studies (in silico models and artificial intelligence-based prediction models) as promising novel tools in liver cancer research.
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Affiliation(s)
- Alexandru Blidisel
- Faculty of Medicine, “Victor Babeș” University of Medicine and Pharmacy Timisoara, Eftimie Murgu Square No. 2, RO-300041 Timișoara, Romania; (A.B.); (F.H.); (O.M.C.)
| | - Iasmina Marcovici
- Faculty of Pharmacy, “Victor Babeș” University of Medicine and Pharmacy Timisoara, Eftimie Murgu Square No. 2, RO-300041 Timișoara, Romania;
- Research Center for Pharmaco-Toxicological Evaluations, Faculty of Pharmacy, “Victor Babes” University of Medicine and Pharmacy Timisoara, Eftimie Murgu Square No. 2, RO-300041 Timișoara, Romania
| | - Dorina Coricovac
- Faculty of Pharmacy, “Victor Babeș” University of Medicine and Pharmacy Timisoara, Eftimie Murgu Square No. 2, RO-300041 Timișoara, Romania;
- Research Center for Pharmaco-Toxicological Evaluations, Faculty of Pharmacy, “Victor Babes” University of Medicine and Pharmacy Timisoara, Eftimie Murgu Square No. 2, RO-300041 Timișoara, Romania
| | - Florin Hut
- Faculty of Medicine, “Victor Babeș” University of Medicine and Pharmacy Timisoara, Eftimie Murgu Square No. 2, RO-300041 Timișoara, Romania; (A.B.); (F.H.); (O.M.C.)
| | - Cristina Adriana Dehelean
- Faculty of Pharmacy, “Victor Babeș” University of Medicine and Pharmacy Timisoara, Eftimie Murgu Square No. 2, RO-300041 Timișoara, Romania;
- Research Center for Pharmaco-Toxicological Evaluations, Faculty of Pharmacy, “Victor Babes” University of Medicine and Pharmacy Timisoara, Eftimie Murgu Square No. 2, RO-300041 Timișoara, Romania
| | - Octavian Marius Cretu
- Faculty of Medicine, “Victor Babeș” University of Medicine and Pharmacy Timisoara, Eftimie Murgu Square No. 2, RO-300041 Timișoara, Romania; (A.B.); (F.H.); (O.M.C.)
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25
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Tumor Immune Microenvironment and Immunosuppressive Therapy in Hepatocellular Carcinoma: A Review. Int J Mol Sci 2021; 22:ijms22115801. [PMID: 34071550 PMCID: PMC8198390 DOI: 10.3390/ijms22115801] [Citation(s) in RCA: 175] [Impact Index Per Article: 58.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 04/15/2021] [Revised: 05/15/2021] [Accepted: 05/24/2021] [Indexed: 12/24/2022] Open
Abstract
Liver cancer has the fourth highest mortality rate of all cancers worldwide, with hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC) being the most prevalent subtype. Despite great advances in systemic therapy, such as molecular-targeted agents, HCC has one of the worst prognoses due to drug resistance and frequent recurrence and metastasis. Recently, new therapeutic strategies such as cancer immunosuppressive therapy have prolonged patients' lives, and the combination of an immune checkpoint inhibitor (ICI) and VEGF inhibitor is now positioned as the first-line therapy for advanced HCC. Since the efficacy of ICIs depends on the tumor immune microenvironment, it is necessary to elucidate the immune environment of HCC to select appropriate ICIs. In this review, we summarize the findings on the immune microenvironment and immunosuppressive approaches focused on monoclonal antibodies against cytotoxic T lymphocyte-associated protein 4 and programmed cell death protein 1 for HCC. We also describe ongoing treatment modalities, including adoptive cell transfer-based therapies and future areas of exploration based on recent literature. The results of pre-clinical studies using immunological classification and animal models will contribute to the development of biomarkers that predict the efficacy of immunosuppressive therapy and aid in the selection of appropriate strategies for HCC treatment.
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