FHL3 Contributes to EMT and Chemotherapy Resistance Through Up-Regulation of Slug and Activation of TGFβ/Smad-Independent Pathways in Gastric Cancer

Overexpression of FHL1 suppresses papillary thyroid cancer proliferation and progression via inhibiting Wnt/β-catenin pathway

PURPOSE

The four and a half LIM domain protein 1 (FHL1) has been found to act as a tumor suppressor in several cancers. However, the clinical and functional significance, as well as underlying molecular mechanisms of FHL1 in papillary thyroid cancer (PTC) are largely unknown.

METHODS

Bioinformatics analyses, qRT-PCR and Western blotting were used to investigate the expression of FHL1 in PTC. Cell proliferation was measured using CCK8, Edu, colony formation, and flow cytometry assays. Cell migration and invasion were examined by wound healing and Transwell assays. qRT-PCR, Western blot, immunofluorescence and Top/Fop reporter assays were performed to assess the underlying mechanisms.

RESULTS

FHL1 expression was significantly downregulated in PTC. FHL1 downregulation negatively correlated with stage, T classification, and N classification of the patients. The downregulation of FHL1 is associated with poor prognosis. Overexpression of FHL1 inhibited PTC cells' proliferation, invasion, migration and Wnt/β-catenin pathway activity. LiCl partially restored the inhibitory effects of FHL1 on aggressive phenotypes and Wnt/β-catenin pathway activity of PTC cells.

CONCLUSION

FHL1 is downregulated in PTC and its expression is associated with better clinical outcomes for patients with the disease. FHL1 acts as a tumor suppressor via, at least partially, suppressing Wnt/β-catenin pathway.

Identification and clinical validation of diverse cell-death patterns-associated prognostic features among low-grade gliomas

Low-grade glioma (LGG) is heterogeneous at biological and transcriptomic levels, and it is still controversial for the definition and typing of LGG. Therefore, there is an urgent need for specific and practical molecular signatures for accurate diagnosis, individualized therapy, and prognostic evaluation of LGG. Cell death is essential for maintaining homeostasis, developing and preventing hyperproliferative malignancies. Based on diverse programmed cell death (PCD) related genes and prognostic characteristics of LGG, this study constructed a model to explore the mechanism and treatment strategies for LGG cell metastasis and invasion. We screened 1161 genes associated with PCD and divided 512 LGG samples into C1 and C2 subtypes by consistent cluster analysis. We analyzed the two subtypes' differentially expressed genes (DEGs) and performed functional enrichment analysis. Using R packages such as ESTIMATE, CIBERSOTR, and MCPcounter, we assessed immune cell scores for both subtypes. Compared with C1, the C2 subtype has a poor prognosis and a higher immune score, and patients in the C2 subtype are more strongly associated with tumor progression. LASSO and COX regression analysis screened four characteristic genes (CLU, FHL3, GIMAP2, and HVCN1). Using data sets from different platforms to validate the four-gene feature, we found that the expression and prognostic correlation of the four-gene feature had a high degree of stability, showing stable predictive effects. Besides, we found downregulation of CLU, FHL3, and GIMAP2 significantly impairs the growth, migration, and invasive potential of LGG cells. Take together, the four-gene feature constructed based on PCD-related genes provides valuable information for further study of the pathogenesis and clinical treatment of LGG.

Harnessing function of EMT in cancer drug resistance: a metastasis regulator determines chemotherapy response

Epithelial-mesenchymal transition (EMT) is a complicated molecular process that governs cellular shape and function changes throughout tissue development and embryogenesis. In addition, EMT contributes to the development and spread of tumors. Expanding and degrading the surrounding microenvironment, cells undergoing EMT move away from the main location. On the basis of the expression of fibroblast-specific protein-1 (FSP1), fibroblast growth factor (FGF), collagen, and smooth muscle actin (-SMA), the mesenchymal phenotype exhibited in fibroblasts is crucial for promoting EMT. While EMT is not entirely reliant on its regulators like ZEB1/2, Twist, and Snail proteins, investigation of upstream signaling (like EGF, TGF-β, Wnt) is required to get a more thorough understanding of tumor EMT. Throughout numerous cancers, connections between tumor epithelial and fibroblast cells that influence tumor growth have been found. The significance of cellular crosstalk stems from the fact that these events affect therapeutic response and disease prognosis. This study examines how classical EMT signals emanating from various cancer cells interfere to tumor metastasis, treatment resistance, and tumor recurrence.

Shake It Up Baby Now: The Changing Focus on TWIST1 and Epithelial to Mesenchymal Transition in Cancer and Other Diseases

TWIST1 is a transcription factor that is necessary for healthy neural crest migration, mesoderm development, and gastrulation. It functions as a key regulator of epithelial-to-mesenchymal transition (EMT), a process by which cells lose their polarity and gain the ability to migrate. EMT is often reactivated in cancers, where it is strongly associated with tumor cell invasion and metastasis. Early work on TWIST1 in adult tissues focused on its transcriptional targets and how EMT gave rise to metastatic cells. In recent years, the roles of TWIST1 and other EMT factors in cancer have expanded greatly as our understanding of tumor progression has advanced. TWIST1 and related factors are frequently tied to cancer cell stemness and changes in therapeutic responses and thus are now being viewed as attractive therapeutic targets. In this review, we highlight non-metastatic roles for TWIST1 and related EMT factors in cancer and other disorders, discuss recent findings in the areas of therapeutic resistance and stemness in cancer, and comment on the potential to target EMT for therapy. Further research into EMT will inform novel treatment combinations and strategies for advanced cancers and other diseases.

The Role of Cyanidin-3-O-glucoside in Modulating Oxaliplatin Resistance by Reversing Mesenchymal Phenotype in Colorectal Cancer

BACKGROUND

Epithelial-mesenchymal transition (EMT) plays an important role in the biological and biochemical processes of cells, and it is a critical process in the malignant transformation, and mobility of cancer. Additionally, EMT is one of the main mechanisms contributing to chemoresistance. Resistance to oxaliplatin (OXA) poses a momentous challenge in the chemotherapy of advanced colorectal cancer (CRC) patients, highlighting the need to reverse drug resistance and improve patient survival. In this study, we explored the response of cyanidin-3-O-glucoside (C3G), the most abundant anthocyanin in plants, on the mechanisms of drug resistance in cancer, with the purpose of overcoming acquired OXA resistance in CRC cell lines.

METHODS

We generated an acquired OXA-resistant cell line, named HCT-116-ROx, by gradually exposing parental HCT-116 cells to increasing concentrations of OXA. To characterize the resistance, we performed cytotoxicity assays and shape factor analyses. The apoptotic rate of both resistant and parental cells was determined using Hoechst 33342/Propidium Iodide (PI) fluorescence staining. Migration capacity was evaluated using a wound-healing assay. The mesenchymal phenotype was assessed through qRT-PCR and immunofluorescence staining, employing E-cadherin, N-cadherin, and Vimentin markers.

RESULTS

Resistance characterization announced decreased OXA sensitivity in resistant cells compared to parental cells. Moreover, the resistant cells exhibited a spindle cell morphology, indicative of the mesenchymal phenotype. Combined treatment of C3G and OXA resulted in an augmented apoptotic rate in the resistant cells. The migration capacity of resistant cells was higher than parental cells, while treatment with C3G decreased the migration rate of HCT-116-ROx cells. Analysis of EMT markers showed that HCT-116-ROx cells exhibited loss of the epithelial phenotype (E-cadherin) and gain of the mesenchymal phenotype (N-cadherin and Vimentin) compared to HCT-116 cells. However, treatment of resistant cells with C3G reversed the mesenchymal phenotype.

CONCLUSION

The morphological observations of cells acquiring oxaliplatin resistance indicated the loss of the epithelial phenotype and the acquisition of the mesenchymal phenotype. These findings suggest that EMT may contribute to acquired OXA resistance in CRC. Furthermore, C3G decreased the mobility of resistant cells, and reversed the EMT process, indicating its potential to overcome acquired OXA resistance.

miR-3133 inhibits gastrointestinal cancer progression through activation of Hippo and p53 signalling pathways via multi-targets

BACKGROUND

Malignant cell growth and chemoresistance, the main obstacles in treating gastrointestinal cancer (GIC), rely on the Hippo and p53 signalling pathways. However, the upstream regulatory mechanisms of these pathways remain complex and poorly understood.

METHODS

Immunohistochemistry (IHC), western blot and RT-qPCR were used to analyse the expression of RNF146, miR-3133 and key components of Hippo and p53 pathway. CCK-8, colony formation, drug sensitivity assays and murine xenograft models were used to investigate the effect of RNF146 and miR-3133 in GIC. Further exploration of the upstream regulatory mechanism was performed using bioinformatics analysis, dual-luciferase reporter gene, immunoprecipitation assays and bisulfite sequencing PCR (BSP).

RESULTS

Clinical samples, in vitro and in vivo experiments demonstrated that RNF146 exerts oncogenic effects in GIC by regulating the Hippo pathway. Bioinformatics analysis identified a novel miRNA, miR-3133, as an upstream regulatory factor of RNF146. fluorescence in situ hybridization and RT-qPCR assays revealed that miR-3133 was less expressed in gastrointestinal tumour tissues and was associated with adverse pathological features. Functional assays and animal models showed that miR-3133 promoted the proliferation and chemotherapy sensitivity of GIC cells. miR-3133 affected YAP1 protein expression by targeting RNF146, AGK and CUL4A, thus activating the Hippo pathway. miR-3133 inhibited p53 protein degradation and extended p53's half-life by targeting USP15, SPIN1. BSP experiments confirmed that miR-3133 promoter methylation is an important reason for its low expression.

CONCLUSION

miR-3133 inhibits GIC progression by activating the Hippo and p53 signalling pathways via multi-targets, including RNF146, thereby providing prognostic factors and valuable potential therapeutic targets for GIC.

High-throughput proteomics profiling-derived signature associated with chemotherapy response and survival for stage II/III colorectal cancer

Adjuvant chemotherapy (ACT) is usually used to reduce the risk of disease relapse and improve survival for stage II/III colorectal cancer (CRC). However, only a subset of patients could benefit from ACT. Thus, there is an urgent need to identify improved biomarkers to predict survival and stratify patients to refine the selection of ACT. We used high-throughput proteomics to analyze tumor and adjacent normal tissues of stage II/III CRC patients with /without relapse to identify potential markers for predicting prognosis and benefit from ACT. The machine learning approach was applied to identify relapse-specific markers. Then the artificial intelligence (AI)-assisted multiplex IHC was performed to validate the prognostic value of the relapse-specific markers and construct a proteomic-derived classifier for stage II/III CRC using 3 markers, including FHL3, GGA1, TGFBI. The proteomics profiling-derived signature for stage II/III CRC (PS) not only shows good accuracy to classify patients into high and low risk of relapse and mortality in all three cohorts, but also works independently of clinicopathologic features. ACT was associated with improved disease-free survival (DFS) and overall survival (OS) in stage II (pN0) patients with high PS and pN2 patients with high PS. This study demonstrated the clinical significance of proteomic features, which serve as a valuable source for potential biomarkers. The PS classifier provides prognostic value for identifying patients at high risk of relapse and mortality and optimizes individualized treatment strategy by detecting patients who may benefit from ACT for survival.

Comprehensive Analyses and Immunophenotyping of LIM Domain Family Genes in Patients with Non-Small-Cell Lung Cancer

The LIM domain family genes play a crucial role in various tumors, including non-small-cell lung cancer (NSCLC). Immunotherapy is one of the most significant treatments for NSCLC, and its effectiveness largely depends on the tumor microenvironment (TME). Currently, the potential roles of LIM domain family genes in the TME of NSCLC remain elusive. We comprehensively evaluated the expression and mutation patterns of 47 LIM domain family genes in 1089 NSCLC samples. Using unsupervised clustering analysis, we classified patients with NSCLC into two distinct gene clusters, i.e., the LIM-high group and the LIM-low group. We further investigated the prognosis, TME cell infiltration characteristics, and immunotherapy in the two groups. The LIM-high and LIM-low groups had different biological processes and prognoses. Moreover, there were significant differences in TME characteristics between the LIM-high and LIM-low groups. Specifically, enhanced survival, immune cell activation, and high tumor purity were demonstrated in patients of the LIM-low group, implying an immune-inflamed phenotype. Moreover, the LIM-low group had higher immune cell proportion scores than the LIM-high group and was more responsive to immunotherapy than the LIM-low group. Additionally, we screened out LIM and senescent cell antigen-like domain 1 (LIMS1) as a hub gene of the LIM domain family via five different algorithms of plug-in cytoHubba and the weighted gene co-expression network analysis. Subsequently, proliferation, migration, and invasion assays demonstrated that LIMS1 acts as a pro-tumor gene that promotes the invasion and progression of NSCLC cell lines. This is the first study to reveal a novel LIM domain family gene-related molecular pattern associated with the TME phenotype, which would increase our understanding of the heterogeneity and plasticity of the TME in NSCLC. LIMS1 may serve as a potential therapeutic target for NSCLC.

The emerging potentials of lncRNA DRAIC in human cancers

Long non-coding RNA (lncRNA) is a subtype of noncoding RNA that has more than 200 nucleotides. Numerous studies have confirmed that lncRNA is relevant during multiple biological processes through the regulation of various genes, thus affecting disease progression. The lncRNA DRAIC, a newly discovered lncRNA, has been found to be abnormally expressed in a variety of diseases, particularly cancer. Indeed, the dysregulation of DRAIC expression is closely related to clinicopathological features. It was also reported that DRAIC is key to biological functions such as cell proliferation, autophagy, migration, and invasion. Furthermore, DRAIC is of great clinical significance in human disease. In this review, we discuss the expression signature, clinical characteristics, biological functions, relevant mechanisms, and potential clinical applications of DRAIC in several human diseases.

Targeting FHL1 impairs cell proliferation and differentiation of acute myeloid leukemia cells

The four and a half LIM domains 1 (FHL1) is considered to play important roles in tumors. This study aims to investigate the role and precise mechanisms of FHL1 in acute myeloid leukemia (AML). Here, we found that FHL1 was highly expressed in AML. CCK8, flow cytometry, and Western blot analysis of cell cycle-related proteins showed that overexpression of FHL1 promoted proliferation and accelerated cell cycle progression in HL-60 cells. Conversely, knockdown of FHL1 inhibited the proliferation and induced cell cycle arrest in KG-1 cells. Furthermore, knockdown of FHL1 promoted cell differentiation, while overexpression of FHL1 restrained all-trans retinoic acid induced cell differentiation in HL-60 cells, revealed by Wright-Giemsa staining and cell surface antigen analysis. Moreover, in vivo experiments revealed that depletion of FHL1 inhibited tumor growth and led to increased levels of CD11b and CD14. Here, we first identify an unexpected and important role of FHL1 that contributes to the AML progression, indicating that FHL1 may be a potential therapeutic target for AML.

TNFAIP6 Promotes Gastric Carcinoma Cell Invasion via Upregulating PTX3 and Activating the Wnt/β-Catenin Signaling Pathway

Tumor metastasis is a fundamental cause of the poor prognosis of gastric carcinoma (GC). In order to study the problems affecting metastasis and recurrence of gastric cancer, the paper expose that TNF alpha induced protein 6 (TNFAIP6) is aberrantly overexpressed in GC, and patients with high-TNFAIP6 levels exhibited inferior overall survival. Mechanistically, overexpression of TNFAIP6 raised β-catenin ectopic nuclear distribution and activated the Wnt/β-catenin signal pathway. The experimental results show that TNFAIP6 facilitates the aggressive potential of GC cells through modulating PTX3 expression.

The Roles of FHL3 in Cancer

The four and a half LIM domain protein 3, also named the LIM-protein FHL3, belongs to the LIM-only family. Based on the special structure of LIM-only proteins, FHL3 can perform significant functions in muscle proliferation and cardiovascular diseases by regulating cell growth and signal transduction. In recent years, there has been increasing evidence of a relation between FHLs and tumor biology, since FHL3 is often overexpressed or downregulated in different cancers. On the one hand, FHL3 can function as a tumor suppressor and influence the expression of downstream genes. On the other hand, FHL3 can also play a role as an oncoprotein in some cancers to promote tumor progression via phosphorylation. Thus, FHL3 is proposed to have a dual effect on cancer progression, reflecting its complex roles in cancer. This review focuses on the roles of FHL3 in cancer progression and discusses the interaction of FHL3 with other proteins and transcription factors. Finally, the clinical significance of FHL3 for the treatment of cancers is discussed.

RNA modification writers influence tumor microenvironment in gastric cancer and prospects of targeted drug therapy

Background: RNA adenosine modifications are crucial for regulating RNA levels. N6-methyladenosine (m6A), N1-methyladenosine (m1A), adenosine-to-inosine RNA editing, and alternative polyadenylation (APA) are four major RNA modification types. Methods: We evaluated the altered mRNA expression profiles of 27 RNA modification enzymes and compared the differences in tumor microenvironment (TME) and clinical prognosis between two RNA modification patterns using unsupervised clustering. Then, we constructed a scoring system, WM_score, and quantified the RNA modifications in patients of gastric cancer (GC), associating WM_score with TME, clinical outcomes, and effectiveness of targeted therapies. Results: RNA adenosine modifications strongly correlated with TME and could predict the degree of TME cell infiltration, genetic variation, and clinical prognosis. Two modification patterns were identified according to high and low WM_scores. Tumors in the WM_score-high subgroup were closely linked with survival advantage, CD4[Formula: see text] T-cell infiltration, high tumor mutation burden, and cell cycle signaling pathways, whereas those in the WM_score-low subgroup showed strong infiltration of inflammatory cells and poor survival. Regarding the immunotherapy response, a high WM_score showed a significant correlation with PD-L1 expression, predicting the effect of PD-L1 blockade therapy. Conclusion: The WM_scoring system could facilitate scoring and prediction of GC prognosis.

Tumour microenvironment: a non-negligible driver for epithelial-mesenchymal transition in colorectal cancer

Cancer remains the leading cause of death worldwide, and metastasis is still the major cause of treatment failure for cancer patients. Epithelial-mesenchymal transition (EMT) has been shown to play a critical role in the metastasis cascade of epithelium-derived carcinoma. Tumour microenvironment (TME) refers to the local tissue environment in which tumour cells produce and live, including not only tumour cells themselves, but also fibroblasts, immune and inflammatory cells, glial cells and other cells around them, as well as intercellular stroma, micro vessels and infiltrated biomolecules from the nearby areas, which has been proved to widely participate in the occurrence and progress of cancer. Emerging and accumulating studies indicate that, on one hand, mesenchymal cells in TME can establish 'crosstalk' with tumour cells to regulate their EMT programme; on the other, EMT-tumour cells can create a favourable environment for their own growth via educating stromal cells. Recently, our group has conducted a series of studies on the interaction between tumour-associated macrophages (TAMs) and colorectal cancer (CRC) cells in TME, confirming that the interaction between TAMs and CRC cells mediated by cytokines or exosomes can jointly promote the metastasis of CRC by regulating the EMT process of tumour cells and the M2-type polarisation process of TAMs. Herein, we present an overview to describe the current knowledge about EMT in cancer, summarise the important role of TME in EMT, and provide an update on the mechanisms of TME-induced EMT in CRC, aiming to provide new ideas for understanding and resisting tumour metastasis.