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Patel NJ, Thippani S, Jathan J, Gaur G, Sawant JY, Pandya JM, Sapi E. Evidence for the presence of Borrelia burgdorferi in invasive breast cancer tissues. Eur J Microbiol Immunol (Bp) 2024; 14:143-153. [PMID: 38451280 PMCID: PMC11097788 DOI: 10.1556/1886.2024.00021] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 02/13/2024] [Accepted: 02/22/2024] [Indexed: 03/08/2024] Open
Abstract
Borrelia burgdorferi, the causative agent of Lyme disease, has recently been demonstrated to infect and enhance the invasive properties of breast cancer cells, while also influencing the expression of inflammatory chemokines (CXCL8 and CXCL10). This study investigates the presence of B. burgdorferi in invasive breast cancer tissues using commercially available, FDA-approved breast cancer tissue microarrays consisting of 350 ductal, 32 lobular, and 22 intraductal invasive breast carcinomas, alongside 29 normal breast tissues. Employing fluorescent immunohistochemical staining and high-resolution imaging, the findings revealed that approximately 20% of invasive lobular and ductal carcinomas, followed by 14% of intraductal carcinomas, tested positive for B. burgdorferi, while all normal breast tissues tested negative. PCR analysis further confirmed the presence of B. burgdorferi DNA in breast cancer tissues. Moreover, 25% of B. burgdorferi-positive tissues exhibited expression of both chemokines, CXCL8 and CXCL10, which was not observed in B. burgdorferi-negative tissues. Analysis of available patient data, including age, indicated a correlation between older patients and B. burgdorferi-positive tissues. This study validates the presence of B. burgdorferi in invasive breast cancer tissues and highlights the involvement of key CXCL family members associated with inflammatory processes.
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Affiliation(s)
- Niraj Jatin Patel
- Lyme Disease Research Group, Department of Biology and Environmental Science, University of New Haven, 300 Boston Post Road, West Haven, CT 06516, USA
| | - Sahaja Thippani
- Lyme Disease Research Group, Department of Biology and Environmental Science, University of New Haven, 300 Boston Post Road, West Haven, CT 06516, USA
| | - Jasmine Jathan
- Lyme Disease Research Group, Department of Biology and Environmental Science, University of New Haven, 300 Boston Post Road, West Haven, CT 06516, USA
| | - Gauri Gaur
- Lyme Disease Research Group, Department of Biology and Environmental Science, University of New Haven, 300 Boston Post Road, West Haven, CT 06516, USA
| | - Janhavi Y. Sawant
- Lyme Disease Research Group, Department of Biology and Environmental Science, University of New Haven, 300 Boston Post Road, West Haven, CT 06516, USA
| | - Jay M. Pandya
- Lyme Disease Research Group, Department of Biology and Environmental Science, University of New Haven, 300 Boston Post Road, West Haven, CT 06516, USA
| | - Eva Sapi
- Lyme Disease Research Group, Department of Biology and Environmental Science, University of New Haven, 300 Boston Post Road, West Haven, CT 06516, USA
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Khatri VA, Paul S, Patel NJ, Thippani S, Sawant JY, Durkee KL, Murphy CL, Aleman GO, Valentino JA, Jathan J, Melillo A, Sapi E. Global transcriptomic analysis of breast cancer and normal mammary epithelial cells infected with Borrelia burgdorferi. Eur J Microbiol Immunol (Bp) 2023; 13:63-76. [PMID: 37856211 PMCID: PMC10668924 DOI: 10.1556/1886.2023.00031] [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: 09/06/2023] [Accepted: 09/26/2023] [Indexed: 10/21/2023] Open
Abstract
The bacterial spirochete Borrelia burgdorferi, the causative agent of Lyme Disease, can disseminate and colonize various tissues and organs, orchestrating severe clinical symptoms including arthritis, carditis, and neuroborreliosis. Previous research has demonstrated that breast cancer tissues could provide an ideal habitat for diverse populations of bacteria, including B. burgdorferi, which is associated with a poor prognosis. Recently, we demonstrated that infection with B. burgdorferi enhances the invasion and migration of triple-negative MDA-MB-231 cells which represent a type of breast tumor with more aggressive cancer traits. In this study, we hypothesized that infection by B. burgdorferi affects the expression of cancer-associated genes to effectuate breast cancer phenotypes. We applied the high-throughput technique of RNA-sequencing on B. burgdorferi-infected MDA-MB-231 breast cancer and normal-like MCF10A cells to determine the most differentially expressed genes (DEG) upon infection. Overall, 142 DEGs were identified between uninfected and infected samples in MDA-MB-231 while 95 DEGs were found in MCF10A cells. A major trend of the upregulation of C-X-C and C-C motif chemokine family members as well as genes and pathways was associated with infection, inflammation, and cancer. These genes could serve as potential biomarkers for pathogen-related tumorigenesis and cancer progression which could lead to new therapeutic opportunities.
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Affiliation(s)
- Vishwa A. Khatri
- Lyme Disease Research Group, Department of Biology and Environmental Science, University of New Haven, 300 Boston Post Road, West Haven, CT 06516, USA
| | - Sambuddha Paul
- Lyme Disease Research Group, Department of Biology and Environmental Science, University of New Haven, 300 Boston Post Road, West Haven, CT 06516, USA
| | - Niraj Jatin Patel
- Lyme Disease Research Group, Department of Biology and Environmental Science, University of New Haven, 300 Boston Post Road, West Haven, CT 06516, USA
| | - Sahaja Thippani
- Lyme Disease Research Group, Department of Biology and Environmental Science, University of New Haven, 300 Boston Post Road, West Haven, CT 06516, USA
| | - Janhavi Y. Sawant
- Lyme Disease Research Group, Department of Biology and Environmental Science, University of New Haven, 300 Boston Post Road, West Haven, CT 06516, USA
| | - Katie L. Durkee
- Lyme Disease Research Group, Department of Biology and Environmental Science, University of New Haven, 300 Boston Post Road, West Haven, CT 06516, USA
| | - Cassandra L. Murphy
- Lyme Disease Research Group, Department of Biology and Environmental Science, University of New Haven, 300 Boston Post Road, West Haven, CT 06516, USA
| | - Geneve Ortiz Aleman
- Lyme Disease Research Group, Department of Biology and Environmental Science, University of New Haven, 300 Boston Post Road, West Haven, CT 06516, USA
| | - Justine A. Valentino
- Lyme Disease Research Group, Department of Biology and Environmental Science, University of New Haven, 300 Boston Post Road, West Haven, CT 06516, USA
| | - Jasmine Jathan
- Lyme Disease Research Group, Department of Biology and Environmental Science, University of New Haven, 300 Boston Post Road, West Haven, CT 06516, USA
| | - Anthony Melillo
- Lyme Disease Research Group, Department of Biology and Environmental Science, University of New Haven, 300 Boston Post Road, West Haven, CT 06516, USA
| | - Eva Sapi
- Lyme Disease Research Group, Department of Biology and Environmental Science, University of New Haven, 300 Boston Post Road, West Haven, CT 06516, USA
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Debbarma A, Mansolf M, Khatri VA, Valentino JA, Sapi E. Effect of Borrelia burgdorferi on the Expression of miRNAs in Breast Cancer and Normal Mammary Epithelial Cells. Microorganisms 2023; 11:1475. [PMID: 37374977 DOI: 10.3390/microorganisms11061475] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 05/12/2023] [Revised: 05/28/2023] [Accepted: 05/29/2023] [Indexed: 06/29/2023] Open
Abstract
Breast cancer is one of the leading causes of death in women worldwide. Recent studies have demonstrated that inflammation due to infections with microorganisms could play a role in breast cancer development. One of the known human pathogens, Borrelia burgdorferi, the causative agent of Lyme disease, has been shown to be present in various types of breast cancer and is associated with poor prognosis. We reported that B. burgdorferi can invade breast cancer cells and affect their tumorigenic phenotype. To better understand the genome-wide genetic changes caused by B. burgdorferi, we evaluated the microRNA (miRNA or miR) expression profiles of two triple-negative breast cancer cell lines and one non-tumorigenic mammary cell line before and after B. burgdorferi infection. Using a cancer-specific miRNA panel, four miRNAs (miR-206, 214-3p, 16-5p, and 20b-5p) were identified as potential markers for Borrelia-induced changes, and the results were confirmed by quantitative real-time reverse transcription (qRT-PCR). Among those miRNAs, miR-206 and 214 were the most significantly upregulated miRNAs. The cellular impact of miR-206 and 214 was evaluated using DIANA software to identify related molecular pathways and genes. Analyses showed that the cell cycle, checkpoints, DNA damage-repair, proto-oncogenes, and cancer-related signaling pathways are mostly affected by B. burgdorferi infection. Based on this information, we have identified potential miRNAs which could be further evaluated as biomarkers for tumorigenesis caused by pathogens in breast cancer cells.
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Affiliation(s)
- Ananya Debbarma
- Lyme Disease Research Group, Department of Biology and Environmental Science, University of New Haven, 300 Boston Post Road, West Haven, CT 06516, USA
| | - Miranda Mansolf
- Lyme Disease Research Group, Department of Biology and Environmental Science, University of New Haven, 300 Boston Post Road, West Haven, CT 06516, USA
| | - Vishwa A Khatri
- Lyme Disease Research Group, Department of Biology and Environmental Science, University of New Haven, 300 Boston Post Road, West Haven, CT 06516, USA
| | - Justine A Valentino
- Lyme Disease Research Group, Department of Biology and Environmental Science, University of New Haven, 300 Boston Post Road, West Haven, CT 06516, USA
| | - Eva Sapi
- Lyme Disease Research Group, Department of Biology and Environmental Science, University of New Haven, 300 Boston Post Road, West Haven, CT 06516, USA
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Kumar D, Downs LP, Embers M, Flynt AS, Karim S. Identification of microRNAs in the Lyme Disease Vector Ixodes scapularis. Int J Mol Sci 2022; 23:5565. [PMID: 35628370 PMCID: PMC9141961 DOI: 10.3390/ijms23105565] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 04/14/2022] [Revised: 05/05/2022] [Accepted: 05/10/2022] [Indexed: 02/01/2023] Open
Abstract
MicroRNAs (miRNAs) are a class of small non-coding RNAs involved in many biological processes, including the immune pathways that control bacterial, parasitic, and viral infections. Pathogens probably modify host miRNAs to facilitate successful infection, so they might be useful targets for vaccination strategies. There are few data on differentially expressed miRNAs in the black-legged tick Ixodes scapularis after infection with Borrelia burgdorferi, the causative agent of Lyme disease in the United States. Small RNA sequencing and qRT-PCR analysis were used to identify and validate differentially expressed I. scapularis salivary miRNAs. Small RNA-seq yielded 133,465,828 (≥18 nucleotides) and 163,852,135 (≥18 nucleotides) small RNA reads from Borrelia-infected and uninfected salivary glands for downstream analysis using the miRDeep2 algorithm. As such, 254 miRNAs were identified across all datasets, 25 of which were high confidence and 51 low confidence known miRNAs. Further, 23 miRNAs were differentially expressed in uninfected and infected salivary glands: 11 were upregulated and 12 were downregulated upon pathogen infection. Gene ontology and network analysis of target genes of differentially expressed miRNAs predicted roles in metabolic, cellular, development, cellular component biogenesis, and biological regulation processes. Several Kyoto Encyclopedia of Genes and Genomes (KEGG) pathways, including sphingolipid metabolism; valine, leucine and isoleucine degradation; lipid transport and metabolism; exosome biogenesis and secretion; and phosphate-containing compound metabolic processes, were predicted as targets of differentially expressed miRNAs. A qRT-PCR assay was utilized to validate the differential expression of miRNAs. This study provides new insights into the miRNAs expressed in I. scapularis salivary glands and paves the way for their functional manipulation to prevent or treat B. burgdorferi infection.
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Affiliation(s)
- Deepak Kumar
- Center for Molecular and Cellular Biosciences, University of Southern Mississippi, Hattiesburg, MS 39406, USA; (D.K.); (A.S.F.)
- School of Biological, Environmental, and Earth Sciences, University of Southern Mississippi, Hattiesburg, MS 39406, USA;
| | - Latoyia P. Downs
- School of Biological, Environmental, and Earth Sciences, University of Southern Mississippi, Hattiesburg, MS 39406, USA;
| | - Monica Embers
- Division of Immunology, Tulane National Primate Research Center, Covington, LA 70433, USA;
| | - Alex Sutton Flynt
- Center for Molecular and Cellular Biosciences, University of Southern Mississippi, Hattiesburg, MS 39406, USA; (D.K.); (A.S.F.)
- School of Biological, Environmental, and Earth Sciences, University of Southern Mississippi, Hattiesburg, MS 39406, USA;
| | - Shahid Karim
- Center for Molecular and Cellular Biosciences, University of Southern Mississippi, Hattiesburg, MS 39406, USA; (D.K.); (A.S.F.)
- School of Biological, Environmental, and Earth Sciences, University of Southern Mississippi, Hattiesburg, MS 39406, USA;
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