Ras-Related Protein Rab-32 and Thrombospondin 1 Confer Resistance to the EGFR Tyrosine Kinase Inhibitor Osimertinib by Activating Focal Adhesion Kinase in Non-Small Cell Lung Cancer

Thrombospondin-1 in drug activity and tumor response to therapies

Thrombospondins (TSPs) have numerous different roles in cancer, regulating the behavior of cancer cells and non-neoplastic cells, and defining the responses of tumor cells to environmental changes, thorough their ability to orchestrate cellular and molecular interactions in the tumor microenvironment (TME). As a result of these activities, TSPs can also control drug delivery and activity, tumor response and resistance to therapies, with different outcomes depending on the nature of TSP-interacting cell types, receptors, and ligands, in a highly context-dependent manner. This review, focusing primarily on TSP-1, discusses the effects of TSPs on tumor response to chemotherapy, antiangiogenic, low-dose metronomic chemotherapy, immunotherapy, and radiotherapy, by analyzing TSP activity on different cell compartments - tumor cells, vascular endothelial cells and immune cells. We review evidence of the value of TSPs, specifically TSP-1 and TSP-2, as biomarkers of prognosis and tumor response to therapy. Finally, we examine possible approaches to develop TSP-based compounds as therapeutic tools to potentiate the efficacy of anticancer therapy.

The cell line models to study tyrosine kinase inhibitors in non-small cell lung cancer with mutations in the epidermal growth factor receptor: A scoping review

Non-Small Cell Lung Cancer (NSCLC) represents ∼85% of all lung cancers and ∼15-20% of them are characterized by mutations affecting the Epidermal Growth Factor Receptor (EGFR). For several years now, a class of tyrosine kinase inhibitors was developed, targeting sensitive mutations affecting the EGFR (EGFR-TKIs). To date, the main burden of the TKIs employment is due to the onset of resistance mutations. This scoping review aims to resume the current situation about the cell line models employed for the in vitro evaluation of resistance mechanisms induced by EGFR-TKIs in oncogene-addicted NSCLC. Adenocarcinoma results the most studied NSCLC histotype with the H1650, H1975, HCC827 and PC9 mutated cell lines, while Gefitinib and Osimertinib the most investigated inhibitors. Overall, data collected frame the current advancement of this topic, showing a plethora of approaches pursued to overcome the TKIs resistance, from RNA-mediated strategies to the innovative combination therapies.

Current Challenges and Future Advances in Lung Cancer: Genetics, Instrumental Diagnosis and Treatment

Lung cancer is a malignancy with a poor prognosis, with only 20% of patients having an overall survival longer than five years from diagnosis, and this prognosis has still not significantly improved despite developments in understanding the genetic evolution of lung cancer; improvements in the accuracy of diagnostic procedures; and refinements in the treatments with multimodal regimens, including surgery, radiotherapy and systemic therapy (chemotherapy, immunotherapy and targeted therapy) [...].

Prognostic Biomarkers after Radiotherapy for Nonsmall Cell Lung Cancer Based on Bioinformatics Analysis

Radiotherapy is one of the main treatment modalities in nonsmall cell lung cancer (NSCLC). However, tumor radiosensitivity is influenced by intrinsic factors like genetic variations and extrinsic factors like tumor microenvironment. Consequently, we hope to develop novel biomarkers, so as to improve the response rate of radiotherapy and overcome resistance to radiotherapy in NSCLC. We investigate the difference genes of primary NSCLC patients before and after radiotherapy in GSE162945 dataset. Gene Ontology (GO), KEGG, Reactome, and GSEA were employed to represent the essential gene and biological function. It was found that most pathway genes clustered in extracellular matrix and ECM-receptor signal pathway. Additionally, TMT-based proteomics was used to survey the differential proteins present in the supernatant of H460 cells before or after irradiation with 2 Gy of γ-rays. And then we take the intersection between the proteomics of H460 cell and ECM-receptor signal pathway proteins of GSE162945 datasets. The data revealed that fibronectin 1 (FN1) and thrombin reactive protein 1 (THBS1) were upregulated after radiation in both datasets. Subsequently, survival analyses using the GEPIA web server demonstrated that FN1 and THBS1 had significant prognostic values (Logrank test P value < 0.05) for LUAD and LUSC. Our observations from this study suggest that FN1 and THBS1 might have potential to serve as novel biomarkers for predicting NSCLC tumor response to radiotherapy.