Altered mRNA and Protein Expression of Monocarboxylate Transporter MCT1 in the Cerebral Cortex and Cerebellum of Prion Protein Knockout Mice

The emerging role of lactate in tumor microenvironment and its clinical relevance

In recent years, the significant impact of lactate in the tumor microenvironment has been greatly documented. Acting not only as an energy substance in tumor metabolism, lactate is also an imperative signaling molecule. It plays key roles in metabolic remodeling, protein lactylation, immunosuppression, drug resistance, epigenetics and tumor metastasis, which has a tight relation with cancer patients' poor prognosis. This review illustrates the roles lactate plays in different aspects of tumor progression and drug resistance. From the comprehensive effects that lactate has on tumor metabolism and tumor immunity, the therapeutic targets related to it are expected to bring new hope for cancer therapy.

Role of the circular RNA regulatory network in the pathogenesis of biliary atresia

Circular RNAs (circRNAs) serve an essential role in the occurrence and development of cholangiocarcinoma, but the expression and function of circRNA in biliary atresia (BA) is not clear. In the present study, circRNA expression profiles were investigated in the liver tissues of patients with BA as well as in the choledochal cyst (CC) tissues of control patients using RNA sequencing. A total of 78 differentially expressed circRNAs (DECs) were identified between the BA and CC tissues. The expression levels of eight circRNAs (hsa_circ_0006137, hsa_circ_0079422, hsa_circ_0007375, hsa_circ_0005597, hsa_circ_0006961, hsa_circ_0081171, hsa_circ_0084665 and hsa_circ_0075828) in the liver tissues of the BA group and control group were measured using reverse transcription-quantitative polymerase chain reaction. Gene Ontology (GO) and Kyoto Encyclopedia of Genes and Genomes (KEGG) pathway enrichment analysis demonstrated that the identified DECs are involved in a variety of biological processes, including apoptosis and metabolism. In addition, based on the GO and KEGG pathway enrichment analyses, it was revealed that target genes that can be affected by circRNAs regulatory network were enriched in the TGF-β signaling pathway, EGFR tyrosine kinase inhibitor resistance pathway and transcription factor regulation pathway as well as other pathways that may be associated with the pathogenesis of BA. The present study revealed that circRNAs are potentially implicated in the pathogenesis of BA and could help to find promising targets and biomarkers for BA.

The Cellular Prion Protein and the Hallmarks of Cancer

Simple Summary

The cellular prion protein PrP^C is best known for its involvement, under its pathogenic isoform, in a group of neurodegenerative diseases. Notwithstanding, an emerging role for PrP^C in various cancer-associated processes has attracted increasing attention over recent years. PrP^C is overexpressed in diverse types of solid cancers and has been incriminated in various aspects of cancer biology, most notably proliferation, migration, invasion and metastasis, as well as resistance to cytotoxic agents. This article aims to provide a comprehensive overview of the current knowledge of PrP^C with respect to the hallmarks of cancer, a reference framework encompassing the major characteristics of cancer cells.

Abstract

Beyond its causal involvement in a group of neurodegenerative diseases known as Transmissible Spongiform Encephalopathies, the cellular prion protein PrP^C is now taking centre stage as an important contributor to cancer progression in various types of solid tumours. The prion cancer research field has progressively expanded in the last few years and has yielded consistent evidence for an involvement of PrP^C in cancer cell proliferation, migration and invasion, therapeutic resistance and cancer stem cell properties. Most recent data have uncovered new facets of the biology of PrP^C in cancer, ranging from its control on enzymes involved in immune tolerance to its radio-protective activity, by way of promoting angiogenesis. In the present review, we aim to summarise the body of literature dedicated to the study of PrP^C in relation to cancer from the perspective of the hallmarks of cancer, the reference framework defined by Hanahan and Weinberg.