Altered SERCA Expression in Breast Cancer

Transcriptome analysis of porcine oocytes during postovulatory aging

Decreased oocyte quality is a significant contributor to the decline in female fertility that accompanies aging in mammals. Oocytes rely on mRNA stores to support their survival and integrity during the protracted period of transcriptional dormancy as they await ovulation. However, the changes in mRNA levels and interactions that occur during porcine oocyte maturation and aging remain unclear. In this study, the mRNA expression profiles of porcine oocytes during the GV, MII, and aging (24 h after the MII stage) stages were explored by transcriptome sequencing to identify the key genes and pathways that affect oocyte maturation and postovulatory aging. The results showed that 10,929 genes were coexpressed in porcine oocytes during the GV stage, MII stage, and aging stage. In addition, 3037 genes were expressed only in the GV stage, 535 genes were expressed only in the MII stage, and 120 genes were expressed only in the aging stage. The correlation index between the GV and MII stages (0.535) was markedly lower than that between the MII and aging stages (0.942). A total of 3237 genes, which included 1408 upregulated and 1829 downregulated genes, were differentially expressed during porcine oocyte postovulatory aging (aging stage vs. MII stage). Key functional genes, including ATP2A1, ATP2A3, ATP2B2, NDUFS1, NDUFA2, NDUFAF3, SREBF1, CYP11A1, CYP3A29, GPx4, CCP110, STMN1, SPC25, Sirt2, SYCP3, Fascin1/2, PFN1, Cofilin, Tmod3, FLNA, LRKK2, CHEK1/2, DDB1/2, DDIT4L, and TONSL, and key molecular pathways, such as the calcium signaling pathway, MAPK signaling pathway, TGF-β signaling pathway, PI3K/Akt signaling pathway, FoxO signaling pathway, gap junctions, and thermogenesis, were found in abundance during porcine postovulatory aging. These genes are mainly involved in the regulation of many biological processes, such as oxidative stress, calcium homeostasis, mitochondrial function, and lipid peroxidation, during porcine oocyte postovulatory aging. These results contribute to a more in-depth understanding of the biological changes, key regulatory genes and related biological pathways that are involved in oocyte aging and provide a theoretical basis for improving the efficiency of porcine embryo production in vitro and in vivo.

Construction of a prognostic risk model for Stomach adenocarcinoma based on endoplasmic reticulum stress genes

OBJECTIVE

Stomach adenocarcinoma (STAD) is caused by malignant transformation of gastric glandular cells and is characterized by a high incidence rate and a poor prognosis. This study was designed to establish a prognostic risk model for STAD according to endoplasmic reticulum (ER) stress feature genes as cancer cells are susceptible to ER stress.

METHODS

The TCGA-STAD dataset was downloaded to screen differentially expressed genes (DEGs). By intersecting DEGs with ER stress genes retrieved from GeneCards, ER stress-related DEGs in STAD were obtained. Kmeans cluster analysis of STAD subtypes and Single sample gene set enrichment analysis (ssGSEA) analysis of immune infiltration were performed. Cox regression analysis was utilized to construct a risk prognostic model. Samples were split into high-risk and low-risk groups according to the median risk score. Survival analysis and Receiver Operating Characteristic (ROC) curves were conducted to assess the validity of the model. Gene set enrichment analysis (GSEA) was performed to investigate differential pathways in the two risk groups. Cox analysis was performed to verify the independence of the risk model, and a nomogram was generated.

RESULTS

A total of 162 ER stress-related DEGs in STAD were identified by bioinformatics analysis. Kmeans cluster analysis showed that STAD was divided into 3 subgroups. The ssGSEA showed that the levels of immune infiltration in subgroups 2 and 3 were significantly higher than subgroup 1. With 12 prognostic genes (MATN3, ATP2A1, NOX4, AQP11, HP, CAV1, STARD3, FKBP10, EGF, F2, SERPINE1, CNGA3) selected from ER stress-related DEGs using Cox regression analysis, we then constructed a prognostic model. Kaplan-Meier (K‑M) survival curves and ROC curves showed good prediction performance of the model. Significant enrichment of genes in the high-risk group was found in extracellular matrix (ECM) receptor interaction. Cox regression analysis combined with clinical factors showed that the risk model could be used as an independent prognostic factor. The prediction correction curve showed that the good prediction ability of the nomogram.

CONCLUSION

The STAD could be divided into three subgroups, and the 12-gene model constructed by ER stress signatures had a good prognostic performance for STAD patients.

Targeting altered calcium homeostasis and uncoupling protein-2 promotes sensitivity in drug-resistant breast cancer cells

Metastatic breast cancer has the highest mortality rate among women owing to its poor clinical outcomes. Metastatic tumors pose challenges for treatment through conventional surgery or radiotherapy because of their diverse organ localization and resistance to various cytotoxic agents. Chemoresistance is a significant obstacle to effective breast cancer treatment owing to cancer's heterogeneous nature. Abnormalities in intracellular calcium signaling, coupled with altered mitochondrial metabolism, play a significant role in facilitating drug resistance and contribute to therapy resistance. Uncoupling protein-2 (UCP2) is considered as a marker of chemoresistance and is believed to play a major role in promoting metabolic shifts and tumor metastasis. In this context, it is imperative to understand the roles of altered calcium signaling and metabolic switching in the development of chemotherapeutic resistance. This study investigates the roles of UCP2 and intracellular calcium signaling (Ca2+ ) in promoting chemoresistance against cisplatin. Additionally, we explored the effectiveness of combining genipin (GP, a compound that reverses UCP2-mediated chemoresistance) and thapsigargin (TG, a calcium signaling modulator) in treating highly metastatic breast cancers. Our findings indicate that both aberrant Ca2+ signaling and metabolic shifts in cancer cells contribute to developing drug-resistant phenotypes, and the combination treatment of GP and TG significantly enhances drug sensitivity in these cells. Collectively, our study underscores the potential of these drug combinations as an effective approach to overcome drug resistance in chemoresistant cancers.

The ins and outs of mammary gland calcium and zinc transport: A brief review

Milk is an excellent source of all macrominerals and trace elements, which are essential for proper function of a wide variety of vital processes. The concentrations of minerals in milk are influenced by numerous factors, including stage of lactation, time of day, nutritional and health status of the mother, as well as maternal genotype and environmental exposures. Additionally, tight regulation of mineral transport within the secretory mammary epithelial cell itself is critical for the production and secretion of milk. In this brief review, we focus on the current understanding of how the essential divalent cations calcium (Ca) and zinc (Zn) are transported in the mammary gland (MG) with a focus on molecular regulation and the consequence of genotype. A deeper grasp of mechanisms and factors affecting Ca and Zn transport in the MG is important to understanding milk production, mineral output, and MG health to inform intervention design and novel diagnostic and therapeutic strategies in production animals and humans.

Targeting Breast Cancer: An Overlook on Current Strategies

Breast cancer (BC) is one of the most widely diagnosed cancers and a leading cause of cancer death among women worldwide. Globally, BC is the second most frequent cancer and first most frequent gynecological one, affecting women with a relatively low case-mortality rate. Surgery, radiotherapy, and chemotherapy are the main treatments for BC, even though the latter are often not aways successful because of the common side effects and the damage caused to healthy tissues and organs. Aggressive and metastatic BCs are difficult to treat, thus new studies are needed in order to find new therapies and strategies for managing these diseases. In this review, we intend to give an overview of studies in this field, presenting the data from the literature concerning the classification of BCs and the drugs used in therapy for the treatment of BCs, along with drugs in clinical studies.

Recent Developments on the Roles of Calcium Signals and Potential Therapy Targets in Cervical Cancer

Intracellular calcium (Ca²⁺) concentration ([Ca²⁺]i) is implicated in proliferation, invasion, and metastasis in cancerous tissues. A variety of oncologic therapies and some candidate drugs induce their antitumor effects (in part or in whole) through the modulation of [Ca²⁺]i. Cervical cancer is one of most common cancers among women worldwide. Recently, major research advances relating to the Ca²⁺ signals in cervical cancer are emerging. In this review, we comprehensively describe the current progress concerning the roles of Ca²⁺ signals in the occurrence, development, and prognosis of cervical cancer. It will enhance our understanding of the causative mechanism of Ca²⁺ signals in cervical cancer and thus provide new sights for identifying potential therapeutic targets for drug discovery.

m7G-Related DNA Damage Repair Genes are Potential Biomarkers for Predicting Prognosis and Immunotherapy Effectiveness in Colon Cancer Patients

Objective: m⁷G is a post-transcriptional modification modality, however, limited research has been conducted on its role in colon cancer. DNA damage repair (DDR) is an important factor that contributes to colon cancer development, growth and chemoresistance. This study aimed to explore whether m⁷G-related DNA damage repair genes may be used as biomarkers to predict the prognosis of colon cancer patients. Methods: We use non-negative matrix factorization (NMF) to type CRC patients into. Risk models were constructed using different expression genes in two clusters. We assessed the reliability of risk models with DCA curves, and a Nomogram. Meanwhile, The receiver operating characteristic and C-index curves were used to compare the predictive significance of the constructed risk models with other studies. In additional, we examined the significance of risk models on patients' immunity microenvironment and response to immune therapy. Finally, we used a series of cellular experiments to validate the effect of model genes on the malignant progression of CRC cells. Results: Twenty-eight m⁷G genes were obtained from the GSEA database. Multivariate Cox and LASSO Cox regression analysis was performed and eleven m⁷G-related DDR genes were identified for constructing the risk model. Survival and stage of CRC patients were worser in the high-risk group than in the low-risk group for both the training and test sets. Additionally, the different immune microenvironment status of patients in the high- and low-risk groups, suggesting that patients in the low-risk group may be more sensitive to immunotherapy, particularly immune checkpoint inhibitors. Finally, we found that depletion of ATP2A1, one of the risk genes in our model, influence the biologic behaviour of CRC cells significantly. Conclusion: The m⁷G-related DDR genes can be used as important markers for predicting patient prognosis and immunotherapy response. Our data suggest that ATP2A1 may promote the proliferation of colon cancer cells. These findings may provide new therapeutic targets for the treatment of colon cancer.

Increased ATP2A1 Predicts Poor Prognosis in Patients With Colorectal Carcinoma

Colorectal cancer is one of the most common malignant tumors in the digestive system. Traditional diagnosis and treatment methods have not significantly improved the overall survival of patients. In this study, we explored the value of ATP2A1 as a biomarker in predicting the prognosis of colorectal cancer patients. We used the TCGA database to reveal the relationship between ATP2A1 mRNA level and prognosis, methylation, and immune invasion in colorectal cancer. The results showed that the expression of ATP2A1 was increased in colorectal cancer. The overall survival of patients with high expression of ATP2A1 was significantly lower than patients with low expression of ATP2A1. Cox regression analysis showed that high expression of ATP2A1 was an independent risk factor for poor prognosis in colorectal cancer patients. In addition, we used three datasets to perform a meta-analysis, which further confirmed the reliability of the results. Furthermore, we revealed that ATP2A1 could significantly inhibit the proliferation of colorectal cancer cells by inhibiting the autophagy process and was associated with several immune cells, especially CD8 + T cells. Finally, four small molecule drugs with potential inhibition of ATP2A1 expression were found by CMap analysis. This study demonstrates for the first time that ATP2A1 is a potential pathogenic factor, which may play a significant role in colorectal cancer.