[The expressions of IL-7 and IL-7R and the relationship between them with lymph node metastasis and prognosis in non-small cell lung cancer]

Elevated IL-7Rα is linked to recurrence and poorer survival of gastric adenocarcinoma

IL-7Rα expression has been suggested to be involved in the development of cancer and has been reported to be linked to poor overall survival in patients with lung cancer. However, no evidence has been reportedregarding the significance of IL-7Rα expression in gastric adenocarcinoma (GA) untilnow. In the present investigation, to understand the clinicopathological significance of IL-7Rα expression in GA, expression of IL-7Rα was evaluated using immunohistochemistry in 121 cases of paired GA and its corresponding normal controls. As further confirmation, detection of IL-7Rα expression was extended from the protein level to the mRNA level using qRT-PCR. Clinicopathological association was statistically analyzed between IL-7Rα expression and clinicopathological variables, including demographic, T classification, clinical stage, lymph nodes metastases, differentiation, recurrence or not, and overall prognosis. IL-7Rα expression was markedly up-regulated in GA tissues relative to paired normal controls at both the protein or mRNA level. Elevation of IL-7Rα was markedly associated with lymph nodes metastases (P=0.006), differentiation (P=0.005), recurrence (P=0.043), and poor overall prognosis (P=0.039). There were trends toward statistical significance forboth T classification (P=0.063) and clinical stage (P=0.065) despite no significant associations found. Together, our study is the first toanalyze the significance of IL-7Rα expression in GA, suggesting its potential predictive value for recurrence and overall prognosis.

Potential implications of interleukin-7 in chronic wound healing

Methods of identifying chronic wounds that will heal in a timely, coordinated fashion and those that will not, together with novel therapeutic strategies, are vital for progression in the field of wound healing. Interleukin (IL)-7 has been associated with various biological and pathological processes. The present study explored the potential role of IL-7 in wound healing. IL-7 expression levels were examined in a clinical cohort of chronic wounds using reverse transcription-quantitative polymerase chain reaction and immunohistochemical staining analysis. The impact of recombinant human IL-7 (rhIL-7) on the growth and migrational rates of HaCaT keratinocyte cells was subsequently examined using in vitro growth and electric cell-substrate impedance sensing functional assays. The mRNA expression levels of IL-7 were increased in the healed chronic wound tissue samples, compared with non-healed chronic wound tissue samples, although the difference was not statistically significant. Similarly, immunohistochemical analysis revealed a greater staining intensity of IL-7 in the healed chronic wound tissue sections compared with the non-healed tissue sections. Treatment with rhIL-7 did not affect HaCaT cell growth rates, but was shown to enhance cell migration, an effect that could be further enhanced through the addition of inhibitors of neuronal Wiskott-Aldrich syndrome protein and protein kinase B. The data of the present study suggest that the expression levels of IL-7 may be increased in healing chronic wounds, and thus IL-7 may have a role in this process, potentially through its effects on the cellular migration of keratinocytes.