MMP-7 is upregulated by COX-2 and promotes proliferation and invasion of lung adenocarcinoma cells

Correlation and significance of COX-2, Ki67, VEGF and other immune indexes with the growth of malignant pulmonary nodules

Objective

This study intends to explore the factors affecting the growth of pulmonary nodules in the natural process by immunohistochemical method.

Methods

40 cases of pulmonary nodules followed up for more than 3 years were divided into growth group (n = 20) and stable group (n = 20). The expressions of cyclooxygenase-2 (COX-2), Ki67, vascular endothelial growth factor (VEGF), CD44V6, epidermal growth factor receptor (EGFR), double microsome 2 (MDM2) and transforming growth factor (TGF)-β1 in pulmonary nodules were detected by immunohistochemical method so as to explore the relationship between it and the growth of pulmonary nodules.

Results

Compared with stable pulmonary nodules, the positive rates of COX-2, Ki67 and VEGF in the growth group were 85%, 80% and 55%, respectively. There was significant difference between the stable group and the growth group (P < 0.05). The correlation between other indexes and the growth of pulmonary nodules was not statistically significant (Pcd44v6 = 0.104;PEGFR = 0.337; PMDM2 = 0.49; PTGF-β1 = 0.141). In the subgroup of patients with non-invasive lung cancer, there was a correlation between VEGF and the growth of pulmonary nodules (P < 0.05).

Conclusion

The high expression of COX-2, Ki67 and VEGF proteins may be significantly related to the growth of pulmonary nodules, and VEGF may be an important factor affecting the growth of malignant pulmonary nodules. This study intends to provide a research direction for further searching for the essential causes of the growth of pulmonary nodules.

A Comprehensive Pan-Cancer Analysis of the Tumorigenic Role of Matrix Metallopeptidase 7 (MMP7) Across Human Cancers

Growing evidence has shown the oncogenic function of matrix metallopeptidase 7 (MMP7) in various tumors. However, no systemic pan-cancer analysis on the association between MMP7 and different cancers based on big clinical data is available. TIMER2, GEPIA2, UALCAN, cBioPortal, String, Metascape, and other web databases were searched in the present study. Generally, MMP7 expression is significantly upregulated in most The Cancer Genome Atlas (TCGA) cancer types compared to the paired normal controls, yet is downregulated in tumor tissues of invasive breast carcinoma (BRCA), kidney chromophobe (KICH), kidney renal clear cell carcinoma (KIRC), liver hepatocellular carcinoma (LIHC), and skin cutaneous melanoma (SKCM). MMP7 protein expression is notably higher in the primary tumor tissues of colon cancer, lung adenocarcinoma (LUAD), and uterine corpus endometrial carcinoma (UCEC) than in normal tissues and is significantly lower in the primary tumor tissues of breast cancer, clear cell renal carcinoma, and ovarian cancer. Furthermore, MMP7 expression is strongly associated with pathological stages, clinical outcomes, tumor mutational burden (TMB), and microsatellite instability (TSI). Gene amplification was detected in most TCGA cancer types. In addition, the missense mutation is the primary type of MMP7 genetic alteration in tumors. Significant positive correlations between MMP7 expression and cancer-associated fibroblasts (CAFs) have been demonstrated in most TCGA cancers. MMP7 expression was also found to be positively correlated with infiltration of dendritic cells and macrophages in some specific tumor types. Functional enrichment analysis by the Kyoto Encyclopedia of Genes and Genomes (KEGG) pathways and gene ontology (GO) methods revealed that RNA processing and DNA damage checkpoints might reveal the pathogenetic mechanisms of MMP7. This pan-cancer analysis provides a clear panorama for the tumorigenic roles of MMP7 across different cancer types. Moreover, MMP7 could be a potential drug therapeutic target in such cancers.

Immunotherapy in endometrial cancer: rationale, practice and perspectives

Tumor immunotherapy has attracted more and more attention nowadays, and multiple clinical trials have confirmed its effect in a variety of solid tumors. Immune checkpoint inhibitors (ICIs), cancer vaccines, adoptive cell transfer (ACT), and lymphocyte-promoting cytokines are the main immunotherapy methods. Endometrial cancer (EC) is one of the most frequent tumors in women and the prognosis of recurrent or metastatic EC is poor. Since molecular classification has been applied to EC, immunotherapy for different EC subtypes (especially POLE and MSI-H) has gradually attracted attention. In this review, we focus on the expression and molecular basis of the main biomarkers in the immunotherapy of EC firstly, as well as their clinical application significance and limitations. Blocking tumor immune checkpoints is one of the most effective strategies for cancer treatment in recent years, and has now become the focus in the field of tumor research and treatment. We summarized clinical date of planned and ongoing clinical trials and introduced other common immunotherapy methods in EC, such as cancer vaccine and ACT. Hormone aberrations, metabolic syndrome (MetS) and p53 mutant and that affect the immunotherapy of endometrial cancer will also be discussed in this review.

Cyclooxygenase-2 and β-Catenin as Potential Diagnostic and Prognostic Markers in Endometrial Cancer

Objectives: Explore the diagnostic and prognostic value of cyclooxygenase-2 and wnt3a/β-catenin pathway in endometrial cancer.

Methods: A prospective cohort study of 93 women underwent hysterectomy at the China-Japan Friendship Hospital (61 patients with primary endometrial carcinoma, and 32 control patients with uterine prolapse or leiomyoma of uterus). Cox2 and β-catenin expression were determined by immunohistochemistry. The serum levels of cox2 and wnt3a were detected via ELISA assays.

Results: Patients with endometrial cancer showed overexpression of cox2 and β-catenin, as well as significantly higher serum levels of cox2 and wnt3a. The serum cox2 level, which is highly significant in predicting the risk of disease progression (RR, 9.617, 95% confidence interval, 1.162–79.622, P = 0.036), showed good diagnostic and prognostic potential, with cut-off of 55 U/L, but alongside β-catenin expression in tissues, were related to poor prognosis (RR, 12.426; 95% confidence interval, 1.618–95.450; P = 0.015).

Conclusion: Serum levels of cox2 and wnt3a exhibited diagnostic value for endometrial cancer. Cox2 serum levels and β-catenin expression also showed potential value of prognostic prediction. Cox2 serum levels might be a potential marker for early diagnosis and prognosis prediction in endometrial cancer.

Matrix-Metalloprotease Resistant Mucin-16 (MUC16) Peptide Mutants Represent a Worse Lung Adenocarcinoma Outcome

PURPOSE

The relationship of lung adenocarcinoma (LUAD)-specific proteases and the mutant profile of cytoskeletal and extracellular matrix proteins (CECMPs) are examined.

EXPERIMENTAL DESIGN

Mutant CECMPs are assessed with an automated application of a protease binding, amino acid-based, scoring database.

RESULTS

MUC16 (Human Genome Organization symbol for mucin-16 gene) mutants in particular are, more often than not, resistant to matrix-metalloproteases (MMPs) commonly secreted by LUAD cells, and LUAD cases representing the MUC16, MMP resistant mutants have a worse outcome. Similar results are obtained for MUC16 mutants resistant to cathepsins, also commonly secreted by LUAD cells. Analyses also show that MUC16, MMP resistant peptide mutants have greater binding affinities to HLA-A and HLA-B when compared to MUC16, MMP nonresistant peptide mutants.

CONCLUSION

These results provide a potential, novel biomarker for lung cancer progression, in particular, protease resistant MUC16 peptides; and suggest a possible mechanism of immune escape entailing the reduction of mutant peptides available for HLA class I binding.

In vivo and in vitro effects of hyperplasia suppressor gene on the proliferation and apoptosis of lung adenocarcinoma A549 cells

Lung adenocarcinoma is the most common subtype of non-small cell lung cancer (NSCLC). Hyperplasia suppressor gene (HSG) has been reported to inhibit cell proliferation, migration, and remodeling in cardiovascular diseases. However, there lacks systematic researches on the effect of HSG on the apoptosis and proliferation of lung adenocarcinoma A549 cells and data of in vivo experiments. The present study aims to investigate the effects of HSG gene silencing on proliferation and apoptosis of lung adenocarcinoma A549 cells. The human lung adenocarcinoma A549 cell was selected to construct adenovirus vector. Reverse transcription-quantitative PCR (RT-qPCR) and Western blot analysis were conducted to detect expressions of HSG and apoptosis related-proteins. Cell Counting Kit (CCK)-8 assay was performed to assess A549 cell proliferation and flow cytometry to analyze cell cycle and apoptosis rate. The BALB/C nude mice were collected to establish xenograft model. Silenced HSG showed decreased mRNA and protein expressions of HSG, and elevated A549 cell survival rates at the time point of 24, 48, and 72 h. The ratio of cells at G₀/G₁ phase and apoptosis rate decreased and the ratio of cells at S- and G₂/M phases increased following the silencing of HSG. There were decreases of B cell lymphoma-2 (Bcl-2)-associated X protein (Bax), Caspase-3, and Caspase-8 expressions but increases in Bcl-2 induced by silenced HSG. As for the xenograft in nude mice, tumor volume increased, and apoptosis index (AI) decreased after HSG silencing. These results indicate that HSG gene silencing may promote the proliferation of A549 cells and inhibit the apoptosis. HSG may be a promising target for the treatment of lung adenocarcinoma.

Association between expression of MMP-7 and MMP-9 and pelvic lymph node and para-aortic lymph node metastasis in early cervical cancer

AIMS

To investigate the association of matrix metalloproteinase (MMP)-7 and MMP-9 with pelvic lymph node and para-aortic lymph node metastasis in early cervical cancer.

METHODS

A total of 137 patients with early cervical cancer (Stage Ia2-IIa2) were recruited from the Department of Gynecology and Obstetrics, Tumor Hospital of Liaoning Province from January 2009 to May 2014. We evaluated the expression of MMP-7 and MMP-9 by immunohistochemistry and their association with the clinicopathological parameters such as pelvic, common iliac and para-aortic lymph node metastasis. Spearman correlation was performed to analyze the correlation between MMP-7 and MMP-9 in cervical cancer. Finally, the areas under the receiver operating characteristic curve (ROC) of MMP-7 and MMP-9 in pelvic lymph node metastasis were assessed.

RESULTS

MMP-7 expression was significantly higher in patients with adenocarcinomas and adenosquamous carcinomas (P = 0.014), vascular cancer embolus (P = 0.041), pelvic lymph node metastasis (P = 0.000) and a higher level of Ki-67 (P = 0.000). MMP-9 expression was significantly associated with vascular cancer embolus (P = 0.003), depth of stromal invasion (P = 0.001), pelvic lymph node metastasis (P = 0.003), common iliac lymph node metastasis (P = 0.001) and para-aortic lymph nodes metastasis (P = 0.004). Coexpression of MMP-7 and MMP-9 was significantly associated with vascular cancer embolus (P < 0.001), higher expression of Ki-67 (P < 0.001) and pelvic lymph node metastasis (P < 0.001). Spearman correlation analysis indicated a positive correlation between MMP-7 and MMP-9 (r = 0.263, P = 0.002). Areas under the ROC of MMP-7 and MMP-9 were 0.707 and 0.646, respectively.

CONCLUSION

MMP-7 and MMP-9 expressions were associated with lymph node metastasis in patients with early cervical cancers, suggesting a positive correlation of MMP-7 and MMP-9 with invasive potential in early cervical cancers.

NanoVelcro-captured CTC number concomitant with enhanced serum levels of MMP7 and MMP9 enables accurate prediction of metastasis and poor prognosis in patients with lung adenocarcinoma

Lung adenocarcinoma (LADC) is among the most malignant cancers that frequently develops micrometastases even in early stages of the disease. Circulating tumor cell (CTC) number, matrix metalloproteinase (MMP) 7, and MMP9 show great prospects as predictive biomarkers in many tumors. However, the interactions between these biomarkers and the molecular basis of their roles in the metastasis and prognosis of LADC remain unclear. The present study revealed that an elevated CTC count and overexpression of MMP7 and MMP9 correlate with metastasis and clinical progression in LADC patients (n=143). Furthermore, MMP7 and MMP9 upregulation facilitates LADC cell migration in vitro and enhances serum CTC levels in a xenograft mouse model. More importantly, receiver operating characteristic (ROC) curves and Kaplan-Meier analysis confirmed more accurate prediction of metastasis and overall survival (OS) with a combination panel of CTC, MMP7, and MMP9. Taken together, our data show, for the first time, the involvement of MMP7 and MMP9 in the release of CTCs into the peripheral blood, and our data reveal that CTC count and expression of MMP7 and MMP9 can be used together as an effective clinical prediction panel for LADC metastasis and prognosis.

Upregulation of KIN17 is associated with non-small cell lung cancer invasiveness

Kin17 DNA and RNA binding protein (Kin17) is a highly conserved protein that participates in DNA replication, DNA repair and cell cycle progression. Recently, the tumor-promoting function of Kin17 has been demonstrated and increasingly studied. In the present study, the role of Kin17 in the invasion and metastasis of non-small cells lung cancer (NSCLC) was investigated. Elevated Kin17 mRNA and protein expression was identified in a total of 97 NSCLC and benign lung lesion tissue specimens. Kin17 overexpression was significantly correlated with high tumor grade and lymph node metastasis, indicating poor patient prognosis. Scratch and Transwell assays demonstrated that the knockdown of KIN17 inhibited the ability of NSCLC cells to migrate and invade. Furthermore, reverse transcription-quantitative polymerase chain reaction and western blot analyses confirmed that knockdown of KIN17 decreased the expression of matrix metalloproteinase 7, epidermal growth factor receptor and v-myc avian myelocytomatosis viral oncogene homolog. The results of the present study indicate that Kin17 is markedly overexpressed in NSCLC tissues compared with benign lung lesion and peritumoral tissue. The upregulation of KIN17 may serve an important role in the metastasis of NSCLC cells. These results indicate that Kin17 is a novel diagnostic and prognostic biomarker of NSCLC, in addition to being a potential therapeutic target for the treatment of patients with NSCLC.

Is there still room for novelty, in histochemical papers?

Histochemistry continues to be widely applied in biomedical research, being nowadays mostly addressed to detect and locate single molecules or molecular complexes inside cells and tissues, and to relate structural organization and function at the high resolution of the more advanced microscopical techniques. In the attempt to see whether histochemical novelties may be found in the recent literature, the articles published in the European Journal of Histochemistry in the period 2014-2016 have been reviewed. In the majority of the published papers, standardized methods have been preferred by scientists to make their results reliably comparable with the data in the literature, but several papers (approximately one fourth of the published articles) described novel histochemical methods and procedures. It is worth noting that there is a growing interest for minimally-invasive in vivo techniques (magnetic resonance imaging, autofluorescence spectroscopy), which may parallel conventional histochemical analyses to acquire evidence not only on the morphological features of living organs and tissues, but also on their functional, biophysical and molecular characteristics. Thanks to this unceasing methodological refinement, histochemistry will continue to provide innovative applications in the biomedical field.

T-box transcription factor brachyury promotes tumor cell invasion and metastasis in non-small cell lung cancer via upregulation of matrix metalloproteinase 12

T-box transcription factor brachyury and matrix metalloproteinases (MMPs) play important roles in non-small cell lung cancer (NSCLC) cell invasion and metastasis. However, the association between Brachyury and the MMP family has not yet been fully investigated. The present study aimed to assess the influence of Brachyury on the expression of 23 MMP members and to further explore the mechanisms involved in the promotion of NSCLC cell invasion by Brachyury and MMPs in the H460 and H1299 stable cell lines. The protein expression levels and correlations between the brachyury transcription factor and the targeted MMPs were also validated in 52 NSCLC patient tissue samples. We observed that brachyury significantly upregulated MMP12 expression to promote NSCLC cell invasion. We also found a potential binding site for the brachyury transcription factor in the MMP12 promoter.

Roles of osteopontin and matrix metalloproteinase-7 in occurrence, progression, and prognosis of nonsmall cell lung cancer

BACKGROUND

This study detected osteopontin (OPN) and matrix metalloproteinase-7 (MMP-7) expressions to explore the roles of OPN and MMP-7 in the occurrence, progression, and prognosis of nonsmall cell lung cancer (NSCLC).

MATERIALS AND METHODS

A retrospective study was conducted on NSCLC tissues (n = 152; case group) and adjacent nonneoplastic lung parenchyma (adjacent to tumor >5 cm; n = 152; control group) collected from 152 NSCLC patients. The protein expressions of OPN and MMP-7 were detected by immunohistochemistry. OPN and MMP-7 messenger RNA (mRNA) expressions were detected by reverse transcription polymerase chain reaction (RT-PCR).

RESULTS

The protein and mRNA expressions of OPN and MMP-7 in NSCLC tissues were evidently higher than those in adjacent nonneoplastic lung parenchyma (all P < 0.05). OPN protein and mRNA expression were associated with the degree of differentiation, tumor node metastasis (TNM) staging, and lymph node metastasis in NSCLC (all P < 0.05). MMP-7 protein expression was associated with TNM staging and lymph node metastasis (both P < 0.05) while MMP-7 mRNA expression was associated with the degree of differentiation, TNM staging, and lymph node metastasis (all P < 0.05). A significantly positive relativity was revealed between OPN expression and MMP-7 expression (protein: r = 0.789, P < 0.001; mRNA: r = 0.377, P < 0.001). Lymph node metastasis, TNM staging, OPN, and MMP-7 protein expressions were independent risk factors for the prognosis of NSCLC (all P < 0.05).

CONCLUSION

High MMP-7 and OPN protein expressions are closely related to the occurrence, progression, and prognosis of NSCLC, and can be served as unfavorable prognostic factors for NSCLC.

Histochemistry in biology and medicine: a message from the citing journals

Especially in recent years, biomedical research has taken advantage of the progress in several disciplines, among which microscopy and histochemistry. To assess the influence of histochemistry in the biomedical field, the articles published during the period 2011-2015 have been selected from different databases and grouped by subject categories: as expected, biological and biomedical studies where histochemistry has been used as a major experimental approach include a wide of basic and applied researches on both humans and other animal or plant organisms. To better understand the impact of histochemical publications onto the different biological and medical disciplines, it was useful to look at the journals where the articles published in a multidisciplinary journal of histochemistry have been cited: it was observed that, in the five-years period considered, 20% only of the citations were in histochemical periodicals, the remaining ones being in journals of Cell &amp; Tissue biology,  general and experimental Medicine, Oncology, Biochemistry &amp; Molecular biology, Neurobiology, Anatomy &amp; Morphology, Pharmacology &amp; Toxicology, Reproductive biology, Veterinary sciences, Physiology, Endocrinology, Tissue engineering &amp; Biomaterials,  as well as in multidisciplinary journals.It is easy to foresee that also in the future the histochemical journals will be an attended forum for basic and applied scientists in the biomedical field. It will be crucial that these journals be open to an audience as varied as possible, publishing articles on the application of refined techniques to very different experimental models: this will stimulate non-histochemist scientists to approach histochemistry whose application horizon could expand to novel and possibly exclusive subjects.

Toll-like receptor 4 expression in the epithelium of inflammatory periapical lesions. An immunohistochemical study

Toll-like receptors (TLR) are essential for the innate immune response against invading pathogens and have been described in immunocompetent cells of areas affected by periapical disease. Besides initiating the inflammatory response, they also directly regulate epithelial cell proliferation and survival in a variety of settings. This study evaluates the in situ expression of TLR4 in periapical granulomas (PG) and radicular cysts, focusing on the epithelial compartment.

Twenty-one periapical cysts (PC) and 10 PG were analyzed; 7 dentigerous non-inflamed follicular cyst (DC) served as control. TLR4 expression was assessed by immunohistochemistry. TLR4 immunoreaction products were detected in the epithelium of all specimens, with a higher percentage of immunostained cells in PG. Although TLR4 overexpression was detected in both PG and PC, there were differences that seemed to be related to the nature of the lesion, since in PG all epithelial cells of strands, islands and trabeculae were strongly immunoreactive for TLR4, whereas in PC only some areas of the basal and suprabasal epithelial layers were immunostained. This staining pattern is consistent with the action of TLR4: in PG it could promote formation of epithelial cell rests of Malassez and in epithelial strands and islands the enhancement of cell survival, proliferation and migration, whereas in PC TLR4 could protect the lining epithelium from extensive apoptosis. These findings go some way towards answering the intriguing question of why many epithelial strands or islands in PG and the lining epithelium of apical cysts regress after non-surgical endodontic therapy, and suggest that TLR4 plays a key role in the pathobiology of the inflammatory process related to periapical disease.

Effect of Helicobacter pylori on cyclooxygenase-2 and inducible nitric oxide synthase in patients with gastric precancerous lesions and its clinical significance

The aim of this study was to investigate the effect of Helicobacter pylori (Hp) on cyclooxygenase-2 (COX-2) and inducible nitric oxide synthase (iNOS) levels in patients with gastric precancerous lesions and its clinical significance. A total of 114 patients with gastric precancerous lesions, 57 whom were positive for Hp (observation group) and 57 of whom were negative for Hp (control group), were selected for the study. The mRNA levels of COX-2 and iNOS in the gastric precancerous lesion tissue from the two groups of patients were analyzed through the reverse transcription-quantitative polymerase chain reaction (RT-qPCR). The protein expression levels of COX-2 and iNOS were analyzed using western blotting and an iNOS kit, respectively. In addition, normal human gastric mucosal GES-1 cells were cultured in vitro and stimulated by Hp for 3, 6, 9 and 12 h. The variations in the mRNA and protein levels of COX-2 and iNOS were then analyzed via RT-qPCR and western blotting. Compared with the control group, the mRNA levels of COX-2 and iNOS in the gastric tissue from the observation group were significantly increased (P<0.05). Furthermore, the expression level of COX-2 and iNOS protein in the gastric tissue from the observation group was significantly higher than that in the tissue from the control group (P<0.05). In vitro analysis showed that the COX-2 and iNOS mRNA and protein levels were significantly increased in the Hp-stimulated normal human gastric mucosal GES-1 cells compared with those in the unstimulated cells. Furthermore, the effect was time-dependent (P<0.05). In conclusion, COX-2 and iNOS are the main inflammatory markers. Hp can induce high expression levels of COX-2 and iNOS in gastric precancerous lesion tissue, which may be associated with the occurrence and development of gastric precancerous lesions.

Impact of Histochemistry on biomedical research: looking through the articles published in a long-established histochemical journal

Histochemistry provides the unique opportunity to detect single molecules in the very place where they exert their structural roles or functional activities: this makes it possible to correlate structural organization and function, and may be fruitfully exploited in countless biomedical research topics. Aiming to estimate the impact of histochemical articles in the biomedical field, the last few years citations of articles published in a long-established histochemical journal have been considered. This brief survey suggests that histochemical journals, especially the ones open to a large spectrum of research subjects, do represent an irreplaceable source of information not only for cell biologists, microscopists or anatomists, but also for biochemists, molecular biologists and biotechnologists.

COX-2 overexpression and -8473 T/C polymorphism in 3' UTR in non-small cell lung cancer

A new class of compounds targeting cyclooxygenase 2 (COX-2) together with other different clinically used therapeutic strategies has recently shown a promise for the chemoprevention of several solid tumors including lung cancer. The aim was to study the possible role of COX-2 -8473 T/C NP and its expression in the pathogenesis of non-small cell lung cancer. One hundred ninety non-small cell lung cancer (NSCLC) patients and 200 healthy age-, sex-, and smoking-matched controls were used for polymorphic analysis, and 48 histopathologically confirmed NSCLC patients were analyzed for COX-2 messenger RNA (mRNA) and protein expression. Our results showed that the frequencies of variant genotypes 8473 CT/CC were significantly less common in the cases (30.0%) than in the controls (36%), suggesting that the 8473 C variant allele is related with lower susceptibility in NSCLC (OR = 0.79, 95% CI 0.54-1.4). However, the frequency of COX-2 -8473 TC and CC genotypes were significantly associated with age in NSCLC (P = 0.02). Quantitative real-time expression analysis showed a significant increase in the COX-2 mRNA in tumor tissues as compared to their adjacent normal tissues [delta cycle threshold (ΔCT) = 9.25 ± 4.67 vs 5.63 ± 3.85, P = 0.0001]. Multivariate logistic regression analyses revealed that the COX-2 expression was associated significantly with age (P = 0.044). Also, an increasing trend was observed in stages I and II and in female patients compared to stages III and IV and male patients, respectively, but no statistical significance was observed. However, COX-2 mRNA expression shown no association with the -8473 C variant allele. Our findings indicate that the COX-2 T8473C polymorphism may contribute to NSCLC cancer susceptibility in the Kashmiri population, while our expression analysis revealed a significant increase of COX-2 in tumor tissues as compared to their adjacent normal tissues, suggesting that it could become an important therapeutic marker in NSCLC in the future.