SLC39A7 promotes malignant behaviors in glioma via the TNF-α-mediated NF-κB signaling pathway

NVS-ZP7-4 inhibits hepatocellular carcinoma tumorigenesis and promotes apoptosis via PI3K/AKT signaling

NVS-ZP7-4 was identified as a novel chemical reagent targeting the zinc input protein ZIP7, which accounts for the zinc surge from the apparatus to the cytoplasm. Since zinc dysregulation is related to multiple diseases, in this study, we aimed to identify the anti-tumor effects of NVS-ZP7-4 and explore the molecular mechanisms of NVS-ZP7-4 in hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC) progression. We found that NVS-ZP7-4 inhibited cell viability, caused cell cycle arrest, induced apoptosis, and inhibited the proliferation, migration, and invasion of HCCLM3 and Huh7 cells. We further investigated the inhibited activation of the phosphatidylinositol 3-kinase (PI3K)/Akt pathway was involved in the antitumor effect of NVS-ZP7-4 in HCC. Furthermore, NVS-ZP7-4 inhibited HCC tumor growth in vivo. The present study demonstrated that NVS-ZP7-4 is a promising therapeutic target for HCC by regulating PI3K/AKT signaling.

The Recent Research Progress of NF-κB Signaling on the Proliferation, Migration, Invasion, Immune Escape and Drug Resistance of Glioblastoma

Glioblastoma multiforme (GBM) is the most common and invasive primary central nervous system tumor in humans, accounting for approximately 45-50% of all primary brain tumors. How to conduct early diagnosis, targeted intervention, and prognostic evaluation of GBM, in order to improve the survival rate of glioblastoma patients, has always been an urgent clinical problem to be solved. Therefore, a deeper understanding of the molecular mechanisms underlying the occurrence and development of GBM is also needed. Like many other cancers, NF-κB signaling plays a crucial role in tumor growth and therapeutic resistance in GBM. However, the molecular mechanism underlying the high activity of NF-κB in GBM remains to be elucidated. This review aims to identify and summarize the NF-κB signaling involved in the recent pathogenesis of GBM, as well as basic therapy for GBM via NF-κB signaling.

Identification of a Gene Panel Predictive of Triple-Negative Breast Cancer Response to Neoadjuvant Chemotherapy Employing Transcriptomic and Functional Validation

Triple-negative breast cancer (TNBC) patients exhibiting pathological complete response (pCR) have better clinical outcomes compared to those with residual disease (RD). Therefore, robust biomarkers that can predict pCR may help with triage and resource prioritization in patients with TNBC. Herein, we identified a gene panel predictive of RD and pCR in TNBC from the discovery (n = 90) treatment-naive tumor transcriptomic data. Eight RD-derived genes were identified as TNBC-essential genes, which were highly predicative of overall survival (OS) and relapse-free survival (RFS) in an additional cohort of basal breast cancer (n = 442). Mechanistically, targeted depletion of the eight genes reduced the proliferation potential of TNBC cell models, while most remarkable effects were for combined SLC39A7, TIMM13, BANF1, and MVD knockdown in conjunction with doxorubicin. Orthogonal partial least squares-discriminant analysis (OPLS-DA) and receiver operating characteristic curve (ROC) analyses revealed significant predictive power for the identified gene panels with an area under the curve (AUC) of 0.75 for the validation cohort (n = 50) to discriminate RD from pCR. Protein–Protein Interaction (PPI) network analysis of the pCR-derived gene signature identified an 87-immune gene signature highly predictive of pCR, which correlated with better OS, RFS, and distant-metastasis-free survival (DMFS) in an independent cohort of basal and, to a lesser extent, HER2+ breast cancer. Our data have identified gene signatures predicative of RD and pCR in TNBC with potential clinical implications.

CircKPNB1 mediates a positive feedback loop and promotes the malignant phenotypes of GSCs via TNF-α/NF-κB signaling

Glioma stem cells (GSCs) are a special kind of cells in GBM showing tumor initiation, self-renewal, and multi-lineage differentiation abilities. Finding novel circRNAs related to GSCs is of great significance for the study of glioma. qPCR, western blotting, and immunohistochemistry were used to detect the expression levels of circKPNB1, SPI1, DGCR8, and TNF-α. The expression of these molecules in GSCs was regulated by lentiviral-based infection. RNA immunoprecipitation assay, RNA pull-down, dual-luciferase reporter, and chromatin immunoprecipitation assays were used to study the direct regulation mechanisms among these molecules. All the MTS, EDU, transwell, neurosphere formation assays, ELDA assays, and xenograft experiments were used to detect the malignant phenotype of GSCs. We found a novel circRNA circKPNB1 was overexpressed in GBM and associated with GBM patients' poor prognosis. CircKPNB1 overexpression can promote the cell viabilities, proliferation, invasion, neurospheres formation abilities, and stemness of GSCs. Mechanistically, circKPNB1 regulates the protein stability and nuclear translocation of SPI1. SPI1 promotes the malignant phenotype of GSCs via TNF-α mediated NF-κB signaling. SPI1 can also transcriptionally upregulate DGCR8 expression, and the latter can maintain the stability of circKPNB1 and forms a positive feedback loop among DGCR8, circKPNB1 and SPI1. Our study found circKPNB1 was a novel oncogene in GBM and of great significance in the diagnosis and prognosis prediction of GBM and maybe a novel target for molecular targeted therapy.