m6A methyltransferase METTL3 promotes oral squamous cell carcinoma progression through enhancement of IGF2BP2-mediated SLC7A11 mRNA stability

xlomafota13 shared this article with you from Inoreader m<sup>6</sup>A methyltransferase METTL3 promotes oral squamous cell carcinoma progression through enhancement of IGF2BP2-mediated SLC7A11 mRNA stability Via American Journal of Cancer Research Am J Cancer Res. 2021 Nov 15;11(11):5282-5298. eCollection 2021. ABSTRACT As the key enzyme of the N6-methyladenosine (m6A) in eukaryotic messenger RNA, METTL3 plays an important role in tumor progression, but the exact mechanism by which METTL3 controls oral squamous cell carcinoma (OSCC) progression remains unclear. In this study, METTL3 expression in OSCC samples was analyzed by qPCR and immunohistochemistry. The effects of METTL3 suppression on OSCC cell lines were measured by CCK-8, Ki67 flow cytometry analysis, invasion transwell and wound healing assays. MeRIP-seq and RNA-seq analyses were performed to explore target gene of METTL3. RIP-qPCR and RNA stability assays were performed to explore the mechanism by which METTL3 regulated the target genes. Triptolide was used to evaluate its specific treatment effects on METTL3 in OSCC cells. BALB/c nude mice were used to establish orthotopic and subcutaneous xenograft models to verify the in vitro results. The results showed that METTL3 was upregulated in OSCC tissues compared with OSCC adjacent normal tissues, and its expression was associated with T stage, lymphatic metastasis and prognosis. METTL3 suppression impaired OSCC cells proliferation, invasion, and migration. MeRIP-seq and RNA-seq analysis identified that SLC7A11 mRNA was the m6A target of METTL3, which was verified by meRIP-qPCR, qPCR and western blot. METTL3 depletion decreased the stability of SLC7A11 mRNA, and IGF2BP2 as m6A reader was involved in this process. Moreover, METTL3 knockdown attenuated the binding between SLC7A11 mRNA and IGF2BP2, finally leading to accelerate SLC7A11 mRNA degradation. Triptolide inhibited METTL3-mediated SLC7A11 expression, thus suppressing malignancy of OSCC cells. In conclusion, the new finding of the manuscript is that METTL3 enhances the mRNA stability of SLC7A11 via m6A-mediated binding of IGF2BP2, which thus pr omotes OSCC progression, and triptolide inhibits OSCC by suppressing METTL3-SLC7A11 axis. Triptolide has a potential to be as an effective anti-OSCC drug targeted to METTL3. PMID:34873461 | PMC:PMC8640804 View on the web Inoreader. Take back control of your news feed. Follow us on Twitter and Facebook.

Targeting the oncogenic TBX3:nucleolin complex to treat multiple sarcoma subtypes

xlomafota13 shared this article with you from Inoreader Targeting the oncogenic TBX3:nucleolin complex to treat multiple sarcoma subtypes Via American Journal of Cancer Research Am J Cancer Res. 2021 Nov 15;11(11):5680-5700. eCollection 2021. ABSTRACT Sarcomas are diverse cancers of mesenchymal origin, with compromised clinical management caused by insufficient diagnostic biomarkers and limited treatment options. The transcription factor TBX3 is upregulated in a diverse range of sarcoma subtypes, where it plays a direct oncogenic role, and it may thus represent a novel therapeutic target. To identify versatile ways to target TBX3, we performed affinity purification coupled by mass spectrometry to identify putative TBX3 protein cofactors that regulate its oncogenic activity in sarcomas. Here we identify and validate the multifunctional phosphoprotein nucleolin as a TBX3 cofactor. We show that nucleolin is co-expressed with TBX3 in several sarcoma subtypes and their expression levels positively correlate in sarcoma patients which are associated with poor prognosis. Furthermore, we demonstrate that nucleolin and TBX3 interact in chondrosarcoma, liposarcoma and rhabdomyosarcoma cells where they act together to enhance proliferation and migration and regulate a common set of tumor suppressor genes. Importantly, the nucleolin targeting aptamer, AS1411, exhibits selective anti-cancer activity in these cells and mislocalizes TBX3 and nucleolin to the cytoplasm which correlates with the re-expression of the TBX3/nucleolin target tumor suppressors CDKN1A (p21CIP1) and CDKN2A (p14ARF). Our findings provide the first evidence that TBX3 requires nucleolin to promote features of sarcomagenesis and that disruption of the oncogenic TBX3-nucleolin interaction by AS1411 may be a novel approach for treating sarcomas. PMID:34873487 | PMC:PMC8640805 View on the web Inoreader. Take back control of your news feed. Follow us on Twitter and Facebook.

From development to cancer - an ever-increasing role of AGR2

xlomafota13 shared this article with you from Inoreader From development to cancer - an ever-increasing role of AGR2 Via American Journal of Cancer Research Am J Cancer Res. 2021 Nov 15;11(11):5249-5262. eCollection 2021. ABSTRACT Anterior gradient 2, AGR2, is a small, 20 kDa protein that plays a vital role in oxidative protein folding in the endoplasmic reticulum. AGR2 is involved in several signal transduction pathways that are essential for cell survival. It was initially discovered in the African clawed frog, Xenopus laevis, where it plays an important function in embryonic development. Akin to several other developmental genes, it is also frequently deregulated in cancer, where it plays a decisive role in tumor initiation, progression and metastasis. In this review, we have summarized currently known AGR2 functions, its expression and function in embryonic and cancer development, as well as its potential as a candidate tumor biomarker and promising new target for cancer immunotherapy. PMID:34873459 | PMC:PMC8640830 View on the web Inoreader. Take back control of your news feed. Follow us on Twitter and Facebook.

Development of KAM score to predict metastasis and worse survival in breast cancer

xlomafota13 shared this article with you from Inoreader Development of KAM score to predict metastasis and worse survival in breast cancer Via American Journal of Cancer Research Am J Cancer Res. 2021 Nov 15;11(11):5388-5401. eCollection 2021. ABSTRACT Some may think that prediction of metastasis is meaningless since metastatic breast cancer is currently incurable. We argue that effective identification of developing metastasis will enable us to design and conduct clinical trials specifically targeting those patients at high risk. The current study sought to generate the KAM score by 4 genes (BRSK2, EYA1, SIGLEC15, and AGTR1) overexpressed in primary breast cancer that developed metastasis to bone compared with matched controls without metastasis longer than 10 years. A high KAM score was prognostic of poor overall (OS), disease free survival (DFS), and disease specific survival (DSS) in the METABRIC, and OS in the GSE96058 cohorts. A high KAM score was significantly associated with clinical aggressiveness, such as high American Joint Committee Cancer (AJCC) stage, lymph node metastasis, Nottingha m pathological grade, and triple negative breast cancer (TNBC). Subgroup analysis revealed that a high KAM score was associated with worse OS in ER-positive/HER2-negative breast cancer in both cohorts. A high KAM breast cancer enriched all 5 cell proliferation-related gene sets of the Hallmark collection and interferon (IFN)-γ response gene sets. Furthermore, a high KAM breast cancer was significantly infiltrated with a high fraction of not only anti-cancer but also pro-cancer immune cells and associated with high level of cytolytic activity. Finally, a high KAM breast cancer was significantly associated with lung metastasis. In conclusion, we developed KAM score using 4 gene expressions that predict lung metastasis and patient survival in breast cancer. PMID:34873467 | PMC:PMC8640803 View on the web Inoreader. Take back control of your news feed. Follow us on Twitter and Facebook.

Low intratumoral genetic neutrophil-to-lymphocyte ratio (NLR) is associated with favorable tumor immune microenvironment and with survival in triple negative breast cancer (TNBC)

xlomafota13 shared this article with you from Inoreader Low intratumoral genetic neutrophil-to-lymphocyte ratio (NLR) is associated with favorable tumor immune microenvironment and with survival in triple negative breast cancer (TNBC) Via American Journal of Cancer Research Am J Cancer Res. 2021 Nov 15;11(11):5743-5755. eCollection 2021. ABSTRACT Patients with triple negative breast cancer (TNBC) have a poor prognosis. A novel prognostic biomarker may guide management by appropriately selecting patients for particular treatments. Peripheral blood neutrophil-to-lymphocyte ratio (NLR) was reported to associate with cancer progression, thus we hypothesized that intratumor genetic NLR will reflect tumor immune microenvironment (TIME) and breast cancer biology. The intratumoral genetic NLR previously defined as the ratio of CD66b (CEACAM8) and CD8 (CD8A) gene expressions was utilized to analyze total of 2,994 patients from METABRIC, TCGA, GSE21094, GSE22358, GSE25088, GSE32646, and GSE2603 cohorts. Intratumoral genetic NLR did not correlate with cancer stage nor clinical parameters of cancer cell proliferation such as Nottingham histological grade or MKI67 expression levels in neither the METABRIC or TC GA cohorts. Intratumoral genetic NLR-high breast cancer was not associated with pathologic complete response (pCR) after neoadjuvant chemotherapy in 5 independent cohorts with different regimens. Despite these results, intratumoral genetic NLR-high TNBC demonstrated worse disease-free, disease-specific, and overall survival. Intratumoral genetic NLR-low TNBC enriched multiple immune-related gene sets, was associated with higher favorable immune-related scores and with a favorable TIME, whereas no gene sets enriched to NLR-high TNBC. In conclusion, intratumoral genetic NLR-low TNBC was associated with favorable TIME and with better survival. PMID:34873491 | PMC:PMC8640806 View on the web Inoreader. Take back control of your news feed. Follow us on Twitter and Facebook.

Synergistic radiosensitizing effect of BR101801, a specific DNA-dependent protein kinase inhibitor, in various human solid cancer cells and xenografts

xlomafota13 shared this article with you from Inoreader Synergistic radiosensitizing effect of BR101801, a specific DNA-dependent protein kinase inhibitor, in various human solid cancer cells and xenografts Via American Journal of Cancer Research Am J Cancer Res. 2021 Nov 15;11(11):5440-5451. eCollection 2021. ABSTRACT DNA-dependent protein kinase (DNA-PK), an essential component of the non-homologous end-joining (NHEJ) repair pathway, plays an important role in DNA damage repair (DDR). Therefore, DNA-PK inhibition is a promising approach for overcoming radiotherapy or chemotherapy resistance in cancers. In this study, we demonstrated that BR101801, a potent DNA-PK inhibitor, acted as an effective radiosensitizer in various human solid cancer cells and an in vivo xenograft model. Overall, BR101801 strongly elevated ionizing radiation (IR)-induced genomic instability via induction of cell cycle G2/M arrest, autophagic cell death, and impairment of DDR pathway in human solid cancer cells. Interestingly, BR101801 inhibited not only phosphorylation of DNA-PK catalytic subunit in NHEJ factors but also BRCA2 protein level in homologous recombination (HR) factors. In addition, combination BR101801 and IR suppressed tumor growth compared with IR alone by reducing phosphorylation of DNA-PK in human solid cancer xenografts. Our findings suggested that BR101801 is a selective DNA-PK inhibitor with a synergistic radiosensitizing effect in human solid cancers, providing evidence for clinical applications. PMID:34873471 | PMC:PMC8640799 View on the web Inoreader. Take back control of your news feed. Follow us on Twitter and Facebook.

Morphometric analysis of the lumbar vertebrae and intervertebral discs in relation to abdominal aorta: CT-based study

xlomafota13 shared this article with you from Inoreader Morphometric analysis of the lumbar vertebrae and intervertebral discs in relation to abdominal aorta: CT-based study Via radiol anat Surg Radiol Anat. 2021 Dec 7. doi: 10.1007/s00276-021-02865-9. Online ahead of print. ABSTRACT PURPOSE: Although lumbar discectomy is the most common procedure in spine surgery, reports about anatomical relations between discs and prevertebral vessels are limited. Aim of this research was to investigate morphometric of the lumbar region and the relations between intervertebral discs (IVDs) and abdominal aorta. METHODS: 557 abdominal computed tomography scans were assess ed. For each spinal column level from Th12/L1 down to L4/L5, we investigated: intervertebral disc's and vertebra's height, width, length, and distance from aorta or common iliac artery (CIA). Those arteries were also measured in two dimensions and classified based on location. RESULTS: 54.58% of patients were male. There was a significant difference in arterial-disc distances (ADDs) between genders at the levels: L1/L2 (1.32 ± 1.97 vs. 0.96 ± 1.78 mm; p = 0.0194), L2/L3 (1.97 ± 2.16 vs. 1.15 ± 2.01 mm; p < 0.0001), L3/L4 (2.54 ± 2.78 vs. 1.71 ± 2.61 mm; p = 0.0012), also for both CIAs (left CIA 3.64 ± 3.63 vs. 2.6 ± 3.06 mm; p = 0.0004 and right CIA: 7.96 ± 5.06 vs. 5.8 ± 4.57 mm; p < 0.001)-those ADDs were higher in men at all levels. The length and width of IVD increased alongside with disc level with the maximum at L4/L5. CONCLUSION: Bifurcations of the aorta in most cases occurred at the L4 level. Collected data suggest that at the highest lumbar leve ls, there is a greater possibility to cause injury of the aorta due to its close anatomical relationship with discs. Females have limited, in comparison to males, ADD at L1/L2, L2/L3, and L3/L4 levels what should be taken into consideration during preoperative planning of surgical intervention. PMID:34874459 | DOI:10.1007/s00276-021-02865-9 View on the web Inoreader. Take back control of your news feed. Follow us on Twitter and Facebook.

Exoscopic visualisation with VITOM® 3D in paediatric cochlear implantation: preliminary results

xlomafota13 shared this article with you from Inoreader Exoscopic visualisation with VITOM® 3D in paediatric cochlear implantation: preliminary results Via Clinical Otolaryngology Abstract 3D exoscopy is an emerging visualisation technique designed to improve ergonomics and image quality during surgeries. We present a novel application of the VITOM® 3D exoscope in cochlear implantation (IDEAL Stage 2a prospective case series). The system enabled high-quality visualisation during both posterior tympanotomy and electrode insertion. Both the chief surgeon and the staff members rated the ergonomics of the system highly. 3D exoscopy is a useful alternative to conventional microscopy, but the two techniques remain to be directly compared in larger studies. View on the web Inoreader. Take back control of your news feed. Follow us on Twitter and Facebook.

Prediction of Oxygen Desaturation by Using Sound Data From a Noncontact Device: A Proof‐of‐Concept Study

xlomafota13 shared this article with you from Inoreader Prediction of Oxygen Desaturation by Using Sound Data From a Noncontact Device: A Proof‐of‐Concept Study Via The Laryngoscope Objectives/Hypothesis Prediction of the apnea-hypopnea index (AHI) from breathing sounds during sleep could be used to prescreen for obstructive sleep apnea (OSA). In addition, the oxygen desaturation index (ODI) is a known risk factor for developing cardiovascular disease in OSA patients. This study focused on estimation of ODI from a noncontact manner from sleep breathing sounds. Study Design Retrospective study. Methods Patients who visited the sleep center due to snoring or sleep apnea underwent polysomnography in lab overnight. Sound recordings were made during polysomnography using a microphone. After noise reduction, the sound data were segmented into 5 seconds windows and features were extracted. Binary classification and regression analyses were performed to estimate the ODI during sleep (model 1). This was re-tested after inclusion of body mass index (BMI) and age as additional features (model 2: BMI only, model 3: BMI and age). Results We included 116 patients. The mean age and AHI of all patients were 50.4 ± 16.7 years and 23.0 ± 24.0 events/hr. In binary classification, for ODI cutoff values of 5, 15, and 30 events/hr, the areas under the curve were 0.88, 0.93, 0.91, respectively, and accuracies were 85.34, 86.21, and 87.07, respectively. In regression analysis, the correlation coefficient and mean absolute error were 0.80 and 9.60 events/hr, respectively. In models 2 and 3, the correlation coefficient and mean absolute error were 0.82, 9.44 events/hr and 0.81, 9.6 events/hr, respectively. Conclusion Prediction of ODI from sleep sound seems to be feasible. Additional clinical feature such as BMI may increase overall predictability. Level of Evidence IV Laryngoscope, 2021 View on the web Inoreader. Take back control of your news feed. Follow us on Twitter and Facebook.

Third molar surgical difficulty scales: systematic review and preoperative assessment form

xlomafota13 shared this article with you from Inoreader Third molar surgical difficulty scales: systematic review and preoperative assessment form Via pubmed: "med oral patol oral... Med Oral Patol Oral Cir Bucal. 2021 Dec 7:24951. doi: 10.4317/medoral.24951. Online ahead of print. ABSTRACT BACKGROUND: The main objective of this systematic review was to collect the pre-existing scales for assessing the difficulty of third molar extraction. The secondary objective was to design a proposal for a preoperative evaluation protocol for the difficulty of third molar extraction. MATERIAL AND METHODS: Two independent researchers conducted an electronic search in Pubmed (MEDLINE), Cochrane, and Scopus databases during March 2021. Included studies evaluated the prediction of the difficulty of surgical removal of impacted upper or lower third molars using new indices/scales or pre-existing scales with or without modifications. Articles referring to coronectomies or assessing pre-surgical difficulty using other tools were excluded. Neither language nor publication date restrictions were applied. RESULTS: Out of 242 articles, 13 prospective cohort studies were finally selected. Seven developed new indices/scales, and 6 assessed the predictive ability of some pre-existing scales. Most of the indices/scales contained radiological variables and few added any patient-related variables. We proposed a preoperative assessment protocol of the difficulty of third molar extraction to facilitate treatment planning and/or considerate referral in cases of high difficulty. This proposal used patient-related, radiological and surgical variables. CONCLUSIONS: Using a preoperative protocol to evaluate the surgical difficulty, including different patient-specific, radiological and surgical variables, could facilitate treatment planning, help clinicians prevent complications and assess the possibility of referral. PMID:34874928 | DOI:10.4317/medoral.24951 View on the web Inoreader. Take back control of your news feed. Follow us on Twitter and Facebook.

Macrophage inhibitory cytokine-1 produced by melanoma cells contributes to melanoma tumor growth and metastasis in vivo by enhancing tumor vascularization

xlomafota13 shared this article with you from Inoreader Macrophage inhibitory cytokine-1 produced by melanoma cells contributes to melanoma tumor growth and metastasis in vivo by enhancing tumor vascularization Via Melanoma Research - Published Ahead-of-Print Macrophage inhibitory cytokine-1 (MIC-1) has been reported to be elevated in various human cancers including melanoma; however, the function of MIC-1 in cancer remains unclear. In this study, we attempt to clarify the role of MIC-1 in tumor pathogenesis by employing the orthotopic B16F1 melanoma mouse model in which seru m MIC-1 levels are positively correlated with tumor size. By stably transfecting a MIC-1 expression construct into B16F1 melanoma cells, we increased the expression and secretion levels of MIC-1. This increase in MIC-1 expression significantly enhanced the growth of tumors derived from B16F1 cells in vivo, despite not affecting in vitro cell growth. The elevated MIC-1 expression in B16F1 cells also resulted in lymph node metastasis in B16F1 tumor-bearing mice, significantly increasing mortality. Interestingly, among small melanoma tumors of similar size, tumors derived from the MIC-1-transfected B16F1 cells exhibited enhanced blood vessel formation compared with those of mock transfectant cells. Also, more MIC-1 was found in well-vascularized tumor regions than in poorly vascularized tumor regions. Moreover, conditioned medium (CM) of the MIC-1-transfected melanoma cells enhanced the angiogenic properties of endothelial cells more than CM of mock transfectant cells. Notably, hypoxic culture conditions forced parental B16F1 cells to secrete more endothelial cell-stimulating factors, among which the function of MIC-1 was confirmed by blocking the effects with an anti-MIC-1 antibody. Taken together, these results suggest that the MIC-1 produced by melanoma cells in response to oxygen deprivation promotes tumor vascularization during melanoma development in vivo, leading to enhanced tumor growth and metastasis. * Jaeseob Lee and Young-June Jin contributed equally to the writing of this article. Received 29 March 2021 Accepted 22 September 2021 Correspondence to Hansoo Lee, PhD, Department of Biological Sciences, College of Natural Sciences, Kangwon National University, Chuncheon 24341, Republic of Korea, Tel: +82 33 250 8530; e-mail: hslee@kangwon.ac.kr Copyright © 2021 Wolters Kluwer Health, Inc. All rights reserved. View on the web Inoreader. Take back control of your news feed. Follow us on Twitter and Facebook.