Cancer Biomarkers

Mini Chromosome Maintenance 5 (MCM5) is considered as a urinary biomarker of bladder cancer. ADXBLADDER is a commercially available test to detect MCM5 antibodies.

External validation of ADXBLADDER test as a urinary biomarker of histopathologically confirmed non-muscle invasive bladder cancer (NMIBC) recurrence.

The study enrolled 119 consecutive patients with a history of NMIBC and 37 healthy volunteers matched as controls. Single, full-void urine samples were collected from patients before cystoscopy ± TUR. To measure MCM5 expression, Arquer Diagnostics ADXBLADDER test was used. The study protocol was registered within the clinical trials database (NCT03796299).

Among patients with NMIBC history, recurrence was diagnosed in 83 patients (69.7%). ADXBLADDER demonstrated sensitivity of 73.5% (95% confidence interval (CI) 62.7%–82.6%), specificity of 33.3% (95% CI 18.6% to 51%), overall negative predictive value (NPV) of 35.3% (95% CI 23.3% to 49.5%) and overall positive predictive value of 71.8% (95% CI 66.1% to 76.8%) for detecting recurrence. In a control group, false positive ADXBLADDER results were noticed in 18 patients (48.6%). The sensitivity and NPV were the highest in invasive tumors (100% and 100%, respectively) and in high-grade recurrences (81.8% and 94.1%, respectively).

ADXBLADDER has a moderate sensitivity and poor specificity in detecting NMIBC recurrence. However, it properly diagnoses patients with T1 + stage recurrence or high-grade tumors.

Non-small cell lung cancer (NSCLC) is one of the most widespread cancer with increasing morbidity and mortality. FAS-associated protein with death domain (FADD) is considered as an essential instrument in cell death, whereas Bcl-XS promotes apoptosis through inhibiting the activity of Bcl-2 and Bcl-XL.

We detected the expression of FADD and Bcl-XS in resected NSCLC tissues by immunohistochemistry, and investigated their association with clinicopathological characteristics and prognostic significance of NSCLC patients.

Bcl-XS expression was significantly increased in well and moderate differentiated lung SCC ( P = 0.004). Lung ADC patients with overexpression of FADD and lung SCC patients with low expression of Bcl-XS had importantly lower overall survival rates by Kaplan-Meier analysis ( P = 0.033, P = 0.02, respectively). Multivariate analysis confirmed that elevated expression of FADD was an independent poor prognostic factor for patients with surgically resected lung ADC ( P = 0.027) and increased expression of Bcl-XS was an independent good prognostic factor for patients with surgically resected lung SCC ( P = 0.016)

Elevated expression of FADD was identified as independent poor prognostic factor for patients with surgically resected lung ADC, however, increased expression of Bcl-XS was an independent good prognostic biomarker for patients with surgically resected lung SCC.

Long noncoding RNA (lncRNA) are critical regulators of tumor progression.

To determine how the lncRNA membrane associated guanylate kinase, WW and PDZ domain-containing 2 (MAG12) antisense RNA 3 (MAGI2-AS3) and the phosphatase and tensin homolog (PTEN) gene function in regulating bladder cancer (Bca) progression.

Total RNA from 80 Bca tissues and 30 paired para-cancerous tissues from patients was sequentially extracted, quantified, purified, and reverse transcribed using RT-PCR. A library was constructed and sequenced. Four Bca cell lines and a normal urothelial cell line were transfected with lentiviral plasmids, and cell migration and invasion were assayed in vitro. An orthotopic mouse model of Bca was created for in vivo studies.

MAGI2-AS3 expression was significantly downregulated in Bca, compared with normal tissues, and negatively associated with tumor stage and a poor prognosis. MAGI2-AS3 and its sense RNA MAGI2 showed significant and positive correlation. The expression of MAGI2 and its downstream gene, PTEN, increased in Bca cells overexpressing MAGI2-AS3, and interference by MAGI2 expression reversed the migration and invasion inhibited by MAGI2-AS3 overexpression.

MAGI2-AS3 overexpression inhibited Bca cell progression by regulating the MAGI2/PTEN/epithelial-mesenchymal transition, offering novel insights into the mechanism of Bca progression.

Circular RNA (circRNA) is a class of non-coding RNA that is vital for regulating gene expression and biological functions. Mounting studies demonstrate that circRNA is crucial for human cancer development. However, the role of circ_0000039 in gastric cancer (GC) remains uncertain.

Normal human gastric tissues and GC tissue samples were collected, and quantitative real-time polymerase chain reaction (qRT-PCR) was employed to detect the expression levels of circ_0000039, miR-1292-5p, and DEK. GC cell lines with overexpression and low expression of circ_0000039 were constructed. Cell counting kit-8 (CCK-8), scratch healing and Transwell experiments were used to assess the function of circ_0000039 on the proliferation, migration and invasion of GC cells. Bioinformatics analysis and dual-luciferase reporter assays were employed to detect the targeting relationship between circ_0000039 and miR-1292-5p.

Circ_0000039 expression was up-regulated in GC tissues and cell lines, and it was significantly related with poor differentiation of tumor tissues. In addition, circ_0000039 overexpression enhanced the proliferation, migration and invasion of GC cells, while circ_0000039 depletion inhibited these malignant biological behaviors. In terms of mechanism, it was found that circ_0000039 promoted the proliferation and progression of GC cells by adsorbing miR-1292-5p and up-regulating the expression of DEK.

Circ_0000039 is a new oncogenic circRNA in GC, which regulates the miR-1292-5p/DEK axis to modulate the malignant biological behaviors of GC.

Glioblastoma (GBM) is the most common and aggressive primary malignant brain tumor with a high mortality rate. Aberrant activation of signal transducers and activators of transcription (STAT) signaling results in tumor pathogenesis and progression by regulating cell cycle, cell survival and immune response.

Therapeutic targets and prognostic biomarkers within the STAT family in GBM were explored using web applications and databases.

High levels of STAT1/3/5A/5B/6 and low levels of STAT4 were observed in GBM patients. GBM patients expressing high STAT1/2/3/5A/6 and low STAT4/5B levels had the worse overall survival. Among the STAT family, STAT4 and STAT6 were the most frequently mutated genes. A low to moderate correlation among members of the STAT family was observed. Additionally, the STATs were involved in activation or inhibition of cancer related pathways. Analysis of immune infiltrates showed STAT5A levels to be significantly correlated with abundance of immune cells and levels of immune gene biomarkers. Gene ontology (GO) functions and KEGG pathway analysis indicated that STAT5A is involved in immune response-regulating signaling pathway, neutrophil and lymphocyte mediated immunity, single-stranded DNA binding, cytokine-cytokine receptor interaction, NOD-like receptor signaling pathway, NF-kappa B signaling pathway and TNF signaling pathway. Moreover, several kinase and transcription factor targets of STAT5A in GBM were identified.

We report here therapeutic targets, prognostic biomarkers and regulation network of STAT family in GBM. These findings lay a foundation for further studies on the role of STAT family in therapy and prognosis of GBM. Further studies are required to verify our results.

Contactin1 (CNTN1), a member of the immunoglobulin superfamily, is known to correlate with tumor development and progression. Although recent studies have found that elevated CNTN1 has been demonstrated in some types of cancers, the expression and prognosis of CNTN1 in colorectal cancer (CRC) are unclear. Here, we aimed to determine the clinicopathological characteristics and prognostic role of CNTN1 in CRC patients.

The protein expression of CNTN1 in tumor tissues was evaluated by immunohistochemistry. In addition, the mRNA and protein expressions of CNTN1 were examined by qRT-PCR and Western blotting analysis in 40 matched adjacent normal mucosa samples. The relationships of CNTN1 with clinicopathological data and prognosis significance were analyzed.

Immunohistochemical consequence suggested that the protein level of CNTN1 was obviously raised in CRC compared with adjacent normal mucosa tissues (56.9% vs 10.3%, P < 0.05). In addition, we detected a significant increase in CNTN1 mRNA and protein levels in CRC tissues compared with the matched adjacent normal mucosa tissues. Moreover, increased CNTN1 exprssion was significantly associated with tumor size, lymph node metastasis (LNM), tumor node-metastasis (TNM) stage and carcino-embryonic antigen (CEA) in clinical analysis. Kaplan-Meier analysis suggested that patients with CNTN1 over-expression showed worse overall survival (OS) ( P = 0.001). Multivariate analysis indicated that high CNTN1 expression was an independent predictor for poor OS in CRC patients ( P = 0.028). Further analysis revealed that patients with high CNTN1 combined with LNM present accurately predicted poorer outcome.

Taken together, the findingsindicate that CNTN1 plays a significant role and serve as a potential biomarker for the prediction of adverse prognosis in CRC. Intriguingly, high express of CNTN1 + LNM-present combination may improve the accuracy of prognosis.

Homeobox A5 (HOXA5) is a member of the HOX protein family which is involved in several carcinogenesis pathways, and is dysregulated in many cancer types. However, its expression and function in human colorectal cancer (CRC) is still largely unknown.

This study aimed to evaluate HOXA5 expression in Tunisian patients with CRC in order to define new potential biomarker.

An immunohistochemical labeling using an HOXA5 antibody was performed on 85 formalin fixed paraffin embedded specimens from patients with CRC. Six normal colon mucosa cases were used as controls.

HOXA5 expression showed a cytoplasmic staining in both tumor and stromal/endothelial cells. Loss or low HOXA5 expression was seen in tumor cells in 74/85 cases (87.06%) and in stromal/endothelial cells, in 77/85 (90.59%). In control group of normal colon mucosa HOXA5 was moderately expressed in all the cases. The abnormal expression, was significantly associated to lymph nodes metastasis in tumor cells ( p = 0.043) and in stromal/endothelial cells ( p = 0.024).

HOXA5 immunostaining results suggest the valuable role of this protein in colorectal carcinogenesis. Moreover, the association of lymph node metastasis to HOXA5 abnormal expression underlies its crucial role in colorectal cancer dissemination and prognosis.

Bone mesenchymal stem cells (BMSCs) have been widely researched in cancer treatment, including hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC). This study intended to discuss the mechanism of miR-20a-3p in BMSCs-extracellular vesicles (EVs) in HCC apoptosis.

BMSCs were isolated and identified. EVs derived from BMSCs were extracted and identified. After overexpressing or inhibiting miR-20a-3p expression in BMSCs, EVs were extracted and acted on HCC cells and transplanted tumors. HCC cell apoptosis in the treatment of BMSCs-conditioned medium, BMSCs-EVs and/or miR-20a-3p mimic/inhibitor was evaluated, with the detection of levels of TRAIL and TRAIL-related proteins. A functional rescue experiment about c-FLIP was carried out in HCC cells. The target binding relationship between miR-20a-3p and c-FLIP was detected. The subcutaneous tumorigenesis model of mice was established and injected with BMSCs-EVs to estimate the effect of BMSCs-EVs-miR-20a-3p on HCC growth.

EVs isolated from BMSCs conditioned medium promoted the apoptosis of HCC cells. After BMSCs-EVs treatment, TRAIL levels, downstream proteins and miR-20a-3p were increased significantly, but the expression of c-FLIP was decreased. miR-20a-3p could target c-FLIP. BMSCs-EVs inhibited the growth of HCC cells, decreased c-FLIP expression, increased TRAIL levels, and promote the of HCC cell apoptosis. BMSCs-EVs with overexpressing miR-20a-3p further enhanced the apoptotic effect of HCC cells in vitro and in vivo.

BMSCs-EVs-carried miR-20a-3p targets c-FLIP and increases TRAIL levels in HCC cells, thus promoting TRAIL-related apoptosis.

Lung adenocarcinoma (LUAD) is a primary cause of cancer-patient mortality throughout the world. Thyroid hormone receptor interactor 13 (TRIP13) is a gene that expresses a protein involved in cell division, including tumorigenesis. Its expression is high in various human tumors; however, its role in LUAD cells remains undetermined.

To investigate the TRIP13’s role in the development of LUAD.

Bioinformation analysis was used to analyze the expression of TRIP13 in LUAD tissues and the impact on the prognosis of LUAD; CRISPR/Cas9 was used to construct the cell lines; CCK-8 was used to explore the cell proliferation; Transwell assays was applied to exam the cell migration and cell invasion abilities; Western blot and immunoprecipitation was used to explore the relation between TRIP13 and AKT/mTORC1/c-Myc signaling pathway.

By analyzing LUAD data from The Cancer Genome Atlas and the Gene Expression Omnibus databases, we determined that TRIP13 is highly expressed in LUAD tissues and that this expression level has a negative impact on the patient mortality. TRIP13 has also proved to promote LUAD cell proliferation, migration, and invasion. In this study, we demonstrated that TRIP13 activates AKT/mTORC1/c-Myc signaling in these cells.

Our results have identified the role and potential mechanism by which TRIP13 affects LUAD cells, which may provide a useful marker for helping to diagnose this disease and create new therapies against it.

CircRNA_100565 was an independent prognostic factor for NSCLC patient survival, and enhanced the resistance of NSCLC cells to cisplatin by regulating cell proliferation, apoptosis and autophagy via miR-337-3p/ADAM28 axis, shedding light on the development of a novel therapeutic strategy to boost the effectiveness of NSCLC chemotherapy.