HPV Enhances HNSCC Chemosensitization by Inhibiting SERPINB3 Expression to Disrupt the Fanconi Anemia Pathway

Effect of deubiquitinases in head and neck squamous cell carcinoma (Review)

HNSCC includes nasopharyngeal, laryngeal and oral cancers, and its pathogenesis is influenced by various factors. As an essential part of the ubiquitin (Ub)-proteasome system (UPS), deubiquitinating enzymes (DUBs) maintain the homeostasis of Ub molecules and influence the physiological functions of cells and disease processes by removing ubiquitinated proteins. Accumulating evidence has confirmed that the aberrant expression of DUBs is involved in cell proliferation, metastasis, and apoptosis during the development of HNSCC, with some acting as oncogenes and others as tumor-suppressor genes. In this review, the DUBs implicated in HNSCC were summarized and the mechanisms underlying abnormal DUBs expression in signaling pathways were discussed. In addition, given the important role of DUBs in tumorigenesis, recent studies were reviewed and agonists and inhibitors of DUBs were summarized to identify more effective therapeutic strategies.

Neoadjuvant Chemotherapy With Cisplatin Up-Regulates GSDMD to Enhance Oral Squamous Cell Carcinoma Metastasis Through MMP14-Mediated EMT Activation

Neoadjuvant chemotherapy has been widely used for the treatment of solid tumors. However, clinical observations have shown that patients with oral squamous cell carcinoma (OSCC) who are receiving neoadjuvant chemotherapy with cisplatin still face issues such as a poor lymph node response and even lymph node progression, but the underlying mechanisms remain unidentified. In this work, it is found that low-dose cisplatin promoted oral squamous cell carcinoma migration, invasion and lymph node metastasis, and gasdermin D (GSDMD) is identified as a potential regulator. GSDMD interacted with MMP14, promoting its expression and epithelial‒mesenchymal transition (EMT) activation without activating pyroptosis. Moreover, pH-responsive nanoparticles (NPs) for the systemic delivery of a GSDMD siRNA (siGSDMD) is developed and showed that this NP-delivered siGSDMD can effectively inhibit OSCC tumor growth and metastasis via the efficient silencing of GSDMD expression in vivo. This findings indicate that GSDMD can be a biomarker to predict the prognosis of OSCC patients receiving neoadjuvant chemotherapy and that NP-mediated GSDMD silencing can be a promising strategy for the treatment of patients with advanced OSCC receiving neoadjuvant chemotherapy with cisplatin.

Revolutionizing head and neck squamous cell carcinoma treatment with nanomedicine in the era of immunotherapy

Head and neck squamous cell carcinoma (HNSCC) is a prevalent malignant tumor globally. Despite advancements in treatment methods, the overall survival rate remains low due to limitations such as poor targeting and low bioavailability, which result in the limited efficacy of traditional drug therapies. Nanomedicine is considered to be a promising strategy in tumor therapy, offering the potential for maximal anti-tumor effects. Nanocarriers can overcome biological barriers, enhance drug delivery efficiency to targeted sites, and minimize damage to normal tissues. Currently, various nano-carriers for drug delivery have been developed to construct new nanomedicine. This review aims to provide an overview of the current status of HNSCC treatment and the necessity of nanomedicine in improving treatment outcomes. Moreover, it delves into the research progress of nanomedicine in HNSCC treatment, with a focus on enhancing radiation sensitivity, improving the efficacy of tumor immunotherapy, effectively delivering chemotherapy drugs, and utilizing small molecule inhibitors. Finally, this article discussed the challenges and prospects of applying nanomedicine in cancer treatment.

DNA damage response and inflammatory response: Two traffic lights for HPVs on the road to transformation

Human papillomaviruses (HPVs) are non-enveloped double-stranded DNA viruses. When HPV infection persists, infected tissues can develop many HPV-related diseases such as cervical cancer and head and neck squamous cell carcinoma. To establish their persistent infection, HPVs have evolved mechanisms to manipulate the host cellular processes such as DNA damage response (DDR), which includes homologous recombination, nonhomologous end joining, and microhomology-mediated end joining. Additionally, HPVs utilize host inflammatory processes to facilitate their life cycles. Here, we bridge the concepts of DDR and inflammatory response, and discuss how HPV proteins orchestrate a sophisticated manipulation of DDR and inflammation to promote their viral replication, ultimately fostering the progression of infected cells towards oncogenic transformation to malignancy.

ANKRD2 expression combined with TNFRSF19 expression for evaluating the prognosis of oral squamous cell carcinoma patients

Objective

As an important chemotherapy drug, cisplatin has been widely used in the treatment of many cancers. However, many patients, including oral squamous cell carcinoma (OSCC) patients, experience unacceptable outcomes from cisplatin treatment. Thus, we devised a risk model for predicting the sensitivity of OSCC patients to cisplatin treatment, to provide a reference for clinical practice.

Methods

CAL-27 and SCC-9 cell lines treated or not with cisplatin and data from The Cancer Genome Atlas (TCGA) were screened for simultaneously and significantly differentially expressed genes. Next, we built a risk model for predicting cisplatin sensitivity in OSCC patients. Reverse transcription-polymerase chain reaction (RT-PCR), pathological samples and clinical data were used to examine the reliability of the model.

Results

ANKRD2 and TNFRSF19 were differentially expressed between the OSCC metastasis cell line HSC-3 treated and not treated with cisplatin, as well as between the OSCC cell line SCC-25 and the cell line SCC25-DDP, which has cisplatin chemoresistance. We found that the expression of ANKRD2 and TNFRSF19 had a significant influence on the prognosis of OSCC patients. The risk model that combined ANKRD2 and TNFRSF19 to predict sensitivity to cisplatin in OSCC patients was confirmed by analysing the pathological samples and follow-up information of clinical patients.

Conclusions

The expression of ANKRD2 and TNFRSF19 is associated with cisplatin sensitivity and prognosis in patients with OSCC. The survival outcome of patients with oral squamous cell carcinoma (OSCC) was found to be significantly worse in those with high expression of ANKRD2 combined with low expression of TNFRSF19. ANKRD2 and TNFRSF19 may be targets for cisplatin sensitivity prediction in OSCC patients. These findings may provide novel strategies for overcoming cisplatin resistance.

The Expression of ZNF268 and Its Role in The Cisplatin-based Chemoresistance of Breast Cancer

Objective

Breast cancer is one of the most prevalent cancers in females worldwide and is one of the leading causes of cancer death and disability in women. Multiple therapies have been applied to breast cancer treatment; however, the long-term survival rate remains low. Although cisplatin has been widely utilized for cancer therapy, chemoresistance still influences the outcome.

Methods

After collecting the breast cancer cell line MDA-MB-231 treated with or without cisplatin and sample information from The Cancer Genome Atlas Program (TCGA), we screened out their common parameters and influences on the prognoses of patients' potential targets. Surgical excisional tissue sections of patients with breast cancer who were admitted and treated in the Department of Breast and Thyroid Surgery, Liuzhou People's Hospital from 2017 to 2020 was collected and follow up. After a series of assays combined with clinical information, we tested the reliability of the target.

Results

We found that a high expression level of ZNF268 in breast cancer cell lines significantly enhances the sensitivity to cisplatin, contrary to the effects of low expression. Furthermore, a significantly worse prognosis was observed in patients with a high expression of ZNF268 after cisplatin chemotherapy.

Conclusion

The expression level of ZNF268 in breast cancer patients after cisplatin chemotherapy may become a potential target to predict the chemoresistance of patients to cisplatin. This study provides a novel idea for improving breast cancer treatment and survival rates.

CD79A work as a potential target for the prognosis of patients with OSCC: analysis of immune cell infiltration in oral squamous cell carcinoma based on the CIBERSORTx deconvolution algorithm

OBJECTIVE

To analyze the abundance of infiltrating tumor immune cells in patients with oral squamous cell carcinoma (OSCC) and to search for potential targets that can predict patient prognosis.

METHODS

A total of 400 samples from 210 patients with OSCC were collected using The Cancer Genome Atlas (TCGA) database. CIBERSORTx was used to evaluate the infiltration abundance of tumor immune cells. Potential target genes were searched to predict patient prognosis through case grouping, differential analysis, and enrichment analysis. Surgical excisional tissue sections of patients with oral squamous cell carcinoma admitted to the Department of Oral and Maxillofacial Surgery, Second Affiliated Hospital of Shantou University Medical College, from 2015 to 2018 were collected and followed up.

RESULTS

The CIBERSORTx deconvolution algorithm was used to analyze the infiltration abundance of immune cells in the samples. Cases with a high infiltration abundance of naive and memory B lymphocytes improved the prognosis of OSCC patients. The prognosis of patients with low CD79A expression was significantly better than that of patients with high CD79A expression.

CONCLUSION

CD79A can predict the infiltration abundance of B lymphocytes in the tumor microenvironment of patients with OSCC. CD79A is a potential target for predicting the prognosis of patients with OSCC. This study provides novel ideas for the treatment of OSCC and for predicting patient prognosis.

Human papillomavirus associated XPF deficiency increases alternative end joining and cisplatin sensitivity in head and neck squamous cell carcinoma

OBJECTIVES

Human papillomavirus (HPV) positive head and neck squamous cell carcinoma (HNSCC) showed a considerably better prognosis with greater cisplatin sensitivity compared to their HPV-negative counterparts. Deciphering the underlying molecular mechanisms for HPV-induced cisplatin sensitivity is imperative to improve the prognosis of HPV-negative HNSCC.

MATERIALS AND METHODS

The Fanconi anemia (FA) pathway status in HNSCC cells was analysed by detecting the cell cycle and chromosomal aberrations. XPF expression was validated using PCR, western blot, and immunohistochemistry. Droplet digital PCR and GFP expressing reporter assay were used to analyse the changes in alternative end-joining (alt-EJ) levels. The cisplatin sensitization was verified by cell proliferation assay, clonogenic cell survival assay, and TUNEL.

RESULTS

HPV-positive HNSCC cells showed significant prolonged G2-M cell cycle arrest and aberrant chromosome formation under interstrand crosslinker treatment. Both mRNA and protein expression of XPF were considerably decreased in HPV-positive HNSCC, according to the analysis of cellular and clinical data. XPF inhibition upregulated the activity of the alt-EJ pathway in HPV-negative HNSCC cells by 32.02% (P < 0.001) but had little effect on HPV-positive HNSCC. Consistent with this, simultaneous suppression of XPF and alt-EJ enhanced cisplatin sensitivity of HPV-negative HNSCC in vitro and in vivo.

CONCLUSION

HPV-positive HNSCC cells exhibit a profound FA pathway deficiency associated with reduced XPF expression. HNSCC cells with compromised XPF function are more reliant on the alt-EJ pathway for genomic stability. Combining FA and alt-EJ inhibition may be used to cope with the hard-to-treat HPV-negative HNSCC.