Tumor immune microenvironment of primary colorectal adenocarcinomas metastasizing to the liver or lungs

CILP2 is a potential biomarker for the prediction and therapeutic target of peritoneal metastases in colorectal cancer

Peritoneal metastases (PM) in colorectal cancer (CRC) is associated with a dismal prognosis. Identifying and exploiting new biomarkers, signatures, and molecular targets for personalised interventions in the treatment of PM in CRC is imperative. We conducted transcriptomic profiling using RNA-seq data generated from the primary tissues of 19 CRC patients with PM. Using our dataset established in a previous study, we identified 1422 differentially expressed genes compared to non-metastatic CRC. The profiling demonstrated no differential expression in liver and lung metastatic CRC. We selected 12 genes based on stringent criteria and evaluated their expression patterns in a validation cohort of 32 PM patients and 84 without PM using real-time reverse transcription-polymerase chain reaction. We selected cartilage intermediate layer protein 2 (CILP2) because of high mRNA expression in PM patients in our validation cohort and its association with a poor prognosis in The Cancer Genome Atlas. Kaplan-Meier survival analysis in our validation cohort demonstrated that CRC patients with high CILP2 expression had significantly poor survival outcomes. Knockdown of CILP2 significantly reduced the proliferation, colony-forming ability, invasiveness, and migratory capacity and downregulated the expression of molecules related to epithelial-mesenchymal transition in HCT116 cells. In an in vivo peritoneal dissemination mouse knockdown of CILP2 also inhibited CRC growth. Therefore, CILP2 is a promising biomarker for the prediction and treatment of PM in CRC.

Low Expression of Phosphodiesterase 2 (PDE2A) Promotes the Progression by Regulating Mitochondrial Morphology and ATP Content and Predicts Poor Prognosis in Hepatocellular Carcinoma

Phosphodiesterase 2 (PDE2A) modulates the levels of cAMP/cGMP and was recently found to be involved in mitochondria function regulation, closely related to multiple types of tumor progression. This study aimed to estimate the prognostic significance and biological effects of PDE2A on hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC). We comprehensively analyzed the PDE2A mRNA expression in HCC based on The Cancer Genome Atlas (TCGA) database and investigated the effects of PDE2A on the proliferation and metastatic capacity of HCC cells. PDE2A was downregulated in 25 cancer types, including HCC. Lower PDE2A expression was a protective factor in HCC and was negatively associated with serum AFP levels, tumor status, vascular invasion, histologic grade, and pathologic stage of HCC. Moreover, tumors with low PDE2A expression displayed a decreased immune function. Then, the ROC curve was used to assess the diagnostic ability of PDE2A in HCC (AUC = 0.823 in TCGA and AUC = 0.901 in GSE76427). Patients with low PDE2A expression exhibited worse outcomes compared with those with high PDE2A expression. Additionally, GO functional annotations demonstrated the involvement of PDE2A in the ECM organization, systems development, and ERK-related pathways, indicating that PDE2A might regulate HCC growth and metastasis. The in vitro experiments confirmed that overexpression of PDE2A inhibited proliferation, colony formation, migration, and invasion in two HCC cell lines (HLF and SNU-368), while inhibition of PDE2A has the opposite results. The mechanism of PDE2A's effect on HCC cells is attributed to the change of mitochondrial morphology and ATP content. These data demonstrated that PDE2A closely participated in the regulation of HCC proliferation and metastasis and can be used as a predictive marker candidate and a potential therapeutic target for HCC.

miR-127-5p Targets JAM3 to Regulate Ferroptosis, Proliferation, and Metastasis in Malignant Meningioma Cells

Objective

Meningiomas are one of the most common primary tumors of the central nervous system. Most of them are benign and can be cured by surgery, while a few meningiomas are malignant. Ferroptosis gene characteristics might be associated with drug therapy and survival in patients with clinically aggressive, unresectable meningiomas. This study explored the mechanism of differentially expressed miRNAs and ferroptosis in meningioma to provide a new reference to treat meningioma.

Methods

Bioinformatics analysis of differential miRNA profiles and functions in patients with meningioma was performed. The contents of lactate dehydrogenase (LDH), malondialdehyde (MDA), and Fe²⁺ were determined. Reactive oxygen species (ROS) values, as well as cell cycle changes, were analyzed by flow cytometry. The targets of miR-127-5p and JAM3 were detected by dual luciferase assays. Cell counting kit-8 (CCK8) and Transwell assays were used to analyze cell activity. Ki67 expression was analyzed by immunohistochemistry. Expression levels of miR-127-5p and JAM3 were analyzed by RT-qPCR. GPX4 expression was quantified by western blotting.

Results

miR-127-5p was expressed at low levels in IOMM-Lee cells, while JAM3 was highly expressed in IOMM-Lee cells. A dual luciferase assay demonstrated that miR-127-5p could target JAM3. Upregulation of miR-127-5p in IOMM-Lee cells resulted in cell cycle arrest and inhibition of cell activity. Upregulation of miR-127-5p increased LDH, MDA, and ROS levels and Fe²⁺ content and inhibited the expression of GPX4 protein. Upregulation of JAM3 reversed the results of miR-127-5p upregulation.

Conclusion

miR-127-5p regulated meningioma formation and ferroptosis through JAM3, providing insights for the development of new treatments for meningioma.