In hepatocellular carcinoma miR-519d is up-regulated by p53 and DNA hypomethylation and targets CDKN1A/p21, PTEN, AKT3 and TIMP2

Targeting microRNA methylation: Innovative approaches to diagnosing and treating hepatocellular carcinoma

Hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC) stands as the most prevalent form of primary liver cancer and is frequently linked to underlying chronic liver conditions such as hepatitis B, hepatitis C, and cirrhosis. Despite the progress achieved in the field of oncology, HCC remains a significant clinical challenge, primarily due to its typically late-stage diagnosis and the complex and multifaceted nature of its tumor biology. These factors contribute to the limited effectiveness of current treatment modalities and result in poor patient prognosis. Emerging research has underscored the vital role of microRNAs (miRNAs)-small, non-coding RNA molecules that play a pivotal part in the post-transcriptional regulation of gene expression. These miRNAs are integral to a wide array of cellular functions, including proliferation, apoptosis, and differentiation, and their dysregulation is closely associated with the pathogenesis of various cancers, notably HCC. A major focus in recent studies has been on the epigenetic regulation of miRNAs through methylation, a key mechanism that modulates gene expression. This process, involving the addition of methyl groups to CpG islands in the promoter regions of miRNA genes, can result in either gene silencing or activation, influencing the expression of oncogenes and tumor suppressor genes. Such alterations have profound implications for tumor growth, metastasis, and resistance to treatment. Evidence suggests that aberrant miRNA methylation can serve as a powerful biomarker for early detection and prognosis in HCC and may present novel opportunities for therapeutic intervention. This review aims to provide a comprehensive overview of the current landscape of miRNA methylation in HCC, elucidating its significance in the molecular mechanisms of liver cancer and examining its potential for clinical application. By exploring the diagnostic and therapeutic potential of miRNA methylation, we seek to highlight its value in enhancing personalized treatment strategies and improving patient outcomes.

Molecular mechanism and therapeutic strategies for embryonal tumors with multilayered rosettes in children (Review)

Embryonal tumors with multilayered rosettes (ETMR) are relatively rare but highly aggressive intracranial tumors that mainly occur in children under four years of age. Despite high-intensity and multi-modal treatment, the five-year overall survival rate of patients with ETMR remains <30%. Therefore, it is necessary to improve understanding of the molecular biological changes in ETMR. The present review presents an overview of the recent molecular and biological characteristics of ETMR in children, the current recommended treatments, and research into potential targeted strategies based on these findings. ETMR are molecularly characterized by distinct DNA methylation signatures and dysregulated expression of oncogenic miRNAs. Despite increased knowledge of the novel molecular characteristics of ETMR in children, treatment outcomes have only marginally improved. Thus, there is an urgent need to translate these new insights in ETMR biology into more effective treatment.

miRNAs in HCC, pathogenesis, and targets

Liver cancer is the third leading cause of cancer-related mortality worldwide. HCC, the most common type of primary liver cancer, is driven by complex genetic, epigenetic, and environmental factors. MicroRNAs, a class of naturally occurring small noncoding RNAs, play crucial roles in HCC by simultaneously modulating the expression of multiple genes in a fine-tuning manner. Significant progress has been made in understanding how miRNAs influence key oncogenic pathways, including cell proliferation, apoptosis, angiogenesis, and epithelial-mesenchymal transition (EMT), as well as their role in modulating the immune microenvironment in HCC. Due to the unexpected stability of miRNAs in the blood and fixed HCC tumors, recent advancements also highlight their potential as noninvasive diagnostic tools. Restoring or inhibiting specific miRNAs has offered promising strategies for targeted HCC treatment by suppressing malignant hepatocyte growth and enhancing antitumor immunity. In this comprehensive review, we consolidate previous research and provide the latest insights into how miRNAs regulate HCC and their therapeutic and diagnostic potential. We delve into the dysregulation of miRNA biogenesis in HCC, the roles of miRNAs in the proliferation and apoptosis of malignant hepatocytes, angiogenesis and metastasis of HCC, the immune microenvironment in HCC, and drug resistance. We also discuss the therapeutic and diagnostic potential of miRNAs and delivery approaches of miRNA drugs to overcome the limitations of current HCC treatment options. By thoroughly summarizing the roles of miRNAs in HCC, our goal is to advance the development of effective therapeutic drugs with minimal adverse effects and to establish precise tools for early diagnosis of HCC.

Exploring non-coding RNA mechanisms in hepatocellular carcinoma: implications for therapy and prognosis

Hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC) is a significant contributor to cancer-related deaths in the world. The development and progression of HCC are closely correlated with the abnormal regulation of non-coding RNAs (ncRNAs), such as microRNAs (miRNAs), long non-coding RNAs (lncRNAs), and circular RNAs (circRNAs). Important biological pathways in cancer biology, such as cell proliferation, death, and metastasis, are impacted by these ncRNAs, which modulate gene expression. The abnormal expression of non-coding RNAs in HCC raises the possibility that they could be applied as new biomarkers for diagnosis, prognosis, and treatment targets. Furthermore, by controlling the expression of cancer-related genes, miRNAs can function as either tumor suppressors or oncogenes. On the other hand, lncRNAs play a role in the advancement of cancer by interacting with other molecules within the cell, which, in turn, affects processes such as chromatin remodeling, transcription, and post-transcriptional processes. The importance of ncRNA-driven regulatory systems in HCC is being highlighted by current research, which sheds light on tumor behavior and therapy response. This research highlights the great potential of ncRNAs to improve patient outcomes in this difficult disease landscape by augmenting the present methods of HCC care through the use of precision medicine approaches.

Integrated multi-omics analyses reveal the TM4SF family genes with prognostic and therapeutic relevance in hepatocellular carcinoma

TM4SF family members (TM4SFs) have been shown to be aberrantly expressed in multiple types of cancer. However, a comprehensive investigation of the TM4SFs has yet to be performed in LIHC. The study comprehensively investigated the expression and prognostic value of TM4SFs. Then, a TM4SFs-based risk model and nomogram were constructed for prognostic prediction. Finally, functional loss of TM4SFs was performed to verify the potential role of TM4SFs in LIHC. We found that TM4SFs were significantly up-regulated in LIHC. High expression and hypomethylation of TM4SFs were associated with poor prognosis of LIHC patients. Then, a TM4SFs-based risk model was constructed that could effectively classify LIHC patients into high and low-risk groups. In addition, we constructed a prognostic nomogram that could predict the long-term survival of LIHC patients. Based on immune infiltration analysis, high-risk patients had a relatively higher immune status than low-risk patients. Moreover, the prediction module could predict patient responses to immunotherapy and chemotherapy. Finally, loss-of-function studies showed that TM4SF4 knockdown could substantially suppress the growth, migratory, and invasive abilities of LIHC cells. Targeting TM4SFs will contribute to effective immunotherapy strategies and improve the prognosis of liver cancer patients.

Update on the Pathology of Pediatric Liver Tumors: A Pictorial Review

Liver tumors in children are uncommon and show remarkable morphologic heterogeneity. Pediatric tumors may arise from either the epithelial or mesenchymal component of the liver and rarely may also show both lines of differentiation. Both benign and malignant liver tumors have been reported in children. The most common pediatric liver tumors by age are benign hepatic infantile hemangiomas in neonates and infants, malignant hepatoblastoma in infants and toddlers, and malignant hepatocellular carcinoma in teenagers. Here, we provide an up-to-date review of pediatric liver tumors. We discuss the clinical presentation, imaging findings, pathology, and relevant molecular features that can help in the correct identification of these tumors, which is important in managing these children.

The Multifunctional Nature of the MicroRNA/AKT3 Regulatory Axis in Human Cancers

Serine/threonine kinase (AKT) signaling regulates diverse cellular processes and is one of the most important aberrant cell survival mechanisms associated with tumorigenesis, metastasis, and chemoresistance. Targeting AKT has become an effective therapeutic strategy for the treatment of many cancers. AKT3 (PKBγ), the least studied isoform of the AKT family, has emerged as a major contributor to malignancy. AKT3 is frequently overexpressed in human cancers, and many regulatory oncogenic or tumor suppressor small non-coding RNAs (ncRNAs), including microRNAs (miRNAs), have recently been identified to be involved in regulating AKT3 expression. Therefore, a better understanding of regulatory miRNA/AKT3 networks may reveal novel biomarkers for the diagnosis of patients with cancer and may provide invaluable information for developing more effective therapeutic strategies. The aim of this review was to summarize current research progress in the isoform-specific functions of AKT3 in human cancers and the roles of dysregulated miRNA/AKT3 in specific types of human cancers.

Doxorubicin and other anthracyclines in cancers: Activity, chemoresistance and its overcoming

Anthracyclines have been important and effective treatments against a number of cancers since their discovery. However, their use in therapy has been complicated by severe side effects and toxicity that occur during or after treatment, including cardiotoxicity. The mode of action of anthracyclines is complex, with several mechanisms proposed. It is possible that their high toxicity is due to the large set of processes involved in anthracycline action. The development of resistance is a major barrier to successful treatment when using anthracyclines. This resistance is based on a series of mechanisms that have been studied and addressed in recent years. This work provides an overview of the anthracyclines used in cancer therapy. It discusses their mechanisms of activity, toxicity, and chemoresistance, as well as the approaches used to improve their activity, decrease their toxicity, and overcome resistance.

Mesenchymal Neoplasms of the Liver

Mesenchymal neoplasms of the liver can be diagnostically challenging, particularly on core needle biopsies. Here, I discuss recent updates in neoplasms that are specific to the liver (mesenchymal hamartoma, undifferentiated embryonal sarcoma, calcifying nested stromal-epithelial tumor), vascular tumors of the liver (anastomosing hemangioma, hepatic small vessel neoplasm, epithelioid hemangioendothelioma, angiosarcoma), and other tumor types that can occur primarily in the liver (PEComa/angiomyolipoma, inflammatory pseudotumor-like follicular dendritic cell sarcoma, EBV-associated smooth muscle tumor, inflammatory myofibroblastic tumor, malignant rhabdoid tumor). Lastly, I discuss metastatic sarcomas to the liver, as well as pitfalls presented by metastatic melanoma and sarcomatoid carcinoma.

Emerging role of MicroRNA-Based theranostics in Hepatocellular Carcinoma

Hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC), with its high mortality and short survival rate, continues to be one of the deadliest malignancies despite relentless efforts and several technological advances. The poor prognosis of HCC and the few available treatments are to blame for the low survival rate, which emphasizes the importance of creating new, effective diagnostic markers and innovative therapy strategies. In-depth research is being done on the potent biomarker miRNAs, a special class of non-coding RNA and has shown encouraging results in the early identification and treatment of HCC in order to find more viable and successful therapeutics for the disease. It is beyond dispute that miRNAs control cell differentiation, proliferation, and survival and, depending on the genes they target, can either promote tumorigenesis or suppress it. Given the vital role miRNAs play in the biological system and their potential to serve as ground-breaking treatments for HCC, more study is required to fully examine their theranostic potential.

Pluripotency-Associated microRNAs in Early Vertebrate Embryos and Stem Cells

MicroRNAs (miRNAs), small non-coding RNA molecules, regulate a wide range of critical biological processes, such as proliferation, cell cycle progression, differentiation, survival, and apoptosis, in many cell types. The regulatory functions of miRNAs in embryogenesis and stem cell properties have been extensively investigated since the early years of miRNA discovery. In this review, we will compare and discuss the impact of stem-cell-specific miRNA clusters on the maintenance and regulation of early embryonic development, pluripotency, and self-renewal of embryonic stem cells, particularly in vertebrates.

Aberrant Methylation of the Imprinted C19MC and MIR371-3 Clusters in Patients with Non-Small Cell Lung Cancer

Epigenetic mechanisms have emerged as an important contributor to tumor development through the modulation of gene expression. Our objective was to identify the methylation profile of the imprinted C19MC and MIR371-3 clusters in patients with non-small cell lung cancer (NSCLC) and to find their potential target genes, as well as to study their prognostic role. DNA methylation status was analyzed in a NSCLC patient cohort (n = 47) and compared with a control cohort including COPD patients and non-COPD subjects (n = 23) using the Illumina Infinium Human Methylation 450 BeadChip. Hypomethylation of miRNAs located on chromosome 19q13.42 was found to be specific for tumor tissue. We then identified the target mRNA-miRNA regulatory network for the components of the C19MC and MIR371-3 clusters using the miRTargetLink 2.0 Human tool. The correlations of miRNA-target mRNA expression from primary lung tumors were analyzed using the CancerMIRNome tool. From those negative correlations identified, we found that a lower expression of 5 of the target genes (FOXF2, KLF13, MICA, TCEAL1 and TGFBR2) was significantly associated with poor overall survival. Taken together, this study demonstrates that the imprinted C19MC and MIR371-3 miRNA clusters undergo polycistronic epigenetic regulation leading to deregulation of important and common target genes with potential prognostic value in lung cancer.

The Roles of Epigenetic Regulation and the Tumor Microenvironment in the Mechanism of Resistance to Systemic Therapy in Hepatocellular Carcinoma

Primary liver cancer is the sixth most common cancer and the third most common cause of cancer-related deaths worldwide. Hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC) is a major histologic type with a poor prognosis owing to the difficulty in early detection, the chemotherapy resistance, and the high recurrence rate of the disease. Despite recent advancements in HCC prevention and diagnosis, over 50% of patients are diagnosed at Barcelona Clinic Liver Cancer Stage B or C. Systemic therapies are recommended for unresectable HCC (uHCC) with major vascular invasion, extrahepatic metastases, or intrahepatic lesions that have a limited response to transcatheter arterial chemoembolization, but the treatment outcome tends to be unsatisfactory due to acquired drug resistance. Elucidation of the mechanisms underlying the resistance to systemic therapies and the appropriate response strategies to solve this issue will contribute to improved outcomes in the multidisciplinary treatment of uHCC. In this review, we summarize recent findings on the mechanisms of resistance to drugs such as sorafenib, regorafenib, and lenvatinib in molecularly targeted therapy, with a focus on epigenetic regulation and the tumor microenvironment and outline the approaches to improve the therapeutic outcome for patients with advanced HCC.

The Role of Cluster C19MC in Pre-Eclampsia Development

Pre-eclampsia is a placenta-related complication occurring in 2-10% of all pregnancies. miRNAs are a group of non-coding RNAs regulating gene expression. There is evidence that C19MC miRNAs are involved in the development of the placenta. Deregulation of chromosome 19 microRNA cluster (C19MC) miRNAs expression leads to impaired cell differentiation, abnormal trophoblast invasion and pathological angiogenesis, which can lead to the development of pre-eclampsia. Information was obtained through a review of articles available in PubMed Medline. Articles on the role of the C19MC miRNA in the development of pre-eclampsia published in 2009-2022 were analyzed. This review article summarizes the current data on the role of the C19MC miRNA in the development of pre-eclampsia. They indicate a significant increase in the expression of most C19MC miRNAs in placental tissue and a high level of circulating fractions in serum and plasma, both in the first and/or third trimester in women with PE. Only for miR-525-5p, low levels of plasma expression were noted in the first trimester, and in the placenta in the third trimester. The search for molecular factors indicating the development of pre-eclampsia before the onset of clinical symptoms seems to be a promising diagnostic route. Identifying women at risk of developing pre-eclampsia at the pre-symptomatic stage would avoid serious complications in both mothers and fetuses. We believe that miRNAs belonging to cluster C19MC could be promising biomarkers of pre-eclampsia development.

A phase II study of buparlisib in relapsed or refractory thymomas

PURPOSE

To investigate the efficacy and safety of buparlisib, an oral pan-PI3K inhibitor, in relapsed or refractory thymomas.

METHODS

This was a single center, single arm, open label phase II trial of buparlisib in patients with recurrent thymoma who have progressed after at least one prior line of treatment. The primary endpoint was objective response rate (complete response [CR] + partial response [PR]). Secondary endpoints included toxicity; progression free survival (PFS); overall survival (OS); disease control rate (DCR), i.e., the percentage of patients who achieve either PR or CR or stable disease [SD] for at least 4 months.

RESULTS

Between 10/13/2014 and 1/18/2017, 14 patients with stage IV disease were enrolled. Median age was 58y (23-74). 71% were females and 71% white. All patients had WHO B2 (29%) or B3 (71%) thymoma. Patients received buparlisib for a median of 4.5m (2-33). At a median follow up of 16.6m (2.4-31.3), onr patients (7%) achieved a PR. DCR was 50%. Median PFS was 11.1m (95% CI 2.9 - 18.8). Median OS, updated as of March, 2021 was 22.5m (10.7-31.3). Most common grade 3-4 adverse events related to buparlisib were dyspnea (21%), rash (14%), elevated transaminases (14%), cough (7%), pneumonitis (7%), anxiety (7%), fatigue (7%) and hyperglycemia (7%). Reasons for treatment discontinuation included progression of disease (n= 5), rash (n=4), pulmonary toxicity (n=3), sinusitis (n=1), and disseminated toxoplasmosis plus autoimmune cholangitis (n=1). As of 3/2021, 8 patients have died, 7 due to disease progression and 1 due to central nervous system toxoplasmosis and autoimmune cholangitis.

CONCLUSION

Buparlisib showed modest activity in patients with relapsed or refractory thymomas. Further investigation of PI3K pathway targeted therapy in thymoma is warranted. (clinicaltrials.gov ID: NCT02220855).

CLINICAL TRIAL REGISTRATION

clinicaltrials.gov, identifier (NCT02220855).

Deubiquitinating enzyme JOSD2 promotes hepatocellular carcinoma progression through interacting with and inhibiting CTNNB1 degradation

Although a variety of molecular targets have been identified, hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC) remains among the leading causes of death. As functions of they deubiquitinating enzyme Josephin domain containing 2 (JOSD2) in cancers are still poorly understood, we investigated its function and molecular mechanism in the regulation of HCC progression. Here, we indicated that JOSD2 expression is elevated in patient samples with HCC and positively associated with poor prognosis. Moreover, the promoting roles of JOSD2 in HCC cell survival, migration, and invasion were determined using in vitro models. Importantly, a mechanistic study revealed that JOSD2 binds to and decreases the ubiquitination level of catenin beta 1 (CTNNB1), a key component of Wnt signaling, thereby augmenting Wnt pathway transduction. Furthermore, a series of rescue experiments confirmed the significance of CTNNB1 in the modulation of HCC progression by JOSD2. Our study uncovered JOSD2 as a novel prognostic marker for patients with HCC and identified CTNNB1 as a pivotal partner and downstream target protein of JOSD2, which may aid in the development of JOSD2 as a promising molecular target for HCC treatment.

Transcription factor p53-mediated activation of miR-519d-3p and downregulation of E2F1 attenuates prostate cancer growth and metastasis

Prostate cancer (PCa) is a commonly diagnosed malignancy in men. The transcription factor p53, a well-known cancer suppressor, has been extensively analyzed in the progression of many tumor types, but its involvement in PCa remains not fully understood. Hence, this study aims to explore the possible molecular mechanism underlying p53 in the growth and metastasis of PCa. Based on bioinformatics analysis findings of GEPIA and starBase databases, p53 was demonstrated to be involved in the development of PCa by transcriptionally activating microRNA-519d-3p (miR-519d-3p) expression to suppress the expression of E2F transcription factor 1 (E2F1) and CD147. In order to verify this finding, clinically-obtained PCa tumor tissues were enrolled and commercially-purchased PCa cell lines were used to detect the cell viability, cycle, and apoptosis, as well as invasion and migration by CCK-8, flow cytometry, and Transwell assays respectively. The results of clinical tissue experiments and in vitro cell experiments showed that miR-519d-3p and p53 were poorly-expressed in PCa tissues and cell lines, while E2F1 was highly-expressed. Overexpression of miR-519d-3p led to inhibited PCa cell proliferation, invasion and migration, and p53 overexpression was found to promote miR-519d-3p expression to suppress the malignant characteristics of PCa cells, while the additional E2F1 overexpression restored the malignant traits. Moreover, ChIP analysis and dual-luciferase reporter assay confirmed the interactions among p53, miR-519d-3p, and E2F1. Mechanistically, it was found that p53 transcriptionally activated miR-519d-3p to suppress E2F1 expression. Finally, the in vitro results were further validated by in vivo experiments, which showed that miR-519d-3p prevents tumorigenesis and lymph node metastasis of PCa in nude mice via negatively regulation of E2F1 and CD147. Taken together, the findings uncover that the transcription factor p53 could upregulate miR-519d-3p expression to directly suppress the expression of E2F1, thus inhibiting PCa growth and metastasis. It highlights a novel therapeutic strategy against PCa based on the p53/miR-519d-3p/E2F1 regulatory pathway.

The Mechanism Underlying the ncRNA Dysregulation Pattern in Hepatocellular Carcinoma and Its Tumor Microenvironment

HCC is one of the most common malignant tumors and has an extremely poor prognosis. Accumulating studies have shown that noncoding RNA (ncRNA) plays an important role in hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC) development. However, the details of the related mechanisms remain unclear. The heterogeneity of the tumor microenvironment (TME) calls for ample research with deep molecular characterization, with the hope of developing novel biomarkers to improve prognosis, diagnosis and treatment. ncRNAs, particularly microRNAs (miRNAs), long noncoding RNAs (lncRNAs), and circular RNAs (circRNAs), have been found to be correlated with HCC neogenesis and progression. In this review, we summarized the aberrant epigenetic and genetic alterations caused by dysregulated ncRNAs and the functional mechanism of classical ncRNAs in the regulation of gene expression. In addition, we focused on the role of ncRNAs in the TME in the regulation of tumor cell proliferation, invasion, migration, immune cell infiltration and functional activation. This may provide a foundation for the development of promising potential prognostic/predictive biomarkers and novel therapies for HCC patients.

Aflatoxin B1 DNA-Adducts in Hepatocellular Carcinoma from a Low Exposure Area

Aflatoxin B1 (AFB1) is a class 1 carcinogen with an ascertained role in the development of hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC) in high exposure areas. Instead, this study aimed to assay whether chronic/intermittent, low-dose AFB1 consumption might occur in low-exposure geographical areas, ultimately accumulating in the liver and possibly contributing to liver cancer. AFB1-DNA adducts were assayed by immunostaining in liver tissues from three Italian series of twenty cirrhosis without HCC, 131 HCC, and 45 cholangiocarcinoma, and in an AFB1-induced HCC rat model. CD68, TP53 immunostaining, and TP53 RFLP analysis of R249S transversion were used to characterize cell populations displaying AFB1-DNA adducts. Twenty-five HCCs displayed AFB1-adducts both in neoplastic hepatocytes and in cells infiltrating the tumor and non-tumor tissues. Nuclear immunostaining was observed in a few cases, while most cases showed cytoplasmic immunostaining, especially in CD68-positive tumor-infiltrating cells, suggestive for phagocytosis of dead hepatocytes. Similar patterns were observed in AFB1-induced rat HCC, though with higher intensity. Cholangiocarcinoma and cirrhosis without HCC did not displayAFB1-adducts, except for one case. Despite not providing a causal relationship with HCC, these findings still suggest paying attention to detection and control measures for aflatoxins to ensure food safety in low exposure areas.

Metformin inhibits pulmonary artery smooth muscle cell proliferation by upregulating p21 via NONRATT015587.2

Pulmonary artery hypertension (PAH) is a complex and progressive disease characterized by pulmonary vascular remodeling. Our previous study confirmed that NONRATT015587.2 could promote the proliferation of PASMCs and pulmonary vascular remodeling. However, the exact mechanism by which NONRATT015587.2 promotes PASMC proliferation is unclear. Bioinformatics analysis revealed that p21 is located at the downstream target of NONRATT015587.2. NONRATT015587.2 expression and localization were analyzed by PCR and fluorescence in situ hybridization. Proliferation was detected by Cell Counting Kit-8, flow cytometry and western blotting. In the current study, a monocrotaline (MCT)-induced PAH rat model and cultured pulmonary artery smooth muscle cells (PASMCs) were used in vitro to elucidate the exact mechanism of NONRATT015587.2 in pulmonary vascular remodeling, alongside the effect following metformin (MET) treatment on vascular remodeling and smooth muscle cell proliferation. The results demonstrated that NONRATT015587.2 expression was upregulated in the MCT group and reduced in the MET + MCT group. In addition, NONRATT015587.2 could promote the proliferation of PASMCs. The expression levels of p21 were reduced in the MCT group, but increased in the MCT + MET group. Additionally, the expression of NONRATT015587.2 was upregulated in platelet-derived growth factor-BB (PDGF-BB)-induced PASMCs, whereas that of p21 was downregulated. Following MET treatment, the expression of NONRATT015587.2 was downregulated and that of p21 was upregulated, which inhibited the proliferation of PASMCs. After overexpression of NONRATT015587.2 in vitro, the proliferation effect of PASMCs was consistent with exogenous PDGF-BB treatment, and MET reversed this effect. NONRATT015587.2 silencing inhibited the proliferation of PASMCs. In addition, p21 silencing reversed the inhibitory effect of NONRATT015587.2 silencing on the proliferation of PASMCs. However, the proliferation of PASMCs was inhibited following MET treatment when NONRATT015587.2 and p21 were silenced at the same time. Thus, NONRATT015587.2 promoted the proliferation of PASMCs by targeting p21, and MET inhibited the proliferation of PASMCs by upregulating p21 mediated via NONRATT015587.2.

Diagnosis and staging of HCV associated fibrosis, cirrhosis and hepatocellular carcinoma with target identification for miR-650, 552-3p, 676-3p, 512-5p and 147b

BACKGROUND: Chronic HCV infection progresses to fibrosis, cirrhosis and hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC). The latter represents the third most common cause for cancer mortality. Currently, there is no reliable non-invasive biomarker for diagnosis of HCV mediated disorders. OBJECTIVE: Profiling expression signature for circulatory miRNAs in the plasma of 167 Egyptian patients (40 healthy, 48 HCV fibrotic, 39 HCV cirrhotic and 40 HCV-HCC cases). METHODS: QRTPCR was used to quantify expression signature for circulatory miRNAs. RESULTS: MiR-676 and miR-650 were powerful in discriminating cirrhotic and late fibrosis from HCC. MiR-650 could distinguish mild (f0-f1) and advanced (f2-f3) fibrosis from HCC cases. MiR-650 and miR-147b could distinguish early fibrosis from healthy controls meanwhile miR-676 and miR-147b could effectively distinguish between mild chronic and (f1-f3) cases from healthy individuals. All studied miRNAs, except miR-512, can differentiate between (f0-f3) cases and healthy controls. Multivariate logistic regression revealed three potential miRNA panels for effective differentiation of HCC, cirrhotic and chronic liver cases. MiR-676-3p and miR-512-5p were significantly correlated in (f1-f3) fibrosis meanwhile miR-676 and miR-512 could differentiate between cirrhosis and (f0-f3) cases. Both miR-650 and miR-512-5p were positively correlated in the cirrhotic group and in (f0-f4) group. Putative targets for investigated miRNAs were also determined. CONCLUSIONS: Investigated miRNAs could assist in staging and diagnosis of HCV associated disorders.

New stem cell autophagy surrogate diagnostic biomarkers in early-stage hepatocellular carcinoma in Egypt: A pilot study

BACKGROUND

Stem cell autophagy disruption is responsible for the development of hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC). Many non-coding RNAs are linked to the activation and inhibition of certain genes. The SQSTM1 gene controls stem cell autophagy as shown in previous studies. The upregulation of SQSTM1 is associated with the inhibition of autophagy in cancerous stem cells in patients with HCC.

AIM

To determine whether serum microRNA, hsa-miR-519d, is linked to SQSTM1 gene and whether they could be used as diagnostic biomarkers for early-stage HCC.

METHODS

In silico analysis was performed to determine the most correlated genes of autophagy with microRNAs. SQSTM1 and hsa-miR-519d were validated through this pilot clinical study. This study included 50 Egyptian participants, who were classified into three subgroups: Group 1 included 34 patients with early-stage HCC, Group 2 included 11 patients with chronic liver disease, and Group 3 (control) included 5 healthy subjects. All patients were subjected to full laboratory investigations, including viral markers and alpha-fetoprotein (AFP), abdominal ultrasound, and clinical assessment with the Child-Pugh score calculation. Besides, the patients with HCC underwent triphasic computed tomography with contrast to diagnose and determine the tumor site, size, and number. Quantitative real-time polymerase chain reaction was used to assess hsa-miR-519d-3p and SQSTM1 in the serum of all the study participants.

RESULTS

Hsa-miR-519d-3p was significantly upregulated in patients with HCC compared with those with chronic liver disease and healthy subjects with an area under the curve (AUC) of 0.939, with cutoff value 8.34, sensitivity of 91.2%, and specificity of 81.8%. SQSTM1 was upregulated with an AUC of 0.995, with cutoff value 7.89, sensitivity of 97.1%, and specificity of 100%. AFP significantly increased in patients with HCC with an AUC of 0.794, with cutoff value 7.30 ng/mL, sensitivity of 76.5%, and specificity of 72.7%.

CONCLUSION

This study is the first to show a direct relation between SQSTM1 and hsa-miR-519d-3p; they are both upregulated in HCC. Thus, they could be used as surrogate diagnostic markers for stem cell autophagy disturbance in early-stage HCC.

Metapath-Based Deep Convolutional Neural Network for Predicting miRNA-Target Association on Heterogeneous Network

Predicting the interactions between microRNAs (miRNAs) and target genes is of great significance for understanding the regulatory mechanism of miRNA and treating complex diseases. The emergence of large-scale, heterogeneous biological networks has offered unprecedented opportunities for revealing miRNA-associated target genes. However, there are still some limitations about automatically learn the feature information of the network in the existing methods. Since network representation learning can self-adaptively capture structure information of the network, we propose a framework based on heterogeneous network representation, MDCNN (Metapath-Based Deep Convolutional Neural Network), to predict the associations between miRNAs and target genes. MDCNN samples the paths between the node pairs in the form of meta-path based on the heterogeneous information network (HIN) about miRNAs and target genes. Then the node feature and the path feature which is learned by the Deep Convolutional Neural Network (DCNN) are spliced together as the representation of the miRNA-target gene, to predict the miRNA-target gene interactions. The experiment results indicate that the performance of MDCNN outperforms other methods in multiple validation metrics by fivefold cross validation. We set an ablation study to identify the necessity of miRNA similarity and target gene similarity for improving the prediction ability of MDCNN. The case studies on hsa-miR-26b-5p and CDKN1A further demonstrates that MDCNN can successfully predict potential miRNA-target gene interactions.

Mutant p53s and chromosome 19 microRNA cluster overexpression regulate cancer testis antigen expression and cellular transformation in hepatocellular carcinoma

A subset of hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC) overexpresses the chromosome 19 miRNA cluster (C19MC) and is associated with an undifferentiated phenotype marked by overexpression of cancer testis antigens (CTAs) including anti-apoptotic melanoma-A antigens (MAGEAs). However, the regulation of C19MC miRNA and MAGEA expression in HCCs are not understood. Here we show that, C19MC overexpression is tightly linked to a sub-set of HCCs with transcription-incompetent p53. Using next-generation and Sanger sequencing we found that, p53 in Hep3B cells is impaired by TP53-FXR2 fusion, and that overexpression of the C19MC miRNA-520G in Hep3B cells promotes the expression of MAGEA-3, 6 and 12 mRNAs. Furthermore, overexpression of p53-R175H and p53-R273H mutants promote miR-520G and MAGEA RNA expression and cellular transformation. Moreover, IFN-γ co-operates with miR-520G to promote MAGEA expression. On the other hand, metals such as nickel and zinc promote miR-526B but not miR-520G, to result in the suppression of MAGEA mRNA expression, and evoke cell death through mitochondrial membrane depolarization. Therefore our study demonstrates that a MAGEA-promoting network involving miR-520G, p53-defects and IFN-γ that govern cellular transformation and cell survival pathways, but MAGEA expression and survival are counteracted by nickel and zinc combination.

MicroRNAs as Modulators of Tumor Metabolism, Microenvironment, and Immune Response in Hepatocellular Carcinoma

Hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC) is the second leading cause of cancer-related mortality. Molecular heterogeneity and absence of biomarkers helping patient allocation to the best therapeutic option contribute to poor prognosis in advanced stages. MicroRNAs’ (miRNAs) deregulated expression contributes to tumor development and progression and influences drug resistance in HCC. Accordingly, miRNAs have been extensively investigated as both biomarkers and therapeutic targets. The diagnostic and prognostic roles of circulating miRNAs have been ascertained, though with some inconsistencies across studies. From a therapeutic perspective, miRNA-based approaches demonstrated safety profiles and antitumor efficacy in HCC animal models. Nevertheless, caution should be used when transferring preclinical findings to the clinic, due to possible molecular inconsistency between animal models and the heterogeneous patterns of human diseases. A wealth of information is offered by preclinical studies exploring the mechanisms driving miRNAs’ aberrant expression, the molecular cascades triggered by miRNAs and the corresponding phenotypic changes. Ex-vivo analyses confirmed these results, further shedding light on the intricacy of the human disease often overcoming pre-clinical models. This complexity seems to be ascribed to the intrinsic heterogeneity of HCC, to different risk factors driving its development, as well as to changes across stages and previous treatments. Preliminary findings suggest that miRNAs associated with specific risk factors might be more informative in defined patients’ subgroups. The first issue to be considered when trying to envisage a possible translational perspective is the molecular context that often drives different miRNA functions, as clearly evidenced by “dual” miRNAs. Concerning the possible roles of miRNAs as biomarkers and therapeutic targets, we will focus on miRNAs’ involvement in metabolic pathways and in the modulation of tumor microenvironment, to support their exploitation in defined contexts.

Targeting K-Ras and apoptosis-driven cellular transformation in cancer

Cellular transformation is a major event that helps cells to evade apoptosis, genomic instability checkpoints, and immune surveillance to initiate tumorigenesis and to promote progression by cancer stem cell expansion. However, the key molecular players that govern cellular transformation and ways to target cellular transformation for therapy are poorly understood to date. Here we draw key evidences from the literature on K-Ras-driven cellular transformation in the context of apoptosis to shed light on the key players that are required for cellular transformation and explain how aiming p53 could be useful to target cellular transformation. The defects in key apoptosis regulators such as p53, Bax, and Bak lead to apoptosis evasion, cellular transformation, and genomic instability to further lead to stemness, tumorigenesis, and metastasis via c-Myc-dependent transcription. Therefore enabling key apoptotic checkpoints in combination with K-Ras inhibitors will be a promising therapeutic target in cancer therapy.

The Epigenetic Regulation of Microenvironment in Hepatocellular Carcinoma

Hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC) is a highly lethal and complex malignancy strongly influenced by the surrounding tumor microenvironment. The HCC microenvironment comprises hepatic stellate cells (HSCs), tumor-associated macrophages (TAMs), stromal and endothelial cells, and the underlying extracellular matrix (ECM). Emerging evidence demonstrates that epigenetic regulation plays a crucial role in altering numerous components of the HCC tumor microenvironment. In this review, we summarize the current understanding of the mechanisms of epigenetic regulation of the microenvironment in HCC. We review recent studies demonstrating how specific epigenetic mechanisms (DNA methylation, histone regulation, and non-coding RNAs mediated regulation) in HSCs, TAMs, and ECM, and how they contribute to HCC development, so as to gain new insights into the treatment of HCC via regulating epigenetic regulation in the tumor microenvironment.

HOTAIR inhibits the proliferation of glioblastoma cells by targeting miR-219

BACKGROUND

To investigate the influences of HOX transcript antisense ribonucleic acid (HOTAIR) on the proliferation and apoptosis of glioblastoma cells by targeting micro RNA (miR)-219.

OBJECTIVE

With glioblastoma cell line U87 as the object, the changes in expression levels of HOTAIR and miR-219 in each group were detected via quantitative real-time polymerase chain reaction (qRT-PCR) after HOTAIR in U87 cell lines was knocked down using small interfering RNA (siRNA). Then the cell proliferation in each group was determined using Cell Counting Kit-8 (CCK-8) and colony formation assays. Flow cytometry was applied to detect the cell apoptosis, and Western blotting assay was adopted to measure the changes in protein levels of Cyclin D1 and Bcl-2-associated X protein (Bax). After miR-219 knockdown with siRNA, the changes in expression levels of HOTAIR and miR-219 in each group were examined through qRT-PCR, and the cell proliferation was tested by CCK-8 assay.

RESULTS

After interference inHOTAIR using siRNA, compared with those in control group, the RNA expression level of HOTAIR was decreased remarkably (p< 0.05), the RNA expression level of miR-219 was increased notably (p< 0.05), the cell proliferation rate was inhibited evidently (p< 0.05), the apoptosis rate was enhanced obviously (p< 0.05), the protein expression level of Cyclin D1 declined markedly (p< 0.05), and the protein expression level of Bax rose distinctly (p< 0.05) in HOTAIR-siRNA group. After miR-219 knockdown with siRNA, the cell proliferation rate was raised remarkably (p< 0.05), but there was no significant change in the RNA expression level of HOTAIR (p> 0.05).

CONCLUSION

HOTAIR can repress the proliferation and promote the apoptosis of glioblastoma cells by targeting miR-219.

MicroRNAs in the Pathogenesis of Hepatocellular Carcinoma: A Review

Simple Summary

Hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC) is one of the most frequently occurring cancers, and the prognosis for late-stage HCC remains poor. A better understanding of the pathogenesis of HCC is expected to improve outcomes. MicroRNAs (miRNAs) are small, noncoding, single-stranded RNAs that regulate the expression of various target genes, including those in cancer-associated genomic regions or fragile sites in various human cancers. We summarize the central roles of miRNAs in the pathogenesis of HCC and discuss their potential utility as valuable biomarkers and new therapeutic agents for HCC.

Abstract

Hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC) is the seventh most frequent cancer and the fourth leading cause of cancer mortality worldwide. Despite substantial advances in therapeutic strategies, the prognosis of late-stage HCC remains dismal because of the high recurrence rate. A better understanding of the etiology of HCC is therefore necessary to improve outcomes. MicroRNAs (miRNAs) are small, endogenous, noncoding, single-stranded RNAs that modulate the expression of their target genes at the posttranscriptional and translational levels. Aberrant expression of miRNAs has frequently been detected in cancer-associated genomic regions or fragile sites in various human cancers and has been observed in both HCC cells and tissues. The precise patterns of aberrant miRNA expression differ depending on disease etiology, including various causes of hepatocarcinogenesis, such as viral hepatitis, alcoholic liver disease, or nonalcoholic steatohepatitis. However, little is known about the underlying mechanisms and the association of miRNAs with the pathogenesis of HCC of various etiologies. In the present review, we summarize the key mechanisms of miRNAs in the pathogenesis of HCC and emphasize their potential utility as valuable diagnostic and prognostic biomarkers, as well as innovative therapeutic targets, in HCC diagnosis and treatment.

Clinical value and potential mechanisms of LINC00221 in hepatocellular carcinoma based on integrated analysis

Aims:This study aimed to unveil the functional roles of LINC00221 in hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC). Materials and methods:A discovery cohort and a validation cohort were respectively used to identify and verify the clinical value of LINC00221 in HCC. Bioinformatics analysis was performed to explore its potential mechanisms. Results:LINC00221 was upregulated in HCC tissues and serum samples. Survival analysis and receiver operating characteristic curve further revealed its prognostic and diagnostic roles. Exploration of the mechanism showed that LINC00221 might exert a pro-cancer role via the lncRNA-miRNA-mRNA network.Conclusions: Our study reveals that upregulated LINC00221 can serve as a potential diagnostic and prognostic biomarker and provides novel clues as to the role of LINC00221 in HCC.

Covid-19 pathogenesis in prostatic cancer and TMPRSS2-ERG regulatory genetic pathway

Members of Coronaviridae family have been the source of respiratory illnesses. The outbreak of SARS-CoV-2 that produced a severe lung disease in afflicted patients in China and other countries was the reason for the incredible attention paid toward this viral infection. It is known that SARS-CoV-2 is dependent on TMPRSS2 activity for entrance and subsequent infection of the host cells and TMPRSS2 is a host cell molecule that is important for the spread of viruses such as coronaviruses.

Different factors can increase the risk of prostate cancer, including older age, a family history of the disease. Androgen receptor (AR) initiates a transcriptional cascade which plays a serious role in both normal and malignant prostate tissues. TMPRSS2 protein is highly expressed in prostate secretory epithelial cells, and its expression is dependent on androgen signals. One of the molecular signs of prostate cancer is TMPRSS2-ERG gene fusion. In TMPRSS2-ERG-positive prostate cancers different patterns of changed gene expression can be detected. The possible molecular relation between fusion positive prostate cancer patients and the increased risk of lethal respiratory viral infections especially SARS-CoV-2 can candidate TMPRSS2 as an attractive drug target. The studies show that some molecules such as nicotinamide, PARP1, ETS and IL-1R can be studied deeper in order to control SARS-CoV-2 infection especially in prostate cancer patients.

This review attempts to investigate the possible relation between the gene expression pattern that is produced through TMPRSS2-ERG fusion positive prostate cancer and the possible influence of these fluctuations on the pathogenesis and development of viral infections such as SARS-CoV-2.

MiRNA-516a promotes bladder cancer metastasis by inhibiting MMP9 protein degradation via the AKT/FOXO3A/SMURF1 axis

BACKGROUND

Metastasis is the leading cause of death in patients with bladder cancer (BC). However, current available treatments exert little effects on metastatic BC. Moreover, traditional grading and staging have only a limited ability to identify metastatic BC. Accumulating evidence indicates that the aberrant expression of microRNA is intimately associated with tumor progression. So far, many miRNAs have been identified as molecular targets for cancer diagnosis and therapy. This study focused on the role of miR-516a-5p (miR-516a) in BC.

METHODS

MiR-516a expression and its downstream signaling pathway were detected using molecular cell biology and biochemistry approaches and techniques. Fresh clinical BC tissue was used to study the clinicopathological characteristics of patients with different miR-516a expression. The biological functions of miR-516a in BC were tested both in vivo and in vitro.

RESULTS

A more invasive BC phenotype was significantly and positively correlated with miR-516a overexpression in BC patients. MiR-516a inhibition significantly decreased BC cell invasion and migration in vitro and in vivo. Furthermore, miR-516a attenuated the expression of PH domain leucine-rich repeat-containing protein phosphatase 2 protein and inhibited SMAD-specific E3 ubiquitin protein ligase 1 transcription by activating the AKT/Forkhead box O3 signaling pathway, which stabilized MMP9 and slowed down its proteasomal degradation, ultimately promoting BC motility and invasiveness.

CONCLUSIONS

Our findings reveal the crucial function of miR-516a in promoting BC metastasis, and elucidate the molecular mechanism involved, suggesting that miR-516a may be a promising novel diagnostic and therapeutic target for BC.

Embryonal tumors with multi-layered rosettes: a disease of dysregulated miRNAs

INTRODUCTION

ETMRs are highly lethal, pediatric embryonal brain tumors, previously classified as various histologic diagnoses including supratentorial primitive neuroectodermal tumors (sPNET) and CNS PNET. With recognition that these tumors harbor recurrent amplification of a novel oncogenic miRNA cluster on chr19, C19MC, ETMRs were designated as a distinct biological and molecular entity with a spectrum of histologic and clinical manifestations.

METHODS

We reviewed published literature describing clinical presentation, the genetic and epigenetic drivers of oncogenesis, and recent therapeutic strategies adopted to combat these aggressive tumors.

RESULTS

As a consequence of C19MC amplification, ETMRs upregulate several oncogenic and pluripotency proteins, including LIN28A, DNMT3B and MYCN, that confer a unique epigenetic signature reminiscent of nascent embryonic stem cells. In this review, we focus on the dysregulation of miRNAs in ETMR, the major pathogenic mechanism identified in this disease.

CONCLUSION

Despite the use of multi-modal therapeutic regimens, ETMR patients have dismal survival. Understanding the unique biology of these tumors has provided new insights towards novel therapeutic targets.

Transgenic expression of human C19MC miRNAs impacts placental morphogenesis

INTRODUCTION

The chromosome 19 miRNA cluster (C19MC) encodes a large family of microRNAs (miRNAs) that are abundantly expressed in the placenta of higher primates and also in certain cancers. In the placenta, miRNAs from this cluster account for nearly 40% of all miRNAs present in trophoblasts. However, the function of these miRNAs in the placenta remains poorly understood. Recent observations reveal a role for these miRNAs in cell migration, and suggest that they are involved in the development and function of the human placenta. Here, we examine the placenta in transgenic mice expressing the human C19MC miRNAs.

METHODS

We produced transgenic mice using pronuclear microinjection of a bacterial artificial chromosome plasmid carrying the entire human C19MC locus and derived a homozygous line using crossbreeding. We performed morphological characterization and profiled gene expression changes in the placentas of the transgenic mice.

RESULTS

C19MC transgenic mice delivered on time with no gross malformations. The placentas of transgenic mice expressed C19MC miRNAs and were larger than wild type placentas. Histologically, we found that the transgenic placenta exhibited projections of spongiotrophoblasts that penetrated deep into the labyrinth. Gene expression analysis revealed alterations in the expression of several genes involved in cell migration, with evidence of enhanced cell proliferation.

DISCUSSION

Mice that were humanized for transgenically overexpressed C19MC miRNAs exhibit enlarged placentas with aberrant delineation of cell layers. The observed phenotype and the related gene expression changes suggest disrupted migration of placental cell subpopulations.

The Evolution of Imprinted microRNAs and Their RNA Targets

Mammalian genomes contain many imprinted microRNAs. When an imprinted miRNA targets an unimprinted mRNA their interaction may have different fitness consequences for the loci encoding the miRNA and mRNA. In one possible outcome, the mRNA sequence evolves to evade regulation by the miRNA by a simple change of target sequence. Such a response is unavailable if the targeted sequence is strongly constrained by other functions. In these cases, the mRNA evolves to accommodate regulation by the imprinted miRNA. These evolutionary dynamics are illustrated using the examples of the imprinted C19MC cluster of miRNAs in primates and C2MC cluster in mice that are paternally expressed in placentas. The 3′ UTR of PTEN, a gene with growth-related and metabolic functions, appears to be an important target of miRNAs from both clusters.

The chromosome 19 microRNA cluster, regulated by promoter hypomethylation, is associated with tumour burden and poor prognosis in patients with hepatocellular carcinoma

Hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC) is still one of the major malignant tumours with poor prognosis. The chromosome 19 microRNA cluster (C19MC) is the largest miRNA cluster, and its functions and regulatory mechanisms remain unclear in HCC. We extracted data from 373 HCC samples and 50 non-tumour samples from The Cancer Genome Atlas database. The differential expression levels and methylation levels of C19MC as well as the correlation between them were analysed. We evaluated the correlation between the expression levels of C19MC and the clinical features. We further performed prognostic analysis for C19MC and analysed the bioinformatic function. C19MC had upregulated expression levels and promoter hypomethylation in HCC. A significant negative correlation between the high expression and low methylation level of C19MC was obtained. In addition, the positive correlation between the expression levels of C19MC and the tumour grade, tumour stage and T-stage is shown. Three miRNAs (mir-512-1, mir-516a-1, mir-519a-2) were negatively associated with overall survival on the basis of the Kaplan-Meier analysis and the 3-miRNA signature was significant for the prognostic assessment of HCC. A bioinformatic enrichment analysis suggested that the target genes of the 3 miRNAs may be associated with mitogen-activated protein kinase pathways related to cancer invasion. In summary, our novel study demonstrated that the hypomethylation of promoters upregulates the expression levels of C19MC and that C19MC may represent a potential new candidate for the diagnosis and therapy of HCC.

ETMR: a tumor entity in its infancy

Embryonal tumor with Multilayered Rosettes (ETMR) is a relatively rare but typically deadly type of brain tumor that occurs mostly in infants. Since the discovery of the characteristic chromosome 19 miRNA cluster (C19MC) amplification a decade ago, the methods for diagnosing this entity have improved and many new insights in the molecular landscape of ETMRs have been acquired. All ETMRs, despite their highly heterogeneous histology, are characterized by specific high expression of the RNA-binding protein LIN28A, which is, therefore, often used as a diagnostic marker for these tumors. ETMRs have few recurrent genetic aberrations, mainly affecting the miRNA pathway and including amplification of C19MC (embryonal tumor with multilayered rosettes, C19MC-altered) and mutually exclusive biallelic DICER1 mutations of which the first hit is typically inherited through the germline (embryonal tumor with multilayered rosettes, DICER1-altered). Identification of downstream pathways affected by the deregulated miRNA machinery has led to several proposed potential therapeutical vulnerabilities including targeting the WNT, SHH, or mTOR pathways, MYCN or chromosomal instability. However, despite those findings, treatment outcomes have only marginally improved, since the initial description of this tumor entity. Many patients do not survive longer than a year after diagnosis and the 5-year overall survival rate is still lower than 30%. Thus, there is an urgent need to translate the new insights in ETMR biology into more effective treatments. Here, we present an overview of clinical and molecular characteristics of ETMRs and the current progress on potential targeted therapies.

HDNA methylation data-based molecular subtype classification related to the prognosis of patients with hepatocellular carcinoma

Background

DNA methylation is a common chemical modification of DNA in the carcinogenesis of hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC).

Methods

In this bioinformatics analysis, 348 liver cancer samples were collected from the Cancer Genome Atlas (TCGA) database to analyse specific DNA methylation sites that affect the prognosis of HCC patients.

Results

10,699 CpG sites (CpGs) that were significantly related to the prognosis of patients were clustered into 7 subgroups, and the samples of each subgroup were significantly different in various clinical pathological data. In addition, by calculating the level of methylation sites in each subgroup, 119 methylation sites (corresponding to 105 genes) were selected as specific methylation sites within the subgroups. Moreover, genes in the corresponding promoter regions in which the above specific methylation sites were located were subjected to signalling pathway enrichment analysis, and it was discovered that these genes were enriched in the biological pathways that were reported to be closely correlated with HCC. Additionally, the transcription factor enrichment analysis revealed that these genes were mainly enriched in the transcription factor KROX. A naive Bayesian classification model was used to construct a prognostic model for HCC, and the training and test data sets were used for independent verification and testing.

Conclusion

This classification method can well reflect the heterogeneity of HCC samples and help to develop personalized treatment and accurately predict the prognosis of patients.

The Similar Effects of miR-512-3p and miR-519a-2-5p on the Promotion of Hepatocellular Carcinoma: Different Tunes Sung With Equal Skill

Although the therapeutic methods of hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC) have made great advances, the current situation is that HCC is the common malignancy. Our previous bioinformatic study presented that two members of C19MC (mir-512-1 and mir-519a-2) acted as crucial roles in the HCC progression. In this study, we first demonstrated that the miR-512-3p and miR-519a-2-5p, which were spliced from the mir-512-1 and mir-519a-2, were the functional mature miRNAs. Meanwhile, both miR-512-3p and miR-519a-2-5p were significantly upregulated in human HCC samples and HCC cell lines. The miR-512-3p and miR-519a-2-5p promoted the proliferation, invasion, and metastasis in vitro and in vivo. Moreover, the two miRNAs co-targeted the downstream tumor suppressors MAP3K2 and MAP2K4 and subsequently achieved the HCC progression. In the clinical cohort, high expression of miR-512-3p and miR-519a-2-5p acted as two risk factors for HCC recurrence and distinguished patients with poor tumor-free survival after radical resection. The integration of the two miRNAs into the AJCC staging system significantly improved the accuracy for the prediction of HCC recurrence. Our study suggests that miR-512-3p and miR-519a-2-5p have similar effects on the promotion of HCC progression. They can be robust markers for the prediction of HCC recurrence and therapy targets.

Dysregulation of microRNA in cholangiocarcinoma identified through a meta-analysis of microRNA profiling

BACKGROUND

In the past decades, the potential of microRNA (miRNA) in cancer diagnostics and prognostics has gained a lot of interests. In this study, a meta-analysis was conducted upon the pooled miRNA microarray data of cholangiocarcinoma (CCA).

AIM

To identify differentially expressed (DE) miRNAs and perform functional analyses in order to gain insights to understanding miRNA-target interactions involved in tumorigenesis pathways of CCA.

METHODS

Raw data from 8 CCA miRNA microarray datasets, consisting of 443 samples in total, were integrated and statistically analyzed to identify DE miRNAs via comparison of levels of miRNA expression between CCA and normal bile duct samples using t-tests (P < 0.001). The 10-fold cross validation was performed in order to increase the robustness of the t-test results.

RESULTS

Our data showed 70 up-regulated and 48 down-regulated miRNAs in CCA. Gene Ontology and pathway enrichment analyses revealed that mRNA targets of DE miRNAs were significantly involved in several biological processes. The most prominent dysregulated pathways included phosphatidylinositol-3 kinases/Akt, mitogen-activated protein kinase and Ras signaling pathways.

CONCLUSION

DE miRNAs found in our meta-analysis revealed dysregulation in major cancer pathways involved in the development of CCA. These results indicated the necessity of understanding the miRNA-target interactions and the significance of dysregulated miRNAs in terms of diagnostics and prognostics of cancers.

Multipotent miRNA Sponge-Loaded Magnetic Nanodroplets with Ultrasound/Magnet-Assisted Delivery for Hepatocellular Carcinoma Therapy

Gene therapy is likely to be the most promising way to tackle cancer, while defects in molecular strategies and delivery systems have led to an impasse in clinical application. Here, it is found that onco-miRNAs of the miR-515 and -449 families were upregulated in hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC), and the sponge targeting miR-515 family had a significant probability to suppress cancer cell proliferation. Then, we constructed non-toxic sponge-loaded magnetic nanodroplets containing 20% C6F14 (SLMNDs-20%) that are incorporated with fluorinated superparamagnetic iron oxide nanoparticles enhancing external magnetism-assisted targeting and enabling a direct visualization of SLMNDs-20% distribution in vivo via magnetic resonance imaging monitoring. SLMNDs-20% could be vaporized by programmable focused ultrasound (FUS) activation, achieving ∼45% in vitro sponge delivery efficiency and significantly enhancing in vivo sponge delivery without a clear apoptosis. Moreover, the sponge-1-carrying SLMNDs-20% could effectively suppress proliferation of xenograft HCC after FUS exposure because sponge-1-suppressing onco-miR-515 enhanced the expression of anti-oncogenes (P21, CD22, TIMP1, NFKB, and E-cadherin) in cancer cells. The current results indicated that ultrasonic cavitation-inducing sonoporation enhanced the intracellular delivery of sponge-1 using SLMNDs-20% after magnetic-assisted accumulation, which was a therapeutic approach to inhibit HCC progression.

Regulation of MYO18B mRNA by a network of C19MC miRNA-520G, IFN-γ, CEBPB, p53 and bFGF in hepatocellular carcinoma

MYO18B has been proposed to contribute to the progression of hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC). However, the signals that govern MYO18B transcription are not known. Here we show that, a network of C19MC miRNA-520G, IFN-γ, CEBPB and p53 transcriptional-defects promote MYO18B mRNA expression in HCCs. IFN-γ by itself suppresses MYO18B transcription, but promotes it when miRNA-520G is stably overexpressed. Similarly, CEBPB-liver-enriched activator protein (LAP) isoform overexpression suppresses MYO18B transcription but promotes transcription when the cells are treated with IFN-γ. Furthermore, miR-520G together with mutant-p53 promotes MYO18B transcription. Conversely, bFGF suppresses MYO18B mRNA irrespective of CEBPB, miR-520G overexpression or IFN-γ treatment. Finally high MYO18B expression reflects poor prognosis while high MYL5 or MYO1B expression reflects better survival of HCC patients. Thus, we identified a network of positive and negative regulators of MYO18B mRNA expression which reflects the survival of HCC patients.

Nonadherent culture method promotes MSC-mediated vascularization in myocardial infarction via miR-519d/VEGFA pathway

BACKGROUND

Mesenchymal stem cells (MSCs) can provide therapeutic benefits for myocardial infarction (MI) recovery; however, the molecular mechanism by which MSCs improve the heart function is unclear.

METHODS

Microarray analysis was performed to examine the expression profiling of human MSCs (hMSCs) grown as adherent cultures (AC-hMSCs) or nonadherent cultures on ultra-low-adherent plates (nonAC-hMSCs). Real-time quantitative polymerase chain reaction (RT-qPCR), western blotting, and enzyme-linked immunosorbent assays (ELISA) were used to assess VEGFA expression and secretion in the AC-hMSCs and nonAC-hMSCs. The paracrine effect of VEGFA-overexpressing AC-MSCs (AC-VEGFA-hMSCs) or VEGFA-knockdown nonAC-hMSCs (nonAC-shVEGFA-hMSCs) on the angiogenic ability of human umbilical vein endothelial cells (HUVECs) was evaluated using tube formation assay. AC-VEGFA-hMSCs or nonAC-shVEGFA-hMSCs were transplanted into myocardial infarction rats to investigate the therapeutic effect of AC-VEGFA-hMSCs or nonAC-shVEGFA-hMSCs. Luciferase reporter assay was used to confirm the association of VEGFA with miR-519d.

RESULTS

Microarray analysis revealed that VEGFA is downregulated in AC-hMSCs compared to nonAC-hMSCs. Functional assays revealed that high levels of VEGFA produced from AC-VEGFA-hMSCs increased the tube formation capacity of HUVECs in vitro, improved angiogenesis and cardiac performance, and reduced infarct size in a rat MI model. Low levels of VEGFA secretion from nonAC-shVEGFA-hMSCs had the opposite effects. Mechanistically, we found that miR-519d directly targets VEGFA. High levels of VEGFA secreted from VEGFA-overexpressing nonAC-hMSCs abolished the repressive effect of miR-519d on HUVEC angiogenesis.

CONCLUSION

Our findings indicate that nonadherent culture-induced secretion of VEGFA plays an important role in MSCs via the miR-519d/VEGFA pathway and may provide a novel therapeutic strategy for MI treatment.

MiR-519d-3p in Trophoblastic Cells: Effects, Targets and Transfer to Allogeneic Immune Cells via Extracellular Vesicles

Members of the placenta-specific miRNA cluster C19MC, including miR-519d, are secreted by fetal trophoblast cells within extracellular vesicles (EVs). Trophoblast-derived EVs can be internalized by the autologous trophoblast and surrounding maternal immune cells, resulting in coordination of cellular responses. The study of functions and targets of placental miRNAs in the donor and recipient cells may contribute to the understanding of the immune tolerance essential in pregnancy. Here, we report that miR-519d-3p levels correlate positively with cell proliferation and negatively with migration in trophoblastic cell lines. Inhibition of miR-519d-3p in JEG-3 cells increases caspase-3 activation and apoptosis. PDCD4 and PTEN are targeted by miR-519d-3p in a cell type-specific manner. Transfection of trophoblastic cell lines with miR-519d mimic results in secretion of EVs containing elevated levels of this miRNA (EV_miR-519d). Autologous cells enhance their proliferation and decrease their migration ability when treated with EV_miR-519d. NK92 cells incorporate EV-delivered miR-519d-3p at higher levels than Jurkat T cells. EV_miR-519d increases the proliferation of Jurkat T cells but decreases that of NK92 cells. Altogether, miR-519d-3p regulates pivotal trophoblast cell functions, can be transferred horizontally via EVs to maternal immune cells and exerts functions therein. Vesicular miRNA transfer from fetal trophoblasts to maternal immune cells may contribute to the immune tolerance in pregnancy.

microRNA-519d Induces Autophagy and Apoptosis of Human Hepatocellular Carcinoma Cells Through Activation of the AMPK Signaling Pathway via Rab10

Background and Aim

Hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC) is a type of cancer with high mortality rates. The overexpression of microRNA-519d (miR-519d) has been explored in different types of cancers, which could significantly help suppress cancer development. This study aimed to investigate the interaction of miR-519d with its target gene, Rab10, as well as its effects on cell proliferation and autophagy in HCC cells through modulation of the AMPK signaling pathway.

Methods

Microarray analysis was used to analyze the differentially expressed genes in HCC, and the target genes of the screened-out miRNA were predicted and verified. The expression of miR-519d and Rab10, AMPK signaling pathway-related proteins, apoptosis- and autophagy-related proteins was determined by RT-qPCR and Western blot analysis in HCC tissues and cell lines. Lastly, the effects of miR-519d and Rab10 in HCC cell proliferation, apoptosis, and mouse tumour xenograft in vivo were examined through gain- and loss-of-function experiments.

Results

MiR-519d was down-regulated and Rab10 was upregulated in HCC tissues and cell lines. Overexpression of miR-519d decreased the expression of Rab10, mTOR, and Bcl-2, but increased the expression of Bax, Beclin1, Atg5, and p53. Upregulated miR-519d and downregulated Rab10 expression suppressed cell proliferation and induced cell apoptosis and autophagy in HCC cells. Finally, upregulation of miR-519d inhibited tumour growth in vivo.

Conclusion

The result obtained in this study indicates that up-regulation of miR-519d inhibits proliferation and promotes apoptosis and autophagy of HCC cells through activation of the AMPK signaling pathway via downregulating Rab10, which provides a potential target for the treatment of HCC.

Molecular avenues in targeted doxorubicin cancer therapy

In recent, intra- and inter-tumor heterogeneity is seen as one of key factors behind success and failure of chemotherapy. Incessant use of doxorubicin (DOX) drug is associated with numerous post-treatment debacles including cardiomyopathy, health disorders, reversal of tumor and formation of secondary tumors. The module of cancer treatment has undergone evolutionary changes by achieving crucial understanding on molecular, genetic, epigenetic and environmental adaptations by cancer cells. Therefore, there is a paradigm shift in cancer therapeutic by employing amalgam of peptide mimetic, small RNA mimetic, DNA repair protein inhibitors, signaling inhibitors and epigenetic modulators to achieve targeted and personalized DOX therapy. This review summarizes on recent therapeutic avenues that can potentiate DOX effects by removing discernible pitfalls among cancer patients.

The genomic landscape of undifferentiated embryonal sarcoma of the liver is typified by C19MC structural rearrangement and overexpression combined with TP53 mutation or loss

Undifferentiated embryonal sarcoma of the liver (UESL) is a rare and aggressive malignancy. Though the molecular underpinnings of this cancer have been largely unexplored, recurrent chromosomal breakpoints affecting a noncoding region on chr19q13, which includes the chromosome 19 microRNA cluster (C19MC), have been reported in several cases. We performed comprehensive molecular profiling on samples from 14 patients diagnosed with UESL. Congruent with prior reports, we identified structural variants in chr19q13 in 10 of 13 evaluable tumors. From whole transcriptome sequencing, we observed striking expressional activity of the entire C19MC region. Concordantly, in 7 of 7 samples undergoing miRNAseq, we observed hyperexpression of the miRNAs within this cluster to levels >100 fold compared to matched normal tissue or a non-C19MC amplified cancer cell line. Concurrent TP53 mutation or copy number loss was identified in all evaluable tumors with evidence of C19MC overexpression. We find that C19MC miRNAs exhibit significant negative correlation to TP53 regulatory miRNAs and K-Ras regulatory miRNAs. Using RNA-seq we identified that pathways relevant to cellular differentiation as well as mRNA translation machinery are transcriptionally enriched in UESL. In summary, utilizing a combination of next-generation sequencing and high-density arrays we identify the combination of C19MC hyperexpression via chromosomal structural event with TP53 mutation or loss as highly recurrent genomic features of UESL.

miR-106b-5p promotes cell proliferation and cell cycle progression by directly targeting CDKN1A in osteosarcoma

MicroRNA (miR)-106b-5p has been reported to act as both an oncogene and tumor suppressor in several tumors. The aim of the present study was to investigate the biological function of miR-106b-5p in osteosarcoma (OS). miR-106b-5p expression was observed to be significantly increased in OS tissues and cell lines. MTT assay and flow cytometry analysis determined that miR-106b-5p inhibitor transfection suppressed OS cell proliferation and induced cell cycle G0/G1 phase arrest. Furthermore, bioinformatics analysis and a luciferase reporter assay demonstrated that cyclin-dependent kinase inhibitor 1A (CDKN1A) was a potential target of miR-106b-5p. p21 protein expression was found to be significantly increased by miR-106b-5p downregulation in OS cells. Further analysis demonstrated that CDKN1A was downregulated in OS tissues and was negatively correlated with miR-106b-5p expression. Furthermore, upregulation of CDKN1A expression mimicked, whilst CDKN1A knockdown reversed the suppressive effects of miR-106b-5p inhibitor on OS cell proliferation and cell cycle progression. In summary, the present data suggested that miR-106b-5p promotes cell proliferation and cell cycle progression by directly targeting CDKN1A in OS.