A phase I study of the farnesyltransferase inhibitor Tipifarnib in combination with the epidermal growth factor tyrosine kinase inhibitor Erlotinib in patients with advanced solid tumors

A novel cuproptosis-related subtypes and gene signature associates with immunophenotype and predicts prognosis accurately in neuroblastoma

Background

Neuroblastoma (NB) is the most frequent solid tumor in pediatrics, which accounts for roughly 15% of cancer-related mortality in children. NB exhibited genetic, morphologic, and clinical heterogeneity, which limited the efficacy of available therapeutic approaches. Recently, a new term 'cuproptosis' has been used to denote a unique biological process triggered by the action of copper. In this instance, selectively inducing copper death is likely to successfully overcome the limitations of conventional anticancer drugs. However, there is still a gap regarding the role of cuproptosis in cancer, especially in pediatric neuroblastoma.

Methods

We characterized the specific expression of cuproptosis-related genes (CRGs) in NB samples based on publicly available mRNA expression profile data. Consensus clustering and Lasso-Cox regression analysis were applied for CRGs in three independent cohorts. ESTIMATE and Xcell algorithm was utilized to visualize TME score and immune cell subpopulations' relative abundances. Tumor Immune Dysfunction and Exclusion (TIDE) score was used to predict tumor response to immune checkpoint inhibitors. To decipher the underlying mechanism, GSVA was applied to explore enriched pathways associated with cuproptosis signature and Connectivity map (CMap) analysis for drug exploration. Finally, qPCR verified the expression levels of risk-genes in NB cell lines. In addition, PDHA1 was screened and further validated by immunofluorescence in human clinical samples and loss-of-function assays.

Results

We initially classified NB patients according to CRGs and identified two cuproptosis-related subtypes that were associated with prognosis and immunophenotype. After this, a cuproptosis-related prognostic model was constructed and validated by LASSO regression in three independent cohorts. This model can accurately predict prognosis, immune infiltration, and immunotherapy responses. These genes also showed differential expression in various characteristic groups of all three datasets and NB cell lines. Loss-of-function experiments indicated that PDHA1 silencing significantly suppressed the proliferation, migration, and invasion, in turn, promoted cell cycle arrest at the S phase and apoptosis of NB cells.

Conclusions

Taken together, this study may shed light on new research areas for NB patients from the cuproptosis perspective.

HRAS Q61L Mutation as a Possible Target for Non-Small Cell Lung Cancer: Case Series and Review of Literature

Introduction: Assessment of actionable gene mutations and oncogene fusions have made a paradigm shift in treatment strategies of non-small cell lung cancer (NSCLC). HRAS mutations involved around 0.2–0.8% of NSCLC patients, mostly on codon 61. For these patients, few data are available regarding clinical characteristics and response to therapies. Methods: Next-Generation Sequencing (NGS) done routinely at Nantes University Hospital was used to identify HRAS molecular alterations in NSCLC patients. We identified and described four HRAS p.GlnQ61Leu mutated patients. Literature of previously HRAS-mutant NSCLC cases was reviewed, and available data in solid tumour with the most advanced H-Ras specific inhibitor, tipifarnib, were presented. Results: Of 1614 patients diagnosed with advanced NSCLC from January 2018 to December 2020, four (0.25%) had HRAS p.Gln61Leu mutation. Three of them died during the first-line systemic therapy. Furthermore, three additional cases were identified in literature. All cases were current or former smokers, most of them had pleural or pericardial effusion at diagnosis. Conclusions: The clinical course of patients with HRAS-mutant NSCLC remains unclear. Furthers cases should be identified in order to clarify prognosis and response to therapies. Tipifarnib, a farnesyl transferase inhibitor, is a promising candidate to target HRAS-mutant tumours and should be explored in NSCLC patients.

Evaluation and Factors of Quality of Life Among Patients With Neurofibromatosis Type 1-Associated Craniofacial Plexiform Neurofibromas

OBJECTIVES

The aim was to evaluate overall quality of life (QOL) and investigate impact factors in Chinese neurofibromatosis type 1 (NF1) patients, particularly in those with craniofacial plexiform neurofibromas (pNFs).

METHODS

The Impact of NF1 on quality of life (INF1-QOL) Questionnaire were completed from a department of plastic and reconstructive surgery by 27 patients. Patients were 3 to 49 years of age. The correlation between subdomains were calculated using Pearson correlation. The difference between groups were evaluated using Fisher exact t-test. P value <0.05 were considered significant.

RESULTS

In age group of craniofacial pNFs, significant difference presented in cosmetic appearance, role and outlook on life and general QOL. Higher impact on general QOL in adults (6/8) than children (1/7) pointed to more impaired QOL in adults, as well as 2 subdomains including appearance, role and outlook on life. The patients who have more than 50 cutaneous neurofibromas (cNFs) (6/7) presented a significantly greater negative impact on the role and outlook of life. No statistically significant difference of QOL were detected between craniofacial and non-craniofacial pNFs patients.

CONCLUSIONS

Age and cNFs were 2 main factors that have a negative impact on QOL in craniofacial pNFs patients. Adults reported lower QOL in cosmetic appearance, the role and outlook of life and general QOL. Patients with more than 50 cNFs reported more negative impact on the role and outlook of life. A multidiscipline management for these patients is required, including psychosocial intervention.

Recent Advances in Developing K-Ras Plasma Membrane Localization Inhibitors

The Ras proteins play an important role in cell growth, differentiation, proliferation and survival by regulating diverse signaling pathways. Oncogenic mutant K-Ras is the most frequently mutated class of Ras superfamily that is highly prevalent in many human cancers. Despite intensive efforts to combat various K-Ras-mutant-driven cancers, no effective K-Ras-specific inhibitors have yet been approved for clinical use to date. Since K-Ras proteins must be associated to the plasma membrane for their function, targeting K-Ras plasma membrane localization represents a logical and potentially tractable therapeutic approach. Here, we summarize the recent advances in the development of K-Ras plasma membrane localization inhibitors including natural product-based inhibitors achieved from high throughput screening, fragment-based drug design, virtual screening, and drug repurposing as well as hit-to-lead optimizations.