Diagnostic Value of Circulating PIGF in Combination with Flt-1 in Early Cervical Cancer

Screening and identification of key biomarkers associated with endometriosis using bioinformatics and next-generation sequencing data analysis

Background

Endometriosis is a common cause of endometrial-type mucosa outside the uterine cavity with symptoms such as painful periods, chronic pelvic pain, pain with intercourse and infertility. However, the early diagnosis of endometriosis is still restricted. The purpose of this investigation is to identify and validate the key biomarkers of endometriosis.

Methods

Next-generation sequencing dataset GSE243039 was obtained from the Gene Expression Omnibus database, and differentially expressed genes (DEGs) between endometriosis and normal control samples were identified. After screening of DEGs, gene ontology (GO) and REACTOME pathway enrichment analyses were performed. Furthermore, a protein–protein interaction (PPI) network was constructed and modules were analyzed using the Human Integrated Protein–Protein Interaction rEference database and Cytoscape software, and hub genes were identified. Subsequently, a network between miRNAs and hub genes, and network between TFs and hub genes were constructed using the miRNet and NetworkAnalyst tool, and possible key miRNAs and TFs were predicted. Finally, receiver operating characteristic curve analysis was used to validate the hub genes.

Results

A total of 958 DEGs, including 479 upregulated genes and 479 downregulated genes, were screened between endometriosis and normal control samples. GO and REACTOME pathway enrichment analyses of the 958 DEGs showed that they were mainly involved in multicellular organismal process, developmental process, signaling by GPCR and muscle contraction. Further analysis of the PPI network and modules identified 10 hub genes, including vcam1, snca, prkcb, adrb2, foxq1, mdfi, actbl2, prkd1, dapk1 and actc1. Possible target miRNAs, including hsa-mir-3143 and hsa-mir-2110, and target TFs, including tcf3 (transcription factor 3) and clock (clock circadian regulator), were predicted by constructing a miRNA-hub gene regulatory network and TF-hub gene regulatory network.

Conclusions

This investigation used bioinformatics techniques to explore the potential and novel biomarkers. These biomarkers might provide new ideas and methods for the early diagnosis, treatment and monitoring of endometriosis.

Serum Proteomic Signatures in Cervical Cancer: Current Status and Future Directions

In 2020, the World Health Organization (WHO) reported 604,000 new diagnoses of cervical cancer (CC) worldwide, and over 300,000 CC-related fatalities. The vast majority of CC cases are caused by persistent human papillomavirus (HPV) infections. HPV-related CC incidence and mortality rates have declined worldwide because of increased HPV vaccination and CC screening with the Papanicolaou test (PAP test). Despite these significant improvements, developing countries face difficulty implementing these programs, while developed nations are challenged with identifying HPV-independent cases. Molecular and proteomic information obtained from blood or tumor samples have a strong potential to provide information on malignancy progression and response to therapy in CC. There is a large amount of published biomarker data related to CC available but the extensive validation required by the FDA approval for clinical use is lacking. The ability of researchers to use the big data obtained from clinical studies and to draw meaningful relationships from these data are two obstacles that must be overcome for implementation into clinical practice. We report on identified multimarker panels of serum proteomic studies in CC for the past 5 years, the potential for modern computational biology efforts, and the utilization of nationwide biobanks to bridge the gap between multivariate protein signature development and the prediction of clinically relevant CC patient outcomes.

Circulating microRNAs in gallbladder cancer: Is serum assay of diagnostic value?

The microRNAs (miRNAs) in circulation could serve as biomarkers for cancer detection. Gallbladder carcinoma (GBC) is mostly asymptomatic; therefore, using microRNAs (miRNAs) as an early diagnostic biomarker could be a valuable tool. We aimed to identify the tumor-associated miR-1, miR130, miR-146, miR-182, and miR-21expression in serum as a biomarker for early detection of GBC and identify their possible diagnostic role. The study group comprised of paired serum and tissue samples from 34 GBC, 19 cholecystitis (CC), 21 normal controls (uninflamed gall bladder), and additional 29 serum-only samples of GBC. Total RNA was isolated using a commercially available RNA isolation kit (Applied Biosystem, USA) and reverse transcribed using Advanced Taqman MicroRNA reverse transcription kit. The relative expression of miRNAs was analyzed using Quantitative real-time polymerase chain reaction. The diagnostic potential of these miRNAs was assessed by ROC analysis. In paired samples, the trend towards up and down regulation for miR-182, miR-21, miR-1, miR-130, and miR-146 was similar in both tissue and sera of GBC. The expression pattern of serum miR-1, miR130, and miR-146 gradually decreased from normal control (NC) to CC to GBC, while miR-21 and miR-182 gradually increased from NC to CC to GBC. The miR-1, miR-121, miR-182, and miR-146 significantly differed between CC vs. early stage and early stage vs. NC. Among these miRNAs, the sensitivity of miR-1 (85.71 %) was the highest, and the specificity of miR-21 was the highest (92.73 %). The combined sensitivity for miRNAs ranged from 73.13 % (CI: 60.90-83.24 %) to 98.63 % (CI: 89.0-99.61 %); however, the specificity was lower. In stage I&II vs. III&IV discrimination, the diagnostic sensitivity of miR-1 was highest (89.36 %, CI: 76.90-96.45). The two miRNAs, in combination, increase the diagnostic sensitivity. Circulating serum miRNAs may provide a new approach for clinical application. Panels of specific circulating miRNA, which require further validation, could be potential non-invasive diagnostic biomarkers for GBC in combination with abnormal radio diagnostic scans.

Circulating cervical cancer biomarkers potentially useful in medical attention (Review)

Cervical cancer (CC) is a public health problem worldwide, including Mexico. This type of cancer is the fourth most frequent in women worldwide; in Mexico it is the second most common type in women after breast cancer. The diagnosis of CC is based mainly on Pap smears and colposcopy and the identification of molecular tools that serve as a support for these methods is urgent. Regarding this, differential expressions of specific circulating biomolecules has been detected and, based on this, they have been postulated as potential biomarkers for CC diagnosis, prognosis, and/or to identify the response to treatments. Importantly, the combined analysis of these molecules considerably improves their efficacy as biomarkers and their potential use in the medical attention is promising.

Efficacy of circulating microRNA-130b and blood routine parameters in the early diagnosis of gastric cancer

Patients with gastric cancer (GC) have a poor prognosis, which is mainly due to the low rate of early diagnosis. The present study aimed to evaluate whether circulating microRNA-130b (miR-130b) and blood routine parameters [neutrophil count (N#), lymphocyte count (L#), monocyte count (M#), neutrophil percentage (N%), lymphocyte percentage (L%), monocyte percentage (M%), hemoglobin (Hb) level, hematocrit (Hct), red blood cell distribution width (RDW), platelet count, platelet distribution width (PDW), mean platelet volume (MPV), MPV to platelet count ratio (MPV/PC), monocyte to lymphocyte ratio (MLR), neutrophil to lymphocyte ratio (NLR) and platelet to lymphocyte ratio (PLR)] are useful biomarkers for GC, early stage GC (EGC) and precancerous lesion (Pre) detection, and to identify more effective diagnostic models by combining circulating blood markers. Circulating levels of M#, M%, RDW-coefficient of variation (RDW-CV), MPV, PDW, MLR and NLR were significantly higher, and the levels of Hb and L% were significantly lower in patients with GC and Pre compared with those in healthy controls (NCs) (all P<0.05). The N#, N% and PLR in patients with GC were significantly higher and the Hct was significantly lower than those in the NCs (all P<0.05). The values of MPV/PC were significantly higher in the Pre cohort compared with those in the NCs. The area under the curve (AUC) of the receiver operating characteristic curve of potential biomarkers for GC was 0.634-0.887 individually, and this increased to 0.978 in the combination model of miR-130b-PDW-MLR-Hb. Additionally, the values for RDW-CV, PLR, NLR, N# and N% were positively correlated with cancer stage, while the values for MPV, L#, L%, Hb and Hct were negatively correlated with cancer stage. Furthermore, the circulating levels of miRNA-130b, and the values for NLR, RDW-CV, PDW, M%, red blood cell count, Hct, Hb and MLR differed between the EGC and NC groups. The AUC values of these biomarkers were 0.6491-0.911 individually in the diagnosis of EGC, and these increased to 0.960 in combination. In addition, the AUC values for miR-130b, RDW-CV, MPV/PC ratio, MLR, NLR, PDW, L%, M%, M# and Hb in the diagnosis of Pre were 0.638-0.811 individually. The dual-model of miR-130b-PDW manifested the largest AUC of 0.896 in the diagnosis of Pre, and the sensitivity and accuracy were increased when miR-130b and PDW were combined. All these results suggested that circulating miR-130b and blood routine parameters might be potential biomarkers, and combinations of measurements of these biomarkers may improve the GC, EGC and Pre diagnostic accuracy.