1
|
Yen HR, Liao WC, Chen CH, Su YA, Huang YW, Hsiao C, Chou YL, Chu YH, Shih PK, Liu CH. Targeting chondroitin sulfate suppresses macropinocytosis of breast cancer cells by modulating syndecan-1 expression. Mol Oncol 2024. [PMID: 38770553 DOI: 10.1002/1878-0261.13667] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 12/26/2023] [Revised: 04/02/2024] [Accepted: 05/08/2024] [Indexed: 05/22/2024] Open
Abstract
Accumulation of abnormal chondroitin sulfate (CS) chains in breast cancer tissue is correlated with poor prognosis. However, the biological functions of these CS chains in cancer progression remain largely unknown, impeding the development of targeted treatment focused on CS. Previous studies identified chondroitin polymerizing factor (CHPF; also known as chondroitin sulfate synthase 2) is the critical enzyme regulating CS accumulation in breast cancer tissue. We then assessed the association between CHPF-associated proteoglycans (PGs) and signaling pathways in breast cancer datasets. The regulation between CHPF and syndecan 1 (SDC1) was examined at both the protein and RNA levels. Confocal microscopy and image flow cytometry were employed to quantify macropinocytosis. The effects of the 6-O-sulfated CS-binding peptide (C6S-p) on blocking CS functions were tested in vitro and in vivo. Results indicated that the expression of CHPF and SDC1 was tightly associated within primary breast cancer tissue, and high expression of both genes exacerbated patient prognosis. Transforming growth factor beta (TGF-β) signaling was implicated in the regulation of CHPF and SDC1 in breast cancer cells. CHPF supported CS-SDC1 stabilization on the cell surface, modulating macropinocytotic activity in breast cancer cells under nutrient-deprived conditions. Furthermore, C6S-p demonstrated the ability to bind CS-SDC1, increase SDC1 degradation, suppress macropinocytosis of breast cancer cells, and inhibit tumor growth in vivo. Although other PGs may also be involved in CHPF-regulated breast cancer malignancy, this study provides the first evidence that a CS synthase participates in the regulation of macropinocytosis in cancer cells by supporting SDC1 expression on cancer cells.
Collapse
Affiliation(s)
- Hung-Rong Yen
- Department of Chinese Medicine, China Medical University Hospital, Taichung, Taiwan
- Chinese Medicine Research Center, and School of Chinese Medicine, College of Chinese Medicine, China Medical University, Taichung, Taiwan
| | - Wen-Chieh Liao
- Doctoral Program in Tissue Engineering and Regenerative Medicine, College of Medicine, National Chung Hsing University, Taichung, Taiwan
- Department of Post-Baccalaureate Medicine, College of Medicine, National Chung Hsing University, Taichung, Taiwan
| | - Chia-Hua Chen
- Molecular Medicine Research Center, Chang Gung University, Taoyuan, Taiwan
| | - Ying-Ai Su
- Doctoral Program in Tissue Engineering and Regenerative Medicine, College of Medicine, National Chung Hsing University, Taichung, Taiwan
- College of Medicine, Chung Shan Medical University, Taichung, Taiwan
| | - Ying-Wei Huang
- Doctoral Program in Tissue Engineering and Regenerative Medicine, College of Medicine, National Chung Hsing University, Taichung, Taiwan
- College of Medicine, Chung Shan Medical University, Taichung, Taiwan
| | - Chi Hsiao
- Doctoral Program in Tissue Engineering and Regenerative Medicine, College of Medicine, National Chung Hsing University, Taichung, Taiwan
- College of Medicine, Chung Shan Medical University, Taichung, Taiwan
| | - Yu-Lun Chou
- Doctoral Program in Tissue Engineering and Regenerative Medicine, College of Medicine, National Chung Hsing University, Taichung, Taiwan
| | - Yin-Hung Chu
- Doctoral Program in Tissue Engineering and Regenerative Medicine, College of Medicine, National Chung Hsing University, Taichung, Taiwan
| | - Pin-Keng Shih
- Doctoral Program in Tissue Engineering and Regenerative Medicine, College of Medicine, National Chung Hsing University, Taichung, Taiwan
- Department of Surgery, China Medical University Hospital, Taichung, Taiwan
- School of Medicine, China Medical University, Taichung, Taiwan
| | - Chiung-Hui Liu
- Doctoral Program in Tissue Engineering and Regenerative Medicine, College of Medicine, National Chung Hsing University, Taichung, Taiwan
- Department of Post-Baccalaureate Medicine, College of Medicine, National Chung Hsing University, Taichung, Taiwan
| |
Collapse
|
2
|
Hoo R, Ruiz-Morales ER, Kelava I, Rawat M, Mazzeo CI, Tuck E, Sancho-Serra C, Chelaghma S, Predeus AV, Murray S, Fernandez-Antoran D, Waller RF, Álvarez-Errico D, Lee MCS, Vento-Tormo R. Acute response to pathogens in the early human placenta at single-cell resolution. Cell Syst 2024; 15:425-444.e9. [PMID: 38703772 DOI: 10.1016/j.cels.2024.04.002] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 05/19/2023] [Revised: 12/01/2023] [Accepted: 04/16/2024] [Indexed: 05/06/2024]
Abstract
The placenta is a selective maternal-fetal barrier that provides nourishment and protection from infections. However, certain pathogens can attach to and even cross the placenta, causing pregnancy complications with potential lifelong impacts on the child's health. Here, we profiled at the single-cell level the placental responses to three pathogens associated with intrauterine complications-Plasmodium falciparum, Listeria monocytogenes, and Toxoplasma gondii. We found that upon exposure to the pathogens, all placental lineages trigger inflammatory responses that may compromise placental function. Additionally, we characterized the responses of fetal macrophages known as Hofbauer cells (HBCs) to each pathogen and propose that they are the probable niche for T. gondii. Finally, we revealed how P. falciparum adapts to the placental microenvironment by modulating protein export into the host erythrocyte and nutrient uptake pathways. Altogether, we have defined the cellular networks and signaling pathways mediating acute placental inflammatory responses that could contribute to pregnancy complications.
Collapse
Affiliation(s)
- Regina Hoo
- Wellcome Sanger Institute, Cambridge, UK; Centre for Trophoblast Research, University of Cambridge, Cambridge, UK
| | | | - Iva Kelava
- Wellcome Sanger Institute, Cambridge, UK
| | - Mukul Rawat
- Wellcome Sanger Institute, Cambridge, UK; Wellcome Centre for Anti-Infectives Research, Division of Biological Chemistry and Drug Discovery, University of Dundee, Dundee, UK
| | | | | | | | - Sara Chelaghma
- Department of Biochemistry, University of Cambridge, Cambridge, UK
| | | | | | - David Fernandez-Antoran
- Wellcome/Cancer Research UK Gurdon Institute, University of Cambridge, Cambridge, UK; Department of Pathology, University of Cambridge, Cambridge, UK
| | - Ross F Waller
- Department of Biochemistry, University of Cambridge, Cambridge, UK
| | | | - Marcus C S Lee
- Wellcome Sanger Institute, Cambridge, UK; Wellcome Centre for Anti-Infectives Research, Division of Biological Chemistry and Drug Discovery, University of Dundee, Dundee, UK.
| | - Roser Vento-Tormo
- Wellcome Sanger Institute, Cambridge, UK; Centre for Trophoblast Research, University of Cambridge, Cambridge, UK.
| |
Collapse
|
3
|
Poddar A, Ahmady F, Rao SR, Sharma R, Kannourakis G, Prithviraj P, Jayachandran A. The role of pregnancy associated plasma protein-A in triple negative breast cancer: a promising target for achieving clinical benefits. J Biomed Sci 2024; 31:23. [PMID: 38395880 PMCID: PMC10885503 DOI: 10.1186/s12929-024-01012-x] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 07/20/2023] [Accepted: 02/10/2024] [Indexed: 02/25/2024] Open
Abstract
Pregnancy associated plasma protein-A (PAPP-A) plays an integral role in breast cancer (BC), especially triple negative breast cancer (TNBC). This subtype accounts for the most aggressive BC, possesses high tumor heterogeneity, is least responsive to standard treatments and has the poorest clinical outcomes. There is a critical need to address the lack of effective targeted therapeutic options available. PAPP-A is a protein that is highly elevated during pregnancy. Frequently, higher PAPP-A expression is detected in tumors than in healthy tissues. The increase in expression coincides with increased rates of aggressive cancers. In BC, PAPP-A has been demonstrated to play a role in tumor initiation, progression, metastasis including epithelial-mesenchymal transition (EMT), as well as acting as a biomarker for predicting patient outcomes. In this review, we present the role of PAPP-A, with specific focus on TNBC. The structure and function of PAPP-A, belonging to the pappalysin subfamily, and its proteolytic activity are assessed. We highlight the link of BC and PAPP-A with respect to the IGFBP/IGF axis, EMT, the window of susceptibility and the impact of pregnancy. Importantly, the relevance of PAPP-A as a TNBC clinical marker is reviewed and its influence on immune-related pathways are explored. The relationship and mechanisms involving PAPP-A reveal the potential for more treatment options that can lead to successful immunotherapeutic targets and the ability to assist with better predicting clinical outcomes in TNBC.
Collapse
Affiliation(s)
- Arpita Poddar
- Fiona Elsey Cancer Research Institute, Victoria, Australia
- Federation University, Victoria, Australia
- RMIT University, Victoria, Australia
| | - Farah Ahmady
- Fiona Elsey Cancer Research Institute, Victoria, Australia
- Federation University, Victoria, Australia
| | - Sushma R Rao
- Fiona Elsey Cancer Research Institute, Victoria, Australia
- Adelaide Medical School, University of Adelaide, Adelaide, South Australia, Australia
| | - Revati Sharma
- Fiona Elsey Cancer Research Institute, Victoria, Australia
- Federation University, Victoria, Australia
| | - George Kannourakis
- Fiona Elsey Cancer Research Institute, Victoria, Australia
- Federation University, Victoria, Australia
| | - Prashanth Prithviraj
- Fiona Elsey Cancer Research Institute, Victoria, Australia
- Federation University, Victoria, Australia
| | - Aparna Jayachandran
- Fiona Elsey Cancer Research Institute, Victoria, Australia.
- Federation University, Victoria, Australia.
| |
Collapse
|
4
|
Zheng Z, Lu X, Zhou D, Deng XF, Liu QX, Liu XB, Zhang J, Li YQ, Zheng H, Dai JG. A novel enemy of cancer: recent investigations into protozoan anti-tumor properties. Front Cell Infect Microbiol 2024; 13:1325144. [PMID: 38274735 PMCID: PMC10808745 DOI: 10.3389/fcimb.2023.1325144] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 11/17/2023] [Accepted: 12/28/2023] [Indexed: 01/27/2024] Open
Abstract
Cancer remains a significant global health issue, despite advances in screening and treatment. While existing tumor treatment protocols such as surgery, chemotherapy, radiotherapy, targeted therapy, and immunotherapy have proven effective in enhancing the prognosis for some patients, these treatments do not benefit all patients. Consequently, certain types of cancer continue to exhibit a relatively low 5-year survival rate. Therefore, the pursuit of novel tumor intervention strategies may help improve the current effectiveness of tumor treatment. Over the past few decades, numerous species of protozoa and their components have exhibited anti-tumor potential via immune and non-immune mechanisms. This discovery introduces a new research direction for the development of new and effective cancer treatments. Through in vitro experiments and studies involving tumor-bearing mice, the anti-tumor ability of Toxoplasma gondii, Plasmodium, Trypanosoma cruzi, and other protozoa have unveiled diverse mechanisms by which protozoa combat cancer, demonstrating encouraging prospects for their application. In this review, we summarize the anti-tumor ability and anti-tumor mechanisms of various protozoa and explore the potential for their clinical development and application.
Collapse
Affiliation(s)
| | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | - Hong Zheng
- Department of Thoracic Surgery, Xinqiao Hospital, Army (Third Military) Medical University, Chongqing, China
| | - Ji-gang Dai
- Department of Thoracic Surgery, Xinqiao Hospital, Army (Third Military) Medical University, Chongqing, China
| |
Collapse
|
5
|
Zhang B, Fan X, Nayak NR. Trophoblast-Targeted Liposomes for Placenta-Specific Drug Delivery. Methods Mol Biol 2024; 2728:173-180. [PMID: 38019401 DOI: 10.1007/978-1-0716-3495-0_15] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/30/2023]
Abstract
A major challenge in developing potential treatments for pregnancy complications is minimizing adverse effects to the fetus and mother. Placenta-targeted drug delivery could reduce the risks of drug treatments in pregnancy by targeting tissue where most pregnancy complications originate and decreasing dosages. We previously developed a tool for the targeted delivery of drug-carrying nanoparticles to the placenta using a synthetic placental chondroitin sulfate A-binding peptide (plCSA-BP) derived from the malarial protein VAR2CSA, which binds a distinct type of chondroitin sulfate A (CSA) exclusively expressed by placental trophoblasts. Liposomes are a type of nanoparticle already approved for use in humans by the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) and used successfully for the treatment of a wide range of diseases. Here, we present a detailed method to create plCSA-BP-decorated liposomes that can be used to deliver drugs specifically to placental trophoblasts. Liposomes are first generated by the standard film method and then conjugated to plCSA-BPs using the 1-ethyl-3-(3-dimethylaminopropyl) carbodiimide hydrochloride/N-hydroxysulfosuccinimide (EDC/NHS) bioconjugate technique. This protocol may facilitate bench-to-bedside translation of drug discovery for the treatment of pregnancy disorders by reducing risks of side effects, and enabling rapid and scalable production.
Collapse
Affiliation(s)
- Baozhen Zhang
- Department of Obstetrics and Gynecology, Women and Children's Hospital of Chongqing Medical University, Chongqing, China
| | - Xiujun Fan
- Laboratory of Reproductive Health, Shenzhen Institute of Advanced Technology, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Shenzhen, China
| | - Nihar R Nayak
- Department of Obstetrics and Gynecology, UMKC School of Medicine, Kansas City, MO, USA
| |
Collapse
|
6
|
Liu G, Chang Y, Mei X, Chen G, Zhang Y, Jiang X, Tao W, Xue C. Identification and structural characterization of a novel chondroitin sulfate-specific carbohydrate-binding module: The first member of a new family, CBM100. Int J Biol Macromol 2024; 255:127959. [PMID: 37951443 DOI: 10.1016/j.ijbiomac.2023.127959] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 09/22/2023] [Revised: 11/05/2023] [Accepted: 11/06/2023] [Indexed: 11/14/2023]
Abstract
Chondroitin sulfate is a biologically and commercially important polysaccharide with a variety of applications. Carbohydrate-binding module (CBM) is an important class of carbohydrate-binding protein, which could be utilized as a promising tool for the applications of polysaccharides. In the present study, an unknown function domain was explored from a putative chondroitin sulfate lyase in PL29 family. Recombinant PhCBM100 demonstrated binding capacity to chondroitin sulfates with Ka values of 2.1 ± 0.2 × 106 M-1 and 6.0 ± 0.1 × 106 M-1 to chondroitin sulfate A and chondroitin sulfate C, respectively. The 1.55 Å resolution X-ray crystal structure of PhCBM100 exhibited a β-sandwich fold formed by two antiparallel β-sheets. A binding groove in PhCBM100 interacting with chondroitin sulfate was subsequently identified, and the potential of PhCBM100 for visualization of chondroitin sulfate was evaluated. PhCBM100 is the first characterized chondroitin sulfate-specific CBM. The novelty of PhCBM100 proposed a new CBM family of CBM100.
Collapse
Affiliation(s)
- Guanchen Liu
- College of Food Science and Engineering, Ocean University of China, 1299 Sansha Road, Qingdao 266404, China
| | - Yaoguang Chang
- College of Food Science and Engineering, Ocean University of China, 1299 Sansha Road, Qingdao 266404, China.
| | - Xuanwei Mei
- College of Food Science and Engineering, Ocean University of China, 1299 Sansha Road, Qingdao 266404, China
| | - Guangning Chen
- College of Food Science and Engineering, Ocean University of China, 1299 Sansha Road, Qingdao 266404, China
| | - Yuying Zhang
- College of Food Science and Engineering, Ocean University of China, 1299 Sansha Road, Qingdao 266404, China
| | - Xiaoxiao Jiang
- College of Food Science and Engineering, Ocean University of China, 1299 Sansha Road, Qingdao 266404, China
| | - Wenwen Tao
- College of Food Science and Engineering, Ocean University of China, 1299 Sansha Road, Qingdao 266404, China
| | - Changhu Xue
- College of Food Science and Engineering, Ocean University of China, 1299 Sansha Road, Qingdao 266404, China
| |
Collapse
|
7
|
Dallmann J, Freitag J, Jung C, Khinvasara K, Merz L, Peters D, Schork M, Beck J. CIMT 2023: report on the 20th Annual Meeting of the Association for Cancer Immunotherapy. IMMUNO-ONCOLOGY TECHNOLOGY 2023; 20:100397. [PMID: 37876518 PMCID: PMC10590812 DOI: 10.1016/j.iotech.2023.100397] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 10/26/2023]
Abstract
The Association for Cancer Immunotherapy (CIMT) celebrated the 20th anniversary of the CIMT Annual Meeting. CIMT2023 was held 3-5 May 2023 in Mainz, Germany. 1051 academic and clinical professionals from over 30 countries attended the meeting and discussed the latest advances in cancer immunology and immunotherapy research. This report summarizes the highlights of CIMT2023.
Collapse
Affiliation(s)
- J. Dallmann
- Immunotherapies & Preclinical Research, BioNTech SE, Mainz
| | - J. Freitag
- TRON-Translational Oncology, University Medical Center of the Johannes Gutenberg University Mainz gGmbH, Mainz, Germany
| | - C. Jung
- BioNTech Cell & Gene Therapies GmbH, Mainz
| | - K. Khinvasara
- TRON-Translational Oncology, University Medical Center of the Johannes Gutenberg University Mainz gGmbH, Mainz, Germany
| | - L. Merz
- TRON-Translational Oncology, University Medical Center of the Johannes Gutenberg University Mainz gGmbH, Mainz, Germany
| | - D. Peters
- Immunotherapies & Preclinical Research, BioNTech SE, Mainz
| | - M. Schork
- TRON-Translational Oncology, University Medical Center of the Johannes Gutenberg University Mainz gGmbH, Mainz, Germany
| | - J.D. Beck
- Immunotherapies & Preclinical Research, BioNTech SE, Mainz
| |
Collapse
|
8
|
Zhang H, Zhu T, Xu W, Liu B, Wu K, Yin Y, Zhang X. Detoxified pneumolysin derivative ΔA146Ply inhibits triple- negative breast cancer metastasis mainly via mannose receptor-mediated autophagy inhibition. Virulence 2023:2283898. [PMID: 37964595 DOI: 10.1080/21505594.2023.2283898] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 04/18/2023] [Accepted: 11/09/2023] [Indexed: 11/16/2023] Open
Abstract
The detoxified pneumolysin derivative ΔA146Ply has been proven to have a direct anti-triple negative breast cancer effect by our group, but its work model remains unclear. In this study, we focused on its ability to inhibit triple-negative breast cancer metastasis. We found that ΔA146Ply suppressed the migration and invasion of triple-negative breast cancer cells by activating mannose receptor and toll-like receptor 4. Their activation triggers the activation of the mammalian target of rapamycin signaling, sequentially leading to autophagy, transforming growth factor-β1, and epithelial-mesenchymal transition inhibition. Furthermore, the combination of doxorubicin and ΔA146Ply significantly inhibited triple-negative breast cancer progression and prolonged survival in tumor-bearing mice. Taken together, our study provides an alternative microbiome-based mannose receptor-targeted therapy for triple-negative breast cancer and a novel theoretical and experimental basis for the downstream signaling pathway of the mannose receptor.
Collapse
Affiliation(s)
- Hong Zhang
- Department of Laboratory Medicine, the Affiliated Hospital of North Sichuan Medical College; Department of Laboratory Medicine, North Sichuan Medical College; Translational Medicine Research Center, North Sichuan Medical College, Nanchong, China
| | - Tao Zhu
- Department of Laboratory Medicine, Key Laboratory of Diagnostic Medicine (Ministry of Education), Chongqing Medical University, Chongqing, China
- Department of Clinical Laboratory and Chongqing Key Laboratory of Translational Research for Cancer Metastasis and Individualized Treatment, Chongqing University Cancer Hospital & Chongqing Cancer Institute & Chongqing Cancer Hospital, Chongqing, China
| | - Wenchun Xu
- Department of Laboratory Medicine, Key Laboratory of Diagnostic Medicine (Ministry of Education), Chongqing Medical University, Chongqing, China
| | - Bichen Liu
- Department of Laboratory Medicine, Key Laboratory of Diagnostic Medicine (Ministry of Education), Chongqing Medical University, Chongqing, China
| | - Kaifeng Wu
- Department of Laboratory Medicine, The First People's Hospital of Zunyi (The Third Affiliated Hospital of Zunyi Medical University), Zunyi, China
| | - Yibing Yin
- Department of Laboratory Medicine, Key Laboratory of Diagnostic Medicine (Ministry of Education), Chongqing Medical University, Chongqing, China
| | - Xuemei Zhang
- Department of Laboratory Medicine, Key Laboratory of Diagnostic Medicine (Ministry of Education), Chongqing Medical University, Chongqing, China
| |
Collapse
|
9
|
Nair S, Ormazabal V, Carrion F, Handberg A, McIntyre H, Salomon C. Extracellular vesicle-mediated targeting strategies for long-term health benefits in gestational diabetes. Clin Sci (Lond) 2023; 137:1311-1332. [PMID: 37650554 PMCID: PMC10472199 DOI: 10.1042/cs20220150] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 02/20/2023] [Revised: 07/23/2023] [Accepted: 08/09/2023] [Indexed: 09/01/2023]
Abstract
Extracellular vesicles (EVs) are critical mediators of cell communication, playing important roles in regulating molecular cross-talk between different metabolic tissues and influencing insulin sensitivity in both healthy and gestational diabetes mellitus (GDM) pregnancies. The ability of EVs to transfer molecular cargo between cells imbues them with potential as therapeutic agents. During pregnancy, the placenta assumes a vital role in metabolic regulation, with multiple mechanisms of placenta-mediated EV cross-talk serving as central components in GDM pathophysiology. This review focuses on the role of the placenta in the pathophysiology of GDM and explores the possibilities and prospects of targeting the placenta to address insulin resistance and placental dysfunction in GDM. Additionally, we propose the use of EVs as a novel method for targeted therapeutics in treating the dysfunctional placenta. The primary aim of this review is to comprehend the current status of EV targeting approaches and assess the potential application of these strategies in placental therapeutics, thereby delivering molecular cargo and improving maternal and fetal outcomes in GDM. We propose that EVs have the potential to revolutionize GDM management, offering hope for enhanced maternal-fetal health outcomes and more effective treatments.
Collapse
Affiliation(s)
- Soumyalekshmi Nair
- Translational Extracellular Vesicle in Obstetrics and Gynae-Oncology Group, UQ Centre for Clinical Research, Royal Brisbane and Women's Hospital, Faculty of Medicine, The University of Queensland, Australia
| | - Valeska Ormazabal
- Department of Pharmacology, Faculty of Biological Sciences, University of Concepcion, Concepción, Chile
| | - Flavio Carrion
- Departamento de Investigación, Postgrado y Educación Continua (DIPEC), Facultad de Ciencias de la Salud, Universidad del Alba, Santiago, Chile
| | - Aase Handberg
- Department of Clinical Biochemistry, Aalborg University Hospital, Aalborg, Denmark
| | - H David McIntyre
- Mater Research, Faculty of Medicine, University of Queensland, Mater Health, South Brisbane, Australia
| | - Carlos Salomon
- Translational Extracellular Vesicle in Obstetrics and Gynae-Oncology Group, UQ Centre for Clinical Research, Royal Brisbane and Women's Hospital, Faculty of Medicine, The University of Queensland, Australia
- Departamento de Investigación, Postgrado y Educación Continua (DIPEC), Facultad de Ciencias de la Salud, Universidad del Alba, Santiago, Chile
| |
Collapse
|
10
|
Yousefi M, Akbari M, Hadipour M, Dehkordi AB, Farahbakhsh Z, Darani HY. Parasites as potential targets for cancer immunotherapy. J Cancer Res Clin Oncol 2023; 149:8027-8038. [PMID: 36949175 DOI: 10.1007/s00432-023-04694-2] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 11/30/2022] [Accepted: 03/13/2023] [Indexed: 03/24/2023]
Abstract
Parasites and cancers have some common antigens. Much scientific evidence in the human population, animal models, and in vitro experiments exhibit that parasites have significant anti-cancer effects. The larval stage of the tapeworm Echinococcus granulosus, Toxoplasma gondii, Trypanosoma cruzy, Plasmodium's, and Trichinella spiralis are among the parasites that have been subjects of anti-cancer research in the last decades. Anti-tumor effects of parasites may be due to the direct impact of the parasites per se or indirectly due to the immune response raised against common antigens between malignant cells and parasites. This manuscript reviews the anti-cancer effects of parasites and possible mechanisms of these effects. Options for using parasites or their antigens for cancer treatment in the future have been discussed.
Collapse
Affiliation(s)
- Morteza Yousefi
- Cancer Research Center, Shahid Beheshti University of Medical Sciences, Tehran, Iran
| | - Mohammadesmail Akbari
- Cancer Research Center, Shahid Beheshti University of Medical Sciences, Tehran, Iran.
| | - Mahboubeh Hadipour
- Department of Parasitology and Mycology, Faculty of Medicine, Infectious Diseases and Tropical Medicine Research Center, Isfahan University of Medical Sciences, Isfahan, Iran
| | - Azar Balouti Dehkordi
- Department of Parasitology and Mycology, Faculty of Medicine, Infectious Diseases and Tropical Medicine Research Center, Isfahan University of Medical Sciences, Isfahan, Iran
| | - Zohreh Farahbakhsh
- Department of Parasitology and Mycology, Faculty of Medicine, Infectious Diseases and Tropical Medicine Research Center, Isfahan University of Medical Sciences, Isfahan, Iran
| | - Hossein Yousofi Darani
- Department of Parasitology and Mycology, Faculty of Medicine, Infectious Diseases and Tropical Medicine Research Center, Isfahan University of Medical Sciences, Isfahan, Iran.
| |
Collapse
|
11
|
Liu X, Zhang Y, Li X, Xu J, Zhao C, Yang J. Raman Spectroscopy Combined with Malaria Protein for Early Capture and Recognition of Broad-Spectrum Circulating Tumor Cells. Int J Mol Sci 2023; 24:12072. [PMID: 37569448 PMCID: PMC10419290 DOI: 10.3390/ijms241512072] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 06/26/2023] [Revised: 07/22/2023] [Accepted: 07/25/2023] [Indexed: 08/13/2023] Open
Abstract
Early identification of tumors can significantly reduce the mortality rate. Circulating tumor cells (CTCs) are a type of tumor cell that detaches from the primary tumor and circulates through the bloodstream. Monitoring CTCs may allow the early identification of tumor progression. However, due to their rarity and heterogeneity, the enrichment and identification of CTCs is still challenging. Studies have shown that Raman spectroscopy could distinguish CTCs from metastatic cancer patients. VAR2CSA, a class of malaria proteins, has a strong broad-spectrum binding effect on various tumor cells and is a promising candidate biomarker for cancer detection. Here, recombinant malaria VAR2CSA proteins were synthesized, expressed, and purified. After confirming that various types of tumor cells can be isolated from blood by recombinant malaria VAR2CSA proteins, we further proved that the VAR2CSA combined with Raman spectroscopy could be used efficiently for tumor capture and type recognition using A549 cell lines spiked into the blood. This would allow the early screening and detection of a broad spectrum of CTCs. Finally, we synthesized and purified the malaria protein fusion antibody and confirmed its in vitro tumor-killing activity. Herein, this paper exploits the theoretical basis of a novel strategy to capture, recognize, and kill broad-spectrum types of CTCs from the peripheral blood.
Collapse
Affiliation(s)
- Xinning Liu
- Key Laboratory of Marine Drugs, Ministry of Education, Qingdao Marine Biomedical Research Institute, Ocean University of China, Qingdao 266071, China; (X.L.)
- Innovation Platform of Marine Drug Screening & Evaluation, Qingdao Marine Science and Technology Center, Qingdao 266100, China
| | - Yidan Zhang
- Key Laboratory of Marine Drugs, Ministry of Education, Qingdao Marine Biomedical Research Institute, Ocean University of China, Qingdao 266071, China; (X.L.)
- Innovation Platform of Marine Drug Screening & Evaluation, Qingdao Marine Science and Technology Center, Qingdao 266100, China
| | - Xunrong Li
- Single-Cell Center, CAS Key Laboratory of Biofuels, Shandong Key Laboratory of Energy Genetics and Shandong Energy Institute, Qingdao Institute of Bioenergy and Bioprocess Technology, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Qingdao 266071, China
- University of Chinese Academy of Sciences, Beijing 100000, China
| | - Jian Xu
- Single-Cell Center, CAS Key Laboratory of Biofuels, Shandong Key Laboratory of Energy Genetics and Shandong Energy Institute, Qingdao Institute of Bioenergy and Bioprocess Technology, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Qingdao 266071, China
- University of Chinese Academy of Sciences, Beijing 100000, China
| | - Chenyang Zhao
- Key Laboratory of Marine Drugs, Ministry of Education, Qingdao Marine Biomedical Research Institute, Ocean University of China, Qingdao 266071, China; (X.L.)
- Innovation Platform of Marine Drug Screening & Evaluation, Qingdao Marine Science and Technology Center, Qingdao 266100, China
| | - Jinbo Yang
- Key Laboratory of Marine Drugs, Ministry of Education, Qingdao Marine Biomedical Research Institute, Ocean University of China, Qingdao 266071, China; (X.L.)
- Innovation Platform of Marine Drug Screening & Evaluation, Qingdao Marine Science and Technology Center, Qingdao 266100, China
| |
Collapse
|
12
|
Skeltved N, Nordmaj MA, Berendtsen NT, Dagil R, Stormer EMR, Al-Nakouzi N, Jiang K, Aicher A, Heeschen C, Gustavsson T, Choudhary S, Gögenur I, Christensen JP, Theander TG, Daugaard M, Salanti A, Nielsen MA. Bispecific T cell-engager targeting oncofetal chondroitin sulfate induces complete tumor regression and protective immune memory in mice. J Exp Clin Cancer Res 2023; 42:106. [PMID: 37118819 PMCID: PMC10142489 DOI: 10.1186/s13046-023-02655-8] [Citation(s) in RCA: 2] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 12/29/2022] [Accepted: 03/28/2023] [Indexed: 04/30/2023] Open
Abstract
BACKGROUND The malaria protein VAR2CSA binds oncofetal chondroitin sulfate (ofCS), a unique chondroitin sulfate, expressed on almost all mammalian cancer cells. Previously, we produced a bispecific construct targeting ofCS and human T cells based on VAR2CSA and anti-CD3 (V-aCD3Hu). V-aCD3Hu showed efficacy against xenografted tumors in immunocompromised mice injected with human immune cells at the tumor site. However, the complex effects potentially exerted by the immune system as a result of the treatment cannot occur in mice without an immune system. Here we investigate the efficacy of V-aCD3Mu as a monotherapy and combined with immune checkpoint inhibitors in mice with a fully functional immune system. METHODS We produced a bispecific construct consisting of a recombinant version of VAR2CSA coupled to an anti-murine CD3 single-chain variable fragment. Flow cytometry and ELISA were used to check cell binding capabilities and the therapeutic effect was evaluated in vitro in a killing assay. The in vivo efficacy of V-aCD3Mu was then investigated in mice with a functional immune system and established or primary syngeneic tumors in the immunologically "cold" 4T1 mammary carcinoma, B16-F10 malignant melanoma, the pancreatic KPC mouse model, and in the immunologically "hot" CT26 colon carcinoma model. RESULTS V-aCD3Mu had efficacy as a monotherapy, and the combined treatment of V-aCD3Mu and an immune checkpoint inhibitor showed enhanced effects resulting in the complete elimination of solid tumors in the 4T1, B16-F10, and CT26 models. This anti-tumor effect was abscopal and accompanied by a systemic increase in memory and activated cytotoxic and helper T cells. The combined treatment also led to a higher percentage of memory T cells in the tumor without an increase in regulatory T cells. In addition, we observed partial protection against re-challenge in a melanoma model and full protection in a breast cancer model. CONCLUSIONS Our findings suggest that V-aCD3Mu combined with an immune checkpoint inhibitor renders immunologically "cold" tumors "hot" and results in tumor elimination. Taken together, these data provide proof of concept for the further clinical development of V-aCD3 as a broad cancer therapy in combination with an immune checkpoint inhibitor.
Collapse
Affiliation(s)
- Nanna Skeltved
- Centre for Medical Parasitology, Department of Infectious Diseases, University of Copenhagen and, Copenhagen University Hospital, Copenhagen, Denmark
| | - Mie A Nordmaj
- Centre for Medical Parasitology, Department of Infectious Diseases, University of Copenhagen and, Copenhagen University Hospital, Copenhagen, Denmark
| | - Nicolai T Berendtsen
- Centre for Medical Parasitology, Department of Infectious Diseases, University of Copenhagen and, Copenhagen University Hospital, Copenhagen, Denmark
| | - Robert Dagil
- Centre for Medical Parasitology, Department of Infectious Diseases, University of Copenhagen and, Copenhagen University Hospital, Copenhagen, Denmark
| | - Emilie M R Stormer
- Centre for Medical Parasitology, Department of Infectious Diseases, University of Copenhagen and, Copenhagen University Hospital, Copenhagen, Denmark
| | - Nader Al-Nakouzi
- Vancouver Prostate Centre, University of British Columbia, Vancouver, Canada
| | - Ke Jiang
- Center for Single-Cell Omics and Key Laboratory of Oncogenes and Related Genes, Shanghai Jiao Tong University School of Medicine, Shanghai, China
| | - Alexandra Aicher
- Precision Immunotherapy, Graduate Institute of Biomedical Sciences, China Medical University, Taichung, Taiwan
| | - Christopher Heeschen
- Center for Single-Cell Omics and Key Laboratory of Oncogenes and Related Genes, Shanghai Jiao Tong University School of Medicine, Shanghai, China
- Pancreatic Cancer Heterogeneity, Candiolo Cancer Institute - FPO - IRCCS, Candiolo (Torino), Italy
| | - Tobias Gustavsson
- Centre for Medical Parasitology, Department of Infectious Diseases, University of Copenhagen and, Copenhagen University Hospital, Copenhagen, Denmark
- Var2 Pharmaceuticals ApS, Copenhagen, Denmark
| | - Swati Choudhary
- Centre for Medical Parasitology, Department of Infectious Diseases, University of Copenhagen and, Copenhagen University Hospital, Copenhagen, Denmark
- Var2 Pharmaceuticals ApS, Copenhagen, Denmark
| | - Ismail Gögenur
- Department of Clinical Medicine, University of Copenhagen and Center for Surgical Science, Zealand University Hospital, Copenhagen, Denmark
| | - Jan P Christensen
- Department of Immunology and Microbiology, Faculty of Health and Medical Sciences, University of Copenhagen, Copenhagen, Denmark
| | - Thor G Theander
- Centre for Medical Parasitology, Department of Infectious Diseases, University of Copenhagen and, Copenhagen University Hospital, Copenhagen, Denmark
| | - Mads Daugaard
- Vancouver Prostate Centre, University of British Columbia, Vancouver, Canada
- Var2 Pharmaceuticals ApS, Copenhagen, Denmark
| | - Ali Salanti
- Centre for Medical Parasitology, Department of Infectious Diseases, University of Copenhagen and, Copenhagen University Hospital, Copenhagen, Denmark.
| | - Morten A Nielsen
- Centre for Medical Parasitology, Department of Infectious Diseases, University of Copenhagen and, Copenhagen University Hospital, Copenhagen, Denmark.
| |
Collapse
|
13
|
Wilczak M, Surman M, Przybyło M. Altered Glycosylation in Progression and Management of Bladder Cancer. Molecules 2023; 28:molecules28083436. [PMID: 37110670 PMCID: PMC10146225 DOI: 10.3390/molecules28083436] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 02/24/2023] [Revised: 04/05/2023] [Accepted: 04/11/2023] [Indexed: 04/29/2023] Open
Abstract
Bladder cancer (BC) is the 10th most common malignancy worldwide, with an estimated 573,000 new cases and 213,000 deaths in 2020. Available therapeutic approaches are still unable to reduce the incidence of BC metastasis and the high mortality rates of BC patients. Therefore, there is a need to deepen our understanding of the molecular mechanisms underlying BC progression to develop new diagnostic and therapeutic tools. One such mechanism is protein glycosylation. Numerous studies reported changes in glycan biosynthesis during neoplastic transformation, resulting in the appearance of the so-called tumor-associated carbohydrate antigens (TACAs) on the cell surface. TACAs affect a wide range of key biological processes, including tumor cell survival and proliferation, invasion and metastasis, induction of chronic inflammation, angiogenesis, immune evasion, and insensitivity to apoptosis. The purpose of this review is to summarize the current information on how altered glycosylation of bladder cancer cells promotes disease progression and to present the potential use of glycans for diagnostic and therapeutic purposes.
Collapse
Affiliation(s)
- Magdalena Wilczak
- Department of Glycoconjugate Biochemistry, Faculty of Biology, Institute of Zoology and Biomedical Research, Jagiellonian University, Gronostajowa 9 Street, 30-387 Krakow, Poland
- Doctoral School of Exact and Natural Sciences, Jagiellonian University, Prof. S. Łojasiewicza 11 Street, 30-348 Krakow, Poland
| | - Magdalena Surman
- Department of Glycoconjugate Biochemistry, Faculty of Biology, Institute of Zoology and Biomedical Research, Jagiellonian University, Gronostajowa 9 Street, 30-387 Krakow, Poland
| | - Małgorzata Przybyło
- Department of Glycoconjugate Biochemistry, Faculty of Biology, Institute of Zoology and Biomedical Research, Jagiellonian University, Gronostajowa 9 Street, 30-387 Krakow, Poland
| |
Collapse
|
14
|
Wei L, Xu Y, Du M, Fan Y, Zou R, Xu X, Zhang Q, Zhang YZ, Wang W, Li F. A novel 4-O-endosulfatase with high potential for the structure-function studies of chondroitin sulfate/dermatan sulfate. Carbohydr Polym 2023; 305:120508. [PMID: 36737182 DOI: 10.1016/j.carbpol.2022.120508] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 07/26/2022] [Revised: 12/15/2022] [Accepted: 12/24/2022] [Indexed: 12/30/2022]
Abstract
The sulfation patterns of chondroitin sulfate (CS)/dermatan sulfate (DS), which encode unique biological information, play critical roles in the various biological functions of CS/DS chains. CS/DS sulfatases, which can specifically hydrolyze sulfate groups, could potentially be essential tools for deciphering and changing the biological information encoded by these sulfation patterns. However, endosulfatase with high activity to efficiently hydrolyze the sulfate groups inside CS/DS polysaccharides have rarely been identified, which hinders the practical applications of CS/DS sulfatases. Herein, a novel CS/DS 4-O-endosulfatase (endoBI4SF) with a strong ability to completely remove 4-O-sulfated groups inside various CS/DS polysaccharides was identified and successfully used to investigate the biological roles of 4-O-sulfated CS/DS in vitro and in vivo. This study provides a much-needed tool to tailor the sulfation patterns and explore the related functions of 4-O-sulfated CS/DS chains in vitro and in vivo.
Collapse
Affiliation(s)
- Lin Wei
- National Glycoengineering Research Center, Shandong Key Laboratory of Carbohydrate Chemistry and Glycobiology and State Key Laboratory of Microbial Technology, Shandong University, 72 Binhai Rd, Qingdao 266237, People's Republic of China
| | - Yingying Xu
- National Glycoengineering Research Center, Shandong Key Laboratory of Carbohydrate Chemistry and Glycobiology and State Key Laboratory of Microbial Technology, Shandong University, 72 Binhai Rd, Qingdao 266237, People's Republic of China
| | - Min Du
- National Glycoengineering Research Center, Shandong Key Laboratory of Carbohydrate Chemistry and Glycobiology and State Key Laboratory of Microbial Technology, Shandong University, 72 Binhai Rd, Qingdao 266237, People's Republic of China
| | - Ying Fan
- Qingdao Special Servicemen Recuperation Center of PLA Navy, Qingdao 266071, People's Republic of China
| | - Ruyi Zou
- National Glycoengineering Research Center, Shandong Key Laboratory of Carbohydrate Chemistry and Glycobiology and State Key Laboratory of Microbial Technology, Shandong University, 72 Binhai Rd, Qingdao 266237, People's Republic of China
| | - Xiangyu Xu
- National Glycoengineering Research Center, Shandong Key Laboratory of Carbohydrate Chemistry and Glycobiology and State Key Laboratory of Microbial Technology, Shandong University, 72 Binhai Rd, Qingdao 266237, People's Republic of China
| | - Qingdong Zhang
- School of Life Science and Technology, Weifang Medical University, 7166 Baotong West Street, Weifang 261053, People's Republic of China
| | - Yu-Zhong Zhang
- College of Marine Life Sciences, Ocean University of China, Qingdao, People's Republic of China
| | - Wenshuang Wang
- National Glycoengineering Research Center, Shandong Key Laboratory of Carbohydrate Chemistry and Glycobiology and State Key Laboratory of Microbial Technology, Shandong University, 72 Binhai Rd, Qingdao 266237, People's Republic of China.
| | - Fuchuan Li
- National Glycoengineering Research Center, Shandong Key Laboratory of Carbohydrate Chemistry and Glycobiology and State Key Laboratory of Microbial Technology, Shandong University, 72 Binhai Rd, Qingdao 266237, People's Republic of China; College of Marine Life Sciences, Ocean University of China, Qingdao, People's Republic of China.
| |
Collapse
|
15
|
Fasanya A, Mohammed N, Saleh BH, Tijani MK, Teleka A, Quintana MDP, Hviid L, Persson KEM. Anti-phosphatidylserine antibody levels are low in multigravid pregnant women in a malaria-endemic area in Nigeria, and do not correlate with anti-VAR2CSA antibodies. Front Cell Infect Microbiol 2023; 13:1130186. [PMID: 37091678 PMCID: PMC10114609 DOI: 10.3389/fcimb.2023.1130186] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 12/22/2022] [Accepted: 03/13/2023] [Indexed: 03/30/2023] Open
Abstract
Anemia is a common malaria-associated complication in pregnant women in endemic regions. Phosphatidylserine (PS) is exposed to the immune system during the massive destruction of red blood cells (RBCs) that accompany malaria, and antibodies against PS have been linked to anemia through destruction of uninfected RBCs. We determined levels of anti-PS IgG antibodies in pregnant women in Ibadan, Nigeria and correlated them to parameters of importance in development of anemia and immunity. Anti-PS correlated inversely with Packed Cell Volume (PCV), indicating that the antibodies could contribute to anemia. There was no correlation with anti-VAR2CSA IgG, haptoglobin or parasitemia, indicating that the modulation of anti-PS response is multifactorial in nature. Anti-PS levels were lowest in multigravidae compared to both primigravidae and secundigravidae and correlated inversely with age. In conclusion, lower levels of anti-PS in multigravidae could be beneficial in avoiding anemia.
Collapse
Affiliation(s)
- Adebimpe Fasanya
- Cellular Parasitology Programme, Cell Biology and Genetics Unit, Department of Zoology, University of Ibadan, Ibadan, Nigeria
| | - Nurat Mohammed
- Cellular Parasitology Programme, Cell Biology and Genetics Unit, Department of Zoology, University of Ibadan, Ibadan, Nigeria
| | - Bandar Hasan Saleh
- Department of Laboratory Medicine, Division of Clinical Chemistry and Pharmacology, Skåne University Hospital, Lund University, Lund, Sweden
- Department of Medical Microbiology and Parasitology, King Abdulaziz University, Jeddah, Saudi Arabia
| | - Muyideen Kolapo Tijani
- Cellular Parasitology Programme, Cell Biology and Genetics Unit, Department of Zoology, University of Ibadan, Ibadan, Nigeria
- Department of Laboratory Medicine, Division of Clinical Chemistry and Pharmacology, Skåne University Hospital, Lund University, Lund, Sweden
- *Correspondence: Muyideen Kolapo Tijani, ; ; Kristina E. M. Persson,
| | - Alexandra Teleka
- Department of Laboratory Medicine, Division of Clinical Chemistry and Pharmacology, Skåne University Hospital, Lund University, Lund, Sweden
| | - Maria del Pilar Quintana
- Department of Immunology and Microbiology, Faculty of Health and Medical Sciences, University of Copenhagen, Copenhagen, Denmark
| | - Lars Hviid
- Department of Immunology and Microbiology, Faculty of Health and Medical Sciences, University of Copenhagen, Copenhagen, Denmark
- Department of Infectious Diseases, Rigshospitalet, Copenhagen, Denmark
| | - Kristina E. M. Persson
- Department of Laboratory Medicine, Division of Clinical Chemistry and Pharmacology, Skåne University Hospital, Lund University, Lund, Sweden
- *Correspondence: Muyideen Kolapo Tijani, ; ; Kristina E. M. Persson,
| |
Collapse
|
16
|
Zhao Y, Tang J, Jiang K, Liu SY, Aicher A, Heeschen C. Liquid biopsy in pancreatic cancer - Current perspective and future outlook. Biochim Biophys Acta Rev Cancer 2023; 1878:188868. [PMID: 36842769 DOI: 10.1016/j.bbcan.2023.188868] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 09/12/2022] [Revised: 01/14/2023] [Accepted: 01/16/2023] [Indexed: 02/27/2023]
Abstract
Pancreatic cancer is a lethal condition with a rising incidence and often presents at an advanced stage, contributing to abysmal five-year survival rates. Unspecific symptoms and the current lack of biomarkers and screening tools hamper early diagnosis. New technologies for liquid biopsies and their respective evaluation in pancreatic cancer patients have emerged over recent years. The term liquid biopsy summarizes the sampling and analysis of circulating tumor cells (CTCs), small extracellular vesicles (sEVs), and tumor DNA (ctDNA) from body fluids. The major advantages of liquid biopsies rely on their minimal invasiveness and repeatability, allowing serial sampling for dynamic insights to aid diagnosis, particularly early detection, risk stratification, and precision medicine in pancreatic cancer. However, liquid biopsies have not yet developed into a new pillar for clinicians' routine armamentarium. Here, we summarize recent findings on the use of liquid biopsy in pancreatic cancer patients. We discuss current challenges and future perspectives of this potentially powerful alternative to conventional tissue biopsies.
Collapse
Affiliation(s)
- Yaru Zhao
- Center for Single-Cell Omics, School of Public Health, Shanghai Jiao Tong University School of Medicine, Shanghai, China
| | - Jiajia Tang
- Center for Single-Cell Omics, School of Public Health, Shanghai Jiao Tong University School of Medicine, Shanghai, China
| | - Ke Jiang
- Center for Single-Cell Omics, School of Public Health, Shanghai Jiao Tong University School of Medicine, Shanghai, China
| | - Shin-Yi Liu
- Department of Biomedical Imaging and Radiological Science, China Medical University, Taichung, Taiwan; Research and Development Center for Immunology, China Medical University, Taichung, Taiwan
| | - Alexandra Aicher
- Precision Immunotherapy, Graduate Institute of Biomedical Sciences, China Medical University, Taichung, Taiwan
| | - Christopher Heeschen
- Center for Single-Cell Omics, School of Public Health, Shanghai Jiao Tong University School of Medicine, Shanghai, China; Key Laboratory of Oncogenes and Related Genes, Shanghai Jiao Tong University School of Medicine, Shanghai, China; Pancreatic Cancer Heterogeneity, Candiolo Cancer Institute, FPO-IRCCS, Candiolo, Turin, Italy.
| |
Collapse
|
17
|
Establishment and validation of a plasma oncofetal chondroitin sulfated proteoglycan for pan-cancer detection. Nat Commun 2023; 14:645. [PMID: 36746966 PMCID: PMC9902466 DOI: 10.1038/s41467-023-36374-7] [Citation(s) in RCA: 4] [Impact Index Per Article: 4.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 05/26/2021] [Accepted: 01/30/2023] [Indexed: 02/08/2023] Open
Abstract
Various biomarkers targeting cell-free DNA (cfDNA) and circulating proteins have been tested for pan-cancer detection. Oncofetal chondroitin sulfate (ofCS), which distinctively modifies proteoglycans (PGs) of most cancer cells and binds specifically to the recombinant Plasmodium falciparum VAR2CSA proteins (rVAR2), is explored for its potential as a plasma biomarker in pan-cancer detection. To quantitate the plasma ofCS/ofCSPGs, we optimized an ELISA using different capture/detection pairs (rVAR2/anti-CD44, -SDC1, and -CSPG4) in a case-control study with six cancer types. We show that the plasma levels of ofCS/ofCSPGs are significantly higher in cancer patients (P values, 1.2 × 10-2 to 4.4 × 10-10). Validation studies are performed with two independent cohorts covering 11 malignant tumors. The individuals in the top decile of ofCS-CD44 have more than 27-fold cancer risk (OR = 27.8, 95%CI = 18.8-41.4, P = 2.72 × 10-62) compared with the lowest 20%. Moreover, the elevated plasma ofCS-CD44 could be detected at the early stage of pan-cancer with strong dose-dependent odds risk prediction.
Collapse
|
18
|
Construction of mouse cochlin mutants with different GAG-binding specificities and their use for immunohistochemistry. Biochem J 2023; 480:41-56. [PMID: 36511224 PMCID: PMC9987951 DOI: 10.1042/bcj20220339] [Citation(s) in RCA: 2] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 06/23/2022] [Revised: 11/29/2022] [Accepted: 12/12/2022] [Indexed: 12/14/2022]
Abstract
Glycosaminoglycan (GAG) is a polysaccharide present on the cell surface as an extracellular matrix component, and is composed of repeating disaccharide units consisting of an amino sugar and uronic acid except in the case of the keratan sulfate. Sulfated GAGs, such as heparan sulfate, heparin, and chondroitin sulfate mediate signal transduction of growth factors, and their functions vary with the type and degree of sulfated modification. We have previously identified human and mouse cochlins as proteins that bind to sulfated GAGs. Here, we prepared a recombinant cochlin fused to human IgG-Fc or Protein A at the C-terminus as a detection and purification tag and investigated the ligand specificity of cochlin. We found that cochlin can be used as a specific probe for highly sulfated heparan sulfate and chondroitin sulfate E. We then used mutant analysis to identify the mechanism by which cochlin recognizes GAGs and developed a GAG detection system using cochlin. Interestingly, a mutant lacking the vWA2 domain bound to various types of GAGs. The N-terminal amino acid residues of cochlin contributed to its binding to heparin. Pathological specimens from human myocarditis patients were stained with a cochlin-Fc mutant. The results showed that both tryptase-positive and tryptase-negative mast cells were stained with this mutant. The identification of detailed modification patterns of GAGs is an important method to elucidate the molecular mechanisms of various diseases. The method developed for evaluating the expression of highly sulfated GAGs will help understand the biological and pathological importance of sulfated GAGs in the future.
Collapse
|
19
|
Cerezo-Magaña M, Bång-Rudenstam A, Belting M. Proteoglycans: a common portal for SARS-CoV-2 and extracellular vesicle uptake. Am J Physiol Cell Physiol 2023; 324:C76-C84. [PMID: 36458979 PMCID: PMC9799137 DOI: 10.1152/ajpcell.00453.2022] [Citation(s) in RCA: 7] [Impact Index Per Article: 7.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 12/03/2022]
Abstract
As structural components of the glycocalyx, heparan sulfate proteoglycans (HSPGs) are involved in multiple pathophysiological processes at the apex of cell signaling cascades, and as endocytosis receptors for particle structures, such as lipoproteins, extracellular vesicles, and enveloped viruses, including SARS-CoV-2. Given their diversity and complex biogenesis regulation, HSPGs remain understudied. Here we compile some of the latest studies focusing on HSPGs as internalizing receptors of extracellular vesicles ("endogenous virus") and SARS-CoV-2 lipid-enclosed particles and highlight similarities in their biophysical and structural characteristics. Specifically, the similarities in their biogenesis, size, and lipid composition may explain a common dependence on HSPGs for efficient cell-surface attachment and uptake. We further discuss the relative complexity of extracellular vesicle composition and the viral mechanisms that evolve towards increased infectivity that complicate therapeutic strategies addressing blockade of their uptake.
Collapse
Affiliation(s)
| | - Anna Bång-Rudenstam
- 1Department of Clinical Sciences Lund, Oncology, Lund University, Lund, Sweden
| | - Mattias Belting
- 1Department of Clinical Sciences Lund, Oncology, Lund University, Lund, Sweden,2Department of Immunology, Genetics, and Pathology, Science for Life Laboratory, Uppsala University, Uppsala, Sweden,3Department of Hematology, Oncology, and Radiophysics, Skåne University Hospital, Lund, Sweden
| |
Collapse
|
20
|
Kawabata C, Adachi R, Gamain B, Tamura T. Evaluation of Malarial Var2CSA-Displaying Baculovirus Vector in Transduction Efficiency in Human Cancer Cells. Biol Pharm Bull 2023; 46:404-411. [PMID: 36858568 DOI: 10.1248/bpb.b22-00630] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 03/03/2023]
Abstract
Baculovirus vectors (BVs) are able to use for gene transduction in mammalian cells and are recognized as growing viral vectors for cancer gene therapy applications. The transduction efficiency of BVs varies among cancer cell types. To improve the transduction efficiency of BVs in human cancer cells, BV displaying malarial variant surface antigen 2-chondroitin sulfate A (var2CSA) molecules was developed in this study. Var2CSA plays a critical role in the sequestration of Plasmodium falciparum-infected erythrocytes in the placenta. Moreover, var2CSA binds to cancer cells via placenta-like chondroitin sulfate A (CSA), but not to non-cancer cells. Var2CSA BV showed significantly higher gene transduction than control BV in HepG2 and Huh7 cells, human hepatic cancer cells as well as AsPC-1 cells, human pancreatic cancer cells. The transduction efficiency of var2CSA BV was significantly inhibited by the anti-gp64 antibody, free heparin, and CSA. The results of this study suggest that var2CSA BV would be an improved vector for cancer gene therapies, especially in the treatment of hepatic and pancreatic cancers.
Collapse
|
21
|
Abstract
Cancer mortality is exacerbated by late-stage diagnosis. Liquid biopsies based on genomic biomarkers can noninvasively diagnose cancers. However, validation studies have reported ~10% sensitivity to detect stage I cancer in a screening population and specific types, such as brain or genitourinary tumors, remain undetectable. We investigated urine and plasma free glycosaminoglycan profiles (GAGomes) as tumor metabolism biomarkers for multi-cancer early detection (MCED) of 14 cancer types using 2,064 samples from 1,260 cancer or healthy subjects. We observed widespread cancer-specific changes in biofluidic GAGomes recapitulated in an in vivo cancer progression model. We developed three machine learning models based on urine (Nurine = 220 cancer vs. 360 healthy) and plasma (Nplasma = 517 vs. 425) GAGomes that can detect any cancer with an area under the receiver operating characteristic curve of 0.83-0.93 with up to 62% sensitivity to stage I disease at 95% specificity. Undetected patients had a 39 to 50% lower risk of death. GAGomes predicted the putative cancer location with 89% accuracy. In a validation study on a screening-like population requiring ≥ 99% specificity, combined GAGomes predicted any cancer type with poor prognosis within 18 months with 43% sensitivity (21% in stage I; N = 121 and 49 cases). Overall, GAGomes appeared to be powerful MCED metabolic biomarkers, potentially doubling the number of stage I cancers detectable using genomic biomarkers.
Collapse
|
22
|
Shen W, Yu Q, Pu Y, Xing C. Upregulation of Long Noncoding RNA MALAT1 in Colorectal Cancer Promotes Radioresistance and Aggressive Malignance. Int J Gen Med 2022; 15:8365-8380. [PMID: 36465270 PMCID: PMC9717691 DOI: 10.2147/ijgm.s393270] [Citation(s) in RCA: 3] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 10/18/2022] [Accepted: 11/18/2022] [Indexed: 09/07/2023] Open
Abstract
BACKGROUND Metastasis-associated lung adenocarcinoma transcript 1 (MALAT1), a conserved transcript with 8000 nt, is highly associated with malignancy of numerous cancer types. However, the function of MALAT1 plays in regulating the response to radiotherapy in colorectal cancer (CRC) remains unclear. Thus, the object of this study is to investigate the functions of MALAT1 in CRC radioresistance. METHODS First, the expression of MALAT1 in colon adenocarcinoma (COAD) was analyzed through the Cancer Genome Atlas (TCGA) database. Then, we detected the expression level of MALAT1 in tumor tissues and CRC cell lines and analyzed the relevance of MALAT1 and clinicopathological parameters. In the end, the effect of silencing MALAT1 on the radiosensitivity of CRC cells was investigated, and its potential mechanism was preliminarily illustrated. RESULTS The analysis of TCGA data showed that MALAT1 was closely related to the type of tumor, and high expression of MALAT1 was remarkably relevant to poor outcome. MALAT1 was highly expressed in CRC tissues and cell lines and related to tumor stages. Knockdown of MALAT1 could significantly suppress colony survival, proliferation, and migration and increase apoptosis, G2/M phase arrest, and formation of gamma-H2AX foci in HCT116, whether in combination with X-rays or not. Moreover, Kyoto Encyclopedia of Genes and Genomes (KEGG) pathway analysis demonstrated that the regulated proteins were principally enriched in the glycosaminoglycan degradation pathway after silencing MALAT1. CONCLUSION Our results implied that MALAT1 was highly expressed in CRC and associated with tumor stage and prognosis. Silencing MALAT1 can increase HCT116 cell radiosensitivity, which may be potentially influenced by glycosaminoglycan degradation pathway.
Collapse
Affiliation(s)
- Wenqi Shen
- Department of General Surgery, Second Affiliated Hospital of Soochow University, Suzhou, People’s Republic of China
| | - Qifeng Yu
- Department of General Surgery, Second Affiliated Hospital of Soochow University, Suzhou, People’s Republic of China
| | - Yuwei Pu
- Department of General Surgery, Second Affiliated Hospital of Soochow University, Suzhou, People’s Republic of China
| | - Chungen Xing
- Department of General Surgery, Second Affiliated Hospital of Soochow University, Suzhou, People’s Republic of China
| |
Collapse
|
23
|
Huang C, Li C, Cai J, Chen J, Wang B, Li M, Zhou W, Wang J, Zhang P, Zhang JV. Chondroitin Sulfate Targeting Nanodrug Achieves Near-Infrared Fluorescence-Guided Chemotherapy Against Triple-Negative Breast Primary and Lung Metastatic Cancer. Int J Nanomedicine 2022; 17:5547-5563. [DOI: 10.2147/ijn.s380358] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 07/13/2022] [Accepted: 10/27/2022] [Indexed: 11/23/2022] Open
|
24
|
A mutated glycosaminoglycan-binding domain functions as a novel probe to selectively target heparin-like epitopes on tumor cells. J Biol Chem 2022; 298:102609. [PMID: 36265583 PMCID: PMC9672413 DOI: 10.1016/j.jbc.2022.102609] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 07/26/2022] [Revised: 10/10/2022] [Accepted: 10/11/2022] [Indexed: 11/15/2022] Open
Abstract
The high heterogeneity and mutation rate of cancer cells often lead to the failure of targeted therapy, and therefore, new targets for multitarget therapy of tumors are urgently needed. Aberrantly expressed glycosaminoglycans (GAGs) have been shown to be involved in tumorigenesis and are promising new targets. Recently, the GAG-binding domain rVAR2 of the Plasmodium falciparum VAR2CSA protein was identified as a probe targeting cancer-associated chondroitin sulfate A-like epitopes. In this study, we found that rVAR2 could also bind to heparin (Hep) and chondroitin sulfate E. Therefore, we used rVAR2 as a model to establish a method based on random mutagenesis of the GAG-binding protein and phage display to identify and optimize probes targeting tumor GAGs. We identified a new probe, VAR2HP, which selectively recognized Hep by interacting with unique epitopes consisting of a decasaccharide structure that contains at least three HexA2S(1-4)GlcNS6S disaccharides. Moreover, we found that these Hep-like epitopes were overexpressed in various cancer cells. Most importantly, our in vivo experiments showed that VAR2HP had good biocompatibility and preferentially localizes to tumors, which indicates that VAR2HP has great application potential in tumor diagnosis and targeted therapy. In conclusion, this study provides a strategy for the discovery of novel tumor-associated GAG epitopes and their specific probes.
Collapse
|
25
|
Abstract
Pregnancy complications affect millions of women each year. Some of these diseases have high morbidity and mortality such as preeclampsia. At present, there is no safe and effective treatment for pregnancy complications, so it is still a difficult clinical problem. As many pregnancy complications are closely related to placental dysplasia, placenta-specific therapy, as an important method, is expected to be a safe, effective, and specific therapeutic strategy. This review explains in detail the placenta physiological structure, characteristics, and action mechanism of some biomolecules and signaling pathways that play roles in normal development and disorders of the development of the placenta, and how to use these biomolecules as therapeutic targets when the placenta disorder causes disease, combining the latest progress in the field of nanodelivery systems, so as to lay a foundation for the development of placenta-specific therapy of pregnancy complications.
Collapse
Affiliation(s)
- Yang Liu
- School of Pharmaceutical Sciences, Zhengzhou University, No. 100, Kexue Avenue, Zhengzhou, 450001, China
| | - Xingli Gao
- School of Pharmaceutical Sciences, Zhengzhou University, No. 100, Kexue Avenue, Zhengzhou, 450001, China
| | - Songwei Gao
- School of Pharmaceutical Sciences, Zhengzhou University, No. 100, Kexue Avenue, Zhengzhou, 450001, China.,Department of Pharmacy, First Affiliated Hospital of Zhengzhou University, Zhengzhou, 450052, Henan, China
| | - Yu Song
- School of Pharmacy, Xinxiang Medical University, Xinxiang, 453003, China
| | - Yongran Guo
- School of Pharmaceutical Sciences, Zhengzhou University, No. 100, Kexue Avenue, Zhengzhou, 450001, China
| | - Jing Cao
- Department of Pathology, The Third Affiliated Hospital of Zhenzhou University, Zhengzhou, 450001, China
| |
Collapse
|
26
|
Raglow Z, McKenna MK, Bonifant CL, Wang W, Pasca di Magliano M, Stadlmann J, Penninger JM, Cummings RD, Brenner MK, Markovitz DM. Targeting glycans for CAR therapy: The advent of sweet CARs. Mol Ther 2022; 30:2881-2890. [PMID: 35821636 PMCID: PMC9481985 DOI: 10.1016/j.ymthe.2022.07.006] [Citation(s) in RCA: 14] [Impact Index Per Article: 7.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 03/06/2022] [Revised: 06/23/2022] [Accepted: 07/09/2022] [Indexed: 01/18/2023] Open
Abstract
Chimeric antigen receptor (CAR) T cell therapy has created a paradigm shift in the treatment of hematologic malignancies but has not been as effective toward solid tumors. For such tumors, the primary obstacles facing CAR T cells are scarcity of tumor-specific antigens and the hostile and complex tumor microenvironment. Glycosylation, the process by which sugars are post-translationally added to proteins or lipids, is profoundly dysregulated in cancer. Abnormally glycosylated glycoproteins expressed on cancer cells offer unique targets for CAR T therapy as they are specific to tumor cells. Tumor stromal cells also express abnormal glycoproteins and thus also have the potential to be targeted by glycan-binding CAR T cells. This review will discuss the state of CAR T cells in the therapy of solid tumors, the cancer glycoproteome and its potential for use as a therapeutic target, and the landscape and future of glycan-binding CAR T cell therapy.
Collapse
Affiliation(s)
- Zoe Raglow
- Department of Internal Medicine, University of Michigan, Ann Arbor, MI 48109, USA
| | - Mary Kathryn McKenna
- Center for Cell and Gene Therapy, Department of Medicine, Baylor College of Medicine, Houston, TX 77030, USA
| | - Challice L Bonifant
- Department of Oncology, Sidney Kimmel Comprehensive Cancer Center, Johns Hopkins University School of Medicine, Baltimore, MD 21287, USA
| | - Wenjing Wang
- Life Sciences Institute, University of Michigan, Ann Arbor, MI 48109, USA; Department of Chemistry, University of Michigan, Ann Arbor, MI 48109, USA
| | - Marina Pasca di Magliano
- Department of Surgery, Department of Cell and Developmental Biology, Rogel Cancer Center, University of Michigan, Ann Arbor, MI 48109, USA
| | - Johannes Stadlmann
- Institute of Biochemistry, Department of Chemistry, University of Natural Resources and Life Sciences (BOKU), Vienna, Austria
| | - Josef M Penninger
- Department of Medical Genetics, Life Sciences Institute, University of British Columbia, Vancouver, BC, Canada; Institute of Molecular Biotechnology of the Austrian Academy of Sciences, Vienna, Austria
| | - Richard D Cummings
- Department of Surgery, Beth Israel Deaconess Medical Center, Harvard Medical School, Boston, MA 02115, USA
| | - Malcolm K Brenner
- Center for Cell and Gene Therapy, Department of Medicine, Baylor College of Medicine, Houston Methodist Hospital and Texas Children's Hospital, Houston, TX 77030, USA.
| | - David M Markovitz
- Department of Internal Medicine, University of Michigan, Ann Arbor, MI 48109, USA; Programs in Cancer Biology, Cellular and Molecular Biology, and Immunology, University of Michigan, Ann Arbor, MI 48109, USA.
| |
Collapse
|
27
|
Anti-Tumor Effect of Parasitic Protozoans. Bioengineering (Basel) 2022; 9:bioengineering9080395. [PMID: 36004920 PMCID: PMC9405343 DOI: 10.3390/bioengineering9080395] [Citation(s) in RCA: 3] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 07/21/2022] [Revised: 08/12/2022] [Accepted: 08/12/2022] [Indexed: 11/22/2022] Open
Abstract
The immune system may aberrantly silence when against “altered self”, which consequently may develop into malignancies. With the development of tumor immunology and molecular biology, the deepened understanding of the relationship between parasites and tumors shifts the attitude towards parasitic pathogens from elimination to utilization. In recent years, the antitumor impact implemented by protozoan parasites and the derived products has been confirmed. The immune system is activated and enhanced by some protozoan parasites, thereby inhibiting tumor growth, angiogenesis, and metastasis in many animal models. In this work, we reviewed the available information on the antitumor effect of parasitic infection or induced by parasitic antigen, as well as the involved immune mechanisms that modulate cancer progression. Despite the fact that clinical trials of the protozoan parasites against tumors are limited and the specific mechanisms of the effect on tumors are not totally clear, the use of genetically modified protozoan parasites and derived molecules combined with chemotherapy could be an important element for promoting antitumor treatment in the future.
Collapse
|
28
|
Reformation of the chondroitin sulfate glycocalyx enables progression of AR-independent prostate cancer. Nat Commun 2022; 13:4760. [PMID: 35963852 PMCID: PMC9376089 DOI: 10.1038/s41467-022-32530-7] [Citation(s) in RCA: 4] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 05/28/2021] [Accepted: 08/03/2022] [Indexed: 11/09/2022] Open
Abstract
Lineage plasticity of prostate cancer is associated with resistance to androgen receptor (AR) pathway inhibition (ARPI) and supported by a reactive tumor microenvironment. Here we show that changes in chondroitin sulfate (CS), a major glycosaminoglycan component of the tumor cell glycocalyx and extracellular matrix, is AR-regulated and promotes the adaptive progression of castration-resistant prostate cancer (CRPC) after ARPI. AR directly represses transcription of the 4-O-sulfotransferase gene CHST11 under basal androgen conditions, maintaining steady-state CS in prostate adenocarcinomas. When AR signaling is inhibited by ARPI or lost during progression to non-AR-driven CRPC as a consequence of lineage plasticity, CHST11 expression is unleashed, leading to elevated 4-O-sulfated chondroitin levels. Inhibition of the tumor cell CS glycocalyx delays CRPC progression, and impairs growth and motility of prostate cancer after ARPI. Thus, a reactive CS glycocalyx supports adaptive survival and treatment resistance after ARPI, representing a therapeutic opportunity in patients with advanced prostate cancer. Chondroitin sulfate (CS) is one of the most abundant glycosaminoglycans in prostate cancers. Here the authors show that inhibition of the androgen receptor pathway leads to the upregulation of CS, which promotes prostate cancer growth and metastasis.
Collapse
|
29
|
Kines RC, Schiller JT. Harnessing Human Papillomavirus’ Natural Tropism to Target Tumors. Viruses 2022; 14:v14081656. [PMID: 36016277 PMCID: PMC9413966 DOI: 10.3390/v14081656] [Citation(s) in RCA: 5] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 07/01/2022] [Revised: 07/25/2022] [Accepted: 07/26/2022] [Indexed: 02/06/2023] Open
Abstract
Human papillomaviruses (HPV) are small non-enveloped DNA tumor viruses established as the primary etiological agent for the development of cervical cancer. Decades of research have elucidated HPV’s primary attachment factor to be heparan sulfate proteoglycans (HSPG). Importantly, wounding and exposure of the epithelial basement membrane was found to be pivotal for efficient attachment and infection of HPV in vivo. Sulfation patterns on HSPG’s become modified at the site of wounds as they serve an important role promoting tissue healing, cell proliferation and neovascularization and it is these modifications recognized by HPV. Analogous HSPG modification patterns can be found on tumor cells as they too require the aforementioned processes to grow and metastasize. Although targeting tumor associated HSPG is not a novel concept, the use of HPV to target and treat tumors has only been realized in recent years. The work herein describes how decades of basic HPV research has culminated in the rational design of an HPV-based virus-like infrared light activated dye conjugate for the treatment of choroidal melanoma.
Collapse
Affiliation(s)
| | - John T. Schiller
- Laboratory of Cellular Oncology, Center for Cancer Research, National Cancer Institute, Bethesda, MD 20892, USA;
| |
Collapse
|
30
|
Mu J, Cao J, Feng G, Zhang Q. Editorial: Cellular and Molecular Basis in Parasitic Diseases Control: Research Trends. Front Cell Dev Biol 2022; 10:897858. [PMID: 35493089 PMCID: PMC9043101 DOI: 10.3389/fcell.2022.897858] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 03/16/2022] [Accepted: 03/29/2022] [Indexed: 11/13/2022] Open
Affiliation(s)
- Jianbing Mu
- Laboratory of Malaria and Vector Research, National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases, National Institutes of Health, Rockville, MD, United States
- *Correspondence: Jianbing Mu, ; Qingfeng Zhang,
| | - Jun Cao
- National Health Commission Key Laboratory of Parasitic Disease Control and Prevention, Jiangsu Provincial Key Laboratory on Parasite and Vector Control Technology, Jiangsu Institute of Parasitic Diseases, Wuxi, China
| | - Gaoqian Feng
- Burnet Institute for Medical Research and Public Health, Melbourne, VIC, Australia
| | - Qingfeng Zhang
- Key Laboratory of Spine and Spinal Cord Injury Repair and Regeneration of Ministry of Education, Tongji Hospital, Shanghai, China
- Clinical Center for Brain and Spinal Cord Research, School of Medicine, Tongji University, Shanghai, China
- *Correspondence: Jianbing Mu, ; Qingfeng Zhang,
| |
Collapse
|
31
|
Parhi L, Abed J, Shhadeh A, Alon-Maimon T, Udi S, Ben-Arye SL, Tam J, Parnas O, Padler-Karavani V, Goldman-Wohl D, Yagel S, Mandelboim O, Bachrach G. Placental colonization by Fusobacterium nucleatum is mediated by binding of the Fap2 lectin to placentally displayed Gal-GalNAc. Cell Rep 2022; 38:110537. [PMID: 35320712 DOI: 10.1016/j.celrep.2022.110537] [Citation(s) in RCA: 15] [Impact Index Per Article: 7.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 10/02/2020] [Revised: 01/20/2022] [Accepted: 02/28/2022] [Indexed: 11/27/2022] Open
Abstract
While the existence of an indigenous placental microbiota remains controversial, several pathogens are known to be involved in adverse pregnancy outcomes. Fusobacterium nucleatum is an oral bacterium that is one of several bacteria associated with preterm birth. Oral fusobacteria translocate to the placenta hematogenously; however, the mechanisms localizing them to the placenta remain unclear. Here, using peanut agglutinin, we demonstrate that the level of Gal-GalNAc (Galβ1-3GalNAc; Thomsen Friedenreich antigen) found on trophoblasts facing entering maternal blood rises during gestation and is recognized by the fusobacterial Fap2 Gal-GalNAc lectin. F. nucleatum binding to human and mouse placenta correlates with Gal-GalNAc levels and is reduced upon O-glycanase treatment or with soluble Gal-GalNAc. Fap2-inactivated F. nucleatum shows reduced binding to Gal-GalNAc-displaying placental sections. In a mouse model, intravenously injected Fap2-expressing F. nucleatum, but not a Fap2 mutant, reduces mouse fetal survival by 70%.
Collapse
Affiliation(s)
- Lishay Parhi
- The Institute of Dental Sciences, The Hebrew University-Hadassah School of Dental Medicine, Jerusalem 9112001, Israel
| | - Jawad Abed
- The Institute of Dental Sciences, The Hebrew University-Hadassah School of Dental Medicine, Jerusalem 9112001, Israel
| | - Amjad Shhadeh
- The Institute of Dental Sciences, The Hebrew University-Hadassah School of Dental Medicine, Jerusalem 9112001, Israel
| | - Tamar Alon-Maimon
- The Institute of Dental Sciences, The Hebrew University-Hadassah School of Dental Medicine, Jerusalem 9112001, Israel
| | - Shiran Udi
- Obesity and Metabolism Laboratory, The Institute for Drug Research, School of Pharmacy, Faculty of Medicine, The Hebrew University of Jerusalem, Jerusalem 9112001, Israel
| | - Shani Leviatan Ben-Arye
- Department of Cell Research and Immunology, The Shmunis School of Biomedicine and Cancer Research, The George S. Wise Faculty of Life Sciences, Tel Aviv University, Tel Aviv 69978, Israel
| | - Joseph Tam
- Obesity and Metabolism Laboratory, The Institute for Drug Research, School of Pharmacy, Faculty of Medicine, The Hebrew University of Jerusalem, Jerusalem 9112001, Israel
| | - Oren Parnas
- Department of Immunology and Cancer Research, Institute for Medical Research Israel Canada (IMRIC), Hebrew University-Hadassah Medical School, Jerusalem 9112001, Israel
| | - Vered Padler-Karavani
- Department of Cell Research and Immunology, The Shmunis School of Biomedicine and Cancer Research, The George S. Wise Faculty of Life Sciences, Tel Aviv University, Tel Aviv 69978, Israel
| | - Debra Goldman-Wohl
- Magda and Richard Hoffman Center for Human Placenta Research, Department of Obstetrics and Gynecology, Hebrew University Hadassah Medical Center, Jerusalem 91240, Israel
| | - Simcha Yagel
- Magda and Richard Hoffman Center for Human Placenta Research, Department of Obstetrics and Gynecology, Hebrew University Hadassah Medical Center, Jerusalem 91240, Israel
| | - Ofer Mandelboim
- Department of Immunology and Cancer Research, Institute for Medical Research Israel Canada (IMRIC), Hebrew University-Hadassah Medical School, Jerusalem 9112001, Israel.
| | - Gilad Bachrach
- The Institute of Dental Sciences, The Hebrew University-Hadassah School of Dental Medicine, Jerusalem 9112001, Israel.
| |
Collapse
|
32
|
Exosomes for Regulation of Immune Responses and Immunotherapy. JOURNAL OF NANOTHERANOSTICS 2022. [DOI: 10.3390/jnt3010005] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/16/2022] Open
Abstract
Exosomes are membrane-enveloped nanosized (30–150 nm) extracellular vesicles of endosomal origin produced by almost all cell types and encompass a multitude of functioning biomolecules. Exosomes have been considered crucial players of cell-to-cell communication in physiological and pathological conditions. Accumulating evidence suggests that exosomes can modulate the immune system by delivering a plethora of signals that can either stimulate or suppress immune responses, which have potential applications as immunotherapies for cancer and autoimmune diseases. Here, we discuss the current knowledge about the active biomolecular components of exosomes that contribute to exosomal function in modulating different immune cells and also how these immune cell-derived exosomes play critical roles in immune responses. We further discuss the translational potential of engineered exosomes as immunotherapeutic agents with their advantages over conventional nanocarriers for drug delivery and ongoing clinical trials.
Collapse
|
33
|
Abstract
Accumulating evidence demonstrates that the oral pathobiont Fusobacterium nucleatum is involved in the progression of an increasing number of tumors types. Thus far, the mechanisms underlying tumor exacerbation by F. nucleatum include the enhancement of proliferation, establishment of a tumor‐promoting immune environment, induction of chemoresistance, and the activation of immune checkpoints. This review focuses on the mechanisms that mediate tumor‐specific colonization by fusobacteria. Elucidating the mechanisms mediating fusobacterial tumor tropism and promotion might provide new insights for the development of novel approaches for tumor detection and treatment.
Collapse
Affiliation(s)
- Tamar Alon-Maimon
- The Institute of Dental Sciences, The Hebrew University-Hadassah School of Dental Medicine, Jerusalem, Israel
| | - Ofer Mandelboim
- The Concern Foundation Laboratories, Lautenberg Center for General and Tumor Immunology, Department of Immunology and Cancer Research, Institute for Medical Research Israel Canada (IMRIC), Faculty of Medicine, The Hebrew University Medical School, Jerusalem, Israel
| | - Gilad Bachrach
- The Institute of Dental Sciences, The Hebrew University-Hadassah School of Dental Medicine, Jerusalem, Israel
| |
Collapse
|
34
|
Wang CK, Nelepcu I, Hui D, Oo HZ, Truong S, Zhao S, Tahiry Z, Esfandnia S, Ghaidi F, Adomat H, Dagil R, Gustavsson T, Choudhary S, Salanti A, Sorensen PH, Al Nakouzi N, Daugaard M. Internalization and trafficking of CSPG-bound recombinant VAR2CSA lectins in cancer cells. Sci Rep 2022; 12:3075. [PMID: 35197518 PMCID: PMC8866492 DOI: 10.1038/s41598-022-07025-6] [Citation(s) in RCA: 1] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 07/10/2021] [Accepted: 02/04/2022] [Indexed: 02/07/2023] Open
Abstract
Proteoglycans are proteins that are modified with glycosaminoglycan chains. Chondroitin sulfate proteoglycans (CSPGs) are currently being exploited as targets for drug-delivery in various cancer indications, however basic knowledge on how CSPGs are internalized in tumor cells is lacking. In this study we took advantage of a recombinant CSPG-binding lectin VAR2CSA (rVAR2) to track internalization and cell fate of CSPGs in tumor cells. We found that rVAR2 is internalized into cancer cells via multiple internalization mechanisms after initial docking on cell surface CSPGs. Regardless of the internalization pathway used, CSPG-bound rVAR2 was trafficked to the early endosomes in an energy-dependent manner but not further transported to the lysosomal compartment. Instead, internalized CSPG-bound rVAR2 proteins were secreted with exosomes to the extracellular environment in a strictly chondroitin sulfate-dependent manner. In summary, our work describes the cell fate of rVAR2 proteins in tumor cells after initial binding to CSPGs, which can be further used to inform development of rVAR2-drug conjugates and other therapeutics targeting CSPGs.
Collapse
Affiliation(s)
- Chris Kedong Wang
- Department of Urologic Sciences, University of British Columbia, Vancouver, BC, Canada.,Vancouver Prostate Centre, Vancouver, BC, Canada
| | - Irina Nelepcu
- Department of Urologic Sciences, University of British Columbia, Vancouver, BC, Canada.,Vancouver Prostate Centre, Vancouver, BC, Canada
| | - Desmond Hui
- Vancouver Prostate Centre, Vancouver, BC, Canada
| | - Htoo Zarni Oo
- Department of Urologic Sciences, University of British Columbia, Vancouver, BC, Canada.,Vancouver Prostate Centre, Vancouver, BC, Canada
| | - Sarah Truong
- Department of Urologic Sciences, University of British Columbia, Vancouver, BC, Canada.,Vancouver Prostate Centre, Vancouver, BC, Canada
| | - Sarah Zhao
- Vancouver Prostate Centre, Vancouver, BC, Canada
| | - Zakir Tahiry
- Department of Urologic Sciences, University of British Columbia, Vancouver, BC, Canada.,Vancouver Prostate Centre, Vancouver, BC, Canada
| | | | | | - Hans Adomat
- Vancouver Prostate Centre, Vancouver, BC, Canada
| | - Robert Dagil
- Centre for Medical Parasitology at Department for Immunology and Microbiology, Faculty of Health and Medical Sciences, University of Copenhagen and Department of Infectious Disease, Copenhagen University Hospital, Copenhagen, Denmark.,VAR2 Pharmaceuticals, Copenhagen, Denmark
| | - Tobias Gustavsson
- Centre for Medical Parasitology at Department for Immunology and Microbiology, Faculty of Health and Medical Sciences, University of Copenhagen and Department of Infectious Disease, Copenhagen University Hospital, Copenhagen, Denmark.,VAR2 Pharmaceuticals, Copenhagen, Denmark
| | - Swati Choudhary
- Centre for Medical Parasitology at Department for Immunology and Microbiology, Faculty of Health and Medical Sciences, University of Copenhagen and Department of Infectious Disease, Copenhagen University Hospital, Copenhagen, Denmark.,VAR2 Pharmaceuticals, Copenhagen, Denmark
| | - Ali Salanti
- Centre for Medical Parasitology at Department for Immunology and Microbiology, Faculty of Health and Medical Sciences, University of Copenhagen and Department of Infectious Disease, Copenhagen University Hospital, Copenhagen, Denmark.,VAR2 Pharmaceuticals, Copenhagen, Denmark
| | - Poul H Sorensen
- Department of Molecular Oncology, British Columbia Cancer Research Centre, Vancouver, BC, Canada
| | - Nader Al Nakouzi
- Department of Urologic Sciences, University of British Columbia, Vancouver, BC, Canada. .,Vancouver Prostate Centre, Vancouver, BC, Canada. .,VAR2 Pharmaceuticals, Copenhagen, Denmark.
| | - Mads Daugaard
- Department of Urologic Sciences, University of British Columbia, Vancouver, BC, Canada. .,Vancouver Prostate Centre, Vancouver, BC, Canada. .,VAR2 Pharmaceuticals, Copenhagen, Denmark.
| |
Collapse
|
35
|
Topa J, Grešner P, Żaczek AJ, Markiewicz A. Breast cancer circulating tumor cells with mesenchymal features-an unreachable target? Cell Mol Life Sci 2022; 79:81. [PMID: 35048186 PMCID: PMC8770434 DOI: 10.1007/s00018-021-04064-6] [Citation(s) in RCA: 11] [Impact Index Per Article: 5.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 05/04/2021] [Revised: 11/26/2021] [Accepted: 11/27/2021] [Indexed: 12/13/2022]
Abstract
Circulating tumor cells (CTCs) mediate dissemination of solid tumors and can be an early sign of disease progression. Moreover, they show a great potential in terms of non-invasive, longitudinal monitoring of cancer patients. CTCs have been extensively studied in breast cancer (BC) and were shown to present a significant phenotypic plasticity connected with initiation of epithelial-mesenchymal transition (EMT). Apart from conferring malignant properties, EMT affects CTCs recovery rate, making a significant portion of CTCs from patients’ samples undetected. Wider application of methods and markers designed to isolate and identify mesenchymal CTCs is required to expand our knowledge about the clinical impact of mesenchymal CTCs. Therefore, here we provide a comprehensive review of clinical significance of mesenchymal CTCs in BC together with statistical analysis of previously published data, in which we assessed the suitability of a number of methods/markers used for isolation of CTCs with different EMT phenotypes, both in in vitro spike-in tests with BC cell lines, as well as clinical samples. Results of spiked-in cell lines indicate that, in general, methods not based on epithelial enrichment only, capture mesenchymal CTCs much more efficiently that CellSearch® (golden standard in CTCs detection), but at the same time are not much inferior to Cell Search®, though large variation in recovery rates of added cells among the methods is observed. In clinical samples, where additional CTCs detection markers are needed, positive epithelial-based CTCs enrichment was the most efficient in isolating CTCs with mesenchymal features from non-metastatic BC patients. From the marker side, PI3K and VIM were contributing the most to detection of CTCs with mesenchymal features (in comparison to SNAIL) in non-metastatic and metastatic BC patients, respectively. However, additional data are needed for more robust identification of markers for efficient detection of CTCs with mesenchymal features.
Collapse
Affiliation(s)
- Justyna Topa
- Laboratory of Translational Oncology, Intercollegiate Faculty of Biotechnology, University of Gdańsk and Medical University of Gdańsk, Debinki 1, 80-211, Gdansk, Poland
| | - Peter Grešner
- Laboratory of Translational Oncology, Intercollegiate Faculty of Biotechnology, University of Gdańsk and Medical University of Gdańsk, Debinki 1, 80-211, Gdansk, Poland
| | - Anna J Żaczek
- Laboratory of Translational Oncology, Intercollegiate Faculty of Biotechnology, University of Gdańsk and Medical University of Gdańsk, Debinki 1, 80-211, Gdansk, Poland
| | - Aleksandra Markiewicz
- Laboratory of Translational Oncology, Intercollegiate Faculty of Biotechnology, University of Gdańsk and Medical University of Gdańsk, Debinki 1, 80-211, Gdansk, Poland.
| |
Collapse
|
36
|
O’Flaherty R, Opdenakker G, Clausen H, Gerardy-Schahn R, Kieda C, Reis CA, Rudd PM, Sadrieh A, Axford J. OUP accepted manuscript. Glycobiology 2022; 32:458-459. [PMID: 35157774 PMCID: PMC9132246 DOI: 10.1093/glycob/cwac006] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 02/03/2022] [Revised: 02/03/2022] [Accepted: 02/04/2022] [Indexed: 11/14/2022] Open
Affiliation(s)
- Roisin O’Flaherty
- Corresponding author: Department of Chemistry, Maynooth University, Ireland.
| | - Ghislain Opdenakker
- Rega Institute for Medical Research, Department of Microbiology, Immunology and Transplantation, Herestraat 49, Leuven, KU Leuven, BE-3000, Belgium
| | - Henrik Clausen
- Copenhagen Centre for Glycomics, Faculty of Health Sciences, University of Copenhagen, DK-2200 Copenhagen N, Denmark
| | - Rita Gerardy-Schahn
- Institute of Clinical Biochemistry, Hannover Medical School, Hannover, 30625, Hannover, Germany
| | - Claudine Kieda
- Centre for Molecular Biophysics, Cell Recognition and Glycobiology, UPR4301-CNRS, rue Charles Sadron, 45071, Orléans, France
| | - Celso A Reis
- Glycobiology in Cancer, i3S – Institute for Research and Innovation in Health, University of Porto, 4200-135, Porto, Portugal
| | - Pauline M Rudd
- UCD School of Medicine, University College Dublin, Belfield, Dublin 4, D04 V1W8, Ireland
- Bioprocessing Technology Institute, 20 Biopolis Way, #06-01 Centros, 138668, Singapore
| | - Azita Sadrieh
- Department of Clinical Rheumatology, St. George's University of London, London, SW17 0QT, UK
| | - John Axford
- Department of Clinical Rheumatology, St. George's University of London, London, SW17 0QT, UK
| |
Collapse
|
37
|
Wu ZY, He YQ, Wang TM, Yang DW, Li DH, Deng CM, Cao LJ, Zhang JB, Xue WQ, Jia WH. Glycogenes in Oncofetal Chondroitin Sulfate Biosynthesis are Differently Expressed and Correlated With Immune Response in Placenta and Colorectal Cancer. Front Cell Dev Biol 2021; 9:763875. [PMID: 34966741 PMCID: PMC8710744 DOI: 10.3389/fcell.2021.763875] [Citation(s) in RCA: 10] [Impact Index Per Article: 3.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 08/24/2021] [Accepted: 11/10/2021] [Indexed: 01/14/2023] Open
Abstract
Oncofetal chondroitin sulfate expression plays an important role in the development of tumors and the pathogenesis of malaria in pregnancy. However, the biosynthesis and functions of these chondroitin sulfates, particularly the tissue-specific regulation either in tumors or placenta, have not been fully elucidated. Here, by examining the glycogenes availability in chondroitin sulfate biosynthesis such as xylosytransferase, chondroitin synthase, sulfotransferase, and epimerase, the conserved or differential CS glycosylation in normal, colorectal cancer (CRC), and placenta tissue were predicted. We found that the expression of seven chondroitin sulfate biosynthetic enzymes, namely B4GALT7, B3GALT6, B3GAT3, CHSY3, CHSY1, CHPF, and CHPF2, were significantly increased, while four other enzymes (XYLT1, CHST7, CHST15, and UST) were decreased in the colon adenocarcinoma (COAD) and rectum adenocarcinoma (READ) patients. In the human placenta, where the distinct chondroitin sulfate is specifically bound with VAR2CSA on Plasmodium parasite-infected RBC, eight chondroitin sulfate biosynthesis enzymes (CSGALNACT1, CSGALNACT2, CHSY3, CHSY1, CHPF, DSE, CHST11, and CHST3) were significantly higher than the normal colon tissue. The similarly up-regulated chondroitin synthases (CHSY1, CHSY3, and CHPF) in both cancer tissue and human placenta indicate an important role of the proteoglycan CS chains length for Plasmodium falciparum VAR2CSA protein binding. Interestingly, twelve highly expressed chondroitin sulfate enzymes were significantly correlated to worse outcomes (prognosis) in both COAD and READ. Furthermore, we showed that the levels of chondroitin sulfate enzymes are significantly correlated with the expression of immuno-regulators and immune infiltration levels in CRCs and placenta, and involved in multiple essential pathways, such as extracellular matrix organization, epithelial-mesenchymal transition, and cell adhesion. Our study provides novel insights into the oncofetal chondroitin sulfate biosynthesis regulation and identifies promising targets and biomarkers of immunotherapy for CRC and malaria in pregnancy.
Collapse
Affiliation(s)
- Zi-Yi Wu
- State Key Laboratory of Oncology in South China, Collaborative Innovation Center for Cancer Medicine, Sun Yat-sen University Cancer Center, Guangzhou, China
| | - Yong-Qiao He
- State Key Laboratory of Oncology in South China, Collaborative Innovation Center for Cancer Medicine, Sun Yat-sen University Cancer Center, Guangzhou, China
| | - Tong-Min Wang
- State Key Laboratory of Oncology in South China, Collaborative Innovation Center for Cancer Medicine, Sun Yat-sen University Cancer Center, Guangzhou, China
| | - Da-Wei Yang
- School of Public Health, Sun Yat-sen University, Guangzhou, China
| | - Dan-Hua Li
- State Key Laboratory of Oncology in South China, Collaborative Innovation Center for Cancer Medicine, Sun Yat-sen University Cancer Center, Guangzhou, China
| | - Chang-Mi Deng
- State Key Laboratory of Oncology in South China, Collaborative Innovation Center for Cancer Medicine, Sun Yat-sen University Cancer Center, Guangzhou, China
| | - Lian-Jing Cao
- State Key Laboratory of Oncology in South China, Collaborative Innovation Center for Cancer Medicine, Sun Yat-sen University Cancer Center, Guangzhou, China
| | - Jiang-Bo Zhang
- State Key Laboratory of Oncology in South China, Collaborative Innovation Center for Cancer Medicine, Sun Yat-sen University Cancer Center, Guangzhou, China
| | - Wen-Qiong Xue
- State Key Laboratory of Oncology in South China, Collaborative Innovation Center for Cancer Medicine, Sun Yat-sen University Cancer Center, Guangzhou, China
| | - Wei-Hua Jia
- State Key Laboratory of Oncology in South China, Collaborative Innovation Center for Cancer Medicine, Sun Yat-sen University Cancer Center, Guangzhou, China.,School of Public Health, Sun Yat-sen University, Guangzhou, China
| |
Collapse
|
38
|
Chu YH, Liao WC, Ho YJ, Huang CH, Tseng TJ, Liu CH. Targeting Chondroitin Sulfate Reduces Invasiveness of Glioma Cells by Suppressing CD44 and Integrin β1 Expression. Cells 2021; 10:3594. [PMID: 34944101 PMCID: PMC8700349 DOI: 10.3390/cells10123594] [Citation(s) in RCA: 3] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 11/13/2021] [Revised: 12/14/2021] [Accepted: 12/17/2021] [Indexed: 12/18/2022] Open
Abstract
Chondroitin sulfate (CS) is a major component of the extracellular matrix found to be abnormally accumulated in several types of cancer tissues. Previous studies have indicated that CS synthases and modification enzymes are frequently elevated in human gliomas and are associated with poor prognosis. However, the underlying mechanisms of CS in cancer progression and approaches for interrupting its functions in cancer cells remain largely unexplored. Here, we have found that CS was significantly enriched surrounding the vasculature in a subset of glioma tissues, which was akin to the perivascular niche for cancer-initiating cells. Silencing or overexpression of the major CS synthase, chondroitin sulfate synthase 1 (CHSY1), significantly regulated the glioma cell invasive phenotypes and modulated integrin expression. Furthermore, we identified CD44 as a crucial chondroitin sulfate proteoglycan (CSPG) that was modified by CHSY1 on glioma cells, and the suppression of CS formation on CD44 by silencing the CHSY1-inhibited interaction between CD44 and integrin β1 on the adhesion complex. Moreover, we tested the CS-specific binding peptide, resulting in the suppression of glioma cell mobility in a fashion similar to that observed upon the silencing of CHSY1. In addition, the peptide demonstrated significant affinity to CD44, promoted CD44 degradation, and suppressed integrin β1 expression in glioma cells. Overall, this study proposes a potential regulatory loop between CS, CD44, and integrin β1 in glioma cells, and highlights the importance of CS in CD44 stability. Furthermore, the targeting of CS by specific binding peptides has potential as a novel therapeutic strategy for glioma.
Collapse
Affiliation(s)
- Yin-Hung Chu
- Department of Anatomy, Faculty of Medicine, Chung Shan Medical University, Taichung 402306, Taiwan; (Y.-H.C.); (W.-C.L.); (C.-H.H.); (T.-J.T.)
| | - Wen-Chieh Liao
- Department of Anatomy, Faculty of Medicine, Chung Shan Medical University, Taichung 402306, Taiwan; (Y.-H.C.); (W.-C.L.); (C.-H.H.); (T.-J.T.)
- Department of Medical Education, Chung Shan Medical University Hospital, Taichung 402306, Taiwan
| | - Ying-Jui Ho
- Department of Psychology, Chung Shan Medical University, Taichung 402306, Taiwan;
| | - Chih-Hsien Huang
- Department of Anatomy, Faculty of Medicine, Chung Shan Medical University, Taichung 402306, Taiwan; (Y.-H.C.); (W.-C.L.); (C.-H.H.); (T.-J.T.)
| | - To-Jung Tseng
- Department of Anatomy, Faculty of Medicine, Chung Shan Medical University, Taichung 402306, Taiwan; (Y.-H.C.); (W.-C.L.); (C.-H.H.); (T.-J.T.)
- Department of Medical Education, Chung Shan Medical University Hospital, Taichung 402306, Taiwan
| | - Chiung-Hui Liu
- Department of Anatomy, Faculty of Medicine, Chung Shan Medical University, Taichung 402306, Taiwan; (Y.-H.C.); (W.-C.L.); (C.-H.H.); (T.-J.T.)
- Department of Medical Education, Chung Shan Medical University Hospital, Taichung 402306, Taiwan
| |
Collapse
|
39
|
Detection of VAR2CSA-Captured Colorectal Cancer Cells from Blood Samples by Real-Time Reverse Transcription PCR. Cancers (Basel) 2021; 13:cancers13235881. [PMID: 34884994 PMCID: PMC8657034 DOI: 10.3390/cancers13235881] [Citation(s) in RCA: 1] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 10/13/2021] [Revised: 11/18/2021] [Accepted: 11/21/2021] [Indexed: 12/12/2022] Open
Abstract
Simple Summary Circulating tumor cells are cancer cells that have entered blood or lymphatic vessels wherefrom they might get access to distant body parts and form metastases. The presence of cancer cells in a blood sample can be exploited for non-invasive diagnostic purposes. However, as blood consists of a vast number of healthy red and white blood cells the task of identifying the few potential cancer cells in a sample is a technical challenge. In this study we explore strategies for detecting circulating tumor cells after a pre-enrichment through binding to VAR2CSA protein coupled to magnetic beads. We evaluate the performance of a novel workflow that recognizes and detects the cancer cells based on their gene expression and compare this with the more traditional detection strategy using antibodies for cell staining. The highly sensitive assay presented here could potentially provide a novel strategy for early cancer detection. Abstract Analysis of circulating tumor cells (CTCs) from blood samples provides a non-invasive approach for early cancer detection. However, the rarity of CTCs makes it challenging to establish assays with the required sensitivity and specificity. We combine a highly sensitive CTC capture assay exploiting the cancer cell binding recombinant malaria VAR2CSA protein (rVAR2) with the detection of colon-related mRNA transcripts (USH1C and CKMT1A). Cancer cell transcripts are detected by RT-qPCR using proprietary Target Enrichment Long-probe Quantitative Amplified Signal (TELQAS) technology. We validate each step of the workflow using colorectal cancer (CRC) cell lines spiked into blood and compare this with antibody-based cell detection. USH1C and CKMT1A are expressed in healthy colon tissue and CRC cell lines, while only low-level expression can be detected in healthy white blood cells (WBCs). The qPCR reaction shows a near-perfect amplification efficiency for all primer targets with minimal interference of WBC cDNA. Spike-in of 10 cancer cells in 3 mL blood can be detected and statistically separated from control blood using the RT-qPCR assay after rVAR2 capture (p < 0.01 for both primer targets, Mann-Whitney test). Our results provide a validated workflow for highly sensitive detection of magnetically enriched cancer cells.
Collapse
|
40
|
Hampton JD, Peterson EJ, Katner SJ, Turner TH, Alzubi MA, Harrell JC, Dozmorov MG, Turner JBM, Gigliotti PJ, Kraskauskiene V, Shende M, Idowu MO, Puchallapalli M, Hu B, Litovchick L, Katsuta E, Takabe K, Farrell NP, Koblinski JE. Exploitation of sulfated glycosaminoglycan status for precision medicine of Triplatin in triple-negative breast cancer. Mol Cancer Ther 2021; 21:271-281. [PMID: 34815360 DOI: 10.1158/1535-7163.mct-20-0969] [Citation(s) in RCA: 3] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 11/12/2020] [Revised: 10/06/2021] [Accepted: 11/12/2021] [Indexed: 11/16/2022]
Abstract
Triple-negative breast cancer (TNBC) is a subtype of breast cancer lacking targetable biomarkers. TNBC is known to be most aggressive, and when metastatic is often drug resistant and uncurable. Biomarkers predicting response to therapy improve treatment decisions and allow personalized approaches for TNBC patients. This study explores sulfated glycosaminoglycan (sGAG) levels as a predictor of TNBC response to platinum therapy. sGAG levels were quantified in three distinct TNBC tumor models including cell line-derived, patient-derived xenograft (PDX) tumors, and isogenic models deficient in sGAG biosynthesis. The in vivo antitumor efficacy of Triplatin, a sGAG-directed platinum agent, was compared in these models to the clinical platinum agent, carboplatin. We determined that >40% of TNBC PDX tissue microarray samples have high levels of sGAGs. The in vivo accumulation of Triplatin in tumors as well as antitumor efficacy of Triplatin positively correlated with sGAG levels on tumor cells, whereas carboplatin followed the opposite trend. In carboplatin-resistant tumor models expressing high levels of sGAGs, Triplatin decreased primary tumor growth, reduced lung metastases, and inhibited metastatic growth in lungs, liver, and ovaries. sGAG levels served as a predictor of Triplatin sensitivity in TNBC. Triplatin may be particularly beneficial in treating patients with chemotherapy-resistant tumors who have evidence of residual disease after standard neoadjuvant chemotherapy. More effective neoadjuvant and adjuvant treatment will likely improve clinical outcome of TNBC.
Collapse
Affiliation(s)
| | | | - Samantha J Katner
- Biochemistry, Chemistry, and Geology, Minnesota State University, Mankato
| | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | - Michael O Idowu
- Pathology, Virginia Commonwealth University Massey Cancer Center
| | | | - Bin Hu
- Department of Pathology, Virginia Commonwealth University
| | | | | | - Kazuaki Takabe
- Surgical Oncology, Roswell Park Comprehensive Cancer Center
| | | | | |
Collapse
|
41
|
Jiang M, Jin S, Han J, Li T, Shi J, Zhong Q, Li W, Tang W, Huang Q, Zong H. Detection and clinical significance of circulating tumor cells in colorectal cancer. Biomark Res 2021; 9:85. [PMID: 34798902 PMCID: PMC8605607 DOI: 10.1186/s40364-021-00326-4] [Citation(s) in RCA: 6] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 06/22/2021] [Accepted: 08/27/2021] [Indexed: 02/08/2023] Open
Abstract
Histopathological examination (biopsy) is the "gold standard" for the diagnosis of colorectal cancer (CRC). However, biopsy is an invasive method, and due to the temporal and spatial heterogeneity of the tumor, a single biopsy cannot reveal the comprehensive biological characteristics and dynamic changes of the tumor. Therefore, there is a need for new biomarkers to improve CRC diagnosis and to monitor and treat CRC patients. Numerous studies have shown that "liquid biopsy" is a promising minimally invasive method for early CRC detection. A liquid biopsy mainly samples circulating tumor cells (CTCs), circulating tumor DNA (ctDNA), microRNA (miRNA) and extracellular vesicles (EVs). CTCs are malignant cells that are shed from the primary tumors and/or metastases into the peripheral circulation. CTCs carry information on both primary tumors and metastases that can reflect dynamic changes in tumors in a timely manner. As a promising biomarker, CTCs can be used for early disease detection, treatment response and disease progression evaluation, disease mechanism elucidation, and therapeutic target identification for drug development. This review will discuss currently available technologies for plasma CTC isolation and detection, their utility in the management of CRC patients and future research directions.
Collapse
Affiliation(s)
- Miao Jiang
- Department of Oncology, the First Affiliated Hospital of Zhengzhou University, NO.1 Eastern Jianshe Road, Zhengzhou, 450052, Henan, China
| | - Shuiling Jin
- Department of Oncology, the First Affiliated Hospital of Zhengzhou University, NO.1 Eastern Jianshe Road, Zhengzhou, 450052, Henan, China
| | - Jinming Han
- Department of Oncology, the First Affiliated Hospital of Zhengzhou University, NO.1 Eastern Jianshe Road, Zhengzhou, 450052, Henan, China
| | - Tong Li
- BGI College, Zhengzhou University, 40 Daxue Road, Zhengzhou, 450052, Henan, China
| | - Jianxiang Shi
- BGI College, Zhengzhou University, 40 Daxue Road, Zhengzhou, 450052, Henan, China.,Precision Medicine Center, Henan Institute of Medical and Pharmaceutical Sciences, Zhengzhou University, 40 Daxue Road, Zhengzhou, 450052, China
| | - Qian Zhong
- Department of Oncology, the First Affiliated Hospital of Zhengzhou University, NO.1 Eastern Jianshe Road, Zhengzhou, 450052, Henan, China
| | - Wen Li
- Department of Oncology, the First Affiliated Hospital of Zhengzhou University, NO.1 Eastern Jianshe Road, Zhengzhou, 450052, Henan, China
| | - Wenxue Tang
- Departments of Otolaryngology, The Second Affiliated Hospital of Zhengzhou University, Zhengzhou, 450000, Henan, China.
| | - Qinqin Huang
- Academy of medical science, Zhengzhou University, Zhengzhou, 450052, Henan, China.
| | - Hong Zong
- Department of Oncology, the First Affiliated Hospital of Zhengzhou University, NO.1 Eastern Jianshe Road, Zhengzhou, 450052, Henan, China.
| |
Collapse
|
42
|
Spliid CB, Toledo AG, Sanderson P, Mao Y, Gatto F, Gustavsson T, Choudhary S, Saldanha AL, Vogelsang RP, Gögenur I, Theander TG, Leach FE, Amster IJ, Esko JD, Salanti A, Clausen TM. The specificity of the malarial VAR2CSA protein for chondroitin sulfate depends on 4-O-sulfation and ligand accessibility. J Biol Chem 2021; 297:101391. [PMID: 34762909 DOI: 10.1016/j.jbc.2021.101391] [Citation(s) in RCA: 1] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 08/18/2021] [Revised: 11/02/2021] [Accepted: 11/03/2021] [Indexed: 10/19/2022] Open
Abstract
Placental malaria infection is mediated by the binding of the malarial VAR2CSA protein to the placental glycosaminoglycan, chondroitin sulfate. Recombinant sub-fragments of VAR2CSA (rVAR2) have also been shown to bind specifically and with high affinity to cancer cells and tissues, suggesting the presence of a shared type of oncofetal chondroitin sulfate (ofCS) in the placenta and in tumors. However, the exact structure of ofCS and what determines the selective tropism of VAR2CSA remains poorly understood. In this study, ofCS was purified by affinity chromatography using rVAR2 and subjected to detailed structural analysis. We found high levels of N-acetylgalactosamine 4-O-sulfation (∼80-85%) in placenta- and tumor-derived ofCS. This level of 4-O-sulfation was also found in other tissues that do not support parasite sequestration, suggesting that VAR2CSA tropism is not exclusively determined by placenta- and tumor-specific sulfation. Here, we show that both placenta and tumors contain significantly more chondroitin sulfate moieties of higher molecular weight than other tissues. In line with this, CHPF and CHPF2, which encode proteins required for chondroitin polymerization, are significantly upregulated in most cancer types. CRISPR/Cas9 targeting of CHPF and CHPF2 in tumor cells reduced the average molecular weight of cell-surface chondroitin sulfate and resulted in a marked reduction of rVAR2 binding. Finally, utilizing a cell-based glycocalyx model, we showed that rVAR2 binding correlates with the length of the chondroitin sulfate chains in the cellular glycocalyx. These data demonstrate that the total amount and cellular accessibility of chondroitin sulfate chains impact rVAR2 binding and thus malaria infection.
Collapse
Affiliation(s)
- Charlotte B Spliid
- Department of Cellular and Molecular Medicine, and Glycobiology Research and Training Center, University of California San Diego, La Jolla, CA, USA; Centre for Medical Parasitology at Department for Immunology and Microbiology, Faculty of Health and Medical Sciences, University of Copenhagen and Department of Infectious Disease, Copenhagen University Hospital, 2200 Copenhagen, Denmark
| | - Alejandro Gomez Toledo
- Department of Cellular and Molecular Medicine, and Glycobiology Research and Training Center, University of California San Diego, La Jolla, CA, USA; Department of Clinical Sciences, Division of Infection Medicine, Lund University, Sweden
| | | | - Yang Mao
- School of Pharmaceutical Sciences, Sun Yat-sen University, 510006 Guangzhou, China and Guangdong Provincial Key Laboratory of Drug Non-Clinical Evaluation and Research, 510990 Guangzhou, China
| | - Francesco Gatto
- Department of Biology and Biological Engineering, Chalmers University of Technology, 42196 Gothenburg, Sweden
| | - Tobias Gustavsson
- Centre for Medical Parasitology at Department for Immunology and Microbiology, Faculty of Health and Medical Sciences, University of Copenhagen and Department of Infectious Disease, Copenhagen University Hospital, 2200 Copenhagen, Denmark
| | - Swati Choudhary
- Centre for Medical Parasitology at Department for Immunology and Microbiology, Faculty of Health and Medical Sciences, University of Copenhagen and Department of Infectious Disease, Copenhagen University Hospital, 2200 Copenhagen, Denmark
| | - Ana L Saldanha
- Centre for Medical Parasitology at Department for Immunology and Microbiology, Faculty of Health and Medical Sciences, University of Copenhagen and Department of Infectious Disease, Copenhagen University Hospital, 2200 Copenhagen, Denmark
| | - Rasmus P Vogelsang
- Center for Surgical Science, Department of Surgery, Zealand University Hospital, DK-4600 Koege, Denmark
| | - Ismail Gögenur
- Center for Surgical Science, Department of Surgery, Zealand University Hospital, DK-4600 Koege, Denmark
| | - Thor G Theander
- Centre for Medical Parasitology at Department for Immunology and Microbiology, Faculty of Health and Medical Sciences, University of Copenhagen and Department of Infectious Disease, Copenhagen University Hospital, 2200 Copenhagen, Denmark
| | - Franklin E Leach
- Department of Environmental Health Science, University of Georgia, Athens, GA 30602
| | | | - Jeffrey D Esko
- Department of Cellular and Molecular Medicine, and Glycobiology Research and Training Center, University of California San Diego, La Jolla, CA, USA
| | - Ali Salanti
- Centre for Medical Parasitology at Department for Immunology and Microbiology, Faculty of Health and Medical Sciences, University of Copenhagen and Department of Infectious Disease, Copenhagen University Hospital, 2200 Copenhagen, Denmark
| | - Thomas Mandel Clausen
- Department of Cellular and Molecular Medicine, and Glycobiology Research and Training Center, University of California San Diego, La Jolla, CA, USA; Centre for Medical Parasitology at Department for Immunology and Microbiology, Faculty of Health and Medical Sciences, University of Copenhagen and Department of Infectious Disease, Copenhagen University Hospital, 2200 Copenhagen, Denmark.
| |
Collapse
|
43
|
Wang W, Wang Z, Yang X, Gao Y, Zhang X, Cao L, Dai A, Sun J, Sun L, Jiang L, Chen Z, Wang L. The molecular mechanism of cytoadherence to placental or tumor cells through VAR2CSA from Plasmodium falciparum. Cell Discov 2021; 7:94. [PMID: 34663782 PMCID: PMC8523661 DOI: 10.1038/s41421-021-00324-8] [Citation(s) in RCA: 10] [Impact Index Per Article: 3.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 07/09/2021] [Accepted: 08/15/2021] [Indexed: 11/25/2022] Open
Affiliation(s)
- Weiwei Wang
- The Center for Microbes, Development and Health, CAS Key Laboratory of Molecular Virology & Immunology, Institut Pasteur of Shanghai, Chinese Academy of Sciences, University of Chinese Academy of Sciences, Shanghai, China.,College of Life Sciences, University of Chinese Academy of Sciences, Beijing, China
| | - Zhaoning Wang
- The Center for Microbes, Development and Health, CAS Key Laboratory of Molecular Virology & Immunology, Institut Pasteur of Shanghai, Chinese Academy of Sciences, University of Chinese Academy of Sciences, Shanghai, China.,College of Life Sciences, University of Chinese Academy of Sciences, Beijing, China
| | - Xiuna Yang
- Institute for Advanced Immunochemical Studies and School of Life Science and Technology, ShanghaiTech University, Shanghai, China
| | - Yan Gao
- Institute for Advanced Immunochemical Studies and School of Life Science and Technology, ShanghaiTech University, Shanghai, China
| | - Xiang Zhang
- Shanghai Fifth People's Hospital, Fudan University, and Shanghai Key Laboratory of Medical Epigenetics, International Co-laboratory of Medical Epigenetics and Metabolism (Ministry of Science and Technology), Institutes of Biomedical Sciences, Fudan University, Shanghai, China
| | - Long Cao
- The Center for Microbes, Development and Health, CAS Key Laboratory of Molecular Virology & Immunology, Institut Pasteur of Shanghai, Chinese Academy of Sciences, University of Chinese Academy of Sciences, Shanghai, China
| | - Aguang Dai
- The Center for Microbes, Development and Health, CAS Key Laboratory of Molecular Virology & Immunology, Institut Pasteur of Shanghai, Chinese Academy of Sciences, University of Chinese Academy of Sciences, Shanghai, China.,College of Life Sciences, University of Chinese Academy of Sciences, Beijing, China
| | - Jin Sun
- The Center for Microbes, Development and Health, CAS Key Laboratory of Molecular Virology & Immunology, Institut Pasteur of Shanghai, Chinese Academy of Sciences, University of Chinese Academy of Sciences, Shanghai, China.,College of Life Sciences, University of Chinese Academy of Sciences, Beijing, China
| | - Lei Sun
- Shanghai Fifth People's Hospital, Fudan University, and Shanghai Key Laboratory of Medical Epigenetics, International Co-laboratory of Medical Epigenetics and Metabolism (Ministry of Science and Technology), Institutes of Biomedical Sciences, Fudan University, Shanghai, China
| | - Lubin Jiang
- The Center for Microbes, Development and Health, CAS Key Laboratory of Molecular Virology & Immunology, Institut Pasteur of Shanghai, Chinese Academy of Sciences, University of Chinese Academy of Sciences, Shanghai, China. .,College of Life Sciences, University of Chinese Academy of Sciences, Beijing, China.
| | - Zhenguo Chen
- Shanghai Fifth People's Hospital, Fudan University, and Shanghai Key Laboratory of Medical Epigenetics, International Co-laboratory of Medical Epigenetics and Metabolism (Ministry of Science and Technology), Institutes of Biomedical Sciences, Fudan University, Shanghai, China.
| | - Lanfeng Wang
- The Center for Microbes, Development and Health, CAS Key Laboratory of Molecular Virology & Immunology, Institut Pasteur of Shanghai, Chinese Academy of Sciences, University of Chinese Academy of Sciences, Shanghai, China. .,College of Life Sciences, University of Chinese Academy of Sciences, Beijing, China.
| |
Collapse
|
44
|
Abstract
Results of immunotherapy in childhood solid cancer have been so far, with the exception of neuroblastoma, quite disappointing. Lack of knowledge of the immune contexture of these tumors may have contributed to the failure of immunotherapies so far. Here, we systematically reviewed the literature regarding the immunology of Wilms tumor (WT), one of the most frequent pediatric solid tumors of the abdomen. In Wilms tumor patients the high cure rate of >90%, achieved by the combination of surgery and radio-chemotherapy, is at the expense of a high early and late toxicity. Moreover, treatment-resistant entities, such as diffuse anaplastic tumors or recurrent disease, still pose unsolved clinical problems. Successful immunotherapy could represent a novel and possibly less-toxic treatment option. Employing the PRISMA (Preferred Reporting Items for Systematic Review and Meta-Analysis) method of literature search, we analyzed the current knowledge of the immunological landscape of Wilms tumors in terms of tumor microenvironment, prognostic implications of single biomarkers, and immunotherapy response.
Collapse
|
45
|
Computational Insights into the Interaction between Cytoadherence Receptor gC1qR and the DBLβ12 Domain of a Plasmodium falciparum PfEMP1 Ligand. Life (Basel) 2021; 11:life11090993. [PMID: 34575142 PMCID: PMC8471399 DOI: 10.3390/life11090993] [Citation(s) in RCA: 1] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 07/19/2021] [Revised: 09/09/2021] [Accepted: 09/15/2021] [Indexed: 12/30/2022] Open
Abstract
Human receptor gC1qR is a 32 kD protein that mediates the cytoadherence of Plasmodium falciparum-infected erythrocytes (IEs) to human brain microvascular endothelial cells (HBMEC) and platelets. The cytoadherence of IEs to gC1qR has been associated with severe malaria symptoms. The cytoadherence to gC1qR is mediated by the Duffy binding-like β12 (DBLβ12) domain of Plasmodium falciparum erythrocyte membrane protein 1 (PfEMP1), PFD0020c. Here, we report the structural insights into the binding of the DBLβ12 domain of PfEMP1 with the human receptor gC1qR using computational methods. A molecular model of the DBLβ12 domain was generated and used for protein-protein docking with the host receptor gC1qR. The protein-protein docking revealed that the DBLβ12 asymmetrically interacts with two subunits of the gC1qR trimer at the solution face of gC1qR. A total of 21 amino acid residues of DBLβ12 interact with 26 amino acid residues in the gC1qR trimer through 99 nonbonding interactions and 4 hydrogen bonds. Comparative analysis of binding sites on the DBL domain fold for the two receptors gC1qR and ICAM1 showed that the two sites are distinct. This is the first study that provides structural insights into DBLβ12 binding with its receptor gC1qR and may help in designing novel antisevere malaria interventions.
Collapse
|
46
|
Oliveira T, Zhang M, Joo EJ, Abdel-Azim H, Chen CW, Yang L, Chou CH, Qin X, Chen J, Alagesan K, Almeida A, Jacob F, Packer NH, von Itzstein M, Heisterkamp N, Kolarich D. Glycoproteome remodeling in MLL-rearranged B-cell precursor acute lymphoblastic leukemia. Am J Cancer Res 2021; 11:9519-9537. [PMID: 34646384 PMCID: PMC8490503 DOI: 10.7150/thno.65398] [Citation(s) in RCA: 4] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 07/27/2021] [Accepted: 09/03/2021] [Indexed: 01/13/2023] Open
Abstract
B-cell precursor acute lymphoblastic leukemia (BCP-ALL) with mixed-lineage leukemia gene rearrangement (MLL-r) is a poor-prognosis subtype for which additional therapeutic targets are urgently needed. Currently no multi-omics data set for primary MLL r patient cells exists that integrates transcriptomics, proteomics and glycomics to gain an inclusive picture of theranostic targets. Methods: We have integrated transcriptomics, proteomics and glycomics to i) obtain the first inclusive picture of primary patient BCP-ALL cells and identify molecular signatures that distinguish leukemic from normal precursor B-cells and ii) better understand the benefits and limitations of the applied technologies to deliver deep molecular sequence data across major cellular biopolymers. Results: MLL-r cells feature an extensive remodeling of their glycocalyx, with increased levels of Core 2-type O-glycans and complex N-glycans as well as significant changes in sialylation and fucosylation. Notably, glycosaminoglycan remodeling from chondroitin sulfate to heparan sulfate was observed. A survival screen, to determine if glycan remodeling enzymes are redundant, identified MGAT1 and NGLY1, essential components of the N-glycosylation/degradation pathway, as highly relevant within this in vitro screening. OGT and OGA, unique enzymes that regulate intracellular O-GlcNAcylation, were also indispensable. Transcriptomics and proteomics further identified Fes and GALNT7-mediated glycosylation as possible therapeutic targets. While there is overall good correlation between transcriptomics and proteomics data, we demonstrate that a systematic combined multi-omics approach delivers important diagnostic information that is missed when applying a single omics technology. Conclusions: Apart from confirming well-known MLL-r BCP-ALL glycoprotein markers, our integrated multi-omics workflow discovered previously unidentified diagnostic/therapeutic protein targets.
Collapse
Affiliation(s)
- Tiago Oliveira
- Institute for Glycomics, Griffith University, Gold Coast Campus, QLD, Australia
| | - Mingfeng Zhang
- Department of Systems Biology, Beckman Research Institute City of Hope, Monrovia, CA, USA
| | - Eun Ji Joo
- Department of Systems Biology, Beckman Research Institute City of Hope, Monrovia, CA, USA
| | - Hisham Abdel-Azim
- Division of Hematology/Oncology and Bone Marrow Transplant, Children's Hospital Los Angeles, Los Angeles, CA, USA
| | - Chun-Wei Chen
- Department of Systems Biology, Beckman Research Institute City of Hope, Monrovia, CA, USA
| | - Lu Yang
- Department of Systems Biology, Beckman Research Institute City of Hope, Monrovia, CA, USA
| | - Chih-Hsing Chou
- Division of Hematology/Oncology and Bone Marrow Transplant, Children's Hospital Los Angeles, Los Angeles, CA, USA
| | - Xi Qin
- Department of Systems Biology, Beckman Research Institute City of Hope, Monrovia, CA, USA
| | - Jianjun Chen
- Department of Systems Biology, Beckman Research Institute City of Hope, Monrovia, CA, USA
| | - Kathirvel Alagesan
- Institute for Glycomics, Griffith University, Gold Coast Campus, QLD, Australia
| | - Andreia Almeida
- Institute for Glycomics, Griffith University, Gold Coast Campus, QLD, Australia
| | - Francis Jacob
- Glyco-Oncology, Ovarian Cancer Research, Department of Biomedicine, University Hospital Basel and University of Basel, Basel, Switzerland
| | - Nicolle H Packer
- Institute for Glycomics, Griffith University, Gold Coast Campus, QLD, Australia.,Department of Chemistry and Biomolecular Sciences, Macquarie University, Sydney, NSW, Australia.,ARC Centre of Excellence for Nanoscale BioPhotonics, Griffith University, QLD and Macquarie University, NSW, Australia
| | - Mark von Itzstein
- Institute for Glycomics, Griffith University, Gold Coast Campus, QLD, Australia
| | - Nora Heisterkamp
- Department of Systems Biology, Beckman Research Institute City of Hope, Monrovia, CA, USA.,✉ Corresponding authors: Equal contributions of Nora Heisterkamp, E-mail: ; and Daniel Kolarich, E-mail:
| | - Daniel Kolarich
- Institute for Glycomics, Griffith University, Gold Coast Campus, QLD, Australia.,ARC Centre of Excellence for Nanoscale BioPhotonics, Griffith University, QLD and Macquarie University, NSW, Australia.,✉ Corresponding authors: Equal contributions of Nora Heisterkamp, E-mail: ; and Daniel Kolarich, E-mail:
| |
Collapse
|
47
|
Oo HZ, Lohinai Z, Khazamipour N, Lo J, Kumar G, Pihl J, Adomat H, Nabavi N, Behmanesh H, Zhai B, Dagil R, Choudhary S, Gustavsson T, Clausen TM, Esko JD, Allen JW, Thompson MA, Tran NL, Moldvay J, Dome B, Salanti A, Al-Nakouzi N, Weiss GJ, Daugaard M. Oncofetal Chondroitin Sulfate Is a Highly Expressed Therapeutic Target in Non-Small Cell Lung Cancer. Cancers (Basel) 2021; 13:4489. [PMID: 34503301 PMCID: PMC8430715 DOI: 10.3390/cancers13174489] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 07/12/2021] [Revised: 08/27/2021] [Accepted: 09/02/2021] [Indexed: 11/27/2022] Open
Abstract
Broad-spectrum therapeutics in non-small cell lung cancer (NSCLC) are in demand. Most human solid tumors express proteoglycans modified with distinct oncofetal chondroitin sulfate (CS) chains that can be detected and targeted with recombinant VAR2CSA (rVAR2) proteins and rVAR2-derived therapeutics. Here, we investigated expression and targetability of oncofetal CS expression in human NSCLC. High oncofetal CS expression is associated with shorter disease-free survival and poor overall survival of clinically annotated stage I and II NSCLC patients (n = 493). Oncofetal CS qualifies as an independent prognosticator of NSCLC in males and smokers, and high oncofetal CS levels are more prevalent in EGFR/KRAS wild-type cases, as compared to mutation cases. NSCLC cell lines express oncofetal CS-modified proteoglycans that can be specifically detected and targeted by rVAR2 proteins in a CSA-dependent manner. Importantly, a novel VAR2-drug conjugate (VDC-MMAE) efficiently eliminates NSCLC cells in vitro and in vivo. In summary, oncofetal CS is a prognostic biomarker and an actionable glycosaminoglycan target in NSCLC.
Collapse
Affiliation(s)
- Htoo Zarni Oo
- Department of Urologic Sciences, University of British Columbia, Vancouver, BC V6H 3Z6, Canada; (H.Z.O.); (N.K.); (J.L.); (G.K.); (H.A.); (N.N.); (H.B.); (B.Z.); (N.A.-N.)
- Vancouver Prostate Centre, Vancouver Coastal Health Research Institute, Vancouver, BC V6H 3Z6, Canada
| | - Zoltan Lohinai
- Department of Tumor Biology, National Koranyi Institute of Pulmonology, 1122 Budapest, Hungary; (Z.L.); (J.M.); (B.D.)
| | - Nastaran Khazamipour
- Department of Urologic Sciences, University of British Columbia, Vancouver, BC V6H 3Z6, Canada; (H.Z.O.); (N.K.); (J.L.); (G.K.); (H.A.); (N.N.); (H.B.); (B.Z.); (N.A.-N.)
- Vancouver Prostate Centre, Vancouver Coastal Health Research Institute, Vancouver, BC V6H 3Z6, Canada
| | - Joey Lo
- Department of Urologic Sciences, University of British Columbia, Vancouver, BC V6H 3Z6, Canada; (H.Z.O.); (N.K.); (J.L.); (G.K.); (H.A.); (N.N.); (H.B.); (B.Z.); (N.A.-N.)
- Vancouver Prostate Centre, Vancouver Coastal Health Research Institute, Vancouver, BC V6H 3Z6, Canada
| | - Gunjan Kumar
- Department of Urologic Sciences, University of British Columbia, Vancouver, BC V6H 3Z6, Canada; (H.Z.O.); (N.K.); (J.L.); (G.K.); (H.A.); (N.N.); (H.B.); (B.Z.); (N.A.-N.)
- Vancouver Prostate Centre, Vancouver Coastal Health Research Institute, Vancouver, BC V6H 3Z6, Canada
| | - Jessica Pihl
- Department of Cellular and Molecular Medicine, University of California, La Jolla, San Diego, CA 92093, USA; (J.P.); (T.M.C.); (J.D.E.)
| | - Hans Adomat
- Department of Urologic Sciences, University of British Columbia, Vancouver, BC V6H 3Z6, Canada; (H.Z.O.); (N.K.); (J.L.); (G.K.); (H.A.); (N.N.); (H.B.); (B.Z.); (N.A.-N.)
- Vancouver Prostate Centre, Vancouver Coastal Health Research Institute, Vancouver, BC V6H 3Z6, Canada
| | - Noushin Nabavi
- Department of Urologic Sciences, University of British Columbia, Vancouver, BC V6H 3Z6, Canada; (H.Z.O.); (N.K.); (J.L.); (G.K.); (H.A.); (N.N.); (H.B.); (B.Z.); (N.A.-N.)
- Vancouver Prostate Centre, Vancouver Coastal Health Research Institute, Vancouver, BC V6H 3Z6, Canada
| | - Hakhamanesh Behmanesh
- Department of Urologic Sciences, University of British Columbia, Vancouver, BC V6H 3Z6, Canada; (H.Z.O.); (N.K.); (J.L.); (G.K.); (H.A.); (N.N.); (H.B.); (B.Z.); (N.A.-N.)
- Vancouver Prostate Centre, Vancouver Coastal Health Research Institute, Vancouver, BC V6H 3Z6, Canada
| | - Beibei Zhai
- Department of Urologic Sciences, University of British Columbia, Vancouver, BC V6H 3Z6, Canada; (H.Z.O.); (N.K.); (J.L.); (G.K.); (H.A.); (N.N.); (H.B.); (B.Z.); (N.A.-N.)
- Vancouver Prostate Centre, Vancouver Coastal Health Research Institute, Vancouver, BC V6H 3Z6, Canada
| | - Robert Dagil
- Department for Immunology and Microbiology, Faculty of Health and Medical Sciences, University of Copenhagen, 2200 Copenhagen, Denmark; (R.D.); (S.C.); (T.G.); (A.S.)
| | - Swati Choudhary
- Department for Immunology and Microbiology, Faculty of Health and Medical Sciences, University of Copenhagen, 2200 Copenhagen, Denmark; (R.D.); (S.C.); (T.G.); (A.S.)
| | - Tobias Gustavsson
- Department for Immunology and Microbiology, Faculty of Health and Medical Sciences, University of Copenhagen, 2200 Copenhagen, Denmark; (R.D.); (S.C.); (T.G.); (A.S.)
| | - Thomas M. Clausen
- Department of Cellular and Molecular Medicine, University of California, La Jolla, San Diego, CA 92093, USA; (J.P.); (T.M.C.); (J.D.E.)
| | - Jeffrey D. Esko
- Department of Cellular and Molecular Medicine, University of California, La Jolla, San Diego, CA 92093, USA; (J.P.); (T.M.C.); (J.D.E.)
| | | | | | - Nhan L. Tran
- Department of Cancer Biology, Mayo Clinic, Scottsdale, AZ 85259, USA;
| | - Judit Moldvay
- Department of Tumor Biology, National Koranyi Institute of Pulmonology, 1122 Budapest, Hungary; (Z.L.); (J.M.); (B.D.)
- MTA-SE NAP, Brain Metastasis Research Group, Department of Pathology, Hungarian Academy of Sciences, 1085 Budapest, Hungary
| | - Balazs Dome
- Department of Tumor Biology, National Koranyi Institute of Pulmonology, 1122 Budapest, Hungary; (Z.L.); (J.M.); (B.D.)
- Department of Thoracic Surgery, National Institute of Oncology, Semmelweis University, 1122 Budapest, Hungary
- Department of Thoracic Surgery, Medical University of Vienna, 1090 Vienna, Austria
| | - Ali Salanti
- Department for Immunology and Microbiology, Faculty of Health and Medical Sciences, University of Copenhagen, 2200 Copenhagen, Denmark; (R.D.); (S.C.); (T.G.); (A.S.)
| | - Nader Al-Nakouzi
- Department of Urologic Sciences, University of British Columbia, Vancouver, BC V6H 3Z6, Canada; (H.Z.O.); (N.K.); (J.L.); (G.K.); (H.A.); (N.N.); (H.B.); (B.Z.); (N.A.-N.)
- Vancouver Prostate Centre, Vancouver Coastal Health Research Institute, Vancouver, BC V6H 3Z6, Canada
| | | | - Mads Daugaard
- Department of Urologic Sciences, University of British Columbia, Vancouver, BC V6H 3Z6, Canada; (H.Z.O.); (N.K.); (J.L.); (G.K.); (H.A.); (N.N.); (H.B.); (B.Z.); (N.A.-N.)
- Vancouver Prostate Centre, Vancouver Coastal Health Research Institute, Vancouver, BC V6H 3Z6, Canada
| |
Collapse
|
48
|
Zhou M, Lai W, Li G, Wang F, Liu W, Liao J, Yang H, Liu Y, Zhang Q, Tang Q, Hu C, Huang J, Zhang R. Platelet Membrane-Coated and VAR2CSA Malaria Protein-Functionalized Nanoparticles for Targeted Treatment of Primary and Metastatic Cancer. ACS APPLIED MATERIALS & INTERFACES 2021; 13:25635-25648. [PMID: 34038097 DOI: 10.1021/acsami.1c02581] [Citation(s) in RCA: 23] [Impact Index Per Article: 7.7] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 06/12/2023]
Abstract
Metastasis is the main cause of death in cancer patients. The efficacy of pharmacological therapy for cancer is limited by the heterogeneous nature of cancer cells and the lack of knowledge of microenvironments in metastasis. Evidence has shown that activated platelets possess both tumor-homing and metastasis-targeting properties via intrinsic cell adhesion molecules on platelets, and malaria protein VAR2CSA is able to specifically bind to oncofetal chondroitin sulfate, which is overexpressed on cancer cells with both epithelial and mesenchymal phenotypes. Inspired by these mechanisms, we developed a recombinant VAR2CSA peptide (rVAR2)-modified activated platelet-mimicking nanoparticles (rVAR2-PM/PLGA-ss-HA) by coating the surface of disulfide-containing biodegradable PLGA conjugate nanoparticles (PLGA-ss-HA) with an activated platelet membrane. The results demonstrated that the engineered 122 nm rVAR2-PM/PLGA-ss-HA inherited the innate properties of the activated platelet membrane and achieved enhanced homing to both primary and metastatic foci. The nanoparticles were endocytosed and responded to a high intracellular concentration of reduced glutathione, resulting in nanoparticle disintegration and the release of chemotherapeutic drugs to kill tumor cells. Thus, rVAR2-decorated activated platelet-targeting nanoparticles with controlled drug release provide a promising drug delivery strategy for efficient treatment of primary and metastatic cancer.
Collapse
Affiliation(s)
- Min Zhou
- Department of Pharmacy, The Second Affiliated Hospital of Army Medical University, ChongQing 400037, China
| | - Wenjing Lai
- Department of Pharmacy, The Second Affiliated Hospital of Army Medical University, ChongQing 400037, China
| | - Guobing Li
- Department of Pharmacy, The Second Affiliated Hospital of Army Medical University, ChongQing 400037, China
| | - Fengling Wang
- Department of Pharmacy, The Second Affiliated Hospital of Army Medical University, ChongQing 400037, China
| | - Wuyi Liu
- Department of Pharmacy, The Second Affiliated Hospital of Army Medical University, ChongQing 400037, China
| | - Jiaxing Liao
- Department of Pharmacy, The Second Affiliated Hospital of Army Medical University, ChongQing 400037, China
| | - Haibo Yang
- Department of Pharmacy, The Second Affiliated Hospital of Army Medical University, ChongQing 400037, China
| | - Yali Liu
- Department of Pharmacy, The Second Affiliated Hospital of Army Medical University, ChongQing 400037, China
| | - Qian Zhang
- Department of Pharmacy, The Second Affiliated Hospital of Army Medical University, ChongQing 400037, China
| | - Qin Tang
- Department of Pharmacy, The Second Affiliated Hospital of Army Medical University, ChongQing 400037, China
| | - Changpeng Hu
- Department of Pharmacy, The Second Affiliated Hospital of Army Medical University, ChongQing 400037, China
| | - Jingbin Huang
- Department of Pharmacy, The Second Affiliated Hospital of Army Medical University, ChongQing 400037, China
| | - Rong Zhang
- Department of Pharmacy, The Second Affiliated Hospital of Army Medical University, ChongQing 400037, China
| |
Collapse
|
49
|
Cryo-EM reveals the architecture of placental malaria VAR2CSA and provides molecular insight into chondroitin sulfate binding. Nat Commun 2021; 12:2956. [PMID: 34011972 PMCID: PMC8134449 DOI: 10.1038/s41467-021-23254-1] [Citation(s) in RCA: 22] [Impact Index Per Article: 7.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 12/04/2020] [Accepted: 04/16/2021] [Indexed: 12/13/2022] Open
Abstract
Placental malaria can have severe consequences for both mother and child and effective vaccines are lacking. Parasite-infected red blood cells sequester in the placenta through interaction between parasite-expressed protein VAR2CSA and the glycosaminoglycan chondroitin sulfate A (CS) abundantly present in the intervillous space. Here, we report cryo-EM structures of the VAR2CSA ectodomain at up to 3.1 Å resolution revealing an overall V-shaped architecture and a complex domain organization. Notably, the surface displays a single significantly electropositive patch, compatible with binding of negatively charged CS. Using molecular docking and molecular dynamics simulations as well as comparative hydroxyl radical protein foot-printing of VAR2CSA in complex with placental CS, we identify the CS-binding groove, intersecting with the positively charged patch of the central VAR2CSA structure. We identify distinctive conserved structural features upholding the macro-molecular domain complex and CS binding capacity of VAR2CSA as well as divergent elements possibly allowing immune escape at or near the CS binding site. These observations will support rational design of second-generation placental malaria vaccines. In placental malaria, interactions between parasite protein VAR2CSA and human glycosaminoglycan chondroitin sulfate A (CS) sequesters infected red blood cells in the placenta. Here, the authors provide cryo-EM structures of VAR2CSA and placental CS, identifying molecular interactions that could guide design of placental malaria vaccines.
Collapse
|
50
|
Ellis T, Eze E, Raimi-Abraham BT. Malaria and Cancer: a critical review on the established associations and new perspectives. Infect Agent Cancer 2021; 16:33. [PMID: 33985540 PMCID: PMC8117320 DOI: 10.1186/s13027-021-00370-7] [Citation(s) in RCA: 5] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.7] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 01/07/2021] [Accepted: 04/29/2021] [Indexed: 01/02/2023] Open
Abstract
Objectives Cancer and malaria both have high incidence rates and are leading causes of mortality worldwide, especially in low and middle-income countries with reduced access to the quality healthcare. The objective of this critical review was to summarize key associations and new perspectives between the two diseases as is reported in existing literature. Methods A critical review of research articles published between 1st January 2000 – 1st July 2020 which yielded 1753 articles. These articles were screened based on a precise inclusion criteria. Eighty-nine eligible articles were identified and further evaluated. Results Many articles reported anti-cancer activities of anti-malarial medicines, including Artemisinin and its derivatives. Other articles investigated the use of chemotherapy in areas burdened by malaria, treatment complications that malaria may cause for cancer patients as well as ways to circumvent cancer related drug resistance. Potential novel targets for cancer treatment, were identified namely oncofoetal chondroitin sulphate and haem, as well as the use of circumsporozoite proteins. A number of articles also discussed Burkitt lymphoma or febrile neutropenia. Conclusions Overall, excluding for Burkitt lymphoma, the relationship between cancer and malaria requires further extensive research in order to define association. There great potential promising new novel anti-cancer therapies using anti-malarial drugs. Graphical abstract Created using BioRender![]()
Collapse
Affiliation(s)
- Toby Ellis
- King's College London, School of Cancer and Pharmaceutical Sciences, Comprehensive Cancer Centre, Guy's Campus, Great Maze Pond, London, SE1 9RT, UK
| | - Elvis Eze
- Malaria no More UK, The Foundry, 17 Oval Way, Vauxhall, London, SE11 5RR, UK
| | - Bahijja Tolulope Raimi-Abraham
- King's College London, School of Cancer and Pharmaceutical Sciences, Institute of Pharmaceutical Science, Waterloo Campus, Franklin Wilkins Building, Stamford Street, London, SE1 9NH, UK.
| |
Collapse
|