Angelol-A exerts anti-metastatic and anti-angiogenic effects on human cervical carcinoma cells by modulating the phosphorylated-ERK/miR-29a-3p that targets the MMP2/VEGFA axis

The Anti-Metastatic Action of Oxyresveratrol via Suppression of Phosphoryl-ERK/-PKCα-Mediated Sp1/MMP1 Signaling in Human Renal Carcinoma Cells

Oxyresveratrol (OxyR) exerts biological and pharmacological effects in a variety of tumor cells, including antioxidant action, antitumor activity, and proapoptotic effects. However, the regulation of targeted signaling pathways by OxyR and the mechanism underlying these effects in human renal cell carcinoma (RCC) have been less studied. We observed that OxyR at noncytotoxic doses did not affect the growth of human RCC cells or normal kidney HK2 cells. OxyR inhibited ACHN and Caki-1 cell migration and invasion through targeting matrix metalloproteinase 1 (MMP1) expression. Analysis of clinical databases showed that high MMP1 expression is associated with lower overall survival (OS) in these cancers (p < 0.01). OxyR significantly inhibited the mRNA and protein expression of Sp1. Furthermore, luciferase assay results showed that OxyR inhibited Sp1 transcriptional activity. Additionally, OxyR preferentially suppressed the activation of ERK and PKCα. Treatment with U0126 (MEK inhibitor) or G06976 (PKCα inhibitor) clearly decreased Sp1 and MMP1 expression and inhibited RCC cell migration and invasion. In conclusion, OxyR may be a potential antitumor therapy for the inhibition of migration and invasion by controlling p-ERK/Sp1 and p-PKCα/Sp1-mediated MMP1 expression in RCC.

AILDE Computer-Aided Discovery of Novel Ibuprofen-Coumarin Antitumor Lead Compounds Targeting Cyclooxygenase-2

Starting from three ibuprofen-coumarin hit compounds, we designed 18 derivative compounds targeting cyclooxygenase-2 (COX-2) by introducing different substituents onto them by using the computational auto in silico ligand directing evolution (AILDE) method. After synthesizing and testing the activity, we found that 6 representative compounds have micromolar enzyme inhibitory activity against COX-2. Additionally, 16 compounds have shown certain inhibitory activity in cervical cancer cells. Among these compounds, 6c (IC50 = 0.606 μM, HeLa) and 7g (IC50 = 0.783 μM, HeLa) have exhibited excellent activity, which is approximately 10 times better than the commercial drug gefitinib. According to molecular simulation results, the halogen atoms of 6c and 7g on the coumarin ring can form halogen bonds with COX-2, which significantly improves their activity compared to their hit compounds 6a and 7a. However, the key interactions were lost in binding with COX-1. The calculation results revealed that the two compounds are selective COX-2 inhibitors, with potential selectivity indexes of 6-fold and 5-fold, respectively. The cell-based activity of compounds 6c and 7g toward HEK293 cells demonstrates that our compounds possess an acceptable safety toward normal cells. The results indicate that 6c and 7g can serve as potential lead compounds for further lucubrate.

A comprehensive review on the potential of coumarin and related derivatives as multi-target therapeutic agents in the management of gynecological cancers

Current treatments for gynecological cancers include surgery, radiotherapy, and chemotherapy. However, these treatments often have significant side effects. Phytochemicals, natural compounds derived from plants, offer promising anticancer properties. Coumarins, a class of benzopyrone compounds found in various plants like tonka beans, exhibit notable antitumor effects. These compounds induce cell apoptosis, target PI3K/Akt/mTOR signaling pathways, inhibit carbonic anhydrase, and disrupt microtubules. Additionally, they inhibit tumor multidrug resistance and angiogenesis and regulate reactive oxygen species. Specific coumarin derivatives, such as auraptene, praeruptorin, osthole, and scopoletin, show anti-invasive, anti-migratory, and antiproliferative activities by arresting the cell cycle and inducing apoptosis. They also inhibit metalloproteinases-2 and -9, reducing tumor cell migration, invasion, and metastasis. These compounds can sensitize tumor cells to radiotherapy and chemotherapy. Synthetic coumarin derivatives also demonstrate potent antitumor and anticancer activities with minimal side effects. Given their diverse mechanisms of action and minimal side effects, coumarin-class phytochemicals hold significant potential as therapeutic agents in gynecological cancers, potentially improving treatment outcomes and reducing side effects. This review will aid in the synthesis and development of novel coumarin-based drugs for these cancers.

Natural products' antiangiogenic roles in gynecological cancer

Gynecological cancers pose a significant threat to women's health. Although the pathogenesis of gynecological cancer remains incompletely understood, angiogenesis is widely acknowledged as a fundamental pathological mechanism driving tumor cell growth, invasion, and metastasis. Targeting angiogenesis through natural products has emerged as a crucial strategy for treating gynecological cancer. In this review, we conducted comprehensive searches in PubMed, Embase, Web of Science, Science Direct, and CNKI databases from the first publication until May 2023 to identify natural products that target angiogenesis in gynecologic tumors. Our findings revealed 63 natural products with anti-angiogenic activity against gynecological cancer. These results underscore the significance of these natural products in augmenting their anticancer effects by modulating other factors within the tumor microenvironment via their impact on angiogenesis. This article focuses on exploring the potential of natural products in targeting blood vessels within gynecological cancer to provide novel research perspectives for targeted vascular therapy while laying a solid theoretical foundation for new drug development.

Serum miRNA Combined With Transvaginal Color Doppler Ultrasound Diagnosis Clinical Research on Cervical Cancer

OBJECTIVES

To explore clinical value of miRNA-18a, miRNA-130a, and miRNA-92a combined with transvaginal color Doppler ultrasound (TVCDS) in the diagnosis of cervical cancer (CC).

METHODS

One hundred patients with pathologically confirmed CC (CC group), 100 patients with cervical epithelial neoplasia (disease group), and 100 patients with benign uterine lesions (control group) were selected. TVCDS was performed, and the levels of serum miRNA-18a, miRNA-130a, and miRNA-92a were detected.

RESULTS

The systolic blood velocity of the cancer group, the disease group, and the control group decreased sequentially, while the resistance index and pulsatility index increased sequentially. The serum miR-18a, miR-130a, miR-92a, and expression levels of the patients' increased sequentially. Multivariate logistic regression analysis showed that age, high-risk human papillomavirus (HR-HPV) infection, menopause, blood flow RI, serum miRNA-18a, miRNA-92a, and miRNA-130a were the influencing factors of CC. The receiver operating characteristic curve showed that the sensitivity, specificity, accuracy, and area under curve of transvaginal Doppler ultrasound in the diagnosis of CC were 86.43%, 88.01%, 84.32%, and 0.913; serum miR-18a were, respectively, 76.56, 81.30, 80.36, and 0.839; serum miR-130a were 77.88%, 76.97%, 78.32%, and 0.0.864; serum miR-92a were 71.04%, 80.39%, 80.74%, and 0.894; 90.33%, 95.14%, 91.25%, and 0.947, the area under curve of the combined detection of the 3 was greater than that of the single detection.

CONCLUSIONS

Serum miRNA combined with TVCDS has the advantages of it being noninvasive, and having high sensitivity and high specificity in the diagnosis of CC.

Knockdown of lncRNA PVT1 protects human trabecular meshwork cells against H2O2-induced injury via the regulation of the miR-29a-3p/VEGF/MMP-2 axis

Purpose

Human trabecular meshwork cell (HTMC) dysfunction results in imbalanced aqueous humor inflow and outflow, leading to an increase in intraocular pressure (IOP). Uncontrolled high IOP can promote the occurrence of glaucoma, an irreversible optic neuropathy. Here, we explored whether the long non-coding RNA plasmacytoma variant translocation 1 (lncRNA PVT1)/microRNA-29a-3p (miR-29a-3p) axis could ameliorate HTMC dysfunction under oxidative stress by modulating the expression of the proangiogenic factor vascular endothelial growth factor (VEGFA) and the profibrotic factor metalloproteinase-2 (MMP-2).

Methods

HTMCs were cultured under H2O2-induced oxidative stress for 48 h. The expression of lncRNA PVT1, miR-29a-3p, VEGFA, MMP-2, intracellular adhesion molecule-1 (ICAM-1), and alpha-smooth muscle actin (α-SMA) was detected by reverse transcription quantitative real-time polymerase chain reaction, western blotting, and immunofluorescence. Interference experiments were conducted via the transfection of HTMCs with small interfering RNA (siRNA) targeting lncRNA PVT1 or miR-29a-3p mimics. A luciferase reporter assay was undertaken to identify the presence of a miR-29a-3p binding site in lncRNA PVT1. Flow cytometry and Transwell and Cell Counting Kit-8 assays were employed to evaluate HTMC functions under oxidative stress with different treatments.

Results

In HTMCs, the expression of lncRNA PVT1 was induced by H2O2 treatment, whereas that of miR-29a-3p was inhibited. The levels of angiogenic factors (VEGFA, ICAM-1) and fibrosis-associated mediators (MMP-2, α-SMA) were upregulated in HTMCs under oxidative stress. The siRNA-mediated suppression of lncRNA PVT1 or the upregulation of miR-29a-3p significantly suppressed the expression of VEGFA, MMP-2, ICAM-1, and α-SMA. A luciferase reporter assay confirmed that lncRNA PVT1 directly targeted miR-29a-3p and acted as a miR-29a-3p sponge. The knockdown of lncRNA PVT1 restored the level of miR-29a-3p in H2O2-treated HTMCs, thereby inhibiting VEGFA and MMP-2, its target mRNAs. HTMC dysfunction, including increased apoptosis and decreased cell mobility and viability, could be effectively ameliorated by lncRNA PVT1 downregulation or miR-29a-3p overexpression under oxidative stress.

Conclusion

LncRNA PVT1 has potential as a therapeutic target for inhibiting VEGFA and MMP-2, thus protecting HTMCs, suppressing the progression of fibrosis, and, consequently, improving the outcome of glaucoma filtration surgery.

Candidate Genes and Pathways in Cervical Cancer: A Systematic Review and Integrated Bioinformatic Analysis

Cervical cancer is the leading cause of cancer-related death among women in developing countries. However, no comprehensive molecular mechanism for cervical cancer has been established, as many studies were small-cohort studies conducted with small sample sizes. A thorough literature search was performed using the PubMed, Scopus, EBSCOhost, and Science Direct databases. Medical Subject Heading (MeSH) terms such as "Uterine Cervical Neoplasms" and "gene expression" were used as the keywords in all fields. A total of 4027 studies were retrieved, and only clinical studies, which used the microarray method to identify differentially expressed genes (DEGs) in the cervical tissue of cervical cancer patients, were selected. Following the screening, 6 studies were selected and 1128 DEGs were extracted from the data. Sixty-two differentially expressed genes from at least two studies were selected for further analysis by DAVID, STRING, and Cytoscape software. In cervical cancer pathogenesis, three significant clusters with high intermolecular interactions from the Protein-Protein Interaction (PPI) network complex revealed three major molecular mechanisms, including cell signaling, cell cycle, and cell differentiation. Subsequently, eight genes were chosen as the candidate genes based on their involvement in the relevant gene ontology (GO) and their interaction with other genes in the PPI network through undirected first neighbor nodes. The present systematic review improves our understanding of the molecular mechanism of cervical cancer and the proposed genes that can be used to expand the biomarker panel in the screening for cervical cancer. The targeted genes may be beneficial for the development of better treatment strategies.

[JAG1 promotes migration, invasion, and adhesion of triple-negative breast cancer cells by promoting angiogenesis]

OBJECTIVE

To investigate the effect of JAG1 on the malignant phenotype of triple-negative breast cancer (TNBC) and its role in angiogenesis in breast cancer microenvironment.

METHODS

The expressions of Notch molecules were detected in human TNBC 231 and 231B cells using RT-qPCR. Five female nude mice were inoculated with 231 cells and another 5 with 231B cells into the mammary fat pads, and 4-6 weeks later, the tumors were collected for immunohistochemical and immunofluorescence tests. 231 cells and 231B cells were treated with recombinant JAG (rJAG) protein and DAPT, respectively, and changes in their malignant phenotypes were assessed using CCK-8 assay, Hoechst 33258 staining, wound healing assay, Transwell chamber assay and endothelial cell adhesion assay. Western blotting was used to detect the changes in the expressions of proteins related with the malignant phenotypes of 231 and 231B cells. The effects of conditioned medium (CM) derived from untreated 231 and 231 B cells, rJAG1-treated 231 cells and DAPT-treated 231B cells on proliferation and tube formation ability of cultured human umbilical vein endothelial cells (HUVECs) were evaluated using CCK-8 assay and tube-forming assay.

RESULTS

The expression of JAG1 was higher in 231B cells than in 231 cells (P < 0.05). Tumor 231B showed higher expression of VEGFA and CD31. Compared with 231-Blank group, the migration, invasion and adhesion of 231 cells in 231-rJAG1 were significantly enhanced (P < 0.05). Protein levels of Twist1 and Snail increased (P < 0.01), anti-apoptotic protein Bcl-2 increased (P < 0.05), while DAPT inhibited the related phenomena and indicators of 231B. The 231-rJAG1-CM increased the cell number and tubule number of HUVEC (P < 0.05).

CONCLUSION

JAG1 may affect the malignant phenotype of TNBC and promote angiogenesis in the tumor microenvironment.