Evaluation of F8-TNF-α in Models of Early and Progressive Metastatic Osteosarcoma

Microenvironment matters: insights from the FOSTER consortium on microenvironment-driven approaches to osteosarcoma therapy

Osteosarcoma (OS), a prevalent malignant bone tumor, has seen limited progress in treatment efficacy and patient outcomes over decades. Recent insights into the tumor microenvironment (TME) have revealed its crucial role in tumor progression and therapeutic resistance, particularly in OS. This review offers a comprehensive exploration of the OS microenvironment, meticulously dissecting its crucial components: the mesenchymal stromal TME, the immune microenvironment, hypoxia-induced adaptations, and the impact of the physical microenvironment. By demonstrating how these elements collectively drive tumor proliferation, immune evasion, and invasion, this review explores the intricate molecular and cellular dynamics at play. Furthermore, innovative approaches targeting the OS microenvironment, such as immunotherapies, are presented. This review highlights the importance of the TME in OS progression and its potential as a source of novel therapeutic strategies, offering new hope for improved patient outcomes.

An improved experimental model of osteosarcoma lung metastases to investigate innovative therapeutic interventions and sex as a biological variable

Osteosarcoma (OS) is the most common primary bone malignancy, with OS lung metastasis (OSLM) being the leading cause of death in OS patients. No curative pharmacotherapies for OSLM are available, highlighting the clinical need for new therapies. Improved and rigorous preclinical models of OSLM are key in supporting advancements in this field. We aimed to develop an immunocompetent mouse model of OSLM that allows monitoring pharmacotherapies' effect on the lung metastatic burden over time and assessing the impact of sex as a biological variable in tumor growth and response to therapy. We transformed K7M2 cells to express bioluminescence and fluorescence, enabling real-time tracking of OSLM in BALB/c mice following tail vein injection. Metastasis was confined to the lungs and exhibited exponential growth with typical downregulated Fas receptor expression. In vivo bioluminescence correlated strongly with ex vivo, suggesting its reliability for evaluating metastatic progression and therapy response. Fluorescence from tdT was stable upon tissue processing, providing unique opportunities to probe the tumor characteristics ex vivo. We also assessed the effect of local lung-delivered gemcitabine, which was well-tolerated and significantly reduced OSLM burden without causing pulmonary toxicity. However, treatment did not resolve metastatic disease. We also explored the effect of sex on tumor growth and response to therapy; while no difference was observed in tumor growth between male and female mice, females showed a better response to local gemcitabine administration. In sum, we established a robust and rigorous immunocompetent mouse model of OSLM that will facilitate exploring new pharmacotherapies for OSLM.

Construction of a novel cancer-associated fibroblast-related signature to predict clinical outcome and immune response in cervical cancer

This study developed a prognostic signature for cervical cancer using transcriptome profiling and clinical data from The Cancer Genome Atlas (TCGA), Gene Expression Omnibus (GEO), and TISCH database, focusing on cancer-associated fibroblasts (CAFs). Through LASSO Cox regression and integrated bioinformatics analyses, we identified 144 differentially expressed genes (DEGs) related to CAFs, from which an 11-gene CAF-related signature (CAFRSig) was constructed. The CAFRSig effectively stratified patients into high- and low-risk categories, demonstrating significant prognostic capability in predicting overall survival. Gene ontology (GO) and gene set variation analysis (GSVA) linked the DEGs to crucial pathways in tumor malignancy, immune response, and fatty acid metabolism. The immune landscape analysis, utilizing the TIMER platform and CIBERSORT algorithm, revealed a positive correlation between immune cell effector functions and CAFRSig scores, highlighting the model's potential to identify patients likely to respond to immune checkpoint blockade (ICB) therapies. Furthermore, neuropilin 1 (NRP1), a key gene in the CAFRSig, was upregulated in cervical cancer tissues and associated with disease progression and differentiation. The downregulation of NRP1 curbed cell proliferation and influenced the epithelial-mesenchymal transition (EMT), implicating the PI3K/AKT pathway and modulating PD-L1 expression. This comprehensive analysis establishes a robust prognostic signature based on CAF-related genes, offering valuable insights for optimizing therapeutic strategies in cervical cancer management.

The Relationship between PBLS and Osteosarcoma Distribution in Different Subgroups and the Survival and Prognosis of Osteosarcoma

Objective

To analyze the differences in the distribution of lymphocytes (PBLS) in different subgroups of osteosarcoma (OS) and the predictive value of related parameters on the survival prognosis of OS.

Methods

For retrospective analysis, 80 patients with malignant OS diagnosed and treated in our hospital from June 2016 to June 2017 were selected as the observation group, and 80 patients with benign bone tumors during the same period were selected as the control group. Patients in the observation group were followed up for three years and grouped according to the tumor diameter, stage, metastasis, and prognosis. Fasting venous blood was collected from each group and the levels of CD3+, CD3+CD4+, and CD3+CD8+ were detected. Meanwhile, the ratio of CD4+/CD8+, CD4+/CD3+, and CD8+/CD3+ was calculated and compared. Kaplan-Meier survival curve was used to analyze the relationship between PBLS parameters and OS survival. The area under the curve (AUC), sensitivity, and specificity of each entry index were analyzed by the receiver operating characteristic curve (ROC curve).

Results

The CD3+CD8+ level and CD4+/CD3+ ratio in the observation group were significantly higher than those in the control group (P < 0.05). The level of CD3+CD8+ in the patients with tumor diameter ≥ 11 cm was observably higher than that in the patients with tumor diameter <11 cm (P < 0.05). The levels of CD3+CD4+ and the ratio of CD4+/CD8 and CD4+/CD3+ of patients in stage III were markedly lower than those of patients in stage II, while the ratio of CD8+/CD3+ and the levels of CD3+CD8+ were prominently higher than those of patients in stage II (P < 0.05). The CD3+CD4+ level and CD4+/CD3+ ratio of patients in the metastatic group before treatment, the metastatic group after treatment, and the nonmetastatic group after treatment increased successively, while the ratio of CD4+/CD8+ and CD8+/CD3+ and the level of CD3+CD8+ decreased successively (P < 0.05). The CD3+CD4+ level and CD4+/CD3+ ratio in the poor prognosis group were significantly higher than those in the good prognosis group, whereas the ratio of CD8+/CD3+ and CD4+/CD8+ and the level of CD3+CD8+ were significantly lower than those in the poor prognosis group (P < 0.05). ROC curve analysis showed that the AUC of CD4+/CD8+ and CD4+/CD3+ in predicting poor prognosis in patients with OS was notably higher than other indicators, which were 0.818 and 0.866, respectively (P < 0.05). Kaplan-Meier survival curve results revealed that patients with CD3+CD4+ ≤ 5.15, CD3+CD8+ > 3.85, CD4+/CD8+ ≤ 1.42, CD4+/CD3+ ≤ 0.50, and CD8+/CD3+ > 0.38 had longer survival.

Conclusion

The distribution of PBLS parameters varied widely among different subgroups of OS. Patients with poor prognosis had a higher ratio of CD4+/CD8+ and CD4+/CD3+, which were related to the survival of patients with OS. Moreover, both the ratio of CD4+/CD8+ and CD4+/CD3+ had certain predictive values in terms of survival and prognosis of OS. Therefore, regular clinical monitoring of patients' immune function could help predict disease changes and assess prognosis.

Recent Progress on the Role of Fibronectin in Tumor Stromal Immunity and Immunotherapy

As a major component of the stromal microenvironment of various solid tumors, the extracellular matrix (ECM) has attracted increasing attention in cancer-related studies. ECM in the tumor stroma not only provides an external barrier and framework for tumor cell adhesion and movement, but also acts as an active regulator that modulates the tumor microenvironment, including stromal immunity. Fibronectin (Fn), as a core component of the ECM, plays a key role in the assembly and remodeling of the ECM. Hence, understanding the role of Fn in the modulation of tumor stromal immunity is of great importance for cancer immunotherapy. Hence, in-depth studies on the underlying mechanisms of Fn in tumors are urgently needed to clarify the current understanding and issues and to identify new and specific targets for effective diagnosis and treatment purposes. In this review, we summarize the structure and role of Fn, its potent derivatives in tumor stromal immunity, and their biological effects and mechanisms in tumor development. In addition, we discuss the novel applications of Fn in tumor treatment. Therefore, this review can provide prospective insight into Fn immunotherapeutic applications in tumor treatment.

The Roles of TNF Signaling Pathways in Metabolism of Bone Tumors

The metabolism of bone tumors is extraordinarily complex and involves many signaling pathways and processes, including the tumor necrosis factor (TNF) signaling pathway, which consists of TNF factors and the TNF receptors that belong to the TNF receptor superfamily (TNFRSF). It is appreciated that signaling events and pathways involving TNFRSF components are essential in coordinating the functions of multiple cell types that act as a host defense network against pathogens and malignant cells, the implications of TNFRSF-related signaling pathways on bone tumor metabolism remain to be summarized, which is one of the significant obstacles to the application of TNF-related treatment modalities in the domain of bone oncology. This review will discuss and summarize the anti-tumor properties of important TNFRSF components concerning osteosarcoma, chondrosarcoma, and Ewing sarcoma.

TYROBP, TLR4 and ITGAM regulated macrophages polarization and immune checkpoints expression in osteosarcoma

We established a relationship among the immune-related genes, tumor-infiltrating immune cells (TIICs), and immune checkpoints in patients with osteosarcoma. The gene expression data for osteosarcoma were downloaded from UCSC Xena and GEO database. Immune-related differentially expressed genes (DEGs) were detected to calculate the risk score. “Estimate” was used for immune infiltrating estimation and “xCell” was used to obtain 64 immune cell subtypes. Furthermore, the relationship among the risk scores, immune cell subtypes, and immune checkpoints was evaluated. The three immune-related genes (TYROBP, TLR4, and ITGAM) were selected to establish a risk scoring system based on their integrated prognostic relevance. The GSEA results for the Hallmark and KEGG pathways revealed that the low-risk score group exhibited the most gene sets that were related to immune-related pathways. The risk score significantly correlated with the xCell score of macrophages, M1 macrophages, and M2 macrophages, which significantly affected the prognosis of osteosarcoma. Thus, patients with low-risk scores showed better results with the immune checkpoints inhibitor therapy. A three immune-related, gene-based risk model can regulate macrophage activation and predict the treatment outcomes the survival rate in osteosarcoma.

Exploring the Role of Osteosarcoma-Derived Extracellular Vesicles in Pre-Metastatic Niche Formation and Metastasis in the 143-B Xenograft Mouse Osteosarcoma Model

Simple Summary

Osteosarcoma is an aggressive bone cancer that frequently metastasizes to the lungs and is the second leading cause of cancer-associated death in children and adolescents. Therefore, deciphering the biological mechanisms that mediate osteosarcoma metastasis is urgently needed in order to develop effective treatment. The aim of our study was to shed light on the primary tumor-induced changes in the lungs prior to osteosarcoma cell arrival using a xenograft osteosarcoma mouse model. Furthermore, we investigated the functional role of osteosarcoma-derived extracellular vesicles in pre-metastatic niche formation and metastasis. We showed that the primary tumor initiates an influx of CD11b⁺ myeloid cells in the pre-metastatic lungs. Furthermore, we demonstrated that osteosarcoma-derived extracellular vesicles alone can recapitulate myeloid cell infiltration in the lungs of naïve mice, but are insufficient to promote osteosarcoma metastasis. Our findings provide valuable insight into the field of osteosarcoma-derived extracellular vesicles and their role in pre-metastatic niche formation in the 143-B osteosarcoma model.

Abstract

The pre-metastatic niche (PMN) is a tumor-driven microenvironment in distant organs that can foster and support the survival and growth of disseminated tumor cells. This facilitates the establishment of secondary lesions that eventually form overt metastasis, the main cause of cancer-related death. In recent years, tumor-derived extracellular-vesicles (EVs) have emerged as potentially key drivers of the PMN. The role of the PMN in osteosarcoma metastasis is poorly understood and the potential contribution of osteosarcoma cell-derived EVs to PMN formation has not been investigated so far. Here, we characterize pulmonary PMN development using the spontaneously metastasizing 143-B xenograft osteosarcoma mouse model. We demonstrate the accumulation of CD11b⁺ myeloid cells in the pre-metastatic lungs of tumor-bearing mice. We also establish that highly metastatic 143-B and poorly metastatic SAOS-2 osteosarcoma cell-derived EV education in naïve mice can recapitulate the recruitment of myeloid cells to the lungs. Surprisingly, despite EV-induced myeloid cell infiltration in the pre-metastatic lungs, 143-B and SAOS-2 EVs do not contribute towards the 143-B metastatic burden in the context of both spontaneous as well as experimental metastasis in severe-combined immunodeficient (SCID) mice. Taken together, OS-derived EVs alone may not be able to form a functional PMN, and may perhaps require a combination of tumor-secreted factors along with EVs to do so. Additionally, our study gives a valuable insight into the PMN complexity by providing the transcriptomic signature of the premetastatic lungs in an osteosarcoma xenograft model for the first time. In conclusion, identification of regulators of cellular and molecular changes in the pre-metastatic lungs might lead to the development of a combination therapies in the future that interrupt PMN formation and combat osteosarcoma metastasis.

Alternative splicing of leptin receptor overlapping transcript in osteosarcoma

IMPACT STATEMENT

Osteosarcoma (OS, also known as osteogenic sarcoma) is the most common primary malignancy of bone in children and adolescents. The molecular mechanisms of OS are extremely complicated and its molecular mediators remain to be elucidated. We sequenced total RNA from 18 OS bone samples (paired normal-tumor biopsies). We found statistically significant (FDR <0.05) 26 differentially expressed transcript variants of LEPROT gene with different expressions in normal and tumor samples. These findings contribute to the understanding of molecular mechanisms of OS development and provide encouragement to pursue further research.

Osteosarcoma-Derived Extracellular Vesicles Induce Lung Fibroblast Reprogramming

Tumor-secreted extracellular vesicles (EVs) have been identified as mediators of cancer–host intercellular communication and shown to support pre-metastatic niche formation by modulating stromal cells at future metastatic sites. While osteosarcoma, the most common primary malignant bone tumor in children and adolescents, has a high propensity for pulmonary metastases, the interaction of osteosarcoma cells with resident lung cells remains poorly understood. Here, we deliver foundational in vitro evidence that osteosarcoma cell-derived EVs drive myofibroblast/cancer-associated fibroblast differentiation. Human lung fibroblasts displayed increased invasive competence, in addition to increased α-smooth muscle actin expression and fibronectin production upon EV treatment. Furthermore, we demonstrate, through the use of transforming growth factor beta receptor 1 (TGFBR1) inhibitors and CRISPR-Cas9-mediated knockouts, that TGFβ1 present in osteosarcoma cell-derived EVs is responsible for lung fibroblast differentiation. Overall, our study highlights osteosarcoma-derived EVs as novel regulators of lung fibroblast activation and provides mechanistic insight into how osteosarcoma cells can modulate distant cells to potentially support metastatic progression.

Clinicopathological and prognostic values of fibronectin and integrin αvβ3 expression in primary osteosarcoma

Background

Osteosarcoma is a malignant bone tumor with a high potential for lung metastasis, and the prognosis for patients with metastatic disease is very poor. The interaction between fibronectin (FN) and integrin αvβ3 in soft-tissue sarcoma promotes cell migration, invasion, and lung metastasis. This study aimed to investigate the prognostic significance of FN and αvβ3 in osteosarcoma.

Methods

Immunohistochemistry and western blotting were used to detect the expression of FN and αvβ3 in 60 osteosarcoma specimens and in 30 osteochondroma specimens. Furthermore, correlations of FN and αvβ3 with the clinicopathological features of osteosarcoma patients were analyzed using the χ² test and Fisher’s exact test. Disease-free survival and overall survival of osteosarcoma patients were assessed using the Kaplan-Meier method and Cox proportional hazards model. The predictive accuracy of the model was determined by the Harrell concordance index.

Results

FN (P < 0.05) and αvβ3 (P < 0.05) were overexpressed in osteosarcoma specimens compared with osteochondroma specimens. High FN expression was associated with a poor response to chemotherapy (P = 0.001) and poor disease-free (P < 0.001) and overall (P < 0.001) survival. High expression of αvβ3 was linked to an advanced surgical stage (P = 0.028), a poor response to chemotherapy (P = 0.002), and both poor disease-free survival (P < 0.001) and overall survival (P < 0.001). FN and αvβ3 co-expression were associated with sex (P = 0.011), an advanced surgical stage (P = 0.013), and a poor response to chemotherapy (P = 0.002). Moreover, high expression of both proteins can serve as an independent prognostic value for reduced survival time in osteosarcoma patients.

Conclusions

The results of this study suggest that FN and αvβ3 expression is associated with an unfavorable clinical outcome of osteosarcoma, and these molecules may constitute attractive therapeutic targets for osteosarcoma treatment. To improve the survival of osteosarcoma patients, further investigations are required to clarify their prognostic values in a larger population.

Electronic supplementary material

The online version of this article (10.1186/s12957-019-1566-z) contains supplementary material, which is available to authorized users.

Comprehensive Treatment and Rehabilitation of Patients With Osteosarcoma of the Mandible

OBJECTIVE

The article studies state-of-the art physical therapeutic techniques as a high degree of relevance to minimize invalidation and improve quality of life for patients with dental osteosarcoma.

MATERIALS AND METHODS

A randomized controlled clinical trial was conducted in 21 patients with osteogenic sarcoma of mandible (C41.1). There were 10 patients in the experimental group and 11 patients in the control group.

RESULTS

A comprehensive treatment and rehabilitation program for patients with osteosarcoma of mandible was developed. The first part of the program comprised 3 basic phases: preop chemotherapy, surgery, and postop rehabilitation. The surgical treatment further included resection of an affected part of the mandible and primary repair of the defect with jaw fragments and an autoimplant joined together with the help of positioning devices. The postop rehabilitation included postop chemotherapy and mesodiencephalic modulation (MDM). The second part of the program comprised preop examination, modeling, using stereolytic 3-dimensional models of the mandible, corrective surgeries, including implantation into the autoimplant-a fragment of patient's fibula, and building of a removable titanium alloy-based denture. MDM sessions were administered after each invasive intervention.

CONCLUSIONS

Higher psychological and physical well-being was observed in the experimental group as compared with the control group (P < 0.01) in 2 weeks after the first surgery and 2 months after scheduled corrective surgeries, which finished in denture installation.