Serum ErbB2 concentration positively correlated to the glycemic variations in newly diagnosed Type 2 diabetic patients

Factors influencing blood tumor marker concentrations in the absence of neoplasia

BACKGROUND

Tumor markers (TMs) are a heterogeneous group of molecules used in the diagnosis, prognosis and follow-up of cancer patients. During neoplastic differentiation, cells can either directly synthesize or induce the synthesis of TMs, and the release of these molecules into the bloodstream allows their quantification in biological fluids. Although very small concentrations of TMs are usually present in the serum or plasma of healthy subjects, increased concentrations may also be found in the presence of benign diseases or due to technical interference, producing false positive results.

MATERIAL AND METHODS AND RESULTS

Our review analyses the causes of false positives described between January 1970 to February 2023 for the TMs most frequently used in clinical practice: α-fetoprotein (AFP), β2-microglobulin (β2-M), cancer antigen 15-3 (CA 15-3), cancer antigen CA 19-9 (CA 19-9), cancer antigen CA 72-4 (CA 72-4), cancer antigen 125 (CA 125), carcinoembryonic antigen (CEA), chromogranin A (CgA), choriogonadotropin (hCG), cytokeratin 19 fragment (CYFRA 21-1), neuron-specific enolase (NSE), human epididymis protein 4 (HE4), serum HER2 (sHER2), squamous cell carcinoma antigen (SCCA), protein induced by vitamin K absence-II (PIVKA-II), Pro-gastrin-releasing peptide (Pro-GRP), prostate-specific antigen (PSA), Protein S-100 (S-100) and thyroglobulin (Tg). A total of 247 references were included.

CONCLUSIONS

A better understanding of pathophysiological processes and other conditions that affect the concentration of TMs might improve the interpretation of results and their clinical application.

Bioinformatics and Next-Generation Data Analysis for Identification of Genes and Molecular Pathways Involved in Subjects with Diabetes and Obesity

Background and Objectives: A subject with diabetes and obesity is a class of the metabolic disorder. The current investigation aimed to elucidate the potential biomarker and prognostic targets in subjects with diabetes and obesity. Materials and Methods: The next-generation sequencing (NGS) data of GSE132831 was downloaded from Gene Expression Omnibus (GEO) database. Functional enrichment analysis of DEGs was conducted with ToppGene. The protein-protein interactions network, module analysis, target gene-miRNA regulatory network and target gene-TF regulatory network were constructed and analyzed. Furthermore, hub genes were validated by receiver operating characteristic (ROC) analysis. A total of 872 DEGs, including 439 up-regulated genes and 433 down-regulated genes were observed. Results: Second, functional enrichment analysis showed that these DEGs are mainly involved in the axon guidance, neutrophil degranulation, plasma membrane bounded cell projection organization and cell activation. The top ten hub genes (MYH9, FLNA, DCTN1, CLTC, ERBB2, TCF4, VIM, LRRK2, IFI16 and CAV1) could be utilized as potential diagnostic indicators for subjects with diabetes and obesity. The hub genes were validated in subjects with diabetes and obesity. Conclusion: This investigation found effective and reliable molecular biomarkers for diagnosis and prognosis by integrated bioinformatics analysis, suggesting new and key therapeutic targets for subjects with diabetes and obesity.

Decreased expression of ErbB2 on left ventricular epicardial cells in patients with diabetes mellitus

We investigated the cell surface expression of ErbB receptors on left ventricular (LV) epicardial endothelial cells and CD105⁺ cells obtained from cardiac biopsies of patients undergoing coronary artery bypass grafting surgery (CABG). Endothelial cells and CD105⁺ non-endothelial cells were freshly isolated from LV epicardial biopsies obtained from 15 subjects with diabetes mellitus (DM) and 8 controls. The expression of ErbB receptors was examined using flow cytometry. We found that diabetes mellitus (DM) and high levels of hemoglobin A1C are associated with reduced expression of ErbB2. To determine if the expression of ErbB2 receptors is regulated by glucose levels, we examined the effect of high Glucose in human microvascular endothelial cells (HMEC-1) and CD105⁺ non-endothelial cells, using a novel flow cytometric approach to simultaneously determine the total level, cell surface expression, and phosphorylation of ErbB2. Incubation of cells in the presence of 25 mM d-glucose resulted in decreased cell surface but not total levels of ErbB2. The level of ErbB2 at the cell surface is controlled by disintegrin and metalloproteinase domain-containing protein 10 (ADAM10) that is expressed on LV epicardial cells. Inhibition of ADAM10 prevented the high glucose-dependent decrease in the cell surface expression of ErbB2. We suggest that high Glucose depresses ErbB receptor signaling in endothelial cells and cardiac progenitor cells via the promotion of ADAM10-dependent cleavage of ErbB2 at the cell surface, thus contributing to vascular dysfunction and adverse remodeling seen in diabetic patients.