Prognostic factor identification by screening changes in differentially expressed genes in oral squamous cell carcinoma

Alterations of bone proteins in medication-related osteonecrosis of the jaw

Changes in the protein expression pattern of osteoblastic lineage cells from the alveolar bone (OLAB) during medication-related osteonecrosis of the jaw (MRONJ) have rarely been investigated. This lack of information is partly because of the limited availability of healthy samples and the lack of human alveolar bone cell lines for research. The aim of the present study was to investigate the bone proteins collagen 1, runt-related transcription factor 2 (RUNX2), and tumor necrosis factor ligand superfamily member 11 (RANKL). Furthermore, we established a cell lineage of OLAB suitable for the analyses of protein expression. We used immunohistochemistry to determine protein expression patterns in vivo. OLAB were treated during culture with zoledronate or denosumab and analyzed by immunocytochemistry and western blotting. Collagen 1 was decreased in vivo in patients with MRONJ and in vitro by denosumab. Zoledronate reduced the level of RUNX2 in vitro. However, RANKL was not significantly affected by zoledronate or denosumab. The results of the present study will help us elucidate the cellular mechanisms of MRONJ. Although culture of OLAB with zoledronate and denosumab significantly altered the protein expression patterns, future research is needed to examine the effects of bone scaffolds, biofilms, and additional cell types mimicking in vivo conditions.

Interaction Between Sclerostin and Mast Cells in Fibro-Osseous Lesions of the Jaws

OBJECTIVE

To assess the sclerostin, β-catenin, and tryptase expression in fibro-osseous lesions (FOL) of the jaws.

SUBJECTS AND METHODS

Immunohistochemistry analysis was performed for these proteins on FOL and non-lesional bone. The sclerostin-positive cells were scored from 0 (no expression) to 3 (high expression).

RESULTS

We analyzed 46 FOL biopsies and selected 38 patients. Categorization showed 15 fibrous dysplasia (FD), eight juvenile trabecular ossifying fibroma (JTOF), two psammomatoid ossifying fibroma (PsOF), and 13 FOL. We found more sclerostin-positive cells in fibrous tissue than in bone, showing a phenotype like mast cells with strong dot-cytoplasmic positivity. The analysis of sclerostin-positive cell lesions (scored as 2 and 3) showed also tryptase positivity in 80.9% of 21 biopsies. β-catenin was diffusely expressed on the fibrous component, mostly with cytosol staining. Non-lesional bone showed sclerostin expression in medullary spaces and a few osteocytes.

CONCLUSIONS

Sclerostin-positive cells are mostly found in the fibrous tissue of FOL, and the tryptase mast cell marker was present in most of the lesions that were positive for sclerostin.

Sclerostin Alters Tumor Cell Characteristics of Oral Squamous Cell Carcinoma and May Be a Key Player in Local Bone Invasion

Localized jawbone invasion is a milestone in the progression of oral squamous cell carcinoma (OSCC). The factors that promote this process are not well understood. Sclerostin is known to be involved in bone metabolism and there are preliminary reports of its involvement in bone tumors and bone metastasis. To identify a possible involvement of sclerostin in the bone invasion process of OSCC, sclerostin expression was analyzed in vitro in two different human OSCC tumor cell lines by quantitative real-time polymerase chain reaction (qRT-PCR), and the effect of recombinant human (rh)-sclerostin treatment on tumor cell capabilities was evaluated using proliferation, migration, and invasion assays. Undifferentiated human mesenchymal stem cells (hMSCs) were osteogenically differentiated and co-cultured with OSCC tumor cells to demonstrate potential interactions and migration characteristics. Sclerostin expression was evaluated in clinical cases by immunohistochemistry at the OSCC-jawbone interface in a cohort of 15 patients. Sclerostin expression was detected in both OSCC tumor cell lines in vitro and was also detected at the OSCC-jawbone interface in clinical cases. Tumor cell proliferation rate, migration and invasion ability were increased by rh-sclerostin treatment. The migration rate of tumor cells co-cultured with osteogenically differentiated hMSCs was increased. The results presented are the first data suggesting a possible involvement of sclerostin in the bone invasion process of OSCC, which deserves further investigation and may be a potential approach for drug-based tumor therapy.

Advances in regulation and function of stearoyl-CoA desaturase 1 in cancer, from bench to bed

Stearoyl-CoA desaturase 1 (SCD1) converts saturated fatty acids to monounsaturated fatty acids. The expression of SCD1 is increased in many cancers, and the altered expression contributes to the proliferation, invasion, sternness and chemoresistance of cancer cells. Recently, more evidence has been reported to further support the important role of SCD1 in cancer, and the regulation mechanism of SCD1 has also been focused. Multiple factors are involved in the regulation of SCD1, including metabolism, diet, tumor microenvironment, transcription factors, non-coding RNAs, and epigenetics modification. Moreover, SCD1 is found to be involved in regulating ferroptosis resistance. Based on these findings, SCD1 has been considered as a potential target for cancer treatment. However, the resistance of SCD1 inhibition may occur in certain tumors due to tumor heterogeneity and metabolic plasticity. This review summarizes recent advances in the regulation and function of SCD1 in tumors and discusses the potential clinical application of targeting SCD1 for cancer treatment.

DKK3 expression is correlated with poorer prognosis in head and neck squamous cell carcinoma: A bioinformatics study based on the TCGA database

OBJECTIVE

We previously reported that dickkopf WNT signaling pathway inhibitor 3 (DKK3) expression is correlated with poorer prognosis in head and neck squamous cell carcinoma (HNSCC). Here we investigated DKK3 expression by using The Cancer Genome Atlas (TCGA) public database and bioinformatic analyses.

METHODS

We used the RNA sequence data and divided the tumor samples into "DKK3-high" and "DKK3-low" groups according to median DKK3 expression. The correlations between DKK3 expression and the clinical data were investigated. Differentially expressed genes (DEGs) were detected using DESEq2 and analyzed by ShinyGO 0.77. A gene set enrichment analysis (GSEA) was also performed using GSEA software. The DEGs were also analyzed with TargetMine to establish the protein-protein interaction (PPI) network.

RESULTS

DKK3 expression was significantly increased in cancer samples, and a high DKK3 expression was significantly associated with shorter overall survival. We identified 854 DEGs, including 284 up-regulated and 570 down-regulated. Functional enrichment analyses revealed several Gene Ontology (GO) terms and Kyoto Encyclopedia of Genes and Genomes (KEGG) pathways associated with extracellular matrix remodeling. The PPI network identified COL8A1, AGTR1, FN1, P4HA3, PDGFRB, and CEP126 as the key genes.

CONCLUSIONS

These results suggested the cancer-promoting ability of DKK3, the expression of which is a promising prognostic marker and therapeutic target for HNSCC.

Cortical microarchitecture and remodeling-associated gene expression related to oral cancer prognosis

The objective of this study was to assess the remodeling-associated gene expression in the mandible of patients diagnosed with oral squamous cell carcinoma (OSCC), investigating the cortical microarchitecture, and their influence on disease-free survival (DFS) and overall survival (OS) rates. A total of twenty-four patients who underwent mandibulectomy for OSCC treatment had two bone fragments harvested from the mandible for gene expression (RANK, RANKL, OPG, and SOST), and microarchitecture analysis, including bone volume, surface, mineral density, degree of anisotropy, and fractal dimension. The prognosis of the patients was assessed. The results revealed that RANK, RANKL, and SOST were predominantly downregulated, while OPG was completely downregulated. Tumors located adjacent to the posterior region of the mandible (p = 0.02), with a bone mineral density below 1.03 g/cm3 HA (p = 0.001), and a bone volume less than 86.47% (p = 0.03) were associated with poor outcomes. In conclusion, bone-remodeling-associated genes exhibited downregulation in the cortex of the mandible in OSCC patients. Additionally, the tumor's location within the mandible, bone volume, and cortical bone mineral density were identified as factors impacting DFS.

Construction of miRNA-mRNA regulatory network and analysis of hub genes in oral squamous cell carcinoma

BACKGROUND

Oral squamous cell carcinoma (OSCC) severely affects the quality of life and the 5-year survival rate is low. Exploring the potential miRNA-mRNA regulatory network and analyzing hub genes and clinical data can provide a theoretical basis for further elucidating the pathogenesis of OSCC.

METHODS

The miRNA expression datasets of GSE113956 and GSE124566 and mRNA expression datasets of GSE31056, GSE37991 and GSE13601 were obtained from the Gene Expression Omnibus databases. The differentially expressed miRNAs (DEMs) and mRNAs (DEGs) were screened using GEO2R. Gene ontology (GO) and Kyoto Encyclopedia of Genes and Genomes (KEGG) enrichment analyses were performed by DAVID database. The PPI network was established through STRING database and the hub genes were preliminarily screened out by Cytoscape software. After identifying the hub genes in the TCGA database, we predicted the potential DEM transcription factors, constructed a miRNA-mRNA regulatory network, and analyzed the relationship between the hub genes and clinical data.

RESULTS

A total of 28 DEMs and 764 DEGs were screened out, which were composed of 285 up-regulated genes and 479 down-regulated genes. Enrichment analysis showed that up-regulation of DEGs were mainly enriched in extracellular matrix organization and cancer-related pathway, while down-regulation of DEGs were mainly enriched in muscular system process and adrenaline signal transduction. After preliminary screening by PPI network and identification in TCGA, the up-regulated FN1, COL1A1, COL1A2, AURKA, CCNB1, CCNA2, SPP1, CDC6, and down-regulated ACTN2, TTN, IGF1, CAV3, MYL2, DMD, LDB3, CSRP3, ACTA1, PPARG were identified as hub genes. The miRNA-mRNA regulation network showed that hsa-miR-513b was the DEM with the most regulation, and COL1A1 was the DEG with the most regulation. In addition, CDC6, AURKA, CCNB1 and CCNA2 were related to overall survival and tumor differentiation.

CONCLUSIONS

The regulatory relationship of hsa-miR-513b/ CDC6, CCNB1, CCNA2 and the regulatory relationship of hsa-miR-342-5p /AURKA were not only verified in the miRNA-mRNA regulatory network but also related to overall survival and tumor differentiation. These results indicated that they participated in the cellular regulatory process, and provided a molecular mechanism model for the study of pathogenesis.