The Study for Diagnostic Value of β-Catenin Immunohistochemistry Marker in Distinction of Aggressive and Non-Aggressive Basal Cell Carcinoma

Mechanistic insights into epithelial-mesenchymal transition mediated cisplatin resistance in ovarian cancer

Epithelial-mesenchymal transition (EMT) is designated as one of the prime causes of chemoresistance in many cancers. In our previous study we established that cisplatin resistance in ovarian cancer (OC) is associated with EMT using sensitive OV90 cells and its resistant counterparts OV90CisR1 and OV90CisR2. In this study, we revealed through RNAseq analysis that ITGA1 can play essential part in EMT mediated cisplatin resistance in OC. We found large number of EMT related terms predominant in the top gene ontologies (GO). We also found Extracellular matrix (ECM) and actin cytoskeleton genes highly altered in the resistant cells. This was further confirmed by the protein-protein interaction (PPI) analysis where we identified that the core ECM components e.g., collagen, fibronectin, metalloproteases and integrins possessed most interactions. The pathway analysis revealed the Wnt signaling as the leading pathway. Since integrins have significant interaction with Wnt signaling, we focused our study on integrins among which, ITGA1, ITGA6, ITGA11 and ITGAV were primarily altered. We validated our results by western blotting and found that ITGA1 was highly expressed in resistant cells. Additionally, the high ABCA5 (efflux transporter) expression in resistant cells also supports the EMT proposition. The western blotting also revealed high β-catenin expression in resistant cells confirming the high Wnt signaling activity. Further, we induced xenograft tumors in nude mice. The histopathological analysis confirmed the aggressive nature of resistant tumors and showed the presence of necrotic core which could be implicated to EMT. Finally, the immunohistochemical staining confirmed the high protein expression in resistant tumor.

GATA3 Positively Correlates with BCL2 Expression in Indolent and Aggressive Histological Types of Cutaneous Basal Cell Carcinoma

OBJECTIVE

Some histological basal cell carcinoma (BCC) types demonstrate more aggressive behavior than others. They are known as high-risk BCC and are more challenging in therapy, contrary to indolent (low-risk) BCC types. Identifying novel protein markers to predict aggressiveness and potential therapeutic targets in challenging cases is recommended. GATA3 is a transcription factor critical for epithelial and lymphocytic differentiation. This study investigated the immunohistochemical expression of GATA3 in indolent and aggressive BCC and its association with BCL2 expression.

MATERIAL AND METHODS

Retrospectively collected indolent and aggressive BCC groups (24 cases each) were immunohistochemically stained with anti-GATA3 and BCL2 antibodies. The mean expression score (by area percentage) and TIL counts were determined and compared using ImageJ analysis. Stromal tumor-infiltrating lymphocytes (TIL) were counted per high-power field (HPF) on hematoxylin and eosin (H&E) staining.

RESULTS

GATA3 and BCL2 expressions were significantly higher in the indolent group than in the aggressive group. GATA3 expression significantly correlated with BCL2 score and TIL counts. Higher GATA3 expression was significantly associated with a more indolent BCC histological type, higher BCL2 expression, and higher TIL count.

CONCLUSION

GATA3 is a possible target for immunomodulation experiments to improve BCC immunotherapy outcomes.

CircCPSF6 promotes hepatocellular carcinoma cancer progression by regulating MAP4K4 through sponging miR-145-5p

BACKGROUND

Aberrant expression of circRNAs is involved in the progression of hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC). This study aimed at screening the pro-tumorigenic circular RNAs (circRNAs) in HCC and the mechanisms of circCPSF6 expression influencing HCC characteristics.

METHOD

circCPSF6 was identified in HCC tissues using high-throughput sequencing data, and its expression was verified in both HCC tissues and cell lines using quantitative real-time PCR (qRT-PCR). CCK-8 and Transwell assays were used to evaluate the effects of circCPSF6 on HCC proliferation and migration. A xenograft mouse model was used to investigate the effects of circCPSF6 on HCC progression in vivo, and the significance of circCPSF6 in HCC was verified both in vivo and in vitro. circCPSF6-associated miRNAs and mRNAs were identified using bioinformatic analyses. Luciferase reporter, RNA pull-down, Fluorescence in situ hybridization, and RNA immunoprecipitation assays were performed to elucidate the circCPSF6 regulatory axis in HCC.

RESULT

CircCPSF6 expression was increased in HCC cell lines and tissues, and the expression of its parental mRNA was positively correlated with tumor severity and negatively correlated with survival. Mechanistic analyses of HCC cell lines showed that tumorigenesis was inhibited by circCPSF6 knockdown and promoted by its overexpression. Functional analyses revealed that circCPSF6 mediated HCC development by sponging miR-145-5p as a competing endogenous RNA. Furthermore, this sponging upregulated the miR-145-5p target gene MAP4K4, a classical pro-tumorigenic gene.

CONCLUSION

Our findings reveal a regulatory network that includes the circCPSF6-miR-145-5p-MAP4K4 axis. Elements of this axis are potential HCC biomarkers, as well as targets for HCC treatment.

Expression of β-Catenin, E-Cadherin, and α-Smooth Muscle Actin in Basal Cell Carcinoma Before Photodynamic Therapy in Non-recurrent and Recurrent Tumors: Exploring the Ability of Predicting Photodynamic Therapy Outcome

Photodynamic therapy (PDT) is an effective and cosmetically beneficial treatment of low-risk basal cell carcinomas (BCCs). To optimize PDT response, it is important to correctly select tumors. We sought to find markers that could identify such tumors beyond contributions from clinical and histological examination. Studies have shown that β-catenin, E-cadherin, and α-smooth muscle actin (SMA) expression can indicate BCC aggressiveness/BCC invasiveness. We wanted to use these markers in an explorative study to investigate whether they were differently expressed among non-recurring compared with recurring BCCs, to evaluate their ability of predicting PDT outcome. Fifty-two BCCs were stained with antibodies against β-catenin, E-cadherin, and α-SMA, and evaluated using immunoreactive score (IRS), subcellular localization, and stromal protein expression. Results showed that IRS of E-cadherin was significantly different among recurring compared with non-recurring BCCs and with area under a receiver operating characteristic curve of 0.71 (95% confidence interval: 0.56-0.86, p=0.025). Stromal β-catenin expression significantly increased among recurring BCCs. Some recurring BCCs had intense expression in the deep invading tumor edge. In conclusion, E-cadherin, and stromal and deep edge β-catenin expression were most prominent in BCCs that recurred post-PDT, suggesting they could potentially predict PDT outcome. Further studies are needed to investigate whether these results are of clinical value.

Role of alternative splicing events in endometrial cancer prognosis

OBJECTIVES

Alternative splicing (AS), as a potent and pervasive mechanism of transcriptional regulation, can expand the genome's coding capacity. Growing evidence suggests that the AS events may be associated with various types of cancer. This study aims to explore the prognostic value of AS in endometrial cancer (EC).

METHODS

Differently expressed AS (DEAS) events were screened by pairing the percent spliced in (PSI) value of tumor and paracancerous tissues in The Cancer Genome Atlas (TCGA) database, and gene ontology (GO) and Kyoto Encyclopedia of Genes and Genomes (KEGG) were performed on their parental gene analysis of organisms. Subsequently, univariate Cox analysis was used to identify the prognostic AS events and a stepwise multi-factor Cox regression analysis was performed to further construct prognostic models. Furthermore, the diagnostic value of the prognostic model was evaluated by receiver operating characteristic (ROC) curve and Kaplan-Meier analysis. Finally, the regulatory network of AS events and splicing factory in the model was also constructed.

RESULTS

A total of 28 281 AS events were detected in EC. Of them, 42 DEAS were identified, and their parental genes were involved in tumor-related processes such as meiotic nuclear division, alpha-amino acid biosynthetic process, nuclear division, and so on. Univariate Cox analysis identified 2 289 prognostic-related AS events and constructed Cox prognostic models based on 7 different types and all types of AS events, in which the area under the curve of ROC of all types was as high as 0.882 and was better than that of 7 different splicing types. Finally, 12 splicing factors and AS events showed an obvious regulatory relationship.

CONCLUSIONS

We use the whole genome analysis of AS events to establish a scientific prognostic prediction model for EC patients, which provides a reliable theoretical basis for the evaluation of EC clinical prognosis.

Basal Cell Carcinoma and its Impact on Different Anatomical Regions

Basal cell carcinoma (BCC) is the most common skin cancer. We conducted a retrospective study over a period of two years (2018-2019), on 214 patients from the Plastic Surgery clinic in order to identify the clinical and histopathological aspects of the disease: the case distribution according to sex, living environment, age, histopathological subtype, location. Results. The F/M ratio was of 1.03 in favour of women. The incidence was higher for patients from rural areas (55.14%). The most affected group age was between 70-80 years old, with 76 patients (35.51%). The most frequent histological type was nodular basal cell carcinoma (65.42%), followed by micronodular subtype (17.29%). We observed the association of basal cell carcinoma with a number of other conditions such as: high blood pressure (92 cases), diabetes (19 cases), chronic kidney disease (2 cases), liver disease (5 cases), epilepsy (2 cases). Correlating the histopathological subtype and the invasion of the edges of the surgical excision specimen, we noticed that edge invasion was present: in the case of nodular basal cell carcinoma (15.71%), micronodular subtype (43.24%), superficial subtype (50%), morpheaform subtype (40%). Dividing the cases by location, we highlighted the risk areas: nasal region (29.44%), cheek (10.75%), orbital region (13.55%), scalp (10.75%), auricular region (7.48%), forehead (8.41%), etc. Thus, 89.72% of cases were located on photo-exposed areas (head and neck). Patients from rural areas registered a higher number of cases both in photo-exposed and non-exposed areas.

Histological, Histochemical and Immunohistochemical Evaluation of the Role of Bone Marrow-Derived Mesenchymal Stem Cells on the Structure of Periodontal Tissues in Carbimazole-Treated Albino Rats

OBJECTIVE

To elucidate the role of bone marrow-mesenchymal stem cells (BM-MSCs) on the structure of periodontal tissues in carbimazole (antithyroid drug) treated rats at different durations.

DESIGN

28 albino rats were divided into: Group I: received distilled water. Group II: received therapeutic dose of carbimazole. Group III: received carbimazole then single injection of BM-MSCs by the end of 3^rd week. Group IV: received carbimazole and single injection of BM-MSCs at the beginning of the experiment. Specimens were examined by light microscope. New collagen and β-catenin-immunoreactivity area% were assessed histomorphometrically, and statistically using ANOVA test.

RESULTS

Histological examination revealed normal periodontal tissues structure in Groups I & IV. Group II showed disorganized periodontal ligament fibers and different stainability of cementum and alveolar bone. Group III illustrated dense periodontal ligament fibers, normal stainability of cementum and most of alveolar bone. Masson's trichrome results of Groups I & IV illustrated large areas of new collagen in periodontal ligament, old collagen in cementum and intermingled old and new collagen in alveolar bone. Group II showed old collagen. Group III revealed only new collagen. β-catenin-immunoreactivity was strong in Groups I & IV, negative in Group II and moderate in Group III. Statistically, Group III showed highest mean of new collagen area% followed by Groups I, IV and II respectively. Highest mean of β-catenin-immunoreactivity area% was for Group I followed by Groups IV, III and II respectively.

CONCLUSIONS

Carbimazole has damaging effects and BM-MSCs are capable to mend these destructive outcomes in time dependent manner.