Downregulation of CacyBP by CRISPR/dCas9-KRAB Prevents Bladder Cancer Progression

Urine proteomics-based analysis identifies CHI3L1 as an immune marker and potential therapeutic target for bladder cancer

BACKGROUND

Bladder cancer (BCa) is a prevalent malignancy characterized by a poor prognosis. Numerous studies have increasingly recognized the role of M2 macrophages in cancer progression. Consequently, our objective is to investigate hub genes in BCa associated with M2 macrophages, assessing their prognostic significance and exploring potential regulatory mechanisms.

METHODS

We performed a comprehensive bioinformatics analysis using data from urine proteomics, the Gene Expression Omnibus (GEO) database, and The Cancer Genome Atlas (TCGA) database, in conjunction with machine learning methods such as LASSO and SVM to identify intersections of differentially expressed genes (DEGs). Subsequently, the role of hub genes in BCa was validated in vitro and in vivo using CCK-8 assay, wound healing assay, immunofluorescence assay, transwell assay, immunohistochemistry, and xenograft tumor model. Finally, we investigated the correlation between hub genes and M2 macrophage immune infiltration using the TIMER database.

RESULTS

Chitinase 3 like 1 (CHI3L1) emerged as a pivotal gene linked to M2 macrophages in BCa. Notably, CHI3L1 was associated with a poor prognosis for BCa, with elevated expression correlating to more advanced histologic and pathologic stages in BCa patients. The findings suggest that inhibiting CHI3L1 can effectively impede the proliferation, migration, and invasion of BCa cells and synergistically increase the inhibitory effect of gemcitabine (GEM) on cell activity. Meanwhile, the downregulation of CHI3L1 was accompanied by inhibition of the PI3K-AKT signaling pathway. Additionally, CHI3L1 demonstrated a significant association with M2 macrophage infiltration in the BCa tumor microenvironment (TME).

CONCLUSIONS

The present study suggests that CHI3L1 may promote bladder cancer progression through the PI3K-Akt signaling pathway and is associated with M2 macrophage infiltration.

Integrative bioinformatics and experimental analyses identify U2SURP as a novel lactylation-related prognostic signature in esophageal carcinoma

The lactylation modification has been implicated in several cancer types; however, the role of lactylation modification-related genes in esophageal carcinoma (EC) remains underexplored. Utilizing a set of 16 lactylation modification-related genes, cohorts of patients with EC were stratified into two distinct clusters, characterized by significant disparities in both survival outcomes and the immune microenvironment. An extensive bioinformatics analysis unveiled 382 differentially expressed genes (DEGs) between these two clusters. A subsequent univariate Cox regression analysis identified 24 DEGs specifically associated with lactylation, forming the basis of a constructed lactylation-related score. The resultant lactylation-related score exhibited notable predictive efficacy for survival and other clinicopathological traits, which was validated through calibration curves, Kaplan-Meier survival curves and the Wilcoxon test. Moreover, the lactylation-related score displayed a close correlation with immune cell infiltration in EC. Notable differential expressions of immune checkpoints and regulators were observed between groups stratified by low and high lactylation scores, with the latter exhibiting a more favorable response to anti-PD-1/PD-L1 therapy. Furthermore, the expression profile of U2 snRNP associated SURP domain containing (U2SURP), a constituent of the lactylation-related score, underwent both ex vivo and in vitro validation. The expression of U2SURP was significantly associated with lactylation levels, histological grade and tumor stage. Notably, knockdown of U2SURP expression inhibited the lactylation levels, immune genes IL-1A and IL-1B, proliferation, migration and invasion of EC cells. In conclusion, the lactylation-related score developed in the present study showed promise in predicting the prognosis and immunotherapeutic responses among patients with EC. Moreover, the identification of U2SUPR as a novel oncogene in EC suggests its potential as a prospective therapeutic target for EC treatment.

CAB39 modulates epithelial-mesenchymal transition through NF-κB signaling activation, enhancing invasion, and metastasis in bladder cancer

Bladder cancer (BC), the predominant urological malignancy in men, exhibits complex molecular underpinnings contributing to its progression. This investigation aims to elucidate the expression dynamics of calcium-binding protein 39 (CAB39) in both healthy and cancerous tissues and to explore its functional role in the epithelial-mesenchymal transition (EMT) within human bladder cancer contexts. Utilizing immunohistochemistry and quantitative reverse transcription analyses, we assessed CAB39 expression across BC specimens and cell lines. Further, we implemented wound healing, cell invasion, and CCK-8 proliferation assays in CAB39-knockdown cell lines, alongside a nude mouse xenograft model, to gauge the impact of diminished CAB39 expression on the invasive, migratory, and proliferative capacities of BC cells. Our gene set enrichment analysis probed into the repertoire of genes augmented by increased CAB39 expression in BC cells, with subsequent validation via western blotting. Our findings reveal a pronounced overexpression of CAB39 in both BC tissues and cellular models, inversely correlated with disease prognosis. Remarkably, the oncogenic trajectory of bladder cancer was mitigated upon the establishment of shRNA-mediated CAB39 knockdown in vitro and in vivo, effectively reversing the cancer's invasive and metastatic behaviors and curbing tumorigenesis in xenograft models. Hence, CAB39 emerges as a critical biomarker for bladder cancer progression, significantly implicated in facilitating EMT via the upregulation of neural cadherin (N-cadherin) and the suppression of epithelial cadherin through NF-κB signaling pathways. CU-T12-9 effectively overturned the downregulation of p65-NF-kB and N-cadherin, key elements involved in EMT and cell motility, induced by CAB39 knockdown. This study underscores CAB39's pivotal role in bladder cancer pathophysiology and its potential as a therapeutic target.

CacyBP promotes the development of lung adenocarcinoma by regulating OTUD5

Lung cancer is the most common and lethal malignancy, with lung adenocarcinoma accounting for approximately 40% of all cases. Despite some progress in understanding the pathogenesis of this disease and developing new therapeutic approaches, the current treatments for lung adenocarcinoma remain ineffective due to factors such as high tumour heterogeneity and drug resistance. Therefore, there is an urgent need to identify novel therapeutic targets. Calcyclin-binding protein (CacyBP) can regulate a variety of physiological processes by binding to different proteins, but its function in lung adenocarcinoma is unknown. Here, we show that CacyBP is highly expressed in lung adenocarcinoma tissues, and high CacyBP expression correlates with poorer patient survival. Moreover, overexpression of CacyBP promoted the proliferation, migration and invasion of lung adenocarcinoma cell lines. Further mechanistic studies revealed that CacyBP interacts with the tumour suppressor ovarian tumour (OTU) deubiquitinase 5 (OTUD5), enhances the ubiquitination and proteasomal degradation of OTUD5 and regulates tumourigenesis via OTUD5. In conclusion, our study reveals a novel mechanism by which CacyBP promotes tumourigenesis by increasing the ubiquitination level and proteasome-dependent degradation of OTUD5, providing a potential target for the treatment of lung adenocarcinoma.

Pan-analysis reveals CACYBP to be a novel prognostic and predictive marker for multiple cancers

OBJECTIVES

Cancer has emerged as a global issue in terms of public health care and treatment. The significance of calcyclin binding protein (CACYBP) in various neoplasms suggests that it may serve as a novel biomarker for numerous types of human tumors.

METHODS

Our research investigated the differences in CACYBP expression between cancer tissues and normal tissues using a total of 18,787 samples from multiple centers. To explore the prognostic factor of CACYBP in cancers, we utilized Cox regression analysis and Kaplan-Meier curves. We also conducted Spearman's rank correlation analyses to determine the associations of CACYBP expression with the immune microenvironment, etc. Additionally, we applied gene set enrichment analysis to explore the underlying mechanisms of CACYBP in cancers. A partial validation of CacyBP expression in cancer tissues was performed through lung adenocarcinoma samples using Western blotting and paired t-test.

RESULTS

Compared to normal tissues, CACYBP exhibited high expression levels in 14 cancer types, including breast invasive carcinoma, and low expression levels in six cancers, including glioblastoma multiforme (P < 0.05). CACYBP expression was found to be significantly associated with the prognosis of 13 cancers, including adrenocortical carcinoma (P < 0.05). CACYBP demonstrated a robust ability to distinguish 15 cancers, including cholangiocarcinoma, from their control samples (area under the curve > 0.8). Furthermore, CACYBP expression was correlated with tumor mutational burden, microsatellite instability, and immune infiltration levels, indicating its potential as an exciting target for cancer treatment. CACYBP may exert its effects on several signaling pathways, including cytokine-cytokine receptor interaction, in various cancers. Compared with paired adjacent specimens, the expression level of CacyBP protein was up-regulated in lung adenocarcinoma specimens (P < 0.05), partially validating the increased expression of CACYBP in cancers.

CONCLUSIONS

CACYBP has the potential to serve as a novel prognostic and predictive marker for multiple human cancers.

Blockage of CacyBP inhibits macrophage recruitment and improves anti-PD-1 therapy in hepatocellular carcinoma

BACKGROUND

Despite remarkable advancements in cancer immunotherapy, the overall response rate to anti-programmed cell death-1 (anti-PD-1) therapy in hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC) patients remains low. Our previous study has demonstrated the critical role of CacyBP/SIP (Calcyclin-Binding Protein and Siah-1 Interacting Protein) as a regulator of HCC development and progression. However, the possible impact of CacyBP on the tumor immune microenvironment has not yet been clarified.

METHODS

The expressions of CacyBP and Myd88 in HCC cell lines and tissues was detected by bioinformatics analysis, real-time quantitative PCR, western blotting and immunohistochemistry. The interaction between CacyBP and Myd88 was measured using co-immunoprecipitation and immunofluorescence. In vitro and in vivo assays were used to investigate the regulation of CacyBP on tumor-associated macrophages (TAMs).

RESULTS

We identified that CacyBP was positively correlated with Myd88, a master regulator of innate immunity, and Myd88 was a novel binding substrate downstream of CacyBP in HCC. Additionally, CacyBP protected Myd88 from Siah-1-mediated proteasome-dependent degradation by competitively binding to its Toll/interleukin-1 receptor (TIR) domain. Inhibition of CacyBP-Myd88 signaling subsequently diminished HDAC1-mediated H3K9ac and H3K27ac modifications on the CX3CL1 promoter and reduced its transcription and secretion in HCC cells. Moreover, by using in vitro and in vivo strategies, we demonstrated that depletion of CacyBP impaired the infiltration of TAMs and the immunosuppressive state of the tumor microenvironment, further sensitizing HCC-bearing anti-PD-1 therapy.

CONCLUSIONS

Our findings suggest that targeting CacyBP may be a novel treatment strategy for improving the efficacy of anti-PD-1 immunotherapy in HCC.

(Nano)platforms in bladder cancer therapy: Challenges and opportunities

Urological cancers are among the most common malignancies around the world. In particular, bladder cancer severely threatens human health due to its aggressive and heterogeneous nature. Various therapeutic modalities have been considered for the treatment of bladder cancer although its prognosis remains unfavorable. It is perceived that treatment of bladder cancer depends on an interdisciplinary approach combining biology and engineering. The nanotechnological approaches have been introduced in the treatment of various cancers, especially bladder cancer. The current review aims to emphasize and highlight possible applications of nanomedicine in eradication of bladder tumor. Nanoparticles can improve efficacy of drugs in bladder cancer therapy through elevating their bioavailability. The potential of genetic tools such as siRNA and miRNA in gene expression regulation can be boosted using nanostructures by facilitating their internalization and accumulation at tumor sites and cells. Nanoparticles can provide photodynamic and photothermal therapy for ROS overgeneration and hyperthermia, respectively, in the suppression of bladder cancer. Furthermore, remodeling of tumor microenvironment and infiltration of immune cells for the purpose of immunotherapy are achieved through cargo-loaded nanocarriers. Nanocarriers are mainly internalized in bladder tumor cells by endocytosis, and proper design of smart nanoparticles such as pH-, redox-, and light-responsive nanocarriers is of importance for targeted tumor therapy. Bladder cancer biomarkers can be detected using nanoparticles for timely diagnosis of patients. Based on their accumulation at the tumor site, they can be employed for tumor imaging. The clinical translation and challenges are also covered in current review.

CACYBP knockdown inhibits progression of prostate cancer via p53

PURPOSE

Prostate cancer (PC) is one of the most common malignant tumors of genitourinary system in men. CACYCLIN binding protein (CACYBP) is involved in the progression of a variety of cancers. The aim of this study was to explore the expression and functional role of CACYBP in PC.

METHODS

The expression of CACYBP in PC was evaluated by immunohistochemical (IHC) staining and qRT-PCR. Subsequently, we established lentivirus-mediated CACYBP knockdown in PC cell lines. The biological roles of CACYBP on proliferation, apoptosis, cycle distribution, migration and tumor formation of PC were investigated by Celigo cell counting assay, flow cytometry, transwell assay, wound-healing assay and mice xenograft models, respectively.

RESULTS

CACYBP was highly expressed in PC and was positively correlated with the pathological grade of PC patients. Knockdown of CACYBP inhibited proliferation, enhanced apoptosis, arrested cell cycle in G2 and suppressed migration of PC cell lines in vitro. In addition, CACYBP knockdown weakened the tumor growth of PC in vivo. Moreover, addition of p53 inhibitor could effectively alleviate the inhibitory effect of CACYBP knockdown on cell activity.

CONCLUSION

This study revealed that knockdown of CACYBP inhibited the proliferation, migration and tumorigenicity of PC, which may serve as a potential therapeutic target for the treatment of PC.

Significance of Hypermethylation of Tumor-Suppressor Genes PTGER4 and ZNF43 at CpG Sites in the Prognosis of Colorectal Cancer

The status of DNA methylation in primary tumor tissue and adjacent tumor-free tissue is associated with the occurrence of aggressive colorectal cancer (CRC) and can aid personalized cancer treatments at early stages. Tumor tissue and matched adjacent nontumorous tissue were extracted from 208 patients with CRC, and the correlation between the methylation levels of PTGER4 and ZNF43 at certain CpG loci and the prognostic factors of CRC was determined using the MassARRAY System testing platform. The Wilcoxon signed-rank test, a Chi-square test, and McNemar’s test were used for group comparisons, and Kaplan–Meier curves and a log-rank test were used for prediction. The hypermethylation of PTGER4 at the CpG_4, CpG_5, CpG_15, and CpG_17 tumor tissue sites was strongly correlated with shorter recurrence-free survival (RFS), progression-free survival (PFS), and overall survival (OS) [hazard ratio (HR) = 3.26, 95% confidence interval (CI) = 1.38–7.73 for RFS, HR = 2.35 and 95% CI = 1.17–4.71 for PFS, HR = 4.32 and 95% CI = 1.8–10.5 for OS]. By contrast, RFS and PFS were significantly longer in the case of increased methylation of ZNF43 at the CpG_5 site of normal tissue [HR = 2.33, 95% CI = 1.07–5.08 for RFS, HR = 2.42 and 95% CI = 1.19–4.91 for PFS]. Aberrant methylation at specific CpG sites indicates tissue with aggressive behavior. Therefore, the differential methylation of PTGER4 and ZNF43 at specific loci can be employed for the prognosis of patients with CRC.