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Romualdo GR, Leroy K, Costa CJS, Prata GB, Vanderborght B, da Silva TC, Barbisan LF, Andraus W, Devisscher L, Câmara NOS, Vinken M, Cogliati B. In Vivo and In Vitro Models of Hepatocellular Carcinoma: Current Strategies for Translational Modeling. Cancers (Basel) 2021; 13:5583. [PMID: 34771745 PMCID: PMC8582701 DOI: 10.3390/cancers13215583] [Citation(s) in RCA: 15] [Impact Index Per Article: 5.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 09/13/2021] [Revised: 11/02/2021] [Accepted: 11/04/2021] [Indexed: 12/24/2022] Open
Abstract
Hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC) is the sixth most common cancer worldwide and the third leading cause of cancer-related death globally. HCC is a complex multistep disease and usually emerges in the setting of chronic liver diseases. The molecular pathogenesis of HCC varies according to the etiology, mainly caused by chronic hepatitis B and C virus infections, chronic alcohol consumption, aflatoxin-contaminated food, and non-alcoholic fatty liver disease associated with metabolic syndrome or diabetes mellitus. The establishment of HCC models has become essential for both basic and translational research to improve our understanding of the pathophysiology and unravel new molecular drivers of this disease. The ideal model should recapitulate key events observed during hepatocarcinogenesis and HCC progression in view of establishing effective diagnostic and therapeutic strategies to be translated into clinical practice. Despite considerable efforts currently devoted to liver cancer research, only a few anti-HCC drugs are available, and patient prognosis and survival are still poor. The present paper provides a state-of-the-art overview of in vivo and in vitro models used for translational modeling of HCC with a specific focus on their key molecular hallmarks.
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Affiliation(s)
- Guilherme Ribeiro Romualdo
- Department of Pathology, School of Veterinary Medicine and Animal Science, University of São Paulo (USP), São Paulo 05508-270, Brazil; (G.R.R.); (C.J.S.C.); (T.C.d.S.)
- Department of Structural and Functional Biology, Biosciences Institute, São Paulo State University (UNESP), Botucatu 18618-689, Brazil; (G.B.P.); (L.F.B.)
- Department of Pathology, Botucatu Medical School, São Paulo State University (UNESP), Botucatu 18618-687, Brazil
| | - Kaat Leroy
- Department of Pharmaceutical and Pharmacological Sciences, Vrije Universiteit Brussel, 1090 Brussels, Belgium; (K.L.); (M.V.)
| | - Cícero Júlio Silva Costa
- Department of Pathology, School of Veterinary Medicine and Animal Science, University of São Paulo (USP), São Paulo 05508-270, Brazil; (G.R.R.); (C.J.S.C.); (T.C.d.S.)
| | - Gabriel Bacil Prata
- Department of Structural and Functional Biology, Biosciences Institute, São Paulo State University (UNESP), Botucatu 18618-689, Brazil; (G.B.P.); (L.F.B.)
- Department of Pathology, Botucatu Medical School, São Paulo State University (UNESP), Botucatu 18618-687, Brazil
| | - Bart Vanderborght
- Gut-Liver Immunopharmacology Unit, Basic and Applied Medical Sciences, Liver Research Center Ghent, Faculty of Medicine and Health Sciences, Ghent University, 9000 Ghent, Belgium;
- Hepatology Research Unit, Internal Medicine and Paediatrics, Liver Research Center Ghent, Faculty of Medicine and Health Sciences, Ghent University, 9000 Ghent, Belgium;
| | - Tereza Cristina da Silva
- Department of Pathology, School of Veterinary Medicine and Animal Science, University of São Paulo (USP), São Paulo 05508-270, Brazil; (G.R.R.); (C.J.S.C.); (T.C.d.S.)
| | - Luís Fernando Barbisan
- Department of Structural and Functional Biology, Biosciences Institute, São Paulo State University (UNESP), Botucatu 18618-689, Brazil; (G.B.P.); (L.F.B.)
| | - Wellington Andraus
- Department of Gastroenterology, Clinics Hospital, School of Medicine, University of São Paulo (HC-FMUSP), São Paulo 05403-000, Brazil;
| | - Lindsey Devisscher
- Hepatology Research Unit, Internal Medicine and Paediatrics, Liver Research Center Ghent, Faculty of Medicine and Health Sciences, Ghent University, 9000 Ghent, Belgium;
| | - Niels Olsen Saraiva Câmara
- Department of Immunology, Institute of Biomedical Sciences IV, University of São Paulo (USP), São Paulo 05508-000, Brazil;
| | - Mathieu Vinken
- Department of Pharmaceutical and Pharmacological Sciences, Vrije Universiteit Brussel, 1090 Brussels, Belgium; (K.L.); (M.V.)
| | - Bruno Cogliati
- Department of Pathology, School of Veterinary Medicine and Animal Science, University of São Paulo (USP), São Paulo 05508-270, Brazil; (G.R.R.); (C.J.S.C.); (T.C.d.S.)
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Correia de Sousa M, Calo N, Sobolewski C, Gjorgjieva M, Clément S, Maeder C, Dolicka D, Fournier M, Vinet L, Montet X, Dufour JF, Humar B, Negro F, Sempoux C, Foti M. Mir-21 Suppression Promotes Mouse Hepatocarcinogenesis. Cancers (Basel) 2021; 13:4983. [PMID: 34638467 DOI: 10.3390/cancers13194983] [Citation(s) in RCA: 7] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 08/31/2021] [Revised: 09/28/2021] [Accepted: 09/28/2021] [Indexed: 12/14/2022] Open
Abstract
Simple Summary Hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC) is a frequent cancer of the liver with limited therapeutic options. MicroRNAs are a class of small molecules regulating a wide range of cellular processes that are important for cancer development. Among these microRNAs, miR-21 is strongly upregulated in almost all human cancers including HCC, and is considered as a strong driver of cancer development, suggesting that its pharmacological inhibition might represent a potential therapy. In this study, we show that deletion of miR-21 in genetically engineered mice promotes instead the development of HCC in several mouse models of this liver cancer. We further show that the lack of miR-21 is associated with increases in the expression of oncogenes such as Cdc25a, subtle deregulations of the MAPK, HiPPO, and STAT3 signaling pathways, as well as alterations of the inflammatory/immune anti-tumoral responses in the liver, which overtime contribute to enhanced tumorigenesis and progression toward malignancy. These results call for cautiousness when considering miR-21 inhibition for therapeutic purposes in HCC. Abstract The microRNA 21 (miR-21) is upregulated in almost all known human cancers and is considered a highly potent oncogene and potential therapeutic target for cancer treatment. In the liver, miR-21 was reported to promote hepatic steatosis and inflammation, but whether miR-21 also drives hepatocarcinogenesis remains poorly investigated in vivo. Here we show using both carcinogen (Diethylnitrosamine, DEN) or genetically (PTEN deficiency)-induced mouse models of hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC), total or hepatocyte-specific genetic deletion of this microRNA fosters HCC development—contrasting the expected oncogenic role of miR-21. Gene and protein expression analyses of mouse liver tissues further indicate that total or hepatocyte-specific miR-21 deficiency is associated with an increased expression of oncogenes such as Cdc25a, subtle deregulations of the MAPK, HiPPO, and STAT3 signaling pathways, as well as alterations of the inflammatory/immune anti-tumoral responses in the liver. Together, our data show that miR-21 deficiency promotes a pro-tumoral microenvironment, which over time fosters HCC development via pleiotropic and complex mechanisms. These results question the current dogma of miR-21 being a potent oncomiR in the liver and call for cautiousness when considering miR-21 inhibition for therapeutic purposes in HCC.
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Shouman MM, Abdelsalam RM, Tawfick MM, Kenawy SA, El-Naa MM. Antisense Tissue Factor Oligodeoxynucleotides Protected Diethyl Nitrosamine/Carbon Tetrachloride-Induced Liver Fibrosis Through Toll Like Receptor4-Tissue Factor-Protease Activated Receptor1 Pathway. Front Pharmacol 2021; 12:676608. [PMID: 34045968 PMCID: PMC8144514 DOI: 10.3389/fphar.2021.676608] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 03/05/2021] [Accepted: 04/27/2021] [Indexed: 11/13/2022] Open
Abstract
Tissue factor (TF) is a blood coagulation factor that has several roles in many non-coagulant pathways involved in different pathological conditions such as angiogenesis, inflammation and fibrogenesis. Coagulation and inflammation are crosslinked with liver fibrosis where protease-activated receptor1 (PAR1) and toll-like receptor4 (TLR4) play a key role. Antisense oligodeoxynucleotides are strong modulators of gene expression. In the present study, antisense TF oligodeoxynucleotides (TFAS) was evaluated in treating liver fibrosis via suppression of TF gene expression. Liver fibrosis was induced in rats by a single administration of N-diethyl nitrosamine (DEN, 200 mg/kg; i. p.) followed by carbon tetrachloride (CCl4, 3 ml/kg; s. c.) once weekly for 6 weeks. Following fibrosis induction, liver TF expression was significantly upregulated along with liver enzymes activities and liver histopathological deterioration. Alpha smooth muscle actin (α-SMA) and transforming growth factor-1beta (TGF-1β) expression, tumor necrosis factor-alpha (TNF-α) and hydroxyproline content and collagen deposition were significantly elevated in the liver. Blocking of TF expression by TFAS injection (2.8 mg/kg; s. c.) once weekly for 6 weeks significantly restored liver enzymes activities and improved histopathological features along with decreasing the elevated α-SMA, TGF-1β, TNF-α, hydroxyproline and collagen. Moreover, TFAS decreased the expression of both PAR1 and TLR4 that were induced by liver fibrosis. In conclusion, we reported that blockage of TF expression by TFAS improved inflammatory and fibrotic changes associated with CCl4+DEN intoxication. In addition, we explored the potential crosslink between the TF, PAR1 and TLR4 in liver fibrogenesis. These findings offer a platform on which recovery from liver fibrosis could be mediated through targeting TF expression.
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Affiliation(s)
- Maha M Shouman
- Department of Pharmacology and Toxicology, Faculty of Pharmacy, Modern Sciences and Arts University (MSA), Giza, Egypt
| | - Rania M Abdelsalam
- Department of Pharmacology and Toxicology, Faculty of Pharmacy, Cairo University, Cairo, Egypt.,Department of Biology, Faculty of Pharmacy, New Giza University, Giza, Egypt
| | - Mahmoud M Tawfick
- Department of Microbiology and Immunology, Faculty of Pharmacy (Boys), Al-Azhar University, Cairo, Egypt
| | - Sanaa A Kenawy
- Department of Pharmacology and Toxicology, Faculty of Pharmacy, Cairo University, Cairo, Egypt
| | - Mona M El-Naa
- Department of Pharmacology and Toxicology, Faculty of Pharmacy, University of Sadat City, Sadat City, Egypt
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Tompkins SC, Sheldon RD, Rauckhorst AJ, Noterman MF, Solst SR, Buchanan JL, Mapuskar KA, Pewa AD, Gray LR, Oonthonpan L, Sharma A, Scerbo DA, Dupuy AJ, Spitz DR, Taylor EB. Disrupting Mitochondrial Pyruvate Uptake Directs Glutamine into the TCA Cycle away from Glutathione Synthesis and Impairs Hepatocellular Tumorigenesis. Cell Rep 2020; 28:2608-2619.e6. [PMID: 31484072 PMCID: PMC6746334 DOI: 10.1016/j.celrep.2019.07.098] [Citation(s) in RCA: 55] [Impact Index Per Article: 13.8] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 02/06/2019] [Revised: 06/14/2019] [Accepted: 07/26/2019] [Indexed: 12/16/2022] Open
Abstract
Hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC) is a devastating cancer increasingly caused by non-alcoholic fatty liver disease (NAFLD). Disrupting the liver Mitochondrial Pyruvate Carrier (MPC) in mice attenuates NAFLD. Thus, we considered whether liver MPC disruption also prevents HCC. Here, we use the N-nitrosodiethylamine plus carbon tetrachloride model of HCC development to test how liver-specific MPC knock out affects hepatocellular tumorigenesis. Our data show that liver MPC ablation markedly decreases tumorigenesis and that MPC-deficient tumors transcriptomically downregulate glutathione metabolism. We observe that MPC disruption and glutathione depletion in cultured hepatomas are synthetically lethal. Stable isotope tracing shows that hepatocyte MPC disruption reroutes glutamine from glutathione synthesis into the tricarboxylic acid (TCA) cycle. These results support a model where inducing metabolic competition for glutamine by MPC disruption impairs hepatocellular tumorigenesis by limiting glutathione synthesis. These findings raise the possibility that combining MPC disruption and glutathione stress may be therapeutically useful in HCC and additional cancers. Tompkins et al. utilize stable glutamine isotope tracers in vivo and ex vivo to demonstrate hepatocyte MPC disruption increases TCA cycle glutamine utilization at the expense of glutathione synthesis and decreases hepatocellular tumorigenesis.
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Affiliation(s)
- Sean C Tompkins
- Department of Biochemistry, University of Iowa Carver College of Medicine, Iowa City, IA 52240, USA
| | - Ryan D Sheldon
- Department of Biochemistry, University of Iowa Carver College of Medicine, Iowa City, IA 52240, USA
| | - Adam J Rauckhorst
- Department of Biochemistry, University of Iowa Carver College of Medicine, Iowa City, IA 52240, USA
| | - Maria F Noterman
- Department of Biochemistry, University of Iowa Carver College of Medicine, Iowa City, IA 52240, USA
| | - Shane R Solst
- Free Radical and Radiation Biology Program, Department of Radiation Oncology, University of Iowa Carver College of Medicine, Iowa City, IA 52240, USA
| | - Jane L Buchanan
- Department of Biochemistry, University of Iowa Carver College of Medicine, Iowa City, IA 52240, USA
| | - Kranti A Mapuskar
- Free Radical and Radiation Biology Program, Department of Radiation Oncology, University of Iowa Carver College of Medicine, Iowa City, IA 52240, USA
| | - Alvin D Pewa
- Department of Biochemistry, University of Iowa Carver College of Medicine, Iowa City, IA 52240, USA; FOEDRC Metabolomics Core Research Facility, University of Iowa Carver College of Medicine, Iowa City, IA 52240, USA
| | - Lawrence R Gray
- Department of Biochemistry, University of Iowa Carver College of Medicine, Iowa City, IA 52240, USA
| | - Lalita Oonthonpan
- Department of Biochemistry, University of Iowa Carver College of Medicine, Iowa City, IA 52240, USA
| | - Arpit Sharma
- Department of Biochemistry, University of Iowa Carver College of Medicine, Iowa City, IA 52240, USA
| | - Diego A Scerbo
- Department of Biochemistry, University of Iowa Carver College of Medicine, Iowa City, IA 52240, USA
| | - Adam J Dupuy
- Department of Anatomy and Cell Biology, University of Iowa Carver College of Medicine, Iowa City, IA 52240, USA; Holden Comprehensive Cancer Center, University of Iowa Carver College of Medicine, Iowa City, IA 52240, USA
| | - Douglas R Spitz
- Free Radical and Radiation Biology Program, Department of Radiation Oncology, University of Iowa Carver College of Medicine, Iowa City, IA 52240, USA; Holden Comprehensive Cancer Center, University of Iowa Carver College of Medicine, Iowa City, IA 52240, USA
| | - Eric B Taylor
- Department of Biochemistry, University of Iowa Carver College of Medicine, Iowa City, IA 52240, USA; Holden Comprehensive Cancer Center, University of Iowa Carver College of Medicine, Iowa City, IA 52240, USA; Fraternal Order of Eagles Diabetes Research Center (FOEDRC), University of Iowa Carver College of Medicine, Iowa City, IA 52240, USA; Abboud Cardiovascular Research Center, University of Iowa Carver College of Medicine, Iowa City, IA 52240, USA; Pappajohn Biomedical Institute, University of Iowa Carver College of Medicine, Iowa City, IA 52240, USA; FOEDRC Metabolomics Core Research Facility, University of Iowa Carver College of Medicine, Iowa City, IA 52240, USA.
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O'Brien A, Zhou T, Tan C, Alpini G, Glaser S. Role of Non-Coding RNAs in the Progression of Liver Cancer: Evidence from Experimental Models. Cancers (Basel) 2019; 11:E1652. [PMID: 31731549 DOI: 10.3390/cancers11111652] [Citation(s) in RCA: 10] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 10/03/2019] [Revised: 10/18/2019] [Accepted: 10/21/2019] [Indexed: 12/12/2022] Open
Abstract
Liver cancer is a devastating cancer that ranges from relatively rare (around 2% of all cancers in the United States) to commonplace (up to 50% of cancers in underdeveloped countries). Depending upon the stage of pathogenesis, prognosis, or functional liver tissue present, transplantation or partial hepatectomy may be the only available treatment option. However, due to the rise in metabolic syndrome and the increasing demand for livers, patients often wait months or years for available organs. Due to this shortage, doctors must have other treatment options available. One promising area of cancer research lies in understanding the role of regulatory non-coding RNAs (ncRNAs) as oncogenic drivers and potential targets for prospective therapies. While the role of these ncRNAs was not initially clear, many of them have since been recognized to function as important players in the regulation of gene expression, epigenetic modification, and signal transduction in both normal and cancer cell cycles. Dysregulation of these different ncRNA subtypes has been implicated in the pathogenesis and progression of many major cancers including hepatocellular carcinoma. This review summarizes current findings on the roles noncoding RNAs play in the progression of liver cancer and the various animal models used in current research to elucidate those data.
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Hung JH, Li CH, Yeh CH, Huang PC, Fang CC, Chen YF, Lee KJ, Chou CH, Cheng HY, Huang HD, Chen M, Tsai TF, Lin AM, Yen CH, Tsou AP, Tyan YC, Chen YA. MicroRNA-224 down-regulates Glycine N-methyltransferase gene expression in Hepatocellular Carcinoma. Sci Rep. 2018;8:12284. [PMID: 30115977 PMCID: PMC6095880 DOI: 10.1038/s41598-018-30682-5] [Citation(s) in RCA: 17] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.8] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 01/18/2018] [Accepted: 07/06/2018] [Indexed: 12/11/2022] Open
Abstract
Glycine N-methyltransferase (GNMT) is a tumor suppressor for HCC. It is down-regulated in HCC, but the mechanism is not fully understood. MicroRNA-224 (miR-224) acts as an onco-miR in HCC. This study is the first to investigate miR-224 targeting the coding region of GNMT transcript. The GNMT-MT plasmid containing a miR-224 binding site silent mutation of the GNMT coding sequence can escape the suppression of miR-224 in HEK293T cells. Expression of both exogenous and endogenous GNMT was suppressed by miR-224, while miR-224 inhibitor enhanced GNMT expression. miR-224 counteracts the effects of GNMT on the reduction of cell proliferation and tumor growth. The levels of miR-224 and GNMT mRNA showed a significant inverse relationship in tumor specimens from HCC patients. Utilizing CCl4-treated hepatoma cells and mice as a cell damage of inflammatory or liver injury model, we observed that the decreased expression levels of GNMT were accompanied with the elevated expression levels of miR-224 in hepatoma cells and mouse liver. Finally, hepatic AAV-mediated GNMT also reduced CCl4-induced miR-224 expression and liver fibrosis. These results indicated that AAV-mediated GNMT has potential liver protection activity. miR-224 can target the GNMT mRNA coding sequence and plays an important role in GNMT suppression during liver tumorigenesis.
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Tang Q, Wang Q, Zhang Q, Lin SY, Zhu Y, Yang X, Guo AY. Gene expression, regulation of DEN and HBx induced HCC mice models and comparisons of tumor, para-tumor and normal tissues. BMC Cancer 2017; 17:862. [PMID: 29254483 PMCID: PMC5735680 DOI: 10.1186/s12885-017-3860-x] [Citation(s) in RCA: 16] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 02/05/2017] [Accepted: 11/29/2017] [Indexed: 12/14/2022] Open
Abstract
BACKGROUND Hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC) is the leading cause of cancer mortality. Chemical and virus induction are two major risk factors, however, the potential molecular mechanisms of their differences remain elusive. In this study, to identify the similarities and differences between chemical and virus induced HCC models, we compared the gene expression profiles between DEN and HBx mice models, as well as the differences among tumor, para-tumor and normal tissues. METHODS We sequenced both gene and microRNA (miRNA) expression for HCC tumor tissues, para-tumor and normal liver tissues from DEN model mice (30-week-old) and downloaded the corresponding microarray expression data of HBx model from GEO database. Then differentially expressed genes (DEGs), miRNAs and transcription factors (TFs) were detected by R packages and performed functional enrichment analysis. To explore the gene regulatory network in HCC models, miRNA and TF regulatory networks were constructed by target prediction. RESULTS For model comparison, although DEGs between tumor and normal tissues in DEN and HBx models only had a small part of overlapping, they shared common pathways including lipid metabolism, oxidation-reduction process and immune process. For tissue comparisons in each model, genes in oxidation-reduction process were down-regulated in tumor tissues and genes in inflammatory response showed the highest expression level in para-tumor tissues. Genes highly expressed in both tumor and para-tumor tissues in two models mainly participated in immune and inflammatory response. Genes expressed in HBx model were also involved in cell proliferation and cell migration etc. Network analysis revealed that several miRNAs such as miR-381-3p, miR-142a-3p, miR-214-3p and TFs such as Egr1, Atf3 and Klf4 were the core regulators in HCC. CONCLUSIONS Through the comparative analyses, we found that para-tumor tissue is a highly inflammatory tissue while the tumor tissue is specific with both inflammatory and cancer signaling pathways. The DEN and HBx mice models have different gene expression pattern but shared pathways. This work will help to elucidate the molecular mechanisms underlying different HCC models.
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Affiliation(s)
- Qin Tang
- Hubei Bioinformatics & Molecular Imaging Key Laboratory, Department of Bioinformatics and Systems Biology, Key Laboratory of Molecular Biophysics of the Ministry of Education, College of Life Science and Technology, Huazhong University of Science and Technology, Luoyu Road 1037, Wuhan, 430074, China
| | - Qi Wang
- National Engineering Research Center for Nanomedicine, College of Life Science and Technology, Huazhong University of Science and Technology, Wuhan, 430074, China
| | - Qiong Zhang
- Hubei Bioinformatics & Molecular Imaging Key Laboratory, Department of Bioinformatics and Systems Biology, Key Laboratory of Molecular Biophysics of the Ministry of Education, College of Life Science and Technology, Huazhong University of Science and Technology, Luoyu Road 1037, Wuhan, 430074, China
| | - Sheng-Yan Lin
- Hubei Bioinformatics & Molecular Imaging Key Laboratory, Department of Bioinformatics and Systems Biology, Key Laboratory of Molecular Biophysics of the Ministry of Education, College of Life Science and Technology, Huazhong University of Science and Technology, Luoyu Road 1037, Wuhan, 430074, China
| | - Yanhong Zhu
- National Engineering Research Center for Nanomedicine, College of Life Science and Technology, Huazhong University of Science and Technology, Wuhan, 430074, China
| | - Xiangliang Yang
- National Engineering Research Center for Nanomedicine, College of Life Science and Technology, Huazhong University of Science and Technology, Wuhan, 430074, China
| | - An-Yuan Guo
- Hubei Bioinformatics & Molecular Imaging Key Laboratory, Department of Bioinformatics and Systems Biology, Key Laboratory of Molecular Biophysics of the Ministry of Education, College of Life Science and Technology, Huazhong University of Science and Technology, Luoyu Road 1037, Wuhan, 430074, China.
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Lin H, Ewing LE, Koturbash I, Gurley BJ, Miousse IR. MicroRNAs as biomarkers for liver injury: Current knowledge, challenges and future prospects. Food Chem Toxicol 2017; 110:229-39. [PMID: 29042291 DOI: 10.1016/j.fct.2017.10.026] [Citation(s) in RCA: 28] [Impact Index Per Article: 4.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 07/24/2017] [Revised: 10/02/2017] [Accepted: 10/14/2017] [Indexed: 12/12/2022]
Abstract
MicroRNAs (miRNAs) are short regulatory RNAs that are involved in various biological processes that regulate gene expression posttranscriptionally. Changes in miRNA expression can be detected in many physiological and pathological events, such as liver injury. Drug induced liver injury is a life threatening condition that frequently requires organ transplantation. Hepatotoxicity is also one of the major causes of drug failure in clinical trials and of drug withdrawal from the market. The profiling of miRNA expression shows great promise in monitoring liver injury, in the prediction of outcome in patients, and in the identification of liver-reactive compounds in toxicological assessment. Recent studies have demonstrated organ-specificity of some miRNAs (i.e., miR-122), which are released into biological fluids as a result of hepatocyte damage. This attests to the potential of miRNAs as noninvasive biomarkers to detect liver toxicity. This review presents information on miRNA signatures of hepatotoxicity and on the application of promising miRNA biomarkers in preclinical safety assessment. We further discuss the technical challenges associated with these emerging biomarkers for early diagnosis and detection of hepatotoxicity.
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Wijayakumara DD, Mackenzie PI, McKinnon RA, Hu DG, Meech R. Regulation of UDP-Glucuronosyltransferases UGT2B4 and UGT2B7 by MicroRNAs in Liver Cancer Cells. J Pharmacol Exp Ther 2017; 361:386-397. [DOI: 10.1124/jpet.116.239707] [Citation(s) in RCA: 19] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.7] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 12/21/2016] [Accepted: 02/21/2017] [Indexed: 01/30/2023] Open
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Chappell G, Silva GO, Uehara T, Pogribny IP, Rusyn I. Characterization of copy number alterations in a mouse model of fibrosis-associated hepatocellular carcinoma reveals concordance with human disease. Cancer Med 2016; 5:574-85. [PMID: 26778414 PMCID: PMC4799957 DOI: 10.1002/cam4.606] [Citation(s) in RCA: 5] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.6] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 08/19/2015] [Revised: 10/22/2015] [Accepted: 11/16/2015] [Indexed: 12/16/2022] Open
Abstract
Hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC) is a prevalent human cancer with rising incidence worldwide. Human HCC is frequently associated with chronic liver inflammation and cirrhosis, pathophysiological processes that are a consequence of chronic viral infection, disturbances in metabolism, or exposure to chemical toxicants. To better characterize the pathogenesis of HCC, we used a human disease‐relevant mouse model of fibrosis‐associated hepatocarcinogenesis. In this model, marked liver tumor response caused by the promutagenic chemical N‐nitrosodiethylamine in the presence of liver fibrosis was associated with epigenetic events indicative of genomic instability. Therefore, we hypothesized that DNA copy number alterations (CNAs), a feature of genomic instability and a common characteristic of cancer, are concordant between human HCC and mouse models of fibrosis‐associated hepatocarcinogenesis. We evaluated DNA CNAs and changes in gene expression in the mouse liver (normal, tumor, and nontumor fibrotic tissues). Additionally, we compared our findings to DNA CNAs in human HCC cases (tumor and nontumor cirrhotic/fibrotic tissues) using publicly available data from The Cancer Genome Atlas (TCGA). We observed that while fibrotic liver tissue is largely devoid of DNA CNAs, highly frequently occurring DNA CNAs are found in mouse tumors, which is indicative of a profound increase in chromosomal instability in HCC. The cross‐species gene‐level comparison of CNAs identified shared regions of CNAs between human fibrosis‐ and cirrhosis‐associated liver tumors and mouse fibrosis‐associated HCC. Our results suggest that CNAs most commonly arise in neoplastic tissue rather than in fibrotic or cirrhotic liver, and demonstrate the utility of this mouse model in replicating the molecular features of human HCC.
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Affiliation(s)
- Grace Chappell
- Department of Veterinary Integrative Biosciences, Texas A&M University, College Station, Texas, 77843.,Department of Environmental Sciences and Engineering, University of North Carolina, Chapel Hill, North Carolina, 27599
| | - Grace O Silva
- Department of Genetics, University of North Carolina, Chapel Hill, North Carolina, 27599.,Curriculum in Bioinformatics and Computational Biology, University of North Carolina, Chapel Hill, North Carolina, 27599.,Lineberger Comprehensive Cancer Center, University of North Carolina, Chapel Hill, North Carolina, 27599
| | - Takeki Uehara
- Department of Environmental Sciences and Engineering, University of North Carolina, Chapel Hill, North Carolina, 27599
| | - Igor P Pogribny
- Division of Biochemical Toxicology, National Center for Toxicological Research, United States Food and Drug Administration, Jefferson, Arkansas, 72079
| | - Ivan Rusyn
- Department of Veterinary Integrative Biosciences, Texas A&M University, College Station, Texas, 77843
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Marrone AK, Tryndyak V, Beland FA, Pogribny IP. MicroRNA Responses to the Genotoxic Carcinogens Aflatoxin B1and Benzo[a]pyrene in Human HepaRG Cells. Toxicol Sci 2015; 149:496-502. [DOI: 10.1093/toxsci/kfv253] [Citation(s) in RCA: 34] [Impact Index Per Article: 3.8] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 01/20/2023] Open
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