BRCA1-IRIS overexpression promotes formation of aggressive breast cancers

Introduction

Women with HER2⁺ or triple negative/basal-like (TN/BL) breast cancers succumb to their cancer rapidly due, in part to acquired Herceptin resistance and lack of TN/BL-targeted therapies. BRCA1-IRIS is a recently discovered, 1399 residue, BRCA1 locus alternative product, which while sharing 1365 residues with the full-length product of this tumor suppressor gene, BRCA1/p220, it has oncoprotein-like properties. Here, we examine whether BRCA1-IRIS is a valuable treatment target for HER2⁺ and/or TN/BL tumors.

Methodology/Principal Findings

Immunohistochemical staining of large cohort of human breast tumor samples using new monoclonal anti-BRCA1-IRIS antibody, followed by correlation of BRCA1-IRIS expression with that of AKT1, AKT2, p-AKT, survivin and BRCA1/p220, tumor status and age at diagnosis. Generation of subcutaneous tumors in SCID mice using human mammary epithelial (HME) cells overexpressing TERT/LT/BRCA1-IRIS, followed by comparing AKT, survivin, and BRCA1/p220 expression, tumor status and aggressiveness in these tumors to that in tumors developed using TERT/LT/Ras^V12-overexpressing HME cells. Induction of primary and invasive rat mammary tumors using the carcinogen N-methyl-N-nitrosourea (NMU), followed by analysis of rat BRCA1-IRIS and ERα mRNA levels in these tumors.High BRCA1-IRIS expression was detected in the majority of human breast tumors analyzed, which was positively correlated with that of AKT1-, AKT2-, p-AKT-, survivin, but negatively with BRCA1/p220 expression. BRCA1-IRIS-positivity induced high-grade, early onset and metastatic HER2⁺ or TN/BL tumors. TERT/LT/BRCA1-IRIS overexpressing HME cells formed invasive subcutaneous tumors that express high AKT1, AKT2, p-AKT and vimentin, but no CK19, p63 or BRCA1/p220. NMU-induced primary and invasive rat breast cancers expressed high levels of rat BRCA1-IRIS mRNA but low levels of rat ERα mRNA.

Conclusion/Significance

BRCA1-IRIS overexpression triggers aggressive breast tumor formation, especially in patients with HER2⁺ or TN/BL subtypes. We propose that BRCA1-IRIS inhibition may be pursued as a novel therapeutic option to treat these aggressive breast tumor subtypes.     

Placebo analgesia: cognitive influences on therapeutic outcome

The therapeutic response to a drug treatment is a mixture of direct pharmacological action and placebo effect. Therefore, harnessing the positive aspects of the placebo effect and reducing the negative ones could potentially benefit the patient. This article is aimed at providing an overview for clinicians of the importance of contextual psychosocial variables in determining treatment response, and the specific focus is on determinants of the placebo response. A better understanding of the physiological, psychological, and social mechanisms of placebo may aid in predicting which contexts have the greatest potential for inducing positive treatment responses. We examine the evidence for the role of psychological traits, including optimism, pessimism, and the effect of patient expectations on therapeutic outcome. We discuss the importance of the patient-practitioner relationship and how this can be used to enhance the placebo effect, and we consider the ethical challenges of using placebos in clinical practice.     

An N-Myristoylated Globin with a Redox-Sensing Function That Regulates the Defecation Cycle in Caenorhabditis elegans

Globins occur in all kingdoms of life where they fulfill a wide variety of functions. In the past they used to be primarily characterized as oxygen transport/storage proteins, but since the discovery of new members of the globin family like neuroglobin and cytoglobin, more diverse and complex functions have been assigned to this heterogeneous family. Here we propose a function for a membrane-bound globin of C. elegans, GLB-26. This globin was predicted to be myristoylated at its N-terminus, a post-translational modification only recently described in the globin family. In vivo, this globin is found in the membrane of the head mesodermal cell and in the tail stomato-intestinal and anal depressor muscle cells. Since GLB-26 is almost directly oxidized when exposed to oxygen, we postulate a possible function as electron transfer protein. Phenotypical studies show that GLB-26 takes part in regulating the length of the defecation cycle in C. elegans under oxidative stress conditions.     

Immediate and one-year outcome of patients presenting with Acute Coronary Syndrome complicated by stroke: Findings from the 2nd Gulf Registry of Acute Coronary Events (Gulf RACE-2)

ABSTRACT: BACKGROUND: Stroke is a potential complication of acute coronary syndrome (ACS). The aim of this study was to identify the prevalence, risk factors predisposing to stroke, in-hospital and 1-year mortality among patients presenting with ACS in the Middle East. METHODS: For a period of 9 months in 2008 to 2009, 7,930 consecutive ACS patients were enrolled from 65 hospitals in 6 Middle East countries. RESULTS: The prevalence of in-hospital stroke following ACS was 0.70%. Most cases were ST segment elevation MI-related (STEMI) and ischemic stroke in nature. Patients with in-hospital stroke were 5 years older than patients without stroke and were more likely to have hypertension (66% vs. 47.6%, P = 0.001). There were no differences between the two groups in regards to gender, other cardiovascular risk factors, or prior cardiovascular disease. Patients with stroke were more likely to present with atypical symptoms, advanced Killip class and less likely to be treated with evidence-based therapies. Independent predictors of stroke were hypertension, advanced killip class, ACS type --STEMI and cardiogenic shock. Stroke was associated with increased risk of in-hospital (39.3% vs. 4.3%) and one-year mortality (52% vs. 12.3%). CONCLUSION: There is low incidence of in-hospital stroke in Middle-Eastern patients presenting with ACS but with very high in-hospital and one-year mortality rates. Stroke patients were less likely to be appropriately treated with evidence-based therapy. Future work should be focused on reducing the risk and improving the outcome of this devastating complication.     

Kinetics and mechanism of the synthesis of a novel protein-based plastic using subcritical water

We investigated the intermolecular mechanism and kinetics of the synthesis of a novel biodegradable protein-based plastic from bovine serum albumin under subcritical water conditions using batch reactors. The reaction mechanism could be viewed as a chain reaction stabilized by the formation of intermolecular disulfide bonds. The kinetic analysis was based on non-steady-state kinetics using a theoretical model developed in one of our previous works. The activation energy and pre-exponential factor were found to be 7.2 kJ/mol and 0.9 s-1, respectively. These low values signify that the reaction is relatively temperature-insensitive with some diffusion limitation.     

Nitric oxide production from nitrite occurs primarily in tissues not in the blood: critical role of xanthine oxidase and aldehyde oxidase

Recent studies have shown that nitrite is an important storage form and source of NO in biological systems. Controversy remains, however, regarding whether NO formation from nitrite occurs primarily in tissues or in blood. Questions also remain regarding the mechanism, magnitude, and contributions of several alternative pathways of nitrite-dependent NO generation in biological systems. To characterize the mechanism and magnitude of NO generation from nitrite, electron paramagnetic resonance spectroscopy, chemiluminescence NO analyzer, and immunoassays of cGMP formation were performed. The addition of nitrite triggered a large amount of NO generation in tissues such as heart and liver, but only trace NO production in blood. Carbon monoxide increased NO release from blood, suggesting that hemoglobin acts to scavenge NO not to generate it. Administration of the xanthine oxidase (XO) inhibitor oxypurinol or aldehyde oxidase (AO) inhibitor raloxifene significantly decreased NO generation from nitrite in heart or liver. NO formation rates increased dramatically with decreasing pH or with decreased oxygen tension. Isolated enzyme studies further confirm that XO and AO, but not hemoglobin, are critical nitrite reductases. Overall, NO generation from nitrite mainly occurs in tissues not in the blood, with XO and AO playing critical roles in nitrite reduction, and this process is regulated by pH, oxygen tension, nitrite, and reducing substrate concentrations.     

Cholest-4-en-3-one-delta 1-dehydrogenase, a flavoprotein catalyzing the second step in anoxic cholesterol metabolism

The anoxic metabolism of cholesterol was studied in the denitrifying bacterium Sterolibacterium denitrificans, which was grown with cholesterol and nitrate. Cholest-4-en-3-one was identified before as the product of cholesterol dehydrogenase/isomerase, the first enzyme of the pathway. The postulated second enzyme, cholest-4-en-3-one-Delta(1)-dehydrogenase, was partially purified, and its N-terminal amino acid sequence and tryptic peptide sequences were determined. Based on this information, the corresponding gene was amplified and cloned and the His-tagged recombinant protein was overproduced, purified, and characterized. The recombinant enzyme catalyzes the expected Delta(1)-desaturation (cholest-4-en-3-one to cholesta-1,4-dien-3-one) under anoxic conditions. It contains approximately one molecule of FAD per 62-kDa subunit and forms high molecular aggregates in the absence of detergents. The enzyme accepts various artificial electron acceptors, including dichlorophenol indophenol and methylene blue. It oxidizes not only cholest-4-en-3-one, but also progesterone (with highest catalytic efficiency, androst-4-en-3,17-dione, testosterone, 19-nortestosterone, and cholest-5-en-3-one. Two steroids, corticosterone and estrone, act as competitive inhibitors. The dehydrogenase resembles 3-ketosteroid-Delta(1)-dehydrogenases from other organisms (highest amino acid sequence identity with that from Pseudoalteromonas haloplanktis), with some interesting differences. Due to its catalytic properties, the enzyme may be useful in steroid transformations.     

Measurement of nicotine in hair by reversed-phase high-performance liquid chromatography with electrochemical detection

We have developed an assay for nicotine in hair based on reversed-phase HPLC with electrochemical detection. The method uses a low-metal, high-purity silica reversed-phase column. We have investigated the washing, digestion and extraction procedures and discuss the important points in the HPLC method development. The assay is presented as an application in a population of exposed and non-exposed children. Analytical parameters are satisfactory with linearity, recoveries, limit of quantitation and precision all suitable for epidemiological studies involving environmental tobacco smoke exposure assessment.     

Production and purification of IgY antibodies from chicken egg yolk

The isolation of polyclonal antibodies from the serum of immunized mammals has significantly contributed to scientific research and diagnosis. The fact that recent technologies allow the production of antibodies in the yolk of eggs laid by hens, has led to the development of an alternative method for antibody generation that is less stressful to animals. As hens are kept under almost all their natural conditions, antibodies are isolated from the collected eggs; this technology is expected to become an interesting alternative to the conventionally serum-based techniques that eventually require to sacrifice the animal.Here we present a modified protocol for the isolation of IgY antibodies from immunized chickens and provide comparison between two chicken breeds in relative to IgY yield per egg. Our results show the possibility of generating large quantities of highly pure IgY from chicken eggs and also show large differences in the yield of IgY production between the two studied breeds. The results of this work indicate that IgY technology can be used for the production of primary antibodies for immunological work and disease diagnosis.     

<Emphasis Type="Italic">Braf</Emphasis>, <Emphasis Type="Italic">Kras</Emphasis> and <Emphasis Type="Italic">Helicobacter pylori</Emphasis> epigenetic changes-associated chronic gastritis in Egyptian patients with and without gastric cancer

We aimed to study MLH1 and MGMT methylation status in Helicobacter pylori-associated chronic gastritis in Egyptian patients with and without gastric cancer. 39 patients were included in our study. They were divided into 2 groups; patients without (group I) and with gastric adenocarcinoma (group II). Patients were subjected to clinical examination, abdominal ultrasound and upper endoscopy for gastric biopsy. Biopsies were subjected to urease test, histological examination, and DNA purification. H. pylori, Braf, Kras, MLH1 and MGMT methylation were assessed by quantitative PCR. DNA sequencing was performed to assess Braf and Kras genes mutation. qPCR of H. pylori was significantly higher in patients with adenocarcinoma (group II) than those without adenocarcinoma (group I); with a p < 0.001 as well as in patients with age above 50 years with a p value = 0.008. By applying logistic regression analysis it was reported that the H. pylori qPCR is a significant predictor to the adenocarcinoma with OR = 1.025 (95 % CI: 1. 002–1.048), with sensitivity of 90 % and specificity of 100 %. Adenocarcinoma patients had a significantly higher mean age and levels of H. Pylori, Braf, K-ras, methylated MGMT and methylated MLH1 than those of gastritis patients. DNA sequence analysis of Braf (codon 12) and Kras (codon 600) had genes mutation in gastric adenocarcinoma versus chronic gastritis. Conclusion: H. pylori may cause epigenetic changes predisposing the patients to cancer stomach. Estimation of H. pylori by qPCR can be a good predictor to adenocarcinoma. Braf and Kras genes mutation were reveled in gastritis and adenocarcinoma patients.