Recent advancement in the discovery and development of COX-2 inhibitors: Insight into biological activities and SAR studies (2008–2019)

Cyclooxygenase-2 is a very important physiological enzyme playing key roles in various biological functions especially in the mechanism of pain and inflammation, among other roles, making it a molecule of high interest to the pharmaceutical community as a target. COX 2 enzyme is induced only during inflammatory processes or cancer and reflects no role in the guarding stomach lining. Thus, selective COX-2 inhibition can significantly reduce the adverse effects including GI tract damage and hepatotoxic effects of traditional NSAIDs like aspirin, ibuprofen, etc. Recent developments on COX-2 inhibitors is primarily focused on improving the selectivity index of the drug towards COX-2 along with enhancing the potency of the drug by modifying the scaffolds of Coxibs currently in the market like Celecoxib, Indomethacin, Oxaprozin, etc. We have reported the progress on new COX-2 inhibitors in the last decade (2008–2019) focussing on five heterocyclic rings- Pyrazole, Indole, Oxazole, Pyridine and Pyrrole. The addition of various moieties to these core rings and their structure-activity relationship along with their molecular modelling data have been explored in the article. This review aims to aid medicinal chemists in the design and discovery of better COX-2 inhibitors constructed on these five heterocyclic pharmacophores.     

Prognostic relevance of miR-137 and its liver microenvironment regulatory target gene AFM in hepatocellular carcinoma

MiR-137 has been identified as potential hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC) prognostic biomarkers. Highly relevant HCC prognostic biomarkers may be derived from combinations of miR-137 with its target genes involved in the regulation of liver microenvironment. This study aimed at the discovery of such a combination with improved HCC prognosis performance than miR-137 or its target gene alone in a significantly higher number of HCC patients than previous studies. Analysis of the differentially expressed micro RNAs (miRNAs) between cancer and noncancer tissues reconfirmed miR-137 to be among the most relevant prognostic miRNAs and the data of 375 HCC patients and 50 normal cases were from the Cancer Genome Atlas (TCGA) data sets. Target genes were identified by the established search methods and Kaplan–Meier survival analysis of HCC patients was used to evaluate the overall survival (OS) and recurrence-free survival (RFS). Cox proportional hazards regression indicated that the miR-137 and its target gene AFM combination is an independent prognostic factor for the OS and RFS in HCC. In vitro experiments validated that miR-137 could bind to 3′-untranslated region of the AFM and promote the invasion and metastasis of HCC cell lines. The expressions of miR-137 and its liver microenvironment regulatory target gene AFM in combination significantly correlated with HCC progression in a higher number of patients than in previous studies, which suggested their potential as prognostic biomarkers for HCC.     

Circulating myeloid-derived suppressor cells: An independent prognostic factor in patients with breast cancer

Evading immune destruction is a hallmark of cancer. Myeloid-derived suppressor cells (MDSCs), a heterogeneous population of myeloid immune cells, are thought to foster the establishment of an immunosuppressive tumor microenvironment, but it remains unclear how. This study aims to determine the levels of circulating MDSCs and their subpopulations and test their immunosuppressive functions in patients with breast cancer (BC). We analyzed the fractions of MDSCs in freshly isolated peripheral blood mononuclear cells of patients with BC and healthy donors using flow cytometry. Circulating MDSCs were further phenotyped using fluorescently labeled antihuman monoclonal antibodies. Coculture experiments revealed the effects of MDSCs on CD3⁺ T cell response. Moreover, we correlated circulating MDSC levels with clinicopathological features of patients with BC. We show that the fraction of HLA-DR ^– CD33 ⁺ MDSCs in peripheral blood is about 10-fold higher in patients with BC than in healthy control individuals. The levels of all MDSC subpopulations, including monocytic and granulocytic MDSCs, are significantly elevated. Coculture experiments of purified HLA-DR ^– CD33 ⁺ MDSCs and CD3 ⁺ T cells demonstrate that T cell proliferation is more effectively inhibited by BC patient-derived MDSCs than by healthy control MDSCs. Moreover, increased circulating MDSC levels robustly associate with advanced BC stage and positive lymph node status. By being more abundant and more effective T cell suppressors, BC patient-derived circulating MDSCs exert a dual immunosuppressive effect. Our findings pave the way to develop novel diagnostic and immunotherapeutic strategies, aimed at detecting and inhibiting MDSCs in patients with BC.     

Tumor microenvironment: Interactions and therapy

Tumor microenvironment (TME) is a host for a complex network of heterogeneous stromal cells with overlapping or opposing functions depending on the dominant signals within this milieu. Reciprocal paracrine interactions between cancer cells with cells within the tumor stroma often reshape the TME in favor of the promotion of tumor. These complex interactions require more sophisticated approaches for cancer therapy, and, therefore, advancing knowledge about dominant drivers of cancer within the TME is critical for designing therapeutic schemes. This review will provide knowledge about TME architecture, multiple signaling, and cross communications between cells within this milieu, and its targeting for immunotherapy of cancer.     

Imaging the interaction of αv integrin-GFP in osteosarcoma cells with RFP-expressing host stromal cells and tumor-scaffold collagen in the primary and metastatic tumor microenvironment

Human osteosarcoma 143B cells were previously stably transfected with an α_v integrin green flourescent protein (GFP) vector. 143B cells expressing α_v integrin-GFP were transplanted orthotopically in the tibia of transgenic nude mice ubiquitously expressing red fluorescent protein (RFP). The primary tumors acquired RFP-expressing stroma and were passaged orthotopically in the tibia in noncolored nude mice, which maintained the RFP stroma. The interaction of α_v integrin-GFP expression in 143B cells with RFP-expressing host stromal cells was observed by confocal microscopy using the Olympus FV1000. Collagen fibers were imaged simultaneously in reflectance mode. The RFP-expressing stroma included cancer-associated fibroblasts (CAFs) and tumor-associated macrophages (TAMs) which persisted even 3 weeks after passage to nontransgenic nude mice. CAFs expressing RFP were aligned between collagen fibers and cancer cells expressing α_v integrin-GFP. Six weeks after transplantation, pulmonary metastases expressing α_v integrin-GFP could be identified. TAMs expressing RFP accompanied metastasized osteosarcoma cells expressing α_v integrin-GFP in the lung. The current study demonstrates the importance of α_v integrin interaction with stromal elements in osteosarcoma.     

56例卵巢上皮性交界性肿瘤的临床和病理分析

目的：探讨卵巢交界性上皮肿瘤（OBT）的临床及病理特征,以供临床和病理借鉴.方法：收集病理快速冰冻切片和石蜡切片确诊的交界性上皮性卵巢肿瘤患者56例,术前均行超声检查及CA125测定.结果：56例OBT中以粘液性肿瘤最多,为33例,占58.9%,浆液性肿瘤23例占41.1%.其中以Ⅰ期多见,手术包括保守性手术治疗交界性肿瘤,预后良好.冰冻切片诊断卵巢交界性上皮肿瘤的总体准确率为64.2%.结论：诊断OBT需根据临床症状、肿瘤标记物及影像学综合判断,术中冰冻切片检查有一定帮助,但最后诊断还是应主要依据病理切片.为提高快速冰冻切片诊断的准确率,应做连续切片.     

结直肠癌血清肿瘤标记物液相芯片制备条件的优化及在CEA抗原检测中的初步应用

液相芯片技术由于其高通量,灵敏度高,信噪比高,液相条件下反应,操作简便,耗时短等优点,已被美国FDA批准成为临床的检测手段。本文主要介绍了结直肠癌血清肿瘤标记物液相芯片制备条件的优化及其在CEA抗原检测中的初步应用。本研究首先将CEA抗原的捕获抗体与微球载体进行偶联,制备液相芯片,然后对影响反应的微球与抗原的反应时间,生物素化检测抗体的浓度及avidin-PE荧光染料的反应浓度等因素进行正交设计,确定出最优的反应条件;用该液相芯片反应体系检测55例临床样本,与ELISA试剂盒检测结果相比：在同样的样本浓度范围内,两者的检测结果基本一致,但液相芯片检测的浓度范围更大而且液相芯片可将多种肿瘤标记物在一个反应进行检测,节省检测的时间和人力。     

RASSF1A 基因在乳腺癌发生、发展中的作用

RASSF1A基因是新近发现的新型候选抑癌基因,其正常表迭能够抑制肿瘤的发生。启动于区域CpG岛异常甲基化可以导致其失活,并在乳腺癌的发生、发展起着重要作用。RASSF1A的甲基化状态检测具有重要的临床意义,有望为乳腺癌的早期诊断、疗效监测、预后判断提供新的参考指标,而逆转RASSF1A的甲基化则可能为乳腺癌治疗提供新的方向。     

PRAX-1蛋白主要结构和功能的研究进展

本文就外周型苯二氮卓类受体（Peripheral benzodiazepine receptor,PBR）的相关蛋白PRAX-1的主要结构和功能进行论述,为细胞凋亡研究和抗抑郁治疗提供一个新的思路。     

呼吸窘迫综合征早产儿血清VA、PCT、TNF-α及CRP水平的表达及临床意义

目的:探讨呼吸窘迫综合征(RDS)早产儿血清维生素A(VA)、降钙素原(PCT)、肿瘤坏死因子-α(TNF-α)及C反应蛋白(CRP)水平的表达及临床意义。方法:选取2015年2月～2018年5月期间青岛市妇女儿童医院收治的90例RDS早产儿纳入观察组,根据RDS分级将观察组分为轻度组48例,中重度组42例。另选取同期于本院出生的非RDS早产儿35例作为对照组。根据血清VA水平将125例早产儿分为VA缺乏组(n=72),亚临床VA缺乏组(n=36),正常组(n=17)。比较观察组与对照组、轻度组与中重度组早产儿血清VA、PCT、TNF-α及CRP水平,比较不同血清VA水平早产儿的RDS发病情况,分析观察组早产儿血清VA与PCT、TNF-α及CRP水平的相关性。结果:观察组早产儿血清VA水平明显低于对照组(P0.05),而观察组早产儿血清PCT、TNF-α、CRP明显高于对照组(P0.05)。中重度组早产儿血清VA水平与轻度组比较差异无统计学意义(P0.05),而中重度组早产儿血清PCT、TNF-α、CRP水平明显高于轻度组(P0.05)。随着血清VA水平的升高,RDS发病率逐渐降低,组间比较差异有统计学意义(P0.05)。Pearson相关性分析显示,观察组早产儿血清VA与PCT、TNF-α及CRP水平无显著相关性(P0.05)。结论:RDS早产儿血清VA与PCT、TNF-α及CRP水平均存在明显异常,但四者无明显相关性,血清VA相对较低者更易发生RDS,临床可通过及时干预VA水平以降低RDS的发生风险。