食管鳞状细胞癌中DICKKOPF-3基因的甲基化状态及表达

目的检测食管鳞状细胞癌(esophageal squamous cell cancer,ESCC)中Wnt通路拮抗基因DICKKOPF-3(DKK3)的甲基化状态,探讨其与ESCC发生的关系。方法应用甲基化特异性PCR(methylation specificPCR,MSP)及RT-PCR的方法检测78例ESCC及相应癌旁非肿瘤组织中DKK3基因的甲基化状态及mRNA表达情况,应用免疫组化的方法检测通路中心因子-βcatenin蛋白及下游靶基因cyclinD1的表达,并分析其与食管癌发生的关系。结果在ESCC组织中,DKK3基因的甲基化频率为37.2%(29/78),明显高于癌旁非肿瘤组织(χ2=35.622,P=0.000);癌组织中该基因的甲基化率与肿瘤患者临床分期相关(χ2=4.705,P=0.030),而与组织学分级无关;食管癌中DKK3基因mRNA的阳性表达率为65.4%(51/78),明显低于癌旁非肿瘤组织(χ2=13.298,P=0.000)。在发生甲基化的食管癌组织中该基因的mRNA表达缺失及-βcatenin蛋白的异质表达率均明显高于未发生甲基化的癌组织,且差异有统计学意义(χ2mRNA=29.141,P=0.000;χ2-βcatenin=6.245,P=0.012)。食管癌中cyclinD1的表达明显高于癌旁组织,且癌组织中该蛋白的表达与DKK3基因的甲基化状态相关(χ2=4.921,P=0.027)。结论 ESCC组织中DKK3基因高甲基化导致的转录沉默可能与食管癌的发生有关,并可能通过活化Wnt/-βcatenin信号转导通路促进下游靶基因cyclinD1的过表达发挥作用。     

Pokemon、P14ARF 蛋白在食管鳞状细胞癌中的表达及临床意义

目的:探讨食管鳞癌(esophageal squamous cell cacinoma,ESCC)组织中Pokemon和P14ARF表达的关系及其对ESCC临床病理特征和预后的判定价值。方法:应用SP免疫组织化学方法检测Pokemon和P14ARF二种蛋白在96例ESCC组织及20例癌旁正常组织中的表达,分析它们与ESCC病理学特征的关系,以及Pokemon和P14ARF的相关性,并结合随访资料观察上述蛋白表达对ESCC长期预后的影响。结果:癌旁正常组织中未见Pokemon蛋白表达,P14ARF蛋白阳性表达率为90.0%;在ESCC组织中Pokemon和P14ARF阳性表达率分别为75.0%和30.2%。Pokemon表达与P14ARF表达呈负相关(r=-0.458,P=0.000)。Pokemon和P14ARF的表达与TNM分期和淋巴结转移相关(P<0.05)。Pokemon表达阳性组的5年生存率分别为20.8%,显著低于阴性组(P=0.004);P14ARF表达阳性组的5年生存率为41.4%,显著高于阴性组(P=0.011)。结论:Pokemon蛋白的高表达和P14ARF蛋白低表达可能与ESCC的发生、发展关系密切,它们对于ESCC预后评估有一定的临床意义。     

Loss of 5-Hydroxymethylcytosine Is an Independent Unfavorable Prognostic Factor for Esophageal Squamous Cell Carcinoma

Ten-eleven translocation (TET) enzymes catalyze the oxidation of 5-methylcytosine (5-mC) to 5-hydroxymethylcytosine (5-hmC), 5-formylcytosine and 5-carboxylcytosine, which result in genomic DNA demethylation. It was reported that 5-hmC levels were decreased in a variety of cancers and could be regarded as an epigenetic hallmark of cancer. In the present study, 5-hmC levels were detected by immunohistochemistry (IHC) in 173 esophageal squamous cell carcinoma (ESCC) tissues and 91 corresponding adjacent non-tumor tissues; DNA dot blot assays were used to detect the 5-hmC level in another 50 pairs of ESCC tissues and adjacent non-tumor tissues. In addition, the mRNA level of TET1, TET2 and TET3 in these 50 pairs of ESCC tissues was detected by real-time PCR. The IHC and DNA dot blot results showed that 5-hmC levels were significantly lower in ESCC tissues compared with corresponding adjacent non-tumor tissues (P = 0.029). TET2 and TET3 expression was also significantly decreased in tumor tissues compared with paired non-tumor tissues (TET2, P < 0.0001; TET3, P = 0.009), and the decrease in 5-hmC was significantly associated with the downregulation of TET2 expression (r = 0.405, P = 0.004). Moreover, the loss of 5-hmC in ESCC tissues was significantly associated with poor overall survival among patients with ESCC (P = 0.043); multivariate Cox regression analysis showed that the loss of 5-hmC in ESCC tissues was an independent unfavorable prognostic indicator for patients with ESCC (HR = 1.569, P = 0.029). In conclusion, 5-hmC levels were decreased in ESCC tissues, and the loss of 5-hmC in tumor tissues was an independent unfavorable prognostic factor for patients with ESCC.     

Using proteomic approach to identify tumor-associated proteins as biomarkers in human esophageal squamous cell carcinoma

Esophageal squamous cell carcinoma (ESCC) is one of the most common cancers in China. The lower survival rate of ESCC is attributed to late diagnosis and poor therapeutic efficacy; therefore, the identification of tumor-associated proteins as biomarkers for early diagnosis, and the discovery of novel targets for therapeutic intervention, seems very important for increasing the survival rate of ESCC. To identify tumor-associated proteins as biomarkers in ESCC, we have analyzed ESCC tissues and adjacent normal tissues by two-dimensional electrophoresis (2DE) and matrix-assisted laser desorption/ionization-time-of-flight mass spectrometry (MALDI-TOF MS) analysis. The results showed that a total of 104 protein spots with different expression levels were found on 2DE, and 47 proteins were eventually identified by MALDI-TOF MS. Among these identified proteins, 33 proteins including keratin 17 (KRT17), biliverdin reductase B (BLVRB), proteasome activator subunit 1 (PSME1), manganese superoxide dismutase (MnSOD), high-mobility group box-1(HMGB1), heat shock protein 70 (HSP70), peroxiredoxin (PRDX1), keratin 13 (KRT13), and so on were overexpressed, and 14 proteins including cystatin B (CSTB), tropomyosin 2 (TPM2), annexin 1 (ANX1), transgelin (TAGLN), keratin 19 (KRT19), stratifin (SFN), and so on were down-expressed in ESCC. Biological functions of these proteins are associated with cell proliferation, cell motility, protein folding, oxidative stress, and signal transduction. In the subsequent study using immunoassay on ESCC serum samples and tissue-array slides, two representative proteins, HSP70 and HMGB1, were selected as examples for the purpose of validation. The results showed that both HSP70 and HMGB1 can induce autoantibody response in ESCC sera and have higher expression in ESCC tissues. Especially, the frequency of antibodies to HSP70 in ESCC sera was significantly higher than that in normal human sera. The preliminary results suggest that some of these identified proteins might contribute to esophageal cell differentiation and carcinogenesis, certain proteins could be used as tumor-associated antigen (TAA) biomarkers in cancer diagnosis, and further studies on these identified proteins should provide more evidence of how these proteins are involved in carcinogenesis of ESCC.     

Comparative proteomic approach identifies PKM2 and cofilin-1 as potential diagnostic, prognostic and therapeutic targets for pulmonary adenocarcinoma

Lung cancer is the leading cause of cancer-related death in the world. Non-small cell lung carcinomas (Non-SCLC) account for almost 80% of lung cancers, of which 40% were adenocarcinomas. For a better understanding of the molecular mechanisms behind the development and progression of lung cancer, particularly lung adenocarcinoma, we have used proteomics technology to search for candidate prognostic and therapeutic targets in pulmonary adenocarcinoma. The protein profile changes between human pulmonary adenocarcinoma tissue and paired surrounding normal tissue were analyzed using two-dimensional polyacrylamide gel electrophoresis (2-DE) based approach. Differentially expressed protein-spots were identified with ESI-Q-TOF MS/MS instruments. As a result, thirty two differentially expressed proteins (over 2-fold, p<0.05) were identified in pulmonary adenocarcinoma compared to normal tissues. Among them, two proteins (PKM2 and cofilin-1), significantly up-regulated in adenocarcinoma, were selected for detailed analysis. Immunohistochemical examination indicated that enhanced expression of PKM2 and cofilin-1 were correlated with the severity of epithelial dysplasia, as well as a relatively poor prognosis. Knockdown of PKM2 expression by RNA interference led to a significant suppression of cell growth and induction of apoptosis in pulmonary adenocarcinoma SPC-A1 cells in vitro, and tumor growth inhibition in vivo xenograft model (P<0.05). In addition, the shRNA expressing plasmid targeting cofilin-1 significantly inhibited tumor metastases and prolonged survival in LL/2 metastatic model. While additional works are needed to elucidate the biological significance and molecular mechanisms of these altered proteins identified in this study, PKM2 and cofilin-1 may serve as potential diagnostic and prognostic biomarkers, as well as therapeutic targets for pulmonary adenocarcinoma.     

PKM2-regulated STAT3 promotes esophageal squamous cell carcinoma progression via TGF-β1-induced EMT

Recent studies have demonstrated pleiotropic roles of pyruvate kinase isoenzyme type M2 (PKM2) in tumor progression. However, the precise mechanisms underlying the effects of PKM2 on esophageal squamous cell carcinoma (ESCC) metastasis and transforming growth factor β1 (TGF-β1)-induced epithelial-mesenchymal transition (EMT) remain to be established. In this study, we observed upregulation of PKM2 in ESCC tissues that was markedly associated with lymph node metastasis and poor prognosis. High PKM2 expression in tumor tissues frequently coincided with the high pSTAT3Tyr705 expression and low E-cadherin expression. Furthermore, altered PKM2 expression was significantly associated with proliferation, migration, and invasion of ESCC cells, in addition to expression patterns of EMT markers (Snail, E-cadherin, and vimentin) and pSTAT3^Tyr705/STAT3 ratio. Overexpression of STAT3 significantly attenuated the effects of PKM2 knockdown on cell proliferation and motility as well as expression of pSTAT3 ^Tyr705 and EMT markers. Consistently, stable short hairpin RNA (shRNA)-mediated silencing of PKM2 reversed the effects of TGF-β1 treatment, specifically, upregulation of PKM2, phosphorylation of STAT3 at Tyr705, and increased EMT, migration, and invasion. We propose that PKM2 regulates cell proliferation, migration, and invasion via phosphorylation of STAT3 through TGF-β1-induced EMT. Our findings collectively provide mechanistic insights into the tumor-promoting role of PKM2, supporting its prognostic value and the therapeutic utility of PKM2 inhibitors as potential antitumor agents in ESCC.     

Proteomics-based strategy to delineate the molecular mechanisms of RhoGDI2-induced metastasis and drug resistance in gastric cancer

Rho GDP dissociation inhibitor 2 (RhoGDI2) was initially identified as a regulator of the Rho family of GTPases. Our recent works suggest that RhoGDI2 promotes tumor growth and malignant progression, as well as enhances chemoresistance in gastric cancer. Here, we delineate the mechanism by which RhoGDI2 promotes gastric cancer cell invasion and chemoresistance using two-dimensional gel electrophoresis (2-DE) on proteins derived from a RhoGDI2-overexpressing SNU-484 human gastric cancer cell line and control cells. Differentially expressed proteins were identified using matrix-assisted laser desorption ionization-time-of-flight mass spectrometry (MALDI-TOF-MS). In total, 47 differential protein spots were identified; 33 were upregulated, and 14 were downregulated by RhoGDI2 overexpression. Upregulation of SAE1, Cathepsin D, Cofilin1, CIAPIN1, and PAK2 proteins was validated by Western blot analysis. Loss-of-function analysis using small interference RNA (siRNA) directed against candidate genes reveals the need for CIAPIN1 and PAK2 in RhoGDI2-induced cancer cell invasion and Cathepsin D and PAK2 in RhoGDI2-mediated chemoresistance in gastric cancer cells. These data extend our understanding of the genes that act downstream of RhoGDI2 during the progression of gastric cancer and the acquisition of chemoresistance.     

LMP gene promoter hypermethylation is a mechanism for its down regulation in Kazak’s esophageal squamous cell carcinomas

Abnormal hypermethylation of CpG islands not only associated with tumor suppressor genes can lead to repression of gene expression, but also contribute to escape of the tumor from immune surveillance and contribute significantly to tumorigenesis. In the present study, we studied the hypermethylation of low molecular-weight protein (LMP) gene and its regulation on protein expression in biopsies from resected tissues from Kazak’s esophageal squamous cell carcinoma (ESCC) patients and their neighboring normal tissues. LMP2 and LMP7 genes promoter region methylation sequences were maped in esophageal cancer cell line Eca109 by bisulfite-sequencing PCR and quantitative detection of methylated DNA from 30 pairs of Kazak’s ESCC and adjacent normal tissues by MassARRAY (Sequenom, San Diego, CA, USA) and LMP2 and LMP7 protein expression were analyzed with immunohistochemistry. In Eca109, we identified 6 CG sites methylated from all of 22 CpG sites of LMP7 gene. However, no methylation was found for LMP2. The analysis of the data resulted from the quantitative analysis of single CpG site methylation by Sequenom MassARRAY platform, has shown that the methylation level between two groups CpG sites (CpG_5, CpG_9, CpG_20, CpG_21 and CpG_20) from CpG_1, CpG_2, CpG_3, CpG_4, CpG_5, CpG_6, CpG_7, CpG_8, CpG_9, CpG_10.11, CpG_12.13.14, CpG_15.16.17.18, CpG_19, CpG_20, CpG_21 and CpG_22 significant differences between ESCC and neighboring normal tissues. The analysis of methylation level of whole target CpG fragment indicated that the methylation level of LMP7 was significant higher in ESCC (0.0517 ± 0.0357) than in neighboring normal tissues (0.0380 ± 0.0214, P < 0.05). there was a tendency of decreasing the LMP7 proteins expression as the increasing the methylation level of LMP7 gene promoter regions (F = 7.69, P = 0.041). The LMP7 gene promoter methylation and protein downregulation were correlated at high extent in Kazakh’s ESCC patients, and may explain the epigenetic regulation on gene expression.     

食管鳞癌组织中CDC2、CLDN5蛋白表达及其临床病理意义的研究

目的探讨CDC2及CLDN5在食管鳞癌中表达及其临床病理特征的关系。方法应用免疫组化Elivision法检测90例食管鳞癌组织、28例正常食管黏膜组织及16例重度不典型增生组织中CDC2和CLDN5的蛋白表达情况。结果在食管鳞癌和正常食管黏膜组织中CDC2和CI。DN5的阳性表达率分别为88．89％（80／90）、85．56％（77／90）和48．86％（12／28）、25．00％（7／28）,两者差异有统计学意义（P〈O．05）。CDC2蛋白表达在低分化食管鳞癌中明显高于高分化食管鳞癌;临床分期Ⅲ＋Ⅳ期组的CDC2蛋白的表达显著高于I期、Ⅱ期组（P〈O．05）。CDC2和CLDN5在食管鳞癌中表达呈正相关（r=0．537,P〈o．05）。结论CDC2和CLDN5在食管鳞癌的发生、发展过程中可能发挥重要作用,可能作为食管癌临床早期诊断的重要指标。     

Clinicopathological pattern and Annexin A2 and Cdc42 status in patients presenting with differentiation and lymphnode metastasis of esophageal squamous cell carcinomas

Annexin A2 and Cdc42 were identified by 2-dimensional electrophoresis (2-DE) and MALDI-TOF–MS between esophageal squamous cell carcinomas (ESCC) and corresponding normal esophagus mucosa in our previous study. To assess clinico-pathological pattern and Annexin A2 and Cdc42 status with respect to cell differentiation and lymphnode metastasis in patients with ESCC. The expression of Annexin A2 and Cdc42 in 22 pairs of fresh ESCC and matched tissues were detected by qRT-PCR and western blot, respectively. And it was further confirmed by immunohistochemistry with 175 pairs of formalin-fixed, paraffin-embedded ESCC. Results showed that Annexin A2 expression was significantly down-regulated, and Cdc42 was up-regulated in ESCC compared to matched control on both mRNA and protein level (P < 0.05), which was in accordance with our previous results on proteomics data. Additionally, Annexin A2 and Cdc42 expression was significantly correlated with lymphoid node metastasis (P < 0.05) and pathological differentiation (P < 0.05). Taken together, we proposed that the aberrant expression of Annexin A2 and Cdc42 played a role in carcinogenesis, differentiation and metastasis of ESCC, which implied its potential target for clinical biomarkers in differentiation and lymph node metastasis.     

Proteomics-based identification of autoantibody against CDC25B as a novel serum marker in esophageal squamous cell carcinoma

This study was aimed to identify tumor proteins that elicit a humoral response in patients with esophageal squamous cell carcinoma (ESCC). Autologous sera of 15 newly diagnosed patients with ESCC and age- and gender-matched 15 healthy controls were analyzed individually for antibody-based reactivity against proteins from 15 homogenized ESCC tissue mixture resolved by two-dimensional PAGE. One protein spot, which reacted with sera from ESCC patients but not with those from controls, was identified to be CDC25B by mass spectrometry and Western blotting. High expression of CDC25B was detected in ESCC cell lines and primary tumor tissues, but not in normal esophageal tissues. In addition, CDC25B expression was significantly higher in tumor tissue of patients with sera positive CDC25B-Abs than that of patients without CDC25B-Abs. Finally, anti-CDC25B antibodies were readily detectable in sera from 45 of 124 (36.29%) patients with ESCC, 13 of 150 (8.67%) patients with other types of cancer and 0 of 102 (0%) of healthy individuals. Thus, CDC25B autoantibodies may have clinical utility in ESCC screening and diagnosis.     

乳腺癌中Rho A蛋白表达及其与Cyclin D1和P21WAF1/CIP1蛋白表达的相关性

目的探讨Rho A蛋白在人乳腺癌中的表达情况,Rho A蛋白与临床病理因素的关系,及其与细胞周期蛋白Cyclin D1,细胞周期抑制蛋白 P21 WAF1/CIP1表达的相关性.方法应用免疫组化S-P法,检测64例乳腺癌组织及20例正常乳腺组织中Rho A蛋白、Cyclin D1和P21 WAF1/CIP1蛋白的表达情况.结果 (1)Rho A、 Cyclin D1和P21 WAF1/CIP1蛋白在正常乳腺组织中的表达率分别为5.00%、25.00%、15.00%,在乳腺癌组织中的表达率分别为73.44%、59.38%、48.44%,三者在乳腺癌组织中的阳性表达分别与正常乳腺组织相比,均差异有显著性意义(P< 0.01).(2)Rho A蛋白表达与病理组织分级,淋巴结转移相关(P< 0.05),与患者年龄、肿瘤大小及临床分期无关.(3)RhoA蛋白与P21 WAF1/CIP1蛋白表达呈负相关(χ2=4.548,P<0.05),与Cyclin D1蛋白表达无关.结论乳腺癌患者RhoA蛋白过表达与预后不良有关.RhoA蛋白通过下调P21 WAF1/CIP1蛋白参与细胞周期调节,进而与乳腺癌发展及侵袭转移相关.     

Translocalization of enhanced PKM2 protein into the nucleus induced by cancer upregulated gene 2 confers cancer stem cell-like phenotypes

Increased mRNA levels of cancer upregulated gene (CUG)2 have been detected in many different tumor tissues using Affymetrix microarray. Oncogenic capability of the CUG2 gene has been further reported. However, the mechanism by which CUG2 overexpression promotes cancer stem cell (CSC)-like phenotypes remains unknown. With recent studies showing that pyruvate kinase muscle 2 (PKM2) is overexpressed in clinical tissues from gastric, lung, and cervical cancer patients, we hypothesized that PKM2 might play an important role in CSC-like phenotypes caused by CUG2 overexpression. The present study revealed that PKM2 protein levels and translocation of PKM2 into the nucleus were enhanced in CUG2-overexpressing lung carcinoma A549 and immortalized bronchial BEAS-2B cells than in control cells. Ex-pression levels of c-Myc, CyclinD1, and PKM2 were increased in CUG2-overexpressing cells than in control cells. Furthermore, EGFR and ERK inhibitors as well as suppression of Yap1 and NEK2 expression reduced PKM2 protein levels. Interestingly, knockdown of β-catenin expression failed to reduce PKM2 protein levels. Furthermore, reduction of PKM2 expression with its siRNA hindered CSC-like phenotypes such as faster wound heal-ing, aggressive transwell migration, and increased size/number of sphere formation. The introduction of mutant S37A PKM2-green fluorescence protein (GFP) into cells without ability to move to the nucleus did not confer CSC-like phenotypes, whereas forced expression of wild-type PKM2 promoted such phenotypes. Overall, CUG2-induced increase in the expression of nuclear PKM2 contributes to CSC-like phenotypes by upregulating c-Myc and CyclinD1 as a co-activator.     

H2-Calponin 在食管鳞癌中的表达及其与食管磷癌预后的关系

目的:探讨H_2-Calponin在食管磷癌组织中的表达及其与食管磷癌患者临床病理特征及预后的相关性。方法:利用免疫组织化学染色技术检测73例食管磷癌及相应癌旁组织中H_2-Calponin的表达情况,并分析其与食管磷癌患者临床病理参数及预后的关系。结果:H_2-calponin在食管磷癌组织中的阳性表达率为95.8%(70/73),显著高于癌旁组织(35.8%,24/67),差异具有统计学意义(p0.0001)。H_2-calponin的表达与食管癌患者的性别、年龄、肿瘤大小、浸润深度及淋巴结转移均无显著相关性,但与AJCC分期显著相关(P0.05)。H_2-calponin的表达水平影响食管癌患者预后及生存期。结论:H_2-Calponin在食管磷癌组织中呈高表达并可预示食管磷癌预后不良。     

Reduced LINC00551 expression promotes proliferation and invasion of esophageal squamous cancer by increase in HSP27 phosphorylation

Esophageal squamous cell carcinoma (ESCC) is one of the deadliest cancers, and long noncoding RNAs (lncRNAs) regulate gene expression or activities. This study investigated the role of lncRNA LINC00551 in ESCC development and progression. Three paired ESCC and normal tissues were subjected to next‐generation sequencing and we identified 82 upregulated and 60 downregulated lncRNAs, including LINC00551, which was confirmed to markedly downregulated in 78 ESCC tissues and in the Gene Expression Profiling Interactive Analysis data set. Downregulated LINC00551 expression was associated with lymph node metastasis, advanced TNM stage, and tumor size. Moreover, downregulated LINC00551 expression was also associated with poor progression‐free survival and overall survival of ESCC patients. In vitro and in vivo, LINC00551 overexpression inhibited ESCC cell proliferation and invasion, whereas knockdown of LINC00551 expression promoted ESCC cell proliferation and invasion. RNA pull‐down and mass spectrometry assays identified the potential LINC00551 binding proteins, and HSP27 was a promising LINC00551 targeting proteins after RNA immunoprecipitation assay. At the protein level, LINC00551 bound to and decreased HSP27 phosphorylation, and in turn, downregulated ESCC cell proliferation and invasion. The current study demonstrated the functional significance of LINC00551 in ESCC development, progression, and prognosis. Further study will assess LINC00551 as a novel prognostic marker or therapeutic target for ESCC.