自发性高血压大鼠肠系膜微静脉白细胞-内皮细胞相互作用和微淋巴管收缩特性的研究

目的:探讨自发性高血压大鼠(Spontaneously Hypertensive Rat,SHR)肠系膜微静脉白细胞-内皮细胞相互作用和微淋巴管收缩的特性。方法:取8周龄Wistar大鼠、8周龄SHR(SHR8W)和13周龄SHR(SHR13W),麻醉、固定并暴露肠系膜后,微循环显微镜下观察肠系膜微循环并录像;回放录像,计算微静脉白细胞滚动数和滚动的白细胞-内皮细胞接触时间(Rolling leukocyte-endothelial contact time,RLECT),用Vas Track自动测量系统对微淋巴管口径进行动态测量,并计算微淋巴管收缩特性指标。结果:SHR13W的白细胞滚动数显著低于Wistar;SHR8W和SHR13W的RLECT均显著低于Wistar,且SHR13W的RLECT显著低于SHR8W;进一步按照管径分级后,三组间白细胞滚动数在10~20μm管径级别下未见差异;各个管径级别下,SHR8W和SHR13W的RLECT均未见差异。SHR13W的淋巴管收缩分数显著低于Wistar和SHR8W;SHR8W及SHR13W的总收缩活性指数均显著低于Wistar;SHR13W的淋巴管动力指数显著低于Wistar。结论:SHR肠系膜微静脉白细胞滚动数及RLECT减少,其中白细胞滚动数在不同管径级别微静脉中的分布不均匀,而RLECT随SHR周龄降低,意味着SHR淋巴管收缩功能降低。     

Riluzole is a radio‐sensitizing agent in an in vivo model of brain metastasis derived from GRM1 expressing human melanoma cells

Approximately 50% of patients having metastatic melanoma develop brain metastases during the course of their illness. Evidence exists that melanoma cells have increased aptitude for the repair of sublethal DNA damage caused by ionizing radiation therapy. To address the radio‐resistance of melanoma, many groups adopted radiotherapy schedules that deliver larger daily fractions of radiation, but due to the risk of neurotoxicity, these large fractions cannot be delivered to the whole brain for patients with brain metastases. Here, we used orthotopic implanted GRM1 expressing human melanoma cell xenografts in mice, to demonstrate that animals receiving concurrent glutamate signaling blockade (riluzole) and radiation led to a decrease in intracranial tumor growth compared to either modality alone. These preclinical results suggest riluzole may cause radio‐sensitization that offers enhanced efficacy for a subset of human melanoma patients undergoing radiotherapy for brain metastasis.     

Methods for Culturing Human Femur Tissue Explants to Study Breast Cancer Cell Colonization of the Metastatic Niche

Bone is the most common site of breast cancer metastasis. Although it is widely accepted that the microenvironment influences cancer cell behavior, little is known about breast cancer cell properties and behaviors within the native microenvironment of human bone tissue.We have developed approaches to track, quantify and modulate human breast cancer cells within the microenvironment of cultured human bone tissue fragments isolated from discarded femoral heads following total hip replacement surgeries. Using breast cancer cells engineered for luciferase and enhanced green fluorescent protein (EGFP) expression, we are able to reproducibly quantitate migration and proliferation patterns using bioluminescence imaging (BLI), track cell interactions within the bone fragments using fluorescence microscopy, and evaluate breast cells after colonization with flow cytometry. The key advantages of this model include: 1) a native, architecturally intact tissue microenvironment that includes relevant human cell types, and 2) direct access to the microenvironment, which facilitates rapid quantitative and qualitative monitoring and perturbation of breast and bone cell properties, behaviors and interactions. A primary limitation, at present, is the finite viability of the tissue fragments, which confines the window of study to short-term culture. Applications of the model system include studying the basic biology of breast cancer and other bone-seeking malignancies within the metastatic niche, and developing therapeutic strategies to effectively target breast cancer cells in bone tissues.     

Secreted meningeal chemokines,but not VEGFA,modulate the migratory properties of medulloblastoma cells

Leptomeningeal metastasis is a cause of morbidity and mortality in medulloblastoma, but the understanding of molecular mechanisms driving this process is nascent. In this study, we examined the secretory chemokine profile of medulloblastoma cells (DAOY) and a meningothelial cell line (BMEN1). Conditioned media (CM) of meningothelial cells increased adhesion, spreading and migration of medulloblastoma. VEGFA was identified at elevated levels in the CM from BMEN1 cells (as compared to DAOY CM); however, recombinant VEGFA alone was insufficient to enhance medulloblastoma cell migration. In addition, bevacizumab, the VEGFA scavenging monoclonal antibody, did not block the migratory phenotype induced by the CM. These results reveal that paracrine factors secreted by meningothelial cells can influence migration and adherence of medulloblastoma tumor cells, but VEGFA may not be a specific target for therapeutic intervention in this context.     

Differential proteomic analysis of lymphatic,venous, and arterial endothelial cells extracted from bovine mesenteric vessels

Differential protein profiling by 2‐D PAGE is generally useful in biomarker discovery, proteome analysis and routine sample preparation prior to analysis by MS. The goal of this study was to compare 2‐D PAGE‐resolved protein profile of lymphatic endothelial cells to those of venous, and arterial endothelial cells isolated from lymphatic and blood vessels of bovine mesentery (bm). Three 2‐D PAGE electrophoretograms were produced for each of the three cell types and quantitatively analyzed. Protein identification by LC‐MS/MS was performed to identify 39 proteins found to be present at statistically significantly different levels in the three cell types (p<0.05). Most of the 39 proteins have not been previously reported in EC proteomic studies of 2‐D PAGE electrophoretograms. Three proteins, HSPA1B (HSP70 family member), HSPB1 (HSP27 family member), and UBE2D3 (a member of E2 ubiquitin‐conjugating enzymes) found to be at highest levels in bm arterial endothelial cells, bm venous endothelial cells, and bm lymphatic endothelial cells, respectively, were validated by immunoblotting with appropriate antibodies. The lack of substantial overlap between our results and those of other groups' comparative studies are discussed. Functional implications of differences in levels of various proteins identified in the three cell types are also discussed.     

采用蛋白质组学技术筛选大肠癌转移相关蛋白

采用对同一亲本来源、不同转移潜能细胞株SW480和SW620的蛋白质表达谱进行双向凝胶电泳和质谱技术分析,并在蛋白质和mRNA水平进行验证,成功鉴定了10个大肠癌转移相关蛋白,其中SW620细胞株表达上调的蛋白质有磷酸甘油酸变位酶1,磷脂酰乙醇胺结合蛋白和高迁移率族蛋白B-1,而热休克蛋白27,膜联蛋白Ⅰ,甲硫腺苷磷酸化酶,切丝蛋白1和表皮型脂肪酸结合蛋白在SW620中表达下调.大多数差异蛋白质功能涉及肿瘤细胞生长、运动、粘附、凋亡等过程,研究结果为阐明大肠癌转移机制及寻找预测大肠癌转移的潜在标志物提供了理论依据.     

Proangiogenic TIE2+/CD31+ macrophages are the predominant population of tumor-associated macrophages infiltrating metastatic lymph nodes

Tumor-associated macrophages (TAMs) accumulate in various cancers and promote tumor angiogenesis and metastasis, and thus may be ideal targets for the clinical diagnosis of tumor metastasis with high specificity. However, there are few specific markers to distinguish between TAMs and normal or inflammatory macrophages. Here, we show that TAMs localize in green fluorescent protein-labeled tumors of metastatic lymph nodes (MLNs) from B16F1 melanoma cells but not in necrotic tumor regions, suggesting that TAMs may promote the growth of tumor cells and the progression of tumor metastasis. Furthermore, we isolated pure populations of TAMs from MLNs and characterized their gene expression signatures compared to peritoneal macrophages (PMs), and found that TAMs significantly overexpress immunosuppressive cytokines such as IL-4, IL-10, and TGF-β as well as proangiogenic factors such as VEGF, TIE2, and CD31. Notably, immunological analysis revealed that TIE2⁺/CD31⁺ macrophages constitute the predominant population of TAMs that infiltrate MLNs, distinct from tissue or inflammatory macrophages. Importantly, these TIE2⁺/CD31⁺ macrophages also heavily infiltrated MLNs from human breast cancer biopsies but not reactive hyperplastic LNs. Thus, TIE2⁺/CD31⁺ macrophages may be a unique histopathological biomarker for detecting metastasis in clinical diagnosis, and a novel and promising target for TAM-specific cancer therapy.     

应用基因表达谱芯片从不同转移能力的 乳腺癌细胞中筛选转移相关基因

人乳腺癌细胞系 MCF-7 及其转移亚克隆 LM-MCF-7 为肿瘤转移分子机制的研究提供了细胞模型 . 应用基因芯片技术比较两种具有不同转移能力细胞系基因表达谱的差异,寻找乳腺癌转移相关基因 . 提取两种细胞总 RNA ,分别用 Cy5-dCTP 、 Cy3-dCTP 标记 LM-MCF-7 和 MCF-7 的 cDNA ,并与含有 21 329 个基因的芯片进行杂交并扫描,利用 GenePix Pro 4.0 图像分析软件处理数据判断基因是否在两个细胞中存在表达差异 . 经互换荧光标记物重复两次实验,共筛选出差异表达基因 67 个,其中 41 个在 LM-MCF-7 细胞中表达上调, 26 个在 LM-MCF-7 细胞中表达下调 . 应用实时定量 RT-PCR 对 7 个表达差异明显的基因进行了验证 . 生物信息学分析结果提示,上述发现的差异基因编码产物与细胞内信号转导、转录调节、应激反应、新陈代谢、发育、细胞运动、细胞凋亡和细胞粘连等功能有关 . 据文献报道,这些差异表达的基因中有 35 个与肿瘤有关,其中 9 个与乳腺癌转移有关, 6 个可能参与肿瘤浸润和转移过程 . 根据基因芯片检测的结果,从功能上对 LM-MCF-7 细胞和 MCF-7 细胞与细胞凋亡的关系进行了研究,发现具有高转移倾向的 LM-MCF-7 细胞与 MCF-7 细胞相比,抗凋亡能力较强 . 上述与肿瘤转移相关基因在肿瘤转移中的作用及其分子机理有待深入研究 .     

cAMP-response-element-binding protein positively regulates breast cancer metastasis and subsequent bone destruction

cAMP-response-element-binding protein (CREB) signaling has been reported to be associated with cancer development and poor clinical outcome in various types of cancer. However, it remains to be elucidated whether CREB is involved in breast cancer development and osteotropism. Here, we found that metastatic MDA-MB-231 breast cancer cells exhibited higher CREB expression than did non-metastatic MCF-7 cells and that CREB expression was further increased by several soluble factors linked to cancer progression, such as IL-1, IGF-1, and TGF-β. Using wild-type CREB and a dominant-negative form (K-CREB), we found that CREB signaling positively regulated the proliferation, migration, and invasion of MDA-MB-231 cells. In addition, K-CREB prevented MDA-MB-231 cell-induced osteolytic lesions in a mouse model of cancer metastasis. Furthermore, CREB signaling in cancer cells regulated the gene expression of PTHrP, MMPs, and OPG, which are closely involved in cancer metastasis and bone destruction. These results indicate that breast cancer cells acquire CREB overexpression during their development and that this CREB upregulation plays an important role in multiple steps of breast cancer bone metastasis.