The aim of this study was to characterize the interaction of KYSE-410, an esophageal squamous cell carcinoma cell line, and fibroblasts with respect to the extracellular matrix component hyaluronan (HA) and chemokine expression. KYSE-410 cells induced the mRNA expression of HA synthase 2 (Has2) in normal skin fibroblasts (SF) only in direct co-cultures. Parallel to Has2 mRNA, Has2 antisense RNA (Has2os2) was up-regulated in co-cultures. Knockdown of LEF1, a downstream target of Wnt signaling, abrogated Has2 and Has2os2 induction. After knockdown of Has2 in SF, significantly less α-smooth muscle actin expression was detected in co-cultures. Moreover, it was investigated whether the phenotype of KYSE-410 was affected in co-culture with SF and whether Has2 knockdown in SF had an impact on KYSE-410 cells in co-culture. However, no effects on epithelial-mesenchymal transition markers, proliferation, and migration were detected. In addition to Has2 mRNA, the chemokine CCL5 was up-regulated and CCL11 was down-regulated in SF in co-culture. Furthermore, co-cultures of KYSE-410 cells and cancer-associated fibroblasts (CAF) were investigated. Similar to SF, Has2 and Ccl5 were up-regulated and Ccl11 was down-regulated in CAF in co-culture. Importantly and in contrast to SF, inhibiting HA synthesis by 4-methylumbelliferone abrogated the effect of co-culture on Ccl5 in CAF. Moreover, HA was found to promote adhesion of CD4(+) but not CD8(+) cells to xenogaft tumor tissues. In conclusion, direct co-culture of esophageal squamous cell carcinoma and fibroblasts induced stromal HA synthesis via Wnt/LEF1 and altered the chemokine profile of stromal fibroblasts, which in turn may affect the tumor immune response.

In a patient who had metastatic anaplastic lymphoma kinase (ALK)-rearranged lung cancer, resistance to crizotinib developed because of a mutation in the ALK kinase domain. This mutation is predicted to result in a substitution of cysteine by tyrosine at amino acid residue 1156 (C1156Y). Her tumor did not respond to a second-generation ALK inhibitor, but it did respond to lorlatinib (PF-06463922), a third-generation inhibitor. When her tumor relapsed, sequencing of the resistant tumor revealed an ALK L1198F mutation in addition to the C1156Y mutation. The L1198F substitution confers resistance to lorlatinib through steric interference with drug binding. However, L1198F paradoxically enhances binding to crizotinib, negating the effect of C1156Y and resensitizing resistant cancers to crizotinib. The patient received crizotinib again, and her cancer-related symptoms and liver failure resolved. (Funded by Pfizer and others; ClinicalTrials.gov number, NCT01970865.).

Multidrug resistance (MDR) is a major obstacle to the successful treatment of osteosarcoma with chemotherapy. Effectiveness of cancer therapy correlates with the ability to induce a p53-dependent apoptotic response. p53 is a tumor suppressor gene that is mutated in 22 % of osteosarcomas. While impaired p53 has been implicated in the oncogenesis of osteosarcoma, it is unclear whether overexpression of wild-type p53 can increase chemosensitivity in MDR osteosarcoma cells.

To evaluate the relationship between use of fertility medication (i.e., selective estrogen receptor [ER] modulator, gonadotropin, or other) or infertility treatment (i.e., IVF or IUI) and the risk of ovarian cancer among women with a BRCA1 or BRCA2 mutation.

Pleuropulmonary blastoma (PPB) is the most common primary malignant neoplasm of the lung in children. Like other solid dysontogenic neoplasms, this tumor typically presents before 7 years of age. The earliest manifestation is the presence of a lung cyst(s), which is usually recognized in the first year of life and is difficult to differentiate on the basis of imaging studies from non-neoplastic cysts of early childhood. From a multilocular cyst, PPB has the potential to progress to a high-grade multipatterned primitive sarcoma. More than 65% of all affected children have a heterozygous germline mutation in DICER1. The DICER1 PPB familial tumor predisposition syndrome is initially recognized in most cases on the basis of PPB alone but also by several other unique and characteristic extrapulmonary tumors, including pediatric cystic nephroma, nasal chondromesenchymal hamartoma, nodular lesions of the thyroid, embryonal rhabdomyosarcoma of the cervix, and ciliary body medulloepithelioma.

Overexpression of Metastasis-associated protein 1 (MTA1) in various cancer cells promotes tumor invasion and migration and predicts cancer patients' poor prognosis. The pilot RNA-Seq data from our laboratory indicated that Epithelial cell adhesion molecule (EpCAM) was statistically reduced in MTA1-silencing cells. EpCAM has been recognized as more than a mere cell adhesion molecule and recent findings have revealed its causal role in mediating migratory and invasive capacity. Thus, this study was aimed to explore whether MTA1 was able to upregulate EpCAM expression and, consequently, modulate its effects on invasion and migration of the lung cancer cells as well as patients' prognosis.

The adoption of next-generation sequencing technologies has led to a remarkable shift in our understanding of the genetic landscape of follicular lymphoma. While the disease has been synonymous with the t(14;18), the prevalence of alterations in genes that regulate the epigenome has been established as a pivotal hallmark of these lymphomas. Giant strides are being made in unraveling the biological consequences of these alterations in tumorigenesis opening up new opportunities for directed therapies.

The AKT/mTORC1/S6K pathway is frequently overstimulated in breast cancer, constituting a promising therapeutic target. The benefit from mTOR inhibitors varies, likely as a consequence of tumour heterogeneity, and upregulation of several compensatory feed-back mechanisms. The mTORC1 downstream effectors S6K1, S6K2, and 4EBP1 are amplified and overexpressed in breast cancer, associated with a poor outcome and divergent endocrine treatment benefit. S6K1 and S6K2 share high sequence homology, but evidence of partly distinct biological functions is emerging. The aim of this work was to explore possible different roles and treatment target potentials of S6K1 and S6K2 in breast cancer.

Cisplatin (cis-diamminedichloroplatinum II, CDDP) is one of the most effective chemotherapeutic agents and is widely used in the treatment of cervical cancer (CC), but cancer cell acquired resistance to this drug during the course of its treatment. The aim of this study was to investigate the role of cyclin I to cisplatin resistance in CC cell.

Ovarian cancer accounted for the first cause of death in female reproductive system tumor even with the operation and chemotherapy. We sought to evaluate the therapeutic potential of p53 up-regulated modulator of apoptosis (PUMA) in ovarian cancer.

We report a case of nodular fasciitis of the breast in a 48-year-old woman who presented with a tender rapidly growing right breast lump. Ultrasound guided fine needle aspiration (FNA) of the solid mass was performed. Cytology was reported as atypical spindle cell neoplasm and the patient was referred to a breast surgeon at a tertiary institution for a definitive diagnosis and further management. Follow-up ultrasound showed partial regression and MRI, mammogram after 2-3 weeks confirmed spontaneous and total resolution of the lesion. Nodular fasciitis of the breast is rarely diagnosed on cytology alone and a histological diagnosis is usually required for a definitive diagnosis. However, in this case, the lesion spontaneously resolved prior to core biopsy or diagnostic open biopsy. The cytological features in conjunction with immunohistochemistry and the clinical history strongly suggest nodular fasciitis, which is further supported by a USP6 FISH positive result.

Among noncoding RNAs, microRNAs (miRNAs) have been most extensively studied, and their biology has repeatedly been proven critical for central nervous system pathological conditions. The diagnostic value of several miRNAs was appraised in pediatric dysembryoplastic neuroepithelial tumors (DNETs) using miRNA microarrays and receiving operating characteristic curves analyses. Overall, five pediatric DNETs were studied. As controls, 17 samples were used: the FirstChoice Human Brain Reference RNA and 16 samples from deceased children who underwent autopsy and were not present with any brain malignancy. The miRNA extraction was carried out using the mirVANA miRNA Isolation Kit, while the experimental approach included miRNA microarrays covering 1211 miRNAs. Quantitative real-time polymerase chain reaction was performed to validate the expression profiles of miR-1909* and miR-3138 in all samples initially screened with miRNA microarrays. Our findings indicated that miR-3138 might act as a tumor suppressor gene when down-regulated and miR-1909* as a putative oncogenic molecule when up-regulated in pediatric DNETs compared to the control cohort. Subsequently, both miRNA signatures might serve as putative diagnostic biomarkers for pediatric DNETs.

Myeloproliferative neoplasms (MPNs) are clonal disorders characterized by increased production of mature blood cells. Philadelphia chromosome-negative MPNs (Ph-MPNs) consist of polycythemia vera (PV), essential thrombocythemia (ET), and primary myelofibrosis (PMF). A number of stem cell derived mutations have been identified in the past 10 years. These findings showed that JAK2V617F, as a diagnostic marker involving JAK2 exon 14 with a high frequency, is the best molecular characterization of Ph-MPNs. Somatic mutations in an endoplasmic reticulum chaperone, named calreticulin (CALR), is the second most common mutation in patients with ET and PMF after JAK2 V617F mutation. Discovery of CALR mutations led to the increased molecular diagnostic of ET and PMF up to 90%. It has been shown that JAK2V617F is not the unique event in disease pathogenesis. Some other genes' location such as TET oncogene family member 2 (TET2), additional sex combs-like 1 (ASXL1), casitas B-lineage lymphoma proto-oncogene (CBL), isocitrate dehydrogenase 1/2 (IDH1/IDH2), IKAROS family zinc finger 1 (IKZF1), DNA methyltransferase 3A (DNMT3A), suppressor of cytokine signaling (SOCS), enhancer of zeste homolog 2 (EZH2), tumor protein p53 (TP53), runt-related transcription factor 1 (RUNX1) and high mobility group AT-hook 2 (HMGA2) have also identified to be involved in MPNs phenotypes. Here, current molecular biology and genetic mechanisms involved in MNPs with a focus on the aforementioned factors is presented.

This study aimed to investigate the methylation status of the promoter region of spalt-like transcription factor 3 (SALL3) and the expression of SALL3 in cervical cancer to explore the function of this gene in cervical cancer carcinogenesis.

Numerous individual studies evaluating the relationship between CD44V6 over-expression and prognostic impact in patients with osteosarcoma (OS) have yielded in conclusive results. This meta-analysis aimed to determine the value of cell adhesion molecule CD44V6 in prognosis of OS by conducting a systematic review and meta-analysis. A comprehensive search was conducted using PubMed (medline), Embase, ISI Web of Knowledge, Springer, the Cochrane Library, Scopus, BioMed Central, ScienceDirect, Wanfang, Weipu, and China National Knowledge Internet (CNKI) databases from inception through May 26, 2015. All available articles written in English or Chinese that investigated the expression of CD44V6 and the prognosis of OS were included. The quantity of the studies was evaluated according to the critical review checklist of the Dutch Cochrane Centre proposed by MOOSE. Finally, a total of eight studies with 486 OS patients were involved and the results indicated that the positive expression of CD44V6 predicts neoplasm metastasis (RR = 1.76, 95 % CI 1.38-2.25, p < 0.00001), and poor survival in OS with the pooled HR of 1.53 (95 % CI 1.25-1.88, p < 0.0001). No significant heterogeneity was observed among all studies. In conclusion, the present meta-analysis and systematic review strongly suggest that CD44V6 over-expression is associated with overall survival rate and metastasis in OS, and may be used as a prognostic biomarker to guide the clinical therapy for OS.

Cdc6 encodes a key protein for DNA replication, responsible for the recruitment of the MCM helicase to replication origins during the G1 phase of the cell division cycle. The oncogenic potential of deregulated Cdc6 expression has been inferred from cellular studies, but no mouse models have been described to study its effects in mammalian tissues. Here we report the generation of K5-Cdc6, a transgenic mouse strain in which Cdc6 expression is deregulated in tissues with stratified epithelia. Higher levels of CDC6 protein enhanced the loading of MCM complexes to DNA in epidermal keratinocytes, without affecting their proliferation rate or inducing DNA damage. While Cdc6 overexpression did not promote skin tumors, it facilitated the formation of papillomas in cooperation with mutagenic agents such as DMBA. In addition, the elevated levels of CDC6 protein in the skin extended the resting stage of the hair growth cycle, leading to better fur preservation in older mice.

Worldwide, colorectal cancer (CRC) is the third most common cancer in men and second in women. The aim of the current study was to identify whether the miR-375 is indeed down-regulated in metastatic CRC and if it could be considered as a potential minimally invasive prognostic biomarker for CRC.

Pigment epithelium-derived factor (PEDF) is a potent multifunctional protein that inhibits angiogenesis and has neurogenic and neuroprotective properties. Since the wet form of age-related macular degeneration is characterized by choroidal neovascularization (CNV), PEDF would be an ideal candidate to inhibit CNV and support retinal pigment epithelial (RPE) cells. However, its short half-life has precluded its clinical use. To deliver PEDF to the subretinal space, we transfected RPE cells with the PEDF gene using the Sleeping Beauty transposon system. Transfected cells expressed and secreted biologically active recombinant PEDF (rPEDF). In cultures of human umbilical vein endothelial cells, rPEDF reduced VEGF-induced cumulative sprouting by ≥47%, decreased migration by 77%, and increased rate of apoptosis at least 3.4 times. rPEDF induced neurite outgrowth in neuroblastoma cells and protected ganglion and photoreceptor cells in organotypic retinal cultures. In a rat model of CNV, subretinal transplantation of PEDF-transfected cells led to a reduction of the CNV area by 48% 14 days after transplantation and decreased clinical significant lesions by 55% and 40% after 7 and 14 days, respectively. We showed that transplantation of pigment epithelial cells overexpressing PEDF can restore a permissive subretinal environment for RPE and photoreceptor maintenance, while inhibiting choroidal blood vessel growth.