HEPPAR1 and PIWIL2 as Panel Markers for Hepatocellular Carcinoma.

OBJECTIVE: The aim of this study was to evaluate the expression profiles of PIWI-like protein- 2 (PIWIL2), and HepPar1 and their immunohistochemical (IHC) characteristics in Hepatocellular Carcinoma (HCC), and determine their correlation with clinicopathological parameters of this type of cancer to determine their diagnostic value in combination. METHODS: Seventy-five patients with HCC were assessed for the expression of PIWIL2 in serum and tissue using real-time polymerase chain reaction (RT-PCR) and IHC was performed for PIWIL2 and HepPar1 was performed on all patients. RESULTS: A statistically significantly higher level of PIWIL2 was found in HCC compared to controls (p≤0.001). Both HepPar1 and PIWIL2 were detected in 84% of HCC cases, the diagnostic and prognostic factors for PIWIL2 were found to be significant in liver tumour tissue samples and non-tumorous sections p<0.001, and the same was observed for serum samples and results of healthy serum controls (p<0.001) when compared to AFP. CONCLUSION: Our results affirm the hypothesis that reactivation of PIWI expression in various caner types is crucial for cancer development, and that a possible panel maybe used for these markers HCC diagnosis.

Elevated expression patterns of P-element Induced Wimpy Testis (PIWI) transcripts are potential candidate markers for Hepatocellular Carcinoma.

BACKGROUND: P-Element-induced wimpy testis (PIWI) proteins, when in combination with PIWI-interacting RNA (piRNA), are engaged in the epigenetic regulation of gene expression in germline cells. Different types of tumour cells have been found to exhibit abnormal expression of piRNA, PIWIL-mRNAs, and proteins. We aimed to determine the mRNA expression profiles of PIWIL1, PIWIL2, PIWIL3, & PIWIL4, in hepatocellular carcinoma patients, and to associate their expression patterns with clinicopathological features. METHODS: The expression patterns of PIWIL1, PIWIL2, PIWIL3, PIWIL4 mRNA, was assessed via real-time quantitative polymerase chain reaction (RT-QPCR), on tissue and serum samples from HCC patients, their impact for diagnosis was evaluated by ROC curves, prognostic utility was determined, and In Silico analysis was conducted for predicted variant detection, association with HCC microRNAs and Network Analysis. RESULTS: Expression levels were significantly higher in both HCC tissue and serum samples than in their respective controls (p< 0.001). Additionally, the diagnostic performance was assessed, Risk determination was found to be statistically significant. CONCLUSION: PIWIL mRNAs are overexpressed in HCC tissue and serum samples, the expression patterns could be valuable molecular markers for HCC, due to their association with age, tumour grade and pattern. To the best of our knowledge, our study is the first to report the expression levels of all PIWIL mRNA and to suggest their remarkable values as diagnostic and prognostic biomarkers, in addition to their correlation to HCC development. Additionally, a therapeutic opportunity might be also suggested through in silico miRNA prediction for HCC and PIWIL genes through DDX4 and miR-124-3p.

Molecular Detection of Genetic Susceptibility to Bladder Cancer in Egyptian Patients.

OBJECTIVE: Genome-wide association studies (GWAS) have identified a number of genetic variants associated with the susceptibility of bladder cancer (BC) in European and Chinese populations. Here, we assessed the association of two of these variants, rs9642880 and rs710521 in an Egyptian patients and also examined the expression of c-Myc.The basis was due to the absence of studies on Egyptian patients to determine the association between rs9642880& rs710521 and bladder cancer risk, particularly due to the known role of the variant (rs9642880) in the Progression and development of bladder cancer. METHODS: Urine samples were collected from onehundred and fiftybladder cancer patients under particular standards and fifty healthy controls. Genomic DNA was extracted,  rs9642880 G>T and rs710521 A>G polymorphisms were amplified, assessed via restriction fragment length polymorphism(RFLP) and sequenced. Urine retrieved results were compared to the histopathological diagnosis of tissue biopsies and to the results of C-Myc immunohistochemistry. Data were statistically analyzed using Microsoft Excel 2016, association between significant genotypes of the two studied variables and bladder cancer risk was performed. RESULTS: We found that the TT genotype of rs9642880 G>T was strongly associated with the risk of bladder cancer, andfor rs710521 A>G, AG genotype was also identified to has an association with bladder cancer risk.All 150 tumor sections showed positive immunoreactivity for c-Myc in the nucleus and the cytoplasm. CONCLUSION: Identifying the association to risk of bladder cancer using genetic analysis will help in the early detection of the disease.