Successful Treatment of Systemic Light Chain Amyloidosis with Liver Involvement using Low-Frequency Daratumumab: A Case Report.

BACKGROUND Systemic light chain (AL) amyloidosis is a disease characterized by the deposition of amyloid fibrils throughout tissues due to the production of misfolded immunoglobulin light chains by clonally expanded populations of CD38+ plasma cells. Some patients can have liver involvement, which typically presents with nonspecific symptoms. Daratumumab, a human CD38-targeting antibody, has shown efficacy in improving hematological parameters and organ function in patients with AL amyloidosis. Low-frequency daratumumab can reduce financial burden, but whether it is effective for patients with liver involvement has not been reported. CASE REPORT We present the case of a 64-year-old man admitted to our hospital with fatigue and recurrent fever. Histological analysis of a liver biopsy demonstrated AL amyloidosis. Bone marrow biopsy demonstrated the presence of abnormal plasma cells. Laboratory test results demonstrated increased levels of circulating free kappa (kappa) light chains, which were also seen on blood and urine immunofixation electrophoresis. Based on these findings, AL amyloidosis of the kappa light chain type with liver, cardiac, and renal involvement was diagnosed. The patient ultimately achieved hematological stringent complete response, liver remission, renal complete response, and cardiac very good partial response after 2 cycles of the low-frequency daratumumab, bortezomib, and dexamethasone regimen and 4 cycles of daratumumab and dexamethasone regimen chemotherapy. CONCLUSIONS The case indicates that low-frequency daratumumab treatment can have efficacy in AL amyloidosis with liver involvement.

The efficacy of residual plerixafor for second-day stem cell mobilization in multiple myeloma patients.

BACKGROUND: Granulocyte colony-stimulating factor (G-CSF) plus plerixafor has been shown to improve the efficacy of peripheral blood stem cell (PBSC) mobilization, however, due to its high price, the use of plerixafor is limited in China. The purpose of this study was to assess the efficacy of residual plerixafor for second-day stem cell mobilization in multiple myeloma (MM) patients. MATERIALS AND METHODS: In this single-center retrospective study, 69 MM patients received G-CSF + plerixafor to mobilize PBSCs, which were collected from 28 patients only for one day and 41 patients for two days. Some of the patients received residual plerixafor, and PBSCs were collected on the second day. The data on the characteristics, different doses of plerixafor and efficacy of PBSC mobilization were collected and analyzed. RESULTS: After 1 or 2 apheresis procedures, 85.5% of patients collected more than 2 × 106 cells/kg PBSCs. There was no statistically significant difference in the success rate of CD34 + PBSC mobilization with the different doses of plerixafor on the first day, but the higher residual plerixafor dose resulted in better success rates on the second day (P＜0.001). Among the patients who collected PBSCs for two days, the level of the CD34 + cell yield of 24 patients (58.5%) changed better, which was significantly correlated with the dose of residual plerixafor on the second day (P = 0.001). DISCUSSION: These results suggested that the administration of residual plerixafor to mobilize stem cells on the second day is an economical, efficient and clinically feasible method.

BMAL1 induces colorectal cancer metastasis by stimulating exosome secretion.

BACKGROUND: To adapt to daily changes in the external environment, organisms have developed circadian rhythm systems with a period of approximately 24 h. Many studies have reported that both circadian rhythms and exosomes play important roles in the development and metastasis of tumors. However, whether circadian clock genes can affect the progression of tumors by regulating exosomes remains unclear. METHODS AND RESULTS: In this study, we isolated exosomes from the supernatant of human colorectal cancer (CRC) cells, including SW480, SW620, and HCT116 cells, by differential centrifugation and characterized exosomes by transmission electron microscopy, nanoparticle tracking analysis, and Western blot analysis. Then, we found that exosomes derived from SW480, SW620 and HCT116 cells could promote the migration of HCT116 and human umbilical vein endothelial cells. Exosomes derived from SW620 cells showed increased stimulating effects when we increased the expression of BMAL1, a core circadian protein. In contrast, exosomes derived from SW480 and HCT116 cells showed decreased stimulating effects when we knocked down the expression of BMAL1. Furthermore, we discovered that BMAL1 promotes the release of exosomes by HCT116 and SW620 cells. In addition, by luciferase assay, we confirmed that BMAL1 transcriptionally regulates the expression of Rab27a, a key molecule related to the secretion of exosomes. CONCLUSIONS: Our data reveal a new mechanism by which BMAL1 induces CRC metastasis by stimulating exosome secretion. This finding may help further clarify the role of circadian rhythm in the progression of CRC.

Prenatal Stress Leads to the Altered Maturation of Corticostriatal Synaptic Plasticity and Related Behavioral Impairments Through Epigenetic Modifications of Dopamine D2 Receptor in Mice.

Prenatal stress (PRS) had a long-term adverse effect on motor behaviors. Corticostriatal synaptic plasticity, a cellular basis for motor controlling, has been proven to participate in the pathogenesis of many behavior disorders. Based on the reports about the involvement of epigenetic DNA alterations in PRS-induced long-term effects, this research investigated the influence of PRS on the development and maturation of corticostriatal synaptic plasticity and related behaviors and explored the underlying epigenetic mechanism. Subjects were male offspring of dams that were exposed to stress three times per day from the 10th day of pregnancy until delivery. The development and maturation of plasticity at corticostriatal synapses, dopamine signaling, behavioral habituation, and DNA methylation were examined and analyzed. Control mice expressed long-term potentiation (LTP) at corticostriatal synapses during postnatal days (PD) 12-14 and produced long-term depression (LTD) during PD 20-60. However, PRS mice exhibited sustained LTP during PD 12-60. The treatment with dopamine 2 receptor (D2R) agonist quinpirole recovered striatal LTD and improved the impaired behavioral habituation in PD 45 adult PRS mice. Additionally, adult PRS mice showed reduced D2R, excess DNA methyltransferase 1 (DNMT1), increased binding of DNMT1 to D2R promoter, and hypermethylation at D2R promoter in the striatum. The DNMT1 inhibitor 5-aza-deoxycytidine restored striatal synaptic plasticity and improved behavioral habituation in adult PRS mice via D2R-mediated dopamine signaling. DNMT1-associated D2R hypermethylation is responsible for altering the maturation of plasticity at corticostriatal synapses and impairing the behavioral habituation in PRS mice.

Tumor Flare Reaction in a Classic Hodgkin Lymphoma Patient Treated With Brentuximab Vedotin and Tislelizumab: A Case Report.

Background: Tumor flare reaction (TFR) is a clinical syndrome, which is mainly associated with painful and swollen lymph nodes or splenomegaly, slight fever, bone pain, and skin rash during treatment with immune-related drugs, causing difficulty in distinguishing TFR from disease progression. Brentuximab vedotin (BV) and programmed death 1 (PD-1) inhibitor are two ideal drugs used for the treatment of classic Hodgkin lymphoma, but few studies have reported their adverse effects in association with TFR. The efficacy and safety of monotherapy or combination therapy with these drugs needs to be further evaluated. It is essential to determine whether treated patients can develop TFR, thus enabling more accurate diagnosis and treatment. Case presentation: A 26-year-old female patient, diagnosed with classic Hodgkin lymphoma, had received 2 + 3 cycles of ABVD chemotherapy (a combination of adriamycin, bleomycin, vinblastine, and dacarbazine) and 4 cycles of PD-1 inhibitor (tislelizumab) therapy but exhibited poor efficacy. Subsequently, she was given combination therapy of BV (100 mg) + tislelizumab (200 mg). However, a slight fever, painful and swollen axillary lymph nodes, multiple skin rashes with pruritus, joint pain, and fatigue with poor appetite appeared during the treatment. Ultrasound (US) scans revealed that multiple lymph nodes were significantly enlarged. After treatment with low-dose dexamethasone and cetirizine, the symptoms were alleviated. A biopsy of the left axillary lymph node revealed that lymphoid tissue exhibited proliferative changes, without tumor cell infiltration. These findings were consistent with the clinical and pathological manifestations of TFR. Conclusion: Combination therapy with BV and PD-1 inhibitor was effective in the treatment of relapsed or refractory classic Hodgkin lymphoma. The results suggest that the combination therapy may cause TFR, and biopsy and also continuous imaging observation are important to determine the disease stage. This approach allows clinicians to decide whether to continue the current treatment plan, and alerts them to the occurrence of excessive activation of the immune system.

Epigenetic Modifications of GABAergic Interneurons Contribute to Deficits in Adult Hippocampus Neurogenesis and Depression-Like Behavior in Prenatally Stressed Mice.

BACKGROUND: Prenatal stress (PRS) is considered a risk factor for depressive disorder. Adult hippocampal neurogenesis is believed to play a role in the regulation of affective behaviors. GABAergic interneuron is a key modulator in adult hippocampal neurogenesis. Growing evidence indicates that PRS has adverse effects on adult hippocampal neurogenesis and DNA epigenetic modifications of the GABAergic system. The aim of this study was to investigate whether epigenetic GABAergic dysfunction participates in the negative impact of PRS on adult hippocampal neurogenesis and related emotional behaviors. METHODS: Behavioral tests were used to explore PRS-induced depression-like behaviors of adult female mice. Immunohistochemistry staining, real-time reverse transcription-polymerase chain reaction, western blot, and chromatin immunoprecipitation were employed to detect adult neurogenesis and epigenetic changes of the GABAergic system in the hippocampus of PRS mice. RESULTS: PRS mice developed a depression phenotype accompanied by the inhibited maturation of hippocampal newborn neurons. Compared with control mice, PRS mice showed decreased expression of glutamic acid decarboxylase 67 at the mRNA and protein levels. GABAA receptor agonist phenobarbital could rectify the decrease of 5-bromo-2-deoxyuridine/neuronal nuclei double-positive (BrdU+/NeuN+) cells in PRS mice. PRS mice also showed increased expression of DNA methyltransferase 1 and increased binding of DNA methyltransferase 1 to glutamic acid decarboxylase 67 promoter region. The treatment with DNA methyltransferase 1 inhibitor 5-aza-deoxycytidine restored the decrease of BrdU+/NeuN+ cells and depression-like behaviors in PRS mice via improving GABAergic system. CONCLUSIONS: The present results indicate that epigenetic changes of the GABAergic system are responsible for adult hippocampus neurogenesis and depression-like behaviors in PRS mice.

Postnatal Lipopolysaccharide Exposure Impairs Adult Neurogenesis and Causes Depression-like Behaviors Through Astrocytes Activation Triggering GABAA Receptor Downregulation.

Growing evidence indicates that early-life inflammation has adverse effects on adult hippocampal neurogenesis and GABA system. Based the report that hippocampal GABA system is a key modulator in adult hippocampal neurogenesis, the aim of this study was to investigate whether and how early inflammation affects GABAergic system resulting in the alterations of adult hippocampal neurogenesis and related behaviors. Neonatal mice received a daily subcutaneous injection of lipopolysaccharide (LPS, 50 µg/kg) or saline on postnatal days (PND) 3-5. Behavioral tests were used to explore LPS-induced depression-like behaviors of adult mice. Immunohistochemistry staining and western blot were employed to detect adult neurogenesis, GABAergic system, glia activation and BDNF-TrkB pathway in the hippocampus. LPS-treated mice developed a depression phenotype with the inhibited maturation of hippocampal newborn neurons in adulthood. Compared with controls, LPS mice showed a decreased expression of GABAA receptor (GABAAR) protein. GABAAR agonist phenobarbital could rectify the decrease of BrdU+/NeuN+ cells in LPS mice. Additionally, postnatal LPS treatment resulted in the activation of astrocytes and the increase expression of toll-like receptor 4 (TLR4) in the second postnatal week and the downregulation of BDNF-TrkB pathway in adulthood. The treatment with TLR4 inhibitor TAK-242 restored the decrease of BrdU+/NeuN+ cells and depression-like behaviors in LPS mice via improving GABAAR. The results indicate that postnatal LPS exposure impairs adult hippocampal neurogenesis and causes depression-like behaviors through early astrocytes activation triggering the later GABAAR downregulation.

Involvement of Epigenetic Modifications of GABAergic Interneurons in Basolateral Amygdala in Anxiety-like Phenotype of Prenatally Stressed Mice.

Background: Prenatal stress is considered a risk factor for anxiety disorder. Downregulation in the expression of GABAergic gene, that is, glutamic acid decarboxylase 67, associated with DNA methyltransferase overexpression in GABAergic neurons has been regarded as a characteristic component of anxiety disorder. Prenatal stress has an adverse effect on the development of the basolateral amygdala, which is a key region in anxiety regulation. The aim of this study is to analyze the possibility of epigenetic alterations of GABAergic neurons in the basolateral amygdala participating in prenatal stress-induced anxiety. Methods: Behavioral tests were used to explore the prenatal stress-induced anxiety behaviors of female adult mice. Real-time RT-PCR, western blot, chromatin immunoprecipitation, and electrophysiological analysis were employed to detect epigenetic changes of GABAergic system in the basolateral amygdala. Results: Prenatal stress mice developed an anxiety-like phenotype accompanied by a significant increase of DNA methyltransferase 1 and a reduced expression of glutamic acid decarboxylase 67 in the basolateral amygdala. Prenatal stress mice also showed the increased binding of DNA methyltransferase 1 and methyl CpG binding protein 2 to glutamic acid decarboxylase 67 promoter region. The decrease of glutamic acid decarboxylase 67 transcript was paralleled by an enrichment of 5-methylcytosine in glutamic acid decarboxylase 67 promoter regions. Electrophysiological study revealed the increase of postsynaptic neuronal excitability in the cortical-basolateral amygdala synaptic transmission of prenatal stress mice. 5-Aza-deoxycytidine treatment restored the increased synaptic transmission and anxiety-like behaviors in prenatal stress mice via improving GABAergic system. Conclusion: The above results suggest that DNA epigenetic modifications of GABAergic interneurons in the basolateral amygdala participate in the etiology of anxiety-like phenotype in prenatal stress mice.