Anterior gradient 2 (AGR2): blood-based biomarker elevated in metastatic prostate cancer associated with the neuroendocrine phenotype.

BACKGROUND: Anterior gradient 2 (AGR2) is associated with metastatic progression in prostate cancer cells as well as other normal and malignant tissues. We investigated AGR2 expression in patients with metastatic prostate cancer. METHODS: Blood was collected from 44 patients with metastatic prostate cancer separated as: castration sensitive prostate cancer (CSPC, n = 5); castration resistant prostate cancer (CRPC, n = 36); and neuroendocrine-predominate CRPC defined by PSA ≤ 1 ng/ml in the presence of wide-spread metastatic disease (NE-CRPC, n = 3). AGR2 mRNA levels were measured with RT-PCR in circulating tumor cell (CTC)-enriched peripheral blood. Plasma AGR2 levels were determined via ELISA assay. AGR2 expression was modulated in prostate cancer cell lines using plasmid and viral vectors. RESULTS: AGR2 mRNA levels are elevated in CTCs and strongly correlated with CTC enumeration. Plasma AGR2 levels are elevated in all sub-groups. AGR2 levels vary independently to PSA and change in some patients in response to androgen-directed and other therapies. Plasma AGR2 levels are highest in the NE-CRPC sub-group. A correlation between AGR2, chromagranin A (CGA), and neuron-specific enolase (NSE) expression is demonstrated in prostate cancer cell lines. CONCLUSIONS: We conclude that AGR2 expression is elevated at the mRNA and protein level in patients with metastatic prostate cancer. In particular, we find that AGR2 expression is associated features consistent with neuroendocrine, or anaplastic, prostate cancer, exemplified by an aggressive clinical phenotype without elevation in circulating PSA levels. Further studies are warranted to explore the mechanistic and prognostic implications of AGR2 expression in this patient population.

IFN-beta-regulated genes show abnormal expression in therapy-naïve relapsing-remitting MS mononuclear cells: gene expression analysis employing all reported protein-protein interactions.

The molecular mechanism by which interferon beta (IFN-beta) is effective in treating multiple sclerosis is not well understood. Mononuclear cells from therapy-naïve MS patients, IFN-beta-1b-treated MS patients, and healthy controls were analyzed to examine mRNA changes that characterize both the disease and its treatment. The scientific literature was comprehensively searched for all protein-protein interactions. In MS patients who had never been treated with IFN-beta, statistical analysis revealed coordinate changes in mRNA expression for proteins reported in the literature as "regulated by IFN-beta." As a positive control for this approach, samples from a separate MS patient cohort showed significant change of these same genes during in vivo treatment with IFN-beta-1b.The strength of effect observed for regulation by IFN-beta was greater than for IFN-alpha, IFN-gamma (Th1), or IL-4 (Th2). Of the sets we investigated, the most strongly affected by disease was the subset defined by regulation by both IFN-beta and IFN-alpha. Changes in cells from therapy-naïve MS patients thus anticipated the importance of IFN-beta in therapy. These findings are a significant step towards marrying MS disease etiology and IFN-beta mechanism of action at a molecular level.

mTORC2 contributes to the metabolic reprogramming in EGFR tyrosine-kinase inhibitor resistant cells in non-small cell lung cancer.

Non-small cell lung cancer (NSCLC) patients with activating EGFR mutations are often successfully treated with EGFR tyrosine kinase inhibitor (TKI) such as erlotinib; however, treatment resistance inevitably occurs. Given tumor metabolism of glucose and therapeutic response are intimately linked, we explored the metabolic differences between isogenic erlotinib-sensitive and -resistant NSCLC cell lines. We discovered that the growth of erlotinib-resistant cells is more sensitive to glucose deprivation. Seahorse metabolic assay revealed erlotinib-resistant cells have lower spare respiratory capacity (SRC), an indicator of metabolic flexibility, compared to erlotinib-sensitive cells. Additionally, we found downstream components of mTORC2 signaling to be phosphorylated in erlotinib-resistant cells. Knockdown of an mTORC2 component, Rictor, enhanced the SRC and rescued the growth rate of erlotinib-resistant cells during glucose deprivation. Among NSCLCs with activating EGFR mutations, gene sets involved in glucose metabolism were enriched in patients with high expression of p-NDGR1, a readout of mTORC2 activity. Furthermore, overall survival was negatively correlated with p-NDRG1. Our work uncovers a link between mTORC2 and metabolic reprogramming in EGFR TKI-resistant cells and highlights the significance of mTORC2 in the progression of EGFR-mutated NSCLC.

Naphthenic acids as indicators of crude oil biodegradation in soil, based on semi-quantitative electrospray ionization Fourier transform ion cyclotron resonance mass spectrometry.

Crude oil contaminated soil cores were collected from a basin that contained oily solids left from three decades of oil production. Hydrocarbon biomarker analyses revealed that the soil extracts were moderately biodegraded compared with the non-degraded source oil. The degree of biodegradation also decreased with core depth (7 cm to 1 m). These data were correlated to compositional changes observed in acidic NSO-compounds that were selectively ionized and mass resolved by negative ion electrospray Fourier transform ion cyclotron resonance mass spectrometry (ESI FT-ICR MS). Among the NSO-compounds ionized, the increase in naphthenic acid concentration (e.g., acyclic and alicyclic carboxylic acids) best correlated with the increase in biodegradation (e.g., from non-degraded to moderately degraded) as determined by the hydrocarbon biomarker analyses. The most biodegraded surface extracts (7 cm) exhibited an 80% increase in the abundance of acids relative to the source oil. Use of an internal standard allowed the semi-quantitative determination of the total naphthenic acid concentration, which decreased significantly (P < 0.05) with soil depth. Furthermore, the shift to higher double bond equivalents (DBEs), from acyclic to alicyclic acids, indicated that the increase in acids in the soil extracts was predominantly due to biotic processes. This work demonstrates the potential of ESI FT-ICR MS as a semi-quantitative tool to monitor the production of naphthenic acids during crude oil biotransformation in the environment.

The ubiquitin-conjugating enzyme E2-EPF is overexpressed in primary breast cancer and modulates sensitivity to topoisomerase II inhibition.

We identified the ubiquitin-conjugating enzyme E2-EPF mRNA as differentially expressed in breast tumors relative to normal tissues and performed studies to elucidate its putative role in cancer. We demonstrated that overexpression of E2-EPF protein correlated with estrogen receptor (ER) negativity in breast cancer specimens and that its expression is cell cycle-regulated, suggesting a potential function for E2-EPF in cell cycle progression. However, reduction of E2-EPF protein levels by > 80% using RNAi had no significant effects on the proliferation of HeLa cervical cancer cells or ER(-) MDA-MB-231 or MDA-MB-453 breast cancer cells. Because E2-EPF protein levels were elevated during the G(2)/M phase of the cell cycle and because E2-EPF mRNA in tumor specimens was frequently coexpressed with genes involved in cell cycle control, spindle assembly, and mitotic surveillance, the possibility that E2-EPF might have a function in the cellular response to agents that induce a G(2) checkpoint or an M checkpoint was investigated. E2-EPF knockdown sensitized HeLa cells to the topoisomerase (topo) II inhibitors etoposide and doxorubicin and also increased topo IIalpha protein levels. These data suggest that combined administration of topo II-directed drugs and E2-EPF inhibitors may enhance their clinical effectiveness.