Inactivation of the tumor suppressor p53 by long noncoding RNA RMRP.

p53 inactivation is highly associated with tumorigenesis and drug resistance. Here, we identify a long noncoding RNA, the RNA component of mitochondrial RNA-processing endoribonuclease (RMRP), as an inhibitor of p53. RMRP is overexpressed and associated with an unfavorable prognosis in colorectal cancer. Ectopic RMRP suppresses p53 activity by promoting MDM2-induced p53 ubiquitination and degradation, while depletion of RMRP activates the p53 pathway. RMRP also promotes colorectal cancer growth and proliferation in a p53-dependent fashion in vitro and in vivo. This anti-p53 action of RMRP is executed through an identified partner protein, SNRPA1. RMRP can interact with SNRPA1 and sequester it in the nucleus, consequently blocking its lysosomal proteolysis via chaperone-mediated autophagy. The nuclear SNRPA1 then interacts with p53 and enhances MDM2-induced proteasomal degradation of p53. Remarkably, ablation of SNRPA1 completely abrogates RMRP regulation of p53 and tumor cell growth, indicating that SNRPA1 is indispensable for the anti-p53 function of RMRP. Interestingly and significantly, poly (ADP-ribose) polymerase (PARP) inhibitors induce RMRP expression through the transcription factor C/EBPß, and RMRP confers tumor resistance to PARP inhibition by preventing p53 activation. Altogether, our study demonstrates that RMRP plays an oncogenic role by inactivating p53 via SNRPA1 in colorectal cancer.

Narrative therapy to relieve stigma in oral cancer patients: A randomized controlled trial.

AIMS AND OBJECTIVES: This study aimed to evaluate the efficacy of narrative therapy in relieving stigma in oral cancer patients who underwent major surgical treatment. BACKGROUND: Health-related stigma compromises mental health and life quality in people with physical or mental abnormalities. Narrative therapy has been implemented to overcome stigma among populations in a diversity of disease states. However, the effectiveness of narrative therapy in relieving stigma among patients with oral cancer is not known. DESIGN: This study was a randomized controlled trial, in which 100 oral cancer patients were selected and randomly assigned to the 'narrative therapy' group, who received narrative therapy treatment in addition to standard care, and the 'control' group, who was provided standard care only. METHODS: This research combined measurement of several questionnaires to evaluate stigma. Analysis of variance and paired t tests were employed for data analysis. RESULTS: Findings in this study demonstrated that narrative therapy treatment effectively relieved oral cancer patients' sense of shame, reducing overall stigma and significantly improving self-esteem and social relationships. CONCLUSIONS: Narrative therapy was demonstrated to be a promising therapeutic intervention for stigma relief in oral cancer patients.

Profiling of the germline mutation BRCA1: p.Ile1845fs in a large cohort of Han Chinese breast cancer.

BACKGROUND: Breast cancer is a one of the malignant carcinomas partially caused by genetic risk factors. Germline BRCA1 gene mutations are reportedly associated with breast cancers. Identification of BRCA1 mutations greatly improves the preventive strategies and management of breast cancer. The aim of our study was to investigate the frequency of the deleterious BRCA1: p.Ile1845fs variant in breast carcinomas, as well as the correlation between p.Ile1845fs variant with clinicopathological parameters and clinical outcomes. RESULTS: A total of 23,481 clinically high-risk patients with breast cancer and 6489 healthy controls were recruited for p.Ile1845fs variant sequencing (either sanger or next generation sequencing). We identified 94 breast cancer patients (0.40%, 94/23481) as well as 11 healthy controls (0.17%, 11/6489) carried p.Ile1845fs variant. BRCA1: p.Ile1845fs variant showed a higher frequency in patients with TNBC molecular typing (20.21%, 19/94) and family history (37.23%, 35/94) compared with non-carriers (P = 3.62E-6 and 0.034, respectively). According to our data, we advanced the frequency of p.Ile1845fs variant and we confirmed that BRCA1: p.Ile1845fs variant was associated with increased risk of breast cancer (OR = 2.36, 95%CI = 1.26-4.89, P = 0.004). CONCLUSIONS: BRCA1: p.Ile1845fs variant was a frequently pathogenic mutation in breast cancer in Han Chinese women and our data may be helpful for diagnosis and therapy of breast cancer.

Identification of a specific peptide binding to colon cancer cells from a phage-displayed peptide library.

BACKGROUND: New molecular probes are essential for early colon cancer diagnosis. A phage-display screening was performed to select novel binding peptides for early colon cancer imaging detection. METHODS: A human colon cancer cell line (COLO320HSR) and a normal human intestinal epithelial cell line (NCM460) were used for subtractive screening with a phage peptide library. The positive peptides were identified, and their binding capacities were confirmed by confocal immunofluorescence both in human colon cancer cells and in biopsy specimens. The sequences were further analysed for homology and the existing mimotopes by the BLAST algorithm and the MimoDB database. RESULTS: A peptide termed as CBP-DWS, which was demonstrated to be capable of binding to a panel of human colon cancer cell lines and tissues, was identified; it had virtually no binding to normal human intestinal epithelial cell line NCM460 and normal surrounding colon tissues. Bioinformatics analyses suggest that CBP-DWS targets human Glypican-3, which may be involved in important cellular functions in multiple cancer types. CONCLUSIONS: These studies suggest that the selected peptide CBP-DWS may be a candidate to serve as a novel probe for colon cancer imaging.

DNA methylation profiling in the thalamus and hippocampus of postnatal malnourished mice, including effects related to long-term potentiation.

BACKGROUND: DNA methylation has been viewed as the most highly characterized epigenetic mark for genome regulation and development. Postnatal brains appear to exhibit stimulus-induced methylation changes because of factors such as environment, lifestyle, and diet (nutrition). The purpose of this study was to examine how extensively the brain DNA methylome is regulated by nutrition in early life. RESULTS: By quantifying the total amount of 5-methylcytosine (5mC) in the thalamus and the hippocampus of postnatal malnourished mice and normal mice, we found the two regions showed differences in global DNA methylation status. The methylation level in the thalamus was much higher than that in the hippocampus. Then, we used a next-generation sequencing (NGS)-based method (MSCC) to detect the whole genome methylation of the two regions in malnourished mice and normal mice. Notably, we found that in the thalamus, 500 discriminable variations existed and that approximately 60% were related to neuronal development or psychiatric diseases. Pathway analyses of the corresponding genes highlighted changes for 9 genes related to long-term potentiation (5.3-fold enrichment, P = 0.033). CONCLUSIONS: Our findings may help to indicate the genome-wide DNA methylation status of different brain regions and the effects of malnutrition on brain DNA methylation. The results also indicate that postnatal malnutrition may increase the risk of psychiatric disorders.

Alteration in methylation level at 11ß-hydroxysteroid dehydrogenase type 2 gene promoter in infants born to preeclamptic women.

BACKGROUND: Preeclampsia reduces placental expression and activity of 11ß-hydroxysteroid dehydrogenase type 2 (HSD11B2), leading to an increase in fetal glucocordicoids. The latter has been proposed to be associated with low birth weight and high risk of metabolic diseases in later life of the offspring. This investigation aims to delineate the alteration in methylation levels at CpG sites of HSD11B2 promoter. RESULTS: Methylation levels of HSD9-2, HSD9-3, HSD23-2 and HSD23-3 and the mean methylation level were significantly lower in preeclampsia than in normal pregnancy (P = 0.002, 0.031, 0.047 and 0.001, respectively and P < 0.001 in mean). The mean methylation level was significantly correlated with preeclampsia after the adjustment of birth weight, maternal age, gestational age at delivery and fetal gender (r = 0.325, P < 0.001). CONCLUSIONS: Preeclampsia reduced methylation level at fetal HSD11B2 promoter. A positive correlation existed between HSD11B2 promoter methylation and preeclampsia. Our findings suggest that the methyaltion status of HSD11B2 promoter is a potentially accessible biomarker for preeclampsia. However, further studies are required to address the mechanisms of thehypomethylation at HSD11B2 promoter and the significance of the hypomethylation in the development of metabolic diseases of the fetals born to preeclamptic women.

Role of gut microbiota in the pathogenesis of castration-resistant prostate cancer: a comprehensive study using sequencing and animal models.

CRPC remains a significant challenge in prostate cancer research. We aimed to elucidate the role of gut microbiota and its specific mechanisms in CRPC using a multidisciplinary approach. We analyzed 16S rRNA sequencing data from mouse fecal samples, revealing substantial differences in gut microbiota composition between CRPC and castration-sensitive prostate cancer mice, particularly in Firmicutes and Bacteroidetes. Functional analysis suggested different bacteria may influence CRPC via the α-linolenic acid metabolism pathway. In vivo, experiments utilizing mouse models and fecal microbiota transplantation (FMT) demonstrated that FMT from healthy control mice could decelerate tumor growth in CRPC mice, reduce TNF-α levels, and inhibit the activation of the TLR4/MyD88/NF-κB signaling pathway. Transcriptome sequencing identified crucial genes and pathways, with rescue experiments confirming the gut microbiota's role in modulating CRPC progression through the TLR4/MyD88/NF-κB pathway. The activation of this pathway by TNF-α has been corroborated by in vitro cell experiments, indicating its role in promoting prostate cancer cell proliferation, migration, and invasion while inhibiting apoptosis. Gut microbiota dysbiosis may promote CRPC development through TNF-α activation of the TLR4/MyD88/NF-κB signaling pathway, potentially linked to α-linolenic acid metabolism.

Topological reorganization and functional alteration of distinct genomic components in gallbladder cancer.

Altered three-dimensional architecture of chromatin influences various genomic regulators and subsequent gene expression in human cancer. However, knowledge of the topological rearrangement of genomic hierarchical layers in cancer is largely limited. Here, by taking advantage of in situ Hi-C, RNA-sequencing, and chromatin immunoprecipitation sequencing (ChIP-seq), we investigated structural reorganization and functional changes in chromosomal compartments, topologically associated domains (TADs), and CCCTC binding factor (CTCF)-mediated loops in gallbladder cancer (GBC) tissues and cell lines. We observed that the chromosomal compartment A/B switch was correlated with CTCF binding levels and gene expression changes. Increased inter-TAD interactions with weaker TAD boundaries were identified in cancer cell lines relative to normal controls. Furthermore, the chromatin short loops and cancer unique loops associated with chromatin remodeling and epithelial-mesenchymal transition activation were enriched in cancer compared with their control counterparts. Cancer-specific enhancer-promoter loops, which contain multiple transcription factor binding motifs, acted as a central element to regulate aberrant gene expression. Depletion of individual enhancers in each loop anchor that connects with promoters led to the inhibition of their corresponding gene expressions. Collectively, our data offer the landscape of hierarchical layers of cancer genome and functional alterations that contribute to the development of GBC.

A nomogram and risk classification model predicts prognosis in Chinese esophageal squamous cell carcinoma patients.

Background: A nomogram model based on gene mutations for predicting the prognosis of patients with resected esophageal squamous cell carcinoma (ESCC) has not been established. We sought to develop a risk classification system. Methods: In total, 312 patients with complete clinical and genome mutation landscapes in our previous study were chosen for the present study. Public International Cancer Genome Consortium (ICGC) and The Cancer Genome Atlas (TCGA) data of ESCC were also used as an external validation set. Results: Using the least absolute shrinkage and selection operator (LASSO) method, we successfully built a 9-gene mutation-based prediction model for overall survival (OS) and a 21-gene mutation model for progression-free survival (PFS). High- and low-risk groups were stratified using the gene mutation-based classifier. Patients in the high-risk group witnessed poorer 3- and 5-year OS and PFS in both the training and validation sets (P<0.01). Moreover, calibration curves and decision curve analyses (DCAs) were used to confirm the independence and potential translational value of this predictive model. In the nomogram analysis, the risk classification model was shown to be a reliable prognostic tool. All results showed better consistency in the external ICGC and TCGA validation sets. Conclusions: We developed and validated a predictive risk model for ESCC. This practical prognostic model may help doctors make different follow-up decisions in the clinic.

Integrated DNA and RNA sequencing reveals early drivers involved in metastasis of gastric cancer.

Gastric cancer (GC) is the second cause of cancer-related death and metastasis is an important cause of death. Considering difficulties in searching for metastatic driver mutations, we tried a novel strategy here. We conducted an integrative genomic analysis on GC and identified early drivers lead to metastasis. Whole-exome sequencing (WES), transcriptomes sequencing and targeted-exome sequencing (TES) were performed on tumors and matched normal tissues from 432 Chinese GC patients, especially the comparative analysis between higher metastatic-potential (HMP) group with T1 stage and lymph-node metastasis, and lower metastatic-potential (LMP) group without lymph-nodes or distant metastasis. HMP group presented higher mutation load and heterogeneity, enrichment in immunosuppressive signaling, more immune cell infiltration than LMP group. An integrated mRNA-lncRNA signature based on differentially expressed genes was constructed and its prognostic value was better than traditional TNM stage. We identified 176 candidate prometastatic mutations by WES and selected 8 genes for following TES. Mutated TP53 and MADCAM1 were significantly associated with poor metastasis-free survival. We further demonstrated that mutated MADCAM1 could not only directly promote cancer cells migration, but also could trigger tumor metastasis by establishing immunosuppressive microenvironment, including promoting PD-L1-mediated immune escape and reprogramming tumor-associated macrophages by regulating CCL2 through Akt/mTOR axis. In conclusion, GCs with different metastatic-potential are distinguishable at the genetic level and we revealed a number of potential metastatic driver mutations. Driver mutations in early-onset metastatic GC could promote metastasis by establishing an immunosuppressive microenvironment. This study provided possibility for future target therapy of GC.

Diethyldithiocarbamate-copper complex (CuET) inhibits colorectal cancer progression via miR-16-5p and 15b-5p/ALDH1A3/PKM2 axis-mediated aerobic glycolysis pathway.

Exploring novel anticancer drugs to optimize the efficacy may provide a benefit for the treatment of colorectal cancer (CRC). Disulfiram (DSF), as an antialcoholism drug, is metabolized into diethyldithiocarbamate-copper complex (CuET) in vivo, which has been reported to exert the anticancer effects on various tumors in preclinical studies. However, little is known about whether CuET plays an anti-cancer role in CRC. In this study, we found that CuET had a marked effect on suppressing CRC progression both in vitro and in vivo by reducing glucose metabolism. Mechanistically, using RNA-seq analysis, we identified ALDH1A3 as a target gene of CuET, which promoted cell viability and the capacity of clonal formation and inhibited apoptosis in CRC cells. MicroRNA (miR)-16-5p and 15b-5p were shown to synergistically regulate ALDH1A3, which was negatively correlated with both of them and inversely correlated with the survival of CRC patients. Notably, using co-immunoprecipitation followed with mass spectrometry assays, we identified PKM2 as a direct downstream effector of ALDH1A3 that stabilized PKM2 by reducing ubiquitination. Taken together, we disclose that CuET treatment plays an active role in inhibiting CRC progression via miR-16-5p and 15b-5p/ALDH1A3/PKM2 axis-mediated aerobic glycolysis pathway.

Prevalence and reclassification of BRCA1 and BRCA2 variants in a large, unselected Chinese Han breast cancer cohort.

Accurate interpretation of BRCA1/2 variants is critical for risk assessment and precise treatment of breast cancer (BC). Hence, the establishment of an ethnicity-based BRCA1/2 variant database of the Chinese population is of paramount importance. In this study, panel-based sequencing served to detect BRCA1/2 variants in a Chinese multicenter cohort of 21,216 BC patients and 6434 healthy controls. Overall, the percentage of subjects carrying pathogenic variants was 5.5% (1174/21,216) in BC patients and 1.1% (71/6434) in healthy controls. We identified 13 pathogenic variants as high-frequency variants that had a frequency of > 0.45‰ in BC patients (≥ 10 in 21,216 patients), none of which has been reported in Caucasians. Pathogenic BRCA1/2 variants correlated with younger onset age, higher frequencies of bilateral and triple-negative BC (TNBC), invasive carcinomas, high histological grades, and family history of BC and other cancers. Furthermore, the percentage of the subjects carrying VUS was 9.8% (2071/21,216) in BC patients and 6.9% (446/6434) in healthy controls. Based on our cohort study, we unambiguously reclassified 7 out of the 858 VUS resulting in lower VUS ratio in patients (from 9.8 to 7.9%) as well as in healthy control (from 6.9 to 5.3%). We also re-analyzed the 100 variants in 13 exons (2-5 and 15-23) of the BRCA1 genes using a functional assay (saturation genome editing; SGE). 55 of the 59 VUS had distinct status in the SGE study: 24 (43.6%) were pathogenic, and 31 (56.4%) were benign. Strong ethnicity-specific occurrences of pathogenic BRCA1/2 variants were identified in the Chinese population. Hence, the findings provide rationale and sequencing information for the implementation of BRCA1/2 variants tailored to the Chinese population into clinical risk assessment.

The frequency of PTEN germline mutations in Chinese breast cancer patients: The PTEN gene may not be closely associated with breast cancer in the Chinese population.

BACKGROUND: PTEN is a tumour suppressor gene that has been proven to be related to breast cancer incidence and tumour progression. The aim of this study was to investigate the frequency of PTEN mutations in breast carcinomas in China and the relationships of PTEN mutations with clinicopathological parameters and clinical outcomes. MATERIAL AND METHODS: Trimmomatic, Burrows-Wheeler Aligner (BWA), ANNOVAR, SAMtools, and Sanger sequencing were used to analyse PTEN mutations and identify variants in Chinese breast cancer. The frequency of PTEN mutations and the relationships of PTEN mutations with clinicopathological parameters and clinical outcomes were evaluated in breast carcinomas in China. RESULTS: The rate of PTEN germline mutation was 0.23% (n = 9) among 3955 unselected primary breast cancer patients. Of these 9 patients, 2 carried pathogenic mutations, and both were identified as having infiltrative carcinoma. One patient had a family history. The other 7 patients carried only PTEN germline variants that were not identified as pathogenic mutations. CONCLUSIONS: We studied the frequency of PTEN germline mutations in a sequential cohort of Chinese breast carcinoma patients. Based on these data, we hypothesize that the germline mutation of the PTEN gene is not closely related to the occurrence of breast cancer in the Chinese population. In the clinic, the PTEN germline mutation cannot be used as the basis for the detection of breast cancer.

Dichloroacetate restores colorectal cancer chemosensitivity through the p53/miR-149-3p/PDK2-mediated glucose metabolic pathway.

The development of chemoresistance remains a major challenge that accounts for colorectal cancer (CRC) lethality. Dichloroacetate (DCA) was originally used as a metabolic regulator in the treatment of metabolic diseases; here, DCA was assayed to identify the mechanisms underlying the chemoresistance of CRC. We found that DCA markedly enhanced chemosensitivity of CRC cells to fluorouracil (5-FU), and reduced the colony formation due to high levels of apoptosis. Using the microarray assay, we noted that miR-149-3p was involved in the chemoresistance of CRC, which was modulated by wild-type p53 after DCA treatment. In addition, PDK2 was identified as a direct target of miR-149-3p. Mechanistic analyses showed that overexpression of miR-149-3p enhanced 5-FU-induced apoptosis and reduced glucose metabolism, similar to the effects of PDK2 knockdown. In addition, overexpression of PDK2 partially reversed the inhibitory effect of miR-149-3p on glucose metabolism. Finally, both DCA treatment and miR-149-3p overexpression in 5-FU-resistant CRC cells were found to markedly sensitize the chemotherapeutic effect of 5-FU in vivo, and this effect was also validated in a small retrospective cohort of CRC patients. Taken together, we determined that the p53/miR-149-3p/PDK2 signaling pathway can potentially be targeted with DCA treatment to overcome chemoresistant CRC.

Identification of the Germline Mutation Profile in Esophageal Squamous Cell Carcinoma by Whole Exome Sequencing.

Background: Esophageal squamous cell carcinoma (ESCC) is associated with poor prognosis and occurs with high frequency in China. The germline mutation profile in ESCC remains unclear, and therefore, the discovery of oncogenic alterations in ESCC is urgently needed. This study investigates the germline mutation profile and reveals associations among genotype-environment interactions in ESCC. Methods: Whole exome sequencing and follow-up analysis were performed in 77 matched tumor-normal ESCC specimens to examine the germline profiles. Additionally, associations among genotype-environment interactions were investigated. Results: We identified 84 pathogenic/likely pathogenic mutations and 51 rare variants of uncertain significance (VUS). Twenty VUS with InterVar evidence of a score of moderate pathogenicity (PM) 2/PM2+ supporting pathogenicity (PP) 1 were found to have pathogenic significance. CYP21A2 was the most frequently mutated gene, and the p.Gln319* variant was identified in 6.5% (5/77) of patients. The TP53 p.V197E mutation, located within the DNA binding domain, was found in 1.3% (1/77) of patients. In total, the 11.7% (9/77) of individuals with homologous recombination (HR) VUS were more likely to have well-differentiated tumors than those without (P = 0.003). The degree of lymph node metastasis was correlated with homologous recombination deficiency (HRD) and VUS group (P < 0.05). Moreover, the 10.4% (8/77) of individuals with mismatch repair (MMR) VUS had a higher tumor mutational burden (TMB), although the correlation was not significant. Conclusions: Our study identified the germline mutation profiles in ESCC, providing novel insights into the molecular pathogenesis of this disease. Our results may also serve as a useful resource for the exploration of the underlying mechanism of ESCC and may provide information for the prevention, diagnosis and risk management of ESCC.

Loss of hypermethylated in cancer 1 (HIC1) promotes lung cancer progression.

Lung cancer is a leading cause of cancer mortality worldwide with dramatically increasing incidence in recent years. However, the mechanism underlying its progression remains unclear. The aim of this study was to identify the role of hypermethylated in cancer 1 (HIC1) in lung cancer development. Here we found that HIC1 expression was markedly decreased in lung cancer compared with the corresponding adjacent non-cancerous tissues. Meanwhile, overall survival (OS) of lung cancer patients was negatively related with HIC1 expression using TCGA and GEO datasets. Loss of HIC1 expression promoted cell proliferation and migration in vitro. Notable, HIC1 knock-out in KrasG12D/+(Lox-Stop-Lox)/sgHIC1 mice had remarkable effect on tumorigenesis compared with KrasG12D/+(Lox-Stop-Lox)/sgTd control mice. Mechanistic analyses showed that ADAMTS9, DCDC2, FAM46C, ZNF883, F2R, MSH6 and PAX2 genes may be potential downstream targets; DNA repair pathway and transcriptional regulation by TP53 pathway were involved. Finally, this study reveals that HIC1 is associated with lung cancer progression and may provide an effective strategy for its treatment.

Enhanced PAPSS2/VCAN sulfation axis is essential for Snail-mediated breast cancer cell migration and metastasis.

The zinc finger protein Snail is a master regulator of epithelial-mesenchymal transition (EMT) and a strong inducer of tumor metastasis, yet the signal cascades triggered by Snail have not been completely revealed. Here, we report the discovery of the sulfation program that can be induced by Snail in breast cancer cells, and which plays an essential role in cell migration and metastasis. Specifically, Snail induces the expression of PAPSS2, a gene that encodes a rate-limiting enzyme in sulfation pathway, and VCAN, a gene that encodes the chondroitin sulfate proteoglycan Versican in multiple breast cancer cells. Depletion of PAPSS2 in MCF7 and MDA-MB-231 cells results in reduced cell migration, while overexpression of PAPSS2 promotes cell migration. Moreover, MDA-MB-231-shPAPSS2 cells display a significantly lower rate of lung metastasis and lower number of micrometastatic nodules in nude mice, and conversely, MDA-MB-231-PAPSS2 cells increase lung metastasis. Similarly, depletion of VCAN dampens the cell migration activity induced by Snail or PAPSS2 in MCF 10A cells. Moreover, PAPSS inhibitor sodium chlorate effectively decreases cell migration induced by Snail and PAPSS2. More importantly, the expression of Snail, PAPSS2, and VCAN is positively correlated in breast cancer tissues. Together, these findings are important for understanding the genetic programs that control tumor metastasis and may identify previously undetected therapeutic targets to treat metastatic disease.

Targeting CXCR7 improves the efficacy of breast cancer patients with tamoxifen therapy.

Chemokine (C-X-C motif) receptor 7 (CXCR7) has been established to be involved in breast cancer (BCa) progression. However, the role of CXCR7 in different subtype of BCa still remains unclear. Here we note that CXCR7 expression is significantly amplified in Luminal type BCa tissues as compared with Her2 and TNBC types through data-mining in TCGA datasets, and its protein level positively correlates with ERα expression by staining of human BCa tissue. Interestingly, alteration of CXCR7 expression in Luminal type BCa cells is able to modulate the expression of ERα through ubiquitination at post-translational level. Additionally, overexpression of CXCR7 in these cells greatly induces 4-OHT insensitivity in vitro and is associated with earlier recurrence in patients with tamoxifen therapy. Notably, silencing ERα expression potentially rescues the sensitivity of the above cells to 4-OHT, suggesting that elevated level of ERα is responsible for CXCR7-induced 4-OHT insensitivity in Luminal type BCa. Finally, mechanistic analyses show that the reduced BRCA1 (ubiquitin E3 ligase) and elevated OTUB1 (deubiquitinase) expression, which are regulated by CXCR7/ERK1/2 signaling pathway, are responsible for stabilizing ERα protein. In conclusion, our results suggest that targeting CXCR7 may serve as a potential therapeutic strategy for improving the efficacy of BCa patients with tamoxifen therapy.

Alteration in methylation level at differential methylated regions of MEST and DLK1 in fetus of preeclampsia.

OBJECTIVES: Offspring born to preeclamptic women are at high risk for metabolic diseases in later life, but the mechanisms are not known. The purposes of the current investigation were to clarify the changes in DNA methylation at MEST and DLK1 DMRs in fetus of preeclampsia and to explore the possible mechanisms behind the high risk of adult diseases in the offspring of preeclampsia. METHODS: Fetal lymphocytes were isolated from umbilical cord blood of 78 women with preeclampsia and 95 women with normal pregnancy. Genomic DNA was extracted and then DNA methylation levels of MEST and DLK1 DMRs were determined by MassARRAY quantitative methylation analysis. RESULTS: The methylation levels were detected in 20 CpG sites of MEST DMR and 16 sites of DLK1 DMR. Methylation changes were significantly different at CPG1, 3, 4, 7.8, 15, 18.19, and 20 of MEST between preeclampsia and normal pregnancy (P = 0.014, 0.001, <0.001, <0.001, = 0.001,  = 0.005, and = 0.003, respectively). Significant differences were also observed at CPG 3 and 9 of DLK1 (P = 0.002 and 0.027, respectively). However, overall methylation at these DMRs were not affected. CONCLUSION: We conclude methylation changes at some CpG sites of MEST and DLK DMRs in preeclamptic group. This may be among the mechanisms behind the high risk of adult diseases in the later life of offspring born to preeclamptic pregnancies. ABBREVIATIONS: DMR: Differentially Methylated Region; MEST: Mesoderm Specific Transcript.

Genome-wide DNA methylation profiling in infants born to gestational diabetes mellitus.

BACKGROUND: Offspring exposed to gestational diabetes mellitus (GDM) are at a high risk for metabolic diseases. The mechanisms behind the association between offspring exposed to GDM in utero and an increased risk of health consequences later in life remain unclear. The aim of this study was to clarify the changes in methylation levels in the foetuses of women with GDM and to explore the possible mechanisms linking maternal GDM with a high risk of metabolic diseases in offspring later in life. METHODS: A genome-wide comparative methylome analysis on the umbilical cord blood of infants born to 30 women with GDM and 33 women with normal pregnancy was performed using Infinium HumanMethylation 450 BeadChip assays. A quantitative methylation analysis of 18 CpG dinucleotides was verified in the validation umbilical cord blood samples from 102 newborns exposed to GDM and 103 newborns who experienced normal pregnancy by MassARRAY EpiTYPER. RESULTS: A total of 4485 differentially methylated sites (DMSs), including 2150 hypermethylated sites and 2335 hypomethylated sites, with a mean ß-value difference of >0.05, were identified by the 450k array. Good agreement was observed between the massarray validation data and the 450k array data (R2 > 0.99; P < 0.0001). Thirty-seven CpGs (representing 20 genes) with a ß-value difference of > 0.15 between the GDM and healthy groups were identified and showed potential as clinical biomarkers for GDM. "hsa04940: Type I diabetes mellitus" was the most significant Kyoto Encyclopedia of Genes and Genomes (KEGG) pathway, with a P-value = 3.20E-07 and 1.36E-02 in the hypermethylated and hypomethylated genepathway enrichment analyses, respectively. In the Gene Ontology (GO) pathway analyses, immune MHC (major histocompatibility complex)-related pathways and neuron development-related pathways were significantly enriched. CONCLUSIONS: Our results suggest that GDM has epigenetic effects on genes that are preferentially involved in the Type I diabetes mellitus pathway, immune MHC-related pathways and neuron development-related pathways, with consequences on fetal growth and development, and provide supportive evidence that DNA methylation is involved in fetal metabolic programming.