High Oestrogen receptor alpha expression correlates with adverse prognosis and promotes metastasis in colorectal cancer.

In normal colon tissue, oestrogen receptor alpha (ERα) is expressed at low levels, while oestrogen receptor beta (ERß) is considered the dominant subtype. However, in colon carcinomas, the ERα/ß ratio is often increased, an observation that prompted us to further investigate ERα's role in colorectal cancer (CRC). Here, we assessed ERα nuclear expression in 351 CRC patients. Among them, 119 exhibited positive ERα nuclear expression, which was significantly higher in cancer tissues than in matched normal tissues. Importantly, patients with positive nuclear ERα expression had a poor prognosis. Furthermore, positive ERα expression correlated with increased levels of the G-protein coupled cysteinyl leukotriene receptor 1 (CysLT1R) and nuclear ß-catenin, both known tumour promoters. In mouse models, ERα expression was decreased in Cysltr1-/- CAC (colitis-associated colon cancer) mice but increased in ApcMin/+ mice with wild-type Cysltr1. In cell experiments, an ERα-specific agonist (PPT) increased cell survival via WNT/ß-catenin signalling. ERα activation also promoted metastasis in a zebrafish xenograft model by affecting the tight junction proteins ZO-1 and Occludin. Pharmacological blockade or siRNA silencing of ERα limited cell survival and metastasis while restoring tight junction protein expression. In conclusion, these findings highlight the potential of ERα as a prognostic marker for CRC and its role in metastasis.

Deep sequencing reveals recurrent somatic mutations and distinct molecular subgroups in gastric cancer in Mizo population, North East India.

In India, Mizoram has the highest incidence of gastric cancer (GC) which might be associated with environmental factors such as diet, Helicobacter pylori (H.pylori) and Epstein-Barr virus (EBV) infections, and somatic genomic alterations. We performed PCR cum sequencing and fragment analysis for detection of H. pylori/EBV infection and microsatellite Instability (MSI) in GC patients (N = 68). Somatic mutations were identified by targeted and exome sequencing. We found 87% of GC patients infected with H. pylori and or EBV. Pathogenic infections were mostly mutually exclusive with only 16% of coinfection. TP53, MUC6, and ARID1A were significantly mutated. Two molecular subgroups with distinctive mutational profiles were identified: (1) patients harboring mutations in TP53 and (2) patients harboring mutations in RTK/RAS/PI3-K signaling pathway and chromatin-remodeling genes. Therefore, EBV and H. pylori infections and somatic mutations in the genes involved in RTK/RAS/PI3K signaling pathway, chromatin-remodeling, and TP53 might drive GC development and progression in Mizo patients.

LGR5 Expression Predicting Poor Prognosis Is Negatively Correlated with WNT5A in Colon Cancer.

WNT/ß-catenin signaling is essential for colon cancer development and progression. WNT5A (ligand of non-canonical WNT signaling) and its mimicking peptide Foxy5 impair ß-catenin signaling in colon cancer cells via unknown mechanisms. Therefore, we investigated whether and how WNT5A signaling affects two promoters of ß-catenin signaling: the LGR5 receptor and its ligand RSPO3, as well as ß-catenin activity and its target gene VEGFA. Protein and gene expression in colon cancer cohorts were analyzed by immunohistochemistry and qRT-PCR, respectively. Three colon cancer cell lines were used for in vitro and one cell line for in vivo experiments and results were analyzed by Western blotting, RT-PCR, clonogenic and sphere formation assays, immunofluorescence, and immunohistochemistry. Expression of WNT5A (a tumor suppressor) negatively correlated with that of LGR5/RSPO3 (tumor promoters) in colon cancer cohorts. Experimentally, WNT5A signaling suppressed ß-catenin activity, LGR5, RSPO3, and VEGFA expression, and colony and spheroid formations. Since ß-catenin signaling promotes colon cancer stemness, we explored how WNT5A expression is related to that of the cancer stem cell marker DCLK1. DCLK1 expression was negatively correlated with WNT5A expression in colon cancer cohorts and was experimentally reduced by WNT5A signaling. Thus, WNT5A and Foxy5 decrease LGR5/RSPO3 expression and ß-catenin activity. This inhibits stemness and VEGFA expression, suggesting novel treatment strategies for the drug candidate Foxy5 in the handling of colon cancer patients.

The tumor promoter cysteinyl leukotriene receptor 1 regulates PD-L1 expression in colon cancer cells via the Wnt/ß-catenin signaling axis.

Immunotherapy targeting programmed death-ligand 1 (PD-L1) or PD-1 in solid tumors has been shown to be clinically beneficial. However, in colorectal cancer (CRC), only a subset of patients benefit from PD-1/PD-L1 treatment. Previously, we showed that high cysteinyl leukotriene receptor 1 (CysLT1R) levels are associated with poor prognosis in CRC patients. Recently, we have revealed the role of the tumor promoter CysLT1R in drug resistance and stemness in colon cancer (CC) cells. Here, we show the role of the CysLT1R/Wnt/ß-catenin signaling axis in the regulation of PD-L1 using both in vitro and in vivo preclinical model systems. Interestingly, we found that both endogenous and IFNγ-induced PD-L1 expression in CC cells is mediated through upregulation of CysLT1R, which enhances Wnt/ß-catenin signaling. Therapeutic targeting of CysLT1R with its antagonist montelukast (Mo), as well as CRISPR/Cas9-mediated or doxycycline-inducible functional absence of CysLT1R, negatively regulated PD-L1 expression in CC cells. Interestingly, an anti-PD-L1 neutralizing antibody exhibited stronger effects together with the CysLT1R antagonist in cells (Apcmut or CTNNB1mut) with either endogenous or IFNγ-induced PD-L1 expression. Additionally, mice treated with Mo showed depletion of PD-L1 mRNA and protein. Moreover, in CC cells with combined treatment of a Wnt inhibitor and an anti-PD-L1 antibody was effective only in ß-catenin-dependent (APCmut) context. Finally, analysis of public dataset showed positive correlations between the PD-L1 and CysLT1R mRNA levels. These results elucidate a previously underappreciated CysLT1R/Wnt/ß-catenin signaling pathway in the context of PD-L1 inhibition in CC, which might be considered for improving the efficacy of anti-PD-L1 therapy in CC patients. Video Abstract.

DNA Methylation and Gene Expression of the Cysteinyl Leukotriene Receptors as a Prognostic and Metastatic Factor for Colorectal Cancer Patients.

Colorectal cancer (CRC), one of the leading causes of cancer-related deaths in the western world, is the third most common cancer for both men and women. As a heterogeneous disease, colon cancer (CC) is caused by both genetic and epigenetic changes. The prognosis for CRC is affected by a variety of features, including late diagnosis, lymph node and distant metastasis. The cysteinyl leukotrienes (CysLT), as leukotriene D4 and C4 (LTD4 and LTC4), are synthesized from arachidonic acid via the 5-lipoxygenase pathway, and play an important role in several types of diseases such as inflammation and cancer. Their effects are mediated via the two main G-protein-coupled receptors, CysLT1R and CysLT2R. Multiple studies from our group observed a significant increase in CysLT1R expression in the poor prognosis group, whereas CysLT2R expression was higher in the good prognosis group of CRC patients. Here, we systematically explored and established the role of the CysLTRs, cysteinyl leukotriene receptor 1(CYSLTR1) and cysteinyl leukotriene receptor 2 (CYSLTR2) gene expression and methylation in the progression and metastasis of CRC using three unique in silico cohorts and one clinical CRC cohort. Primary tumor tissues showed significant CYSLTR1 upregulation compared with matched normal tissues, whereas it was the opposite for the CYSLTR2. Univariate Cox proportional-hazards (CoxPH) analysis yielded a high expression of CYSLTR1 and accurately predicted high-risk patients in terms of overall survival (OS; hazard ratio (HR) = 1.87, p = 0.03) and disease-free survival [DFS] Hazard ratio [HR] = 1.54, p = 0.05). Hypomethylation of the CYSLTR1 gene and hypermethylation of the CYSLTR2 gene were found in CRC patients. The M values of the CpG probes for CYSLTR1 are significantly lower in primary tumor and metastasis samples than in matched normal samples, but those for CYSLTR2 are significantly higher. The differentially upregulated genes between tumor and metastatic samples were uniformly expressed in the high-CYSLTR1 group. Two epithelial-mesenchymal transition (EMT) markers, E-cadherin (CDH1) and vimentin (VIM) were significantly downregulated and upregulated in the high-CYSLTR1 group, respectively, but the result was opposite to that of CYSLTR2 expression in CRC. CDH1 expression was high in patients with less methylated CYSLTR1 but low in those with more methylated CYSLTR2. The EMT-associated observations were also validated in CC SW620 cell-derived colonospheres, which showed decreased E-cadherin expression in the LTD4 stimulated cells, but not in the CysLT1R knockdown SW620 cells. The methylation profiles of the CpG probes for CysLTRs significantly predicted lymph node (area under the curve [AUC] = 0.76, p < 0.0001) and distant (AUC = 0.83, p < 0.0001) metastasis. Intriguingly, the CpG probes cg26848126 (HR = 1.51, p = 0.03) for CYSLTR1, and cg16299590 (HR = 2.14, p = 0.03) for CYSLTR2 significantly predicted poor prognosis in terms of OS, whereas the CpG probe cg16886259 for CYSLTR2 significantly predicts a poor prognosis group in terms of DFS (HR = 2.88, p = 0.03). The CYSLTR1 and CYSLTR2 gene expression and methylation results were successfully validated in a CC patient cohort. In this study, we have demonstrated that CysLTRs' methylation and gene expression profile are associated with the progression, prognosis, and metastasis of CRC, which might be used for the assessment of high-risk CRC patients after validating the result in a larger CRC cohort.

Molecular typing of dengue virus in Mizoram, Northeast India.

INTRODUCTION: Dengue is an emerging vector-borne public health threat and characterization at the molecular level is important for proper management of the disease. The aim of the study is to examine the diversity of the dengue viral serotypes from a hilly mountainous region of Northeast India. METHODOLOGY: Thirty-six blood samples that were positive for dengue virus IgM antibodies identified by the enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay (ELISA) method were collected and quantified for the IL6 gene expression by using reverse transcriptase polymerase chain reaction (RT-PCR). RESULTS: All the patients had dengue hemorrhagic fever (DHF); 12 samples had a monotypic infection and 14 samples had dual infection with various dengue virus (DENV) serotypes; one sample had triple infection with DENV-1, DENV-2, and DENV-3. CONCLUSIONS: This study identified DENV-1 as the major serotype in the state of Mizoram and it is the first report on the molecular typing of the dengue virus from the hilly mountainous state located in the Indo-Burma region bordering Myanmar and Bangladesh.

Combined Estrogen Alpha and Beta Receptor Expression Has a Prognostic Significance for Colorectal Cancer Patients.

We reported that high estrogen receptor beta (ERß) expression is independently associated with better prognosis in female colorectal cancer (CRC) patients. However, estrogen receptor alpha (ERα) is expressed at very low levels in normal colon mucosa, and its prognostic role in CRC has not been explored. Herein, we investigated the combined role of ERα and ERß expression in the prognosis of female patients with CRC, which, to the best of our knowledge, is the first study to investigate this topic. A total number of 306 primary CRCs were immunostained for ERα and ERß expression. A Cox regression model was used to evaluate overall survival (OS) and disease-free survival (DFS). The combined expression of high ERß + negative ERα correlates with longer OS (HR = 0.23; 95% CI: 0.11-0.45, P <0.0001) and DFS (HR = 0.10; 95% CI: 0.03-0.26, P < 0.0001) and a more favorable tumor outcome, as well as significantly higher expression of antitumorigenic proteins than combined expression of low ERß + positive ERα. Importantly, we found that low ERß expression was associated with local recurrence of CRC, whereas ERα expression was correlated with liver metastasis. Overall, our results show that the combined high ERß + negative ERα expression correlated with a better prognosis for CRC patients. Our results suggest that the combined expression of ERα and ERß could be used as a predictive combination marker for CRC patients, especially for predicting DFS.

Identification of a Novel Five-Gene Signature as a Prognostic and Diagnostic Biomarker in Colorectal Cancers.

Colorectal cancer (CRC) is one of the leading causes of cancer-related mortality worldwide. The current TNM (Tumor, Node, and Metastasis) classification approach is suboptimal in determining the prognosis of CRC patients. The prognosis for CRC is affected by a variety of features that are present at the initial diagnosis. Herein, we performed a systematic exploration and established a novel five-panel gene signature as a prognostic and early diagnosis biomarker after performing differential gene expression analyses in five independent in silico CRCs cohort and independently validating it in one clinical cohort, using immunohistochemistry. Four genes (BDNF, PTGS2, GSK3B, and CTNNB1) were significantly upregulated and one gene (HPGD) was significantly downregulated in primary tumor tissues compared with adjacent normal tissues throughout all the five in silico datasets. The univariate CoxPH analysis yielded a five-gene signature that accurately predicted overall survival (OS) and recurrence-free survival (RFS) in the in silico training (AUC = 0.73 and 0.69, respectively) and one independent in silico validation cohort (AUC = 0.69 and 0.74, respectively). This five-gene signature demonstrated significant associations with poor OS in independent clinical validation cohorts of colon cancer (CC) patients (AUC = 0.82). Intriguingly, a risk stratification model comprising of the five-gene signature together with TNM stage and gender status achieved an even superior AUC of 0.89 in the clinical cohorts. On the other hand, the circulating mRNA expression of the upregulated four-gene signature achieved a robust AUC = 0.83 with high sensitivity and specificity as a diagnosis marker in plasma from CRC patients. We have identified a novel, five-gene signature as an independent predictor of OS, which in combination with TNM stage and gender offers an easy-to-translate and facile assay for the personalized risk-assessment in CRC patients.

High PGD2 receptor 2 levels are associated with poor prognosis in colorectal cancer patients and induce VEGF expression in colon cancer cells and migration in a zebrafish xenograft model.

BACKGROUND: Despite intense research, the prognosis for patients with advanced colorectal cancer (CRC) remains poor. The prostaglandin D2 receptors DP1 and DP2 are explored here as potential therapeutic targets for advanced CRC. METHODS: A CRC cohort was analysed to determine whether DP1 and DP2 receptor expression correlates with patient survival. Four colon cancer cell lines and a zebrafish metastasis model were used to explore how DP1/DP2 receptor expression correlates with CRC progression. RESULTS: Analysis of the clinical CRC cohort revealed high DP2 expression in tumour tissue, whereas DP1 expression was low. High DP2 expression negatively correlated with overall survival. Other pathological indicators, such as TNM stage and metastasis, positively correlated with DP2 but not DP1 expression. In accordance, the in vitro results showed high DP2 expression in four CC-cell lines, but only one expressed DP1. DP2 stimulation resulted in increased proliferation, p-ERK1/2 and VEGF expression/secretion. DP2-stimulated cells exhibited increased migration in the zebrafish metastasis model. CONCLUSION: Our results support DP2 receptor expression and signalling as a therapeutic target in CRC progression based on its expression in CRC tissue correlating with poor patient survival and that it triggers proliferation, p-ERK1/2 and VEGF expression and release and increased metastatic activity in CC-cells.

An Observational Study on Metabolic Derangements in People Living with HIV.

BACKGROUND: HIV infection is a global pandemic. The adult HIV prevalence in India is 0.22%. Successful therapy is transforming HIV into a chronic medical condition, and there are many metabolic complications. This study aimed to evaluate the metabolic abnormalities in people living with HIV (PLHIV) who were on antiretroviral therapy (ART) for at least 2 years and compare it with ART-naïve patients as well as the effect of protease inhibitor-based (PI-based) and non-protease inhibitor-based (non-PI-based) ART was assessed. METHODOLOGY: Adult HIV-positive patients both ART-naïve and on ART for more than 2 years were included. Detailed history and clinical examination, including blood pressure and anthropometric measurements were done. This was followed by investigations like lipid profile including total cholesterol, triglyceride, high-density lipoprotein-cholesterol (HDL-C), low-density lipoprotein-cholesterol (LDL-C), fasting plasma glucose, and hemoglobin A1c (HbA1C) estimation. Standard statistical tools were utilized to assess derangements and association to therapy. RESULTS: The study was conducted for 1.5 years in a tertiary care hospital. A total of 70% of the study population was male with mean age of participants being 43.2 years, 40% were ART-naïve, 37% received non-PI-based ART, and 23% PI-based ART. The mean total cholesterol level and mean triglyceride value were significantly higher in the PI-based ART group than in the therapy-naïve group. The ART-naïve group was seen to have more subjects with abnormally low HDL-C values. The PI-based ART study subjects were found to have a greater number of cases of glucose intolerance in relation to the rest of the two groups significantly (p-value <0.001). The LDL-C systolic blood pressure (SBP), diastolic blood pressure (DBP), body mass index (BMI), and waist circumference had no association with the different ART regimens or with the HIV infection itself. CD4 T cell count at diagnosis in the three study groups was compared with all the variables of metabolic syndrome and no association was found. CONCLUSION: Total cholesterol, triglycerides, and glucose levels are the main parameters found to be affected in PLHIV on therapy.

Brain-Derived Neurotrophic Factor, Neutrophils and Cysteinyl Leukotriene Receptor 1 as Potential Prognostic Biomarkers for Patients with Colon Cancer.

The tumor microenvironment has been recognized as a complex network in which immune cells play an important role in cancer progression. We found significantly higher CD66b neutrophil expression in tumor tissue than in matched normal mucosa in the Malmö colon cancer (CC) cohort and poorer survival of stage I-III patients with high CD66b expression. Additionally, mice lacking CysLT1R expression (cysltr1-/-) produce less brain-derived neurotrophic factor (BDNF) compared to WT mice and Montelukast (a CysLT1R antagonist)-treated mice also reduced BDNF expression in a mouse xenograft model with human SW480 CC cells. CD66b and BDNF expression was significantly higher in patient tumor tissues than in the matched normal mucosa. The univariate Cox PH analysis yielded CD66b and BDNF as an independent predictor of overall survival, which was also found in the public TCGA-COAD dataset. We also discovered a strong positive correlation between CD66b, BDNF and CysLT1R expression in the Malmö CC cohort and in the TCGA-COAD dataset. Our data suggest that CD66b/BDNF/CysLT1R expression as a prognostic combined biomarker signature for CC patients.

Fermented pork fat (Sa-um) and lifestyle risk factors as potential indicators for type 2 diabetes among the Mizo population, Northeast India.

Over the last few decades, Mizoram has shown an increase in cases of type 2 diabetes mellitus; however, no in-depth scientific records are available to understand the occurrence of the disease. In this study, 500 patients and 500 healthy controls were recruited to understand the possible influence of their dietary and lifestyle habits in relation with type 2 diabetes mellitus. A multivariate analysis using Cox regression was carried out to find the influence of dietary and lifestyle factors, and an unpaired t test was performed to find the difference in the levels of biochemical tests. Out of 500 diabetic patients, 261 (52.3%) were males and 239 (47.7%) were females, and among the control group, 238 (47.7%) were males and 262 (52.3%) were females. Fermented pork fat, Sa-um (odds ratio (OR) 18.98), was observed to be a potential risk factor along with tuibur (OR 0.1243) for both males and females. Creatinine level was found to be differentially regulated between the male and female diabetic patients. This is the first report of fermented pork fat and tobacco (in a water form) to be the risk factors for diabetes. The unique traditional foods like Sa-um and local lifestyle habits like tuibur of the Mizo population may trigger the risk for the prevalence of the disease, and this may serve as a model to study other populations with similar traditional practices.

Panel of significant risk factors predicts early stage gastric cancer and indication of poor prognostic association with pathogens and microsatellite stability.

BACKGROUND: There are very few studies covering the epidemiological risk factors associated with Epstein Barr Virus (EBV) and Microsatellite stability for Gastric Cancer (GC) cases. Early diagnosis of GC through epidemiological risk factors is very necessary for the clinical assessment of GC. The aim of this study was to find out the major risk factors to predict GC in early stage and the impact of pathogen infection and MSI on survival rate of patients. GC samples were screened for Helicobacter pylori, Epstein Barr Virus, and Mismatch repair (MMR) gene status (microsatellite stable or instable). Chi-square and logistic regression analysis of Odd ratio and 95% confidence interval (OR, 95% CI) were performed to find out the association between epidemiological factors and the risk of gastric cancer. The pathogen and MMR gene status were analysed to predict their effect on overall survival and the risk score and hazard ratio was calculated for prognostic assessment. RESULTS: Excess body weight, consumption of extra salt, smoked food, alcohol, and smoking were the major risk factors for GC development. This study achieved a high area under the curve (AUC 0.94) for the probable GC patients in early-stage using the five-panel epidemiological risk factors. H. pylori infected cases were significant with smoked food, while EBV was found to be associated with tuibur intake and smoked food. In overall survival analysis EBV infected and microsatellite stable (HR: 1.32 and 1.34 respectively) GC cases were showing poor prognosis. CONCLUSION: This study might provide new opportunities for personalized treatment options using this epidemiological factor risk score and clinicopathological factors assessment for early detection and prognosis in high-risk GC populations.

Association of tobacco smoke-infused water (tuibur) use by Mizo people and risk of Helicobacter pylori infection.

The study aims to understand the influence of environmental and lifestyle factors and more specifically the role of tobacco smoke-infused water (tuibur) on Helicobacter pylori infection. It was a cross-sectional study to measure the epidemiological risk factors associated with H. pylori infection among the tribal population in Northeast India. Endoscopic samples were collected from the antrum region of the stomach from 863 participants with gastritis. H. pylori infection was confirmed in 475 samples by the rapid urease test and PCR-based methods. Information on demographic and lifestyle factors was collected using a validated and standardized questionnaire. Logistic regression was used to estimate odds ratio (OR) and 95% confidence interval (CI) for the association between the various factors and H. pylori. The use of tuibur was associated with an increased OR of H. pylori infection (OR = 3.32, 95% Cl = 1.95-5.83). Tobacco chewers (OR = 1.49, 95% Cl = 1.06-2.09), smokers (OR = 1.81, 95% Cl = 1.26-2.61), and alcohol consumers (OR = 1.81, 95% Cl = 1.19-2.76) were also infected with H. pylori. The results were not attenuated after adjusting for major well-known risk factors of H. pylori infection. The habit of tuibur consumption may be a contributing factor to the high prevalence of H. pylori infection and in turn, may contribute to the high prevalence of gastritis among the Mizo population.

Influence of Micronutrients on the Food Consumption Rate and Silk Production of Bombyx mori (Lepidoptera: Bombycidae) Reared on Mulberry Plants Grown in a Mountainous Agro-Ecological Condition.

The study involves analyzing the performance of bivoltine Bombyx mori larvae reared on different host plants varieties. The consumption rate (CR) of different strains of B. mori was high when fed with Jorhat and TR10 mulberry plant varieties. Jorhat and TR10 mulberry plant varieties were found to contain significant amount of calcium, potassium, magnesium and phosphorus. Local (Hmute) mulberry plant variety had high amount of protein, carbohydrate and reducing sugar. Majority of the B. mori strains reared on Jorhat and TR10 mulberry plant varieties had high level of fibroin protein which resulted in increased silk productivity than those larvae reared with other mulberry varieties. The filament length was higher when reared on Jorhat and TR10 mulberry plant varieties. CSR4 × CSR2, FC1 × FC2, and FC2 × FC1 strains reared on Jorhat and TR10 mulberry plant varieties performed well in terms of economic parameters. Proteins and other nutrients in combination with high levels of micronutrients are very much essential for better silk quality. The present study attempted to identify the most suitable host plants for silkworm rearing under mountainous agro-ecological conditions which can lead to sustainable production of silk in relation to physiological and economic parameters.

Induction of Apoptosis by Pierisin-6 in HPV Positive HeLa and HepG2 Cancer Cells is Mediated by the Caspase-3 Dependent Mitochondrial Pathway.

BACKGROUND: To explore the cytotoxic and apoptotic activity of the pierisin-6 protein in HPV HeLa and HepG2 cell lines. METHODS: In this study, isolation, and purification of cytotoxic Prierisin-6 from the larvae of Pieris napi by affinity column chromatography techniques. Characterization of full-length mRNA of pierisin-6 gene was performed using 3'/5' RACE PCR. The quantitative RT-PCR used to study the developmental stage-specific expression of pierisin-6 mRNA. The most effective concentration of Pierisin-6 protein was determined by measuring cell proliferation. Apoptosis was assessed using AO/Et-Br, Propidium Iodide, and Rhodamine 123 assays, whereas protein levels of caspase 3, cytochrome C were evaluated by ELISA method. Pierisin-6 induced cell cycle arrest was determined using Propidium iodide by FACS. RESULTS: In this study, Pierisin-6, a novel apoptotic protein was found to have cytotoxicity against HeLa, HepG2 human cancer cell lines and L-132 human lung epithelial cell line. Among the target cells, HeLa was the most sensitive to Pierisin-6. Flow cytometry analysis confirms an increased percentage of apoptotic cells in sub G1 phase and cell cycle arrest at S phase. Alteration in the transmembrane potential of mitochondria, Cytochrome c released from the mitochondrial membrane, and caspase substrate assay demonstrated the cleavage of Ac- DEVD-pNA signifying the activation of Caspase-3. These findings suggested that Pierisin-6 significantly induce apoptosis in HeLa and HepG2 cells and is attributed mainly through a mitochondrial pathway by activation of caspases. The developmental and stage-specific expression of pierisin-6 mRNA was one thousand-fold increased from second to third instar larvae and gradually declined before pupation. CONCLUSION: Pierisin-6 represents a promising therapeutic approach for liver cancer patients.

Lifestyle chemical carcinogens associated with mutations in cell cycle regulatory genes increases the susceptibility to gastric cancer risk.

In the present study, we correlated the various lifestyle habits and their associated mutations in cell cycle (P21 and MDM2) and DNA damage repair (MLH1) genes to investigate their role in gastric cancer (GC). Multifactor dimensionality reduction (MDR) analysis revealed the two-factor model of oral snuff and smoked meat as the significant model for GC risk. The interaction analysis between identified mutations and the significant demographic factors predicted that oral snuff is significantly associated with P21 3'UTR mutations. A total of five mutations in P21 gene, including three novel mutations in intron 2 (36651738G > A, 36651804A > T, 36651825G > T), were identified. In MLH1 gene, two variants were identified viz. one in exon 8 (37053568A > G; 219I > V) and a novel 37088831C > G in intron 16. Flow cytometric analysis predicted DNA aneuploidy in 07 (17.5%) and diploidy in 33 (82.5%) tumor samples. The G2/M phase was significantly arrested in aneuploid gastric tumor samples whereas high S-phase fraction was observed in all the gastric tumor samples. This study demonstrated that environmental chemical carcinogens along with alteration in cell cycle regulatory (P21) and mismatch repair (MLH1) genes may be stimulating the susceptibility of GC by altering the DNA content level abnormally in tumors in the Mizo ethic population.

Novel AKT1 mutations associated with cell-cycle abnormalities in gastric carcinoma.

AIM: The aim of this study is to identify the AKT1 gene mutation driven pathogenicity in gastric cancer for Mizo population. METHODS: 50 diffuse-type gastric tumors were analyzed for AKT1 exon 2 and 14 mutations. Cell-cycle aberration was analyzed in the AKT1-mutated samples and the stability of the protein as well as exonic splicing enhancer motifs were examined. RESULTS: The novel mutations, 15553T >A and 25376C >G might affect the exonic splicing enhancers and silencers. Significant decline was observed in the S-phase population in the tumor cells with 15553T >A and 15579G >C mutations suggesting the arrest of G1 phase. CONCLUSION: The present study is a novel finding of the possible role of AKT1 mutations which might help to identify gastric cancer patients.

Polymorphisms in ADH1B and ALDH2 genes associated with the increased risk of gastric cancer in West Bengal, India.

BACKGROUND: Gastric cancer (GC) is one of the most frequently diagnosed digestive tract cancers and carries a high risk of mortality. Acetaldehyde (AA), a carcinogenic intermediate of ethanol metabolism contributes to the risk of GC. The accumulation of AA largely depends on the activity of the major metabolic enzymes, alcohol dehydrogenase and aldehyde dehydrogenase encoded by the ADH (ADH1 gene cluster: ADH1A, ADH1B and ADH1C) and ALDH2 genes, respectively. This study aimed to evaluate the association between genetic variants in these genes and GC risk in West Bengal, India. METHODS: We enrolled 105 GC patients (cases), and their corresponding sex, age and ethnicity was matched to 108 normal individuals (controls). Genotyping for ADH1A (rs1230025), ADH1B (rs3811802, rs1229982, rs1229984, rs6413413, rs4147536, rs2066702 and rs17033), ADH1C (rs698) and ALDH2 (rs886205, rs968529, rs16941667 and rs671) was performed using DNA sequencing and RFLP. RESULTS: Genotype and allele frequency analysis of these SNPs revealed that G allele of rs17033 is a risk allele (A vs G: OR = 3.67, 95% CI = 1.54-8.75, p = 0.002) for GC. Significant association was also observed between rs671 and incidence of GC (p = 0.003). Moreover, smokers having the Lys allele of rs671 had a 7-fold increased risk of acquiring the disease (OR = 7.58, 95% CI = 1.34-42.78, p = 0.009). CONCLUSION: In conclusion, rs17033 of ADH1B and rs671 of ALDH2 SNPs were associated with GC risk and smoking habit may further modify the effect of rs671. Conversely, rs4147536 of ADH1B might have a protective role in our study population. Additional studies with a larger patient population are needed to confirm our results.