MiR-600 mediates EZH2/RUNX3 signal axis to modulate breast cancer cell viability and sorafenib sensitivity.

Breast cancer (BC) ranks as the most prevalent gynecologic tumor globally. Abnormal expression of miRNAs is concerned with the development of cancers such as BC. However, little is known about the role of miR-600 in BC. This work aimed to explore the role of miR-600 in the malignant progression and sorafenib sensitivity of BC cells. Expression and interaction of miR-600/EZH2/RUNX3 were analyzed by bioinformatics. qRT-PCR was utilized to assay RNA expression of miR-600 and mRNA expression of EZH2/RUNX3. The binding relationship between miR-600 and EZH2 was tested by dual luciferase assay and RNA immunoprecipitation (RIP). The effects of miR-600/EZH2/RUNX3 axis on the malignant behavior and sorafenib sensitivity of BC cells were detected by CCK-8 and colony formation assay. Low expression of miR-600 and RUNX3 in BC was found by bioinformatics and molecular assays. High expression of EZH2 in BC was negatively correlated with RUVX3. Dual luciferase assay and RIP demonstrated that MiR-600 could bind to EZH2. Cell assays displayed that miR-600 knockdown could foster the malignant progression of BC cells and reduce the sensitivity of BC cells to sorafenib. EZH2 knockdown or RUNX3 overexpression could offset the effect of miR-600 inhibitor on the malignant behavior and sorafenib sensitivity of BC cells. MiR-600 can hinder the malignant behavior of BC cells and foster sensitivity of BC cells to sorafenib via EZH2/RUNX3 axis, exhibiting the miR-600/EZH2/RUNX3 axis as a feasible therapeutic target for BC patients.

STAT1 mediated long non-coding RNA LINC00504 influences radio-sensitivity of breast cancer via binding to TAF15 and stabilizing CPEB2 expression.

Radiotherapy plays important roles in the treatment of breast cancer (BC), which develops from malignant cells in the breast. Long non-coding RNAs (lncRNAs) have been reported to be implicated in radio-resistance or radio-sensitivity of human cancer, which includes breast cancer. Nevertheless, long intergenic non-protein coding RNA 0504 (LINC00504) has not been investigated in BC. In our study, from RT-qPCR analysis, LINC00504 was found to be up-regulated in BC cells. By conducting in vitro assays, it was confirmed that the knockdown of LINC00504 could enhance the radio-sensitivity of BC cells. The regulatory mechanism of LINC00504 in BC was also verified by chromatin immunoprecipitation (ChIP), RNA immunoprecipitation (RIP) and luciferase reporter assays. From the experimental results, we knew that the up-regulation of LINC00504 was mediated by signal transducer and activator of transcription 1 (STAT1). Moreover, LINC00504 stabilized the expression of cytoplasmic polyadenylation element-binding protein 2 (CPEB2) via binding to TATA-box binding protein associated factor 15 (TAF15). Furthermore, rescue assays validated that LINC00504 participated in regulating the radio-sensitivity of BC cells via up-regulating CPEB2. In summary, our study disclosed that STAT1 could mediate LINC00504 and weaken the radio-sensitivity of BC cells via binding to TAF15 and stabilizing CPEB2 expression.

Usefulness of Contrast-Enhanced Ultrasonography for Predicting Esophageal Varices in Patients with Hepatitis B Virus (HBV)-Related Cirrhosis.

BACKGROUND The aim of this study was to investigate the usefulness of contrast-enhanced ultrasonography (CEUS) in predicting of esophageal varices (EV) and assessing high-risk EV in patients with hepatitis B virus (HBV)-related cirrhosis. MATERIAL AND METHODS Patients with HBV-related cirrhosis who had undergone endoscopy were prospectively recruited. Hepatic dynamic CEUS was performed. Regions of interest (ROI) were drawn on the hepatic artery, hepatic vein, portal vein, and liver parenchyma to measure the corresponding features, such as arrival times. Spearman's correlation analysis was used to determine the relations between several dynamic CEUS features and the degree of EV. Receiver operating characteristics (ROC) curves were constructed to investigate the diagnostic performance of CEUS in assessing the presence of EV and high-risk EV. RESULTS Fifty-eight patients (44 men; mean age 51.3 years) were included in this study. Of these, 18 (31.0%), 12 (20.7%), 11 (19.0%), and 17 (29.3%) of patients had grade 0, 1, 2, and 3 EV, respectively. Grade 2 and grade 3 EV were considered high-risk EV. Among the CEUS features, the area under the ROC curves of intrahepatic transit time (HV-HA, i.e., the difference between hepatic vein arrival time and hepatic artery arrival time) both for assessment of the presence of EV and high-risk EV (0.883 and 0.915, respectively) were larger than the other indices. HV-HA was negatively correlated with the grade of EV. An HV-HA of under 8.2 s indicated the presence of EV and under 7 s indicated high-risk EV. CONCLUSIONS Dynamic CEUS imaging is useful in assessing the presence of EV and high-risk EV in patients with HBV-related cirrhosis.

Ultrasound-Guided Diffuse Optical Tomography for Differentiation of Benign and Malignant Breast Lesions: A Meta-analysis.

OBJECTIVES: The purpose of this study was to assess the diagnostic performance of ultrasound-guided diffuse optical tomography for differentiation of benign and malignant breast lesions. METHODS: The Cochrane Library, PubMed, and Embase databases were searched from inception to February 14, 2016. Sensitivity, specificity, and other information were extracted from the included studies. Sensitivity and specificity were pooled by a bivariate mixed-effects binary regression model. A summary receiver operating characteristic curve was constructed. Heterogeneity and publication bias were explored by Higgins and Deeks tests, respectively. RESULTS: Seven studies including 768 women with 886 lesions were analyzed. The summary sensitivity, specificity, and diagnostic odds ratio were 95% (95% confidence interval [CI], 85%-98%), 77% (95% CI, 66%-85%), and 57 (95% CI, 12-267), respectively. The area under the summary receiver operating characteristic curve was 91% (95% CI, 89%-94%). No significant heterogeneity or publication bias existed. CONCLUSIONS: Ultrasound-guided diffuse optical tomography is useful for differentiating breast lesions. Especially, its sensitivity is excellent.

Diagnostic Accuracy of SuperSonic Shear Imaging for Staging of Liver Fibrosis: A Meta-analysis.

OBJECTIVES: The purpose of this study was to assess the performance of SuperSonic shear imaging (SuperSonic Imagine SA, Aix-en-Provence, France) for diagnosis of liver fibrosis. METHODS: Literature databases were searched to identify relevant studies from inception to February 28, 2015. Sensitivity, specificity, and other information were extracted from the studies. Pooled data were calculated by a bivariate mixed-effects binary regression model. Subgroup and sensitivity analyses were performed. Publication bias was tested by funnel plots. RESULTS: Twelve studies were included in this meta-analysis and reported on 1635 patients. The pooled sensitivity and specificity were 0.78 (95% confidence interval [CI], 0.69-0.85) and 0.95 (95% CI, 0.75-0.99), respectively, for fibrosis stages F≥1, 0.84 (95% CI, 0.81-0.86) and 0.81 (95% CI, 0.74-0.87) for F≥2, 0.89 (95% CI, 0.85-0.93) and 0.84 (95% CI, 0.77-0.89) for F≥3, and 0.88 (95% CI, 0.82-0.91) and 0.86 (95% CI, 0.81-0.90) for F=4. The areas under the summary receiver operating characteristic curves were 0.87 (95% CI, 0.84-0.90) for F≥1, 0.85 (95% CI, 0.81-0.88) for F≥2, 0.93 (95% CI, 0.91-0.95) for F≥3, and 0.93 (95% CI, 0.90-0.95) for F=4. No significant publication bias was found. CONCLUSIONS: SuperSonic shear imaging could be used for staging of liver fibrosis. Especially, it has high diagnostic accuracy for severe fibrosis and cirrhosis.