[Prevention and treatment of endometrial cancer].

Endometrial cancer is rising in incidence, especially in young women. This rise in incidence has implications for both primary prevention and screening in high-risk population. In the past several years, our understanding of the integration of clinically related genomic and pathologic data optimized the management of endometrial cancer. The updated 2023 FIGO staging includes the histological and molecular classification to better reflect the improved understanding of the heterogenous nature of endometrial carcinoma. Standard primary treatment is quite essential, however, selection of patients for adjuvant radiation or chemotherapy remains in controversy. Molecular characterization of endometrial cancer is becoming critical in directing treatment for advanced and recurrent disease, and the addition of immunotherapy to frontline chemotherapy is becoming the standard of care. More attention should be given to increase awareness of survivorship issues and improve patient quality-of-life.

Niraparib maintenance therapy in patients with platinum-sensitive recurrent ovarian cancer using an individualized starting dose (NORA): a randomized, double-blind, placebo-controlled phase III trial☆.

BACKGROUND: This study evaluated maintenance treatment with niraparib, a potent inhibitor of poly(ADP-ribose) polymerase 1/2, in patients with platinum-sensitive recurrent ovarian cancer. PATIENTS AND METHODS: In this phase III, double-blind, placebo-controlled study conducted at 30 centers in China, adults with platinum-sensitive recurrent ovarian cancer who had responded to their most recent platinum-containing chemotherapy were randomized 2 : 1 to receive oral niraparib (300 mg/day) or matched placebo until disease progression or unacceptable toxicity (NCT03705156). Following a protocol amendment, patients with a bodyweight <77 kg or a platelet count <150 × 103/µl received 200 mg/day, and all other patients 300 mg/day, as an individualized starting dose (ISD). Randomization was carried out by an interactive web response system and stratified by BRCA mutation, time to recurrence following penultimate chemotherapy, and response to most recent chemotherapy. The primary endpoint was progression-free survival (PFS) assessed by blinded independent central review. RESULTS: Between 26 September 2017 and 2 February 2019, 265 patients were randomized to receive niraparib (n = 177) or placebo (n = 88); 249 patients received an ISD (300 mg, n = 14; 200 mg, n = 235) as per protocol. In the intention-to-treat population, median PFS was significantly longer for patients receiving niraparib versus placebo: 18.3 [95% confidence interval (CI), 10.9-not evaluable] versus 5.4 (95% CI, 3.7-5.7) months [hazard ratio (HR) = 0.32; 95% CI, 0.23-0.45; P < 0.0001], and a similar PFS benefit was observed in patients receiving an ISD, regardless of BRCA mutation status. Grade ≥3 treatment-emergent adverse events occurred in 50.8% and 19.3% of patients who received niraparib and placebo, respectively; the most common events were neutrophil count decreased (20.3% versus 8.0%) and anemia (14.7% versus 2.3%). CONCLUSIONS: Niraparib maintenance treatment reduced the risk of disease progression or death by 68% and prolonged PFS compared to placebo in patients with platinum-sensitive recurrent ovarian cancer. Individualized niraparib dosing is effective and safe and should be considered standard practice in this setting.

Cystatin C alleviates H2O2-induced H9c2 cell injury.

OBJECTIVE: At present, the incidence of acute myocardial infarction is increasing year by year, and it has become one of the diseases with the highest mortality rate in humans. Myocardial ischemia-reperfusion injury (MIRI) is a major problem in the treatment of myocardial infarction, but clinically there is no effective way to treat MIRI. This study used Cystatin C (Cys C) to treat cardiomyocytes and rats to investigate the effect of Cys C on MIRI. MATERIALS AND METHODS: We used H2O2 to induce rat cardiomyocytes (H9c2 cells) injury and stimulated the cells with Cys C. Cell counting kit 8 (CCK8) assay was used to determine the optimal concentration of H2O2 and Cys C to stimulate H9c2 cells. We determined the effects of Cys C on oxidative stress and apoptosis levels in H9c2 cells by measuring the activity of dehydrogenase (LDH), superoxide dismutase (SOD) and malondialdehyde (MDA), and the expression of apoptosis-related molecules (caspase3/8/9, Bax and Bcl-2). Changes in the activity of the NF-κB signaling pathway in H9c2 cells were also detected. In addition, we made rat MIRI models by ligating the coronary arteries and used Cys C to treat rats to verify the effect of Cys C on MIRI. RESULTS: According to the results of the CCK8 assay, 1000 µM of H2O2 and 15 µM of Cys C were used to stimulate H9c2 cells. Cys C alleviated H2O2-induced H9c2 cell injury, manifested as a decrease in LDH and MDA activity and an increase in SOD activity. Cys C also reduced the apoptosis level in H9c2 cells. The activity of NF-κB signaling pathway in injured H9c2 cells was increased, and stimulation of Cys C could inhibit the NF-κB signaling pathway in H9c2 cells. The application of Cys C in MIRI rats also verified its therapeutic effect on MIRI. CONCLUSIONS: Cys C reduced the oxidative stress and apoptosis levels of cardiomyocytes by inhibiting the activity of NF-κB signaling pathway in cardiomyocytes, thereby reducing cardiomyocyte injury and treating MIRI.

MiR-9-5p could promote angiogenesis and radiosensitivity in cervical cancer by targeting SOCS5.

OBJECTIVE: The aim of this study was to investigate the molecular mechanism of miRNA-9-5p in cervical cancer. PATIENTS AND METHODS: The expression level of microRNA-9-5p (miR-9-5p) in cervical cancer (CC) tissues and cell lines was examined by quantitative Real Time-Polymerase Chain Reaction. Cells were transfected with Lipofectamine 3000. Cell proliferation was measured by Cell Counting Kit-8 (CCK-8). Invasion assays were performed in 24-well transwell chambers system with 8 µm pores. Cell invasion was evaluated by transwell assay. Western blot was used to detect the changes of epithelial-mesenchymal transition (EMT) and SOCS5. The effects of miR-9-5p on tubule formation were examined under different doses of γ radiation. Immunohistochemistry assay was used to analyze the protein expression of SOCS5. Fluorescence microscopy analysis was used to measure autophagosomes after cells treated with γ irradiation. RESULTS: From the Cancer Genome Atlas (TCGA) database, the expression of miR-9-5p was significantly higher in cervical cancer patients than in the negative ones, and it was verified in 22 paired of lymph node-positive patient tissues and negative. The overexpression of miR-9-5p promoted proliferation and invasion of cervical cancer cells in vitro and primary tumor growth in vivo. MiR-9-5p reduced the tubule generation after the radiation dose of 4Gy. Besides, we identified SOCS5 as the target of miR-9-5p, and the overexpression of SOCS5 could inhibit miR-9-5p mimics from promoting tubule formation. CONCLUSIONS: MiR-9-5p could promote proliferation and invasion of CC cells in vitro and in vivo. MiR-9-5p could affect angiogenesis and radiosensitivity of CC cells by targeting SOCS5.

Cloning, overexpression, purification, and modeling of a lectin (Rhinocelectin) with antiproliferative activity from Tiger Milk Mushroom, Lignosus rhinocerus.

A lectin gene from the Tiger Milk Mushroom Lignosus rhinocerus TM02® was successfully cloned and expressed via vector pET28a in Escherichia coli BL21(DE3). The recombinant lectin, Rhinocelectin, with a predicted molecular mass of 22.8 kDa, was overexpressed in water-soluble form without signal peptide and purified via native affinity chromatography Ni-NTA agarose. Blast protein analysis indicated the lectin to be homologous to jacalin-related plant lectin. In its native form, Rhinocelectin exists as a homo-tetramer predicted with four chains of identical proteins consisting of 11 beta-sheet structures with only one alpha-helix structure. The antiproliferative activity of the Rhinocelectin against human cancer cell lines was concentration dependent and selective. The IC50 values against triple negative breast cancer cell lines MDA-MB-231 and breast cancer MCF-7 are 36.52 ± 13.55 µg mL-1 and 53.11 ± 22.30 µg mL-1 , respectively. Rhinocelectin is only mildly cytotoxic against the corresponding human nontumorigenic breast cell line 184B5 with IC50 value at 142.19 ± 36.34 µg mL-1 . The IC50 against human lung cancer cell line A549 cells is 46.14 ± 7.42 µg mL-1 while against nontumorigenic lung cell line NL20 is 41.33 ± 7.43 µg mL-1 . The standard anticancer drug, Doxorubicin exhibited IC50 values mostly below 1 µg mL-1 for the cell lines tested. Flow cytometry analysis showed the treated breast cancer cells were arrested at G0/G1 phase and apoptosis induced. Rhinocelectin agglutinated rat and rabbit erythrocytes at a minimal concentration of 3.125 µg mL-1 and 6.250 µg mL-1 , respectively.

Comparisons of vaginal and abdominal radical trachelectomy for early-stage cervical cancer: preliminary results of a multi-center research in China.

BACKGROUND: There are limited data comparing the prognosis and fertility outcomes of the patients with early cervical cancer treated by trans-vaginal radical trachelectomy (VRT) or abdominal radical trachelectomy (ART).The objective of this study was to compare the surgical and pathologic characteristics, the prognosis and fertility outcomes of the patients treated by VRT or ART. METHODS: Matched-case study based on a prospectively maintained database of patients underwent radical trachelectomy in 10 centres of China was designed to compare the prognosis and fertility outcomes of the patients treated by VRT or ART. RESULTS: Totally 150 cases, 77 in the VRT and 73 in the ART group, were included. VRT and ART provide similar surgical and pathological outcomes except larger specimens obtained by ART. In the ART group, no patient developed recurrent diseases, but, in the VRT group, 7 (9.8%) patients developed recurrent diseases and 2 (1.6%) patients died of the tumours (P=0.035). The rate of pregnancy in the VRT group was significantly higher than those of ART (39.5% vs 8.8%; P=0.003). The patients with tumour size >2 cm showed significant higher recurrent rate (11.6% vs 2.4%, P<0.05) and lower pregnant rate (12.5% vs 32.1%, P=0.094) compared with the patients with tumour size <2 cm. CONCLUSION: Patients treated by ART obtained better oncology results, but their fertility outcomes were unfavourable compared with VRT. Tumour size <2 cm should be emphasised as an indication for radical trachelectomy for improving the outcome of fertility and prognosis.

Vascular endothelial growth factor +936C/T polymorphism and cancer risk in Asians: a meta-analysis.

Vascular endothelial growth factor (VEGF), the most important regulator of angiogenesis and vascular permeability, is involved in various steps of carcinogenesis. The +936C/T polymorphism of the VEGF gene has been reported to affect the VEGF protein level and to be related to the susceptibility of cancer. However, the results of published studies, as well as the subsequent meta-analyses, remain contradictory. We investigated the association between VEGF +936C/T polymorphism and cancer risk in the Asian population. Twenty-one papers were selected from the PubMed database after a systematic search. Statistics on the frequencies of CC, CT, and TT genotypes of the VEGF +936C/T gene were collected from 8298 cases and 8053 controls. No significant associations between the VEGF +936C/T polymorphism and cancer risk were found for alleles T vs C [odd ratio (OR) = 0.99, 95% confidence interval (95%CI) = 0.93-1.05], TT vs CT/CC (OR = 1.05, 95%CI = 0.88-1.26), CC vs CT/TT (OR = 1.02, 95%CI = 0.96-1.10), and TT vs CC (OR = 1.05, 95%CI = 0.88-1.25). No significant associations were detected in the subgroup analysis by cancer type either. The VEGF +936C/T polymorphism is not associated with risk of overall cancer among Asians.

Soluble BAFF-R produced by decidual stromal cells plays an inhibitory role in monocytes and macrophages.

A sophisticated immunological regulation between decidual stromal cells (DSC) and monocytes and macrophages is essential for the successful symbiosis of the mother and her fetus, but the mechanisms remain incompletely understood. The mRNA and proteins of B lymphocyte stimulator (BAFF, also known as BLys) and its receptor, BAFF-R (also known as BR3, CD268 or TNFRSF17), have been detected in both first-trimester and term placentas, but whether BAFF or BAFF-R participates in the cross-talk between DSC and monocytes and macrophages in the first-trimester pregnancy has not been described. This study found that purified DSC extensively shed BAFF-R and that polyinosinic:polycytidylic acid (poly(I:C); a synthetic toll-like receptor (TLR) 3 agonist) dramatically up-regulated BAFF-R secretion, suggesting that release of these soluble proteins was an inherent property of DSC and its induction might have relevance to TLR-3-mediated signal transduction. When monocytes were cultured with the supernatants of resting DSC or poly(I:C)-treated DSC, the proliferation of CD14(+)HLA-DR(+) monocytes (P=0.025 and 0.045) and the secretion levels of tumour necrosis factor α (P=0.035 and 0.031) and interleukin 6 (P=0.021 and 0.035) were significantly increased after the BAFF-R was blocked. Soluble BAFF-R may play inhibitory roles in monocytes and macrophages.

CD16+ monocytes in breast cancer patients: expanded by monocyte chemoattractant protein-1 and may be useful for early diagnosis.

Human peripheral blood monocytes are a heterogeneous population, including CD14(+) CD16(-) 'classical' monocytes and CD14(+) CD16(+) 'proinflammatory' monocytes. CD16(+) monocytes are expanded in various inflammatory conditions. However, little is known about the CD14(+) CD16(+) monocytes in patients with breast cancer. We detected CD14(+) CD16(+) monocytes in 96 patients with breast cancer and 54 control subjects using flow cytometry. Receiver-operating characteristic (ROC) curve analysis was used to determine the feasibility of CD14(+) CD16(+) monocytes as an indicator for diagnosis of breast cancer. We found that the frequency of CD14(+) CD16(+) monocytes showed a significantly greater increase in breast cancer patients than in controls (16·96% versus 10·84%, P < 0·0001). The area under the ROC curve for CD14(+) CD16(+) monocytes was 0·805 [95% confidence interval (95% CI): 0·714-0·877, P = 0·0001]. Furthermore, the levels of CD16(+) monocytes were significantly negatively associated with the tumour size and pathological staging. In vitro, we showed that CD14(+) CD16(+) monocytes were expanded significantly when the purified CD14(+) monocytes were exposed to Michigan Cancer Foundation (MCF)-7 cells-conditioned medium (MCF-CM) or, separately, to monocyte chemotactic protein 1 (MCP-1). Neutralizing antibodies against MCP-1 inhibited the expansion of CD14(+) CD16(+) monocytes by MCF-CM. Collectively, our findings indicated that MCP-1 can expand CD14(+) CD16(+) monocytes in patients with breast cancer. Furthermore, the CD14(+) CD16(+) monocyte may be a useful indicator in early diagnosis of breast cancer.

Prohibitin as a novel target protein of luteinizing hormone in ovarian epithelial carcinogenesis.

The exact role of follicle-stimulating hormone (FSH) and luteinizing hormone (LH) in ovarian epithelial carcinoma (OEC) development has not been yet characterized. This prompted us to identify particular proteins to better understand the underlying mechanism. Total proteins from ovarian epithelial tumor (OET) cells treated with gonadotropins were analyzed by proteomics. Western blot and immunohistochemistry were used to validate the target protein (prohibitin) and to detect its expression in human ovarian tissue of serous tumors. As the results, prohibitin was found to be significantly up-regulated by LH, with a maximum of 2.5-fold increase at the concentration of 200 mIU/mL. The expression of prohibitin was steadily decreased from benign serous cystadenomas to borderline tumors and serous carcinomas (P < 0.0001). The difference between any two groups was significant (P < 0.001). Collectively, data from this study indicate that prohibitin is one LH-associated protein and it may be protective of ovarian cancer development and progression, supporting that LH may play an inhibitory role in ovarian tumorigenesis.

Application of amplified ribosomal DNA restriction analysis in identification of Acinetobacter baumannii from a tertiary teaching hospital, Malaysia.

Acinetobacter baumannii, genomic species 3 and 13TU are being increasingly reported as the most important Acinetobacter species that cause infections in hospitalized patients. These Acinetobacter species are grouped in the Acinetobacter calcoaceticus- Acinetobacter baumannii (Acb) complex. Differentiation of the species in the Acb-complex is limited by phenotypic methods. Therefore, in this study, amplified ribosomal DNA restriction analysis (ARDRA) was applied to confirm the identity A. baumannii strains as well as to differentiate between the subspecies. One hundred and eighty-five strains from Intensive Care Unit, Universiti Malaya Medical Center (UMMC) were successfully identified as A. baumannii by ARDRA. Acinetobacter genomic species 13TU and 15TU were identified in 3 and 1 strains, respectively. ARDRA provides an accurate, rapid and definitive approach towards the identification of the species level in the genus Acinetobacter. This paper reports the first application ARDRA in genospecies identification of Acinetobacter in Malaysia.

Application of amplified ribosomal DNA restriction analysis in identification of Acinetobacter baumannii from a Tertiary Teaching Hospital, Malaysia

Acinetobacter baumannii, genomic species 3 and 13TU are being increasingly reported as the most important Acinetobacter species that cause infections in hospitalized patients. These Acinetobacter species are grouped in the Acinetobacter calcoaceticus- Acinetobacter baumannii (Acb) complex. Differentiation of the species in the Acb-complex is limited by phenotypic methods. Therefore, in this study, amplified ribosomal DNA restriction analysis (ARDRA) was applied to confirm the identity A. baumannii strains as well as to differentiate between the subspecies. One hundred and eighty-five strains from Intensive Care Unit, Universiti Malaya Medical Center (UMMC) were successfully identified as A. baumannii by ARDRA. Acinetobacter genomic species 13TU and 15TU were identified in 3 and 1 strains, respectively. ARDRA provides an accurate, rapid and definitive approach towards the identification of the species level in the genus Acinetobacter. This paper reports the first application ARDRA in genospecies identification of Acinetobacter in Malaysia.

BDCA-1+, BDCA-2+ and BDCA-3+ dendritic cells in early human pregnancy decidua.

Dendritic cells (DCs) can acquire unique features or phenotypes in different tissue microenvironments and decide whether immunity or tolerance develops. DCs observed within the decidua have been implicated in pregnancy maintenance. However, the precise distribution of decidual DC subsets and their phenotypic characteristics are largely unknown. Using flow cytometry, we identified three DC subsets in normal human first-trimester decidua: BDCA-1+ CD19- CD14(-) myeloid DC type 1 (MDC1), BDCA-3+ CD14- myeloid DC type 2 (MDC2) and BDCA-2+ CD123+ plasmacytoid DC (PDC). The percentage of MDC1 to mononuclear cells in the decidua was similar to that in the peripheral blood controls. The percentage of MDC2 in the decidua was significantly higher than that in the peripheral blood controls, whereas the percentage of PDC was significantly lower. Both MDC1 and MDC2 subsets expressed human leucocyte antigen D-related, CD86 and CD80 at low levels, suggesting a characteristic of immature myeloid DCs. Immunoglobulin-like transcript 3, suggested to be involved in immune tolerance induction, was also expressed on decidual MDC1 and MDC2 subsets. In addition, as gestational age increased from 6 to 9 weeks, the numbers of MDC1 decreased but MDC2 increased significantly. This is the first study to demonstrate the presence of three previously unidentified BDCA-1+, BDCA-3+ and BDCA-2+ DC subsets in human decidua, these decidual DCs might play important role in the maintenance of pregnancy.

Inhibition of nuclear factor-kappaB by an antioxidant enhances paclitaxel sensitivity in ovarian carcinoma cell line.

The objective of this study was to determine whether paclitaxel and a strong antioxidant, pyrrolidinedithiocarbamate (PDTC), can affect the activation of nuclear factor-kappa B (NF-kappaB) in SKOV-3 human ovarian cancer cell line and the effect of these two agents on the growth and apoptosis of the cancer cells. The cells were treated with various concentrations of paclitaxel and/or PDTC at various time intervals. Following treatments, cell growth and apoptosis were determined by 2-(2-methoxy-4-nitrophenyl)-3-(4-nitrophenyl)-5-(2,4-disulphonyl)-2H-tetrazolium (WST-8) (WST) assay and flow cytometry, respectively. Western blot assay was used to determine the nuclear p65 protein and cytoplasmic IkappaB-alpha protein. High doses of PDTC significantly inhibited the growth of SKOV-3 cells and caused apoptosis. Paclitaxel and lower doses of PDTC combined demonstrated additive inhibition of cell growth and increased levels of apoptosis. Treatment of paclitaxel alone showed increased nuclear p65 protein and decreased cytoplasmic IkappaB-alpha protein expression, while pretreatment of PDTC reversed this function. PDTC blocks the paclitaxel-induced activation of NF-kappaB leading to increased chemosensitivity to paclitaxel and enhanced apoptosis. Combining antioxidants and paclitaxel has significant potential to overcome the risk of paclitaxel resistance.

[Study on high-efficiency gene transfer of pseudotyped HIV vector].

OBJECTIVE: To investigate the high-efficiency of pseudotyped HIV as gene transfer vector. METHODS: Three plasmids of pseudotyped HIV gene transfer vector system were transferred into packaging cell line 293T by Ca3 (PO4)2 precipitation method. GFP (Green Fluorescence Protein) or HSV-tk gene was constructed in the plasmid pHR'CS respectively (pHR'CS.GFP or pHR'CS.HSV-tk). The pseudotyped HIV particles were observed through electronic microscopy and were measured through spectrofluorophotometer. High titer pseudotyped HIV was harvested from volume of virus-producing cell supernatant and concentrated. Ovarian epithelial cancer cell line SKOV3 and normal human gingival fibroblast cell GF were infected by pseudotyped HIV. PCR and RT-PCR were resorted to demonstrate the successful transduction and transcription of the HSV-tk gene. After administration of GCV, the changes of those cells and apoptosis were observed through optical microscopy. The cytotoxicity efficacy of HSV-tk/GCV system was evaluated by MTT method. The growth inhibition rate (GIR) of cells and inhibition concentration 50 (IC50) were counted. RESULTS: The above plasmids were effectively transferred into 293T cell. A lot of pseudotyped HIV particles were observed through electronic microscopy. The virus supernatant had a high absorbing value at 510 nm through spectrofluorophotometer, which proved the existence of virus. After pseudotyped HIV infection, SKOV3 and GF had remarkable infection rate. 600 bp strand was seen through PCR and RT-PCR. Changes and apoptosis of cells followed by administration of GCV were observed. The MTT method showed that the cytotoxicity efficacy of GCV was high to SKOV3 and GF cell. CONCLUSIONS: The pseudotyped HIV is a high-efficiency gene transfer vector.