Overexpression of RAB27A in Oral Squamous Cell Carcinoma Promotes Tumor Migration and Invasion via Modulation of EGFR Membrane Stability.

Oral squamous cell carcinoma (OSCC) is the most prevalent subtype of head and neck tumors, highly prone to lymph node metastasis. This study aims to examine the expression pattern of Ras-related protein Rab-27A (RAB27A) and explore its potential implications in OSCC. The expression of RAB27A was assessed through immunohistochemical analysis utilizing tissue microarrays. In vitro experiments were conducted using RAB27A-knockdown cells to investigate its impact on OSCC tumor cells. Additionally, transcriptome sequencing was performed to elucidate potential underlying mechanisms. RAB27A was significantly overexpressed in OSCC, and particularly in metastatic lymph nodes. It was positively correlated with the clinical progression and poor survival prognosis. Silencing RAB27A notably decreased the proliferation, migration, and invasion abilities of OSCC cells in vitro. A Gene Ontology (GO) enrichment analysis indicated a strong association between RAB27A and the epidermal growth factor receptor (EGFR) signaling pathway. Further investigations revealed that RAB27A regulated the palmitoylation of EGFR via zinc finger DHHC-type containing 13 (ZDHHC13). These findings provide insights into OSCC progression and highlight RAB27A as a potential therapeutic target for combating this aggressive cancer.

p-AKT/VPS4B regulates the small extracellular vesicle size in venous malformation endothelial cells.

OBJECTIVE: Small extracellular vesicle (sEV)-mediated intercellular communication is increasingly the key for the understanding of venous malformations (VMs). This study aims to clarify the detailed changes of sEVs in VMs. SUBJECTS AND METHODS: Fifteen VM patients without treatment history and twelve healthy donors were enrolled in the study. sEVs were isolated from both fresh lesions and cell supernatant, and were examined by western blotting, nanoparticle tracking analysis and transmission electron microscopy. Western blot analysis, immunohistochemistry and immunofluorescence were adopted to screening candidate regulator of sEV size. Specific inhibitors and siRNA were employed to validate the role of dysregulated p-AKT/vacuolar protein sorting-associated protein 4B (VPS4B) signaling on the size of sEVs in endothelial cells. RESULTS: The size of sEVs derived from both VM lesion tissues and cell model was significantly increased. VPS4B, whose expression level was mostly significantly downregulated in VM endothelial cells, was responsible for the size change of sEVs. Targeting abnormal AKT activation corrected the size change of sEVs by recovering the expression level of VPS4B. CONCLUSION: Downregulated VPS4B in endothelial cells, resulted from abnormally activated AKT signaling, contributed to the increased size of sEVs in VMs.

ALIX promotes cell migration and invasion of head and neck squamous cell carcinoma by regulating the expression of MMP9, MMP14, VEGF-C.

OBJECTIVE: The poor survival rate of head and neck squamous cell carcinoma (HNSCC), one of the most prevalent human cancer, is attributed to frequent locoregional recurrence and lymph node metastases. Though it is reported that the expression of ALG-2 interacting protein X (ALIX) closely correlates with the progression of various tumors, its role in HNSCC remains unclear. The present study aims to investigate the role of ALIX in the development of HNSCC. DESIGN: With immunohistochemical staining, the expression levels of ALIX and series of related functional proteins were compared in normal mucosal (n = 18), HNSCC tissues (n = 54), and metastatic lymph nodes (n = 11). Further, the correlation analysis was performed among the proteins detected. By knocking down ALIX in HNSCC cell lines, the correlation of ALIX with the proteins was verified in vitro. The role of ALIX in proliferation, migration, and invasion of HNSCC cells was further studied by flow cytometry, wounding healing, and transwell assays, respectively. RESULTS: Higher expression level of ALIX was revealed in HNSCC samples, especially in metastatic lymph nodes, than in normal mucosal tissues. Accordingly, increasing levels of MMP9, MMP14, and VEGF-C were also discovered in metastatic lymph nodes and significantly correlated with the expression of ALIX. In vitro assays demonstrated that the knockdown of ALIX reduced both the transcriptional and protein levels of MMP9, MMP14, and VEGF-C, together with suppressed migration and weakened invasion of HNSCC cell lines. CONCLUSIONS: ALIX up-regulated the expression of MMP9, MMP14 and VEGF-C, and promoted migration and invasion of HNSCC cells.

A histological study of vascular wall resident stem cells in venous malformations.

Vascular wall resident stem cells (VW-SCs) play a key role in vascular formation and remodeling under both physiological and pathological situations. They not only serve as a reservoir to supply all types of vascular cells needed, but also regulate vascular homeostasis by paracrine effects. Venous malformations (VMs) are common congenital vascular malformations which are just characterized by the deficient quantity and abnormal function of vascular cells. However, the existence and role of VW-SCs in VMs is still unclear at present. In this study, the level and distribution of VW-SCs in 22 specimens of VMs were measured by immunochemistry, double-labeling immunofluorescence, and qPCR, followed by the Spearman rank correlation test. We found that both the protein and mRNA expression levels of CD34, vWF, VEGFR2, CD44, CD90, and CD105 were significantly downregulated in VMs compared with that in normal venules. VW-SCs were sporadically distributed or even absent within and outside the endothelium of VMs. The expression of the VW-SC-related markers was positively correlated with the density of both endothelial cells and perivascular cells. All those results and established evidence indicated that VW-SCs were more sporadically distributed with fewer amounts in VMs, which possibly contributing to the deficiency of vascular cells in VMs.

Endothelial cells induce degradation of ECM through enhanced secretion of MMP14 carried on extracellular vesicles in venous malformation.

Venous malformations (VMs), featuring localized dilated veins, are the most common developmental vascular anomalies. Aberrantly organized perivascular extracellular matrix (ECM) is one of the prominent pathological hallmarks of VMs, accounting for vascular dysfunction. Although previous studies have revealed various proteins involved in ECM remodeling, the detailed pattern and molecular mechanisms underlying the endothelium-ECM interplay have not been fully elucidated. Our previous studies revealed drastically elevated extracellular vesicle (EV) secretion in VM lesions. Here, we identified increased EV-carried MMP14 in lesion fluids of VMs and culture medium of TIE2-L914F mutant endothelial cells (ECs), along with stronger ECM degradation. Knockdown of RAB27A, a required regulator for vesicle docking and fusion, led to decreased secretion of EV-carried MMP14 in vitro. Histochemical analysis further demonstrated a highly positive correlation between RAB27A in the endothelium and MMP14 in the perivascular environment. Therefore, our results proved that RAB27A-regulated secretion of EV-MMP14, as a new pattern of endothelium-ECM interplay, contributed to the development of VMs by promoting ECM degradation.

Recanalization of accessory hepatic vein for hepatic vein-type Budd-Chiari syndrome.

OBJECTIVE: To evaluate the clinical efficacy and long-term outcomes associated with the treatment of hepatic vein (HV)-type Budd-Chiari syndrome (BCS) via accessory HV (AHV) recanalization. METHODS: In total, 26 HV-type BCS patients underwent AHV recanalization between July 2014 and December 2019 at our hospital, while 73 HV-type BCS patients without compensatory AHV underwent main HV (MHV) recanalization and served as controls in the present study. Short- and long-term clinical outcomes were compared. RESULTS: AHV and MHV recanalization approaches were both associated with 100% technical success rates, with one recanalization procedure being performed per patient. Respective clinical success rates for the AHV and MHV recanalization approaches were 96.2% and 94.5% (P = 0.744). Re-obstruction rates were comparable between these two approaches at 20% and 34.8%, respectively (P = 0.17). Primary cumulative 1-, 2-, and 5-year patency rates in the AHV group were 96.0%, 91.6%, and 76.3%, respectively, whereas in the MHV group, these three respective rates were 87.0%, 78.6%, and 58.6% (P = 0.048). Secondary cumulative 1-, 2-, and 5-year patency rates in the AHV group were 96.0%, 96.0%, and 96.0%, respectively, whereas in the MHV group, they were 97.1%, 97.1%, and 81.8%, respectively (P = 0.289). Cumulative 1-, 2-, and 5-year survival rates for AHV group patients were 96.0%, 96.0%, and 96.0%, respectively, while for the MHV group, these respective rates were 98.6%, 95.2%, and 89.7% (P = 0.462). CONCLUSION: HV-type BCS can be safely and effectively treated via AHV recanalization, which may achieve longer patency relative to MHV recanalization.

A quantum chemical and statistical study of ganoderic acids with cytotoxicity against tumor cell.

A set of molecular properties (variables) of 24 ganoderic acids with cytotoxicities against Meth-A tumor cells was calculated by the molecular orbital semi-empirical method AM1 and ChemPropStd. Pattern recognition techniques, principal component analysis (PCA) and hierarchical cluster analysis (HCA) were employed to reduce dimensionality and investigate which subset of variables could be more effective for classifying the ganoderic acids according to their degree of cytotoxicities against tumor cells. The PCA and HCA studies showed that EHOMO (highest occupied molecular orbital energy), Mulliken electronegativity (chi), electronic energy (Eel), log P (octanol/water partition coefficient), and Connolly molecular area (MA) are the most important variables for the classification between the ganoderic acids with higher and lower cytotoxicities against tumor cells.

[The process of Chinese medicine by submerged fermentation of pharmaceutical fungi].

The progress of Chinese medicine modernization is slow in china, and one of the reason is the dated process method. The fermentation technology of pharmaceutical fungi is more and more perfect. To process Chinese medicine by pharmaceutical fungi could enhance the effective density of active ingredient in Chinese medicine, and the fungi could produce a variety of active secondary metabolite, moreover, some compounds in Chinese medicine could be bio-transformed to produce new compound by pharmaceutical fungi in the fermentation. So process Chinese medicine by pharmaceutical fungi could produce de novo Chinese medicine preparations which include a variety of bioactive compounds, and it is suitable to produce in a large scale and convenient to control the quality. To process Chinese medicine by submerged fermentation of pharmaceutical fungi provides a new process method for Chinese medicine.