Effectiveness of metformin for the reversal of cold-ischemia-induced damage in hepatosteatosis.

BACKGROUND: Primary dysfunction and rejection are more common in donor liver tissues with steatosis. AMP-activated protein kinase (AMPK) assumes organ-protective functions during ischemia. Metformin was used for the activation of AMPK in hepatocytes. The aim of this study is to investigate the effectiveness of metformin administration for the reversal of cold-ischemia-induced damage in hepatosteatosis. MATERIAL AND METHODS: Seven-week-old C7BL56 male-mice (n = 109) were separated into four groups depending on diet type and metformin use. A specific diet model was followed for 10 weeks to induce hepatosteatosis. A group of the animals was administered with metformin for the last four weeks via oral gavage. After resection, the liver tissues were perfused and kept for 0-6-12-24 h in the UW solution. Histopathological examinations were performed, and Western blot was utilized to analyze p-AMPK and AMPK expression levels. RESULTS: Hepatosteatosis decreased significantly with metformin. The steatotic liver group had more prominent pericentral inflammation, necrosis as well as showing a decreased and more delayed AMPK response than the non-fat group. All these alterations could be corrected using metformin. CONCLUSION: Metformin can increase the resistance of livers with hepatosteatosis to cold-ischemia-induced damage, which in turn may pave the way for successful transplantation of fatty living-donor livers.

Targeting TACC3 Induces Immunogenic Cell Death and Enhances T-DM1 Response in HER2-Positive Breast Cancer.

Trastuzumab emtansine (T-DM1) was the first and one of the most successful antibody-drug conjugates (ADC) approved for treating refractory HER2-positive breast cancer. Despite its initial clinical efficacy, resistance is unfortunately common, necessitating approaches to improve response. Here, we found that in sensitive cells, T-DM1 induced spindle assembly checkpoint (SAC)-dependent immunogenic cell death (ICD), an immune-priming form of cell death. The payload of T-DM1 mediated ICD by inducing eIF2α phosphorylation, surface exposure of calreticulin, ATP and HMGB1 release, and secretion of ICD-related cytokines, all of which were lost in resistance. Accordingly, ICD-related gene signatures in pretreatment samples correlated with clinical response to T-DM1-containing therapy, and increased infiltration of antitumor CD8+ T cells in posttreatment samples was correlated with better T-DM1 response. Transforming acidic coiled-coil containing 3 (TACC3) was overexpressed in T-DM1-resistant cells, and T-DM1 responsive patients had reduced TACC3 protein expression whereas nonresponders exhibited increased TACC3 expression during T-DM1 treatment. Notably, genetic or pharmacologic inhibition of TACC3 restored T-DM1-induced SAC activation and induction of ICD markers in vitro. Finally, TACC3 inhibition in vivo elicited ICD in a vaccination assay and potentiated the antitumor efficacy of T-DM1 by inducing dendritic cell maturation and enhancing intratumoral infiltration of cytotoxic T cells. Together, these results illustrate that ICD is a key mechanism of action of T-DM1 that is lost in resistance and that targeting TACC3 can restore T-DM1-mediated ICD and overcome resistance. SIGNIFICANCE: Loss of induction of immunogenic cell death in response to T-DM1 leads to resistance that can be overcome by targeting TACC3, providing an attractive strategy to improve the efficacy of T-DM1.

Reviving immunogenic cell death upon targeting TACC3 enhances T-DM1 response in HER2-positive breast cancer.

Immunogenic cell death (ICD), an immune-priming form of cell death, has been shown to be induced by several different anti-cancer therapies. Despite being the first and one of the most successful antibody-drug conjugates (ADCs) approved for refractory HER2-positive breast cancer, little is known if response and resistance to trastuzumab emtansine (T-DM1) involves ICD modulation that can be leveraged to enhance T-DM1 response. Here, we report that T-DM1 induces spindle assembly checkpoint (SAC)-dependent ICD in sensitive cells by inducing eIF2α phosphorylation, surface exposure of calreticulin, ATP and HMGB1 release, and secretion of ICD-related cytokines, all of which are lost in resistance. Accordingly, an ICD-related gene signature correlates with clinical response to T-DM1-containing therapy. We found that transforming acidic coiled-coil containing 3 (TACC3) is overexpressed in T-DM1 resistant cells, and that T-DM1 responsive patients have reduced TACC3 protein while the non-responders exhibited increased TACC3 expression during T-DM1 treatment. Notably, genetic or pharmacological inhibition of TACC3 revives T-DM1-induced SAC activation and induction of ICD markers in vitro. Finally, TACC3 inhibition elicits ICD in vivo shown by vaccination assay, and it potentiates T-DM1 by inducing dendritic cell (DC) maturation and enhancing infiltration of cytotoxic T cells in the human HER2-overexpressing MMTV.f.huHER2#5 (Fo5) transgenic model. Together, our results show that ICD is a key mechanism of action of T-DM1 which is lost in resistance, and that targeting TACC3 restores T-DM1-mediated ICD and overcomes resistance.

Can endocan serve as a molecular "hepatostat" in liver regeneration?

BACKGROUND: Intriguingly, liver regeneration after injury does not induce uncontrolled growth and the underlying mechanisms of such a "hepatostat" are still not clear. Endocan, a proteoglycan, was implicated in liver regeneration. It can support the function of hepatocyte growth factor/scatter factor in tissue repair after injury. Endostatin, a 20 kDa C-terminal fragment of collagen XVIII, may modulate the cessation of liver regeneration. eEF2K, a protein kinase that regulates protein synthesis, can regulate angiogenesis. Thus, we investigated the role of endocan, endostatin and eEF2K during normal liver regeneration. METHODS: Serum samples and regenerating remnant liver tissues were obtained on various days after partial hepatectomy in rats. mRNA expression levels of Vegf and Pcna were analyzed in addition to immunohistochemical evaluations. Liver tissue protein levels of endostatin, endocan and p-eEF2K/eEF2K were determined with Western blot. Serum levels of endostatin and endocan were assessed with ELISA. RESULTS: Pcna expression level in residual liver tissues peaked on day-1, while Vegf expression reached its highest level on days 1-3 after partial hepatectomy (70%). Endocan activity declined gradually on days 1-7. The decrease in liver endocan expression was accompanied by an increase in serum endocan levels. Partial hepatectomy induced a rapid increase in liver endostatin levels. Following its surge on day-1, endostatin expression gradually declined, which was accompanied by a peak in serum endostatin. Finally, partial hepatectomy was shown to regulate eEF2K; thus, increasing protein translation. CONCLUSIONS: We revealed possible mechanistic insights into liver regeneration by examining the associations of Pcna, Vegf, endocan, endostatin, eEF2K with hepatic regeneration after partial hepatectomy. Indeed, endocan might serve as a useful biomarker to monitor clinical prognosis in a plethora of conditions such as recovery of donor's remaining liver after living-donor liver transplant. Whether endocan might represent a strategy to optimize liver regeneration when given therapeutically needs to be investigated in future studies.

Targeting LINC00152 activates cAMP/Ca2+/ferroptosis axis and overcomes tamoxifen resistance in ER+ breast cancer.

Tamoxifen has been the mainstay therapy to treat early, locally advanced, and metastatic estrogen receptor-positive (ER+) breast cancer, constituting around 75% of all cases. However, emergence of resistance is common, necessitating the identification of novel therapeutic targets. Here, we demonstrated that long-noncoding RNA LINC00152 confers tamoxifen resistance via blocking tamoxifen-induced ferroptosis, an iron-mediated cell death. Mechanistically, inhibiting LINC00152 reduces the mRNA stability of phosphodiesterase 4D (PDE4D), leading to activation of cAMP/PKA/CREB axis and increased expression of TRPC1 Ca2+ channel. This causes cytosolic Ca2+ overload and generation of reactive oxygen species (ROS) that is, on one hand, accompanied by downregulation of FTH1, a member of the iron sequestration unit, thus increasing intracellular Fe2+ levels; and on the other hand, inhibition of the peroxidase activity upon reduced GPX4 and xCT levels. These ultimately induce lipid peroxidation and ferroptotic cell death in combination with tamoxifen. Overexpressing PDE4D rescues LINC00152 inhibition-mediated tamoxifen sensitization by de-activating the cAMP/Ca2+/ferroptosis axis. Importantly, high LINC00152 expression is significantly correlated with high PDE4D/low ferroptosis and worse survival in multiple cohorts of tamoxifen- or tamoxifen-containing endocrine therapy-treated ER+ breast cancer patients. Overall, we identified LINC00152 inhibition as a novel mechanism of ferroptosis induction and tamoxifen sensitization, thereby revealing LINC00152 and its effectors as actionable therapeutic targets to improve clinical outcome in refractory ER+ breast cancer.