Behaviour of mesenchymal stem cells from bone marrow of untreated advanced breast and lung cancer patients without bone osteolytic metastasis.

Tumour cells can find in bone marrow (BM) a niche rich in growth factors and cytokines that promote their self-renewal, proliferation and survival. In turn, tumour cells affect the homeostasis of the BM and bone, as well as the balance among haematopoiesis, osteogenesis, osteoclastogenesis and bone-resorption. As a result, growth and survival factors normally sequestered in the bone matrix are released, favouring tumour development. Mesenchymal stem cells (MSCs) from BM can become tumour-associated fibroblasts, have immunosuppressive function, and facilitate metastasis by epithelial-to-mesenchymal transition. Moreover, MSCs generate osteoblasts and osteocytes and regulate osteoclastogenesis. Therefore, MSCs can play an important pro-tumorigenic role in the formation of a microenvironment that promotes BM and bone metastasis. In this study we showed that BM MSCs from untreated advanced breast and lung cancer patients, without bone metastasis, had low osteogenic and adipogenic differentiation capacity compared to that of healthy volunteers. In contrast, chondrogenic differentiation was increased. Moreover, MSCs from patients had lower expression of CD146. Finally, our data showed higher levels of Dkk-1 in peripheral blood plasma from patients compared with healthy volunteers. Because no patient had any bone disorder by the time of the study we propose that the primary tumour altered the plasticity of MSCs. As over 70 % of advanced breast cancer patients and 30-40 % of lung cancer patients will develop osteolytic bone metastasis for which there is no total cure, our findings could possibly be used as predictive tools indicating the first signs of future bone disease. In addition, as the MSCs present in the BM of these patients may not be able to regenerate bone after the tumour cells invasion into BM/bone, it is possible that they promote the cycle between tumour cell growth and bone destruction.

Higher oxidation and lower antioxidant levels in peripheral blood plasma and bone marrow plasma from advanced cancer patients.

BACKGROUND: Bone marrow (BM) is an important tissue in the generation of immunocompetent and peripheral blood cells. The precursors of hematopoietic cells in BM undergo continuous proliferation and differentiation and are highly vulnerable to acute and chronic oxidative stress. Little is known about the oxidant and antioxidant status in the BM of untreated patients with nonhematologic tumors. In this study, oxidative stress was evaluated in peripheral blood plasma (PBP) and BM plasma (BMP) from lung carcinoma (LC) and breast carcinoma (BC) patients. METHODS: The sample included 13 consecutive untreated LC patients, 15 BC patients, and 11 healthy controls. Luminol-dependent chemiluminescence was used to evaluate oxygen radical generation by peripheral blood neutrophils. Lipid oxidation, assessed by 2-thiobarbituric acid-reactive substances (TBARS), and alpha-tocopherol, beta-carotene, and total ubiquinol-10 levels were determined in PBP and BMP. RESULTS: In LC and BC patients, neutrophil chemiluminescence was higher (128% and 264%, respectively) than in controls (P < 0.05). In cancer patients, TBARS levels were higher in both PBP (51% and 243% for LC and BC patients, respectively) and BMP (66% and 305% for LC and BC patients, respectively) than in plasma from controls (P < 0.01). alpha-Tocopherol and total ubiquinol-10 levels were significantly lower in BMP from BC patients compared with controls. In BC patients, alpha-tocopherol content in PBP was significantly lower than in controls. CONCLUSIONS: Untreated cancer patients presented an imbalance between oxidant generation and lipid-soluble antioxidant levels in favor of the former.