Biomolecular analysis of matrix proteoglycans as biomarkers in non small cell lung cancer.

Matrix proteoglycans (PGs) have shown promise as biomarker in malignancies. We employed agarose gel eletrophoresis, quantitative real- time reverse transcription-polymerase chain reaction and immunohistochemistry to evaluate the content of sulfated glicosaminoglycans (chondroitin sulfate and heparan sulfate) and expression of PG (biglycan, glypican, perlecan, syndecan e versican) in patient-matched normal and tumor tissues obtained from resected specimens of lung cancer. A significant increase of heparan sulfate (HS) and chondroitin sulfate (CS) concentrations was found in tumor tissue samples when compared to normal lung tissue samples. HS was also significantly increased in adenocarcinomas compared to squamous cell carcinomas. PG gene expression, with exception of syndecan, were significantly decreased in tumor tissue compared to normal lung, coinciding with significant decrease of PG protein levels in tumor cells and stroma compared to normal lung tissue (Kappa coefficient 0.41, 0.42 and 0,28, respectively). Women patients (p = 0.02), non smokers (p = 0.05), T stage (p = 0.009), N stage (p = 0.03) and adenocarcinoma (p = 0.05) were associated with improved overall survival (OS). Patients presenting tumors with low concentration of sulfated GAG and high PGs levels presented better OS compared to patients with high concentration of sulfated GAG and low expression of PGs. Cox regression model controlled by gender, tobacco history and histological type, showed that patients with high perlecan and versican expression in tumor presented respectively high probability of life (ß risk 11.64; 1.27 to 15.90) and low risk of death (ß risk 0.11; 0.02-0.51). The combined approach suggest matrix (PGs) as biomarkers in lung cancer.

The Th17 pathway in the peripheral lung microenvironment interacts with expression of collagen V in the late state of experimental pulmonary fibrosis.

BACKGROUND: Myofibroblasts derived from fibroblasts in the pathogenesis of pulmonary fibrosis causes excessive and disordered deposition of matrix proteins, including collagen V, which can cause a Th17-mediated immune response and lead to apoptosis. However, whether the intrinsic ability of lung FBs to produce the matrix depends on their site-specific variations is not known. AIM: To investigate the link between Th17 and collagen V that maintains pulmonary remodeling in the peripheral lung microenvironment during the late stage of experimental pulmonary fibrosis. METHODS: Young male mice including wild Balb/c mice (BALB, n=10), wild C57 Black/6J mice (C57, n=10) and IL-17 receptor A knockout mice (KO, n=8), were sacrificed 21 days after treatment with bleomycin. Picrosirius red staining, immunohistochemistry for IL-17-related markers and "in situ" detection of apoptosis, immunofluorescence for collagen types I and V, primary cell cultures from tissue lung explants for RT-PCR and electron microscopy were used. RESULTS: The peripheral deposition of extracellular matrix components by myofibroblasts during the late stage is maintained in C57 mice compared with that in Balb mice and is not changed in the absence of IL-17 receptor A; however, the absence of IL-17 receptor A induces overexpression of type V collagen, amplifies the peripheral expression of IL-17 and IL-17-related cytokines and reduces peripheral lung fibroblast apoptosis. CONCLUSION: A positive feedback loop between the expression patterns of collagen V and IL-17 may coordinate the maintenance of peripheral collagen I in the absence of IL-17 receptor A in fibrosis-susceptible strains in a site-specific manner.