Ethnicity based variation in expression of E-cadherin in patients with squamous cell carcinoma of the oral tongue.

The oral tongue is the most common site for tumours within the oral cavity. Despite intense research, there has been no improvement in the survival rate for patients with oral tongue squamous cell carcinoma (OTSCC) during the last decades. Differences between oral cancer patients based on ethno-geographical distribution have been reported. The present study used immunohistochemistry to evaluate commonly used markers of cancer cell phenotypes, E-cadherin, ß-catenin and cytokeratins 5 and 19, in 120 patients with OTSCC. To evaluate the impact of ethnicity, patients from Sweden and Italy were included. A higher proportion of Swedish patients exhibited high expression of E-cadherin in their tumours (P=0.039), and high levels of E-cadherin in Swedish OTSCC patients that had succumbed to their disease were associated with poor prognosis. These data demonstrated differences in the pathological characteristics of OTSCC between two different European populations. The findings emphasise the need to take ethnicity/geographical location of patients into account when comparing results from different studies of OTSCC.

In vitro evaluation of the cytotoxic activity of three epoxy resin-based endodontic sealers.

The aim of the study was to evaluate the cytotoxicity of three epoxy resin-based endodontic sealer, AH Plus, Sicura Seal and Top Seal. Direct and indirect cytotoxicity were evaluated by 3-(4,5-dimethylthiazol-2-yl)-2,5-diphenyl tetrazolium bromide assay and LIVE/DEAD® Viability/Cytotoxicity Assay on MG63 osteoblasts-like cells. Data were statistically analyzed by analysis of variance and Tukey test, setting a significance level of 5%. Both results related to direct and indirect cell viability tests showed that all groups were significantly more cytotoxic than the negative control group. The cytotoxicity activity after one week of culture showed the absence of direct cytotoxicity, while a medium rate of indirect cytotoxicity. All the three epoxy resin-based sealers (AH Plus, Top Seal and Sicura Seal) showed a medium rate of cytotoxicity on osteoblasts-like cells in vitro. No significant difference was found among the sealers analyzed.

Genistein as a Potential Anticancer Agent Against Head and Neck Squamous Cell Carcinoma.

The use of nutraceuticals as protection drugs against chronic diseases gained a vast success. Many studies found that nutraceuticals may reduce the tumorigenic actions of carcinogens, inhibiting the adhesion and proliferation of tumor cells. Genistein is a natural isoflavone preventing osteoporosis, menopause problems and heart diseases. It is also known in China and Japan for its anticancer properties. The available treatment protocols for Head and neck squamous cell cancer (HNSCC) have led to poor results and new therapies are necessary. In this paper, we will review anticancer therapeutic potential of genistein and in vitro and in vivo studies that suggest its potential role in the treatments of HNSCC.

In vitro study on anti-cancer properties of genistein in tongue cancer.

PURPOSE: Tongue cancer is an extremely aggressive disease and is characterized by a poor prognosis. It is a complex disease to treat and current therapies have produced mediocre results with many side effects. Some facts suggest that natural essences can support traditional cancer therapy by carrying out a synergistic function with chemotherapy. Therefore, we evaluated the antitumor effects of genistein on tongue carcinoma cells. METHODS: Genistein 20, 50 and 100 µM were used for 24, 48 and 72 hours on 3 tongue carcinoma cell lines. xCELLigence system was used to evaluate the effects on cell adhesion, proliferation and to calculate IC50 values. Both MTT assay and Trypan blue assay were used to evaluate alterations in cell viability, scratch assay for cell migration and Western blot analysis for expression of some proteins. RESULTS: Cell adhesion was inhibited especially between 20 and 50 µM of genistein treatment. Proliferation was reduced by 50% for treatments with 20 µM at 24 hours, with 20 or 50 µM at 48 and 50 µM at 72 hours (P<0.0001). Viability tests confirmed a proportional reduction in concentration of genistein and duration of treatments. Even cell migration was reduced significantly (P<0.001). Genistein down-regulates vitronectin, OCT4 and survivin. CONCLUSION: This in vitro study clarifies the anti-tumor effect of genistein on tongue carcinoma. In vivo studies are needed to confirm these data and develop a suitable delivery system that is capable of acting directly on tumor.

Resveratrol (3,5,4'-trihydroxystilbene) and its properties in oral diseases.

Health promotion strategies and lifestyle changes are important in disease prevention. Oral health has received a large amount of attention previously as it is a fundamental component of general health and it contributes to the quality of life. Therefore, the study of associations between diet, health and the presence of bioactive compounds in food is receiving a substantial amount of attention. In the present review the effects and targets of a natural polyohenolic stilbenoid compound; resveratrol (3,5,4'-trihydroxystilbene; RSV) is assessed, and the future prospects for RSV in promoting oral health are considered. RSV is a phytoalexin, synthesized by a wide range of plants and abundantly extracted in grape skin, it has been purported to exert a multiplicity of anti-inflammatory, anti-viral, anti-microbial, estrogenic, anticancer, cardioprotective, neuroprotective and immunomodulatory functions. In this review, following an introduction documenting the biochemistry of RSV and RSV glucosides, the bioavailability and pharmacokinetics of RSV are described. Considering its multiple properties, the present review has focused on the potential benefits of RSV as an antioxidant and chemopreventive agent.

The crucial role of protein phosphorylation in cell signaling and its use as targeted therapy (Review).

Protein phosphorylation is an impo-rtant cellular regulatory mechanism as many enzymes and receptors are activated/deactivated by phosphorylation and dephosphorylation events, by means of kinases and phosph-atases. In particular, the protein kinases are responsible for cellular transduction signaling and their hyperactivity, malfunction or overexpression can be found in several diseases, mostly tumors. Therefore, it is evident that the use of kinase inhibitors can be valuable for the treatment of cancer. In this review, we discuss the mechanism of action of phosphorylation, with particular attention to the importance of phosphorylation under physiological and pathological conditions. We also discuss the possibility of using kinase inhibitors in the treatment of tumors.

Patients with high c-MYC-expressing squamous cell carcinomas of the tongue show better survival than those with low- and medium-expressing tumours.

BACKGROUND: c-MYC is a potent oncoprotein with roles in a wide range of cellular processes such as differentiation, apoptosis and growth control. Deregulation of the MYC gene is commonly seen in human tumours resulting in overexpression of the protein. Here we studied expression of c-MYC in correlation to clinical outcome in patients with primary squamous cell carcinoma of the mobile tongue. METHODS: Immunohistochemistry was used to identify c-MYC in a group of 104 tongue squamous cell carcinomas with an antibody directed against the N-terminal part of the protein. Staining was evaluated by multiplying the percentage of c-MYC-expressing cells with staining intensity, giving a quick score for each tumour. RESULTS: All 104 tumours expressed c-MYC at varying levels. Quantitation according to per cent of positive cells and staining intensity revealed that most (15/21; 71%) high-expressing tumours were seen in males. Within the group of high c-MYC-expressing tumours, the majority were alive 2 and 5 years after treatment. CONCLUSIONS: The present findings show that expression of c-MYC has prognostic value in squamous cell carcinoma of the tongue, and could be useful in choice of therapy.

Circulating miRNAs from blood, plasma or serum as promising clinical biomarkers in oral squamous cell carcinoma: A systematic review of current findings.

The purpose of this systematic review was to summarize current findings on the use of circulating miRNAs from blood, serum and plasma as cancer biomarkers in patients with oral squamous cell carcinoma. Studies were gathered after searching four different electronic databases: PUBMED, SCOPUS, Cochrane Library and Web of Science. Additional search was carried out through cross check on bibliography of selected articles. After the selection process made by two of the authors, 16 articles met the inclusion criteria and were included in the review. Results showed that circulating miRNAs from blood, serum or plasma represent promising candidates as cancer biomarkers in patients suffering from oral cancer. The possibility to predict recurrences and metastases through follow-up quantification of candidate miRNAs represents another potential feature to be addressed in future studies. However, methodological standardization and uniform sampling is needed to increase the power and accuracy of results.

Novel possibilities in the study of the salivary proteomic profile using SELDI-TOF/MS technology.

There is currently an increasing interest in exploring human saliva to identify salivary diagnostic and prognostic biomarkers, since the collection of saliva is rapid, non-invasive and stress-free. Diagnostic tests on saliva are common and cost-effective, particularly for patients who need to monitor their hormone levels or the effectiveness of undergoing therapies. Furthermore, salivary diagnostics is ideal for surveillance studies and in situations where fast results and inexpensive technologies are required. The most important constituents of saliva are proteins, the expression levels of which may be modified due to variations of the cellular conditions. Therefore, the different profile of proteins detected in saliva, including their absence, presence or altered levels, is a potential biomarker of certain physiological and/or pathological conditions. A promising novel approach to study saliva is the global analysis of salivary proteins using proteomic techniques. In the present study, surface-enhanced laser desorption/ionization-time-of-flight/mass spectrometry (SELDI-TOF/MS), one of the most recent proteomic tools for the identification of novel biomarkers, is reviewed. In addition, the possible use of this technique in salivary proteomic studies is discussed, since SELDI technology combines the precision of matrix-assisted laser desorption/ionization-TOF/MS proteomic analysis and the high-throughput nature of protein array analysis.

Biological and therapeutic activities, and anticancer properties of curcumin.

Curcumin (diferuloylmethane) is a polyphenol derived from the Curcuma longa plant. Curcumin has been used extensively in Ayurvedic medicine, as it is nontoxic and exhibits a variety of therapeutic properties, including antioxidant, analgesic, anti-inflammatory and antiseptic activities. Recently, certain studies have indicated that curcumin may exert anticancer effects in a variety of biological pathways involved in mutagenesis, apoptosis, tumorigenesis, cell cycle regulation and metastasis. The present study reviewed previous studies in the literature, which support the therapeutic activity of curcumin in cancer. In addition, the present study elucidated a number of the challenges concerning the use of curcumin as an adjuvant chemotherapeutic agent. All the studies reviewed herein suggest that curcumin is able to exert anti-inflammatory, antiplatelet, antioxidative, hepatoprotective and antitumor activities, particularly against cancers of the liver, skin, pancreas, prostate, ovary, lung and head neck, as well as having a positive effect in the treatment of arthritis.