Down-regulation of RB1 and miR-132 in ductal carcinoma of the breast.

INTRODUCTION: miR-132-3p acts in normal breast development and its downregulation has been documented in breast cancer. One of the targets of miR-132-3p is RB1 which is also inactivated in breast cancer. The interactions between RB1 and miR-132 have been reported in several pathological conditions. We aimed to investigate the correlation between expression levels of miR-132 and RB1 in ductal carcinoma of the breast. METHODS: The study was carried out on tissues obtained from female patients with primary breast cancer. Tumor samples were classified using clinical and pathological data. Following RNA extraction and cDNA synthesis, relative gene expressions in tumors were compared to non-cancerous adjacent tissues. The link between RB1 and miR-132 was assessed by the correlation coefficient test. RESULTS: Our findings revealed a significant decrease in miR-132 and RB1 expressions with a ratio of 0.165 and 0.365, respectively. Tumor grade showed an association with miRNA-132 levels. The expression of miR-132 in grade I tumors was almost equal to that of normal adjacent tissues, but was intensely decreased in grades II and III. The correlation analysis showed a small linear association between RB1 and miR-132 levels. CONCLUSION: The reduction of miR-132 and RB1 expression confirmed the tumor-suppressive role of both genes in breast cancer. Considering that RB1 is one of the miR-132 targets, further studies are required to discover any miRNA-mediated upregulation role for miR-132. Our finding discovered a small linear association between miR-132 and RB1, which can be concluded towards their independent function in breast cancer pathogenesis.

K-Ras4A Plays a More Significant Role than K-Ras4B in Ductal Carcinoma of Breast.

Background: K-Ras mutations rarely occur in breast cancer. However, studies have supported that K-Ras upregulation is involved in breast cancer pathogenesis. Two main K-Ras transcript variants; K-Ras4A and K-Ras4B, originate from the alternative splicing of exon 4. In this study, we aimed to evaluate variations in the expression of K-Ras4A and K-Ras4B and their role in breast ductal carcinoma. Methods: Total RNA was extracted from breast tumors, and the NATs obtained via mastectomy. Patients were selected from new cases of breast cancer with no prior history of chemotherapy. Relative mRNA expression was calculated based on a pairwise comparison between the tumors and the NATs following normalization to the internal control gene. Predictive values of the transcript variants were examined by ROC curve analysis. Results: A statistically significant increase was found in the K-Ras4A and K-Ras4B expression with the mean fold changes of 7.58 (p = 0.01) and 2.47 (p = 0.001), respectively. The K-Ras4A/K-Ras4B ratio was lower in the tumors than that of the normal tissues. ROC curve analysis revealed the potential of K-Ras4A (AUC: 0.769) and K-Ras4B (AUC: 0.688) in breast cancer prediction. There was also a significant association between K-Ras4B expression and HER2 statues (p = 0.04). Furthermore, a significant link was detected between K-Ras4A expression and pathological prognostic stages (p = 0.04). Conclusion: Our findings revealed that expression levels of K-Ras4A and K-Ras4B is higher in the tumor compared to the normal breast tissues. Increase in K-Ras4A expression was more significant than that of K-Ras4B.

Short-Term Changes on Body Composition After Sleeve Gastrectomy and One Anastomosis Gastric Bypass.

Introduction: Changes in body composition after different bariatric surgeries have been studied extensively, but most of them have emphasized on Roux-en-Y gastric bypass. Only a few studies have assessed the effects of sleeve gastrectomy (SG). Also, the effect of one anastomosis gastric bypass (OAGB) on body composition is not fully apprehended. Furthermore, there is no agreement on how much fat-free mass (FFM) loss is tolerable in weight loss interventions. Therefore, we decided to assess the reduction in fat mass (FM) and FFM at 1, 3, 6, and 12 months after two types of bariatric surgery in a single center. Methods: In the current retrospective cross-sectional study, the patients' hospital records were analyzed. We included patients who had SG or OAGB and a complete 1-year follow-up record. We recorded demographic data as well as weight, body mass index (BMI), FM, and FFM before and at 1, 3, 6, and 12 months after surgery in a predesigned checklist. Results: We analyzed 311 patients (43 males and 268 females) in the SG (N = 192, 61.7%) and OAGB (N = 119, 38.3%) groups. Both the SG and OAGB groups demonstrated a statistically significant reduction in weight, BMI, FM, and FFM indices at 12 months after the intervention (P < .001). Moreover, no statistically significant difference was observed between the SG and OAGB groups regarding the mean of all body composition indices at 3, 6, and 12 months after the intervention. Conclusion: We found that SG and OAGB effectively decreased weight and body composition indices, comprising FM and FFM, with no significant difference between each other.

A novel panel of blood-based microRNAs capable of discrimination between benign breast disease and breast cancer at early stages.

Breast cancer (BC) as a leading cause of cancer death among women, exhibits a wide range of genetic heterogeneity in affected individuals. Satisfactory management of BC depends on early diagnosis and proper monitoring of patients' response to therapy. In this study, we aimed to assess the relation between the expression patterns of blood-based microRNAs (miRNAs) with demographic characteristics of the patients with BC in an attempt to find novel diagnostic markers for BC with acceptable precision in clinical applications. To this end, we performed comprehensive statistical analysis of the data of the Cancer Genome Atlas (TCGA) database and the blood miRNome dataset (GSE31309). As a result, 21 miRNAs were selected for experimental verification by quantitative RT-PCR on blood samples of 70 BC patients and 60 normal individuals (without any lesions or benign breast diseases). Statistical one-way ANOVA revealed no significant difference in the blood levels of the selected miRNAs in BC patients compared to any lesions or benign breast diseases. However, the multi-marker panel consisting of hsa-miR-106b-5p, -126-3p, -140-3p, -193a-5p, and -10b-5p could detect early-stages of BC with 0.79 sensitivity, 0.86 specificity and 0.82 accuracy. Furthermore, this multi-marker panel showed the potential of detecting benign breast diseases from BC patients with 0.67 sensitivity, 0.80 specificity, and 0.74 accuracy. In conclusion, these data indicate that the present panel might be considered an asset in detecting benign breast disease and BC.

LncRNAs AK058003 and MVIH Overexpression in the Blood Samples of Iranian Breast Cancer Patients.

Background: Long non-coding RNAs (LncRNAs) are considered as novel biological regulators and potential cancer biomarkers. LncRNAs microvascular invasion in hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC; microvascular invasion [MVIH]) and AK058003 are associated with MVIH in HCC. In breast cancer (BC), upregulated MVIH and AK058003 expression levels have been shown to promote cell proliferation, though LncRNA-AK058003 acts as a tumor suppressor in HCC. Methods: Blood samples were collected from 30 healthy women and 30 female BC patients. RNA was extracted from the blood of both groups, and cDNA was then synthesized. A real-time PCR technique was conducted to measure the expression level of LncRNA-AK058003 and MVIH. Results: The expression level of two LncRNAs in the blood samples of BC patients increased significantly compared with healthy individuals. The levels of AK058003 and MVIH were not associated with lymph node metastasis (p = 0.402 and p = 0.39), tumor size (p = 0.76 and p = 0.461), and tumor size; lymph nodes, metastasis stage (TNM; p = 0.574 and p = 0.711), respectively. Conclusion: As per our findings, LncRNA-AK058003 could serve as a suitable indicator for low stage of BC. In addition, the increased level of LncRNA-MVIH could be considered as a biomarker for BC, which needs more evaluation in the future.

Investigation of the SPAG5 gene expression and amplification related to the NuMA mRNA levels in breast ductal carcinoma.

BACKGROUND: The cell proliferative markers are very important in breast cancer. Since SPAG5 and NuMA proteins play a significant role in the mitosis regulatory network and cell division, we aimed to study their mRNA levels as well as SPAG5 gene amplification correlated to clinicopathological status in ductal carcinoma of the breast. METHODS: SPAG5 and NuMA gene expressions were investigated in 40 breast cancer tissues and normal adjacent tissues via real-time PCR. PUM1 was selected as the reference gene. QMF PCR method was applied to study SPAG5 gene amplification and AGBL2, BOD1L, and POR were designated as internal control genes. Gene amplification was determined by calculating a dosage quotient for each DNA fragment. RESULTS: Increased SPAG5 mRNA expression was detected in breast cancer tissues (p = 0.005) and related to tumor size. No significant difference was observed between NuMA gene expression level in tumor tissue and the normal adjacent tissue (p = 0.56). However, we observed that NuMA expression was significantly increased in ER-positive tumor tissues. There was no clear correlation pattern between SPAG5 and NuMA mRNA levels (r = 0.33). Seventeen percent of tissues showed complete amplification in SPAG5 gene fragments. CONCLUSION: Our results were consistent with the previous publications regarding SPAG5 gene expression and amplification in breast cancer with an emphasis on the prominent role of this protein in tumor pathogenesis. Our results failed to yield any correlation between SPAG5 and NuMA mRNA levels which implies independence of these genes in breast cancer pathogenesis.

Breast tuberculosis: report of eight cases.

Tuberculosis of the breast is an extremely rare disease, which is still present and is also misdiagnosed with carcinoma or bacterial abscesses. In this study, we reported on eight patients with mammary tuberculosis during a four-year period. The main signs and symptoms of the patients included a painful tender lump in the breast (n=4), a painless lump in the breast (n=3), a lump with sinus (n=1), a sinus without lump (n=1), and an ipsilateral axillary lymphadenopathy (n=1). The diagnosis was confirmed by fine-needle aspiration cytology or histology. Antitubercular therapy was the therapeutic mainstay. Surgical intervention was reserved for aspiration of cold abscesses, and excision of residual sinuses and masses.

Spontaneous uterine perforation due to pyometra presenting as acute abdomen.

Spontaneous perforation of the uterus is rare, its incidence being about 0.01%-0.05%. We report a rare case of diffuse peritonitis caused by spontaneously perforated pyometra. A 63-year-old woman with severe abdominal pain was admitted to our hospital. Laparotomy was performed because of the suspicion of gastrointestinal perforation with generalized peritonitis. At laparotomy, about 900 mL of pus was found in the peritoneal cavity. There were no abnormal findings in the alimentary tract, liver, or gallbladder. A total abdominal hysterectomy with bilateral salpingo-oophorectomy was performed. Pathological investigation of the surgical specimen revealed endometritis and myometritis of the uterus; but there was no evidence of malignancy, and the cervical canal was patent. Although spontaneously perforated pyometra is rare, a perforated pyometra should therefore also be considered when elderly women present with acute abdominal pain.