Redox-responsive hyaluronan-conjugated polypyrrole nanoparticles targeting chemo-photothermal therapy for breast cancer.

The combination of chemo-photothermal therapy has a wide application prospect in the intensive treatment of cancer. In this study, we developed a complex nanoparticle consist of polypyrrole, cystine dihydrochloride and hyaluronan. The polypyrrole nanoparticles loaded with paclitaxel exhibited good photothermal effects, and the drug release can be triggered by combined response of temperature and redox. In vitro biological studies indicated the nanoparticles could effectively induced apoptosis of MDA-MB-231 breast cancer cells involved in the potential mechanism of inhibition of biological expression of heat shock proteins and JAK-STAT signaling pathway. In addition, the nanoparticles have a significant inhibitory effect on cancer growth in breast tumor-bearing mice model, indicating that they have great potential for synergistic chemo-photothermal therapy.

CTCF-Induced lncRNA C5orf66-AS1 Facilitates the Progression of Triple-Negative Breast Cancer via Sponging miR-149-5p to Up-Regulate CTCF and CTNNB1 to Activate Wnt/ß-Catenin Pathway.

Triple-negative breast cancer (TNBC) represents one of the subtypes of breast cancer with high aggressiveness. Long noncoding RNAs (lncRNAs) are well-known to function as crucial regulators in human cancers which include TNBC. Nevertheless, the specific role of the lncRNA C5orf66-AS1 in TNBC is unclear. In this study, we tested C5orf66-AS1 expression in TNBC cells using quantitative real-time PCR (qRT-PCR) and used functional assays to detect cell behaviors, which showed that C5orf66-AS1 was highly expressed in TNBC cells and that C5orf66-AS1 knockdown attenuated cell proliferation, migration, and invasion while promoting cell apoptosis. Through a luciferase reporter assay, RNA immunoprecipitation (RIP) assay, and chromatin immunoprecipitation (ChIP) assay, we identified the binding capacity of C5orf66-AS1 to RNAs. Furthermore, miR-149-5p was proven to be sponged by C5orf66-AS1. CCCTC-binding factor (CTCF) was confirmed as the target of miR-149-5p and could transcriptionally activate C5orf66-AS1 expression in TNBC cells. We also discovered that C5orf66-AS1 activated the Wnt/ß-catenin signaling pathway by upregulating catenin beta 1 (CTNNB1). Importantly, CTNNB1 could be targeted by miR-149-5p. In rescue assays, it was proven that overexpressing CTCF and CTNNB1 or inhibiting miR-149-5p could totally reverse the inhibitory effect of silencing C5orf66-AS1 on TNBC progression. In short, the lncRNA C5orf66-AS1 acted as an oncogene to facilitate TNBC malignancy.

Postoperative expressions of TRACP5b and CA125 in patients with breast cancer and their values for monitoring bone metastasis.

PURPOSE: To explore the diagnostic values of serum tartrate-resistant acid phosphatase 5b (TRACP5b) and serum carbohydrate antigen 125 (CA125) for bone metastasis of breast cancer. METHODS: 118 patients pathologically diagnosed with breast cancer in the second People's Hospital of Lianyungang from September 2014 to June 2017 were selected. Among them, 60 patients who were confirmed with bone metastasis by whole-body bone imaging combined with clinical manifestations and other imaging methods were included in a bone metastasis group, and 58 patients who were confirmed without bone metastasis were included in a non-bone metastasis group. Another 61 patients who were pathologically confirmed with benign breast lesion formed a benign lesion group. Enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay (ELISA) was used to detect TRACP5b level and electrochemiluminescence (ECL) was used to detect CA125 level. RESULTS: The expression levels of TRACP5b and CA125 in the bone metastasis group were significantly higher than those in the non-bone metastasis and benign lesion groups (p<0.05), and the expression levels in the non-bone metastasis group were higher than those in the benign lesion group (p<0.05). In bone metastasis of breast cancer, the expression level of TRACP5b was correlated with the number of tumor nodules, lymph node metastasis, tumor local infiltration and TNM staging (p<0.05), while the expression level of CA125 was correlated with the number of tumor nodules, lymph node metastasis and TNM staging (p<0.05). Logistic regression analysis showed that TNM staging, estrogen receptor (ER), TRACP5b, and CA125 were risk factors for bone metastasis of breast cancer patients. CONCLUSION: In conclusion, TRACP5b and CA125 may be involved in the occurrence and progression of bone metastasis of breast cancer. Detection of TRACP5b and CA125 has good sensitivity and specificity in diagnosing bone metastasis of breast cancer, so TRACP5b and CA125 may become new biomarkers for diagnosing the disease.