scholarly journals Detection of VAR2CSA-Captured Colorectal Cancer Cells from Blood Samples by Real-Time Reverse Transcription PCR

Cancers ◽  
2021 ◽  
Vol 13 (23) ◽  
pp. 5881
Author(s):  
Sara R. Bang-Christensen ◽  
Viatcheslav Katerov ◽  
Amalie M. Jørgensen ◽  
Tobias Gustavsson ◽  
Swati Choudhary ◽  
...  

Analysis of circulating tumor cells (CTCs) from blood samples provides a non-invasive approach for early cancer detection. However, the rarity of CTCs makes it challenging to establish assays with the required sensitivity and specificity. We combine a highly sensitive CTC capture assay exploiting the cancer cell binding recombinant malaria VAR2CSA protein (rVAR2) with the detection of colon-related mRNA transcripts (USH1C and CKMT1A). Cancer cell transcripts are detected by RT-qPCR using proprietary Target Enrichment Long-probe Quantitative Amplified Signal (TELQAS) technology. We validate each step of the workflow using colorectal cancer (CRC) cell lines spiked into blood and compare this with antibody-based cell detection. USH1C and CKMT1A are expressed in healthy colon tissue and CRC cell lines, while only low-level expression can be detected in healthy white blood cells (WBCs). The qPCR reaction shows a near-perfect amplification efficiency for all primer targets with minimal interference of WBC cDNA. Spike-in of 10 cancer cells in 3 mL blood can be detected and statistically separated from control blood using the RT-qPCR assay after rVAR2 capture (p < 0.01 for both primer targets, Mann-Whitney test). Our results provide a validated workflow for highly sensitive detection of magnetically enriched cancer cells.

2021 ◽  
Vol 21 (1) ◽  
Author(s):  
Zeinab Faghfoori ◽  
Mohammad Hasan Faghfoori ◽  
Amir Saber ◽  
Azimeh Izadi ◽  
Ahmad Yari Khosroushahi

Abstract Background Colorectal cancer (CRC), with a growing incidence trend worldwide, is resistant to apoptosis and has uncontrolled proliferation. It is recently reported that probiotic microorganisms exert anticancer effects. The genus Bifidobacterium, one of the dominant bacterial populations in the gastrointestinal tract, has received increasing attention because of widespread interest in using it as health-promoting microorganisms. Therefore, the present study aimed to assess the apoptotic effects of some bifidobacteria species on colon cancer cell lines. Methods The cytotoxicity evaluations performed using MTT assay and FACS-flow cytometry tests. Also, the effects of five species of bifidobacteria secretion metabolites on the expression level of anti- or pro-apoptotic genes including BAD, Bcl-2, Caspase-3, Caspase-8, Caspase-9, and Fas-R studied by real-time polymerase chain reaction (RT-PCR) method. Results The cell-free supernatant of all studied bifidobacteria significantly decreased the survival rates of colon cancer cells compared with control groups. Flow cytometric and RT-PCR results indicated that apoptosis is induced by bifidobacteria secretion metabolites and the mechanism for the action of bifidobacteria species in CRC prevention could be down-regulation and up-regulation of anti-apoptotic and, pro-apoptotic genes. Conclusions In the present study, different bifidobacteria species showed anticancer activity on colorectal cancer cells through down-regulation and up-regulation of anti-apoptotic and pro-apoptotic genes. However, further studies are required to clarify the exact mechanism of apoptosis induction by bifidobacteria species.


Cancers ◽  
2019 ◽  
Vol 11 (10) ◽  
pp. 1482 ◽  
Author(s):  
Leung ◽  
Chou ◽  
Huang ◽  
Yang

Aberrant overexpression of high mobility group AT-hook 2 (HMGA2) is frequently found in cancers and HMGA2 has been considered an anticancer therapeutic target. In this study, a pan-cancer genomics survey based on Cancer Cell Line Encyclopedia (CCLE) and The Cancer Genome Atlas (TCGA) data indicated that HMGA2 was mainly overexpressed in gastrointestinal cancers including colorectal cancer. Intriguingly, HMGA2 overexpression had no prognostic impacts on cancer patients’ overall and disease-free survivals. In addition, HMGA2-overexpressing colorectal cancer cell lines did not display higher susceptibility to a previously identified HMGA2 inhibitor (netroposin). By microarray profiling of HMGA2-driven gene signature and subsequent Connectivity Map (CMap) database mining, we identified that S100 calcium-binding protein A4 (S100A4) may be a druggable vulnerability for HMGA2-overexpressing colorectal cancer. A repurposing S100A4 inhibitor, niclosamide, was found to reverse the HMGA2-driven gene signature both in colorectal cancer cell lines and patients’ tissues. In vitro and in vivo experiments validated that HMGA2-overexpressing colorectal cancer cells were more sensitive to niclosamide. However, inhibition of S100A4 by siRNAs and other inhibitors was not sufficient to exert effects like niclosamide. Further RNA sequencing analysis identified that niclosamide inhibited more cell-cycle-related gene expression in HMGA2-overexpressing colorectal cancer cells, which may explain its selective anticancer effect. Together, our study repurposes an anthelminthic drug niclosamide for treating HMGA2-overexpression colorectal cancer.


2009 ◽  
Vol 27 (15_suppl) ◽  
pp. 4124-4124
Author(s):  
T. Yeung ◽  
J. Wilding ◽  
W. Bodmer

4124 Background: Cancer stem cells are defined as cells within a tumour that are able to self-renew and differentiate into all cell lineages within that tumour. With our extensive panel of colorectal cell lines, our aims are: 1) To characterise and isolate cancer stem cells based on stem cell markers, morphological appearances and the ability to form multiple lineages; 2) To understand how cancer stem cells drive tumour growth and progression. Methods: 1) Fluorescent Activated Cell Sorting (FACS); 2) In vitro soft agar clonogenic and Matrigel differentiation assays; 3) In vivo tumourigenic NOD/SCID mice assay; 4) Confocal immunofluorescence imaging. Results: 1) A subpopulation of cells can differentiate into crypt-like megacolonies, retaining the ability to self-renew and differentiate. SW1222 cell line forms heterogeneous colonies when single cells are plated in Matrigel. Megacolonies can both self-renew and form terminally differentiated small colonies, whereas small colonies cannot form megacolonies. Megacolonies develop crypt-like structures and increase their expression of differentiation markers (CDX-1, CK-20) over time. Experiments are currently under way to confirm that cells from megacolonies are able to initiate tumours in NOD/SCID mice. Some cell lines retain the ability to differentiate into both neuroendocrine and epithelial lineages. 2) CD44+CD24+ enriches for the cancer stem cell population. Colorectal cancer cell lines HCT116, HT29, LS180, LS174T and SW1222 express both CD44 and CD24. The CD44+CD24+ subpopulation is the most clonogenic. In SW1222, CD44+CD24+ cells enrich for megacolonies and can reform all four CD44/CD24 subpopulations. 3) Hypoxia reduces differentiation, increases stem-like phenotype and enhances clonogenicity. Hypoxia increases the proportion of undifferentiated colorectal cancer cells when plated on Matrigel and increases clonogenicity. Conclusions: 1) Colorectal cancer cell lines contain subpopulations of cells that have the ability to self-renew, differentiate and drive tumour growth, and may be characterised by their cell surface markers and colony morphology. 2) CD44+CD24+ can be used as markers for colorectal cancer stem cells. 3) Hypoxia increases the stem-like phenotype of cancer cells, reduces differentiation and increases clonogenicity. No significant financial relationships to disclose.


2021 ◽  
Author(s):  
Zeinab Faghfoori ◽  
Mohammad Hasan Faghfoori ◽  
Amir Saber ◽  
Azimeh Izadi ◽  
Ahmad Yari Khosroushahi

Abstract Background: Colorectal cancer (CRC), with a growing incidence trend worldwide, is resistant to apoptosis and have the uncontrolled proliferation. It is recently reported that probiotic microorganisms exert anticancer effects. The genus Bifidobacterium, one of the dominant bacterial populations in the gastrointestinal tract, has received increasing attention because of widespread interest in using as health-promoting microorganisms. Therefore, the present study aimed to assess the apoptotic effects of some bifidobacteria species on colon cancer cell lines.Methods: The cytotoxicity evaluations performed using MTT assay and FACS-flow cytometry tests. Also, the effects of five species of bifidobacteria secretion metabolites on the expression level of anti- or pro-apoptotic genes including BAD, Bcl-2, Caspase-3, Caspase-8, Caspase-9, and Fas-R studied by real-time polymerase chain reaction (RT-PCR) method. Results: The cell-free supernatant of all studied bifidobacteria significantly decreased the survival rates of colon cancer cells compared with control groups. Flow cytometric and RT-PCR results indicated that apoptosis is induced by bifidobacteria secretion metabolites and the mechanism for the action of bifidobacteria species in CRC prevention could be down-regulation and up-regulation of anti-apoptotic and, pro-apoptotic genes.Conclusions: In the present study, different bifidobacteria species showed anticancer activity on colorectal cancer cells through down-regulation and up-regulation of anti-apoptotic and pro-apoptotic genes. However, further studies are required to clarify the exact mechanism of apoptosis induction by bifidobacteria species.


2011 ◽  
Vol 29 (4_suppl) ◽  
pp. 414-414
Author(s):  
C. Grandclement ◽  
R. Bedel ◽  
B. Kantelip ◽  
E. Viel ◽  
J. Remy Martin ◽  
...  

414 Background: Initially characterized as neuronal receptors, Neuropilins (NRPs) were also found to be expressed in endothelial cells and subsequently were shown to play a role in the development of the vascular system. NRP family consists of two genes, neuropilin-1 (NRP1) and neuropilin-2 (NRP2).The multiple functions of NRPs were recently highlighted by the identification of NRP role in oncogenesis. In this study, we first confirmed the role of NRP2 in tumor progression. We also extended the understanding of NRP2 oncogenic functions by investigating the ability of NRP2 to orchestrate epithelial-mesenchymal transition (EMT) in colorectal cancer cells. Methods: We have generated human colon cancer cell lines transfected with NRP2 transgene or siRNA to investigate NRP2 involvement in EMT. First, the oncogenic functions of NRP2 were studied in vitro by MTT, soft agar, invasion assays and in vivo using xenografts experiments. Ability of NRP2 to orchestrate EMT was then investigated by flow cytometry, immunohistochemical (IHC) staining, western-blotting and quantitative real-time PCR. Results: IHC staining revealed that NRP2 is expressed in human colon and breast carcinomas while it is not expressed in healthy tissues. Then, we confirmed that NRP2 increases tumor proliferation, colony formation, invasion and xenograft formation. Moreover, NRP2-expressing cells displayed an immunohistochemical phenotype of EMT characterized by the loss of E-Cadherin and an increase of vimentin. Furthermore, NRP2 expression promotes transforming-growth factor-β1 (TGF- β1) signaling, leading to an increased phosphorylation of the Smad2/3 complex in colorectal cancer cell lines. Specific inhibition of NRP2 using siRNA or treatment with specific TGFβRI kinase inhibitors prevented this phosphorylation and the EMT, suggesting that NRP2 cooperates with TGFRI to promote EMT in colorectal carcinoma. Conclusions: Our findings have reinforced the essential role of NRP2 in cancer progression and demonstrated that NRP2 expression confers to tumor cell lines the hallmarks of EMT. Moreover, in the current work, we present evidence for the therapeutic value of NRP2 targeting. No significant financial relationships to disclose.


2019 ◽  
Vol 37 (15_suppl) ◽  
pp. e15107-e15107
Author(s):  
Wan He ◽  
Han Wu ◽  
Dongcheng Liu ◽  
Wenwen Li ◽  
Ruilian Xu ◽  
...  

e15107 Background: Our previous studies revealed the increased expression of Jagged 2 (JAG2) in most intestinal cancer tissues. In colon cancer cell lines, JAG2 involved in the regulation of migration and invasion without affecting cell proliferation. This study further explored the mechanisms of how JAG2 promotes migration and invasion of colorectal cancer cells. Methods: We analyzed the expression of JAG2 mRNA and protein in normal human colon tissue cells and colorectal cancer cells. The promotive role of JAG2 in migration and invasion was tested by JAG2 siRNA and JAG2 overexpression in various colon cancer cell lines. To understand the mechanisms, we first treated HT29 cells with LY2157299, a TGF-β signaling pathway inhibitor, and Slug siRNA, to identify the cross-talk between JAG2 and EMT pathway. In addition, co-expression status of JAG2 and TGF-β-induced epithelial-mesenchymal transition (EMT) markers was analyzed. Finally, by using siRNA and proteomics technology, co-expressed proteins of JAG2 in colorectal cancer cells were identified. Results: JAG2 was abnormally expressed in colorectal cancer tissues and directly related with clinical stages. Similar to the findings in human tissues, the expression of both JAG2 mRNA and protein was significantly increased in the colorectal cancer cell lines compared with that of normal colorectal cell line CCD18-Co. Interestingly, the promotion of JAG2 in migration and invasion was independent of EMT pathway. Furthermore, we found that the expression of JAG2 was correlated with PRAF2 (PRA1 Domain Family Member 2), a protein involved in the formation of exosome-like vesicles. In the presence of PRAF2, JAG2-rich exosome promoted migration and invasion. JAG2 might regulate the migration and invasion of colon cell through PRAF2. Conclusions: This is the evidence supporting the biological function of JAG2 in migration and invasion through non-EMT-dependent pathways and also the first exploration of the role of PRAF2 in colorectal cancer cells. These findings provide the theoretical basis for potential targeted therapy against JAG2/PRAF2.


Tumor Biology ◽  
2017 ◽  
Vol 39 (3) ◽  
pp. 101042831769168 ◽  
Author(s):  
U Subrahmanyeswara Rao ◽  
Prema S Rao

One long-term complication of chronic intestinal inflammation is the development of colorectal cancer. However, the mechanisms linking inflammation to the colorectal tumorigenesis are poorly defined. Previously, we have demonstrated that galectin-4 is predominantly expressed in the luminal epithelia of the gastrointestinal tract, and its loss of expression plays a key role in the colorectal tumorigenesis. However, the mechanism by which galectin-4 regulates inflammation-induced tumorigenesis is unclear. Here, we show that galectin-4 secreted by the colorectal cancer cell lines was bound to the cell surface. Neutralization of surface-bound galectin-4 with anti-galectin-4 antibody resulted in increased cell proliferation with concomitant secretion of several chemokines into the extracellular medium. Neutralization of the surface-bound galectin-4 also resulted in the up-regulation of transcription of 29 genes, several of which are components of multiple inflammation signaling pathways. In an alternate experiment, binding of recombinant galectin-4 protein to cell surface of the galectin-4-negative colorectal cancer cells resulted in increased p27, and decreased cyclin D1 and c-Myc levels, leading to cell cycle arrest and apoptosis. Together, these data demonstrated that surface-bound galectin-4 is a dual function protein—down-regulating cell proliferation and chemokine secretion in galectin-4-expressing colorectal cancer cells on one hand and inducing apoptosis in galectin-4-negative colorectal cancer cells on the other hand.


2022 ◽  
Vol 11 ◽  
Author(s):  
Lihuiping Tao ◽  
Changliang Xu ◽  
Weixing Shen ◽  
Jiani Tan ◽  
Liu Li ◽  
...  

BackgroundExosomes are extracellular vesicles secreted by most cells to deliver functional cargoes to recipient cells. MicroRNAs (miRNAs) constitute a significant part of exosomal contents. The ease of diffusion of exosomes renders them speedy and highly efficient vehicles to deliver functional molecules. Cancer cells secrete more exosomes than normal cells. Reports have showed that exosomal miRNAs of cancer cells facilitate cancer progression. Yet the complexity of cancer dictates that many more functional exosomal miRNAs remain to be discovered.MethodsIn this study, we analyzed miRNA expression profiles of tissue and plasma exosome samples collected from 10 colorectal cancer (CRC) patients and 10 healthy individuals. We focused on hsa-miR-101-3p (101-3p), a profoundly up-regulated miRNA enriched in plasma exosomes of patients bearing CRC. We performed target analysis of 101-3p and pursued functional studies of this microRNA in two colorectal cancer cell lines, namely HCT116 and SW480.ResultsOur results indicated that inhibiting 101-3p slowed cell growth and retarded cell migration in vivo in two colorectal cancer cell lines. Target analysis showed that Homeodomain-interacting protein kinase (HIPK3) is a target of miR-101-3p. HCT116 and SW480 cells stably overexpressing HIPK3 showed increased level of phosphorylated FADD, as well as retarded cell growth, migration, and increased sensitivity to 5-FU. In-depth analysis revealed increased mitochondrial membrane potential upon HIPK3 overexpression along with increased production of reactive oxygen species, number of mitochondria, and expression of respiratory complexes. Measurements of glycolytic parameters and enzymes revealed decreased level of glycolysis upon HIPK3 overexpression in these two cell lines. Xenograft model further confirmed a profoundly improved potency of the synergistic treatment combining both 5-FU and 101-3p inhibitor compared to 5-FU alone.ConclusionThis study unraveled an oncogenic nature of the exosomal 101-3p and suggested a relationship between the 101-3p-HIPK3 axis and metabolic homeostasis in colorectal cancer. Expression level of 101-3p is positively correlated with glycolytic capacity in CRC and therefore 101-3p itself is an oncomiR. Combining 101-3p inhibitor with chemotherapeutic agents is an effective strategy against CRC.


2021 ◽  
Author(s):  
Suneetha Nunna ◽  
Ying-Pei Huang ◽  
Mahdi Rasa ◽  
Krepelova Anna ◽  
Francesco Annunziata ◽  
...  

Abstract BackgroundColorectal cancer (CRC) is one of the most frequent and lethal cancers in the world. The current medical treatment for CRC primarily includes combination of multiple chemotherapeutic, targeted and/or immunotherapeutic drugs. However, these approaches are still not fully successful and cause numerous and severe side effects for the patient. Therefore, there is an urgent need to discover novel and cancer-selective drugs for CRC treatment. As many other natural compounds, a-Mangostin and Paeonol possess anti-cancer properties, but both of these compounds have low solubility and low membrane permeability.Methodsa-Mangostin and Paeonol derivatives were chemically synthesized to increase cytotoxicity versus cancer cell over non-transformed cells. The anticancer properties of these compounds were investigated on human colon cancer cell lines by employing cell viability, apoptosis and cell-cycle analyses. Transcriptome of cancer cells treated with natural compounds were also analyzed by total RNA-sequencing. Finally, we investigated their effects on human colon organoids derived from healthy and cancerous tissue of the same patient.ResultsWe found the two derivative compounds (a-Mangostin-1 (aMan1) and Paeonol-1 (Pae1)) more efficiently induced cytotoxicity in HCT116, HT-29, and SW48 colorectal cancer cell lines than the parental compounds. Both, aMan1 and Pae1 arrested HCT116 cells in G1 and HT-29 and SW48 cells in G2/M phase of the cell cycle. aMan1 and Pae1 induced selective transcriptional responses in CRC cells involving genes related to metabolic stress and DNA damage response signaling pathways. Both aMan1 and Pae1 induced apoptosis in human cancer cells and organoids derived from tumor tissue without affecting the viability of human non-cancer cells and intestinal organoids derived from healthy tissue.ConclusionsOur findings increase the knowledge about natural compound derivatives as anticancer compounds and open new research options on the derivation of lead compounds aimed to the development of novel CRC chemotherapeutic drugs that selectively target cancer, but not healthy cells.


2021 ◽  
Author(s):  
Poshen B. Chen ◽  
Patrick C. Fiaux ◽  
Bin Li ◽  
Kai Zhang ◽  
Naoki Kubo ◽  
...  

AbstractPrecision medicine depends critically on developing treatment strategies that can selectively target cancer cells with minimal adverse effects. Identifying unique transcriptional regulators of oncogenic signaling, and targeting cancer-cell-specific enhancers that may be active only in specific tumor cell lineages, could provide the necessary high specificity, but a scarcity of functionally validated enhancers in cancer cells presents a significant hurdle to this strategy. We address this limitation by carrying out large-scale functional screens for pro-growth enhancers using highly multiplexed CRISPR-based perturbation and sequencing in multiple cancer cell lines. We used this strategy to identify 488 pro-growth enhancers in a colorectal cancer cell line and 22 functional enhancers for the MYC and MYB key oncogenes in an additional nine cancer cell lines. The majority of pro-growth enhancers are accessible and presumably active only in cancer cells but not in normal tissues, and are enriched for elements associated with poor prognosis in colorectal cancer. We further identify master transcriptional regulators and demonstrate that the cancer pro-growth enhancers are modulated by lineage-specific transcription factors acting downstream of growth signaling pathways. Our results uncover context-specific, potentially actionable pro-growth enhancers from cancer cells, yielding insight into altered oncogenic transcription and revealing potential therapeutic targets for cancer treatment.


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