Expression of miR-210, miR-137, and miR-153 in Patients with Acute Cerebral Infarction

Aim. To explore the expression levels of miR-210, miR-137, and miR-153 in patients with acute cerebral infarction. Material and Methods. 76 patients with acute cerebral infarction treated in our hospital from April 2016 to October 2017 were enrolled as the observation group. Another 64 normal patients were selected as the control group. The patients were divided into the death and survival groups based on 1-year mortality of patients. qRT-PCR was used to detect the expression of miR-210, miR-137, and miR-153 in the serum of each group. Receiver operating characteristic (ROC) curve was employed to analyze the diagnostic value and predictive value of miR-210, miR-137 and miR-153 death in patients. The correlation between miR-210, miR-137, and miR-153 in the serum of the observation group was analyzed by Pearson’s test. Results. Levels of miR-210 and miR-137 in the observation group were significantly lower than those in the control group, while levels of miR-153 in the observation group were significantly higher than those in the control group (all P < 0.05 ). The ROC curve of diagnosis of acute cerebral infarction showed that the area under curve of miR-210 was 0.836, that of miR-137 was 0.843, and that of miR-153 was 0.842. The 1-year survival rate was 71.05%. The 1-year survival of the low-expression group of miR-210 and miR-137 was significantly lower than that of the high-expression group, while the 1-year survival of the low-expression group of miR-153 was significantly higher than that of the high-expression group (all P < 0.05 ). The ROC curve for predicting death showed that the area under curve of miR-210 was 0.786, that of miR-137 was 0.824, and that of miR-153 was 0.858. Pearson’s correlation analysis showed that the expression of miR-210 was positively correlated with that of miR-137, while miR-137 was negatively correlated with that of miR-153 and miR-210 was negatively correlated with that of miR-153. Conclusion. miR-210, miR-137, and miR-153 have a certain value in the diagnosis and prediction of 1-year death of acute cerebral infarction and may be potential diagnostic and predictive indicators.

Exploration of Various Roles of Hypoxia Genes in Osteosarcoma

Background: Osteosarcoma is a primary malignant tumor that often metastasizes in orthopedic diseases. Although multi-drug chemotherapy and surgical treatment have significantly improved the survival and prognosis of patients with osteosarcoma, the survival rate is still very low due to frequent metastases in patients with osteosarcoma. In-depth exploration of the relationship between various influencing factors of osteosarcoma is very important for screening promising therapeutic targets. Methods: This study used multivariate COX regression analysis to select the hypoxia genes SLC2A1 and FBP1 in patients with osteosarcoma, and used the expression of these two genes to divide the patients with osteosarcoma into high-risk and low-risk groups. Then, we first constructed a prognostic model based on the patient's risk value, and compared the survival difference between the high expression group and the low expression group. Second, in the high expression group and the low expression group, compare the differences in tumor invasion and inflammatory gene expression between the two groups of immune cells. Finally, the ferroptosis-related genes with differences between the high expression group and the low expression group were screened, and the correlation between these genes was analyzed. Results: In the high-risk group, immune cells with higher tumor invasiveness, macrophages M0 and immune cells with lower invasiveness included: mast cell resting, regulatory T cells (Tregs) and monocytes. Finally, among genes related to ferroptosis, we found AKR1C2, AKR1C1 and ALOX15 that may be related to hypoxia. These ferroptosis-related genes were discovered for the first time in osteosarcoma. Among them, the hypoxia gene FBP1 is positively correlated with the ferroptosis genes AKR1C1 and ALOX15, and the hypoxia gene SLC2A1 is negatively correlated with the ferroptosis genes AKR1C2, AKR1C1 and ALOX15. Conclusion: This study constructed a prognostic model based on hypoxia-related genes SLC2A1 and FBP1 in patients with osteosarcoma, and explored their correlation with immune cells, inflammatory markers and ferroptosis-related genes. This indicates that SLC2A1 and FBP1 are promising targets for osteosarcoma research.

Bioinformatics Analysis of ZBTB16 as a Prognostic Marker for Ewing’s Sarcoma

Objective. The purpose of this study is to identify novel biomarkers for the prognosis of Ewing’s sarcoma based on bioinformatics analysis. Methods. The GSE63157 and GSE17679 datasets contain patient and healthy control microarray data that were downloaded from the Gene Expression Omnibus (GEO) database and analyzed through R language software to obtain differentially expressed genes (DEGs). Firstly, Gene Ontology (GO) and Kyoto Encyclopedia of Genes and Genomes (KEGG) functional enrichment, protein-protein interaction (PPI) networks, and Cytoscape Molecular Complex Detection (MCODE) plug-in were then used to compute the highest scores of the module. After survival analysis, the hub genes were lastly obtained from the two module genes. Results. A total of 1181 DEGs were identified from the two GSEs. Through MCODE and survival analysis, we obtain 53 DEGs from the module and 29 overall survival- (OS-) related genes. ZBTB16 was the only downregulated gene after Venn diagrams. Survival analysis indicates that there was a significant correlation between the high expression of ZBTB16 and the OS of Ewing’s sarcoma (ES), and the low expression group had an unfavorable OS when compared to the high expression group. Conclusions. High expression of ZBTB16 may serve as a predictor biomarker of poor prognosis in ES patients.

Heparanase (HPSE) Associates with the Tumor Immune Microenvironment in Colorectal Cancer

There is an unmet clinical need to identify potential predictive biomarkers for immunotherapy efficacy in mismatch repair proficient (pMMR) metastatic colorectal cancer (mCRC). Heparanase (HPSE) is a multifunctional molecule mediating tumor–host crosstalk. However, the function of HPSE in the tumor immune microenvironment of CRC remains unclear. Data of CRC patients from public datasets (TCGA and GSE39582) and Zhongshan Hospital (ZS cohort) were collected to perform integrative bioinformatic analyses. In total, 1036 samples from TCGA (N = 457), GSE39582 (N = 510) and ZS cohort (N = 69) were included. Samples of deficient MMR (dMMR) and consensus molecular subtypes 1 (CMS1) showed significantly higher HPSE expression. The expression of HPSE also exhibited a significantly positive association with PD-L1 expression, tumor mutation burden and the infiltration of macrophages. Immune pathways were remarkably enriched in the HPSE high-expression group, which also showed higher expressions of chemokines and immune checkpoint genes. Survival analysis suggested that high HPSE expression tended to be associated with shorter overall survival in patients with pMMR mCRC. HPSE might contribute to the immune-activated tumor microenvironment with high levels of immune checkpoint molecules, suggesting that pMMR mCRC with high HPSE expression might respond to immune checkpoint inhibitors.

Circulating microRNAs Signature for Predicting Response to GLP1-RA Therapy in Type 2 Diabetic Patients: A Pilot Study

Type 2 diabetes (T2D) represents one of the major health issues of this century. Despite the availability of an increasing number of anti-hyperglycemic drugs, a significant proportion of patients are inadequately controlled, thus highlighting the need for novel biomarkers to guide treatment selection. MicroRNAs (miRNAs) are small non-coding RNAs, proposed as useful diagnostic/prognostic markers. The aim of our study was to identify a miRNA signature occurring in responders to glucagon-like peptide 1 receptor agonists (GLP1-RA) therapy. We investigated the expression profile of eight T2D-associated circulating miRNAs in 26 prospectively evaluated diabetic patients in whom GLP1-RA was added to metformin. As expected, GLP1-RA treatment induced significant reductions of HbA1c and body weight, both after 6 and 12 months of therapy. Of note, baseline expression levels of the selected miRNAs revealed two distinct patient clusters: “high expressing” and “low expressing”. Interestingly, a significantly higher percentage of patients in the high expression group reached the glycemic target after 12 months of treatment. Our findings suggest that the evaluation of miRNA expression could be used to predict the likelihood of an early treatment response to GLP1-RA and to select patients in whom to start such treatment, paving the way to a personalized medicine approach.

MCUR1 is a prognostic biomarker for ovarian cancer patients

PURPOSE: To propose MCUR1 gene as a potential biomarker for ovarian cancer prognosis. METHODS: The ovarian cancer patient specimen from TCGA database were analyzed using survival analysis. The immune cell infiltration ratio and checkpoints had also been investigated for different expression group of MCUR1. The function of MCUR1 as a ovarian cancer prognosis biomarker was verified in clinic. RESULTS: The low expression of MCUR1 was associated with the poor prognosis of ovarian cancer patients. The expressions of majority of immune cells and 6 checkpoints in low expression group of MCUR1 were significantly lower than that in high expression group of MCUR1 (P< 0.05). The MCUR1 could be utilized as a prognostic biomarker for ovarian cancer patients in clinic. CONCLUSION: This study has proposed a potential prognostic biomarker for ovarian cancer patients, which offers a beneficial reference for future ovarian cancer administration.

Diagnostic value of LncRNAs for Postoperative Metastasis of Breast Cancer: A Nested Case-Control Study.

Background: Breast cancer is an aggressive tumor with no definitely identified prognostic biomarker for diagnosis. Studies have preliminarily found that lncRNAs are closely related to breast cancer metastasis, but, the significant clinical prediction of lncRNAs was remain unclear. In this study, we evaluated the diagnostic value of long non-coding RNA (lncRNA UCA1,CCAT2, ANCR) on postoperative metastasis of breast cancer as well as the possible mechanism involving the EMT.Methods: We investigated lncRNA ANCR, UCA1,CCAT2 are at high stake of breast cancer metastasis in a population-based nested case-control study. Metastasis cases were identified by clinical diagnostic criteria in approximately 103 cases in the Cancer Institute of Southwest Medical University during 2013-2020. Meanwhile, the control group (no-metastasis) was single out on the basis of the 1:1 pairing principle in this cohort (n=103, the matching condition was the surgery time within the same month, and the treatment plan both are modifed radical mastectomy ,age±3 years) The mRNA of lncRNA( UCA1,CCAT2, ANCR) expression was determined by Real-time PCR. By Western blot, the expression of E-cadherin, N-cadherin, and vimentin proteins was detected. The migration and invasion of transfected cells were determined by the Transwell assay.Results: lncRNA ANCR,UCA1,CCAT2 was significantly up-regulated in breast cancer cells and postoperative metastasis of breast cancer.CCAT2 (OR=1.024, 95% CI:1.010, 1.039), UCA1(OR=1.025, 95% CI: 1.011, 1.039),ANCR(OR=1.055, 95% CI:1.001, 1.111)was the risk factor for postoperative metastasis of breast cancer. Further more , By the ROC curve assay, we detect the optimal critical values of CCAT2, UCA1, ANCR , the risk of metastasis in the CCAT2 high expression group was 2.297 times that of the low expression group (OR=2.297, 95% CI:1.427 ~ 3.695, P< 0.05). The risk of metastasis in the UCA1 high expression group was 2.032 times that of the low expression group (OR=2.032, 95% CI 1.282 ~ 3.218, P<0.05). We further observed that lncRNA UCA1, CCAT2, ANCR was down-regulated in MDA-231 cells by 48 h of siRNA transfection. LncRNAs UCA1, CCAT2, ANCR silencing significantly decreased the migration and invasion cells, down-regulated N-cadherin, and up-regulated E-cadherin and vimentin in MDA-231 cells.Conclusions: Our data suggested that lncRNA CCAT2 ,UCA1,ANCR was a novel molecule involved in postoperative metastasis of breast cancer, which has predictive value in patients with breast cancer metastasis.

microRNA-451 (miR-451) Regulates the Apoptosis of Non-Small Cell Lung Cancer Cells by Targeting Macrophage Migration Promoting Factors

MicroRNA (miRNA) participates in cellular activities. This article mainly discusses whether miR-451 has a role in the apoptosis of non-small cell lung cancer (NSCLC) cells. A549 cell was divided into blank group, miR-451 overexpression group and NC group followed by analysis of level of miR-451, MIF mRNA, MIF, NF-κB, and nuclear expression of NF-κB by immunofluorescence, clone formation, cell apoptosis rate and cell cycle. miR-451 overexpression significantly inhibited MIF and NF-κB expression. In the case of miR-451 overexpression, NSCLC clone formation was inhibited time-dependently The nuclear NF-κB expression in miR451 group was significantly inhibited, indicating inhibition of MIF by miR-451, leading to inhibition of NSCLC cell proliferation. Further results showed that cell apoptotic rate of miR-451 high expression group was elevated with increased cell number in G2 phase, confirming that miR-451 overexpression promoted NSCLC cell apoptosis. miR-451 over-expression can inhibit MIF level by inhibiting NF-κB signaling pathway, thereby promoting NSCLC cell apoptosis, providing a new therapeutic approach for the clinical targeted therapy.

The Correlation Between SPP1 and Immune Escape of EGFR Mutant Lung Adenocarcinoma Was Explored by Bioinformatics Analysis

BackgroundImmune checkpoint inhibitors have achieved breakthrough efficacy in treating lung adenocarcinoma (LUAD) with wild-type epidermal growth factor receptor (EGFR), leading to the revision of the treatment guidelines. However, most patients with EGFR mutation are resistant to immunotherapy. It is particularly important to study the differences in tumor microenvironment (TME) between patients with and without EGFR mutation. However, relevant research has not been reported. Our previous study showed that secreted phosphoprotein 1 (SPP1) promotes macrophage M2 polarization and PD-L1 expression in LUAD, which may influence response to immunotherapy. Here, we assessed the role of SPP1 in different populations and its effects on the TME.MethodsWe compared the expression of SPP1 in LUAD tumor and normal tissues, and in samples with wild-type and mutant EGFR. We also evaluated the influence of SPP1 on survival. The LUAD data sets were downloaded from TCGA and CPTAC databases. Clinicopathologic characteristics associated with overall survival in TCGA were assessed using Cox regression analysis. GSEA revealed that several fundamental signaling pathways were enriched in the high SPP1 expression group. We applied CIBERSORT and xCell to calculate the proportion and abundance of tumor-infiltrating immune cells (TICs) in LUAD, and compared the differences in patients with high or low SPP1 expression and wild-type or mutant EGFR. In addition, we explored the correlation between SPP1 and CD276 for different groups.ResultsSPP1 expression was higher in LUAD tumor tissues and in people with EGFR mutation. High SPP1 expression was associated with poor prognosis. Univariate and multivariate cox analysis revealed that up-regulated SPP1 expression was independent indicator of poor prognosis. GSEA showed that the SPP1 high expression group was mainly enriched in immunosuppressed pathways. In the SPP1 high expression group, the infiltration of CD8+ T cells was lower and M2-type macrophages was higher. These results were also observed in patients with EGFR mutation. Furthermore, we found that the SPP1 expression was positively correlated with CD276, especially in patients with EGFR mutation.ConclusionSPP1 levels might be a useful marker of immunosuppression in patients with EGFR mutation, and could offer insight for therapeutics.

Diagnostic Value of LncRNAs for Postoperative Metastasis of Breast Cancer: A Nested Case-Control Study.

Background: Breast cancer is a malignancy with no clearly identified prognostic factors for diagnosis. Studies have preliminarily found that lncRNAs are related to breast cancer metastasis, however, the clinical predictive significance of lncRNAs is still elusive.In this study, we evaluated the diagnostic value of long non-coding RNA (lncRNA UCA1,CCAT2, ANCR) on postoperative metastasis of breast cancer as well as the possible mechanism involving the EMT. Methods: We investigated lncRNA ANCR, UCA1,CCAT2 that associated with breast cancer metastasis risk in a population-based nested case-control study. Metastasis cases were identified by clinical diagnostic criteria in approximately 103 cases in the Cancer Institute of Southwest Medical University during 2013-2020. At the same time, the control group (metastasis-free) was selected according to the 1:1 pairing principle in this cohort (n=103, the matching condition was age±3 years, the operation time within the same month, and the treatment plan both are modifed radical mastectomy) The mRNA of lncRNA( UCA1,CCAT2, ANCR) expression was determined by Real-time PCR. The expression of E-cadherin, N-cadherin, and vimentin proteins was detected by Western blot. The migration and invasion of transfected cells were determined by the Transwell assay.Results: lncRNA ANCR, UCA1, CCAT2 was significantly up-regulated in breast cancer cells and postoperative metastasis of breast cancer.CCAT2 (OR=1.024, 95% CI: 1.010, 1.039), UCA1(OR=1.025, 95% CI: 1.011, 1.039),ANCR(OR=1.055, 95% CI:1.001, 1.111)was the risk factor for postoperative metastasis of breast cancer. Furthermore , we used the ROC curve to detect the optimal critical values of CCAT2, UCA1, ANCR , the risk of metastasis in the CCAT2 high expression group was 2.297 times that of the low expression group (OR=2.297, 95% CI:1.427 ~ 3.695, P< 0.05). The risk of metastasis in the UCA1 high expression group was 2.032 times that of the low expression group (OR=2.032, 95% CI 1.282 ~ 3.218, P<0.05). We further observed that lncRNA UCA1, CCAT2, ANCR was down-regulated in MDA-231 cells by 48 h of siRNA transfection. LncRNAs UCA1, CCAT2, ANCR silencing significantly decreased the percentage of migration and invasion cells, down-regulated N-cadherin, and up-regulated E-cadherin and vimentin in MDA-231 cells.Conclusions: Our data suggested that lncRNA CCAT2 , UCA1,ANCR was a novel molecule involved in postoperative metastasis of breast cancer, which has predictive value in patients with breast cancer metastasis.