BackgroundMicroRNAs (miRNAs) display aberrant expression patterns and functional abnormalities in many types of cancer. However, their roles in primary gallbladder carcinoma (PGC) have not been well documented. miR-335 has been demonstrated to be involved in tumorigenesis of several cancers in the digestive system. The aim of this study was to investigate the clinical significance of miR-335 in PGC.MethodsmiR-335 expression in 166 human PGC tissues and matched adjacent nondysplastic gallbladder epithelia was measured by real-time quantitative polymerase chain reaction (RT-PCR) assay.ResultsThe expression level of miR-335 was significantly lower in PGC tissues than that in nondysplastic gallbladder epithelia (P<0.001). Of 166 PGC patients, 96 (57.83%) had reduced expression of miR-335. Additionally, the expression of miR-335 was significantly lower in PGC tissues with high histologic grade (P=0.02), advanced pathologic T stage (P=0.009) and clinical stage (P=0.008), and with positive lymph node metastasis (P=0.001). In univariate analysis by log-rank test, histologic grade (P=0.03), pathologic T stage (P=0.008), clinical stage (P=0.01), lymph node metastasis (P<0.001), and miR-335 expression (P<0.001) were significant prognostic factors for overall survival of PGC patients. Multivariate analysis further revealed that pathologic T stage (P=0.02), lymph node metastasis (P=0.008), and miR-335 expression (P=0.006) maintained independent prognostic influence on overall survival.ConclusionThis study offers convincing evidence for the first time that miR-335 was downregulated in a majority of PGC patients and may be associated with the aggressive tumor behaviors. Loss of miR-335 expression may be a useful marker for clinical outcome and a therapeutic target for PGC.

The matrix metalloprotease-1 (MMP-1)/protease-activated receptor-1 (PAR-1) signal transduction axis plays an important role in tumorigenesis. To explore the expression and prognostic value of MMP-1 and PAR-1 in esophageal squamous cell carcinoma (ESCC), we evaluated the expression of two proteins in resected specimens from 85 patients with ESCC by immunohistochemistry. Sixty-two (72.9%) and 58 (68.2%) tumors were MMP-1- and PAR-1-positive, respectively, while no significant staining was observed in normal esophageal squamous epithelium. MMP-1 and PAR-1 overexpression was significantly associated with tumor node metastasis (TNM) stage and regional lymph node involvement. Patients with MMP-1- and PAR-1-positive tumors, respectively, had poorer disease-free survival (DFS) than those with negative ESCC (P = 0.002 and 0.003, respectively). Univariate analysis showed a significant relationship between TNM stage [hazard ratio (HR) = 2.836, 95% confidence interval (CI) = 1.866-4.308], regional lymph node involvement (HR = 2.955, 95%CI = 1.713-5.068), MMP-1 expression (HR = 2.669, 95%CI = 1.229-6.127), and PAR-1 expression (HR = 1.762, 95%CI = 1.156-2.883) and DFS. Multivariate analysis including the above four parameters identified TNM stage (HR = 2.035, 95%CI = 1.167-3.681), MMP-1 expression (HR = 2.109, 95%CI = 1.293-3.279), and PAR-1 expression (HR = 1.967, 95%CI = 1.256-2.881) as independent and significant prognostic factors for DFS. Our data suggest for the first time that MMP-1 and PAR-1 were both overexpressed in ESCC and are novel predictors of poor patient prognosis after curative resection. The MMP-1/PAR-1 signal transduction axis might be a new therapeutic target for future therapies tailored against ESCC.

Laryngeal squamous cell carcinoma (LSCC) is the most common malignant tumor, which occurs in the head and neck. Current treatments for LSCC are all largely weakened by increasing drug resistance. Our study aimed to investigate the effects of long noncoding RNA (lncRNA) H19 on drug resistance in LSCC. In our study, we found that the level of H19 was sharply upregulated in LSCC tissues and drug‐resistant cells compared with the control. Besides, the expression of high‐mobility group B1 (HMGB1) was elevated, and microRNA107 (miR‐107) was suppressed in drug‐resistant cells compared with the control. Further study revealed that the interference of H19 by short hairpin RNA (shRNA) effectively suppressed high autophagy level and obvious drug resistance in drug‐resistant cells. Besides that, miR‐107 was predicted as a target of H19 and inhibiting effects of H19 shRNA on autophagy and drug resistance were both reversed by miR‐107 inhibitor. Moreover, HMGB1 was predicted as a target of miR‐107 in LSCC cells and knockdown of HMGB1 was able to suppress autophagy and drug resistance in LSCC cells. In addition, our investigation demonstrated that H19 shRNA exerted an inhibiting effect on autophagy and drug resistance by downregulating HMGB1 by targeting miR‐107. Finally, the in vivo experiment revealed that LV‐H19 shRNA strongly suppressed drug resistance compared with the usage of cisplatin individually. Taken together, our research indicated an H19–miR‐107–HMGB1 axis in regulating the autophagy‐induced drug resistance in LSCC in vitro and in vivo, providing novel targets for molecular‐targeted therapy and broadening the research for LSCC.

MiR‐130b and SAM and SH3 domain containing 1 (SASH1) play an important role in many types of human cancers. The aim of our research was to study their interactions in the process of the proliferation and aggressiveness of oesophageal squamous cell carcinoma (ESCC) cells. Microarray analysis was done to screen the differentially expressed genes in the ESCC tissues. miR‐130b and SASH1 mRNA levels in the ESCC tissues and cells were detected by qRT‐PCR. Dual luciferase reporter system was used to verify the target relationship between miR‐130b and SASH1. The effects of miR‐130b on SASH1 expression were explored by western blot in KYSE30 and TE1 cell lines. CCK‐8 assay, flow cytometry, Transwell, and wound healing assays were conducted to explore the effects of miR‐130b and SASH1 in vitro. In addition, in vivo experiments were conducted to study the roles of miR‐130b and SASH1. miR‐130b was highly expressed, while SASH1 was the opposite in both the ESCC tissues and cells. The expression of SASH1 was inhibited by the direct binding of miR‐130b. The inhibition of miR‐130b reduced the proliferation and aggressiveness of ESCC cells, while it also induced apoptosis and cell cycle arrest in the ESCC cells by suppressing SASH1. The in vivo assay suggested that the overexpression of miR‐130b promoted the growth of ESCC tumours. MiR‐130b was up‐regulated in the ESCC tumour tissues and cells, acting as a tumour promoter. A stimulating effect was demonstrated on ESCC cell growth and aggressiveness by suppressing SASH1, which is an anti‐oncogene.

Cluster of differentiation 38 (CD38) is a cell surface glycoprotein and multifunctional extracellular enzyme. As a NADase, CD38 produces adenosine through the adenosine energy pathway to cause immunosuppression. As a cell surface receptor, CD38 is necessary for immune cell activation and proliferation. The aggregation and polarization of macrophages are affected by the knockout of CD38. Intracellular NAD+ levels are reduced by nuclear receptor liver X receptor-alpha (LXR) agonists in a CD38-dependent manner, thereby reducing the infection of macrophages. Previous studies suggested that CD38 plays an important role in the regulation of macrophage function. Therefore, as a new marker of macrophages, the effect of CD38 on macrophage proliferation, polarization and function; its possible mechanism; the relationship between the expression level of CD38 on macrophage surfaces and disease diagnosis, treatment, etc; and the role of targeting CD38 in macrophage-related diseases are reviewed in this paper to provide a theoretical basis for a comprehensive understanding of the relationship between CD38 and macrophages.

BackgroundRadical or palliative surgery with subsequent adjuvant therapy is the routine treatment for stage II/III colorectal cancer(CRC) and some stage IV CRC patients. This study aimed to clarify the prognostic clinicopathological and genetic factors for these patients.MethodsFifty-five stage II-IV CRC patients undergoing surgery and adjuvant therapy were recruited, including patients without liver metastasis(5 at stage II, 21 at stage III) and with liver metastasis(29 at stage IV). Genetic alterations of the primary cancer tissues were investigated by whole exome sequencing(WES). Patients were followed up to 1652 days(median at 788 days).ResultsThe mutational landscape of primary CRC tissue of patients with or without liver metastasis was largely similar, although the mutational frequency of TRIM77 and TCF7L2 was significantly higher in patients with liver metastasis. Several main driver gene co-mutations, such as TP53-APC, APC-KRAS, APC-FRG1, and exclusive mutations, such as TP53-CREBBP, were found in patients with liver metastasis, but not in patients without liver metastasis. No significant difference was found between the two groups in aberrant pathways. If stage II-IV patients were studied altogether, relapse status, SUPT20HL1 mutations, Amp27_21q22.3 and Del8_10q23.2 were independent risk factors(P&lt;0.05). If patients were divided into two groups by metastatic status, surgery types and Amp6_20q13.33 were independent risk factors for patients without liver metastasis(P&lt;0.05), while TRIM77 mutations were the only independent risk factor for patients with liver metastasis(P&lt;0.05).ConclusionsSurgery types and Amp6_20q13.33 were independent risk factors for CRC patients without liver metastasis, and TRIM77 mutations were the independent risk factor for CRC patients with liver metastasis.

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e16049 Background: Although liver metastasis is the most common metastasis for colorectal cancer (CRC), the molecular mechanism determining the metastasis has not been clarified. Our study aims to investigate the potential molecular mechanisms of liver metastasis by comparing the genetic variations between patients with or without liver metastasis, and to explore the prognostic factors for the two groups of patients. Methods: 57 stage I-IV CRC patients (49 with stage III/IV) were enrolled. 26 patients had no liver metastasis while 31 patients had liver metastasis when they were recruited. Whole-exome sequencing was performed on the primary cancer tissues of all patients. All patients were followed up for up to 50 months. Results: We found that the tumor mutation burden (TMB) of primary cancer tissue from patients with liver metastasis was significantly higher than those without metastasis (P < 0.05). When the mutation frequency was compared at whole-exome level, the mutation frequency of TCF7L2 and TRIM77 genes of primary cancer tissues was found to be significantly higher in patients with liver metastasis (TCF7L2: 35.48% vs. 3.85% (P = 0.0037) for patients with or without metastasis; TRIM77: 16.13% vs. 0% (P = 0.050) for patients with or without metastasis). Further study revealed that in patients with liver metastasis, patients with TRIM77 mutations showed worse overall survival (OS) than those without TRIM77 mutations (P < 0.0001). Similarly, patients with 7_12p.13.33 amplification, 10_14q32.33 amplification, and 4_10q23.31 deletion showed worse OS than those without the mutations (P < 0.05). In contrast, in patients without liver metastasis, patients with 6_20q13.33 amplification showed worse OS than those without the amplification. Conclusions: The TMB of CRC patients with liver metastasis was significantly higher than those without liver metastasis. TCF7L2 and TRIM77 gene mutations may be predictive for liver metastasis. TRIM77 mutation, 7_12 p.13.33 amplification, 10_14q32.33 amplification, and 4_10q23.31 deletion were related to poor OS in patients with liver metastasis, while 6_20q13.33 amplification was related to poor OS in patients without liver metastasis.