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Our data demonstrated that circulating leukocytes derived from donor lungs, and not circulating proinflammatory cytokines substantially impaired the quality of lung grafts through caspase-1-induced pyroptotic cell death during EVLP. Removing these cells with a LF and/or inhibiting pyroptosis of the cells can be a new therapeutic approach leading to long-term success after lung transplantation.

Psf3 is a member of the evolutionarily conserved heterotetrameric complex GINS (Go-Ichi-Ni-San), which consists of Sld5, Psf1, Psf2, and Psf3. Previous studies have suggested that some GINS complex members are upregulated in cancer, but the status of Psf3 expression in lung adenocarcinoma has not been investigated. The objective of the current study was to determine whether Psf3 plays a role in lung adenocarcinoma by investigating clinical samples. We investigated the status of Psf3 expression in cancer cells of 125 consecutive resected lung adenocarcinomas by immunohistochemistry. Increased Psf3 expression was observed in 27 (21.6%) of the 125 cases. Further, univariate analysis and log-rank test indicated a significant association between Psf3 expression and lower overall survival rate (P = 0.0001 and P < 0.0001, respectively). Multivariate analysis also indicated a statistically significant association between increased Psf3 expression and lower overall survival rate (hazard ratio, 5.2; P = 0.0027). In a subgroup analysis of only stage I patients, increased Psf3 expression was also significantly associated with a lower overall survival rate (P = 0.0008, log-rank test). Moreover, the Ki67 index level was higher in the Psf3-positive group than in the Psf3-low positive group (P < 0.0001, Mann-Whitney U-test). Our results indicated that Psf3 can serve as a prognostic biomarker in lung adenocarcinoma.

The GINS complex associates with cell division cycle (Cdc) protein 45 and mini‐chromosome maintenance (Mcm) proteins 2–7 to form the Cdc45–Mcm–GINS (CMG) complex, which is essential for DNA duplication. One member of the GINS complex is Psf3. We previously found that increased Psf3 expression was strongly associated with poor survival in lung adenocarcinoma. Here, we investigated the role of Psf3 expression in non‐small‐cell lung cancer (NSCLC). We verified Psf3 expression in human NSCLC tissues (180 patients) and cell lines. Immunohistochemical analysis revealed that the overexpression of Psf3 was significantly associated with vessel invasion (P = 0.016), lymphatic invasion (P = 0.002), and pleural invasion (P = 0.036). The overall survival rate in patients with Psf3 overexpression was significantly lower than that in patients without Psf3 overexpression (P = 0.006). Multivariate survival analysis revealed Psf3 expression to be an independent risk factor for an unfavorable outcome (P = 0.049). A proximal ligation assay showed interactions between Psf3 and other CMG components (such as Mcm2 and Cdc45) in both NSCLC specimens and cell lines, indicating that Psf3 acted as the CMG complex, which could lead to excessive proliferation. Knockdown of Psf3 inhibited the proliferation of both cell lines by delaying the S phase, which revealed that Psf3 played an important role in cancer proliferation. Thus, Psf3 acted as the CMG complex, promoting excessive proliferation. These results suggest that Psf3 inhibition might be a therapeutic target for NSCLC with Psf3 overexpression.

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Background The mammalian Notch family ligands delta‐like 3 (DLL3) is reported to be a potential therapeutic target for large cell neuroendocrine carcinomas (LCNEC). The effect of DLL3 expression on LCNEC prognosis has not yet been elucidated. Methods We reviewed the medical records of 70 LCNEC patients undergoing surgical resection between 2001 and 2015 using a prospectively maintained database. We performed immunohistochemistry for DLL3 and investigated the correlation between the sensitivity of LCNEC to platinum‐based adjuvant chemotherapy. Results DLL3 expression was positive in 26 (37.1%) LCNEC patients. A total of 23 patients (32.9%) received platinum‐based adjuvant chemotherapy. Among patients with DLL3 expression‐positive tumors, no difference was found in the five‐year overall survival (OS) or recurrence‐free survival (RFS) between patients with and without adjuvant chemotherapy (surgery + chemotherapy vs. surgery alone, five‐year OS: 58.3% vs. 35.7% P = 0.36, five‐year RFS: 41.7% vs. 35.7% P = 0.74). In contrast, among patients with DLL3‐negative tumors, significantly greater five‐year OS and RFS rates were observed for patients with adjuvant chemotherapy than for those without it (surgery + chemotherapy vs. surgery alone: five‐year OS: 90.0% vs. 26.9% P<0.01, five‐year RFS: 80.0% vs. 21.7% P < 0.01). A multivariate analysis for the RFS revealed that adjuvant chemotherapy was a significant independent prognostic factor among patients with DLL3‐negative tumors (hazard ratio [HR]: 0.05, 95% confidence interval [CI]: 0.01–0.41, P < 0.01), although it was not a factor among patients with DLL3‐positive tumors (HR: 0.73, 95% CI: 0.23–2.27, P = 0.58). Conclusions Our results revealed that DLL3 is a predictive marker of sensitivity to platinum‐based adjuvant chemotherapy for LCNEC. Key points Significant findings of the study DLL3 was a predictive marker of sensitivity to platinum‐based adjuvant chemotherapy for LCNEC. Among patients with DLL3 expression‐negative LCNEC, platinum‐based adjuvant chemotherapy significantly improved the OS and RFS, although it did not do so among patients with DLL3 expression‐positive LCNEC. What this study adds Our results suggest that DLL3 expression‐positive LCNEC may be better treated with other types of adjuvant chemotherapy, such as the anti‐DLL3 therapies if these effects are confirmed by ongoing clinical research.

The present findings strengthened our previous data demonstrating that high Psf3 expression in primary lung adenocarcinoma plays an important role in disease progression and is a prognostic indicator, particularly in early-stage adenocarcinoma.

The results of our study suggest that segmentectomy may not be recommended for cT1b tumours if pathological invasion is suspected before surgery.