P rimary hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC) is one of the most fatal cancers in humans with rising incidence in many regions around the world.(1) The majority of HCC patients have a background of chronic liver disease, and the presence of liver cirrhosis is the main risk factor for the development of HCC. (2,3)

Accelerated glycolysis is one of the biochemical characteristics of cancer cells. The glucose transporter isoform 1 (GLUT1) gene encodes a key rate-limiting factor in glucose transport into cancer cells. However, its expression level and functional significance in hepatocellular cancer (HCC) are still disputed. Therefore, we aimed to analyze the expression and function of the GLUT1 gene in cases of HCC. We found significantly higher GLUT1 mRNA expression levels in HCC tissues and cell lines compared with primary human hepatocytes and matched nontumor tissue. Immunohistochemical analysis of a tissue microarray of 152 HCC cases revealed a significant correlation between Glut1 protein expression levels and a higher Ki-67 labeling index, advanced tumor stages, and poor differentiation. Accordingly, suppression of GLUT1 expression by siRNA significantly impaired both the growth and migratory potential of HCC cells. Furthermore, inhibition of GLUT1 expression reduced both glucose uptake and lactate secretion. Hypoxic conditions further increased GLUT1 expression levels in HCC cells , and this induction was dependent on the activation of the transcription factor hypoxiainducible factor-1␣. In summary , our findings suggest that increased GLUT1 expression levels in HCC cells functionally affect tumorigenicity , and thus , we propose GLUT1 as an innovative therapeutic target for this highly aggressive tumor. (Am J Pathol

Abbreviations: CM (conditioned medium); FFAs (free fatty acids); HSC (hepatic stellate cells); NAFLD (non-alcoholic fatty liver disease); NASH (non-alcoholic steatohepatitis); MMP (matrix-metallo-proteinase); NFκB (nuclear-factor κB); PHH (primary human hepatocytes); TIMP-1/-2 (tissue inhibitor of metallo-proteinase-1/-2) Despite the initial belief that non-alcoholic fatty liver disease is a benign disorder, it is now recognized that fibrosis progression occurs in a significant number of patients. Furthermore, hepatic steatosis has been identified as a risk factor for the progression of hepatic fibrosis in a wide range of other liver diseases. Here, we established an in vitro model to study the effect of hepatic lipid accumulation on hepatic stellate cells (HSCs), the central mediators of liver fibrogenesis. Primary human hepatocytes were incubated with the saturated fatty acid palmitate to induce intracellular lipid accumulation. Subsequently, human HSCs were incubated with conditioned media (CM) from steatotic or control hepatocytes. Lipid accumulation in hepatocytes induced the release of factors that accelerated the activation and proliferation of HSC, and enhanced their resistance to apoptosis, largely mediated via activation of the PI-3-kinase pathway. Furthermore, CM from steatotic hepatocytes induced the expression of the profibrogenic genes TGF-β, tissue inhibitor of metallo-proteinase-1 (TIMP-1), TIMP-2 and matrix-metallo-proteinase-2, as well as nuclear-factor κB-dependent MCP-1 expression in HSC. In summary, our in vitro data indicate a potential mechanism for the pathophysiological link between hepatic steatosis and fibrogenesis in vivo. Herewith, this study provides an attractive in vitro model to study the molecular mechanisms of steatosis-induced fibrogenesis, and to identify and test novel targets for antifibrotic therapies in fatty liver disease.

Primary hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC) is one of the most fatal cancers in humans with rising incidence in many regions around the world. Currently, no satisfactory curative pharmacological treatment is available, and the outcome is mostly poor. Recently, we have shown that the glucose transporter GLUT1 is increased in a subset of patients with HCC and functionally affects tumorigenicity. GLUT1 is a rate-limiting transporter for glucose uptake, and its expression correlates with anaerobic glycolysis. This phenomenon is also known as the Warburg effect and recently became of great interest, since it affects not only glucose uptake and utilization but also has an influence on tumorigenic features like metastasis, chemoresistance and escape from immune surveillance. Consistent with this, RNA-interference-mediated inhibition of GLUT1 expression in HCC cells resulted in reduced tumorigenicity. Together, these findings indicate that GLUT1 is a novel and attractive therapeutic target for HCC. This review summarizes our current knowledge on the expression and function of GLUT1 in HCC, available drugs/strategies to inhibit GLUT1 expression or function, and potential side effects of such therapeutic strategies.

BACKGROUND: Melanoma inhibitory activity 2 (MIA2) is a novel gene of the MIA gene family. The selective expression of MIA2 in hepatocytes is controlled by hepatocyte nuclear factor (HNF) 1 binding sites in the MIA2 promotor. In contrast, in most hepatocellular carcinomas (HCC) MIA2 expression is down-regulated or lost. AIM: In this study we examined the regulation and functional role of MIA2 in hepatocancerogenesis. METHODS AND RESULTS: In HCC cell lines and tissues HNF-1 expression was lower than in primary human hepatocytes (PHH) and corresponding non-tumorous tissue, respectively, and correlated significantly with the down-regulation of MIA2 expression. Re-expression of HNF-1 in HCC cells reinduced MIA2 in HCC cells to similar levels as found in PHH. Further, MIA2 was re-expressed in HCC cell lines by stable transfection, and the generated cell clones revealed a strongly reduced invasive potential and proliferation rate in vitro. In line with these findings treatment of HCC cells with recombinant MIA2 inhibited proliferation and invasion. In nude mice MIA2 re-expressing HCC cells grew significantly slower and revealed a less invasive growth pattern. Immunohistochemical analysis of a tissue microarray containing HCC and corresponding non-cancerous liver tissue of 85 patients confirmed reduced MIA2 expression in HCC. Furthermore, MIA2 negative HCC tissue showed a significantly higher Ki67 labelling index and loss of MIA2 expression correlated significantly with more advanced tumour stages. CONCLUSION: This study presents MIA2 as an inhibitor of HCC growth and invasion both in vitro and in vivo, and consequently, as a tumour suppressor of HCC. Further, our findings indicate a novel mechanism, how loss of HNF-1 expression in HCC affects tumorigenicity via down-regulation of MIA2.

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Striking similarities exist between molecular mechanisms driving embryonic liver development and progression of hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC). Bone morphogenetic proteins (BMPs), particularly BMP4, have been proposed to regulate embryonic hepatic development. BMP expression has been observed in neoplasia but the expression and biological role of BMP4 in human HCC are unknown. We found increased BMP4 mRNA and protein in HCC cell lines and tissue samples compared to primary human hepatocytes and corresponding non-tumourous tissue. Hypoxia further induced BMP4 expression in HCC cells, which was abolished by transfection of a dominant negative form of HIF-1 alpha (dnHIF-1 alpha). However, gel shift assays revealed only minor binding activity in nuclear extracts from (hypoxic) HCC cells to a putative hypoxia-response element in the BMP4 promoter. Sequence analysis of the BMP4 promoter revealed two Ets-1 binding sites, and Ets-1 activity was increased in HCC cells under hypoxic conditions. Transfection of dnHIF-1 alpha completely abrogated hypoxia-induced Ets-1 activity as well as BMP4 expression. Overexpression of Ets-1 markedly enhanced BMP4 promoter activity, while antisense Ets-1 almost completely abolished basal as well as hypoxia-induced BMP4 expression. These data demonstrate that Ets-1 activity contributes to baseline expression of the BMP4 gene and is the predominant mediator of the HIF-dependent BMP4 induction under hypoxic conditions. To determine the functional relevance of BMP4 expression, HCC cell lines were treated with antisense BMP4 constructs or siRNA against BMP4. BMP4 suppression resulted in a strong reduction of the migratory and invasive potential and anchorage-independent growth. Furthermore, tube formation assays indicated that BMP4 expressed by HCC cells promotes vasculogenesis. Our findings demonstrate that BMP4 is increased in HCC and promotes HCC progression. Therefore, BMP4 expression may have clinical relevance, and interfering with BMP4 signalling appears as an attractive therapeutic target for this highly aggressive tumour.

In the surface waters of sulfidic springs near Regensburg, Bavaria, Germany, the SM1 euryarchaeon, together with filamentous bacteria, forms the recently described unique string-of-pearls community. In addition to naturally occurring string-of-pearls communities, the growth of these communities was also observed on polyethylene nets provided as an artificial attachment material in the streamlets of springs. In order to learn more about the distribution and origin of the SM1 euryarchaeon and its possible occurrence in the subsurface, polyethylene nets were incubated as deeply as possible in different spring holes. After a short residence time, slime-like, milky drops, almost completely composed of SM1 euryarchaeon, were attached to the nets, indicating that this organism grows independent of a partner in deeper earth layers. A newly designed in situ biofilm trapping system allowed the quantitative harvesting of organisms exhibiting this newly discovered lifestyle of the SM1 euryarchaeon for detailed biological studies. The discovery of naturally occurring archaeal biofilms extends our knowledge of the biology and ecological significance of archaea in their environments.Sulfidic springs are fairly common around the world and have been the focus of (micro)biological work for more than 150 years (29, 42). They were classified as areas of high bioactivity, as visible by the development of extended (white) mats representing vast populations of various genera of filamentous sulfur bacteria (23). As the main focus for our detailed investigations of microbial communities in nongeothermal environments, we have chosen a sulfurous marsh, the "Sippenauer Moor" near Regensburg, Germany (32). In this area, cold water (ϳ10°C) from deeper earth layers reaches the surface and emerges from the ground between rocks and tree roots, forming small streamlets that merge in a large pond. The intake of atmospheric oxygen causes the appearance of white microbial mats in the streamlets, indicating high bioactivity. In these sulfidic streamlets, growth of a unique microbial community occurs, with microbes forming a string-of-pearls-like, macroscopically visible structure: single, whitish pearls with diameters of up to 3 mm are connected to each other by thin, white-colored threads. In the pearl interior, the nonmethanogenic SM1 euryarchaeon is predominant, representing a deep phylogenetic branch within the 16S rRNA tree (32). The exteriors of the pearls and the connecting threads are mainly composed of a single phylotype, the filamentous sulfide-oxidizing bacterium Thiothrix sp. (21).During a recent microbial survey of cold sulfidic springs in Bavaria, Germany, a second type of microbial string-of-pearls community was discovered in the streamlet of the "Islinger Mühlbach" (Regensburg, Southern Germany) (31). The SM1 euryarchaeon was again predominant in the pearl interior, while its partner was represented by the filamentous so-called IMB1 ε-proteobacterium, most probably outcompeting Thiothrix at the low in situ oxygen concentrations. The ...