Metastases are the leading cause of mortality in patients with cancer. Metastasis formation requires cancer cells to adapt their cellular phenotype. However, how metabolism supports this adaptation of cancer cells is poorly defined. We use 2D versus 3D cultivation to induce a shift in the cellular phenotype of breast cancer cells. We discover that proline catabolism via proline dehydrogenase (Prodh) supports growth of breast cancer cells in 3D culture. Subsequently, we link proline catabolism to in vivo metastasis formation. In particular, we find that PRODH expression and proline catabolism is increased in metastases compared to primary breast cancers of patients and mice. Moreover, inhibiting Prodh is sufficient to impair formation of lung metastases in the orthotopic 4T1 and EMT6.5 mouse models, without adverse effects on healthy tissue and organ function. In conclusion, we discover that Prodh is a potential drug target for inhibiting metastasis formation.

Sarcomas are malignant soft tissue and bone tumours affecting adults, adolescents and children. They represent a morphologically heterogeneous class of tumours and some entities lack defining histopathological features. Therefore, the diagnosis of sarcomas is burdened with a high inter-observer variability and misclassification rate. Here, we demonstrate classification of soft tissue and bone tumours using a machine learning classifier algorithm based on array-generated DNA methylation data. This sarcoma classifier is trained using a dataset of 1077 methylation profiles from comprehensively pre-characterized cases comprising 62 tumour methylation classes constituting a broad range of soft tissue and bone sarcoma subtypes across the entire age spectrum. The performance is validated in a cohort of 428 sarcomatous tumours, of which 322 cases were classified by the sarcoma classifier. Our results demonstrate the potential of the DNA methylation-based sarcoma classification for research and future diagnostic applications.

Background Available data on the characteristics of patients with Ebola virus disease (EVD) and clinical management of EVD in settings outside West Africa, as well as the complications observed in those patients, are limited. Methods We reviewed available clinical, laboratory, and virologic data from all patients with laboratory-confirmed Ebola virus infection who received care in U.S. and European hospitals from August 2014 through December 2015. Results A total of 27 patients (median age, 36 years [range, 25 to 75]) with EVD received care; 19 patients (70%) were male, 9 of 26 patients (35%) had coexisting conditions, and 22 (81%) were health care personnel. Of the 27 patients, 24 (89%) were medically evacuated from West Africa or were exposed to and infected with Ebola virus in West Africa and had onset of illness and laboratory confirmation of Ebola virus infection in Europe or the United States, and 3 (11%) acquired EVD in the United States or Europe. At the onset of illness, the most common signs and symptoms were fatigue (20 patients [80%]) and fever or feverishness (17 patients [68%]). During the clinical course, the predominant findings included diarrhea, hypoalbuminemia, hyponatremia, hypokalemia, hypocalcemia, and hypomagnesemia; 14 patients (52%) had hypoxemia, and 9 (33%) had oliguria, of whom 5 had anuria. Aminotransferase levels peaked at a median of 9 days after the onset of illness. Nearly all the patients received intravenous fluids and electrolyte supplementation; 9 (33%) received noninvasive or invasive mechanical ventilation; 5 (19%) received continuous renal-replacement therapy; 22 (81%) received empirical antibiotics; and 23 (85%) received investigational therapies (19 [70%] received at least two experimental interventions). Ebola viral RNA levels in blood peaked at a median of 7 days after the onset of illness, and the median time from the onset of symptoms to clearance of viremia was 17.5 days. A total of 5 patients died, including 3 who had respiratory and renal failure, for a mortality of 18.5%. Conclusions Among the patients with EVD who were cared for in the United States or Europe, close monitoring and aggressive supportive care that included intravenous f luid hydration, correction of electrolyte abnormalities, nutritional support, and critical care management for respiratory and renal failure were needed; 81.5% of these patients who received this care survived.

Cellular proliferation depends on refilling the tricarboxylic acid (TCA) cycle to support biomass production (anaplerosis). The two major anaplerotic pathways in cells are pyruvate conversion to oxaloacetate via pyruvate carboxylase (PC) and glutamine conversion to α-ketoglutarate. Cancers often show an organ-specific reliance on either pathway. However, it remains unknown whether they adapt their mode of anaplerosis when metastasizing to a distant organ. We measured PC-dependent anaplerosis in breast-cancer-derived lung metastases compared to their primary cancers using in vivo C tracer analysis. We discovered that lung metastases have higher PC-dependent anaplerosis compared to primary breast cancers. Based on in vitro analysis and a mathematical model for the determination of compartment-specific metabolite concentrations, we found that mitochondrial pyruvate concentrations can promote PC-dependent anaplerosis via enzyme kinetics. In conclusion, we show that breast cancer cells proliferating as lung metastases activate PC-dependent anaplerosis in response to the lung microenvironment.

SummaryBackground In the current epidemic of Ebola virus disease in western Africa, many aid workers have become infected. Some of these aid workers have been transferred to specialised hospitals in Europe and the USA for intensifi ed treatment, providing the potential for unique insight into the clinical course of Ebola virus disease under optimised supportive measures in isolation units.