Background:Diabetes mellitus is associated with an increased risk of breast cancer, but studies of the effects of diabetes on the prognosis of women with breast cancer have yielded inconsistent findings. The present meta-analysis aimed to investigate the impact of preexisting diabetes on the prognosis in terms of overall survival (OS), disease-free survival (DFS), and relapse-free period (RFP) in women with breast cancer.Methods:We searched the Embase and PubMed databases until June 2016 for cohort or case–control studies assessing the impact of diabetes on the prognosis of women with breast cancer. The pooled multivariate adjusted hazard ratio (HR) and their 95% confidence intervals (CIs) for OS, DFS, and RFP were used to analyze the impact of diabetes on the prognosis of breast cancer patients.Results:Seventeen studies involving 48,315 women with breast cancer met our predefined inclusion criteria. Meta-analysis showed that the pooled adjusted HR was 1.51 (95% CI 1.34–1.70) for OS and 1.28 (95% CI 1.09–1.50) for DFS in breast cancer patients with diabetes compared to those without diabetes. However, RFP did not differ significantly between patients with and without diabetes (HR 1.42; 95% CI 0.90–2.23).Conclusions:The present meta-analysis suggests that preexisting diabetes is independently associated with poor OS and DFS in female breast cancer patients. However, the impact of diabetes on RFP should be further verified. More prospective studies are warranted to investigate whether appropriate glycemic control with modification of antihyperglycemic agents can improve the prognosis of female breast cancer patients with diabetes.

Background: Previous clinical studies have suggested that trimethylamine-N-oxide (TMAO) could contribute to the development of atherosclerosis cardiovascular disease. However, the synthetic analysis in coronary heart disease (CHD) was not yet performed. We aimed to clarify the relationship between elevated plasma concentrations of TMAO and the incidence of major adverse cardiovascular events (MACE) in CHD patients. Methods: Meta-analysis and dose-response analysis of hazard ratio data from prospective observational studies reporting on the association between TMAO plasma concentrations and the incidence of MACE in patients with CHD were conducted. Results: Of the 2369 published articles identified in the search, seven papers, with data from nine cohort studies (10,301 patients), were included in the meta-analysis. Combined data showed that elevated plasma TMAO concentrations could increase 58% higher risk of MACE in patients with CHD (hazard ratios [HR]: 1.58; 95% confidence interval [CI] = 1.35-1.84, P = 0.000). For follow-up ≥ 1 year, it was associated with 62% higher risk of MACE in patients with longer-term than shorter-term (HR for follow-up ≥ 4 years: 1.96; 95% CI = 1.52-2.52 vs one to 3 years: 1.34; 95% CI = 1.26-1.43, P = 0.004). The dose-response analysis revealed a 'J' shaped association between TMAO concentration and the incidence of MACE (P = 0.033), with the concentration above 5.1 μmol/L being associated with HR of > 1. Conclusions: Elevated levels of TMAO are associated with an increased incidence of MACE in patients with CHD. TMAO concentration of 5.1 μmol/L may be a cutoff value for prognosis.

It has been established that macrophages and endothelial cells infiltrate peritoneum in the vicinity of tumor implants of epithelial ovarian cancer (EOC). This study investigates whether the interaction of ovarian cancer cells and tumor-associated macrophages could promote the involvement of endothelial cells in angiogenesis. Macrophage phenotypes were detected by fluorescence-activated cell sorting, and cytokine/chemokine secretion was measured by enzyme linked immunosorbent assay. The effect of co-culture of ovarian cancer cells and tumor-associated macrophage (TAM) cells on endothelial cell migration and tube formation was investigated. Signaling pathway mediators were also evaluated for their potential roles in endothelial cell activation by ovarian cancer cells co-cultured with TAM cells. Our results showed that higher expression of interleukin-8 (IL-8) expression associated with 54.26 ± 34.46% of TAM infiltration of peritoneum was significantly higher than 16.58 ± 17.74% of CD3 + T-cell by immunofluorescence co-staining and confocal microscopy. THP-1 cells exhibited M2-polarized phenotype markers with high proportion of CD68 + , CD206+ and CD204 + markers after phorbol 12-myristate 13-acetate (PMA) treatment, After co-culturing with TAM cells in a transwell chamber system, EOC cells (SKOV3) increased their IL-8 expression at the level of mRNA and protein. After exposure to the conditioned medium obtained by co-culturing TAM and SKOV3 cells, the migration and tube formation of endothelial cells were enhanced significantly. Furthermore, the upregulation of IL-8 expression in ovarian cancer cells induced by macrophages could be inhibited by pyrollidine dithiocarbamate, an inhibitor of nuclear factor (NF)-jB signal pathway. We suggest that the interaction of ovarian cancer cells and tumor-associated macrophages enhances the ability of endothelial cells to promote the progression of ovarian cancer. (Cancer Sci 2013; 104: 516-523) E pithelial ovarian cancer (EOC) accounts for 90% of all ovarian cancers and has become the leading cause of death from gynecological cancers in North America and Europe.(1)A remarkable feature of advanced EOC is the presence of widespread peritoneal metastases at the time of the initial diagnosis. However, the mechanisms of peritoneal seeding, spreading and progression remain elusive.Tumor microenvironment consists of various stromal cells, including activated endothelial cells, tumor-associated macrophages (TAMs), fibroblasts, and bone marrow-derived cells.(2)Our previous study has confirmed that more than 75% of mononuclear immune cells in peritoneum close to a tumor implant were TAM, which mimic chronic inflammation. Most studies reported that infiltrating TAMs were associated with cancer progression.(4-7) Tumor-associated macrophages might be recruited from peripheral blood by chemokines and then positioned in the tumor stroma. Those macrophages could be 'educated' and differentiated into M1 or M2 forms as a result of activation by some molecular factors. Interferon-c (IFN-c)

Background: Alpha-momorcharin (α-MMC) and momordica anti-HIV protein (MAP30) derived from Momordica charantia L. have been confirmed to possess antitumor and antivirus activities due to their RNA-N-glycosidase activity. However, strong immunogenicity and short plasma half-life limit their clinical application. To solve this problem, the two proteins were modified with (mPEG) 2 -Lys-NHS (20 kDa). Methodology/principal findings: In this article, a novel purification strategy for the two main type I ribosome-inactivating proteins (RIPs), α-MMC and MAP30, was successfully developed for laboratory-scale preparation. Using this dramatic method, 200 mg of α-MMC and about 120 mg of MAP30 was obtained in only one purification process from 200 g of Momordica charantia seeds. The homogeneity and some other properties of the two proteins were assessed by gradient SDS-PAGE, electrospray ionization quadruple mass spectrometry, and N-terminal sequence analysis as well as Western blot. Two polyethylene glycol (PEG)ylated proteins were synthesized and purified. Homogeneous mono-, di-, or tri-PEGylated proteins were characterized by matrix-assisted laser desorption ionization-time of flight mass spectrometry. The analysis of antitumor and antivirus activities indicated that the serial PEGylated RIPs preserved moderate activities on JAR choriocarcinoma cells and herpes simplex virus-1. Furthermore, both PEGylated proteins showed about 60%-70% antitumor and antivirus activities, and at the same time decreased 50%-70% immunogenicity when compared with their unmodified counterparts. Conclusion/significance: α-MMC and MAP30 obtained from this novel purification strategy can meet the requirement of a large amount of samples for research. Their chemical modification can solve the problem of strong immunogenicity and meanwhile preserve moderate activities. All these findings suggest the potential application of PEGylated α-MMC and PEGylated MAP30 as antitumor and antivirus agents. According to these results, PEGylated RIPs can be constructed with nanomaterials to be a targeting drug that can further decrease immunogenicity and side effects. Through nanotechnology we can make them low-release drugs, which can further prolong their half-life period in the human body.

BackgroundBreast cancer is the main type of cancer in women, and triple-negative breast cancer (TNBC) is a unique subtype of breast cancer. The expression of miR-940 has been shown to play an important role in various cancers; however, the role of miR-940 in TNBC remains unknown.Material/MethodsThe expression of miR-940 in TNBC tissues or cells were tested by qRT-PCR; the expression of miR-940 in cells were overexpressed by miR-940 mimics, and suppressed by anti-miR-940. Bioinformatics algorithms from TargetScanHuman were used to predict the target genes of miR-940. The interaction between miR-940 and ZNF24 was confirmed by dual luciferase assays. The protein level was assayed by Western blot.ResultsTNBC tissues and cells showed lower miR-940 levels.ConclusionsMiR-940 inhibited cellular proliferation and migration in TNBC.

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Liposomes have been a main focus of tumor-selective boron delivery strategies in boron neutron capture therapy (BNCT), a binary method for the treatment of cancer that is based on the nuclear reaction between boron atoms and low-energy thermal neutrons. Three novel carboranyl cholesterol derivatives were prepared as lipid bilayer components for the construction of nontargeted and receptor-targeted boronated liposomes for BNCT. A major structural feature of these novel boronated cholesterol mimics is the replacement of the B and the C ring of cholesterol with a carborane cluster. Computational analyses indicated that all three boronated compounds have structural features and physicochemical properties that are very similar to those of cholesterol. One of the synthesized boronated cholesterol mimics was stably incorporated into non-, folate receptor (FR)-, and vascular endothelial growth factor receptor-2 (VEGFR-2)-targeted liposomes. No major differences were found in appearance, size distribution, and lamellarity between conventional dipalmitoylphosphatidylcholine (DPPC)/cholesterol liposomes, nontargeted, and FR-targeted liposomal formulations of this carboranyl cholesterol derivative. FR-targeted boronated liposomes were taken up extensively in FR overexpressing KB cells in vitro, and the uptake was effectively blocked in the presence of free folate. In contrast, a boronated cholesterol mimic incorporated into nontargeted liposomes showed significantly lower cellular uptake. There was no apparent in vitro cytotoxicity in FR overexpressing KB cells and VEGFR-2 overexpressing 293/KDR cells when these were incubated with boronated FR- and (VEGFR-2)-targeted liposomes, respectively, although the former accumulated extensively in KB cells and the latter effectively interacted with VEGFR-2 by causing autophosphorylation and protecting 293/KDR cells from SLT (Shiga-like toxin)-VEGF cytotoxicity.

Triple-negative breast cancer (TNBC) is an aggressive subtype of breast cancer that is often associated with biologic behavior with frequent distant metastasis. FAT tumor suppressor homolog 4 (FAT4), a cadherin-related protein, is involved in a variety of biological processes as a tumor suppressor; however, the role of FAT4 in TNBC is still unclear. The aim of our study was to identify the role of FAT4 in TNBC and examine the underlying molecular mechanisms. The expression of FAT4 was evaluated by immunohistochemistry, western blotting, and qRT-PCR in a series of TNBC tissues. The effects of FAT4 on the ability of cell proliferation, migration, and invasion were assessed by MTT assay and migration and invasion assays. We demonstrated that the repression of FAT4 by shRNA could promote TNBC progression. Taken together, our findings provide evidence for a role of the FAT4 cluster as a tumor suppressor in TNBC patients and may serve as potential novel targets for the treatment of TNBC.