The high incidence of recurrence and the poor prognosis of hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC) necessitate the discovery of new predictive markers of HCC invasion and prognosis. In this study, we evaluated the expression pattern of two members of a novel oncogene family, Musashi1 (MSI1) and Musashi2 (MSI2) in 40 normal hepatic tissue specimens, 149 HCC specimens and their adjacent non-tumourous tissues. We observed that MSI1 and MSI2 were significantly up-regulated in HCC tissues. High expression levels of MSI1 and MSI2 were detectable in 37.6% (56/149) and 49.0% (73/149) of the HCC specimens, respectively, but were rarely detected in adjacent non-tumourous tissues and were never detected in normal hepatic tissue specimens. Nevertheless, only high expression of MSI2 correlated with poor prognosis. In addition, MSI2 up-regulation correlated with clinicopathological parameters representative of highly invasive HCC. Further study indicated that MSI2 might enhance invasion of HCC by inducing epithelial–mesenchymal transition (EMT). Knockdown of MSI2 significantly decreased the invasion of HCC cells and changed the expression pattern of EMT markers. Moreover, immunohistochemistry assays of 149 HCC tissue specimens further confirmed this correlation. Taken together, the results of our study demonstrated that MSI2 correlates with EMT and has the potential to be a new predictive biomarker of HCC prognosis and invasion to help guide diagnosis and treatment of post-operative HCC patients.

BackgroundIncreasing studies confirmed that abnormal lncRNAs expression play a critical role in cervical cancer (CC) development and progression. LncRNA TPT1-AS1, a novel lncRNA, its role and underlying mechanisms involved in CC remain largely unknown.MethodsColony formation, EdU and Transwell assays were used to determine colony formation, proliferation, migration and invasion in vitro. The subcutaneous tumor model and tail vein injection lung metastasis model were performed to check tumor growth and metastasis in vivo. Luciferase activity and RIP experiment were carried out to determine the interaction between miR-324-5p and TPT1-AS1.ResultsWe demonstrated for the first time that TPT1-AS1 expression was up-regulated in CC tissues and cell lines. High TPT1-AS1 was significantly correlated with adverse prognostic characteristics and poor survival. TPT1-AS1 overexpression and knockdown experiments revealed that TPT1-AS1 promoted cell colony formation, proliferation, migration, invasion and EMT progression of CC cells in vitro and in vivo. The underlying mechanism indicated that TPT1-AS1 functioned as an endogenous sponge for miR-324-5p in CC cells. Gain- and loss- experiment confirmed that miR-324-5p inhibited cell colony formation, proliferation, migration, invasion and EMT progression of CC cells, and mediated the biological effects of TPT1-AS1. Further investigations confirmed that SP1 was a direct target of miR-324-5p and mediated the effects of TPT1-AS1 and miR-324-5p in CC.ConclusionsWe demonstrated for the first time that TPT1-AS1 as an oncogenic lncRNA in CC progression and as a potential target for CC cure.Electronic supplementary materialThe online version of this article (10.1186/s13046-018-0846-8) contains supplementary material, which is available to authorized users.

Overexpression of hypoxia-induced factor 1α (HIF-1α) has been shown to be involved in the development and progression of hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC). HIF-1α should therefore be a promising molecular target for the development of anti-HCC agents. Metformin, an established antidiabetic drug, has proved to also be effective in treating cancer although the precise underlying mechanisms of this activity are not fully elucidated. The aim of this study was to investigate the effects of metformin on the expression of HIF-1α and oxygen metabolism in HCC. The results showed that metformin inhibited hypoxia-induced HIF-1α accumulation and activation independent of AMP-activated protein kinase (AMPK). Moreover, this decrease in HIF-1α accumulation was accompanied by promotion of HIF-1α protein degradation. In addition, metformin significantly decreased oxygen consumption, ultimately leading to increased intracellular oxygen tension and decreased staining with the hypoxia marker pimonidazole. In vivo studies demonstrated that metformin delayed tumor growth and attenuated the expression of HIF-1α in HCC tumor xenografts. Together, these findings suggest that metformin decreases hypoxia-induced HIF-1α accumulation by actively suppressing mitochondrial oxygen consumption and enhancing cellular oxygenation ability, providing a fundamental mechanism of metformin activity against HCC.

Adoptive T cell therapy has achieved dramatic success in a clinic, and the Food and Drug Administration approved two chimeric antigen receptor-engineered T cell (CAR-T) therapies that target hematological cancers in 2018. A significant issue faced by CART therapies is the lack of tumor-specific biomarkers on the surfaces of solid tumor cells, which hampers the application of CART therapies to solid tumors. Intracellular tumor-related antigens can be presented as peptides in the major histocompatibility complex (MHC) on the cell surface, which interact with the T cell receptors (TCR) on antigen-specific T cells to stimulate an anti-tumor response. Multiple immunotherapy strategies have been developed to eradicate tumor cells through targeting the TCR-peptide/MHC interactions. Here, we summarize the current status of TCR-based immunotherapy strategies, with particular focus on the TCR structure, activated signaling pathways, the effects and toxicity associated with TCR-based therapies in clinical trials, preclinical studies examining immune-mobilizing monoclonal TCRs against cancer (ImmTACs), and TCR-fusion molecules. We propose several TCR-based therapeutic strategies to achieve optimal clinical responses without the induction of autoimmune diseases.

We identified IL1B was significantly up-regulated in COPD small airway epithelial cells and propose IL1B as a novel player in airway inflammation in COPD.

Objectives: Circular RNAs (circRNAs) are non-coding RNAs, some of which are thought to be involved in gastric cancer development. Here, we examined the functions of circRNA hsa_circ_006100 in gastric cancer cells and an animal model of gastric cancer. Materials and Methods:The expression of hsa_circ_006100, miR-195 and various functional genes was determined by quantitative RT-PCR. Cell viability, clone formation, apoptosis and cell migration/invasion abilities were analysed by the CCK-8 assay, crystal violet staining, Hoechst staining and Transwell assay, respectively.A tumour model was established by subcutaneously injecting tumour cells into nude mice. Levels of protein expression were analysed by Western blotting and immunohistochemistry. Results:A bioinformatics analysis showed that miR-195 was negatively co-expressed with hsa_circ_006100. Patients with a high hsa_circ_006100 level or low miR-195 level had tumours with a high TNM stage, poor cellular differentiation and lymph node metastasis. miR-195 was targeted and inhibited by hsa_circ_006100. Overexpression of hsa_circ_006100 enhanced cellular viability and proliferation, while miR-195 suppressed hsa_circ_006100-enhanced cell growth and induced apoptosis in MGC-803 and AGS cells. Forced hsa_circ_006100 expression promoted the migration and invasion of MGC-803 and AGS cells, while those activities were inhibited by miR-195.Mechanistically, GPRC5A was predicted as a target of miR-195 and was upregulated in gastric cancer. A miR-195 inhibitor restored cell viability, proliferation, migration and invasion, and repressed apoptosis via GPRC5A. In vivo studies showed that knockdown of hsa_circ_006100 delayed tumour growth, reduced PCNA expression and upregulated miR-195 and BCL-2 expression which was restored by miR-195 inhibition due to GPRC5A/EGFR signalling, and changed the EMT phenotype in vivo. Conclusions:Hsa_circ_006100 functions as an oncogene in gastric cancer and exerts its effects via miR-195/GPRC5A signalling.

The induction of senescence for cancer treatment has provoked considerable interest recently. Metformin, a first-line drug for diabetes mellitus type 2, appears to be associated with a lower risk and improved outcomes in hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC). The mechanism involved in function of metformin in HCC is poorly understood. We show that low doses of metformin induced hepatoma cell senescence characterized by accumulation of senescence-associated β-galactosidase activity (SA-β-gal) and the senescence marker Dec1, whereas the higher doses initiated apoptotic cell death. Metformin-induced senescence was accompanied by enhanced phosphorylation levels of AMP-activated protein kinase (AMPK) and its downstream target acetyl-CoA carboxylase (ACC). The expression of acetylated p53 at Lys382 (Ac-p53) and p21 was also increased, while phosphorylation of p53 at Ser15 (p-p53), p53, p16 and pRB was rarely altered after metformin treatment. Moreover, inhibition of AMPK decreased p-AMPK, p-ACC, Ac-p53 and p21 expression, diminished SA-β-gal staining and restored hepatoma cell proliferation. In addition, p53 siRNA transfection attenuated metformin-induced SA-β-gal staining. Intriguingly, co-expression of SIRT1 and p53 dramatically reduced the levels of Ac-p53, however, low doses of metformin treatment partially reversed the effect of SIRT1 on p53 acetylation and elevated SA-β-gal activity. These observations indicate that activation of the AMPK pathway promotes senescence in hepatoma cells exposed to low concentrations of metformin in a p53-dependent manner. Further, low doses of metformin may have the potential to be used as an adjuvant to HCC therapy.

Cancer immunotherapy has been regarded as the most significant scientific breakthrough of 2013, and antibody therapy is at the core of this breakthrough. Despite significant success achieved in recent years, it is still difficult to target intracellular antigens of tumor cells with traditional antibodies, and novel therapeutic strategies are needed. T cell receptor (TCR)-like antibodies comprise a novel family of antibodies that can recognize peptide/MHC complexes on tumor cell surfaces. TCR-like antibodies can execute specific and significant anti-tumor immunity through several distinct molecular mechanisms, and the success of this type of antibody therapy in melanoma, leukemia, and breast, colon, and prostate tumor models has excited researchers in the immunotherapy field. Here, we summarize the generation strategy, function, and molecular mechanisms of TCR-like antibodies described in publications, focusing on the most significant discoveries.