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Background In our preliminary screening, expression of miR-338-5p was found to be higher in primary colorectal cancer (CRC) with metastasis. The autophagy related gene- phosphatidylinositol 3-kinase, catalytic subunit type 3 (PIK3C3) appeared to be targeted by miR-338-5p. Here, we provide solid evidence in support of PIK3C3 involved in miR-338-5p related metastasis of CRC in vitro and in vivo . Methods The potential clinical relevance of miR-338-5p and its target gene was analysed on benign colorectal polyps and primary CRCs by QPCR. Mouse spleen xenograft experiment was performed to examine the importance of miR-338-5p for metastasis. Findings PIK3C3 was one of target genes of miR-338-5p. In primary CRCs, expression of miR-338-5p is positively related to tumour staging, distant metastasis and poor patient survival. Patients with higher ratios of miR-338-5p/PIK3C3 also had significantly poor overall survival, supporting their significance in the progression of CRC. Over-expression of miR-338-5p promotes CRC metastasis to the liver and lung in vivo , in which PIK3C3 was down-regulated in the metastatic tumours. In contrast, overexpression of PIK3C3 in miR-338-5p stable cells inhibited the growth of metastatic tumours. Both migration and invasion of CRC in vitro induced by miR-338-5p are mediated by suppression of PIK3C3. Using forward and reverse approaches, autophagy was proved to involve in CRC migration and invasion induced by miR-338-5p. Interpretation MiR-338-5p induces migration, invasion and metastasis of CRC in part through PIK3C3-related autophagy pathway. The miR-338-5p/PIK3C3 ratio may become a prognostic biomarker for CRC patients. Fund NCKU Hospital, Taiwan, Ministry of Science and Technology, Taiwan.

EMP3 is an important prognostic indicator for selecting patients with upper urinary tract urothelial carcinoma for more intensive therapy. EMP3 is an innovative co-targeting candidate for designing ErbB2 based cancer therapy.

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Ocimum gratissimum(OG) is known as a food spice and traditional herb, which has been recommended for the treatment of various diseases. To investigate the hepatoprotective effect of OG aqueous extract (OGAE), male Wistar rats challenged by carbon tetrachloride (CCl4) were used as the animal model of chronic hepatic injury. Significantly increased serum catalase and DPPH levels were detected in CCl4-administrated rats that were treated with OGAE or silymarin as compared to those rats that were treated with saline or CCl4. In contrast, significantly decreased stress proteins including HSP70 and iNOS were observed in livers of CCl4-administrated rats that were treated with OGAE or sylimarin as compared to those rats that were treated with saline or CCl4. Moreover, significant decreases of MMP-9/MMP-2 ratio, uPA, phosphorylated ERK (p-ERK) and NF-κB (p-P65) were detected in livers of CCl4-administrated rats that were treated with OGAE or sylimarin as compared to those rats that were treated with saline or CCl4. These findings imply that OGAE can efficiently inhibit CCl4-induced liver injuries in rats and may therefore be a potential food or herb for preventing liver injuries.

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AIMTo investigate the clinicopathological significance of progesterone receptor membrane component 1 (PGRMC1) and PGRMC2 in hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC).METHODSWe performed immunohistochemical staining to evaluate the estrogen receptor (ER), progesterone receptor (PR), PGRMC1, and PGRMC2 in a clinical cohort consisting of 89 paired HCC and non-tumor liver samples. We also analyzed HCC data (n = 373) from The Cancer Genome Atlas (TCGA). We correlated the expression status of PGRMC1 and PGRMC2 with clinicopathological indicators and the clinical outcomes of the HCC patients. We knocked down or overexpressed PGRMC1 in HCC cell lines to evaluate its biological significance in HCC cell proliferation, differentiation, migration, and invasion.RESULTSWe found that few HCC cases expressed ER (5.6%) and PR (4.5%). In contrast, most HCC cases expressed PGRMC1 (89.9%) and PGRMC2 (100%). PGRMC1 and PGRMC2 exhibited significantly lower expression in tumor tissue than in non-tumor tissue (P < 0.001). Lower PGRMC1 expression in HCC was significantly associated with higher serum alpha-fetoprotein expression (P = 0.004), poorer tumor differentiation (P = 0.045) and liver capsule penetration (P = 0.038). Low PGRMC1 expression was an independent predictor for worse disease-free survival (P = 0.002, HR = 2.384, CI: 1.377-4.128) in our cases, as well as in the TCGA cohort (P < 0.001, HR = 2.857, CI: 1.781-4.584). The expression of PGRMC2 did not relate to patient outcome. PGRMC1 knockdown promoted a poorly differentiated phenotype and proliferation of HCC cells in vitro, while PGRMC1 overexpression caused the opposite effects.CONCLUSIONPGRMC1 is a non-classical hormonal receptor that negatively regulates hepatocarcinogenesis. PGRMC1 down-regulation is associated with progression of HCC and is a poor prognostic indicator.

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