Various types of histone methylation have been associated with cancer progression. Depending on the methylation site in histone proteins, its effects on transcription are different. DPY30 is a common member of SET1/MLL histone H3K4 methyltransferase complexes. However, its expression and roles in gastric cancer have been poorly characterized. To determine whether DPY30 has pathophysiological roles in gastric cancer, its expression and roles were examined. Immunohistochemistry and real time PCR showed up-regulation of DPY30 expression in some gastric cancer cell lines and patients’ tissues. Its knockdown by siRNA decreased the proliferation, migration, and invasion of gastric cancer cells, whereas its overexpression showed the opposite effects. These results indicate that DPY30 has critical roles in the proliferation, migration, and invasion of gastric cancer cells, and suggest DPY30 might be a therapeutic target in gastric cancer.

Objective: To determine whether the preoperative lymphocyte-monocyte ratio (LMR) is a predictor of suboptimal cytoreduction in advanced-stage epithelial ovarian cancer (EOC).Methods: Preoperative clinico-pathologic and hematologic parameters were reviewed in a total of 154 patients with EOC submitted to primary cytoreductive surgery. Patients were categorized into two different groups according to the results of cytoreductive surgery: optimal and suboptimal cytoreduction. Continuous variables were categorized into two groups using the best cutoff points selected on the receiver operating characteristic (ROC) curve for suboptimal cytoreduction.Results: Based on data collected from the 154 patients, 133 (86.4%) and 21 (13.6%) patients presented with stage III and IV disease, respectively. One hundred seventeen (76.0%) patients had serous adenocarcinoma, and 92 (59.7%) had histologic tumor grade 3. The optimal and suboptimal cytoreduction groups included 96 (62.3%) and 58 patients (37.7%), respectively. The best LMR cutoff point for suboptimal cytoreduction was 3.75. On multivariate logistic regression analysis, age, cancer antigen 125, white blood cell count, and LMR were found to be the strongest predictors for suboptimal cytoreduction (P=0.0037, 0.0249, 0.0062, and 0.0015, respectively).Conclusion: Preoperative LMR is an independent predictor of suboptimal cytoreduction. It provides additional prognostic information beyond the biological parameters of the tumor.

MED30 is an essential member of the mediator complex that forms a hub between transcriptional activators and RNA polymerase II. However, the expressions and roles of MED30 have been poorly characterized in cancer. In this study, we examined the functional roles of MED30 during gastric cancer progression. It was found that MED30 was overexpressed in gastric cancer tissues and cell lines. Moreover, MED30 overexpression increased the proliferation, migration, and invasion of gastric cancer cells, whereas MED30 knockdown inhibited these effects. Furthermore the knockdown significantly inhibited tumorigenicity in SCID mice. MED30 also promoted the expressions of genes related to epithelial-mesenchymal transition and induced a fibroblast-like morphology. This study shows MED30 has pathophysiological roles in the proliferation, migration, and invasion of gastric cancer cells and suggests that MED30 should be viewed as a potent therapeutic target for malignant gastric carcinoma