Project description:Initial screening for potential metastases suppressors down regulated by methylation was performed using lung cancer cell line models specific for site-specific metastasation. Gene expression profiling and qRT-PCR validations were conducted on tumor tissues from primary lung cancer (LC) and brain metastasis. HERC5 was further characterized for the methylation pattern. Three human lung cancer cell lines H1993, H1395 and were compared to the (SV40)-transformed human bronchial epithelial cell line BEAS-2B in order to find genes, which might be specifically involved in brain metastasis formation. The cell lines were treated with 5-Aza-2'-deoxycytidine in order to find genes potentially down regulated by methylation. The non-tumorigenic cell line BEAS-2B was used to control for stress response after the treatment with 5-Aza-2'-deoxycytidine.
Project description:Myeloid sarcoma (MS) is a subform of acute myeloid leukemia (AML), where myeloid blasts infilitrate extramedullary tissues, a process that resembles the formation of metastases in solid tumors. RKIP has been shown to be a metastasis-suppressor gene. Identification of genes modulated by RKIP in human AML cells helps us to identify mechanisms how RKIP could be involved in the formation of MS.
Project description:Genome-wide DNA methylation profiling of brain metastases from lung cancer, breast cancer, and melanoma samples. The Illumina Infinium 450K Human DNA methylation Beadchip was used to obtain DNA methylation profiles across approximately 450,000 methylation sites in formalin-fixed paraffin-embedded (FFPE) samples from brain metastases. Samples included 30 breast cancer brain metastases, 18 lung cancer brain metastases, 37 melanoma brain metastases, and 4 samples with brain metastases from patients with uncertain primary.
Project description:Brain metastases are highly resistant to chemotherapy. Brain metastases are surrounded and infiltrated by activated astrocytes. To examine the genes whose expression is associated with chemo-resistance of brain-metastasized cancer cells, gene expression data were collected and analyzed from breast cancer cells and lung cancer cells co-cultured with astrocytes. Fibroblast cells were used as control. Human lung cancer cell PC14 was co-cultured with mouse astrocytes or fibroblasts for two rounds. Total RNAs were extracted from co-cultured cells and hybridized to human microarray.
Project description:Introduction: The incidence of brain metastases in cancer patients is increasing, with lung and breast cancer being the most common sources. Despite advancements in targeted therapies, the prognosis remains poor, highlighting the importance to investigate the underlying mechanisms in brain metastases. The aim of this study was to investigate the differences in the molecular mechanisms involved in brain metastasis of breast and lung cancers. In addition, we aimed to identify cancer lineage-specific druggable targets in the brain metastasis. Methods: To that aim, a cohort of 44 FFPE tissue samples, including 22 breast cancer and 22 lung adenocarcinoma (LUAD) and their matched-paired brain metastases were collected. Targeted gene expression profiles of primary tumors were compared to their matched-paired brain metastases samples using nCounter PanCancer IO 360™ Panel of NanoString technologies. Pathway analysis was performed using gene set analysis (GSA) and gene set enrichment analysis (GSEA). The validation was performed by using Immunohistochemistry (IHC) to confirm the expression of immune checkpoint inhibitors. Results: Our results revealed the significant upregulation of cancer-related genes in primary tumors compared to their matched-paired brain metastases (adj. p ≤ 0.05). We found that upregulated differentially expressed genes in breast cancer brain metastasis (BM-BC) and brain metastasis from lung adenocarcinoma (BM-LUAD) were associated with the metabolic stress pathway, particularly related to the glycolysis. Additionally, we found that the upregulated genes in BM-BC and BM-LUAD played roles in immune response regulation, tumor growth, and proliferation. Importantly, we identified high expression of the immune checkpoint VTCN1 in BM-BC, and VISTA, IDO1, NT5E, and HDAC3 in BM-LUAD. Validation using immunohistochemistry further supported these findings. Conclusion: In conclusion, the findings highlight the significance of using matched-paired samples to identify cancer lineage-specific therapies that may improve brain metastasis patients outcomes.
Project description:Stephen Paget first proposed, in 1889, that organ distribution of metastases is a non-random event, yet metastatic organotropism remains one of the greatest mysteries in cancer biology. Here, we demonstrate that exosomes released by lung-, liver- and brain-tropic tumor cells fuse preferentially with resident cells at their predicted destination, such as fibroblasts and epithelial cells in the lung, Kupffer cells in the liver, and endothelial cells in the brain. We found that exosome homing to organ-specific cell types prepares the pre-metastatic niche and that treatment with exosomes derived from lung tropic models can redirect metastasis to the lung. Proteomic profiling of exosomes revealed distinct integrin expression patterns associated with each organ-specific metastasis. Whereas exosomal integrins α6β4 and α6β1 were associated with lung metastasis, exosomal integrins αvβ5 and αvβ3 were linked with liver and brain metastases, respectively. Targeting α6β4 and αvβ5 integrins decreased exosome uptake and metastasis in the lung and liver, respectively. Importantly, we demonstrate that exosome uptake activates a cell-specific subset of S100 family genes, known to support cell migration and niche formation. Finally, our clinical data indicate that integrin-expression profiles in circulating plasma exosomes from cancer patients could be used to predict organ-specific metastasis. Education of human von Kupffer cells in vitro with human pancreatic cancer exosomes
Project description:Lung adenocarcinoma (LADC) is the most common subtype of non-small cell lung cancer (NSCLC). One major feature of disease progression is the metastatic spread to the central nervous system (CNS). Treatment regimens for brain metastases are limited, thus distant metastases remain the leading cause of tumour-associated deaths globally. The central aim of this paper was to investigate the differences of LADC and brain metastases with reference to fast and slowly progressing patients. Additionally, we elucidated the differences between patients with single versus multiple brain metastases.