Project description:Brain metastases are common in lung adenocarcinoma (LUAD) patients, and by far, the metastasis mechanisms are not fully understood. We performed a comprehensive single-cell level transcriptomic analysis on one LUAD patient with CTC, primary tumor tissue and metastatic tumor tissue using scRNA-seq approach to identify metastasis related biomarkers. Further scRNA-seq were performed on 7 patients to validate the cancer metastatic hallmark. with single cells collected from either metastatic or primary LUAD tissues. we obtained a more comprehensive picture over lung cancer metastasis in the single-cell level, giving a new perspective to the role of RAC1 in the LUAD brain metastasis, and related pathways to participate in the metastasis process.
Project description:Macrophages play a critical role in promoting bone metastasis growth. Microarray was used for determining the transcriptional change of macrophages and their progenitor inflammatory monocytes during bone metastasis progression.
Project description:The bone marrow (BM) is the third most frequent site of metastasis for solid tumors, creating an unfavorable clinical outcome. It provides a unique microenvironment that promotes growth of tumors, however, the role of different BM cells, their molecular features, and their interactions with tumor cells, are poorly defined. Here, we investigate the BM niche in neuroblastoma (NB), a pediatric cancer of the sympathetic nervous system. NB has been molecularly defined at the primary cancer site, yet, the metastatic site is poorly characterized. We performed single-cell transcriptomics (scRNA-seq) and epigenomic profiling (scATAC-seq) of BM aspirates from 11 subjects spanning three major NB subtypes: patients with MYCN amplification (MNA), ATRX mutations (ATRXmut), and cases that lack these alterations (sporadic): NB cases were then compared to five age-matched and metastasis-free BM (controls), followed by in-depth single cell analyses of tissue diversity and cell-cell interactions. We present the first map of the epigenetic and transcriptomic effects of bone marrow metastases. Our analyses demonstrate that tumor cells in the metastatic niche display plasticity that differs among NB subtypes. NB cells via cell-cell interaction signal to the bone marrow microenvironment, rewiring specifically monocytes, which exhibit M1 and M2 features, marked by activation of pro- and anti-inflammatory programs, and express tumor-promoting factors, reminiscent of tumor-associated macrophages. Our study may provide the basis for a therapeutic approach, targeting tumor-to-microenvironment interactions.
Project description:The reciprocal interaction between cancer cells and the tissue-specific stroma is critical for primary and metastatic tumor growth progression. Prostate cancer cells colonize preferentially bone (osteotropism), where they alter the physiological balance between osteoblast-mediated bone formation and osteoclast-mediated bone resorption, and elicit prevalently an osteoblastic response (osteoinduction). The molecular cues provided by osteoblasts for the survival and growth of bone metastatic prostate cancer cells are largely unknown. We exploited the sufficient divergence between human and mouse RNA sequences together with redefinition of highly species-specific gene arrays by computer-aided and experimental exclusion of cross-hybridizing oligonucleotide probes. This strategy allowed the dissection of the stroma (mouse) from the cancer cell (human) transcriptome in bone metastasis xenograft models of human osteoinductive prostate cancer cells (VCaP and C4-2B). As a result, we generated the osteoblastic bone metastasis-associated stroma transcriptome (OB-BMST). Subtraction of genes shared by inflammation, wound healing and desmoplastic responses, and by the tissue type-independent stroma responses to a variety of non-osteotropic and osteotropic primary cancers generated a curated gene signature (“Core” OB-BMST) putatively representing the bone marrow/bone-specific stroma response to prostate cancer-induced, osteoblastic bone metastasis. The expression pattern of three representative Core OB-BMST genes (PTN, EPHA3 and FSCN1) seems to confirm the bone specificity of this response. A robust induction of genes involved in osteogenesis and angiogenesis dominates both the OB-BMST and Core OB-BMST. This translates in an amplification of hematopoietic and, remarkably, prostate epithelial stem cell niche components that may function as a self-reinforcing bone metastatic niche providing a growth support specific for osteoinductive prostate cancer cells. The induction of this combinatorial stem cell niche is a novel mechanism that may also explain cancer cell osteotropism and local interference with hematopoiesis (myelophthisis). Accordingly, these stem cell niche components may represent innovative therapeutic targets and/or serum biomarkers in osteoblastic bone metastasis. Keywords: cancer, transcription-profile, bone, metastasis, stroma 3 samples of VCaP xenografted mouse bones (VCaP xenografts 1/2/3), 3 samples of C4-2B xenografted mouse bones (C4-2B xenografts 1/2/3), 2 samples of Ep156T xenografted mouse bones (Ep156T xenografts 1/2), 2 samples of sham-operated mouse bones (sham-operated bones 1/2) and 3 samples of intact mouse bones (intact bones 1/2/3) were profiled on Affymetrix Mouse Genome 430A 2.0 Arrays. Sample code: MVX stands for VCaP xenografts, MBM for Intact bone samples, MCX for C4-2B xenografts and MNX for Sham-operated bones samples
Project description:The reciprocal interaction between cancer cells and the tissue-specific stroma is critical for primary and metastatic tumor growth progression. Prostate cancer cells colonize preferentially bone (osteotropism), where they alter the physiological balance between osteoblast-mediated bone formation and osteoclast-mediated bone resorption, and elicit prevalently an osteoblastic response (osteoinduction). The molecular cues provided by osteoblasts for the survival and growth of bone metastatic prostate cancer cells are largely unknown. We exploited the sufficient divergence between human and mouse RNA sequences together with redefinition of highly species-specific gene arrays by computer-aided and experimental exclusion of cross-hybridizing oligonucleotide probes. This strategy allowed the dissection of the stroma (mouse) from the cancer cell (human) transcriptome in bone metastasis xenograft models of human osteoinductive prostate cancer cells (VCaP and C4-2B). As a result, we generated the osteoblastic bone metastasis-associated stroma transcriptome (OB-BMST). Subtraction of genes shared by inflammation, wound healing and desmoplastic responses, and by the tissue type-independent stroma responses to a variety of non-osteotropic and osteotropic primary cancers generated a curated gene signature (“Core” OB-BMST) putatively representing the bone marrow/bone-specific stroma response to prostate cancer-induced, osteoblastic bone metastasis. The expression pattern of three representative Core OB-BMST genes (PTN, EPHA3 and FSCN1) seems to confirm the bone specificity of this response. A robust induction of genes involved in osteogenesis and angiogenesis dominates both the OB-BMST and Core OB-BMST. This translates in an amplification of hematopoietic and, remarkably, prostate epithelial stem cell niche components that may function as a self-reinforcing bone metastatic niche providing a growth support specific for osteoinductive prostate cancer cells. The induction of this combinatorial stem cell niche is a novel mechanism that may also explain cancer cell osteotropism and local interference with hematopoiesis (myelophthisis). Accordingly, these stem cell niche components may represent innovative therapeutic targets and/or serum biomarkers in osteoblastic bone metastasis. Keywords: cancer, transcription-profile, bone, metastasis, stroma