DNA methylation landscape reveals GNAS as a decitabine-responsive marker in patients with acute myeloid leukemia.

BACKGROUND: The demethylation agent decitabine (DAC) is a pivotal non-intensive alternative treatment for acute myeloid leukemia (AML). However, patient responses to DAC are highly variable, and predictive biomarkers are warranted. Herein, the DNA methylation landscape of patients treated with a DAC-based combination regimen was compared with that of patients treated with standard chemotherapy to develop a molecular approach for predicting clinical response to DAC. METHODS: Twenty-five non-M3 AML patients were enrolled and subjected to DNA methylation sequencing and profiling to identify differentially methylated regions (DMRs) and genes of interest. Moreover, the effects of a DAC-based regimen on apoptosis and gene expression were explored using Kasumi-1 and K562 cells. RESULTS: Overall, we identified 541 DMRs that were specifically responsive to DAC, among which 172 DMRs showed hypomethylation patterns upon treatment and were aligned with the promoter regions of 182 genes. In particular, GNAS was identified as a critical DAC-responsive gene, with in vitro GNAS downregulation leading to reduced cell apoptosis induced by DAC and cytarabine combo treatment. CONCLUSIONS: We found that GNAS is a DAC-sensitive gene in AML and may serve as a prognostic biomarker to assess the responsiveness of patients with AML to DAC-based therapy.

Validation and performance of three scoring systems for predicting primary non-function and early allograft failure after liver transplantation.

BACKGROUND: Primary non-function (PNF) and early allograft failure (EAF) after liver transplantation (LT) seriously affect patient outcomes. In clinical practice, effective prognostic tools for early identifying recipients at high risk of PNF and EAF were urgently needed. Recently, the Model for Early Allograft Function (MEAF), PNF score by King's College (King-PNF) and Balance-and-Risk-Lactate (BAR-Lac) score were developed to assess the risks of PNF and EAF. This study aimed to externally validate and compare the prognostic performance of these three scores for predicting PNF and EAF. METHODS: A retrospective study included 720 patients with primary LT between January 2015 and December 2020. MEAF, King-PNF and BAR-Lac scores were compared using receiver operating characteristic (ROC) and the net reclassification improvement (NRI) and integrated discrimination improvement (IDI) analyses. RESULTS: Of all 720 patients, 28 (3.9%) developed PNF and 67 (9.3%) developed EAF in 3 months. The overall early allograft dysfunction (EAD) rate was 39.0%. The 3-month patient mortality was 8.6% while 1-year graft-failure-free survival was 89.2%. The median MEAF, King-PNF and BAR-Lac scores were 5.0 (3.5-6.3), -2.1 (-2.6 to -1.2), and 5.0 (2.0-11.0), respectively. For predicting PNF, MEAF and King-PNF scores had excellent area under curves (AUCs) of 0.871 and 0.891, superior to BAR-Lac (AUC = 0.830). The NRI and IDI analyses confirmed that King-PNF score had the best performance in predicting PNF while MEAF served as a better predictor of EAD. The EAF risk curve and 1-year graft-failure-free survival curve showed that King-PNF was superior to MEAF and BAR-Lac scores for stratifying the risk of EAF. CONCLUSIONS: MEAF, King-PNF and BAR-Lac were validated as practical and effective risk assessment tools of PNF. King-PNF score outperformed MEAF and BAR-Lac in predicting PNF and EAF within 6 months. BAR-Lac score had a huge advantage in the prediction for PNF without post-transplant variables. Proper use of these scores will help early identify PNF, standardize grading of EAF and reasonably select clinical endpoints in relative studies.

DNA methylation landscape reveals LIN7A as a decitabine-responsive marker in patients with t(8;21) acute myeloid leukemia.

BACKGROUND: Despite its inconsistent response rate, decitabine, a demethylating agent, is often used as a non-intensive alternative therapeutic agent for acute myeloid leukemia (AML). It has been reported that relapsed/refractory AML patients with t(8;21) translocation achieved better clinical outcomes with a decitabine-based combination regimen than other AML subtypes; however, the mechanisms underlying this phenomenon remain unknown. Herein, the DNA methylation landscape of de novo patients with the t(8;21) translocation was compared with that of patients without the translocation. Moreover, the methylation changes induced by decitabine-based combination regimens in de novo/complete remission paired samples were investigated to elucidate the mechanisms underlying the better responses observed in t(8;21) AML patients treated with decitabine. METHODS: Thirty-three bone marrow samples from 28 non-M3 AML patients were subjected to DNA methylation sequencing to identify the differentially methylated regions and genes of interest. TCGA-AML Genome Atlas-AML transcriptome dataset was used to identify decitabine-sensitive genes that were downregulated following exposure to a decitabine-based regimen. In addition, the effect of decitabine-sensitive gene on cell apoptosis was examined in vitro using Kasumi-1 and SKNO-1 cells. RESULTS: A total of 1377 differentially methylated regions that specifically responsive to decitabine in t(8;21) AML were identified, of which 210 showed hypomethylation patterns following decitabine treatment aligned with the promoter regions of 72 genes. And the methylation-silencing genes, LIN7A, CEBPA, BASP1, and EMB were identified as critical decitabine-sensitive genes in t(8;21) AML. Moreover, AML patients with hypermethylated LIN7A and reduced LIN7A expression had poor clinical outcomes. Meanwhile, the downregulation of LIN7A inhibited decitabine/cytarabine combination treatment-induced apoptosis in t(8;21) AML cells in vitro. CONCLUSION: The findings of this study suggest that LIN7A is a decitabine-sensitive gene in t(8;21) AML patients that may serve as a prognostic biomarker for decitabine-based therapy.

A novel immune-related gene signature predicts the prognosis of hepatocellular carcinoma.

Immune-related genes play a key role in regulating the cancer immune microenvironment, influencing the overall survival of patients with hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC). Along with the rapid development of immunotherapy, identifying immune-related genes with prognostic value in HCC has attracted increasing attention. Here, we aimed to develop a prognostic signature based on immune-related genes. By investigating the transcriptome landscape of 374 HCC and 160 non-HCC samples in silico, a total of 2251 differentially expressed genes were identified. Among which, 183 differentially expressed immune-related genes were subjected to a univariate Cox proportional hazard model to screen for genes with possible prognostic significance. A 10-gene prognostic signature, including HLA-G, S100A9, S100A10, DCK, CCL14, NRAS, EPO, IL1RN, GHR and RHOA, was generated employing a multivariate Cox proportional hazard model. Kaplan-Meier and Receiver Operator Characteristic (ROC) curves were used to evaluate the prognostic utility of the 10-gene signature. Moreover, the underlying mechanisms of these genes were analyzed via Gene Ontology (GO) and Kyoto Encyclopedia of Genes and Genomes (KEGG) enrichment. According to the Tumor Immune Estimation Resource (TIMER) database, our prognostic signature was significantly associated with tumor-infiltrating B cells, CD4 T cells, dendritic cells, macrophages and neutrophils. Our study provides a novel prognostic signature based on immune-related genes associated with clinical outco mes of HCC.

Low concentration triphenyl phosphate fuels proliferation and migration of hepatocellular carcinoma cells.

Organophosphate flame retardants (OPFRs) have been widely used due to their unique properties. The OPFRs are mainly metabolized in the liver. However, whether the plasma level of OPFRs was involved in the progression of liver cancer remains unclear. Triphenyl phosphate (TPP) is one of the OPFRs that are mostly detected in environment. In this study, we performed CCK8, ATP, and EdU analyses to evaluate the effect of TPP at the concentrations at 0.025-12.8 µM on the proliferation, invasion, and migration of Hep3B, a hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC) cell line. Tumor-bearing mouse model was used for in vivo validation. The results showed that low concentrations of TPP at (0.025-0.1 µM), which are obtained in the plasma of patients with cancers, remarkably promoted cell invasion and migration of Hep3B cells. Animal experiments confirmed that TPP treatment significantly enhanced tumor growth in the xenograft HCC model. To explore the possible molecular mechanisms that might mediate the actions of TPP on Hep3B cells, we profiled gene expression in groups treated with or without TPP at the concentrations of 0.05 and 0.1 µM using transcriptional sequencing. Gene ontology (GO), Kyoto Encyclopedia of Genes and Genomes (KEGG) enrichment, and Protein-protein interaction (PPI) analyses demonstrated that pathways affected by differentially expressed genes (DEGs) were mainly in nuclear-transcribed mRNA catabolic processes, cytosolic ribosome, and ATPase activity. A 0.05 and 0.1 µM TPP led to up-regulation of a series of genes including EREG, DNPH1, SAMD9, DUSP5, PFN1, CKB, MICAL2, SCUBE3, and CXCL8, but suppressed the expression of MCC. These genes have been shown to be associated with proliferation and movement of cells. Taken together, our findings suggest that low concentration of TPP could fuel the proliferation, invasion, and migration of HCC cells. Thus, TPP is a risk factor in the progression of HCC in human beings.

The FLT3 Y842D mutation may be highly sensitive to midostaurin: a case report.

A Y842D mutation within the activation loop of fms-like tyrosine kinase 3 (FLT3) has been shown to confer strong resistance to sorafenib in vitro. Whether this type of mutation exerts clinically significant effects in patients with acute myeloid leukaemia (AML) remains unclear. Here, a novel Y842D activating mutation within the kinase domain of FLT3, in a pregnant patient with de novo hyperleucocyte acute myeloid leukaemia, is described. Following induction failure with standard dose idarubicin and cytarabine (IA), the patient received re-induction combined with midostaurin, a promising agent targeting mutant-FLT3, and IA regimen. Fortunately, morphological remission was achieved. During the period of midostaurin treatment, the patient exhibited a symptom that was characteristic of differentiation syndrome, which disappeared following treatment with methylprednisolone. The present case revealed that Y842D, an uncommon activating mutation in the activation loop of FLT3, may be a midostaurin-sensitive mutation type in patients with acute myeloid leukaemia.

Prediction of Graft Survival Post-liver Transplantation by L-GrAFT Risk Score Model, EASE Score, MEAF Scoring, and EAD.

Background: Early allograft dysfunction (EAD) is correlated with poor patient or graft survival in liver transplantation. However, the power of distinct definitions of EAD in prediction of graft survival is unclear. Methods: This retrospective, single-center study reviewed data of 677 recipients undergoing orthotopic liver transplant between July 2015 and June 2020. The following EAD definitions were compared: liver graft assessment following transplantation (L-GrAFT) risk score model, early allograft failure simplified estimation score (EASE), model for early allograft function (MEAF) scoring, and Olthoff criteria. Risk factors for L-GrAFT7 high risk group were evaluated with univariate and multivariable logistic regression analysis. Results: L-GrAFT7 had a satisfied C-statistic of 0.87 in predicting a 3-month graft survival which significantly outperformed MEAF (C-statistic = 0.78, P = 0.01) and EAD (C-statistic = 0.75, P < 0.001), respectively. L-GrAFT10, EASE was similar to L-GrAFT7, and they had no statistical significance in predicting survival. Laboratory model for end-stage liver disease score and cold ischemia time are risk factors of L-GrAFT7 high-risk group. Conclusion: L-GrAFT7 risk score is capable for better predicting the 3-month graft survival than the MEAF and EAD in a Chinese cohort, which might standardize assessment of early graft function and serve as a surrogate endpoint in clinical trial.

Clinical Benefits and Safety of Gemtuzumab Ozogamicin in Treating Acute Myeloid Leukemia in Various Subgroups: An Updated Systematic Review, Meta-Analysis, and Network Meta-Analysis.

Background: Previous trials demonstrated evidence involving the total effects of gemtuzumab ozogamicin (GO), an anti-CD33 humanized antibody, on treating acute myeloid leukemia (AML). In this updated systematic review, meta-analysis, and network meta-analysis (NMA), we aimed to comprehensively explore the clinical benefits and safety of GO in various subtypes of AML. Methods: PubMed, Embase, Cochrane, and Chinese databases were filtered to search randomized controlled trials (RCTs) and retrospective cohort studies that compared clinical efficiency and toxicity of GO with non-GO groups in AML. Random-effects models were used to calculate pooled effect sizes and 95% confidence intervals (CIs). Relative risk (RR) was used for estimating complete remission (CR), early death, and toxicity. Hazard risk (HR) was accomplished to evaluate survival. Results: Fifteen RCTs and 15 retrospective cohort studies were identified (GO: 4,768; Control: 6,466). GO tended to improve CR (RR 0.95, p = 0.084), followed by significantly improved survival (overall survival: HR 0.86, p = 0.003; event-free survival: HR 0.86, p = 0.015; relapse-free survival: HR 0.83, p = 0.001; cumulative incidence of relapse: HR 0.82, p < 0.001). GO benefits of CR and survival were evident in favorable- and intermediate-risk karyotypes (p ≤ 0.023). GO advantages were also associated with nucleophosmin 1 mutations (p ≤ 0.04), wild-type FMS-like tyrosine kinase 3 internal tandem duplication gene (p ≤ 0.03), age of <70 years (p < 0.05), de novo AML (p ≤ 0.017), and CD33(+) (p ≤ 0.021). Both adding GO into induction therapy (p ≤ 0.011) and a lower (<6 mg/m2) dose of GO (p ≤ 0.03) enhanced survival. Prognosis of combined regimens with GO was heterogeneous in both meta-analysis and NMA, with several binding strategies showing improved prognosis. Additionally, GO was related to increased risk of early death at a higher dose (≥6 mg/m2) (RR 2.01, p = 0.005), hepatic-related adverse effects (RR 1.29, p = 0.02), and a tendency of higher risk for hepatic veno-occlusive disease or sinusoidal obstruction syndrome (RR 1.56, p = 0.072). Conclusions: These data indicated therapeutic benefits and safety of GO in AML, especially in some subtypes, for which further head-to-head RCTs are warranted. Systematic Review Registration: [PROSPERO: https://www.crd.york.ac.uk/prospero/], identifier [CRD42020158540].

Transcriptional analysis of the expression, prognostic value and immune infiltration activities of the COMMD protein family in hepatocellular carcinoma.

BACKGROUND: The copper metabolism MURR1 domain (COMMD) protein family involved in tumor development and progression in several types of human cancer, but little is known about the function of COMMD proteins in hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC). METHODS: The ONCOMINE and the UALCAN databases were used to evaluate the expression of COMMD1-10 in HCC and the association of this family with individual cancer stage and tumor grade. Kaplan-Meier (K-M) Plotter and Cox analysis hint the prognostic value of COMMDs. A network comprising 50 most similar genes and COMMD1-10 was constructed with the STRING database. Gene set enrichment analysis (GSEA) was performed using LinkedOmics database. The correlations between COMMD expression and the presence of immune infiltrating cells were also analyzed by the tumor immune estimation resource (TIMER) database. GSE14520 dataset and 80 HCC patients were used to validated the expression and survival value of COMMD3. Human HCC cell lines were also used for validating the function of COMMD3. RESULTS: The expression of all COMMD family members showed higher expression in HCC tissues than that in normal tissues, and is associated with clinical cancer stage and pathological tumor grade. In HCC patients, the transcriptional levels of COMMD1/4 are positively correlated with overall survival (OS), while those of COMMD2/3/7/8/9 are negatively correlated with OS. Multivariate analysis indicated that a high level of COMMD3 mRNA is an independent prognostic factor for shorter OS in HCC patients. However, the subset of patients with grade 3 HCC, K-M survival curves revealed that high COMMD3/5/7/8/9 expression and low COMMD4/10 expression were associated with shorter OS. In addition, the expression of COMMD2/3/10 was associated with tumor-induced immune response activation and immune infiltration in HCC. The expression of COMMD3 from GSE14520 dataset and 80 patients are both higher in tumor than that in normal tissue, and a higher level of COMMD3 mRNA is associated with shorter OS. Knockdown of COMMD3 inhibits human HCC cell lines proliferation in vitro. CONCLUSIONS: Our study indicates that COMMD3 is an independent prognostic biomarker for the survival of HCC patients. COMMD3 supports the proliferation of HCC cells and contributes to the poor OS in HCC patients.

Prediction of post-transplant graft survival by different definitions of early allograft dysfunction.

BACKGROUND: The efficacy of early allograft dysfunction (EAD) definitions in predicting post-transplant graft survival in a Chinese population is still unclear. METHODS: A total of 607 orthotopic liver transplants (OLT) have been included in the current study. Model accuracy was evaluated using receiver operating characteristic (ROC) analysis. Risk factors for EAD was evaluated using univariable analysis and multivariable logistic regression model. RESULTS: The 3-, 6-, and 12-month patient/graft survival were 91.6%/91.4%, 91.1%/90%, and 87.5%/87.3%, respectively. MELDPOD5 had a superior discrimination of 3-month graft survival (C statistic, 0.83), compared with MEAF (C statistic, 0.77) and Olthoff criteria (C statistic, 0.72). Multivariate analysis of risk factors for EAD defined by MELDPOD5, showed that donor body mass index (P=0.001), donor risk index (P=0.006), intraoperative use of packed red blood cells (P=0.001), hypertension of recipient (P=0.004), and preoperative total bilirubin (P<0.001) were independent risk factors. CONCLUSIONS: The results suggest that MLEDPOD5 is a better criterion of EAD for the Chinese population, which might serve as a surrogate end-point for graft survival in clinical study.

Resolving the graft ischemia-reperfusion injury during liver transplantation at the single cell resolution.

Ischemia-reperfusion injury (IRI) remains the major reason for impaired donor graft function and increased mortality post-liver transplantation. The mechanism of IRI involves multiple pathophysiological processes and numerous types of cells. However, a systematic and comprehensive single-cell transcriptional profile of intrahepatic cells during liver transplantation is still unclear. We performed a single-cell transcriptome analysis of 14,313 cells from liver tissues collected from pre-procurement, at the end of preservation and 2 h post-reperfusion. We made detailed annotations of mononuclear phagocyte, endothelial cell, NK/T, B and plasma cell clusters, and we described the dynamic changes of the transcriptome of these clusters during IRI and the interaction between mononuclear phagocyte clusters and other cell clusters. In addition, we found that TNFAIP3 interacting protein 3 (TNIP3), specifically and highly expressed in Kupffer cell clusters post-reperfusion, may have a protective effect on IRI. In summary, our study provides the first dynamic transcriptome map of intrahepatic cell clusters during liver transplantation at single-cell resolution.

Clinical Benefits and Safety of FMS-Like Tyrosine Kinase 3 Inhibitors in Various Treatment Stages of Acute Myeloid Leukemia: A Systematic Review, Meta-Analysis, and Network Meta-Analysis.

BACKGROUND: Given the controversial roles of FMS-like tyrosine kinase 3 inhibitors (FLT3i) in various treatment stages of acute myeloid leukemia (AML), this study was designed to assess this problem and further explored which FLT3i worked more effectively. METHODS: A systematic review, meta-analysis and network meta-analysis (NMA) were conducted by filtering PubMed, Embase, Cochrane library, and Chinese databases. We included studies comparing therapeutic effects between FLT3i and non-FLT3i group in AML, particularly FLT3(+) patients, or demonstrating the efficiency of allogeneic hematopoietic stem cell transplantation (allo-HSCT) in FLT3(+) AML. Relative risk (RR) with 95% confidence intervals (CI) was used for estimating complete remission (CR), early death and toxicity. Hazard ratio (HR) was used to assess overall survival (OS), event-free survival (EFS), relapse-free survival (RFS) and cumulative incidence of relapse (CIR). RESULTS: After addressing all criteria, 39 studies were eventually analyzed. Better CR was accomplished by FLT3i in untreated AML (RR 0.88, p = 0.04) and refractory and relapsed FLT3(+) AML (rrAML) (RR 0.61, p < 0.01) compared to non-FLT3i arm, followed by improved survival (untreated AML: OS, HR 0.76; EFS, HR 0.67; RFS, HR 0.72; all p < 0.01; FLT3(+) rrAML: OS, HR 0.60, p < 0.01; RFS, HR 0.40, p = 0.01). In addition, allo-HSCT improved survival in FLT3(+) AML (OS, HR 0.53; EFS, HR 0.50; RFS, HR 0.57; CIR, HR 0.26; all p < 0.01), which was further prolonged by FLT3i administrated after allo-HSCT (OS, HR 0.45; RFS, HR 0.34; CIR, HR 0.32; all p < 0.01). Additionally, FLT3i consistently improved OS (p < 0.05) regardless of FLT3-ITD ratio, when compared to non-FLT3i group. Besides, FLT3i showed significantly increased risk of thrombocytopenia, neutropenia, anemia, skin- and cardiac-related adverse effects, increased alanine aminotransferase, and increased risk of cough and dyspnea (p < 0.05). In NMA, gilteritinib showed the highest probability for improved prognosis. CONCLUSIONS: FLT3i safely improved prognosis in induction/reinduction stage of FLT3(+) AML and further boosted survival benefits from allo-HSCT as maintenance therapy, suggesting better prognosis if FLT3i is combined before and after allo-HSCT. In NMA, gilteritinib potentially achieved the best prognosis, which should be identified in direct trials.

The role of ARHGAP9: clinical implication and potential function in acute myeloid leukemia.

BACKGROUND: Rho GTPase activating protein 9 (ARHGAP9) is expressed in various types of cancers and can inactivate Rho GTPases that mainly regulate cytoskeletal dynamics. However, the exact role of ARHGAP9 in acute myeloid leukemia (AML) has yet to be clarified. METHODS: We compared the transcriptional expression, prognosis, differentially expressed genes, functional enrichment, and hub genes in AML patients on the basis of the data published in the following databases: UALCAN, GEPIA, Gene Expression Omnibus, the Human Protein Atlas, Cancer Cell Line Encyclopedia, LinkedOmics, Metascape, and String. Data from the Cancer Genome Atlas database was used to evaluate the correlations between ARHGAP9 expression and various clinicopathological parameters, as well as the significantly different genes associated with ARHGAP9 expression. RESULTS: We found that ARHGAP9 expression was higher in the tissues and cell lines extracted from patients with AML than corresponding control tissues and other cancer types. ARHGAP9 overexpression was associated with decreased overall survival (OS) in AML. Compared with the ARHGAP9low group, the ARHGAP9high group, which received only chemotherapy, showed significantly worse OS and event-free survival (EFS); however, no significant difference was observed after treatment with autologous or allogeneic hematopoietic stem cell transplantation (auto/allo-HSCT). The ARHGAP9high patients undergoing auto/allo-HSCT also had a significantly better prognosis with respect to OS and EFS than those receiving only chemotherapy. Most overlapping genes of the significantly different genes and co-expression genes exhibited enriched immune functions, suggesting the immune regulation potential of ARHGAP9 in AML. A total of 32 hub genes were identified from the differentially expressed genes, within which the KIF20A had a significant prognostic value for AML. CONCLUSIONS: ARHGAP9 overexpression was associated with poor OS in AML patients and can be used as a prognostic biomarker. AML patients with ARHGAP9 overexpression can benefit from auto/allo-HSCT rather than chemotherapy.

Upregulated Seizure-Related 6 Homolog-Like 2 Is a Prognostic Predictor of Hepatocellular Carcinoma.

Seizure-related 6 homolog-like 2 (SEZ6L2), which is localized on the cell surface, has been found to be associated with tumor angiogenesis and lung cancer progression. However, the role of SEZ6L2 in hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC) is still unclear. We obtained data from The Cancer Genome Atlas (TCGA) and the Gene Expression Omnibus (GEO) to investigate SEZ6L2 expression and regulation in HCC. Then, HCC tissue samples were collected to verify SEZ6L2 by quantitative real-time polymerase chain reaction (qRT-PCR) and immunohistochemical staining (IHC). Patient information was collected for survival and prognosis analysis. qRT-PCR, IHC, and bioinformatics analysis showed that the SEZ6L2 protein was highly expressed in HCC samples. Clinical data showed that high SEZ6L2 protein expression was correlated with tumor-node-metastasis (TNM) stages (P = 0.046), tumor number (P = 0.016), and tumor size (P = 0.029). Meanwhile, SEZ6L2 overexpression was closely associated with poor overall survival and disease-free survival in HCC patients. Moreover, SEZ6L2 is an independent prognostic predictor for the survival of HCC patients. This study suggests a significant correlation between SEZ6L2 and HCC, which means that SEZ6L2 may potentially serve as a useful prognostic biomarker for HCC patients.

FOXA1 inhibits hepatocellular carcinoma progression by suppressing PIK3R1 expression in male patients.

BACKGROUND: Forkhead box A1 (FOXA1) expression is associated with various types of tumors; however, the function and underlying mechanism of FOXA1 in the development of hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC) remains obscure. METHODS: Here, we investigated the role of FOXA1 in the development of HCC by applying gene function gain and loss analysis to HepG2 and Hep3B cell lines, and comparing outcomes with those of clinical HCC samples. RESULTS: Phosphoinositide-3-kinase regulatory subunit 1 (PIK3R1), which encodes protein PI3Kp85 (p85), was identified as a FOXA1 target gene. Analyses of the mechanism and function revealed that FOXA1 suppresses hepatocellular carcinoma cell viability and motility by inhibiting PI3K/Akt signaling through direct inhibition of PIK3R1 transcription. Moreover, in clinical samples from male HCC patients, FOXA1 expression was much lower, whereas PI3Kp85 levels were much higher in tumor than in non-tumor tissues. Elevated PI3Kp85 is an unfavorable factor in HCC. CONCLUSIONS: As a tumor suppressor, FOXA1 targets PIK3R1 directly to inhibit PI3K/Akt signaling pathway, thus exerting a negative regulatory effect on proliferation, migration, and invasion of HCC in male patients.

Protein arginine N-methyltransferase 1 promotes the proliferation and metastasis of hepatocellular carcinoma cells.

Hepatocellular carcinoma is the most common subtype of liver cancer. Protein arginine N-methyltransferase 1 was shown to be upregulated in various cancers. However, the role of protein arginine N-methyltransferase 1 in hepatocellular carcinoma progression remains incompletely understood. We investigated the clinical and functional significance of protein arginine N-methyltransferase 1 in a series of clinical hepatocellular carcinoma samples and a panel of hepatocellular carcinoma cell lines. We performed suppression analysis of protein arginine N-methyltransferase 1 using small interfering RNA to determine the biological roles of protein arginine N-methyltransferase 1 in hepatocellular carcinoma. In addition, the expression of epithelial-mesenchymal transition indicators was verified by western blotting in hepatocellular carcinoma cell lines after small interfering RNA treatment. Protein arginine N-methyltransferase 1 expression was found to be significantly upregulated in hepatocellular carcinoma cell lines and clinical tissues. Moreover, downregulation of protein arginine N-methyltransferase 1 in hepatocellular carcinoma cells by small interfering RNA could inhibit cell proliferation, migration, and invasion in vitro. These results indicate that protein arginine N-methyltransferase 1 may contribute to hepatocellular carcinoma progression and serves as a promising target for the treatment of hepatocellular carcinoma patients.