Mechanisms of traditional Chinese medicine overcoming of radiotherapy resistance in breast cancer.

Breast cancer stands as the most prevalent malignancy among women, with radiotherapy serving as a primary treatment modality. Despite radiotherapy, a subset of breast cancer patients experiences local recurrence, attributed to the intrinsic resistance of tumors to radiation. Therefore, there is a compelling need to explore novel approaches that can enhance cytotoxic effects through alternative mechanisms. Traditional Chinese Medicine (TCM) and its active constituents exhibit diverse pharmacological actions, including anti-tumor effects, offering extensive possibilities to identify effective components capable of overcoming radiotherapy resistance. This review delineates the mechanisms underlying radiotherapy resistance in breast cancer, along with potential candidate Chinese herbal medicines that may sensitize breast cancer cells to radiotherapy. The exploration of such herbal interventions holds promise for improving therapeutic outcomes in the context of breast cancer radiotherapy resistance.

Identification of the ferroptosis-related prognostic gene signature in mesothelioma.

Mesothelioma, an uncommon yet highly aggressive malignant neoplasm, presents challenges in the effectiveness of current therapeutic approaches. Ferroptosis, a non-apoptotic mechanism of cellular demise, exhibits a substantial association with the progression of diverse cancer forms. It is important to acknowledge that there exists a significant association between ferroptosis and the advancement of various forms of cancer. Nevertheless, the precise role of ferroptosis regulatory factors within the context of mesothelioma remains enigmatic. In our investigation, we initially scrutinized the prognostic significance of 24 ferroptosis regulatory factors in the realm of mesothelioma. Our observations unveiled that heightened expression levels of CARS1, CDKN1A, TFRC, FANCD2, FDFT1, HSPB1, SLC1A5, SLC7A11, coupled with reduced DPP4 expression, were indicative of an unfavorable prognosis. Built upon the nine previously discussed prognostic genes, the ferroptosis prognostic model offers a reliable means to forecast mesothelioma patients' survival with a substantial degree of precision. Furthermore, a notable correlation emerged between these prognostic ferroptosis regulators and parameters such as immune cell infiltration, tumor mutation burden, microsatellite instability, and PD-L1 expression in the context of mesothelioma. Within this cadre of nine ferroptosis regulatory factors with prognostic relevance, FANCD2 exhibited the most pronounced prognostic influence, as elucidated by our analyses. Subsequently, we executed a validation process employing clinical specimens sourced from our institution, thus confirming that heightened FANCD2 expression is a discernible harbinger of an adverse prognosis in the context of mesothelioma. In vitro experiments revealed that knocking down FANCD2 markedly suppressed the proliferation, migration, and ability of mesothelioma cells to attract immune cells. Furthermore, our findings also showed that reducing FANCD2 levels heightened the vulnerability of mesothelioma cells to inducers of ferroptosis. Furthermore, an extensive pan-cancer analysis uncovered a robust association between FANCD2 and the gene expression linked to immune checkpoints, thereby signifying an adverse prognosis across a broad spectrum of cancer types. Additional research is warranted to validate these findings.

Amifostine-Loaded Nanocarrier Traverses the Blood-Brain Barrier and Prevents Radiation-Induced Brain Injury.

Radiation-induced brain injury (RIBI) is a severe, irreversible, or even life-threatening cerebral complication of radiotherapy in patients with head and neck tumors, and there is no satisfying prevention and effective treatment available for these patients. Amifostine (AMF) is a well-known free radical scavenger with demonstrated effectiveness in preventing radiation-induced toxicity. However, the limited permeability of AMF across the blood-brain barrier (BBB) when administered intravenously reduces the effectiveness of AMF in preventing RIBI. Herein, we construct a nanoparticle (NP) platform for BBB delivery of AMF. AMF is conjugated with 1,2-dioleoyl-sn-glycero-3-phosphoethanolamine-n-[poly(ethylene glycol)]-hydroxy succinamide [DSPE-PEG-NHS, PEG M 2000], and the product is DSPE-PEG-AMF. Then, the nanoparticles (DAPP NPs) were formed by self-assembly of poly(lactic-co-glycolic acid) (PLGA), DSPE-PEG-AMF, and polysorbate 80 (PS 80). PEG shields the nanoparticles from blood clearance by the reticuloendothelial system and lengthens the drug circulation time. PS 80 is used to encapsulate nanoparticles for medication delivery to the brain. The results of our study showed that DAPP NPs were able to effectively penetrate the blood-brain barrier (BBB) in healthy C57BL/6 mice. Furthermore, in a well-established mouse model of X-knife-induced brain injury, treatment with DAPP NPs (corresponding to 250 mg/kg AMF) was found to significantly reduce the volume of brain necrosis compared to mice treated with AMF (250 mg/kg). Importantly, the use of DAPP NPs was also shown to significantly mitigate the effects of radiation-induced neuronal damage and glial activation. This work presents a convenient brain-targeted AMF delivery system to achieve effective radioprotection for the brain, providing a promising strategy with tremendous clinical translation potential.

Molecular detection of epithelial-mesenchymal transition markers in circulating tumor cells from pancreatic cancer patients: Potential role in clinical practice.

AIM: To evaluate the clinical properties of three subpopulations of circulating tumor cells (CTCs) undergoing epithelial-mesenchymal transition (EMT) in pancreatic ductal adenocarcinoma (PDAC) patients. METHODS: We identified CTCs for expression of the epithelial cell marker cytokeratin or epithelial cell adhesion molecule (EpCAM) (E-CTC), the mesenchymal cell markers vimentin and twist (M-CTC), or both (E/M-CTC) using the CanPatrol system. Between July 2014 and July 2016, 107 patients with PDAC were enrolled for CTC evaluation. CTC enumeration and classification were correlated with patient clinicopathological features and outcomes. RESULTS: CTCs were detected in 78.5% of PDAC patients. The number of total CTCs ranged from 0 to 26 across all 107 patients, with a median value of six. CTC status correlated with lymph node metastasis, TNM stage, distant metastasis, blood lymphocyte counts, and neutrophil-to-lymphocyte ratio (NLR). Kaplan-Meier survival analysis showed that patients with ≥ 6 total CTCs had significantly decreased overall survival and progression-free survival compared with patients with < 6 total CTCs. The presence of M-CTCs was positively correlated with TNM stage (P < 0.01) and distant metastasis (P < 0.01). Additionally, lymphocyte counts and NLR in patients without CTCs were significantly different from those in patients testing positive for each CTC subpopulation (P < 0.01). CONCLUSION: Classifying CTCs by EMT markers helps to identify the more aggressive CTC subpopulations and provides useful evidence for determining a suitable clinical approach.

Linc00511 acts as a competing endogenous RNA to regulate VEGFA expression through sponging hsa-miR-29b-3p in pancreatic ductal adenocarcinoma.

Pancreatic ductal adenocarcinoma (PDAC) is a lethal malignancy. Long non-coding RNAs (lncRNAs) are important regulators in pathological processes, yet their potential roles in PDAC are poorly understood. Here, we identify a fundamental role for a novel lincRNA, linc00511, in the progression of PDAC. Linc00511 levels in PDAC tissue specimens and cell lines were examined by quantitative real-time PCR. Corresponding adjacent non-neoplastic tissues were used as controls. The function of linc00511 in PDAC cell lines was determined by RNA interference approach in vitro and in vivo. Fluorescence in situ hybridization (FISH) was used to characterize linc00511 expression in PDAC cells. Insights of the mechanism of competitive endogenous RNAs (ceRNAs) were obtained from bioinformatic analysis, luciferase assays and RIP assays. The association between the linc00511/hsa-miR29b-3p axis and VEGFA was verified by Western blotting assay. Immunohistochemistry was performed to evaluate the expression of VEGFA in PDAC samples. The aberrant up-regulation of linc00511 was detected in PDAC cell lines and patient specimens compared with controls. An increase in linc00511 expression indicates the adverse clinical pathological characteristics and poor prognosis. Functionally, linc00511 depletion in PDAC cells decreased proliferation, migration, invasion and endothelial tube formation. Mechanistically, linc00511 could up-regulate VEGFA via its competing endogenous RNA (ceRNA) activity on hsa-miR-29b-3p. In summary, our results define an important axis controlling proliferation, invasion and tumour angiogenesis in PDAC. Linc00511 is a novel lncRNA that plays a significant regulatory role in the pathogenesis and progression of PDAC. Thus, Linc00511 represents a new prognostic biomarker to predict clinical outcome of PDAC patients after surgery and may serve as a potential therapeutic target for PDAC treatment.