Eco-evolutionary Guided Pathomic Analysis to Predict DCIS Upstaging.

Cancers evolve in a dynamic ecosystem. Thus, characterizing cancer's ecological dynamics is crucial to understanding cancer evolution and can lead to discovering novel biomarkers to predict disease progression. Ductal carcinoma in situ (DCIS) is an early-stage breast cancer characterized by abnormal epithelial cell growth confined within the milk ducts. Although there has been extensive research on genetic and epigenetic causes of breast carcinogenesis, none of these studies have successfully identified a biomarker for the progression and/or upstaging of DCIS. In this study, we show that ecological habitat analysis of hypoxia and acidosis biomarkers can significantly improve prediction of DCIS upstaging. First, we developed a novel eco-evolutionary designed approach to define habitats in the tumor intra-ductal microenvironment based on oxygen diffusion distance in our DCIS cohort of 84 patients. Then, we identify cancer cells with metabolic phenotypes attributed to their habitat conditions, such as the expression of CA9 indicating hypoxia responding phenotype, and LAMP2b indicating a hypoxia-induced acid adaptation. Traditionally these markers have shown limited predictive capabilities for DCIS upstaging, if any. However, when analyzed from an ecological perspective, their power to differentiate between indolent and upstaged DCIS increased significantly. Second, using eco-evolutionary guided computational and digital pathology techniques, we discovered distinct spatial patterns of these biomarkers and used the distribution of such patterns to predict patient upstaging. The patterns were characterized by both cellular features and spatial features. With a 5-fold validation on the biopsy cohort, we trained a random forest classifier to achieve the area under curve(AUC) of 0.74. Our results affirm the importance of using eco-evolutionary-designed approaches in biomarkers discovery studies in the era of digital pathology by demonstrating the role of eco-evolution dynamics in predicting cancer progression.

Spider chart, greenness and whiteness assessment of experimentally designed multivariate models for simultaneous determination of three drugs used as a combinatory antibiotic regimen in critical care units: Comparative study.

In this study, five earth-friendly spectrophotometric methods using multivariate techniques were developed to analyze levofloxacin, linezolid, and meropenem, which are utilized in critical care units as combination therapies. These techniques were used to determine the mentioned medications in laboratory-prepared mixtures, pharmaceutical products and spiked human plasma that had not been separated before handling. These methods were named classical least squares (CLS), principal component regression (PCR), partial least squares (PLS), genetic algorithm partial least squares (GA-PLS), and artificial neural network (ANN). The methods used a five-level, three-factor experimental design to make different concentrations of the antibiotics mentioned (based on how much of them are found in the plasma of critical care patients and their linearity ranges). The approaches used for levofloxacin, linezolid, and meropenem were in the ranges of 3-15, 8-20, and 5-25 µg/mL, respectively. Several analytical tools were used to test the proposed methods' performance. These included the root mean square error of prediction, the root mean square error of cross-validation, percentage recoveries, standard deviations, and correlation coefficients. The outcome was highly satisfactory. The study found that the root mean square errors of prediction for levofloxacin were 0.090, 0.079, 0.065, 0.027, and 0.001 for the CLS, PCR, PLS, GA-PLS, and ANN models, respectively. The corresponding values for linezolid were 0.127, 0.122, 0.108, 0.05, and 0.114, respectively. For meropenem, the values were 0.230, 0.222, 0.179, 0.097, and 0.099 for the same models, respectively. These results indicate that the developed models were highly accurate and precise. This study compared the efficiency of artificial neural networks and classical chemometric models in enhancing spectral data selectivity for quickly identifying three antimicrobials. The results from these five models were subjected to statistical analysis and compared with each other and with the previously published ones. Finally, the whiteness of the methods was assessed by the recently published white analytical chemistry (WAC) RGB 12, and the greenness of the proposed methods was assessed using AGREE, GAPI, NEMI, Raynie and Driver, and eco-scale, which showed that the suggested approaches had the least negative environmental impact. Furthermore, to demonstrate solvent sustainability, a greenness index using a spider chart methodology was employed.

Eco-friendly micellar HPLC approach for simultaneous estimation of combination therapy for hidradenitis suppurativa: Applications to spiked human plasma and different dosage forms.

This study introduces a new method for analyzing rifampicin, moxifloxacin, and metronidazole using a green micellar High Performance Liquid Chromatography-Ultraviolet method in bulk drugs, different commercial formulations, and spiked human plasma. The combined therapy of these three broad-spectrum antibiotics is used to cure refractory hidradenitis suppurativa (HS), an inflammatory condition affecting the skin. The sustainable separation was attained on a reversed-phase C18 Kinetex® column maintained at ambient temperature in less than 5 min. The mobile phase comprises 0.1 M sodium dodecyl sulfate (SDS) in water, pH 3.5, adjusted using o-phosphoric acid, and 10% n-butanol. The flow rate was 1 mL/min, with 10 µL injection volume and UV detection at 230 nm. The impact of three key significant variables, SDS concentration, n-butanol percentage, and the mobile phase pH, on suitability parameters was studied. ICH and FDA guidelines were committed to when validating the technique. The results showed linear calibration graphs with high precision and accuracy, in both pure and spiked plasma. The method is efficient, easy to use, and has a high sample throughput, making it suitable for routine analysis in the quality control department and therapeutic monitoring. It is also evaluated as a green-and-white substitute for traditional reported methods.

A validated eco-friendly HPLC-FLD for analysis of the first approved antiviral remdesivir with other potential add-on therapies for COVID-19 in human plasma and pharmaceuticals.

It is crucial to have a reliable and sensitive method for separating common drugs used in SARS-CoV-2 pneumonia treatment protocols for ongoing treatment and upcoming investigations. This study presents an HPLC-FLD approach to analyze three co-administered medicines - remdesivir (RDV), hydroxychloroquine sulphate (HCQ), and levofloxacin hemihydrate (LVX) - in their pure forms, pharmaceutical preparations, and spiked human plasma. The HPLC-FLD analysis was conducted using a Symmetry® C18 column (100 mm × 4.6 mm ID, 3.5 µm particle size) at 40 °C, with (A) an aqueous mixture of 0.02 M phosphate buffer and 0.2% heptane-1-sulphonic acid sodium solutions (50 : 50) adjusted to pH 3, (B) acetonitrile, and (C) methanol as the mobile phase. The injection volume was 10 µL, and the flow rate was 1.5 mL min-1. The detection was done using a multi-wavelength excitation and emission fluorescence detector, with individual optimization for each drug. The drug separation time was less than 10 minutes, and the method showed sensitive and wide linearity ranges for all medicines, with r2 values of more than 0.999. The impact of the mobile phase pH and flow rate on suitability parameters (retention time and number of theoretical plates) was studied. The method was found to be environmentally friendly based on GAPI and AGREE metrics. The validity of the method was evaluated following ICH and FDA guidelines.

Earth-friendly micellar UPLC technique for determination of four hypoglycemic drugs in different pharmaceutical dosage forms and spiked human plasma.

A novel, sensitive, and green micellar UPLC method was proposed and validated for the simultaneous determination of four hypoglycemic agents used in type II diabetes mellitus treatment namely, pioglitazone, alogliptin, glimepiride, and vildagliptin. The developed UPLC method was successfully applied for quantitative analysis of these drugs in bulk, in pharmaceutical formulations, and in spiked human plasma. Chromatographic separation was carried out on a Kinetex® 1.7 µm XB-C18 100 Å (50 × 2.1 mm) column, using a degassed and filtered mixture of (0.1 M SDS- 0.3% triethyl amine- 0.1% phosphoric acid (pH 6)) and n-propanol (85:15 v/v), at a flow rate of 0.2 mL/min. The experimental conditions of the suggested method were well investigated and optimized. The newly developed micellar UPLC method is capable of determining different dosage forms at the same time with the same solvents, saving time and effort. The method was found to be efficiently applicable in spiked human plasma and could be extended to study the pharmacokinetics of the cited drugs in real human plasma samples. The greenness of the developed method was evaluated by applying the Eco-scale scoring tool, which verified the excellent greenness of the analytical method.

Microbiological and spectrophotometric methods for the determination of tioconazole: A comparative thermodynamic study.

Two sensitive microbiological and charge transfer spectrophotometric methods have been developed for the quantitative determination of the antifungal drug, tioconazole, in its pure form and pharmaceutical preparations. The microbiological assay was based on the agar disk diffusion method by measuring the diameter of the inhibition zones related to different concentrations of tioconazole. The spectrophotometric method relied on charge transfer complex formation between tioconazole as an n-donor and chloranilic acid as a π-acceptor at room temperature. The formed complex was measured at λmax = 530 nm. The molar absorptivity and the formation constant of the formed complex were determined using different models, including the Benesi-Hildebrand, Foster-Hammick-Wardley, Scott, Pushkin-Varshney-Kamoonpuri, and Scatchard equations. Different thermodynamic parameters associated with the complex formation, including the free energy change (ΔG°), the standard enthalpy (ΔH°), and the standard entropy change (ΔS°), were evaluated. The two methods were validated in conformity with ICH-recommended guidelines and employed successfully for the quantification of tioconazole in both pure form and pharmaceutical formulations.

Comparative study of four innovative earth-friendly platforms for rapid analysis of daclatasvir dihydrochloride: Application on different matrices.

BACKGROUND: Daclatasvir dihydrochloride has important roles not only in the management of COVID-19 pandemic symptoms but also in the treatment of chronic hepatitis C infection. OBJECTIVE: The current research presents four novel and simple platforms including silver-nanoparticles spectrophotometric technique and three electrochemical conductometric ones for daclatasvir analysis in its tablet, biological fluids, and dissolution media. METHODS: The spectrophotometric platform involved the synthesis of silvernanoparticles through a redox reaction between the reducing agent (daclatasvir) and the oxidizing agent (silver nitrate) in presence of polyvinylpyrrolidone as a stabilizing agent. The produced silver-nanoparticles have an intense surface plasmon resonance peak at 421 nm where the measured absorbance values were utilized for quantitative spectrophotometric determination of daclatasvir. While the electrochemical conductometric platforms involved the reaction of daclatasvir with three different precipitating reagents (silver nitrate, phosphomolybdic acid, and ammonium reineckate) to form ion associates between these reagents and daclatasvir in the aqueous system. RESULTS: All proposed platforms were validated in line with recommendations of the international conference on harmonization producing satisfactory outcomes within the agreed boundaries. CONCLUSION: The proposed platforms are green alternatives for routine rapid assay of daclatasvir at the cheapest cost because their results were observed to be nearly similar to those of the reported platform. Moreover, the suggested spectrophotometric platform's sensitivity can be employed for investigating daclatasvir bioequivalence.

Earth friendly spectrophotometric methods based on different manipulation approaches for simultaneous determination of aspirin and omeprazole in binary mixture and pharmaceutical dosage form: Comparative statistical study.

Aspirin and omeprazole combining has proven their effectiveness clinically in the treatment and prevention of cardiovascular diseases in patient with gastric diseases and gastric ulcers. Simultaneous determination of omeprazole and aspirin in their combination is a challenge due to the overlapping spectra of these drugs. Six smart and different spectrophotometric methods were developed for the analysis of omeprazole and aspirin in binary mixture and pharmaceutical dosage form. These smart methods characterized by simplicity and accuracy. The first two methods based on minimal mathematical data processing based on the zero order absorption spectra were; dual wavelength and advanced absorbance subtraction methods. The third method is first and second derivative spectrophotometric method that based on derivative spectra. The last three methods based on ratio spectra manipulation are named; ratio difference, mean centering and derivative ratio spectrophotometric methods. The linearity range of omeprazole was 2-20 µg/mL for dual wavelength method and 2-30 µg/mL for the other ones, while aspirin showed a good linearity over a range of 2.5-30 µg/mL for all methods. The correlation coefficients were greater than 0.999. The results of the developed methods are statistically compared with each other and with the results of the reported HPLC method showing no significant difference. The greenness of the developed methods was assessed using eco-scale scoring method revealing excellent greenness of the applied methods. This spectrophotometric methods is more sensitive and greener with comparing by the reported one so, these developed methods are considered eco-friendly to the environment.

Spectrophotometric Determination of Aspirin and Omeprazole in the Presence of Salicylic Acid as a Degradation Product: A Comparative Evaluation of Different Univariate/Multivariate Post Processing Algorithms.

BACKGROUND: A recent combination of aspirin (ASP) and omeprazole (OMP) has been presented in a fixed dosage form for the treatment of many cardiovascular diseases, particularly in patients with gastric diseases. However, ASP is very sensitive to degradation into salicylic acid (SAL) as its main degradation product. Hence, it is very important to develop methods for the determination of ASP and OMP in the presence of SAL. OBJECTIVE: In this study, UV spectrophotometry assisted by different univariate/multivariate post processing algorithms is presented for quantitative determination of ASP, OMP, and SAL without any prior separation. METHODS: The univariate/multivariate algorithms include double divisor ratio difference and double divisor mean centering as the univariate approaches while the multivariate methods include principal component regression (PCR) and partial least squares (PLS) models. Validation of the univariate methods was done according to International Conference on Harmonization guidelines, while the multivariate models were validated using an external validation set. RESULTS: The univariate algorithms displayed excellent regression and validation capabilities in terms of linearity, accuracy, precision, and selectivity. Regarding PCR and PLS, the number of latent variables were carefully optimized, and the model's validation criteria displayed excellent recoveries and lower errors of prediction. CONCLUSION: Our findings indicate that the developed methods were comparable to the reported chromatographic methods, but are simpler and have much shorter analysis times. HIGHLIGHTS: Overall, this report presents the first spectrophotometric methods applied for determination of possible combinations of ASP, OMP, and SAL, and poses these methods as valuable analytical tools for in-process testing and quality control analysis.

Smart UV-spectrophotometric platforms for rapid green analysis of miconazole nitrate and nystatin in their combined suppositories and in vitro dissolution testing.

Miconazole nitrate (MIC) and nystatin (NYS) combination has proven its effectiveness as a prodigious therapy to cure women's common infections; vaginal candidiasis and vaginal mycosis. Herein, six smart UV-spectrophotometric platforms depending on minimal mathematical manipulation steps were first introduced for the simultaneous green analysis of MIC and NYS in their pure forms and commercial vaginal suppositories without any preliminary separation steps. These platforms included dual-wavelength, ratio difference, mean centering of ratio spectra, first derivative ratio, ratio subtraction, and absorption correction methods. All of the aforementioned platforms could estimate MIC in a linear range of 90-900 µg/ml. While NYS was computed directly by zero-order spectrophotometry at its λmax (304 nm) in a linear range of 1-15 µg/ml without any interference by MIC even in low or high concentrations. Dual-wavelength and zero-order spectrophotometric platforms were successfully applied to study the dissolution profile of MIC and NYS in their combined formulation in compliance with FDA recommendations without excipients interference. According to ICH guidelines, all platforms were validated regarding the accuracy, precision, and selectivity producing satisfactory results within the accepted limits. Also, the suggested platforms' results were statistically compared with each other and with those of the reported HPLC platform revealing no significant difference concerning accuracy and precision at p = .05. Accordingly, all proposed platforms are regarded as economic and eco-friendly alternatives to the expensive chromatographic platforms that utilize hazardous organic solvents during the analysis of cited drugs.

Comparative study of novel green UV-spectrophotometric platforms for simultaneous rapid analysis of flumethasone pivalate and clioquinol in their combined formulation.

Flumethasone pivalate (FP) and clioquinol (CL) formulation was developed as a prodigious remedy to cure the external ear inflammatory disorders. So, the current research introduces five smart and novel UV-spectrophotometric platforms relying on minimal mathematical manipulation steps for simultaneous green analysis of FP and CL with no preliminary separation in their formulation that suffered from the high difference of their ratio and severe spectral overlapping. These platforms involved dual-wavelength, first derivative ratio, Fourier self-deconvolution, area under the curve, and bivariate methods. The suggested platform' linearity was observed over the concentration range of 3-42 µg/ml for FP and 1.5-8 µg/ml for CL. All suggested platforms were validated according to ICH recommendations regarding accuracy, precision, repeatability, and selectivity producing satisfactory results within the accepted limits. These platforms were represented as rapid, green, and cheap alternatives to the reported chromatographic method due to lower solvent consumption and waste generation. Furthermore, they improved the determination sensitivity of the studied drugs and enhanced the recorded data signals or its spectral resolution by the newly introduced Fourier self-deconvoluted method. The statistical comparison between the results of the suggested platforms with each other and with those of the reported method showed no significant differences between them.

Simple mathematical data processing method for the determination of sever overlapped spectra of linagliptin and empagliflozin in their pure forms and pharmaceutical formulation: Fourier self deconvulated method.

A new and simple spectrophotometric method was developed for the simultaneous determination of a new antidiabetic mixture of linagliptin and empagliflozin namely fourier self deconvulated method. The developed method based on minimal mathematical data processing on the zero order spectrum for solving sever overlapping spectra of the mentioned drugs in their pure forms and pharmaceutical dosage form. The zero order spectra of linagliptin and empagliflozin were deconvulated using Fourier transforms function. The peak amplitudes at 232 nm were selected for linagliptin and at 239 nm for empagliflozin. The constructed calibration graphs were linear over the range (5-30 µg/mL) and (2-12 µg/mL) for empagliflozin and linagliptin, respectively. The adopted method was simple, accurate, precise and validated according to the ICH guidelines.

Therapeutic and prognostic implications of NOTCH and MAPK signaling in bladder cancer.

Signaling pathways that drive bladder cancer (BC) progression may be promising and specific targets for systemic therapy. Here, we investigated the clinical significance and targetability of NOTCH and mitogen-activated protein kinase (MAPK) signaling for this aggressive malignancy. We assessed NOTCH1 and MAPK activity in 222 stage III and IV BC specimens of patients that had undergone radical cystectomy, and tested for clinical associations including cancer-specific and overall survival. We examined therapeutic effects of NOTCH and MAPK repression in a murine xenograft model of human bladder cancer cells and evaluated tumor growth and tumor cell plasticity. In BC, NOTCH1 and MAPK signaling marked two distinct tumor cell subpopulations. The combination of high NOTCH1 and high MAPK activity indicated poor cancer-specific and overall survival in univariate and multivariate analyses. Inhibition of NOTCH and MAPK in BC xenografts in vivo depleted targeted tumor cell subpopulations and revealed strong plasticity in signaling pathway activity. Combinatorial inhibition of NOTCH and MAPK signaling most strongly suppressed tumor growth. Our findings indicate that tumor cell subpopulations with high NOTCH and MAPK activity both contribute to tumor progression. Furthermore, we propose a new concept for BC therapy, which advocates specific and simultaneous targeting of these different tumor cell subpopulations through combined NOTCH and MAPK inhibition.

CXC Chemokine Receptor Type 5 Gene Polymorphisms in a Cohort of Egyptian Patients with Diffuse Large B-Cell Lymphoma.

BACKGROUND: The chemokine receptor CXCR5 is selectively expressed on B cells; it is involved in lymphocyte homing and the development of normal lymphoid tissue. Its principle ligand is CXCL13 or B lymphocyte chemoattractant. Three polymorphisms in the CXCR5 gene, rs148351692 C/G, rs6421571 C/T, and rs78440425 G/A, have been identified. OBJECTIVE: To assess the genetic polymorphisms of CXCR5 and evaluate their possible contribution to the susceptibility and response to therapy of diffuse large B-cell lymphoma (DLBCL). PATIENTS AND METHODS: Fifty DLBCL (not otherwise specified) patients and 50 control subjects were included in this study. CXCR5 genotypes were determined by PCR-RFLP. RESULTS: Our study revealed that the CXCR5 rs148351692 C/G and rs6421571 C/T gene polymorphisms are associated with an increased risk of developing DLBCL (OR 28.57 [95% CI 8.96-96.56] and 3.45 [1.67-11.83] respectively), while CXCR5 rs78440425 G/A showed no association with the risk of lymphoma. Moreover, the double and triple combined gene polymorphisms are associated with an increased risk of developing DLBCL of approximately 120-fold and 105-fold, respectively. CXCR5 gene polymorphisms had no significant impact on disease outcome or response to therapy. CONCLUSIONS: CXCR5 gene polymorphisms could be considered a potential risk factor for the development of DLBCL.

Flourimetric study on antidiabetic combined drugs; empagliflozin and linagliptin in their pharmaceutical formulation and human plasma.

Empagliflozin and linagliptin are newly approved FDA combination that used for the treatment of type 2 diabetes mellitus (T2DM) under trade name Glxambi. Two spectroflourimetric methods were developed for simple quantitative determination of empagliflozin and linagliptin in their pharmaceutical formulation and human plasma without need any tedious processing operations. Empagliflozin has a native fluorescence nature, therefore can be directly determined by measuring emission peak at 305 nm after excitation at 234 nm. There is no any interference from linagliptin at this emission wavelength. On the other hand, linagliptin is a very weak florescent compound that needs to react with fluorogenic reagent to be quantitatively determined without any reaction of empagliflozin. So, quantitative analysis of linagliptin was achieved by coupling with NBD-Cl which is an electro active halide reagent (targeting only Linagliptin with no effect on empagliflozin). Dark yellow fluorophore with high fluorescence is a result of this reaction and can be measured at emission wavelength 538 nm after excition at wavelength 469 nm. Experimental conditions of the suggested methods were well checked and optimized. The regression plots were found to be linear over the range of 40-1200 ng/mL and 3-700 ng/mL for empagliflozin and linagliptin, respectively. The obtained results by the suggested methods were statistically compared with those obtained by the reported methods, showing no significant difference with respect to accuracy and precision at p = 0.05.

Determination of terazosin in the presence of prazosin: Different state-of-the-art machine learning algorithms with UV spectroscopy.

Counterfeit drugs have adverse effects on public health; chromatographic methods can be used but they are costly. In this study, we developed cost-effective and environmentally friendly methodology for the analysis of terazosin HCl (TZ) in the presence prazosin hydrochloride (PZ) using UV spectroscopy in conjunction with machine learning (ML) models. Variable selection algorithms were applied to select most informative spectral variables. Thirty-five ML models were assessed and their performances were compared. The models covered a wide range of prediction mechanisms, such as tree-based, linear, self-organizing maps, neural network, Gaussian process, boosting, bagging, Bayesian models, kernel methods, and quantile regression. The values of the root mean square error (RMSE), coefficient of determination (R2), and absolute mean error (MAE) were obtained for the evaluation of the developed models. According to the results of these performance indices, linear model showed the highest prediction capacity among all other models. RMSE, R2 and MAE values of (0.159, 0.997 and 0.131) and (0.196, 0.99 and 0.161) were obtained for train and test datasets, respectively. The predictive models in this study can be useful for the researchers who are interested to work on the determination of active ingredients in pharmaceutical dosage forms in the presence of interference using UV spectroscopy; therefore, it was used to determine TZ without interference of PZ.

Simultaneous determination of Nebivolol hydrochloride and Valsartan in their binary mixture using different validated spectrophotometric methods.

Five simple, sensitive, accurate and precise spectrophotometric methods were developed for the simultaneous determination of Nebivolol hydrochloride (NEB) and Valsartan (VAL) in their binary mixtures and in pharmaceutical dosage form. The methods included Ratio Difference, First Derivative ratio, Mean Centering of ratio spectra, Bivariate and H-Point Standard additions method. The calibration curves were linear over the concentration range of 10-70 µg/ml and 20-60 µg/ml for NEB and VAL, respectively for Ratio Difference and First Derivative ratio method and over the concentration range of 10-70 µg/ml and 10-60 µg/ml for NEB and VAL, respectively for Mean Centering of ratio spectra, Bivariate and H-Point Standard additions method. These methods were examined by analyzing synthetic mixtures of the studied drugs and they were utilized to determine the studied drugs in their commercial pharmaceutical preparation. All methods were validated as per ICH guidelines and accuracy, robustness, repeatability and precision were found to be within the acceptable limits. The results of the proposed methods were compared to the results of reported methods with no significant difference between them.

RBP7 is a clinically prognostic biomarker and linked to tumor invasion and EMT in colon cancer.

RBP7 is a member of the cellular retinol-binding protein (CRBP) family and previous data suggested a link between CRBPs and the malignant transformation of colon cancer cells. Here, we investigated the potential of RBP7 as a predictive biomarker for patients with colon cancer and determined its functional relevance for tumor progression. We analyzed RBP7 protein and mRNA expression in independent tissue collections of colon cancers with recorded follow-up data, including data from TCGA. We used gene set enrichment analyses to characterize its functional role. Effects of RBP7 on migration and invasion were determined in transwell assays. High expression of RBP7 was an independent biomarker of poor cancer specific survival in early and late stage colon cancer, and linked to colon cancer progression. Gene set enrichment analysis revealed a strong association of RBP7, colon cancer invasion and epithelial mesenchymal transition (EMT). Ectopic expression of RBP7 increased migration and invasion of colon cancer cells. Our findings demonstrate that RBP7 is a strong prognostic biomarker in colon cancer that functionally contributes to the malignant phenotype of colon cancer cells. This may aid in risk stratification for the therapeutic management of patients with colorectal cancer.

Prognostic value and association with epithelial-mesenchymal transition and molecular subtypes of the proteoglycan biglycan in advanced bladder cancer.

OBJECTIVE: Dysregulation of the extracellular matrix molecule biglycan (BGN) predicts poor survival in several cancer entities. Our study investigated the prognostic impact of BGN in bladder cancer (BC) in 2 independent cohorts and assessed its role in epithelial-mesenchymal transition (EMT) and association with molecular BC subtypes. METHODS: BGN protein expression was correlated with the oncological outcome of 162 patients with BC undergoing radical cystectomy (RC) in a single center and furthermore on gene expression level in the TCGA database. Cut-off values for BGN protein and RNA expression were tested with receiver operating characteristic (ROC) curves. BGN gene expression was correlated with established EMT and BC gene signatures in the TCGA database using gene set enrichment analysis (GSEA). Key EMT and basal/luminal molecular BC subtype markers were correlated with BGN expression and data were shown in a heat map. RESULTS: BGN upregulation in BC cells on the protein level predicted poor oncological survival in the institutional cohort for both univariate (P = 0.007) and multivariate (P = 0.040) analyses. BGN expression was not associated with other clinicopathological parameters. The prognostic value of BGN was validated on the mRNA level in the BC TCGA database (P = 0.002). Both EMT and BC core gene signatures (P < 0.001) correlated with BGN expression in GSEA. BGN gene expression was associated with key indicators of EMT. BGN was associated positively with the molecular basal BC subtype and negatively with the BC luminal subtype. CONCLUSION: BGN is an independent prognosticator for poor survival in BC patients. BGN is associated with the basal molecular BC subtype. EMT might be a key player for BGN driven oncogenesis, as BGN expression correlates with EMT gene signatures.

Interleukin-17 Gene Polymorphism Is Protective Against the Susceptibility to Adult Acute Myeloid Leukaemia in Egypt: A Case-Control Study.

BACKGROUND: Th17 cells are blamed for being accused in the pathogenesis of acute myeloid leukaemia. Th17 cells are CD4+ cell subtype. They produce IL-17A and IL-17F. AIM: This study aims to trace the relation between IL-17A and IL-17F polymorphisms and AML incidence and to define the connection between IL-17 polymorphisms and its serum level. METHODS: A group of 100 acute myeloid leukaemia patients and 100 age and sex-matched healthy subjects (controls) were enrolled in the present work. Restriction fragment length polymorphism- polymerase chain reaction (PCR-RFLP) was done to detect IL-17A (rs2275913; G197A) and IL-17F (rs763780; A7488G). Serum IL-17 level was assessed by Enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay analysis (ELISA) in both patients and controls. RESULTS: IL-17F, IL-17A mutant genotypes and alleles showed no significant relation with acute myeloid leukaemia incidence. Also, ELISA results proved that serum IL-17 did not vary between acute myeloid leukaemia patients and healthy subjects. CONCLUSION: Interleukin-17 gene polymorphisms did not consider a risk for acute myeloid leukaemia.