DNA Methylation Biomarkers as Prediction Tools for Therapeutic Response and Prognosis in Intermediate-Stage Hepatocellular Carcinoma.

INTRODUCTION: Alfa-fetoprotein (AFP), as the main serum tumor marker of hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC), is limited in terms of specificity and ability to predict outcomes. This study investigated the clinical utility of DNA methylation biomarkers to predict therapeutic responses and prognosis in intermediate-stage HCC. METHODS: This study enrolled 72 patients with intermediate-stage HCC who underwent locoregional therapy (LRT) between 2020 and 2021. The immediate therapeutic response and disease status during a two-year follow-up were recorded. Analysis was performed on 10 selected DNA methylation biomarkers via pyrosequencing analysis of plasma collected before and after LRT. RESULTS: Analysis was performed on 53 patients with complete responses and 19 patients with disease progression after LRT. The mean follow-up duration was 2.4 ± 0.6 years. A methylation prediction model for tumor response (MMTR) and a methylation prediction model for early progression (MMEP) were constructed. The area under the curve (AUC) for sensitivity and specificity of MMTR was 0.79 for complete response and 0.759 for overall survival. The corresponding AUCs for sensitivity and specificity of AFP and protein induced by vitamin K absence-II (PIVKA-II) were 0.717 and 0.708, respectively. Note that the MMTR index was the only significant predictor in multivariate analysis. The AUC for sensitivity and specificity of the MMEP in predicting early progression was 0.79. The corresponding AUCs for sensitivity and specificity of AFP and PIVKA-II were 0.758 and 0.714, respectively. Multivariate analysis revealed that platelet count, beyond up-to-7 criteria, and the MMEP index were strongly correlated with early tumor progression. Combining the indexes and serum markers further improved the predictive accuracy (AUC = 0.922). Multivariate analysis revealed the MMEP index was the only independent risk factor for overall survival. DISCUSSION/CONCLUSIONS: This study indicates that these methylation markers could potentially outperform current serum markers in terms of accuracy and reliability in assessing treatment response and predicting outcomes. Combining methylation markers and serum markers further improved predictive accuracy, indicating that a multi-marker approach may be more effective in clinical practice. These findings suggest that DNA methylation biomarkers may be a useful tool for managing intermediate-stage HCC patients and guiding personalized treatment, particularly for those who are at high risk for close surveillance or adjuvant treatment after LRT.

Spectral sensitivities and color signals in a polymorphic damselfly.

Animal communication relies on conspicuous signals and compatible signal perception abilities. Good signal perception abilities are particularly important for polymorphic animals where mate choice can be a challenge. Behavioral studies suggest that polymorphic damselflies use their varying body colorations and/or color patterns as communication signal for mate choice and to control mating frequencies. However, solid evidence for this hypothesis combining physiological with spectral and behavioral data is scarce. We investigated this question in the Australian common blue tail damselfly, Ischnura heterosticta, which has pronounced female-limited polymorphism: andromorphs have a male-like blue coloration and gynomorphs display green/grey colors. We measured body color reflectance and investigated the visual capacities of each morph, showing that I. heterosticta have at least three types of photoreceptors sensitive to UV, blue, and green wavelength, and that this visual perception ability enables them to detect the spectral properties of the color signals emitted from the various color morphs in both males and females. We further demonstrate that different color morphs can be discriminated against each other and the vegetation based on color contrast. Finally, these findings were supported by field observations of natural mating pairs showing that mating partners are indeed chosen based on their body coloration. Our study provides the first comprehensive evidence for the function of body coloration on mate choice in polymorphic damselflies.

Effects of the brown anole invasion and betelnut palm planting on arthropod diversity in southern Taiwan.

The brown anole ( Anolis sagrei ) occurs naturally in various localities in Central America, and an exotic invasive population was first reported in Sheishan District, Chiayi County, Taiwan, in 2000. Previous studies showed that following the invasion of A. sagrei , the diversity and abundance of local terrestrial arthropods, such as orb spiders and arboreal insects, were severely affected. In this study, we assessed the impact of A. sagrei on arthropod diversity in Taiwan by comparing spider and insect diversities among betelnut palm plantations, in which this lizard species was either present or absent, and a secondary forest. In addition, enclosures were established in which the density of A. sagrei was manipulated to investigate the effect of this predator on spiders. The results of a lizard stomach content analysis showed that spiders comprised 7% and insects 90% of the prey consumed. Among the insects consumed by A. sagrei , more than 50% were ants. The abundances of the major arthropod prey of A. sagrei , such as jumping spiders and hymenopterans, in the lizard-present sites were much lower than in the lizard-removed sites. The enclosure experiments also showed that predation by the lizards significantly reduced the abundance of jumping spiders. All these results indicated that the introduced lizard greatly affected the diversity and abundance of terrestrial arthropods in agricultural areas in southern Taiwan.