LGALS3 Is a Poor Prognostic Factor in Diffusely Infiltrating Gliomas and Is Closely Correlated With CD163+ Tumor-Associated Macrophages.

Background: Glioma, the most common brain tumor, is a heterogeneous group of glia-derived tumors, the majority of which have characteristics of diffuse infiltration and immunosuppression. The LGALS protein family is a large class of sugar-binding proteins. Among them, LGALS3 has been reported to promote tumor development and progression in some cancers. However, the clinical significance and biological functions of LGALS3 in glioma remain virtually unknown. The purpose of our research is to detect LGALS3 expression and its prognostic value in glioma and reveal the relationship between its expression and the clinico/molecular-pathological features of patients and immune cell infiltration. Methods: LGALS3 protein expression was examined by immunohistochemistry. The mRNA expression data of LGALS3 was downloaded and analyzed from TCGA and Rembrandt datasets. The association between LGALS3 and glioma clinically relevant diagnostic/molecular markers (IDH, 1p19q, ATRX, MGMT, and TERT) was examined using the Chi-Squared (χ2) test. The correlation between LGALS3 expression and the infiltration of multiple intra-tumoral immune cell types, including B cells (CD20), T cells (CD4 and CD8), macrophages (CD68), and M2 tumor-associated macrophages (CD163), was evaluated by Spearman correlation analysis. Kaplan-Meier analysis and the Cox regression analysis were applied to evaluate the prognostic value of LGALS3 in glioma. The log-rank test was used to evaluate Kaplan-Meier results for significance. Results: Out of all 304 glioma cases, LGALS3 protein was expressed in 125 glioma cases (41.1%, 125/304), with 69.2% (9/13) in WHO I, 9.8% (8/82) in WHO II, 34.2% (26/76) in WHO III, and 61.7% (82/133) in WHO IV. The expression of LGALS3 was correlated with patient age, WHO grade, PHH3 (mitosis), Ki67 index, IDH, 1p/19q codeletion, and TERT promoter status. LGALS3 was an independent poor prognostic marker in diffusely infiltrating gliomas and was positively correlated with immune cell infiltration, particularly CD163+ tumor-associated macrophages in the TCGA dataset, Rembrandt dataset, and our SYSUCC cohort (R = 0.419, 0.627, and 0.724). Conclusion: LGALS3 was highly expressed in pilocytic astrocytoma, GBM, and IDH wild-type LGG. It served as a poor prognostic marker in diffusely infiltrating gliomas. Based on its prognostic significance and strong correlation with CD163+ TAMs, it may act as an important therapeutic target for human glioma.

SSH3 facilitates colorectal cancer cell invasion and metastasis by affecting signaling cascades involving LIMK1/Rac1.

Slingshot phosphatase 3 (SSH3) is a member of the SSH phosphatase family that regulates actin filament dynamics. However, its role in cancer metastasis is relatively unclear compared to that of SSH1. Here, we showed that SSH3 was upregulated in colorectal cancer (CRC). Of note, SSH3 was upregulated in the tumor thrombus and lymph node metastasis compared with that in paired primary CRC tissues. High SSH3 expression was associated with the aggressive phenotype of CRC and may be an independent prognostic factor for the poor survival of patients with CRC. SSH3 significantly enhanced the invasion and metastasis of CRC cells in vitro and in vivo. Moreover, SSH3 regulated the remodeling of actin, which is involved in the cytoskeleton signaling pathway, through its interaction with LIMK1/Rac1 and subsequently promoted CRC cell invasion and metastasis. Our data elucidate an important role for SSH3 in the progression of CRC, and SSH3 may be considered a potential therapeutic target for CRC.

[Percutaneous dynamic release in stress position by acupotomy in treating severe scapulohumeral periarthritis].

OBJECTIVE: To investigate the clinical efficacy of acupotomy stress position percutaneous dynamic release for severe shoulder periarthritis. METHODS: From April 2012 to August 2016, 160 patients with severe shoulder periarthritis were randomly divided into treatment group and control group. Among them, 80 patients in treatment group were treated with acupotomy stress position percutaneous dynamic release including 32 males and 48 females with an average of(52.47±9.04)years old ranging from 40 to 74 years old;the courses of disease was(20.72±9.55)months on average. The other 80 patients in control group were treated with simple joint loosening according to Maitland technique in grade III-IV therapy, once a day, 15 to 20 min each time, and 10 d for 1 course, for a total of 2 courses, including 33 males and 47 females with an average of (53.19±10.18) years old ranging from 42 to 75 years old; the average course of disease was (21.98 ±8.99) months. After operation, the shoulder muscles training and shoulder joint activity training were routinely conducted, the treatment lasted for 3 weeks. The visual analogue scale(VAS) and Constant-Murley shoulder function score were observed and compared between the two groups before treatment and 3 weeks, 3, 6 months after treatment. RESULTS: The VAS scores of the treatment group at 3 weeks, 3 and 6 months after treatment were all lower than those of the control group(P<0.05). The shoulder joint function Constant-Murley scores of the treatment group at 3 weeks, 3 and 6 months after treatment were higher than those of the control group (P<0.05); the result was excellent in 59 cases, good in 18 cases, fair in 3 cases in the treatment group; excellent in 15 cases, good in 31 cases, fair in 23 cases, poor in 11 cases in the control group, and the difference between the two groups was statistically significant(P<0.01). CONCLUSIONS: Treatment of severe shoulder periarthritis with acupotomy stress position percutaneous dynamic release can obviously improve the shoulder joint function and pain, according to the different parts of the shoulder joint pain and function limitation, the corresponding shoulder stress and body position should be designed and maintained during the treatment process, and the angle of stress position gradually increased by loosening the adhesion, which is the key to ensure the curative effect.

Hypermethylation of NDN promotes cell proliferation by activating the Wnt signaling pathway in colorectal cancer.

The progression of CRC is a multistep process involving several genetic changes or epigenetic modifications. NDN is a member of the MAGE family, encoding a protein that generally suppresses cell proliferation and acting as a transcriptional repressor. Immunohistochemical staining revealed that the expression of NDN was significantly down-regulated in CRC tissues compared with normal tissues and the down-regulation of NDN in CRC could reflect the hypermethylation of the NDN promoter. Treatment of the CRC cell line SW480 with the demethylating agent 5-Aza-CdR restored the NDN expression level. The down-regulation of NDN was closely related to poor differentiation, advanced TNM stage and poor prognosis of CRC. The inhibition of NDN promoted CRC cell proliferation by enriching cells in the S phase. Furthermore, we observed that NDN binds to the GN box in the promoter of LRP6 to attenuate LRP6 transcription and inhibit the Wnt signaling pathway in CRC. In conclusion, our study revealed that the hypermethylation of NDN promotes cell proliferation by activating the Wnt signaling pathway through directly increasing the transcription of LRP6 in CRC. These findings might provide a new theoretical basis for the pathogenesis of CRC and facilitate the development of new therapeutic strategies against CRC.

Identification of NCK1 as a novel downstream effector of STAT3 in colorectal cancer metastasis and angiogenesis.

Signal transducer and activator of transcription 3 (STAT3) is known to activate targets associated with invasion, proliferation, and angiogenesis in a wide variety of cancers. The adaptor protein NCK1 is involved in cytoskeletal movement and was identified as a STAT3-associated target in human tumors. However, the underlying molecular mechanism associated with colorectal cancer (CRC) metastasis is not yet completely understood. In this study, we report a novel STAT3 to NCK1 signaling pathway in colorectal cancer (CRC). We investigated the expression of NCK1 and its potential clinical and biological significance in CRC. NCK1 was noticeably up-regulated in human CRC tissues. NCK1 was also significantly associated with serosal invasion, lymph metastasis, and tumor-node-metastasis classification but was inversely correlated with differentiation. Gain-of-function and loss-of-function studies have shown that ectopic expression of NCK1 enhanced metastasis and angiogenesis in CRC cells. By gene expression analyses, we revealed a high co-overexpression of STAT3 and NCK1 in CRC tissues. Ectopic overexpression of STAT3 in CRC cells induced the expression of NCK1, whereas STAT3 knockdown decreased the expression of NCK1. Promoter activation and binding analyses demonstrated that STAT3 promoted the expression of NCK1 via direct action on the NCK1 promoter. The knock down of NCK1 partially reduced the CRC cell metastasis and angiogenesis promoted by STAT3. Additionally, by co-immunoprecipitation assays, we verified that NCK1 interacted with PAK1, which resulted in the activation of the PAK1/ERK pathway. STAT3 induced the transcription of NCK1 and triggered a PAK1/ERK cascade in CRC. These findings suggest a novel STAT3 to NCK1 to PAK1/ERK signaling mechanism that is potentially critical for CRC metastasis and angiogenesis.

[Effect of miR-101 on biological characteristics of colorectal cancer cell line SW620].

OBJECTIVE: To investigate the effect of miR-101 on biological behaviors of colorectal cancer cell line SW620. METHODS: CCK-8 method, colony formation assay, cell cycle analysis and apoptosis analysis were applied to assess the effects of miR-101 on cell proliferation, invasion and apoptosis of SW620 cells. RESULTS: Over-expression of miR-101 in SW620 cells significantly suppressed the cell proliferation and attenuated the colony-forming ability of the cells. Flow cytometry showed that over-expression of miR-101 in SW620 cells caused obvious cell cycle arrest in G2/M and 1/ phases, and significantly increased the cell apoptosis rate. CONCLUSION: Over-expression of miR-101 can inhibit the proliferation, cause cell cycle arrest and promote apoptosis of colorectal cancer SW620 cells.

[MiR-135b promotes proliferation of endometrial carcinoma cells by targeting FOXO1].

OBJECTIVE: To explore the expression of miR-135b in endometrial carcinoma and the mechanism by which miR-135b promotes the proliferation of endometrial cancer cells. METHODS: The expressions of miR-135b and FOXO1 were using RT-PCR detected in 22 fresh endometrial cancer tissues and paired adjacent tissues and also in endometrial cancer cell lines JEC, Ishikawa, HEC-1-B, and RL-952. The RL-952 and Ishikawa cell lines were transfected with miR-135b mimics or inhibitors, and the changes in their proliferative activity were detected with MTT assay; the expressions of FOXO1 mRNA and protein were detected by RT-PCR and Western blotting, respectively. RESULTS: The expression of miRNA135b was significantly up-regulated and FOXO1 expression was down-regulated in endometrial carcinoma tissues as compared with the adjacent tissues (P<0.05). The mRNA expression of miR-135b was negatively correlated with the expression of FOXO1 in endometrial carcinoma. In RL-952 and Ishikawa cell lines, transfection with miR-135b mimics obviously promoted the cell proliferation (P<0.05). Up-regulation of miR-135b significantly decreased the expressions of FOXO1 protein and mRNA (P<0.05), and down- regulation of miR-135b increased FOXO1 expressions (P<0.05). CONCLUSIONS: MiR-135b plays an important role in the occurrence and development of endometrial carcinoma partially by regulating its target gene FOXO1.

Loss of TINCR expression promotes proliferation, metastasis through activating EpCAM cleavage in colorectal cancer.

Long non-coding RNAs (lncRNAs) are involved in kinds of human diseases, including colorectal cancer (CRC). TINCR, a 3.7 kb long non coding RNA, was associated with cell differentiation in keratinocyte and gastric cancer cells. However, little is known about the role of TINCR in regulation CRC progression. Here, we showed that lncRNA TINCR was associated with CRC proliferation and metastasis. TINCR was statistically downregulated in CRC tissues and metastatic CRC cell lines compared with their counterparts. TINCR was reversely correlated with CRC progression and promoted tumor cells growth, metastasis in vivo and in vitro. While overexpression of TINCR had opposite effect. In addition, we also found that TINCR specifically bound to EpCAM through RNA IP and RNA pull down assays. Loss of TINCR promoted hydrolysis of EpCAM and then released EpICD, subsequently, activated the Wnt/ß-catenin pathway. Further studies shown that c-Myc repressed the expression of TINCR through repressing sp1 transcriptive activity, which established a positive feedback loop controlling c-Myc and TINCR expression. These findings elucidate that loss of TINCR expression promotes proliferation and metastasis in CRC and it could be considered as a potential cancer suppressor gene.

Human CD133-positive hematopoietic progenitor cells initiate growth and metastasis of colorectal cancer cells.

The tumour-specific 'pre-metastatic niche' has emerged as a potential driving force for tumour metastasis and has been confirmed using mouse models of cancer metastasis. Vascular endothelial growth factor receptor-1(+) hematopoietic progenitor cells (HPCs) have been shown to play an important role in metastasis, forming a 'pre-metastatic niche' at designated sites for distant tumour progression. Here, CD133+ human umbilical hematopoietic progenitor cells (HUHPCs) were purified from human umbilical cord blood and expanded in vitro. We studied the effects of CD133+ HUHPCs on the growth and metastasis of four colorectal cancer (CRC) cell lines by using cell-to-cell co-culture. Our results revealed that CD133+ HUHPCs promoted the proliferation and invasion of CRC cells in vitro and enhanced tumour growth and metastasis in vivo. Moreover, CD133+ HUHPCs were observed in the pre-metastatic liver tissue using immunohistochemical analysis after co-injection of SW480/EGFP(+) cells and HUHPCs. Further experiments were therefore conducted to uncover the molecular mechanisms by which CD133+ HUHPCs influenced colon carcinogenesis and cancer progression. Extracted proteins were separated using the two-dimensional difference in gel electrophoresis technology. Among the differentially expressed proteins, mitogen-activated protein 4 kinase 4, stromal cell-derived factor-1, matrix metallopeptidase 9, calumenin, peripherin, leucine zipper, putative tumour suppressor 1 and guanidinoacetate methyltransferase attracted our attention. Western blot analysis further confirmed the differential expression of these proteins. Altogether, these results suggest that CD133+ HUHPCs may induce proliferation or metastasis of CRC cells and impact their derived proteins by providing a pre-metastatic microenvironment.

Regulation of colorectal carcinoma stemness, growth, and metastasis by an miR-200c-Sox2-negative feedback loop mechanism.

PURPOSE: To elucidate a novel mechanism of miR-200c in the regulation of stemness, growth, and metastasis in colorectal carcinoma (CRC). EXPERIMENTAL DESIGN: Quantitative reverse transcription PCR was used to quantify miR-200c expression in CRC cell lines and tissues. A luciferase assay was adopted for the target evaluation. The functional effects of miR-200c in CRC cells were assessed by its forced or inhibited expression using lentiviruses. RESULTS: MiR-200c was statistically lower in CRC clinical specimens and highly metastatic CRC cell lines compared with their counterparts. Sox2 was validated as a target for miR-200c. The knockdown of miR-200c significantly enhanced proliferation, migration, and invasion in CRC cell lines, whereas the upregulation of miR-200c exhibited an inverse effect. Moreover, rescue of Sox2 expression could abolish the effect of the upregulation of miR-200c. In addition, the reduction of miR-200c increased the expression of CRC stem cell markers and the sphere-forming capacity of CRC cell lines. Further study has shown that miR-200c and Sox2 reciprocally control their expression through a feedback loop. MiR-200c suppresses the expression of Sox2 to block the activity of the phosphoinositide 3-kinase (PI3K)-AKT pathway. CONCLUSION: Our findings indicate that miR-200c regulates Sox2 expression through a feedback loop and is associated with CRC stemness, growth, and metastasis.

[Construction of has-miR-335 lentiviral vector and verification of the target gene of miR-335].

OBJECTIVE: To construct a lentiviral vector of miR-335 gene and verify the target gene of miR-335. METHODS: The precursor sequence of miR-335 gene was amplified from the genomic DNA by PCR and cloned into the lentiviral vector PLVTHM labeled with GFP. Real-time quantitative RT-PCR was used to detect miR-335 and RASA1 expression in different colorectal cancer cell lines. A recombinant vector psiCHECK-2-RASA1 containing RASA1 3'UTR was constructed followed by site-directed mutagenesis of RASA1 3'UTR to establish the vector psiCHECK-2-RASA1-Mut. Co-transfection of hsa-mir-335 or a NC with these recombined vectors in HEK293A and SW480 cells was performed, and dual-luciferase reporter assay was utilized to examine the changes in luciferase activities. The recombinant PLVTHM-miR335 plasmid was packaged into mature lentivirus by 293FT cells and used to infect SW620 cells. Flow cytometry was employed for sorting the GFP+ cells. The expression of miR-335 and RASA1 were determined by qRT-PCR, and Western blotting was used to detect the expression of RASA1 protein in SW620 cell lines. RESULTS: The recombinant lentiviral vector PLVTHM-miR335, psiCHECK-2-RASA1 and the mutation expression vector psiCHECK-2-RASA1-Mut were successfully constructed. Dual-luciferase reporter assay showed that miR-335 decreased luciferase activity in cells co-transfected with psiCHECK-2-RASA1. The expression of miR-335 in SW620 cells infected with the lentivirus PLVTHM-miR335 was significantly increased, but the expression of RASA1 showed only slight changes. Overexpression of miR-335 suppressed the expression of RASA1 protein in SW620 cells. CONCLUSION: We have successfully constructed the lentiviral vector containing mir-335 gene and a SW620 cell line with miR-335 overexpression. MiR-335 can suppress RASA1 gene expression by targeting the specific sequence of RASA1 3'UTR.

[Long-term culture and identification of CD133⁺ hematopoietic progenitor cells from human umbilical cord blood].

OBJECTIVE: To isolate CD133(+) hematopoietic progenitor cells from human umbilical cord blood and optimize the culture condition for maintaining their stem cell characteristics. METHODS: CD133(+) hematopoietic progenitor cells were isolated from human umbilical cord blood using magnetic cell sorting system, and the cells were detected by flow cytometry. Four methods were used for culturing cells. After 8 weeks' culture, cytomorphology, flow cytometry, immunocytochemistry and immunofluorescence assay were used to identify the characteristics of the stem cells. RESULTS: Over 80% of CD133(+) hematopoietic progenitor cells were isolated from human umbilical cord blood using magnetic cell sorting system. The cells were effectively expanded using optimized serum-free medium after 8 weeks of cell culture, whereas the cells in other media differentiated into adherent cells in a poor state. CONCLUSION: The optimized serum-free medium allows effective expansion of CD133(+) hematopoietic progenitor cells that maintain stem cell characteristics after a long-term culture.

[Touchdown PCR and overlap extension PCR for generating CD133(+) cancer stem cell-selective adenovirus vector].

OBJECTIVE: To construct a replication-incompetent adenovirus vector targeting cancer stem cells by modified touchdown PCR and overlap extension PCR and investigate its infection efficiency in CD133(+) SW480 cells in vitro. METHODS: The two portions of the fiber gene encoding the Ad5 fiber knob domain with the HI loop deleted were amplified using two pairs of designed primers and then linked by overlap extension PCR. The product obtained was identified by sequencing and inserted into prokaryotic expression vector pEGFP-N1. The product, pEGFP-N1 KNOBδHI, contained a unique EcoRV restriction site in the deleted portion of the sequence encoding the HI loop. The gene sequences of the adenovirus fiber were amplified using both common PCR and overlap extension PCR, then identified by sequencing and inserted into pNEB193, resulting in pNEB-F5. CD133(+) SW480 cells were infected with the generated adenovirus vectors Ad5-GFP and Ad5FHI-GFP to investigate the infection efficiency using fluorescent microscope. RESULTS: The target fragments of expected sizes were amplified by touchdown PCR and overlap extension PCR, but not by common PCR. Ad5FHI-GFP showed a higher infection efficiency than Ad5-GFP in CD133(+) SW480 cells. CONCLUSION: Compared with common PCR, touchdown PCR and overlap extension PCR can significantly improve the specificity and efficiency of the PCR products for constructing CD133(+) cancer stem cell-selective adenovirus type 5 vector, which provides carriers for tumor-targeted gene therapy.

[Selection and identification of specific-binding peptides for cancer stem cell surface marker CD133].

OBJECTIVE: To select the peptides that specifically bind human cancer stem cell surface marker CD133 from the Ph.D.-7>(TM) phage peptide library. METHODS: With a biotinylated extracellular fragment of human cancer stem cell surface marker CD133 as the target protein, the CD133 high-affinity peptides were screened from the phage peptide library by liquid phase panning. The clones with high-binding force with human CD133 were then identified by sandwich ELISA and their single-stranded DNA was extracted to test the specificity by competitive ELISA. The amino acid sequences of the selected peptides derived from the phage DNA sequences were synthesized after sequence alignment analysis, and their capacity of binding with colorectal carcinoma cells was assessed by immunofluorescence technique. RESULTS: After 4 rounds of liquid phase selection, the phages capable of specific binding with human CD133 were effectively enriched, with an enrichment ratio of 388 times compared to that at the fourth and first rounds. Thirteen out of the 20 clones from the fourth round of panning were identified as positive clones, among which 11 had identical amino acid sequence of TISWPPR, and 2 had the sequence of STTKLAL, and the former sequence showed a stronger binding specificity to CD133. CONCLUSION: We have successfully obtained a peptide that specifically binds human CD133 from the Ph.D.-7(TM) phage peptide library, demonstrating the feasibility of screening small molecule high-affinity polypeptides from phage peptide library by liquid-phase panning.

[Initial screening of binding-peptide of the cell surface marker CD133 of cancer stem cells].

OBJECTIVE: To select the binding-peptide of the cell surface marker CD133 of cancer stem cells from phage peptide library, and to find a new tool for research on stem cells, tumor therapy and anti-metastasis of cancer. METHODS: Biotined mouse CD133 extracellular fraction was used as a target to screen phage 7-peptide library by the high affinity of streptavidin and biotin, and the clones were identified by sandwich ELISA and competitive experiment. Single strand DNA was extracted from these positive clones and was analyzed by single-strand dideoxy-sequencing. RESULTS: After three turn solution panning, five peptides with high affinity shared the same amino acid sequence: APSPMIW and three identical peptides with high affinity shared the same amino acid sequence: LQNAPRS. CONCLUSION: The peptides that bind with mouse CD133 extracellular fraction with high affinity and specificity were first screened from the phage peptide library for the first time, which initially indicates that the feasibility of screening from phage peptide library with small molecule polypeptide biotined as a target.

[Establishment of a whole-body visualization model of breast cancer with high hepatic metastatic potential in nude mice through serial passage in vivo].

OBJECTIVE: To establish a whole-body visualization model of breast cancer with high hepatic metastatic potential in nude mice and observe the development and metastasis of breast cancer by real-time imaging. METHODS: pEGFP-N1 plasmid was transfected into human breast cancer cell line MDA-MB-231 to obtain pEGFP-MDA-MB-231 cells that emitted fluorescence. pEGFP-MDA-MB-231 cells were inoculated orthotopically in BALB/C nude mice and cultured in vivo through serial passage, thereby establishing the mouse model bearing tumors with high hepatic metastasis potential. The fluorescence emitted from the tumors was quantitatively detected and imaged with a fluorescence stereo microscope for real-time visualization of the tumor growth and metastasis. RESULTS: The transfected breast cancer cells stably and efficiently expressed EGFP. After inoculation of the transfected cells in nude mice, 20% of the first-generation cells showed hepatic metastasis, and the rate increased to 80% among the second-generation and up to 100% among the third-generation cells. The reliability of this visualization model was validated with conventional pathological methods. CONCLUSION: The whole-body visualization model bearing breast cancer with high hepatic metastasis potential provides a reliable means for studying the mechanisms of hepatic tumor metastasis, and can be instrumental in the exploration of novel means for breast cancer treatment.

[Role of vascular endothelial growth factor receptor 1-positive hematopoietic progenitor cell clusters in human colorectal carcinoma metastasis].

OBJECTIVE: To investigate the relation of vascular endothelial growth factor receptor 1 (VEGFR1)-positive hematopoietic progenitor cell with the metastasis of human colorectal carcinoma. METHODS: Human colorectal cancer cells SW480/M5 were implanted into BALB/c nude mice, and the tumor tissue blocks were re-implanted into the colon of nude mice. The quantity and percentage of VEGFR1-positive hematopoietic progenitor cells and human colorectal cancer cells in the pre-metastatic location were observed with flow cytometry, and the expression of metastasis-related factors was detected using Western blotting. RESULTS: Bone marrow-derived hematopoietic progenitor cells expressing VEGFR1 were found in the common pre-metastatic sites and formed cell clusters before the arrival of the tumor cells, but these cells were not detected in nude mice without tumor implantation. In the course of tumor metastasis, the expression of the proteinases including matrix metalloproteinase 9 and stromal cell-derived factor 1 gradually intensified within the metastatic niche. CONCLUSION: The formation of VEGFR1-positive hematopoietic progenitor cellular clusters is accompanied by the metastasis of human colorectal cancer, and may enhance the expression of metastasis-related factors, suggesting its important role in the invasion and metastasis of colorectal cancer.

Selection of choriocarcinoma-associated genes using bioinformatics.

OBJECTIVE: To analyze the data of gene expression profiles of choriocarcinoma and screen for choriocarcinoma- related genes. METHODS: Human cDNA expression microarray containing 4 096 genes was used to study the gene expression profiles in specimens of complete hydatidiform moles (n=3) and choriocarcinomas (n=3), with normal placental villi serving as the control group. The candidate genes with similar expression profiles were identified by hierarchical cluster analysis, and their expressions in normal and neoplastic tissues analyzed by electronic Northern analysis and other bioinformatics methods. Three selected genes were analyzed by beta-actin semiquantitative reverse transcriptase-PCR to confirm the data. RESULTS: A total of 52 coexpressed candidate genes were identified from the gene expression data derived from the choriocarcinoma specimens, of which 19 genes were selected as choriocarcinoma-related genes by further cluster analysis, such as dynamin (L07807), katanin p60 (AF056022), zinc finger protein ZNF184 (U6656), calmodulin (U12022), carboxypeptidase M (BC022276), calcineurin-binding protein cabin 1 (NM_012295) and transducin-like enhancer protein TLE1(M99435). CONCLUSION: The identification of choriocarcinoma-related genes by cluster analysis provides new clues for seeking the key genes associated with the progression and metastasis of choriocarcinoma.

Transcriptional gene expression profiles of HGF/SF-met signaling pathway in colorectal carcinoma.

AIM: To explore the transcriptional gene expression profiles of HGF/SF-met signaling pathway in colorectal carcinoma to understand mechanisms of the signaling pathway at so gene level. METHODS: Total RNA was isolated from human colorectal carcinoma cell line LoVo treated with HGF/SF (80 ng/L) for 48 h. Fluorescent probes were prepared from RNA labeled with cy3-dUTP for the control groups and with cy5-dUTP for the HGF/SF-treated groups through reverse-transcription. The probes were mixed and hybridized on the microarray at 60 degrees for 15-20 h, then the microarray was scanned by laser scanner (GenePix 4000B). The intensity of each spot and ratios of Cy5/Cy3 were analyzed and finally the differentially expressed genes were selected by GenePix Pro 3.0 software. 6 differential expression genes(3 up-regulated genes and 3 down-regulated genes) were selected randomly and analyzed by beta-actin semi-quantitative RT-PCR. RESULTS: The fluorescent intensities of built-in negative control spots were less than 200, and the fluorescent intensities of positive control spots were more than 5000. Of the 4004 human genes analyzed by microarray, 129 genes (holding 3.22 % of the investigated genes) revealed differential expression in HGF/SF-treated groups compared with the control groups, of which 61 genes were up-regulated (holding 1.52 % of the investigated genes) and 68 genes were down-regulated (holding 1.70 % of the investigated genes), which supplied abundant information about target genes of HGF/SF-met signaling. CONCLUSION: HGF/SF-met signaling may up-regulate oncogenes, signal transduction genes, apoptosis-related genes, metastasis related genes, and down-regulate a number of genes. The complexity of HGF/SF-met signaling to control the gene expression is revealed as a whole by the gene chip technology.