Ficolin-2 Plasma Level Assesses Liver Fibrosis in Non-Alcoholic Fatty Liver Disease

Fibrosis is the strongest predictor for disease-specific mortality in non-alcoholic fatty liver diseases (NAFLD), but the need for liver biopsy limits its diagnosis. We assessed the performance of plasma ficolin-2 (FCN-2) as a biomarker of fibrosis identified by an in silico discovery strategy. Two hundred and thirty-five morbidly obese (MO) subjects with biopsy-proven NAFLD stratified by fibrosis stage (F0, n = 44; F1, n = 134; F2, n = 46; F3/F4, n = 11) and 40 cirrhotic patients were enrolled. The cohort was subdivided into discovery (n = 76) and validation groups (n = 159). The plasma level of FCN-2 and other candidate markers was determined. FCN-2 was inversely correlated with the stage of liver fibrosis (ρ = −0.49, p < 0.001) independently of steatosis (p = 0.90), inflammation (p = 0.57), and ballooning (p = 0.59). In the global cohort, FCN-2 level decreased significantly in a stepwise fashion from F0/F1 (median 4753 ng/mL) to F2–F3–F4 (2760 ng/mL) and in cirrhotic subjects (1418 ng/mL). The diagnostic performance of FCN-2 in detecting F ≥ 2 was higher than other indexes (APRI, FIB-4) (AUROC 0.82, 0.68, and 0.6, respectively). The accuracy improved when combined with APRI score and HDL values (FCNscore, AUROC 0.85). Overall, the FCN-2 plasma level can accurately discriminate liver fibrosis status (minimal vs. moderate/advanced) significantly improving the fibrosis diagnostic algorithms.     

Disruption of Membrane Integrity as a Molecular Initiating Event Determines the Toxicity of Polyhexamethylene Guanidine Phosphate Depending on the Routes of Exposure

Polyhexamethylene guanidine phosphate (PHMG-P), a cationic biocide, is widely used in household products due to its strong bactericidal activity and low toxicity. However, it causes fatal lung damage when inhaled. In this study, we investigated why PHMG-P causes fatal lung injury when inhaled, and demonstrated that the disruption of membrane integrity through ionic interaction—a molecular initiating event of PHMG-P—determines toxicity. Mice were injected intravenously with 0.9 or 7.2 mg/kg PHMG-P (IV group), or instilled intratracheally with 0.9 mg/kg PHMG-P (ITI group); they were euthanatized at 4 h and on days 1 and 7 after treatment. Increased total BAL cell count and proinflammatory cytokine production, along with fibrotic changes in the lungs, were detected in the ITI group only. Levels of hepatic enzymes and hepatic serum amyloid A mRNA expression were markedly upregulated in the 7.2 mg/kg IV and ITI groups at 4 h or day 1 after treatment, but returned to baseline. No pathological findings were detected in the heart, liver, or kidneys. To simulate the IV injection, A549, THP-1, and HepG2 cells were treated with PHMG-P in cell culture media supplemented with different serum concentrations. Increased serum concentration was associated with an increase in cell viability. These results support the idea that direct contact between PHMG-P and cell membranes is necessary for PHMG-induced toxicity.     

The Natural Course of Non-Alcoholic Fatty Liver Disease

Non-alcoholic fatty liver disease (NAFLD) is the most prevalent form of chronic liver disease in the world, paralleling the epidemic of obesity and Type 2 diabetes mellitus (T2DM). NAFLD exhibits a histological spectrum, ranging from “bland steatosis” to the more aggressive necro-inflammatory form, non-alcoholic steatohepatitis (NASH) which may accumulate fibrosis to result in cirrhosis. Emerging data suggests fibrosis, rather than NASH per se, to be the most important histological predictor of liver and non-liver related death. Nevertheless, only a small proportion of individuals develop cirrhosis, however the large proportion of the population affected by NAFLD has led to predictions that NAFLD will become a leading cause of end stage liver disease, hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC), and indication for liver transplantation. HCC may arise in non-cirrhotic liver in the setting of NAFLD and is associated with the presence of the metabolic syndrome (MetS) and male gender. The MetS and its components also play a key role in the histological progression of NAFLD, however other genetic and environmental factors may also influence the natural history. The importance of NAFLD in terms of overall survival extends beyond the liver where cardiovascular disease and malignancy represents additional important causes of death.     

CHID1 Is a Novel Prognostic Marker of Non-Small Cell Lung Cancer

There is an urgent need for identification of new prognostic markers and therapeutic targets for non-small cell lung cancer (NSCLC). In this study, we evaluated immune cells markers in 100 NSCLC specimens. Immunohistochemical analysis revealed no prognostic value for the markers studied, except CD163 and CD206. At the same time, macrophage markers iNOS and CHID1 were found to be expressed in tumor cells and associated with prognosis. We showed that high iNOS expression is a marker of favorable prognosis for squamous cell lung carcinoma (SCC), and NSCLC in general. Similarly, high CHID1 expression is a marker of good prognosis in adenocarcinoma and in NSCLC in general. Analysis of prognostic significance of a high CHID1/iNOS expression combination showed favorable prognosis with 20 months overall survival of patients from the low CHID1/iNOS expression group. For the first time, we demonstrated that CHID1 can be expressed by NSCLC cells and its high expression is a marker of good prognosis for adenocarcinoma and NSCLC in general. At the same time, high expression of iNOS in tumor cells is a marker of good prognosis in SCC. When used in combination, CHID1 and iNOS show a very good prognostic capacity for NSCLC. We suggest that in the case of lung cancer, tumor-associated macrophages are likely ineffective as a therapeutic target. At the same time, macrophage markers expressed by tumor cells may be considered as targets for anti-tumor therapy or, as in the case of CHID1, as potential anti-tumor agents.     

MicroRNA-16 Restores Sensitivity to Tyrosine Kinase Inhibitors and Outperforms MEK Inhibitors in KRAS-Mutated Non-Small Cell Lung Cancer

Background: Non-small cell lung cancer (NSCLC) is the leading cause of cancer death worldwide. Chemotherapy, the treatment of choice in non-operable cases, achieves a dismal success rate, raising the need for new therapeutic options. In about 25% of NSCLC, the activating mutations of the KRAS oncogene define a subclass that cannot benefit from tyrosine kinase inhibitors (TKIs). The tumor suppressor miR-16 is downregulated in many human cancers, including NSCLC. The main objectives of this study were to evaluate miR-16 treatment to restore the TKI sensitivity and compare its efficacy to MEK inhibitors in KRAS-mutated NSCLC. Methods: We performed in vitro and in vivo studies to investigate whether miR-16 could be exploited to overcome TKI resistance in KRAS-mutated NSCLC. We had three goals: first, to identify the KRAS downstream effectors targeted by mir-16, second, to study the effects of miR-16 restoration on TKI resistance in KRAS-mutated NSCLC both in vitro and in vivo, and finally, to compare miR-16 and the MEK inhibitor selumetinib in reducing KRAS-mutated NSCLC growth in vitro and in vivo. Results: We demonstrated that miR-16 directly targets the three KRAS downstream effectors MAPK3, MAP2K1, and CRAF in NSCLC, restoring the sensitivity to erlotinib in KRAS-mutated NSCLC both in vitro and in vivo. We also provided evidence that the miR-16–erlotinib regimen is more effective than the selumetinib–erlotinib combination in KRAS-mutated NSCLC. Conclusions: Our findings support the biological preclinical rationale for using miR-16 in combination with erlotinib in the treatment of NSCLC with KRAS-activating mutations.     

草苁蓉提取物抑制肺癌细胞增殖分子机制的研究

草苁蓉提取物可通过促进肿瘤细胞凋亡抑制A549肺癌细胞增殖。继续探讨草苁蓉提取物(BRE)抑制肺癌细胞增殖的分子机制。采用流式细胞术检测A549细胞周期分布和细胞凋亡,免疫细胞化学法检测凋亡相关蛋白Bax、Bc1-2、P53和Fas蛋白的表达,ELISA法检测sFAS蛋白的表达。结果表明,BRE改变肺癌细胞周期分布,使多数细胞阻滞于G0/G1期。同时,BRE诱导肺癌细胞凋亡,明显增加Fas表达,增加Bax表达和降低Bc1-2表达,但不改变P53表达以及sFas蛋白水平。提示,BRE抗肺癌细胞增殖作用与其改变细胞周期分布、增高Fas表达和降低Bcl-2/Bax比值而诱导肺癌细胞凋亡相关。     

碳酸酐酶1沉默对肺癌A549细胞增殖、凋亡、侵袭和迁移的影响

目的:探讨沉默碳酸酐酶1（CA1）对人肺癌A549细胞增殖、凋亡、侵袭和迁移的影响。方法:采用脂质体转染法将CA1特异性siRNA（si-CA1组）及阴性对照（si-NC组）转染肺癌A549细胞,同时以转染空脂质体的A549细胞为空白对照组（Blank组）。采用实时荧光定量PCR（qPCR）和蛋白印迹法（Western blot）检测CA1 mRNA和蛋白表达水平,细胞计数试剂盒法（CCK-8）、流式细胞术、Transwell实验分别检测A549细胞增殖、凋亡、侵袭和迁移能力。结果:qPCR和Western blot检测结果显示,转入CA1 siRNA的A549细胞中CA1 mRNA和蛋白的表达水平均明显下调（P<0.05）;CCK-8实验结果显示,沉默CA1后si-CA1组A549细胞在24、48和72 h时光密度（OD）值明显低于si-NC组（P<0.05）;流式细胞术结果发现,si-CA1组A549细胞凋亡率明显高于si-NC组（P<0.05）;Transwell实验结果显示,si-CA1组侵袭和迁移细胞数均明显少于si-NC组（P<0.05）。与Blank组相比,si-NC组以上各指标差异均不显著（P>0.05）。结论:沉默CA1能够抑制肺癌A549细胞增殖、侵袭和迁移,并促进细胞凋亡。