scholarly journals Updates on the Role of Molecular Alterations and NOTCH Signalling in the Development of Neuroendocrine Neoplasms

2019 ◽  
Vol 8 (9) ◽  
pp. 1277 ◽  
Author(s):  
Claudia von Arx ◽  
Monica Capozzi ◽  
Elena López-Jiménez ◽  
Alessandro Ottaiano ◽  
Fabiana Tatangelo ◽  
...  

Neuroendocrine neoplasms (NENs) comprise a heterogeneous group of rare malignancies, mainly originating from hormone-secreting cells, which are widespread in human tissues. The identification of mutations in ATRX/DAXX genes in sporadic NENs, as well as the high burden of mutations scattered throughout the multiple endocrine neoplasia type 1 (MEN-1) gene in both sporadic and inherited syndromes, provided new insights into the molecular biology of tumour development. Other molecular mechanisms, such as the NOTCH signalling pathway, have shown to play an important role in the pathogenesis of NENs. NOTCH receptors are expressed on neuroendocrine cells and generally act as tumour suppressor proteins, but in some contexts can function as oncogenes. The biological heterogeneity of NENs suggests that to fully understand the role and the potential therapeutic implications of gene mutations and NOTCH signalling in NENs, a comprehensive analysis of genetic alterations, NOTCH expression patterns and their potential role across all NEN subtypes is required.

Author(s):  
Claudia von Arx ◽  
Monica Capozzi ◽  
Elena López-Jiménez ◽  
Alessandro Ottaiano ◽  
Fabiana Tatangelo ◽  
...  

Neuroendocrine neoplasms (NENs) comprise a heterogeneous group of rare malignancies mainly originated from hormones secreting cells, which are widespread in human tissues. The identification of mutations in ATRX/DAXX genes in sporadic NENs, as well as the high burden of mutations scattered throughout MEN-1 gene in both sporadic and inherited syndromes, provided new insights into the molecular biology of tumour development. Other molecular mechanisms, such as the NOTCH signaling pathway, have shown to play an important role in the pathogenesis of NENs. NOTCH receptors are expressed on neuroendocrine cells and generally, act as tumour suppressor proteins, but in some contexts can function as oncogenes. The biological heterogeneity of NENs suggests that to fully understand the roles and the potential therapeutic implications of gene mutations and NOTCH signaling in NENs, a comprehensive analysis of genetic alterations, NOTCH expression patterns and their potential roles across all NEN subtypes is required.


Author(s):  
Elena Fountzilas ◽  
Razelle Kurzrock ◽  
Henry Hiep Vo ◽  
Apostolia-Maria Tsimberidou

Abstract The development of checkpoint blockade immunotherapy has transformed the medical oncology armamentarium. But, despite its favorable impact on clinical outcomes, immunotherapy benefits only a subset of patients, and a substantial proportion of these individuals eventually manifest resistance. Serious immune-related adverse events and hyper-progression have also been reported. It is therefore essential to understand the molecular mechanisms and identify the drivers of therapeutic response and resistance. In this review, we provide an overview of the current and emerging clinically relevant genomic biomarkers implicated in checkpoint blockade outcome. U.S. Food and Drug Administration–approved molecular biomarkers of immunotherapy response include mismatch repair deficiency/microsatellite instability and tumor mutational burden ≥10 mutations/megabase. Investigational genomic-associated biomarkers for immunotherapy response include alterations of the following genes/associated pathways: chromatin remodeling (ARID1A, PBRM1, SMARCA4, SMARCB1, BAP1), major histocompatibility complex, specific (e.g., ultraviolet, APOBEC) mutational signatures, T-cell receptor repertoire, PDL1, POLE/POLD1, and neo-antigens produced by the mutanome; those potentially associated with resistance include β2-microglobulin, EGFR, Keap1, JAK1/JAK2/interferon-gamma signaling, MDM2, PTEN, STK11, and Wnt/Beta-catenin pathway alterations. Prospective clinical trials are needed to assess the role of a composite of these biomarkers in order to optimize the implementation of precision immunotherapy in patient care.


2020 ◽  
Author(s):  
Tong Zhao ◽  
Alma Piñeyro-Nelson ◽  
Qianxia Yu ◽  
Xiaoying Hu ◽  
Huanfang Liu ◽  
...  

Abstract Background:The flower of Hedychium coronarium possesses highly specialized floral organs: a synsepalous calyx, petaloid staminodes and a labellum. The formation of these organs is controlled by two gene categories: floral organ identity genes and organ boundary genes, which may function individually or jointly during flower development. Although the floral organogenesis of H. coronarium has been studied at the morphological level, the underlying molecular mechanisms involved in its floral development still remain poorly understood. In addition, previous works analyzing the role of MADS-box genes in controlling floral organ specification in some Zingiberaceae did not address the molecular mechanisms involved in the formation of particular organ morphologies that emerge later in flower development, such as the synsepalous calyx formed through intercalary growth of adjacent sepals. Results:Here, we used comparative transcriptomics combined with Real-time quantitative PCR and mRNA in situ hybridization to investigate gene expression patterns of ABC-class genes in H. coronarium flowers, as well as the homolog of the organ boundary gene PETAL LOSS (HcPTL). qRT-PCR detection showed that HcAP3 and HcAG were expressed in both the petaloid staminode and the fertile stamen. mRNA in situ hybridization showed that HcPTL was expressed in developing meristems, including cincinnus primordia, floral primordia, common primordia and almost all new initiating floral organ primordia.Conclusions:Our studies found that stamen/petal identity or stamen fertility in H. coronarium was not necessarily correlated with the differential expression of HcAP3 and HcAG. We also found a novel spatio-temporal expression pattern for HcPTL mRNA, suggesting it may have evolved a lineage-specific role in the morphogenesis of the Hedychium flower. Our study provides a new transcriptome reference and a functional hypothesis regarding the role of a boundary gene in organ fusion that should be further addressed through phylogenetic analyzes of this gene, as well as functional studies.


2011 ◽  
Vol 2011 ◽  
pp. 1-8 ◽  
Author(s):  
Ioannis Legakis ◽  
Konstantinos Syrigos

Recent molecular studies have described a number of abnormalities associated with the progression and dedifferentiation of thyroid carcinoma. These distinct molecular events are often associated with specific stages of tumor development. In particular, remarkable advances have occurred in several major biological areas of thyroid cancer, including the molecular alterations for the loss of radioiodine avidity of thyroid cancer, the pathogenic role of the MAP kinase and PI3K/Akt pathways and their related genetic alterations, and the aberrant methylation of functionally important genes in thyroid tumorigenesis and pathogenesis. Recognition of these features is crucial to the management of patients with thyroid cancer. Novel treatments are being designed based on our enhanced understanding of this disease process.


2020 ◽  
Vol 2020 ◽  
pp. 1-14
Author(s):  
Tengjiao Zhu ◽  
Yingtong Chen ◽  
Shuyuan Min ◽  
Fang Li ◽  
Yun Tian

The mammalian orosomucoid-like gene family (ORMDL), containing ORMDL1, ORMDL2, and ORMDL3, is the important regulator of sphingolipid metabolism, which is relevant to cell growth, proliferation, migration, and invasion. Since the role of ORMDL1 in cancers remained unclear, the main purpose of our study was to explore the expression patterns and prognostic values of ORMDL1 in different tumors, especially in cholangiocarcinoma (CHOL), lymphoid neoplasm diffuse large B cell lymphoma (DLBCL), acute myeloid leukemia (LAML), and thymoma (THYM). Bioinformatics tools including GEPIA, CCLE, LinkedOmics, cBioPortal, and TIMER databases were used. As a result, the expression levels of ORMDL1 in tumor tissues and normal tissues varied in different cancers, especially significantly upregulated in CHOL, DLBCL, LAML, and THYM. Moreover, ORMDL1 mRNA was also highly expressed in cell lines of DLBCL and LAML. Further studies showed that ORMDL1 overexpression was associated with poor prognosis in DLBCL, but not significant in CHOL, LAML, and THYM. Consistently, there were genetic alterations of ORMDL1 in DLBCL, and patients with genetic alterations indicated worse survival. Coexpressed genes and related biological events with ORMDL1 in DLBCL were found via LinkedOmics, Gene Ontology (GO), and Kyoto Encyclopedia of Genes and Genomes (KEGG) analysis. The relationship between ORMDL1 and cancer immune cells was investigated, and ORMDL1 expression was positively correlated with infiltrating levels of B cells. In conclusion, ORMDL1 is suggested to be a tumorigenic factor and considered as the potential therapeutic target and prognostic biomarker in DLBCL.


Metallomics ◽  
2017 ◽  
Vol 9 (10) ◽  
pp. 1352-1366 ◽  
Author(s):  
Yarden Golan ◽  
Taiho Kambe ◽  
Yehuda G. Assaraf

Transient neonatal zinc deficiency (TNZD) results from loss of function mutations in theSLC30A2/ZnT2gene. Nursing mothers harboring this defective zinc transporter produce zinc-deficient milk. Consequently, their exclusively breastfed infants develop severe zinc deficiency. The present review summarizes our current knowledge onSLC30A2/ZnT2gene mutations and highlights the molecular mechanisms underlying this zinc deficiency. We further propose novel approaches for the early diagnosis and prevention of TNZD.


2021 ◽  
Vol 2021 ◽  
pp. 1-10
Author(s):  
Bo Liang ◽  
Biao Zheng ◽  
Yan Zhou ◽  
Zheng-Quan Lai ◽  
Citing Zhang ◽  
...  

Colon cancer (COAD) is a leading cause of cancer mortality in the world. Most patients with COAD die as a result of cancer cell metastasis. However, the mechanisms underlying the metastatic phenotype of COAD remain unclear. Instead, particular features of the tumor microenvironment (TME) could predict adverse outcomes including metastasis in patients with COAD, and the role of TME in governing COAD progression is undeniable. Therefore, exploring the role of TME in COAD may help us better understand the molecular mechanisms behind COAD progression which may improve clinical outcomes and quality of patients. Here, we identified a Specific TME Regulatory Network including AEBP1, BGN, POST, and FAP (STMERN) that is highly involved in clinical outcomes of patients with COAD. Comprehensive in silico analysis of our study revealed that the STMERN is highly correlated with the severity of COAD. Meanwhile, our results reveal that the STMERN might be associated with immune infiltration in COAD. Importantly, we show that dihydroartemisinin (DHA) potentially interacts with the STMERN. We suggest that DHA might contribute to immune infiltration through regulating the STMERN in COAD. Taken together, our data provide a set of biomarkers of progression and poor prognosis in COAD. These findings could have potential prognostic and therapeutic implications in the progression of COAD.


Author(s):  
Vishal Sharma ◽  
Chhaya Bawa ◽  
Kuldeep Chand Vatsyan

Extensive efforts are going on to understand the molecular mechanisms behind tumor initiation, progression, and invasion and find novel targets for cancer treatment. The physiological state of the tumor microenvironment (TME) is crucial to every step of tumor cell growth and angiogenesis. Cancer cells are rarely in contact with each other. The intervening medium between the cancer cells, immune cells, and other cells become acidic, which significantly affects cancer pathogenesis. It could be a novel targeting marker and may help treat tumors. Even after extensive research in this area, the nature of molecular alterations and the basic mechanisms in the tumor microenvironment remains unclear. Based on recent studies of TME, this mini-review bids a more inclusive overview of the role of TME in cancer cell growth. Also, it helps to understand the potential of TME for therapeutic interventions.


Author(s):  
Sabrina Carrella ◽  
Sandro Banfi ◽  
Marianthi Karali

Photoreceptors (PRs) are specialized neuroepithelial cells of the retina responsible for sensory transduction of light stimuli. In the highly structured vertebrate retina, PRs have a highly polarized modular structure to accommodate the demanding processes of phototransduction and the visual cycle. Because of their function, PRs are exposed to continuous cellular stress. PRs are therefore under pressure to maintain their function in defiance of constant environmental perturbation, besides being part of a highly sophisticated developmental process. All this translates into the need for tightly regulated and responsive molecular mechanisms that can reinforce transcriptional programs. It is commonly accepted that regulatory non-coding RNAs (ncRNAs), and in particular microRNAs (miRNAs), are not only involved but indeed central in conferring robustness and accuracy to developmental and physiological processes. Here we integrate recent findings on the role of regulatory ncRNAs (e.g., miRNAs, lncRNAs, circular RNAs, and antisense RNAs), and of their contribution to PR pathophysiology. We also outline the therapeutic implications of translational studies that harness ncRNAs to prevent PR degeneration and promote their survival and function.


2019 ◽  
Vol 18 (1) ◽  
Author(s):  
Yongsheng Li ◽  
Jun Xiao ◽  
Jing Bai ◽  
Yi Tian ◽  
Yinwei Qu ◽  
...  

Abstract The methylation of N6 adenosine (m6A) plays a critical role in diverse biological processes. However, knowledge regarding the reconstitution of m6A across cancer types is still lacking. Here, we systematically analyzed the molecular alterations and clinical relevance of m6A regulators across > 10,000 subjects representing 33 cancer types. We found that there are widespread genetic alterations to m6A regulators, and that their expression levels are significantly correlated with the activity of cancer hallmark-related pathways. Moreover, m6A regulators were found to be potentially useful for prognostic stratification, and we identified IGF2BP3 as a potential oncogene across multiple cancer types. Our results provide a valuable resource that will guide both mechanistic and therapeutic analyses of the role of m6A regulators in cancer.


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