Publications by authors named "Eva Obermayr"

Single nucleotide polymorphisms (SNPs) of the IL-16 gene have been reported to influence the risk of several cancers, but their role in ovarian cancer (OC) has not been studied. Using the restriction fragment length polymorphism (PCR-RFLP) method, we examined four IL-16 SNPs: rs11556218 (T > G), rs4778889 (T > C), rs4072111 (C > T), and rs1131445 (T > C) in blood samples from 413 women of Central European descent, including 200 OC patients and 213 healthy controls. Among the patients, 62% were postmenopausal, 84.

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Circulating tumor cells (CTCs) are an established prognostic marker in metastatic prostate cancer (PrC) but have received little attention in localized high-risk disease. Peripheral blood was obtained from patients with early intermediate and high-risk PrC (n = 15) at baseline, after radiotherapy, and during follow-up, as well as from metastatic PrC patients (n = 23). CTCs were enriched using the microfluidic Parsortix technology.

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We analyzed variations in the epidermal growth factor receptor (EGFR) gene and 5'-upstream region to identify potential molecular predictors of treatment response in primary epithelial ovarian cancer. Tumor tissues collected during debulking surgery from the prospective multicenter OVCAD study were investigated. Copy number variations in the human endogenous retrovirus sequence human endogenous retrovirus K9 (HERVK9) and EGFR Exons 7 and 9, as well as repeat length and loss of heterozygosity of polymorphic CA-SSR I and relative EGFR mRNA expression were determined quantitatively.

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Article Synopsis
  • Ovarian cancer, especially in its platinum-resistant form (PROC), presents significant challenges due to limited treatment options and poor prognosis for patients.
  • This study aimed to find markers for monitoring treatment response in 123 PROC patients participating in the GANNET53 clinical trial assessing Ganetespib combined with standard chemotherapy.
  • Results showed that the presence of the ERCC1 gene was linked to a higher risk of disease progression, while the CDH1 and ESR1 genes appeared to have a protective effect, suggesting the potential of using liquid biopsy samples for better disease management.
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Interleukin-8 (IL-8) is involved in the regulation of inflammatory processes and carcinogenesis. Single-nucleotide polymorphisms (SNPs) within the IL-8 gene have been shown to alter the risks of lung, gastric, or hepatocellular carcinomas. To date, only one study examined the role of IL-8 SNPs in ovarian cancer (OC), suggesting an association between two IL-8 SNPs and OC risk.

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Small-cell lung cancer (SCLC) is a fatal disease with limited treatment options. Circulating tumor cells (CTCs) in liquid biopsy samples may serve as predictive and prognostic biomarkers; but the analysis of CTCs is still challenging. By using microfluidic or density gradient CTC enrichment in combination with immunofluorescent (IF) staining or qPCR of CTC-related transcripts, we achieved a 60.

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TP53 is the most commonly mutated gene in cancer and has been shown to form amyloid-like aggregates, similar to key proteins in neurodegenerative diseases. Nonetheless, the clinical implications of p53 aggregation remain unclear. Here, we investigated the presence and clinical relevance of p53 aggregates in serous ovarian cancer (OC).

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Liquid biopsy is a promising tool for therapy monitoring of cancer patients, but a need for further research in this field exists in order to improve sensitivity, specificity, standardization and minimize costs. In our present study, we evaluated two panels of transcripts related with the presence of circulating tumor cells (CTCs) (Panel 1: , , and Panel 2: , , , , and ) in two cohorts of breast cancer patients (metastatic and early). A blood cell fraction possibly containing CTCs was isolated with density gradient centrifugation, followed by RNA isolation and qPCR using TaqMan or RT-qPCR using hybridization probes.

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Introduction: Despite recent advances in epithelial ovarian cancer (EOC) management, the highly heterogenous histological/molecular tumour background and patients' treatment response obstructs personalised prognosis and therapeutics. Herein, we have studied the role and clinical utility of the novel subclass of tRNA-derived small RNA fragments emerging via 3'-trailer processing of pre-tRNAs (3'U-tRFs) in EOC.

Methods: SK-OV-3 and OVCAR-3 cells were used for in vitro study.

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Objectives: The stability of gene transcripts associated with the presence of circulating tumor cells (CTCs) has been predominantly studied in cultured cancer cell lines added to blood samples under artificial conditions. In the present study the effect of storage on CTC-related transcripts was assessed in blood samples taken from patients with non-small lung cancer (n=58).

Methods: The blood samples were split in two equal parts to compare the gene expression with and without storage for 24 h at ambient temperature without preservative added.

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Article Synopsis
  • The study investigates how to effectively isolate circulating tumor cells (CTCs) from blood using various microfluidic techniques to improve cancer diagnosis.
  • Blood samples from breast cancer patients were processed through different methods to enhance the recovery of CTCs while minimizing contamination from other blood cells.
  • Results showed that the method used significantly influenced the yield and purity of isolated tumor cells, with a notable disparity in the presence of cancer markers between early and metastatic breast cancer samples.
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Ovarian cancer (OC) is the most lethal genital malignancy in women. We aimed to develop and validate new proteomic-based models for non-invasive diagnosis of OC. We also compared them to the modified Risk of Ovarian Malignancy Algorithm (ROMA-50), the Copenhagen Index (CPH-I) and our earlier Proteomic Model 2017.

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Epithelial ovarian cancer (EOC) remains a highly-lethal gynecological malignancy, characterized by frequent recurrence, chemotherapy resistance and poor 5-year survival. Identifying novel predictive molecular markers remains an overdue challenge in the disease's clinical management. Herein, in silico analysis of TCGA-OV highlighted the tRNA-derived internal fragment (i-tRF-GlyGCC) among the most abundant tRFs in ovarian tumors, while target prediction and gene ontology (GO) enrichment analysis predicted its implication in key biological processes.

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Background: Epigenetic alterations in ctDNA are highly promising as a source of novel potential liquid biopsy biomarkers and comprise a very promising liquid biopsy approach in ovarian cancer, for early diagnosis, prognosis and response to treatment.

Methods: In the present study, we examined the methylation status of six gene promoters (, , , , and in high-grade serous ovarian cancer (HGSOC). We evaluated the prognostic significance of DNA methylation of these six gene promoters in primary tumors (FFPEs) and plasma cfDNA samples from patients with early, advanced and metastatic HGSOC.

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Background/aim: Lung cancer is the most prevalent type of cancer globally and small cell lung cancer (SCLC) accounts for only 15% of all cases but exhibits a dismal prognosis. The standard of care of SCLC has not changed for decades and novel biomarkers and novel strategies for patient's care are urgently needed.

Materials And Methods: The expression of the two potential markers MUC1 and CD147 was evaluated in circulating tumor cells (CTCs) and CTC-derived SCLC cell lines using qRT PCR, western blotting, immunohistochemistry, and ELISA assays.

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We investigated the prognostic role of systemic characteristics for cancer exhaustion and the presence of circulating tumor cells (CTCs) in primary epithelial ovarian cancer (EOC) patients. We included 185 patients in this multicenter study with a median follow-up time of 10.25 years.

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Unlabelled: Despite recent advances in the treatment of non-small cell lung cancer (NSCLC), less than 10% of patients survive the first five years when the disease has already spread at primary diagnosis.

Methods: Blood samples were taken from 118 NSCLC patients at primary diagnosis or at progression of the disease before the start of a new treatment line and enriched for circulating tumor cells (CTCs) by microfluidic Parsortix™ (Angle plc, Guildford GU2 7AF, UK) technology. The gene expression of epithelial cancer stem cell (CSC), epithelial to mesenchymal (EMT), and lung-related markers was assessed by qPCR, and the association of each marker with overall survival (OS) was evaluated using log-rank tests.

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Introduction: We previously reported the prognostic impact of circulating tumor cells (CTCs) in a multicenter study on minimal residual disease in primary ovarian cancer. With additional follow-up data, we evaluated the combined CTC approach (CTCs), in particular for the patients who had survived more than five years.

Material And Methods: Blood samples taken at baseline and six months after adjuvant treatment (follow-up) were assessed by quantitative PCR (qPCR) measuring PPIC transcripts and immunofluorescent staining (IF).

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Article Synopsis
  • Mass-spectrometry analyses have identified potential protein biomarkers for epithelial ovarian cancer (EOC) that need further validation for clinical application.
  • The Deep MALDI method created a blood-based proteomic classifier that successfully categorized EOC patients based on survival outcomes, revealing an age-dependent prognostic performance.
  • The findings indicate that systemic conditions reflected in proteomic patterns, including complement activation and inflammatory responses, can impact survival and therapy effectiveness in ovarian cancer patients, suggesting their consideration in treatment planning.
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Article Synopsis
  • *This study identifies miR-181a as a significant predictor of poor survival and disease progression in serous ovarian cancer, validated through multiple patient cohorts.
  • *Incorporating miR-181a into prognostic models enhances risk assessment and could improve personalized treatment strategies for ovarian cancer patients.
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Background/aim: This study analyzed the gene expression of the "classic" KLK1 and "new" kallikreins KLK4-KLK15, in relation to the molecular characteristics and in vitro invasiveness of 21 breast cancer (BC) and three normal breast-derived cell lines (CLs).

Materials And Methods: Gene expression of KLKs was determined by using real-time polymerase chain reaction (PCR). The invasiveness of the CLs was examined using a fibroblast-collagen-based in vitro cell culture assay.

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Ovarian cancer (OC) accounts for the most gynecological cancer-related deaths in developed countries. Unfortunately, the lack of both evident early symptoms and effective asymptomatic population screening results in late diagnosis and inevitably poor prognosis. Hence, it is urgent to identify novel molecular markers to support personalized prognosis.

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At initial diagnosis, most patients with small-cell lung cancer (SCLC) present with metastatic disease with a high number of tumor cells (CTCs) circulating in the blood. We analyzed RNA transcripts specific for neuroendocrine and for epithelial cell lineages, and Notch pathway delta-like 3 ligand (), the actionable target of rovalpituzumab tesirine (Rova-T) in CTC samples. Peripheral blood samples from 48 SCLC patients were processed using the microfluidic Parsortix™ technology to enrich the CTCs.

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Objectives: Poor survival of high-grade serous pelvic cancer is caused by a lack of effective screening measures. The detection of exfoliated cells from high-grade serous pelvic cancer, or precursor lesions, is a promising concept for earlier diagnosis. However, collecting those cells in the most efficient way while fulfilling all requirements for a screening approach is a challenge.

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Objective: Circulating tumor cells (CTCs) may represent a chronic stimulus for the immune system. In the present study we investigated the potential association of CTCs, the immune activation marker neopterin, and the ratio of kynurenine to tryptophan (Kyn/Trp) as a measure for tryptophan breakdown.

Methods: Neopterin, tryptophan and kynurenine levels were measured in plasma samples from patients with benign gynecological diseases (n=65) and with primary advanced epithelial ovarian cancer (EOC) at diagnosis (n=216) and six months after adjuvant platinum-based chemotherapy (n=45) by an enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay and high performance liquid chromatography.

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