Phosphoserine phosphatase as a prognostic biomarker in patients with gastric cancer and its potential association with immune cells.

Background: Because of dismal prognosis in gastric cancer, identifying relevant prognostic factors is necessary. Phosphoserine phosphatase (PSPH) exhibits different expression patterns in many cancers and has been reported to affect the prognosis of patients with cancer. In this study, we examined the prognostic role of metabolic gene PSPH in gastric cancer based on the TCGA dataset and our hospital-based cohort cases.

The Immunoscore system predicts prognosis after liver metastasectomy in colorectal cancer liver metastases.

Background: The Immunoscore was initially established to evaluate the prognosis of stage I/II/III colorectal cancer patients. However, the feasibility of the Immunoscore for the prognosis of colorectal cancer liver metastases (CRCLM) has not been reported.

Methods: Liver metastases in 249 CRCLM patients were retrospectively analyzed.

A new prognostic histopathologic classification of nasopharyngeal carcinoma.

Background: The current World Health Organization (WHO) classification of nasopharyngeal carcinoma (NPC) conveys little prognostic information. This study aimed to propose an NPC histopathologic classification that can potentially be used to predict prognosis and treatment response.

Methods: We initially developed a histopathologic classification based on the morphologic traits and cell differentiation of tumors of 2716 NPC patients who were identified at Sun Yat-sen University Cancer Center (SYSUCC) (training cohort).

Clinicopathologic characteristics and therapeutic responses of Chinese patients with non-small cell lung cancer who harbor an anaplastic lymphoma kinase rearrangement.

Introduction: The rearrangement of the anaplastic lymphoma kinase (ALK) gene accounts for approximately 1%-6% of lung adenocarcinoma cases and defines a molecular subgroup of tumors characterized by clinical sensitivity to ALK inhibitors such as crizotinib. This study aimed to identify the relationship between ALK rearrangement and the clinicopathologic characteristics of non-small cell lung cancer (NSCLC) and to analyze the therapeutic responses of crizotinib and conventional chemotherapy to ALK rearrangement in NSCLC patients.

Methods: A total of 487 lung cancer patients who underwent testing for ALK rearrangement in our department were included in this study.

Effect of Raf kinase inhibitor protein expression on malignant biological behavior and progression of colorectal cancer.

The Raf kinase inhibitor protein (RKIP) is a novel metastasis suppressor. RKIP was previously found to have low expression in a colorectal cancer (CRC) patient cohort by immunohistochemistry. However, the role of RKIP in CRC remains undetermined.

The Frequency and Clinical Implication of ROS1 and RET Rearrangements in Resected Stage IIIA-N2 Non-Small Cell Lung Cancer Patients.

To evaluate the frequency and clinicopathological features of ROS1 and RET rearrangements in N2 node positive stage IIIA (IIIA-N2) non-small cell lung cancer (NSCLC) patients, we retrospectively screened 204 cases with a tissue microarray (TMA) panel by fluorescent in situ hybridization (FISH), and confirmed by direct sequencing and immunohistochemistry (IHC). The relationship between ROS1 or RET rearrangements, clinicopathological features, and prognostic factors were analyzed in resected stage IIIA-N2 NSCLC. Of the 204 cases, 4 cases were confirmed with ROS1 rearrangement, but no RET rearrangement was detected.

MicroRNA-30a promotes invasiveness and metastasis in vitro and in vivo through epithelial-mesenchymal transition and results in poor survival of nasopharyngeal carcinoma patients.

Although microRNA-30a (miR-30a) has been shown to regulate cancer metastasis, the molecular mechanism has not yet been clearly elucidated in nasopharyngeal carcinoma (NPC). The present study was to investigate the miR-30a expression pattern and its potential functions and further to identify its target gene and corresponding clinical applications in NPC. MiR-30a was identified to be down-regulated in NPC primary tumors compared with metastatic tumors using quantitative real-time PCR.

High expression of zinc-binding protein-89 predicts decreased survival in esophageal squamous cell cancer.

Background: Zinc-binding protein-89 (ZBP-89), a Krüppel-type four-zinc finger transcription factor, is associated with many cellular functions, including cell growth, differentiation, and apoptosis. It has been reported to be involved in several human cancers. However, ZBP-89 expression pattern and its clinical significance have not yet been investigated in esophageal squamous cell cancer.

Reduced expression of ZDHHC2 is associated with lymph node metastasis and poor prognosis in gastric adenocarcinoma.

Background: Zinc finger, DHHC-type containing 2 (ZDHHC2), originally named as reduced expression associated with metastasis protein (REAM), has been proposed as a putative tumor/metastasis suppressor gene and is often aberrantly decreased in human cancers. However ZDHHC2 expression pattern and its clinical significance have not yet been investigated in gastric adenocarcinoma.

Methodology/principal Findings: Quantitative Real-Time PCR (qRT-PCR) and immunostaining were performed to detect ZDHHC2 expression in gastric adenocarcinoma, and then the correlation between ZDHHC2 expression and clinicpathologic parameters, and patient survival was analyzed.

Elevated DLL4 expression is correlated with VEGF and predicts poor prognosis of nasopharyngeal carcinoma.

Delta-like ligand 4 (DLL4), one of the transmembranous Notch ligands, is upregulated at the site of tumor growth, particularly during tumor angiogenesis. Expression pattern of DLL4 in nasopharyngeal carcinoma (NPC) and the clinical and prognostic significance remain unclear. In this study, immunohistochemical analysis (IHC) was used to examine the protein level of DLL4 in NPC tissues from two independent cohorts.

Overexpression of the secretory small GTPase Rab27B in human breast cancer correlates closely with lymph node metastasis and predicts poor prognosis.

Background: The secretory small GTPase Rab27b was recently identified as an oncogene in breast cancer (BC) in vivo and in vitro studies. This research was designed to further explore the clinical and prognostic significance of Rab27B in BC patients.

Methods: The mRNA/protein expression level of Rab27B was examined by performing Real-time PCR, western blot, and immunohistochemistry (IHC) assays in 12 paired BC tissues and matched adjacent noncancerous tissues (NAT).

Clinical significance of elevated spleen tyrosine kinase expression in nasopharyngeal carcinoma.

Background: Spleen tyrosine kinase (Syk) is a nonreceptor tyrosine kinase and often aberrantly expressed in human cancers. However, Syk expression pattern has not yet been investigated in nasopharyngeal carcinoma (NPC).

Methods: Samples of 223 NPC tissues were immunohistochemically stained for Syk expression and survival analysis was then performed.

Eight-signature classifier for prediction of nasopharyngeal [corrected] carcinoma survival.

Purpose: Currently, nasopharyngeal carcinoma (NPC) prognosis evaluation is based primarily on the TNM staging system. This study aims to identify prognostic markers for NPC.

Patients And Methods: We detected expression of 18 biomarkers by immunohistochemistry in NPC tumors from 209 patients and evaluated the association between gene expression level and disease-specific survival (DSS).

A single nucleotide polymorphism in the matrix metalloproteinase 2 promoter is closely associated with high risk of nasopharyngeal carcinoma in Cantonese from southern China.

Matrix metalloproteinase 2 (MMP2) has been shown to play an important role in several steps of cancer development. The -1306C/T polymorphism of the MMP2 gene displays a strikingly lower promoter activity than the T allele, and the CC genotype in the MMP2 promoter has been reported to associate with the development of several cancers. To assess the contribution of the MMP2 -1306C/T polymorphism to the risk of nasopharyngeal carcinoma (NPC), we conducted a case-control study and analyzed MMP2 genotypes in 370 patients with NPC and 390 frequency-matched controls using real-time PCR-based TaqMan allele analysis.

miR-125b is methylated and functions as a tumor suppressor by regulating the ETS1 proto-oncogene in human invasive breast cancer.

The microRNA miR-125b is dysregulated in various human cancers but its underlying mechanisms of action are poorly understood. Here, we report that miR-125b is downregulated in invasive breast cancers where it predicts poor patient survival. Hypermethylation of the miR-125b promoter partially accounted for reduction of miR-125b expression in human breast cancer.

Polymorphisms of death pathway genes FAS and FASL and risk of nasopharyngeal carcinoma.

The FAS receptor/ligand system is a key regulator of apoptotic cell death and corruption of this signaling pathway has been shown to participate in carcinogenesis. Functional polymorphisms in the FAS (FAS -1377G/A) and FASL (FASL -844T/C) genes alter their transcriptional activity. Therefore, we examined the association between these polymorphisms and the risk of developing nasopharyngeal carcinoma (NPC).

Polymorphisms of methylenetetrahydrofolate reductase are associated with a high risk of nasopharyngeal carcinoma in a smoking population from Southern China.

Methylenetetrahydrofolate reductase (MTHFR) plays a central role in converting folate to a compound which serves as a methyl donor for DNA methylation, an epigenetic modification known to be dysregulated in carcinogenesis. This case-control study assessed the contribution of MTHFR polymorphisms to the risk of nasopharyngeal carcinoma (NPC). MTHFR genotypes C677T and A1298C in 529 NPC patients and 577 frequency-matched controls were determined by PCR-based restriction fragment length polymorphism.

Upregulation of caveolin-1 and CD147 expression in nasopharyngeal carcinoma enhanced tumor cell migration and correlated with poor prognosis of the patients.

Expression of caveolin-1 (Cav-1) and extracellular matrix metalloproteinase inducer (EMMPRIN/CD147) and their prognostic significance were analyzed in archive NPC samples. Cav-1 and CD147 were overexpressed in 49.48% (96/194) and 59.

Combined determination of Epstein-Barr virus-related antibodies and antigens for diagnosis of nasopharyngeal carcinoma.

Background And Objective: With the development of molecular biology in recent years, many indexes for detecting Epstein-Barr virus (EBV) have been developed. This study was to evaluate the diagnostic value of combined determination of EBV-related antibodies and antigens, including VCA-IgA, EA-IgA, EBV-DNase antibody and EBV-DNA, in diagnosing nasopharyngeal carcinoma (NPC).

Methods: Serum and plasma samples from 160 untreated NPC patients and 76 healthy donors were collected.

MicroRNA miR-21 overexpression in human breast cancer is associated with advanced clinical stage, lymph node metastasis and patient poor prognosis.

To investigate the global expression profile of miRNAs in primary breast cancer (BC) and normal adjacent tumor tissues (NATs) and its potential relevance to clinicopathological characteristics and patient survival, the genome-wide expression profiling of miRNAs in BC was investigated using a microarray containing 435 mature human miRNA oligonucleotide probes. Nine miRNAs of hsa-miR-21, hsa-miR-365, hsa-miR-181b, hsa-let-7f, hsa-miR-155, hsa-miR-29b, hsa-miR-181d, hsa-miR-98, and hsa-miR-29c were observed to be up-regulated greater than twofold in BC compared with NAT, whereas seven miRNAs of hsa-miR-497, hsa-miR-31, hsa-miR-355, hsa-miR-320, rno-mir-140, hsa-miR-127 and hsa-miR-30a-3p were observed to be down-regulated greater than twofold. The most significantly up-regulated miRNAs, hsa-mir-21 (miR-21), was quantitatively analyzed by TaqMan real-time PCR in 113 BC tumors.

Elevated expressions of survivin and VEGF protein are strong independent predictors of survival in advanced nasopharyngeal carcinoma.

Background: Nasopharyngeal carcinoma (NPC) is one of the most common malignancies in southern China. The China 1992 TNM staging system has been widely used for prognosis prediction of NPC patients in China. Although NPC patients can be classified according to their clinical stage in this system, their prognosis may vary significantly.

Polymorphisms of XRCC1 genes and risk of nasopharyngeal carcinoma in the Cantonese population.

Background: Nasopharyngeal carcinoma (NPC) is one of the most common cancers in southern China. In addition to environmental factors such as Epstein-Barr virus infection and diet, genetic susceptibility has been reported to play a key role in the development of this disease. The x-ray repair cross-complementing group 1 (XRCC1) gene is important in DNA base excision repair.

[Quantitative analysis of Epstein-Barr virus DNA in plasma and peripheral blood cells in patients with nasopharyngeal carcinoma].

Objective: To quantitative analysis of Epstein-Barr virus (EBV) DNA levels in plasma, peripheral blood cells (PBCs) and tumor tissue in nasopharyngeal carcinoma (NPC), to investigate the relationship between EBV-DNA levels and clinical parameters.

Methods: Blood of 150 primary NPC and 49 corresponding tumor tissues, 47 nasopharyngitis tissues and blood of 75 controls were entered this investigation. Plasma and PBCs were isolated for quantitative detection of EBV-DNA by using real-time quantitative PCR (RQ-PCR).