Small Extracellular Vesicles (sEVs) Biogenesis Molecular Players Are Associated with Clinical Outcome of Colorectal Cancer Patients.

A growing number of studies have shed light on the role of small extracellular vesicles (sEVs), including exosomes, in colorectal cancer (CRC). Available data regarding the clinical significance of molecular players in CRC, implicated in sEVs biogenesis, is limited. In this study, we assessed the expression of the most important genes which are implicated in sEVs biogenesis and their association with sEVs plasma levels, investigated with a double sandwich ELISA assay, as well as with the clinical outcome of patients with CRC.

Differentially Methylated Ultra-Conserved Regions Uc160 and Uc283 in Adenomas and Adenocarcinomas Are Associated with Overall Survival of Colorectal Cancer Patients.

Deregulation of the transcribed ultra-conserved regions (T-UCRs) Uc160, Uc283, and Uc346 has been reported in colorectal cancer (CRC) recently. Here, we investigated promoter methylation of these T-UCRs during the adenoma-carcinoma sequence and their clinical significance in CRC patients. Methylation levels were assessed in CRC, adenomas, infiltrated lymph nodes, and metastatic tissue specimens.

The survivin -31 snp in human colorectal cancer correlates with survivin splice variant expression and improved overall survival.

Background: Survivin is involved in the regulation of cell division and survival, two key processes in cancer. The majority of studies on survivin in colorectal cancer (CRC) have focused on protein expression and less is known about the expression of survivin splicing variants or survivin gene polymorphisms in CRC. In the present study, the mRNA levels of the five known isoforms of survivin as well as survivin protein were assessed in matched normal and neoplastic colorectal tissue.

Irinotecan/fluorouracil/leucovorin or the same regimen followed by oxaliplatin/fluorouracil/leucovorin in metastatic colorectal cancer.

Background: This study reports the long-term follow-up of patients with metastatic colorectal cancer (CRC) participating in a randomised phase II study that compared the efficacy and toxicity of the combination of irinotecan (IRI), fluorouracil (FU) with leucovorin (LV) (arm A) versus sequential chemotherapy with IRI plus FU/LV followed by oxaliplatin (OXA) plus FU/LV (arm B) as first line therapy.

Materials And Methods: Intent-to-treat analysis was performed on 417 patients (211 in arm A and 206 in arm B). Treatment schedules of weekly IRI 80 mg/m(2) or OXA 45 mg/m(2) plus LV 200 mg/m(2) immediately followed by intravenous bolus FU 450 mg/m(2) for 6 weeks were followed by a 2-week rest period.

The survivin -31 snp in human colorectal cancer correlates with survivin splice variant expression and improved overall survival.

Background: survivin is involved in the regulation of cell division and survival, two key processes in cancer. The majority of studies on survivin in colorectal cancer (CRC) have focused on protein expression and less is known about the expression of survivin splicing variants or survivin gene polymorphisms in CRC. In the present study, the mRNA levels of the five known isoforms of survivin as well as survivin protein were assessed in matched normal and neoplastic colorectal tissue.

TGF-beta repressors SnoN and Ski are implicated in human colorectal carcinogenesis.

Background: The TGF-beta signaling repressors SnoN and Ski have been critically implicated in human cancer.

Methods: To explore the role of SnoN and Ski in the development and progression of colorectal cancer we examined their protein expression profile by immunohistochemistry in a series of human colorectal adenomas, carcinomas and lymph node metastases. The mRNA expression of SnoN was also quantified by Real-Time RT-PCR.

Laparoscopic cholecystectomy: a report from a single center.

Aim: To review and evaluate our experience in laparoscopic cholecystectomy.

Methods: A retrospective analysis was performed on data collected during a 13-year period (1992-2005) from 1220 patients who underwent laparoscopic cholecystectomy.

Results: Mortality rate was 0%.

The greatly increased amounts of accumulated versican and decorin with specific post-translational modifications may be closely associated with the malignant phenotype of pancreatic cancer.

Pancreatic carcinoma (PC) is a cancer type with highly malignant growth and dissemination pattern of which the mechanisms are poorly understood. However, the malignant phenotype is closely linked to extracellular matrix (ECM) of which proteoglycans (PGs) and hyaluronan (HA) play a crucial role in the control of tumor progression and metastasis. In this study, we demonstrated that versican and decorin, two different PGs with contradictory roles and functions in the pathobiology of cancer, were the main matrix PGs in PC presenting a great increase 27- and 7-fold, respectively, in comparison to normal pancreas (NP).