Cancer-specific functional profiling in microsatellite-unstable (MSI) colon and endometrial cancers using combined differentially expressed genes and biclustering analysis.

Microsatellite-unstable (MSI) cancers have distinct genetic and clinical features from microsatellite-stable cancers, but the molecular functional differences between MSI cancers originating from different tissues or organs have not been well studied because the application of usual differentially expressed gene (DEG) analysis is error-prone, producing too many noncancer-specific normally functioning genes. To maximize therapeutic efficacy, biomarkers reflecting cancer-specific differences between MSI cancers of different tissue origins should be identified. To identify functional differences between MSI colon and endometrial cancers, we combined DEG analysis and biclustering instead of DEG analysis alone and refined functionally relevant biclusters reflecting genuine functional differences between the 2 tumors.

STAT3 mediates RCP-induced cancer cell invasion through the NF-κB/Slug/MT1-MMP signaling cascade.

Rab coupling protein (RCP) has been known to induce cancer invasion and metastasis, and STAT3 is one of major oncogenic factors. In the present study, we identify the critical role of STAT3 in RCP-induced cancer cell invasion. Immunohistochemical data of ovarian cancer tissues presented that levels of RCP expression are closely correlated with those of phospho-STAT3 (p-STAT3).

Enhancing the landscape of colorectal cancer using targeted deep sequencing.

Targeted next-generation sequencing (NGS) technology detects specific mutations that can provide treatment opportunities for colorectal cancer (CRC) patients. We included 145 CRC patients who underwent surgery. We analyzed the mutation frequencies of common actionable genes and their association with clinicopathological characteristics and oncologic outcomes using targeted NGS.

Mutation Analysis of Colorectal and Gastric Carcinomas Originating from Adenomas: Insights into Genomic Evolution Associated with Malignant Progression.

Small malignant tumor foci arising from benign lesions are rare but offer a unique opportunity to investigate the genomic evolution that occurs during malignant transformation. In this study, we analyzed 11 colorectal and 10 gastric adenoma-carcinoma pairs, each of which represented malignant tumors (carcinomas) embedded in benign lesions (adenomas) found in the same patient. Whole-exome sequencing revealed that mutation abundance was variable across different cases, but comparable between adenoma-carcinoma pairs.

Bach2 deficiency leads autoreactive B cells to produce IgG autoantibodies and induce lupus through a T cell-dependent extrafollicular pathway.

Class-switched IgG autoantibodies but not unswitched IgM autoantibodies play a crucial role in the development of systemic lupus erythematosus (SLE). Bach2 is known to be essential for class switch recombination of Ig genes, but recent genomic and clinical studies have suggested an association of Bach2 deficiency with SLE. This study was undertaken to examine the mechanism by which Bach2 regulates the development of SLE.

Clinical MetaData ontology: a simple classification scheme for data elements of clinical data based on semantics.

Background: The increasing use of common data elements (CDEs) in numerous research projects and clinical applications has made it imperative to create an effective classification scheme for the efficient management of these data elements. We applied high-level integrative modeling of entire clinical documents from real-world practice to create the Clinical MetaData Ontology (CMDO) for the appropriate classification and integration of CDEs that are in practical use in current clinical documents.

Methods: CMDO was developed using the General Formal Ontology method with a manual iterative process comprising five steps: (1) defining the scope of CMDO by conceptualizing its first-level terms based on an analysis of clinical-practice procedures, (2) identifying CMDO concepts for representing clinical data of general CDEs by examining how and what clinical data are generated with flows of clinical care practices, (3) assigning hierarchical relationships for CMDO concepts, (4) developing CMDO properties (e.

Low Estimated Glomerular Filtration Rate Is Prevalent among North Korean Refugees in South Korea.

Background: The number of North Korean refugees entering South Korea is rising. Few studies have investigated the risk of non-communicable disease in North Korean refugees. Moreover, kidney insufficiency, a risk factor for cardiovascular disease, has not been studied in this population.

Dissecting the relationships of IgG subclasses and complements in membranous lupus nephritis and idiopathic membranous nephropathy.

Membranous lupus nephritis (MLN) and idiopathic membranous nephropathy (IMN) are kidney diseases with similar morphology, but distinct etiologies, both producing glomeruli with immune deposits. Immunoglobulins and complements, the main components of the deposits, can be detected by immunofluorescence (IF) microscopy. Previous researches characterized the immune deposits only individually, but not the interactions between them.

Clinicopathologic Correlations of E-cadherin and Prrx-1 Expression Loss in Hepatocellular Carcinoma.

Background: Developing predictive markers for hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC) is important, because many patients experience recurrence and metastasis. Epithelial to mesenchymal transition (EMT) is a developmental process that plays an important role during embryogenesis and also during cancer metastasis. Paired-related homeobox protein 1 (Prrx-1) is an EMT inducer that has recently been introduced, and its prognostic significance in HCC is largely unknown.

MicroRNA Expression Signatures Associated With BRAF-Mutated Versus KRAS-Mutated Colorectal Cancers.

BRAF and KRAS genes are known to play a similar role in the activation of RAS-RAF-MEK-ERK signaling pathway in colorectal tumorigenesis. However, BRAF-mutated colorectal cancers (CRCs) have distinct clinicopathologic characteristics different from those of the KRAS mutated ones as in comparison the BRAF-mutated CRCs are associated with a much worse prognosis for the afflicted patients. This study aimed to determine the different miRNA expression signatures associated with BRAF-mutated CRCs in comparison to KRAS-mutated ones, and to identify the specific miRNAs possibly mediating the aggressive phenotype of the BRAF-mutated CRCs.

High MicroRNA-370 Expression Correlates with Tumor Progression and Poor Prognosis in Breast Cancer.

Purpose: Deregulation of microRNA-370 (miR-370) has been reported in various cancers, in which it can act as either an oncogene or a tumor suppressor gene. However, the clinicopathologic significance of miR-370 expression in breast cancer has not been studied.

Methods: The expression of miR-370 was determined with quantitative real-time polymerase chain reaction in 60 formalin-fixed, paraffin-embedded primary breast cancer tissues.

Significance of the Extracapsular Spread of Metastatic Lymph Nodes in Papillary Thyroid Carcinoma.

Objectives: The extracapsular spread (ECS) of metastatic lymph nodes is associated with aggressive tumor behavior, and is regarded as a major risk factor for local recurrence in patients with head and neck squamous cell carcinoma. However, the significance of ECS of metastatic lymph nodes has not been well established in well-differentiated thyroid carcinoma. The purpose of this study was to examine this question.

DOT1L cooperates with the c-Myc-p300 complex to epigenetically derepress CDH1 transcription factors in breast cancer progression.

DOT1L has emerged as an anticancer target for MLL-associated leukaemias; however, its functional role in solid tumours is largely unknown. Here we identify that DOT1L cooperates with c-Myc and p300 acetyltransferase to epigenetically activate epithelial-mesenchymal transition (EMT) regulators in breast cancer progression. DOT1L recognizes SNAIL, ZEB1 and ZEB2 promoters via interacting with the c-Myc-p300 complex and facilitates lysine-79 methylation and acetylation towards histone H3, leading to the dissociation of HDAC1 and DNMT1 in the regions.

Tumor necrosis factor-α produced in the kidney contributes to angiotensin II-dependent hypertension.

Immune system activation contributes to the pathogenesis of hypertension and the resulting progression of chronic kidney disease. In this regard, we recently identified a role for proinflammatory Th1 T-lymphocyte responses in hypertensive kidney injury. Because Th1 cells generate interferon-γ and tumor necrosis factor-α (TNF-α), we hypothesized that interferon-γ and TNF-α propagate renal damage during hypertension induced by activation of the renin-angiotensin system.

Time-lapse electrical resistivity investigations for imaging the grouting injection in shallow subsurface cavities.

The highway of Yongweol-ri, Muan-gun, south-western part of the South Korean Peninsula, is underlain by the abandoned of subsurface cavities, which were discovered in 2005. These cavities lie at shallow depths with the range of 5∼15 meters below the ground surface. Numerous subsidence events have repeatedly occurred in the past few years, damaging infrastructure and highway.

Differential diagnosis of lupus and primary membranous nephropathies by IgG subclass analysis.

Background And Objectives: Previous studies showed that the accuracy of IgG subclasses (ISs) in differentiating membranous lupus nephritis (MLN) from primary membranous nephropathy (PMN) is <80%. This study hypothesized that diagnostic accuracy of ISs would be increased if renal compartment measurements and decision tree analysis are applied.

Design, Setting, Participants, & Measurements: Renal biopsy specimens from 41 patients with MLN and 59 patients with PMN between October 2004 and March 2010 were examined, and immunofluorescence staining against IgG1, IgG2, IgG3, and IgG4 as well as C3, C1q, and C4 was evaluated in five different renal compartments (glomerular capillary walls, mesangium, tubules, interstitium, and blood vessels).

Synergistic effect of different levels of genomic data for cancer clinical outcome prediction.

There have been many attempts in cancer clinical-type classification by using a dataset from a number of molecular layers of biological system. Despite these efforts, however, it still remains difficult to elucidate the cancer phenotypes because the cancer genome is neither simple nor independent but rather complicated and dysregulated by multiple molecular mechanisms. Recently, heterogeneous types of data, generated from all molecular levels of 'omic' dimensions from genome to phenome, for instance, copy number variants at the genome level, DNA methylation at the epigenome level, and gene expression and microRNA at the transcriptome level, have become available.

A novel role for type 1 angiotensin receptors on T lymphocytes to limit target organ damage in hypertension.

Rationale: Human clinical trials using type 1 angiotensin (AT(1)) receptor antagonists indicate that angiotensin II is a critical mediator of cardiovascular and renal disease. However, recent studies have suggested that individual tissue pools of AT(1) receptors may have divergent effects on target organ damage in hypertension.

Objective: We examined the role of AT(1) receptors on T lymphocytes in the pathogenesis of hypertension and its complications.

Semantically enabled and statistically supported biological hypothesis testing with tissue microarray databases.

Background: Although many biological databases are applying semantic web technologies, meaningful biological hypothesis testing cannot be easily achieved. Database-driven high throughput genomic hypothesis testing requires both of the capabilities of obtaining semantically relevant experimental data and of performing relevant statistical testing for the retrieved data. Tissue Microarray (TMA) data are semantically rich and contains many biologically important hypotheses waiting for high throughput conclusions.

Synthesis and utilization of E. coli-encapsulated PEG-based microdroplet using a microfluidic chip for biological application.

We report herein an effective strategy for encapsulating Escherichia coli in polyethylene glycol diacrylate (PEGDA) microdroplets using a microfluidic device and chemical polymerization. PEGDA was employed as a reactant due to the biocompatibility, high porosity, and hydrophilic property. The uniform size and shape of microdroplets are obtained in a single-step process using microfluidic device.

Droplet-based microextraction in the aqueous two-phase system.

This report is about microfluidic extraction systems based on droplets of aqueous two-phase system. Mass transfer between continuous phase and dispersed droplet is demonstrated by microextraction of ruthenium red in a microfluidic device. Droplets are generated with electrohydrodynamic method in the same device.

Infantile hemangioendothelioma with elevated serum alpha fetoprotein: report of 2 cases with immunohistochemical analysis.

Infantile hemangioendothelioma is the most common benign mesenchymal tumor of the liver presenting during the first 6 months of life. Serum alpha fetoprotein is an important tumor marker for hepatoblastoma, hepatocellular carcinoma, and germ cell tumors. However, it is rarely elevated in patients with hepatic infantile hemangioendothelioma.

Lymphocyte responses exacerbate angiotensin II-dependent hypertension.

Activation of the immune system by ANG II contributes to the pathogenesis of hypertension, and pharmacological suppression of lymphocyte responses can ameliorate hypertensive end-organ damage. Therefore, to examine the mechanisms through which lymphocytes mediate blood pressure elevation, we studied ANG II-dependent hypertension in scid mice lacking lymphocyte responses and wild-type controls. Scid mice had a blunted hypertensive response to chronic ANG II infusion and accordingly developed less cardiac hypertrophy.

Enhancer of zeste homolog 2 expression is associated with tumor cell proliferation and metastasis in gastric cancer.

The enhancer of zeste homolog 2 (EZH2), a member of the polycomb group of proteins, plays an important role in cell proliferation and cell cycle regulation. EZH2 is overexpressed in aggressive forms of prostate, breast, bladder, and endometrial cancers. However, the role of EZH2 expression in gastric cancer has not been fully determined.