Predictive value of dendritic cell-related genes for prognosis and immunotherapy response in lung adenocarcinoma.

Background: Patients with lung adenocarcinoma (LUAD) receiving drug treatment often have an unpredictive response and there is a lack of effective methods to predict treatment outcome for patients. Dendritic cells (DCs) play a significant role in the tumor microenvironment and the DCs-related gene signature may be used to predict treatment outcome. Here, we screened for DC-related genes to construct a prognostic signature to predict prognosis and response to immunotherapy in LUAD patients.

Silencing GRHL3 promotes multiple organ distant metastasis of lung squamous cell carcinoma cells by enhancing SOX2 stability via SIRT1.

Aberrant expression of grainyhead-like transcription factor 3 (GRHL3) has been extensively reported in the development and progression of several squamous cell carcinomas, such as cutaneous, head and neck, and esophageal squamous cell carcinoma. However, the clinical significance and biological roles of GRHL3 in lung squamous cell (LUSC) carcinoma are largely unclear. Herein, we report that GRHL3 was significantly upregulated in lung squamous epithelium of LUSC tissues, bronchiole, and bronchus.

Inactivation of TACC2 epigenetically represses CDKN1A and confers sensitivity to CDK inhibitors.

Background: The genomic landscape of esophageal squamous cell carcinoma (ESCC) has been characterized extensively, but there remains a significant need for actionable targets and effective therapies.

Methods: Here, we perform integrative analysis of genome-wide loss of heterozygosity and expression to identify potential tumor suppressor genes. The functions and mechanisms of one of the candidates, TACC2, are then explored both in vitro and in vivo, leading to the proposal of a therapeutic strategy based on the concept of synthetic lethality.

A phase Ia study of a novel anti-HER2 antibody-drug conjugate GQ1001 in patients with previously treated HER2 positive advanced solid tumors.

Background: A novel anti-human epidermal growth factor receptor 2 (HER2) antibody-drug conjugate (ADC) GQ1001 was assessed in patients with previously treated HER2 positive advanced solid tumors in a global multi-center phase Ia dose escalation trial.

Methods: In this phase Ia trial, a modified 3 + 3 study design was adopted during dose escalation phase. Eligible patients were enrolled, and GQ1001 monotherapy was administered intravenously every 3 weeks.

Intra-tumoral sphingobacterium multivorum promotes triple-negative breast cancer progression by suppressing tumor immunosurveillance.

Background: Intratumor-resident bacteria represent an integral component of the tumor microenvironment (TME). Microbial dysbiosis, which refers to an imbalance in the bacterial composition and bacterial metabolic activities, plays an important role in regulating breast cancer development and progression. However, the impact of specific intratumor-resident bacteria on tumor progression and their underlying mechanisms remain elusive.

Covalent Inhibitor Screening for Targeting LOXL2: Studied by Virtual Screening and Experimental Validation.

Background: Lysyl oxidase-like 2 (LOXL2) is a metalloenzyme that catalyzes oxidative deamination ε-amino group of lysine. It has been found that LOXL2 is a promotor for the metastasis and invasion in kinds of tumors. Previous studies show that disulfide bonds are important components in LOXL2, and their bioactivity can be regulated by those bonds.

Association Between Treatment-Related Adverse Event Trajectory and Prognosis in Esophageal Cancer Receiving Neoadjuvant Immunochemotherapy.

Background: Immunochemotherapy is inevitably accompanied with treatment-related adverse events (TRAEs). However, TRAEs are typically assessed at a single time point, overlooking the complexity of TRAE trajectories over time. This study aimed to characterize TRAE trajectories during multi-cycle neoadjuvant immunochemotherapy (nICT) and identify potential prognostic factors for patients with esophageal squamous cell carcinoma (ESCC).

MDRN: Multi-distillation residual network for efficient MR image super-resolution.

Super-resolution (SR) of magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) is gaining increasing attention for being able to provide detailed anatomical information. However, current SR methods often use the complex convolutional network for feature extraction, which is difficult to train and not suitable for limited computation resources in the medical scenario. To tackle these bottlenecks, we propose a multi-distillation residual network (MDRN) for more differential feature refinement, which has a superior trade-off between reconstruction accuracy and computation cost.

Prognostic value of immuno-inflammatory biomarkers in esophageal squamous cell carcinoma patients receiving immunotherapy combined with chemoradiotherapy and its association with immuno-genomic landscape.

Background: The clinical significance of immuno-inflammatory indicators and the underlying biological basis in patients with esophageal squamous cell carcinoma (ESCC) who receive chemoradiotherapy (CRT) combined with immunotherapy remains unclear. This study aims to evaluate the prognostic value of immuno-inflammatory biomarkers, develop a prognostic model, and explore the underlying mechanisms.

Methods: This study included 212 ESCC patients who received CRT and anti-PD-1 immunotherapy.

Radiofrequency Ablation Versus Stereotactic Body Radiotherapy for Recurrent Small Hepatocellular Carcinoma: A Randomized, Open-Label, Controlled Trial.

Purpose: To assess the efficacy and safety of radiofrequency ablation (RFA) versus stereotactic body radiotherapy (SBRT) in treating recurrent small hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC).

Methods: In this trial, patients with recurrent small HCC (single lesion ≤5 cm) were randomly assigned to receive either SBRT or RFA. The primary end point was local progression-free survival (LPFS), and secondary end points were progression-free survival (PFS), overall survival (OS), local control rate, and safety.

PPIH Expression Correlates with Tumor Aggressiveness and Immune Dysregulation in Hepatocellular Carcinoma.

Purpose: Hepatocellular Carcinoma (HCC) features a complex pathophysiology and unpredictable immunosuppressive microenvironment, which limit the effectiveness of traditional therapies and lead to poor patient outcomes. Understanding the immune characteristics of HCC is essential for elucidating the immune microenvironment and developing more effective treatments. This study investigates the role of Peptidyl-prolyl isomerase H (PPIH) in HCC by analyzing its expression, prognosis, methylation levels, and relationship with immune cell infiltration.

MST1 interactomes profiling across cell death in esophageal squamous cell carcinoma.

Objectives: Resistance to apoptosis in esophageal squamous cell carcinoma (ESCC) constitutes a significant impediment to treatment efficacy. Exploring alternative cell death pathways and their regulatory factors beyond apoptosis is crucial for overcoming drug resistance and enhancing therapeutic outcomes in ESCC.

Methods: Mammalian Ste 20-like kinase 1 (MST1) is implicated in regulating various cell deaths, including apoptosis, autophagy, and pyroptosis.

Multiomics reveals tumor microenvironment remodeling in locally advanced gastric and gastroesophageal junction cancer following neoadjuvant immunotherapy and chemotherapy.

Background: Perioperative chemotherapy is the standard of care for patients with locally advanced gastric and gastroesophageal junction cancer. Recent evidence demonstrated the addition of programmed cell death protein 1 (PD-1) inhibitors enhanced therapeutic efficacy. However, the mechanisms of response and resistance remain largely undefined.

Nomograms for predicting the prognosis in multiple primary esophageal squamous cell carcinoma.

Background: Due to its rarity, it is challenging to predict the survival of patients with synchronous multiple primary esophageal squamous carcinomas (SMPESCs). We aimed to construct nomograms to predict survival outcomes and help to make therapeutic strategy for patients with SMPESCs.

Materials And Methods: The clinical and survival data of 135 patients with SMPESCs were analyzed retrospectively.

Exploring the Allosteric Response of Fascin to Its Inhibitor.

Fascin is a major actin-binding protein (ABP) for stabilizing filopodia to support efficient adhesion and migration of cancer cells. Fascin is also highly expressed in metastatic tumors. Disrupting the actin-binding site (ABS) on fascin constitutes a critical approach to hindering tumor metastasis.

Blockade of purine metabolism reverses macrophage immunosuppression and enhances anti-tumor immunity in non-small cell lung cancer.

Aims: Immune checkpoint blockade therapy is not effective in most patients with non-small cell lung cancer (NSCLC) due to the immunosuppressive tumor microenvironment. Macrophages are key components of tumor-infiltrating immune cells and play a critical role in immunosuppression, which can be mediated by cell-intrinsic metabolism. This study aimed to evaluate whether macrophages regulate NSCLC progression through metabolic crosstalk with cancer cells and affect immunotherapy efficacy.

Induction chemotherapy plus chemoradiotherapy in esophageal cancer: long-term results and exploratory analyses of a randomized controlled trial.

Background: Previous results of our trial demonstrated that the addition of induction chemotherapy (IC) prior to definitive chemoradiotherapy (CRT) failed to significantly improve the response rate or 3-year survival in patients with locally advanced esophageal squamous cell carcinoma (ESCC). Here, we report long-term results and exploratory analyses to further evaluate the therapeutic value of IC.

Methods: Patients with previously untreated, unresectable, stage II-IVA ESCC were randomly assigned to receive IC followed by CRT or CRT alone.

Liquid biopsy to identify Barrett's oesophagus, dysplasia and oesophageal adenocarcinoma: the multicentre study.

Background: There is no clinically relevant serological marker for the early detection of oesophageal adenocarcinoma (EAC) and its precursor lesion, Barrett's oesophagus (BE).

Objective: To develop and test a blood-based assay for EAC and BE.

Design: Oesophageal MicroRNAs of BaRRett, Adenocarcinoma and Dysplasia () was a large, international, multicentre biomarker cohort study involving 792 patient samples from 4 countries (NCT06381583) to develop and validate a circulating miRNA signature for the early detection of EAC and high-risk BE.

GPRC5A promotes lung colonization of esophageal squamous cell carcinoma.

Emerging evidence suggests that cancer cells may disseminate early, prior to the formation of traditional macro-metastases. However, the mechanisms underlying the seeding and transition of early disseminated cancer cells (DCCs) into metastatic tumors remain poorly understood. Through single-cell RNA sequencing, we show that early lung DCCs from esophageal squamous cell carcinoma (ESCC) exhibit a trophoblast-like 'tumor implantation' phenotype, which enhances their dissemination and supports metastatic growth.

Lympho-myeloid aggregate-infiltrating CD20 B cells display a double-negative phenotype and correlate with poor prognosis in esophageal squamous cell carcinoma.

According to morphological features, tumor-infiltrating B cells (TIL-Bs) can be classified as lympho-myeloid aggregates (LMAs) and tertiary lymphoid structures (TLSs). As a disease with high incidence and mortality, research on esophageal squamous cell carcinoma (ESCC) TIL-Bs is still unclear. Thus, we aimed to investigate the prognostic value and functional involvement of TIL-Bs in ESCC.

DNA methylation classifier to diagnose pancreatic ductal adenocarcinoma metastases from different anatomical sites.

Background: We have recently constructed a DNA methylation classifier that can discriminate between pancreatic ductal adenocarcinoma (PAAD) liver metastasis and intrahepatic cholangiocarcinoma (iCCA) with high accuracy (PAAD-iCCA-Classifier). PAAD is one of the leading causes of cancer of unknown primary and diagnosis is based on exclusion of other malignancies. Therefore, our focus was to investigate whether the PAAD-iCCA-Classifier can be used to diagnose PAAD metastases from other sites.