Cancer stem cells render a complex cascade of events that facilitates highly invasive melanoma malignancy. Interplay between immunocytes and cancer stem cells within tumor microenvironment with the participation of sphingolipid signaling mediators skews the immune evasion strategies toward metastatic neoplasm. In this context, we aimed to explore the functional aspect of glucosylceramide synthase (GCS)

Rohitukine, a chromone alkaloid extracted from Dysoxylum binectariferum, has a propitious anticancer activity. Our previous study shows that a new Rohitukine derivative IIIM-290 restricts the growth of pancreatic cancer in vivo and in vitro. In the present findings, we report the mechanism of cell death induced by IIIM-290 in MOLT-4 cells (acute lymphoblastic leukemia) and its anticancer potential

ERCC1 is a gene for repairing DNA damage whose function is related to carcinogenic-induced tumorigenesis and the effectiveness of platinum therapies. Circular RNAs (circRNAs) are products of posttranscriptional regulation with pleiotropic effects on the pathogenesis of lung cancer. We aim to identify that specific circRNAs derived from ERCC1 can regulate key biological processes involved in the development

Monocarboxylate transporter 4 (MCT4) is highly expressed in various types of solid neoplasms including breast cancer (BC); however, the pro-tumor functions underlying its increased expression have not been explained. Here, we examined the roles of posttranslational modifications to MCT4 in BC, particularly SUMOylation. Our findings revealed that SUMOylation of MCT4 inhibited its degradation and stabilized

In Wang et al.,1 the following error was published on page 1814, in Figure 2B and on page 1816, in Figure 4B. Figure 2 Open in figure viewerPowerPoint B Figure 4 Open in figure viewerPowerPoint B Following publication, the authors discovered that in Figure 2B, they inadvertently used the transwell invasion image of Blank (inhibitor of MIF negative control) group from Control (MIF knockdown negative

In Gao et al.,1 the following error was published on page 2307 in Figure 3. Following publication, the authors discovered that there were two mismatched images in the figure (panel F and H) due to the loss of original data in the lab movement. The experiment was repeated by the authors and the results exactly recapitulated the phenomena observed in the previous study. The results and conclusions were

Retraction Statement: Knockdown of cathepsin B and uPAR inhibits CD151 and α3β1 integrin-mediated cell adhesion and invasion in glioma.

Gastric cancer (GC) has one of the highest tumor incidences worldwide. Heat shock protein 70 (HSP70) is highly expressed and plays a critical role in the occurrence, progression, metastasis, poor prognosis, and drug resistance of GC. However, the underlying mechanisms of HSP70 are not clear. To explore the regulatory role of HSP70 in GC, we performed cell counting kit-8 (CCK-8) and EdU staining assays

Cancer multidrug resistance (MDR) is existence in stem cell-like cancer cells characterized by stemness including high-proliferation and self-renewal. Programmed cell death 4 (PDCD4), as a proapoptotic gene, whether it engaged in cancer stemness and cisplatin resistance is still unknown. Here we showed that PDCD4 expressions in Hela/DDP (cisplatin resistance) cells were lower than in parental Hela

Active cancer-associated fibroblasts (CAFs) are major components of the tumor microenvironment, which promote carcinogenesis and modulate response to therapy. Therefore, targeting these cells or reducing their paracrine pro-carcinogenic effects could be of great therapeutic value. To this end, we sought to investigate the effect of eugenol, a natural phenolic molecule, on active breast CAFs. We have

Oral squamous cell carcinoma (OSCC) is the most common type of oral malignancy. Our study uses multipoint materials to explore the heterogeneity and metastasis mechanism of OSCC to find more accurate molecular markers and new therapeutic targets. By using whole-exome capture and sequencing and tumor evolution analysis, we found that most clone-driven mutations were located in the branches of tumor

Programmed death-ligand 1 (PD-L1)-mediated resistance has become a great challenge for tumor treatment. Cisplatin increased tumor PD-L1 expression, promoted chemotherapy resistance. Interferon-γ (IFN-γ)-induced PD-L1 expression might facilitate immunotherapy resistance. Methylseleninic acid (MSeA), a selenium (Se) compound, offered superior cancer chemo-preventive activities and enhanced tumor sensitivity

Gastric cancer (GC) is histologically classified into intestinal-type gastric cancer (IGC) and diffuse-type gastric cancer (DGC), and the latter is poorly differentiated and highly metastatic. In this study, using quantitative real-time polymerase chain reaction, we described a complete protocol for in vivo CRISPR–Cas9-based knockout screening of essential genes for DGC metastasis. We functionally

Hepatocellular carcinoma is a highly fatal disease and threatens human health seriously. Fluid shear stress (FSS), which is caused by the leakage of plasma from abnormally permeable tumor blood vessels and insufficient lymphatic drainage, has been identified as contributing pathologically to cancer metastasis. Autophagy and epithelial–mesenchymal transition (EMT) are both reported to be involved in

Genome-wide association study recently identified a novel antiviral gene INTS10 (index rs7000921) in suppression of hepatitis B virus (HBV) replication. However, data were lacking on single nucleotide polymorphisms (SNPs) of INTS10 in the context of hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC) induced by HBV infection. Herein, we conducted a case-control study, including 737 HBV-related HCC cases and 750 persistently

Nonhomologous end joining (NHEJ), one of the major DNA double-strand break repair pathways, plays a significant role in cancer cell proliferation and resistance to radio and chemotherapeutic agents. Previously, we had described a small molecule inhibitor, SCR7, which inhibited NHEJ in a DNA Ligase IV dependent manner. Here, we report that SCR7 potentiates the effect of γ-radiation (IR) that induces

Recent studies evidence that ubiquitin-specific proteases (USPs) are associated with the occurrence and chemoresistance of T-cell acute lymphoblastic leukemia (T-ALL). N6-methyladenosine (m6A) demethylase AlkB homolog 5 (ALKBH5) exerts a carcinogenic effect in human cancers and improves the mRNA stability of USPs. Whether ubiquitin-specific protease 1 (USP1) controls chemoresistance of T-ALL is unknown

The Cancer Genome Atlas (TCGA) of a pancreatic cancer cohort identified high MST1R (RON tyrosine kinase receptor) expression correlated with poor prognosis in human pancreatic cancer. RON expression is null/minimal in normal pancreas but elevates from pan-in lesions through invasive carcinomas. We report using multiple approaches RON directly regulates HIF-1α, a critical driver of genes involved in

Insulin-like growth factors (IGF) play important roles in carcinogenesis. The associations of circulating IGF-1 and insulin-like growth factor-binding protein-3 (IGFBP-3) with the risks of bladder cancer remain unclear. In this large case control study of 2011 bladder cancer cases and 2369 heathy controls, we assessed the associations of circulating IGF-1 and IGFBP-3 with bladder cancer risks using

The role of β-catenin/TCF transcriptional activity in endometrial cancer (EC) recurrence is not well understood. We assessed the impact of Wnt/β-catenin inhibition in EC models. In an analysis of the Cancer Genome Atlas, we confirmed that CTNNB1 mutations are enriched in recurrent low-risk EC and showed that aberrant Wnt/β-catenin pathway activation is associated with recurrence. We studied CTNNB1-wildtype

Tumour-derived CXCL8 facilitates the movement of myeloid-derived suppressor cells, which are able to restrain antitumour immune responses to the tumour microenvironment. Kruppel-like factor 4 (KLF4) is a potential tumour suppressor in gastric cancer (GC). However, knowledge regarding correlations between KLF4 and CXCL8 in GC is limited. We use cellular and molecular biological methods to assess whether

Triple-negative breast cancer (TNBC) is the most malignant subtype of breast cancer. Some microRNAs (miRNAs) were abnormally expressed in TNBC, and they are closely related to the occurrence and progression of TNBC. Here, we found that miR-506 was significantly downregulated in TNBC and relatively lower miR-506 expression predicted a poorer prognosis. Moreover, we found that miR-506 could inhibit MDA-MB-231

The epithelial–mesenchymal transition (EMT) is a pivotal step involved in cancer recurrence and metastasis. In addition, the activation of the EMT program can induce a cancer stem cell (CSC)-like phenotype and programmed death-ligand 1 (PD-L1) expression in head and neck squamous cell carcinoma (HNSCC). The CMTM family has reported as an important regulator in this process. Here, we investigated the

The sesquiterpene lactone parthenolide is a major component of the feverfew medicinal plant, Tanacetum parthenium. Parthenolide has been extensively studied for its anti-inflammatory and anticancer properties in several tumor models. Parthenolide's antitumor activities depend on several mechanisms but it is mainly known as an inhibitor of the nuclear factor-κB (NF-κB) pathway. This pathway is constitutively

Circular RNAs (circRNAs) have been implicated to have important regulatory functions in chemical carcinogenesis via sponging microRNAs to regulate gene expression. Our study revealed a novel mechanism of circRNA in cadmium carcinogenesis through directly binding with protein. Here, we used cadmium-transformed human bronchial epithelial BEAS-2B cells to study the involvement and mechanism of circRNA

Acute promyelocytic leukemia (APL) is a distinct subtype of acute myeloid leukemia (AML), which is characterized by the reciprocal t (15;17) (q24; q21) translocation, resulting in PML–RARA gene fusion. Therapy-related AML (t-AML) is a serious complication after cytotoxic and/or radiation therapy in many malignant diseases. In this report, MLL/KMT2A-MON2, with balanced chromosomal translocation t (11;12)

Forkhead box class O (FOXO) transcription factors play a pivotal role in regulating a variety of biological processes, including organismal development, cell signaling, cell metabolism, and tumorigenesis. Therefore, we hypothesize that genetic variants in FOXO pathway genes are associated with breast cancer (BC) risk. To test this hypothesis, we conducted a large meta-analysis using 14 published genome-wide

Canine mammary gland tumors (CMTs) are the most common tumor type in female dogs. This study evaluated the expression pattern and role of thyroglobulin (Tg) in CMT and in human breast cancer (HBC). CMT samples were subjected to fine-needle aspiration, primary cell culture, and histopathology. The expression level of Tg was higher in benign CMT than in malignant CMT (mCMT) primary cells, particularly

Mesothelioma is a highly aggressive cancer of the mesothelial lining that is caused by exposure to asbestos. Surgical resection followed by chemotherapy is the current treatment strategy, but this is marginally successful and leads to drug-resistant disease. We are interested in factors that maintain the aggressive mesothelioma cancer phenotype as therapy targets. Protein arginine methyltransferase

Aberrant expression of kinesin family member 4A (KIF4A), which is associated with tumor progression, has been reported in several types of cancer. However, its expression and the underlying molecular mechanisms regulating the transcription of KIF4A in esophageal squamous cell carcinoma (ESCC) remain largely unclear. Here, we found that high KIF4A expression was positively correlated with tumor stage

Aberrant expression or mutation of the Septin gene family is closely associated with cancer progression, and septin 2 (SEPT2) exerts its tumor-promoting effects in multiple cancers, but its role in regulating laryngeal squamous cell carcinoma (LSCC) progression and drug resistance has not been investigated. Based on the published data, the present study identified that SEPT2 promoted cancer progression

c-Hepatocyte growth factor receptor (Met) inhibitors have demonstrated clinical benefits in some types of solid tumors. However, the efficacy of c-Met inhibitors in esophageal squamous cell carcinoma (ESCC) remains unclear. In this study, we discovered that c-Met inhibitors induced “Signal Transducer and Activator of Transcription (STAT3)-addiction” in ESCC cells, and the feedback activation of STAT3

Epidermal squamous cell carcinoma (SCC) develops in response to ultraviolet light exposure and is among the most common cancers. The transglutaminase 2 cancer cell survival protein stimulates the activity of the YAP1/TEAD transcription complex to drive the expression of genes that promote aggressive epidermal SCC cell invasion, migration, and tumor formation. Therefore, we are interested in mechanisms

Cervical cancer (CC) is one of the most common cancers among women with high recurrence rates all over the world. Recently, the molecular mechanism of CC has been gradually uncovered in accumulating reports. This study aimed to investigate the function and upstream regulation mechanism of pyruvate dehydrogenase kinase 4 (PDK4) in CC cells, which was verified as an oncogene in several cancers. Through

The potential role of hepatocytes versus hepatic progenitor cells (HPC) on the onset and pathogenesis of hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC) has not been fully clarified. Because the administration of 2‐acetylaminofluorene (2AAF) followed by a partial hepatectomy, selectively induces the HPC proliferation, we investigated the effects of chronic 2AAF administration on the HCC development caused by the chronic

Epigenetics/epigenomics has been shown to be involved in carcinogenesis. However, how the epigenome would be altered in the transgenic adenocarcinoma of the mouse prostate (TRAMP) cancer model and the effect of cancer chemopreventive phytochemical phenethyl isothiocyanate (PEITC) on the epigenome in TRAMP mice are not known. PEITC has been reported to reduce the risk of many cancers including prostate

Abnormal DNA methylation is considered a vital hallmark to regulate gene expression and influence the development and progression of colorectal cancer (CRC). Although CRC‐related methylation prognostic models have been developed, their clinical application is limited due to the lack of external validation and extension to other survival evaluation indicators. Therefore, this study aimed to develop

Ours and other previous studies have shown that CYP4Z1 is specifically and highly expressed in breast cancer, and acts as a promoter for the stemness of breast cancer cells. Here, we explored whether targeting CYP4Z1 could attenuate the stemness of breast cancer cells using HET0016, which has been confirmed to be an inhibitor of CYP4Z1 by us and others. Using the transcriptome‐sequencing analysis,

Fluid accumulation in the abdominal cavity is commonly found in advanced‐stage ovarian cancer patients, which creates a specialized tumor microenvironment for cancer progression. Using single‐cell RNA sequencing (scRNA‐seq) of ascites cells from five patients with ovarian cancer, we identified seven cell types, including heterogeneous macrophages and ovarian cancer cells. We resolved a distinct polarization

Oncogenic high‐risk human papillomavirus (HR‐HPV) infection causes a majority of cases of cervical cancer and pre‐cancerous cervical lesions. However, the mechanisms underlying the direct evolution from HPV‐16/18‐infected epithelium to cervical intraepithelial neoplasia (CIN) III, which can progress to cervical cancer, remain poorly identified. Here, we performed RNA‐seq after laser capture microdissection

Incidence of melanoma continues to rise in the United States with ~100,000 new cases diagnosed in 2019. While the 5‐year survival rate of melanoma is 99% when localized, the rate of survival drops to 22.5% when distant disease is detected. As such, an area of great interest is understanding the mechanisms that promote melanoma metastasis so that better potential therapeutic targets can be discovered

The transcription factor Twist1 has been reported to be essential for the formation and invasiveness of chemically induced tumors in mouse skin. However, the impact of keratinocyte‐specific Twist1 deletion on skin carcinogenesis caused by UVB radiation has not been reported. Deletion of Twist1 in basal keratinocytes of mouse epidermis using K5.Cre × Twist1flox/flox mice led to significantly reduced

N6‐Methyladenosine (m6A) is the most common modification of messenger RNA (mRNA) in mammals. It critically influences RNA metabolism and plays an essential role in virtually all types of bioprocesses including gene expression, tissue development, self‐renewal and differentiation of stem cells, stress response and circadian clock control. It plays a crucial role in carcinogenesis and could be used as

The suppressive activity of monocyte chemoattractant protein 1‐induced protein 1 (MCPIP1) an inflammation‐related ribonuclease, has been described in a few cancer types but has yet to be assessed in the most common subtype of skin cancer: melanoma. Here, we have evaluated the MCPIP1 expression in melanoma tissues by reanalysis of publicly available transcriptome data from 89 melanoma samples, and immunohistochemical

Active cancer‐associated fibroblasts (CAFs), which constitute the most preponderant cell type in breast tumors, contribute actively to all aspects of cancer progression, stimulate recurrence, and restrain drug sensitivity. In the present study, we tested the effect of the selective JAK/STAT3 inhibitor cucurbitacin I (JSI‐124) on active breast CAFs. We have shown that JSI‐124 at non‐cytotoxic concentration

The ErbB3 binding protein 1 (Ebp1) has been reported in several cancers, in which it can act as either a pro‐oncogenic regulator or a tumor suppressor. However, the biological function and molecular mechanism of Ebp1 p48 in hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC) remain unclear. Here, we report that the long isoform of Ebp1, p48, is highly expressed in HCC tissues compared with normal tissues. Ebp1 p48 expression

Ubiquitin‐specific protease 39 (USP39) is frequently overexpressed in a variety of cancers, and involved in the regulation of various biological processes, such as cell proliferation, cell cycle progression, apoptosis and pre‐messenger RNA splicing. Nevertheless, the biological roles and mechanisms of USP39 in colon cancer remain largely unknown. In this study, we analyzed whether USP39 can be a molecular

Alternative splicing (AS) is a process that produces various mRNA splicing isoforms via different splicing patterns of mRNA precursors (pre‐mRNAs). AS is the primary mechanism for increasing the types and quantities of proteins to improve biodiversity and influence multiple biological processes, including chromatin modification, signal transduction, and protein expression. It has been reported that

Germline variants of the melanocortin‐1‐receptor (MC1R) gene are the most common genetic trait predisposing to cutaneous melanoma (CM). Here, we performed a literature review and meta‐analysis of the association between MC1R gene variants and the frequency of somatic mutations of the BRAF, NRAS, and TERT genes in CM patients. We included studies published until January 2020 in MEDLINE, EMBASE, Ovid

Although beta 2 adrenergic receptors (β2ADR) are present in the keratinocytes, their role in cutaneous squamous cell tumorigenesis needs to be ascertained. For the first time, we report here that selective β2ADR antagonists by inhibiting β2ADR actions significantly retarded the progression of ultraviolet B (UVB) induced premalignant cutaneous squamous cell lesions. These antagonists acted by inhibiting

Esophageal squamous cell carcinoma (ESCC) is recognized as one of the malignant tumors with poor prognosis. UAP1L1 (UDP‐N‐acetylglucosamine‐1‐like‐1) affects numerous biological processes, which is a key regulator of the development of malignant tumors. The biological function and molecular mechanism of UAP1L1 in ESCC were explored in this study. The relationship between UAP1L1 and ESCC was analyzed

Interaction between a tumor and its microenvironment is important for tumor initiation and progression. Cancer stem cells (CSCs) within the tumor interact with a microenvironmental niche that controls their maintenance and differentiation. We investigated the CSC‐promoting effect of factors released from myofibroblasts into the microenvironment of early colorectal cancer tumors and its molecular mechanism

Mutations in the BRAF gene are highly prevalent in thyroid cancer. However, the response rate of thyroid tumors to BRAF‐directed therapies has been mixed. Increasingly, combination therapies inhibiting the MAPK pathway at multiple nodes have shown promise. Recently developed ERK1/2 inhibitors are of interest for use in combination therapies as they have the advantage of inhibiting the most downstream

The overexpression and amplification of the protooncogene neu (ERBB2) play an important role in the development of aggressive breast cancer (BC) in humans. Ral‐interacting protein (RLIP), a modular stress‐response protein with pleiotropic functions, is overexpressed in several types of cancer, including BC. Here, we show that blocking RLIP attenuates the deleterious effects caused by the loss of the

The evolving concept that cancer stem cells (CSCs) are the driving element in cancer development, evolution and heterogeneity, has overridden the previous model of a tumor consisting of cells all with similar sequentially acquired mutations and a similar potential for renewal, invasion and metastasis. This paradigm shift has focused attention on therapeutically targeting CSCs directly as a means of

Acute promyelocytic leukemia (APL) is a unique disease entity in acute myeloid leukemia, characterized by PML‐RARA fusion gene, which is generated by chromosomal translocation t(15;17)(q24;q21). We identified TNRC18‐RARA as novel RARA fusion in resembling APL. Our study highlights the importance of combining multiple molecular techniques to characterize and optimally manage APL lacking classic t(1

Multiple myeloma (MM) is a heterogeneous bone marrow cancer characterized by proliferation of malignant plasma cells in the bone marrow. One of its major symptoms are hypercalcaemia and bone lesions, which may result in pathologic bone fractures. Receptor activator for nuclear factor κB (RANK) and its ligand, RANKL, are part of an activation pathway for osteoclasts and are thus responsible for bone