Intestinal Microbiota in the Carcinogenesis and Treatment of Colorectal Cancers

The term“intestinal microbiota”mainly refers to the bacteria colonizing the gut.They are divided into different enterotypes,which have different distributions and functions.Dysbiosis of the intestinal microbiota may cause a variety of diseases,including colorectal cancers.Besides carcinogenesis,they are also related to the efficacy and side effects of antitumor therapies,as well as the prognosis of patients.There are two theoretical explanations for how microbiota is involved in carcinogenesis:the“alpha-bughypothesis”and the“driver-passenger”model.These theories explain the course of carcinogenesis related to intestinal microbiota.However,the relationship between the intestinal microbiota and colonic epithelial cells is excessively emphasized under both of these theories,and other factors related to carcinogenesis are neglected.Pathogenic microbiota may be associated with colorectal cancer through different mechanisms,and may act singly or in combination.With regard to treatment,some intestinal microbiota may exert chemopreventive effects and improve the dysbiosis besides anti-inflammatory drugs.Most importantly,the intestinal microbiota may affect the anticancer effects of chemotherapy and immunotherapy.For example,it has been shown that some probiotics can promote the antitumor effects of immune checkpoint inhibitors.Intestinal microbiota may also influence the effects of oxaliplatin and the incidence and grade of diarrhea associated with irinotecan.There are new clinical trials that have been initiated to further investigate the effects of intestinal microbiota on the efficacy and side effects of antitumor therapy.In addition,new targets for the prevention and treatment of colorectal cancers associated with intestinal microbiota are under investigation.

Bioinformatics Analysis of miRNA-related Signaling Pathways in Non-small Cell Lung Cancer

The morbidity of lung cancer has increased rapidly in recent decades.Non-small cell lung cancer(NSCLC)accounts for 80%-85% of total lung cancer cases.The molecular mechanism associated with NSCLC remains unclear.MicroRNAs(miRNAs)play an important role at the post-transcriptional level.NSCLC-associated pathways targeted by NSCLC-related miRNAs(NSCLC-miRNAs)have not been fully investigated.In a previous study,we have demonstrated 10 miRNAs are overexpressed in NSCLC and can be used as biomarkers for NSCLC diagnosis.In the present study,we found that five of the 10 miRNAs were downregulated in several common cancers.We analyzed the protein classes,molecular functions,biological functions,and signaling pathways targeted by the 5 NSCLC-related miRNAs and four main canonical pathways,identifying potential new targets for future clinical applications.