Effects of Neuregulins on Invasion and Metastasis of Non-overexpression ErbB2 Breast Cancer Cells

Objective： To explore the effects of neuregulins on ErbB2 receptor signal transduction pathway activation, and invasion and metastasis of non-overexpression ErbB2 breast cancer cell MDA-MB-231. Methods： The expressions of neuregulin were detected by immunocytochemistry and Western blot. MDA-MB-231 cells were treated with ErbB2 kinase inhibitor AG825. Proliferations were measured with MTT assay. Invasion and metastasis of MDA-ME-231 cells were evaluated with transwell chamber. The enzyme activities of MMP-2 and MMP-9 were detected by gelatin zymography. The expressions of MMP-2 and HIF-1α were detected by Western blot. Results： MDA-MB-231 cells expressed a relatively higher level of neuregulin. In Western blot, the positive reaction band was found at 44KD which coincides with the molecular weight of NRG. When MDA-MB-231 cells were treated with AG825, the proliferation was inhibited in a time-dose-dependent manner （P〈0.01）, invasion and metastasis were also depressed （P〈0.05）. The enzyme activities of MMP-2 and MMP-9 were lower （P〈0.05）. The expression levels of MMP-2 and HIF-lct were decreased （P〈0.05）. Conclusion： Our study indicates that neuregulins are synthesized in MDA-MB-231 cells as transmembrane proteins, neuregulins could activate ErbB2 receptor signal transduction pathway by autocrine or paracrine secretion, and induce invasion and metastasis of MDA-MB-231 cells.

UBE2T mediates the stemness properties of breast cancer cells through the mTOR signaling pathway

Objectives:This study aimed to reveal the role and possible mechanism of the ubiquitin-conjugating enzyme 2T(UBE2T)in the biological activities of breast cancer stem cells(BCSCs).Methods:The specific protein and gene expression were quantified by Western blotting and quantitative real-time polymerase chain reaction,the proportion of BCSCs was examined by flow cytometry,and the self-renewal and proliferation of BCSCs were verified by serial sphere formation and soft agar.Results:Increasing expression of UBE2T was drastically found in breast cancer than that in adjacent tissues.Furthermore,UBE2T overexpression significantly increased the proportion of BCSCs in breast cancer cells and promoted their self-renewal and proliferation.Silent UBE2T exhibited the opposite functions.UBE2T increased the levels of the mammalian target of rapamycin and the phosphorylated mammalian target of rapamycin.Mammalian target of rapamycin(mTOR)inhibitor rapamycin inhibited the function of UBE2T in BCSCs.Conclusion:UBE2T plays a role in BCSCs through mTOR pathway and may suggest a novel therapeutic strategy for breast cancer.

Induction of ERBB2 Nuclear Transport after Radiation in Breast Cancer Cells

The ERBB2 nuclear transport in breast cancer cell lines after radiation and its possible role in radiation tolerance were observed. Confocal microscopy and Western blotting were applied to detect the nuclear ERBB2 expression after radiation in breast carcinomas cells. And the effects of Herceptin, AG825 and Cisplatin on the expression of nuclear ERBB2 were investigated. Survival fractions were also observed. After radiation, compared with control group, confocal microscopy and Western blot revealed that the expression of nuclear ERBB2 was increased in breast cancer cells time-dependently. Herceptin, and AG825 could significantly inhibit the radiation-induced nuclear ERBB2 expression, and decrease survival fractions. Cisplatin also induced the nuclear ERBB2 expression in breast cancer cells with high ERBB2 expression. It was concluded that radiation could induce ERBB2 nuclear transport, and nuclear ERBB2 may correlate with radiation resistance in breast cancer cells with high ERBB2 expression.

Vaccinia-related kinase 2 variants differentially affect breast cancer growth by regulating kinase activity

Genetic information is transcribed from genomic DNA to mRNA,which is then translated into threedimensional proteins.mRNAs can undergo various post-transcriptional modifications,including RNA editing that alters mRNA sequences,ultimately affecting protein function.In this study,RNA editing was identified at the 499th base(c.499)of human vaccinia-related kinase 2(VRK2).This RNA editing changes the amino acid in the catalytic domain of VRK2 from isoleucine(with adenine base)to valine(with guanine base).Isoleucine-containing VRK2 has higher kinase activity than the valine-containing VRK2,which leads to an increase in tumor cell proliferation.Earlier we reported that VRK2 directly interacts with dystrobrevin-binding protein(dysbindin)and results in reducing its stability.Herein,we demonstrate that isoleucine-containing VRK2 decreases the level of dysbindin than valinecontaining VRK2.Dysbindin interacts with cyclin D and thereby regulates its expression and function.The reduction in the level of dysbindin by isoleucine-containing VRK2 further enhances the cyclin D expression,resulting in increased tumor growth and reduction in survival rates.It has also been observed that in patient samples,VRK2 level was elevated in breast cancer tissue compared to normal breast tissue.Additionally,the isoleucine form of VRK2 exhibited a greater increase in breast cancer tissue.Therefore,it is concluded that VRK2,especially dependent on the 167th variant amino acid,can be one of the indexes of tumor progression and proliferation.

Suppression of cell growth and invasion by miR-205 in breast cancer

MicroRNAs （miRNAs） are endogenous, small, non-coding RNAs, which are capable of silencing gene expression at the post-transcriptional level. In this study, we report that miR-205 is significantly underexpressed in breast tumor compared to the matched normal breast tissue. Similarly, breast cancer cell lines, including MCF-7 and MDA-MB- 231, express a lower level miR-205 than the non-malignant MCF-10A cells. Of interest, ectopic expression of miR-205 significantly inhibits cell proliferation and anchorage independent growth, as well as cell invasion. Furthermore, miR- 205 was shown to suppress lung metastasis in an animal model. Finally, western blot combined with the luciferase reporter assays demonstrate that ErbB3 and vascular endothelial growth factor A （VEGF-A） are direct targets for miR-205, and this miR-205-mediated suppression is likely through the direct interaction with the putative miR-205 binding site in the 3＇-untranslated region （3＇-UTR） of ErbB3 and VEGF-A. Together, these results suggest that miR- 205 is a tumor suppressor in breast cancer.

The PI3K/Akt/GSK-3β/ROS/eIF2B pathway promotes breast cancer growth and metastasis via suppression of NK cell cytotoxicity and tumor cell susceptibility

Objective: To examine the effect of pSer9-GSK-3β on breast cancer and to determine whether the underlying metabolic and immunological mechanism is associated with ROS/eIF2B and natural killer(NK) cells.Methods: We employed TWS119 to inactivate GSK-3β by phosphorylating Ser9 and explored its effect on breast cancer and NK cells. The expression of GSK-3β, natural killer group 2 member D(NKG2D) ligands, eIF2B was quantified by PCR and Western blot. We measured intracellular reactive oxygen species(ROS) and mitochondrial ROS using DCFH-DA and MitoSOX^(TM) probe,respectively, and conducted quantitative analysis of cellular respiration on 4T1 cells with mitochondrial respiratory chain complex Ⅰ/Ⅲ kits.Results: Our investigation revealed that TWS119 downregulated NKG2D ligands(H60 a and Rae1), suppressed the cytotoxicity of NK cells, and promoted the migration of 4T1 murine breast cancer cells. Nevertheless, LY290042, which attenuates p-GSK-3β formation by inhibiting the PI3K/Akt pathway, reversed these effects. We also found that higher expression of p Ser9-GSK-3β induced higher levels of ROS, and observed that abnormality of mitochondrial respiratory chain complex Ⅰ/Ⅲ function induced the dysfunction of GSK-3β-induced electron transport chain, naturally disturbing the ROS level. In addition, the expression of NOX3 and NOX4 was significantly up-regulated, which affected the generation of ROS and associated with the metastasis of breast cancer. Furthermore, we found that the expression of pSer535-eIF2B promoted the expression of NKG2D ligands(Mult-1 and Rae1) following by expression of pSer9-GSK-3β and generation of ROS.Conclusions: The PI3K/Akt/GSK-3β/ROS/eIF2B pathway could regulate NK cell activity and sensitivity of tumor cells to NK cells,which resulted in breast cancer growth and lung metastasis. Thus, GSK-3β is a promising target of anti-tumor therapy.

HIF-2α regulates CD44 to promote cancer stem cell activation in triple-negative breast cancer via PI3K/AKT/mTOR signaling

BACKGROUND Breast cancer is a common malignant tumor that seriously threatens women’s health.Breast cancer stem cell(CSC)-like cell population may be the main factor for breast cancer metastasis.Therefore,targeted therapy for CSCs has great potential significance.Hypoxia-inducible factor is a transcription factor widely expressed in tumors.Studies have shown that down-regulation of the hypoxia signaling pathway inhibits tumor stem cell self-renewal and increases the sensitivity of stem cells to radiotherapy and chemotherapy mediated by hypoxiainducible factor-2α(HIF-2α).However,the specific mechanism remains unclear and further research is necessary.AIM To investigate the effect of HIF-2αdown-regulation on stem cell markers,microsphere formation,and apoptosis in breast cancer cell line MDA-MB-231 under hypoxia and its possible mechanism.METHODS Immunohistochemistry was used to detect the expression of HIF-2αand CD44 in triple-negative breast cancer(TNBC)and non-TNBC tissues.Double-labeling immunofluorescence was applied to detect the co-expression of HIF-2αand CD44 in MDA-MB-231 cells and MCF-7 cells.HIF-2αwas silenced by RNA interference,and the expression of CD44 and transfection efficiency were detected by real-time fluorescent quantitative PCR.Further,flow cytometry,TdT-mediated X-dUTP nick end labeling,and mammosphere formation assays were used to evaluate the effect of HIF-2αon CSCs and apoptosis.The possible mechanisms were analyzed by Western blot.RESULTS The results of immunohistochemistry showed that HIF-2αwas highly expressed in both TNBC and non-TNBC,while the expression of CD44 in different molecular types of breast cancer cells was different.In in vitro experiments,it was found that HIF-2αand CD44 were expressed almost in the same cell.Compared with hypoxia+negative-sequence control,HIF-2αsmall interfering ribonucleic acid transfection can lower the expression of HIF-2αand CD44 mRNA(P<0.05),increase the percentage of apoptotic cells(P<0.05),and resulted in a reduction of CD44+/CD24−population(P<0.05)and mammosphere formation(P<0.05)in hypoxic MDA-MB-231 cells.Western blot analysis revealed that phosphorylated protein-serine-threonine kinase(p-AKT)and phosphorylated mammalian target of rapamycin(p-mTOR)levels in MDA-MB-231 decreased significantly after HIF-2αsilencing(P<0.05).CONCLUSION Down-regulation of HIF-2αexpression can inhibit the stemness of human breast cancer MDA-MB-231 cells and promote apoptosis,and its mechanism may be related to the CD44/phosphoinosmde-3-kinase/AKT/mTOR signaling pathway.

Dietary Daidzein Enhances Antiapoptotic Effect of 17β-Estradiol (E_2) on Breast Cancer MCF-7 Cells

Objective： To investigate whether dietary daidzein interact with endogenous 17β-Estradiol （E2） to give rise to additive or inhibitory effects on proliferation and apoptosis in breast cancer cells. Methods： Cell cycle distribution and apoptosis induction were analyzed by using flow cytometry when breast cancer cell lines MCF-7 were cotreated with daidzein （1, 5 μmol/L） and E2 （0.1-10 nmol/L） for 5 days. Whether daidzein could alter E2-modulated mRNA expression of estrogen receptor alpha （ERα）, estrogen receptor beta （ERI3） and ERβ-estrogen response element （ERE） dependent transcription was investigated by RT-PCR and luciferase induction assays. The effects of daidzein on E2-modulated expression of proapoptotic p53, bax and antiapoptotic bcl-2 at both mRNA and protein levels were also investigated by RT-PCR and Western blot. Results： Daidzein enhanced the antiapoptotic effect in an Ea dose-dependent manner, but had no effect on E2-induced proliferation. Daidzein antagonized E2-induced ERβ mRNA expression and ERβ-ERE dependent transcription. In addition, daidzein only antagonized E2-upregulated expression of p53 and bax, but had no effect on E2-upregulated expression of bcl-2. Conclusion： Daidzein enhances the antiapoptotic effect of E2 on breast cancer cells by inhibiting E2-mediated p53-bax proapoptotic pathway. These results suggest that dietary daidzein may enhance deleterious effect of endogenous E2 in hormone-dependent breast cancer.

Regulation of mitochondrial carrier SLC25A13 on breast cancer cell cycle in vitro

Objective·To investigate the role of mitochondrial solute carrier family 25 member 13(SLC25A13)on breast cancer development.Methods·SLC25A13 mRNA and protein expressions in invasive breast cancer tissues and normal breast tissues were from The Cancer Genome Atlas(TCGA)breast cancer dataset.Survival analysis was conducted online by Kaplan-Meier software.MCF-7 cell line was used for in vitro cell assay.Knockdown of SLC25A13 and sirtuin 2(SIRT2)were conducted by siRNA transfection.Cell viability was measured with trypan blue exclusion.Cell cycle arrest was determined by flow cytometry.The mRNA expression of SLC25A13 and P27 were detected by quantitative PCR.The protein level of SLC25A13,P27 and SIRT2 were detected by Western blotting.Protein half-life of P27 was assessed by Western blotting after cycloheximide treatment.Results·SLC25A13 was up-regulated in invasive breast cancer tissues.High expression of SLC25A13 correlated with poor overall survival and breast cancer recurrence.SLC25A13 knockdown inhibited MCF-7 cell cycle progression.P27 and SIRT2 both accumulated after SLC25A13 knockdown.P27 accumulation resulted from prolonged protein half-life.Knockdown of SIRT2 restored cell cycle arrest as well as P27 accumulation caused by SLC25A13 silencing.Conclusion·High expression of SLC25A13 may promote cell cycle progression via SIRT2 in breast cancer development.

THE EXPRESSION OF CATHEPSIN-D, C-erbB-2 AND EGFR IN BREAST CANCER AND ITS CORRELATION TO LYMPHATIC METASTASIS

The expression of Cathepsin-D(Cath-D),c-erbB-2 and EGFR in breast cancer and its correlation to lymphatic metastases were studied in 277 cases by immunohistochemical technique.Positive staining of CathD was detected in 107 cases(38.62%).Among those, 89cass(83.17%) had documented metastases in the lymph nodes. One hundred and seventy cases(61.38%)stained negative for Cath-D.Of which 64 cases(37.64%)had detectable lymphatic metastases. There is a significant differencd in the rate of the lymphatic metastases between the Cath-D positive and Cath-D negative groups(x2=55 .05 P<0.0001).Fifty-six out of 107 Cath-D positive cases(52.23%)were c-erbB-2 positive as well.However, ouly 27 out of 170 Cath-D ngtive cases(15.88%)were c-erbB-2 positive.The positive mte of c-erbB-2 in Cath-D positive group was significantly different from that of Cath-D negative group (x2=41.58P<0.0001). Among those 107 Cath-D positive cases,49cases(45.79%)were EGFR positive. Only 24 cases (14.12%)were EGFR positive among the 170 Cath-D negative cases. The positive rate of EGFR between these two groups was also significantly different(x2=33.95 P<0.0001).An analysis of the three mentioned markers, the lymph node metastasis and tumor size suggests that Cath-D is the most valuble indicator for tumor aggressiveness. Breast cancer cases with a positive Cath-D staining are more likely to have lymphatic metastases and a poor prognosis.Therefore, alternative therapeutic strategies and close follow ups are appropriate for these patients.

Quantitative expression of MMP-2 and FN in high metastatic and low metastatic cell lines of breast cancer

To analyze the relation of matrix metalloproteinase-2(MMP-2) and Fibronection (FN) mRNA expression with metastasis of breast cancer and elucidate the role of MMP-2 and FN in breast cancer metastasis.Methods The expression of MMP-2 and FN mRNA in breast cancer cell lines was detected by fluorescence-quantitative RT-PCR.The expression of MMP-2 and FN protein was detected by Western blots.Results The expression of MMP-2 and FN mRNA was down-regulated in high metastatic cell lines MDA-MB-231,MDA-MB-435,but up-regulated in low metastatic cell lines MDA-453,T47D,SK-BR-3 and non-metastatic cell line MCF-7,ZR-75-30.The protein expression of MMP-2 and FN was up-regulated in high mestastic cell lines,and down-regulated in low metastatic cell lines.Conclusion The mRNA and protein expression of MMP-2 and FN was related with breast cancer metastasis.The mRNA expression of MMP-2 and FN is feed-back regulated with protein expression.6 refs,4 figs,2 tabs.

HER2-Specific T Lymphocytes Kill both Trastuzumab-Resistant and Trastuzumab-Sensitive Breast Cell Lines In Vitro

Objective： Although the development of trastuzumab has improved the outlook for women with human epidermal growth factor receptor 2 （HER2）-positive breast cancer, the resistance to anti-HER2 therapy is a growing clinical dilemma. We aim to determine whether HER2-specific T cells generated from dendritic cells （DCs） modified with HER2 gene could effectively kill the HER2-positive breast cancer cells, especially the trastuzumab-resistant cells. Methods： The peripheral blood mononuclear cells （PBMCs） from healthy donors, whose HLA haplotypes were compatible with the tumor cell lines, were transfected with reconstructive human adeno-association virus （rhAAV/HER2） to obtain the specific killing activities of T cells, and were evaluated by lactate dehydrogenase （LDH） releasing assay. Results： Trastuzumab produced a significant inhibiting effect on SK-BR-3, the IC50 was 100ng/ml. MDA-MB-453 was resistant to trastuzumab even at a concentration of 10,000 ng/ml in vitro. HER2-specific T lymphocytes killed effectively SK-BR-3 [（69.86±13.41）%] and MDA-MB-453 [（78.36±10.68）%] at 40：1 （effector：target ratio, E：T）, but had no significant cytotoxicity against HER2-negative breast cancer cell lines MDA-MB-231 or MCF-7 （less than 10%）. Conclusion： The study showed that HER2-specific T lymphocytes generated from DCs modified by rhAAV/HER2 could kill HER2-positive breast cancer cell lines in a HER2-dependent manner, and result in significantly high inhibition rates on the intrinsic trastuzumab-resistant cell line MDA-MB-453 and the tastuzumab-sensitive cell line SK-BR-3. These results imply that this immunotherapy might be a potential treatment to HER2-positive breast cancer.

Epithelial-mesenchymal transition status of circulating tumor cells in breast cancer and its clinical relevance

Objective:Circulating tumor cells(CTCs)play a critical role in cancer metastasis,but their prevalence and significance remain unclear.This study attempted to track the epithelial-mesenchymal transition(EMT)status of CTCs in breast cancer patients and investigate their clinical relevance.Methods:In this study,the established negFACS-IF:E/M platform was applied to isolate rare CTCs and characterize their EMT status in breast cancer.A total of 89 breast cancer patients were recruited,including stage 0–III(n=60)and late stage(n=29)cases.Results:Using the negFACS-IF:E/M platform,it was found that in human epidermal growth factor receptor 2(HER2)+patients,mesenchymal CTCs usually exhibited a high percentage of HER2+cells.Stage IV breast cancer patients had considerably more CTCs than stage 0–III patients.Among stage 0–III breast cancers,the HER2 subtype included a significantly higher percentage of mesenchymal and biphenotypic(epithelial and mesenchymal)CTCs than the luminal A or B subtypes.Among stage IV patients,CTCs were predominantly epithelial in cases with local recurrence and were more mesenchymal in cases with distant metastasis.By applying a support vector machine(SVM)algorithm,the EMT status of CTCs could distinguish between breast cancer cases with metastasis/local recurrence and those without recurrence.Conclusions:The negFACS-IF:E/M platform provides a flexible and generally acceptable method for the highly sensitive and specific detection of CTCs and their EMT traits in breast cancer.This study demonstrated that the EMT status of CTCs had high clinical relevance in breast cancer,especially in predicting the distant metastasis or local recurrence of breast cancer.

Establishment and molecular characterization of breast cancer mesenchymal stem cell line derived from human non-metastasis breast cancer tumor

Breast cancer remains a leading cause of morbidity and mortality in women mainly because of the propensity of primary breast tumors to metastasize. It is composed of heterogeneous cell populations with different biological properties. Breast cancer-initiating cells have been recently identified in breast carcinoma as CD44+/CD24-/low cells, which display stem cell like properties. In the present study, we have isolated breast cancer stem cells from non-metastasis tumor tissue, which is presently at passage 18 and designated as human Breast Cancer Mesenchymal Stem Cells (hBCMSCs) line. These cells showed spindle shaped morphology and formed mammos-pheres as well as pluripotency clones indicating their stem cell nature. Molecular marker study confirmed mesenchymal nature as well as pluripotency, plasticity and oncogenicity of these cells. The hBCMSCs cell line may likely contain a heterogeneous population of malignant cells. Interestingly, we also found that these cells exhibit BRCA 2 mutation, which was found in Indian population. Overall, this study revealed that hBCMSCs cell line may represent a suitable in vitro model to study the mechanism of breast cancer which further leads to an identification of molecular targets for future breast cancer targeted therapy.

Why natural killer cells in triple negative breast cancer?

The triple-negative subtype of breast cancer(TNBC)has the bleakest prognosis,owing to its lack of either hormone receptor as well as human epidermal growth factor receptor 2.Henceforth,immunotherapy has emerged as the front-runner for TNBC treatment,which avoids potentially damaging chemotherapeutics.However,despite its documented association with aggressive side effects and developed resistance,immune checkpoint blockade continues to dominate the TNBC immunotherapy scene.These immune checkpoint blockade drawbacks necessitate the exploration of other immunotherapeutic methods that would expand options for TNBC patients.One such method is the exploitation and recruitment of natural killer cells,which by harnessing the innate rather than adaptive immune system could potentially circumvent the downsides of immune checkpoint blockade.In this review,the authors will elucidate the advantageousness of natural killer cell-based immuno-oncology in TNBC as well as demonstrate the need to more extensively research such therapies in the future.

Targeting HER2 genomic alterations in non-small cell lung cancer

Oncogenic mutations and amplifications in the erythroblastic oncogene B(ERBB2),or human epidermal growth factor receptor 2(HER2),have emerged as distinct oncogenic drivers and drug targets in non-small cell lung cancer(NSCLC).Each genomic alteration occurs in 2-4%of NSCLC by next generation sequencing and is asso-ciated with constitutive HER2 activation.The most common HER2 mutations in NSCLC are exon 20 mutation A775_G776insYVMA mutation in the kinase domain and S310F mutation in the extracellular domain.Unlike in breast and gastric cancer,HER2 protein overexpression in NSCLC is not validated to be a biomarker predictive of clinical response to HER2-targeted agents.High HER2 protein overexpression by immunohistochemistry(3+)only occurs in 2-4%of NSCLC.Until now HER2-targeted agents(such as afatinib and ado-trastuzumab emtansine)only demonstrate modest clinical activity in patients with HER2-mutant NSCLC.Retrospective studies show concern for inferior clinical benefit of immune checkpoint inhibitors in HER2-mutated NSCLC.Therefore,platinum-based chemotherapy with or without an anti-angiogenesis inhibitor remains the first line standard treatment for this pa-tient population.In May 2020 trastuzumab deruxtecan(T-DXd)received the U.S.Food and Drug Administration breakthrough therapy designation for HER2-mutant metastatic NSCLC,and was added as an option for HER2-mutant NSCLC to the NCCN guidelines V1.2021.A global phase III study of pyrotinib compared to docetaxel as a second line therapy for advanced NSCLC harboring HER2 exon 20 mutations was just opened for enrollment in September 2020.In this review,we highlight the current knowledge and perspectives on targeting-HER2 genomic alterations in NSCLC.

HER2-Specific Vaccines for HER2-Positive Breast Cancer Immunotherapy

Anti-human epidermal growth factor receptor-2 (HER2) immunization can be elicited by vaccination with DNA encoding the extra- or intra-cellular domain (ECD or ICD) of HER2, naked or encap-sulated in viral vectors. HER2-peptides derived from ECD or ICD of HER2, and HER2-pulsed dendritic cells (DCs) or engineered DCs expressing HER2, respectively. We performed a computer- based literature search which includes but is not limited to the following keywords: breast cancer, immunotherapy, HER2-peptide vaccine, HER2-DNA vaccine, HER-DC vaccine, HER2 vaccine, and HER2/neu, in PubMed, Medline, EMBO and Google Scholar;data from recently reported clinical trials were also included. Drawing upon this synthesis of literature, this work summarizes the de-velopment and current trend in experimental and clinical investigations in HER2-positive breast cancer using HER2-specific vaccine and immunotherapy, focusing especially on: (i) DNA-;(ii) peptide-;and (iii) DC-based vaccines. It addresses interventions that have been applied to overcome immunotolerance thereby to improve treatment outcomes. These include blocking the inhibitory cytotoxic T lymphocyte-associated protein-4 (CTLA-4), which is expressed at high levels by regulatory T (Treg) cells, or complete Treg depletion to improve T-cell activation. Moreover, modulatory interventions can provide further improvement in the efficacy of HER2-specific vaccine. The interventions include the use of immunogenic adjuvants such as cytokines interleukin-12 (IL-12), tumor necrosis factor (TNF)-α and granulocyte-macrophage colony-stimulating factor (GM-CSF), the use of Toll-like receptor (TLR) ligands and tetanus toxin’s universal epitopes such as the CD4+ help T (Th)-epitope P30, and the use of either chimeric or heterogenous xenogeneic HER2. Combining active HER2-vaccination with adoptive trastuzumab antibody immunotherapy is likely to increase the effectiveness of each approach alone. The development of effective HER2-vaccines for breast cancer remains a critical challenge. Though these novel interventions seem promising, further investigation is still needed since the results are preliminary. Furthermore, the review discusses the challenges and future perspectives in HER2-vaccine research and development.

MUC2 mRNA detection in peripheral blood and bone marrow of breast cancer patients reveals micrometastasis

Tumor dissemination to distant organ is the main cause of death. Therefore there is urgent need to set up sensitive methods for early detection of circulating tumor cells (CTCs) and disseminated tumor cells (DTCs) in peripheral blood (PB) and bone marrow (BM) specimens of breast cancer patients. We aim to detect MUC2 mRNA positive cells in PB and BM of breast cancer patients;to relate this to patient relapse. In this study to detect MUC2 mRNA positive cells (tumor marker), PB and BM samples were collected from 50 breast cancer patients after operation and before adjuvant therapy with 20 PB from healthy individuals as negative controls. Chi-square test was used to analyze data. MUC2 mRNA by using Real-time PCR was detected in 9 (18%) of PB and in 10 (20%) of BM samples and none of the healthy individuals. The relapse rate among MUC2-positive patients was significance in BM (P < 0.004) and MUC2-positive patients had a shorter disease free survival than the negative patients in BM samples (p < 0.05). This study shows MUC2 can be a suitable marker for detection of micrometastasis in breast cancer patients at early stages of cancer.

The Antiproliferative and Pro-apoptotic Role of 2-aminoethyl dihydrogen Phosphate in Triple-negative Breast Tumor Cells

Antineoplastic phospholipids are a new class of antitumor agents.These molecules interact with the plasma membrane,changing numerous pathways that induce cell death,with high selectivity for cancer cells.A representative of this class of antineoplastic agents is 2-aminoethyl dihydrogen phosphate(2-AEH2P).It is present in high intracellular concentrations in various tissues and organelles with antitumor,antiproliferative and pro-apoptotic action.Therefore,4T1 triple-negative tumor cells were treated in different concentrations in order to assess the cytotoxic potential and its effects on the modulation of cell death pathways in association with the chemotherapeutic drug Paclitaxel.2-AEH2P promoted cytotoxicity in tumor cells and significant morphological changes,however,it did not cause these effects in normal cells.There was positive regulation of proteins involved in the intrinsic pathway of cell death by apoptosis and regulation of the phases of cell cycle progression.Furthermore,structural and distribution changes in mitochondria,as well as decreased cell density and regression of the cytoskeleton were observed.The 2-AEH2P demonstrated a modulatory potential of apoptotic pathways inducing cell death,being a new compound with antitumor properties.

青年和绝经后女性乳腺癌c-erbB-2、p53、ER和PR受体表达及意义

目的 探讨青年和绝经后女性乳癌c erbB 2、p53、ER、PR的表达及意义。方法 采用SP法检测青年组 (13 1例 )与绝经组 (13 6例 )乳癌组织中各指标的表达及其与临床分期、腋淋巴结 (ALN )转移、3年无病生存率 (DFS)之间的关系。结果 c erbB 2阳性与临床分期、ALN转移相关 (P <0 .0 5) ,c erbB 2阳性者 3年DFS低于阴性者 (P <0 .0 5)。青年组c erbB 2、p53阳性率高、ER阳性率低 (P <0 .0 1) ,3年DFS低于绝经组 (P <0 .0 5)。结论 c erbB 2表达是乳腺癌预后重要指标 ,青年乳腺癌c erbB 2、p53阳性率高 ,ER阳性率低 ,3年DFS低 。