Association of Lysosome Associated Protein Transmembrane 4 Beta Gene Polymorphism with the Risk of Pancreatic Cancer

Objective： Lysosome associated protein transmembrane 4 beta （LAPTM4B） was originally identified as a gene in human hepatocellular carcinoma （HCC）. It was successfully cloned by fluorescence differential display, rapid amplification of cDNA ends （RACE） and reverse transcription polymerase chain reaction （RT-PCR）. Previous study showed that the novel gene played an important role in the occurrence, development, migration and prognosis of tumors. Pancreatic cancer is an aggressive malignancy with the majority of patients dying within one year after diagnosis. This study tries to find out the relationship between lysosome associated protein transmembrane 4 beta gene polymorphism and the susceptibility of pancreatic cancer. Methods： A case-control study was conducted in China, including 58 pancreatic cancer cases and 156 healthy controls. Human genomic DNA was used as the template, polymerase chain reaction （PCR） was used to detect the distribution of LAPTM4B genotype. Analyses Odds ratio （OR） and corresponding 95% confidence interval （95%CI） with logistic regression were performed. Results： Two alleles of LAPTM4B generated three kinds of genotypes in population, ＊1/1, ＊1/2, and ＊2/2. The genotype frequency of ＊1/1, ＊1/2 and ＊2/2 in the pancreatic cancer group were 41.4%, 44.8% and 13.8% respectively, which were not significantly different from those of healthy group （47.4%, 42.9%, 9.6%） （P=0.773, P=0.291）. Also the ＊2 allele frequency of LAPTM4B among pancreatic cancer had no significantly difference with the controls （P=0.354）. When compared to the ＊1 allele, the people with ＊2 allele had no increased risk of pancreatic cancer. Conclusion： The gene polymorphism of LAPTM4B may not influence the susceptibility of pancreatic cancer.

Transmembrane serine protease 4 expression in the prognosis of radical resection for biliary tract cancer

BACKGROUND Recent advancements in biliary tract cancer(BTC)treatment have expanded beyond surgery to include adjuvant therapy,yet the prognosis remains poor.Identifying prognostic biomarkers could enhance the assessment of patients who have undergone radical resection for BTC.AIM To determine transmembrane serine protease 4(TMPRSS4)utility as a prognostic biomarker of radical resection for BTC.METHODS Medical records of patients who underwent radical resection for BTC,excluding intrahepatic cholangiocarcinoma,were retrospectively reviewed.The associations between TMPRSS4 expression and clinicopathological factors,overall survival,and recurrence-free survival were analyzed.RESULTS Among the 85 patients undergoing radical resection for BTC,46(54%)were TMPRSS4-positive.The TMPRSS4-positive group exhibited significantly higher preoperative carbohydrate antigen 19-9(CA19-9)values and greater lymphatic invasion than the TMPRSS4-negative group(P=0.019 and 0.039,respectively).Postoperative overall survival and recurrence-free survival were significantly worse in the TMPRSS4-positive group(median survival time:25.3 months vs not reached,P<0.001;median survival time:28.7 months vs not reached,P=0.043,respectively).Multivariate overall survival analysis indicated TMPRSS4 positivity,pT3/T4,and resection status R1 were independently associated with poor prognosis(P=0.032,0.035 and 0.030,respectively).TMPRSS4 positivity correlated with preoperative CA19-9 values≥37 U/mL and pathological tumor size≥30 mm(P=0.016 and 0.038,respectively).CONCLUSION TMPRSS4 is a potential prognostic biomarker of radical resection for BTC.

Cathepsin L, transmembrane peptidase/serine subfamily member 2/4, and other host proteases in COVID-19 pathogenesis – with impact on gastrointestinal tract

Severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus-2(SARS-CoV-2)seems to employ two routes of entrance to the host cell;via membrane fusion(with the cells expressing both angiotensin converting enzyme 2(ACE2)and transmembrane peptidase/serine subfamily member 2/4(TMPRSS2/4))or via receptor-mediated endocytosis(to the target cells expressing only ACE2).The second mode is associated with cysteine cathepsins(probably cathepsin L)involvement in the virus spike protein(S protein)proteolytic activation.Also furin might activate the virus S protein enabling it to enter cells.Gastrointestinal tract(GIT)involvement in SARS-CoV-2 infection is evident in a subset of coronavirus disease 2019(COVID-19)patients exhibiting GIT symptoms,such as diarrhea,and presenting viral-shedding in feces.Considering the abundance and co-localization of ACE2 and TMPRSS2 in the lower GIT(especially brush-border enterocytes),these two receptors seem to be mainly involved in SARS-CoV-2 invasion of the digestive tract.Additionally,in vitro studies have demonstrated the virions capability of infection and replication in the human epithelial cells lining GIT.However,also furin and cysteine cathepsins(cathepsin L)might participate in the activation of SARS-CoV-2 spike protein contributing to the virus invasiveness within GIT.Moreover,cathepsin L(due to its involvement in extracellular matrix components degradation and remodeling,the processes enhanced during SARS-CoV-2-induced inflammation)might be responsible for the dysregulation of absorption/digestion functions of GIT,thus adding to the observed in some COVID-19 patients symptoms such as diarrhea.

Genomics of hepatitis B virus-related hepatocellular carcinoma and adjacent noncancerous tissues with cDNA microarray

Background Hepatocellular carcinoma （HCC） is a common primary cancer frequently associated with hepatitis B virus （HBV） infection. However, whether these identified genes are particularly associated with HBV-related HCC remains unknown. The aim of this study was to investigate the differential gene expression between HBV-related HCC tissues and adjacent noncancerous tissues. Methods cDNA microarray was used to detect the differential gene expression profile in the HBV-related HCC tissues and adjacent noncancerous tissues, and reverse transcription-polymerase chain reaction （RT-PCR） was performed to verify the differential expression of candidate genes obtained from cDNA microarray experiment. Results In this study, 1369 genes or expressed sequence tags （ESTs） including 121 genes or ESTs with at least two-fold expression alterations between cancerous and noncancerous tissues were identified. Special AT-rich sequence binding protein 1 （SATB-1） expression was positive in 73% （16/22） of cancerous tissues and negative （0/22） in all noncancerous tissues of HBV-related HCC patients. Transmembrane 4 superfamily member 1 （TM4SF-1） expression was positive in 86% （19/22） of cancerous tissues and negative （0/22） in all noncancerous tissues. Suppression of tumorigenicity 14 （ST-14） expression was positive in 73% （16/22） of noncancerous tissues in patients with HBV-related HCC and negative in all HCC tissues （0/22）. Conclusion This study provided the gene expression profile of HBV-related HCC and presented differential expression patterns of SATB-1, TM4SF-1 and ST-14 between cancerous and noncancerous tissues in patients with HBV-related HCC.