Resolution of Late Steroid-Responsive Nephrotic Syndrome in a Patient with Alport Syndrome Treated with Atorvastatin

Experimental and clinical studies have pointed out the lipid-induced renal damage, and statins may have pleiotropic effects on renoprotection. We reported a girl with X-linked Alport syndrome whose late steroid-responsive nephrotic syndrome (NS) was resolved by atorvastatin. She had been in a nephrotic condition despite of prednisone therapy 60 mg/day for 8 weeks. Renal biopsy dispicted extreme foamy appearance of tubular epithelial cells with detachment led to luminal obliteration. Atorvastatin was started on the ninth week of prednisone therapy due to severe hypercholesterolemia. Partial remission of NS was dramatically achieved with unchanged dosage of prednisone at the end of the twelfth week. Our case provides a pathology-based evidence to support the use of statins in profoundly hyperlipidemic patients with NS. In patients with NS and profound hyperlipidemia, early initiation of statin therapy is required in combination with immunosuppressive therapy.

Tumour suppressor HLJ1: A potential diagnostic, preventive and therapeutic target in non-small cell lung cancer

Lung cancer is the leading cause of cancer-related mortality throughout the world. Non-small cell lung cancer(NSCLC) accounts for 85% of all diagnosed lung cancers. Despite considerable progress in the diagnosis and treatment of the disease, the overall 5-year survival rate of NSCLC patients remains lower than 15%. The most common causes of death in lung cancer patients are treatment failure and metastasis. Therefore, developing novel strategies that target both tumour growth and metastasis is an important and urgent mission for the next generation of anticancer therapy research. Heat shock proteins(HSPs), which are involved in the fundamental defence mechanism for maintaining cellular viability, are markedly activated during environmen-tal or pathogenic stress. HSPs facilitate rapid cell division, metastasis, and the evasion of apoptosis in cancer development. These proteins are essential players in the development of cancer and are prime therapeutic targets. In this review, we focus on the current understanding of the molecular mechanisms responsible for HLJ1's role in lung cancer carcinogenesis and progression. HLJ1, a member of the human HSP 40 family, has been characterised as a tumour suppressor. Research studies have also reported that HLJ1 shows promising dual anticancer effects, inhibiting both tumour growth and metastasis in NSCLC. The accumulated evidence suggests that HLJ1 is a potential biomarker and treatment target for NSCLC.

Update on a tumor-associated NADH oxidase in gastric cancer cell growth

Gastric cancer is one of the most common human malignancies, and its prevalence has been shown to be well-correlated with cancer-related deaths worldwide. Regrettably, the poor prognosis of this disease is mainly due to its late diagnosis at advanced stages after the cancer has already metastasized. Recent research has emphasized the identification of cancer biomarkers in the hope of diagnosing cancer early and designing targeted therapies to reverse cancer progression. One member of a family of growth-related nicotinamide adenine dinucleotide(NADH or hydroquinone) oxidases is tumor-associated NADH oxidase(t NOX; ENOX2). Unlike its counterpart CNOX(ENOX1), identified in normal rat liver plasma membranes and shown to be stimulated by growth factors and hormones, t NOX activity purified from rat hepatoma cells is constitutively active. Its activity is detectable in the sera of cancer patients but not in those of healthy volunteers, suggesting its clinical relevance. Interestingly, t NOX expression was shown to be present in an array of cancer cell lines. More importantly, inhibition of t NOX was well correlated with reduced cancer cell growth and induction of apoptosis. RNA interference targeting t NOX expression in cancer cells effectively restored non-cancerous phenotypes, further supporting the vital role of t NOX in cancer cells. Here, we review the regulatory role of t NOX in gastric cancer cell growth.