Publications
976 results found
Periyasamy M, Nguyen VTM, Patel H, et al., 2016, Cytidine deamination activity of APOBEC3B regulates estrogen receptor function in breast cancer, UK Breast Cancer Research Symposium, Publisher: Springer Verlag (Germany), Pages: 197-197, ISSN: 1573-7217
Day S, Coombes RC, McGrath-Lone L, et al., 2016, Stratified, precision or personalised medicine? Cancer services in the “real world” of a London hospital, Sociology of Health & Illness, Vol: 39, Pages: 143-158, ISSN: 0141-9889
We conducted ethnographic research in collaboration with a large research-intensive London breast cancer service in 2013-14 so as to understand the practices and potential effects of stratified medicine. Stratified medicine is often seen as a synonym for both personalised and precision medicine but these three terms, we found, also related to distinct facets of treatment and care. Personalised medicine is the term adopted for the developing 2016 NHS England Strategy, in which breast cancer care is considered a prime example of improved biological precision and better patient outcomes. We asked how this biologically stratified medicine affected wider relations of care and treatment. We interviewed formally 33 patients and 23 of their carers, including healthcare workers; attended meetings associated with service improvements, medical decision-making, public engagement, and scientific developments as well as following patients through waiting rooms, clinical consultations and other settings. We found that the translation of new protocols based on biological research introduced further complications into an already-complex patient pathway. Combinations of new and historic forms of stratification had an impact on almost all patients, carers and staff, resulting in care that often felt less rather than more personal.
Patel H, Abduljabbar R, Lai CF, et al., 2016, CDK7, cyclin H and MAT1 is elevated in breast cancer and is prognostic in estrogen receptor- positive breast cancer, Clinical Cancer Research, Vol: 22, Pages: 5929-5938, ISSN: 1557-3265
PURPOSE: CDK-activation kinase (CAK) is required for the regulation of the cell-cycle and is a trimeric complex consisting of Cyclin Dependent Kinase 7 (CDK7), Cyclin H and the accessory protein, MAT1. CDK7 also plays a critical role in regulating transcription, primarily by phosphorylating RNA polymerase II, as well as transcription factors such as estrogen receptor-alpha(ERalpha).). Deregulation of cell cycle and transcriptional control is aare general featurefeatures of cancertumor cells, highlighting the potential for the use of CDK7 inhibitors as novel cancer therapeutics in cancer. EXPERIMENTAL DESIGN: mRNA and protein expression of CDK7 and its essential co-factors cyclinH and MAT1, were evaluated in breast cancer samples to determine if their levels are altered in cancer. Immunohistochemical staining of >900 breast cancers was used to determine the association with clinicopathological features and patient outcome. RESULTS: We show that expression of CDK7, cyclinH and MAT1 are all closely linked at the mRNA and protein level and their expression is elevated in breast cancer compared with the normal breast tissue. Intriguingly, CDK7 expression was inversely proportional to tumour grade and size and outcome analysis showed an association between CAK levels and better outcome. Moreover, CDK7 expression was positively associated with ERalpha expression and in particular with phosphorylation of ERalpha at serine 118, a site important for ERalpha transcriptional activity. CONCLUSIONS: Expression of components of the CAK complex, CDK7, MAT1 and Cyclin H are elevated in breast cancer and correlates with ERalpha.. Like ERalpha, CDK7 expression is inversely proportional to poor prognostic factors and survival.
Amrania H, Drummond L, Coombes RC, et al., 2016, New IR imaging modalities for cancer detection and for intra-cell chemical mapping with a sub-diffraction mid-IR s-SNOM, Faraday Discussions, Vol: 187, Pages: 539-553, ISSN: 1364-5498
We present two new modalities for generating chemical maps. Both are mid-IR based and aimed at the biomedical community, but they differ substantially in their technological readiness. The first, so-called "Digistain", is a technologically mature "locked down" way of acquiring diffraction-limited chemical images of human cancer biopsy tissue. Although it is less flexible than conventional methods of acquiring IR images, this is an intentional, and key, design feature. It allows it to be used, on a routine basis, by clinical personnel themselves. It is in the process of a full clinical evaluation and the philosophy behind the approach is discussed. The second modality is a very new, probe-based "s-SNOM", which we are developing in conjunction with a new family of tunable "Quantum Cascade Laser" (QCL) diode lasers. Although in its infancy, this instrument can already deliver ultra-detailed chemical images whose spatial resolutions beat the normal diffraction limit by a factor of ∼1000. This is easily enough to generate chemical maps of the insides of single cells for the first time, and a range of new possible scientific applications are explored.
Coombes RC, Kilburn LS, Tubiana-Mathieu N, et al., 2016, Epirubicin dose and sequential hormonal therapy-Mature results of the HMFEC randomised phase III trial in premenopausal patients with node positive early breast cancer, European Journal of Cancer, Vol: 60, Pages: 146-153, ISSN: 1879-0852
Palmieri C, Rudraraju B, Giannoudis A, et al., 2016, A study of c-Jun N -terminal kinase (JNK) and c-Jun as biomarkers in early breast cancer, 38th Annual CTRC-AACR San Antonio Breast Cancer Symposium, Publisher: AMER ASSOC CANCER RESEARCH, ISSN: 0008-5472
Palmieri C, Rudraraju B, Giannoudis A, et al., 2016, A study of c-Jun N-terminal kinase (JNK) and c-Jun as biomarkers in early breast cancer, 38th Annual CTRC-AACR San Antonio Breast Cancer Symposium, Publisher: AMER ASSOC CANCER RESEARCH, ISSN: 0008-5472
Palmieri C, Rudraraju B, Giannoudis A, et al., 2016, A study of c-Jun N-terminal kinase (JNK) and c-Jun as biomarkers in early breast cancer, 38th Annual CTRC-AACR San Antonio Breast Cancer Symposium, Publisher: AMER ASSOC CANCER RESEARCH, ISSN: 0008-5472
Mollet IG, Patel D, Govani FS, et al., 2016, Low Dose Iron Treatments Induce a DNA Damage Response in Human Endothelial Cells within Minutes, PLOS One, Vol: 11, ISSN: 1932-6203
BackgroundSpontaneous reports from patients able to report vascular sequelae in real time, and recognitionthat serum non transferrin bound iron may reach or exceed 10μmol/L in the bloodstream after iron tablets or infusions, led us to hypothesize that conventional iron treatmentsmay provoke acute vascular injury. This prompted us to examine whether a phenotypecould be observed in normal human endothelial cells treated with low dose iron.MethodologyConfluent primary human endothelial cells (EC) were treated with filter-sterilized iron (II) citrateor fresh media for RNA sequencing and validation studies. RNA transcript profiles wereevaluated using directional RNA sequencing with no pre-specification of target sequences.Alignments were counted for exons and junctions of the gene strand only, blinded to treatmenttypes.Principal FindingsRapid changes in RNA transcript profiles were observed in endothelial cells treated with10μmol/L iron (II) citrate, compared to media-treated cells. Clustering for Gene Ontology(GO) performed on all differentially expressed genes revealed significant differences in biologicalprocess terms between iron and media-treated EC, whereas 10 sets of an equivalentnumber of randomly selected genes from the respective EC gene datasets showed no significantdifferences in any GO terms. After 1 hour, differentially expressed genes clusteredto vesicle mediated transport, protein catabolism, and cell cycle (Benjamini p = 0.0016,0.0024 and 0.0032 respectively), and by 6 hours, to cellular response to DNA damage stimulusmost significantly through DNA repair genes FANCG, BLM, and H2AFX. Comet assays demonstrated that 10μM iron treatment elicited DNA damage within 1 hour. This wasaccompanied by a brisk DNA damage response pulse, as ascertained by the developmentof DNA damage response (DDR) foci, and p53 stabilization.SignificanceThese data suggest that low dose iron treatments are sufficient to modify the vascular endothelium,and induce a DNA damage
Zhang Y, Clausmeyer J, Babakinejad B, et al., 2016, Spearhead Nanometric Field-Effect Transistor Sensors for Single-Cell Analysis., ACS Nano, Vol: 10, Pages: 3214-3221, ISSN: 1936-086X
Nanometric field-effect-transistor (FET) sensors are made on the tip of spear-shaped dual carbon nanoelectrodes derived from carbon deposition inside double-barrel nanopipettes. The easy fabrication route allows deposition of semiconductors or conducting polymers to comprise the transistor channel. A channel from electrodeposited poly pyrrole (PPy) exhibits high sensitivity toward pH changes. This property is exploited by immobilizing hexokinase on PPy nano-FETs to give rise to a selective ATP biosensor. Extracellular pH and ATP gradients are key biochemical constituents in the microenvironment of living cells; we monitor their real-time changes in relation to cancer cells and cardiomyocytes. The highly localized detection is possible because of the high aspect ratio and the spear-like design of the nano-FET probes. The accurately positioned nano-FET sensors can detect concentration gradients in three-dimensional space, identify biochemical properties of a single living cell, and after cell membrane penetration perform intracellular measurements.
Zwart W, Flach K, Rudraraju B, et al., 2016, SRC3 Phosphorylation at Serine 543 Is a Positive Independent Prognostic Factor in ER-Positive Breast Cancer, CLINICAL CANCER RESEARCH, Vol: 22, Pages: 479-491, ISSN: 1078-0432
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- Citations: 14
Mansi J, Morden J, Bliss JM, et al., 2016, Bone marrow micrometastases in early breast cancer–30-year outcome, British Journal of Cancer, Vol: 114, Pages: 243-247, ISSN: 1532-1827
background: Micrometastases in bone marrow of women with early breast cancer were first identified immunocytochemically in the 1980s. We report on the original cohort of women with a median follow-up of 30 years.patients and methods: In total, 350 women with primary breast cancer had eight bone marrow aspirates examined with antibody to epithelial membrane antigen. Data on long-term mortality were obtained via record linkage to death certification.results: At a 30-year median follow-up, 79 out of 89 (89%) patients with micrometastases have died compared with 202 out of 261 (77%) without (hazard ratio=1.46 (95% CI 1.12–1.90), P=0.0043). Most marked effect of micrometastases on overall survival (OS) was seen in patients aged less than or equal to50 at surgery (N=97, P=0.012), and on all patients within 10 years of diagnosis. In multivariable analyses, the presence of micrometastases was no longer a statistically significant prognostic factor.conclusions: Bone marrow micrometastases are predictive for OS, particularly in the first decade and in younger patients.
Sharma R, Kallur KG, Ryu JS, et al., 2015, Multicenter Reproducibility of <SUP>18</SUP>F-Fluciclatide PET Imaging in Subjects with Solid Tumors, JOURNAL OF NUCLEAR MEDICINE, Vol: 56, Pages: 1855-1861, ISSN: 0161-5505
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- Citations: 17
Nguyen VTM, Barozzi I, Faronato M, et al., 2015, Differential epigenetic reprogramming in response to specific endocrine therapies promotes cholesterol biosynthesis and cellular invasion, Nature Communications, Vol: 6, Pages: 1-15, ISSN: 2041-1723
Endocrine therapies target the activation of the oestrogen receptor alpha (ERa) via distinctmechanisms, but it is not clear whether breast cancer cells can adapt to treatment usingdrug-specific mechanisms. Here we demonstrate that resistance emerges via drug-specificepigenetic reprogramming. Resistant cells display a spectrum of phenotypical changes withinvasive phenotypes evolving in lines resistant to the aromatase inhibitor (AI). Orthogonalgenomics analysis of reprogrammed regulatory regions identifies individual drug-inducedepigenetic states involving large topologically associating domains (TADs) and the activationof super-enhancers. AI-resistant cells activate endogenous cholesterol biosynthesis (CB)through stable epigenetic activation in vitro and in vivo. Mechanistically, CB sparks theconstitutive activation of oestrogen receptors alpha (ERa) in AI-resistant cells, partly via thebiosynthesis of 27-hydroxycholesterol. By targeting CB using statins, ERa binding is reducedand cell invasion is prevented. Epigenomic-led stratification can predict resistance to AI in asubset of ERa-positive patients.
Hu Y, Li K, Asaduzzaman M, et al., 2015, miR-106b similar to 25 cluster regulates multidrug resistance in an ABC transporter-independent manner via downregulation of EP300, Oncology Reports, Vol: 35, Pages: 1170-1178, ISSN: 1021-335X
Periyasamy M, Patel H, Lai C-F, et al., 2015, APOBEC3B mediated cytidine deamination is required for estrogen receptor action in breast cancer, Cell Reports, Vol: 13, Pages: 108-121, ISSN: 2211-1247
Estrogen receptor α (ERα) is the key transcriptional driver in a large proportion of breast cancers. We report that APOBEC3B (A3B) is required for regulation of gene expression by ER and acts by causing C-to-U deamination at ER binding regions. We show that these C-to-U changes lead to the generation of DNA strand breaks through activation of base excision repair (BER) and to repair by non-homologous end-joining (NHEJ) pathways. We provide evidence that transient cytidine deamination by A3B aids chromatin modification and remodelling at the regulatory regions of ER target genes that promotes their expression. A3B expression is associated with poor patient survival in ER+ breast cancer, reinforcing the physiological significance of A3B for ER action.
Kramer H, Lai C, Dattani H, et al., 2015, LRH-1 drives colon cancer cell growth by repressing the expression of the CDKN1A gene in a p53-dependent manner, Nucleic Acids Research, Vol: 44, Pages: 582-594, ISSN: 1362-4962
Liver receptor homologue 1 (LRH-1) is an orphan nuclearreceptor that has been implicated in the progressionof breast, pancreatic and colorectal cancer(CRC). To determine mechanisms underlying growthpromotion by LRH-1 in CRC, we undertook global expressionprofiling following siRNA-mediated LRH-1knockdown in HCT116 cells, which require LRH-1 forgrowth and in HT29 cells, in which LRH-1 does notregulate growth. Interestingly, expression of the cellcycle inhibitor p21 (CDKN1A) was regulated by LRH-1 in HCT116 cells. p21 regulation was not observedin HT29 cells, where p53 is mutated. p53 dependencefor the regulation of p21 by LRH-1 was confirmed byp53 knockdown with siRNA, while LRH-1-regulationof p21 was not evident in HCT116 cells where p53 hadbeen deleted. We demonstrate that LRH-1-mediatedp21 regulation in HCT116 cells does not involve alteredp53 protein or phosphorylation, and we showthat LRH-1 inhibits p53 recruitment to the p21 promoter,likely through a mechanism involving chromatinremodelling. Our study suggests an importantrole for LRH-1 in the growth of CRC cells that retainwild-type p53.
Speirs V, Viale G, Mousa K, et al., 2015, Prognostic and predictive value of ERβ1 and ERβ2 in the Intergroup Exemestane Study (IES)-first results from PathIES<SUP>aEuro</SUP>, ANNALS OF ONCOLOGY, Vol: 26, Pages: 1890-1897, ISSN: 0923-7534
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- Citations: 9
Lin M-L, Patel H, Remenyi J, et al., 2015, Expression profiling of nuclear receptors in breast cancer identifies TLX as a mediator of growth and invasion in triple-negative breast cancer, Oncotarget, Vol: 6, Pages: 21685-21703, ISSN: 1949-2553
he Nuclear Receptor (NR) superfamily of transcription factors comprises 48 members, several of which have been implicated in breast cancer. Most important is estrogen receptor-α (ERα), which is a key therapeutic target. ERα action is facilitated by co-operativity with other NR and there is evidence that ERα function may be recapitulated by other NRs in ERα-negative breast cancer. In order to examine the inter-relationships between nuclear receptors, and to obtain evidence for previously unsuspected roles for any NRs, we undertook quantitative RT-PCR and bioinformatics analysis to examine their expression in breast cancer. While most NRs were expressed, bioinformatic analyses differentiated tumours into distinct prognostic groups that were validated by analyzing public microarray data sets. Although ERα and progesterone receptor were dominant in distinguishing prognostic groups, other NR strengthened these groups. Clustering analysis identified several family members with potential importance in breast cancer. Specifically, RORγ is identified as being co-expressed with ERα, whilst several NRs are preferentially expressed in ERα-negative disease, with TLX expression being prognostic in this subtype. Functional studies demonstrated the importance of TLX in regulating growth and invasion in ERα-negative breast cancer cells.
Dowsett M, Forbes JF, Bradley R, et al., 2015, Aromatase inhibitors versus tamoxifen in early breast cancer: patient-level meta-analysis of the randomised trials, LANCEt, Vol: 386, Pages: 1341-1352, ISSN: 0140-6736
Guttery DS, Page K, Hills A, et al., 2015, Noninvasive detection of activating estrogen receptor 1 (ESR1) mutations in estrogen receptor-positive metastatic breast cancer, Clinical Chemistry, Vol: 61, Pages: 974-982, ISSN: 1530-8561
BACKGROUND: Activating mutations in the estrogen receptor 1 (ESR1) gene are acquired on treatment and can drive resistance to endocrine therapy. Because of the spatial and temporal limitations of needle core biopsies, our goal was to develop a highly sensitive, less invasive method of detecting activating ESR1 mutations via circulating cell-free DNA (cfDNA) and tumor cells as a “liquid biopsy.”METHODS: We developed a targeted 23-amplicon next-generation sequencing (NGS) panel for detection of hot-spot mutations in ESR1, phosphatidylinositol-4,5-bisphosphate 3-kinase, catalytic subunit alpha (PIK3CA), tumor protein p53 (TP53), fibroblast growth factor receptor 1 (FGFR1), and fibroblast growth factor receptor 2 (FGFR2) in 48 patients with estrogen receptor-α–positive metastatic breast cancer who were receiving systemic therapy. Selected mutations were validated using droplet digital PCR (ddPCR).RESULTS: Nine baseline cfDNA samples had an ESR1 mutation. NGS detected 3 activating mutations in ESR1, and 3 hot-spot mutations in PIK3CA, and 3 in TP53 in baseline cfDNA, and the ESR1 p.D538G mutation in 1 matched circulating tumor cell sample. ddPCR analysis was more sensitive than NGS and identified 6 additional baseline cfDNA samples with the ESR1 p.D538G mutation at a frequency of <1%. In serial blood samples from 11 patients, 4 showed changes in cfDNA, 2 with emergence of a mutation in ESR1. We also detected a low frequency ESR1 mutation (1.3%) in cfDNA of 1 primary patient who was thought to have metastatic disease but was clear by scans.CONCLUSIONS: Early identification of ESR1 mutations by liquid biopsy might allow for cessation of ineffective endocrine therapies and switching to other treatments, without the need for tissue biopsy and before the emergence of metastatic disease.
Magnani L, Patten DK, Nguyen VTM, et al., 2015, The pioneer factor PBX1 is a novel driver of metastatic progression in ERα-positive breast cancer., Oncotarget, Vol: 6, Pages: 21878-24891, ISSN: 1949-2553
Over 30% of ERα breast cancer patients develop relapses and progress to metastatic disease despite treatment with endocrine therapies. The pioneer factor PBX1 translates epigenetic cues and mediates estrogen induced ERα binding. Here we demonstrate that PBX1 plays a central role in regulating the ERα transcriptional response to epidermal growth factor (EGF) signaling. PBX1 regulates a subset of EGF-ERα genes highly expressed in aggressive breast tumours. Retrospective stratification of luminal patients using PBX1 protein levels in primary cancer further demonstrates that elevated PBX1 protein levels correlate with earlier metastatic progression. In agreement, PBX1 protein levels are significantly upregulated during metastatic progression in ERα-positive breast cancer patients. Finally we reveal that PBX1 upregulation in aggressive tumours is partly mediated by genomic amplification of the PBX1 locus. Correspondingly, ERα-positive breast cancer patients carrying PBX1 amplification are characterized by poor survival. Notably, we demonstrate that PBX1 amplification can be identified in tumor derived-circulating free DNA of ERα-positive metastatic patients. Metastatic patients with PBX1 amplification are also characterized by shorter relapse-free survival. Our data identifies PBX1 amplification as a functional hallmark of aggressive ERα-positive breast cancers. Mechanistically, PBX1 amplification impinges on several critical pathways associated with aggressive ERα-positive breast cancer.
Faronato M, Nguyen VTM, Patten DK, et al., 2015, DMXL2 drives epithelial to mesenchymal transition in hormonal therapy resistant breast cancer through Notch hyper-activation, Oncotarget, Vol: 6, Pages: 22467-22479, ISSN: 1949-2553
The acquisition of endocrine therapy resistance in estrogen receptor α (ERα) breast cancer patients represents a major clinical problem. Notch signalling has been extensively linked to breast cancer especially in patients who fail to respond to endocrine therapy. Following activation, Notch intracellular domain is released and enters the nucleus where activates transcription of target genes. The numerous steps that cascade after activation of the receptor complicate using Notch as biomarker. Hence, this warrants the development of reliable indicators of Notch activity. DMXL2 is a novel regulator of Notch signalling not yet investigated in breast cancer. Here, we demonstrate that DMXL2 is overexpressed in a subset of endocrine therapy resistant breast cancer cell lines where it promotes epithelial to mesenchymal transition through hyper-activation of Notch signalling via V-ATPase dependent acidification. Following DMXL2 depletion or treatment with Bafilomycin A1, both EMT targets and Notch signalling pathway significantly decrease. We show for the first time that DMXL2 protein levels are significantly increased in ERα positive breast cancer patients that progress after endocrine therapy. Finally, we demonstrate that DMXL2 is a transmembrane protein with a potential extra-cellular domain. These findings identify DMXL2 as a novel, functional biomarker for ERα positive breast cancer.
Gordon A, Palmieri C, Cleator SJ, et al., 2015, Tumour volume analysis (TVA) as applied to a pilot randomized study of neoadjuvant endocrine versus neoadjuvant chemotherapy (NEOCENT)., Annual Meeting of the American-Society-of-Clinical-Oncology (ASCO) / Clinical Science Symposium on Predicting and Improving Adverse Outcomes in Older Adults with Cancer, Publisher: AMER SOC CLINICAL ONCOLOGY, ISSN: 0732-183X
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- Citations: 1
Adams C, Cazzanelli G, Rasul S, et al., 2015, Apoptosis inhibitor TRIAP1 is a novel effector of drug resistance, Oncology Reports, Vol: 34, Pages: 415-422, ISSN: 1021-335X
Khongkow P, Gomes AR, Gong C, et al., 2015, Paclitaxel targets FOXM1 to regulate KIF20A in mitotic catastrophe and breast cancer paclitaxel resistance., Oncogene, Vol: 35, Pages: 990-1002, ISSN: 1476-5594
FOXM1 has been implicated in taxane resistance, but the molecular mechanism involved remains elusive. In here, we show that FOXM1 depletion can sensitize breast cancer cells and mouse embryonic fibroblasts into entering paclitaxel-induced senescence, with the loss of clonogenic ability, and the induction of senescence-associated β-galactosidase activity and flat cell morphology. We also demonstrate that FOXM1 regulates the expression of the microtubulin-associated kinesin KIF20A at the transcriptional level directly through a Forkhead response element (FHRE) in its promoter. Similar to FOXM1, KIF20A expression is downregulated by paclitaxel in the sensitive MCF-7 breast cancer cells and deregulated in the paclitaxel-resistant MCF-7Tax(R) cells. KIF20A depletion also renders MCF-7 and MCF-7Tax(R) cells more sensitive to paclitaxel-induced cellular senescence. Crucially, resembling paclitaxel treatment, silencing of FOXM1 and KIF20A similarly promotes abnormal mitotic spindle morphology and chromosome alignment, which have been shown to induce mitotic catastrophe-dependent senescence. The physiological relevance of the regulation of KIF20A by FOXM1 is further highlighted by the strong and significant correlations between FOXM1 and KIF20A expression in breast cancer patient samples. Statistical analysis reveals that both FOXM1 and KIF20A protein and mRNA expression significantly associates with poor survival, consistent with a role of FOXM1 and KIF20A in paclitaxel action and resistance. Collectively, our findings suggest that paclitaxel targets the FOXM1-KIF20A axis to drive abnormal mitotic spindle formation and mitotic catastrophe and that deregulated FOXM1 and KIF20A expression may confer paclitaxel resistance. These findings provide insights into the underlying mechanisms of paclitaxel resistance and have implications for the development of predictive biomarkers and novel chemotherapeutic strategies for paclitaxel resistance.Oncogene advance online publicatio
Merchant S, Aboagye EO, Lim A, et al., 2015, Evaluation of apoptosis in breast cancer using the novel PET probe [<SUP>18</SUP>F]ICMT-11 in patients treated with neoadjuvant FEC chemotherapy: Initial assessment of optimum imaging time and relation to caspase-3 immunostaining, 37th Annual CTRC-AACR San Antonio Breast Cancer Symposium, Publisher: AMER ASSOC CANCER RESEARCH, ISSN: 0008-5472
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- Citations: 1
Roca-Alonso L, Castellano L, Mills A, et al., 2015, Myocardial MiR-30 downregulation triggered by doxorubicin drives alterations in beta-adrenergic signaling and enhances apoptosis, Cell Death & Disease, Vol: 6, ISSN: 2041-4889
The use of anthracyclines such as doxorubicin (DOX) has improved outcome in cancer patients, yet associated risks ofcardiomyopathy have limited their clinical application. DOX-associated cardiotoxicity is frequently irreversible and typicallyprogresses to heart failure (HF) but our understanding of molecular mechanisms underlying this and essential for development ofcardioprotective strategies remains largely obscure. As microRNAs (miRNAs) have been shown to play potent regulatory roles inboth cardiovascular disease and cancer, we investigated miRNA changes in DOX-induced HF and the alteration of cellularprocesses downstream. Myocardial miRNA profiling was performed after DOX-induced injury, either via acute application toisolated cardiomyocytes or via chronic exposure in vivo, and compared with miRNA profiles from remodeled hearts followingmyocardial infarction. The miR-30 family was downregulated in all three models. We describe here that miR-30 act regulating theβ-adrenergic pathway, where preferential β1- and β2-adrenoceptor (β1AR and β2AR) direct inhibition is combined with Giα-2targeting for fine-tuning. Importantly, we show that miR-30 also target the pro-apoptotic gene BNIP3L/NIX. In aggregate, wedemonstrate that high miR-30 levels are protective against DOX toxicity and correlate this in turn with lower reactive oxygenspecies generation. In addition, we identify GATA-6 as a mediator of DOX-associated reductions in miR-30 expression. Inconclusion, we describe that DOX causes acute and sustained miR-30 downregulation in cardiomyocytes via GATA-6. miR-30overexpression protects cardiac cells from DOX-induced apoptosis, and its maintenance represents a potential cardioprotectiveand anti-tumorigenic strategy for anthracyclines.
Saleem A, Searle GE, Kenny LM, et al., 2015, Lapatinib access into normal brain and brain metastases in patients with Her-2 overexpressing breast cancer, EJNMMI Research, Vol: 5, ISSN: 2191-219X
BackgroundBrain metastases are common in human epidermal growth factor receptor (Her)-2-positive breast cancer. Drug access to brain metastases and normal brain is key to management of cranial disease. In this study, positron emission tomography (PET) scanning after administration of radiolabelled lapatinib was used to obtain direct evidence of cranial drug access.MethodsPatients with Her-2+ metastatic breast cancer either with at least one 1-cm diameter brain metastasis or without brain metastases underwent dynamic carbon-11 radiolabelled lapatinib ([11C]lapatinib)-PET. Less than 20 μg of [11C]lapatinib was administered before and after 8 days of oral lapatinib (1,500 mg once daily). Radial arterial blood sampling was performed throughout the 90-min scan. The contribution of blood volume activity to the tissue signal was excluded to calculate lapatinib uptake in normal brain and metastases. Partitioning of radioactivity between plasma and tissue (V T) was calculated and the tissue concentration of lapatinib derived. Plasma lapatinib levels were measured and adverse events noted.ResultsSix patients (three with brain metastases) were recruited. About 80% plasma radioactivity corresponded to intact [11C]lapatinib after 60 min. PET signal in the brain corresponded to circulating radioactivity levels, with no [11C]lapatinib uptake observed in normal brain tissue. In contrast, radioactivity uptake in cranial metastases was significantly higher (p = 0.002) than that could be accounted by circulating radioactivity levels, consistent with [11C]lapatinib uptake in brain metastases. There was no difference in lapatinib uptake between the baseline and day 8 scans, suggesting no effect of increased drug access by inhibition of the drug efflux proteins by therapeutic doses of lapatinib.ConclusionsIncreased lapatinib uptake was observed in brain metastases but not in normal brain.
Coombes RC, 2015, Drug testing in the patient: Toward personalized cancer treatment, SCIENCE TRANSLATIONAL MEDICINE, Vol: 7, ISSN: 1946-6234
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- Citations: 12
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