The chemopreventive polyphenol Curcumin prevents hematogenous breast cancer metastases in immunodeficient mice

Dissemination of metastatic cells probably occurs long before diagnosis of the primary tumor. Metastasis during early phases of carcinogenesis in high risk patients is therefore a potential prevention target. The plant polyphenol Curcumin has been proposed for dietary prevention of cancer. We therefore examined its effects on the human breast cancer cell line MDA-MB-231 in vitro and in a mouse metastasis model. Curcumin strongly induces apoptosis in MDA- MB- 231 cells in correlation with reduced activation of the survival pathway NF kappa B, as a consequence of diminished I kappa B and p65 phosphorylation. Curcumin also reduces the expression of major matrix metalloproteinases (MMPs) due to reduced NF kappa B activity and transcriptional downregulation of AP-1. NF kappa B/p65 silencing is sufficient to downregulate c-jun and MMP expression. Reduced NF kappa B/AP-1 activity and MMP expression lead to diminished invasion through a reconstituted basement membrane and to a significantly lower number of lung metastases in immunodeficient mice after intercardiac injection of 231 cells (p=0.0035). 68% of Curcumin treated but only 17% of untreated animals showed no or very few lung metastases, most likely as a consequence of down-regulation of NF kappa B/AP-1 dependent MMP expression and direct apoptotic effects on circulating tumor cells but not on established metastases. Dietary chemoprevention of metastases appears therefore feasible. Copyright (c) 2007 S. Karger AG, Basel

Fredrika Runeberg – kirjailija kansallisrunoilijan varjossa.

Kirjallisuusarvostel

Smoking status and survival in the national comprehensive cancer network non–small cell lung cancer cohort

BACKGROUND: The objectives of this study were to evaluate survival among current smokers, former smokers, and never smokers who are diagnosed with non–small cell lung cancer (NSCLC). METHODS: The study included patients who participated in the National Comprehensive Cancer Network's NSCLC Database Project. Current, former, and never smokers were compared with respect to overall survival by fitting Cox regression models. RESULTS: Data from 4200 patients were examined, including 618 never smokers, 1483 current smokers, 380 former smokers who quit 1 to 12 months before diagnosis, and 1719 former smokers who quit >12 months before diagnosis. Among patients with stage I, II, and III disease, only never smokers had better survival than current smokers (hazard ratio, 0.47 [95% confidence interval, 0.26‐0.85] vs 0.51 [95% confidence interval, 0.38‐0.68], respectively). Among patients with stage IV disease, the impact of smoking depended on age: Among younger patients (aged ≤55 years), being a never smoker and a former smoker for ≥12 months increased survival. After age 85 years, smoking status did not have a significant impact on overall survival. CONCLUSIONS: Patients who were smoking at the time of diagnosis had worse survival compared with never smokers. Among younger patients with stage IV disease, current smokers also had worse survival compared with former smokers who quit >12 months before diagnosis. It is likely that tumor biology plays a major role in the differences observed; however, to improve survival, it is prudent to encourage all smokers to quit smoking if they are diagnosed with NSCLC. Cancer 2013. © 2012 American Cancer Society. Patients who are smoking at the time of diagnosis have worse survival compared with never smokers. Although some of these differences probably are related to tumor biology, to improve survival, it is prudent to encourage all smokers to quit smoking if they are diagnosed with non–small cell lung cancer.Peer Reviewedhttp://deepblue.lib.umich.edu/bitstream/2027.42/96341/1/27824_ftp.pd

New sanctioning options

ARTICLES: : 1. Editorial 2. Josine Junger-Tas - Recent Trends in Sentencing Policies in The Netherlands 3. Ivo Aertsen and Tony Peters - Mediation and Restorative Justice in Belgium 4. F.W.M. McElrea - The New Zealand Model of Family Group Conferences 5. Alan W. Leschied and Alison Cunningham - Alternatives to Custody for High-Risk Young Offenders: The Multisystemic Therapy Approach 6. Klára Kerezsi - Costs of Alternative Sanctions in Hungary 7. Jana Valkova - Some Remarks on the Implementation of Community Sanctions and Measures 8. Current Issues: Christine Lazerges and Jean-Pierre Balduyck - Response to Juvenile Delinquency: Report to the French Prime Minister 9. Commentaries on the White Paper “No More Excuses” 10. Sturla Falck - Rights of the Child 11. Barry Krisberg - A Blame Culture 12. Lode Walgrave - Trying to Pick up the Pieces 13. Catrien C.J.H. Bijleveld - Methodological Issues in the Study of Domestic Victimisation Prevalence 14. Crime Institute Profile: Max Planck Institute for Foreign and International Criminal La

Lipids and lipolytic enzymes of the microalga Isochrysis galbana

International audienceMarine microalgae are now well-known for their ability to produce omega-3 long chain polyunsaturated fatty acids (PUFAs) such as docosahexaenoic acid (DHA) and eicosapentaenoic acid (EPA). Among these microalgae, Isochrysis galbana has received increasing interest especially because of its high DHA content and its common use in hatchery to feed fish larvae and clams. Moreover, lipolysis occurring from the biomass harvest stage suggests that I. galbana may contain lipolytic enzymes with potential interesting selectivities. For these reasons, the potential of this microalga for the production of valuable lipids and lipolytic enzymes was investigated. Lipid analysis revealed that DHA is mainly located at the sn-2 position of the phospholipids. Thus, I. galbana was considered as an interesting starting material for the lipase catalyzed production of 1-lyso-2-DHA-phospholipids which are considered as convenient vehicles for the conveyance of DHA to the brain. Lipids from I. galbana can also be used for the enzyme-catalyzed production of structured phospholipids containing one DHA and one medium chain fatty acid in order to combine interesting therapeutic and biological benefits. Starting from total RNA extract from I. galbana, coding sequences of putative lipolytic enzymes were obtained by RACE and Nested PCR. The heterologous expression of a sequence designated IgTeCe was implemented. An expression plasmid was constructed by ligating the coding sequence to a plasmid vector and then cloned and expressed in E. coli. Results showed the effective functionality of plasmid construction for the production of a recombinant protein with the expected molecular mass. Moreover, local alignment using BLASTP and biochemical evidences support the hypothesis that the expressed protein is a thioesterase. Keywords: microalgae / v-3 polyunsaturated fatty acids / phospholipids / lipolytic enzymes Résumé-Lipides et enzymes lipolytiques de la microalgue Isochrysis galbana. Les microalgues marines sont maintenant bien connues pour leur aptitude à produire des acides gras à longue chaîne de la série v-3 comme l'acide docosahexahénoïque (DHA) ou eicosapentaénoïque (EPA). Parmi ces microalgues, Isochrysis galbana connaît, ces dernières années, un intérêt croissant du fait d'un contenu lipidique riche en DHA et de son importante utilisation en écloserie pour nourrir les larves de poissons et les bivalves. D'autre part, la lipolyse souvent observée dès l'étape de collecte de la biomasse ainsi que la forte teneur en DHA suggère qu'I. galbana pourrait contenir des enzymes lipolytiques intéressantes en termes de sélectivité. Pour ces différentes raisons, le potentiel de cette microalgue pour la production de lipides d'intérêt et d'enzymes lipolytiques a été étudié. L'analyse des lipides d'I. galbana a tout d'abord révélé que le DHA était majoritairement greffé sur la position sn-2 des phospholipides. Dans ce contexte, les phospholipides d'I. galbana constituent une matière première intéressante pour la production, par voie enzymatique, de 1-lyso-2-DHA phospholipides, des composés intéressants pour optimiser le transport du DHA au niveau du cerveau. À partir des lipides d'I. galbana, on peut également envisager la production, toujours par voie enzymatique, de phospholipides structurés contenant du DHA et un acide gras à chaîne moyenne ce qui permet de combiner des intérêts thérapeutiques et biologiques intéressants. À partir des ARN totaux d'I. galbana, des séquences codant des enzymes lipolytiques putatives ont été obtenues par RACE et Nested PCR. L'expression hétérologue d'une séquence nommée IgTeCe a été initiée. Une construction plasmidique contenant la séquence codante a été clonée et exprimée avec E. coli. Les résultats ont montré que laLes microalgues marines sont maintenant bien connues pour leur aptitude à produire des acides gras à longue chaîne de la série ω-3 comme l’acide docosahexahénoïque (DHA) ou eicosapentaénoïque (EPA). Parmi ces microalgues, Isochrysis galbana connaît, ces dernières années, un intérèt croissant du fait d’un contenu lipidique riche en DHA et de son importante utilisation en écloserie pour nourrir les larves de poissons et les bivalves. D’autre part, la lipolyse souvent observée dès l’étape de collecte de la biomasse ainsi que la forte teneur en DHA suggère qu’I. galbana pourrait contenir des enzymes lipolytiques intéressantes en terme de sélectivité.Pour ces différentes raisons, le potentiel de cette microalgue pour la production de lipides d’intérêt et d’enzymes lipolytiques a été étudié.L’analyse des lipides d’I. galbana a tout d’abord revélé que le DHA était majoritairement greffé sur la position sn-2 des phopholipides. Dans ce contexte, les phospholipids d’I. galbana constituent une matière première intéressante pour la production, par voie enzymatique, de 1-lyso-2–DHA phospholipides, des composés intéressants pour optimiser le transport du DHA au niveau du cerveau. A partir des lipides d’I. galbana, on peut également envisager la production, toujours par voie enzymatique, de phospholipides structurés contenant du DHA et un acide gras à chaîne moyenne ce qui permet de combiner des intérêts thérapeutiques et biologiques intéressants.A partir des ARN totaux d’I. galbana, des séquences codant des enzymes lipolytiques putatives ont été obtenues par RACE et Nested PCR. L’expression hétérologue d’une sequence nommée IgTeCe a été initiée. Une construction plasmidique contenant la séquence codante a été clonée et exprimée avec E. coli. Les résultats ont montré que la construction plasmidique permettait bien d’obtenir une protéine recombinante avec la masse moléculaire attendue. D’autre part, l’outil d’alignement local de séquences, BLASTP, ainsi que des données biochimiques ont permis de confirmer l’hypothèse que la protéine obtenue était une thioestérase

MMP-13 stimulates osteoclast differentiation and activation in tumour breast bone metastases

INTRODUCTION: The increased bone degradation in osteolytic metastases depends on stimulation of mature osteoclasts and on continuous differentiation of new pre-osteoclasts. Metalloproteinases (MMP)-13 is expressed in a broad range of primary malignant tumours and it is emerging as a novel biomarker. Recent data suggest a direct role of MMP-13 in dissolving bone matrix complementing the activity of MMP-9 and other enzymes. Tumour-microenvironment interactions alter gene expression in malignant breast tumour cells promoting osteolytic bone metastasis. Gene expression profiles revealed that MMP-13 was among the up-regulated genes in tumour-bone interface and its abrogation reduced bone erosion. The precise mechanism remained not fully understood. Our purpose was to further investigate the mechanistic role of MMP-13 in bone osteolytic lesions. METHODS: MDA-MB-231 breast cancer cells that express MMP-13 were used as a model for in vitro and in vivo experiments. Conditioned media from MDA-MB-231 cells were added to peripheral blood mononuclear cultures to monitor pre-osteoclast differentiation and activation. Bone erosion was evaluated after injection of MMP-13-silenced MDA-MB-231 cells into nude mice femurs. RESULTS: MMP-13 was co-expressed by human breast tumour bone metastases with its activator MT1-MMP. MMP-13 was up-regulated in breast cancer cells after in vitro stimulation with IL-8 and was responsible for increased bone resorption and osteoclastogenesis, both of which were reduced by MMP inhibitors. We hypothesized that MMP-13 might be directly involved in the loop promoting pre-osteoclast differentiation and activity. We obtained further evidence for a direct role of MMP-13 in bone metastasis by a silencing approach: conditioned media from MDA-MB-231 after MMP-13 abrogation or co-cultivation of silenced cells with pre-osteoclast were unable to increase pre-osteoclast differentiation and resorption activity. MMP-13 activated pre-MMP-9 and promoted the cleavage of galectin-3, a suppressor of osteoclastogenesis, thus contributing to pre-osteoclast differentiation. Accordingly, MMP-13 abrogation in tumour cells injected into the femurs of nude mice reduced the differentiation of TRAP positive cells in bone marrow and within the tumour mass as well as bone erosion. CONCLUSIONS: These results indicate that within the inflammatory bone microenvironment MMP-13 production was up-regulated in breast tumour cells leading to increased pre-osteoclast differentiation and their subsequent activation

Correlation between MMPs and their inhibitors in breast cancer tumor tissue specimens and in cell lines with different metastatic potential

Background: The metastatic disease rather than the primary tumor itself is responsible for death in most solid tumors, including breast cancer. The role of matrix metalloproteinases ( MMPs), tissue inhibitors of MMPs (TIMPs) and Reversion-inducing cysteine-rich protein with Kazal motifs ( RECK) in the metastatic process has previously been established. However, in all published studies only a limited number of MMPs/MMP inhibitors was analyzed in a limited number of cell lines. Here, we propose a more comprehensive approach by analyzing the expression levels of several MMPs (MMP-2, MMP-9 and MMP-14) and MMP inhibitors (TIMP-1, TIMP-2 and RECK) in different models ( five human breast cancer cell lines, 72 primary breast tumors and 30 adjacent normal tissues). Methods: We analyzed the expression levels of MMP-2, MMP-9 and MMP-14 and their inhibitors (TIMP-1, TIMP-2 and RECK) by quantitative RT-PCR (qRT-PCR) in five human breast cancer cell lines presenting increased invasiveness and metastatic potential, 72 primary breast tumors and 30 adjacent normal tissues. Moreover, the role of cell-extracellular matrix elements interactions in the regulation of expression and activity of MMPs and their inhibitors was analyzed by culturing these cell lines on plastic or on artificial ECM (Matrigel). Results: The results demonstrated that MMPs mRNA expression levels displayed a positive and statistically significant correlation with the transcriptional expression levels of their inhibitors both in the cell line models and in the tumor tissue samples. Furthermore, the expression of all MMP inhibitors was modulated by cell-Matrigel contact only in highly invasive and metastatic cell lines. The enzyme/inhibitor balance at the transcriptional level significantly favors the enzyme which is more evident in tumor than in adjacent non-tumor tissue samples. Conclusion: Our results suggest that the expression of MMPs and their inhibitors, at least at the transcriptional level, might be regulated by common factors and signaling pathways. Therefore, the multi-factorial analysis of these molecules could provide new and independent prognostic information contributing to the determination of more adequate therapy strategies for each patient.`Fundacao de Amparo a Pesquisa do Estado de Sao Paulo (FAPESP)Conselho Nacional de Pesquisa (CNPq)Financiadora de Estudos e Projetos (FINEP)Pro-Reitoria da Universidade de Sao Paulo (PRP-USP

In vitro and in vivo MMP gene expression localisation by In Situ-RT-PCR in cell culture and paraffin embedded human breast cancer cell line xenografts

BACKGROUND: Members of the matrix metalloproteinase (MMP) family of proteases are required for the degradation of the basement membrane and extracellular matrix in both normal and pathological conditions. In vitro, MT1-MMP (MMP-14, membrane type-1-MMP) expression is higher in more invasive human breast cancer (HBC) cell lines, whilst in vivo its expression has been associated with the stroma surrounding breast tumours. MMP-1 (interstitial collagenase) has been associated with MDA-MB-231 invasion in vitro, while MMP-3 (stromelysin-1) has been localised around invasive cells of breast tumours in vivo. As MMPs are not stored intracellularly, the ability to localise their expression to their cells of origin is difficult. METHODS: We utilised the unique in situ-reverse transcription-polymerase chain reaction (IS-RT-PCR) methodology to localise the in vitro and in vivo gene expression of MT1-MMP, MMP-1 and MMP-3 in human breast cancer. In vitro, MMP induction was examined in the MDA-MB-231 and MCF-7 HBC cell lines following exposure to Concanavalin A (Con A). In vivo, we examined their expression in archival paraffin embedded xenografts derived from a range of HBC cell lines of varied invasive and metastatic potential. Mouse xenografts are heterogenous, containing neoplastic human parenchyma with mouse stroma and vasculature and provide a reproducible in vivo model system correlated to the human disease state. RESULTS: In vitro, exposure to Con A increased MT1-MMP gene expression in MDA-MB-231 cells and decreased MT1-MMP gene expression in MCF-7 cells. MMP-1 and MMP-3 gene expression remained unchanged in both cell lines. In vivo, stromal cells recruited into each xenograft demonstrated differences in localised levels of MMP gene expression. Specifically, MDA-MB-231, MDA-MB-435 and Hs578T HBC cell lines are able to influence MMP gene expression in the surrounding stroma. CONCLUSION: We have demonstrated the applicability and sensitivity of IS-RT-PCR for the examination of MMP gene expression both in vitro and in vivo. Induction of MMP gene expression in both the epithelial tumour cells and surrounding stromal cells is associated with increased metastatic potential. Our data demonstrate the contribution of the stroma to epithelial MMP gene expression, and highlight the complexity of the role of MMPs in the stromal-epithelial interactions within breast carcinoma