Lymphatic Vascular Structures : A New Aspect in Proliferative Diabetic Retinopathy

Diabetic retinopathy (DR) is the most common diabetic microvascular complication and major cause of blindness in working-age adults. According to the level of microvascular degeneration and ischemic damage, DR is classified into non-proliferative DR (NPDR), and end-stage, proliferative DR (PDR). Despite advances in the disease etiology and pathogenesis, molecular understanding of end-stage PDR, characterized by ischemia- and inflammation-associated neovascularization and fibrosis, remains incomplete due to the limited availability of ideal clinical samples and experimental research models. Since a great portion of patients do not benefit from current treatments, improved therapies are essential. DR is known to be a complex and multifactorial disease featuring the interplay of microvascular, neurodegenerative, metabolic, genetic/epigenetic, immunological, and inflammation-related factors. Particularly, deeper knowledge on the mechanisms and pathophysiology of most advanced PDR is critical. Lymphatic-like vessel formation coupled with abnormal endothelial differentiation and progenitor cell involvement in the neovascularization associated with PDR are novel recent findings which hold potential for improved DR treatment. Understanding the underlying mechanisms of PDR pathogenesis is therefore crucial. To this goal, multidisciplinary approaches and new ex vivo models have been developed for a more comprehensive molecular, cellular and tissue-level understanding of the disease. This is the first step to gain the needed information on how PDR can be better evaluated, stratified, and treated.Peer reviewe

Fibroblasts in the Tumor Microenvironment : Shield or Spear?

Tumorigenesis is a complex process involving dynamic interactions between malignant cells and their surrounding stroma, including both the cellular and acellular components. Within the stroma, fibroblasts represent not only a predominant cell type, but also a major source of the acellular tissue microenvironment comprising the extracellular matrix (ECM) and soluble factors. Normal fibroblasts can exert diverse suppressive functions against cancer initiating and metastatic cells via direct cell-cell contact, paracrine signaling by soluble factors, and ECM integrity. The loss of such suppressive functions is an inherent step in tumor progression. A tumor cell-induced switch of normal fibroblasts into cancer-associated fibroblasts (CAFs), in turn, triggers a range of pro-tumorigenic signals accompanied by distraction of the normal tissue architecture, thus creating an optimal niche for cancer cells to grow extensively. To further support tumor progression and metastasis, CAFs secrete factors such as ECM remodeling enzymes that further modify the tumor microenvironment in combination with the altered adhesive forces and cell-cell interactions. These paradoxical tumor suppressive and promoting actions of fibroblasts are the focus of this review, highlighting the heterogenic molecular properties of both normal and cancer-associated fibroblasts, as well as their main mechanisms of action, including the emerging impact on immunomodulation and different therapy responses.Peer reviewe

Membrane-Type-3 Matrix Metalloproteinase (MT3-MMP) Functions as a Matrix Composition-Dependent Effector of Melanoma Cell Invasion

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MMP14 in Sarcoma: A Regulator of Tumor Microenvironment Communication in Connective Tissues

Sarcomas are deadly malignant tumors of mesenchymal origin occurring at all ages. The expression and function of the membrane-type matrix metalloproteinase MMP14 is closely related to the mesenchymal cell phenotype, and it is highly expressed in most sarcomas. MMP14 regulates the activity of multiple extracellular and plasma membrane proteins, influencing cell–cell and cell–extracellular matrix (ECM) communication. This regulation mediates processes such as ECM degradation and remodeling, cell invasion, and cancer metastasis. Thus, a comprehensive understanding of the biology of MMP14 in sarcomas will shed light on the mechanisms controlling the key processes in these diseases. Here, we provide an overview of the function and regulation of MMP14 and we discuss their relationship with clinical and pre-clinical MMP14 data in both adult and childhood sarcomas

Liprin-alpha 1 modulates cancer cell signaling by transmembrane protein CD82 in adhesive membrane domains linked to cytoskeleton

Background: PPFIA1 is located at the 11q13 region commonly amplified in cancer. The protein liprin-alpha 1 encoded by PPFIA1 contributes to the adhesive and invasive structures of cytoskeletal elements and is located at the invadosomes in cancer cells. However, the precise mechanism of liprin-alpha 1 function in cancer progression has remained elusive. Methods: Invasion regulating activity of liprin-alpha 1 was examined by analyzing the functions of squamous cell carcinoma of head and neck (HNSCC) cell lines in three-dimensional collagen I after RNAi mediated gene knockdown. Transcriptome profiling and Gene Set Enrichment Analysis from HNSCC and breast cancer cells were used to identify expression changes relevant to specific cellular localizations, biological processes and signaling pathways after PPFIA1 knockdown. The significance of the results was assessed by relevant statistical methods (Wald and Benjamini-Hochberg). Localization of proteins associated to liprin-alpha 1 was studied by immunofluorescence in 2D and 3D conditions. The association of PPFIA1 amplification to HNSCC patient survival was explored using The Cancer Genome Atlas data. Results: In this study, we show that liprin-alpha 1 regulates biological processes related to membrane microdomains in breast carcinoma, as well as protein trafficking, cell-cell and cell-substrate contacts in HNSCC cell lines cultured in three-dimensional matrix. Importantly, we show that in all these cancer cells liprin-alpha 1 knockdown leads to the upregulation of transmembrane protein CD82, which is a suppressor of metastasis in several solid tumors. Conclusions: Our results provide novel information regarding the function of liprin-alpha 1 in biological processes essential in cancer progression. The results reveal liprin-alpha 1 as a novel regulator of CD82, linking liprin-alpha 1 to the cancer cell invasion and metastasis pathways.Peer reviewe

Liprin-α1 modulates cancer cell signaling by transmembrane protein CD82 in adhesive membrane domains linked to cytoskeleton

Abstract Background PPFIA1 is located at the 11q13 region commonly amplified in cancer. The protein liprin-α1 encoded by PPF1A1 contributes to the adhesive and invasive structures of cytoskeletal elements and is located at the invadosomes in cancer cells. However, the precise mechanism of liprin-α1 function in cancer progression has remained elusive. Methods Invasion regulating activity of liprin-α1 was examined by analyzing the functions of squamous cell carcinoma of head and neck (HNSCC) cell lines in three-dimensional collagen I after RNAi mediated gene knockdown. Transcriptome profiling and Gene Set Enrichment Analysis from HNSCC and breast cancer cells were used to identify expression changes relevant to specific cellular localizations, biological processes and signaling pathways after PPFIA1 knockdown. The significance of the results was assessed by relevant statistical methods (Wald and Benjamini-Hochberg). Localization of proteins associated to liprin-α1 was studied by immunofluorescence in 2D and 3D conditions. The association of PPFIA1 amplification to HNSCC patient survival was explored using The Cancer Genome Atlas data. Results In this study, we show that liprin-α1 regulates biological processes related to membrane microdomains in breast carcinoma, as well as protein trafficking, cell-cell and cell-substrate contacts in HNSCC cell lines cultured in three-dimensional matrix. Importantly, we show that in all these cancer cells liprin-α1 knockdown leads to the upregulation of transmembrane protein CD82, which is a suppressor of metastasis in several solid tumors. Conclusions Our results provide novel information regarding the function of liprin-α1 in biological processes essential in cancer progression. The results reveal liprin-α1 as a novel regulator of CD82, linking liprin-α1 to the cancer cell invasion and metastasis pathways

Lymphatics and the eye

The lymphatic system, fundamental for body fluid homeostasis and immune system functions, also participates in pathological processes including cancer, cardiovascular and neurodegenerative diseases. Many aspects of the lymphatic system are unclear, but great advancements have been made – e.g. the discovery of meningeal lymphatics and the lymphatic-like nature of Schlemm’s canal. Lymphatic-like structures were also recently discovered in proliferative diabetic retinopathy, a severe diabetic eye complication, where the treatment of pathological neovessel growth is not always effective. Novel findings in the field can help to develop new treatments for lymphatic disorders and for other diseases where lymphatic neovascular growth is involved.Peer reviewe

Aggressive and recurrent ovarian cancers upregulate ephrinA5, a non-canonical effector of EphA2 signaling duality

Erythropoietin producing hepatocellular (Eph) receptors and their membrane-bound ligands ephrins are variably expressed in epithelial cancers, with context-dependent implications to both tumor-promoting and-suppressive processes in ways that remain incompletely understood. Using ovarian cancer tissue microarrays and longitudinally collected patient cells, we show here that ephrinA5/EFNA5 is specifically overexpressed in the most aggressive high-grade serous carcinoma (HGSC) subtype, and increased in the HGSC cells upon disease progression. Among all the eight ephrin genes, high EFNA5 expression was most strongly associated with poor overall survival in HGSC patients from multiple independent datasets. In contrast, high EFNA3 predicted improved overall and progression-free survival in The Cancer Genome Atlas HGSC dataset, as expected for a canonical inducer of tumor-suppressive Eph receptor tyrosine kinase signaling. While depletion of either EFNA5 or the more extensively studied, canonically acting EFNA1 in HGSC cells increased the oncogenic EphA2-S897 phosphorylation, EFNA5 depletion left unaltered, or even increased the ligand-dependent EphA2-Y588 phosphorylation. Moreover, treatment with recombinant ephrinA5 led to limited EphA2 tyrosine phosphorylation, internalization and degradation compared to ephrinA1. Altogether, our results suggest a unique function for ephrinA5 in Eph-ephrin signaling and highlight the clinical potential of ephrinA5 as a cell surface biomarker in the most aggressive HGSCs.Peer reviewe