Internet Usage by Patients with Multiple Sclerosis: Implications to Participatory Medicine and Personalized Healthcare

Online health information and services for patients were suggested to improve symptom management and treatment adherence, thereby contributing to healthcare optimization. This paper aimed to characterize multiple sclerosis (MS) patients Internet usage. Information regarding browsing habits, Internet reliability, and the medical team's attitude to information collected online was obtained by questionnaires from MS patients. Data was compared between nonbrowsers, browsers on MS topics, and browsers on non-MS topics only. From the 96 patients recruited, 61 (63.5%) performed MS-related searches. The most viewed topics were “understanding the disease” and “treatments”. Patients reported that the information helped coping with MS and assured them of the appropriateness of their therapy. Shorter disease duration was correlated with higher Internet activity. Disabled patients were more interested in online interaction with specialists and support groups. This paper suggests that MS patients benefit from online information, and it emphasizes the importance of resources tailored to patients needs

Polymorphisms in alcohol metabolism genes ADH1B and ALDH2, alcohol consumption and colorectal cancer

Background: Colorectal cancer (CRC) is a leading cause of cancer death worldwide. Epidemiological risk factors for CRC included alcohol intake, which is mainly metabolized to acetaldehyde by alcohol dehydrogenase and further oxidized to acetate by aldehyde dehydrogenase; consequently, the role of genes in the alcohol metabolism pathways is of particular interest. The aim of this study is to analyze the association between SNPs in ADH1B and ALDH2 genes and CRC risk, and also the main effect of alcohol consumption on CRC risk in the study population. Methodology/Principal Findings: SNPs from ADH1B and ALDH2 genes, included in alcohol metabolism pathway, were genotyped in 1694 CRC cases and 1851 matched controls from the Molecular Epidemiology of Colorectal Cancer study. Information on clinicopathological characteristics, lifestyle and dietary habits were also obtained. Logistic regression and association analysis were conducted. A positive association between alcohol consumption and CRC risk was observed in male participants from the Molecular Epidemiology of Colorectal Cancer study (MECC) study (OR = 1.47; 95%CI = 1.18-1.81). Moreover, the SNPs rs1229984 in ADH1B gene was found to be associated with CRC risk: under the recessive model, the OR was 1.75 for A/A genotype (95%CI = 1.21-2.52; p-value = 0.0025). A path analysis based on structural equation modeling showed a direct effect of ADH1B gene polymorphisms on colorectal carcinogenesis and also an indirect effect mediated through alcohol consumption. Conclusions/Significance: Genetic polymorphisms in the alcohol metabolism pathways have a potential role in colorectal carcinogenesis, probably due to the differences in the ethanol metabolism and acetaldehyde oxidation of these enzyme variants

A network analysis to identify mediators of germline-driven differences in breast cancer prognosis.

Identifying the underlying genetic drivers of the heritability of breast cancer prognosis remains elusive. We adapt a network-based approach to handle underpowered complex datasets to provide new insights into the potential function of germline variants in breast cancer prognosis. This network-based analysis studies ~7.3 million variants in 84,457 breast cancer patients in relation to breast cancer survival and confirms the results on 12,381 independent patients. Aggregating the prognostic effects of genetic variants across multiple genes, we identify four gene modules associated with survival in estrogen receptor (ER)-negative and one in ER-positive disease. The modules show biological enrichment for cancer-related processes such as G-alpha signaling, circadian clock, angiogenesis, and Rho-GTPases in apoptosis

Evaluation of a candidate breast cancer associated SNP in ERCC4 as a risk modifier in BRCA1 and BRCA2 mutation carriers. Results from the Consortium of Investigators of Modifiers of BRCA1/BRCA2 (CIMBA)

Background: In this study we aimed to evaluate the role of a SNP in intron 1 of the ERCC4 gene (rs744154), previously reported to be associated with a reduced risk of breast cancer in the general population, as a breast cancer risk modifier in BRCA1 and BRCA2 mutation carriers. Methods: We have genotyped rs744154 in 9408 BRCA1 and 5632 BRCA2 mutation carriers from the Consortium of Investigators of Modifiers of BRCA1/2 (CIMBA) and assessed its association with breast cancer risk using a retrospective weighted cohort approach. Results: We found no evidence of association with breast cancer risk for BRCA1 (per-allele HR: 0.98, 95% CI: 0.93–1.04, P=0.5) or BRCA2 (per-allele HR: 0.97, 95% CI: 0.89–1.06, P=0.5) mutation carriers. Conclusion: This SNP is not a significant modifier of breast cancer risk for mutation carriers, though weak associations cannot be ruled out. A Osorio1, R L Milne2, G Pita3, P Peterlongo4,5, T Heikkinen6, J Simard7, G Chenevix-Trench8, A B Spurdle8, J Beesley8, X Chen8, S Healey8, KConFab9, S L Neuhausen10, Y C Ding10, F J Couch11,12, X Wang11, N Lindor13, S Manoukian4, M Barile14, A Viel15, L Tizzoni5,16, C I Szabo17, L Foretova18, M Zikan19, K Claes20, M H Greene21, P Mai21, G Rennert22, F Lejbkowicz22, O Barnett-Griness22, I L Andrulis23,24, H Ozcelik24, N Weerasooriya23, OCGN23, A-M Gerdes25, M Thomassen25, D G Cruger26, M A Caligo27, E Friedman28,29, B Kaufman28,29, Y Laitman28, S Cohen28, T Kontorovich28, R Gershoni-Baruch30, E Dagan31,32, H Jernström33, M S Askmalm34, B Arver35, B Malmer36, SWE-BRCA37, S M Domchek38, K L Nathanson38, J Brunet39, T Ramón y Cajal40, D Yannoukakos41, U Hamann42, HEBON37, F B L Hogervorst43, S Verhoef43, EB Gómez García44,45, J T Wijnen46,47, A van den Ouweland48, EMBRACE37, D F Easton49, S Peock49, M Cook49, C T Oliver49, D Frost49, C Luccarini50, D G Evans51, F Lalloo51, R Eeles52, G Pichert53, J Cook54, S Hodgson55, P J Morrison56, F Douglas57, A K Godwin58, GEMO59,60,61, O M Sinilnikova59,60, L Barjhoux59,60, D Stoppa-Lyonnet61, V Moncoutier61, S Giraud59, C Cassini62,63, L Olivier-Faivre62,63, F Révillion64, J-P Peyrat64, D Muller65, J-P Fricker65, H T Lynch66, E M John67, S Buys68, M Daly69, J L Hopper70, M B Terry71, A Miron72, Y Yassin72, D Goldgar73, Breast Cancer Family Registry37, C F Singer74, D Gschwantler-Kaulich74, G Pfeiler74, A-C Spiess74, Thomas v O Hansen75, O T Johannsson76, T Kirchhoff77, K Offit77, K Kosarin77, M Piedmonte78, G C Rodriguez79, K Wakeley80, J F Boggess81, J Basil82, P E Schwartz83, S V Blank84, A E Toland85, M Montagna86, C Casella87, E N Imyanitov88, A Allavena89, R K Schmutzler90, B Versmold90, C Engel91, A Meindl92, N Ditsch93, N Arnold94, D Niederacher95, H Deißler96, B Fiebig97, R Varon-Mateeva98, D Schaefer99, U G Froster100, T Caldes101, M de la Hoya101, L McGuffog49, A C Antoniou49, H Nevanlinna6, P Radice4,5 and J Benítez1,3 on behalf of CIMB

Vascular Endothelial Growth Factor Mediates Intracrine Survival in Human Breast Carcinoma Cells through Internally Expressed VEGFR1/FLT1

Shalom Avraham and colleagues' study provides evidence of a survival system in breast cancer cells by which VEGF acts as an internal autocrine survival factor through its binding to VEGFR1

Lymphocytic infiltration in stage II microsatellite stable colorectal tumors: A retrospective prognosis biomarker analysis

Background: Identifying stage II patients with colorectal cancer (CRC) at higher risk of progression is a clinical priority in order to optimize the advantages of adjuvant chemotherapy while avoiding unnecessary toxicity. Recently, the intensity and the quality of the host immune response in the tumor microenvironment have been reported to have an important role in tumorigenesis and an inverse association with tumor progression. This association is well established in microsatellite instable CRC. In this work, we aim to assess the usefulness of measures of T-cell infiltration as prognostic biomarkers in 640 stage II, CRC tumors, 582 of them confirmed microsatellite stable. Methods and findings: We measured both the quantity and clonality index of T cells by means of T-cell receptor (TCR) immunosequencing in a discovery dataset (95 patients with colon cancer diagnosed at stage II and microsatellite stable, median age 67, 30% women) and replicated the results in 3 additional series of stage II patients from 2 countries. Series 1 and 2 were recruited in Barcelona, Spain and included 112 fresh frozen (FF, median age 69, 44% women) and 163 formalin-fixed paraffin-embedded (FFPE, median age 67, 39% women) samples, respectively. Series 3 included 270 FFPE samples from patients recruited in Haifa, Northern Israel, as part of a large case-control study of CRC (median age 73, 46% women). Median follow-up time was 81.1 months. Cox regression models were fitted to evaluate the prognostic value of T-cell abundance and Simpson clonality of TCR variants adjusting by sex, age, tumor location, and stage (IIA and IIB). In the discovery dataset, higher TCR abundance was associated with better prognosis (hazard ratio [HR] for ≥Q1 = 0.25, 95% CI 0.10-0.63, P = 0.003). A functional analysis of gene expression on these tumors revealed enrichment in pathways related to immune response. Higher values of clonality index (lower diversity) were not associated with worse disease-free survival, though the HR for ≥Q3 was 2.32 (95% CI 0.90-5.97, P = 0.08). These results were replicated in an independent FF dataset (TCR abundance: HR = 0.30, 95% CI 0.12-0.72, P = 0.007; clonality: HR = 3.32, 95% CI 1.38-7.94, P = 0.007). Also, the association with prognosis was tested in 2 independent FFPE datasets. The same association was observed with TCR abundance (HR = 0.41, 95% CI 0.18-0.93, P = 0.03 and HR = 0.56, 95% CI 0.31-1, P = 0.042, respectively, for each FFPE dataset). However, the clonality index was associated with prognosis only in the FFPE dataset from Israel (HR = 2.45, 95% CI 1.39-4.32, P = 0.002). Finally, a combined analysis combining all microsatellite stable (MSS) samples demonstrated a clear prognosis value both for TCR abundance (HR = 0.39, 95% CI 0.26-0.57, P = 1.3e-06) and the clonality index (HR = 2.13, 95% CI 1.44-3.15, P = 0.0002). These associations were also observed when variables were considered continuous in the models (HR per log2 of TCR abundance = 0.85, 95% CI 0.78-0.93, P = 0.0002; HR per log2 or clonality index = 1.16, 95% CI 1.03-1.31, P = 0.016). Limitations: This is a retrospective study, and samples had been preserved with different methods. Validation series lack complete information about microsatellite instability (MSI) status and pathology assessment. The Molecular Epidemiology of Colorectal Cancer (MECC) study had information about overall survival instead of progression-free survival. Conclusion: Results from this study demonstrate that tumor lymphocytes, assessed by TCR repertoire quantification based on a sequencing method, are an independent prognostic factor in microsatellite stable stage II CRC

mTORC1 signalling and eIF4E/4E-BP1 translation initiation factor stoichiometry influence recombinant protein productivity from GS-CHOK1 cells

Many protein-based biotherapeutics are produced in cultured Chinese hamster ovary (CHO) cell lines. Recent reports have demonstrated that translation of recombinant mRNAs and global control of the translation machinery via mammalian target of rapamycin (mTOR) signalling are important determinants of the amount and quality of recombinant protein such cells can produce. mTOR complex 1 (mTORC1) is a master regulator of cell growth/division, ribosome biogenesis and protein synthesis, but the relationship between mTORC1 signalling, cell growth and proliferation and recombinant protein yields from mammalian cells, and whether this master regulating signalling pathway can be manipulated to enhance cell biomass and recombinant protein production (rPP) are not well explored. We have investigated mTORC1 signalling and activity throughout batch culture of a panel of sister recombinant glutamine synthetase-CHO cell lines expressing different amounts of a model monoclonal IgG4, to evaluate the links between mTORC1 signalling and cell proliferation, autophagy, recombinant protein expression, global protein synthesis and mRNA translation initiation. We find that the expression of the mTORC1 substrate 4E-binding protein 1 (4E-BP1) fluctuates throughout the course of cell culture and, as expected, that the 4E-BP1 phosphorylation profiles change across the culture. Importantly, we find that the eIF4E/4E-BP1 stoichiometry positively correlates with cell productivity. Furthermore, eIF4E amounts appear to be co-regulated with 4E-BP1 amounts. This may reflect a sensing of either change at the mRNA level as opposed to the protein level or the fact that the phosphorylation status, as well as the amount of 4E-BP1 present, is important in the co-regulation of eIF4E and 4E-BP1

Genome-wide association study of colorectal cancer identifies six new susceptibility loci

El document inclou una pàgina final amb una correcció (corrigendum). Aquesta, per si sola, té el següent DOI: 10.1038/ncomms9739 i es va publicar al mateix vol. 6.Genetic susceptibility to colorectal cancer is caused by rare pathogenic mutations and common genetic variants that contribute to familial risk. Here we report the results of a two-stage association study with 18,299 cases of colorectal cancer and 19,656 controls, with follow-up of the most statistically significant genetic loci in 4,725 cases and 9,969 controls from two Asian consortia. We describe six new susceptibility loci reaching a genome-wide threshold of P<5.0E-08. These findings provide additional insight into the underlying biological mechanisms of colorectal cancer and demonstrate the scientific value of large consortia-based genetic epidemiology studies