OBJECTIVETo gain insight into the mechanism by which sex-determining region of Y chromosome (SRY)-related high-mobility-group box 2 (SOX2) involved in carcinogenesis and cancer stem cells (CSCs).

DATA SOURCESThe data used in this review were mainly published in English from 2000 to present obtained from PubMed. The search terms were "SOX2," "cancer," "tumor" or "CSCs."

STUDY SELECTIONArticles studying the mitochondria-related pathologic mechanism and treatment of glaucoma were selected and reviewed.

RESULTSSOX2, a transcription factor that is the key in maintaining pluripotent properties of stem cells, is a member of SRY-related high-mobility group domain proteins. SOX2 participates in many biological processes, such as modulation of cell proliferation, regulation of cell death signaling, cell apoptosis, and most importantly, tumor formation and development. Although SOX2 has been implicated in the biology of various tumors and CSCs, the findings are highly controversial, and information regarding the underlying mechanism remains limited. Moreover, the mechanism by which SOX2 involved in carcinogenesis and tumor progression is rather unclear yet.

CONCLUSIONSHere, we review the important biological functions of SOX2 in different tumors and CSCs, and the function of SOX2 signaling in the pathobiology of neoplasia, such as Wnt/β-catenin signaling pathway, Hippo signaling pathway, Survivin signaling pathway, PI3K/Akt signaling pathway, and so on. Targeting towards SOX2 may be an effective therapeutic strategy for cancer therapy.

Gene Expression Regulation, Neoplastic ; Humans ; Neoplasms ; metabolism ; Neoplastic Stem Cells ; metabolism ; SOXB1 Transcription Factors ; metabolism

OBJECTIVETo rapidly detect SOX2 gene using primed in situ labeling (PRINS).

METHODSHuman peripheral blood samples were cultured using an optimized method. Sequence of the SOX2 gene was amplified in situ with biotin-labeled specific primers and processed with a tyramide signal amplification (TSA) biotin system. Subsequently, fluorescence-stained signal was detected by streptavidin-Texas red. For the control group, MCF-10F cells were transfected with Lentivirus hSox2.

RESULTSBy VideoTesT-FISH software analysis, the long arm of chromosome 3 in the experimental group showed a specific red fluorescence signal, whilst the control samples showed no specific signals for SOX2. Transfected MCF-10F cells showed various efficiency of SOX2 gene integration.

CONCLUSIONPRINS utilizes a highly sensitive in situ PCR technique combined with fluorescence labeled oligodeoxynucleotides can synthesize probes in situ, thus greatly reducing the cost of probe and time for detection. It can facilitate identification and classification of induced pluripotent stem cells, and has many potential applications in this prospect.

Humans ; In Situ Hybridization, Fluorescence ; methods ; Male ; Primed In Situ Labeling ; methods ; SOXB1 Transcription Factors ; chemistry

OBJECTIVETo investigate the expression of SOX2 in cervical intraepithelial neoplasia (CIN) and cervical cancer and explore its association with the clinical features.

METHODSSOX2 expressions were examined using immunohistochemical method in 10 normal cervical tissue specimens, 36 cervical intraepithelial neoplasia specimens (including 10 cases of grade I, 12 of grade II, and 14 grade III) and 40 cervical cancer specimens (including 21 cases of stage I and 19 of stage II). The correlation between the immunohistochemical results and the clinical features of the patients was analyzed.

RESULTSSOX2 expression was negative in normal cervical tissues, and was positive in 41.6% of CIN specimens (10.0% in CIN I, 41.7% in CIN II, and 64.3% in CIN III) in 82.5% of cervical cancer specimens (78.2% in stage I and 88.2% in stage II). The patients with cervical cancer had a significantly higher positivity rate of SOX2 than normal control group (P<0.05). The positivity rate of SOX2 increased with the evolution of cervical disease. SOX2 protein expression was significantly correlated with the histological grade and lymph node metastasis (P<0.05), but not with the age or clinical stage of the patients (P<0.05).

CONCLUSIONSOX2 expression may serve as a useful indicator for evaluating metastasis and malignancy of cervical cancer.

Cervical Intraepithelial Neoplasia ; genetics ; metabolism ; pathology ; Humans ; Lymphatic Metastasis ; Neoplasm Grading ; Neoplasm Staging ; SOXB1 Transcription Factors ; genetics ; metabolism

Living organisms are exposed to the geomagnetic field (GMF) throughout their lifespan. Elimination of the GMF, resulting in a hypogeomagnetic field (HMF), leads to central nervous system dysfunction and abnormal development in animals. However, the cellular mechanisms underlying these effects have not been identified so far. Here, we show that exposure to an HMF (<200 nT), produced by a magnetic field shielding chamber, promotes the proliferation of neural progenitor/stem cells (NPCs/NSCs) from C57BL/6 mice. Following seven-day HMF-exposure, the primary neurospheres (NSs) were significantly larger in size, and twice more NPCs/NSCs were harvested from neonatal NSs, when compared to the GMF controls. The self-renewal capacity and multipotency of the NSs were maintained, as HMF-exposed NSs were positive for NSC markers (Nestin and Sox2), and could differentiate into neurons and astrocyte/glial cells and be passaged continuously. In addition, adult mice exposed to the HMF for one month were observed to have a greater number of proliferative cells in the subventricular zone. These findings indicate that continuous HMF-exposure increases the proliferation of NPCs/NSCs, in vitro and in vivo. HMF-disturbed NPCs/NSCs production probably affects brain development and function, which provides a novel clue for elucidating the cellular mechanisms of the bio-HMF response.
Animals ; Cell Proliferation ; physiology ; Female ; Magnetic Fields ; Male ; Mice ; Nestin ; metabolism ; Neural Stem Cells ; cytology ; metabolism ; SOXB1 Transcription Factors ; metabolism

Mesenchymal stem cells (MSCs) are attractive candidates for clinical repair or regeneration of damaged tissues. Oct4 and Sox2, which are essential transcription factors for pluripotency and self-renewal, are naturally expressed in MSCs at low levels in early passages, and their levels gradually decrease as the passage number increases. Therefore, to improve MSC proliferation and stemness, we introduced human Oct4 and Sox2 for conferring higher expansion and differentiation capabilities. The Oct4-IRES-Sox2 vector was transfected into human adipose tissue MSCs (ATMSCs) by liposomal transfection and used directly. Oct4 and Sox2 were successfully transfected into ATMSCs, and we confirmed maintenance of MSC surface markers without alterations in both red fluorescent protein (RFP) (control) and Oct4/Sox2-ATMSCs. Enhanced proliferative activity of Oct4/Sox2-ATMSCs was shown by WST-1 assay, and this result was further confirmed by cell counting using trypan blue exclusion for a long period. In addition, FACs cell cycle analysis showed that there was a reduction in the fraction of Oct4/Sox2-ATMSCs in G1 with a concomitant increase in the fraction of cells in S, compared with RFP-ATMSCs. Increased levels of cyclin D1 were also seen in Oct4/Sox2-ATMSCs, indicating acceleration in the transition of cells from G1 to S phase. Furthermore, Oct4/Sox2-overexpressing ATMSCs showed higher differentiation abilities for adipocytes or osteoblasts than controls. The markers of adipogenic or osteogenic differentiation were also upregulated by Oct4/Sox2 overexpression. The improvement in cell proliferation and differentiation using Oct4/Sox2 expression in ATMSCs may be a useful method for expanding the population and increasing the stemness of ATMSCs.
Adipose Tissue/cytology ; *Cell Differentiation ; *Cell Proliferation ; Cells, Cultured ; Humans ; Mesenchymal Stromal Cells/cytology/*metabolism/physiology ; Octamer Transcription Factor-3/genetics/*metabolism ; SOXB1 Transcription Factors/genetics/*metabolism

OBJECTIVETo screen the down-stream proteins of transcription factor Sox2 and explore the role of Sox2 in the proliferation and migration of colonic cancer cells in vitro.

METHODSThe cellular proteins were separated by SDS-PAGE electrophoresis and stained with Coomassie blue and amine plated silver. The differentially expressed proteins was identified by mass spectrometry and verified by QPCR and Western blotting. A cell counting kit-8 (CCK8) assay was performed to evaluate the cell proliferation, and the cell migration was assessed using Transwell assay.

RESULTSS3a was identified by proteomics technology as a Sox2-downregulated protein while ENO1 and gama-actin the up-regulated proteins. QPCR and Western blotting analyses showed that overexpression of Sox2 significantly decreased the expression of S3a (P<0.005) and increased the expression of ENO1(P<0.05), but had no significant effect on gama-actin expression. Sox2 overexpression obviously promoted cell proliferation and migration (P<0.05), while inhibition of Sox2 produced contrary effects (P<0.05).

CONCLUSIONSox2 negatively regulates S3a expression and positively regulates ENO1 expression to promot the proliferation and migration of colonic cancer cells.

Cell Line, Tumor ; Cell Movement ; Cell Proliferation ; Colonic Neoplasms ; metabolism ; Down-Regulation ; Humans ; Proteomics ; Ribosomal Proteins ; metabolism ; SOXB1 Transcription Factors ; metabolism ; Up-Regulation

OBJECTIVETo investigate the expression of SOX2 in cervical intraepithelial neoplasia (CIN) and cervical cancer and explore its association with the clinical features.

METHODSSOX2 expressions were examined using immunohistochemical method in 10 normal cervical tissue specimens, 36 cervical intraepithelial neoplasia specimens (including 10 cases of grade I, 12 of grade II, and 14 grade III) and 40 cervical cancer specimens (including 21 cases of stage I and 19 of stage II). The correlation between the immunohistochemical results and the clinical features of the patients was analyzed.

RESULTSSOX2 expression was negative in normal cervical tissues, and was positive in 41.6% of CIN specimens (10.0% in CIN I, 41.7% in CIN II, and 64.3% in CIN III) in 82.5% of cervical cancer specimens (78.2% in stage I and 88.2% in stage II). The patients with cervical cancer had a significantly higher positivity rate of SOX2 than normal control group (P<0.05). The positivity rate of SOX2 increased with the evolution of cervical disease. SOX2 protein expression was significantly correlated with the histological grade and lymph node metastasis (P<0.05), but not with the age or clinical stage of the patients (P<0.05).

CONCLUSIONSOX2 expression may serve as a useful indicator for evaluating metastasis and malignancy of cervical cancer.

Adult ; Aged ; Cervical Intraepithelial Neoplasia ; metabolism ; pathology ; Female ; Humans ; Middle Aged ; Neoplasm Grading ; Neoplasm Staging ; SOXB1 Transcription Factors ; metabolism ; Uterine Cervical Neoplasms ; metabolism ; pathology

OBJECTIVE: To investigate the expression of SOX2 in laryngeal carcinoma and analyze the relation of SOX2 and clinical factors. METHOD: We measured the expression of SOX2 protein in 45 laryngeal carcinoma fresh samples and 45 paracarcinoma tissues (cutting margin > 0.5 cm) with flow cytometer (Epics-XL II), 20 normal laryngeal mucosa samples were also studied as controls. RESULT: The quantitative and qualitative expression of SOX2 protein in laryngeal carcinoma tissues was obviously higher than those in paracarcinoma and in normal laryngeal mucosa tissues respectively (P < 0 05). There was no significant difference between the expression of paracarcinoma and normal laryngeal mucosa tissues. In laryngeal carcinoma, the expression of SOX2 protein wasn't significantly related to patients' clinical classification, tumor size, smoking history, patients' age and sex but related to metastasis, pathological grade and clinical stage. CONCLUSION The high expression of SOX2 may contribute to the carcinogenesis and development of laryngeal carcinoma. It is an important index of judging metastasis and staging and prognosis of laryngeal carcinoma to measure the expression of SOX2 protein.
Adult ; Aged ; Biomarkers, Tumor ; metabolism ; Carcinoma ; metabolism ; pathology ; Female ; Flow Cytometry ; Humans ; Laryngeal Neoplasms ; metabolism ; pathology ; Male ; Middle Aged ; Neoplasm Staging ; SOXB1 Transcription Factors ; metabolism

OBJECTIVE: To investigate the effect of SOX2 on chemotherapy sensitivity of human laryngeal epithelial cells Hep-2. METHOD: We designed and synthesized RNAis for silencing the expression of SOX2 in Hep-2 cells and selected the most effective RNAi by Western blot analysis. Then the recombinant plasmids of pGCsi-H1-SOX2 and pGCsi-H1-NC were constructed and transfected into Hep-2 cells to build cell lines of psiSOX2-Hep-2 and psiNC-Hep-2. CCK-8 assay had been used to test the sensitivity of Hep-2 cells to 5-FU and PTX after silencing SOX2 expression. Hoechst staining had been used to exam the changes of Hep-2 cells apoptosis treatment by 5-FU and PTX after silencing SOX2 expression. Furthermore, the changes of apoptosis-related genes expressions were detected by Western blotting. RESULT: The cell lines of psiSOX2-Hep-2 and psiNC-Hep-2 were successfully established, and the expression of SOX2 protein was decreased 78% in psiSOX2-Hep-2 cells compared with psiNC-Hep-2 cells. After reducing SOX2 expression, the sensitivity of Hep-2 cells to 5-FU and PTX were increased and the IC50 values for 48 h were decreased to 8.12 μg/ml and 5.16 μg/ml. Meanwhile, the apoptosis rate and the expression of apoptotic gene Bax and cleaved caspase-3 expression were dramatically increased and anti-apoptotic genes survivin and Bcl-2 were significantly decreased in psiSOX2-Hep-2 cells compared with psiNC-Hep-2 cells. CONCLUSION Down-regulating the protein expression of SOX2 by RNAi will significantly enhance the sensitivity of human laryngeal epithelial cells Hep-2 to 5-FU and PTX.
Apoptosis ; Cell Line, Tumor ; Cell Proliferation ; Drug Resistance, Neoplasm ; Epithelial Cells ; drug effects ; metabolism ; pathology ; Fluorouracil ; pharmacology ; Humans ; Laryngeal Neoplasms ; metabolism ; pathology ; RNA Interference ; SOXB1 Transcription Factors ; genetics

OBJECTIVE: To investigate the effect of norcantharidin (NCTD) to proliferation of leukemia cells through disrupting key regulators of sonic Hedgehog (SHH) pathway and its downstream transcription factor SOX2. METHODS: CCK8 was used to detected the HL60 and NB4 cells after inhibited by NCTD, SMO and GLI1 inhibitor for 24 hours. Expression level of SMO, GLI1 and SOX2 in HL60 cells with NCTD treatment was detected by immunoblot. HL60 cells were transfected with pcDNA3.1 plasmid expressing GLI1 or SOX2. Empty vector and pcDNA3. 1-EGFP were divided into negative and positive control group, respectively. The expression of exogenous GLI1 or SOX2 in HL60 cells was confirmed by immunoblot, and growth curve of HL60 cell was checked by CCK8. Proliferation of genetic modified HL60 cells treated by various dose of NCTD was detected. RESULTS: NCTD, SMO/GLI1 inhibitors could inhibit the proliferation of NB4 and HL60 cells in a dose-dependent manner. Compared with solvent (DMSO)-treated control group, NCTD remarkably decreased protein level of SMO, GLI1 and SOX2. GLI1 and SOX2 were overexpressed in HL60 cells as compared with pcDNA3.1 empty vector-transfected group. Growth curve demonstrated significant proliferative advantage of GLI1/SOX2-transfected cells. CCK8 assay indicated that GLI1/SOX2-overexpressed HL60 cells were more resistant to NCTD treatment. CONCLUSION NCTD attenuates HL60 proliferation via targeting the Hedgehog/SOX2 axis.
Bridged Bicyclo Compounds, Heterocyclic ; Cell Proliferation ; HL-60 Cells ; Hedgehog Proteins ; Humans ; Leukemia, Myeloid, Acute ; SOXB1 Transcription Factors ; Zinc Finger Protein GLI1