1.Integrated molecular characterization of sarcomatoid hepatocellular carcinoma
Rong-Qi SUN ; Yu-Hang YE ; Ye XU ; Bo WANG ; Si-Yuan PAN ; Ning LI ; Long CHEN ; Jing-Yue PAN ; Zhi-Qiang HU ; Jia FAN ; Zheng-Jun ZHOU ; Jian ZHOU ; Cheng-Li SONG ; Shao-Lai ZHOU
Clinical and Molecular Hepatology 2025;31(2):426-444
Background:
s/Aims: Sarcomatoid hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC) is a rare histological subtype of HCC characterized by extremely poor prognosis; however, its molecular characterization has not been elucidated.
Methods:
In this study, we conducted an integrated multiomics study of whole-exome sequencing, RNA-seq, spatial transcriptome, and immunohistochemical analyses of 28 paired sarcomatoid tumor components and conventional HCC components from 10 patients with sarcomatoid HCC, in order to identify frequently altered genes, infer the tumor subclonal architectures, track the genomic evolution, and delineate the transcriptional characteristics of sarcomatoid HCCs.
Results:
Our results showed that the sarcomatoid HCCs had poor prognosis. The sarcomatoid tumor components and the conventional HCC components were derived from common ancestors, mostly accessing similar mutational processes. Clonal phylogenies demonstrated branched tumor evolution during sarcomatoid HCC development and progression. TP53 mutation commonly occurred at tumor initiation, whereas ARID2 mutation often occurred later. Transcriptome analyses revealed the epithelial–mesenchymal transition (EMT) and hypoxic phenotype in sarcomatoid tumor components, which were confirmed by immunohistochemical staining. Moreover, we identified ARID2 mutations in 70% (7/10) of patients with sarcomatoid HCC but only 1–5% of patients with non-sarcomatoid HCC. Biofunctional investigations revealed that inactivating mutation of ARID2 contributes to HCC growth and metastasis and induces EMT in a hypoxic microenvironment.
Conclusions
We offer a comprehensive description of the molecular basis for sarcomatoid HCC, and identify genomic alteration (ARID2 mutation) together with the tumor microenvironment (hypoxic microenvironment), that may contribute to the formation of the sarcomatoid tumor component through EMT, leading to sarcomatoid HCC development and progression.
2.Integrated molecular characterization of sarcomatoid hepatocellular carcinoma
Rong-Qi SUN ; Yu-Hang YE ; Ye XU ; Bo WANG ; Si-Yuan PAN ; Ning LI ; Long CHEN ; Jing-Yue PAN ; Zhi-Qiang HU ; Jia FAN ; Zheng-Jun ZHOU ; Jian ZHOU ; Cheng-Li SONG ; Shao-Lai ZHOU
Clinical and Molecular Hepatology 2025;31(2):426-444
Background:
s/Aims: Sarcomatoid hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC) is a rare histological subtype of HCC characterized by extremely poor prognosis; however, its molecular characterization has not been elucidated.
Methods:
In this study, we conducted an integrated multiomics study of whole-exome sequencing, RNA-seq, spatial transcriptome, and immunohistochemical analyses of 28 paired sarcomatoid tumor components and conventional HCC components from 10 patients with sarcomatoid HCC, in order to identify frequently altered genes, infer the tumor subclonal architectures, track the genomic evolution, and delineate the transcriptional characteristics of sarcomatoid HCCs.
Results:
Our results showed that the sarcomatoid HCCs had poor prognosis. The sarcomatoid tumor components and the conventional HCC components were derived from common ancestors, mostly accessing similar mutational processes. Clonal phylogenies demonstrated branched tumor evolution during sarcomatoid HCC development and progression. TP53 mutation commonly occurred at tumor initiation, whereas ARID2 mutation often occurred later. Transcriptome analyses revealed the epithelial–mesenchymal transition (EMT) and hypoxic phenotype in sarcomatoid tumor components, which were confirmed by immunohistochemical staining. Moreover, we identified ARID2 mutations in 70% (7/10) of patients with sarcomatoid HCC but only 1–5% of patients with non-sarcomatoid HCC. Biofunctional investigations revealed that inactivating mutation of ARID2 contributes to HCC growth and metastasis and induces EMT in a hypoxic microenvironment.
Conclusions
We offer a comprehensive description of the molecular basis for sarcomatoid HCC, and identify genomic alteration (ARID2 mutation) together with the tumor microenvironment (hypoxic microenvironment), that may contribute to the formation of the sarcomatoid tumor component through EMT, leading to sarcomatoid HCC development and progression.
3.Determination method of plasma concentrations of 7 anti-tumor drugs and its application
Jinxiu LYU ; Nan YAN ; Wenjun XU ; Jing ZHAO ; Hua ZHU ; Pengzhou HANG
China Pharmacy 2025;36(4):475-481
OBJECTIVE To establish a method for simultaneous determination of 7 anti-tumor drugs (irinotecan, capecitabine, paclitaxel, docetaxel, tamoxifen, letrozole and methotrexate) in human plasma and apply it to the clinic. METHODS After precipitating with a methanol-acetonitrile mixture (1∶ 1, V/V) containing 0.1% formic acid, liquid chromatography-tandem mass spectrometry (LC-MS/MS) was used to determine the plasma concentration, using deuterium isotopes of each analyte as internal standards. The chromatography was performed on the Agilent Eclipse Plus C18 column with a gradient elution of water (containing 0.1% formic acid+0.04% 5 mmol/L ammonium formate) as mobile phase A and acetonitrile (containing 0.1% formic acid) as mobile phase B. The flow rate was 0.6 mL/min, and the column temperature was set at 40 ℃ . The sample size was 10 μL, and the analysis lasted for 5.5 min. Electrospray ionization was used in positive and negative ion mode, and multiple reaction monitoring mode was used. The ion pairs used for quantitative analysis were m/z 587.1→167.1 (irinotecan), m/z 360.1→244.1 (capecitabine), m/z 876.4→308.0 (paclitaxel), m/z 830.3→304.2 (docetaxel), m/z 372.1→129.1 (tamoxifen), m/z 284.1→242.1 (letrozole), and m/z 455.0→ 308.0 (methotrexate). A total of 97 patients with malignant tumors in our hospital were selected to measure the plasma concentrations of 7 anti-tumor drugs using the above method. RESULTS The linear ranges of irinotecan, capecitabine, paclitaxel, docetaxel, tamoxifen, letrozole and methotrexate were 2-1 000 ng/mL (r=0.994 3), 20-10 000 ng/mL (r=0.997 5), 2-1 000 ng/mL (r=0.997 9), 1-500 ng/mL (r=0.995 8), 1-500 ng/mL (r=0.995 2), 1-500 ng/mL (r=0.996 4), 10-5 000 (r=0.997 7), respectively. The quantitative lower limits were 2, 20, 2, 1, 1, 1 and 10 ng/mL; RSDs of intra-assay precision were 0.08%-14.86% (n=6). RSDs of inter-batch precision were 1.51%-11.55% (n=3), and the accuracies were 89.17%-114.93% (n=6). The matrix effects ranged from 89.89%-119.74% (n=6). RSDs of the stability tests were 1.98%-14.88% (n=6). The results of E-mail:hangpengzhou@163.com clinical application showed, the average plasma concentrations of irinotecan, capecitabine, paclitaxel and docetaxel were 704.09, 909.40, 36.45, 150.43 ng/mL, respectively. The values of the coefficient of variation were 25.24%, 62.65%, 122.69%, and 92.27%. CONCLUSIONS The established LC-MS/MS method is simple and rapid, and can be used for the simultaneous determination of 7 commonly used anti-tumor drugs in the plasma of patients with malignancy.
4.Integrated molecular characterization of sarcomatoid hepatocellular carcinoma
Rong-Qi SUN ; Yu-Hang YE ; Ye XU ; Bo WANG ; Si-Yuan PAN ; Ning LI ; Long CHEN ; Jing-Yue PAN ; Zhi-Qiang HU ; Jia FAN ; Zheng-Jun ZHOU ; Jian ZHOU ; Cheng-Li SONG ; Shao-Lai ZHOU
Clinical and Molecular Hepatology 2025;31(2):426-444
Background:
s/Aims: Sarcomatoid hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC) is a rare histological subtype of HCC characterized by extremely poor prognosis; however, its molecular characterization has not been elucidated.
Methods:
In this study, we conducted an integrated multiomics study of whole-exome sequencing, RNA-seq, spatial transcriptome, and immunohistochemical analyses of 28 paired sarcomatoid tumor components and conventional HCC components from 10 patients with sarcomatoid HCC, in order to identify frequently altered genes, infer the tumor subclonal architectures, track the genomic evolution, and delineate the transcriptional characteristics of sarcomatoid HCCs.
Results:
Our results showed that the sarcomatoid HCCs had poor prognosis. The sarcomatoid tumor components and the conventional HCC components were derived from common ancestors, mostly accessing similar mutational processes. Clonal phylogenies demonstrated branched tumor evolution during sarcomatoid HCC development and progression. TP53 mutation commonly occurred at tumor initiation, whereas ARID2 mutation often occurred later. Transcriptome analyses revealed the epithelial–mesenchymal transition (EMT) and hypoxic phenotype in sarcomatoid tumor components, which were confirmed by immunohistochemical staining. Moreover, we identified ARID2 mutations in 70% (7/10) of patients with sarcomatoid HCC but only 1–5% of patients with non-sarcomatoid HCC. Biofunctional investigations revealed that inactivating mutation of ARID2 contributes to HCC growth and metastasis and induces EMT in a hypoxic microenvironment.
Conclusions
We offer a comprehensive description of the molecular basis for sarcomatoid HCC, and identify genomic alteration (ARID2 mutation) together with the tumor microenvironment (hypoxic microenvironment), that may contribute to the formation of the sarcomatoid tumor component through EMT, leading to sarcomatoid HCC development and progression.
5.Simultaneous determination of gefitinib,erlotinib,nilotinib and imatinib concentrations in plasma by HPLC-MS/MS
Tian-Lun ZHENG ; Jing-Pu XU ; Zhu-Hang HAN ; Wen-Li LI ; Wei-Chong DONG ; Zhi-Qing ZHANG
The Chinese Journal of Clinical Pharmacology 2024;40(6):899-903
Objective To establish a high performance liquid chromatography-tandem mass spectrometry(HPLC-MS/MS)for the simultaneous determination of gefitinib,erlotinib,nillotinib and imatinib plasma concentrations and analyze the results.Methods The plasma samples were treated with acetonitrile precipitation and separated by Diamonsil C18 column(150 mm ×4.6 mm,3.5 μm)with mobile phase of 0.1%formic acid water(A)-0.1%formic acid acetonitrile(B).The flow rate of gradient elution was 0.7 mL·min-1,and the column temperature was 40 ℃ and the injection volume was 3 μL.Using arotinib as the internal standard,the scanning was carried out by using electrospray ionization source in positive ionization mode with multi-reaction monitoring.The specificity,standard curve,lower limit of quantitation,precision,accuracy,recovery rate,matrix effect and stability of the method were investigated.The concentrations of imatinib and erlotinib in 20 patients with chronic myelogenous leukemia(CML)and gefitinib and erlotinib in 3 patients with non-small cell lung cancer were measured.Results The standard curves of the four drugs were as follows,gefitinib:y=2.536 × 10-3x+9.362 × 10-3(linear range 20-2 000 ng·mL-1,R2=0.996 6);erlotinib:y=3.575× 10-3x+7.406 × 10-3(linear range 50-5 000 ng·mL-1,R2=0.994 9);nilotinib:y=1.945 x 10-3x+0.015 643(linear range 50-5 000 ng·mL-1,R2=0.990 6);imatinib:y=4.56 x 10-3x+0.010 451(linear range 100~104 ng·mL-1,R2=0.9963).RSD of intra-day and inter-day were less than 10%,and the accuracy ranged from 90%to 110%,and the recovery rates were 91.35%to 98.93%(RSD<10%);the matrix effect ranged from 91.64%to 107.50%(RSD<10%).Determination of 23 patients showed that the blood concentration of nilotinib ranged from 623.76 to 2 934.13 ng·mL-1,and the blood concentration of imatinib ranged from 757.77 to 2 637.71 ng·mL-1,and the blood concentration of gefitinib ranged from 214.76 to 387.40 ng·mL-1.The serum concentration of erlotinib was 569.57 ng·mL-1.Conclusion The method of this research is simple,fast,sensitive and dedicated,which can be monitored by the concentration of clinical blood.
6.Ganoderma lucidum Polysaccharides Inhibit Malignant Phenotype of Hepatocellular Carcinoma Cells by Regulating PI3K/Akt Signaling Pathway
Rui SHEN ; Jing XU ; Lei WANG ; Biao CAI ; Hang SONG
Chinese Journal of Experimental Traditional Medical Formulae 2023;29(6):88-94
ObjectiveTo investigate the effect of Ganoderma lucidum polysaccharides (GLP) on the proliferation, migration, cycle, and apoptosis of hepatocellular carcinoma SKHEP1 and Huh7 cells and to explore the underlying mechanism. MethodSK-HEP-1 and Huh-7 cells were classified into the blank group and low-, medium-, and high-dose GLP groups (3.5, 7, 14 g·L-1). The proliferation of the cells was examined by cell counting kit-8 (CCK8) assay, and the migration by scratch assay. Cell cycle was measured by flow cytometry and apoptosis was detected based on Hoechst33258 staining. In addition, the expression of phosphatidylinositol 3-kinase (PI3K), protein kinase B (Akt), phosphorylated PI3K (pPI3K), and phosphorylated Akt (pAkt) in the cells was determined by Western blot. ResultCompared with the blank group, the three doses of GLP reduced the proliferation and migration of SKHEP1 and Huh7 cells (P<0.05), increased the percentage of cells in G1 phase (P<0.05), and decreased percentage of cells in S and G2 phase (P<0.05). In addition, the three doses can induce apoptosis of both SK-HEP-1 and Huh-7 cells, particularly the high dose. Moreover, the three doses of GLP lowered the levels of pPI3K and pAkt (P<0.05). ConclusionGLP significantly inhibited the malignant phenotype of SK-HEP-1 and Huh-7 cells through the PI3K/Akt signaling pathway.
7.Building bioorthogonal click-release capable artificial receptors on cancer cell surface for imaging, drug targeting and delivery.
Jing CHEN ; Peng JI ; Giri GNAWALI ; Mengyang CHANG ; Feng GAO ; Hang XU ; Wei WANG
Acta Pharmaceutica Sinica B 2023;13(6):2736-2746
The current targeting drug delivery mainly relies on cancer cell surface receptors. However, in many cases, binding affinities between protein receptors and homing ligands is relatively low and the expression level between cancer and normal cells is not significant. Distinct from conventional targeting strategies, we have developed a general cancer targeting platform by building artificial receptor on cancer cell surface via a chemical remodeling of cell surface glycans. A new tetrazine (Tz) functionalized chemical receptor has been designed and efficiently installed on cancer cell surface as "overexpressed" biomarker through a metabolic glycan engineering. Different from the reported bioconjugation for drug targeting, the tetrazine labeled cancer cells not only locally activate TCO-caged prodrugs but also release active drugs via the unique bioorthogonal Tz-TCO click-release reaction. The studies have demonstrated that the new drug targeting strategy enables local activation of prodrug, which ultimately leads to effective and safe cancer therapy.
8.The efficacy and safety of intravenous sucrose iron therapy for recurrent iron deficiency anemia.
Jing Qian LIU ; Xia Wan YANG ; Xu LIU ; Jing HU ; Xiang Rong HU ; Xiao Xia LI ; Yu Fei ZHAO ; Yi Meng SHI ; Bao Hang ZHANG ; Wen Rui YANG ; Guang Xin PENG ; Xin ZHAO ; Feng Kui ZHANG
Chinese Journal of Hematology 2023;44(5):408-412
Objective: To evaluate the efficacy and safety of intravenous iron supplementation in patients with recurrent iron deficiency anemia (IDA) . Methods: This retrospective analysis of 90 patients with recurrent IDA from May 2012 to December 2021 was conducted, comparing the efficacy and safety of the intravenous iron therapy group and the oral iron therapy group. Results: Among the 90 patients with recurrent IDA, 20 were males and 70 were females, with a median age of 40 (range: 14-85) years. A total of 60 patients received intravenous iron supplementation and 30 received oral iron supplementation. The hematologic response rates in the intravenous iron group were significantly higher than those in the oral iron group at 4 and 8 weeks after treatment [80.0% (48/60) vs 3.3% (1/30) and 96.7% (58/60) vs 46.7% (14/30), all P<0.001, respectively]. The median increase in hemoglobin levels was also significantly higher in the intravenous iron group than in the oral iron group [38 (4, 66) g/L vs 7 (1, 22) g/L at week 4 and 44.5 (18, 80) g/L vs 19 (3, 53) g/L at week 8, all P<0.001]. The intravenous iron group had a significantly higher proportion of patients who achieved normal hemoglobin levels than the oral iron group (55.0% vs 0 and 90% vs 43.3%, all P<0.001, respectively). Iron metabolism indicators were tested before and after 8 weeks of treatment in 26 and 7 patients in the intravenous and oral iron groups, respectively. The median increase in serum ferritin (SF) levels in the intravenous iron group 8 weeks after treatment was 113.7 (49.7, 413.5) μg/L, and 54% (14/26) of these patients had SF levels of ≥100 μg/L, which was significantly higher than the median increase in SF levels in the oral iron group [14.0 (5.8, 84.2) μg/L, t=4.760, P<0.001] and the proportion of patients with SF levels of ≥100 μg/L (P=0.013). The incidence of adverse reactions was 3.3% (2/60) in the intravenous iron group, which was significantly lower than that in the oral iron group [20.0% (6/30), P=0.015]. Conclusion: Intravenous iron supplementation is more effective for hematologic response, faster hemoglobin increase, and higher iron storage replenishment rates compared with oral iron supplementation in patients with recurrent IDA, and it is well tolerated by patients.
Male
;
Female
;
Humans
;
Adolescent
;
Young Adult
;
Adult
;
Middle Aged
;
Aged
;
Aged, 80 and over
;
Anemia, Iron-Deficiency/epidemiology*
;
Sucrose/therapeutic use*
;
Ferric Compounds/therapeutic use*
;
Retrospective Studies
;
Iron/therapeutic use*
;
Hemoglobins/therapeutic use*
9.Meta analysis of the prevalence and influencing factors of WMSDs among dentists in China.
Xiang Xiang HAN ; Jin LI ; Rong Yin SUN ; Shun Hang LI ; Jing LI ; Xin XU
Chinese Journal of Industrial Hygiene and Occupational Diseases 2023;41(5):358-363
Objective: To explore the relevant factors of work-related musculoskeletal disorders (WMSDs) among dentists through Meta analysis, providing a basis for the prevention and control of WMSDs among dentists. Methods: In April 2022, cross-sectional research literatures on the prevalence correlation of WMSDs among Chinese dentists were searched in databases such as China National Knowledge Infrastructure, Wanfang, VIP, PubMed, Web of Science, and Em Base database. The search was conducted from the establishment of the database until April 2022, literatures were selected using keywords such as musculoskeletal disorders and dentists. To extract gender, age, length of service, disease classification and other related influencing factors as indicator, and prevalence was selected as the outcome indicator. After evaluating the quality of the literatures, RevMan 5.3 software was used to calculate the combined RD (95%CI) values of the included literatures. Results: A total of 15 articles were included, with a total sample size of 3646 people. Meta analysis results showed that the prevalence of WMSDs among dentists in China was 80%, and the top three parts of the incidence rates were 65% of the waist, 58% of the neck, and 50% of the back. Gender, age, length of service, region and disease classification all increased the risk of WMSDs, and the combined effect size were 75%, 78%, 71%, 77% and 82% respectively (P<0.05) . Conclusion: The occurrence of WMSDs among dentists in China is related to multiple factors such as gender, age, length of service and disease classification. The above risk factors should be taken into account in the workplace and preventive measures should be actively implemented to prolong the working life of dentists.
Humans
;
Prevalence
;
Cross-Sectional Studies
;
Occupational Diseases/epidemiology*
;
Surveys and Questionnaires
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Musculoskeletal Diseases/epidemiology*
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Risk Factors
;
China/epidemiology*
;
Dentists
10.Research progress on cirrhosis reversal and recompensation.
Jing Hang XU ; Yan Yan YU ; Xiao Yuan XU
Chinese Journal of Hepatology 2023;31(7):673-676
Previously, liver lesions in cirrhosis were considered irreversible, especially because the condition aggravated gradually after entering the decompensated phase, thus making it difficult to return to the compensated phase. At present, more and more evidence shows that some patients with decompensated liver cirrhosis can be recompensated after the cause is controlled and complications are managed. This article explores the research progress related to LC reversal and recompensation from three aspects: liver histopathology, liver function, and clinical complications.
Humans
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Liver Cirrhosis/complications*

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