BACKGROUND: Oral squamous cell carcinoma (OSCC) is a prevalent type of cancer with a high mortality rate in its late stages. One of the major challenges in OSCC treatment is the resistance to epidermal growth factor receptor (EGFR) inhibitors. Therefore, it is imperative to elucidate the mechanism underlying drug resistance and develop appropriate precision therapy strategies to enhance clinical efficacy. METHODS: To evaluate the efficacy of the combination of the Ca 2+ /calmodulin-dependent protein kinase II (CAMK2) inhibitor KN93 and EGFR inhibitors, we performed in vitro and in vivo experiments using two FAT atypical cadherin 1 ( FAT1 )-deficient (SCC9 and SCC25) and two FAT1 wild-type (SCC47 and HN12) OSCC cell lines. We assessed the effects of EGFR inhibitors (afatinib or cetuximab), KN93, or their combination on the malignant phenotype of OSCC in vivo and in vitro . The alterations in protein expression levels of members of the EGFR signaling pathway and SRY-box transcription factor 2 (SOX2) were analyzed. Changes in the yes-associated protein 1 (YAP1) protein were characterized. Moreover, we analyzed mitochondrial dysfunction. Besides, the effects of combination therapy on mitochondrial dynamics were also evaluated. RESULTS: OSCC with FAT1 mutations exhibited resistance to EGFR inhibitors treatment. The combination of KN93 and EGFR inhibitors significantly inhibited the proliferation, survival, and migration of FAT1 -mutated OSCC cells and suppressed tumor growth in vivo . Mechanistically, combination therapy enhanced the therapeutic sensitivity of FAT1 -mutated OSCC cells to EGFR inhibitors by modulating the EGFR pathway and downregulated tumor stemness-related proteins. Furthermore, combination therapy induced reactive oxygen species (ROS)-mediated mitochondrial dysfunction and disrupted mitochondrial dynamics, ultimately resulting in tumor suppression. CONCLUSION Combination therapy with EGFR inhibitors and KN93 could be a novel precision therapeutic strategy and a potential clinical solution for EGFR-resistant OSCC patients with FAT1 mutations.
Humans ; ErbB Receptors/metabolism* ; Mouth Neoplasms/metabolism* ; Cell Line, Tumor ; Animals ; Drug Resistance, Neoplasm/genetics* ; Cadherins/metabolism* ; Carcinoma, Squamous Cell/metabolism* ; Mice ; Mutation/genetics* ; Mice, Nude ; Protein Kinase Inhibitors/therapeutic use* ; Cetuximab/pharmacology* ; Afatinib/therapeutic use* ; Cell Proliferation/drug effects* ; Signal Transduction/drug effects*

Acute liver failure (ALF) is a life-threatening condition associated with macrophage-mediated inflammatory responses. Effective therapies and drugs are still lacking to date. Here, we reveal that a derivative of xanthohumol, CAM12203, alleviates lipopolysaccharide (LPS) + d-galactosamine (D-GalN)-induced ALF through limiting macrophage-mediated inflammation, with the most significant impact on interleukin-1β (IL-1β) transcription. Through biotin labeling-mediated pull-down and LC-MS/MS analysis, diacylglycerol kinase ζ (DGKζ), a lipid-metabolizing kinase, is identified as the direct target of CAM12203. Mechanistically, DGKζ is induced in macrophages upon inflammatory stimuli and is upregulated observed on clinical liver failure samples. Its product phosphatidic acid (PA) boosts phospholipase C (PLC)-inositol 1,4,5-trisphosphate (IP₃)-Ca²⁺ signaling and subsequent janus kinase 2 (JAK2)-signal transducer and activator of transcription 3 (STAT3) cascade, ultimately promoting IL-1β production and liver failure. DGKζ knockdown/ablation or inhibition significantly impairs the DGKζ-STAT3-IL-1β pathway along with ALF progression. Finally, CAM12203 is confirmed to be a new DGKζ inhibitor and acts against inflammation in a DGKζ-reliant manner. Taken together, CAM12203 inhibits IL-1β transcription in macrophages by binding to DGKζ and blocking the DGKζ-STAT3 axis, thereby exerting an ameliorative effect on ALF. These results not only highlight CAM12203 as a promising lead compound for ALF treatment, but also define DGKζ as a novel therapeutic target.

Objective Tto evaluate the effect of low intensity pulsed ultrasound(LIPUS)on the migration and phagocytosis ability of lipopolysaccharide(LPS)-induced RAW264.7 macrophages and on macrophage behavior under inflammation.Methods An in vitro activated RAW264.7 macrophage model was developed using LPS.Cell viability was assessed using a CCK-8 assay to explore the effect of LIPUS on activated and inactivated macrophages.Wound healing assays were employed to measure the effect of LIPUS on macrophage migration,and the Transwell assay was employed when LPS was used as a chemoattractant.Phagocytosis ability was examined using confocal microscopy and flow cytometry by observing the FITC fluorescence signal of internalized pHrodo Green E.coli BioParticles Conjugate.Results An activated RAW264.7 macrophage model was successfully developed using 100 ng/mL LPS.LIPUS inhibited the migration of inactivated macrophages into scratch areas as well as guided cell migration.However,cell viability and phagocytosis remained unchanged.Conclusion LIPUS may inhibit RAW264.7 migration but not affect the phagocytosis ability of the macrophages.

Gastric cancer(GC)is one of the most common and high mortality tumors in the world,and the clinical staging during diagnosis is closely related to the prognosis of patients.Therefore,finding sensitive diagnostic biomarkers to improve the early diagnosis rate has become an urgent issue.Exosomes are nanoscale extracellular vesicles secreted by various cells,which play an important role in cellular communication by transporting bioactive substances in tumor microenvironment(TME).CircRNA is a type of non-coding RNA with a specific structure.Because it is difficulty in degradation,it can be enriched in extracellular vesicles and participate in various pathophysiological processes mediated by it.Exo-circRNA can affect the proliferation,invasion,drug resistance and tissue metastasis of tumor cells,and has more significant diagnostic specificity than conventional diagnostic biomarkers in clinical practice.It may become a supplement to biomarker for the diagnosis and prognosis of GC.This article briefly introduces the characteristics,formation mechanism and role of extracellular vesicles and circRNA in GC.It discusses in detail the role of exo-circRNA in the occurrence and development of GC,and discusses their potential clinical application value and challenges in GC.

Objective:To evaluate artificial intelligence constructed by deep convolutional neural network (DCNN) for the site identification in upper gastrointestinal endoscopy.Methods:A total of 21 310 images of esophagogastroduodenoscopy from the Cancer Hospital of Chinese Academy of Medical Sciences from January 2019 to June 2021 were collected. A total of 19 191 images of them were used to construct site identification model, and the remaining 2 119 images were used for verification. The performance differences of two models constructed by DCCN in the identification of 30 sites of the upper digestive tract were compared. One model was the traditional ResNetV2 model constructed by Inception-ResNetV2 (ResNetV2), the other was a hybrid neural network RESENet model constructed by Inception-ResNetV2 and Squeeze-Excitation Networks (RESENet). The main indices were the accuracy, the sensitivity, the specificity, positive predictive value (PPV) and negative predictive value (NPV).Results:The accuracy, the sensitivity, the specificity, PPV and NPV of ResNetV2 model in the identification of 30 sites of the upper digestive tract were 94.62%-99.10%, 30.61%-100.00%, 96.07%-99.56%, 42.26%-86.44% and 97.13%-99.75%, respectively. The corresponding values of RESENet model were 98.08%-99.95%, 92.86%-100.00%, 98.51%-100.00%, 74.51%-100.00% and 98.85%-100.00%, respectively. The mean accuracy, mean sensitivity, mean specificity, mean PPV and mean NPV of ResNetV2 model were 97.60%, 75.58%, 98.75%, 63.44% and 98.76%, respectively. The corresponding values of RESENet model were 99.34% ( P<0.001), 99.57% ( P<0.001), 99.66% ( P<0.001), 90.20% ( P<0.001) and 99.66% ( P<0.001). Conclusion:Compared with the traditional ResNetV2 model, the artificial intelligence-assisted site identification model constructed by RESENNet, a hybrid neural network, shows significantly improved performance. This model can be used to monitor the integrity of the esophagogastroduodenoscopic procedures and is expected to become an important assistant for standardizing and improving quality of the procedures, as well as an significant tool for quality control of esophagogastroduodenoscopy.

Objective:To analyze the impact of global budget on the medical flow treatment and fund allocation in a non-compact medical community based on the symbiosis theory, so as to provide references for relevant authorities to formulate policies for the medical community.Methods:Data on outpatient and emergency visits, discharges, and medical insurance fund usage of the leading hospital and primary medical and health institutions in a non-compact medical community were collected from the health information system of a certain city. The time range of the data spanned from January 2017 to December 2019. The total budget was implemented in April 2018. The symbiotic system of the non-compact medical community was analyzed based on the theory of symbiosis. Descriptive analysis and intermittent time series segmented regression model were used to analyze the changes in indexes related to the flow of medical treatment and fund allocation between the leading hospital and primary institutions under the global budget.Results:The non-compact medical community′s symbiotic system had developed a continuous symbiotic model in organization and an asymmetric reciprocal symbiotic model in behavior. From the perspective of medical treatment flow, the number of outpatient and emergency visits of leading hospital and primary institutions in the medical community showed an upward trend, with little change in the number of discharged patients from 2017 to 2019; The number of patients transferred by the leading hospital increased from 32 in 2017 to 87 in 2019. According to the analysis of the intermittent time series segmented regression model, after the implementation of global budget, the proportion of outpatient and emergency visits in leading hospital was decreased ( β3=-0.43, P<0.05), the proportion of outpatient and emergency visits in primary institutions was on the rise ( β3= 0.02, P<0.05). In terms of fund allocation, the share of health insurance fund of the leading hospital increased from 45.98% in 2017 to 46.51% in 2019, and the primary medical and health institutions decreased from 23.44% to 18.06%, as well as the ratio of per capita income of primary medical and health institutions to that of leading hospitals was decreased from 72.62% to 60.79%. Conclusions:Under the global budget, the outpatient and emergency medical treatment flow in a non-compact medical community had been optimized. However, there was an uneven distribution of funds among medical institutions at all levels. Thus it was recommended to continue to give full play to the positive incentive effect of the global budget, establish a scientific mechanism for distributing benefits, and strengthen supervision and management.

Objective To observe the value of 18F-FDG PET/CT combined with tumor markers for diagnosis of non stageⅠ A limited-stage small cell lung cancer(LS-SCLC).Methods Totally 87 cases of non stage Ⅰ A LS-SCLC(LS-SCLC group),137 of non stage Ⅰ A non-small cell lung cancer(NSCLC,NSCLC group)and 48 cases of pulmonary inflammatory lesions(inflammatory group)were enrolled.Patients'general data,tumor marker levels and PET/CT findings were comparatively analyzed.Logistic regression analysis was performed to evaluate the efficacy of parameters for diagnosing non stage Ⅰ A LS-SCLC.Results There were significant differences of patients'age,neuron-specific enolase(NSE),pro-gastrin-releasing peptide(ProGRP),carcinoembryonic antigen(CEA),squamous cell carcinoma antigen(SCCA)and cytokeratin-19-fragment(CYFRA21-1),as well as of the maximum lesion diameter,maximum standard uptake value(SUVmax),morphology,spiculation sign,relationship between long axis and bronchus,lymph node fusion and proportion of lymph node with higher SUVmax than primary lesion among 3 groups(all P＜0.05).The area under the curve(AUC)of the combination of spiculation sign,NSE＞23.5 μg/L,ProGRP＞111.8 ng/L,SCCA≤2.5 μg/L and CYFRA21-1≤7.4 μg/L for differentiating LS-SCLC and NSCLC was 0.91,higher than that of each single parameter(all P＜0.05).AUC of the combination of SUVmax＞8.1,NSE＞19.4 μg/L,ProGRP＞72.5 ng/L and lymph node fusion for differentiating LS-SCLC and pulmonary inflammatory lesions was 0.99,higher than each single parameter(all P＜0.05).Conclusion 18F-FDG PET/CT combined with tumor markers ProGRP and NSE was helpful for diagnosing non stage ⅠA LS-SCLC.

Luohu District of Shenzhen has implemented the global budget management mode as " surplus reward, no compensation for overspending and reasonable sharing" in the hospital group, which continued to strengthen cooperation, optimize services, reduce costs, and improve health outcomes. The authors employed the game theory to build a game model of medical alliance under Luohu global budget management mode, discussing the reasons of medical and health institution′s stronger cooperation and what could be improved in Luohu′s case. Based on the experience of Luohu total budget management, it is suggested that when implementing total budget, all localities should improve closed-loop management, expand coverage, adopt compound medical insurance payment method, promote outpatient coordination, strengthen assessment and incentives, so as to give full play to the incentive role of total budget.

Epithelial-mesenchymal transition (EMT) is involved in both physiological and pathological processes. EMT plays an essential role in the invasion, migration and metastasis of tumours. Autophagy has been shown to regulate EMT in a variety of cancers but not in head and neck squamous cell carcinoma (HNSCC). Herein, we investigated whether autophagy also regulates EMT in HNSCC. Analyses of clinical data from three public databases revealed that higher expression of fibronectin-1 (FN1) correlated with poorer prognosis and higher tumour pathological grade in HNSCC. Data from SCC-25 cells demonstrated that rapamycin and Earle's balanced salt solution (EBSS) promoted autophagy, leading to increased FN1 degradation, while 3-methyladenine (3-MA), bafilomycin A1 (Baf A1) and chloroquine (CQ) inhibited autophagy, leading to decreased FN1 degradation. On the other hand, autophagic flux was blocked in BECN1 mutant HNSCC Cal-27 cells, and rapamycin did not promote autophagy in Cal-27 cells; also in addition, FN1 degradation was inhibited. Further, we identified FN1 degradation through the lysosome-dependent degradation pathway using the proteasome inhibitor MG132. Data from immunoprecipitation assays also showed that p62/SQSTM1 participated as an autophagy adapter in the autophagy-lysosome pathway of FN1 degradation. Finally, data from immunoprecipitation assays demonstrated that the interaction between p62 and FN1 was abolished in p62 mutant MCF-7 and A2780 cell lines. These results indicate that autophagy significantly promotes the degradation of FN1. Collectively, our findings clearly suggest that FN1, as a marker of EMT, has adverse effects on HNSCC and elucidate the autophagy-lysosome degradation mechanism of FN1.
Autophagy ; Cell Line, Tumor ; Female ; Fibronectins ; Humans ; Lysosomes/metabolism* ; Ovarian Neoplasms ; Sequestosome-1 Protein/metabolism* ; Squamous Cell Carcinoma of Head and Neck