Articles

Expression of E-cadherin and specific CXCR3 isoforms impact each other in prostate cancer

Carcinoma cells shift between epithelial and mesenchymal phenotypes during cancer progression, as defined by surface presentation of the cell-cell cohesion molecule E-cadherin, affecting dissemination, progres...

Authors: Bo Ma, Ahmad Khazali, Hanshuang Shao, Yuhan Jiang and Alan Wells

1,25-(OH)₂D₃/Vitamin D receptor alleviates systemic lupus erythematosus by downregulating Skp2 and upregulating p27

Recent evidence has suggested that the 1,25(OH)₂D₃/Vitamin D receptor (VDR) acts to suppress the immune response associated with systemic lupus erythematosus (SLE), a serious multisystem autoimmune disease. Hence...

Authors: Dan Liu, Yu-Xuan Fang, Xia Wu, Wei Tan, Wei Zhou, Yu Zhang, Yan-Qing Liu and Guo-Qing Li

TRIM30 modulates Interleukin-22-regulated papillary thyroid Cancer cell migration and invasion by targeting Sox17 for K48-linked Polyubiquitination

Interleukin-22 (IL-22) belongs to the IL-10 cytokine family and is mainly produced by activated Th1 cells. Although IL-22 expression is reported to be elevated in many cancers, and increased IL-22 expression c...

Authors: Wei Li, Fen Li, Weiwei Lei and Zezhang Tao

Chaperone activity of serine protease HtrA of Helicobacter pylori as a crucial survival factor under stress conditions

Serine protease HtrA exhibits both proteolytic and chaperone activities, which are involved in cellular protein quality control. Moreover, HtrA is an important virulence factor in many pathogens including Helicob...

Authors: Urszula Zarzecka, Aileen Harrer, Anna Zawilak-Pawlik, Joanna Skorko-Glonek and Steffen Backert

Dimerization of MORC2 through its C-terminal coiled-coil domain enhances chromatin dynamics and promotes DNA repair

Decondesation of the highly compacted chromatin architecture is essential for efficient DNA repair, but how this is achieved remains largely unknown. Here, we report that microrchidia family CW-type zinc finge...

Authors: Hong-Yan Xie, Tai-Mei Zhang, Shu-Yuan Hu, Zhi-Ming Shao and Da-Qiang Li

Karyopherin α2-dependent import of E2F1 and TFDP1 maintains protumorigenic stathmin expression in liver cancer

Members of the karyopherin superfamily serve as nuclear transport receptors/adaptor proteins and provide exchange of macromolecules between the nucleo- and cytoplasm. Emerging evidence suggests a subset of kar...

Authors: Elisabeth Drucker, Kerstin Holzer, Stefan Pusch, Juliane Winkler, Diego F. Calvisi, Eva Eiteneuer, Esther Herpel, Benjamin Goeppert, Stephanie Roessler, Alessandro Ori, Peter Schirmacher, Kai Breuhahn and Stephan Singer

Correction to: MicroRNA-9 regulates survival of chondroblasts and cartilage integrity by targeting protogenin

Following publication of the original article [1], the authors reported that Figs. 3 and 6 are incorrect.

Authors: Jinsoo Song, Dongkyun Kim, Churl-Hong Chun and Eun-Jung Jin

The role of hedgehog signaling in gastric cancer: molecular mechanisms, clinical potential, and perspective

Patients with advanced gastric cancer usually have a poor prognosis and limited therapeutic options. Overcoming this challenge requires novel targets and effective drugs. The Hedgehog (Hh) signaling pathway pl...

Authors: Yan Xu, Shumei Song, Zhenning Wang and Jaffer A. Ajani

TAM receptors, Phosphatidylserine, inflammation, and Cancer

The numerous and diverse biological roles of Phosphatidylserine (PtdSer) are featured in this special issue. This review will focus on PtdSer as a cofactor required for stimulating TYRO3, AXL and MERTK – compr...

Authors: Tal Burstyn-Cohen and Avi Maimon

S100P is a molecular determinant of E-cadherin function in gastric cancer

E-cadherin has been awarded a key role in the aetiology of both sporadic and hereditary forms of gastric cancer. In this study, we aimed to identify molecular interactors that influence the expression and func...

Authors: Patrícia Carneiro, Ana Margarida Moreira, Joana Figueiredo, Rita Barros, Patrícia Oliveira, Maria Sofia Fernandes, Anabela Ferro, Raquel Almeida, Carla Oliveira, Fátima Carneiro, Fernando Schmitt, Joana Paredes, Sérgia Velho and Raquel Seruca

Distinct functions of AKT isoforms in breast cancer: a comprehensive review

AKT, also known as protein kinase B, is a key element of the PI3K/AKT signaling pathway. Moreover, AKT regulates the hallmarks of cancer, e.g. tumor growth, survival and invasiveness of tumor cells. After AKT ...

Authors: Nico Hinz and Manfred Jücker

SUMO3 modification by PIAS1 modulates androgen receptor cellular distribution and stability

Abnormal reactivation of androgen receptor (AR) signaling in castration-resistant prostate cancer (CRPC) mainly results from overexpression and down-regulation of AR. Sumoylation of AR can influence its functi...

Authors: Nanyang Yang, Sitong Liu, Tian Qin, Xintong Liu, Nobumoto Watanabe, Kevin H. Mayo, Jiang Li and Xiaomeng Li

ΗΙF1α, EGR1 and SP1 co-regulate the erythropoietin receptor expression under hypoxia: an essential role in the growth of non-small cell lung cancer cells

Overexpression of erythropoietin (EPO) and EPO receptor (EPO-R) is associated with poor prognosis in non-small-cell lung carcinoma (NSCLC). Hypoxia, a potent EPO inducer, is a major stimulating factor in the g...

Authors: Tianhong Su, Pi Liu, Xinyu Ti, Shouzhen Wu, Xiaochang Xue, Zenglu Wang, Elhardji Dioum and Qiuyang Zhang

Correction to: Inhibition of the key metabolic pathways, glycolysis and lipogenesis, of oral cancer by bitter melon extract

Following publication of the original article [1], it was reported that Fig. 1c was not entirely readable due to overlapping Fig. 1d. The publishers apologise for this error.

Authors: Subhayan Sur, Hiroshi Nakanishi, Colin Flaveny, Joseph E. Ippolito, Jane McHowat, David A. Ford and Ratna B. Ray

Targeting bone morphogenetic protein receptor 2 sensitizes lung cancer cells to TRAIL by increasing cytosolic Smac/DIABLO and the downregulation of X-linked inhibitor of apoptosis protein

Authors: Rachel NeMoyer, Arindam Mondal, Mehul Vora, Elaine Langenfeld, Danea Glover, Michael Scott, Lauren Lairson, Christopher Rongo, David J. Augeri, Youyi Peng, Salma K. Jabbour and John Langenfeld

TPP-related mitochondrial targeting copper (II) complex induces p53-dependent apoptosis in hepatoma cells through ROS-mediated activation of Drp1

In recent years, copper complexes have gradually become the focus of potential anticancer drugs due to their available redox properties and low toxicity. In this study, a novel mitochondrion-targeting copper (...

Authors: Jiangjuan Shao, Mengmeng Li, Zijian Guo, Chun Jin, Feng Zhang, Chunyan Ou, Yaochen Xie, Shanzhong Tan, Zhenyi Wang, Shizhong Zheng and Xiaoyong Wang

Phosphorylation of NFATC1 at PIM1 target sites is essential for its ability to promote prostate cancer cell migration and invasion

Progression of prostate cancer from benign local tumors to metastatic carcinomas is a multistep process. Here we have investigated the signaling pathways that support migration and invasion of prostate cancer ...

Authors: Sini K. Eerola, Niina M. Santio, Sanni Rinne, Petri Kouvonen, Garry L. Corthals, Mauro Scaravilli, Giovanni Scala, Angela Serra, Dario Greco, Pekka Ruusuvuori, Leena Latonen, Eeva-Marja Rainio, Tapio Visakorpi and Päivi J. Koskinen

The regulatory roles of neutrophils in adaptive immunity

Neutrophils have long been considered as cells playing a crucial role in the immune defence against invading pathogens. Accumulating evidence strongly supported the direct and indirect regulatory effects of ne...

Authors: Yang Li, Wei Wang, Fan Yang, Yanan Xu, Chang Feng and Yong Zhao

Specific trophoblast transcripts transferred by extracellular vesicles affect gene expression in endometrial epithelial cells and may have a role in embryo-maternal crosstalk

Successful establishment of pregnancy hinges on appropriate communication between the embryo and the uterus prior to implantation, but the nature of this communication remains poorly understood. Here, we teste...

Authors: Masoumeh Es-Haghi, Kasun Godakumara, Annika Häling, Freddy Lättekivi, Arina Lavrits, Janeli Viil, Aneta Andronowska, Tamer Nafee, Victoria James, Ülle Jaakma, Andres Salumets and Alireza Fazeli

Epithelial and interstitial Notch1 activity contributes to the myofibroblastic phenotype and fibrosis

Notch1 signalling is a stem-cell-related pathway that is essential for embryonic development, tissue regeneration and organogenesis. However, the role of Notch1 in the formation of myofibroblasts and fibrosis ...

Authors: Weilong Hong, Ge Zhang, Hong Lu, Yangyang Guo, Shizhang Zheng, Hengyue Zhu, Yanyi Xiao, Akuetteh Percy David Papa, Cunzao Wu, Linxiao Sun, Bicheng Chen and Yongheng Bai

ATM controls DNA repair and mitochondria transfer between neighboring cells

Intercellular communication is essential for multicellular tissue vitality and homeostasis. We show that healthy cells message protective signals through direct cell–cell connections to adjacent DNA–damaged ce...

Authors: Sha Jin and Nils Cordes

Extracellular vesicle cross-talk between pulmonary artery smooth muscle cells and endothelium during excessive TGF-β signalling: implications for PAH vascular remodelling

Excessive TGF-β signalling has been shown to underlie pulmonary hypertension (PAH). Human pulmonary artery smooth muscle cells (HPASMCs) can release extracellular vesicles (EVs) but their contents and signific...

Authors: Fernando de la Cuesta, Ilaria Passalacqua, Julie Rodor, Raghu Bhushan, Laura Denby and Andrew H. Baker

Platelets promote breast cancer cell MCF-7 metastasis by direct interaction: surface integrin α2β1-contacting-mediated activation of Wnt-β-catenin pathway

Integrin-mediated platelet-tumor cell contacting plays an important role in promoting epithelial-mesenchymal transition (EMT) transformation of tumor cells and cancer metastasis, but whether it occurs in breas...

Authors: Xiao-xiao Zuo, Ya Yang, Yue Zhang, Zhi-gang Zhang, Xiao-fei Wang and Yong-gang Shi

Loss-of-function phenotype of a PKCθ^T219A knockin mouse strain

Protein kinase C θ has been established as an important signaling intermediate in T-effector-cell activation and survival pathways by controlling activity of the key transcription factors NF-κB and NFAT. Previ...

Authors: Nikolaus Thuille, Kerstin Siegmund, Victoria Klepsch, Jacqueline Schörgenhuber, Sarah Danklmaier, Michael Leitges and Gottfried Baier

GREM1 is associated with metastasis and predicts poor prognosis in ER-negative breast cancer patients

In breast cancer, activation of bone morphogenetic protein (BMP) signaling and elevated levels of BMP-antagonists have been linked to tumor progression and metastasis. However, the simultaneous upregulation of...

Authors: Ulrike Neckmann, Camilla Wolowczyk, Martina Hall, Eivind Almaas, Jiang Ren, Sen Zhao, Bjarne Johannessen, Rolf I. Skotheim, Geir Bjørkøy, Peter ten Dijke and Toril Holien

Flipping the dogma – phosphatidylserine in non-apoptotic cell death

The exposure of phosphatidylserine (PS) on the outer plasma membrane has long been considered a unique feature of apoptotic cells. Together with other “eat me” signals, it enables the recognition and phagocyto...

Authors: Inbar Shlomovitz, Mary Speir and Motti Gerlic

Correction to: Transcriptional activation of CBFβ by CDK11^p110 is necessary to promote osteosarcoma cell proliferation

Following publication of the original article [1], it was reported that Figs. 4 and 5 were not updated during the production process.

Authors: Yong Feng, Yunfei Liao, Jianming Zhang, Jacson Shen, Zengwu Shao, Francis Hornicek and Zhenfeng Duan

Targeting PKCι-PAK1 signaling pathways in EGFR and KRAS mutant adenocarcinoma and lung squamous cell carcinoma

p21-activated kinase 1 (PAK1) stimulates growth and metastasis in non-small cell lung cancer (NSCLC). Protein kinase C iota (PKCι) is an enzyme highly expressed in NSCLC, regulating PAK1 signaling. In the pres...

Authors: Masaoki Ito, Carles Codony-Servat, Jordi Codony-Servat, David Lligé, Imane Chaib, Xiaoyan Sun, Jing Miao, Rongwei Sun, Xueting Cai, Alberto Verlicchi, Morihito Okada, Miguel Angel Molina-Vila, Niki Karachaliou, Peng Cao and Rafael Rosell

The PPAR-γ antagonist T007 inhibits RANKL-induced osteoclastogenesis and counteracts OVX-induced bone loss in mice

Osteoclasts are key determinant cellular components implicated in the development and progression of disorders driven by bone damage. Herein, we studied the upshot of T007, an antagonist of peroxisome prolifer...

Authors: Xiang Li, Lei Ning, Jianjun Ma, Ziang Xie, Xiangde Zhao, Gangliang Wang, Xinyu Wan, Pengcheng Qiu, Teng Yao, Haoming Wang, Shunwu Fan and Shuanglin Wan

The multi-site docking protein Grb2-associated binder 1 (Gab1) enhances interleukin-6-induced MAPK-pathway activation in an SHP2-, Grb2-, and time-dependent manner

Cytokine-dependent activation of signalling pathways is tightly orchestrated. The spatiotemporal activation of signalling pathways dictates the specific physiological responses to cytokines. Dysregulated signa...

Authors: Hannes Bongartz, Karen Gille, Wiebke Hessenkemper, Katharina Mandel, Marc Lewitzky, Stephan M. Feller and Fred Schaper

Notch1-ADAM8 positive feed-back loop regulates the degradation of chondrogenic extracellular matrix and osteoarthritis progression

Osteoarthritis (OA) is one of the most prevalent joint disease, and there are still no effective therapeutic agents or clinical methods for the cure of this disease to date. The degradation of cartilage extrac...

Authors: Biao Duan, Yan Liu, He Hu, Fu-Guo Shi, Ya-Long Liu, Hao Xue, Xin-Yu Yun, Ming-Yu Yan, Xi-Rui Han, An-Fu Chen, Yong Wang and Zhe-Hai Li

Notch pathway: a bistable inducer of biological noise?

Notch signalling pathway is central to development of metazoans. The pathway codes a binary fate switch. Upon activation, downstream signals contribute to resolution of fate dichotomies such as proliferation/d...

Authors: Filip Vujovic, Neil Hunter and Ramin M. Farahani

Roles of phosphatidylserine exposed on the viral envelope and cell membrane in HIV-1 replication

Phosphatidylserine (PtdSer) is usually present only in the inner leaf of the lipid bilayers of the cell membrane, but is exposed on the outer leaf when cells are activated and/or die. Exposure of PtdSer has ph...

Authors: Bernadette Anne Chua, Jamie Ann Ngo, Kathy Situ and Kouki Morizono

Inhibition of the key metabolic pathways, glycolysis and lipogenesis, of oral cancer by bitter melon extract

Metabolic reprogramming is one of the hallmarks of cancer which favours rapid energy production, biosynthetic capabilities and therapy resistance. In our previous study, we showed bitter melon extract (BME) pr...

Authors: Subhayan Sur, Hiroshi Nakanishi, Colin Flaveny, Joseph E. Ippolito, Jane McHowat, David A. Ford and Ratna B. Ray

Correction to: MIIP inhibits the growth of prostate cancer via interaction with PP1α and negative modulation of AKT signaling

Following publication of the original article [1], the authors reported that the given name of Qinhao Wang was incorrectly published as Qinghao Wang. The original article has been corrected.

Authors: Guang Yan, Yi Ru, Fengqi Yan, Xin Xiong, Wei Hu, Tao Pan, Jianming Sun, Chi Zhang, Qinhao Wang and Xia Li

Induction of LEF1 by MYC activates the WNT pathway and maintains cell proliferation

While regulated WNT activity is required for normal development and stem cell maintenance, mutations that lead to constitutive activation of the WNT pathway cause cellular transformation and drive colorectal c...

Authors: Yi-Heng Hao, M. Carmen Lafita-Navarro, Lauren Zacharias, Nofit Borenstein-Auerbach, Min Kim, Spencer Barnes, Jiwoong Kim, Jerry Shay, Ralph J. DeBerardinis and Maralice Conacci-Sorrell

Linoleic acid improves assembly of the CII subunit and CIII2/CIV complex of the mitochondrial oxidative phosphorylation system in heart failure

Linoleic acid is the major fatty acid moiety of cardiolipin, which is central to the assembly of components involved in mitochondrial oxidative phosphorylation (OXPHOS). Although linoleic acid is an essential ...

Authors: Satoshi Maekawa, Shingo Takada, Hideo Nambu, Takaaki Furihata, Naoya Kakutani, Daiki Setoyama, Yasushi Ueyanagi, Dongchon Kang, Hisataka Sabe and Shintaro Kinugawa

Phloretin attenuates STAT-3 activity and overcomes sorafenib resistance targeting SHP-1–mediated inhibition of STAT3 and Akt/VEGFR2 pathway in hepatocellular carcinoma

Hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC) is the most common primary liver malignancy. Phloretin (PH) possesses anticancer, antitumor, and hepatoprotective effects, however, the effects and potential mechanisms of phlore...

Authors: Sarita Saraswati, Abdulqader Alhaider, Abdelgalil Mohamed Abdelgadir, Pooja Tanwer and Hesham M. Korashy

Distribution, dynamics and functional roles of phosphatidylserine within the cell

Phosphatidylserine (PtdSer), an essential constituent of eukaryotic membranes, is the most abundant anionic phospholipid in the eukaryotic cell accounting for up to 10% of the total cellular lipid. Much of wha...

Authors: Jason G. Kay and Gregory D. Fairn

Transcriptional activation of CBFβ by CDK11^p110 is necessary to promote osteosarcoma cell proliferation

Aberrant expression of cyclin-dependent protein kinases (CDK) is a hallmark of cancer. CDK11 plays a crucial role in cancer cell growth and proliferation. However, the molecular mechanisms of CDK11 and CDK11 t...

Authors: Yong Feng, Yunfei Liao, Jianming Zhang, Jacson Shen, Zengwu Shao, Francis Hornicek and Zhenfeng Duan

Identification of Cancer–associated metabolic vulnerabilities by modeling multi-objective optimality in metabolism

Cancer cells undergo global reprogramming of cellular metabolism to satisfy demands of energy and biomass during proliferation and metastasis. Computational modeling of genome-scale metabolic models is an effe...

Authors: Ziwei Dai, Shiyu Yang, Liyan Xu, Hongrong Hu, Kun Liao, Jianghuang Wang, Qian Wang, Shuaishi Gao, Bo Li and Luhua Lai

Pharmacological and functional similarities of the human neuropeptide Y system in C. elegans challenges phylogenetic views on the FLP/NPR system

The neuropeptide Y system affects various processes, among others food intake, and is frequently discussed in the context of targeting obesity. Studies in model organisms are indispensable to enable molecular ...

Authors: Miron Mikhailowitsch Gershkovich, Victoria Elisabeth Groß, Anette Kaiser and Simone Prömel

Abi1 loss drives prostate tumorigenesis through activation of EMT and non-canonical WNT signaling

Prostate cancer development involves various mechanisms, which are poorly understood but pointing to epithelial mesenchymal transition (EMT) as the key mechanism in progression to metastatic disease. ABI1, a memb...

Authors: Disharee Nath, Xiang Li, Claudia Mondragon, Dawn Post, Ming Chen, Julie R. White, Anita Hryniewicz-Jankowska, Tiffany Caza, Vladimir A. Kuznetsov, Heidi Hehnly, Tamara Jamaspishvili, David M. Berman, Fan Zhang, Sonia H. Y. Kung, Ladan Fazli, Martin E. Gleave…

cAMP- and cGMP-elevating agents inhibit GPIbα-mediated aggregation but not GPIbα-stimulated Syk activation in human platelets

The glycoprotein (GP) Ib-IX-V complex is a unique platelet plasma membrane receptor, which is essential for platelet adhesion and thrombus formation. GPIbα, part of the GPIb-IX-V complex, has several physiolog...

Authors: Stephanie Makhoul, Katharina Trabold, Stepan Gambaryan, Stefan Tenzer, Daniele Pillitteri, Ulrich Walter and Kerstin Jurk

Dual roles and therapeutic potential of Keap1-Nrf2 pathway in pancreatic cancer: a systematic review

Pancreatic cancer (PC) is one of the most fatal diseases with a very high rate of metastasis and low rate of survival. Despite the advances in understanding this devastating disease, PC still accounts for 3% o...

Authors: Jiang-Jiang Qin, Xiang-Dong Cheng, Jia Zhang and Wei-Dong Zhang

Fibroblast-derived CXCL12 regulates PTEN expression and is associated with the proliferation and invasion of colon cancer cells via PI3k/Akt signaling

Stromal-derived CXCL12 play an important role which influence the proliferation and invasiveness of colon cancer in microenvironment. The present study aimed to analyze the underlying mechanism by which CXCL12...

Authors: Jiachi Ma, Xiaowen Sun, Yimin Wang, Bangling Chen, Liyu Qian and Yaguo Wang

CXCL1-LCN2 paracrine axis promotes progression of prostate cancer via the Src activation and epithelial-mesenchymal transition

Mechanisms driving the progression of castration-resistant prostate cancer are believed to relate substantially to the tumor microenvironment. However, the cross-talks between tumor epithelial cell, stromal ce...

Authors: Yongning Lu, Baijun Dong, Fan Xu, Yunze Xu, Jiahua Pan, Jiajia Song, Jin Zhang, Yiran Huang and Wei Xue

Nonlytic exocytosis of Cryptococcus neoformans from neutrophils in the brain vasculature

Cryptococcus neoformans (C. neoformans) is an encapsulated budding yeast that causes life-threatening meningoencephalitis in immunocompromised individuals, especially those with acquired immunodeficiency syndrome...

Authors: Xiaofan Yang, Huijuan Wang, Fan Hu, Xichen Chen and Mingshun Zhang

Ventricular Zone Expressed PH Domain Containing 1 (VEPH1): an adaptor protein capable of modulating multiple signaling transduction pathways during normal and pathological development

Ventricular Zone Expressed PH Domain-Containing 1 (VEPH1) is an 833-amino acid protein encoded by an evolutionarily conserved single-copy gene that emerged with pseudocoelomates. This gene has no paralog in an...

Authors: Theodore J. Brown, Alexandra Kollara, Premalatha Shathasivam and Maurice J. Ringuette

4.1B suppresses cancer cell proliferation by binding to EGFR P13 region of intracellular juxtamembrane segment

Gastric cancer (GC) has high incidence and mortality worldwide. However, the underlying mechanisms that regulate gastric carcinogenesis are largely undefined. 4.1B is an adaptor protein found at the interface ...

Authors: Fumin Xue, Chao An, Lixiang Chen, Gang Liu, Feifei Ren, Xinhua Guo, Haibin Sun, Lu Mei, Xiangdong Sun, Jinpeng Li, Youcai Tang, Xiuli An and Pengyuan Zheng