Project description:PurposeTP53 mutation is the most common genetic variation type in Hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC). We aim to illustrate the landscape of genomic alterations and TP53 mutation related and directly regulated lncRNA prognosis markers.Materials and methodsUtilizing the clinical and transcriptome data from The Cancer Genome Atlas (TCGA) website, we present the landscape of genomic alterations and RNA differential expression profiles. By analyzing the ENCODE TP53 ChIP-seq data, we get the TP53 chromatin binding profiles. By Kaplan-Meier (KM) survival analysis and ROC analysis, we identify lncRNA prognosis markers.ResultsTP53 ranks the highest mutation frequency gene and the maximum mutation type of TP53 is Missense Mutation (> 2.5×104). TP53 mutation showed poor clinical outcome among the pathological Stage II and Stage III HCC patients. By differential expression analysis of the TP53 wild type and mutation HCC, we find thousands of misregulated genes, including 699 differential expression lncRNAs (p <0.05, |log2FC| ≥1). Functional enrichment analysis of the misregulated genes shows that TP53 mutation events mainly alter DNA replication, cell cycle and immune response signaling pathways. By estimation of tumor-infiltrating immune cells through CIBERSORT, we find that the TP53 mutation events are significantly correlated with the different proportions of nine immune cells. We then integratively analyze the differential expression lncRNAs in TP53 wild type and mutation groups and the TP53 ChIP-seq binding lncRNAs, and get 112 overlap lncRNAs. By Kaplan-Meier survival analysis and ROC analysis, we identify two lncRNAs (RP4-736L20.3 and SNRK-AS1) that show significant prognosis value. Using the collected HCC samples, we validate the misregulated expression of RP4-736L20.3 and SNRK-AS1.ConclusionThe work presents the landscape of genomic variations and two TP53 mutation related and directly regulated lncRNA prognosis markers of HCC.
Project description:Background:Stratification of tumors is necessary to achieve better clinical outcomes. Hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC) is commonly associated with mutation of the TP53 gene and heterogeneity in immune cell content. However, TP53 mutation-associated immunotype of HCC has not been reported yet. This study aimed to identify the TP53 mutation-associated immunotype in HCC. Methods:The mutation annotation format (MAF) document, mRNA expression data, and clinical data of HCC patients were downloaded from the publicly available The Cancer Genome Atlas (TCGA) data portal. Data from 332 HCC patients were analyzed in this study. Infiltrating immune cells were evaluated by the well-known CIBERSORT method. Additional mutation data of HCC patients were downloaded from the Catalogue of Somatic Mutations in Cancer (COSMIC) database. Results:The TP53 gene harbored the highest frequency of mutations in HCC patients. Consequently, five lethal features, including TP53 mutations, were screened by least absolute shrinkage and selector operation (LASSO)-COX regression, according to TP53 mutations and 22 infiltrating immune cells. Two distinct subgroups of HCC were identified, namely, immunotypes A and B. Furthermore, the expression levels of co-inhibitory immune checkpoints were significantly upregulated, and the gene ontology (GO) terms or pathways to boost immune responses were found to be inhibited in the immunotype B subgroup compared to that in the immunotype A subgroup. Finally, we proved immunotype to be an independent adverse prognostic factor that contributed to improvement in the predictive accuracy of the immunotype-based model and helped in avoiding excessive medical treatment. Conclusions:Two distinct immunotypes of HCC, in terms of prognosis, phenotype, and function, were identified and the traditional understanding of intratumoralCD8+ T cells was subverted. Moreover, the identified immunotypes contributed to improving the predictive accuracy of the immunotype-based model and helped in avoiding excessive medical treatment in some HCC patients.
Project description:In regions with high prevalence of chronic hepatitis B virus (HBV) infection and dietary aflatoxin B(1) (AFB(1)) exposure, hepatocellular carcinomas (HCCs) often contain TP53 mutation at codon 249 (R249S). Furthermore, a C-terminal truncated HBx protein expressed from hepatocyte integrated HBV is associated with HCC development. This study evaluates the association between R249S and HBX status in relation to HCC in West African population. HBX (complete or 3'-truncated) and HBS genes were assessed by PCR in cell-free DNA (CFDNA) from plasma of subjects recruited in a hospital-based case-control study (325 controls, 78 cirrhotic patients and 198 HCC cases) conducted in The Gambia. These samples had been previously analyzed for R249S and HBV serological status. Complete HBX sequence was frequently detected in CFDNA of HCC-R249S positive (77%, 43/56) compared with HCC-R249S-negative cases (44%, 22/50). Conversely, the proportion of 3'-truncated HBX gene was significantly higher in HCC-R249S negative than positive cases (34%, 17/50, compared with 12%, 7/56) (?(2) = 12.12; P = 0.002; distribution of R249S negative and positive according to HBX status). Occult HBV infection (detected by PCR) was present in 24% of HCC previously considered as negative by HBV serology. Moreover, HBV mutation analysis revealed that double mutation at nucleotides 1762(T)/1764(A) was associated with diagnosis of cirrhosis or HCC {cirrhosis: odds ratio (OR): 9.50 [95% confidence interval (CI) 1.50-60.11]; HCC: OR: 11.29 [95% CI 2.07-61.47]}. These findings suggest that in HCC from The Gambia, complete HBX sequences are often associated with the presence of TP53 R249S mutation.
Project description:H2A family member Z (H2AFZ) is a highly conserved gene encoding H2A.Z.1, an isoform of histone variant H2A.Z, and is implicated in cancer. In this study, we report that overexpression of H2AFZ is associated with tumor malignancy and poor prognosis in HCC patients. Functional network analysis suggested that H2AFZ mainly regulates cell cycle signaling and DNA replication via pathways involving several cancer-related kinases and transcription factor E2F1. Further studies revealed that H2AFZ overexpression is regulated by TP53 mutation and led to an attenuation of rapid proliferation phenotype and aggressive behavior in HCC cells. Moreover, we found that H2AFZ was related to immune infiltrations and was co-expressed with immune checkpoint genes, including CD274 (PD-L1), CTLA-4, HAVCR2 (TIM3), LAG3, PDCD1 (PD-1), and TIGIT (VSIG9) in HCC, indicating that H2AFZ-overexpressed HCC patients may be sensitive to immune checkpoint blockades (ICBs). Integrated analysis suggested that H2AFZhigh/TP53mut patients had the shortest OS and PFS time, but most likely to respond to ICBs. These findings indicate that the H2AFZ possesses potential value as a novel prognostic indicator for HCC patients and is correlated with immune infiltration in HCC, laying a foundation for future study of HCC investigation and intervention.
Project description:Hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC) is the third leading cause of cancer-related deaths worldwide. The lack of effective targeted drugs has become a challenge on treating HCC patients. Cellular senescence is closely linked to the occurrence, development, and therapy of tumor. Induction of cellular senescence and further activation of immune surveillance provides a new strategy to develop HCC targeted drugs, that is, senescence-induced therapy for HCC. Precancerous hepatocytes or HCC cells can be induced into senescent cells, subsequently producing senescence-associated secretory phenotype (SASP) factors. SASP factors recruit and activate various types of immune cells, including T cells, NK cells, macrophages, and their subtypes, which carry out the role of immune surveillance and elimination of senescent cells, ultimately preventing the occurrence of HCC or inhibiting the progression of HCC. Specific interventions in several checkpoints of senescence-mediated therapy will make positive contributions to suppress tumorigenesis and progression of HCC, for instance, by applying small molecular compounds to induce cellular senescence or selecting cytokines/chemokines to activate immunosurveillance, supplementing adoptive immunocytes to remove senescent cells, and screening chemical drugs to induce apoptosis of senescent cells or accelerate clearance of senescent cells. These interventional checkpoints become potential chemotherapeutic targets in senescence-induced therapy for HCC. In this review, we focus on the frontiers of senescence-induced therapy and discuss senescent characteristics of hepatocytes during hepatocarcinogenesis as well as the roles and mechanisms of senescent cell induction and clearance, and cellular senescence-related immunosurveillance during the formation and progression of HCC.
Project description:Background & aimsWe combined gene expression and metabolic profiling analyses to identify factors associated with outcomes of patients with hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC).MethodsWe compared metabolic and gene expression patterns between paired tumor and nontumor tissues from 30 patients with HCC, and validated the results using samples from 356 patients with HCC. A total of 469 metabolites were measured using liquid chromatography/mass spectrometry and gas chromatography/mass spectrometry. Metabolic and genomic data were integrated, and Kaplan-Meier and Cox proportional hazards analyses were used to associate specific patterns with patient outcomes. Associated factors were evaluated for their effects on cancer cells in vitro and tumor formation in nude mice.ResultsWe identified 28 metabolites and 169 genes associated with aggressive HCC. Lipid metabolites of stearoyl-CoA-desaturase (SCD) activity were associated with aberrant palmitate signaling in aggressive HCC samples. Expression of gene products associated with these metabolites, including SCD, were associated independently with survival times and tumor recurrence in the test and validation sets. Combined expression of SCD and α-fetoprotein were associated with outcomes of patients with early-stage HCC. Levels of monounsaturated palmitic acid, the product of SCD activity, were increased in aggressive HCCs; monounsaturated palmitic acid increased migration and invasion of cultured HCC cells and colony formation by HCC cells. HCC cells that expressed small interfering RNA against SCD had decreased cell migration and colony formation in culture and reduced tumorigenicity in mice.ConclusionsBy using a combination of gene expression and metabolic profile analysis, we identified a lipogenic network that involves SCD and palmitate signaling and was associated with HCC progression and patient outcomes. The microarray platform and data have been submitted to the Gene Expression Omnibus public database at NCBI following MIAME guidelines. Accession numbers: GPL4700 (platform), and GSE6857 (samples).
Project description:Most hepatocellular carcinomas (HCCs) develop in a chronically injured liver, yet the extent to which this microenvironment promotes neoplastic transformation or influences selective pressures for genetic drivers of HCC remains unclear. We sought to determine the impact of hepatic injury in an established mouse model of HCC induced by Sleeping Beauty transposon mutagenesis. Chemically induced chronic liver injury dramatically increased tumor penetrance and significantly altered driver mutation profiles, likely reflecting distinct selective pressures. In addition to established human HCC genes and pathways, we identified several injury-associated candidates that represent promising loci for further study. Among them, we found that FIGN is overexpressed in human HCC and promotes hepatocyte invasion. We also validated Gli2's oncogenic potential in vivo, providing direct evidence that Hedgehog signaling can drive liver tumorigenesis in the context of chronic injury. Finally, we show that a subset of injury-associated candidate genes identifies two distinct classes of human HCCs. Further analysis of these two subclasses revealed significant trends among common molecular classification schemes of HCC. The genes and mechanisms identified here provide functional insights into the origin of HCC in a chronic liver damage environment.ConclusionA chronically damaged liver microenvironment influences the genetic mechanisms that drive hepatocarcinogenesis. (Hepatology 2018;67:924-939).
Project description:Exosome DNA (exoDNA) can be used for liquid biopsy. This study was the first to use droplet digital PCR (ddPCR) to detect tumor-specific mutations in exoDNA and to evaluate the prognosis of hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC) patients. 60 HCC patients were enrolled in the study. We used ddPCR to detect c.747 G > T mutation in TP53 gene. We analyzed the correlation between detectable mutation in exoDNA and clinicopathologic characteristics using Multivariate logistics regression analysis. We performed Cox regression to assess the correlation between mutation frequency (mutant droplets/total droplets, MD/TD) and prognostic. We found that 48 of 60 patients had c.747 G > T mutation in TP53 gene in exoDNA (80.0%). We found that detectable mutation in exoDNA and age were associated with microvascular invasion (MVI) (P < .01). The ROC curve analysis revealed that the best cutoff value of mutation frequency to predict MVI was 67% (sensitivity 48.15%, specificity 93.94%,), the corresponding AUC was 0.761 (95%CI, 0.640-0.866; P < .01). Furthermore, we found that patients suffered high-frequency mutation (>67%) had shorted median recurrence-free survival (RFS) with 63 days (range, 53-202 days), compared with 368 days (range, 51-576 days) for patients with low-frequency mutation (<67%) (HR:4.61; 95% CI, 1.70-12.48; P = 0 .003). We also found that high-frequency mutation was associated with poor prognosis though patients had better pathological characteristics, such as AFP (<400 ng/mL), Liver cirrhosis (Negative), Tumor thrombus (Negative), Tumor numbers (Single) and Post-operation TACE (Executed). We provided evidence that the mutations in exoDNA might be used to predict patients with poor RFS.Abbreviations: TP53: Tumor protein p53; ExoDNA: Exosomal DNA; HCC: Hepatocellular carcinoma; ddPCR: Droplet digital Polymerase Chain Reaction (PCR); MD/TD: The ratio of mutant droplets/total droplets; AFP: Alpha-fetoprotein; MVI: Microvascular invasion; RFS: Recurrence-free survival.
Project description:The aim of this study was to evaluate associations between TP53 status and outcomes after transarterial embolization (TAE) for the treatment of patients with hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC). This single-institution study included patients from 1/2014 to 6/2022 who underwent TAE of HCC and genomic analysis of tumoral tissue. The primary outcome was overall survival (OS) with relation to TP53 status, and the secondary outcome was the time to progression. Survival analysis was performed using the Kaplan-Meier method. The time to progression with death or the last patient contact without progression as competing risks were used to obtain a cumulative incidence function, and the association with TP53 status was evaluated using the Gray test. In total, 75 patients (63 men) with a median age of 70.0 (IQR 62.0-76.3) years were included. Of these, 26/75 (34.7%) patients had TP53-mutant HCC. Patients with TP53-mutant HCC had a significantly worse median OS of 15.2 (95% CI, 9.5-29.3) months, versus 31.2 (95% CI, 21.2-52.4) months as the median OS (p = 0.023) for TP53 wild-type HCC. Competing risk analysis showed a shorter time to local hepatic progression (at the site of the previously treated tumor) after TAE in patients with TP53-mutant HCC. The cumulative incidences of local progression at 6 and 12 months for TP53-mutant HCC were 65.4% and 84.6%, versus 40.8% and 55.1% for TP53 wild-type HCC (p = 0.0072). A TP53 mutation may predict a worse overall survival and a shorter time to local progression in HCC patients treated with TAE.
Project description:Background: Previous studies reported that stress-induced phosphoprotein 1 (STIP1) can be secreted by hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC) cells and is increased in the serum of HCC patients. However, the therapy-monitoring and prognostic value of serum STIP1 in HCC remains unclear. Here, we aimed to systemically explore the prognostic significance of serum STIP1 in HCC. Methods: A total of 340 HCC patients were recruited to this study; 161 underwent curative resection and 179 underwent transcatheter arterial chemoembolization (TACE). Serum STIP1 was detected by enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay (ELISA). Optimal cutoff values for serum STIP1 in resection and TACE groups were determined by receiver operating characteristic (ROC) analysis. Prognostic value was assessed by Kaplan-Meier, log-rank, and Cox regression analyses. Predictive values of STIP1 for objective response (OR) to TACE and MVI were evaluated by ROC curves and logistic regression. Results: Serum STIP1 was significantly increased in HCC patients when compared with chronic hepatitis B patients or health donors (both P < 0.05). Optimal cutoff values for STIP1 in resection and TACE groups were 83.43 and 112.06 ng/ml, respectively. High pretreatment STIP1 was identified as an independent prognosticator. Dynamic changes in high STIP1 status were significantly associated with long-term prognosis, regardless of treatment approaches. Moreover, post-TACE STIP1 was identified as an independent predictor for OR, with a higher area under ROC curve (AUC-ROC) than other clinicopathological features. Specifically, pretreatment STIP1 was significantly increased in patients with microvascular invasion (MVI), and was confirmed as a novel, powerful predictor for MVI. Conclusions: Serum STIP1 is a promising biomarker for outcome evaluation, therapeutic response assessment, and MVI prediction in HCC. Integration serum STIP1 detection into HCC management might facilitate early clinical decision making to improve the prognosis of HCC.