Project description:To identify gene expression biomarkers associate with asbestos-related lung squamous cell carcinoma, we analyzed gene expression profiles for a total of 56 lung squamous cell carcinomas using 44K Illumina Gene Expression microarrays. Twenty-six cases had lung asbestos body counts above levels associated with urban dwelling (ARLC-SCC: asbestos-related lung cancer-squamous cell carcinoma) and 30 cases had no lung asbestos bodies (NARLC-SCC: non-asbestos related lung cancer- squamous cell carcinoma). Genes differentially expressed between ARLC-SCC and NARLC-SCC were identified on fold change and P-value, and then prioritised using gene ontology. Total RNA was obtained from fresh frozen lung tumour tissue and stratified by asbestos phenotype. Gene expression profiling was performed to identify differences in the gene profiles of asbestos-related and non-asbestos related lung squamous cell carcinomas.
Project description:Chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD) and squamous cell lung carcinoma (SCC) are both smoking-related diseases. Interestingly, COPD itself is a risk factor for SCC, and this is independent of smoking history. Inferring from this knowledge, it is plausible to assume that patients with COPD may have a different gene expression profile in normal bronchial epithelium and in SCC. To test this hypothesis, we compared gene expression profiles in bronchial epithelium and in SCC from patients with and without COPD. Gene expression profiles were generated using whole human genome oligo microarrays for 28 laser microdissected histologically normal bronchial epithelium samples (10 without COPD, 18 with COPD) and 35 laser microdissected SCC samples (17 without COPD, 18 with COPD). We found no significant differences in gene expression levels between normal bronchial epithelium from patients with and without COPD. Remarkably, 374 genes were differentially expressed in SCC obtained from patients with or without COPD; 295 showed a higher expression level in SCC from patients with COPD and 79 genes showed higher expression levels in SCC from patients without COPD. Genes related to mitochondrial localization (n=44) and genes located on chromosomal arm 5q (n=34) were significantly overrepresented. For both categories, all genes showed a higher expression level in SCC from patients with COPD than from those without COPD. In conclusion, SCC from patients with COPD show a different gene expression profile compared to SCC from patients without COPD. This suggests that COPD related factors affect the gene expression signature in SCC.
Project description:Differential profiles from whole genome human expression arrays on monocytes obtained from peripheral blood in COPD was studied and compared with controls. Monocytes were isolated from Controls (Group 1) which included Control Smokers (Group 1A) and Control Never Smokers (Group 1B) and COPD (Group 2) which included COPD Smokers (Group 2A) and COPD ExSmokers (Group 2B). Differential transcriptomic expression associated with (i) Smoking, (ii) COPD, and (iii) cessation of smoking were identified.
Project description:Chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD) is an independent risk factor for lung cancer, suggesting that COPD stroma favors cancer initiation. Therefore, we used proteomics and polysome-profiling to identify gene expression programs that distinguish stroma of patients harboring lung cancer from those that do not, with varied COPD severities. This profiling unveiled distinct COPD-dependent cancer-associated gene expression programs predominantly manifesting as alterations in mRNA translation. Mechanistically, such programs are downstream of the mammalian target of rapamycin pathway in mild COPD and pathological extracellular matrix in more severe COPD; and both programs parallel activation of distinct pro-cancer fibroblast-derived secretomes. Therefore, depending upon COPD severity, the lung stroma can exist in two states favoring cancer initiation, which likely result in distinct disease entities.