Treatment of aggressive glioblastoma multiforme (GBM) must be based on very precise histological and molecular diagnostic of GBM type. According to the WHO guidelines, only tissue biopsy is a relevant source of cellular material evaluated in the diagnostic process to specify the tumor features. Nevertheless, obtaining a GBM biopsy is complicated and relies mostly on resection surgery. Evaluating circulating free DNA and/or circulating tumor cells (CTCs) in the clinic, using a liquid biopsy could represent a non-invasive cancer care optimization. In the present study, the peripheral blood of patients undergoing GBM resection (n = 18) was collected and examined for CTCs. The feasibility of GBM molecular diagnostics from a simple non-invasive peripheral blood withdrawal was evaluated. The size-based enriched CTCs were analyzed using cytomorphology and their origin confirmed based on mutational analysis. In addition, shared DNA mutations in CTCs and in primary tumor tissue were searched. For the identification of CTCs, next generation sequencing (NGS) was used. The GeneReader™ sequencing platform enables targeted sequencing of a 12-gene panel and direct evaluation of detected gene variations using QIAGEN Clinical Insight Analyze (QCI-A) software with a special algorithm for liquid biopsy sequencing analysis. Herein, we present a standard operating procedure for CTC enrichment in GBM patients, CTC in vitro culture, CTC cytomorphological evaluation, and NGS analysis of CTCs using the QIAGEN Actionable Insights Tumor (ATP) Panel. CTCs were present in all tested patients (18/18). The NGS data generated for formalin-fixed paraffin-embedded (FFPE) primary tumor tissues and CTCs reached significantly high-quality parameters. The comparisons between different sample types (CTCs vs. primary tumors) and sampling area (different primary tumor regions) showed a significant level of concordance, indicating CTC testing could be used for patient monitoring and recurrence awareness. Notably, more mutations were detected when analyzing CTC samples compared with the paired primary tumors (n = 3). The results confirm the feasibility of using CTCs as a source of tumor DNA in a diagnostic process, especially when evaluating the molecular characteristics of GBMs. A major advantage of the presented NGS approach for detecting CTCs is the simultaneous identification of several markers relevant for GBM diagnostics, allowing molecular diagnostics on cytological specimens and potential administration of innovative targeted therapies.
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Circulating tumor cells (CTC) present in peripheral blood are assigned precursors of advanced tumor disease. Simplicity of blood withdrawal procedure adds practically an unlimited possibility of the CTC-monitoring and the advantages of the repeated biopsies over time. CTC got prognostic, predictive and diagnostic status with the technologic advance. Although the clinical utility of CTC has reached the high evidence, the significance of CTC testing was presented in the treatment strategy mostly with palliative intention. We report on the experiences with the CTC-testing in the CLIA-like laboratory working with the size-based CTC separation and in vitro culture. The data is presented in the form of case reports in patients with breast (BC), colorectal (CRC), prostate (PC) and lung cancer (NSCLC) to support the clinical utility of CTC during the neoadjuvant, adjuvant and palliative treatment. The presented findings support the evidence for liquid biopsy clinical implementation and enhance the ability of malignant disease monitoring and the treatment efficacy prediction.
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Gonadal hormones have been well-known to affect brain regions known to be involved in the modulation of mood and affective-related behavior. Prenatal stress might alter hypothalamic-pituitary-gonadal axis, it could be a target for development of affective-related disorders in male offspring. The present study was designed to examine an anxiety-like behavior in the adult male offspring with low levels of endogenous androgens delivered from pregnant dams exposed to prenatal stress from gestation day 15 to gestation day 19. The non-stressed and prenatally stressed intact, gonadectomized (GDX) and GDX male offspring treated with oil solvent or testosterone propionate (TP, 0.5 mg/kg, s.c., 14 days, once daily) were used in all experiments. Anxiety-like behavior was assessed in the elevated plus maze (EPM) and the open field test (OFT), respectively. Also, testosterone levels in the blood serum were measured in all experimental groups of offspring. Prenatally stressed GDX offspring demonstrated a significant decrease for time spent into the open arms and increase for time spent into the closed arms as compared to the non-stressed offspring. Administration of TP to the prenatally stressed GDX offspring resulted in a more markedly decrease of the time spent into the open arms and significantly raised the time spent into the closed arms as compared to the non-stressed GDX offspring treated with TP, non-stressed/prenatally stressed GDX offspring. Prenatally stressed GDX offspring showed a significant increase of crossing, rearing, grooming and defecation as compared to the prenatally stressed control offspring. On the contrary, administration of TP to the prenatally stressed GDX offspring significantly decreased crossing behavior, frequency of rearing and grooming behavior as compared to the non-stressed GDX offspring treated with TP, non-stressed/prenatally stressed GDX offspring. Prenatally stressed GDX offspring demonstrated a significant decrease of testosterone levels as compared to the non-stressed/prenatally stressed intact offspring, as well as non-stressed GDX offspring. Administration of TP significantly increased testosterone levels when prenatally stressed GDX offspring were compared with the prenatally stressed intact offspring, non-stressed/prenatally stressed GDX offspring. Thus, the results of the study clearly suggest that gonadectomy and TP supplementation profoundly changed an anxiety-related behavior in prenatally stressed male offspring in the EPM. Our current findings suggest that androgen deficiency in the prenatally stressed male offspring produces the high anxiety level and induces a marked anxious-like state. TP supplementation provokes development of profoundly anxious-like state in the prenatally stressed male offspring, Furthermore, this is the first study to show anxiogenic-like effect of TP administration on anxiety-related states in prenatally stressed male offspring with androgen deficiency.
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Atrial natriuretic peptide (ANP) is produced and released by mammalian cardiomyocytes and induces natriuresis, diuresis, and lowering of blood pressure. The present study examined localization of ANP and a possible role of the hypothalamic-pituitary-adrenal axis (HPA) activity on the expression of proANP gene in the heart. The Sprague Dawley (SD) and Lewis (LE) rat strains were used. The animals were exposed to the two types of stress: immobilization and immobilization combined with water immersion for 1 hour. Localization of ANP was detected by immunohistochemistry and expression of the proANP mRNA by real-time qPCR in all heart compartments of control and stressed animals after 1 and 3 hours after stress termination (IS1, IS3, ICS1, and ICS3). Relatively high density of ANP-immunoreactivity was observed in both atria of both rat strains. In control rats of both strains, the expression of the proANP mRNA was higher in the atria than in ventricles. In SD rats with the intact HPA axis, an upregulation of ANP gene expression was observed in the right atrium after IS1, in both atria and the left ventricle after IS3 and in the left atrium and the left ventricle after ICS3. In LE rats with a blunted reactivity of the HPA axis, no increase or even a downregulation of the gene expression was observed. Thus, acute stress-induced increase in the expression of the proANP gene is related to the activity of the HPA axis. It may have relevance to ANP-induced protection of the heart.
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Novel anxiolytic medications are necessary to broaden treatment therapy. Thus, the aim of the present study was to compare the clinically effective anxiolytic, diazepam with the novel 3,4-dimethoxyphenylethylamine derivates. The novel 3,4-dimethoxyphenylethylamine derivates (PK, 0.1, 1.0, 10.0 mg/kg, i.p.) and diazepam (1.0 mg/kg) were injected acutely or chronically in animals subjected to the black-white model and the open field test. The acute administration of PK-2122 (0.1 mg/kg, i.p.) exerted anxiogenic-like effect, while in the middle or high doses PK-2122 exerted anxiolytic-like effect compared with the control group (p<0.05). The repeated treatment with PK-2111 was followed by anxiolytic-like effect in doses of 0.1 or 1.0 mg/kg which was more significant compared not only with control group, but with comparison to group treated with diazepam (p<0.05). Chronic treatment with PK-2123 or PK-2122 in all tested doses produced anxiolytic-like effect (p<0.05), compared with control group and diazepam group. These results demonstrate that PK-2126, but not PK-2122, is dose independent and may be effective in experimental model of anxiety in rats when administered acutely or repeatedly.
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Calcium release channel on the sarcoplasmic reticulum of cardiomyocytes (ryanodine receptor type 2, RyR2) plays a critical role in the regulation of calcium and was identified as a crucial factor for development of chronic anthracycline cardiomyopathy. Its early stages are less well described although these determine the later development. Hence, we tested the effect of repeated, short-term anthracycline (daunorubicin) administration on cardiac performance, cardiomyocyte function and accompanied changes in calcium regulating proteins expression. Ten-twelve weeks old male Wistar rats were administered with 6 doses of daunorubicin (DAU, 3 mg/kg, i.p., every 48 h), controls (CON) received vehicle. Left ventricular function (left ventricular pressure, LVP; rate of pressure development, +dP/dt and decline, -dP/dt) was measured using left ventricular catheterization under tribromethanol anaesthesia (15 ml/kg b.w.). Cell shortening was measured in enzymatically isolated cardiomyocytes. The expressions of RyR2 and associated intracellular calcium regulating proteins, cytoskeletal proteins (alpha-actinin, alpha-tubul in) as well as oxidative stress regulating enzymes (gp91phox, MnSOD) were detected in ventricular tissue samples using immunoblotting. mRNA expressions of cardiac damage markers (Nppa and Nppb, atrial and brain natriuretic peptides; Myh6, Myh7 and Myh7b, myosin heavy chain alpha and beta) were detected using RT-PCR. Thiobarbituric acid reactive substances concentration was measured to estimate oxidative stress. DAU rats exhibited significantly depressed left ventricular features (LVP by 14%, +dP/dt by 36% and -dP/dt by 30%; for all P<0.05), in line with concomitant increase in Nppa and Nppb gene expressions (3.23- and 2.18-fold, for both P<0.05), and a 4.34-fold increase in Myh7 (P<0.05). Controversially, we observed increased cell shortening of isolated cardiac cells by 31% (p<0.05). DAU administration was associated with a twofold upregulation of RyR2 (P<0.05), but not of other examined Ca(2+) regulating proteins remained. In addition, we observed a significant reduction in alpha-tubulin (by 46% when compared to CON P<0.05). Indicators of oxidative injury were unaffected. In conclusion, unbalanced RyR2 overexpression plays a particular role in early development of daunorubicin cardiomyopathy characterized by discrepant in situ versus in vitro cardiac performance.
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The focus of the study was to implement a new workflow for circulating tumor cells (CTCs) characterization that would allow the analysis of CTCs on a cytomorphological and molecular level in patients with diagnosed gynecological cancer. Our findings may be useful in future cancer patient management. The study introduces a size-based enrichment (MetaCell(®)) method for the separation of viable CTCs, followed by CTCs culturing in vitro and gene expression characterization. It is based on the observation of CTCs and DTCs (Disseminated Tumor Cells) in several case studies of ovarian, endometrial and cervical cancer by means of cytomorphology and gene expression profiling. The viability of the enriched CTCs was estimated using vital and lethal fluorescence nuclear staining. This type of staining may be predictive for the success rate of subsequent CTC growth in vitro. To identify CTCs in the enriched CTC fraction, cytomorphological evaluations based on vital fluorescence staining were followed by gene expression analysis of tumor-associated (TA) genes. Cytokeratin expression (KRT7, KRT19) was analyzed in combination with MUC1, MUC16, CD24, CD44 and ALDH1. Gene expression analysis has shown that short-term in vitro culture enhanced the differentiation process of the captured CTCs growing on a membrane. On the other hand, redundant white blood cells captured on the membrane were eliminated during a short-term culture. The most frequently elevated genes in ovarian cancer (serous type) are EPCAM, KRT19 and MUC1. It has been demonstrated that CTC presence revealed by cytomorphological evaluation may be usefully complemented by TA-gene expression analysis, to increase the sensitivity of the analysis.
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