The host defence peptide LL-37/hCAP-18 is a growth factor for lung cancer cells

2007

Cancer development can be viewed as dysregulated repair. Antimicrobial peptides (AMPs) are effector molecules of the innate immune system with direct antimicrobial activity. Beside this host defence function several AMPs play a role in the regulation of inflammation and tissue repair. The aim of the present study was to investigate whether the human cathelicidin AMP LL-37/hCAP-18 is involved in the biology of lung cancer. Human cancer cell lines were found to express the human cathelicidin LL-37/hCAP-18 mRNA and peptide at different levels. Immunohistochemistry of human lung cancers showed that the peptide is expressed mostly in adenocarcinoma and squamous cell carcinoma. Application of exo…

A Key Regulatory Role of the Transcription Factor NFATc2 in Bronchial Adenocarcinoma via CD8+ T Lymphocytes

2009

AbstractThe Ca2+-regulated calcineurin/nuclear factor of activated T cells (NFAT) cascade controls alternative pathways of T-cell activation and peripheral tolerance. Here, we describe reduction of NFATc2 mRNA expression in the lungs of patients with bronchial adenocarcinoma. In a murine model of bronchoalveolar adenocarcinoma, mice lacking NFATc2 developed more and larger solid tumors than wild-type littermates. The extent of central tumor necrosis was decreased in the tumors in NFATc2(−/−) mice, and this finding was associated with reduced tumor necrosis factor-α and interleukin-2 (IL-2) production by CD8+ T cells. Adoptive transfer of CD8+ T cells of NFATc2(−/−) mice induced transforming…

The prognostic impact of blood group-related antigen Lewis Y and the ABH blood groups in resected non-small cell lung cancer.

2007

The blood group antigen Lewis Y is expressed on epithelial tumors of the respiratory, digestive and reproductive system. Despite being regarded as an attractive target for immunotherapy, its function is still not well defined and its prognostic value remains a subject of discussion. Eighty-three paraffin-embedded tissue sections of non-small cell lung cancer (NSCLC) patients in stage I-IIIa, who underwent surgical resection of the primary tumor (73% male; 43% adenocarcinoma), were stained with a new, highly specific monoclonal antibody against Lewis Y (clone A70-C/C8). A positive Lewis Y expression was observed in 51% of patients; adenocarcinomas were favorably stained (67%). Multivariate a…

Bcl-2, Bcl-xl, and pp32/PHAPI in resected non-small-cell lung cancer patients

2009

Einleitung: Fur viele Tumorarten ist der Einfluss des Apoptosesignalweges auf die Prognose der Tumorerkrankung beschrieben worden. So konnte fur die antiapoptotischen Proteine wie Bcl-2 und Bcl-xL gezeigt werden, dass sie den mitochondrialen Selbstzerstorungsmechanismus der Zellen herunterregulieren konnen. Fur nicht-kleinzellige Lungenkarzinomen (NSCLC) hingegen existieren widerspruchliche Angaben in der wissenschaftlichen Literatur in Bezug auf die prognostische Wertigkeit apoptotischer und insbesondere antiapoptotischer Faktoren. Ein weiterer wichtiger Faktor im genannten Mechanismus, welches NSCLC fur apoptotische Stimuli sensibilisieren soll, ist das Protein pp32/PHAPI. Fur bereits che…

pp32/PHAPI determines the apoptosis response of non-small-cell lung cancer

2007

During malignant transformation, cancer cells have to evade cell-intrinsic tumor suppressor mechanisms including apoptosis, thus acquiring a phenotype that is relatively resistant to clinically applied anticancer therapies. Molecular characterization of apoptotic signal transduction defects may help to identify prognostic markers and to develop novel therapeutic strategies. To this end we have undertaken functional analyses of drug-induced apoptosis in human non-small cell-lung cancer (NSCLC) cells. We found that primary drug resistance correlated with defects in apoptosome-dependent caspase activation in vitro. While cytochrome c-induced apoptosome formation was maintained, the subsequent …

Targeting BCL-2 family proteins to overcome drug resistance in non-small cell lung cancer.

2007

Cytotoxic chemotherapies are standard of care for patients suffering from advanced non-small cell lung cancer (NSCLC). However, objective responses are only achieved in 20% of cases and long-term survival is rarely observed. Clinically applied anticancer drugs exert at least some of their activities by inducing apoptosis. A critical step in apoptotic signal transduction is the permeabilization of the mitochondrial outer membrane (MOM), which is regulated by the BCL-2 family of proteins. Hence, therapeutic targeting of BCL-2 proteins is a promising approach to increase the drug-sensitivity of cancers. To this end we have assessed the impact of conditional expression of the proapoptotic multi…

Mast cell-derived tumour necrosis factor is essential for allergic airway disease

2007

Mast cells are thought to contribute to allergic airway disease. However, the role of mast cell-produced mediators, such as tumour necrosis factor (TNF), for the development of allergic airway disease is unclear. In order to define the role of mast cells in acute allergic airway disease two strains of mast cell-deficient mice (Kit W/Wv and Kit W-sh/W-sh ) were studied. Compared with their wild-type littermates, Kit W/Wv and Kit W-sh/W-sh mice developed significantly lower airway responsiveness to methacholine and less airway inflammation and goblet cell metaplasia, following sensitisation in the absence of adjuvant and airway challenge. Transfer of bone marrow-derived mast cells (BMMCs) fro…

TA-MUC1 epitope in non-small cell lung cancer

2007

MUC1 (CD227), an established tumor marker, is expressed on glandular epithelia and on epithelial tumors. Tumor MUC1 differs from normal MUC1 by modified glycan side chains. Recently, a novel carbohydrate-induced conformational tumor-associated MUC1 epitope (TA-MUC1) was described, whose clinical relevance in lung cancer is not known. Eighty-five paraffin embedded tissue sections of non-small cell lung cancer (NSCLC) patients (73% male; mean age 64+/-9 years) were stained with the monoclonal antibody PankoMab (against TA-MUC1) and compared with the established antibodies E29 and 214D4 regarding prognostic relevance. TA-MUC1 is virtually absent in bronchial epithelium. As shown by multivariat…

Blood group antigen A type 3 expression is a favorable prognostic factor in advanced NSCLC.

2015

Abstract Objectives Several blood group-related carbohydrate antigens are prognosis-relevant markers of tumor tissues. A type 3 (repetitive A) is a blood group antigen specific for A 1 erythrocytes. Its potential expression in tumor tissues has so far not been examined. Material and methods We have evaluated its expression in normal lung and in lung cancer using a novel antibody (A69-A/E8). For comparison an anti-A antibody specific to A types 1 and 2 was used, because its expression on lung cancer tissue has been previously reported to be of prognostic relevance. Resected tissue samples of 398 NSCLC patients were analyzed in immunohistochemistry using tissue microarrays. Results and conclu…

Targeted Delivery of Catalase to the Pulmonary Endothelium Preserves Graft Function of Non-Heart-Beating Donor Lungs in Pigs.

2009

Prognostic Stratification For Curatively Resected NSCLC Patients By Apoptosis Panel

2010

Characterization of the interstitial lung and peripheral blood T cell receptor repertoire in cigarette smokers.

2005

T lymphocytes modulate the pulmonary inflammatory response. The aim of this study was to evaluate the clonality within the interstitial lung and peripheral blood T cell receptor (TCR) repertoire in smokers. Interstitial T lymphocytes were isolated from surplus tissue of 16 patients (63 +/- 9 [+/- SD] yr old, 11 male) undergoing surgery due to lung cancer (n = 15) or emphysema. TCR clonality was assessed by PCR amplification followed by spectratyping. Nearly all TCR of interstitial lung lymphocytes showed oligoclonal bands (CD4(+) subset 13/16 patients, 81%; CD8(+) 100%) indicating a specific differentiation. Peripheral blood T lymphocytes (PBL) TCR (especially CD4(+)) had less oligoclonal b…

EXPRESSION OF T-CELL TRANSCRIPTION FACTOR T-BET IS INCREASED IN COPD

2010