Hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC) is the most prevalent type of malignant liver disease worldwide. Molecular changes in HCC collectively contribute to Wnt/β-catenin, as a tumor proliferative signaling pathway, toll-like receptors (TLRs), nuclear factor-kappa B (NF-κB), as well as the c-Jun NH2-terminal kinase (JNK), predominant signaling pathways linked to the release of tumor-promoting cytokines. It should also be noted that the Hippo signaling pathway plays an important role in organ size control, particularly in promoting tumorigenesis and HCC development. Nowadays, mesenchymal stromal cells (MSCs)-based therapies have been the subject of in vitro, in vivo, and clinical studies for liver such as cirrhosis, liver failure, and HCC. At present, despite the importance of basic molecular pathways of malignancies, limited information has been obtained on this background. Therefore, it can be difficult to determine the true concept of interactions between MSCs and tumor cells. What is known, these cells could migrate toward tumor sites so apply effects via paracrine interaction on HCC cells. For example, one of the inhibitory effects of MSCs is the overexpression of dickkopf-related protein 1 (DKK-1) as an important antagonist of the Wnt signaling pathway. A growing body of research challenging the therapeutic roles of MSCs through the secretion of various trophic factors in HCC. This review illustrates the complex behavior of MSCs and precisely how their inhibitory signals interface with HCC tumor cells.
Chemokines secreted from different cellular components of bone marrow (BM) play an important role in the formation of the BM niche system. The hematopoietic stem cell (HSC) pool located in specialized anatomical sites within the BM is subjected to a complex network of chemokines, such that the produced chemokines affect the fate of these cells. Expression of different chemokine receptors on leukemic stem cells (LSCs) uncovers the critical role of chemokines in the maintenance, survival and fate of these cells in the leukemic niche. As a pre-metastatic niche rich in a variety of chemokines, the BM niche is turned into a locus of tumor cell development and division. The chemokine receptors expressed on the surface of metastatic cells lead to their metastasis and homing to the BM niche. Knowledge of chemokines and their receptors leads to the production of various therapeutic antagonists at chemokine receptors expressed on leukemic and tumor cells, enabling interference with chemokine function as a therapeutic tool. New findings suggest that miRNAs, with their specific inhibitory function, affect the ability of producing and expressing chemokines and chemokine receptors. This review focuses on the emerging role of chemokines and their receptors in normal and pathologic conditions of the BM niche, and also discusses the new therapeutic methods with this background.
A closer investigation of the influence of Ras-mediated signaling pathways on CML progression to blast crisis is warranted to uncover new directions for targeted therapies, particularly in cases that are resistant to current tyrosine kinase inhibitors.
We introduce a 78-year-old woman presented with thrombocytosis and high blast count who had a history of splenectomy. Her cytogenetic analysis revealed aberrant chromosomal rearrangements in different clonal populations harboring 46XX karyotype with t(9;22) (q34;q11). RT-PCR assay detected the e1a2 BCR-ABL translocation resulting from rearrangement of the minor breakpoint cluster region (m-bcr) in BCR gene. Subsequent evaluation of the disease showed calreticulin (CALR) 52-bp deletion as well as the absence of JAK2V617F heterozygous mutation in granulocyte population of peripheral blood using allele-specific PCR and bi-directional DNA sequencing. To our knowledge, this is the first case of a patient initially diagnosed as p190 BCR-ABL transcript positive CML in blast crisis characterized by a 52-bp deletion in CALR gene.
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