Expression of endothelial cell-specific molecule-1 regulated by hypoxia inducible factor-1α in human colon carcinoma: Impact of ESM-1 on prognosis and its correlation with clinicopathological features

Abstract

Based on a previous finding that endothelial cell-specific molecule-1 (ESM-1) is a potential serum marker for colorectal cancer (CRC), the aim of this study was to clarify the clinicopathological significance of ESM-1 expression in CRC, and to explore the correlation between ESM-1 and HIF-1α in the tumorigenesis of CRC related to hypoxic conditions. ESM-1 mRNA expression was examined in CRC and corresponding normal mucosal tissues by reverse transcriptase-polymerase chain reaction (RT-PCR) and real-time RT-PCR. This experiment confirmed that ESM-1 levels were high in CRC. We screened the tissue samples of 143 CRC patients. By immunohistochemistry, we determined that the ESM-1 immunoreactivity was significantly correlated with the tumor size, depth of invasion, nodal status, distant metastasis and Dukes' stage, and was an independent prognostic factor for disease recurrence and worse survival outcome (P=0.001). The modulation of ESM-1 under hypoxia was investigated, and it was confirmed that ESM-1 expression was induced by HIF1-α and significantly attenuated by small interfering RNA (siRNA) targeting HIF-1α in CRC cells. These results showed that ESM-1 is significantly overexpressed, which is regulated by HIF-1α in CRC patients, and can be used as a potential biomarker and a therapeutic target for CRC.

Serum Endocan as a Novel Prognostic Biomarker in Patients with Hepatocellular Carcinoma

“…Recent studies have shown that endocan is overexpressed at the mRNA and/or protein levels in various tumor types, including glioblastoma, pituitary adenoma, non-small cell lung cancer, gastric cancer, colorectal cancer, renal cell cancer, bladder cancer, ovarian cancer, and HCC 9, 12-23. Moreover, endocan overexpression in cancer tissues and sera has been associated with tumor progression and poor outcomes 13-17, 19-23. A study of the association between endocan expression and HCC patient outcomes found that microvessel density in surgically resected tumors, represented by endocan expression, was prognostic for worse survival 21.…”

Plasma endocan levels associate with inflammation, vascular abnormalities, cardiovascular events, and survival in chronic kidney disease

“…Increasing experimental evidence has reported that endocan is overexpressed in cancer, sepsis, obesity, or inflammatory conditions 6 and is related to patients' outcome in different conditions such as sepsis 7 and cancer. [8][9][10] endocan may have roles in the vascular contribution to organ-specific inflammation and in endothelium-dependent pathological disorders and may represent a novel endothelial cell dysfunction marker. 7,11 The aim of this study was threefold: (a) to evaluate endocan levels in CKD (vs. non-CKD) patients and their relation with GFR; (b) to investigate the relationship between endocan and different markers of inflammation and endothelial dysfunction in the same CKD population; and (c) to test the ability of endocan as a novel predictor of all-cause mortality and cardiovascular events (CVE) in CKD patients.…”

Severe Pneumococcal Pneumonia Causes Acute Cardiac Toxicity and Subsequent Cardiac Remodeling

“…Finally, to confirm that cardiac injury and collagen deposition were secondary to S. pneumoniae invasion, we explored the HIF1-α pathway that is activated by hypoxia (34).…”