This SuperSeries is composed of the SubSeries listed below.
Effects of warm ischemic time on gene expression profiling in colorectal cancer tissues and normal mucosa.
Specimen part, Disease, Disease stage, Subject, Time
View SamplesThe study outcome was to evaluate the effect of the time on normal colon mucosa samples and possibly select specific genes whose expression is time-related, that could be used as detectors of tissue degradation.
Effects of warm ischemic time on gene expression profiling in colorectal cancer tissues and normal mucosa.
Specimen part, Disease, Disease stage, Subject, Time
View SamplesThe study outcome was to evaluate the effect of the time on tumor samples and possibly select specific genes whose expression is time-related, that could be used as detectors of tissue degradation.
Effects of warm ischemic time on gene expression profiling in colorectal cancer tissues and normal mucosa.
Specimen part, Disease, Disease stage, Subject, Time
View SamplesWe implemented an optimized processing, using alternative Chip Description Files (CDFs) and fRMA normalization, which improve the quality of downstream analysis.
Accurate data processing improves the reliability of Affymetrix gene expression profiles from FFPE samples.
Specimen part
View SamplesThis SuperSeries is composed of the SubSeries listed below.
Use of formalin-fixed paraffin-embedded samples for gene expression studies in breast cancer patients.
Specimen part
View SamplesThis SuperSeries is composed of the SubSeries listed below.
Integrated gene and miRNA expression analysis of prostate cancer associated fibroblasts supports a prominent role for interleukin-6 in fibroblast activation.
Specimen part, Treatment
View SamplesThe FHIT gene, at 3p14.2, encompasses the common fragile site FRA3B and is frequently inactivated in primary tumors and cell lines of lung, head and neck, stomach, esophagus, cervix and breast cancer. In particular, loss of the FHIT protein is one of the most frequent alteration in lung tumors and pre-invasive lung lesions, suggesting a role for this gene in the early stages of lung carcinogenesis. Adenoviral-mediated restoration of FHIT expression in FHIT-negative cell lines results in cell cycle alteration, induction of apoptosis (through activation of the cytoplasmic apoptotic pathway) and regression of the tumorigenic phenotype. Taken together these observations support the hypothesis of a role for FHIT in human carcinogenesis, but little is known about its mechanism of action. Identification of transcriptional targets of FHIT is therefore critical to understand the pathways by which FHIT promotes growth arrest and apoptosis.
No associated publication
Specimen part, Disease, Cell line
View SamplesThe use of Affymetrix U133 2.0 Plus chips on FFPE samples when coupled with a qPCR-based sample pre-assessment step, yielded satisfactory results from the point of view of biological reliability. When compared with the Illumina DASL WG platform, specifically designed for degraded RNA, the data generated with the Affymetrix platform showed a wider interquartile range (IQR 1.32 vs 0.57, p<2.2x10-16) suggesting a superior discriminatory power within samples as indicated by the good agreement with the immunohistiochemically derived ER status.
Use of formalin-fixed paraffin-embedded samples for gene expression studies in breast cancer patients.
Specimen part
View SamplesTumor microenvironment coevolves with and simultaneously sustains cancer progression. Reactive fibroblasts found in prostate cancer (PCa), known as cancer associated fibroblasts (CAF), have been indeed shown to fuel tumor development and metastasis by mutually interacting with PCa cells. Little is known about the molecular mechanisms that lead to activation of CAFs from tissue-resident fibroblasts, circulating marrow-derived fibroblast progenitors or mesenchymal stem cells. Through integrated gene and microRNA expression profiling, here we showed that transcriptome of CAFs isolated from prostate tumors strictly resembles that of normal fibroblasts stimulated in vitro with interleukin-6 (IL6), thus confirming the capability of the cytokine to promote acquisition of an activated and cancer-promoting phenotype, and, for the first time, proving that IL6 is able per se to induce all the complex transcriptional changes characteristic of patient-derived CAFs. Comparison with publicly available datasets, however, suggested that prostate CAFs may be alternatively characterized by IL6 and TGF-related signatures, indicating that either signal, depending on the context, tumor stage and etiology, may concur to fibroblast activation. Our analyses also highlighted pathways relevant for induction of reactive stroma, including genes the role of which in fibroblast activation is still to be explored. In addition, we revealed a role for muscle-specific miR-133b as a soluble factor secreted by activated fibroblasts to support paracrine activation of non-activated fibroblasts or promote tumor progression. Overall, in this study we provided insights on the molecular mechanisms driving fibroblast activation in prostate cancer, thus contributing to identify novel hits for the development of therapeutic strategies targeting the crucial interplay between tumor cells and their microenvironment. Tumor microenvironment coevolves with and simultaneously sustains cancer progression. Reactive fibroblasts found in prostate cancer (PCa), known as cancer associated fibroblasts (CAF), have been indeed shown to fuel tumor development and metastasis by mutually interacting with PCa cells. Little is known about the molecular mechanisms that lead to activation of CAFs from tissue-resident fibroblasts, circulating marrow-derived fibroblast progenitors or mesenchymal stem cells. Through integrated gene and microRNA expression profiling, here we showed that transcriptome of CAFs isolated from prostate tumors strictly resembles that of normal fibroblasts stimulated in vitro with interleukin-6 (IL6), thus confirming the capability of the cytokine to promote acquisition of an activated and cancer-promoting phenotype, and, for the first time, proving that IL6 is able per se to induce all the complex transcriptional changes characteristic of patient-derived CAFs. Comparison with publicly available datasets, however, suggested that prostate CAFs may be alternatively characterized by IL6 and TGF-related signatures, indicating that either signal, depending on the context, tumor stage and etiology, may concur to fibroblast activation. Our analyses also highlighted pathways relevant for induction of reactive stroma, including genes the role of which in fibroblast activation is still to be explored. In addition, we revealed a role for muscle-specific miR-133b as a soluble factor secreted by activated fibroblasts to support paracrine activation of non-activated fibroblasts or promote tumor progression. Overall, in this study we provided insights on the molecular mechanisms driving fibroblast activation in prostate cancer, thus contributing to identify novel hits for the development of therapeutic strategies targeting the crucial interplay between tumor cells and their microenvironment. Tumor microenvironment coevolves with and simultaneously sustains cancer progression. Reactive fibroblasts found in prostate cancer (PCa), known as cancer associated fibroblasts (CAF), have been indeed shown to fuel tumor development and metastasis by mutually interacting with PCa cells. Little is known about the molecular mechanisms that lead to activation of CAFs from tissue-resident fibroblasts, circulating marrow-derived fibroblast progenitors or mesenchymal stem cells. Through integrated gene and microRNA expression profiling, here we showed that transcriptome of CAFs isolated from prostate tumors strictly resembles that of normal fibroblasts stimulated in vitro with interleukin-6 (IL6), thus confirming the capability of the cytokine to promote acquisition of an activated and cancer-promoting phenotype, and, for the first time, proving that IL6 is able per se to induce all the complex transcriptional changes characteristic of patient-derived CAFs. Comparison with publicly available datasets, however, suggested that prostate CAFs may be alternatively characterized by IL6 and TGF-related signatures, indicating that either signal, depending on the context, tumor stage and etiology, may concur to fibroblast activation. Our analyses also highlighted pathways relevant for induction of reactive stroma, including genes the role of which in fibroblast activation is still to be explored. In addition, we revealed a role for muscle-specific miR-133b as a soluble factor secreted by activated fibroblasts to support paracrine activation of non-activated fibroblasts or promote tumor progression. Overall, in this study we provided insights on the molecular mechanisms driving fibroblast activation in prostate cancer, thus contributing to identify novel hits for the development of therapeutic strategies targeting the crucial interplay between tumor cells and their microenvironment.
Integrated gene and miRNA expression analysis of prostate cancer associated fibroblasts supports a prominent role for interleukin-6 in fibroblast activation.
Specimen part, Treatment
View SamplesCellular plasticity confers cancer cells the ability to adapt to micro-environmental changes, a fundamental requirement for tumour progression and metastasis. The epithelial to mesenchymal transition (EMT) is a transcriptional programme associated with increased cell motility and stemness. Beside EMT, the mesenchymal to amoeboid transition (MAT) has been described during tumour progression but, to date, little is known about its transcriptional control and involvement in stemness. The aim of this study is to investigate (i) the transcriptional profile associated with the MAT programme and (ii) to study whether MAT acquisition in melanoma cancer cells correlate with clonogenic potential to promote tumor growth. Our results demonstrate that MAT programme in melanoma is characterised by increased stemness and clonogenic features of cancer cells, thus sustaining tumour progression. Furthermore, these data suggest that stemness is not an exclusive feature of cells undergoing EMT, but more generally is associated with an increase in cellular plasticity of cancer cells.
Mesenchymal to amoeboid transition is associated with stem-like features of melanoma cells.
Cell line, Treatment
View Samples