Overexpression Of CXCL12 Research Articles

Overexpression of CXCL14 Alleviates Ventilator-Induced Lung Injury through the Downregulation of PKM2-Mediated Cytokine Production

Ventilator-induced lung injury (VILI) is one of the most common complications of mechanical ventilation (MV), which strongly impacts the outcome of ventilated patients. Current evidences indicated that inflammation is a major contributor to the pathogenesis of VILI. Our results showed that MV induced excessive proinflammatory cytokine productions together with decreased CXCL14 and increased PKM2 expressions in injured lungs. In addition, CXCL14 overexpression downregulated PKM2 expression and attenuated VILI with reduced inflammation. Moreover, the overexpression of PKM2 markedly diminished the protective effects of CXCL14 against VILI as reflected by worsened morphology and increased cytokine production, whereas PKM2 knockdown decreased cytokine production and attenuated VILI. Collectively, these results suggested that CXCL14 overexpression attenuates VILI through the downregulation of PKM2-mediated proinflammatory cytokine production.

Ubiquitous overexpression of CXCL12 confers radiation protection and enhances mobilization of hematopoietic stem and progenitor cells.

C-X-C motif chemokine ligand 12 (CXCL12; aka SDF1α) is a major regulator of a number of cellular systems, including hematopoiesis, where it influences hematopoietic cell trafficking, proliferation, and survival during homeostasis and upon stress and disease. A variety of constitutive, temporal, ubiquitous, and cell-specific loss-of-function models have documented the functional consequences on hematopoiesis upon deletion of Cxcl12. Here, in contrast to loss-of-function experiments, we implemented a gain-of-function approach by generating a doxycycline-inducible transgenic mouse model that enables spatial and temporal overexpression of Cxcl12. We demonstrated that ubiquitous CXCL12 overexpression led to an increase in multipotent progenitors in the bone marrow and spleen. The CXCL12+ mice displayed reduced reconstitution potential as either donors or recipients in transplantation experiments. Additionally, we discovered that Cxcl12 overexpression improved hematopoietic stem and progenitor cell mobilization into the blood, and conferred radioprotection by promoting quiescence. Thus, this new CXCL12+ mouse model provided new insights into major facets of hematopoiesis and serves as a versatile resource for studying CXCL12 function in a variety of contexts.

Effect of chemokine CXCL14 on in vitro angiogenesis of human hepatocellular carcinoma cells

The study was designed to investigate the effect of chemokine CXCL14 on in vitro angiogenesis of human hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC) cells. CXCL14 mRNA expression in HCC tissue samples and adjacent tissue samples was detected by quantitative reverse transcription polymerase chain reaction (qRT-PCR). CXCL14 mRNA and protein expression in human normal hepatocyte HL-7702 and HCC cell line HepG2 were detected by qRT-PCR and western blot. In HepG2 cell line, the expression of vascular endothelial growth factor (VEGF) was detected by enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay method, cell viability was detected by CCK-8, cell proliferation was detected by colony formation assay, and cell migration as well as invasion ability was detected by Transwell assay. Moreover, human umbilical vein endothelial cell (HUVEC) tube formation assay was carried out to determine the cell ability of angiogenesis. Results showed that the overexpression of CXCL14 could inhibit angiogenesis, proliferation, migration, and invasion abilities of HCC cells.Highlights CXCL14 is lowly expressed in hepatocellular carcinoma tissues and cells. CXCL14 overexpression inhibits the angiogenesis of hepatocellular carcinoma cells. CXCL14 overexpression inhibits proliferation, invasion, and migration of hepatocellular carcinoma cells.

MicroRNA-429/Cxcl1 Axis Protective Against Oxygen Glucose Deprivation/Reoxygenation-Induced Injury in Brain Microvascular Endothelial Cells.

Objective:The objective of the present work was to study the role of Cxcl1 in cerebral ischemia–reperfusion (I/R) injury and to in-depth explore its pathogenesis.Methods:The expression of Cxcl1 based on the public data was analyzed. Then, we constructed an oxygen glucose deprivation/reoxygenation (OGD/R) model in vitro using mice brain microvascular endothelial cells (BMECs) to simulate cerebral I/R in vivo.Results:The results of quantitative real-time polymerase chain reaction assay uncovered that Cxcl1 showed higher expression while miR-429 showed lower expression in BMECs damaged by OGD/R, whereas overexpression of Cxcl1 or inhibition of miR-429 expression can strengthen this effect. Hereafter, through dual luciferase reporter assay, we verified that miR-429 directly targets Cxcl1 and negatively regulates Cxcl1 expression. Furthermore, the results also revealed that overexpression of Cxcl1 can reverse the miR-429-mediated effects.Conclusion:We concluded that miR-429 exerts protective effects against OGD/R-induce injury in vitro through modulation of Cxcl1 and nuclear factor kinase B pathway, hoping provide a new view on the pathogenesis of cerebral I/R injury and a feasible potential therapeutic target.

CXCL14 Overexpression Attenuates Sepsis-Associated Acute Kidney Injury by Inhibiting Proinflammatory Cytokine Production.

CXCL14 is a relatively novel chemokine with a wide spectrum of biological activities. The present study was designed to investigate whether CXCL14 overexpression attenuates sepsis-associated acute kidney injury (AKI) in mice. Sepsis model has been established by cecal ligation and puncture (CLP). CLP induced AKI in mice as assessed by increased renal neutrophil gelatinase-associated lipocalin (NGAL) expression and serum creatinine levels. We found that renal CXCL14 expression in the kidney was significantly decreased at 12 hours after CLP. Correlation analysis demonstrated a negative association between renal CXCL14 expression and AKI markers including serum creatinine and renal NGAL. Moreover, CXCL14 overexpression reduced cytokine (TNF-α, IL-6, and IL-1β) production and NGAL expression in the kidney and decreased serum creatinine levels. In vivo and in vitro experiments found that CXCL14 overexpression inhibited M1 macrophage polarization but increased M2 polarization. Together, these results suggest that CXCL14 overexpression attenuates sepsis-associated AKI probably through the downregulation of macrophages-derived cytokine production. However, further studies are required to elucidate the underlying mechanism.

Perirenal Adipose Tissue Displays an Age-Dependent Inflammatory Signature Associated With Early Graft Dysfunction of Marginal Kidney Transplants.

Background: Better understanding of the contribution of donor aging and comorbidity factors of expanded criteria donors (ECD) to the clinical outcome of a transplant is a challenge in kidney transplantation. We investigated whether the features of donor-derived stromal vascular fraction of perirenal adipose tissue (PRAT-SVF) could be indicative of the deleterious impact of the ECD microenvironment on a renal transplant.Methods: A comparative analysis of cellular components, transcriptomic and vasculogenic profiles was performed in PRAT-SVF obtained from 22 optimal donors and 31 ECD deceased donors. We then investigated whether these parameters could be associated with donor aging and early allograft dysfunction.Results: When compared with the PRAT-SVF of non-ECD donors, ECD PRAT-SVF displayed a lower proportion of stromal cells, a higher proportion of inflammatory NK cells. The global RNA sequencing approach indicated a differential molecular signature in the PRAT-SVF of ECD donors characterized by the over-expression of CXCL1 and IL1-β inflammatory transcripts. The vasculogenic activity of PRAT-SVF was highly variable but was not significantly affected in marginal donors. Periorgan recruitment of monocytes/macrophages and NK cells in PRAT-SVF was associated with donor aging. The presence of NK cell infiltrates was associated with lower PRAT-SVF angiogenic activity and with early allograft dysfunction evaluated on day 7 and at 1 month post-transplant.Conclusions: Our results indicate that human NK cell subsets are differentially recruited in the periorgan environment of aging kidney transplants. We provide novel evidence that PRAT-SVF represents a non-invasive and timely source of donor material with potential value to assess inflammatory features that impact organ quality and function.

Interleukin-22 Ameliorates Neutrophil-Driven Nonalcoholic Steatohepatitis Through Multiple Targets.

Nonalcoholic fatty liver disease encompasses a spectrum of diseases ranging from simple steatosis to nonalcoholic steatohepatitis (NASH), cirrhosis, and liver cancer. At present, how simple steatosis progresses to NASH remains obscure and effective pharmacological therapies are lacking. Hepatic expression of C-X-C motif chemokine ligand 1 (CXCL1), a key chemokine for neutrophil infiltration (a hallmark of NASH), is highly elevated in NASH patients but not in fatty livers in obese individuals or in high-fat diet (HFD)-fed mice. The aim of this study was to test whether overexpression of CXCL1 itself in the liver can induce NASH in HFD-fed mice and to test the therapeutic potential of IL-22 in this new NASH model. Overexpression of Cxcl1 in the liver alone promotes steatosis-to-NASH progression in HFD-fed mice by inducing neutrophil infiltration, oxidative stress, and stress kinase (such as apoptosis signal-regulating kinase 1 and p38 mitogen-activated protein kinase) activation. Myeloid cell-specific deletion of the neutrophil cytosolic factor 1 (Ncf1)/p47phox gene, which encodes a component of the NADPH oxidase 2 complex that mediates neutrophil oxidative burst, markedly reduced CXCL1-induced NASH and stress kinase activation in HFD-fed mice. Treatment with interleukin (IL)-22, a cytokine with multiple targets, ameliorated CXCL1/HFD-induced NASH or methionine-choline deficient diet-induced NASH in mice. Mechanistically, IL-22 blocked hepatic oxidative stress and its associated stress kinases via the induction of metallothionein, one of the most potent antioxidant proteins. Moreover, although it does not target immune cells, IL-22 treatment attenuated the inflammatory functions of hepatocyte-derived, mitochondrial DNA-enriched extracellular vesicles, thereby suppressing liver inflammation in NASH. Hepatic overexpression of CXCL1 is sufficient to drive steatosis-to-NASH progression in HFD-fed mice through neutrophil-derived reactive oxygen species and activation of stress kinases, which can be reversed by IL-22 treatment via the induction of metallothionein.

Silencing MicroRNA-137-3p, which Targets RUNX2 and CXCL12 Prevents Steroid-induced Osteonecrosis of the Femoral Head by Facilitating Osteogenesis and Angiogenesis.

The main pathogenesis of steroid-induced osteonecrosis of the femoral head (SONFH) includes decreased osteogenic capacity of bone marrow-derived mesenchymal stem cells (BMSCs) and damaged blood supply to the femoral head. MicroRNAs (miRNAs) have been shown to play prominent roles in SONFH development. However, there is no report that a specific miRNA targeting two genes in two different pathogenic pathways has been applied to this disease. The present study investigated the effects of transplantation of miR-137-3p-silenced BMSCs on the prevention and early treatment of SONFH. First, western blotting and dual luciferase assays were employed to verify that miR-137-3p directly targets Runx2 and CXCL12. Then, silencing of miR-137-3p was found to facilitate osteogenic differentiation of BMSCs, which was confirmed by alkaline phosphatase (ALP) staining, alizarin red staining and qRT-PCR. Silencing of miR-137-3p also promoted angiogenesis by human umbilical vein endothelial cells (HUVECs) in the presence or absence of glucocorticoids. Thereafter, overexpression of Runx2 and CXCL12 without the 3′ untranslated region (3′UTR) partially rescued the effects of miR-137-3p on osteogenesis and angiogenesis, respectively. This finding further supported the hypothesis that miR-137-3p exerts its functions partly by regulating the genes, Runx2 and CXCL12. We also demonstrated that SONFH was partially prevented by transplantation of miR-137-3p-silenced BMSCs into a rat model. Micro-CT and histology showed that the transplantation of miR-137-3p-silenced BMSCs significantly improved bone regeneration. Additionally, the results of enzyme-linked immunosorbent assays (ELISA) and flow cytometry suggested that stromal cell-derived factor-1α (SDF-1α) and endothelial progenitor cells (EPCs) participated in the process of vascular repair. Taken together, these findings show that silencing of miR-137-3p directly targets the genes, Runx2 and CXCL12, which can play critical roles in SONFH repair by facilitating osteogenic differentiation and mobilizing EPCs.

Effect of CXCL14 on Migration of Mds Via CXCL12/CXCR4 Axis in Vitro

Objective:To detect the expression level of chemokine CXCL-14 in patients with MDS, and to explore how it is regulated and what clinical effects may occour . For the further step ,to find new target in MDS therapy.Method:45 patients with MDS and 28 donors' peripheral blood samples were included. The expression of chemokine CXCL14, CXCL12 / CXCR4 and CXCR7 were detected by ELISA and FCM. Logistic regression analysis confirmed the association between chemokine expression level and disease progression. Kaplan-meier survival analysis ,introducing time factors, show how CXCL14 works on median survival time and cumulative survival. Methylation specific PCR detected the promoter methylation level in CXCL14.To affirm the clinical significaonce of CXCL14 in MDS, the group conduct experiment with cell line SKM-1 and rebuild the cell in the way of CXCL14 and CXCR7 overexpression .CCK-8 cell proliferation experiment tested cell vigor, Flow Cytometry detected cell apoptosis, transwell chemotactic experiment evaluated cell migration and invasion.Result:With the progression of MDS, the expression of receptors, CXCR4 and CXCR7, on tumor cell membrane increases .Statistical analysis showed that CXCL14 expression of stem cell mobilized donors was significantly high. Logistic regression analysis showed that increased expression of cxcl14 might hinder MDS progression, and overexpression of CXCL12 / CXCR4 axis was beneficial to disease progression. Kaplan-meier survival analysis showed that the median survival time and cumulative survival rate of patients with high CXCL14 expression were both better than the low CXCL14 expression group's. In the CXCL14 low-expression group, the gene promoter was hypermethylated.The expression of CXCR4 and CXCR7 on the surface of cell SKM-1 was down-regulated after Descitabine treatment, similarly in CXCL14 overexpression. In vitro, the high expression of CXCL14 could inhibit cell SKM-1 proliferation and promote cell apoptosis, and weak the cell migration and invasion induced by CXCL12/CXCR4 axis.Conclusion: In MDS, up-regulating CXCL14 expression might is one of the key factors to prevent the excessive activation of CXCL12 /CXCR4 axis, to maintain the stem cells in dynamic balance and limit the migration of tumor cells. To stimulate CXCL14 in vivo and infusion CXCL14 analogues are expected to be a new way in MDS treatment. Disclosures No relevant conflicts of interest to declare.

NR2F1 contributes to cancer cell dormancy, invasion and metastasis of salivary adenoid cystic carcinoma by activating CXCL12/CXCR4 pathway

BackgroundSalivary adenoid cystic carcinoma (SACC) can recur after removal of the primary tumor and treatment, where they can keep no clinical symptoms and dormant state for 10–15 years. NR2F1 has been demonstrated to regulate the tumor cell dormancy in various malignant tumors and has a potential impact on recurrence and metastasis of carcinoma. However, the role and significance of NR2F1 in SACC dormancy still remain unknown.MethodsA total number of 59 patients with a diagnosis of SACC were included to detected expression of NR2F1, Ki-67 by immunohistochemical (IHC) staining and terminal deoxynucleotidyl transferase-mediated dUTP nick and labeling (TUNEL). Fisher’s exact test was used to examine the NR2F1 expression and clinicopathologic parameters of SACC. In vitro, SACC cell lines were transfected NR2F1 and knockdown NR2F1 respectively. CCK-8, flow cytometry, wound healing assay and transwell invasion determined SACC cell proliferation, apoptosis, cell cycle, migration and invasion respectively. Chromatin immunoprecipitation (ChIP) assays were utilized to demonstrate the potential role of NR2F1 in SACC invasion via CXCL12/CXCR4 axis. In vivo, xenografts of nude mice via subcutaneous injection or tail vein injection were used to testify the results in vitro.ResultsAmong the 59 patients with SACC, 23.73% (14/59) were positive to NR2F1 expression, a lower rate of expression compared with 60% (6/10) in normal salivary gland samples. NR2F1 was correlated with metastasis, relapse and dormancy of SACC. SACC cells with transfected NR2F1 remained dormant, as well as enhanced invasion and metastasis. Knockdown of NR2F1 via siRNA after NR2F1 overexpression restored the proliferation and the cell number in G2/M phases, and reduced the abilities of migration and invasion. In addition, NR2F1 promoted the expression of CXCL12 and CXCR4, and overexpression of CXCL12 at least partly rescued the proliferation, migration, and invasion activities induced by NR2F1 silencing.ConclusionsNR2F1 may be an underlying mechanism of SACC recurrence and metastasis via regulating tumor cell dormancy through CXCL12/CXCR4 pathway.

Abstract A054: Tumor cell intrinsic factors dictate immune cell infiltration and response to immunotherapy

Abstract The establishment of immune heterogeneity in the tumor microenvironment (TME) is poorly understood, despite recent data that the success of immunotherapies is dictated by the immune environment of the tumor site. Pancreatic ductal adenocarcinoma (PDA) is characteristically devoid of CD8 T-cells and resistant to therapeutic intervention. However, a small subset of patients (15%) have tumors highly infiltrated by CD8 T-cells, correlating with improved overall survival. To better elucidate the determinants of immune heterogeneity in the PDA TME, we generated clones from spontaneous tumors harvested from KrasG12D+/-;Trp53R172H+/-;Pdx-1 Cre (KPC) mice, a genetically engineered mouse model of PDA. Using a panel of 17 tumor clones, we found the clones segregated in to two groups with differential immune cell infiltration upon implantation in congenic C57BL/6 mice. 7/17 tumor clones were categorized as “T-cell high,” with an immune infiltrate comprising CD8 T-cells and CD103+ dendritic cells (DCs). In contrast, the remaining 10 tumor clones were categorized as “T-cell low” lines, with the TME dominated by myeloid cells and macrophages, especially granulocytic myeloid-derived suppressor cells. Hypothesizing that increased T-cell infiltrate would render PDA sensitive to therapy, we treated two T-cell high and two T-cell low tumor clones with combination immunotherapy. Mice bearing T-cell high clones responded to therapy (7/7 and 4/7 mice cured) and formed protective memory responses against secondary tumor challenge, while none of the mice bearing T-cell low tumors responded to treatment (0/7 and 0/7 mice cured). At baseline, T-cell high tumors had similar proportions of functional CD8 T-cells as in T-cell low tumors. However, the proportion of activated CD44hiPD-1+ CD8 T-cells was significantly increased in T-cell high tumors (62.2% vs. 35.1% in T-cell low clones, p<0.0001), and predicted response to therapy across the panel of tumor clones. CD44hiPD-1+ CD8 T-cells trafficked in to the tumor site independently of CXCR3 (53.8% in control vs. 50.0% in anti-CXCR3 treated tumors, p=0.8), in contrast to the bulk CD8 T-cell population which required CXCR3 to enter the TME (7.5% in control vs 0.53% in anti-CXCR3 treated tumors, p<0.01). Furthermore, in Batf3 KO mice, the T-cell high TME lacked CD8 T-cells and resembled the T-cell low phenotype, including resistance to combined immunotherapy with 0/7 mice responding to treatment, indicating the requirement for CD103+ DCs in the TME for T-cell infiltration and tumor regression. Co-mixing experiments revealed that the T-cell low phenotype was dominant in the local – but not systemic – setting, suggesting a secreted protein was involved in establishing the T-cell low TME, and CXCL1 was identified as a top candidate after transcriptomic and epigenetic profiling (padj = 0.088, basemean = 772.79). Overexpression of CXCL1 in T-cell high tumors converted the TME to a T-cell low phenotype, while ablation of CXCL1 in T-cell low tumors converted the TME to a T-cell high phenotype and rendered T-cell low sensitive to combined immunotherapy (16/16 responders or 7/16 responders in two independent CXCL1 KO T-cell low clones). These data reveal tumor cell intrinsic factors as major determinants of immune heterogeneity in the TME and highlight the use of this panel of clonal tumor lines as a tool to probe TME heterogeneity to develop optimized, patient-specific therapies. Citation Format: Katelyn T. Byrne, Jinyang Li, Robert H. Vonderheide, Ben Stanger. Tumor cell intrinsic factors dictate immune cell infiltration and response to immunotherapy [abstract]. In: Proceedings of the Fourth CRI-CIMT-EATI-AACR International Cancer Immunotherapy Conference: Translating Science into Survival; Sept 30-Oct 3, 2018; New York, NY. Philadelphia (PA): AACR; Cancer Immunol Res 2019;7(2 Suppl):Abstract nr A054.

TNF-α-Induced Bone Marrow Stromal Progenitor Alterations Enhance Leukemic Stem Cell Growth and Treatment Resistance Via Increased CXCL1-CXCR2 Signaling

Mesenchymal cells within the bone marrow (BM) microenvironment play an important role in regulation of hematopoietic stem cell (HSC) fate. However, the effects of leukemia development on distribution and function of mesenchymal cell subpopulations are not well understood. Here we used the SCL-tTA-BCR-ABL transgenic CML mouse model to examine how CML development affected murine BM mesenchymal subpopulations within a recently delineated skeletal stem cell (SSC) hierarchy, and evaluate how mesenchymal subpopulations affected HSC and leukemia stem cell (LSC) growth.We observed a significant increase in bone-forming “Thy” and stroma-forming “6C3” progenitor subsets in CML compared to normal BM. CML Thy and 6C3 progenitors demonstrated increased proliferation and CFU-F potential. In addition, CML Thy cells exhibiting increased osteogenic potential whereas CML 6C3 cells showed increased adipogenic potential compared to their normal counterparts.CML LSC and normal HSC were cocultured with Thy and 6C3 cells, purified from CML and normal mice for 3 days and transplanted into irradiated normal recipients to evaluate long-term engraftment. Normal HSC engraftment was enhanced by coculture with normal Thy and 6C3 cells but not by their CML counterparts. On the other hand, LSC engraftment was enhanced by CML 6C3 cells compared to normal 6C3 cells, but not by CML Thy cells compared to normal Thy cells. These results indicate that CML stromal progenitors demonstrate enhanced support of LSC and reduced support of normal HSC.Q-PCR analysis showed that expression of major hematopoietic regulatory molecules, including CXCL12, G-CSF, SCF, IL-1, IL-6, and IGF-1, was significantly reduced in CML 6C3 and Thy progenitors.RNA-Seq analysis demonstrated that expression of TNFaand NF-kbrelated gene sets was significantly increased in CML compared with normal 6C3 cells. Ligand-receptor interactome analysis, based on differential gene expression in LSC and normal HSC, and CML and normal 6C3 cells, revealed upregulation of the chemokines CXCL1 and CXCL5 in CML 6C3 cells, and of their cognate receptor CXCR2 in LSC. We have previously shown that TNFalevels are increased in CML compared to normal BM (Zhang et al., 2012). Here we found that treatment of WT mice with TNFα led to expansion of 6C3 cells and increased CXCL1 expression on 6C3 cells. In contrast, treatment of CML mice with anti-TNFα antibodies led to reduction in 6C3 cell numbers and reduced CXCL1 expression in 6C3 cells. These results support a critical role for TNFα signaling in expansion and increased CXCL1 expression by stromal progenitors in CML BM.We evaluated the role of paracrine CXCL1-CXCR2 signaling in growth and TKI resistance of LSC. Treatment with CXCL1 and CXCL5 resulted in expansion of LSC and leukemic progenitors respectively, and this effect was blocked by the CXCR2 inhibitor SB225002. Treatment with SB225002 significantly reduced proliferation of LSC cocultured with CML 6C3 cells. SB225002 administration to mice engrafted with CML cells resulted in significant reduction in peripheral blood WBC counts, neutrophil percentage, and leukemic short-term HSC (STHSC) and granulocyte-macrophage progenitors (GMP) in the BM. The combination of SB225002 and the TKI Nilotinib (50mg/kg) resulted in significantly greater reduction in peripheral blood WBC and neutrophils, and in BM LSC compared to Nilotinib or SB225002 alone.SB225002 treatment also significantly reduced proliferation and enhanced apoptosis of human CML CD34+CD38- cells cocultured with human CML BM mesenchymal stromal cells, and that the combination of SB225002 and Nilotinib significantly enhanced apoptosis and inhibited proliferation of CML CD34+CD38- cells compared to Nilotinib alone.We conclude that increased TNFα signaling results in expansion of stromal progenitors in CML BM, which differentially support LSC compared to normal HSC. TNFα-signaling leads to overexpression of CXCL1 by stromal progenitors, which interacts with CXCR2 overexpressed on LSC to enhance their growth. Inhibition of CXCR2 signaling reduces LSC proliferation and survival, and enhances LSC elimination in combination with TKI. These observations support further exploration of targeting of CXCL1-CXCR2 interactions as a novel and effective strategy to target BM microenvironment-protected TKI-resistant LSC. DisclosuresNo relevant conflicts of interest to declare.

Adipose tissue derived-factors impaired pancreatic β-cell function in diabetes

Inflammatory factors produced and secreted by adipose tissue, in particular peri-pancreatic adipose tissue (P-WAT), may influence pancreatic β-cell dysfunction. Using the ZDF Rat model of diabetes, we show the presence of infiltrating macrophage (ED1 staining) on pancreatic tissue and P-WAT in the pre-diabetes stage of the disease. Then, when the T2D is installed, infiltrating cells decreased. Meanwhile, the P-WAT conditioned-medium composition, in terms of inflammatory factors, varies during the onset of the T2D. Using chemiarray technology, we observed an over expression of CXCL-1, -2, -3, CCL-3/MIP-1α and CXCL-5/LIX and TIMP-1 in the 9 weeks old obese ZDF pre-diabetic rat model. Surprisingly, the expression profile of these factors decreased when animals become diabetic (12 weeks obese ZDF rats). The expression of these inflammatory proteins is highly associated with inflammatory infiltrate. P-WAT conditioned-medium from pre-diabetes rats stimulates insulin secretion, cellular proliferation and apoptosis of INS-1 cells. However, inhibition of conditioned-medium chemokines acting via CXCR2 receptor do not change cellular proliferation apoptosis and insulin secretion of INS-1 cells induced by P-WAT conditioned-medium. Taken together, these results show that among the secreted chemokines, increased expression of CXCL-1, -2, -3 and CXCL-5/LIX in P-WAT conditioned-medium is concomitant with the onset of the T2D but do not exerted a direct effect on pancreatic β-cell dysfunction.

Abstract 5466: CXCL14 suppresses the aggressive phenotype in triple-negative breast cancer (TNBC) through CXCR4

Abstract The chemokine network is involved in cancer metastasis by modulating cell migration and angiogenesis. CXCL12-CXCR4 is a common signaling axis that is associated with cancer metastasis. Metastatic breast cancers often overexpress the CXCR4 receptor, whereas lung tissues express high levels of CXCL12; consequently, this is a proposed mechanism for breast cancer metastasis to the lung. CXCL14, an anti-inflammatory chemokine, has been postulated to be an alternative ligand for CXCR4, though a formal assignment of CXCR4 as the receptor for CXCL14 has not been made. Interestingly, CXCL14 competes with CXCL12, a main ligand for CXCR4, to modulate CXCL12-CXCR4 downstream activation of ERK. CXCL14 expression is downregulated in oral, colon, prostate, lung, pancreatic, cervical, kidney cancers, and in TNBC when compared to other subtypes of breast cancer. Overexpression of CXCL14 in cancer cell lines in vivo and in vitro leads to decrease in tumor metastasis. CXCL14 overexpression in the MDA-MB-231 breast cancer cell line leads to a decrease in cell growth, invasion and migration. To further explore a role for CXCL14 in breast cancer aggressiveness, we examined the effects of CXCL14 on the cell migration and metastasis of additional breast cancer cell lines. Here we performed cell migration and MTT cytotoxicity assays using MDA-MB-231 and BT-549 TNBC cell lines and the MCF-7 estrogen receptor+ cell line. Our results demonstrate TNBC cells are significantly more sensitive to CXCL14 compared to non-TNBC MCF7 cells (in Boyden chamber migration assay). Also, in our experiments CXCL14 did not alter proliferation in either TNBC cells or non-TNBC cells. However, when we generated CXCR4-overexpressing breast cancer cell lines using parental BT-549, MDA-MB-231, and MCF-7 cells, we observed the changes in the phosphorylation of ERK1/2 (MAPK targets) and pAKT (PI3K downstream effector protein). Based on these data, we propose CXCL14 as a negative modifier of the CXCL12-CXCR4 axis in TNBC. Based on these data, we propose a negative role for CXCL14 in the modulation of TNBC aggressiveness. Citation Format: Carla R. Gibbs, Rosa Mistica C. Ignacio, Ann Richmond, Deok-Soo Son. CXCL14 suppresses the aggressive phenotype in triple-negative breast cancer (TNBC) through CXCR4 [abstract]. In: Proceedings of the American Association for Cancer Research Annual Meeting 2018; 2018 Apr 14-18; Chicago, IL. Philadelphia (PA): AACR; Cancer Res 2018;78(13 Suppl):Abstract nr 5466.

Plac1 Is a Key Regulator of the Inflammatory Response and Immune Tolerance In Mammary Tumorigenesis

Plac1 is an X-linked trophoblast gene expressed at high levels in the placenta, but not in adult somatic tissues other than the testis. Plac1 however is re-expressed in several solid tumors and in most human cancer cell lines. To explore the role of Plac1 in cancer progression, Plac1 was reduced by RNA interference in EO771 mammary carcinoma cells. EO771 “knockdown” (KD) resulted in 50% reduction in proliferation in vitro and impaired tumor growth in syngeneic mice; however, tumor growth in SCID mice was equivalent to tumor cells expressing a non-silencing control RNA, suggesting that Plac1 regulated adaptive immunity. Gene expression profiling of Plac1 KD cells indicated reduction in several inflammatory and immune factors, including Cxcl1, Ccl5, Ly6a/Sca-1, Ly6c and Lif. Treatment of mice engrafted with wild-type EO771 cells with a Cxcr2 antagonist impaired tumor growth, reduced myeloid-derived suppressor cells and regulatory T cells, while increasing macrophages, dendritic cells, NK cells and the penetration of CD8+ T cells into the tumor bed. Cxcl1 KD phenocopied the effects of Plac1 KD on tumor growth, and overexpression of Cxcl1 partially rescued Plac1 KD cells. These results reveal that Plac1 modulates a tolerogenic tumor microenvironment in part by modulating the chemokine axis.

Adiponectin promotes human jaw bone marrow mesenchymal stem cell chemotaxis via CXCL1 and CXCL8.

Adiponectin (APN) is known to promote the osteogenic differentiation of human jaw bone marrow mesenchymal stem cells (h‐JBMMSCs). However, the underlying mechanism has not been fully elucidated. Previously, we showed that APN could promote h‐JBMMSC osteogenesis via APPL1‐p38 by up‐regulating osteogenesis‐related genes. Here, we aimed to determine whether APN could promote h‐JBMMSC chemotaxis through CXCL1/CXCL8. The CCK‐8, wound healing and transwell assays were used to evaluate the proliferation, migration and chemotaxis of h‐JBMMSCs with or without APN treatment. Chemotaxis‐related genes were screened using RNA‐seq, and the results were validated using real‐time PCR and ELISA. We also performed Western blot using the AMPK inhibitor, WZ4003, and the p38 MAPK inhibitor, SB203580, to identify the signalling pathway involved. We found that APN could promote h‐JBMMSC chemotaxis in the co‐culture transwell system. CXCL1 and CXCL8 were screened and confirmed as the up‐regulated target genes. The APN‐induced CXCL1/8 up‐regulation to promote chemotaxis could be blocked by CXCR2 inhibitor SB225002. Western blot revealed that the phosphorylation of AMPK and p38 MAPK increased in a time‐dependent manner with APN treatment. Additionally, WZ4003 and SB203580 could suppress the APN‐induced overexpression of CXCL1 and CXCL8. The results of the transwell chemotaxis assay also supported the above results. Our data suggest that APN can promote h‐JBMMSC chemotaxis by up‐regulating CXCL1 and CXCL8.

Characterization of CD9-CXCL12-CXCR4 Expression in Biological Subtypes of Childhood ACUTE Lymphoblastic Leukemia: Preliminary Findings and Future Perspectives

Background. Although the prognosis of acute lymphoblastic leukemia (ALL) has improved considerably in recent years, some cases still exhibit therapy-resistance and late relapse. CD9-CXCL12-CXCR4 pathway has been implicated in hematopoietic and leukemic stem cell homing, promoting cell adhesion and survival in bone marrow stromal niches and mediating cell dissemination to secondary lymphoid organs. We characterized the CD9-CXCL12-CXCR4 expression in specific biological subgroups of childhood ALL, comparing, in some cases, diagnosis vs relapse, in order to investigate the role of these genes, in the process of leukemia relapse and to preliminarily evaluate their impact as prognostic markers, even for those subtypes with well-established good outcome.Materials and Methods. We analyzed bone marrow (BM) samples from 68 children with ALL, 3 cases with chronic myeloid leukemia, as control for t(9;22) positive leukemia, and 4 healthy donors (HDs). Patients were enrolled and treated at our Center from 2000 to 2010. We reverse-transcribed 500 ng of patients’ diagnostic RNA and performed a Real-time PCR using the SYBRTM Green PCR Master Mix (Applied Biosystems®), calculating the median fold-changes (MFCs) among different reactions and comparing with HDs. GUS gene mRNA was used as an internal positive control, showing no significant variation in our experiments. Each PCR experiment was carried out in duplicate. Sequences of oligonucleotides used for experiments, together with RQ-PCR protocol were previously published (Gandemer V. et al Leukemia Research 2010)Results. We analyzed for CD9, CXCL12 and CXCR4 expression 39 children with t(12;21) positive ALL, 12 cases with t(1;19) positive ALL, 8 cases with t(9;22) positive ALL, and 9 cases resulted negative for chromosomal translocation screening. Among the t(12;21) positive ALL we found that CD9 was overexpressed in 13 out of 39 patients (33%), CXCL12 in 14 out of 39 (35%) and CXCR4 in 9 out of 39 (23%), respectively. We noted that in 2 cases who presented a late relapse, one (CT13) showed a normal expression of the analyzed genes, conversely the other case (CT24), who suffered from a isolated extramedullary relapse, showed a high overexpression of CD9. In the t(1;19) subgroup we found only one case with overexpression of both CD9 and CXCR4 genes, respectively. Moreover we noted that comparing diagnosis vs relapse in one case, we observed a dramatic increased expression of CXCL12 (CT70 diagnosis 3,33 FCs vs relapse 38 FCs). In the subgroup of children with t(9;22) positive ALL, we observed an extremely high expression of the CD9-CXCL12-CXCR4 genes. In particular, we found an overexpression of CD9 in 4 out of 8 (50%) cases with this subtype of ALL; interestingly, all these case showed a BM relapse. One of these (CT56) showed an overexpression of all the three pathway’s components. As negative counterpart, we also analyzed three cases with a t(9;22) positive CML, finding a normal expression of all genes. In order to determine this pathway’s expression in children presenting an ALL without known chromosomal aberration, we analyzed other 9 cases. In only one (CT44) we found an overexpression of both CD9 and CXCL12. This patient suffered from an early relapse (<24 months from diagnosis).Conclusions. Our preliminary findings demonstrated that the CD9-CXCL12-CXCR4 pathway is mainly altered in children with t(12;21) and t(9;22) positive ALL. In the latter subgroup we found a linear correlation between overexpression and impending relapse, confirming that this pathway can be potentially used as prognostic marker. Among t(1;19) positive ALL, we found few cases with single gene aberration. More importantly, we found an overexpression of one or two pathway's components in diagnostic samples of those cases, who presented a subsequent relapse. These data need to be confirmed in a larger population and will pave the way to identify new prognostic marker and/or therapeutic target, since CXCR4 has already antagonist drugs in clinical use, showing very recent promising results (Randhawa S et al. British Journal of Hematology 2016). DisclosuresNo relevant conflicts of interest to declare.

Elevated CXCL1 increases hepatocellular carcinoma aggressiveness and is inhibited by miRNA-200a.

In this study, we investigated the value of measurement of the chemokine CXCL1 in clinical management of hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC) and its possible role in the molecular pathogenesis of HCC. High CXCL1 expression predicted recurrence in HCC patients and promoted tumor progression in both in vivo and in vitro experimental systems. Overexpression of CXCL1 increased mitochondrial metabolism and activated the epithelial-to-mesenchymal transition (EMT). Using computational analysis we identified the microRNA miR-200a as a putative post-transcriptional regulator of CXCL1. We found that levels of miR-200a were inversely correlated with CXCL1 expression in HCC patient tissue samples by northern blot and qRT-PCR. Furthermore, CXCL1 was identified as a direct target which was bound and inhibited by miR- 200a. These findings provide new insights into the role of CXCL1 in HCC and its post-transcriptional regulation and suggest it may be a prognostic indicator for poor outcomes and a potential target for therapy.

CXC chemokine CXCL12 tissue expression and circulating levels in peptic ulcer patients with Helicobacter pylori infection

Helicobacter pylori (H. pylori) infection is among the most prevalent human infections. CXCL12 is a well-known CXC chemokine involved in inflammation and play major roles in angiogenesis. There is currently very limited data on the role of CXCL12 in peptic ulcer disease. Hence, we aimed to explore whether CXCL12 is involved in the pathogenesis of peptic ulcer induced by H. pylori. In this study, we enrolled 102 H. pylori-infected patients, including 51 with active ulcer (GA) and 51 with healing ulcer (GH). We also recruited 50 healthy subjects as control, which did not show any sign or symptoms of chronic inflammatory diseases, infection, or immune-related disorders. Endoscopy was performed to determine the stage of the disease. ELISA was used for detection of H. pylori infection and CXCL12 measurement. We also employed western blotting to detect CXCL12 in ulcerative lesions of H. pylori. Demographic data were also collected by questionnaire. Our results demonstrated that CXCL12 serum levels in GA group (151.8±18.31pg/mL) were significantly higher than those in GH (36.89±6.78pg/mL) and control groups (33.77±9.12pg/mL) (P<0.0001). However, we did not observe a significant difference between GH and control groups. Moreover, overexpression of CXCL12 in gastric lesions of patients in GA group was confirmed by Western blot analysis. According to the result of the present study, it could be concluded that CXCL12 is involved in the pathogenesis and healing of H. pylori-induced peptic ulcer. CXCL12 serum levels may also be used to distinguish between GA and GH phases of the disease.

Inducible expression of CXCL1 within the CNS amplifies demyelination in pre-clinical models of multiple sclerosis

Abstract The functional role of the ELR+ chemokine CXCL1 in host defense and disease in two pre-clinical mouse models of the human demyelinating disease multiple sclerosis (MS) was assessed. Mice in which expression of CXCL1 is under the control of a tetracycline-inducible promoter active within GFAP-positive cells were generated and infected intracranially with the neurotropic JHM strain of mouse hepatitis virus (JHMV) or immunized with myelin oligodendrocyte glycoprotein (MOG)35-55 to induce experimental autoimmune encephalomyelitis (EAE). In both JHMV-induced neurologic disease and EAE, overexpression of CXCL1 by astrocytes resulted in increased clinical disease severity. Immunophenotyping cells infiltrating into the central nervous system (CNS) revealed a selective increase in Ly6G+CD11b+ neutrophils (but not Ly6G−Ly6C+CD11b+ monocytes) present within the CNS. In JHMV infected mice and MOG35-55-immunized mice, the T cell response to antigen with regard to proliferation and cytokine production was not altered, nor was trafficking into the CNS affected. In both models, increased CXCL1 expression within the CNS resulted in increased morbidity that correlated with selectively elevated neutrophil infiltration, diminished numbers of mature oligodendrocytes, and an increase in the severity of demyelination. Neutrophil ablation in CXCL1-transgenic mice reduced the severity of demyelination in mice arguing a role for these cells in white matter damage. Collectively, these findings illustrate that sustained CXCL1 expression amplifies the severity of white matter damage and neutrophils can contribute to this process in two different mouse models of MS.