Objective To explore the expression of CD105 protein in esophageal squamous cell carcinoma and it＇s relationship with P53 protein. Methods Using streptavidin biotinperoxidase （SP） method, the expression of CD105 protein and P53 protein in esophageal squamous cell carcinoma were examined in normal esophageal tissues （n=10） and esophageal squamous cell carcinoma tissues（n=86）. Results The expression positive rate of CD105 protein was 74. 4%（64/86） in esophageal squamous cell carcinoma , 0% in normal esophageal epithelium. Expression positive rate of CD105 protein was 66. 1%（37/56） in early stage （stage Ⅰ-Ⅱ ）, 90.0% （27/30） in later stages （stage Ⅲ-Ⅳ ）. The expression of CD105 protein were bly associated with P53 protein（P〈0. 05）. Conclusion CD105 protein may participate in the onset and progression of esophageal squamous cell carcinoma. CD105 protein could he a new diagnostic /therapeutic target in esophageal squamous cell carcinoma.
Increasing evidence suggests that many types of cancers contain a population of cells that display stem cell properties. These cells are called cancer stem cells （CSCs），which are closely related to tumor initiation，growth，metastasis and chemoresistance. CSCs are also found in esophageal squamous cell carcinoma （ESCC）. These cells are characterized by potential of self-renewal and differentiation，tumor formation in nude mice and chemotherapy resistance，and thus may play an important role in targeted cancer therapies. Current methods for culturing and sorting CSCs in ESCC mainly include fluorescence activated cell sorting （FACS），magnetic activated cell sorting （MACS），suspension culture，and side population （SP） cell sorting. In this review，we focus on current research methods for CSCs in ESCC，their biological characteristics and areas for improvement. We believe that a combination of multiple cell-surface makers is needed for research of CSCs in ESCC.
Objective To compare short-term quality of life and postoperative complications in esophageal squamous cell carcinoma patients with different routes reconstruction after McKeown esophagectomy. Methods The clinical data of 144 patients with esophageal squamous cell carcinoma who received McKeown esophagectomy in Shanghai Chest Hospital from January 2016 to October 2016 were retrospectively reviewed. Among them 93 patients accepted retrosternal approach (a RR group, 71 males and 22 females at an average age of 63.5±7.7 years) and 51 patients accepted posterior mediastinal approach (a PR group, 39 males and 12 females at an average age of 62.3±8.0 years). Short-term surgical outcomes were compared and a Quality of Life Questionnaire of Patients Underwent Esophagectomy 1.0 was performed at postoperative 1st and 3rd month. Results There was no difference in two groups in sex, age, Body Mass Index (BMI), and location and clinical stage of tumors (P>0.05). The neoadjuvant therapy was more performed in the RR group (16.1%vs. 5.9%, P=0.075). There were more robot-assisted esophagecctomy operations performed in the PR group (52.9% vs. 45.2%, P=0.020). No significant difference was noted in operation duration, intraoperative blood loss or length of ICU stay between the RR and PR groups (251.3±59.1 min vs. 253.1±27.7 min, P=0.862; 223.7±75.1 ml vs. 240.0±75.1 ml, P=0.276; 3.7±6.6 d vs. 2.3±2.1 d, P=0.139). The patients in the PR group had more lymph nodes dissected and shorter hospital stay (P<0.001). Rate of R1/2 resection was higher in the RR group (12.9%vs. 5.9%, P=0.187). No surgery-related mortality was observed in both groups. The anastomotic leak and the anastomotic stricture was higher in the RR group than that in the PR group (25.8% vs. 5.9%, P=0.003). No significant difference was found between the two groups in the quality of life at postoperative 1st and 3rd month. However, the quality of life at postoperative 3rd month significantly improved in both groups (P<0.001). Compared with the PR group, the dysphagia was more severe in the RR group at postoperative 1st month (3.3±1.5 vs. 2.6±1.1, P=0.007), while the reflux symptom was lighter at postoperative 3rd month (3.0±1.8 vs. 3.6±1.6, P=0.045). Conclusion The two different routes reconstruction after McKeown esophagectomy are both safe and feasible. The anterior mediastinal approach increases the risk of anastomotic leak, but with low incidence of reflux symptom.
ObjectiveTo explore the effect of DDX46 silencing on growth and apoptosis in esophageal squamous cell carcinoma cell TE-1 by the shRNA. MethodsThe relative expression of DDX46 mRNA in TE-1 cells was detected by real-time quantitative polymerase chain reaction (qRT-PCR) and compared with immortalized human esophageal squamous cell Het-1A. DDX46 shRNA-expressing lentivirus was applied to silence DDX46 (experimental group), and non-silencing control lentivirus was added (control group) with a multiplicity of infection of 5 in TE-1 cells. In both groups, cell growth was monitored using high content screening, cell colony-forming capacity was measured by colony formation assay, cell apoptosis were determined by flow cytometry. Further, the Stress and Apoptosis Signaling Antibody Array Kit was used to detect the changes of signaling molecules in TE-1 cells after DDX46 knockdown. ResultsCompared with the control group, cell counting after DDX46 silencing showed that TE-1 cell growth was significantly inhibited (P<0.001). Colony formation assay showed that cell colony-forming capacity was significantly inhibited (P<0.01). Annexin V-APC flow cytometry showed a significant increase in apoptosis (P<0.001). In PathScan® Antibody Array, the expression levels of Akt (Ser473, phosphorylation) and IκBα (Total, N/A) significantly decreased (P<0.01), and the expression of Caspase-3 (Asp175, cleaved) increased (P<0.05). ConclusionDDX46 is overexpressed in TE-1 cells. Targeted gene silencing of DDX46 inhibits cell growth, and induces cell apoptosis. DDX46 silencing probably by negative regulation of Akt/NF-κB signaling pathway, to play a role in inhibiting TE-1 cells growth and inducing apoptosis.
ObjectiveTo systematically evaluate the expression of programmed cell death receptor 1 (PD-1) and programmed cell death ligand 1 (PD-L1) in esophageal squamous cell carcinoma and its relationship with prognosis.MethodsThe literature from PubMed, EMbase, The Cochrane Library, Web of Science, CNKI and Wanfang data from inception to February 22, 2020 was searched by computer. Data were extracted and the quality of literature was evaluated using RevMan 5.3 software for meta-analysis. Egger's and Begg's tests were used to evaluate publication bias, and Stata 15.1 software was used for sensitivity analysis.Results A total of 16 articles were included, and there were 3 378 patients with esophageal squamous cell carcinoma. The methodological index for nonrandomized studies (MINORS) scores were all 12 points and above. The meta-analysis results showed that the positive expression rates of PD-1 and PD-L1 in tumor cells were 37.8% (190/504) and 41.7% (1 407/3 378), respectively. The positive expression of PD-L1 in tumor immune infiltrating cells was 41.7% (412/987). The overall survival (OS) of the tumor cell with high PD-L1 expression was lower than that with low PD-LI expression (HR=1.30, 95%CI 1.01-1.69, P=0.04). The OS of the tumor immune infiltrating cell with high PD-L1 expression was significantly higher than that with low PD-LI expression (HR=0.65, 95%CI 0.53-0.80, P<0.0001).ConclusionPD-L1 has a high expression rate in esophageal squamous cell carcinoma and is an important factor for the prognosis of esophageal squamous cell carcinoma.
Objective To observe the expression of Twist in esophageal squamous cell carcinoma (ESCC) and analyze the relationship between positive expression of Twist and disease-free survival, and to provide clinical evidence for reducing tumor recurrence, prolonging disease-free survival and improving prognosis. Methods Retrospective analysis of 70 ESCC patients receiving thoracic surgery from June 2010 to June 2012 in the Department of Thoracic Surgery, Sichuan Cancer Hospital was done, including 39 males and 31 females with an average age of 63.6 years. The expression of Twist in normal esophageal tissue, tumor tissue and vascular tumor emboli was observed by immunohistochemical staining of paraffin specimens. Results The positive rate of Twist in normal esophageal tissues was 42.9%, and in tumor tissue was 77.1% (P<0.05). The positive expression rate of Twist in tumor cells was 74.3% in patients with vascular tumor emboli and 80.0% in patients without vascular tumor emboli (P>0.05). The positive expression rate of Twist in tumor cells and in vascular tumor emboli was 74.3% and 71.4%, respectively (P>0.05). The expression of Twist in lymphatic vessels and blood vessels of patients with vascular tumor emboli was 56.0% and 72.0%, respectively (P>0.05). Conclusion Twist expression in esophageal cancer tissues is significantly higher than that in normal tissues, but there is no significant difference in the positive expression of Twist between tumor cells and the mean disease-free survival (P>0.05). At present, Twist expression can not be used as a prognostic indicator of esophageal cancer, and more researches need be further implemented.
ObjectiveTo construct a prognostic model of esophageal squamous cell carcinoma (ESCC) based on immune checkpoint-related genes and explore the potential relationship between these genes and the tumor microenvironment (TME). Methods The transcriptome sequencing data and clinical information of immune checkpoint genes of samples from GSE53625 in GEO database were collected. The difference of gene expression between ESCC and normal paracancerous tissues was evaluated, and the drug sensitivity of differentially expressed genes in ESCC was analyzed. We then constructed a risk model based on survival-related genes and explored the prognostic characteristics, enriched pathway, immune checkpoints, immune score, immune cell infiltration, and potentially sensitive drugs of different risk groups. ResultsA total of 358 samples from 179 patients were enrolled, including 179 ESCC samples and 179 corresponding paracancerous tissues. There were 33 males and 146 females, including 80 patients≤60 years and 99 patients>60 years. 39 immune checkpoint genes were differentially expressed in ESCC, including 14 low expression genes and 25 high expression genes. Drug sensitivity analysis of 8 highly expressed genes (TNFRSF8, CTLA4, TNFRSF4, CD276, TNFSF4, IDO1, CD80, TNFRSF18) showed that many compounds were sensitive to these immunotherapy targets. A risk model based on three prognostic genes (NRP1, ICOSLG, HHLA2) was constructed by the least absolute shrinkage and selection operator analysis. It was found that the overall survival time of the high-risk group was significantly lower than that of the low-risk group (P<0.001). Similar results were obtained in different ESCC subtypes. The risk score based on the immune checkpoint gene was identified as an independent prognostic factor for ESCC. Different risk groups had unique enriched pathways, immune cell infiltration, TME, and sensitive drugs. Conclusion A prognostic model based on immune checkpoint gene is established, which can accurately stratify ESCC and provide potential sensitive drugs for ESCC with different risks, thus providing a possibility for personalized treatment of ESCC.
Resection is one of the most important treatments for esophageal squamous cell carcinoma, and routine postoperative follow-up is an effective method for early detection and treatment of recurrent metastases, which can improve patients' quality of life and prognosis. This consensus aims to provide a reference for colleagues responsible for postoperative follow-up of esophageal squamous cell carcinoma patients in China, and further improve the standardization of the diagnosis and treatment of esophageal squamous cell carcinoma.
ObjectiveTo investigate the relationship between DDX46 genes and invasion and migration of esophageal squamous cell carcinoma cells. MethodsHuman esophageal squamous cell carcinoma cells TE-1 were transfected by fluorescent marker shRNA lentivirus (shDDX46 group), and an empty vector was transfected as a control (shCtrl group). The expression rate of green fluorescent protein under the microscope was used to evaluate the cell transfection efficiency. Real-time fluorescence quantitative polymerase chain reaction (RTFQ-PCR) and Western blotting (WB) detected the knockdown efficiency of the target gene at the mRNA and protein expression levels. Wound healing, invasion assay and migration assay detected the changes of invasion and metastasis ability. Classical pathway analysis was used to explore signaling pathway changes and the possible mechanism of DDX46 in the invasion and metastasis was explored by detecting fibronectin expression. ResultsDDX46 gene at mRNA and protein levels was significantly inhibited after lentiviral transfection. Wound healing showed that after 8 h the cell mobility of TE-1 cells decreased significantly (P=0.001). Invasion assay showed that after 24 h the average cell metastasis rate of TE-1 cells was lower in the shDDX46 group than that in the shCtrl group (P<0.001). The cell metastasis rate in the shDDX46 group corresponding to observation points in the transwell assay was lower than that in the shCtrl group (P<0.001) after 24 h culture. The results of the classical pathway analysis showed that the integrin signaling pathway activity was inhibited, further exploration of the mechanism of action found that the expression of fibronectin associated with cell adhesion was decreased. ConclusionDDX46 gene is related to the invasion and migration ability of esophageal squamous cell carcinoma cells. Knockdown of DDX46 genes may reduce cell adhesion by downregulating the integrin pathway signaling.
Esophageal cancer is a serious threat to the health of Chinese people. The key to solve this problem is early diagnosis and early treatment, and the most important method is endoscopic screening. The rapid development of artificial intelligence (AI) technology makes its application and research in the field of digestive endoscopy growing, and it is expected to become the "right-hand man" for endoscopists in the early diagnosis of esophageal cancer. Currently, the application of multimodal and multifunctional AI systems has achieved good performance in the diagnosis of superficial esophageal squamous cell carcinoma and precancerous lesions. This study summarized and reviewed the research progress of AI in the diagnosis of superficial esophageal squamous cell carcinoma and precancerous lesions, and also explored its development direction in the future.