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- Johansson, Mattias, et al.
(author)
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The influence of obesity-related factors in the etiology of renal cell carcinoma—A mendelian randomization study
- 2019
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In: PLoS Medicine. - : Public Library of Science (PLoS). - 1549-1277 .- 1549-1676. ; 16:1
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Journal article (peer-reviewed)abstract
- Background: Several obesity-related factors have been associated with renal cell carcinoma (RCC), but it is unclear which individual factors directly influence risk. We addressed this question using genetic markers as proxies for putative risk factors and evaluated their relation to RCC risk in a mendelian randomization (MR) framework. This methodology limits bias due to confounding and is not affected by reverse causation.Methods and findings: Genetic markers associated with obesity measures, blood pressure, lipids, type 2 diabetes, insulin, and glucose were initially identified as instrumental variables, and their association with RCC risk was subsequently evaluated in a genome-wide association study (GWAS) of 10,784 RCC patients and 20,406 control participants in a 2-sample MR framework. The effect on RCC risk was estimated by calculating odds ratios (ORSD) for a standard deviation (SD) increment in each risk factor. The MR analysis indicated that higher body mass index increases the risk of RCC (ORSD: 1.56, 95% confidence interval [CI] 1.44–1.70), with comparable results for waist-to-hip ratio (ORSD: 1.63, 95% CI 1.40–1.90) and body fat percentage (ORSD: 1.66, 95% CI 1.44–1.90). This analysis further indicated that higher fasting insulin (ORSD: 1.82, 95% CI 1.30–2.55) and diastolic blood pressure (DBP; ORSD: 1.28, 95% CI 1.11–1.47), but not systolic blood pressure (ORSD: 0.98, 95% CI 0.84–1.14), increase the risk for RCC. No association with RCC risk was seen for lipids, overall type 2 diabetes, or fasting glucose.Conclusions: This study provides novel evidence for an etiological role of insulin in RCC, as well as confirmatory evidence that obesity and DBP influence RCC risk.
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- Laskar, Ruhina S, et al.
(author)
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Sex specific associations in genome wide association analysis of renal cell carcinoma.
- 2019
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In: European Journal of Human Genetics. - : Springer Science and Business Media LLC. - 1018-4813 .- 1476-5438. ; 27:10, s. 1589-1598
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Journal article (peer-reviewed)abstract
- Renal cell carcinoma (RCC) has an undisputed genetic component and a stable 2:1 male to female sex ratio in its incidence across populations, suggesting possible sexual dimorphism in its genetic susceptibility. We conducted the first sex-specific genome-wide association analysis of RCC for men (3227 cases, 4916 controls) and women (1992 cases, 3095 controls) of European ancestry from two RCC genome-wide scans and replicated the top findings using an additional series of men (2261 cases, 5852 controls) and women (1399 cases, 1575 controls) from two independent cohorts of European origin. Our study confirmed sex-specific associations for two known RCC risk loci at 14q24.2 (DPF3) and 2p21(EPAS1). We also identified two additional suggestive male-specific loci at 6q24.3 (SAMD5, male odds ratio (ORmale) = 0.83 [95% CI = 0.78-0.89], Pmale = 1.71 × 10-8 compared with female odds ratio (ORfemale) = 0.98 [95% CI = 0.90-1.07], Pfemale = 0.68) and 12q23.3 (intergenic, ORmale = 0.75 [95% CI = 0.68-0.83], Pmale = 1.59 × 10-8 compared with ORfemale = 0.93 [95% CI = 0.82-1.06], Pfemale = 0.21) that attained genome-wide significance in the joint meta-analysis. Herein, we provide evidence of sex-specific associations in RCC genetic susceptibility and advocate the necessity of larger genetic and genomic studies to unravel the endogenous causes of sex bias in sexually dimorphic traits and diseases like RCC.
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- Mallikarjuna, Pramod, et al.
(author)
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Interactions between TGF-β type I receptor and hypoxia-inducible factor-alpha mediates a synergistic crosstalk leading to poor prognosis for patients with clear cell renal cell carcinoma
- 2019
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In: Cell Cycle. - : Taylor & Francis. - 1538-4101 .- 1551-4005. ; 18:17, s. 2141-2156
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Journal article (peer-reviewed)abstract
- To investigate the significance of expression of HIF-1 alpha, HIF-2 alpha, and SNAIL1 proteins; and TGF-beta signaling pathway proteins in ccRCC, their relation with clinicopathological parameters and patient's survival were examined. We also investigated potential crosstalk between HIF-alpha and TGF-beta signaling pathway, including the TGF-beta type 1 receptor (ALK5-FL) and the intracellular domain of ALK5 (ALK5-ICD). Tissue samples from 154 ccRCC patients and comparable adjacent kidney cortex samples from 38 patients were analyzed for HIF-1 alpha/2 alpha, TGF-beta signaling components, and SNAIL1 proteins by immunoblot. Protein expression of HIF-1 alpha and HIF-2 alpha were significantly higher, while SNAIL1 had similar expression levels in ccRCC compared with the kidney cortex. HIF-2 alpha associated with poor cancer-specific survival, while HIF-1 alpha and SNAIL1 did not associate with survival. Moreover, HIF-2 alpha positively correlated with ALK5-ICD, pSMAD2/3, and PAI-1; HIF-1 alpha positively correlated with pSMAD2/3; SNAIL1 positively correlated with ALK5-FL, ALK5-ICD, pSMAD2/3, PAI-1, and HIF-2 alpha. Intriguingly, in vitro experiments performed under normoxic conditions revealed that ALK5 interacts with HIF-1 alpha and HIF-2 alpha, and promotes their expression and the expression of their target genes GLUT1 and CA9, in a VHL dependent manner. We found that ALK5 induces expression of HIF-1 alpha and HIF-2 alpha, through its kinase activity. Under hypoxic conditions, HIF-alpha proteins correlated with the activated TGF-beta signaling pathway. In conclusion, we reveal that ALK5 plays a pivotal role in synergistic crosstalk between TGF-beta signaling and hypoxia pathway, and that the interaction between ALK5 and HIF-alpha contributes to tumor progression.
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| 6. |
- Mallikarjuna, Pramod, 1987-
(author)
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The role of transforming growth factor‐β signaling and hypoxia‐inducible factors in renal cell carcinoma
- 2019
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Doctoral thesis (other academic/artistic)abstract
- Renal cell carcinoma (RCC) is the cancer of the kidneys; about 1100 patients with RCC are diagnosed in Sweden each year. RCC can be classified into several subtypes, clear cell renal cell carcinoma (ccRCC) is most common accounting to about 70% of all RCCs, and also the most lethal; papillary renal cell carcinoma (pRCC) accounts to about 10%‐15%, while chromophobe renal cell carcinoma (chRCC) accounts to about 5% of all RCCs. There is a need to study the distinguishing features of RCC subtypes to design treatment. Von Hippel‐Lindau tumor suppressor gene (VHL) is often inactivated in ccRCC, unlike in pRCC or chRCC. Transforming growth factor‐β (TGF‐β) is a cytokine involved in various biological processes such as differentiation, proliferation, apoptosis, migration, andepithelial‐mesenchymal transition. TGF‐β exerts its functions through canonical (Smad‐dependent) and non‐canonical (Smadindependent) signaling pathways. In the first study, we have shown that both canonical and non‐canonical TGF‐β signaling pathways are associated with ccRCC tumor progression. VHL is known to have a dampening effect on TGF‐β signaling in RCC. However, the effects of pVHL status on the TGF‐β signaling pathway in ccRCC and non-ccRCC has not yet been studied in detail. In the second study, we have investigated the effects of the TGF‐β signaling pathway in the presence or absence of pVHL in ccRCC and non‐ccRCC. We show that, in ccRCC, VHL has an inhibiting effect exclusively on canonical TGF‐β signaling, and has no effect on non‐canonical TGF‐β signaling via ALK5‐ICD. In non‐ccRCC, TGF‐β signaling did not have an effect on tumor progression. Further, we demonstrate that VHL, through its ubiquitin ligases activity ubiquitinates ALK5 in a K48 dependent manner and subjects it to proteasomal degradation. During the normoxic conditions, VHL is implicated in ubiquitination and proteasomal degradation of Hypoxia‐inducible factors (HIFs). In hypoxic conditions or when the loss of VHL occurs, HIFs accumulates in the cytoplasm and enters the nucleus to initiate angiogenesis, cell proliferation, and tumor progression. In the third study, we have explored a potential synergistic cross‐talk between TGF‐β signaling and hypoxia in ccRCC. We demonstrate a correlation between TGF‐β signaling components and HIF‐1α/2α in ccRCC. We have also shown that TGF‐β signaling enhances the expression of HIF‐1α/2α and their target genes even under normoxic conditions, dependent on the kinase activity of ALK5 and dictated by the status of VHL. We present novel data that the synergistic crosstalk between hypoxia and TGF‐β is orchestrated through interactions between ALK5 and HIF‐1α/2α. HIF‐3α is only limited studied, compared with HIF‐1α and HIF‐2α. In the fourth study, we have analyzed the roles of HIF‐3α in ccRCC and pRCC and show that HIF‐3α is associated with advanced stage and metastasized tumors. We also found that HIF‐3α is associated with TRAF6, a crucial component of non‐canonical TGF‐β signaling.
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| 7. |
- Mallikarjuna, Pramod, et al.
(author)
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VHL status regulates transforming growth factor-β signaling pathways in renal cell carcinoma
- 2018
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In: Oncotarget. - : Impact Journals, LLC. - 1949-2553. ; 9:23, s. 16297-16310
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Journal article (peer-reviewed)abstract
- To evaluate the role of pVHL in the regulation of TGF-β signaling pathways in clear cell renal cell carcinoma (ccRCC) as well as in non-ccRCC; the expression of pVHL, and the TGF-β pathway components and their association with clinicopathological parameters and patient’s survival were explored. Tissue samples from 143 ccRCC and 58 non-ccRCC patients were examined by immunoblot. ccRCC cell lines were utilized for mechanistic in-vitro studies. Expression levels of pVHL were significantly lower in ccRCC compared with non-ccRCC. Non-ccRCC and ccRCC pVHL-High expressed similar levels of pVHL. Expression of the TGF-β type I receptor (ALK5) and intra-cellular domain were significantly higher in ccRCC compared with non-ccRCC. In non-ccRCC, expressions of ALK5-FL, ALK5-ICD, pSMAD2/3, and PAI-1 had no association with clinicopathological parameters and survival. In ccRCC pVHL-Low, ALK5-FL, ALK5-ICD, pSMAD2/3, and PAI-1 were significantly related with tumor stage, size, and survival. In ccRCC pVHL-High, the expression of PAI-1 was associated with stage and survival. In-vitro studies revealed that pVHL interacted with ALK5 to downregulate its expression through K48-linked poly-ubiquitination and proteasomal degradation, thus negatively controlling TGF-β induced cancer cell invasiveness. The pVHL status controls the ALK5 and can thereby regulate the TGF-β pathway, aggressiveness of tumors, and survival of the ccRCC and non-ccRCC patients.
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| 8. |
- Sheng, Nongfei, 1988-, et al.
(author)
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Human PRH1, PRH2 susceptibility and resistance and Streptococcus mutans virulence phenotypes specify different microbial profiles in caries
- 2024
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In: EBIOMEDICINE. - : Elsevier. - 2352-3964. ; 101
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Journal article (peer-reviewed)abstract
- Background Lifestyle- and sucrose -dependent polymicrobial ecological shifts are a primary cause of caries in populations with high caries prevalence. In populations with low prevalence, PRH1, PRH2 susceptibility and resistance phenotypes may interact with the Streptococcus mutans adhesin cariogenicity phenotype to affect caries progression, but studies are lacking on how these factors affect the microbial profile of caries. Methods We analysed how the residency and infection profiles of S. mutans adhesin (SpaP A/B/C and Cnm/Cbm) phenotypes and commensal streptococci and lactobacilli influenced caries progression in a prospective case-referent sample of 452 Swedish adolescents with high (P4a), moderate (P6), and low (P1) caries PRH1, PRH2 phenotypes. Isolates of S. mutans from participants were analysed for adhesin expression and glycosylation and in vitro and in situ mechanisms related to caries activity. Findings Among adolescents with the resistant (P1) phenotype, infection with S. mutans high -virulence phenotypes was required for caries progression. In contrast, with highly (P4a) or moderately (P6) susceptible phenotypes, caries developed from a broader polymicrobial flora that included moderately cariogenic oral commensal streptococci and lactobacilli and S. mutans phenotypes. High virulence involved unstable residency and fluctuating SpaP ABC, B-1, or Cnm expression/glycosylation phenotypes, whereas low/moderate virulence involved SpaP A phenotypes with stable residency. Adhesin phenotypes did not display changes in individual host residency but were paired within individuals and geographic regions. Interpretation These results suggest that receptor PRH1, PRH2 susceptibility and resistance and S. mutans adhesin virulence phenotypes specify different microbial profiles in caries.
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| 10. |
- Tumkur Sitaram, Raviprakash, Senior Researcher, 1974-, et al.
(author)
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Expression of HIF‑α and their association with clinicopathological parameters in clinical renal cell carcinoma
- 2024
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In: Upsala Journal of Medical Sciences. - : Uppsala Medical Society. - 0300-9734 .- 2000-1967. ; 129
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Journal article (peer-reviewed)abstract
- Objectives: This study aimed to assess the cellular localization and expression levels of hypoxia-inducible factor (HIF) -α proteins (specifically HIF-1α, HIF-2α, and HIF-3α) that play a role in the hypoxia pathway and to determine their correlation with clinicopathological parameters and patient survival in renal cell carcinoma (RCC).Materials and methods: Tissue microarray (TMA) with cores from 150 clear cell RCCs and 31 non-ccRCC samples. HIF-1α, HIF-2α, and HIF-3α antibodies were used for immunohistochemistry (IHC) of TMA to evaluate the cellular localization and expression levels of HIF-α proteins, specifically in relation to the hypoxia pathway.Results: The expression levels of the HIF-α proteins were higher in the nucleus than in the cytoplasm. Furthermore, the nuclear expression levels of all HIF-α proteins were significantly higher in clear cell RCC (ccRCC) than in non-ccRCC. Cytoplasmic HIF-3α expression was also higher in ccRCC than in non-ccRCC, whereas cytoplasmic HIF-1α and HIF-2α expression levels were similar between the different RCC types. In ccRCC, nuclear HIF-1α expression levels correlated with both nuclear HIF-2α and HIF-3α levels, whereas cytoplasmic HIF-3α expression levels were associated with HIF-1α only.In non-ccRCC, there was a positive correlation observed between nuclear HIF-1α and HIF-3α expression, but no correlation was found with HIF-2α. In patients with ccRCC, the nuclear expressions of HIF-1α and HIF-3α was significantly associated with cancer-specific survival (CSS) in univariate analysis. This association was no longer evident in multivariate analysis. Notably, there was no correlation observed between nuclear HIF-2α expression and CSS in these patients. In contrast, cytoplasmic expression levels showed no association with CSS.Conclusion: The expression levels of the three primary HIF-α proteins were found to be higher in the nucleus than in the cytoplasm. Furthermore, the results indicated that HIF-3α and HIF-1α expression levels were significant univariate factors associated with CSS in patients with clear cell RCC. These results highlight the critical role that HIF-3α and HIF-1α play in the hypoxia pathway.
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