Sridha Ganesh¹, Rui Wang¹, Honglei Chen^1,2

Oncologie, Vol.23, No.3, pp. 335-350, 2021, DOI:10.32604/oncologie.2021.018610

Abstract Non-small cell lung cancer (NSCLC) constitutes about 84% of lung cancer. Hence, increased efforts have been fueled into immunotherapy of NSCLC with immune checkpoint inhibitors (ICIs). ICIs have recently taken off as promising immune-therapeutic methods that have slowed down the progress of NSCLC and equipped patients with survival advantages. However, the long-term respondents tally is less than 20% of the population. This low response rate warrants the need for dynamic biomarkers which will provide insight into the possible response of patients to ICIs. Biomarkers are biological molecules that predict the pathologic state of patients and the potential response they will… More >

Weifeng Ren^1,2,#, Xiaomeng Cai^2,3,#, Jun Chen^2,3,#, Lifo Ruan^2,3, Huiru Lu², Jiayu Zhang^2,3, Yi Hu^2,3,*, Jimin Gao^1,*

Oncologie, Vol.23, No.3, pp. 359-371, 2021, DOI:10.32604/Oncologie.2021.018605

Abstract This study reported the construction of GM-CSF-loaded chitosan/graphene oxide nanoparticles for photothermal therapy-assisted immunotherapy against murine orthotopic bladder cancer. The encapsulated GM-CSF in chitosan/graphene oxide nanoparticles facilitated their immobilization on biotinylated mouse orthotopic bladder cancer surface, resulting in slow release of antitumor immune adjuvant. Locally released GM-CSF efficiently recruited dendritic cells to bladder tumor sites, thereby promoting immune responses in mice. Thus, the activated immune response in mice provided enhanced antitumor effects. Meanwhile, the thermal effect from the nanoparticles upon light irradiation induced a significant increase in dendritic cells and T cells compared with other groups, which confirmed that the… More >

FRANCESCO MAININI^*

BIOCELL, Vol.45, No.5, pp. 1171-1173, 2021, DOI:10.32604/biocell.2021.017399

Abstract Adoptive cell therapy and Immune Checkpoint Blockade Inhibitors have recently revolutionized the field of oncology. However, these types of immunotherapeutic approaches have limited success in treating solid tumors. In particular, chimeric antigen receptor (CAR)-T cells efficacy is hampered by immunosuppressive signals in the tumor microenvironment (TME) and by a limited infiltration of re-infused T cells to the tumor site. The field of nanobiotechnology applied to oncology is also rapidly expanding. Nanoparticles-based delivery systems can be employed to modulate the activity of immune cells present in the TME enhancing the efficacy of CAR-T cells. Interestingly, nano-backpacks can be attached to CAR-T… More >

D. Grazziotin-Soares, J.-P. Lotz

Oncologie, Vol.21, No.1, pp. 69-72, 2019, DOI:10.3166/onco-2019-0030

Abstract Several studies have shown an association between Epstein-Barr virus (EBV) infection and some human cancers such as a subgroup of gastric carcinomas. The oncogenic potential of EBV has been widely explored but the exact processes conducting carcinogenesis are not yet fully understood. EBV-encoded viral proteins are known to deregulate the DNA damage response (DDR) signaling pathways. DDR inactivation leads to genomic instability and promote cellular transformation to generate malignant cells. In a recently published article in Nature Medicine, a molecular characterization of tumor tissue and circulating tumor DNA (cDNA) from non-selected patients with metastatic gastric cancer treated with pembrolizumab was… More >

A. de Nonneville, A. Gonçalves

Oncologie, Vol.21, No.1, pp. 33-39, 2019, DOI:10.3166/onco-2019-0039

Abstract Triple-negative breast cancer (TNBC), defined by the lack of expression of hormone receptors and HER2 (Human Epidermal growth factor Receptor-2), accounts for 15–20% of breast cancers. However, this definition, which is essentially negative, masks the large biological heterogeneity of this subtype. While chemotherapy is the main established systemic treatment in both early and advanced stages of the disease, the progressive understanding of the molecular components involved in the pathogenesis of TNBC allows innovative therapeutic perspectives. The objective of this review is to describe these potential targets and to explore current and future treatments that will help fighting this cancer with… More >

ZHIXIONG WANG^1,2, NA RISU², JIAYU FU², HUI LIU³, GUOMIN ZHOU³, QIAN LIU³, YAN ZOU⁴, JIAXING TANG⁴, LONG LI⁴, XUEKAI ZHU^4,*

BIOCELL, Vol.45, No.1, pp. 157-165, 2021, DOI:10.32604/biocell.2021.010261

Abstract Chimeric antigen receptor (CAR) T-cell therapy is mostly limited to hematological malignancies and has a poor effect on solid tumors. CAR T cells as a kind of immune cell may be affected by some immunomodulatory drugs such as pomalidomide, so the use of pomalidomide may improve the effect of CAR T cells on solid tumors. In this study, CD133- or HER2-specific CAR T cells were chosen to investigate whether pomalidomide can regulate the function of CAR T cells in vitro. We found that pomalidomide can significantly enhance the ability of CD133-CAR T cells and HER2-CAR T cells to kill tumor… More >

Longwei Liu¹, Praopim Limsakul¹, Shaoying (Kathy) Lu¹, Peter Yingxiao Wang^1,*

Molecular & Cellular Biomechanics, Vol.16, Suppl.2, pp. 82-82, 2019, DOI:10.32604/mcb.2019.07360

Abstract Genetically-encoded biosensors based on Fluorescence Resonance Energy Transfer (FRET biosensors) have been widely used to dynamically track the activity of Protein Tyrosine Kinases (PTKs) in living cells because of their sensitive ratiometric fluorescence readout, high spatiotemporal resolution. However, the limitation in sensitivity, specificity, and dynamic range of these biosensors have hindered their broader applications, and there was a lack of efficient ways to optimize FRET biosensors. Here we established a rapid, systematic and universal approach for FRET biosensor optimization through directed evolution which involves generating genetic diversity and screening for protein variants with desired properties at the same time and… More >