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The ubiquitous second messenger Ca2+ has long been recognized as a key regulator in cell migration. Locally confined Ca2+, in particular, is essential for building front-to-rear Ca2+ gradient, which serves to maintain the morphologic polarity required in directionally migrating cells. However, little is known about the source of the Ca2+ and the mechanism by which they crosstalk between different signaling pathways in cancer cells. Here, we report that calcium release–activated calcium modulator 2 (ORAI2), a poorly characterized store-operated calcium (SOC) channel subunit, predominantly upregulated in the lymph node metastasis of gastric cancer, supports cell proliferation and migration. Clinical data reveal that a high frequency of ORAI2-positive cells in gastric cancer tissues significantly correlated with poor differentiation, invasion, lymph node metastasis, and worse prognosis. Gain- and loss-of-function showed that ORAI2 promotes cell motility, tumor formation, and metastasis in both gastric cancer cell lines and mice. Mechanistically, ORAI2 mediated SOC activity and regulated tumorigenic properties through the activation of the PI3K/Akt signaling pathways. Moreover, ORAI2 enhanced the metastatic ability of gastric cancer cells by inducing FAK-mediated MAPK/ERK activation and promoted focal adhesion disassembly at rear-edge of the cell. Collectively, our results demonstrate that ORAI2 is a novel gene that plays an important role in the tumorigenicity and metastasis of gastric cancer. Significance: These findings describe the critical role of ORAI2 in gastric cancer cell migration and tumor metastasis and uncover the translational potential to advance drug discovery along the ORAI2 signaling pathway.

Background Recent studies have revealed that microRNAs (miRNAs) play important roles as oncogenes or tumor suppressors in tumorigenesis and tumor development, by negatively regulating protein expression. A previous study of microarrays identified that miR-411 was down-regulated in renal cell carcinoma (RCC), while few studies investigating the role of miR-411 in the pathogenesis of RCC have been performed. Methods We assessed the miR-411 expression in RCC and paired adjacent normal tissues, as well as in RCC cell lines and a normal renal cell line, by quantitative reverse transcriptase polymerase chain reaction (qRT-PCR). Furthermore, the effects of miR-411 on RCC and normal renal cell proliferation, apoptosis and migration were determined using MTT assay, CCK-8 assay, flow cytometry and scratch wound assay following restoration of miR-411 with synthetic mimics. Results Results of qRT-PCR indicated that the expression of miR-411 was down-regulated in RCC tissues and cell lines when compared with adjacent normal tissues and a normal renal cell line. Further, results of CCK-8, MTT, cell scratch and transwell assay showed that over-expression of miR-411 suppressed RCC cell (786-0 and ACHN) proliferation and migration. Flow cytometry assay revealed that miR-411 could induce RCC cell apoptosis. However, overexpression of miR-411 had no obvious effect on normal renal cell line 293T Conclusions To sum up, miR-411 is significantly down-regulated and plays a role as a tumor suppressor in RCC. Further studies are warranted to determine the mechanisms of miR-411 in RCC pathogenesis and define the target genes of miR-411 in RCC.

// Anbang He 1,2,* , Rong Hu 1,* , Zhicong Chen 2,3,* , Xinhui Liao 1,* , Jianfa Li 2,3 , Dailian Wang 2,4 , Zhaojie Lv 1 , Yuchen Liu 1,2 , Feng Wang 1 and Hongbing Mei 1,2 1 Department of Urology, Shenzhen Second People’s Hospital, The First Affiliated Hospital of Shenzhen University, Shenzhen, Guangdong, China 2 Key Laboratory of Medical Reprogramming Technology, Shenzhen Second People’s Hospital, The First Affiliated Hospital of Shenzhen University, Shenzhen, China 3 Shantou University Medical College, Shantou, Guangdong, China 4 Guangzhou Medical University, Guangzhou, Guangdong, China * These authors have contributed equally to this work Correspondence to: Feng Wang, email: // Hongbing Mei, email: // Keywords : UCA1, lncRNA, prognosis, survival, lymph node metastasis Received : July 15, 2016 Accepted : September 21, 2016 Published : October 04, 2016 Abstract Accumulating evidences indicated that UCA1 expression was up-regulated in various cancers, and high UCA1 expression was correlated with metastasis and prognosis. This meta-analysis collected all eligible studies and explored the relationships between UCA1 expression and lymph node metastasis (LNM) or overall survival (OS). Literature collection was performed by using electronic databases PubMed, Cochrane Library, and Web of Science (up to June 13, 2016). According to the inclusion and exclusion criteria, twelve studies were included in the meta-analysis. The result showed that high UCA1 expression was correlated with more LNM (OR=2.50, 95 %CI: 1.58-3.96, p

Objectives To study the expression pattern of long non-coding RNA FGFR3 antisense transcript 1(FGFR3-AS1) and the cell proliferation inhibition, apoptosis, and motility changes induced by silencing FGFR3-AS1 in bladder cancer. Methods The differential expression levels of FGFR3-AS1 and FGFR3 in tumor tissues and paired normal tissues were determined using Real-Time qPCR in a total of 36 patients diagnosed with bladder cancer (urothelial carcinoma). Pearson's coefficient correlation was used for expression correlation assay. Expression differences of FGFR3-AS1 were analyzed according to grading and staging. FGFR3 protein was detected by western blot assay. Human bladder cancer T24 and 5637 cell lines were transiently transfected with FGFR3-AS1-specific siRNA or negative control siRNA. The cell proliferation changes of transfected bladder cancer cells were determined using CCK-8 assay. Apoptosis caused by knockdown of FGFR3-AS1 was evaluated using ELISA assay. Motility changes induced by knockdown of FGFR3-AS1 were measured using wound healing assay and transwell assay. Results Both FGFR3-AS1 and FGFR3 were overexpressed in bladder cancer tissues compared to matched normal tissues. They were also positively expressed in bladder cancer. FGFR3-AS1 expression levels were higher in high grade tumors than those in low grade tumors. FGFR3-AS1 expression levels were higher in invasive tumors than those in non-invasive tumors. Cell proliferation inhibition, increased apoptosis, and decreased motility were observed in FGFR3-AS1 siRNA-transfected T24 and 5637 cell lines. Conclusions FGFR3-AS1 plays an oncogenic role in human bladder cancer. Knockdown of FGFR3-AS1 may provide a potential new therapeutic approach to this disease.

// Jiangeng Yang 1, 2 , Yuchen Liu 1, 2 , Anbang He 1, 2, 3 , Yuhan Liu 1 , Jianting Wu 1 , Xinhui Liao 1 , Zhaojie Lv 1 , Feng Wang 1 and Hongbing Mei 1, 2 1 Department of Urology, Shenzhen Second People’s Hospital, Clinical Institute of Guangzhou Medical University, Shenzhen, China 2 Key Laboratory of Medical Reprogramming Technology, Shenzhen Second People’s Hospital, The First Affiliated Hospital of Shenzhen University, Shenzhen, China 3 Anhui Medical University, Anhui, China Correspondence to: Hongbing Mei, email: hbmei68@163.com Keywords: microRNA, urothelial carcinoma, cyclin-dependent kinase inhibitor 2B Received: December 28, 2016 Accepted: July 06, 2017 Published: August 03, 2017 ABSTRACT Background and Objectives: Hsa-miR-429 is increased in bladder cancer. Its roles in bladder cancer are poorly understood. Methods: The expression levels of hsa-miR-429 and cyclin-dependent kinase inhibitor 2B (CDKN2B) were determined using Real-Time qPCR in a total of 50 patients with bladder cancer. Bladder cancer T24 and 5637 cells were transfected CDKN2B siRNA or hsa-miR-429 mimic. CDKN2B expression levels after transfection were detected by Real-Time qPCR and Western blot assay respectively. Binding sites between hsa-miR-429 and 3’-untranslated region of CDKN2B were confirmed by Dual luciferase reporter assay. Cell proliferation was evaluated using MTT and EdU assays. Cell apoptosis was determined using ELISA assay. Results: Higher hsa-miR-429 expression levels were associated with higher tumor grade and stage. All patients with low hsa-miR-429 expression survived 5 years, while with high hsa-miR-429 expression, only 58% survived. Hsa-miR-429 and CDKN2B were inversely expressed in bladder cancer. Hsa-miR-429 mimic decreased the expression of CDKN2B at both mRNA and protein levels. The binding site was confirmed between hsa-miR-429 and 3’-untranslated region of CDKN2B. Up-regulation of hsa-miR-429 or down-regulation of CDKN2B promoted cell growth and decreased apoptosis. Conclusions: Our data suggest a mechanism for hsa-miR-429 to play oncogenic roles via inhibiting CDKN2B.

Background Accumulating evidences indicated that lncRNAs play crucial regulatory roles in oncogenesis and progression of cancers. BRAF activated non-coding RNA (BANCR) has been identified to contribute to the progression of some human cancers. However, the relationship between BANCR and bladder cancer (BC) is largely unclear. Methods BANCR expression levels in BC, paired non-cancer tissues and BC cell lines were detected by real-time quantitative RT-PCR (qRT-PCR). The relationships between BANCR expression levels and the clinical characteristics were evaluated. BANCR expression was enhanced by transfecting a pcDNA-BANCR vector. We used both CCK-8 assay and Edu assay to detect cell proliferation. We also detect cell apoptosis and migration by using ELISA assay, Flow cytometry and transwell assay, respectively. All statistical analyses were executed by using the SPSS 20.0 software. Results BANCR expression levels were remarkably decreased in BC tissues compared with adjacent noncancerous tissues. BANCR expression levels in two BC cell lines were also significantly down-regulated. Clinicopathologic analysis revealed that low BANCR expression was positively correlated with TNM stage, but not associated with other clinicopathological characteristics. BANCR has been successfully overexpressed in BC cell lines (T24 and SW780) by transfecting a pcDNA-BANCR vector. Cell proliferation inhibition, apoptosis induction and migration suppression were also observed in pCDNA-BANCR-transfected T24 and SW780 cells. Conclusions These data suggested that BANCR represents a tumor suppressor player in bladder cancer, contributes to tumor proliferation, apoptosis and migration, and may serve as a new candidate biomarker and a potential therapeutic target for patients with BC.

Meng Zhang,1–3,* Tingting Fang,1–3,* Kai Wang,1–3,* Hongbing Mei,3 Zhaojie Lv,3 Feng Wang,3 Zhiming Cai,3 Chaozhao Liang1,2 1Department of Urology, The First Affiliated Hospital of Anhui Medical University, 2Institute of Urology, Anhui Medical University, Hefei, Anhui, 3Department of Urology, Shenzhen Second People’s Hospital, The First Affiliated Hospital of Shenzhen University, Shenzhen, Guangdong, People’s Republic of China *These authors contributed equally to this work Abstract: Interleukin-8 (IL-8) is a kind of chemokine that plays an important role in the development and progression of many human malignancies. Previous studies have uncovered that polymorphisms in IL-8 is associated with the risk of many cancer types, but the results were inconsistent and inconclusive. In the present study, we aimed to explore the roles of IL-8 polymorphisms (rs2227307, rs2227306, +678T/C, rs1126647, and +1633C/T) and cancer risk through a systematic review and meta-analysis. Potential source of heterogeneity was sought out through sensitivity analysis. Desirable data were extracted and registered into databases. Finally, a total of ten publications comprising of 22 case–control studies, including 4,259 cases and 7,006 controls were ultimately eligible for the meta-analysis. No significant association was uncovered for all the five polymorphisms and the overall cancer risk. However, in the stratification analysis by cancer type, a significantly decreased risk of hepatocellular carcinoma was identified for rs2227306 polymorphism (T vs C: odds ratio [OR] =0.721, 95% confidence interval [CI] =0.567–0.916, Pz=0.007; TT vs CC: OR =0.447, 95% CI =0.274–0.728, Pz=0.001; TT vs TC + CC: OR =0.480, 95% CI =0.304–0.760, Pz=0.002). In conclusion, our data shows that rs2227306 polymorphism plays a protective role in hepatocellular carcinoma risk. Future well-designed studies with a larger sample size are warranted to verify our findings. Keywords: interleukin-8, polymorphisms, cancer

Meng Zhang,1,2,* Xiuxiu Tan,1,* Junjie Huang,3,* Lijuan Xie,1 Hao Wang,1 Jizhou Shi,4 Wei Lu,1 Zhaojie Lv,1 Hongbing Mei,1 Chaozhao Liang21Department of Urology, Shenzhen Second People’s Hospital, Clinical Medicine of Anhui Medical University, 2Department of Urology, the First Affiliated Hospital of Anhui Medical University, Hefei, 3Department of Hematology, Shenzhen Second People’s Hospital, the First Affiliated Hospital of Shenzhen University, Shenzhen, 4Department of Urology, Shengli Oilfield Central Hospital, Dongying, Peoples Republic of China *These authors contributed equally tothis workBackground: Several epidemiological studies have illustrated that polymorphisms in interleukin-2 (IL-2) were associated with diverse cancer types. However, recently published statistics were inconsistent and inconclusive. Therefore, the current meta-analysis was performed to elaborate the effects of IL-2 polymorphisms (rs2069762 and rs2069763) on cancer susceptibility.Material and methods: A total of 5,601 cancer cases and 7,809 controls from 21 published case–control studies were enrolled in our meta-analysis. Odds ratios (ORs) with 95% confidence intervals (CIs) were estimated to assess the association between IL-2 polymorphisms and cancer susceptibility.Results: Our study demonstrated an increased susceptibility to cancer in rs2069762 (G vs T: OR =1.268, 95% CI =1.113–1.445; GG vs TT: OR =1.801, 95% CI =1.289–2.516; GT vs TT: OR =1.250, 95% CI =1.061–1.473; GG + GT vs TT: OR =1.329, 95% CI =1.118–1.579; GG vs GT + TT: OR =1.536, 95% CI =1.162–2.030). In the subgroup analysis, increased susceptibility to cancer was identified in the hospital-based group and PHWE