UNASSIGNED: The main adaptive immune cells are T and B lymphocytes and they play key roles in the induction of immune responses against canine mammary tumours. Investigating these cell subpopulations may lead to more precise diagnosis of these malignancies.
UNASSIGNED: The percentages of CD3+, CD4+ and CD8+ T cells and of CD21+ B cells in the peripheral blood of bitches with malignant mammary tumours were compared with those in the blood of healthy animals. The phenotypic features of peripheral blood leukocytes were evaluated by flow cytometry.
UNASSIGNED: There was a significant difference in the mean percentages of CD3+ lymphocytes between healthy (66.7%) and metastatic dogs (46.1%), and between tumour-bearing non-metastatic (66.6%) and metastatic dogs. There was also a significant difference in CD4+ T helper cell percentages between healthy dogs (40.4%) and dogs with metastases (23.2%), and between the latter and dogs without them (35.5%). In the case of CD21+ lymphocyte subsets, a significant difference was noted between healthy animals (10.9%) and those with metastases (20.1%), and between the latter and patients without metastases (8.5%). There were also significant differences in CD3+/CD21+ ratios between the group with metastases (3.0), the healthy group (7.8), and the group without metastases (8.5). Similarly, a significant difference was noted in CD4+/CD8+ ratios between animals with metastases (1.4), bitches in the control group (2.2), and dogs without metastases (1.9).
UNASSIGNED: Peripheral blood leukocyte phenotypic characteristics are putative novel biomarkers. These findings may be useful in future studies improving mammary tumour diagnostic procedures, especially in metastasis detection.

Metastasis is the biggest obstacle to esophageal squamous cell carcinoma (ESCC) treatment. Single-cell RNA sequencing analyses are applied to investigate lung metastatic ESCC cells isolated from pulmonary metastasis mouse model at multiple timepoints to characterize early metastatic microenvironment. A small population of parental KYSE30 cell line (Cluster S) resembling metastasis-initiating cells (MICs) is identified because they survive and colonize at lung metastatic sites. Differential expression profile comparisons between Cluster S and other subpopulations identified a panel of 7 metastasis-initiating signature genes (MIS), including CD44 and TACSTD2, to represent MICs in ESCC. Functional studies demonstrated MICs (CD44high) exhibited significantly enhanced cell survival (resistances to oxidative stress and apoptosis), migration, invasion, stemness, and in vivo lung metastasis capabilities, while bioinformatics analyses revealed enhanced organ development, stress responses, and neuron development, potentially remodel early metastasis microenvironment. Meanwhile, early metastasizing cells demonstrate quasi-epithelial-mesenchymal phenotype to support both invasion and anchorage. Multiplex immunohistochemistry (mIHC) staining of 4 MISs (CD44, S100A14, RHOD, and TACSTD2) in ESCC clinical samples demonstrated differential MIS expression scores (dMISs) predict lymph node metastasis, overall survival, and risk of carcinothrombosis.

Background: In order to find cytogenetic and molecular metastasis biomarkers detectable in peripheral blood the spontaneous genomic instability expressed as micronuclei and Bmi-1 expression in peripheral blood of breast cancer (BC) patients were studied in different stages of the disease compared with unaffected first-degree relatives (FDRs) and normal control. Methods: The Cytokinesis Block Micronuclei Cytome (CBMN cyt) and nested real-time Reverse Transcription-Polymerase Chain Reaction (RT-PCR) assays, were respectively used to measure genomic instability and Bmi-1 gene expression in 160 Iranian individuals comprised of BC patients in different stages of the disease, unaffected FDRs and normal control groups. Result: The frequency of micronuclei and Bmi-1 expression were dramatically higher in distant metastasis compared with non-metastatic BC. In spite of micronucleus frequency with no association with lymph node (LN) involvement and hormone receptor status, the Bmi-1 expression level was higher in LN positive and triple negative patients. Conclusion: Our results indicate that increased genomic instability expressed as micronuclei and higher Bmi-1 expression in peripheral blood are associated with metastasis in breast cancer. Therefore implementation of micronucleus assay and Bmi-1 expression analysis in blood as possible cytogenetic and molecular biomarkers in clinical level may potentially enhance the quality of management of patients with breast cancer.