Interferons: Success in anti-viral immunotherapy

Growing evidence suggests that aberrant microRNA (miRNA) expression contributes to hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC) development and progression. However, the potential role and mechanism of miR-665 in the progression of liver cancer remains largely unknown. Our current study showed that miR-665 expression was upregulated in HCC cells and tissues. High expression of miR-665 exhibited more severe tumor size, vascular invasion and Edmondson grading in HCC patients. Gain- or loss-of-function assays demonstrated that miR-665 promoted cell proliferation, migration, invasion, and the epithelial-mesenchymal transition (EMT) of HCC cells in vitro and in vivo. Tyrosine phosphatase receptor type B (PTPRB) was downregulated in HCC tissues, and was negatively correlated with miR-665 expression. Through western blotting and luciferase reporter assay, PTPRB was identified as a direct downstream target of miR-665. Restoration of PTPRB reverses the effects of miR-665 on HCC migration, invasion, and cell proliferation. A mechanistic study showed that PTPTRB mediated the functional role of miR-665 through regulation of the Hippo signaling pathway. In conclusion, our results suggested that miR-665 was a negative regulator of the PTPRB and could promote tumor proliferation and metastasis in HCC through decreasing Hippo signaling pathway activity, which can be a potential target for HCC treatment.

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miR-665 promotes hepatocellular carcinoma cell migration, invasion, and proliferation by decreasing Hippo signaling through targeting PTPRB

Hepatitis B is a major global health problem and a potentially life-threatening liver infection caused by hepatitis B virus (HBV). Many cytokines including interleukin 6 (IL-6) have been shown to be involved in the HBV infection process. IL-6 is a typical cytokine made up of 184 amino acids, and the gene is located in chromosome 7p21. For healthy people, serum IL-6 levels are usually too low to be detected. However, dysregulated synthesis of IL-6 has been discovered in chronic inflammatory diseases such as hepatitis B, Crohn's disease and rheumatoid arthritis. IL-6 also plays an important role in HBV replication and in the development of hepatitis B disease. This review aims to present the latest discoveries concerning the role of IL-6 in hepatitis B disease progression, and HBV entry and replication, and evaluate polymorphisms that are associated with the development of hepatitis B disease.

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Involvement of Interleukin 6 in Hepatitis B Viral Infection.

Hepatitis B is one of the leading causes of liver cancer worldwide and unfortunately the number of people affected with hepatitis B virus (HBV) infection is still on the rise. Although the HBV has been known to cause fatal illness since decades but the population effected by this lethal virus have still only a few options for its management. The major treatment strategies include interferons and nucleos(t)ide analogues. These agents have so far produced unsatisfactory results in terms of complete virus eradication. Interferons cannot be used for long term therapy because of their potential side effects. Prolong treatment with nucleos(t)ide analogues has also been reported to cause serious side effects besides the increasing resistance by the virus. The need for new innovative solutions for treatment of HBV has been realized by global research institutes and pharmaceutical industry. Present review focuses in detail on the new ideas that are being transformed into therapeutic tools for use as future therapies in HBV infection. Modern drug designing and screening methods have made the drug discovery process shorter and more reliable. HBV therapeutics will take a new turn in coming years owing to these intelligent drug designing and screening methods. Future therapy of HBV is aiming to include the use of vaccines (both prophylactic and therapeutic), immunomodulators such as antibodies, non-nucleoside antivirals such as RNAi and inhibitors of viral life cycle.

Xiang Zhong Liu

Papers

Immunotherapeutic interventions in chronic hepatitis B virus infection: a review.