Differential Roles of Tumor Necrosis Factor Ligand Superfamily Members as Biomarkers in Pancreatic Cancer
by
Ines Pombeiro 1,2,†, Sven H. Loosen 1,†
, Sanchari Roy 1,†, Florian Schueller 1, Lukas Niewenhuisen 1, Mark Luedde 3, Mihael Vucur 2, Frank Tacke 1, Marcel Binnebösel 4, Wenzel Schoening 4, Christian Trautwein 1, Tom Luedde 1,2,*, Ulf Peter Neumann 4,‡ and Christoph Roderburg 1,‡
Ines Pombeiro 1,2,†, Sven H. Loosen 1,†, Sanchari Roy 1,†, Florian Schueller 1, Lukas Niewenhuisen 1, Mark Luedde 3, Mihael Vucur 2, Frank Tacke 1, Marcel Binnebösel 4, Wenzel Schoening 4, Christian Trautwein 1, Tom Luedde 1,2,*, Ulf Peter Neumann 4,‡ and Christoph Roderburg 1,‡
1
Department of Medicine III, University Hospital RWTH Aachen, Pauwelsstrasse 30, 52074 Aachen, Germany
2
Division of Gastroenterology, Hepatology and Hepatobiliary Oncology, University Hospital RWTH Aachen, Pauwelsstrasse 30, 52074 Aachen, Germany
3
Department of Internal Medicine III, University of Kiel, Schittenhelmstrasse 12, 24105 Kiel, Germany
4
Department of Surgery, University Hospital RWTH Aachen, Pauwelsstrasse 30, 52074 Aachen, Germany
*
Author to whom correspondence should be addressed.
†
These authors share first authorship.
‡
These authors share senior authorship.
J. Clin. Med. 2018, 7(7), 175; https://doi.org/10.3390/jcm7070175
Received: 18 June 2018 / Revised: 4 July 2018 / Accepted: 12 July 2018 / Published: 13 July 2018
(This article belongs to the Section Molecular Diagnostics)
The tumor necrosis factor–related weak inducer of apoptosis (TWEAK) belongs to the tumor necrosis factor ligand superfamily, which was shown to play an important role in inflammatory and malignant gastrointestinal diseases, including colitis or colorectal cancer. However, in contrast to other members of the TNF ligand superfamily, its role as a biomarker in pancreatic cancer is currently unknown. We analyzed serum levels of A proliferation-inducing ligand (APRIL) and TWEAK in 134 patients with pancreatic cancer. Results were compared with 50 healthy controls and correlated with clinical data. Intratumoral expression of APRIL and TWEAK in pancreatic cancer was analysed using the datasets made available by the TCGA-LIHC project. APRIL serum levels were significantly elevated in patients with pancreatic cancer compared to healthy controls, which is in line with previous findings. Notably, the diagnostic accuracy of circulating APRIL levels was similar to CA19-9, an established tumor marker for pancreatic cancer. In contrast, serum concentrations of TWEAK were decreased in pancreatic cancer patients. Interestingly, no differences in TWEAK concentrations became apparent between different clinical subgroups of pancreatic cancer. Moreover, within our cohort of patients, TWEAK levels did not correlate with the patients’ prognosis and the diagnostic as well as prognostic potential of TWEAK was lower than CA 19-9, when analyzed in this setting. Finally, using data from the TCGA-LIHC project, we demonstrate that expression levels of TWEAK and APRIL represent prognostic markers for patients’ survival according to Kaplan-Meier curve analyses. TWEAK and APRIL serum concentrations are regulated differently in patients with pancreatic cancer, highlighting diverse roles of variant TNF ligands in this type of cancer.
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MDPI and ACS Style
Pombeiro, I.; Loosen, S.H.; Roy, S.; Schueller, F.; Niewenhuisen, L.; Luedde, M.; Vucur, M.; Tacke, F.; Binnebösel, M.; Schoening, W.; Trautwein, C.; Luedde, T.; Neumann, U.P.; Roderburg, C. Differential Roles of Tumor Necrosis Factor Ligand Superfamily Members as Biomarkers in Pancreatic Cancer. J. Clin. Med. 2018, 7, 175.
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