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Claudins (CLDNs) are central components of tight junctions that regulate epithelial-cell barrier function and polarity. Altered CLDN expression patterns have been demonstrated in numerous cancer types and lineage-specific CLDNs have been proposed as therapy targets. The objective of this study was to assess which fraction of patients with non-small-cell lung cancer (NSCLC) express CLDN6 and CLDN18 isoform 2 (CLDN18.2). Protein expression of CLDN6 and CLDN18.2 was examined by immunohistochemistry on a tissue microarray (n = 355) and transcript levels were supportively determined based on gene expression microarray data from fresh-frozen NSCLC tissues (n = 196). Both were analyzed with regard to frequency, distribution and association with clinical parameters. Immunohistochemical analysis of tissue sections revealed distinct membranous positivity of CLDN6 (6.5%) and CLDN18.2 (3.7%) proteins in virtually non-overlapping subgroups of adenocarcinomas and large-cell carcinomas. Pneumocytes and bronchial epithelial cells were consistently negative. Corresponding to the protein expression, in subsets of non-squamous lung carcinoma high mRNA levels of CLDN6 (7-16%) and total CLDN18 (5-12%) were observed. Protein expression correlated well with total mRNA expression of the corresponding gene (rho = 0.4-0.8). CLDN18.2 positive tumors were enriched among slowly proliferating, thyroid transcription factor 1 (TTF-1)-negative adenocarcinomas, suggesting that isoform-specific CLDN expression may delineate a specific subtype. Noteworthy, high CLDN6 protein expression was associated with worse prognosis in lung adenocarcinoma in the univariate [hazard ratio (HR): 1.8; p = 0.03] and multivariate COX regression model (HR: 1.9; p = 0.02). These findings encourage further clinical exploration of targeting ectopically activated CLDN expression as a valuable treatment concept in NSCLC., (© 2014 UICC.)

The majority of pancreatic neoplasms are characterized by a generally lethal progress within a short period of time after primary diagnosis and the mortality of patients is expected to increase further. Due to lack of efficient screening programs and moderate response to treatments, novel compounds for treatment are needed. We investigated the CLDN18.2 expression in affected patients as in vitro feasibility study for a potential treatment with the novel antibody IMAB362. Therefore, we analyzed the expression of CLDN18.2 in normal pancreatic tissues (N = 24), primary lesions (N = 202), metastases (N = 84) and intra-individually matched samples (N = 48) of patients with pancreatic ductal adenocarcinoma (PDAC), neuroendocrine neoplasia (NEN) and acinar cell carcinoma. A standardized method for evaluation by immunohistochemistry was developed. The specific staining was evaluated by two independent raters and analysis of staining intensities (range 0-3+) and relative proportions of tumor cells were performed. One hundred three (59.2%) samples of primary PDAC were found positive. The vast majority of positive samples were characterized to highly express CLDN18.2: 54.6% (N = 95) with staining intensities of ≥ 2+. NEN were positive in 20% of cases (all ≥ 2+). Metastases of pancreatic neoplasms were also frequently found positive with comparable high rates (69.4% of lymph node and 65.7% of liver metastases). The rate of CLDN18.2 positivity is high in pancreatic neoplasms whereby the expression is not limited to the primaries but is also maintained upon metastasis. Thus, a considerable number of patients with pancreatic neoplasms would be in principle eligible for a CLDN18.2-targeting approach., (© 2013 UICC.)

Keratin (K) intermediate filament proteins form cytoskeletal scaffolds in epithelia, the disruption of which leads to a large number of human disorders. KRT5 or KRT14 mutations cause epidermolysis bullosa simplex (EBS). The considerable intra- and interfamilial variability in EBS suggests modifying loci, most of which are unknown. In many human disorders, chaperones and the ubiquitin-proteasome system have been found to modify disease severity, thereby providing novel therapy targets. Here, we demonstrate upregulation of stress-induced Hsp70 and Hsp90 in two EBS models, namely, in neonatal K5(-/-) mice and upon proteasome inhibition in cells that stably express the disease-causing mutation K14-p.Arg125Cys, both harboring keratin aggregates. Furthermore, proteasome inhibition caused nuclear translocation of pHSF-1 and an increase in K14-p.Arg125Cys-positive aggregates in cells. Overexpression of the chaperone-associated ubiquitin ligase CHIP/STUB1 strongly reduced keratin aggregates through increased degradation of mutant K14. Using CHIP-p.Met1_Ala142del (DeltaTPR-CHIP), we demonstrated the involvement of Hsc70 and Hsp70 in mutant keratin degradation. Our data uncover common principles between EBS and other protein misfolding disorders, revealing that aggregation-prone keratins are targeted by components of the chaperone machinery. Thus, modulation of the chaperone machinery using small molecules may represent a novel therapeutic strategy for dominant EBS, allowing reformation of an intact keratin cytoskeleton., ((c) 2010 Wiley-Liss, Inc.)