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Abstract Breast cancer (BCa) is a major global health challenge. The BCa genome often carries extensive somatic copy number alterations (CNAs), including gains/amplifications and losses/deletions. These CNAs significantly affect tumor development, drug response and patient survival. However, how individual CNAs contribute is mostly elusive. We identified loss of chromosome 13q14.2 as a key CNA in BCa, occurring in up to 63% of patients, depending on the subtype, and correlating with poor survival. Through multi-omics and in vitro analyses, we uncover a paradoxical role of 13q14.2 loss, promoting both cell cycle and pro-apoptotic pathways in cancer cells, while also associating with increased NK cell and macrophage populations in the tumor microenvironment. Notably, 13q14.2 loss increases BCa susceptibility to BCL2 inhibitors, both in vitro and in patient-derived xenografts. Thus, 13q14.2 loss could serve as a biomarker for BCa prognosis and treatment, potentially improving outcomes for BCa patients. Graphical abstract

Abstract Low-molecular synthetic fluorophores are convenient tools in bioimaging applications. Several derivatives of Safirinium dyes as well as their reactive N-hydroxysuccinimide (NHS) esters bearing diverse substituents were synthesized and evaluated experimentally in terms of their lipophilicity by means of reverse-phase and immobilized artificial membrane high-performance liquid chromatography. Subsequently, the selected compounds were employed as novel cellular imaging agents for staining Gram-positive and Gram-negative bacteria, human kidney cell line, as well as human skin tissue. The analyzed dyes allowed for visualization of cellular structures such as mitochondria, endoplasmic reticulum, and cellular nuclei. They proved to be useful in fluorescent staining of stratum corneum, especially in the aspect of xenobiotic exposure and its penetration into the skin. The best results were obtained with the use of moderately lipophilic NHS esters of Safirinium Q. The development of Safirinium dyes is a promising alternative for commercially available dyes since the reported molecules have low molecular masses and exhibit efficient staining and remarkable water solubility. Moreover, they are relatively simple and low-cost in synthesis.

Infections of Candida spp. etiology are frequently treated with azole drugs. Among azoles, the most widely used in the clinical scenario remains fluconazole (FLC). Promising results in treatment of dangerous, systemic Candida infections demonstrate the advantages of combined therapies carried out with combinations of at least two different antifungal agents. Here, we report five conjugates composed of covalently linked FLC and cell penetrating or antimicrobial peptide: TP10-7-NH2, TP10-NH2, LFcinB(2-11)-NH2, LFcinB[Nle1,11]-NH2, and HLopt2-NH2, with aspects of design, chemical synthesis and their biological activities. Two of these compounds, namely FLCpOH-TP10-NH2 and FLCpOH-TP10-7-NH2, exhibit high activity against reference strains and fluconazole-resistant clinical isolates of C. albicans, including strains overproducing drug transporters. Moreover, both of them demonstrate higher fungicidal effects compared to fluconazole. Analysis performed with fluorescence and scanning electron microscopy as well as flow cytometry indicated the cell membrane as a molecular target of synthesized conjugates. An important advantage of FLCpOH-TP10-NH2 and FLCpOH-TP10-7-NH2 is their low cytotoxicity. The IC90 value for the human cells after 72 h treatment was comparable to the MIC50 value after 24 h treatment for most strains of C. albicans. In reported conjugates, FLC was linked to the peptide by its hydroxyl group. It is worth noting that conjugation of FLC by the nitrogen atom of the triazole ring led to practically inactive compounds. Two compounds produced by us and reported herein appear to be potential candidates for novel antifungal agents.