Recent investigations reported that some subtypes from the Lund or The Cancer Genome Atlas (TCGA) classifications were most responsive to PD-L1 inhibitor treatment. However, the association between previously reported subtypes and immune checkpoint inhibitor (ICI) therapy responsiveness has been insufficiently explored. Despite these contributions, the ability to predict the clinical applicability of immune checkpoint inhibitor therapy in patients remains a major challenge. Here, we aimed to re-classify distinct subtypes focusing on ICI responsiveness using gene expression profiling in the IMvigor 210 cohort (n = 298). Based on the hierarchical clustering analysis, we divided advanced urothelial cancer patients into three subgroups. To confirm a prognostic impact, we performed survival analysis and estimated the prognostic value in the IMvigor 210 and TCGA cohort. The activation of CD8+ T effector cells was common for patients of classes 2 and 3 in the TCGA and IMvigor 210 cohort. Survival analysis showed that patients of class 3 in the TCGA cohort had a poor prognosis, while patients of class 3 showed considerably prolonged survival in the IMvigor 210 cohort. One of the distinct characteristics of patients in class 3 is the inactivation of the TGFβ and YAP/TAZ pathways and activation of the cell cycle and DNA replication and DNA damage (DDR). Based on our identified transcriptional patterns and the clinical outcomes of advanced urothelial cancer patients, we constructed a schematic summary. When comparing clinical and transcriptome data, patients with downregulation of the TGFβ and YAP/TAZ pathways and upregulation of the cell cycle and DDR may be more responsive to ICI therapy.

DUOX, a member of the NADPH oxidase family, acts as the first line of defense against enteric pathogens by producing microbicidal reactive oxygen species. DUOX is activated upon enteric infection, but the mechanisms regulating DUOX activity remain incompletely understood. Using Drosophila genetic tools, we show that enteric infection results in "pro-catabolic" signaling that initiates metabolic reprogramming of enterocytes toward lipid catabolism, which ultimately governs DUOX homeostasis. Infection induces signaling cascades involving TRAF3 and kinases AMPK and WTS, which regulate TOR kinase to control the balance of lipogenesis versus lipolysis. Enhancing lipogenesis blocks DUOX activity, whereas stimulating lipolysis via ATG1-dependent lipophagy is required for DUOX activation. Drosophila with altered activity in TRAF3-AMPK/WTS-ATG1 pathway components exhibit abolished infection-induced lipolysis, reduced DUOX activation, and enhanced susceptibility to enteric infection. Thus, this work uncovers signaling cascades governing inflammation-induced metabolic reprogramming and provides insight into the pathophysiology of immune-metabolic interactions in the microbe-laden gut epithelia.

Although early life colonization of commensal microbes contributes to long-lasting immune imprinting in host tissues, little is known regarding the pathophysiological consequences of postnatal microbial tuning of cutaneous immunity. Here, we show that postnatal exposure to specific skin commensal Staphylococcus lentus (S. lentus) promotes the extent of atopic dermatitis (AD)-like inflammation in adults through priming of group 2 innate lymphoid cells (ILC2s). Early postnatal skin is dynamically populated by discrete subset of primed ILC2s driven by microbiota-dependent induction of thymic stromal lymphopoietin (TSLP) in keratinocytes. Specifically, the indole-3-aldehyde-producing tryptophan metabolic pathway, shared across Staphylococcus species, is involved in TSLP-mediated ILC2 priming. Furthermore, we demonstrate a critical contribution of the early postnatal S. lentus-TSLP-ILC2 priming axis in facilitating AD-like inflammation that is not replicated by later microbial exposure. Thus, our findings highlight the fundamental role of time-dependent neonatal microbial-skin crosstalk in shaping the threshold of innate type 2 immunity co-opted in adulthood.

Chemotherapy resistance is an obstacle to cancer therapy and is considered a major cause of recurrence. Thus, understanding the mechanisms of chemoresistance is critical to improving the prognosis of patients. Here, we have established a stepwise gemcitabine-resistant T24 bladder cancer cell line to understand the molecular mechanisms of chemoresistance within cancer cells. The characteristics of the stepwise chemoresistance cell line were divided into 4 phases (parental, early, intermediate, and late phases). These four phase cells showed increasingly aggressive phenotypes in vitro and in vivo experiments with increasing phases and revealed the molecular properties of the biological process from parent cells to phased gemcitabine-resistant cell line (GRC). Taken together, through the analysis of gene expression profile data, we have characterized gene set of each phase indicating the response to anticancer drug treatment. Specifically, we identified a multigene signature (23 genes including GATA3, APOBEC3G, NT5E, MYC, STC1, FOXD1, SMAD9) and developed a chemoresistance score consisting of that could predict eventual responsiveness to gemcitabine treatment. Our data will contribute to predicting chemoresistance and improving the prognosis of bladder cancer patients.

Despite the availability of several treatments for non-muscle-invasive bladder cancer (NMIBC), many patients are still not responsive to treatments, and the disease progresses. A new prognostic classifier can differentiate between treatment response and progression, and it could be used as a very important tool in patient decision-making regarding treatment options. In this study, we focused on the activation of Yes-associated protein 1 (YAP1), which is known to play a pivotal role in tumour progression and serves as a factor contributing to the mechanism of resistance to various relevant therapeutic agents. We further evaluated its potential as a novel prognostic agent.

MicroRNAs (miRNAs) regulate cardiovascular biology and disease, but the role of flow-sensitive microRNAs in atherosclerosis is still unclear. Here we identify miRNA-712 (miR-712) as a mechanosensitive miRNA upregulated by disturbed flow (d-flow) in endothelial cells, in vitro and in vivo. We also show that miR-712 is derived from an unexpected source, pre-ribosomal RNA, in an exoribonuclease-dependent but DiGeorge syndrome critical region 8 (DGCR8)-independent manner, suggesting that it is an atypical miRNA. Mechanistically, d-flow-induced miR-712 downregulates tissue inhibitor of metalloproteinase 3 (TIMP3) expression, which in turn activates the downstream matrix metalloproteinases (MMPs) and a disintegrin and metalloproteases (ADAMs) and stimulate pro-atherogenic responses, endothelial inflammation and permeability. Furthermore, silencing miR-712 by anti-miR-712 rescues TIMP3 expression and prevents atherosclerosis in murine models of atherosclerosis. Finally, we report that human miR-205 shares the same 'seed sequence' as murine-specific miR-712 and also targets TIMP3 in a flow-dependent manner. Targeting these mechanosensitive 'athero-miRs' may provide a new treatment paradigm in atherosclerosis.

Disturbed blood flow (d-flow) induces atherosclerosis by altering the expression of mechanosensitive genes in the arterial endothelium. Previously, we identified >580 mechanosensitive genes in the mouse arterial endothelium, but their role in endothelial inflammation is incompletely understood. From this set, we obtained 84 Drosophila RNAi lines that silences the target gene under the control of upstream activation sequence (UAS) promoter. These lines were crossed with C564-GAL4 flies expressing GFP under the control of drosomycin promoter, an NF-κB target gene and a marker of pathogen-induced inflammation. Silencing of psmd12 or ERN1 decreased infection-induced drosomycin expression, while Bap60 silencing significantly increased the drosomycin expression. Interestingly, knockdown of Bap60 in adult flies using temperature-inducible Bap60 RNAi (C564ts-GAL4-Bap60-RNAi) enhanced drosomycin expression upon Gram-positive bacterial challenge but the basal drosomycin expression remained unchanged compared to the control. In the mammalian system, smarcd3 (mammalian ortholog of Bap60) expression was reduced in the human- and mouse aortic endothelial cells exposed to oscillatory shear in vitro as well as in the d-flow regions of mouse arterial endothelium in vivo. Moreover, siRNA-mediated knockdown of smarcd3 induced endothelial inflammation. In summary, we developed an in vivo Drosophila RNAi screening method to identify flow-sensitive genes that regulate endothelial inflammation.

A balanced intake of macronutrients-protein, carbohydrate and fat-is essential for the well-being of organisms. An adequate calorific intake but with insufficient protein consumption can lead to several ailments, including kwashiorkor1. Taste receptors (T1R1-T1R3)2 can detect amino acids in the environment, and cellular sensors (Gcn2 and Tor)3 monitor the levels of amino acids in the cell. When deprived of dietary protein, animals select a food source that contains a greater proportion of protein or essential amino acids (EAAs)4. This suggests that food selection is geared towards achieving the target amount of a particular macronutrient with assistance of the EAA-specific hunger-driven response, which is poorly understood. Here we show in Drosophila that a microbiome-gut-brain axis detects a deficit of EAAs and stimulates a compensatory appetite for EAAs. We found that the neuropeptide CNMamide (CNMa)5 was highly induced in enterocytes of the anterior midgut during protein deprivation. Silencing of the CNMa-CNMa receptor axis blocked the EAA-specific hunger-driven response in deprived flies. Furthermore, gnotobiotic flies bearing an EAA-producing symbiotic microbiome exhibited a reduced appetite for EAAs. By contrast, gnotobiotic flies with a mutant microbiome that did not produce leucine or other EAAs showed higher expression of CNMa and a greater compensatory appetite for EAAs. We propose that gut enterocytes sense the levels of diet- and microbiome-derived EAAs and communicate the EAA-deprived condition to the brain through CNMa.