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Journals
Cancers
Special Issues
Current Progress and Research Trends in Ocular Oncology
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Current Progress and Research Trends in Ocular Oncology

A special issue of Cancers (ISSN 2072-6694). This special issue belongs to the section "Cancer Therapy".

Deadline for manuscript submissions: 30 June 2024 | Viewed by 2296

Special Issue Editors

Prof. Dr. Utta Berchner-Pfannschmidt

E-Mail Website
Guest Editor
Department of Ophthalmology, University Hospital Essen, University of Duisburg-Essen, 45147 Essen, Germany
Interests: ocular oncology; primary tumor and metastasis; genetic and cellular heterogeneity; oncogenic pathways; cancer biology and immunology; molecular biomarkers; drug screening; 3D cell culture models; novel treatment options
Dr. Miltiadis Fiorentzis

E-Mail Website
Guest Editor
Department of Ophthalmology, University Hospital Essen, University of Duisburg-Essen, 45147 Essen, Germany
Interests: ocular oncology; primary tumor; uveal melanoma; conjunctival melanoma; metastatic risk; diagnostic strategies; innovative therapeutic options; electrochemotherapy; patient-derived xenograft models; vitreoretinal surgery
Prof. Dr. Nikolaos E. Bechrakis

E-Mail Website
Guest Editor
Department of Ophthalmology, University Hospital Essen, University of Duisburg-Essen, 45147 Essen, Germany
Interests: ocular oncology; uveal melanoma; conjunctival melanoma; retinoblastoma; primary tumor; metastatic risk; clinic–pathologic analysis; diagnostic strategies; prognostic factors; therapeutic options; vitreoretinal surgery

Special Issue Information

Dear Colleagues,

We are pleased to invite you to contribute to this Special Issue with an original article or review in the field of ocular oncology with a focus on uveal melanoma, conjunctival melanoma or retinoblastoma. Uveal melanoma and retinoblastoma, which cause blindness and even death, are the most common primary intraocular malignancies in adults and children, respectively. Conjunctival melanoma shares genetic and pathophysiological features with cutaneous melanomas and is distinct from uveal melanoma. Although our understanding of these ocular cancers has advanced over the last decade and local tumor control is mostly achievable, they remain malignancies with recurrence and no treatment for metastatic disease.

This Special Issue aims to highlight current progress and research trends in all aspects of ocular oncology, including oncogenic pathways and genetic and cellular heterogeneity, and cancer immunity that underlie the initiation, progression, recurrence and metastasis of ocular tumors. Basic science studies with translational aspects as well as clinical trials are strongly encouraged. Experts in the field are invited to contribute with articles reviewing the latest perspectives in ocular cancer biology or diagnosis and therapy. This Special Issue reflects the wide range of efforts to advance the understanding and treatment of eye cancers.

Prof. Dr. Utta Berchner-Pfannschmidt
Dr. Miltiadis Fiorentzis
Prof. Dr. Nikolaos E. Bechrakis
Guest Editors

Manuscript Submission Information

Manuscripts should be submitted online at www.mdpi.com by registering and logging in to this website. Once you are registered, click here to go to the submission form. Manuscripts can be submitted until the deadline. All submissions that pass pre-check are peer-reviewed. Accepted papers will be published continuously in the journal (as soon as accepted) and will be listed together on the special issue website. Research articles, review articles as well as short communications are invited. For planned papers, a title and short abstract (about 100 words) can be sent to the Editorial Office for announcement on this website.

Submitted manuscripts should not have been published previously, nor be under consideration for publication elsewhere (except conference proceedings papers). All manuscripts are thoroughly refereed through a single-blind peer-review process. A guide for authors and other relevant information for submission of manuscripts is available on the Instructions for Authors page. Cancers is an international peer-reviewed open access semimonthly journal published by MDPI.

Please visit the Instructions for Authors page before submitting a manuscript. The Article Processing Charge (APC) for publication in this open access journal is 2900 CHF (Swiss Francs). Submitted papers should be well formatted and use good English. Authors may use MDPI's English editing service prior to publication or during author revisions.

Keywords

  • ocular oncology
  • uveal melanoma
  • conjunctival melanoma
  • retinoblastoma
  • primary tumor
  • recurrence
  • metastasis
  • oncogenic pathways
  • genetic and cellular heterogeneity
  • cancer immunity
  • diagnostic strategies
  • therapeutic options

Published Papers (3 papers)

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Research

22 pages, 1216 KiB  
Article
Gastric Inhibitory Polypeptide Receptor (GIPR) Overexpression Reduces the Tumorigenic Potential of Retinoblastoma Cells
by André Haase, Emily Alefeld, Fatma Yalinci, Dario Van Meenen, Maike Anna Busch and Nicole Dünker
Cancers 2024, 16(9), 1656; https://doi.org/10.3390/cancers16091656 - 25 Apr 2024
Viewed by 208
Abstract
Retinoblastoma (RB) is the most common malignant intraocular tumor in early childhood. Gene expression profiling revealed that the gastric inhibitory polypeptide receptor (GIPR) is upregulated following trefoil factor family peptide 1 (TFF1) overexpression in RB cells. In the study presented, we found this [...] Read more.
Retinoblastoma (RB) is the most common malignant intraocular tumor in early childhood. Gene expression profiling revealed that the gastric inhibitory polypeptide receptor (GIPR) is upregulated following trefoil factor family peptide 1 (TFF1) overexpression in RB cells. In the study presented, we found this G protein-coupled transmembrane receptor to be co-expressed with TFF1, a new diagnostic and prognostic RB biomarker for advanced subtype 2 RBs. Functional analyses in two RB cell lines revealed a significant reduction in cell viability and growth and a concomitant increase in apoptosis following stable, lentiviral GIPR overexpression, matching the effects seen after TFF1 overexpression. In chicken chorioallantoic membrane (CAM) assays, GIPR-overexpressing RB cells developed significantly smaller CAM tumors. The effect of GIPR overexpression in RB cells was reversed by the GIPR inhibitor MK0893. The administration of recombinant TFF1 did not augment GIPR overexpression effects, suggesting that GIPR does not serve as a TFF1 receptor. Investigations of potential GIPR up- and downstream mediators suggest the involvement of miR-542-5p and p53 in GIPR signaling. Our results indicate a tumor suppressor role of GIPR in RB, suggesting its pathway as a new potential target for future retinoblastoma therapy. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Current Progress and Research Trends in Ocular Oncology)
12 pages, 2688 KiB  
Article
CEP-1347 Dually Targets MDM4 and PKC to Activate p53 and Inhibit the Growth of Uveal Melanoma Cells
by Keita Togashi, Shuhei Suzuki, Yuta Mitobe, Yurika Nakagawa-Saito, Asuka Sugai, Senri Takenouchi, Masahiko Sugimoto, Chifumi Kitanaka and Masashi Okada
Cancers 2024, 16(1), 118; https://doi.org/10.3390/cancers16010118 - 25 Dec 2023
Viewed by 801
Abstract
Uveal melanoma (UM) is among the most common primary intraocular neoplasms in adults, with limited therapeutic options for advanced/metastatic disease. Since UM is characterized by infrequent p53 mutation coupled with the overexpression of MDM4, a major negative regulator of p53, we aimed to [...] Read more.
Uveal melanoma (UM) is among the most common primary intraocular neoplasms in adults, with limited therapeutic options for advanced/metastatic disease. Since UM is characterized by infrequent p53 mutation coupled with the overexpression of MDM4, a major negative regulator of p53, we aimed to investigate in this study the effects on UM cells of CEP-1347, a novel MDM4 inhibitor with a known safety profile in humans. We also examined the impact of CEP-1347 on the protein kinase C (PKC) pathway, known to play a pivotal role in UM cell growth. High-grade UM cell lines were used to analyze the effects of genetic and pharmacological inhibition of MDM4 and PKC, respectively, as well as those of CEP-1347 treatment, on p53 expression and cell viability. The results showed that, at its clinically relevant concentrations, CEP-1347 reduced not only MDM4 expression but also PKC activity, activated the p53 pathway, and effectively inhibited the growth of UM cells. Importantly, whereas inhibition of either MDM4 expression or PKC activity alone failed to efficiently activate p53 and inhibit cell growth, inhibition of both resulted in effective activation of p53 and inhibition of cell growth. These data suggest that there exists a hitherto unrecognized interaction between MDM4 and PKC to inactivate the p53-dependent growth control in UM cells. CEP-1347, which dually targets MDM4 and PKC, could therefore be a promising therapeutic candidate in the treatment of UM. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Current Progress and Research Trends in Ocular Oncology)
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14 pages, 2545 KiB  
Article
Trefoil Family Factor Peptide 1—A New Biomarker in Liquid Biopsies of Retinoblastoma under Therapy
by Maike Anna Busch, André Haase, Emily Alefeld, Eva Biewald, Leyla Jabbarli and Nicole Dünker
Cancers 2023, 15(19), 4828; https://doi.org/10.3390/cancers15194828 - 02 Oct 2023
Cited by 1 | Viewed by 960
Abstract
Effective management of retinoblastoma (RB), the most prevalent childhood eye cancer, depends on reliable monitoring and diagnosis. A promising candidate in this context is the secreted trefoil family factor peptide 1 (TFF1), recently discovered as a promising new biomarker in patients with a [...] Read more.
Effective management of retinoblastoma (RB), the most prevalent childhood eye cancer, depends on reliable monitoring and diagnosis. A promising candidate in this context is the secreted trefoil family factor peptide 1 (TFF1), recently discovered as a promising new biomarker in patients with a more advanced subtype of retinoblastoma. The present study investigated TFF1 expression within aqueous humor (AH) of enucleated eyes and compared TFF1 levels in AH and corresponding blood serum samples from RB patients undergoing intravitreal chemotherapy (IVC). TFF1 was consistently detectable in AH, confirming its potential as a biomarker. Crucially, our data confirmed that TFF1-secreting cells within the tumor mass originate from RB tumor cells, not from surrounding stromal cells. IVC-therapy-responsive patients exhibited remarkably reduced TFF1 levels post-therapy. By contrast, RB patients’ blood serum displayed low-to-undetectable levels of TFF1 even after sample concentration and no therapy-dependent changes were observed. Our findings suggest that compared with blood serum, AH represents the more reliable source of TFF1 if used for liquid biopsy RB marker analysis in RB patients. Thus, analysis of TFF1 in AH of RB patients potentially provides a minimally invasive tool for monitoring RB therapy efficacy, suggesting its importance for effective treatment regimens. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Current Progress and Research Trends in Ocular Oncology)
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