Background/Objectives: The health-protective properties of olive oil phenolics, including their potential chemopreventive and anticancer effects, have attracted considerable scientific interest. However, their in vivo efficacy and mechanisms of action remain insufficiently understood. Recent advances in extraction and purification technologies have enabled large-scale production of highly purified olive oil phenols and phenolic-rich extracts, facilitating translational research. Methods: Herein, the antitumor efficacy of isolated olive oil phenols and phenolic-rich formulations was investigated in an MDA-MB-231 triple-negative breast cancer (TNBC) xenograft model. Results: Intraperitoneal administration of oleocanthal (OLC), oleuropein aglycone (OleA) or their combination reduced endpoint tumor burden, with OLC exhibiting the most pronounced effect. Oral administration of total olive oil phenolics (OOPs) achieved comparable efficacy. Pre-treatment initiated before tumor cell implantation conferred the greatest protection, consistent with a prophylactic mode of action. In contrast, delayed intervention displayed diminished or no antitumor benefit. Phenolic-rich extra virgin olive oil likewise showed an inhibition trend in tumor progression. Mechanistically, OOPs attenuated plasma protein oxidation, modulated proteasome mediated proteolysis, and reduced γH2AX levels in vivo. Furthermore, OOPs negatively affected the MDA-MB-231 cell migration in a concentration-dependent manner in vitro. Conclusions: Collectively, these findings are consistent with antitumor activities of olive oil phenolics via multiple mechanisms and support their further investigation as prophylactic agents in TNBC and as nutraceuticals.

Pancreatic ductal adenocarcinoma (PDAC) is characterized by poor clinical outcomes and limited responsiveness to conventional treatments. Beyond delayed diagnosis, its high mortality is linked to limited treatment choices and resistance to chemotherapy. Neoplastic cells characterized by stem-like features and epithelial-mesenchymal transition (EMT) activation are crucial drivers of drug resistance and metastatic progression. Consequently, targeting these cellular programs could represent a promising therapeutic strategy for PDAC. N-acetyl-L-aspartic acid (NAA) is an endogenous metabolite, mainly localized in the central nervous system, where it facilitates acetate storage for lipid metabolism. Previous studies established its antineoplastic effect in neuroblastoma, promoting a more differentiated phenotype of cancer cells. Here we investigated the effects of NAA on BxPC-3 pancreatic cancer cells using both 2D and 3D models. NAA treatment induced a dose-dependent reduction in cell proliferation and led to a significant downregulation of stemness-associated surface markers, with concomitant upregulation of E-cadherin. Furthermore, NAA significantly enhanced cellular radiosensitization with a reduction in caveolin-1 and increased efficacy of gemcitabine in PDAC cells. Collectively, these results confirmed the anticancer activity of NAA and provide a rationale for further investigation of its synergistic effects with radiotherapy to yield better PDAC treatments.

While the chaperonin-containing TCP-1 (CCT) complex is essential for proteostasis, the distinct roles of individual subunits in tumor immune regulation remain unclear. Here, we identify CCT7 as a previously unrecognized regulator of immune evasion in lung adenocarcinoma (LUAD). Integrative analyses of TCGA and GEO cohorts revealed that CCT7 is markedly upregulated in LUAD and is associated with poor patient prognosis. Functional studies demonstrated that CCT7 knockdown inhibited tumor cell proliferation and migration and enhanced cisplatin-induced apoptosis, yet paradoxically impaired T-cell activation. Mechanistically, transcriptomic and biochemical analyses revealed that CCT7 depletion activated the DR5-MKK4-JNK-c-Jun signaling cascade, resulting in the transcriptional upregulation of PD-L1. Disruption of DR5 or JNK signaling effectively abrogated PD-L1 induction. In contrast, CCT2 depletion exerted the opposite effect by suppressing the DR5-JNK-c-Jun-PD-L1 signaling axis and enhancing T-cell activation. Collectively, these findings reveal unexpected functional divergence among TRiC/CCT subunits and identify the CCT7-DR5-JNK-c-Jun signaling axis as a previously unrecognized mechanism regulating PD-L1-mediated immune evasion, highlighting the potential therapeutic relevance of this signaling axis in LUAD.

Neuroinflammation within the tumor microenvironment (TME) of central nervous system (CNS) neoplasms, particularly glioblastoma (GBM), is no longer viewed merely as a reactive phenomenon but rather as a major driver of gliomagenesis and malignant transformation. This process involves a shift from acute immune activation to a chronic, sterile state that reshapes the CNS borders and immune niches to favor tumor evasion. This narrative review provides a comprehensive mechanistically focused analysis of the mechanisms governing the inflammatory stroma in primary and metastatic brain neoplasms. It critically examines the ontogeny and transcriptomic profile of myeloid and glial populations, dismantling the binary M1/M2 polarization model in favor of a continuum of functional states determined by metabolic and oxygenation gradients. It also analyzes intracellular signaling cascades, the subversion of innate immunity sensors such as the cGAS-STING pathway, the epigenetic reprogramming of stromal cells, and the role of extracellular vesicles. The electrochemical integration of tumor cells into neuronal circuits via glutamatergic synapses and connexin 43 gap junction coupling is addressed in detail, defining the mitogenic impact of neuronal activity on the tumor. The inflammatory profiles of IDH-wildtype and IDH-mutant gliomas and of secondary brain metastases are contrasted. Finally, the correlates of functional neuroimaging, liquid biopsies, and resistance mechanisms to conventional therapies are analyzed, including the GIANT and SENIPERA clinical trials, CARv3-TEAM-E bivalent cellular immunotherapy preconditioned with the LDC + R regimen, and the accelerated approval of dordaviprone (Modeyso) in H3 K27M-mutant diffuse midline gliomas.

Leukemia progression is increasingly shaped by reciprocal interactions between leukemic cells and the bone marrow microenvironment, yet the extracellular regulatory networks associated with these interactions remain incompletely understood. Here, we investigated the biological context associated with the antileukemic activity of LCC-10 (NSC765599), a synthetic biphenyl benzamide derivative, using an integrated pharmacogenomic and structure-guided computational framework. Antiproliferative activity was first characterized using the NCI-60 screen and subsequently integrated with pharmacogenomic response similarity analysis, baseline transcriptomic profiling, similarity-based target prediction, systems-level network analysis, molecular docking, coarse-grained molecular dynamics simulations, comparative in silico ADMET evaluation, and zebrafish embryo developmental toxicity assessment. LCC-10 exhibited potent antiproliferative activity across leukemia cell lines, with submicromolar GI₅₀ values in five of six models. Computational analyses converged on a matrix metalloproteinase (MMP)-associated extracellular matrix (ECM) regulatory network, with MMP2 and MMP9 among the recurrently implicated candidates. Structure-guided analyses suggested structural compatibility of LCC-10 with representative MMP catalytic domains but did not establish direct biochemical inhibition or target engagement. Comparative in silico ADMET analyses supported the predicted developability profile of LCC-10, whereas zebrafish embryo assays indicated concentration-dependent developmental tolerability within the tested range. Collectively, these findings associate LCC-10 with an MMP-associated ECM regulatory network in leukemia while defining this relationship as a hypothesis requiring direct experimental validation. This integrated framework provides a rationale for subsequent biochemical, target-engagement, and functional studies to clarify the molecular basis of LCC-10 activity.

Cancer immunotherapy has transformed the treatment of multiple malignancies; however, primary and acquired resistance remain major clinical challenges. Because effective immune recognition depends on the repertoire of peptides presented by major histocompatibility complex class I (MHC-I) molecules, increasing attention has focused on the antigen processing and presentation pathway as a therapeutic target to enhance tumor immunogenicity. Among its key regulators, the endoplasmic reticulum (ER) aminopeptidases ERAP1 and ERAP2 shape the MHC-I immunopeptidome by trimming peptide precursors before antigen presentation. Beyond this canonical function, accumulating evidence indicates that ERAP aminopeptidases are multifunctional proteins involved in inflammation, angiogenesis, ER stress responses, cell migration, and tumor-intrinsic signaling. These moonlighting activities suggest that ERAP enzymes influence cancer progression through both immune-dependent and immune-independent mechanisms. Recent advances in medicinal chemistry have enabled the development of selective ERAP1 inhibitors, leading to the first clinical evaluation of this therapeutic strategy and providing early clinical evidence that pharmacological modulation of antigen processing may complement existing immunotherapies. In this review, we summarize the multiple functions of ERAP aminopeptidases in cancer, discuss their role in regulating adaptive and innate immune responses, and highlight emerging therapeutic strategies and future challenges for exploiting ERAP-targeted interventions in precision immuno-oncology.

CD97 is an adhesion G-protein-coupled receptor encoded by ADGRE5 that integrates extracellular signals (including cell adhesion, ligand binding, and mechanical stimulation) with intracellular signal transduction. Recent structural studies have further elucidated tethered/intramolecular agonist (TIA)/Stachel recognition and engagement of the seven-transmembrane domain (7TMD), activation-associated 7TMD conformational changes, and G-protein coupling, including the structural basis for the preferential coupling of CD97 to G13. Currently, antibody-drug conjugates (ADCs) targeting CD97 are supported by in vitro proof-of-concept evidence, whereas chimeric antigen receptor (CAR) strategies have shown antitumor activity in animal models of glioblastoma (GBM) and acute myeloid leukemia (AML). Existing research indicates that CD97 is involved in maintaining stem-like states, invasion and metastasis, metabolic adaptation, and stress survival in certain tumors, and its function varies depending on tumor type and cellular environment. Because CD97 is also expressed in normal immune cells and various nonhematopoietic tissues, systemic targeted therapy may be limited by on-target/off-tumor toxicity. This article reviews the latest advances in CD97 structure and signal transduction, and explores its tumor-related functions, biomarker value, evidence for ADC and CAR-related therapies, as well as early exploratory directions involving RNA-mediated downregulation and structure-guided interventions.

Temozolomide (TMZ) resistance remains a fundamental obstacle in the treatment of glioblastoma (GBM). While the metabolic sensor AMPK is known to influence cancer cell survival, the specific role of its regulatory γ-subunit isoforms in orchestrating chemoresistance is poorly understood. This study investigates how the dynamic remodeling of the AMPK heterotrimer contributes to TMZ evasion in GBM. We observed significantly low expression of AMPKγ2 in glioma patient samples, but the treatment of GBM cell lines with TMZ led to a robust increase in AMPKγ2 expression with a concomitant decrease in AMPKγ1 expression. We identified a significant "isoform switch" in TMZ-treated cells, characterized by a marked downregulation of the γ1 subunit and a reciprocal upregulation of γ2. The structural remodeling of the AMPK complex was validated using co-immunoprecipitation (Co-IP). Co-IP analysis confirmed that the AMPK α catalytic subunit shifts its primary association from γ1 to γ2 during the TMZ treatment. Functionally, γ2-dominant complexes exhibited reduced sensitivity to ATP-mediated inhibition, allowing resistant cells to maintain better ATP homeostasis and sustained AMPK activation under TMZ-induced stress. Furthermore, the knockdown of the γ2 subunit abolished this metabolic advantage, resulting in the resensitization of GBM cell lines to TMZ-induced cell death. Our findings reveal that AMPK γ-subunit isoform switching is a previously unrecognized metabolic adaptation that drives TMZ resistance in GBM. Targeting the γ2-specific complex or preventing this isoform transition represents a promising therapeutic strategy to overcome chemoresistance in malignant gliomas.

Cutaneous T-cell lymphoma (CTCL), including mycosis fungoides (MF) and Sézary syndrome (SS), is defined by malignant CD4+ T-cell clones that evolve within and remodel the skin and systemic immune compartments. For disease biology and immune remodeling, we prioritize evidence from human primary samples; for therapeutic implications, we integrate clinical-trial and translational biomarker studies. We organize evidence by compartment (skin vs. blood) and, within skin, by stage (patch/plaque vs. tumor). Early patch/plaque MF often shows features consistent with constrained inflammation: skin-resident memory T-cell (TRM)-like malignant clones are in a Th1-leaning microenvironment with relatively preserved cytotoxic surveillance. Progression to tumor-stage MF (and/or large-cell transformation) is frequently associated with clonal dominance, Th2 cytokine polarization, upregulation of checkpoint pathways, and remodeling of myeloid/fibroblast populations. SS is typically associated with leukemic clonal dominance, systemic Th2 skewing, and broad impairment of cytotoxic immune control. These trajectories support an interpretive framework that aligns immune-directed therapies with compartment- and stage-associated biology; these include strategies that (i) deplete malignant clones (e.g., CCR4, CD30, KIR3DL2 targeting), (ii) re-engage exhausted effectors (PD-1/PD-L1 axis), (iii) reprogram cytokine balance (IFN-γ, IL-12, extracorporeal photopheresis), or (iv) suppress malignant signaling programs with secondary immune effects (JAK/STAT inhibition). We highlight potential candidate predictive biomarkers at varying levels of maturity, most of which require prospective validation, including antigen density, compartmental tumor burden, tumor cell fraction, effector-cell substrate, and interferon/cytokine signatures.

Cancer therapy-related acute kidney injury has become an increasingly common challenge as modern treatments prolong survival and increase exposure to potentially nephrotoxic therapies. Decisions regarding therapeutic rechallenge have relied on normalizing serum creatinine and recovering estimated glomerular filtration rate, despite growing evidence that biochemical recovery does not necessarily indicate restoration of kidney integrity or resilience. In this review, we propose biological kidney recovery as a conceptual framework that integrates mechanisms of kidney injury and repair (adaptive and maladaptive) with emerging biomarkers and therapeutic rechallenge. We first summarize the distinct mechanisms of kidney injury induced by platinum-based chemotherapy, immune checkpoint inhibitors, and vascular endothelial growth factor pathway inhibitors, highlighting how these differences influence subsequent repair. We then discuss the cellular and metabolic processes underlying adaptive repair, the transition to maladaptive remodeling, and current approaches for assessing biological recovery through pathology, biomarkers, and multi-omics technologies. Finally, we present a practical framework for individualized therapeutic rechallenge based on an integrated assessment of kidney-, tumor-, and patient-related factors and outline future directions for precision onco-nephrology. By shifting the focus from filtration alone to biological recovery, this framework enables more informed therapeutic rechallenge aimed at preserving both oncologic efficacy and long-term kidney health.