Biomedical subjects

Dan Cao

Publications and source records attributed to Dan Cao.

5 recordsLinked to original sources

PubMed2026

Age as a core disease modifier: Distinct clinical, molecular and prognostic landscapes of essential thrombocythaemia in adolescents and young adults.

Essential thrombocythaemia (ET) in adolescents and young adults (AYA, 15-39 years) is a distinct entity with an incompletely defined prognosis. In this multicentre retrospective study, 1728 ET patients from 29 centres across China were stratified into AYA (n = 328) and non-AYA (≥40 years, n = 1400) cohorts. We compared their clinical profiles, genomic landscapes, long-term outcomes and risk factors for progression to post-ET myelofibrosis (MF). AYA patients had fewer cardiovascular risks and lower thrombosis rates, but higher rates of extreme thrombocytosis. Molecularly, AYA patients were enriched for calreticulin (CALR) mutations, whereas Janus kinase 2 (JAK2) predominated in older patients. The burden of non-driver mutations (tet methylcytosine dioxygenase 2 [TET2], DNA methyltransferase 3A [DNMT3A], ASXL transcriptional regulator 1 [ASXL1], SH2‑B adaptor protein 3 [SH2B3]) was lower in AYA patients. Consequently, AYA patients achieved superior long-term outcomes across all key survival endpoints, including overall, myelofibrosis-free and leukaemia-free survival. Analysis of post-ET MF progression risks identified age-specific patterns: CALR mutations are enriched in younger patients and show an age-specific association with MF progression. AYA-ET constitutes a unique clinicomolecular subtype with a favourable prognosis, supporting age-stratified management. The enrichment of CALR mutations and their specific link to MF progression in young patients underscore the urgent need for targeted therapies against CALR-mutant clones.

adolescents and young adults (AYA)↗

PubMed2026

Chinese expert consensus on precision testing and molecular diagnosis of pancreatic cancer (2025).

This consensus by the CSCO Pancreatic Cancer Expert Committee establishes evidence-based guidelines for molecular testing in pancreatic ductal adenocarcinoma. It details recommendations for biomarkers (e.g., KRAS, BRCA, MSI), liquid biopsy, and precision imaging to direct targeted therapies and immunotherapy, aiming to standardize diagnosis and optimize individualized patient care. Pancreatic ductal adenocarcinoma (PDAC) is the most common pathological type of primary pancreatic malignancy, accounting for ~95% of cases and generally referred to as pancreatic cancer [1]. Its prognosis is extremely poor and its incidence continues to rise [2]. According to the most recent global cancer statistics, the incidence of pancreatic cancer ranks 12th among all cancers, and its mortality ranks 6th, making it one of the deadliest malignancies worldwide [3]. Approximately 57% of patients have metastatic disease at diagnosis and require systemic therapy, for which chemotherapy remains the standard first-line option [1]. However, the overall response rate to currently available systemic regimens is low, and the 5-year survival rate for patients with metastatic disease remains below 5% [3]. Although most pancreatic cancers harbor canonical driver mutations, they exhibit marked heterogeneity at the molecular level. Whole-genome sequencing (WGS) and integrative genomic analyses have identified molecular subtypes of PDAC with potential clinical relevance [4-9]. With the increasing implementation of precision oncology, the Chinese Society of Clinical Oncology (CSCO) Guidelines for the Diagnosis and Treatment of Pancreatic Cancer give a level 1 recommendation to perform genetic and other molecular testing on tissue or cytologic specimens as part of the pathological diagnostic work-up, in order to guide individualized treatment, including targeted therapy and immunotherapy [10]. To further promote the use of genetic and molecular testing in the precision treatment of pancreatic cancer, the CSCO Pancreatic Cancer Expert Committee convened a multidisciplinary panel to develop the present Chinese Expert Consensus on Precision Testing and Molecular Diagnosis of Pancreatic Cancer (2025), aiming to provide clinicians with an authoritative reference for precision diagnostics and treatment decision-making.

Humans↗

PubMed2025

Novel mutations associated with clofazimine resistance in Mycobacterium intracellulare.

BACKGROUND: Clofazimine is a promising repurposed drug for treating Mycobacterium avium-intracellulare complex pulmonary disease, but its resistance mechanisms in Mycobacterium intracellulare remain poorly understood. OBJECTIVE: This study aims to elucidate the resistance mechanisms of M. intracellulare to clofazimine. METHODS: We isolated 36 clofazimine-resistant M. intracellulare mutants in vitro and performed whole-genome sequencing to identify resistance-associated mutations. Gene complementation was used to validate the role of the identified mutations. RESULTS: We identified various mutations in the marR gene (WP_009952290.1) in 61% of clofazimine-resistant mutants by whole-genome sequencing. Mutations were identified in additional genes encoding ssuD (flavin-dependent oxidoreductase, C67A), lppI (membrane lipoprotein, C207 deletion), GMC oxidoreductase (glucose-methanol-choline oxidoreductase, G157 deletion), MASE1 domain-containing protein (C62G) and PPE family protein (222C deletion). Gene complementation experiments demonstrated that introducing the wild-type marR in clofazimine-resistant strain (L72) with marR mutations reduced clofazimine MIC from 1 mg/L to susceptible baseline (0.25 mg/L), confirming its critical role in clofazimine resistance. Notably, the M. intracellulare MarR lacks homology to Mycobacterium tuberculosis MarR family protein Rv0678 (MmpR) involved in clofazimine and bedaquiline resistance but is flanked by non-efflux pump genes (dhmA and doxX), and unlike M. tuberculosis, its mutation does not cause bedaquiline cross-resistance, indicating a different MarR and distinct regulatory mechanism for clofazimine resistance in M. intracellulare. CONCLUSIONS: This work highlights marR as a key determinant of clofazimine resistance in M. intracellulare and underscores the need for further mechanistic studies with implications for rapid molecular detection and effective treatment.

Clofazimine↗

PubMed2025

Transposition element MERVL regulates DNA demethylation through TET3 in oxidative-damaged mouse preimplantation embryos.

Transposable elements (TEs) comprise approximately half of eukaryotic genomes and significantly contribute to genome plasticity. In this study, we focused on a specific TE, MERVL, which exhibits particular expression during the 2-cell stage and commonly serves as an indicator of embryonic totipotency. However, its precise role in embryo development remains mysterious. We utilized DRUG-seq to investigate the effects of oxidative damage on genes and TEs expression. Our findings revealed that exposure to hydrogen peroxide (H2O2) could induce DNA damage, apoptosis, and incomplete DNA demethylation in embryos, which were potentially associated with MERVL expression. To further explore its function, antisense nucleotides (ASO) targeting MERVL were constructed to knockdown the expression in early embryos. Notably, this knockdown led to the occurrence of DNA damage and apoptosis as early as the 2-cell stage, consequently reducing the number of embryos that could progress to the blastocyst stage. Moreover, we discovered that MERVL exerted an influence on the reprogramming of embryonic DNA methylation. In MERVL-deficient embryos, the activity of the DNA demethylase ten-eleven translocation 3 (TET3) was suppressed, resulting in impaired demethylation when compared to normal development. This impairment might underpin the mechanism that impacts embryonic development. Collectively, our study not only verified the crucial role of MERVL in embryonic development but also probed its regulatory function in DNA methylation reprogramming, thereby laying a solid foundation for further investigations into MERVL's role.

Animals↗

PubMed2024

The associations between functional dyspepsia and potential risk factors: A comprehensive Mendelian randomization study.

BACKGROUND: Previous cross-sectional studies have identified multiple potential risk factors for functional dyspepsia (FD). However, the causal associations between these factors and FD remain elusive. Here we aimed to fully examine the causal relationships between these factors and FD utilizing a two-sample MR framework. METHODS: A total of 53 potential FD-related modifiable factors, including those associated with hormones, metabolism, disease, medication, sociology, psychology, lifestyle and others were obtained through a comprehensive literature review. Independent genetic variants closely linked to these factors were screened as instrumental variables from genome-wide association studies (GWASs). A total of 8875 FD cases and 320387 controls were available for the analysis. The inverse variance weighted (IVW) method was employed as the primary analytical approach to assess the relationship between genetic variants of risk factors and the FD risk. Sensitivity analyses were performed to evaluate the consistency of the findings using the weighted median model, MR-Egger and MR-PRESSO methods. RESULTS: Genetically predicted depression (OR 1.515, 95% confidence interval (CI) 1.231 to 1.865, p = 0.000088), gastroesophageal reflux disease (OR 1.320, 95%CI 1.153 to 1.511, p = 0.000057) and years of education (OR 0.926, 95%CI 0.894 to 0.958, p = 0.00001) were associated with risk for FD in univariate MR analyses. Multiple medications, alcohol consumption, poultry intake, bipolar disorder, mood swings, type 1 diabetes, elevated systolic blood pressure and lower overall health rating showed to be suggestive risk factors for FD (all p<0.05 while ≥0.00167). The positive causal relationship between depression, years of education and FD was still significant in multivariate MR analyses. CONCLUSIONS: Our comprehensive MR study demonstrated that depression and lower educational attainment were causal factors for FD at the genetic level.

Humans↗