This study aimed to analyze the molecular characteristics of oral epithelial dysplasia (OED), highlighting the pathways and variants of genes that are frequently mutated in oral squamous cell carcinoma (OSCC) and other cancers. Ten archival OED cases were retrieved for retrospective clinicopathological analysis and exome sequencing. Comparative genomic analysis was performed between high-grade dysplasia (HGD) and low-grade dysplasia (LGD), focusing on 57 well-known cancer genes, of which 10 were previously described as the most mutated in OSCC. HGD cases had significantly more variants; however, a similar mutational landscape to OSCC was observed in both groups. CASP8+FAT1/HRAS, TP53, and miscellaneous molecular signatures were also present. FAT1 is the gene that is most affected by pathogenic variants. Hierarchical divisive clustering showed division between the two groups: “HGD-like cluster” with 4HGD and 2LGD and “LGD-like cluster” with 4 LGD. MLL4 pathogenic variants were exclusively in the “LGD-like cluster”. TP53 was affected in one case of HGD; however, its pathway was usually altered. We describe new insights into the genetic basis of epithelial malignant transformation by genomic analysis, highlighting those associated with FAT1 and TP53. Some LGDs presented a similar mutational landscape to HGD after cluster analysis. Perhaps molecular alterations have not yet been reflected in histomorphology. The relative risk of malignant transformation in this molecular subgroup should be addressed in future studies.
Obesity has been implicated in the induction of oxidative stress, which is thought to contribute to the pathogenesis of various cardiovascular diseases, including cardiac hypertrophy. However, the redox status during the early stages of cardiac hypertrophy remains inadequately characterized. In this study, we administered a high-fat diet (HFD) to C57BL/6N mice for 12 weeks. We investigated the expression of biomarkers associated with hypertrophy and oxidative stress, including lipid peroxidation, protein carbonylation, and the redox couples NADH/NAD+, NADPH/NADP+, and GSH/GSSG. Additionally, we assessed the expression levels and enzymatic activities of catalase, glutathione peroxidase, glutathione reductase, and superoxide dismutase. Following 12 weeks on a HFD, mice exhibited obesity and a 10% increase in the heart weight/tibia length ratio, together with an upregulation in the mRNA levels of β-myosin heavy chain, brain natriuretic peptide, and regulator of calcineurin 1, isoform 4. There was also a significant increase in NOX4 content in the heart of these animals; however, we observed no rise in protein carbonylation and a decrease in lipid peroxidation products. As for the redox couples, the GSH/GSSG ratio nearly doubled, while the NADH/NAD+ and NADPH/NADP+ ratios remained stable. All antioxidant enzyme mRNAs examined showed increased expression; however, only glutathione reductase showed higher activity. Our findings suggest that reductive stress is predominant within the cardiac environment of these animals.