Evidence map›Paper›PMID 39831781›Full record

ArticleCancer research communications2025

A Melanoma Brain Metastasis CTC Signature and CTC:B-cell Clusters Associate with Secondary Liver Metastasis: A Melanoma Brain-Liver Metastasis Axis.

Tetiana Y Bowley, Mireya C Ortiz, Irina V Lagutina, Mara P Steinkamp, Bridget N Fahy, Bernard Tawfik, Moises Harari-Turquie, Dario Marchetti

Abstract read
In one paragraph

Article in Cancer research communications, 2025. The graph could read no effect estimate from its abstract, so it casts no vote on the map. Cited by 1 paper.

0numbers the graph read from it
0cells of the map it votes in
1citing papers in PubMed
–field-weighted citation impact
1 · What the graph read from it

What it found

Each row is one number read from the abstract, on the scale the paper reported it, with its interval. Left of the dashed line favours the treatment, right favours the comparator. Under each row is the sentence it came from. New to these charts? A ten-minute tutorial.

The abstract states no effect estimate the extractor could read, or names no intervention and outcome on the map, so this paper lights no cell and moves no belief. It is still indexed, cited and linked below.

2 · The registry

The trial behind it

Trials whose registry record cites this paper, or whose number appears in the abstract. A trial that started after this paper was published is citing it as background, not reporting it.

Neither the registry nor the abstract names a trial number. If this is a trial report, that itself is worth knowing.

3 · Its place in the literature

Who cites it

1 citing paper in PubMed.

  1. Review
4 · The record

Corrections and comments

PubMed lists nothing against this paper. Absence here is not a guarantee, only a check that was made.

5 · Who and what money

Authors and funding

8 authors.

Tetiana Y BowleyDivision of Molecular Medicine, Department of Internal Medicine, University of New Mexico Health Sciences Center, Albuquerque, New Mexico.ORCID 0000-0002-0172-169X
Mireya C OrtizDivision of Molecular Medicine, Department of Internal Medicine, University of New Mexico Health Sciences Center, Albuquerque, New Mexico.ORCID 0009-0000-1803-3570
Irina V LagutinaAnimal Models Shared Resource, The University of New Mexico Comprehensive Cancer Center, Albuquerque, New Mexico.ORCID 0000-0001-9538-4008
Mara P SteinkampDepartment of Pathology, University of New Mexico Health Sciences Center, Albuquerque, New Mexico.ORCID 0000-0003-1226-9325
Bridget N FahyDivision of Surgical Oncology and Palliative Medicine, University of New Mexico Comprehensive Cancer Center, Albuquerque, New Mexico.ORCID 0000-0002-2293-5785
Bernard TawfikDivision of Hematology and Oncology, Department of Internal Medicine, University of New Mexico Comprehensive Cancer Center, Albuquerque, New Mexico.ORCID 0000-0002-4380-2471
Moises Harari-TurquieDivision of Hematology and Oncology, Department of Internal Medicine, University of New Mexico Comprehensive Cancer Center, Albuquerque, New Mexico.ORCID 0009-0005-0799-8453
Dario MarchettiDivision of Molecular Medicine, Department of Internal Medicine, University of New Mexico Health Sciences Center, Albuquerque, New Mexico.ORCID 0000-0002-5951-2823

Funding

University of Colorado Cancer Center Support Grant - Lung Cancer Patient-Derived Xenografts with Autologous Human Immune SystemsP30CA046934 · NCI · UNIVERSITY OF COLORADO DENVER · PI James V Degregori · 1988 to 2026
$117.0M
WOMEN'S CANCERS RESEARCH PROGRAMP30CA118100 · NCI · UNIVERSITY OF NEW MEXICO HEALTH SCIS CTR · PI Yolanda Sanchez · 2005 to 2026
$57.1M
Mechanisms of melanoma brain metastasis by CTCs isolated from patients' blood and CSFR01CA216991 · NCI · UNIVERSITY OF NEW MEXICO HEALTH SCIS CTR · PI MARCHETTI, DARIO · 2018 to 2024
$1.8M
NCI NIH HHS P30 CA046934NCI NIH HHS P30 CA118100NCI NIH HHS R01 CA216991
6 · The paper itself

Abstract

abstractMelanoma brain metastasis is linked to dismal prognosis and low overall survival and is detected in up to 80% of patients at autopsy. Circulating tumor cells (CTC) are the smallest functional units of cancer and precursors of fatal metastasis. We previously used an unbiased multilevel approach to discover a unique ribosomal protein large/small subunit (RPL/RPS) CTC gene signature associated with melanoma brain metastasis. In this study, we hypothesized that CTC-driven melanoma brain metastasis secondary metastasis (“metastasis of metastasis” per clinical scenarios) has targeted organ specificity for the liver. We injected parallel cohorts of immunodeficient and newly developed humanized NBSGW (huNBSGW) mice with cells from CTC-derived melanoma brain metastasis to identify secondary metastatic patterns. We found the presence of a melanoma brain–liver metastasis axis in huNBSGW mice. Furthermore, RNA sequencing analysis of tissues showed a significant upregulation of the RPL/RPS CTC gene signature linked to metastatic spread to the liver. Additional RNA sequencing of CTCs from huNBSGW blood revealed extensive CTC clustering with human B cells in these mice. CTC:B-cell clusters were also upregulated in the blood of patients with primary melanoma and maintained either in CTC-driven melanoma brain metastasis or melanoma brain metastasis CTC–derived cells promoting liver metastasis. CTC-generated tumor tissues were interrogated at single-cell gene and protein expression levels (10x Genomics Xenium and HALO spatial biology platforms, respectively). Collectively, our findings suggest that heterotypic CTC:B-cell interactions can be critical at multiple stages of metastasis. SIGNIFICANCE: This study provides important insights into the relevance of prometastatic CTC:B-cell clusters in melanoma progression, extends the importance of the CTC RPL/RPS gene signature beyond primary metastasis/melanoma brain metastasis driving targeted organ specificity for liver metastasis ("metastasis of metastasis"), and identifies new targets for clinical melanoma metastasis therapies.

Indexed as

B-LymphocytesBrain NeoplasmsLiver NeoplasmsMelanomaNeoplastic Cells, CirculatingSkin NeoplasmsHumans

Identifiers

PMID39831781
PMCPMC11816052

What Socratic holds

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LicenceCC BY
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Registered trials

None linked

Read under generation 80e0d062 · epoch 390. Bibliography from PubMed, PubMed Central and OpenAlex; grants from NIH RePORTER; trial links from ClinicalTrials.gov; estimates, votes and beliefs from the Socratic graph.