Evidence map›Paper›PMID 40528221›Full record

ArticleJournal of translational medicine2025

Airway microbiota associated D-phenylalanine promotes non-small cell lung cancer metastasis through epithelial mesenchymal transition.

Lin Gao, Hua Liao, Yuehua Chen, Cuiping Ye, Liping Huang, Mingming Xu, Jiangzhou Du, Jinming Zhang, Danhui Huang, Shaoxi Cai and 1 more

Abstract read
In one paragraph

Article in Journal of translational medicine, 2025. The graph could read no effect estimate from its abstract, so it casts no vote on the map. Cited by 7 papers.

0numbers the graph read from it
0cells of the map it votes in
7citing 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

7 citing papers in PubMed.

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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

11 authors.

Lin Gao *Chronic Airways Diseases Laboratory, Department of Respiratory and Critical Care Medicine, Nanfang Hospital, Southern Medical University, Guangzhou, China.
Hua Liao *The Fifth Affiliated Hospital, Southern Medical University, Guangzhou, China.
Yuehua ChenChronic Airways Diseases Laboratory, Department of Respiratory and Critical Care Medicine, Nanfang Hospital, Southern Medical University, Guangzhou, China.
Cuiping YeDepartment of Critical Care Medicine, Nanfang Hospital, Southern Medical University, Guangzhou, China.
Liping HuangChronic Airways Diseases Laboratory, Department of Respiratory and Critical Care Medicine, Nanfang Hospital, Southern Medical University, Guangzhou, China.
Mingming XuChronic Airways Diseases Laboratory, Department of Respiratory and Critical Care Medicine, Nanfang Hospital, Southern Medical University, Guangzhou, China.
Jiangzhou DuChronic Airways Diseases Laboratory, Department of Respiratory and Critical Care Medicine, Nanfang Hospital, Southern Medical University, Guangzhou, China.
Jinming ZhangChronic Airways Diseases Laboratory, Department of Respiratory and Critical Care Medicine, Nanfang Hospital, Southern Medical University, Guangzhou, China.
Danhui HuangChronic Airways Diseases Laboratory, Department of Respiratory and Critical Care Medicine, Nanfang Hospital, Southern Medical University, Guangzhou, China.
Shaoxi CaiChronic Airways Diseases Laboratory, Department of Respiratory and Critical Care Medicine, Nanfang Hospital, Southern Medical University, Guangzhou, China. hxkc@smu.edu.cn.
Hangming DongChronic Airways Diseases Laboratory, Department of Respiratory and Critical Care Medicine, Nanfang Hospital, Southern Medical University, Guangzhou, China. dhm@smu.edu.cn.ORCID 0000-0002-4476-9829

Funding

Basic and Applied Basic Research Foundation of Guangdong Province 2023A1515110216China Postdoctoral Science Foundation 2023M731546National Natural Science Foundation of China 82170032National Natural Science Foundation of China 82270024National Natural Science Foundation of China 82470058President Foundation of The Fifth Affiliated Hospital, Southern Medical University YZ2022ZX04
6 · The paper itself

Abstract

backgroundLung cancer is the leading cause of cancer-related death worldwide, and patients with distant metastasis have a poor prognosis. Various studies have reported that microbiota and metabolites significantly differ between healthy individuals and lung cancer patients. However, the effects of metabolites on tumor formation and metastasis are unclear. Therefore, our study aimed to determine the correlation between airway metabolites and microbiota, along with their respective roles in lung cancer metastasis.

methodsBronchoalveolar lavage fluid (BALF) samples were collected from 30 non-small cell lung cancer (NSCLC) patients, including 11 patients without metastasis (M0) and 19 patients with metastasis (M1). Integrated pathogenic metagenomic and Liquid chromatography-mass spectrometry (LC‒MS) analyses were employed to explore differences between two groups. The omics data were analyzed and integrated via Spearman's correlation coefficient. Specific metabolites were subsequently used to intervene in lung cancer cells and animal models to assess their influence on tumor metastasis.

resultsA total of 801 metabolites were identified in the BALF of all patients. Compared with those in the M0 group, 48 metabolites in the M1 group were significantly different. D-phenylalanine was notably upregulated in M1 and was positively related to Metamycoplasma salivarium. Intranasal administration of D-phenylalanine promoted tumor intrapulmonary metastasis and induced epithelial mesenchymal transition (EMT) process in NSCLC mouse models. Moreover, D-phenylalanine promotes the proliferation of non-small cell lung cancer cells and facilitates their migration and invasion via EMT.

conclusionThe airway microbiota associated D-phenylalanine could promote lung cancer metastasis via EMT, which could be a new predictor for the diagnosis of tumor metastasis in NSCLC patients.

Indexed as

Carcinoma, Non-Small-Cell LungEpithelial-Mesenchymal TransitionLung NeoplasmsMicrobiotaPhenylalanineRespiratory SystemAgedAnimalsBronchoalveolar Lavage FluidCell Line, TumorFemaleHumansMaleMiceMiddle AgedNeoplasm MetastasisPhenylalanineAirway metabolitesD-phenylalanineEpithelial mesenchymal transition (EMT)Non-small cell lung cancer (NSCLC)Tumor metastasis

Identifiers

PMID40528221
PMCPMC12175366

What Socratic holds

Textmetadata
LicenceCC BY-NC-ND
Read underepoch 390

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.