In various embodiments a cancer treatment method is provided based on inhibition of proline catabolism. When combined with p53 restoration therapy and/or inhibition of glutaminase, the inhibition of proline catabolism results in a “synthetic lethal” and synergistic anticancer response. Novel suicide inhibitors that induce the degradation of proline dehydrogenase (PRODH) are also provided. Also provided is a method of assaying PRODH to identify responders/non-responders to inhibition of proline catabolism and/or glutaminase.

Provided are methods for detecting or isolating circulating tumor cells (CTCs) in a subject. The methods may include detecting the expression of at least one epithelial mesenchymal transition (EMT) biomarker. Further provided are kits for detecting or isolating CTCs. The kits may include antibodies to at least one EMT biomarker. Further provided are methods of predicting the responsiveness of a subject to a cancer drug, methods of targeting delivery of a cancer drug in a subject, methods of providing a cancer prognosis to a subject, and methods for following the progress of cancer in a subject.

The present invention concerns an ex vivo method for selecting patient having cancer as eligible to EGFR/RAS pathway inhibitor therapy, an EGFR/RAS pathway inhibitor for use for treating cancer in a patient, and a method for prognosis cancer outcome or progression.

The present application discloses an antibody or antigen-binding fragment thereof that binds specifically to a BAG2 polypeptide or fragment thereof, and a method of treating cancer thereof.

The present invention provides an application of a drug or a pharmaceutical composition in the treatment of cancers showing high expression of PIWI and/or an NMD complex protein, such as gastric cancer. When applied in the treatment of cancers showing high expression of PIWI and/or an NMD complex protein, such as gastric cancer, the drug or the pharmaceutical composition of the present invention not only can effectively treat cancers, particularly gastric cancer, but also has higher specificity and will not cause harm to normal cells and body functions.

Provided herein are, in various embodiments, methods of predicting a likelihood of a subject developing an acute myeloid leukemia (AML) or blast crisis (BC), methods of detecting a subject having AML or BC cells susceptible to treatment with a B cell-specific Moloney murine leukemia virus integration site 1 (Bmi-1) inhibitor, a B-cell lymphoma 2 (Bel -2) inhibitor and/or a Receptor Tyrosine Kinase Like Orphan Receptor 1 (RORI) inhibitor, methods of stratifying subjects having Myelodysplastic syndrome (MDS) or chronic phase chronic myeloid leukemia (CML), and methods of preparing a sample that is useful for performing the disclosed methods. The present invention also provides methods of treating a subject having a leukemia (e.g., MDS AML or CML) with a therapy that increases the expression or activity of miR-15a, miR-15b, miR-16-1 and/or miR-16-2 gene product, reduces the expression or activity of a target of said gene product, or a combination thereof.

The present disclosure relates to PD-1 variants having minimal mutations for enhancing binding ability to PD-L1. The PD-1 variants of the present disclosure have fewer mutations than existing PD-1 and PD-1 variants and have significantly increased binding ability to PD-L1 compared to the existing variants, thereby solving the problem of immunogenicity. In addition, since these variants are very small-sized proteins as compared to existing antibody therapeutic agents, PD-1/PD-L1 binding of tumors and immune cells in a tumor micro-environment can be effectively inhibited, and since the problem of low binding ability of PD-L1 to existing PD-1 has been solved, the therapeutic effect thereof as a therapeutic agent can be significantly improved. These variants can also be used as an imaging agent for detecting the expression level of PD-L1.

Disclosed is a synthetic T cell receptor (TCR) having antigenic specificity for an HLA-A2-restricted epitope of human papillomavirus (HPV) 16 E7, E7.sub.11-19. Related polypeptides and proteins, as well as related nucleic acids, recombinant expression vectors, host cells, and populations of cells are also provided. Antibodies, or an antigen binding portion thereof, and pharmaceutical compositions relating to the TCRs of the invention are also provided. Also disclosed are methods of detecting the presence of a condition in a mammal and methods of treating or preventing a condition in a mammal, wherein the condition is cancer, HPV 16 infection, or HPV-positive premalignancy.

Disclosed are surprising new methods and compositions for isolating extracellular microvesicles such as exosomes, particularly disease-related and phosphatidylserine (PS)-positive extracellular microvesicles as exemplified by tumor- and viral-derived exosomes. The methods of the invention are rapid, efficient, cost-effective and, importantly, are suitable for use with large volumes of biological fluids and produce antigenically intact extracellular microvesicles and exosomes. The methods and compositions are based on the surprising use of acetate buffers to isolate large quantities of extracellular microvesicles, particularly tumor-derived exosomes, from solution, without damaging their morphological or functional properties or antigenicity.

Antibodies, humanized antibodies, resurfaced antibodies, antibody fragments, derivatized antibodies, and conjugates of same with cytotoxic agents, which specifically bind to CD38, are capable of killing CD38.sup.30 cells by apoptosis, antibody-dependent cell-mediated cytotoxicity (ADCC), and/or complement-dependent cytotoxicity (CDC). Said antibodies and fragments thereof may be used in the treatment of tumors that express CD38 protein, such as multiple myeloma, chronic lymphocytic leukemia, chronic rnyelogenous leukemia, acute myelogenous leukemia, or acute lymphocytic leukemia, or the treatment of autoimmune and inflammatory diseases such as systemic lupus, rheumatoid arthritis, multiple sclerosis, erythematosus, and asthma. Said derivatized antibodies may be used in the diagnosis and imaging of tumors that express elevated levels of CD38, Also provided are cytotoxic conjugates comprising a cell binding agent and a cytotoxic agent, therapeutic compositions comprising the conjugate, methods for using the conjugates in the inhibition of cell growth and the treatment of disease, and a kit comprising the cytotoxic conjugate. In particular, the cell binding agent is a monoclonal antibody, and epitope-binding fragments thereof, that recognizes and binds the CD38 protein.