Senescence-related signatures predict prognosis and response to immunotherapy in colon cancer.

Background: Colorectal cancer (CRC) is one of the most common cancers. Cellular senescence plays a vital role in carcinogenesis by activating many pathways. In this study, we aimed to identify biomarkers for predicting the survival and recurrence of CRC through cellular senescence-related genes. Methods: Utilizing The Cancer Genome Atlas (TCGA) and Gene Expression Omnibus (GEO) databases, RNA-sequencing data and clinical information for CRC were collected. A risk model for predicting overall survival was established based on five differentially expressed genes using least absolute shrinkage and selection operator-Cox regression (LASSO-Cox regression), receiver operating characteristic (ROC), and Kaplan-Meier analyses. The study also delved into both the tumor microenvironment and the response to immunotherapy. Moreover, we gathered clinical sample data from our center in order to confirm the findings of public database analysis. Results: Through ROC and Kaplan-Meier analyses, a risk model was developed using five cellular senescence-related genes [i.e., CDKN2A, SERPINE1, SNAI1, CXCL1, and ETS2] to categorize patients into high- and low-risk groups. In the TCGA-colon adenocarcinoma (COAD) and GEO-COAD cohorts, the high-risk group was associated with a bleaker forecast (P<0.05), immune cell inactivation, and insensitivity to immunotherapy in IMvigor210 database (http://research-pub.gene.com/IMvigor210CoreBiologies/). Clinical samples were then used to confirm that ETS2 and CDKN2A could serve as independent prognostic biomarkers in CRC. Conclusions: Gene signatures related to cellular senescence, specifically involving CDKN2A and ETS2, are emerging as promising biomarkers for predicting CRC prognosis and guiding immunotherapy.

Quantitative detection of mpox antigen using time-resolved fluorescence immunochromatography.

Recently, concern has been raised about the spread of human mpox virus, and the demand for rapid detection reagents for mpox virus has increased. This study aims to establish a time-resolved fluorescence immunochromatography (TRFICO) method for qualitative/quantitative detection of mpox virus. A double-antibody sandwich TRFICO method was optimized and established using mpox recombinant fusion antigen and its paired monoclonal antibody. The test performance of the method was evaluated using mpox fusion antigen and control serum, including sensitivity, linearity range, specificity, precision, and reference interval. We successfully established a TRFICO method for qualitative/quantitative detection of mpox antigen, its linearity range 0-100 ng/mL, analytical sensitivity 0.017 ng/mL, and reference intervals greater than 0.045 ng/mL. No cross-reaction was detected with various poxvirus and clinical negative controls, with good specificity. All average recoveries of the intra- and inter-batch ranged from 81.33% to 97.83%, and all CVs were below 10%. Additionally, the TRFICO strips can be stably stored at 37°C for 7 days without significant changes in the fluorescence intensity. This TRFICO method, with high sensitivity, linearity range, specificity, precision, and stability with 16-min detection time, provides a new option for qualitative/quantitative and convenient testing of mpox virus.

Development of a time-resolved fluorescence immunoassay kit for detecting canine coronavirus and parvovirus through double labeling.

OBJECTIVE: Canine enteric coronavirus (CCV) and canine parvovirus type 2 (CPV-2) are the main pathogens responsible for acute gastroenteritis in dogs, and both single and mixed infections are common. This study aimed to establish a double-labeling time-resolved fluorescence immunoassay (TRFIA) to test and distinguish CCV and CPV-2 diseases. METHODS: A sandwich double-labeling TRFIA method was established and optimized using europium(III) (Eu3+)/samarium(III) (Sm3+) chelates. CCV/CPV-2 antigens were first captured by the immobilized antibodies. Then, combined with Eu3+/Sm3+-labeled paired antibodies, the Eu3+/Sm3+ fluorescence values were detected after dissociation to calculate the CCV/CPV-2 ratios. The performance, clinical performance and methodology used for laboratory (sensitivity, specificity, accuracy and stability) testing were evaluated. RESULTS: A double-label TRFIA for CCV and CPV-2 detection was optimized and established. The sensitivity of this TRFIA kit was 0.51 ng/mL for CCV and 0.80 ng/mL for CPV-2, with high specificity for CCV and CPV-2. All the accuracy data were less than 10%, and the recovery ranged from 101.21 to 110.28%. The kits can be temporarily stored for 20 days at 4 °C and can be stored for 12 months at temperatures less than - 20 °C. Based on a methodology comparison of 137 clinically suspected patients, there was no statistically significant difference between the TRFIA kit and the PCR method. Additionally, for CCV detection, the clinical sensitivity was 95.74%, and the clinical specificity was 93.33%. For CPV-2 detection, the clinical sensitivity was 92.86%, and the clinical specificity was 96.97%. CONCLUSION: In this study, a double-label TRFIA kit was prepared for CCV and CPV-2 detection with high laboratory sensitivity, specificity, accuracy, stability, clinical sensitivity and specificity. This kit provides a new option for screening/distinguishing between CCV and CPV-2 and may help improve strategies to prevent and control animal infectious diseases in the future.

Simultaneous Detection of Prolactin and Growth Hormone Using a Dual-label Time-resolved Fluorescence Immunoassay.

Prolactin (PRL) and growth hormone (GH) are two important hormones secreted by the pituitary gland, and their abnormal levels are often related to disease status. This study aimed to establish a new dual-label time-resolved fluorescence immunoassay (TRFIA) to quantitatively measure PRL and GH levels in serum. A sandwich TRFIA was optimized and established: anti-PRL/GH antibodies immobilized on 96-well plates captured PRL/GH and then banded together with anti-PRL/GH paired antibodies labeled with europium(III) (Eu3+)/samarium(III) (Sm3+) chelates. Finally, a time-resolved analyzer measured the Eu3+/Sm3+ fluorescence values. Clinical serum samples were used to evaluate the detection performance of this method. The sensitivities of this dual-label TRFIA were 0.35 ng/mL and 0.45 ng/mL, respectively, and the detection range was between 0.1 and 1000 ng/mL. All the cross-reactivities were lower than 1.07%. The intra-assay and interassay coefficients of variation were 2.18-7.85% and 2.25-7.30%, respectively. Compared with the registered TRFIA kits, a high Pearson coefficient (r = 0.9626 and 0.9675) was observed. This dual-label TRFIA has high sensitivity, accuracy and specificity with good clinical detection performance, representing a suitable alternative to existing methods for determining PRL and GH levels, and is expected to be used in the clinic in the future.

Development of a fluorescence immunochromatography method for quantitative measurement of matrix metalloproteinase-9.

Objective: Abnormal serum matrix metalloproteinase-9 (MMP-9) levels are closely related to the occurrence and development of many diseases. This study aimed to establish a fluorescence immunochromatography (FIC) method using the lanthanide fluorescent element europium(III) (Eu3+) for the quantitative measurement of MMP-9 in serum. Design & Methods: The FIC method for quantifying MMP-9 was optimized and established, and the FIC test strips (FICTS) were assembled and subsequently evaluated for sensitivity, specificity and precision. Furthermore, the reference interval and clinical sensitivity/specificity were estimated using clinical healthy/positive serum samples, and a commercial ELISA was used for comparison. Results: We successfully established an FIC method and prepared FICTS. The analytical sensitivity of the FICTS was 0.92 ng/mL, with a linearity range of 0-1000 ng/mL. The cross-reactivity of the 7 common serum interferents was less than 1.56%. All recoveries of the intra-array and inter-array samples ranged from 102.50% to 110.99%, and all CVs were less than 5%. The reference interval of the FICTS was >161.15 ng/mL. The clinical sensitivity was 96.00%, and the specificity was 97.5%. The results of 270 clinical serum samples were highly coincident with the clinical diagnostic results. Pearson correlation analysis and Bland‒Altman plots indicated that the FICTS and commercial ELISA results were consistent with the quantitative MMP-9 concentration. Conclusions: The designed FIC method and test strips may be suitable for point-of-care quantitative measurement of MMP-9, which provides a new method for screening for atherosclerosis, xerophthalmia, etc.

Determination of serum CA724 levels using fluorescence immunochromatography.

BACKGROUND: Carbohydrate antigen 724 (CA724) is a sensitive and specific indicator for multiple malignant tumors. The aim of this study was to establish a Eu-time resolved fluorescence immunochromatography (Eu-TRFICO) method for quantitative detection of CA724 in serum. METHODS: Eu-TRFICO strips were optimized and assembled. The sensitivity, specificity and precision were evaluated using CA724 standard dilutions and matrix serum. Meanwhile, the reference interval, comparison, and sensitivity/specificity were performed using clinical negative/positive gastric cancer serum samples. RESULTS: The standard curve equation was y = 9.869 x - 154.12 (R2 = 0.993), and the sensitivity was 0.42 U/mL. The common interferents in serum could not affect the quantitative results with low cross-reactivities (all no more than 1.09%). All average recoveries of the intra- and interbatch ranged from 102.38 to 106.40%, and all CVs were below 10%. The reference interval of the healthy subjects was < 4.68 U/mL and the reference interval of the subjects with grade I/II gastric cancer was > 9.54 U/mL. Additionally, a high Pearson r (0.9503) and sensitivity/specificity (92.86%/94.20%) were obtained. CONCLUSION: This study prepared Eu-TRFICO strips with high sensitivity, specificity, precision and satisfactory clinical testing performance, which provides more options for clinical quantitative and convenient testing of CA724.

Determination of echinococcosis IgG antibodies using magnetic bead-based chemiluminescence immunoassay.

Echinococcosis is a kind of parasitic disease shared by humans and animals. The aim of this study was to establish a new detection method for echinococcosis screening using magnetic bead-based chemiluminescence immunoassay (CLIA). A magnetic bead-based CLIA to determine anti-echinococcosis IgG antibodies was optimized and established. The sensitivity, accuracy, precision and recovery rate were evaluated using the national reference serum, and the reference interval, specificity and comparison assays were performed using the clinical negative/positive echinococcosis serum samples. This study established a new CLIA to determine anti-echinococcosis IgG antibodies. The sensitivity of this CLIA method was higher than that of the registered ELISA kit and the national standard, the conformance rate of the negative/positive references was 100% (8/8), the CVs of the sensitivity reference were all below 5%, and the CVs of the precision reference were 5.7%. There was no obvious cross-reactivity with the common parasitic disease-positive serum and serum interferents. Clinical sample testing found that the cutoff value of this CLIA was 5537.15 (RLU), and there was no significant difference between the CLIA method and the registered ELISA kit. This study established a fully automated CLIA method with high sensitivity, specificity, accuracy, precision, recovery rate, and satisfactory clinical testing performance, which may provide a new choice for echinococcosis screening.

A New Method for Early Screening of Gastric Cancer (G17 and CA724 Dual-Labeled Time-Resolved Fluorescence Immunoassay).

Gastric carcinoma (GC) is one of the most common malignancies in the world with the great early screening challenges. The study is aimed at establishing a new detection method for early screening GC using time-resolved fluorescence immunoassay (TRFIA) via quantitative detection of gastrin-17 (G-17) and carbohydrate antigen 724 (CA724) in serum. Time-resolved analyzer measured the fluorescence intensity. The standards of G-17/CA724 were used for drawing the standard curve, which is used to calculate the concentration of G-17 and CA724 in serum sample. The sensitivity for G-17 was 0.54 pg/mL and for CA724 was 0.28 U/mL with a wide-range analyze concentration (0.1-1000) pg/mL or U/mL. The average recoveries ranged from 100.52% to 110.30% for G-17 and 103.02% to 116.00% for CA724. All CVs of the intra- and interassay were below 10% with high specificity. There was a high Pearson coefficient between this TRFIA method and the commercially available kits (Pearson r 0.9117 for G-17 and 0.9449 for CA724). Additionally, the cutoff value was 88.41 pg/mL and 5.47 U/mL for CA724 in health subjects. This study established a TRFIA method for simultaneous detection of the concentrations of G-17 and CA724 in serum, which provide a new method for sensitive, accurate, and specific early screening of gastric cancer.

A New Method for Detection African Swine Fever Virus: Time-resolved Fluorescence Immunoassay.

African swine fever (ASF) has severely influenced the swine industry of the whole world. Fast and accurate African swine fever virus (ASFV) antigen detection is very important for ASF prevention. This study aims to establish a new detection method for detection ASFV antigen using time-resolved fluorescence immunoassay (TRFIA) in the nose and mouth discharge. A double antibody sandwich TRFIA method was optimized and established. Recombinant P30 recombinant antigen was captured by its antibodies immobilized on 96-well plate, and then banded together with another detection antibodies labeled with Europium(III) (Eu3+) chelates, finally time-resolved analyzer measured the fluorescence intensity. The performance of this TRFIA (sensitivity, specificity and accuracy) was evaluated using the clinical samples and compared with the nucleic acid testing method. The sensitivity of this TRFIA was 0.015 ng/mL (dynamic range 0.24-500 ng/mL) with high specificity. The recovery ranged from 92.00 to 103.62 %, the inter-assay CVs ranged from 5.50 to 11.96 %, and the intra-assay CVs was between 5.20 and 10.53 %. Additionally, the cutoff value was 0.016. TRFIA took only 45 min to generate results, and its detection capability comparable to the nucleic acid detection. This study developed a TRFIA method that could be used for qualitative/quantitative detection of ASFV antigen in pigs nasal discharge, which has high sensitivity, specificity and accuracy. This TRFIA provides a new method for rapidly screening ASFV infection in pigs industry.

Determination of parvovirus antigen in the vaccine using time-resolved fluorescence immunoassay.

As a highly contagious and potentially fatal disease of dogs, canine parvovirus type 2 (CPV-2) usually causes severe myocarditis and gastroenteritis, while vaccine injection has greatly reduced the incidence of CPV-2 diseases. However, there is currently a lack of simple and effective method for quantitative detection of CPV-2 in vaccine. Therefore, this study aims to prepare an accurate method to determine the CPV-2 antigen (CPV-2-Ag) in vaccine. Here, a sandwich time-resolved fluorescence immunoassay (TRFIA) was established and optimized. Anti-CPV-2 antibodies were immobilized on 96-well plates to capture CPV-2-Ag, and then bound together with the detection antibodies labeled with Europium(III) (Eu3+ ) chelates; finally, time-resolved fluorometry was employed to measure the fluorescence intensity. Vaccination was performed to evaluate the relationship between CPV-2-Ag concentration and antibody titer. The sensitivity is 1.15 mEU/mL (LogY = 1.524 + 0.8667 × LogX, R2  = 0.9933), and the average recovery is among 91.00% to 106.39% without cross-reactions with the other canine viral antigen. The correlation between ELISA assay and this method is up to 0.9861. And, there is high correlation between the CPV-2-Ag concentration and antibody titers (R2  = 0.9234). This immunoassay established has high sensitivity, accuracy, and specificity, which indicate that this method could be suitable for quantitative detection of CPV-2-Ag in vaccine evaluation.

Astragaloside IV inhibits excessive mesangial cell proliferation and renal fibrosis caused by diabetic nephropathy via modulation of the TGF-ß1/Smad/miR-192 signaling pathway.

Astragaloside IV (ASI) exhibits a wide variety of pharmacological effects in cardiovascular diseases, hepatitis and kidney disease and due to this, ASI has recently become an attractive research target. The present study aimed to determine the effect of ASI on renal fibrosis and the mechanisms underlying its therapeutic effects in diabetic nephropathy (DN). In vitro, ASI was added to rat mesangial cells (RMCs) and cultured with a high level of glucose (HG) to observe the effects exhibited on proliferation and fibrosis-related mRNA and protein expression. In vivo, a DN model was established using streptozotocin administration in rats, and renal injury was evaluated using renal histological examination. The expression levels of related mRNAs and proteins were analyzed using reverse transcription-quantitative PCR, western blot analysis and immunohistochemistry. ASI was demonstrated to downregulate miR-192 expression and inhibit excessive proliferation of RMCs, which was induced by HG, in a dose-dependent manner. Additionally, ASI exhibited a therapeutic effect on DN rats. ASI was also demonstrated to decrease the miR-192 expression and mRNA and protein expression of transforming growth factor-ß1 (TGF-ß1), Smad3, α-smooth muscle actin (α-SMA) and collagen type 1 (col1), and increase the mRNA and protein expression of Smad7 in vitro and in vivo. These results suggested that ASI exhibited a therapeutic effect on DN, possibly due to the inhibition of excessive mesangial proliferation and renal fibrosis via the TGF-ß1/Smad/miR-192 signaling pathway.

Determination of parvovirus antibodies in canine serum using magnetic bead-based chemiluminescence immunoassay.

Canine parvovirus type 2 (CPV-2), as a highly contagious and potentially fatal disease of dogs and many other carnivores, usually causes severe gastroenteritis and myocarditis. Therefore, it is very necessary and urgent to have an accurate method to determine the CPV-2 antibodies (CPV-2-Ab) in canine samples. Here, a magnetic bead-based chemiluminescence immunoassay was established and optimized to detect the concentration of CPV-2-Ab in serum. And a commercial assay was also used to evaluate the consistency with our method. After optimization of the detective system, the CPV-2-Ab was captured by CPV-antigen-magnetic bead (8.3 µg/mL); then combined with the conjugation of anti-canine IgG antibody-acridinium ester (0.36 µg/mL). Finally, collected the signal (read the luminosity) after 1 H reaction time. The linear correlation coefficient (R2 ) is 0.9924. The limit of detection (sensitivity) is 0.36 ng/mL (the linear dynamic range: 1.32-93.75 ng/mL), and the average recovery is 100.89% without cross-reactions with other canine viral antibodies. The results' correlation between commercial assays and this method is 0.9888. This immunoassay establishes that it has high sensitivity, accuracy, and specificity in clinical analysis, indicating that this method could be suitable for quantitative detection of CPV-2-Ab and evaluation of vaccination effect.

A dual-label time-resolved fluorescence immunoassay for the simultaneous determination of carcinoembryonic antigen and squamous cell carcinoma antigen.

Among women worldwide, cervical cancer is the second-most common cancer, and cervical smears and DNA detection have low sensitivity or are too expensive. The concentrations of carcinoembryonic antigen (CEA) and squamous cell carcinoma (SCC) in the serum were detected using a sandwich immunoassay. The CEA and SCC in the serum were captured by anti-CEA and anti-SCC antibodies. After combining other anti-CEA- and anti-SCC-labeled antibodies with europium (III) (Eu3+ ) and samarium (III) (Sm3+ ) chelates, CEA and SCC were detected with time-resolved fluorometry (TRF). The linear correlation coefficients (R2 ) of the CEA and SCC standard curves were 0.9997 and 0.9997, respectively. The minimum detection level for CEA was 1.15 ng/mL (the linear dynamic range was 3.24-543.67 ng/mL), and the average recovery was 100.83%. The sensitivity for SCC detection was 0.54 ng/mL (the linear dynamic range was 2.47-96.58 ng/mL), and the average recovery was 101.02%. High R2 between the results of commercial assays and this method were obtained (R2  = 0.9983 for CEA, R2   = 0.9878 for SCC). These findings indicated that the dual-label TRFIA invented in this study has high sensitivity, accuracy, and specificity in clinical analysis, which indicates that this method could be used for the early diagnosis and follow-up surveillance of cervical cancer.

Effects of Acupuncture on 1-chloro-2,4-dinitrochlorobenzene-induced Allergic Contact Dermatitis in Mice.

Allergic contact dermatitis (ACD) is a chronic inflammatory skin disease. Topical corticosteroids are the first-line therapy for ACD despite their significant adverse effects. Acupuncture has been widely used in the treatment of various skin diseases, but its underlying mechanism remains unrevealed. In this study, we investigated the characteristics of acupuncture treatment based on effectiveness and mechanism. BALB/c mice received 1-chloro-2,4-dinitrobenzene (DNCB) application to build AD-like model. Results showed that acupuncture was an effective treatment method in inhibiting inflammatory conditions, serum IgE levels, and expression of proinflammatory cytokine Th2 (IL-4, IL-6), and Th2 (IL-1ß, TNF-α) mRNA compared with DNCB treatment. Acupuncture treatment also inhibited nuclear factor-κB p65, phosphorylation of IκBα, and phosphorylation of occludin proteins expression. Furthermore, it could improve the expression of epidermal growth factor in both mRNA and protein levels. These results suggest that acupuncture, as an alternative therapy treatment for its no significant side effects, was effective in alleviating ACD by reducing proinflammatory cytokines and changing proteins' expression.

EphB3-targeted regulation of miR-149 in the migration and invasion of human colonic carcinoma HCT116 and SW620 cells.

microRNAs play key roles during various crucial cell processes such as proliferation, migration, invasion and apoptosis. Also, microRNAs have been shown to possess oncogenic and tumor-suppressive functions in human cancers. Here, we describe the regulation and function of miR-149 in colorectal cancer cell lines. miR-149 expression patterns were detected in human colorectal cell lines and tissue samples, and then focused on its role in regulation of cell growth, migration, invasion, and its target gene identification. Furthermore, the function of the target gene of miR-149 was analyzed in vitro and in vivo. miR-149 expression was downregulated in human colorectal cancer HCT116 and SW620 cell lines compared to the normal colon epithelial NCM460 cell line using quantitative real-time polymerase chain reaction methods. Further studies indicated that introduction of miR-149 was able to suppress cell migration and invasion. Then, EphB3 was identified as a direct target gene of miR-149 in colorectal cancer cells. Moreover, experiments in vitro showed that knockdown expression of EphB3 could suppress cell proliferation and invasion, and ectopic expression of EphB3 restored the phenotypes of CRC cell lines transfected with miR149. In addition, silencing of EphB3 significantly affected cycle progression distribution and increased apoptosis in CRC cell lines. Finally, in vivo results demonstrated that knockdown of EphB3 by siRNA inhibited tumor growth. In conclusion,the important role of miR-149 in colorectal cancer progression suggesting that miR-149 may serve as a therapeutic target for colorectal cancer treatment.