lncRNA XIST attenuates hypoxia-induced H9c2 cardiomyocyte injury by targeting the miR-122-5p/FOXP2 axis.

OBJECTIVE: To investigate the effect of lncRNA XIST on apoptosis induced by hypoxia. METHODS: We analyzed the expression levels of lncRNA XIST and miR-122-5p using RT-qPCR in hypoxia-induced cardiomyocytes. The mechanism by which lncRNA XIST affects myocardial ischemia was investigated using the cell transfection, CCK-8, and dual-luciferase reporter assays, as well as by flowcytometry, western blotting, and RNA immunoprecipitation. RESULTS: Hypoxic H9c2 cells demonstrated a decrease in their migration and invasion abilities and XIST expression and an increase in the extent of their apoptosis and expression of microRNA-122-5p. Overexpression of XIST significantly increased the H9c2 cell viability, enhanced cell migration and invasion, and decreased cell apoptosis in a hypoxic environment. The luciferase activity of XIST-WT in H9c2 cells co-transfected with XIST-WT and microRNA-122-5p mimics had decreased. The results of RNA immunoprecipitation showed that XIST interacted directly with miRNA-122-5p. Overexpression of XIST decreased the level of miRNA-122-5p significantly. mi-122-5p mimics increased H9c2 cell apoptosis and downregulated FOXP2 expression. Overexpression of FOXP2 upregulated the expression of the Bcl-2 protein in H9c2 cells transfected with microRNA-122-5p mimics and inhibited the expression of HIF-alpha, Bax, and the cleaved-caspase 9 protein. CONCLUSION: lncRNA XIST could regulate the miR-122-5p/FOXP2 axis to attenuate hypoxia-induced H9c2 cardiomyocyte injury.

EBF1 gene polymorphism and its interaction with smoking and drinking on the risk of coronary artery disease for Chinese patients.

Objective: Early B-cell factor 1 (EBF1) is a transcription factor that is expressed in early B-cells, adipocytes, and olfactory neurons, and is essential for the maturation of early B lymphocytes. The present study analyzes the influence of EBF1 gene polymorphism and its interaction with smoking and drinking on the risk of coronary artery disease (CAD). Methods: In the present study, 243 CAD cases were enrolled as the CAD group and 215 non-CAD patients as the control group by case-control study. We analyzed their genotypes of the rs987401919, rs36071027, and rs1056065671 loci of the EBF1 gene by Sanger sequencing and detected their content of HDL-C, LDL-C, and TG. Results: The C allele at the rs987401919 and rs36071027 loci of EBF1 was found to be the risk factor for CAD (Odds ratio, OR = 1.233; 95% confidence interval, CI: 1.039-1.421; P=0.017; OR = 1.487; 95% CI: 1.015-1.823; P=0.042). The interaction between single nucleotide polymorphisms (SNP) of the rs987401919 and rs36071027 loci and smoking and drinking were distinctly associated with the incidence of CAD (P<0.05). The content of systolic blood pressure (SBP), diastolic blood pressure (DBP), HDL-C, LDL-C, and TG was distinctly changed after gene mutation at the rs987401919 and rs36071027 loci (P<0.05). Conclusion: The results of the present study show that the mutation (CT+TT) at the rs987401919 and rs36071027 loci of EBF1 and its interaction with smoking and drinking are risk factors for CAD, and that the mechanism may be related to the changes in blood pressure and blood lipid content.

Establishment of a prediction model of changing trends in cardiac hypertrophy disease based on microarray data screening.

The aim of the present study was to construct a mathematical model to predict the changing trends of cardiac hypertrophy at gene level. Microarray data were downloaded from Gene Expression Omnibus database (accession, GSE21600), which included 35 samples harvested from the heart of Wistar rats on postoperative days 1 (D1 group), 6 (D6 group) and 42 (D42 group) following aorta ligation and sham operated Wistar rats, respectively. Each group contained six samples, with the exception of the samples harvested from the aorta ligated group after 6 days, where n=5. Differentially expressed genes (DEGs) were identified using a Limma package in R. Hierarchical clustering analysis was performed on common DEGs in order to construct a linear equation between the D1 and D42 groups, using linear discriminant analysis. Subsequent verification was performed using receiver operating characteristic (ROC) curve and the measurement data at day 42. A total of 319, 44 and 57 DEGs were detected in D1, D6 and D42 sample groups, respectively. AKIP1, ANKRD23, LTBP2, TGF-ß2 and TNFRSF12A were identified as common DEGs in all groups. The predicted linear equation between D1 and D42 group was calculated to be y=1.526×-186.671. Assessment of the ROC curve demonstrated that the area under the curve was 0.831, with a specificity and sensitivity of 0.8. As compared with the predictive and measurement data at day 42, the consistency of the two sets of data was 76.5%. In conclusion, the present model may contribute to the early prediction of changing trends in cardiac hypertrophy disease at gene level.

Exciton localization and optical properties improvement in nanocrystal-embedded ZnO core-shell nanowires.

We present a comparative investigation of the morphological, structural, and optical properties of vertically aligned ZnO nanowires (NWs) before and after high energy argon ion (Ar(+)) milling. It is found that the outer regions of the as-grown sample change from crystalline to amorphous, and ZnO core-shell NWs with ZnO nanocrystals embedded are formed after Ar(+) milling. Optical properties of the ZnO NWs have been investigated systematically through power and temperature dependent photoluminescence measurements, and the phenomenon of exciton localization as well as the relevant favorable photoluminescence characteristics is elucidated. Interestingly, under high density optical pumping at room temperature, coherent random lasing action is observed, which is ascribed to exciton localization and strong scattering. Our results on the unique optical properties of localized exciton in ZnO core-shell nanostructures shed light on developing stable and high-efficiency excitonic optoelectronic devices such as light-emitting diodes and lasers.

Large two-photon absorption of terpyridine-based quadrupolar derivatives: towards their applications in optical limiting and biological imaging.

Developing organic chromophores with large two-photon absorption (TPA) in both organic solvents and aqueous media is crucial owing to their applications in solid-state photonic devices and biological imaging. Herein, a series of novel terpyridine-based quadrupolar derivatives have been synthesized. The influences of electron-donating group, type of conjugated bridge, as well as solvent polarity on the molecular TPA properties have been investigated in detail. In contrast to the case in organic solvents, bis(thienyl)-benzothiadiazole as a rigid conjugated bridge will completely quench molecular two-photon emission in aqueous media. However, the combination of alkylcarbazole as the donor and bis(styryl)benzene as a conjugation bridge can enlarge molecular TPA cross-sections in both organic solvent and aqueous media. The reasonable two-photon emission brightness for the organic nanoparticles of chromophores 3-5 in the aqueous media, prepared by the reprecipitation method, enables them to be used as probes for in vivo biological imaging.