Transcriptional activation of S100A2 expression by HIF-1α via binding to the hypomethylated hypoxia response elements in HCC cells.

Hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC) is one of the most prevalent and lethal cancers. Dysregulation of S100A2 has recently been found in many cancers including HCC. However, its regulatory mechanism in HCC remains poorly understood, especially in hypoxia. In this study, we found that S100A2 is upregulated and correlated with the clinicopathological features of HCC patients. Moreover, the elevated S100A2 showed worse overall survival. Functionally, S100A2 inhibition decreased the proliferation and migration of HepG2 cells. Interestingly, we found that HIF-1α directly binds to hypoxia response elements (HREs) of the S100A2 promoter region. S100A2 expression could be induced in an HIF-1α-dependent manner under hypoxia. Furthermore, S100A2 silencing significantly suppressed HCC cell proliferation and invasion under hypoxia. Mechanistically, pyrosequencing results showed that the hypomethylation status of CpG located in the HRE at the S100A2 promoter was correlated with S100A2 induction. Additionally, HIF-1α- mediated S100A2 activation was associated with TET2-related epigenetic inactivation. TET2 was enriched in the HRE of the S100A2 promoter in HepG2 cells. Finally, S100A2 methylation-related genes and pathways were analyzed. We found that the methylation of S100A2 is correlated with ANXA2, PPP1R15A, and FOS, which include in a hypoxia-related gene set from the GSEA database. Moreover, some EMT-related genes are associated with the methylation of S100A2 in HCC. Conclusively, our study thus uncovered a novel mechanism showing that hypoxia/HIF-1α signaling associated with DNA methylation enhances S100A2 expression in HCC. S100A2 may be useful as a target for facilitating novel diagnostic and therapeutic strategies in liver cancer.

Comprehensive analysis of the correlations of S100B with hypoxia response and immune infiltration in hepatocellular carcinoma.

S100B has been found to be dysregulated in many cancers including hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC). However, the functions of S100B and its underlying mechanisms in HCC remain poorly understood, especially in the tumor microenvironment. In this study, functions enrichment analysis indicated that S100B expression was correlated with hypoxia and immune responses. We found that hypoxia could induce S100B expression in an HIF-1α-dependent manner in HepG2 cells. Luciferase reporter and ChIP-qRCR assays demonstrated that HIF-1α regulates S100B transcription by directly binding to hypoxia-response elements (HREs) of the S100B promoter. Functionally, knockdown of S100B reduces hypoxia-induced HepG2 cell invasion and migration. Furthermore, GSVA enrichment results displayed that S100B and its co-expressed genes were positively correlated with EMT pathway in HCC. Additionally, GO/KEGG cluster analysis results indicated that co-expressed genes of S100B were involved in biological processes of immune response and multiple tumor immune-related signaling pathways in HCC. S100B expression was positively correlated with multiple immune cells tumor infiltration and associated with chemokines/chemokine receptors and immune checkpoint genes. Moreover, S100B is predominantly expressed in immune cells, especially NK (Natural Killer) cell. In addition, the hub genes of S100B co-expression and hypoxia response in HepG2 cell were also associated with immune cells infiltration in HCC. Taken together, these findings provide a new insight into the complex networks between hypoxia response and immune cells infiltration in tumor microenvironment of liver cancer. S100B maybe serve as a novel target for future HCC therapies.

SPATS2 is positively activated by long noncoding RNA SNHG5 via regulating DNMT3a expression to promote hepatocellular carcinoma progression.

Hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC) is one of the most prevalent malignant tumors with high mortality worldwide. Spermatogenesis-associated serine-rich 2 (SPATS2) could be a novel diagnostic and prognostic biomarker in HCC. However, the regulatory mechanism of SPATS2 in HCC requires further elucidation. Therefore, the study's objective was to investigate this process in HCC. In this study, we found that SPATS2 is significantly upregulated in HepG2 cells to promote cell growth and migration. SPATS2 is the target transcript of lncRNA SNHG5. SPATS2 positively affects the proliferation and migration of HepG2 cells caused by the higher expression of SNHG5. Mechanistically, we identified that the elevated of SPATS2 was attributed to SNHG5 related hypomethylation of SPATS2. SNHG5 reduced the expression of DNMT3a to suppress the methylation level of SPATS2. Taken together, our results uncover a novel epigenetic regulatory mechanism of lncRNA SNHG5-DNMT3a axis-related SPATS2 expression underlying HCC progression. This may serve as a novel prognostic marker and a promising therapeutic target for the treatment of HCC.

Mesenchymal stem cells from bone marrow show a stronger stimulating effect on megakaryocyte progenitor expansion than those from non-hematopoietic tissues.

In order to evaluate whether mesenchymal stem cells (MSCs) from non-hematopoietic tissues are able to regulate megakaryocytopoiesis, we identified human MSCs from adult bone marrow (ABM), fetal pancreas (FPan) and umbilical cord (UC), and their abilities to support megakaryocyte (MK) differentiation from CD34(+) hematopoietic progenitor cells (HPCs) were comparatively studied. First, MSCs were isolated from ABM, FPan and UC then their growth kinetics, molecular characterization and mesodermal differentiation capacity were determined. ABM-MSCs, FPan-MSCs and UC-MSCs were irradiated and cocultured with human umbilical cord blood (UCB) CD34(+) cells, and the expansion efficiency of MK progenitor cells and MK formation were analysed and compared. Finally, SCF, IL-6 and GM-CSF expression by the three types of MSCs were also examined. Our results showed that FPan-MSCs and UC-MSCs shared most of the characteristic of ABM-MSCs, including morphology, immunophenotype, adipogenic and osteogenic differentiation potentials. Compared with ABM-MSCs, fetal MSCs had higher proliferative capacity. After 7 days' coculture, the maximal production of CD34(+)/CD41a(+) cells was obtained in a group of CD34(+) HPCs + ABM-MSCs. Furthermore, this group produced more MK colonies than other groups (p < 0.05). Surface antigen and ploidy analysis morphological observation demonstrated that a proportion of expanded cells in each group differentiated into mature MKs. ABM-MSCs, FPan-MSCs and UC-MSCs were revealed to express SCF, IL-6 and GM-CSF at mRNA level. We conclude that FPan-MSCs and UC-MSCs have the ability to promote megakaryocytopoiesis, while ABM-MSCs expand more MK progenitor cells from CD34(+) HPCs than MSCs from non-hematopoietic tissues and CD34(+) cells alone.

Human umbilical cord derived stem cells for the injured heart.

The limited ability of the heart to regenerate damaged tissue following a myocardial infarct results in progressive dysfunctions and consequently leads to heart failure. Cell therapy with stem cells for cardiac repair is emerging as an alternative strategy and demonstrates promising results. Recent advances suggest human umbilical cord may be a new source for stem cells. Human umbilical cords are easy to obtain and umbilical cord derived stem cells can be easily extracted and cryopreserved, allowing for individuals to store their own samples for possible future autologous use even if there were no immediate indication that stem cell therapy would be required. Therefore, we hypothesize that human umbilical cord derived stem cells may be the new cell source for the injured heart.

[Neovascularization potential of mobilized peripheral mononuclear cells from diabetes patients].

OBJECTIVE: To determine whether mobilized peripheral blood mononuclear cells (M-PBMNCs) obtained from patients with diabetes was impaired in therapeutic neovascularization in limb ischemia, and to explore the pathological mechanisms of the impairment. METHODS: Endothelial progenitor cells (EPC) were cultured in EGM-2MV, and then characterized by uptake of 1, 1-dioctadecyl-3, 3, 3, 3-tetramethylindocarbocyanine-labeled acetylated low density lipoprotein (Dil-AcLDL) and binding of ulex europaeus agglutinin (UEA). The number of EPC was compared between M-PBMNCs obtained from diabetic patients and those from normal subjects. M-PBMNCs obtained from diabetic patients, M-PBMNCs obtained from normal controls, or PBS were injected into the ischemic limbs of streptozotocin-induced diabetic nude mice. The limb blood perfusion was detected by laser Doppler blood perfusion imaging between these three groups in the following 1, 3, 7, 14, 21, and 28 days. Ambulatory score and ischemia damage were evaluated in the following 4 weeks. Capillary/fiber ratio was detected by CD31 or BS-1 lectin, and arteriole density was detected by alpha-smooth muscle actin (alpha-SMactin). RESULTS: The number of EPC from diabetic patients were positively correlated with the blood perfusion (R = 0.486, P < 0.05) and capillary density (R = 0.491, P < 0.05), and the EPC number in diabetic patient were negatively correlation with their disease courses (R = - 0.587, P < 0.05). Transplantation of diabetic M-PBMNCs augmented the blood perfusion of ischemia hindlimbs, increased the capillary and arteriole densities, and promoted the collateral vessel formation. However, all the improvements were less significant in the diabetic patients than in the non-diabetic patients (P < 0.05). CONCLUSION: Diabetes decreased the capability of M-PBMNCs to augment neovascularization in ischemia.

[Concentration and Size Distribution Characteristics of Culturable Bioaerosols at Various Air Quality Levels During Fall and Winter in Xi'an, China].

The concentration and size distribution of culturable bacteria and fungi were studied in Xi'an city at various air quality levels. The culturable bioaerosols were collected by an Andersen bioaerosol aerosol sampler between Sept. 2014 and Jan. 2015. Principal component analysis and multiple linear regressions were applied to link the concentrations with meteorological conditions including ambient temperature and relative humidity, as well as the levels of air pollutants such as PM2.5, PM10, NO2, SO2, and O3. These measured results showed that the concentration of culturable bacteria and fungi were in the ranges of 97-1909 CFU·m-3 and 92-1737 CFU·m-3, respectively. The concentrations of culturable bioaerosols increased along with a deterioration in air quality. The size distribution of the bacteria migrated to coarse particles. Fungal aerosols showed a normal distribution at low pollution levels, while for a high levels, they preferenced fine particles. Results from the principal component analysis (PCA) indicate that the concentration of culturable bioaerosols is mainly influenced by haze, solar radiation, and relative humidity. Multiple linear regression analysis showed that bacterial aerosol concentrations are positively correlated with haze (P<0.05) and relative humidity, while no significant negative correlations with solar radiation exists. Fungal aerosol concentrations did not have significant positive correlations with haze, solar radiation, or relative humidity. The results of this study will provide basic data for evaluating the effects of bioaerosols on human health and the environment.

[Human coagulation factor IX gene therapy in murine hemophilia B by hydrodynamic delivery and site-specific genomic integration].

OBJECTIVE: To investigate whether the plasmid bearing attB and human coagulation factor IX (hFIX) coding sequence could insert into hemophilia B mice genome and persistently express hFIX with co-injected integrase. METHODS: The plasmid attB-hFIX-pIRES2-EGFP was constructed, which bore attB site and hFIX coding sequence and was proved in vitro to express hFIX. The plasmid and CMV-int expressing integrase was co-infused rapidly in a large-volume solution through tail vein of hemophilia B mice. Mice infused with the plasmid alone served as controls. ELISA was performed to determine serum hFIX level. Correction of coagulation defect in vivo by plasmid infusion was assessed by bleeding time. Genomic integration of the plasmid was determined by nested PCR. RESULTS: The plasmid attB-hFIX-pIRES2-EGFP was successfully constructed. The hemophilia B mice produced (1533 ± 239) ng/ml hFIX at 24 hour after infusion of the hFIX encoding plasmid and the bleeding diathesis of the hemophilia B mice was significantly corrected as measured by clotting assays. However, whether or not co-injected with CMV-int, the serum hFIX level decreased to background level in 10 days after infusion. Nested-PCR results indicated that the integrase phiC31 resulted in the integration of the plasmid in the mouse liver chromosomes. CONCLUSION: Integrase phiC31 can catalyze recombination of 34 bp attB and pseudo-attP. Human FIX driven by CMV promoter can be transiently and highly expressed after infusion, but rapidly silenced in vivo.

[Construction and identification of a novel adeno-integrase hybrid system for hemophilia B].

This study was aimed to construct an adenovirus hybrid system with high transduction efficiency and site-specific integration. By a series of DNA manipulation, a hybrid system of two adenovirus vectors was constructed. One vector contains loxP-flanked transgene expression cassette, in which there are hFIX and DsRed coding sequences and attB for phiC31 recolonization. The other vector carries Cre and phiC31 gene. Vectors only expressing Cre or phiC31 were used as controls. 293A cells were constructed and transfected with the adenoviral vectors by Lipofectamine 2000, and the expression of target genes was identified by fluorescence microscopy and RT-PCR. The results showed that after being identified by PCR, restriction analysis and sequencing, an adeno-integrase hybrid system was successfully constructed. The system expressed RFP, GFP, hFIX, Cre and phiC31 in 293A cells in vitro. It is concluded that the adeno-integrase hybrid system is successfully constructed, which lays a good foundation for further investigation of its therapeutic application.

More mesenchymal stem cells enriched from bone marrow aspirates by culturing bone marrow particles and mononuclear cells separately.

Bone marrow (BM) is the major source of mesenchymal stem cells (MSC). In most experiments, MSC were classically cultured from mononuclear cells (MNC) isolated by density gradient centrifugation method. However, several studies have demonstrated that this method was less efficient for MSC recovery. This study was aimed to investigate whether BM particles were the cause resulting in less efficiency of this method and how to isolate them. A total of 20 patients were enrolled in this study. MNC were cultured by standard adherence and BM particles were cultivated by primary explant culture. For BM from patients 1-10, MNC were first isolated and BM particles were then filtered out. The morphology and the fibroblastic colony number were compared between cultures of MNC and BM particles. For BM from patients 11-20, MNC isolation and BM particle filtration were processed in opposite order, then the immunophenotype and function between adherent cells expanded from MNC and BM particles were compared. In addition, for patients 11-20, the left BM aspirates were cultured too after BM particles and MNC were isolated separately. The results showed that adherent cells from BM particles were MSC. After BM particles were filtered out and cultured separately, MSC could be recovered completely from MNC isolated by density gradient centrifugation and no MSC were left in the residual BM aspirates. BM particles, which have been mostly discarded by the method of density gradient centrifugation, are another important source of MSC and they can be cultivated reliably by primary explant culture. It is concluded that more MSC are recovered from a single BM sample by culturing BM particles and MNC separately.

[Transfusion of allogeneic mesenchymal stem cells promotes progression of atherosclerotic plaque in rabbits].

The present study was purposed to evaluate the safety of mesenchymal stem cell (MSC)-based therapy impacting on atherosclerosis. Allogeneic MSCs were obtained from rabbit bone marrow aspirates and expanded in vitro. New Zealand white rabbits were divided into three groups: 24 rabbits with hypercholesterolemia receiving intravenous injection of either 5 x 10(7) MSCs (n = 12) or saline (n = 12) after 5 weeks on a high lipid diet and additional rabbits (n = 6) fed with standard rabbit diet were served as controls. Body weight and blood lipids were measured at weeks 0, 5, 9 and 13 during the study. All rabbits were sacrificed at week 13. Atherosclerotic lesion size and vasa vasorum were evaluated by using pathological analysis and immunocytochemical technique. The results showed that the aortic sinus lesion size significantly increased in rabbits infused with MSCs as compared with controls receiving saline (23.35 +/- 3.51% and 11.39 +/- 3.08% respectively). The lesion size in whole aortas of MSC-treated rabbits was 76.64 +/- 12.70% versus 57.61 +/- 9.00% in saline-treated animals (p < 0.05). Moreover, vasa vasorum networks in MSC-treated aortas were more numerous and had increased capillary density. It is concluded that the allogeneic MSC transfusion may result in an increase in atherosclerotic lesion size. In cell therapy with MSCs or cell populations containing MSCs a strategy to attenuate the high potential of MSCs involved in atherogenesis of atherosclerosis should be taken in account.

[Comparative study of in vitro hematopoietic supportive capability of human mesenchymal stem cells derived from bone marrow and umbilical cord].

The present study was aimed to isolate and identify human mesenchymal stem cells from adult bone marrow (BM-MSC) and umbilical cord (UC-MSC), and to compare their ability to support in vitro long-term hematopoiesis. MSC from bone marrow and umbilical cord were isolated by using density gradient centrifugation or enzyme digestion. MSC were further purified by adherent culture. Immunophenotype, adipogenic and osteogenic differentiation potential of BM-MSC and UC-MSC were detected. The hematopoietic supporting capacity of BM-MSC and UC-MSC was assessed by LTC-IC assay. Nonadherent cells in each group were collected for phenotypic analysis at 3, 5 and 7th week of culture. The results showed that BM-MSC and UC-MSC in culture shared a similar spindle-shaped morphology and adhered to the tissue culture substrate. They were both positive for CD90, CD105, CD73, CD29, CD54, CD166, HLA-ABC, and negative for HLA-DR, CD34 and CD45. BM-MSC and UC-MSC could differentiate into adipocytes or osteoblasts confirmed by oil red O staining and von Kossa staining, separately. LTC-IC assay showed that at 5th week of culture, the difference of the CFC yields between UC-MSC group and BM-MSC group was not statistically significant (p>0.05). At 6, 7, 9th week of culture, the CFC yields in the UC-MSC group were lower than those of BM-MSC (p<0.05). The phenotypic analysis of nonadherent cells at 3, 5, 7th week of culture indicated that along with prolongation of time, the percentages of CD34+ cells and CD117+ cells in each group decreased markedly, and the percentages of CD33+ cells, CD13+ cells and CD11b+ cells increased gradually. It is concluded that MSC from human adult bone marrow and umbilical cord can be successfully isolated and identified. UC-MSC are able to support long-term hematopoiesis in vitro, but its hematopoietic supportive capacity is weaker than those of BM-MSC.

[Reversal of leukemia multidrug resistance by sequence-specific short hairpin RNA].

This study was aimed to design and screen short hairpin RNA (shRNA) molecules targeting multidrug resistance gene (mdr1), as well as to investigate the effects of shRNA expression vector on K562/A02 cells. Mdr1-shRNA expression vector was transfected into K562/A02 cells by lipofectamine 2000, and G418 was added to screen and establish the stable expression cell strain. The expressions of mdr1 mRNA and protein were detected by real-time RT-PCR and Western blot respectively. The sensitivity of cells to chemodrugs after interference were tested by CCK8 assay. The function of p-glycoprotein was determined by Rhodamine 123 efflux experiment. The results showed that all of 4 mdr1-shRNA expression vectors could significantly knockdown the expression of p-glycoprotein as compared with control vector, moreover, the vector targeting 508 - 526 sites of mdr1 gene was the best one. It is concluded that the mdr1-shRNA expression vector gained by screening can significantly knockdown the expression of mdr1 gene and reverse leukemia drug resistance, paving the way for the application of RNAi in the following animal experiments.

[The therapeutic efficacy for limb ischemia by transplantation of mobilized peripheral blood cells before and after CD34+ cell depletion].

OBJECTIVE: To explore the mechanism of the therapeutic efficiency of mobilized peripheral blood mononuclear cells (PBMNCs) with and without CD34+ cell depletion in ischemia nude mice. METHODS: After femoral ligation of mice, 1 x 10(6) PBMNCs, CD34+ cell depletion PBMNCs, or PBS were intramuscularly injected into the ischemic limb. Blood perfusion, ischemia damage, and capillary density of the limb were observed. VEGF expression in ischemic limbs was assayed by ELISA and immunohistochemistry. RESULTS: PBMNCs transplant greatly improved the recovery of ischemic limbs. At day 28 after surgery, the blood perfusion rate of ischemic limbs recovered to (96.4 +/- 5.6)% from (20.3 +/- 4.2)% in PBMNCs transplanted group, compared with (71.3 +/- 4.4) % in PBS group (P <0.01). Depletion of CD34+ cells reduced the perfusion ratio to (83.8 +/- 5.2)% (P < 0.05). Capillary density in PBMNCs transplanted group was (521 +/- 47)/mm2, while in CD34+ cell-depleted group [ (396 +/- 21)/mm2] (P < 0.05). PBMNCs were found to incorporate into vascular network. VEGF was greatly up-regulated after transplantation of PBMNCs and was secreted in situ. CONCLUSION: Transplantation of mobilized PBMNCs augments neovascularization in ischemic limb via supply of stem/progenitor cells and angiogenic factors. Depletion of CD34+ cells impaired therapeutic efficacy for limb ischemia.

Enhancement of neovascularization with mobilized blood cells transplantaion: supply of angioblasts and angiogenic cytokines.

We have recently provided evidence that transplantation of G-CSF mobilized peripheral blood mononuclear cells (M-PBMNCs) improves limb ischemia in diabetic patients. This method represents a simple, safe, effective, and novel therapeutic approach for diabetic ischemia. Here we investigated the mechanisms by which mobilized blood cells transplantation improves limb ischemia. Unilateral hindlimb ischemia was surgically induced in streptozotocin-induced diabetic nude mice, and they were intramuscularly injected 10(6) M-PBMNCs, or human umbilical vein endothelial cells (HUVECs), PBS controls. We compared their blood-flow restoration via laser Doppler perfusion image (LDPI), angiogenesis via histological determination of capillary density. Physiological and histological assessment revealed an acceleration of ischemia recovery and increase in capillary density with less apoptosis in M-PBMNCs group, compared with those in HUVECs and PBS groups. In vivo noninvasive imaging and immunofluorescence revealed the survival, migration, proliferation, differentiation, and incorporation of M-PBMNCs into foci of vessel networks. More angioblasts were from blood cells after mobilization, and they also produced a number of antiapoptotic and proagniogenic factors that promoted angiogenesis in vivo. M-PBMNCs and its conditioned medium augmented the vessel formation in matrigel plugs in vivo. Thus, transplantation of M-PBMNCs achieved therapeutic neovascularization via supply of abundant angioblasts and angiogenic factors.

Impaired therapeutic vasculogenesis by transplantation of OxLDL-treated endothelial progenitor cells.

Previous in vitro studies have revealed that oxidized low density lipoprotein (OxLDL) has negative effects on the proliferation and activity of endothelial progenitor cells (EPCs). Here, we evaluated the effect of OxLDL on the therapeutic potential of EPCs in ischemia-induced neovascularization. EPCs derived from mobilized human peripheral blood mononuclear cells were cultured without or with OxLDL before transplantation. Hindlimb ischemia models were surgically induced in athymic nude mice, which then received an intracardiac injection of 3 x 10(5) EPCs. By laser Doppler perfusion image and ischemia damage score, we found that blood perfusion and ischemia damage were less well recovered in the OxLDL-treated EPC transplantation group than in controls. Histological examination showed fewer transplanted EPCs and lower capillary density in ischemic tissue. Local delivery of Stromal cell-derived factor (SDF-1) restored this defect and improved blood perfusion by recruiting OxLDL-treated EPCs to the ischemic area and increasing host capillary density. These results provide for the first time direct evidence that OxLDL impaired the therapeutic potential of EPCs in ischemia-induced neovascularization through an inhibitory effect on the migration, adhesion, and incorporation of EPCs into vasculature and/or entrapment in the perivascular region in vivo. A therapeutic strategy based on SDF-1 administration ameliorated such defects and improved postischemic neovascularization.