Dahuang Huanglian Xiexin Decoction ameliorates obesity via modulating adipocyte differentiation and lipid degradation through inhibiting endoplasmic reticulum stress.

Dahuang Huanglian Xiexin Decoction (DHXD) is the representative clinical formula for treating epigastric oppression. In this study, we aim to explore the effect of DHXD on obesity and attempt to investigate its potential mechanism. 3T3-L1 preadipocytes were differentiated and high-fat diet-induced obese rat model was established. DHXD was used for treatment and tunicamycin, the activator of endoplasmic reticulum (ER) stress, was adopted to investigate the related regulatory mechanism. Cell viability was evaluated using CCK-8 assay. Oil-Red O staining was performed to determine lipid accumulation. Glycerol production and Triglyceride content were measured using their commercial kits. Western blot was conducted to examine the expression of critical proteins. Results indicated that DHXD could greatly reduce intracellular lipid droplets and triglyceride in differentiated 3T3-L1 cells. Moreover, the elevated expression of mature adipocytes markers, PPARγ, aP2, during adipogenesis was decreased by DHXD treatment. In addition, DHXD aggravated the lipolysis in differentiated 3T3-L1 cells, as evidenced by the upregulated ATGL expression and the downregulated HSL expression. Besides, DHXD inhibited endoplasmic reticulum (ER) stress in 3T3-L1 cells. Further experiments indicated that the impacts of DHXD on adipocyte differentiation and lipid degradation were partly abolished by tunicamycin. Finally, DHXD alleviated lipid accumulation and ER stress in obese rats. In conclusion, DHXD ameliorates obesity via modulating adipocyte differentiation and lipid degradation through inhibiting ER stress.

Topical treatment of tea saponin stabilized silybin nanocrystal gel reduced oxidative stress in UV-induced skin damage.

UV-induced peroxidation is a significant factor in skin damage. Some natural products have been utilized to protect the skin. However, most of them suffer from issues such as poor bioavailability. A promising strategy is to prepare them as safe and convenient gels. In this study, we constructed Silybin Nanocrystal Gel (SIL-NG). Tea saponin, a spatial stabilizer that we have previously reported, was used to prepare SIL-NS and subsequently combined with xanthan gum to prepare SIL-NG with an excellent safety profile. This nanogel with a natural stabilizer has a suitable ductility and shows a good safety profile in vitro and in vivo. In L929 cells, SIL-NG was able to reduce H2O2-induced ROS levels. In addition, SIL-NG exhibited better antioxidant activity compared to SIL-NS. SIL-NG was able to reduce UVB irradiation-induced oxidative damage in mice, significantly increase SOD activity, and reduce MDA levels. In conclusion, our work gives a new perspective on the treatment of UV skin damage using natural ingredients.

Persister control by leveraging dormancy associated reduction of antibiotic efflux.

Persistent bacterial infections do not respond to current antibiotic treatments and thus present a great medical challenge. These conditions have been linked to the formation of dormant subpopulations of bacteria, known as persister cells, that are growth-arrested and highly tolerant to conventional antibiotics. Here, we report a new strategy of persister control and demonstrate that minocycline, an amphiphilic antibiotic that does not require active transport to penetrate bacterial membranes, is effective in killing Escherichia coli persister cells [by 70.8 ± 5.9% (0.53 log) at 100 µg/mL], while being ineffective in killing normal cells. Further mechanistic studies revealed that persister cells have reduced drug efflux and accumulate more minocycline than normal cells, leading to effective killing of this dormant subpopulation upon wake-up. Consistently, eravacycline, which also targets the ribosome but has a stronger binding affinity than minocycline, kills persister cells by 3 logs when treated at 100 µg/mL. In summary, the findings of this study reveal that while dormancy is a well-known cause of antibiotic tolerance, it also provides an Achilles' heel for controlling persister cells by leveraging dormancy associated reduction of drug efflux.

Shengjie Tongyu Decoction Regulates Cardiomyocyte Autophagy Through Modulating ROS-PI3K/Akt/mTOR Axis by LncRNA H19 in Diabetic Cardiomyopathy.

Context: Diabetic cardiomyopathy (DCM) is particularly dangerous in diabetes mellitus (DM). The Shengjie Tongyu decoction (SJTYD) is a well-known, traditional Chinese medicinal formulation that practitioners use to treat myocardial diseases in China; however, its role in DCM remain unclear. Objective: The study intended to investigate: (1) SJTYD's role in the treatment of DCM and its underlying mechanisms, (2) the association of autophagy with DCM, and (3) the involvement of mammalian target of rapamycin (mTOR) signaling in the regulation of DCM. Design: The research team performed an animal study. Setting: The study took place in the Department of Endocrinology in the No. 2 ward-Traditional and Complementary Medicine(TCM) of the China-Japan Friendship Hospital in Beijing, China. Animals: The animals were 60 C57/BL6 mice weighing 200-250 g. Intervention: To determine the role of SJTYD in treating DCM, the research team established a mouse model of DM using streptozotocin (STZ). The team randomly divided the mice into three groups with 20 mice each: (1) a negative control group, which didn't receive injections of STZ or treatment with SJTYD; (2) a model group, the Model group, which received injections of STZ but didn't receive treatment with SJTYD; and (3) an SJTYD group, which received injections of STZ and treatment with SJTYD. Outcome Measures: The research team: (1) conducted a differential analysis to identify the differentially expressed genes; (2) performed deep sequencing of the long noncoding RNAs (lncRNAs) expressed in cardiomyocytes from the control, Model, and SJTYD groups ; (3) performed a bioinformatics analysis; (4) used the ultrasonic and pathological, transmission electron microscopy (TEM) test as well as a Western blot to evaluate cardiac function, myocardial-injury areas, and autophagy in vivo; (5) transfected primary cardiomyocytes treated them with lncRNA H19 and SJTY 3-MA to establish SJTYD subgroups in which the H19 protected against DCM and the 3-MA inhibited autophagy; and (6) carried out immunofluorescence staining and Western blot to test the phosphorylated levels of phosphoinositide 3-kinase (PI3K)/ protein kinase B (AKT)/ mammalian target of rapamycin (mTOR) as well as autophagy levels in vitro. Results: The bioinformatics analysis indicated that SJTYD significantly modulated lncRNA H19 as well as the mTOR pathway. The vevo2100's results indicated the SJTYD reversed the cardiac-dysfunction parameters in DCM. The Masson' staining, TEM, and Western blot demonstrated that the SJTYD could suppress the myocardial-injury areas as well as the numbers of autophagosomes and the expression proteins of autophagy in vivo. The SJTYD promoted the phosphorylated-levels of PI3K, AKT, and mTOR and decreased the levels of autophagy proteins. LC3A-II and Beclin-1; lncRNA H19 amplified the SJTYD's role; and 3-MA reversed those effects, as tested using immunofluorescence and Western blot in primary cardiomyocytes. Conclusions: The SJTYD can protect against diabetic myocardial injury by inhibiting cardiomyocyte autophagy through the activation of lncRNA H19, reactive oxygen species (ROS), and the PI3K/Akt/mTOR signaling pathway. SJTYD may be an effective strategy to ameliorate diabetic myocardial injuries.

Small G protein RAC-2 regulates forgetting via the JNK-1 signalling pathway in Caenorhabditis elegans.

Although forgetting was once regarded as a passive decline in memory and an occasional source of embarrassment, recent research suggests that it is an active biological process of removing outdated or irrelevant memories via activation of specific genes and signal transduction pathways. Rho family G proteins are known to have a role in synaptic plasticity mediated by the actin cytoskeleton. However, the current study reveals that another Rho guanosine triphosphate enzyme (GTPase), RAC-2, facilitates the occurrence of forgetting in Caenorhabditis elegans independent of actin dynamics. Functioning downstream of RAC-2 in the same signalling pathway, JNK-1 and its phosphorylated protein are required to positively regulate forgetting. The pan-neuronal rescue of RAC-2 or JNK-1, instead of AWC neuron-specific expression, reverses the delayed forgetting caused by the rac-2 mutation, which indicates that the involvement of RAC-2/JNK-1 in more than AWCs must be required. In summary, our work elucidates the action of the Rho GTPase RAC-2 and downstream JNK-1 as a potential novel pathway in forgetting in C. elegans.

Novel CD44-targeting and pH/redox-dual-stimuli-responsive core-shell nanoparticles loading triptolide combats breast cancer growth and lung metastasis.

BACKGROUND: The toxicity and inefficient delivery of triptolide (TPL) in tumor therapy have greatly limited the clinical application. Thus, we fabricated a CD44-targeting and tumor microenvironment pH/redox-sensitive nanosystem composed of hyaluronic acid-vitamin E succinate and poly (ß-amino esters) (PBAEss) polymers to enhance the TPL-mediated suppression of breast cancer proliferation and lung metastasis. RESULTS: The generated TPL nanoparticles (NPs) had high drug loading efficiency (94.93% ± 2.1%) and a desirable average size (191 nm). Mediated by the PBAEss core, TPL/NPs displayed a pH/redox-dual-stimuli-responsive drug release profile in vitro. Based on the hyaluronic acid coating, TPL/NPs exhibited selective tumor cellular uptake and high tumor tissue accumulation capacity by targeting CD44. Consequently, TPL/NPs induced higher suppression of cell proliferation, blockage of proapoptotic and cell cycle activities, and strong inhibition of cell migration and invasion than that induced by free TPL in MCF-7 and MDA-MB-231 cells. Importantly, TPL/NPs also showed higher efficacy in shrinking tumor size and blocking lung metastasis with decreased systemic toxicity in a 4T1 breast cancer mouse model at an equivalent or lower TPL dosage compared with that of free TPL. Histological immunofluorescence and immunohistochemical analyses in tumor and lung tissue revealed that TPL/NPs induced a high level of apoptosis and suppressed expression of matrix metalloproteinases, which contributed to inhibiting tumor growth and pulmonary metastasis. CONCLUSION: Collectively, our results demonstrate that TPL/NPs, which combine tumor active targeting and pH/redox-responsive drug release with proapoptotic and antimobility effects, represent a promising candidate in halting breast cancer progression and metastasis while minimizing systemic toxicity.

TNIP1-mediated TNF-α/NF-κB signalling cascade sustains glioma cell proliferation.

As a malignant tumour of the central nervous system, glioma exhibits high incidence and poor prognosis. Although TNIP1 and the TNF-α/NF-κB axis play key roles in immune diseases and inflammatory responses, their relationship and role in glioma remain unknown. Here, we revealed high levels of TNIP1 and TNF-α/NF-κB in glioma tissue. Glioma cell proliferation was activated with TNF-α treatment and showed extreme sensitivity to the TNF receptor antagonist. Furthermore, loss of TNIP1 disbanded the A20 complex responsible for IκB degradation and NF-κB nucleus translocation, and consequently erased TNFα-induced glioma cell proliferation. Thus, our investigation uncovered a vital function of the TNIP1-mediated TNF-α/NF-κB axis in glioma cell proliferation and provides novel insight into glioma pathology and diagnosis.

High-Level Antibiotic Tolerance of a Clinically Isolated Enterococcus faecalis Strain.

Bacteria can survive antibiotic treatment both by acquiring antibiotic resistance genes and through mechanisms of tolerance that are based on phenotypic changes and the formation of metabolically inactive cells. Here, we report an Enterococcus faecalis strain (E. faecalis UM001B) that was isolated from a cystic fibrosis patient and had no increase in resistance but extremely high-level tolerance to ampicillin, vancomycin, and tetracycline. Specifically, the percentages of cells that survived 3.5-h antibiotic treatment (at 100 µg · ml-1) were 25.4% ± 4.3% and 51.9% ± 4.0% for ampicillin and tetracycline, respectively; vancomycin did not exhibit any significant killing. Consistent with the changes in antibiotic susceptibility, UM001B was found to have reduced penetration of ampicillin and vancomycin and accumulation of tetracycline compared to the reference strain ATCC 29212. Based on whole-genome sequencing, four amino acid substitutions were identified in one of the tetracycline efflux pump repressors (TetRs), compared to ATCC 29212. Results of molecular simulations and experimental assays revealed that these mutations could lead to higher levels of tetracycline efflux activity. Consistently, replicating these mutations in Escherichia coli MG1655 increased its tolerance to tetracycline. Overall, these findings provide new insights into the development of multidrug tolerance in E. faecalis, which can facilitate future studies to better control enterococcal infections.IMPORTANCEEnterococcus faecalis represents a major group of pathogens causing nosocomial infections that are resistant to multiple classes of antibiotics. An important challenge associated with E. faecalis infection is the emergence of multidrug-tolerant strains, which have normal MICs but do not respond to antibiotic treatment. Here, we report a strain of E. faecalis that was isolated from a cystic fibrosis patient and demonstrated high-level tolerance to ampicillin, vancomycin, and tetracycline. Whole-genome sequencing revealed critical substitutions in one of the tetracycline efflux pump repressors that are consistent with the increased tolerance of E. faecalis UM001B to tetracycline. These findings provide new information about bacterial antibiotic tolerance and may help develop more effective therapeutics.

Antibiotic Susceptibility of Escherichia coli Cells during Early-Stage Biofilm Formation.

Bacteria form complex multicellular structures on solid surfaces known as biofilms, which allow them to survive in harsh environments. A hallmark characteristic of mature biofilms is the high-level antibiotic tolerance (up to 1,000 times) compared with that of planktonic cells. Here, we report our new findings that biofilm cells are not always more tolerant to antibiotics than planktonic cells in the same culture. Specifically, Escherichia coli RP437 exhibited a dynamic change in antibiotic susceptibility during its early-stage biofilm formation. This phenomenon was not strain specific. Upon initial attachment, surface-associated cells became more sensitive to antibiotics than planktonic cells. By controlling the cell adhesion and cluster size using patterned E. coli biofilms, cells involved in the interaction between cell clusters during microcolony formation were found to be more susceptible to ampicillin than cells within clusters, suggesting a role of cell-cell interactions in biofilm-associated antibiotic tolerance. After this stage, biofilm cells became less susceptible to ampicillin and ofloxacin than planktonic cells. However, when the cells were detached by sonication, both antibiotics were more effective in killing the detached biofilm cells than the planktonic cells. Collectively, these results indicate that biofilm formation involves active cellular activities in adaption to the attached life form and interactions between cell clusters to build the complex structure of a biofilm, which can render these cells more susceptible to antibiotics. These findings shed new light on bacterial antibiotic susceptibility during biofilm formation and can guide the design of better antifouling surfaces, e.g., those with micron-scale topographic structures to interrupt cell-cell interactions.IMPORTANCE Mature biofilms are known for their high-level tolerance to antibiotics; however, antibiotic susceptibility of sessile cells during early-stage biofilm formation is not well understood. In this study, we aim to fill this knowledge gap by following bacterial antibiotic susceptibility during early-stage biofilm formation. We found that the attached cells have a dynamic change in antibiotic susceptibility, and during certain phases, they can be more sensitive to antibiotics than planktonic counterparts in the same culture. Using surface chemistry-controlled patterned biofilm formation, cell-surface and cell-cell interactions were found to affect the antibiotic susceptibility of attached cells. Collectively, these findings provide new insights into biofilm physiology and reveal how adaptation to the attached life form may influence antibiotic susceptibility of bacterial cells.

NG2 glia regulate brain innate immunity via TGF-ß2/TGFBR2 axis.

BACKGROUND: Brain innate immunity is vital for maintaining normal brain functions. Immune homeostatic imbalances play pivotal roles in the pathogenesis of neurological diseases including Parkinson's disease (PD). However, the molecular and cellular mechanisms underlying the regulation of brain innate immunity and their significance in PD pathogenesis are still largely unknown. METHODS: Cre-inducible diphtheria toxin receptor (iDTR) and diphtheria toxin-mediated cell ablation was performed to investigate the impact of neuron-glial antigen 2 (NG2) glia on the brain innate immunity. RNA sequencing analysis was carried out to identify differentially expressed genes in mouse brain with ablated NG2 glia and lipopolysaccharide (LPS) challenge. Neurotoxin 1-methyl-4-phenyl-1,2,3,6-tetrahydropyridine (MPTP)-treated mice were used to evaluate neuroinflammatory response in the presence or absence of NG2 glia. The survival of dopaminergic neurons or glial cell activation was evaluated by immunohistochemistry. Co-cultures of NG2 glia and microglia were used to examine the influence of NG2 glia to microglial activation. RESULTS: We show that NG2 glia are required for the maintenance of immune homeostasis in the brain via transforming growth factor-ß2 (TGF-ß2)-TGF-ß type II receptor (TGFBR2)-CX3C chemokine receptor 1 (CX3CR1) signaling, which suppresses the activation of microglia. We demonstrate that mice with ablated NG2 glia display a profound downregulation of the expression of microglia-specific signature genes and remarkable inflammatory response in the brain following exposure to endotoxin lipopolysaccharides. Gain- or loss-of-function studies show that NG2 glia-derived TGF-ß2 and its receptor TGFBR2 in microglia are key regulators of the CX3CR1-modulated immune response. Furthermore, deficiency of NG2 glia contributes to neuroinflammation and nigral dopaminergic neuron loss in MPTP-induced mouse PD model. CONCLUSIONS: These findings suggest that NG2 glia play a critical role in modulation of neuroinflammation and provide a compelling rationale for the development of new therapeutics for neurological disorders.

Bradyrhizobium diazoefficiens USDA 110- Glycine max Interactome Provides Candidate Proteins Associated with Symbiosis.

Although the legume-rhizobium symbiosis is a most-important biological process, there is a limited knowledge about the protein interaction network between host and symbiont. Using interolog- and domain-based approaches, we constructed an interspecies protein interactome containing 5115 protein-protein interactions between 2291 Glycine max and 290 Bradyrhizobium diazoefficiens USDA 110 proteins. The interactome was further validated by the expression pattern analysis in nodules, gene ontology term semantic similarity, co-expression analysis, and luciferase complementation image assay. In the G. max-B. diazoefficiens interactome, bacterial proteins are mainly ion channel and transporters of carbohydrates and cations, while G. max proteins are mainly involved in the processes of metabolism, signal transduction, and transport. We also identified the top 10 highly interacting proteins (hubs) for each species. Kyoto Encyclopedia of Genes and Genomes pathway analysis for each hub showed that a pair of 14-3-3 proteins (SGF14g and SGF14k) and 5 heat shock proteins in G. max are possibly involved in symbiosis, and 10 hubs in B. diazoefficiens may be important symbiotic effectors. Subnetwork analysis showed that 18 symbiosis-related soluble N-ethylmaleimide sensitive factor attachment protein receptor proteins may play roles in regulating bacterial ion channels, and SGF14g and SGF14k possibly regulate the rhizobium dicarboxylate transport protein DctA. The predicted interactome provide a valuable basis for understanding the molecular mechanism of nodulation in soybean.

The Dual Role of MicroRNAs in Colorectal Cancer Progression.

Colorectal cancer (CRC) is responsible for one of the major cancer incidence and mortality worldwide. It is well known that MicroRNAs (miRNAs) play vital roles in maintaining the cell development and other physiological processes, as well as, the aberrant expression of numerous miRNAs involved in CRC progression. MiRNAs are a class of small, endogenous, non-coding, single-stranded RNAs that bind to the 3'-untranslated region (3'-UTR) complementary sequences of their target mRNA, resulting in mRNA degradation or inhibition of its translation as a post-transcriptional regulators. Moreover, miRNAs also can target the long non-coding RNA (lncRNA) to regulate the expression of its target genes involved in proliferation and metastasis of CRC. The functions of these dysregulated miRNAs appear to be context specific, with evidence of having a dual role in both oncogenes and tumor suppression depending on the cellular environment in which they are expressed. Therefore, the unique expression profiles of miRNAs relate to the diagnosis, prognosis, and therapeutic outcome in CRC. In this review, we focused on several oncogenic and tumor-suppressive miRNAs specific to CRC, and assess their functions to uncover the molecular mechanisms of tumor initiation and progression in CRC. These data promised that miRNAs can be used as early detection biomarkers and potential therapeutic target in CRC patients.

[Effect of allicin on proliferation and apoptosis of KG-1 cells and its molecular mechanism].

Allicin is one of the main bioactive substances in garlic, with antibacterial, hypolipidemic and other pharmacological effects. In this study, apoptosis-related indicators were detected to explore the molecular mechanism of allicin on KG-1 cell proliferation inhibition. The apoptosis rate of KG-1 cells induced by allicin was detected by flow cytometry. The effect of allicin on the expressions of Bax, Bcl-2, survivin and ERK mRNA in KG-1 cells was detected by RT-qPCR. Western blot was used to detect the expressions of caspase 3, cleaved caspase 3, ERK1/2, p-ERK1/2 and survivin protein in KG-1 cells. According to the findings, compared with the control group, allicin could significantly inhibit the proliferation activity of KG-1 cells in a concentration-dependent and time-dependent manner. Flow cytometry showed that allicin could induce the apoptosis of KG-1 cells, which was mainly late apoptosis. The results of RT-qPCR showed that the expressions of Bax mRNA, Bcl-2, survivin and ERK mRNA in KG-1 cells increased after treatment with allicin. The results of Western-blot showed that after KG-1 cells were treated with allicin, the expressions of caspase 3 and its active form cleaved caspase 3 increased, the expressions of survivin, ERK1/2 and its active form p-ERK1/2 were decreased, of which p-ERK1/2 was down-regulated in a dose-dependent manner. The above results suggest that allicin inhibited the proliferation of KG-1 cells primarily by inducing late apoptosis; the execution of apoptosis involved cleaved caspase 3; the induction of apoptosis involved the protein expression, the decrease of ERK1/2andexpression of survivin and the dose-dependent decrease of p-ERK1/2; the mRNA expression involved the increase of Bax, and the down-regulation of survivin, Bcl-2 and ERK1/2.

Clinical Characteristics and Prognostic Factors of Small Intestine Angiosarcoma: a Retrospective Clinical Analysis of 66 Cases.

BACKGROUND/AIMS: Primary angiosarcoma of the small intestine is a rare neoplasia, and there are limited data from systematic analyses. The aim of this study is to describe the clinical and pathological characteristics in addition to the prognostic factors for this rare neoplasia. METHODS: We retrospectively collected the clinical records and prognostic information of 66 patients with small intestine angiosarcoma reported between 1970 and 2017. We used the Chi-square test, the log-rank test, and Cox regression analyses to evaluate the data. RESULTS: There were 66 patients diagnosed with small intestine angiosarcoma. The onset age ranged from 24-92 years old. There were 24 patients diagnosed before the year 2000, and 42 patients were diagnosed after 2000. The data indicated that 49 cases were diagnosed as primary disease, and the remaining 15 cases were secondary disease. The main clinical symptoms were nonspecific and included gastrointestinal (GI) bleeding and abdominal pain. Additionally, we found multi-center foci were one of the characteristics of this disease. Radiation-induced small intestine angiosarcoma (RSIA) is a special type of disease with a similar prognosis. This type was more frequent in females and decreased after the year 2000. We also found that GI bleeding was less common in RSIA cases. The log-rank test results revealed that old-age, poor differentiation, and GI bleeding were associated with worse prognosis. Surgical treatment showed a trend toward a prolonged survival time. However, the result was not statistically significant. Our results show treatment with adjuvant therapy improved prognosis. The multivariate Cox analysis demonstrated adjuvant therapy was an independent indicator of a favorable outcome in small intestine angiosarcoma patients. CONCLUSION: Pay attention to the unexplained gastrointestinal bleeding could lead to a faster diagnosis and control of small intestine angiosarcoma. Furthermore, treatments including adjuvant therapy can effectively improve the prognosis.

Conjugation in Escherichia coli Biofilms on Poly(dimethylsiloxane) Surfaces with Microtopographic Patterns.

Bacterial biofilms are highly tolerant to antimicrobials and play an important role in the development and spread of antibiotic resistance based on horizontal gene transfer due to close cell-to-cell contact. As an important surface property, topography has been shown to affect bacterial adhesion and biofilm formation. Here, we demonstrate that micrometer-scale surface topographies also affect horizontal gene transfer through conjugation in bacterial biofilms. Specifically, biofilm formation and associated conjugation on poly(dimethylsiloxane) (PDMS) surfaces with 10 µm tall protruding patterns were studied using fluorescently labeled donor and recipient strains of Escherichia coli. The results demonstrate that square-shaped topographic patterns with side length of 20, 50, and 100 µm and interpattern distance equal to or larger than 10 µm promote biofilm formation and conjugation compared to the smooth control. The vertical sides of these topographic features were found to be the "hot spots" for bacterial conjugation compared to the top of patterns and grooves between topographic features. The increase in conjugation frequency on the sides of topographic patterns was attributed to the high cell density of recipient cells at these locations. A motility (motB) mutant of the recipient strain exhibited defects in biofilm formation at the "hot spots" and conjugation, which were recovered by complementing the motB gene on a plasmid. These results also provided guidance for designing surface topographies that can reduce conjugation. Specifically, 10 µm tall hexagon-shaped topographic patterns with side length of 15 µm and interpattern distance of 2 µm were prepared to reduce biofilm formation on the side of protruding patterns and interrupt cell-cell interaction in the grooves. This topography exhibited 85% and 46% reduction of biofilm formation and associated conjugation, respectively, compared to the smooth control.

Anterior wrist and medial malleolus as the novel sites of tissue selection: a retrospective study on electric shock death through the hand-to-foot circuit pathway.

Our previous work demonstrated that characteristic changes could occur in the anterior wrist and medial malleolus in electric deaths through the hand-to-foot electric circuit pathway in an electric shock rat model. However, whether the same phenomenon occurs in humans is unknown. The aim of the present retrospective study was to ascertain whether the anterior wrist and medial malleolus could also be selected as the promising and significant sites in electric death through the hand-to-foot circuit pathway. Nineteen human cases from the autopsy and one clinical survivor who sustained a severe electric shock through the hand-to-foot circuit pathway were analyzed. Additional ten autopsy patients who died from traffic accidents and sudden cardiac attacks were used as the control group. Histopathological changes in the soft tissues of the anterior wrist and medial malleolus in all autopsy patients, as well as the electric current pathway of the survivor, were observed. The results showed that the nuclear polarizations in the anterior wrist and medial malleolus soft tissues of the electric death were extremely noticeable as compared with the controls. The most severe electrical injury in the survivor occurred in the anterior wrist. These findings suggest that the soft tissues of the anterior wrist and/or the medial malleolus as the narrowest parts of the limbs could be used as the complementary sites for tissue selection and considered as necessary locations for examinations to assess the electric death in medicolegal identification.

Digital gene expression profiling analysis of DNA repair pathways in colon cancer stem population of HT29 cells.

Cancer stem cells (CSCs) contribute to the relapse and development of new neoplasm lesions. While most available clinical approaches, such as chemical and radiation therapies, will kill the majority of cancer cells, they do not kill them all. Some resisting cells, like CSCs, are able to survive due to their excellent self-maintaining capabilities, even in challenging environments. In the present study, we investigated the mRNA level of DNA repair genes of colon CSCs from the HT29 cell line in response to single-strand damage and double-strand breaks, as well as the evident upregulation of key genes in base excision repair, mismatch repair, non-homologous end-joining, and homologous recombination pathways in these cells. Digital gene expression analysis identified upregulated genes in CD44+ HT29 cells that may play important roles in DNA repair. Our results reveal that colon CSCs bear efficient DNA repair abilities, which might explain the survival of colon CSCs after repeated chemical and radiation therapy.

The value of serum pepsinogen levels for the diagnosis of gastric diseases in Chinese Han people in midsouth China.

BACKGROUND: Serum pepsinogen (PG) levels are valuable in the diagnosis of gastric diseases. However, PG levels are affected by many factors such as the area and race. This study aimed to investigate serum PG levels in patients with different gastric diseases who were Chinese Han people in Hunan Province, midsouth China. METHODS: A total of 248 gastric disease patients and 34 healthy controls were enrolled. The patients included those with non-atrophic and chronic atrophic gastritis, gastric and duodenal ulcer, early and advanced gastric cancer. Serum PG I and II levels were detected by Biohit ELISA kit (Finland), and PG I/II ratio was calculated. Differences in patients with gastric disease and healthy controls were analyzed using paired t-test. RESULTS: Compared with controls, patients with early and advanced gastric cancer had a significantly lower PG I level and PG I/II ratio (p <0.005). In contrast, patients with gastric and duodenal ulcer had a significantly higher PG I level (p <0.005). Compared with atrophic gastritis patients, patients with early and advanced carcinoma of the stomach had a significantly lower PG I/II ratio (p < 0.001). Combination of the cut-off levels of PG I (70 µg/L) and PG I/II ratio (6) provided 62.1% sensitivity of and 94.2% specificity for the diagnosis of gastric cancer. CONCLUSIONS: Decreased PG I level and PG I/II ratio are risk factors for gastric cancer. Combined use of serum PG I level and PG I/II ratio may help the early diagnosis of gastric cancer.

[Non-coding RNA and pancreatic cancer].

Non-coding RNA could regulate gene expression, involved in epigenetic modification, and participate in the cell differentiation, proliferation, apoptosis, and other life activities. Noncoding RNA also plays a crucial role in cancer occurrence, cancer cell invasion and distant metastases. Through mediating genome hyper-methylation, transcriptional regulation, regulation of transposable sequences, maintenance of genomic imprinting and DNA damage repair, noncoding RNA could regulate the growth and apoptosis of pancreatic cancer cells. Understanding the molecular mechanism of non-coding RNA in the development process of pancreatic cancer has important theoretical and practical value in the diagnosis, treatment and prognosis.

Role and molecular regulatory mechanisms of Hippo signaling pathway in Caenorhabditis elegans and mammalian cell models of Alzheimer's disease.

Although there is increasing evidence for the involvement of Hippo signaling in Alzheimer's disease (AD), the detailed functions and regulatory mechanisms are not fully understood, given the diverse biological effects of this pathway. In the present work, we used Caenorhabditis elegans and mammalian cell models to investigate changes in the Hippo signaling pathway in response to Aß and the downstream effects on AD development. Aß1-42 production in the AD models decreased phosphorylation of the upstream CST-1/WTS-1 kinase cascade and promoted an interaction between LIN-10 and YAP-1, leading to the nuclear translocation of YAP-1 and inducing gene transcription in conjunction with the transcription factor EGL-44. The YAP-1/EGL-44 complex suppressed the autophagy-lysosome pathway by modulating mTOR signaling, which enhanced Aß1-42 accumulation and promoted AD progression. These results demonstrate for the first time that crosstalk between Hippo and mTOR signaling contributes to AD development by enhancing Aß production, resulting in inhibition of Hippo signaling and autophagy-lysosome pathway and Aß accumulation, suggesting potential therapeutic targets for the treatment or prevention of AD.