Histone mRNA polyadenylation-mediated inflammation underlies various virus infections and cancers.

The mechanistic understanding of virus infection and inflammation in many diseases is incomplete. Normally, messenger RNA (mRNA) tails of replication-dependent histones (RDH) that safeguard naked nuclear DNAs are protected by a specialized stem-loop instead of polyadenylation. Here, we showed that infection by various RNA viruses (including severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2) induced aberrant polyadenylation of RDH mRNAs (pARDH) that resulted in inflammation or cellular senescence, based on which we constructed a pARDH inflammation score (pARIS). We further investigated pARIS elevation in various disease conditions, including different types of virus infection, cancer, and cellular senescence. Notably, we found that pARIS was positively correlated with coronavirus disease 2019 severity in specific immune cell types. We also detected a subset of HIV-1 elite controllers characterized by pARDH "flipping" potentially mediated by HuR. Importantly, pARIS was positively associated with transcription of endogenous retrovirus but negatively associated with most immune cell infiltration in tumors of various cancer types. Finally, we identified and experimentally verified two pARIS regulators, ADAR1 and ZKSCAN1, which was first linked to inflammation. The ZKSCAN1 was known as a transcription factor but instead was shown to regulate pARIS as a novel RNA binding protein. Both regulators were upregulated under most infection and inflammation conditions. In conclusion, we unraveled a potential antiviral mechanism underlying various types of virus infections and cancers.

Multiomics analyses reveal pathological mechanisms of HBV infection and integration in liver cancer.

Hepatitis B virus (HBV) infection and integration are important for hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC) initiation and progression, while disease mechanisms are still largely elusive. Here, we combined bulk and single-cell sequencing technologies to tackle the disease mechanisms of HBV-related HCC. We observed high HBV mutation rate and diversity only in tumors without HBV integration. We identified human somatic risk loci for HBV integration (VIMs). Transcription factors (TFs) enriched in VIMs were involved in DNA repair and androgen receptor (AR) signaling. Aberration of AR signaling was further observed by single-cell regulon analysis in HBV-infected hepatocytes, which showed remarkable interactions between AR and the complement system that, together with the X-linked ZXDB regulon that contains albumin (ALB), probably contribute to HCC male predominance. Complement system dysregulation caused by HBV infection was further confirmed by analyses of single-cell copy numbers and cell-cell communications. Finally, HBV infection-associated immune cells presented critical defects, including TXNIP in T cells, TYROBP in NK cells, and the X-linked TIMP1 in monocytes. We further experimentally validated our findings in multiple independent patient cohorts. Collectively, our work shed light on the pathogenesis of HBV-related HCC and other liver diseases that affect billions of people worldwide.

FPIA: A database for gene fusion profiling and interactive analyses.

As one of the hallmarks of cancer, gene fusions play an important role in tumorigenesis, and have been established as biomarkers and therapeutic targets. Although recent years have witnessed the development of gene fusion databases, a tool with interactive analytic functions remains lacking. Here, we introduce fusion profiling interactive analysis (FPIA), a web server to perform interactive and customizable analysis on fusion genes. With this platform, researchers can easily explore fusion-associated biological and molecular differences including gene expression, tumor purity and ploidy, mutation, copy number variations, protein expression, immune cell infiltration, stemness, telomere length, microsatellite instability, survival and novel peptides based on 33 cancer types from The Cancer Genome Atlas (TCGA) data. Currently, it contains 31 633 fusion events from 6910 patients. FPIA complements the existing gene fusion annotation databases with its multiomics analytic capacity, integrated analysis features, customized analysis selection and user-friendly design. The comprehensive data analyses by FPIA will greatly facilitate data mining, hypothesis generation and therapeutic target discovery. FPIA is available at http://bioinfo-sysu.com/fpia.

The landscape of long noncoding RNA-involved and tumor-specific fusions across various cancers.

The majority of the human genome encodes long noncoding RNA (lncRNA) genes, critical regulators of various cellular processes, which largely outnumber protein-coding genes. However, lncRNA-involved fusions have not been surveyed and characterized yet. Here, we present a systematic study of the lncRNA fusion landscape across cancer types and identify >30 000 high-confidence tumor-specific lncRNA fusions (using 8284 tumor and 6946 normal samples). Fusions positively correlated with DNA damage and cancer stemness and were specifically low in microsatellite instable (MSI)-High or virus-infected tumors. Moreover, fusions distribute differently among cancer molecular subtypes, but with shared enrichment in tumors that are microsatellite stable (MSS), with high somatic copy number alterations (SCNA), and with poor survival. Importantly, we find a potentially new mechanism, mediated by enhancer RNAs (eRNA), which generates secondary fusions that form densely connected fusion networks with many fusion hubs targeted by FDA-approved drugs. Finally, we experimentally validate functions of two tumor-promoting chimeric proteins derived from mRNA-lncRNA fusions, KDM4B-G039927 and EPS15L1-lncOR7C2-1. The EPS15L1 fusion protein may regulate (Gasdermin E) GSDME, critical in pyroptosis and anti-tumor immunity. Our study completes the fusion landscape in cancers, sheds light on fusion mechanisms, and enriches lncRNA functions in tumorigenesis and cancer progression.

Identification of differentially expressed circulating exosomal lncRNAs in IgA nephropathy patients.

BACKGROUND: Although immunoglobulin A nephropathy (IgAN) is one of the foremost primary glomerular disease, treatment of IgAN is still in infancy. Non-invasive biomarkers are urgently needed for IgAN diagnosis. We investigate the difference in expression profiles of exosomal long non-coding-RNAs (lncRNAs) in plasma from IgAN patients compared with their healthy first-degree relatives, which may reveal novel non-invasive IgAN biomarkers. METHODS: We isolated exosomes from the plasma of both IgAN patients and their healthy first-degree relatives. High-throughput RNA sequencing and real-time quantitative polymerase chain reaction (qRT-PCR) was used to validate lncRNA expression profiles. Pathway enrichment analysis was used to predict their nearest protein-coding genes. RESULTS: lncRNA-G21551 was significantly down-regulated in IgAN patients. Interestingly, the nearest protein-coding gene of lncRNA-G21551 was found to be encoding the low affinity receptor of the Fc segment of immunoglobulin G (FCGR3B). CONCLUSIONS: Exosomal lncRNA-G21551, with FCGR3B as the nearest protein-coding gene, was down-regulated in IgAN patients, indicating its potential to serve as a non-invasive biomarker for IgAN.

miRNA-210-3p regulates trophoblast proliferation and invasiveness through fibroblast growth factor 1 in selective intrauterine growth restriction.

Selective intrauterine growth restriction (sIUGR), which affects approximately 10%-15% of monochorionic (MC) twin pregnancies, is highly associated with intrauterine foetal death and neurological impairment in both twins. Data suggest that unequal sharing of the single placenta is the main contributor to birth weight discordance. While MC twins and their placenta derive from a single zygote and harbour almost identical genetic material, the underlying mechanisms of phenotypic discrepancies in MC twins remain unclear. MicroRNAs are small non-coding RNA molecules that regulate gene expression but do not change the DNA sequence. Our preliminary study showed that microRNA-210-3p (miR-210-3p) was significantly upregulated in the placental share of the smaller sIUGR twin. Here, we investigate the potential role of miR-210-3p in placental dysplasia, which generally results from dysfunction of trophoblast cells. Functional analysis revealed that miR-210-3p, induced by hypoxia-inducible factor 1α (HIF1α) under hypoxic conditions, suppressed the proliferation and invasiveness of trophoblast cell lines. Further RNA sequencing analysis and luciferase reporter assays were performed, revealing that fibroblast growth factor 1 (FGF1) is an influential target gene of miR-210-3p. Moreover, correlations among miR-210-3p levels, HIF1α and FGF1 expression and the smaller placental share were validated in sIUGR specimens. These findings suggest that upregulation of miR-210-3p may contribute to impaired placentation of the smaller twin by decreasing FGF1 expression in sIUGR.

Pan-cancer analysis identifies telomerase-associated signatures and cancer subtypes.

BACKGROUND: Cancer cells become immortalized through telomere maintenance mechanisms, such as telomerase reverse transcriptase (TERT) activation. In addition to maintaining telomere length, TERT activates manifold cell survival signaling pathways. However, telomerase-associated gene signatures in cancer remain elusive. METHODS: We performed a systematic analysis of TERT high (TERThigh) and low (TERTlow) cancers using multidimensional data from The Cancer Genome Atlas (TCGA). Multidimensional data were analyzed by propensity score matching weight algorithm. Coexpression networks were constructed by weight gene coexpression network analysis (WGCNA). Random forest classifiers were generated to identify cancer subtypes. RESULTS: The TERThigh-specific mRNA expression signature is associated with cell cycle-related coexpression modules across cancer types. Experimental screening of hub genes in the cell cycle module suggested TPX2 and EXO1 as potential regulators of telomerase activity and cell survival. MiRNA analysis revealed that the TERThigh-specific miR-17-92 cluster can target biological processes enriched in TERTlow cancer and that its expression is negatively correlated with the tumor/normal telomere length ratio. Intriguingly, TERThigh cancers tend to have mutations in extracellular matrix organization genes and amplify MAPK signaling. By mining the clinical actionable gene database, we uncovered a number of TERThigh-specific somatic mutations, amplifications and high expression genes containing therapeutic targets. Finally, a random forest classifier integrating telomerase-associated multi-omics signatures identifies two cancer subtypes showed profound differences in telomerase activity and patient survival. CONCLUSIONS: In summary, our results depict a telomerase-associated molecular landscape in cancers and provide therapeutic opportunities for cancer treatment.

pgRNAFinder: a web-based tool to design distance independent paired-gRNA.

SUMMARY: The CRISPR/Cas System has been shown to be an efficient and accurate genome-editing technique. There exist a number of tools to design the guide RNA sequences and predict potential off-target sites. However, most of the existing computational tools on gRNA design are restricted to small deletions. To address this issue, we present pgRNAFinder, with an easy-to-use web interface, which enables researchers to design single or distance-free paired-gRNA sequences. The web interface of pgRNAFinder contains both gRNA search and scoring system. After users input query sequences, it searches gRNA by 3' protospacer-adjacent motif (PAM), and possible off-targets, and scores the conservation of the deleted sequences rapidly. Filters can be applied to identify high-quality CRISPR sites. PgRNAFinder offers gRNA design functionality for 8 vertebrate genomes. Furthermore, to keep pgRNAFinder open, extensible to any organism, we provide the source package for local use. AVAILABILITY AND IMPLEMENTATION: The pgRNAFinder is freely available at http://songyanglab.sysu.edu.cn/wangwebs/pgRNAFinder/, and the source code and user manual can be obtained from https://github.com/xiexiaowei/pgRNAFinder. CONTACT: songyang@bcm.edu or daizhim@mail.sysu.edu.cn. SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: Supplementary data are available at Bioinformatics online.

Profiling kidney microRNAs from juvenile grass carp (Ctenopharyngodon idella) after 56days of oral exposure to decabromodiphenyl ethane.

Grass carp (Ctenopharyngodon idella) is one of the most important species in China. Decabromodiphenyl ethane (DBDPE) is a brominated flame retardant that has been used widely in industry, and has been observed to accumulate in the tissues of fish from South China. Evidence has shown that DBDPE is toxic to aquatic animals, but the molecular response has been unclear. MicroRNAs (miRNAs) are small noncoding and negative regulatory RNAs that are 20-24 nucleotides in length, which are involved in a wide range of biological processes. We took advantage of deep-sequencing techniques to accurately and comprehensively profile the kidney miRNA expression of grass carp after 8weeks of oral exposure to DBDPE. After mapping sequencing data to the genome and Expressed Sequence Tags (ESTs) of grass carp, we identified 493 miRNAs in the sequenced grass carp samples, which included 51 new miRNAs. The results indicated that 5 miRNAs were significantly down-regulated and 36 miRNAs were significantly up-regulated (FDR<0.001, 1.5-fold change) after DBDPE exposure. Real-time quantitative PCR (RT-qPCR) was performed on 4 miRNAs from the two samples, and the sequencing and RT-qPCR data were consistent. This study provides the first comprehensive identification of grass carp miRNAs, and the first expression analysis of grass carp miRNAs following DBDPE exposure. The results indicated that miRNAs have potential for use as biomarkers.

Genome-wide analysis of transcription factor binding sites and their characteristic DNA structures.

BACKGROUND: Transcription factors (TF) regulate gene expression by binding DNA regulatory regions. Transcription factor binding sites (TFBSs) are conserved not only in primary DNA sequences but also in DNA structures. However, the global relationship between TFs and their preferred DNA structures remains to be elucidated. RESULTS: In this paper, we have developed a computational method to generate a genome-wide landscape of TFs and their characteristic binding DNA structures in Saccharomyces cerevisiae. We revealed DNA structural features for different TFs. The structural conservation shows positional preference in TFBSs. Structural levels of DNA sequences are correlated with TF-DNA binding affinities. CONCLUSIONS: We provided the genome-wide correspondences of TFs to DNA structures. Our findings will have implications in understanding TF regulatory mechanisms.

The complete genome sequence of Dickeya zeae EC1 reveals substantial divergence from other Dickeya strains and species.

BACKGROUND: Dickeya zeae is a bacterial species that infects monocotyledons and dicotyledons. Two antibiotic-like phytotoxins named zeamine and zeamine II were reported to play an important role in rice seed germination, and two genes associated with zeamines production, i.e., zmsA and zmsK, have been thoroughly characterized. However, other virulence factors and its molecular mechanisms of host specificity and pathogenesis are hardly known. RESULTS: The complete genome of D. zeae strain EC1 isolated from diseased rice plants was sequenced, annotated, and compared with the genomes of other Dickeya spp.. The pathogen contains a chromosome of 4,532,364 bp with 4,154 predicted protein-coding genes. Comparative genomics analysis indicates that D. zeae EC1 is most co-linear with D. chrysanthemi Ech1591, most conserved with D. zeae Ech586 and least similar to D. paradisiaca Ech703. Substantial genomic rearrangement was revealed by comparing EC1 with Ech586 and Ech703. Most virulence genes were well-conserved in Dickeya strains except Ech703. Significantly, the zms gene cluster involved in biosynthesis of zeamines, which were shown previously as key virulence determinants, is present in D. zeae strains isolated from rice, and some D. solani strains, but absent in other Dickeya species and the D. zeae strains isolated from other plants or sources. In addition, a DNA fragment containing 9 genes associated with fatty acid biosynthesis was found inserted in the fli gene cluster encoding flagellar biosynthesis of strain EC1 and other two rice isolates but not in other strains. This gene cluster shares a high protein similarity to the fatty acid genes from Pantoea ananatis. CONLUSION: Our findings delineate the genetic background of D. zeae EC1, which infects both dicotyledons and monocotyledons, and suggest that D. zeae strains isolated from rice could be grouped into a distinct pathovar, i.e., D. zeae subsp. oryzae. In addition, the results of this study also unveiled that the zms gene cluster presented in the genomes of D. zeae rice isolates and D. solani strains, and the fatty acid genes inserted in the fli gene cluster of strain EC1 were likely derived from horizontal gene transfer during later stage of bacterial evolution.

Neighboring genes show interchromosomal colocalization after their separation.

The order of genes on eukaryotic chromosomes is nonrandom. Some neighboring genes show order conservation among species, while some neighboring genes separate during evolution. Here, we investigated whether neighboring genes show interactions after their separation. We found that neighboring gene pairs tend to show interchromosomal colocalization (i.e., nuclear colocalization) in the species in which they separate. These nuclear colocalized separated neighboring gene pairs 1) show neighborhood conservation in more species, 2) tend to be regulated by the same transcription factor, and 3) tend to be regulated by the same histone modification. These results suggest a mechanism by which neighboring genes could retain nuclear proximity after their separation.

The pattern and evolution of looped gene bendability.

Gene looping, defined as the physical interaction between the promoter and terminator regions of a RNA polymerase II-transcribed gene, is widespread in yeast and mammalian cells. Gene looping has been shown to play important roles in transcription. Gene-loop formation is dependent on regulatory proteins localized at the 5' and 3' ends of genes, such as TFIIB. However, whether other factors contribute to gene looping remains to be elucidated. Here, we investigated the contribution of intrinsic DNA and chromatin structures to gene looping. We found that Saccharomyces cerevisiae looped genes show high DNA bendability around middle and 3/4 regions in open reading frames (ORFs). This bendability pattern is conserved between yeast species, whereas the position of bendability peak varies substantially among species. Looped genes in human cells also show high DNA bendability. Nucleosome positioning around looped ORF middle regions is unstable. We also present evidence indicating that this unstable nucleosome positioning is involved in gene looping. These results suggest a mechanism by which DNA bendability and unstable nucleosome positioning could assist in the formation of gene loops.

Genome-wide discovery of novel and conserved microRNAs in white shrimp (Litopenaeus vannamei).

Of late years, a large amount of conserved and species-specific microRNAs (miRNAs) have been performed on identification from species which are economically important but lack a full genome sequence. In this study, Solexa deep sequencing and cross-species miRNA microarray were used to detect miRNAs in white shrimp. We identified 239 conserved miRNAs, 14 miRNA* sequences and 20 novel miRNAs by bioinformatics analysis from 7,561,406 high-quality reads representing 325,370 distinct sequences. The all 20 novel miRNAs were species-specific in white shrimp and not homologous in other species. Using the conserved miRNAs from the miRBase database as a query set to search for homologs from shrimp expressed sequence tags (ESTs), 32 conserved computationally predicted miRNAs were discovered in shrimp. In addition, using microarray analysis in the shrimp fed with Panax ginseng polysaccharide complex, 151 conserved miRNAs were identified, 18 of which were significant up-expression, while 49 miRNAs were significant down-expression. In particular, qRT-PCR analysis was also performed for nine miRNAs in three shrimp tissues such as muscle, gill and hepatopancreas. Results showed that these miRNAs expression are tissue specific. Combining results of the three methods, we detected 20 novel and 394 conserved miRNAs. Verification with quantitative reverse transcription (qRT-PCR) and Northern blot showed a high confidentiality of data. The study provides the first comprehensive specific miRNA profile of white shrimp, which includes useful information for future investigations into the function of miRNAs in regulation of shrimp development and immunology.

The trithorax group protein Ash2l is essential for pluripotency and maintaining open chromatin in embryonic stem cells.

Embryonic stem (ES) cells exhibit general characteristics of open chromatin, a state that may be necessary for ES cells to efficiently self-renew while remaining poised for differentiation. Histone H3K4 and H3K9 trimethylation associate as a general rule, with open and silenced chromatin, respectively, for ES cell pluripotency maintenance. However, how histone modifications are regulated to maintain open chromatin in ES cells remains largely unknown. Here, we demonstrate that trithorax protein Ash2l, homologue of the Drosophila Ash2 (absent, small, homeotic-2) protein, is a key regulator of open chromatin in ES cells. Consistent with Ash2l being a core subunit of mixed lineage leukemia methyltransferase complex, RNAi knockdown of Ash2l was sufficient to reduce H3K4 methylation levels and drive ES cells to a silenced chromatin state with high H3K9 trimethylation. Genome-wide ChIP-seq analysis indicated that Ash2l is recruited to target loci through two distinct modes and enriched at a family of genes implicated in open chromatin regulation, including chromatin remodeler Cdh7, transcription factor c-Myc, and H3K9 demethylase Kdm4c. Our results underscore the importance of Ash2l in open chromatin regulation and provide insight into how the open chromatin landscape is maintained in ES cells.

Identification and Validation of eRNA as a Prognostic Indicator for Cervical Cancer.

The survival of CESC patients is closely related to the expression of enhancer RNA (eRNA). In this work, we downloaded eRNA expression, clinical, and gene expression data from the TCeA and TCGA portals. A total of 7936 differentially expressed eRNAs were discovered by limma analysis, and the relationship between these eRNAs and survival was analyzed by univariate Cox hazard analysis, LASSO regression, and multivariate Cox hazard analysis to obtain an 8-eRNA model. Risk score heat maps, KM curves, ROC analysis, robustness analysis, and nomograms further indicate that this 8-eRNA model is a novel indicator with high prognostic performance independent of clinicopathological classification. The model divided patients into high-risk and low-risk groups, compared pathway diversity between the two groups through GSEA analysis, and provided potential therapeutic agents for high-risk patients.

PvGeneExpDB: An integrative gene expression database for in-depth understanding on the Pacific white shrimp (Litopenaeus vannamei).

The Pacific white shrimp (Litopenaeus vannamei) is a high-valued economic farming species. With the development of high-throughput sequencing technology, cumulative large-scale transcriptomic studies have been revealing molecular landscape of various biological conditions including genetic selection, breeding, evolution, disease landscape, etc. However, no single experiment or databases allow thorough investigations of transcriptomic dynamics for these progressions. Meanwhile, the available datasets are often scattered and lack management. Here, we have established PvGeneExpDB, the first gene expression database for L. vannamei (www.bio-marine-scau.com/pv_ex/), which encompasses gene expression profiles, differential expression, and co-expression analyses under various biological conditions. Based on the analyses of 7 datasets, which include 53 samples with accurate and detailed records, PvGeneExpDB identifies 20,599 novel transcripts, shows expression profiles of a total of 20,817 genes, and implements Gene Ontology (GO) reconstruction of 76.7 % of these genes. Besides, 26 co-expressed groups were first identified by large-scale, cross-sample Weighted Gene Co-expression Network Analysis (WGCNA). By integrating the gene expression data in the database, our goal is to deepen the biological understanding of L. vannamei.

OmicVerse: a framework for bridging and deepening insights across bulk and single-cell sequencing.

Single-cell sequencing is frequently affected by "omission" due to limitations in sequencing throughput, yet bulk RNA-seq may contain these ostensibly "omitted" cells. Here, we introduce the single cell trajectory blending from Bulk RNA-seq (BulkTrajBlend) algorithm, a component of the OmicVerse suite that leverages a Beta-Variational AutoEncoder for data deconvolution and graph neural networks for the discovery of overlapping communities. This approach effectively interpolates and restores the continuity of "omitted" cells within single-cell RNA sequencing datasets. Furthermore, OmicVerse provides an extensive toolkit for both bulk and single cell RNA-seq analysis, offering seamless access to diverse methodologies, streamlining computational processes, fostering exquisite data visualization, and facilitating the extraction of significant biological insights to advance scientific research.

Targeting STING in dendritic cells alleviates psoriatic inflammation by suppressing IL-17A production.

Psoriasis is a common chronic inflammatory skin disease driven by the aberrant activation of dendritic cells (DCs) and T cells, ultimately leading to increased production of cytokines such as interleukin (IL)-23 and IL-17A. It is established that the cGAS-STING pathway is essential for psoriatic inflammation, however, the specific role of cGAS-STING signaling in DCs within this context remains unclear. In this study, we demonstrated the upregulation of cGAS-STING signaling in psoriatic lesions by analyzing samples from both clinical patients and imiquimod (IMQ)-treated mice. Using a conditional Sting-knockout transgenic mouse model, we elucidated the impact of cGAS-STING signaling in DCs on the activation of IL-17- and IFN-γ-producing T cells in psoriatic inflammation. Ablation of the Sting hampers DC activation leads to decreased numbers of IL-17-producing T cells and Th1 cells, and thus subsequently attenuates psoriatic inflammation in the IMQ-induced mouse model. Furthermore, we explored the therapeutic potential of the STING inhibitor C-176, which reduces psoriatic inflammation and enhances the anti-IL-17A therapeutic response. Our results underscore the critical role of cGAS-STING signaling in DCs in driving psoriatic inflammation and highlight a promising psoriasis treatment.

Melatonin mediates protective effects on inflammatory response induced by interleukin-1 beta in human mesenchymal stem cells.

Joint diseases like osteoarthritis usually are accompanied with inflammatory processes, in which pro-inflammatory cytokines mediate the generation of intracellular reactive oxygen species (ROS) and compromise survival of subchondral osteoblasts. Melatonin is capable of manipulating bone formation and osteogenic differentiation of mesenchymal stem cells (MSCs). The aim of this work was to investigate the anti-inflammatory effect of melatonin on MSC proliferation and osteogenic differentiation in the absence or presence of interleukin-1 beta (IL-1ß), which was used to induce inflammation. Our data showed that melatonin improved cell viability and reduced ROS generation in MSCs in a dose-dependent manner. When exposed to 10 ng/mL IL-1ß, various concentrations of melatonin resulted in significant reduction of ROS by 34.9% averagely. Luzindole as a melatonin receptor antagonist reversed the anti-oxidant effect of melatonin in MSCs with co-exposure to IL-1ß. Real-time RT-PCR data suggested that melatonin treatment up-regulated the expression of CuZnSOD and MnSOD, while down-regulated the expression of Bax. To investigate the effect of melatonin on osteogenesis, MSCs were cultured in osteogenic differentiation medium supplemented with IL-1ß, melatonin, or luzindole. After exposed to IL-1ß for 21 days, 1 µm melatonin treatment significantly increased the levels of type I collagen, ALP, and osteocalcin, and 100 µm melatonin treatment yielded the highest level of osteopontin. Our study demonstrated that melatonin maintained MSC survival and promoted osteogenic differentiation in inflammatory environment induced by IL-1ß, suggesting melatonin treatment could be a promising method for bone regenerative engineering in future studies.