Recombinant human endostatin combined with radiotherapy promotes cardiomyocyte apoptosis in rats via TGFß1/Smads/CTGF signaling pathway.

PURPOSE: The aim of the present study was to investigate the efficacy of recombinant human endostatin (ES) (rh-ES) combined with radiation on rat cardiomyocyte apoptosis and the regulatory mechanism of transforming growth factor beta1 (TGF-ß1)/Sma and Mad-related protein 3 (Smad3)/connective tissue growth factor (CTGF) signaling. METHOD: The primary cardiomyocytes were isolated from neonatal Sprague-Dawley rats for culture in vitro and divided into blank control group (without treatment), 10 Gy radiation + siTGF-ß1 siRNA (gene silencing) group, ES + siTGF-ß1 siRNA group, and 10 Gy radiation + ES + siTGF-ß1 siRNA group. Methyl thiazolyl tetrazolium assay was used to calculate the half-maximal inhibitory concentration (IC50) of rh-ES on cardiomyocytes. Adenoviral vector was constructed for virus packaging to silence TGF-ß1 expression in cardiomyocytes. Quantitative real-time polymerase chain reaction and Western blot were carried out to analyze TGF-ß1, Smad2, Smad3 and CTGF expression at both gene and protein levels. Flow cytometry and electron microscope were used to examine cell apoptosis. RESULTS: ES had a dose-dependent inhibitory effect on the proliferation of primary rat cardiomyocytes. ES combined with radiotherapy significantly inhibited cardiomyocyte proliferation and promoted cell apoptosis (P < 0.01). The gene and protein expression of TGF-ß1, Smad2, Smad3 and CTGF were significantly up-regulated in primary cardiomyocytes transfected with TGF-ß1 gene (P < 0.05). CONCLUSION: The combination therapy with rh-ES and radiation can promote cardiomyocyte apoptosis and aggravate myocardial cell damage via TGF-ß1/Smad3/CTGF signaling pathway.

Effects of Different Short-Term UV-B Radiation Intensities on Metabolic Characteristics of Porphyra haitanensis.

The effects of ultraviolet (UV) radiation, particularly UV-B on algae, have become an important issue as human-caused depletion of the protecting ozone layer has been reported. In this study, the effects of different short-term UV-B radiation on the growth, physiology, and metabolism of Porphyra haitanensis were examined. The growth of P. haitanensis decreased, and the bleaching phenomenon occurred in the thalli. The contents of total amino acids, soluble sugar, total protein, and mycosporine-like amino acids (MAAs) increased under different UV-B radiation intensities. The metabolic profiles of P. haitanensis differed between the control and UV-B radiation-treated groups. Most of the differential metabolites in P. haitanensis were significantly upregulated under UV-B exposure. Short-term enhanced UV-B irradiation significantly affected amino acid metabolism, carbohydrate metabolism, glutathione metabolism, and phenylpropane biosynthesis. The contents of phenylalanine, tyrosine, threonine, and serine were increased, suggesting that amino acid metabolism can promote the synthesis of UV-absorbing substances (such as phenols and MAAs) by providing precursor substances. The contents of sucrose, D-glucose-6-phosphate, and beta-D-fructose-6-phosphate were increased, suggesting that carbohydrate metabolism contributes to maintain energy supply for metabolic activity in response to UV-B exposure. Meanwhile, dehydroascorbic acid (DHA) was also significantly upregulated, denoting effective activation of the antioxidant system. To some extent, these results provide metabolic insights into the adaptive response mechanism of P. haitanensis to short-term enhanced UV-B radiation.

Effect of primary tumor volume on survival of concurrent chemoradiotherapy in stage IV non-small cell lung cancer.

OBJECTIVE: To explore the survival effect of thoracic gross tumor volume (GTV) in three-dimensional (3D) radiotherapy for stage IV non-small cell lung cancer (NSCLC). METHODS: The data cases were obtained from a single-center retrospective analysis. From May. From 2008 to August 2018, 377 treatment criteria were enrolled. GTV was defined as the volume of the primary lesion and the hilus as well as the mediastinal metastatic lymph node. Chemotherapy was a platinum-based combined regimen of two drugs. The number of median chemotherapy cycles was 4 (2-6), and the cut-off value of the planning target volume (PTV) dose of the primary tumor was 63 Gy (30-76.5 Gy). The cut-off value of GTV volume was 150 cm3 (5.83-3535.20 cm3). RESULTS: The survival rate of patients with GTV <150 cm3 is better than patients with GTV ≥150 cm3. Multivariate Cox regression analyses suggested that peripheral lung cancer, radiation dose ≥63 Gy, GTV <150 cm3, 4-6 cycles of chemotherapy, and CR + PR are good prognostic factors for patients with stage IV non-small cell lung cancer. The survival rate of patients with GTV <150 cm3 was longer than patients with ≥150 cm3 when they underwent 2 to 3 cycles of chemotherapy concurrent 3D radiotherapy (p < 0.05). When performing 4 to 6 cycles of chemotherapy concurrent 3D radiotherapy, there was no significant difference between <150 cm3 and ≥150 cm3. CONCLUSIONS: The volume of stage IV NSCLC primary tumor can affect the survival of patients. Appropriate treatment methods can be opted by considering the volume of tumors to extend patients' lifetime to the utmost.