Addition of α-ketoglutaric acid (AKG) reduces deamination in Chinese perch (Siniperca chuatsi) fed with fermented soybean meal as a substitute for fishmeal.

To alleviate amino acid imbalances in fermented soybean meal as a replacement for fishmeal feeds, this study evaluated the effects of adding lysine (Lys), methionine (Met), and α-ketoglutaric acid (AKG) to fermented soybean meals for Chinese perch. Chinese perch (34 ± 3 g) were fed five diets for 66 days (fishmeal as the protein source of the basal diet [FM]; fermented soybean meal as a substitute for 30% fishmeal in the soybean meal diet [FSM]; addition of crystalline Lys and Met [AA]; addition of α-ketoglutaric acid [AKG]; and simultaneous addition of crystalline Lys, Met, and AKG [BA] to the soybean meal diet). At the end of the feeding trial, the FSM group had the highest feeding rate and the lowest weight gain rate among all the groups. The FM group had the highest protein retention and the lowest feed efficiency among the groups. The mRNA transcription level of genes related to the AMP-activating protein (AMPK) signaling pathway and amino acid response (AAR) signaling pathway (lkb1, atf4, and gcn2) were highest in the AA group (P < 0.05) but lower in the AKG and BA groups. In the AKG group, the mRNA transcription level of the gluconeogenesis pathway-related gene (pepck and g6pase) was significantly higher than that in the other four groups, but the mRNA transcription level of genes related to amino acid catabolism (gdh and ampd) was lower. Among all the groups, the FSM group had the lowest mRNA transcription level of genes associated with the mammalian target of rapamycin (mTOR) signaling pathway (mtor and s6k). These findings imply that the feeding rate of Chinese perch in the fermented soybean meal group was the highest, but the protein retention was the lowest, while the addition of Lys, Met, and AKG improved protein retention. In conclusion, the addition of AKG to fermented soybean meal as a fishmeal substitute reduced amino acid deamination, enhanced gluconeogenesis, and increased protein deposition, which contributed to the growth of Chinese perch, alleviated amino acid imbalances, and improved the feed utilization of Chinese perch.

Dietary soybean lecithin promoted growth performance and feeding in juvenile Chinese perch (Siniperca chuatsi) could be by optimizing glucolipid metabolism.

To explore the potential benefits of dietary phospholipids (PLs) in fish glucose metabolism and to promote feed culture of Chinese perch (Siniperca chuatsi), we set up six diets to feed Chinese perch (initial mean body weight 37.01 ± 0.20 g) for 86 days, including: Control diet (CT), 1% (SL1), 2% (SL2), 3% (SL3), 4% (SL4) soybean lecithin (SL) and 2% (KO2) krill oil (KO) supplemental diets (in triplicate, 20 fish each). Our study found that the SL2 significantly improved the weight gain rate and special growth rate, but the KO2 did not. In addition, the SL2 diet significantly improved feed intake, which is consistent with the mRNA levels of appetite-related genes (npy, agrp, leptin A). Additionally, in the CT and SL-added groups, leptin A expression levels were nearly synchronized with serum glucose levels. Besides, the SL2 significantly upregulated expression levels of glut2, gk, cs, fas and downregulated g6pase in the liver, suggesting that it may enhance glucose uptake, aerobic oxidation, and conversion to fatty acids. The SL2 also maintained the hepatic crude lipid content unchanged compared to the CT, possibly by significantly down-regulating the mRNA level of hepatic lipase gene (hl), and by elevating serum low-density lipoprotein (LDL) level and intraperitoneal fat ratio in significance. Moreover, the serum high-density lipoprotein levels were significantly increased by PL supplementation, and the SL2 further significantly increased serum total cholesterol and LDL levels, suggesting that dietary PLs promote lipid absorption and transport. Furthermore, dietary SL at 1% level could enhance non-specific immune capacity, with serum total protein level being markedly higher than that in the CT group. In conclusion, it is speculated that the promotion of glucose utilization and appetite by 2% dietary SL could be linked. We suggest a 1.91% supplementation of SL in the diet for the best growth performance in juvenile Chinese perch.

MiR-136 targets E2F1 to reverse cisplatin chemosensitivity in glioma cells.

MicroRNAs (miRNAs) have gained much attention due to their critical roles in diverse biological events, including tumorigenesis. In this study, we demonstrate that miR-136 is down-regulated in two cohorts of patients with glioma. Furthermore, the low-level expression of miR-136 is significantly associated with a more aggressive and/or poor prognostic phenotype of patients with gliomas. Both gain- and loss-of-function experiments showed that miR-136 expression can reverse cisplatin resistance and enhance the response to cisplatin treatment. Furthermore, we identified a novel direct target of miR-136, the E2F transcription factor 1 (E2F1) oncogene. Depletion of E2F1 recapitulated the tumor-suppressive functions of miR-136, whereas re-expression of E2F1 attenuated the function of miR-136 in glioma cells. Finally, we revealed that miR-136 is inversely correlated with E2F1 expression in human glioma samples. The present study provides functional and mechanistic links between the tumor suppressor miR-136 and the oncogene E2F1 for the development of chemoresistance in human glioma. Our results indicate that targeting of the miR-136/E2F1 axis may provide a promising therapeutic approach to treat glioma.

Progesterone for Traumatic Brain Injury: A Meta-Analysis Review of Randomized Controlled Trials.

OBJECTIVE: To conduct a meta-analysis to determine whether progesterone, compared with placebo or no treatment, influences mortality and neurologic outcome in traumatic brain injury (TBI). METHODS: To identify eligible studies, systematic searches for randomized controlled trials of progesterone treatment in TBI were conducted in PubMed, Web of Science, EMBASE, Cochrane Library, and ClinicalTrials.gov databases. The search yielded 8 studies that were included in the meta-analysis. Included data were study characteristics, patient demographics, baseline characteristics, progesterone treatment protocol, main outcome of mortality, and secondary neurologic outcome evaluated using the Glasgow Outcome Scale. RESULTS: The 8 studies comprised 2585 patients. The meta-analysis indicated that there was no evidence that progesterone treatment decreased the risk of mortality in patients with TBI; the overall risk ratio was 0.852 (95% confidence interval, 0.632-1.144; P = 0.284). In the secondary outcome analysis, progesterone had no neuroprotective role in improving neurologic outcome; the overall risk ratio was 1.151 (95% confidence interval, 0.0991-1.338; P = 0.06). Subgroup analysis according to the degree of injury assessed by the Glasgow Coma Scale demonstrated similar results. CONCLUSIONS: This study is the largest meta-analysis conducted to date to determine whether progesterone is effective in the treatment of TBI. The findings indicate that progesterone treatment does not decrease mortality or improve neurologic outcome in patients with TBI.

Polyphyllin D induces apoptosis in U87 human glioma cells through the c-Jun NH2-terminal kinase pathway.

Polyphyllin D (PD), an active component from a traditional medicinal herb Paris polyphylla, which has long been used for the treatment of cancer in Asian countries, has been found to hold significant antitumor activity in vivo or in vitro. However, there were few reports on the effects and underlying mechanism of PD on apoptosis in U87 human glioma cells. The present study was conducted to evaluate apoptotic induction of PD in U87 human glioma cells, and explore its underlying pathway. U87 glioma cells were cultured and treated with varied concentrations of PD (from 10(-8) to 10(-4) M). The inhibition of U87 glioma cell proliferation by PD was assessed by MTT assay. The apoptosis of U87 glioma cells was detected by flow cytometry, and western blot analysis was used to examine human B-cell leukemia/lymphoma 2 (Bcl-2), human Bcl-2 associated X protein (Bax), caspase-3, total-c-jun NH2-terminal kinase (t-JNK), and phosphorylation-JNK (p-JNK) protein expression in U87 human glioma cells. The treatment with PD for 24 h significantly inhibited the proliferation of U87 human glioma cells in a concentration-dependent manner. PD increased apoptosis and significantly upregulated the expression of Bax, caspase-3, and p-JNK associated with apoptosis, but downregulated antiapoptotic Bcl-2 expression in U87 human glioma cells. Our data provided evidences that PD induces apoptosis in U87 human glioma cells. This effect might be associated with the JNK pathway.

[Mechanism of ING4 mediated inhibition of the proliferation and migration of human glioma cell line U251].

AIM: To investigate the effect of Ad-ING4 on proliferation and migration of glioma cells and explore its probable mechanism. METHODS: U251 were infected with Ad-ING4. ING4 gene expression was evaluated by RT-PCR. MTT assay was adopted to evaluate the effect of ING4 on proliferation of U251; Boyden chamber assay was used to check the effect of ING4 on the migration of U251. In ING4 transfected U251, Western blot was used for detecting NGF and TrkA expression; Pull-down assay was used for detecting active RhoA expression. RESULTS: ING4 was overexpressed in Ad-ING4 transfected U251 cells. ING4 inhibited proliferation and migration of U251 significantly. Moreover, overexpression of ING4 result in depression of NGF, TrkA and active RhoA. CONCLUSION: ING4 mediated inhibition of the proliferation and migration of human glioma cells by down regulating NGF, TrkA and active RhoA expression.

The Hedgehog signalling pathway and its prognostic impact in human gliomas.

OBJECTIVE: Aberrant activation of Hedgehog signalling pathway is involved in the progression of various human tumours, such as gastric cancer, paediatric brain tumour and hepatocellular carcinoma. However, the correlation of this signalling with tumourigenesis and patients' survival of gliomas has not been well documented. The present study was undertaken to examine the expression of Hedgehog signalling pathway in gliomas to elucidate its prognostic value in this tumour. METHODS: Surgical specimens were obtained from 118 patients with primary gliomas. The expression of sonic hedgehog (Shh), its receptor patched (Ptch), and downstream transcription factor Gli1 was evaluated using immunohistochemical staining. Kaplan­ Meier survival and Cox regression analyses were performed to evaluate the prognosis of patients. RESULTS: Immunostaining revealed that the activation of Hedgehog signalling pathway was significantly associated with the Karnofsky performance scale (KPS) score and World Health Organization (WHO) grade of patients with gliomas. Especially, the positive expression rates of Shh, Ptch and Gli1 were significantly higher in patients with higher grade (P = 0.008, 0.008 and 0.01) and lower KPS score (P = 0.009, 0.009 and 0.02). Statistical analysis showed that patients expressing Shh, Ptch and Gli1 have poorer overall survival rates than those not expressing these proteins. Cox multi-factor analysis showed that KPS (P = 0.02), WHO grade (P = 0.008), Shh (P = 0.01), Ptch (P = 0.01) and Gli1 (P = 0.03) were independent prognosis factors for human gliomas. CONCLUSION: These results provide convincing evidence that the Shh-Ptch1-Gli1 signalling pathway is activated in human gliomas and correlates with clinicopathologic features as well as with prognostic parameters of the tumours. Hedgehog signalling pathway may therefore play an important role in the malignant potential and survival of gliomas.

Upregulation of matrix metalloproteinase-1 and proteinase-activated receptor-1 promotes the progression of human gliomas.

Matrix metalloproteinases (MMPs) have been proposed to be involved in remodeling the tumor-stromal microenvironment. The protease-activated receptors (PARs) are the latest MMP targets. Recent studies have revealed that stromal-derived MMP-1 acts as a signaling molecule by cleaving PAR1 to cause tumor migration and invasion of various cancers. However, the involvement of MMP-1/PAR1 signaling pathway in the progression and prognosis of human gliomas remains to be identified. Immunohistochemical staining was performed to detect the expression patterns of MMP-1 and PAR1 in biopsies from 108 patients with primary gliomas. Kaplan-Meier survival and Cox regression analyzes were performed to evaluate the prognosis of patients. Immunostaining revealed MMP-1 to be expressed in 83.3% (90/108) and PAR1 in 76.9% (83/108) of the biopsies. PAR1 expression was significantly correlated with that of MMP-1 (r = 0.786, p<0.0001). The total IHC scores for MMP-1 and PAR1 were significantly higher in high-grade tumors than in low-grade tumors (both p = 0.001). In addition, patients with high MMP-1 and high PAR1 expression have lower Karnofsky performance scale (KPS) scores than patients with low MMP-1 and low PAR1 expression (both p = 0.008). Moreover, MMP-1 and PAR1 expression was shown to be a strong prognostic marker for decreased overall survival (p = 0.002 and 0.003, respectively). Furthermore, Cox multi-factor analysis showed that KPS (p = 0.008), WHO grade (p = 0.006), MMP-1 (p = 0.006), and PAR1 (p = 0.008) were independent prognostic factors for human gliomas. Our results suggest that in gliomas, the upregulation of MMP-1 and PAR1 correlates with histological malignancy grade and clinical outcome. Also, MMP-1 and PAR1 immunostaining supplements the current histological grading by offering additional prognostic and predictive information.

Nerve growth factor expression in astrocytoma and cerebrospinal fluid: a new biomarker for prognosis of astrocytoma.

BACKGROUND: Recent studies have discovered that nuclear translocation of nerve growth factor (NGF) and its receptor fragments function differently from the traditional model. This study aimed to uncover the nuclear expression of NGF in astrocytoma and its biological significance. METHODS: Ninety-four paraffin-embedded astrocytoma specimens were subjected to immunohistochemical (IHC) and hemotoxylin & eosin (HE) staining. Preoperative cerebrospinal fluid (CSF) specimens and intraoperative snap-frozen astrocytoma tissues were assayed for NGF expression by ELISA and Western blotting. The outcome of patients who contributed samples was tracked. Each ten tissue samples from patients with traumatic brain injury who had received decompression surgery and CSF samples from patients undergoing spinal anesthesia but with no history of nervous system disease were taken as control. RESULTS: NGF-positive immunoreactive products were distributed in both the cytoplasm and nucleus of astrocytoma, but were only located in the cytoplasm of traumatic brain injury (TBI) tissue. NGF nuclear-positive rate (NPR) of grades III - IV astrocytomas (70.0%) was higher than that of grades I - II astrocytoma (28.6%, P < 0.05). NGF-NP expression positively correlated with the NGF concentration in cerebrospinal fluid (CSF) (r = 0.755, P < 0.01). Kaplan-Meier survival analysis indicated that the median survival time was 25 months for NGF-NP astrocytoma grade I - II patients and 42 months in NGF nuclear negative (NGF-NN) astrocytoma grade I - II patients (P < 0.05). In astrocytoma III - IV patients, the median survival was 7 months for NGF-NP patients and 24 months for NGF-NN patients (P < 0.01). Two types of NGF with molecular weights of 13 and 36 kDa were present in astrocytoma, but only the 36 kDa NGF was found in the CSF. NGF expression elevated as the malignancy increased. CONCLUSIONS: NGF-NP expression and NGF level in CSF were significant prognostic factors in astrocytoma patients. Because of the easy access of CSF, it may be developed as an index for early diagnosis and surveillance of astrocytoma.