CircRNA mannosidase alpha class 1A member 2 promotes esophageal squamous cell carcinoma progression by regulating C-C chemokine ligand 5.

Esophageal squamous cell carcinoma (ESCC) is a common malignancy with high morbidity and mortality. Although circular RNAs (circRNAs) play important roles in various cancers including ESCC, the role of the circRNA mannosidase alpha class 1A member 2 (circMAN1A2) in ESCC has been rarely studied. This study aimed to explore the role of circMAN1A2 in ESCC. CircMAN1A2 expression in ESCC tissues and cells was evaluated, and the relationship between circMAN1A2 expression and prognosis in patients with ESCC was analyzed. C-C chemokine ligand 5 (CCL5) was found to be a downstream target of circMAN1A2 by analysing the Agilent Microarray. Next, we performed in vitro and in vivo xenotransplantation assays to explore the role of circMAN1A2 in ESCC. We observed that high circMAN1A2 expression is associated with poor prognosis in patients with ESCC. Suppression of circMAN1A2 expression inhibits the proliferation, migration, and invasiveness of ESCC via regulating CCL5. Our results suggest that circMAN1A2 can promote the progression of ESCC by regulating CCL5. Thus, circMAN1A2 might be a novel diagnostic biomarker of ESCC, and targeting circMAN1A2 using inhibitors could be a potential therapeutic strategy to treat ESCC.

The circRNA circADAMTS6 promotes progression of ESCC and correlates with prognosis.

Circular RNAs (circRNAs) are a type of noncoding RNA, which play a vital role in the occurrence and development of esophageal squamous cell carcinoma (ESCC). While the role of novel circADAMTS6 in ESCC remains unknown. We assessed circADAMTS6 expression in ESCC tissues and cells, and the relationship between circADAMTS6 expression and overall survival of ESCC patients. Functional experiments in vitro and xenograft in vivo assay were applied to explore the functions and mechanisms of circADAMTS6 in ESCC. Results found that up-regulation of circADAMTS6 was associated with poor overall survival and may acted as an independent risk factor for ESCC prognosis. Knockdown of circADAMTS6 significantly inhibited the proliferation, migration and invasion of ESCC cells and growth of xenograft tumors in vivo. Induced AGR2 expression was able to rescue the loss of function induced by si-circADAMTS6 in KYSE150 cell. CircADAMTS6 may acts as oncogene by activating AGR2 and the Hippo signaling pathway coactivator YAP in ESCC.

Atomic Force Microscope Guided SERS Spectra Observation for Au@Ag-4MBA@PVP Plasmonic Nanoparticles.

Recently polymer encapsulated surface-enhanced-Raman-scattering (SERS) probes with internal noble metal core-shell structure has found growing applications in biomedical applications. Here we studied the SERS spectra of Au@Ag-4MBA@PVP (4MBA: 4-mercaptobenzoic acid; PVP: polyvinylpyrrolidone) plasmonic nanoparticles produced from a chemical reduction method. By linking the atomic force microscope (AFM) with the homebuilt confocal Raman spectrometer thus to use AFM images as guidance, we realized the measurement of the SERS spectra from separated nanoparticles. We investigated the cases for single nanoparticles and for dimer structures and report several observed results including SERS spectra linearly scaled with laser power, abrupt boosting and abnormal shape changing of SERS spectra for dimer structures. Based on the finite element method simulation, we explained the observed ratio of SERS signals between the dimer structure and the single nanoparticle, and attributed the observed abnormal spectra to the photothermal effect of these plasmonic nanoparticles. Our study provides valuable guidance for choosing appropriate laser power when applying similar SERS probes to image biological cells.

DNA methylation inhibitor, decitabine, promotes MGC803 gastric cancer cell migration and invasion via the upregulation of NEDD4­1.

Gastric cancer is the fourth most common cancer type and the second leading cause of cancer­associated mortality worldwide. Metastasis is a crucial feature of its progression. DNA methylation provides a key epigenetic signature in the epigenetic regulation pathway, and is implicated in transcriptional regulation. CpG sites, which are associated with gene transcriptional activity, are underrepresented in the mammalian genome and tend to be clustered within CpG islands (CGIs) located in the vicinity of the transcription start sites of the majority of the protein­coding genes in humans. The DNA methylation inhibitor, decitabine (DAC), has been demonstrated to be active in hematological disorders. The majority of previous studies in cancer cells demonstrated that DAC inhibits cell proliferation and the motility of the cells. However, since demethylation across the entire genome alters the expression of a large number of genes, the effects of DAC in different tumor cell types are difficult to accurately predict. Neural precursor cell­expressed, developmentally downregulated (NEDD)4­1, a member of the NEDD4 family, which belongs to the E3­ubiquitin ligase family, was reported to be highly expressed in a wide range of tumor types, and it activates the phosphoinositide 3­kinase/Akt pathway by degrading phosphatase and tensin homolog. NEDD4­1 promotes the migration and invasion of glioma cells via the ubiquitination and subsequent degradation of cyclic nucleotide­Ras guanine nucleotide exchange factors (CNrasGEFs). In gastric cardia adenocarcinoma, NEDD4­1 acts as an exceptional prognostic biomarker. In the present study, DAC was revealed to promote the invasive properties of MGC803 gastric cancer cells. NEDD4­1 targeted the CNrasGEF­mediated DAC invasion­promoting activity in MGC803 cells, and CGI methylation in neither the NEDD4 promoter nor the first intron was demonstrated to be associated with this effect. The results of the present study revealed that DAC exerts variable effects in different gastric cancer cell lines and may provide a reference for DAC administration in the clinic.

OCT4B modulates OCT4A expression as ceRNA in tumor cells.

OCT4 is an essential transcription factor for maintaining the self-renewal and the pluripotency of embryonic stem cells (ESCs). The human OCT4 gene can generate three mRNA isoforms (OCT4A, OCT4B and OCT4B1) by alternative splicing. OCT4A protein is a transcription factor for the stemness of ESCs, while the function of OCT4B isoforms remains unclear. Most types of cancer express a relatively low level of OCT4 protein, particularly the OCT4B isoforms. In the present study, we found that OCT4A and OCT4B mRNA were co-expressed in several types of tumor cell lines and tumor samples, and we demonstrated that OCT4B functioned as a non-coding RNA, modulating OCT4A expression in an miRNA-dependent manner [competing endogenous RNA (ceRNA) regulation] at the post-transcription level in the tumor cell lines. This is the first time that ceRNA regulation was observed among spliced isoforms of one gene, and may pave the way for identification of new targets for cancer treatment.

[Study on the chemical constituents of the PTP 1B inhibitory effective parts of Paeoniae Rubra Radix].

OBJECTIVE: To study the chemical constituents of the PTP 1B inhibitory effective parts of Paeoniae Rubra Radix. METHODS: The effective part of Paeoniae Rubra Radix was enriched by Sephadex LH-20. Compounds were isolated by various column chromatography and their structures were elucidated through spectroscopic analysis. RESULTS: Thirteen compounds were identified as: benzoylpaeoniflorin(1), albiflorin(2), paeoniflorigenone(3), methyl gallate(4), adenosine(5),2-amino adenosine(6), 3,3'-Di-O-methylellagic acid(7), 3,3',4-trimethyl ellagic acid(8), dihydrokaempferol(9), glycerol(10), dibutyl phthalate(11). CONCLUSION: Compounds 5-11 are obtained from this plant for the first time.

Encapsulation of photosensitizer into multilayer microcapsules by combination of spontaneous deposition and heat-induced shrinkage for photodynamic therapy.

Annealing of PDADMAC/PSS multilayer microcapsules assembled on PSS-doped CaCO(3) particles at 80 °C for 30 min reduces their size dramatically from 6.9 ± 0.3 to 3.1 ± 0.5 µm. Methylene blue molecules are encapsulated by spontaneous deposition and post-annealing with a concentration of 22 mg · mL(-1), which is 1000 times higher than the feeding value. The unreleased MB molecules are retained stably for a long time, which are then protected by the capsules against reductive enzymes and keep their photodynamic activity. The viability of HeLa cells incubated with the MB-loaded capsules decreases sharply from ≈ 75 (dark cytotoxicity) to ≈ 20% after irradiation with a laser at 671 nm and 60 J · cm(-2) for 75 s.

[Comparative study of clinical efficacy between surgery by intraoperative MRI navigation versus traditional surgical resection for malignancy of parapharyngeal space].

OBJECTIVE: To investigate the clinical efficacy between mobile intraoperative magnetic resonance imaging (iMRI) navigation with a high field strength and routine surgical resection for malignancy of parapharyngeal space. METHODS: The surgical efficacy indexes of patients at our hospital during the time range from February 2010 to February 2011 were compared between two groups consisting of 29 or 42 individuals undergoing surgery with the assistance of the technique of iMRI navigation with a high field strength 1.5T or routine operation. RESULTS: No difference existed between two groups in terms of age, gender, maximal diameter of tumors, tumor stages, surgical approach or pathologic diagnosis (P > 0.05). The operative duration of the group by iMRI navigation was more than the group of routine operation ((3.1 ± 0.6) h vs (2.7 ± 0.7) h, P < 0.05). And the hemorrhagic loss ((185 ± 20) ml vs (230 ± 22) ml), the volume of drainage in 72 hours, the positive rate of initial surgical margins, the postoperative hospital stay ((9.1 ± 2.1) d vs (10.3 ± 2.3) d) and the complication incidence rate (3.4% vs 9.5%) were less (all P < 0.05). CONCLUSION: The operation by the iMRI navigation offers a much better clinical efficacy than the traditional surgery in the resection of malignancy of parapharyngeal space.

[The preliminary study of the use of MRI navigation in identifying the safe surgical margin of the maxillofacial malignancy].

OBJECTIVE: To evaluate the feasibility of MRI navigation in identifing the safe surgical margin of the maxillofacial malignancy. METHODS: The pathology results of the surgical margin identified by the technique of MRI navigation form 20 patients with maxillofacial malignancy were compared with those of 45 patients with maxillofacial malignancy who underwent the routine operation without MRI navigation. RESULTS: There was no difference between the two groups of patients in age, sex, size of tumor, tumor stages, pathologic diagnosis (P > 0.05). The negative rate of the surgical margin of the lesions treated by surgery with the technique of MRI navigation was significantly lower than that of the lesions treated without MRI navigation (P = 0.007) and highly correspondent with the pathology results. CONCLUSIONS: MRI navigation was helpful in identifying the safe surgical margin of the maxillofacial malignancy.

Morphine-induced conditioned place preference in mice: metabolomic profiling of brain tissue to find "molecular switch" of drug abuse by gas chromatography/mass spectrometry.

Conditioned place preference (CPP) is a widely used model to explore the mechanism of context-dependent learning. In this work, we developed a GC-MS method to investigate the metabolites in mice brain which was used to study the mechanism of context-dependent learning associated with rewarding effect of morphine. Metabolites were extracted from brain tissues and derivatized followed by analysis by gas chromatography/mass spectrometry (GC-MS). In total, 69 peaks were identified as known compounds. By a Wilcoxon ran sum test with p value ≤0.05, 21 metabolites were selected and considered as the potential biomarkers of morphine in mice brain. Using principal component analysis (PCA) and receiver-operator characteristic (ROC) curves, a model was constructed with a combination of these 21 metabolic markers. Multivariate statistics of the model yielded separation between the two groups with an area under the curve value of 0.947. Some metabolites were further discussed in detail about their pathway. Results showed that our technique can be successfully applied to profile for biomarkers and in understanding molecular mechanisms of drug abuse.

Preparation of polypyrrole-coated magnetic particles for micro solid-phase extraction of phthalates in water by gas chromatography-mass spectrometry analysis.

In this work, polypyrrole (PPy)-coated Fe(3)O(4) magnetic microsphere were successfully synthesized, and applied as a magnetic sorbent to extract and concentrate phthalates from water samples. The PPy-coated Fe(3)O(4) magnetic microspheres had the advantages of large surface area, convenient and fast separation ability. The PPy coating of magnetic microspheres contributed to preconcentration of phthalates from water sample, due to the π-π bonding between PPy coating and the analytes. Also, the coating could prevent aggregation of the microspheres, and improve their dispersibility. In this study, seven kinds of phthalates were selected as model analytes, including dimethyl phthalate (DMP), diethyl phthalate (DEP), di-iso-butyl phthalate (DIBP), di-n-butyl phthalate (DBP), benzylbutyl phthalate (BBP), di-(2-ethylhexyl) phthalate (DEHP) and di-n-octyl phthalate (DNOP), and gas chromatography-mass spectrometry (GC-MS) was introduced to detect the phthalates after sample pretreatment. Important parameters of the extraction procedure were investigated, and optimized including eluting solvent, the amount of Fe(3)O(4)@PPy particles, and extraction time. After optimization, the procedure took only 15 min to extract and concentrate analytes with high efficiency. Validation experiments showed that the optimized method had good linearity (0.985-0.998), precision (3.4-11.7%), high recovery (91.1-113.4%), and the limits of detection were from 0.006 to 0.068 µg/L. The results indicated that the novel method had advantages of convenience, good sensitivity, high efficiency, and it could also be applied successfully to analyze phthalates in real water sample.