Circ_0044235 regulates the development of osteoarthritis by the modulation of miR-375/PIK3R3 axis.

BACKGROUND: Circular RNAs (circRNAs) play an important role in osteoarthritis (OA). However, the role of circRNA in OA is still unclear. Here, we explored the role and mechanism of circ_0044235 in OA. METHODS: CHON-001 cells were treated with IL-1ß to establish OA model in vitro. The levels of circ_0044235, miR-375 and phosphoinositide 3-kinase (PI3K) regulatory subunit 3 (PIK3R3) were detected by quantitative real-time PCR. Cell count kit-8 assay and flow cytometry assay were used to detect cell viability and apoptosis. The concentrations of inflammation factors were determined by enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay. Western blot was used to detect protein levels. The interaction between miR-375 and circ_0044235 or PIK3R3 was analyzed by dual-luciferase reporter assay and RNA immunoprecipitation assay. RESULTS: Circ_0044235 was significantly decreased in OA cartilage tissue and IL-1ß-treated CHON-001 cells. Overexpression of circ_0044235 promoted IL-1ß-stimulated CHON-001 cell viability and inhibited apoptosis, inflammation, and extracellular matrix (ECM) degradation. In mechanism analysis, circ_0044235 could act as a sponge for miR-375 and positively regulate PIK3R3 expression. In addition, miR-375 ameliorated the effect of circ_0044235 overexpression on IL-1ß-mediated CHON-001 cells injury. In addition, miR-375 inhibition mitigated IL-1ß-induced CHON-001 cell injury, while PIK3R3 silencing restored the effect. CONCLUSION: Circ_0044235 knockdown alleviated IL-1ß-induced chondrocytes injury by regulating miR-375/PIK3R3 axis, confirming that circ_0044235 might be a potential target for OA treatment.

Associations between the severity of reflux esophagitis in children and changes in oxidative stress, serum inflammation, vasoactive intestinal peptide and motilin.

Changes in the levels of serum oxidative stress indexes, gastrointestinal hormones and inflammatory factors in children with different severity of reflux esophagitis (RE) were detected. Sixty child patients diagnosed with gastroesophageal reflux disease (GERD) via gastroscopy were selected and divided into non-erosive reflux disease group (NERD group, n=12) and RE group (n=48) according to whether there was esophageal mucosal injury. In RE group, the patients were further divided into grade I RE group (n=15), grade II RE group (n=18) and grade III RE group (n=15) based on the severity of mucosal injury. None of the child patients took PPI and domperidone within 2 weeks before enrollment. The content of malondialdehyde (MDA) and total superoxide dismutase (T-SOD) in the esophageal mucosa was detected. The changes in the levels of serum vasoactive intestinal peptide (VIP), motilin, interleukin-1ß (IL-1ß), IL-8 and tumor necrosis factor-α (TNF-α) were determined. The DeMeester score was the highest in grade III RE group, followed by grade II RE group, grade I RE group and NERD group (P<0.05). The content of MDA in the esophageal mucosa was higher in RE group than that in NERD group, and the T-SOD activity declined with the increased severity of injury (P<0.05). In the three RE groups, the level of plasma VIP was significantly higher, while the motilin level was remarkably lower than those in NERD group (P<0.05). With the increased severity of disease, the expression levels of serum IL-1ß, IL-8 and TNF-α in RE group were gradually raised (P<0.05). RE patients have strong oxidative stress and inflammatory response, an increased level of serum VIP, a regulator of gastrointestinal motility, and a decreased level of motilin. Controlling the changes in the above factors using effective treatment means can improve the development of GERD.

A new family of fullerene derivatives: Fullerene-curcumin conjugates for biological and photovoltaic applications.

The synthesis and characterization of a family of [60]fullerocurcuminoids obtained via Bingel reactions is reported. The new C60 derivatives include curcumin and curcuminoids with a variety of end groups. Preliminary biological experiments show the potential activity of the compound containing a curcumin addend, which exhibits moderate anti-HIV-1 and radical scavenger properties, but no anti-cancer activity. In addition, the new fullerocurcuminoids exhibit HOMO/LUMO energy levels that are reasonably matched with those of perovskites and when they were tested in perovskite solar cells (PSCs) as the electron transporting material (ETM), photoconversion efficiencies ranging from 14.04%-14.95% were obtained, whereas a value of 16.23% was obtained for [6,6]-phenyl-C61-butyric acid methyl ester (PC61BM) based devices.