UQCRFS1 serves as a prognostic biomarker and promotes the progression of ovarian cancer.

UQCRFS1 has been reported to be highly expressed in gastric and breast cancer, but the mechanism remains unclear. The prognosis and biological functions of UQCRFS1 in ovarian cancer (OC) have not been evaluated. The expression of UQCRFS1 in EOC was detected by GEPIA and HPA websites, and the prognosis value was investigated by Kaplan-Meier analysis. Then the correlation between the UQCRFS1 gene and tumor-related signature were analyzed by Spearman correlation analysis and rank sum test. Subsequently, the expression of the UQCRFS1 gene in four ovarian cancer cell lines was detected. A2780 and OVCAR8 with the highest expression of UQCRFS1 were selected in the following biological experiments. Cell proliferation was detected by CCK8 assay, cell cycle and apoptosis were determined by flow cytometry, reactive oxygen species (ROS) production was detected by DCFH-DA, DNA damage gene mRNA expression was analyzed by RT-PCR, and AKT/mTOR pathway protein expression were also examined by western blot after siRNA transfection. We found that UQCRFS1 was high-expression in EOC and associated with poor prognosis. Spearman correlation analysis revealed that the high expression of UQCRFS1 is associated with the cell cycle, apoptosis, oxidative phosphorylation, and DNA damage. Further studies found that knockdown of UQCRFS1 cells reduced cell proliferation, cell cycle arrest at the G1 phase, increased proportion of apoptosis, ROS production, and expression of DNA damage genes, inhibited ATK/mTOR pathway. The study suggested that UQCRFS1 may be a candidated target for diagnosis and treatments in OC.

Inhibit ALDH3A2 reduce ovarian cancer cells survival via elevating ferroptosis sensitivity.

Ovarian cancer (OC) is a malignant gynecologic tumor with high morbidity and mortality. As a newly discovered mode of programmed cell death, ferroptosis has been involved in various pathological processes of kinds of tumors in recent years. Aldehyde dehydrogenase 3 family member A2 (ALDH3A2) catalyzes the oxidation of long-chain aliphatic aldehydes to fatty acid. ALDH3A2 has been shown to be associated with ferroptosis in acute myeloid leukemia (AML), but the mechanism remains unclear. In this study, we analyzed the TCGA and GTEx databases and showed that high ALDH3A2 expression predicted poor prognosis in ovarian cancer. Further studies found that knockout or overexpression of ALDH3A2 correspondingly increased or attenuated the ferroptosis sensitivity of ovarian cancer cells. And sequencing revealed that ALDH3A2 knockout led to the activation of lipid metabolic, GSH metabolic, phospholipid metabolic, and aldehyde metabolic pathways, suggesting that ALDH3A2 induced changes in the sensitivity of ovarian cancer cells to ferroptosis by affecting these metabolic processes. Our results provide a new promising therapeutic strategy for the treatment of OC.

Dynamic Changes of IsiA-Containing Complexes during Long-Term Iron Deficiency in Synechocystis sp. PCC 6803.

Iron stress-induced protein A (IsiA), a major chlorophyll-binding protein in the thylakoid membrane, is significantly induced under iron deficiency conditions. Using immunoblot analysis and 77 K fluorescence spectroscopy combined with sucrose gradient fractionation, we monitored dynamic changes of IsiA-containing complexes in Synechocystis sp. PCC 6803 during exposure to long-term iron deficiency. Within 3 days of exposure to iron deficiency conditions, the initially induced free IsiA proteins preferentially conjugated to PS I trimer to form IsiA18-PS I trimers, which serve as light energy collectors for efficiently transmitting energy to PS I. With prolonged iron deficiency, IsiA proteins assembled either into IsiA aggregates or into two other types of IsiA-PS I supercomplexes, namely IsiA-PS I high fluorescence supercomplex (IHFS) and IsiA-PS I low fluorescence supercomplex (ILFS). Further analysis revealed a role for IsiA as an energy dissipater in the IHFS and as an energy collector in the ILFS. The trimeric structure of PS I mediated by PsaL was found to be indispensable for the formation of IHFS/ILFS. Dynamic changes in IsiA-containing complexes in cyanobacteria during long-term iron deficiency may represent an adaptation to iron limitation stress for flexible light energy distribution, which balances electron transfer between PS I and PS II, thus minimizing photooxidative damage.

Congenital cataract: prevalence and surgery age at Zhongshan Ophthalmic Center (ZOC).

Congenital cataract (CC) is the primary cause of treatable childhood blindness. Population-based assessments of prevalence and surgery age of CC, which are critical for improving management strategies, have been unavailable in China until now. We conducted a hospital-based, cross-sectional study of the hospital charts of CC patients younger than 18 years old from January 2005 to December 2010 at Zhongshan Ophthalmic Center (ZOC) in Guangzhou, China. Residence, gender, age at surgery, hospitalization time, and the presence of other ocular abnormalities were extracted and statistically analyzed in different subgroups. The search identified 1314 patients diagnosed with CC from a total of 136154 hospitalizations, which accounted for 2.39% of all the cataract in-patients and 1.06% of the total in-patients over the six-year study period. Of the identified CC patients, 9.2% had ≥ 2 hospitalizations due to the necessity of additional surgeries, with a total ratio of boys to girls of 1.75 ∶ 1. Based on a subgroup analysis according to age, patients 2-6 years old constituted the highest proportion (29.22%) of all hospitalized CC patients, and those 13-18 years old constituted the lowest proportion (13.47%) of the total number. The average age at surgery was 27.62 ± 23.36 months, but CC patients ≤ 6 years old (especially ≤ 6 months old) became increasingly prevalent throughout the 6-year study period. A total of 276 cases (20.93%) of CC were associated with one or more other ocular abnormalities, the highest incidence rates were observed for exotropia (6.24%), nystagmus (6.16%), and refractive error (3.65%). In conclusion, CC patients accounted for 2.39% of all cataract in-patients in a review of 6 years of hospitalization charts from ZOC. The age at the time of surgery decreased over the 6-year study period, which probably reflects the continuing improvement of public awareness of children's eye care in China.

Ocular hypertension after pediatric cataract surgery: baseline characteristics and first-year report.

Monitoring intraocular pressure (IOP) is essential for pediatric cataract treatment but always difficult due to lack of cooperation in young children. We present the baseline characteristics and the first-year results of a long-term prospective cohort study, which are aimed to determine the relationship of the incidence of ocular hypertension (OH) in children after cataract surgery during the first-year period and the risk of developing late-onset glaucoma. Children were included with the following criteria: they were ≤10 years old and scheduled to undergo cataract surgery with/without intraocular lens implantation; they were compliant with our follow-up protocol, which included monitoring IOP using a Tono-Pen under sedation or anesthesia. Incidence of OH, peak OH value, OH onset time and OH duration within a 12-month period following surgery were measured. In brief, 206 patients (379 eyes) were included and OH developed in 66 of 379 (17.4%) eyes. The mean follow-up period was 14.0±3.2 months (median, 12 months; range, 10-16 months). Moreover, 33 of 196 (16.8%) aphakic eyes and 33 of 183 (18.0%) IOL eyes were diagnosed with OH. The peak OH onset times were at 1-week (34/66, 51.5%) and 1-month (14/66, 21.2%) appointments postsurgery. The peak IOP value in the OH eyes was 29.9±7.5 mmHg (median, 29 mmHg; range, 21-48 mmHg). The duration of OH was 30.9±31.2 days (median, 30 days; range, 3-150 days). OH recurred in 13 eyes with a history of OH diagnosed within 1 month postsurgery (13/54, 24.1%), which needed temporary or long term use of antiglaucoma medications. In conclusion, the incidence of OH in children after cataract surgery was 17.4% during the first-year period. Children who have suffered elevated IOP in the first year after cataract surgery should be followed closely to determine if there is an increased risk of developing late-onset glaucoma.

Scientific publications in ophthalmic journals from China and other top-ranking countries: a 12-year review of the literature.

BACKGROUND: Eye diseases with increasing mortality are common health problems that affect people of all ages and demographic backgrounds. In this study, we study the publication characteristics in international ophthalmic journals of the US, the UK, Germany, Australia, Japan, and China. METHODS: Articles published in 53 ophthalmic journals from 2000 to 2011 were retrieved from the PubMed database. We recorded the number of articles published each year, analyzed the publication type, and evaluated the accumulated and average impact factors (IFs), and the distribution of articles in ophthalmic journals in relation to IFs. The characteristics of publication outputs from China and other top-ranking countries were compared. RESULTS: The total number of articles increased significantly during the past 12 years, with an increase of 51.0%. The growth in the annual number of articles from the US, the UK, Australia, and China showed a significantly positive trend. Publications from the US exceeded those from any other country and had the highest IFs, largest number of total citations of articles, and the most articles published in leading ophthalmic journals. During the past 12 years, China contributed 3.5% of the total publications, and the number of Chinese articles showed a more than 6-fold increase (from 99 to 605, R2 =0.947, P<0.001). The numbers of IFs and citations of articles originating in China were mostly lower than for other top-ranking counties. CONCLUSIONS: Research on ophthalmic journals has maintained an upward growing trend from 2000 to 2011. Chinese ophthalmology research has developed rapidly, but the gap still exists between China and other top-ranking countries for the advanced level of research.

[Expression and purification of mucin 16 and preparation and characterization of anti-mucin 16 monoclonal antibody].

AIM: To generate monoclonal antibodies (mAbs) against mucin 16 using purified recombinant protein of human mucin 16 N terminus with His tag (His-mucin 16N) as the antigen. METHODS: Mucin 16 N terminus was cloned into a prokaryotic expression vector pET-32. His-mucin 16N was then expressed in E.coli and purified by the affinity chromotography. Cell fusion was performed after the BALB/c mice were immunized with the purified His-mucin 16N protein. We screened hybridoma cell strains producing mAbs against mucin 16. The specificity and titer of the antibodies were characterized with ELISA, Western blotting, immunofluorescent and immunohistochemical staining. RESULTS: The recombinant protein of His-mucin 16N was expressed and purified. A few hybridoma cell strains which could secrete specific mAbs against mucin 16 were obtained, and one anti-mucin 16 mAb with good specificity and high titer was selected and purified. The isotype of this anti-mucin 16 mAb was determined as IgG1, which indicated that this anti-mucin 16 mAb could be used for ELISA, Western blotting, immunofluorescent and immunohistochemical staining. The endogenous expression of mucin 16 in various cancer cell lines or tissues was also examined with this anti-mucin 16 antibody by Western blotting and other immunoassays. CONCLUSION: The recombinant protein of His-mucin 16N was expressed and purified successfully, with which we prepared anti-mucin 16 mAb with good specificity and high titer.