Silencing of spindle apparatus coiled-coil protein 1 suppressed the progression of hepatocellular carcinoma through farnesyltransferase-beta and increased drug sensitivity.

Hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC) is the major cause of cancer-associated mortality worldwide. Despite great advances have been made on the treatment of HCC, the survival rate of patients remains poor. Spindle apparatus coiled-coil protein 1 (SPDL1) is involved in the development of various cancers in humans. However, the role of SPDL1 in HCC remains unclear. In this study, we found high expression of SPDL1 in HCC tissues as compared to normal samples. In vitro, silencing of SPDL1 induced HCC cell apoptosis, and suppressed HCC cell propagation and migration. In vivo, knockdown of SPDL1 inhibited the tumor growth of HCC cells. These findings indicated the tumor-promoting role of SPDL1 in HCC. Mechanistically, we identified farnesyltransferase-beta (FNTB) as the downstream target protein of SPDL1 based on immunoprecipitation and mass spectrometry, which were confirmed by western blotting. Rescue assay determined that FNTB played a tumor promoting role in SPDL1-trigger HCC cell growth. Overexpression of FNTB recovered HCC cell viability and migration in SPDL1 knockdown cells. We also found that silencing of SPDL1 increased the sensitivity of Huh7 cells to sorafenib and lenvatinib, suggesting that SPDL1 is a new therapeutic target in HCC. Collectivity, the present study identified a new axis SPDL1/FNTB involved in the progression of HCC. Hence, SPDL1/FNTB is a potential target for the treatment of HCC.

ATP6V0A1-dependent cholesterol absorption in colorectal cancer cells triggers immunosuppressive signaling to inactivate memory CD8+ T cells.

Obesity shapes anti-tumor immunity through lipid metabolism; however, the mechanisms underlying how colorectal cancer (CRC) cells utilize lipids to suppress anti-tumor immunity remain unclear. Here, we show that tumor cell-intrinsic ATP6V0A1 drives exogenous cholesterol-induced immunosuppression in CRC. ATP6V0A1 facilitates cholesterol absorption in CRC cells through RAB guanine nucleotide exchange factor 1 (RABGEF1)-dependent endosome maturation, leading to cholesterol accumulation within the endoplasmic reticulum and elevated production of 24-hydroxycholesterol (24-OHC). ATP6V0A1-induced 24-OHC upregulates TGF-ß1 by activating the liver X receptor (LXR) signaling. Subsequently, the release of TGF-ß1 into the tumor microenvironment by CRC cells activates the SMAD3 pathway in memory CD8+ T cells, ultimately suppressing their anti-tumor activities. Moreover, we identify daclatasvir, a clinically used anti-hepatitis C virus (HCV) drug, as an ATP6V0A1 inhibitor that can effectively enhance the memory CD8+ T cell activity and suppress tumor growth in CRC. These findings shed light on the potential for ATP6V0A1-targeted immunotherapy in CRC.

A distinct subset of urothelial cells with enhanced EMT features promotes chemotherapy resistance and cancer recurrence by increasing COL4A1-ITGB1 mediated angiogenesis.

Drug resistance and tumor recurrence remain clinical challenges in the treatment of urothelial carcinoma (UC). However, the underlying mechanism is not fully understood. Here, we performed single-cell RNA sequencing and identified a subset of urothelial cells with epithelial-mesenchymal transition (EMT) features (EMT-UC), which is significantly correlated with chemotherapy resistance and cancer recurrence. To validate the clinical significance of EMT-UC, we constructed EMT-UC like cells by introducing overexpression of two markers, Zinc Finger E-Box Binding Homeobox 1 (ZEB1) and Desmin (DES), and examined their histological distribution characteristics and malignant phenotypes. EMT-UC like cells were mainly enriched in UC tissues from patients with adverse prognosis and exhibited significantly elevated EMT, migration and gemcitabine tolerance in vitro. However, EMT-UC was not specifically identified from tumorous tissues, certain proportion of them were also identified in adjacent normal tissues. Tumorous EMT-UC highly expressed genes involved in malignant behaviors and exhibited adverse prognosis. Additionally, tumorous EMT-UC was associated with remodeled tumor microenvironment (TME), which exhibited high angiogenic and immunosuppressive potentials compared with the normal counterparts. Furthermore, a specific interaction of COL4A1 and ITGB1 was identified to be highly enriched in tumorous EMT-UC, and in the endothelial component. Targeting the interaction of COL4A1 and ITGB1 with specific antibodies significantly suppressed tumorous angiogenesis and alleviated gemcitabine resistance of UC. Overall, our findings demonstrated that the driven force of chemotherapy resistance and recurrence of UC was EMT-UC mediated COL4A1-ITGB1 interaction, providing a potential target for future UC treatment.

The tumour suppressor Fat1 is dispensable for normal murine hematopoiesis.

Loss and overexpression of FAT1 occurs among different cancers with these divergent states equated with tumor suppressor and oncogene activity, respectively. Regarding the latter, FAT1 is highly expressed in a high proportion of human acute leukemias relative to normal blood cells, with evidence pointing to an oncogenic role. We hypothesized that this occurrence represents legacy expression of FAT1 in undefined hematopoietic precursor subsets that is sustained following transformation, predicating a role for FAT1 during normal hematopoiesis. We explored this concept by using the Vav-iCre strain to construct conditional knockout (cKO) mice where Fat1 expression was deleted at the hematopoietic stem cell stage. Extensive analysis of precursor and mature blood populations using multi-panel flow cytometry revealed no ostensible differences between Fat1 cKO mice and normal littermates. Further functional comparisons involving colony forming unit and competitive bone marrow transplantation assays support the conclusion that Fat1 is dispensable for normal murine hematopoiesis.

Genetic evaluation in indeterminate acute liver failure: A post hoc analysis.

BACKGROUND AND STUDY AIMS: There are limited data regarding indeterminate acute liver failure (ALF). The study aims to perform a post hoc analysis using genetic methods for the ALF cases with indeterminate etiology. PATIENTS AND METHODS: Stored blood samples from these patients with indeterminate ALF were collected. Whole-exome sequencing (WES) was used to evaluate the pathogenesis of indeterminate ALF. RESULTS: A total of 16 samples from 11 adult patients and 5 pediatric patients with indeterminate ALF were available. Among the adult patients, one female patient was identified with two heterozygous variants (c.2333G > T (p.Arg778Leu) and c.2310C > G (p.Leu770 = )) in the adenosine triphosphatase copper-transporting beta (ATP7B) gene, and two male patients were found to harbor heterozygous and homozygous variants (c.686C > A (p.Pro229Gln) plus homozygousvariantA(TA)6TAAinsTA (-), andc.1456 T > G (p.Tyr486Asp) plus c.211G > A (p.Gly71Arg)) in the uridine diphosphate glucuronosyltransferase 1A1 (UGT1A1) gene. For the pediatric patients, single heterozygous variant (c.2890C > T (p.Arg964Cys)) in the polymerase gamma (POLG) gene was found in 1 male child, and two heterozygous variants (c.1909A > G (p.Lys637Glu) and c.3646G > A (p.Val1216Ile)) in the tetratricopeptide repeat domain 37 (TTC37) gene were found in 1 female child. No variants clinically associated with known liver diseases were revealed in the remaining patients. CONCLUSION: These results expand the knowledge of ALF with indeterminate etiology. WES is helpful to reveal possible candidate genes for indeterminate ALF, but incomplete consistency between the genotype and phenotype in some cases still challenge the accurate diagnosis.

XBP1s activates METTL3/METTL14 for ER-phagy and paclitaxel sensitivity regulation in breast cancer.

Cancer cells employ the unfolded protein response (UPR) or induce autophagy, especially selective removal of certain ER domains via reticulophagy (termed ER-phagy), to mitigate endoplasmic reticulum (ER) stress for ER homeostasis when encountering microenvironmental stress. N6-methyladenosine (m6A) is one of the most abundant epitranscriptional modifications and plays important roles in various biological processes. However, the molecular mechanism of m6A modification in the ER stress response is poorly understood. In this study, we first found that ER stress could dramatically elevate m6A methylation levels through XBP1s-dependent transcriptional upregulation of METTL3/METTL14 in breast cancer (BC) cells. Further MeRIP sequencing and relevant validation results confirmed that ER stress caused m6A methylation enrichment on target genes for ER-phagy. Mechanistically, METTL3/METTL14 increased ER-phagy machinery formation by promoting m6A modification of the ER-phagy regulators CALCOCO1 and p62, thus enhancing their mRNA stability. Of note, we further confirmed that the chemotherapeutic drug paclitaxel (PTX) could induce ER stress and increase m6A methylation for ER-phagy. Furthermore, the combination of METTL3/METTL14 inhibitors with PTX demonstrated a significant synergistic therapeutic effect in both BC cells and xenograft mice. Thus, our data built a novel bridge on the crosstalk between ER stress, m6A methylation and ER-phagy. Most importantly, our work provides novel evidence of METTL3 and METTL14 as potential therapeutic targets for PTX sensitization in breast cancer.

Juveniles, young adults, and infants with hepatitis B virus infection: A genomic study.

Integration of hepatitis B virus (HBV) DNA into the human genome is recognized as an oncogenic factor and a barrier to hepatitis B cure. In the study, biopsy liver tissues were collected from adolescents and young adults with acute HBV infection younger than or equal to 35 years of age and from HBV-infected infant patients younger than or equal to 6 months of age. A high-throughput sequencing method was used to detect HBV DNA integration. Totally, 12 adolescents, young adults, and 6 infants were included. Among the 12 patients with acute HBV infection, immunohistochemical staining of intrahepatic hepatitis B surface antigen for all displayed negative results, and no HBV DNA integrants in the hepatocyte DNA were confirmed. All infant patients had elevated levels of alanine aminotransferase and high levels of serum HBV DNA. Numerous gene sites of hepatocyte DNA were integrated by HBV DNA for each infant patient, ranging from 120 to 430 integration sites. The fragile histidine triad gene was the high-frequency integrated site in the intragenic region for infant patients. In conclusion, hepatocyte DNA is integrated by HBV DNA in babies with active hepatitis B but seems seldom affected among adolescents and young adults with acute HBV infection. Infantile hepatitis B should be taken seriously considering abundant HBV DNA integration events.

Studies on the binding of wedelolactone to human serum albumin with multi-spectroscopic analysis, molecular docking and molecular dynamic simulation.

Wedelolactone (WEL) is a small molecule compound isolated from Eclipta prostrate L., which has been reported to possess various biological activities such as anti-hepatotoxicity, anti-hypertension, anti-tumour, anti-phospholipase A2 and detoxification activity against snake venom. In the present study, we investigated the interaction of WEL with human serum albumin (HSA) using simultaneous fluorescence, UV-visible spectroscopy, 3D fluorescence spectroscopy, Fourier transform infrared spectroscopy (FTIR), molecular docking technique and molecular dynamics simulation. We found that the interaction between HSA and WEL can exhibit a static fluorescence burst mechanism, and the binding process is essentially spontaneous, with the main forces manifested as hydrogen bonding, van der Waals force and electrostatic interactions. Competitive binding and molecular docking studies showed that WEL preferentially bound to HSA in substructural region IIA (site I); molecular dynamics simulations showed that HSA interacted with WEL to form a stable complex, which also induced conformational changes in HSA. The study of the interaction between WEL and HSA can provide a reference for a more in-depth study of the pharmacodynamic mechanism of WEL and its further development and utilisation.

Multifunctional Fe-based coordination polymer nano-bomb modified with ß-lapachone and CaO2 for targeted tumor dual chemodynamic therapy with enhanced ferroptosis and H2O2 self-supply.

Chemodynamic therapy (CDT) is seriously limited by the inadequacy of exogenous catalytic ions and endogenous H2O2 in tumors. Herein, a multifunction nano-bomb integrated with calcium peroxide (CaO2) and ß-lapachone as donors of H2O2 and GSH-sensitive Fe-based coordination polymer as provider of catalytic ions was constructed for dual cascade-amplified tumor CDT. This hyaluronic acid (HA)-modified nano-bomb could be specially endocytosed by breast cancer cells through a targeting pathway, degraded and released cargoes in response to the GSH-rich cytoplasm. Furthermore, the released CaO2 and ß-lapachone could significantly self-generated sufficient H2O2, which could dual-cascade amplify CDT and induce severe oxidative to tumors via cooperating with the delivered iron ions from nano-bombs. Moreover, the unloaded iron and calcium ions could further accelerate tumor damage by overloading Ca2+ and ferroptosis, as accompanied by good magnetic resonance imaging (MRI). In vitro and in vivo studies collectively reveal that this nano-bomb not only self-initiates double cascade-amplified CDT via self-generation of H2O2, but also efficiently activates ferroptosis and initiates Ca2+ overloading, consequently significantly tumor growth suppression. This study offers a novel tumor-initiated nano-bomb for dual cascade-amplified CDT and bioimaging with activated ferroptosis and self-supplying H2O2.

METTL1 mediated tRNA m7G modification promotes leukaemogenesis of AML via tRNA regulated translational control.

BACKGROUND: RNA modifications have been proven to play fundamental roles in regulating cellular biology process. Recently, maladjusted N7-methylguanosine (m7G) modification and its modifiers METTL1/WDR4 have been confirmed an oncogene role in multiple cancers. However, the functions and molecular mechanisms of METTL1/WDR4 in acute myeloid leukemia (AML) remain to be determined. METHODS: METTL1/WDR4 expression levels were quantified using qRT-PCR, western blot analysis on AML clinical samples, and bioinformatics analysis on publicly available AML datasets. CCK-8 assays and cell count assays were performed to determine cell proliferation. Flow cytometry assays were conducted to assess cell cycle and apoptosis rates. Multiple techniques were used for mechanism studies in vitro assays, such as northern blotting, liquid chromatography-coupled mass spectrometry (LC-MS/MS), tRNA stability analysis, transcriptome sequencing, small non-coding RNA sequencing, quantitative proteomics, and protein synthesis measurements. RESULTS: METTL1/WDR4 are significantly elevated in AML patients and associated with poor prognosis. METTL1 knockdown resulted in reduced cell proliferation and increased apoptosis in AML cells. Mechanically, METTL1 knockdown leads to significant decrease of m7G modification abundance on tRNA, which further destabilizes tRNAs and facilitates the biogenesis of tsRNAs in AML cells. In addition, profiling of nascent proteins revealed that METTL1 knockdown and transfection of total tRNAs that were isolated from METTL1 knockdown AML cells decreased global translation efficiency in AML cells. CONCLUSIONS: Taken together, our study demonstrates the important role of METTL1/WDR4 in AML leukaemogenesis, which provides a promising target candidate for AML therapy.

An Adjuvant Micelle-Based Multifunctional Nanosystem for Tumor Immunotherapy by Remodeling Three Types of Immunosuppressive Cells.

Immunotherapy is restricted by a complex tumor immunosuppressive microenvironment (TIM) and low drug delivery efficiency. Herein, a multifunctional adjuvant micelle nanosystem (PPD/MPC) integrated with broken barriers and re-education of three classes of immune-tolerant cells is constructed for cancer immunotherapy. The nanosystem significantly conquers the penetration barrier via the weakly acidic tumor microenvironment-responsive size reduction and charge reversal strategy. The detached core micelle MPC could effectively be internalized by tumor-associated macrophages (TAMs), tumor-infiltrating dendritic cells (TIDCs), and myeloid-derived suppressor cells (MDSCs) via mannose-mediated targeting endocytosis and electrostatic adsorption pathways, promoting the re-education of immunosuppressive cells for allowing them to reverse from pro-tumor to antitumor phenotypes by activating TLR4/9 pathways. This process in turn leads to the remodeling of TIM. In vitro and in vivo studies collectively indicate that the adjuvant micelle-based nanosystem not only relieves the intricate immune tolerance and remodels TIM via reprogramming the three types of immunosuppressive cells and regulating the secretion of relevant cytokines/immunity factors but also strengthens immune response and evokes immune memory, consequently suppressing the tumor growth and metastasis.

Comparative diagnostic accuracy of multiparametric magnetic resonance imaging-ultrasound fusion-guided biopsy versus systematic biopsy for clinically significant prostate cancer.

Purpose: To examine the accuracy of transperineal magnetic resonance imaging (MRI)-ultrasound (US) fusion biopsy (FB) in identifying men with prostate cancer (PCa) that has reached a clinically relevant stage. Methods: This investigation enrolled 459 males. In 210 of these patients (FB group), transperineal MRI/US fusion-guided biopsies were performed on the suspicious region, and in 249 others, a systematic biopsy (SB) was performed (SB group). We compared these groups using Gleason scores and rates of cancer detection. Results: PCa cases counted 198/459 (43.1%), including 94/249 (37.8%) in the SB group and 104/210 (49.5%) in the FB group. FB was associated with higher overall diagnostic accuracy relative to SB (88.5% and 72.3%, P = 0.024). FB exhibited greater sensitivity than SB (88.9% and 71.2%, P = 0.025). The area under the curve for FB and SB approaches was 0.837 and 0.737, respectively, such that FB was associated with an 11.9% increase in accuracy as determined based upon these AUC values. Relative to SB, FB was better able to detect high-grade tumors (GS ≥ 7) (78.85% vs. 60.64%, P = 0.025). Conclusion: Transperineal MRI-US fusion targeted biopsy is superior to the systematic one as an approach to diagnosing clinically significant PCa, as it is a viable technical approach to prostate biopsy.

Detection, Verification and Analysis of Micro Surface Defects in Steel Filament Using Eddy Current Principles, Scanning Electron Microscopy and Energy-Dispersive Spectroscopy.

In the current industrial revolution, advanced technologies and methods can be effectively utilized for the detection and verification of defects in high-speed steel filament production. This paper introduces an innovative methodology for the precise detection and verification of micro surface defects found in steel filaments through the application of the Eddy current principle. Permanent magnets are employed to generate a magnetic field with a high frequency surrounding a coil of sensors positioned at the filament's output end. The sensor's capacity to detect defects is validated through a meticulous rewinding process, followed by a thorough analysis involving scanning electron microscopy (SEM) and energy-dispersive spectroscopy (EDS). Artificial defects were intentionally introduced into a sample, and their amplitudes were monitored to establish a threshold value. The amplitude signal of these created defect was identified at approximately 10% FSH, which corresponds to a crack depth of about 20 µm. In the experimental production of 182 samples covering 38 km, the defect ratio was notably high, standing at 26.37%. These defects appeared randomly along the length of the samples. The verification results underscore the exceptional precision achieved in the detection of micro surface defects within steel filaments. These defects were primarily characterized by longitudinal scratches and inclusions containing physical tungsten carbide.

[Mechanism of Proliferation and Apoptosis of Acute Promyelocytic Leukemia Cell Line NB4 Induced by TPA].

OBJECTIVE: To investigate the effect of phorbol-12-myristate-13-ace-tate (TPA) on the proliferation and apoptosis of acute promyelocytic leukemia cell line NB4 and its molecular mechanism. METHODS: The effect of different concentrations of TPA on the proliferation of NB4 cells at different time points was detected by CCK-8 assay. The morphological changes of NB4 cells were observed by Wright-Giemsa staining. The cell cycle and apoptosis of NB4 cells after TPA treatment were detected by flow cytometry. The mRNA expressions of NB4 cells after TPA treatment were analyzed by high-throughput microarray analysis and real-time quantitative PCR. Western blot was used to detect the protein expression of CDKN1A, CDKN1B, CCND1, MYC, Bax, Bcl-2, c-Caspase 3, c-Caspase 9, PIK3R6, AKT and p-AKT. RESULTS: Compared with the control group, TPA could inhibit the proliferation of NB4 cells, induce the cells to become mature granulocyte-monocyte differentiation, and also induce cell G1 phase arrest and apoptosis. Differentially expressed mRNAs were significantly enriched in PI3K/AKT pathway. TPA treatment could increase the mRNA levels of CCND1, CCNA1, and CDKN1A, while decrease the mRNA level of MYC. It could also up-regulate the protein levels of CDKN1A, CDKN1B, CCND1, Bax, c-Caspase 3, c-Caspase 9, and PIK3R6, while down-regulate MYC, Bcl-2, and p-AKT in NB4 cells. CONCLUSION: TPA induces NB4 cell cycle arrest in G1 phase and promotes its apoptosis by regulating PIK3/AKT signaling pathway.

Detachable MOF-Based Core/Shell Nanoreactor for Cancer Dual-Starvation Therapy With Reversing Glucose and Glutamine Metabolisms.

Tumor-dependent glucose and glutamine metabolisms are essential for maintaining survival, while the accordingly metabolic suppressive therapy is limited by the compensatory metabolism and inefficient delivery efficiency. Herein, a functional metal-organic framework (MOF)-based nanosystem composed of the weakly acidic tumor microenvironment-activated detachable shell and reactive oxygen species (ROS)-responsive disassembled MOF nanoreactor core is designed to co-load glycolysis and glutamine metabolism inhibitors glucose oxidase (GOD) and bis-2-(5-phenylacetmido-1,2,4-thiadiazol-2-yl) ethyl sulfide (BPTES) for tumor dual-starvation therapy. The nanosystem excitingly improves tumor penetration and cellular uptake efficiency via integrating the pH-responsive size reduction and charge reversal and ROS-sensitive MOF disintegration and drug release strategy. Furthermore, the degradation of MOF and cargoes release can be self-amplified via additional self-generation H2 O2 mediated by GOD. Last, the released GOD and BPTES collaboratively cut off the energy supply of tumors and induce significant mitochondrial damage and cell cycle arrest via simultaneous restriction of glycolysis and compensatory glutamine metabolism pathways, consequently realizing the remarkable triple negative breast cancer killing effect in vivo with good biosafety via the dual starvation therapy.

NOTCH4ΔL12_16 sensitizes lung adenocarcinomas to EGFR-TKIs through transcriptional down-regulation of HES1.

Resistance to epidermal growth factor tyrosine kinase inhibitors (EGFR-TKI) remains one of the major challenges in lung adenocarcinoma (LUAD) therapy. Here, we find an increased frequency of the L12_16 amino acid deletion mutation in the signal peptide region of NOTCH4 (NOTCH4ΔL12_16) in EGFR-TKI-sensitive patients. Functionally, exogenous induction of NOTCH4ΔL12_16 in EGFR-TKI -resistant LUAD cells sensitizes them to EGFR-TKIs. This process is mainly mediated by the reduction of the intracellular domain of NOTCH4 (NICD4) caused by the NOTCH4ΔL12_16 mutation, which results in a lower localization of NOTCH4 in the plasma membrane. Mechanistically, NICD4 transcriptionally upregulates the expression of HES1 by competitively binding to the gene promoter relative to p-STAT3. Because p-STAT3 can downregulate the expression of HES1 in EGFR-TKI-resistant LUAD cells, the reduction of NICD4 induced by NOTCH4ΔL12_16 mutation leads to a decrease in HES1. Moreover, inhibition of the NOTCH4-HES1 pathway using inhibitors and siRNAs abolishes the resistance of EGFR-TKI. Overall, we report that the NOTCH4ΔL12_16 mutation sensitizes LUAD patients to EGFR-TKIs through transcriptional down-regulation of HES1 and that targeted blockade of this signaling cohort could reverse EGFR-TKI -resistance in LUAD, providing a potential approach to overcome resistance to EGFR-TKI -therapy.

Preparation of Molecularly Imprinted Cysteine Modified Zinc Sulfide Quantum Dots Based Sensor for Rapid Detection of Dopamine Hydrochloride.

By combining surface molecular imprinting technology with cysteine-modified ZnS quantum dots, an elegant, molecularly imprinted cysteine-modified Mn2+: ZnS QDs (MIP@ZnS QDs) based fluorescence sensor was successfully developed. The constructed fluorescence sensor is based on a molecularly imprinted polymer (MIP) coated on the surface cysteine-modified ZnS quantum dots and used for rapid fluorescence detection of dopamine hydrochloride. The MIP@ZnS quantum dots possess the advantages of rapid response, high sensitivity, and selectivity for the detection of dopamine hydrochloride molecules. Experimental results show that the adsorption equilibrium time of MIP@ZnS QDs for dopamine hydrochloride molecules is 12 min, and it can selectively capture and bind dopamine in the sample with an imprinting factor of 29.5. The fluorescence quenching of MIP@ZnS QDs has a good linear (R2 = 0.9936) with the concentration of dopamine hydrochloride ranged from 0.01 to 1.0 µM, and the limit of detection is 3.6 nM. In addition, The MIP@ZnS QDs demonstrate good recyclability and stability and are successfully employed for detection of dopamine hydrochloride in urine samples with recoveries was 95.2% to 103.8%. The proposed MIP@ZnS QDs based fluorescent sensor provides a promising approach for food safety detection and drug analysis.

Whole-genome sequencing identified novel mutations in a Chinese family with lynch syndrome.

Background: Lynch syndrome (LS) is caused by a germline mutation in one of the mismatch repair genes (MLH1, MSH2, MSH6, and PMS2) or in the EPCAM gene. The definition of Lynch syndrome is based on clinical, pathological, and genetic findings. Therefore, the identification of susceptibility genes is essential for accurate risk assessment and tailored screening programs in LS monitoring. Patients and methods: In this study, LS was diagnosed clinically in a Chinese family using Amsterdam II criteria. To further explore the molecular characteristics of this LS family, we performed whole genome sequencing (WGS) to 16 members in this family and summarized the unique mutational profiles within this family. We also used Sanger sequencing technology and immunohistochemistry (IHC) to verify some of the mutations identified in the WGS analysis. Results: We showed that mutations in mismatch repair (MMR) related genes, as well as pathways including DNA replication, base excision repair, nucleotide excision repair, and homologous recombination were enhanced in this family. Two specific variants, MSH2 (p.S860X) and FSHR (p.I265V) were identified in all five members with LS phenotypes in this family. The MSH2 (p.S860X) variant is the first reported variant in a Chinese LS family. This mutation would result in a truncated protein. Theoretically, these patients might benefit from PD-1 (Programmed death 1) immune checkpoint blockade therapy. The patients who received nivolumab in combination with docetaxel treatments are currently in good health. Conclusion: Our findings extend the mutation spectrum of genes associated with LS in MLH2 and FSHR, which is essential for future screening and genetic diagnosis of LS.

Human circulating small non-coding RNA signature as a non-invasive biomarker in clinical diagnosis of acute myeloid leukaemia.

Background: Acute myeloid leukaemia (AML) is the most common acute leukaemia in adults; AML is highly heterogeneous and involves abnormalities at multiple omics levels. Small non-coding RNAs (sncRNAs) present in body fluids are important regulatory molecules and considered promising non-invasive clinical diagnostic biomarkers for disease. However, the signature of sncRNA profile alteration in AML patient serum and bone marrow supernatant is still under exploration. Methods: We examined data for blood and bone marrow samples from 80 consecutive, newly-diagnosed patients with AML and 12 healthy controls for high throughput small RNA-sequencing. Differentially expressed sncRNAs were analysed to reveal distinct patterns between AML patients and controls. Machine learning methods were used to evaluate the efficiency of specific sncRNAs in discriminating individuals with AML from controls. The altered expression level of individual sncRNAs was evaluated by RT-PCR, Q-PCR, and northern blot. Correlation analysis was employed to assess sncRNA patterns between serum and bone marrow supernatant. Results: We identified over 20 types of sncRNA categories beyond miRNAs in both serum and bone marrow supernatant, with highly coordinated expression patterns between them. Non-classical sncRNAs, including rsRNA (62.86%), ysRNA (14.97%), and tsRNA (4.22%), dominated among serum sncRNAs and showed sensitive alteration patterns in AML patients. According to machine learning-based algorithms, the tsRNA-based signature robustly discriminated subjects with AML from controls and was more reliable than that comprising miRNAs. Our data also showed that serum tsRNAs to be closely associated with AML prognosis, suggesting the potential application of serum tsRNAs as biomarkers to assist in AML diagnosis. Conclusions: We comprehensively characterized the expression pattern of circulating sncRNAs in blood and bone marrow and their alteration signature between healthy controls and AML patients. This study enriches research of sncRNAs in the regulation of AML, and provides insights into the role of sncRNAs in AML.

Intermittent energization improves microbial electrolysis cell-assisted thermophilic anaerobic co-digestion of food waste and spent mushroom substance.

Microbial electrolysis cell-assisted thermophilic anaerobic digestion (MEC-TAD) is a promising method to improve anaerobic co-digestion efficiency; however, its application is restricted by high energy consumption. To improve the energy use efficiency of MEC-TAD, this study investigated the effect of different intermittent energization strategies on thermophilic co-digestion performance. Results revealed that an 18 h-ON/6h-OFF energization schedule resulted in the fastest electron transfer rate and the highest methane yield (364.3 mL/g VS). Mechanistic analysis revealed that 18 h-ON/6h-OFF resulted in the enrichment of electroactive microorganisms and increased abundance of enzyme-coding genes associated with energy metabolism (ntp, nuo, atp), electron transfer (pilA, nfrA2, ssuE), and the hydrogenotrophic methanogenic pathway. Finally, energy balance analysis revealed that 18 h-ON/6h-OFF had the highest net energy benefit (2.52 kJ) and energy conversion efficiency (110.76 %). Therefore, intermittent energization of MEC-TAD using an 18 h-ON/6h-OFF schedule can provide improved performance and more energy savings.