Prognostic significance of serum monoclonal proteins based on immunofixation electrophoresis in B-cell non-Hodgkin lymphoma.

The presence of serum monoclonal components has been associated with poor outcomes in various hematological malignancies. The current study focused on exploring its prognostic role in B-cell non-Hodgkin lymphoma. Our study represented 314 patients with information on serum immunofixation electrophoresis at diagnosis that were available with B-cell non-Hodgkin lymphoma. IFE was positive in 61 patients (19%). Baseline features were comparable between pairs of groups, poor ECOG PS, B symptoms, advanced stage, and high-risk IPI score were significantly more frequent in the + IFE group. Shorter PFS and OS of B-NHL patients were observed in patients who presented at diagnosis with a + IFE, and IFE was the independent predictor of PFS and OS in multivariate analysis. Moreover, integrating IFE into the IPI-M1, IPI-M2, and IPI-M3 models improved the area under the curve for more accurate survival prediction and prognosis. Serum monoclonal proteins are significant prognostic indicators for newly diagnosed B-cell non-Hodgkin lymphoma that can early identify patients with poor prognosis and guide clinical treatment decisions.

Metagenomic next-generation sequencing in detecting pathogens in pediatric oncology patients with suspected bloodstream infections.

BACKGROUND: Studies on mNGS application in pediatric oncology patients, who are at high risk of infection, are quite limited. METHODS: From March 2020 to June 2022, a total of 224 blood samples from 195 pediatric oncology patients who were suspected as bloodstream infections were enrolled in this study. Their clinical and laboratory data were retrospectively reviewed, and the diagnostic performance of mNGS was assessed. RESULTS: Compared to the reference tests, mNGS showed significantly higher sensitivity (89.8% vs 32.5%, P < 0.001) and clinical agreement (76.3% vs 51.3%, P < 0.001) in detecting potential pathogens and distinguishing BSI from non-BSI. Especially, mNGS had an outstanding performance for virus detection, contributing to 100% clinical diagnosed virus. Samples from patients with neutropenia showed higher incidence of bacterial infections (P = 0.035). The most identified bacteria were Escherichia coli, and the overall infections by gram-negative bacteria were significantly more prevalent than those by gram-positive ones (90% vs 10%, P < 0.001). Overall, mNGS had an impact on the antimicrobial regimens' usage in 54.3% of the samples in this study. CONCLUSIONS: mNGS has the advantage of rapid and effective pathogen diagnosis in pediatric oncology patients with suspected BSI, especially for virus. IMPACT: Compared with reference tests, mNGS showed significantly higher sensitivity and clinical agreement in detecting potential pathogens and distinguishing bloodstream infections (BSI) from non-BSI. mNGS is particularly prominent in clinical diagnosed virus detection. The incidence of bacterial infection was higher in patients with neutropenia, and the overall infection rate of Gram-negative bacteria was significantly higher than that of Gram-positive bacteria. mNGS affects the antimicrobial regimens' usage in more than half of patients.

[Summary and evaluation of randomized controlled trial on Chinese patent medicine in treatment of diabetic foot ulcer].

This study systematically collected, analyzed, and evaluated randomized controlled trial(RCT) in the treatment of diabetic foot ulcer(DFU). The aim as provide references for future studies and to enhance the application of clinical evidence. The RCT of DFU treated with Chinese Patent Medicine was obtained and analyzed using the AI-Clinical Evidence Database of Chinese Patent Medicine(AICED-CPM). The analysis was supplemented with data from CNKI, Wanfang, VIP, SinoMed, PubMed, EMbase, Cochrane Library, and Web of Science. A total of 275 RCTs meeting the requirements were retrieved, with only 7 of them having a sample size of 200 or more. These trials involved 66 different Chinese patent medicine including 25 oral medications, 24 Chinese herbal injections, and 17 external drugs. Among the 33 different intervention/control designs identified, the most common design was Chinese patent medicine + conventional treatment vs conventional treatment(86 cases, 31.27%). Out of the 275 articles included in the literature, 50 did not provide information on the specific course of treatment(18.18%). A total of 10 counting indicators(with a frequency of 426) and 36 measuring indicators(with a frequency of 962) were utilized. The methodological quality of the RCT for the treatment of DFU with Chinese patent medicine was found to be low, with deficiencies in blind methods, other bias factors, study registration, and sample size estimation. There were noticeable shortcomings in the reporting of allocation hiding and implementation bias(blind method application). More studies should prioritize trial registration, program design, and strict quality control during implementation to provide valuable data for clinical practice and serve as a reference for future investigations.

PARP inhibitor exerts an anti-tumor effect via LMO2 and synergizes with cisplatin in natural killer/T cell lymphoma.

BACKGROUND: PARP inhibitor (PARPi), as a kind of DNA damage repair inhibitor, has been shown to be effective in various solid tumors and hematologic malignancies. Natural killer/T cell lymphoma (NKTCL) is a highly aggressive malignancy, the treatment of which has long been a major challenge in the clinic. Here, we investigated the efficacy and mechanism of PARPi, and the therapeutic value of PARPi combined with cisplatin in NKTCL. METHODS: The cell proliferation, cell apoptosis, and cell cycle of NKTCL cells were detected respectively by CCK-8 and flow cytometry. The changes of mRNA expression and protein level were measured respectively by mRNA-sequencing, quantitative real-time PCR, western blotting, and immunofluorescence. LMO2 expression was detected by immunohistochemistry and western blotting. Targeted knockdown of LMO2 was conducted by short hairpin RNA. The tumor xenograft models were established to evaluate the efficacy of drugs in vivo. RESULTS: PARPi inhibited cell proliferation, promoted cell apoptosis, and induced S-phase cell cycle arrest in NKTCL cells. PARPi led to the accumulation of DNA damage by blocking DNA repair and DNA replication. Additionally, LMO2 deficiency reduced the sensitivity of NKTCL cells to PARPi. Finally, the combination of PARPi and cisplatin exhibited significant synergistic effects both in vitro and in vivo. CONCLUSIONS: In summary, we found that PARPi exerted an anti-tumor effect via LMO2 and synergized with cisplatin in NKTCL, which provides the theoretical basis for the clinical application of PARPi.

CAR-T cells targeting CD38 and LMP1 exhibit robust antitumour activity against NK/T cell lymphoma.

BACKGROUND: Natural killer/T cell lymphoma (NKTCL) is an aggressive lymphoma with a poor prognosis. Chimeric antigen receptor-transduced T (CAR-T) cell therapy has become a promising immunotherapeutic strategy against haematologic malignancies. METHODS: In this study, four CAR-T cell lines (CD38-CAR, LMP1-CAR, CD38-LMP1 tandem CAR 1 and CD38-LMP1 tandem CAR 2) were generated. The effect of CAR-T cells against NKTCL cells was evaluated both in vitro and in vivo. Expression of T cell activation markers and cytokines produced by CAR-T cells were detected by flow cytometry. RESULTS: The four CAR-T cell lines could effectively eliminate malignant NKTCL cells. They could be activated and produce inflammatory cytokines in a target-dependent manner. In vivo tests showed that the CAR-T cells exhibited significant antitumour effects in a xenotransplanted NKTCL mouse model. CONCLUSIONS: In summary, four CAR-T cell lines exhibited significant cytotoxicity against NKTCL cells both in vitro and in vivo. These results indicated the effective therapeutic promise of CD38 and LMP1 CAR-T cells in NKTCL.

Synergistic anticancer effect of a combination of chidamide and etoposide against NK/T cell lymphoma.

Natural killer/T cell lymphoma (NKTCL) is a highly aggressive hematological malignancy. However, there is currently no consensus on therapies for refractory/relapsed patients. In this study, we investigated the synergistic anticancer effect and potential mechanism of combining chidamide, a histone deacetylases (HDACs) inhibitor, and etoposide, a DNA-damaging agent, in NKTCL. We demonstrated that chidamide or etoposide alone dose- and time-dependently inhibited the cell viability of NKTCL cell lines, YT, NKYS and KHYG-1. Functional experiments suggested that combined chidamide and etoposide treatment exerted synergistic antiproliferation effect and enhanced cell apoptotic death in vitro and in vivo. Furthermore, the expression of DNA damage related proteins was detected and we also examined the alternations in histone acetylation, cell cycle progression, and mitochondrial membrane potential (MMP). The results suggested that increased histone acetylation, cell cycle arrest at the G2/M phase and loss of MMP, converging to greater DNA damage, might account for the synergism of the combination of chidamide and etoposide in NKTCL. Taken together, our study provides an evident for possible application on combining HDACs inhibitors and DNA-damaging agents for the treatment of NKTCL.

Enhanced efficacy of combined fluzoparib and chidamide targeting in natural killer/T-cell lymphoma.

The treatment of natural killer/T-cell lymphoma (NKTCL) presents an onerous challenge, and a search for new therapeutic targets is urgently needed. Poly ADP-ribose polymerase inhibitors (PARPi) were initially used to treat breast and ovarian cancers with BRCA1/2 mutations. Their excellent antitumor efficacy led to a series of clinical trials conducted in other malignancies. However, the exploration of PARPi and their potential use in combination treatments for NKTCL remains unexplored. We treated NKTCL cell lines with fluzoparib (a novel inhibitor of PARP) and chidamide (a classical inhibitor of HDACs) to explore their cytotoxic effects in vitro. Then, their antitumor efficacy in vivo was confirmed in YT-luciferin xenograft mouse models. Fluzoparib or chidamide alone inhibited NKTCL cell proliferation in a dose-dependent manner. Cotreatment with both drugs synergistically induced excessive accumulation of DNA double-strand breaks and massive apoptotic cell death by inhibiting the DNA damage repair pathway, as shown by the decreased protein levels of p-ATM, p-BRCA1, p-ATR, and Rad51. Moreover, the combination treatment apparently increased the level of intracellular reactive oxygen species (ROS) to enhance apoptosis, and pretreatment with an ROS scavenger reduced the proapoptotic effect by 30-60% in NKTCL cell lines. In vivo, this combined regimen also showed synergistic antitumor effects in xenograft mouse models. The combination of fluzoparib and chidamide showed synergistic effects against NKTCL both in vitro and in vivo and deserves further exploration in clinical trials.

Anti-inflammatory Activity of Gegen Decoction and Its Modulatory Mechanism on the NF-κB and MAPK Signaling Pathways.

Gegen Decoction as anti-inflammatory medicine is used in clinic widespread, however the specific anti-inflammatory molecular mechanism of Gegen Decoction is still unclear. The purpose was to study the anti-inflammatory activity of Gegen Decoction in vivo and to research its anti-inflammatory molecular mechanism. The content of main essential components in Gegen Decoction were determined by HPLC method. The anti-inflammatory activity of Gegen Decoction was confirmed through in vivo animal experiments. Furthermore, RAW 264.7 cells were stimulated by lipopolysaccharides to induce inflammatory reaction, the modulatory effect of Gegen Decoction on the activation process of mitogen-activated protein kinases and nuclear factor-κB signaling pathways was investigated. The content of puerarin was the highest among all the index components. Gegen Decoction inhibited carrageenan-induced paw edema in rats and xylene-induced ear swelling in mice. Gegen Decoction had no obvious toxicity against RAW 264.7 cells at the concentrations of 10-40 mg/mL; significantly inhibited the release of nitric oxide, prostaglandin E2, tumor necrosis factor-α and interleukin-6; down-regulated the high expression of inflammatory proteins inducible nitric oxide synthase and cyclooxygenase-2. It inhibited the phosphorylation of mitogen-activated protein kinases (MAPKs)/extracellular regulated protein kinases (ERK)/c-Jun N-terminal kinase (JNK), the degradation of nuclear factor-κB (NF-κB)/inhibitor of NF-κB-α (IκB-α) and the nuclear translocation of NF-κB/p65 into nucleus. Gegen Decoction exerts significant anti-inflammatory activity, mainly by blocking the activation of both MAPKs and NF-κB pathway.

[Baicalin improves inflammatory response of human microglia by regulating cAMP-PKA-NF-κB/CREB pathway].

This study aims to investigate the effects of baicalein(BAI) on lipopolysaccharide(LPS)-induced human microglial clone 3(HMC3) cells, with a focus on suppressing inflammatory responses and elucidating the potential mechanism underlying the therapeutic effects of BAI on ischemic stroke via modulating the cAMP-PKA-NF-κB/CREB pathway. The findings have significant implications for the application of traditional Chinese medicine in treating cerebral ischemic diseases. First, the safe dosage of BAI was screened, and then an inflammation model was established with HMC3 cells by induction with LPS for 24 h. The cells were assigned into a control group, a model group, and high-, medium-, and low-dose(5, 2.5, and 1.25 µmol·L~(-1), respectively) BAI groups. The levels of superoxide dismutase(SOD) and malondialdehyde(MDA) in cell extracts, as well as the levels of interleukin-1ß(IL-1ß), IL-6, tumor necrosis factor-α(TNF-α), and cyclic adenosine monophosphate(cAMP) in the cell supernatant, were measured. Western blot was performed to determine the expression of protein kinase A(PKA), phosphorylated cAMP-response element binding protein(p-CREB), and nuclear factor-kappa B p65(NF-κB p65). Hoechst 33342/PI staining was employed to assess cell apoptosis. High and low doses of BAI were used for treatment in the research on the mechanism. The results revealed that BAI at the concentrations of 10 µmol·L~(-1) and below had no impact on normally cultured HMC3 cells. LPS induction at 200 ng·mL~(-1) for 24 h reduced the SOD activity and increased the MDA content in HMC3 cells. However, 5, 2.5, and 1.25 µmol·L~(-1) BAI significantly increased the SOD activity and 5 µmol·L~(-1) BAI significantly decreased the MDA content. In addition, BAI ameliorated the M1 polarization of HMC3 cells induced by LPS, as indicated by cellular morphology. The results of ELISA demonstrated that BAI significantly lowered the levels of TNF-α, IL-1ß, IL-6, and cAMP in the cell supernatant. Western blot revealed that BAI up-regulated the protein levels of PKA and p-CREB while down-regulating the expression of NF-κB p65. Hoechst 33342/PI staining results indicated that BAI mitigated the apoptosis of HMC3 cells. Overall, the results indicated that BAI had protective effects on the HMC3 cells induced by LPS, and could inhi-bit inflammatory response and improve cell apoptosis, which might be related to the regulation of the cAMP-PKA-NF-κB/CREB pathway.

The potential efficacy and mechanism of bendamustine in entra-nodal NK/T cell lymphoma.

Bendamustine has been shown to have anti-tumor activities in hematological malignancies, but the role of bendamustine in natural killer (NK)/T cell lymphoma (NKTCL) treatment is unclear. Our study has shown that bendamustine had potent growth-inhibitory and apoptosis-inducing effects on NKTCL cells. Interestingly, we noticed that the combination of either gemcitabine or etoposide results in additive or synergistic cytotoxicity. Bendamustine induced mitochondria-mediated apoptosis in concentration- and time-dependent manners in NKTCL cells, shown as down-regulation of Bcl-2 and activation of cleavage of caspases 3, 7, 9 and poly adenosinediphosphate-ribose polymerase (PARP). Bendamustine arrested NKTCL cells in G2/M phase, with downregulation of expression of cyclin B1 and upregulation of expression of p-cdc2, p-cdc25c and p-P53. Furthermore, we confirmed that bendamustine activated DNA damage response (DDR) directly or through Ataxia Telangiectasia Mutated Protein (ATM)/Chk2 and ATR/Chk1 pathway and increased the intracellular reactive oxygen species (ROS) level in NKTCL cells, which caused G2/M phase arrest and apoptosis. Bendamustine also inhibited phosphorylation of transcriptional factor STAT3, contributing to cell apoptosis and proliferation inhibition. Finally, we verified the effect of bendamustine on NKTCL cells in vivo. It showed that bendamustine dramatically inhibited the growth of the subcutaneous tumor, with no obvious impact on mice weight. These findings demonstrate that bendamustine activates DDR pathway, induces the accumulation of intracellularROS level as well as inhibition of STAT3, leading to cell apoptosis and G2/M cell cycle arrest in NKTCL cells, which indicates that bendamustine dramatically suppressed NKTCL both in vitro and in vivo and provides a potential therapeutic strategy in the treatment of NK/T lymphoma.

Effects of Thrombin on the Neurovascular Unit in Cerebral Ischemia.

Cerebral ischemia is a cerebrovascular disease with high morbidity and mortality that poses a significant burden on society and the economy. About 60% of cerebral ischemia is caused by thrombus, and the formation of thrombus proceeds from insoluble fibrin, following its transformation from liquid fibrinogen. In thrombus-induced ischemia, increased permeability of the blood-brain barrier (BBB), followed by the extravasation of blood components into the brain results in an altered brain microenvironment. Changes in the brain microenvironment affect brain function and the neurovascular unit (NVU), the working unit of the brain. Recent studies have reported that coagulation factors interact with the NVU and its components, but the specific function of this interaction is highly speculative and warrants further investigations. In this article, we reviewed the role of coagulation factors in cerebral ischemia and the role of coagulation factors in thrombosis. Additionally, the influence of thrombin on the NVU is introduced, as well as in the function of NVU, which may help to explore part of brain injury mechanism during ischemia. Lastly, we propose some novel therapeutic approaches on ischemic stroke by reducing the risk of coagulation.

RAB3D, upregulated by aryl hydrocarbon receptor (AhR), promotes the progression of prostate cancer by activating the PI3K/AKT signaling pathway.

Many patients with prostate cancer (PCa) cannot be diagnosed until an advanced stage, which make PCa become a large threat to human health. It is an urgent need to explore novel biomarkers for accurate diagnosis and targets for the effective treatment of PCa. This study aimed to investigate the effects of RAB3D (which belongs to the secretory Rab GTPases) on the progression of PCa. The results showed that RAB3D was highly expressed in PCa tissues compared to normal tissues according to the gene expression omnibus dataset. Consistent with the bioinformatics results, RAB3D exhibited a higher expression in PCa cells. Overexpression of RAB3D promoted the proliferation, migration, and invasion of PCa cells, whereas the knockdown of RAB3D led to the opposite results. The procancer effects of RAB3D were further confirmed by the in vivo growth of xenograft model. Subsequently, RAB3D upregulated the PI3K/AKT signaling pathway both in vivo and in vitro. LY294002 (a PI3K inhibitor) rescued the RAB3D upregulation-induced promotion of malignant phenotypes of PCa cells. Furthermore, the transcription activity of RAB3D was found to be enhanced by aryl hydrocarbon receptor (AhR; a transcription factor). The AhR silencing-induced inhibition of the proliferation and migration of PCa cells was reversed by the overexpression of RAB3D. Taken together, RAB3D, upregulated by AhR, promotes the PCa progression by activating the PI3K/AKT signaling pathway.

Production of Multiple Talaroenamines from Penicillium malacosphaerulum via One-Pot/Two-Stage Precursor-Directed Biosynthesis.

Nineteen new talaroenamine derivatives, talaroenamines F1-F19 (1-19), were isolated from the Yellow River wetland derived Penicillium malacosphaerulum HPU-J01 by use of a one-pot/two-stage precursor-directed biosynthesis approach. During this approach, the initial precursor p-methylaniline was first used as a carrier to capture the biologically synthesized cyclohexanedione to produce talaroenamine F, and then the other aniline derivatives were employed to replace the p-methylaniline fragment of talaroenamine F to generate the final products. LC-MS analysis showed that only four compounds (2, 8, 10, and 12) could be produced by the traditional precursor-directed biosynthesis in which the aniline precursors were added simultaneously. Compound 14 was cytotoxic against the K562 cell line with an IC50 value of 2.2 µM. This work demonstrated the one-pot/two-stage precursor-directed biosynthesis could improve substrate acceptance leading to the production of diverse talaroenamines.

GSK3ß inhibitor TDZD8 ameliorates brain damage through both ROS scavenging and inhibition of apoptosis in hyperglycaemic subarachnoid haemorrhage rats.

Hyperglycaemia is known to be associated with unfavourable outcomes in subarachnoid haemorrhage (SAH), but the pathogenic mechanism is unclear, and there is also a lack of effective therapeutic drugs in clinical practice. Phosphorylation of GSK3ß at serine 9 can inhibit its activity to further worsen SAH. The aim of the present study was to evaluate the protective effect and the potential mechanism of the GSK3ß inhibitor TDZD8 on brain injury in a hyperglycaemic SAH rat model. Hyperglycaemia was induced by intraperitoneal injection of streptozocin for 3 days. The SAH model was established by injecting fresh autologous femoral artery blood into the prechiasmatic cistern. p-GSK3ß (Ser9) expression was induced by intraperitoneal injection of TDZD8 (30 min post-SAH). The expression levels of GSK3ß, p-GSK3ß, SOD1/2, caspase 3, Bax and Bcl-2 were detected by western blot analysis. Terminal deoxynucleotidyl transferase dUTP nick end-labelling (TUNEL) staining was used to detect neuronal apoptosis of basal temporal lobe. Neurological scores were calculated to determine behavioural recovery. Neuronal survival was detected by Nissl staining. Hyperglycaemia significantly decreased p-GSK3ß expression, further exacerbated neurobehavioural deficits and increased oxidative stress and neuronal apoptosis in the brain after SAH compared to normal glycaemic SAH rats and hyperglycaemic rats. In addition, hyperglycaemic SAH rats had obvious oxidative stress and apoptosis. However, TDZD8 effectively decreased cleaved caspase 3 expression and TUNEL-positive cells and increased the Bcl2/Bax ratio, expression of SOD1/2 and activity of superoxide dismutase (SOD) enzyme compared with hyperglycaemic SAH rats. The GSK3ß inhibitor TDZD8 has therapeutic potential for hyperglycaemic SAH. The neuroprotective effect of TDZD8 appears to be mediated through its antioxidative and antiapoptotic activity.

A pH-Reversible Fluorescent Probe for in Situ Imaging of Extracellular Vesicles and Their Secretion from Living Cells.

Our knowledge in how extracellular vesicles (EVs) are secreted from cells remains inadequate due to the limited technologies available for visualizing them in situ. We report a pH-reversible boron dipyrromethene (BODIPY) fluorescent probe for confocal imaging of EVs secreted from living cells without inducing severe cytotoxicity. This probe predominantly assumes a non-fluorescent leuco-BODIPY form under basic conditions, but it gradually switches to its fluorescent parent BODIPY form upon acidification; such pH transition empowers the imaging of acidic EVs (such as CD81-enriched exosomes and extracellular multivesicular bodies) in weakly basic culture medium and intracellular acidic precursor EVs in weakly basic cytoplasm, with minimal false positive signals frequently encountered for "always-on" dyes. Joint application of this probe with plasmid transfection reveals the secretion of some EVs from cellular pseudopodia via microtubule trackways. This probe may provide mechanistic insights into the extracellular transport of EVs and support the development of EV-based nanomedicines.

Entropy-Weight-Method-Based Integrated Models for Short-Term Intersection Traffic Flow Prediction.

Three different types of entropy weight methods (EWMs), i.e., EWM-A, EWM-B, and EWM-C, have been used by previous studies for integrating prediction models. These three methods use very different ideas on determining the weights of individual models for integration. To evaluate the performances of these three EWMs, this study applied them to developing integrated short-term traffic flow prediction models for signalized intersections. At first, two individual models, i.e., a k-nearest neighbors (KNN)-algorithm-based model and a neural-network-based model (Elman), were developed as individual models to be integrated using EWMs. These two models were selected because they have been widely used for traffic flow prediction and have been approved to be able to achieve good performance. After that, three integrated models were developed by using the three different types of EWMs. The performances of the three integrated models, as well as the individual KNN and Elman models, were compared. We found that the traffic flow predicted with the EWM-C model is the most accurate prediction for most of the days. Based on the model evaluation results, the advantages of using the EWM-C method were deliberated and the problems with the EWM-A and EWM-B methods were also discussed.

[Protection of salidroside on endothelial cell barrier in cerebral ischemia-reperfusion model rats].

This study aims to observe the therapeutic effect of salidroside on cerebral ischemia-reperfusion(I/R) model rats, and to specifically explore the protection of salidroside on endothelial cell barrier after I/R and the mechanism. In the experiment, SD rats were randomized into sham group, model group, and high-, medium-, and low-dose(10, 5, and 2.5 mg·kg~(-1)) salidroside groups. The suture method was used to induce I/R in rats. The infarct area, neurobehavioral evaluation, and brain water content were used to evaluate the efficacy of salidroside. As for the experiment on the mechanism, high-dose and low-dose salidroside groups were designed. The pathological morphology was observed based on hematoxylin and eosin(HE) staining, and ultrastructure of vascular endothelial cells based on transmission electron microscopy. The content of nitric oxide(NO) in serum, four indexes of blood coagulation, and the content of von Willebrand factor(vWF) in plasma were measured. Western blot(WB) and immunofluorescence(IF) were employed to determine the expression of tight junction proteins(ZO-1, occluding, and claudin-1) and matrix metalloproteinase 9(MMP-9) in the cortex. The results showed that the model group had obvious neurological deficit, obvious infarct in the right brain tissue, and significant increase in water content in brain tissue compared with the sham group. Compared with the model group, high-dose and low-dose salidroside groups showed decrease in neurobehavioral score, and the high-, medium-, and low-dose salidroside groups demonstrated obviously small infarct area and significant decrease in water content in brain tissue. The results of HE staining and transmission electron microscopy showed that rats had necrosis of neurons, damage of original physiological structure of endothelial cells, and disintegration of the tight junction between endothelial cells after I/R compared with the sham group. Compared with the model group, the high-dose and low-dose salidroside groups showed alleviation of neuron injury and intact physiological structure of endothelial cells. The model group had significantly lower serum level of NO, significantly higher plasma levels of vWF and fibrinogen(FIB), and significantly shorter thrombin time(TT) and prothrombin time(PT) than the sham group. Compared with model group, the high-dose and low-dose salidroside groups increased the serum content of NO in serum, decreased the plasma levels of FIB and vWF, and significantly prolonged TT and PT. WB and IF results showed that the model group had significantly lower levels of ZO-1, occluding, and claudin-1 among endothelial cells and significantly higher level of MMP-9 than the sham group. Compared with the model group, high-dose and low-dose salidroside significantly increased the levels of ZO-1, occluding, and claudin-1 in the cortex. The above experimental results show that salidroside has clear therapeutic effect on I/R rats and protects the brain. To be specific, it alleviates the damage of endothelial cells by increasing NO synthesis in endothelial cells, inhibiting coagulation reaction and MMP-9 expression, up-regulating the expression of ZO-1, occludin, and claudin-1, thereby protecting the brain.

[Baicalin treats cerebral ischemia reperfusion-induced brain edema in rats by inhibiting TRPV4 and AQP4 of astrocytes].

This study aims to explore the pharmacodynamic effect of baicalin on rat brain edema induced by cerebral ischemia reperfusion injury and discuss the mechanism from the perspective of inhibiting astrocyte swelling, which is expected to serve as a refe-rence for the treatment of cerebral ischemia with Chinese medicine. To be specific, middle cerebral artery occlusion(suture method) was used to induce cerebral ischemia in rats. Rats were randomized into normal group, model group, high-dose baicalin(20 mg·kg~(-1)) group, and low-dose baicalin(10 mg·kg~(-1)) group. The neurobehavior, brain index, brain water content, and cerebral infarction area of rats were measured 6 h and 24 h after cerebral ischemia. Brain slices were stained with hematoxylin and eosin(HE) for the observation of pathological morphology of cerebral cortex after baicalin treatment. Enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay(ELISA) was employed to determine the content of total L-glutathione(GSH) and glutamic acid(Glu) in brain tissue, Western blot to measure the content of glial fibrillary acidic protein(GFAP), aquaporin-4(AQP4), and transient receptor potential vanilloid type 4(TRPV4), and immunohistochemical staining to observe the expression of GFAP. The low-dose baicalin was used for exploring the mechanism. The experimental results showed that the neurobehavioral scores(6 h and 24 h of cerebral ischemia), brain water content, and cerebral infarction area of the model group were increased, and both high-dose and low-dose baicalin can lower the above three indexes. The content of GSH dropped but the content of Glu raised in brain tissue of rats in the model group. Low-dose baicalin can elevate the content of GSH and lower the content of Glu. According to the immunohistochemical staining result, the model group demonstrated the increase in GFAP expression, and swelling and proliferation of astrocytes, and the low-dose baicalin can significantly improve this situation. The results of Western blot showed that the expression of GFAP, TRPV4, and AQP4 in the cerebral cortex of the model group increased, and the low-dose baicalin reduce their expression. The cerebral cortex of rats in the model group was severely damaged, and the low-dose baicalin can significantly alleviate the damage. The above results indicate that baicalin can effectively relieve the brain edema caused by cerebral ischemia reperfusion injury in rats, possibly by suppressing astrocyte swelling and TRPV4 and AQP4.

CircADARB1 serves as a new biomarker in natural killer T-cell lymphoma and a potential regulator of p-Stat3.

BACKGROUND: Natural killer/T-cell lymphoma (NKTCL) is a rare and aggressive subtype of Non-Hodgkin's Lymphoma. CircRNA has shown great potential to become a biomarker in plasma. In this study, we aimed to determine circRNA for its diagnostic and prognostic value and biological function in NKTCL. METHOD: The circRNA microarray of plasma from NKTCL patients and healthy donors were conducted. The relative expressions of target circRNA were verified by qRT-PCR. We conducted function experiments in vitro and in vivo. Bioinformatics predicted the target miRNA of the target circRNA and the binding site was detected by the dual luciferase report assay. Downstream target protein was predicted and detected by western blot in vitro and immunohistochemistry in vivo. RESULT: By analyzing the plasma circRNA microarrays in NKTCL, 6137 circRNAs were up-regulated and 6190 circRNAs were down-regulated. The relative expressions of circADARB1 were significantly higher in NKTCL patients. The knockdown of circADARB1 inhibited proliferation of NKTCL cells in vitro and in vivo. CircADARB1 could bind to miR-214-3p in the downstream and regulate the expression of p-Stat3. In nude mice tumor tissue, p-Stat3 was under-expressed in the circADARB1 knockdown group. CONCLUSION: CircADARB1 was highly expressed in NKTCL plasma and circADARB1 was a potential biomarker to assist diagnosis and predict the response in NKTCL. CircADARB1 bound up to miR-214-3p and regulated p-Stat3.

"Petal-like" size-tunable gold wrapped immunoliposome to enhance tumor deep penetration for multimodal guided two-step strategy.

BACKGROUND: Breast cancer is the fastest-growing cancer among females and the second leading cause of female death. At present, targeted antibodies combined with hyperthermia locally in tumor has been identified as a potential combination therapy to combat tumors. But in fact, the uniformly deep distribution of photosensitizer in tumor sites is still an urgent problem, which limited the clinical application. We reported an HER2-modified thermosensitive liposome (immunoliposome)-assisted complex by reducing gold nanocluster on the surface (GTSL-CYC-HER2) to obtain a new type of bioplasma resonance structured carrier. The HER2 decoration on the surface enhanced targeting to the breast cancer tumor site and forming irregular, dense, "petal-like" shells of gold nanoclusters. Due to the good photothermal conversion ability under near-infrared light (NIR) irradiation, the thermosensitive liposome released the antitumor Chinese traditional medicine, cyclopamine, accompanied with the degradation of gold clusters into 3-5 nm nanoparticles which can accelerate renal metabolism of the gold clusters. With the help of cyclopamine to degrade the tumor associated matrix, this size-tunable gold wrapped immunoliposome was more likely to penetrate the deeper layers of the tumor, while the presence of gold nanoparticles makes GTSL-CYC-HER2 multimodal imaging feasible. RESULTS: The prepared GTSL-CYC-HER2 had a size of 113.5 nm and displayed excellent colloidal stability, photo-thermal conversion ability and NIR-sensitive drug release. These GTSL-CYC-HER2 were taken up selectively by cancer cells in vitro and accumulated at tumour sites in vivo. As for the in vivo experiments, compared to the other groups, under near-infrared laser irradiation, the temperature of GTSL-CYC-HER2 rises rapidly to the phase transition temperature, and released the cyclopamine locally in the tumor. Then, the released cyclopamine destroyed the stroma of the tumor tissue while killing the tumor cells, which in turn increased the penetration of the liposomes in deep tumor tissues. Moreover, the GTSL-CYC-HER2 enhanced the performance of multimodal computed tomography (CT) and photothermal (PT) imaging and enabled chemo-thermal combination therapy. CONCLUSIONS: This optically controlled biodegradable plasmonic resonance structures not only improves the safety of the inorganic carrier application in vivo, but also greatly improves the anti-tumor efficiency through the visibility of in vivo CT and PT imaging, as well as chemotherapy combined with hyperthermia, and provides a synergistic treatment strategy that can broaden the conventional treatment alone.