Glutathione S-transferase M1 null genotype contributes to increased risk of esophageal carcinoma in Chinese population.

Glutathione S-transferases (GSTs) play important roles in the detoxification of electrophilic carcinogens, and GSTM1 null genotype is associated with the dysfunction of GSTs. Previous studies investigating the association between GSTM1 null genotype and risk of esophageal carcinoma in Chinese provided inconsistent findings. To provide a more precise estimation on the association between GSTM1 null genotype and risk of esophageal carcinoma in Chinese population, a meta-analysis was performed. Eligible studies were searched in PubMed, Embase, and China National Knowledge Infrastructure databases. Odds ratio (OR) with the corresponding 95 % confidence interval (95 %CI) was used to assess the association. A total of 18 case-control studies involving 1,947 cases and 3,506 controls were finally included in the meta-analysis. Meta-analysis of those 18 studies showed that GSTM1 null genotype was associated with an increased risk of esophageal carcinoma in Chinese (random effect model OR = 1.49, 95 %CI = 1.11-2.00, P = 0.008). The findings from cumulative meta-analysis showed that the association was more obvious as the data increased by publication year. There was no risk of publication bias in the meta-analysis. Therefore, the findings from our meta-analysis provide a strong evidence for the association between GSTM1 null genotype and risk of esophageal carcinoma in Chinese population, and GSTM1 null genotype contributes to increased risk of esophageal carcinoma in Chinese.

Renierol from marine sponge Haliclona.SP.: a natural inhibitor of xanthine oxidase with hypouricemic effects.

The purpose of this study was to evaluate the inhibitory effect of renierol, extracted from marine sponge Halicdona.SP., on xanthine oxidase (XO) and its hypouricemic effect in vivo. Renierol and a positive control, allopurinol, were tested for their effects on XO activity by measuring the formation of uric acid and superoxide radical from xanthine. Renierol inhibited XO in a concentration-dependent and competitive manner. IC(50) value was 1.85 microg.ml(-1) through the measuring of uric acid and was 1.36 microg.ml(- 1) through the measuring of superoxide radical. Renierol was found to have an in vivo hypouricemic activity against potassium oxonate-induced hyperuricaemia in mice. After oral administration of renierol at doses of 10, 20 and 30 mg.kg(- 1), there was a significant decrease in the serum urate level (4.08 +/- 0.09 mg.dl(- 1), P < 0.01), (3.47 +/- 0.11 mg.dl(- 1), P < 0.01) and (3.12 +/- 0.08 mg.dl(- 1), P < 0.01), when compared to the hyperuricaemic control (6.74 +/- 0.23 mg.dl(- 1)). Renierol was a potent XO inhibitor with hypouricemic activity in mice.

Serum metabolic profiling and features of papillary thyroid carcinoma and nodular goiter.

Thyroid carcinoma is a common endocrine malignancy worldwide, accounting for approximately 1% of all diagnosed cancers and about 91.5% of the malignancies of head and neck. However, differentiating malignant thyroid nodules from benign ones remains a diagnostic challenge. Thus, novel molecular markers that enable non-invasive diagnostics for malignant thyroid nodules are urgently needed. In the present study, a metabonomic investigation based on liquid chromatography-LTQ Orbitrap mass spectrometry was employed for serum metabolic profiling of 30 cases of papillary thyroid carcinomas (PTC), 80 cases of nodular goiters (benign thyroid nodules) and 30 cases of healthy controls. According to the results of multivariate statistical data analysis, the significantly changed metabolites among these three groups were defined. It was found that most of these metabolites decreased in the sera of both malignant and benign thyroid cases due to the increased metabolic rate, which is in accordance with clinical features. The major metabolic differences between benign and malignant nodules occurred in lipid metabolism. Especially, the content of 3-hydroxybutyric acid, an intermediate product of fatty acid metabolism, was much higher in the PTC group than that in the nodule goiter and control groups, indicating its potential as a diagnostic marker for PTC and nodular goiters. These results show that the serum metabolic profiling method is a powerful tool for distinguishing thyroid carcinoma from nodular goiter and healthy controls.