Loss of UBE2S causes meiosis I arrest with normal spindle assembly checkpoint dynamics in mouse oocytes.

The timely degradation of proteins that regulate the cell cycle is essential for oocyte maturation. Oocytes are equipped to degrade proteins via the ubiquitin-proteasome system. In meiosis, anaphase promoting complex/cyclosome (APC/C), an E3 ubiquitin-ligase, is responsible for the degradation of proteins. Ubiquitin-conjugating enzyme E2 S (UBE2S), an E2 ubiquitin-conjugating enzyme, delivers ubiquitin to APC/C. APC/C has been extensively studied, but the functions of UBE2S in oocyte maturation and mouse fertility are not clear. In this study, we used Ube2s knockout mice to explore the role of UBE2S in mouse oocytes. Ube2s-deleted oocytes were characterized by meiosis I arrest with normal spindle assembly and spindle assembly checkpoint dynamics. However, the absence of UBE2S affected the activity of APC/C. Cyclin B1 and securin are two substrates of APC/C, and their levels were consistently high, resulting in the failure of homologous chromosome separation. Unexpectedly, the oocytes arrested in meiosis I could be fertilized and the embryos could become implanted normally, but died before embryonic day 10.5. In conclusion, our findings reveal an indispensable regulatory role of UBE2S in mouse oocyte meiosis and female fertility.

Effect of azilsartan on myocardial remodeling after acute myocardial infarction.

PURPOSE: To investigate the effect of azilsartan on myocardial remodeling after acute myocardial infarction (AMI). METHODS: A total of 200 AMI patients under percutaneous coronary intervention (PCI) were selected from the Affiliated Huaian No.1 People's Hospital of Nanjing Medical University from Jan 2021 to Dec 2021. The subjects were randomly divided to take either azilsartan or benazepril. Serum C1q tumor necrosis factor-associated protein 1 (CTRP1) levels were detected in all subjects after admission, and the indices of left ventricular end-diastolic volume (LVEDV), left ventricular end-diastolic diameter (LVEDD), and left ventricular ejection fraction (LVEF) were measured by using echocardiography. At the follow-up of 6 months and 1 year after PCI, the differences in CTRP1 and echocardiogram indices between the two groups were compared, and the influencing factors of myocardial remodeling after acute myocardial infarction were analyzed. RESULTS: The levels of LVEDV and CTRP1 in all subjects at 6 months and 1 year after PCI were lower than those before discharge, and the LVEDV in the azilsartan group at 6 months and 1 year after PCI was lower than that in the benazepril group. An improvement in myocardial remodeling was obviously observed within 6 months after PCI, but the effect declined over time. CONCLUSIONS: Azilsartan can improve myocardial remodeling after acute myocardial infarction. CTRP1 may become an effective target for the prevention and treatment of myocardial remodeling after acute myocardial infarction.

[Effects and mechanism of p53 gene deletion on energy metabolism during the pluripotent transformation of spermatogonial stem cells].

Previous studies have shown that long-term spermatogonial stem cells (SSCs) have the potential to spontaneously transform into pluripotent stem cells, which is speculated to be related to the tumorigenesis of testicular germ cells, especially when p53 is deficient in SSCs which shows a significant increase in the spontaneous transformation efficiency. Energy metabolism has been proved to be strongly associated with the maintenance and acquisition of pluripotency. Recently, we compared the difference in chromatin accessibility and gene expression profiles between wild-type (p53+/+) and p53 deficient (p53-/-) mouse SSCs using the Assay for Targeting Accessible-Chromatin with high-throughput sequencing (ATAC-seq) and transcriptome sequencing (RNA-seq) techniques, and revealed that SMAD3 is a key transcription factor in the transformation of SSCs into pluripotent cells. In addition, we also observed significant changes in the expression levels of many genes related to energy metabolism after p53 deletion. To further reveal the role of p53 in the regulation of pluripotency and energy metabolism, this paper explored the effects and mechanism of p53 deletion on energy metabolism during the pluripotent transformation of SSCs. The results of ATAC-seq and RNA-seq from p53+/+ and p53-/- SSCs revealed that gene chromatin accessibility related to positive regulation of glycolysis and electron transfer and ATP synthesis was increased, and the transcription levels of genes encoding key glycolytic enzymes and regulating electron transport-related enzymes were markedly increased. Furthermore, transcription factors SMAD3 and SMAD4 promoted glycolysis and energy homeostasis by binding to the chromatin of the Prkag2 gene which encodes the AMPK subunit. These results suggest that p53 deficiency activates the key enzyme genes of glycolysis in SSCs and enhances the chromatin accessibility of genes associated with glycolysis activation to improve glycolysis activity and promote transformation to pluripotency. Moreover, SMAD3/SMAD4-mediated transcription of the Prkag2 gene ensures the energy demand of cells in the process of pluripotency transformation and maintains cell energy homeostasis by promoting AMPK activity. These results shed light on the importance of the crosstalk between energy metabolism and stem cell pluripotency transformation, which might be helpful for clinical research of gonadal tumors.

[MicroRNA-22-3p Regulates the Expression of Kruppel-like Factor 6 to Affect the Cardiomyocyte-like Differentiation of Bone Marrow Mesenchymal Stem Cell].

Objective To explore the effect of microRNA-22-3p (miR-22-3p) regulating the expression of Kruppel-like factor 6 (KLF6) on the cardiomyocyte-like differentiation of bone marrow mesenchymal stem cell (BMSC). Methods Rat BMSC was isolated and cultured,and the third-generation BMSC was divided into a control group,a 5-azacytidine(5-AZA)group,a mimics-NC group,a miR-22-3p mimics group,a miR-22-3p mimics+pcDNA group,and a miR-22-3p mimics+pcDNA-KLF6 group.Real-time fluorescent quantitative PCR (qRT-PCR) was carried out to determine the expression of miR-22-3p and KLF6 in cells.Immunofluorescence staining was employed to detect the expression of Desmin,cardiac troponin T (cTnT),and connexin 43 (Cx43).Western blotting was employed to determine the protein levels of cTnT,Cx43,Desmin,and KLF6,and flow cytometry to detect the apoptosis of BMSC.The targeting relationship between miR-22-3p and KLF6 was analyzed by dual luciferase reporter gene assay. Results Compared with the control group,5-AZA up-regulated the expression of miR-22-3p (q=7.971,P<0.001),Desmin (q=7.876,P<0.001),cTnT (q=10.272,P<0.001),and Cx43 (q=6.256,P<0.001),increased the apoptosis rate of BMSC (q=12.708,P<0.001),and down-regulated the mRNA (q=20.850,P<0.001) and protein (q=11.080,P<0.001) levels of KLF6.Compared with the 5-AZA group and the mimics-NC group,miR-22-3p mimics up-regulated the expression of miR-22-3p (q=3.591,P<0.001;q=11.650,P<0.001),Desmin (q=5.975,P<0.001;q=13.579,P<0.001),cTnT (q=7.133,P<0.001;q=17.548,P<0.001),and Cx43 (q=4.571,P=0.037;q=11.068,P<0.001),and down-regulated the mRNA (q=7.384,P<0.001;q=28.234,P<0.001) and protein (q=4.594,P=0.036;q=15.945,P<0.001) levels of KLF6.The apoptosis rate of miR-22-3p mimics group was lower than that of 5-AZA group (q=8.216,P<0.001).Compared with the miR-22-3p mimics+pcDNA group,miR-22-3p mimics+pcDNA-KLF6 up-regulated the mRNA(q=23.891,P<0.001) and protein(q=13.378,P<0.001)levels of KLF6,down-regulated the expression of Desmin (q=9.505,P<0.001),cTnT (q=10.985,P<0.001),and Cx43 (q=8.301,P<0.001),and increased the apoptosis rate (q=4.713,P=0.029).The dual luciferase reporter gene experiment demonstrated that KLF6 was a potential target gene of miR-22-3p. Conclusion MiR-22-3p promotes cardiomyocyte-like differentiation of BMSC by inhibiting the expression of KLF6.

RIP2 deficiency attenuates cardiac hypertrophy, inflammation and fibrosis in pressure overload induced mice.

Although the pathological cardiac hypertrophy presents a leading cause of morbidity and mortality worldwide, our knowledge of the molecular mechanisms underlying the disease is still poor. Here, we reported that receptor-interacting serine/threonine-protein kinase 2 (RIP2), promoting pro-inflammatory gene expression, enhanced the pathological cardiac hypertrophy in animals. The effects of RIP2 on the cardiac hypertrophy triggered by pathological stimuli have not been fully investigated. In our study, mice were subjected to aortic banding (AB) surgery to explore the pathological, echocardiographic and molecular mechanisms. RIP2 expressed highly in cardiomyocytes after AB operation in wild type (WT) mice. RIP2-knockout (KO) attenuated cardiac hypertrophy, inflammation and fibrosis in mice 4 weeks after AB-surgery. First, RIP2 knockout down-regulated hypertrophic markers of atrial natriuretic peptide (ANP), brain natriuretic peptide (BNP) and ß-myosin heavy chain (ß-MHC) in the heart of AB-operated mice.in addition, RIP2-deficiency reduced toll-like receptor 4/myeloid differentiation factor 88/nuclear factor kappa B (TLR4/MyD88/NF-κB) activation, mitogen-activated protein kinases (MAPKs) phosphorylation and transforming growth factor-ß1 (TGF-ß1)/SMADs expressions, contributing to the suppression of inflammatory response and fibrosis, as further evidenced by down-regulated pro-inflammatory cytokines, including Tumor necrosis factor-α (TNF-α), interleukin (IL)-1ß, IL-6 and IL-18, as well as fibrosis markers of Collagen I, Collagen III and α-smooth muscle actin (α-SMA). Taken together, our data indicated that RIP2-deficience ameliorated cardiac hypertrophy, inflammation and fibrosis through modulating multiple signaling pathways.

Luteolin attenuates angiotensin II­induced renal damage in apolipoprotein E­deficient mice.

Renal damage is a common and severe condition encountered in the clinic. Luteolin (Lut) exhibits anti­inflammatory, anti­fibrotic and anti­apoptotic effects. Thus, the present study aimed to investigate the pharmacological effects of Lut on angiotensin II (AngII)­induced renal damage in apolipoprotein E­deficient (ApoE­/­) mice. Male ApoE­/­ mice (age, 8 weeks) were randomly divided into the following three groups: i) Control group (n=6); ii) AngII group (n=6); and iii) AngII + Lut group (n=6). Lut was administered by gavage (100 mg/kg/d). ApoE­/­ mice were implanted with Alzet osmotic minipumps, filled with either saline vehicle or AngII solution for a maximum period of 4 weeks. After 4 weeks, metabolic characteristics were measured and the histopathological alterations in the kidney tissue were observed. The metabolic characteristics of blood creatinine (CRE) levels were lower in the AngII + Lut group compared with in the AngII group. The expression levels of collagen I and III were lower in the kidney tissues of the AngII + Lut group compared with the corresponding tissues of the AngII group. The gene expression levels of IL­1ß, IL­6, TNF­α and IL­10 were also suppressed in the kidney tissues of the AngII + Lut group compared with those in the corresponding tissues of the AngII group. Furthermore, the AngII + Lut group exhibited markedly increased LC3 protein expression and notably decreased p62 protein expression in the kidney tissues compared with the expression levels in the AngII group. The data demonstrated that Lut attenuated AngII­induced collagen deposition and inflammation, while inducing autophagy. Collectively, the results suggested that Lut treatment exhibited a exerted effect on AngII­induced renal injury in ApoE­/­ mice.

Effect of Thymoquinone on Acute Kidney Injury Induced by Sepsis in BALB/c Mice.

Acute kidney injury (AKI) is a common complication of sepsis and has also been observed in some patients suffering from the new coronavirus pneumonia COVID-19, which is currently a major global concern. Thymoquinone (TQ) is one of the most active ingredients in Nigella sativa seeds. It has a variety of beneficial properties including anti-inflammatory and antioxidative activities. Here, we investigated the possible protective effects of TQ against kidney damage in septic BALB/c mice. Eight-week-old male BALB/c mice were divided into four groups: control, TQ, cecal ligation and puncture (CLP), and TQ+CLP. CLP was performed after 2 weeks of TQ gavage. After 48 h, we measured the histopathological alterations in the kidney tissue and the serum levels of creatinine (CRE) and blood urea nitrogen (BUN). We also evaluated pyroptosis (NLRP3, caspase-1), apoptosis (caspase-3, caspase-8), proinflammatory (TNF-α, IL-1ß, and IL-6)-related protein and gene expression levels. Our results demonstrated that TQ inhibited CLP-induced increased serum CRE and BUN levels. It also significantly inhibited the high levels of NLRP3, caspase-1, caspase-3, caspase-8, TNF-α, IL-1ß, and IL-6 induced by CLP. Furthermore, NF-κB protein level was significantly decreased in the TQ+CLP group than in the CLP group. Together, our results indicate that TQ may be a potential therapeutic agent for sepsis-induced AKI.

Protective Role of Coenzyme Q10 in Acute Sepsis-Induced Liver Injury in BALB/c Mice.

Sepsis increases the risk of the liver injury development. According to the research works, coenzyme Q10 exhibits hepatoprotective properties in vivo as well as in vitro. Current work aimed at investigating the protective impacts of coenzyme Q10 against liver injury in septic BALB/c mice. The male BALB/c mice were randomly segregated into 4 groups: the control group, the coenzyme Q10 treatment group, the puncture and cecal ligation group, and the coenzyme Q10+cecal ligation and puncture group. Cecal ligation and puncture was conducted after gavagaging the mice with coenzyme Q10 during two weeks. Following 48 h postcecal ligation and puncture, we estimated hepatic biochemical parameters and histopathological changes in hepatic tissue. We evaluated the expression of factors associated with autophagy, pyroptosis, and inflammation. Findings indicated that coenzyme Q10 decreased the plasma levels in alkaline phosphatase, alanine aminotransferase, and aspartate aminotransferase in the cecal ligation and puncture group. Coenzyme Q10 significantly inhibited the elevation of sequestosome-1, interleukin-1ß, oligomerization domain-like receptor 3 and nucleotide-binding, interleukin-6, and tumor necrosis factor-α expression levels; coenzyme Q10 also increased beclin 1 levels. Coenzyme Q10 might be a significant agent in the treatment of liver injury induced by sepsis.

Erratum to "Effect of Thymoquinone on Acute Kidney Injury Induced by Sepsis in BALB/c Mice".

[This corrects the article DOI: 10.1155/2020/1594726.].

Identification of Long Noncoding RNAs as Predictors of Survival in Triple-Negative Breast Cancer Based on Network Analysis.

Breast cancer is the most common cancer observed in adult females, worldwide. Due to the heterogeneity and varied molecular subtypes of breast cancer, the molecular mechanisms underlying carcinogenesis in different subtypes of breast cancer are distinct. Recently, long noncoding RNAs (lncRNAs) have been shown to be oncogenic or play important roles in cancer suppression and are used as biomarkers for diagnosis and therapy. In this study, we identified 134 lncRNAs and 6,414 coding genes were differentially expressed in triple-negative (TN), human epidermal growth factor receptor 2- (HER2-) positive, luminal A-positive, and luminal B-positive breast cancer. Of these, 37 lncRNAs were found to be dysregulated in all four subtypes of breast cancers. Subtypes of breast cancer special modules and lncRNA-mRNA interaction networks were constructed through weighted gene coexpression network analysis (WGCNA). Survival analysis of another public datasets was used to verify the identified lncRNAs exhibiting potential indicative roles in TN prognosis. Results from heat map analysis of the identified lncRNAs revealed that five blocks were significantly displayed. High expressions of lncRNAs, including LINC00911, CSMD2-AS1, LINC01192, SNHG19, DSCAM-AS1, PCAT4, ACVR28-AS1, and CNTFR-AS1, and low expressions of THAP9-AS1, MALAT1, TUG1, CAHM, FAM2011, NNT-AS1, COX10-AS1, and RPARP-AS1 were associated with low survival possibility in TN breast cancers. This study provides novel lncRNAs as potential biomarkers for the therapeutic and prognostic classification of different breast cancer subtypes.

Reversible structural modulation of Fe-Pt bimetallic surfaces and its effect on reactivity.

Tunable surface: The surface structure of the Fe-Pt bimetallic catalyst can be reversibly modulated between the iron-oxide-rich Pt surface and the Pt-skin structure with subsurface Fe via alternating reduction and oxidation treatments (see figure). The regenerated active Pt-skin structure is active in reactions involving CO and/or O.

Protective effect of thymoquinone improves cardiovascular function, and attenuates oxidative stress, inflammation and apoptosis by mediating the PI3K/Akt pathway in diabetic rats.

Thymoquinone is the main active monomer extracted from black cumin and has anti­inflammatory, antioxidant and anti­apoptotic functions. However, the protective effects of thymoquinone on cardiovascular function in diabetes remain to be fully elucidated. The present study aimed to investigate the molecular mechanisms underling the beneficial effects of thymoquinone on the cardiovascular function in streptozotocin­induced diabetes mellitus (DM) rats. Supplement thymoquinone may recover the insulin levels and body weight, inhibit blood glucose levels and reduce the heart rate in DM­induced rats. The results indicated that the heart, liver and lung to body weight ratios, in addition to the blood pressure levels, were similar for each experimental group. Treatment with thymoquinone significantly reduced oxidative stress damage, inhibited the increased endothelial nitric oxide synthase protein expression and suppressed the elevation of cyclooxygenase­2 levels in DM­induced rats. In addition, thymoquinone significantly suppressed the promotion of tumor necrosis factor­α and interleukin­6 levels in the DM­induced rats. Furthermore, administration of thymoquinone significantly reduced caspase­3 activity and the promotion of phosphorylated­protein kinase B (Akt) protein expression levels in DM­induced rats. These results suggest that the protective effect of thymoquinone improves cardiovascular function and attenuates oxidative stress, inflammation and apoptosis by mediating the phosphatidylinositol 3­kinase/Akt pathway in DM­induced rats.

TCF4 gene polymorphism is associated with cognition in patients with schizophrenia and healthy controls.

BACKGROUND: Cognitive deficits have been identified as an important core feature of schizophrenia. Single nucleotide polymorphisms in the transcription factor 4 (TCF4) gene have been reported to be involved in the susceptibility to schizophrenia and be significantly related to cognitive deficits of schizophrenia and controls. This study examines whether the TCF4 rs2958182 polymorphism influences cognitive functions in chronic schizophrenia and controls. METHODS: The presence of the TCF4 rs2958182 was determined in 976 patients and 420 controls using a case-control design. We assessed all the patients' psychopathology using the Positive and Negative Syndrome Scale (PANSS). Cognition was assessed in 777 patients and 399 controls by using the Repeatable Battery for the Assessment of Neuropsychological Status (RBANS). RESULTS: There were marginally significant differences in the TCF4 rs2958182 allelic and genotypic distributions between patients and controls (χ2 = 3.48, p = 0.062 and χ2 = 0.036, p = 0.036, respectively). Cognitive test scores were significantly lower in patients than in controls on all scales (all p < 0.001) except for the visuospatial/constructional index (p > 0.05). There were significant genotype effects on delayed memory score (p = 0.013), the RBANS total score (p = 0.028) and language score (p = 0.034). Further analysis showed that the language score significantly differed according to the genotypic groups (A/A+T/A group versus T/T group) (p = 0.007) in patients but not in controls (p > 0.05), and the delayed memory score also significantly differed according to the genotypic groups (A/A+T/A group versus T/T group) (p = 0.021) in controls but not in patients (p > 0.05). CONCLUSIONS: This study found that the A allele of the TCF4 rs2958182 polymorphism was the risk allele of schizophrenia, and was associated with lower cognitive performance in language in schizophrenia and delayed memory in controls. In contrast, the T allele of this polymorphism was found to be the schizophrenia risk allele in another study in Han Chinese people.

Phosphate-modified carbon nanotubes in the oxidative dehydrogenation of isopentanes.

Ketonic/quinonic C=O groups on the surface of a carbon matrix are capable of abstracting hydrogen in C=H bonds from hydrocarbons and enable them to selectively convert into corresponding unsaturated hydrocarbons; this process is the oxidative dehydrogenation (ODH) reaction. However, a variety of inevitable defects or graphene edges and other oxygen-containing groups on the carbon matrix are detrimental to the selective production of alkenes due to their high activity towards overoxidation. Herein, we show that phosphate can not only impede the total oxidation but also cover the selective C=O groups, hence allowing its use as a modulator to defects and oxygen-containing functional groups on the multiwalled carbon nanotubes, regulating the distribution of active sites and related catalytic targets.

Synthesis, DNA binding and cleavage activities of copper (II) thiocyanate complex with 4-(N,N-dimethylamino)pyridine and N,N-dimethylformamide.

Two novel copper(II) thiocyanate complexes with 4-(N,N-dimethylamino) pyridine and N,N-dimethylformamide (1) and with 4-(N,N-dimethylamino) pyridine (2) have been synthesized and characterized. The crystal and molecular structures of complexes 1 and 2 were determined by single-crystal X-ray diffraction. Antioxidative activity tests in vitro showed that complex 1 has significant antioxidative activity against hydroxyl free radicals from the Fenton reaction and also oxygen free radicals, which is better than standard antioxidants like vitamin C and mannitol. The interaction of complex 1 with calf thymus DNA was investigated by spectroscopic, cyclic voltammetry, and viscosity measurements. Results suggest that complex 1 can bind to DNA via partial intercalation mode. Moreover, complex 1 has been found to cleavage of plasmid DNA pBR322.