Neuropeptide Y attenuates cardiac remodeling and deterioration of function following myocardial infarction.

Plasma levels of neuropeptide Y (NPY) are elevated in patients with acute myocardial infarction (AMI), but its role in AMI remains unclear, which was examined here in NPY wild-type/knockout (WT/KO) mice treated with/without exogenous NPY and its Y1 receptor antagonist (Y1Ra) BIBP 3226. We found that AMI mice lacking NPY developed more severe AMI than WT mice with worse cardiac dysfunction, progressive cardiac inflammation and fibrosis, and excessive apoptosis but impairing angiogenesis. All of these changes were reversed when the NPY KO mice were treated with exogenous NPY in a dose-dependent manner. Interestingly, treatment with NPY also dose dependently attenuated AMI in WT mice, which was blocked by BIBP 3226. Phenotypically, cardiac NPY was de novo expressed by infiltrating macrophages during the repairing or fibrosing process in heart-failure patients and AMI mice. Mechanistically, NPY was induced by transforming growth factor (TGF)-ß1 in bone marrow-derived macrophages and signaled through its Y1R to exert its pathophysiological activities by inhibiting p38/nuclear factor κB (NF-κB)-mediated M1 macrophage activation while promoting the reparative M2 phenotype in vivo and in vitro. In conclusion, NPY can attenuate AMI in mice. Inhibition of cardiac inflammation and fibrosis while enhancing angiogenesis but reducing apoptosis may be the underlying mechanisms through which NPY attenuates cardiac remodeling and deterioration of function following AMI.

Promoter methylation-regulated miR-148a-3p inhibits lung adenocarcinoma (LUAD) progression by targeting MAP3K9.

Lung adenocarcinoma (LUAD) characterized by high metastasis and mortality is the leading subtype of non-small cell lung cancer. Evidence shows that some microRNAs (miRNAs) may act as oncogenes or tumor suppressor genes, leading to malignant tumor occurrence and progression. To better understand the molecular mechanism associated with miRNA methylation in LUAD progression and clinical outcomes, we investigated the correlation between miR-148a-3p methylation and the clinical features of LUAD. In the LUAD cell lines and tumor tissues from patients, miR-148a-3p was found to be significantly downregulated, while the methylation of miR-148a-3p promoter was notably increased. Importantly, miR-148a-3p hypermethylation was closely associated with lymph node metastasis. We demonstrated that mitogen-activated protein (MAP) kinase kinase kinase 9 (MAP3K9) was the target of miR-148a-3p and that MAP3K9 levels were significantly increased in both LUAD cell lines and clinical tumor tissues. In A549 and NCI-H1299 cells, overexpression of miR-148a-3p or silencing MAP3K9 significantly inhibited cell growth, migration, invasion and cytoskeleton reorganization accompanied by suppressing the epithelial-mesenchymal transition. In a nude mouse xenograft assay we found that tumor growth was effectively inhibited by miR-148a-3p overexpression. Taken together, the promoter methylation-associated decrease in miR-148a-3p could lead to lung cancer metastasis by targeting MAP3K9. This study suggests that miR-148a-3p and MAP3K9 may act as novel therapeutic targets for the treatment of LUAD and have potential clinical applications.

Association between SII and markers of liver injury: A cross-sectional study from the NHANES (2017-2020).

INTRODUCTION: A novel indicator of inflammation is the systemic immune-inflammation index (SII), and liver dysfunction is linked to the advancement of inflammation. In light of this, this study aims to look into any potential connections between SII and markers of liver injury. METHODS: A cross-sectional study was conducted using the National Health and Nutrition Examination (NHANES) dataset for 2017-2020. The linear relationship between SII and markers of liver injury was examined using multiple linear regression models. Examining threshold effects and fitted smoothed curves were utilized to describe nonlinear connections. RESULTS: A total of 8213 adults aged 18-80 years participated in this population-based study. In the fully adjusted model, SII maintained a negative association with ALT(ß = -0.003, 95%CI:-0.005, -0.002, P<0.00001), AST(ß = -0.004, 95% CI:-0.005, -0.002, P<0.00001), and GGT(ß = -0.004, 95% CI:-0.007, -0.000, P = 0.03791) and a positive association with ALP (ß = 0.005, 95% CI:0.003, 0.007, P<0.00001). In subgroup analyses, it was found that SII remained negatively correlated with ALT, AST and GGT in gender, age and body mass index. SII was positively correlated with ALP at BMI≥25(kg/m2)(ß = 0.005, 95% CI:0.003, 0.008, P = 0.00001), and was negatively correlated with ALT(ß = -0.004, 95% CI:-0.005, -0.002, P<0.00001), AST(ß = -0.004, 95% CI:-0.005, -0.003, P<0.00001) and GGT(ß = -0.004, 95% CI:-0.008, -0.000, P = 0.02703) at BMI≥25, whereas no significant correlation was observed at BMI<25 (all P-values>0.05). Furthermore, the association between SII and markers of liver injury was nonlinear. By using a two-stage linear regression model for analysis, a U-shaped relationship was found to exist between SII and ALT with a turning point of 818.40(1,000 cells/µl). The inflection points of SII with AST and GGT were 451.20 (1,000 cells/µl) and 443.33 (1,000 cells/µl), respectively, and no significant inflection point with ALP was observed. Interaction tests demonstrated that SII correlation with ALT, AST, ALP, and GGT was not significantly different between strata (all p for interaction>0.05). CONCLUSIONS: The research findings suggested that there was a negative correlation between SII and ALT, AST and GGT, and a positive correlation with ALP. However, larger prospective investigations are still greatly needed to confirm the findings.

Naked Gene Delivery Induces Autophagy for Effective Treatment of Acute Lung Injury in a Mouse Model.

Background: Acute lung injury (ALI) leads to diffuse pulmonary interstitial and alveolar edema, further developing into acute respiratory distress syndrome (ARDS). The present therapeutic approaches showed limited effects with poor clinical efficacy or severe side effects. This study aims to develop novel pharmaceutical agents to reduce lung damage with acceptable side effects for ALI. Methods: Naked gene delivery system based on epigallocatechin 3-gallate (EGCG) was synthesized to deliver plasmid expressing DNA damage regulated autophagy modulator 1 (DRAM1), designated as EGCG/DRAM1 (ED). ED was characterized by dynamic light scattering analysis and transmission electron microscope. The biodistribution of ED in mice was measured by an in vivo small animal imaging system. The therapeutic potentials of ED were evaluated in MLE12 cells and LPS-induced ALI mice. Results: Our results showed that ED was nearly spherical with a diameter of ~100 nm and increased the stability of DRAM1 plasmid that encapsulated. The synthesized ED showed negligible toxicity at the selected experimental concentration in MLE12 cells. ED could be taken up by MLE12 cells with high efficiency and escape from the lysosome. In ALI mice, ED facilitated the accumulation and retention of DRAM1 plasmid in lung, and attenuated pulmonary edema and pulmonary vascular permeability. The therapeutic effects of ED on ALI were associated with increased autophagy and reduced oxidative stress in lung. Conclusion: In summary, ED attenuated pulmonary edema and pulmonary vascular permeability, and improved pulmonary dysfunction in ALI mice. This naked gene delivery system for autophagy enhancement may serve as a potential therapeutic strategy to attenuate ALI.