A Peptide-Based Magnetic Chemiluminescence Enzyme Immunoassay for Serological Diagnosis of Coronavirus Disease 2019.

BACKGROUND: Severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2), a novel ß-coronavirus, causes severe pneumonia and has spread throughout the globe rapidly. The disease associated with SARS-CoV-2 infection is named coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19). To date, real-time reverse-transcription polymerase chain reaction (RT-PCR) is the only test able to confirm this infection. However, the accuracy of RT-PCR depends on several factors; variations in these factors might significantly lower the sensitivity of detection. METHODS: In this study, we developed a peptide-based luminescent immunoassay that detected immunoglobulin (Ig)G and IgM. The assay cutoff value was determined by evaluating the sera from healthy and infected patients for pathogens other than SARS-CoV-2. RESULTS: To evaluate assay performance, we detected IgG and IgM in the sera from confirmed patients. The positive rate of IgG and IgM was 71.4% and 57.2%, respectively. CONCLUSIONS: Therefore, combining our immunoassay with real-time RT-PCR might enhance the diagnostic accuracy of COVID-19.

Verteporfin Inhibits Cell Proliferation and Induces Apoptosis in Human Leukemia NB4 Cells without Light Activation.

Background and Aims: Verteporfin (VP), clinically used in photodynamic therapy for neovascular macular degeneration, has recently been proven a suppressor of yes-associated protein (YAP) and has shown potential in anticancer treatment. However, its anti-human leukemia effects in NB4 cells remain unclear. In this study, we investigated the effects of VP on proliferation and apoptosis in human leukemia NB4 cells. Methods: NB4 cells were treated with VP for 24 h. The effects of VP on cell proliferation were determined using a Cell-Counting Kit-8 assay (CCK-8) assay and colony forming assay. Apoptosis and cell cycle were evaluated by flow cytometry (FCM). The protein levels were detected by western blot. Results: We found that VP inhibited the proliferation of NB4 cells in a concentration and time-dependent manner. FCM analysis showed that VP induced apoptosis in a concentration dependent manner and that VP treatment led to cell cycle arrest at G0/G1 phase. Moreover, VP significantly decreased the protein expression of YAP, p-YAP, Survivin, c-Myc, cyclinD1, p-ERK, and p-AKT. In addition, VP increased the protein expression of cleaved caspase3, cleaved PARP, Bax, and p-p38 MAPK. Conclusions: VP inhibited the proliferation and induced apoptosis in NB4 cells.

Effect of YAP Inhibition on Human Leukemia HL-60 Cells.

Background: Yes-associated protein (YAP), the nuclear effector of the Hippo pathway, is a candidate oncoprotein and participates in the progression of various malignancies. However, few reports have examined the effect of YAP inhibition in human leukemia HL-60 cells. Methods: We examined the effects of YAP knockdown or inhibition using short hairpin RNA (shRNA) or verteporfin (VP), respectively. Western blot assays were used to determine the expression levels of YAP, Survivin, cyclinD1, PARP, Bcl-2, and Bax. Cell proliferation was assessed using the cell counting kit (CCK-8) assay. Cell cycle progression and apoptosis were evaluated by flow cytometry, and apoptotic cell morphology was observed by Hoechst 33342 staining. Results: Knockdown or inhibition of YAP led to cell cycle arrest at the G0/G1 phase and increased apoptosis, inhibited cell proliferation, increased levels of Bax and cleaved PARP, and decreased levels of PARP, Bcl-2, Survivin, and cyclinD1. Moreover, Hoechst 33342 staining revealed increased cell nuclear fragmentation. Conclusion: Collectively, these results show that inhibition of YAP inhibits proliferation and induces apoptosis in HL-60 cells. Therefore, a novel treatment regime involving genetic or pharmacological inhibition of YAP could be established for acute promyelocytic leukemia.

Effects of LG268 on Cell Proliferation and Apoptosis of NB4 Cells.

AIMS: To investigate the effect of LG100268 (LG268) on cell proliferation and apoptosis in NB4 cells. METHODS: NB4 cells were treated with LG268 for 24 h or 48 h. The effect of LG268 on cell proliferation was assessed by the CCK-8 assay and colony-forming assay. Apoptosis and cell cycle were evaluated by flow cytometry. The protein expression levels of Survivin, PARP, c-Myc, cyclin D1, ERK, p-ERK, p38 MAPK, and p- p38 MAPK were detected by western blot. RESULTS: We found that LG268 inhibited the proliferation of NB4 cells in a dose-dependent manner. Flow cytometry analysis showed that LG268 accelerated apoptosis in NB4 cells in a time- dependent manner and that LG268 treatment led to cell cycle arrest at G0/G1 phase. Moreover, LG268 significantly decreased the protein levels of Survivin, c-Myc, and cyclinD1. Cleaved PARP was observed in the LG268 treatment group but not in the control group. In addition, LG268 increased the phosphorylation level of p38 MAPK and decreased the phosphorylation level of ERK. CONCLUSIONS: LG268 inhibited cell proliferation and promoted cell apoptosis in NB4 cells.

Lithium Chloride Promotes Apoptosis in Human Leukemia NB4 Cells by Inhibiting Glycogen Synthase Kinase-3 Beta.

Acute promyelocytic leukemia (APL) is a subtype of acute myeloid leukemia (AML). With the application of all-trans retinoic acid (ATRA) and arsenic trioxide (ATO), APL becomes one of best prognosis of leukemia. However, ATRA and ATO are not effective against all APLs. Therefore, a new strategy for APL treatment is necessary. Here, we investigated whether lithium chloride (LiCl), a drug used for the treatment of mental illness, could promote apoptosis in human leukemia NB4 cells. We observed that treatment with LiCl significantly accelerated apoptosis in NB4 cells and led to cell cycle arrest at G2/M phase. Moreover, LiCl significantly increased the level of Ser9-phosphorylated glycogen synthase kinase 3ß(p-GSK-3ß), and decreased the level of Akt1 protein in a dose-dependent manner. In addition, LiCl inhibition of c-Myc also enhanced cell death with a concomitant increase in ß-catnin. Taken together, these findings demonstrated that LiCl promoted apoptosis in NB4 cells through the Akt signaling pathway and that G2/M phase arrest was induced by increase of p-GSK-3ß(S9).

Analysis of the impact of extracellular acidity on the expression and activity of P-glycoprotein and on the P-glycoprotein-mediated cytotoxicity of daunorubicin in cancer cell by microfluidic chip technology.

OBJECTIVE: To explore the impact of extracellular acidic environment on the expression and activity of P-glycoprotein (P-gp) and on the P-gp-mediated cytotoxicity of daunomycin in cancer cells by using microfluidic chip technology. METHODS: The A549 cells cultured on a microfluidic chip were divided into experiment group and control group. The experiment group was exposed to an acidic cell culture medium (pH 6.6), while the control group was treated with a neutral cell culture medium (pH 7.4). The expression of P-gp was detected by cell immunofluorescense analysis and the activity of P-gp was evaluated by Rhodamine 123 efflux experiment. Meanwhile, the cytotoxicity of daunomycin was analyzed by cell live/dead fluorescence staining method. RESULTS: Microfluidic chip designed in this study could provide a suitable microenvironment for the growth of A549 cells and the A549 cells reached the confluence of 90% after inoculation for 72 h. Treatment of the acidic cell culture media on A549 cells did not make a significant difference on the expression level of P-gp. However, the activity of P-gp was significantly enhancement and peaked at 6 h after treatment with acidic cell culture media. Meanwhile, the cytotoxicity of daunomycin reduced significantly after treatment with acidic cell culture medium for 6 h,and a reversal effect was obtained when synergy with verapamil. CONCLUSIONS: Microfluidic chip technology can shorten the analysis time and reduce the reagent consumption. It can be used as a new technology platform for understanding the mechanisms of multi-drug resistance and for screening highly efficient multi-drug resistance reversal agents.

NLS-RARα promotes proliferation and inhibits differentiation in HL-60 cells.

A unique mRNA produced in leukemic cells from a t(15;17) acute promyelocytic leukemia (APL) patient encodes a fusion protein between the retinoic acid receptor α (RARα) and a myeloid gene product called PML. Studies have reported that neutrophil elastase (NE) cleaves bcr-1-derived PML-RARα in early myeloid cells, leaving only the nuclear localization signal (NLS) of PML attached to RARα. The resultant NLS-RARα fusion protein mainly localizes to, and functions within, the cell nucleus. It is speculated that NLS-RARα may act in different ways from the wild-type RARα, but its biological characteristics have not been reported. This study takes two approaches. Firstly, the NLS-RARα was silenced with pNLS-RARα-shRNA. The mRNA and protein expression of NLS-RARα were detected by RT-PCR and Western blot respectively. Cell proliferation in vitro was assessed by MTT assay. Flow cytometry (FCM) was used to detect the differentiation of cells. Secondly, the NLS-RARα was over-expressed by preparation of recombinant adenovirus HL-60/pAd-NLS-RARα. The assays of mRNA and protein expression of NLS-RARα, and cell proliferation, were as above. By contrast, cell differentiation was stimulated by all trans retinoic acid (ATRA) (2.5µmol/L) at 24h after virus infection of pAd-NLS-RARα, and then detected by CD11b labeling two days later. The transcription and translation of C-MYC was detected in HL-60/pAd-NLS-RARα cells which treated by ATRA. Our results showed that compared to the control groups, the expression of NLS-RARα was significantly reduced in the HL-60/pNLS-RARα-shRNA cells, and increased dramatically in the HL-60/pAd-NLS-RARα cells. The proliferation was remarkably inhibited in the HL-60/pNLS-RARα-shRNA cells in a time-dependent manner, but markedly promoted in the HL-60/pAd-NLS-RARα cells. FCM outcome revealed the differentiation increased in HL-60/pNLS-RARα-shRNA cells, and decreased in the HL-60/pAd-NLS-RARα cells treated with 2.5µmol/L ATRA. The expression of C-MYC increased strikingly in HL-60/pAd-NLS-RARα cells treated with 2.5µmol/L ATRA. Down-regulation of NLS-RARα expression inhibited the proliferation and induced the differentiation of HL-60 cells. On the contrary, over-expression of NLS-RARα promoted proliferation and reduced the ATRA-induced differentiation of HL-60 cells.

Effect of GINS2 on proliferation and apoptosis in leukemic cell line.

Although previous researches have demonstrated that GINS2 express abundantly and abnormally in many malignant solid tumors, such as breast cancer, melanoma and hepatic carcinoma. However, the role and precise molecular mechanism in acute promyelocytic leukemia (APL) are rarely reported. In this current study, we investigated the possible effect and particular mechanism of GINS2 in occurrence and development of APL. We synthesized interference plasmid targeted GINS2 successfully in vitro and also constructed recombinant adenovirus vector carrying GINS2 gene in order to down-regulate or up-regulate GINS2 expression from two aspects of positive and negative in APL. After siRNA were transfected into HL60 cells, both GINS2 expression level of mRNA and protein in interfering group were down-regulated when compared with control groups. Together, MTT and flow cytometry technology showed that cell growth was significantly inhibited. Moreover, the expression lever of Bax was distinctly increased whereas Bcl2 was dramatically decreased in transfected group. Further experiments revealed that down-regulation of GINS2 expression inhibited DNA replication and had a G2/M phase block in HL60 cells. What's more, ATM, CHK2, and P53 gene could involve in the pathogenic signaling pathways of HL60 cells when GINS2 gene was down-regulated. On the contrary, after HL60 cells were infected by recombinant adenovirus vector which contained GINS2 gene, we observed that over-expression of GINS2 could promote HL-60 cell proliferation. What's more, GINS2 might implicate a potential target for leukemia gene therapy.

PML(NLS(-)) inhibits cell apoptosis and promotes proliferation in HL-60 cells.

Promyelocytic leukemia (PML) is a cell-growth suppressor, and PML-retinoic acid receptor α (PML-RARα) is known as a fusion gene of acute promyelocytic leukemia (APL). Studies have reported that neutrophil elastase(NE) cleaved bcr-1-derived PML-RARα in early myeloid cells leading to the removal of nuclear localization signal (NLS) from PML. The resultant PML without NLS named PML(NLS(-)). PML(NLS(-)) mainly locates and functions in the cytoplasm. PML(NLS(-)) may act in different ways from PML, but its biological characteristics have not been reported. In this study, the PML (NLS(-)) was silenced with shRNA [HL-60/pPML(NLS(-))-shRNA] and over-expressed by preparation of recombinant adenovirus [HL-60/pAd-PML(NLS(-))]. The mRNA and protein expression of PML(NLS(-)) were detected by RT-PCR and Western blot respectively. Cell proliferation in vitro was assessed by MTT assay. Flow cytometry (FCM) was used to detect apoptotic cells. The transcription of BCL-2, BAX and C-MYC was detected in HL-60/pAd-PML(NLS(-)) cells. Our results showed that compared to the control group, the expression of PML(NLS(-)) was significantly reduced in the HL-60/pPML(NLS(-))-shRNA cells, and increased significantly in the HL-60/pAd-PML(NLS(-)) cells. The proliferation was significantly inhibited in the HL-60/pPML(NLS(-))-shRNA cells in a time-dependent manner, but markedly promoted in the HL-60/pAd-PML(NLS(-)) cells treated with 60 µmol/L emodin. FCM revealed the apoptosis increased in HL-60/pPML(NLS(-))-shRNA cells, and decreased in the HL-60/pAd-PML(NLS(-)) cells. The expression of BAX decreased significantly, while that of BCL-2 and C-MYC increased significantly in HL-60/ pAd-PML(NLS(-)) cells. Down-regulation of PML(NLS(-)) expression inhibits the proliferation and induces the apoptosis of HL-60 cells. On the contrary, over-expression of PML(NLS(-)) promotes the proliferation and reduce the emodin-induced apoptosis of HL-60 cells.

[Effect of PML(NLS-) gene mediated by recobinant adenovirus vector on emodin-induced apoptosis of HL-60 cells].

OBJECTIVE: To determine the effect and mechanism of action of PML(NLS-) gene on emodin-induced apoptosis of human HL-60 cells. METHODS: HL-60 cells were infected with recombinant adenovirus Ad-PML (NLS-) and Ad-KZ, respectively. The PML(NLS-) gene was detected by Real-time PCR(RT-PCR) and Western blot. The proliferation level of the HL-60 cells was determined by MTT method. The HL-60 cells were treated with 60 micromol/L emodin for 72 h and then analyzed by flow cytometry for their cell cycle and apoptosis rate. The transcription levels of apoptosis-related BCL-2, BAX and C-MYC genes were determined by RT-PCR. The translation levels of those genes were determined by Western blot. RESULTS: Compared with normal controls and the HL-60 cells infected with Ad-KZ, the mRNA and protein expression levels of PML(NLS-) gene increased significantly in the HL-60 cells infected with Ad-PML( NLS-). Increased proliferation levels of the Ad-PML (NLS-) infected HL-60 cells were observed in those treated with 60 pmol/L emodin, which showed decreased percentage of cells at Gx phase, increased percentage of cells at S phase, and decreased emodin-induced apoptosis. The levels of mRNA transcription and protein expression of BAX gene decreased, while those of BCL-2 and C-MYC genes increased significantly. CONCLUSION: The over-expression of PML(NLS-) gene might promote the proliferation and arrest the apoptosis of HL-60 cells by up-regulating the expressions of BCL-2 and C-MYC genes and down-regulating the expression of BAX gene.

[Identification of interaction between BPHL and PML-C].

OBJECTIVE: To explore the interaction between BPHL and PML-C by co-immunoprecipitation and yeast two-hybird system. METHODS: The recombination expression plasmids pGBKT7-PML-C and pACT2-BPHL were cotransformed into yeast AH109, to investigate their interaction in vivo. The expression vector of HA-tagged fusion protein (pCMV-HA-PML-C) and the expression vector of myc-tagged fusion protein (pCMV-myc-BPHL) were constructed and identified respectively, and cotransfected into human embryo kidney 293 (HEK293) cells. The interaction between PML-C and BPHL was investigated by co-immunoprecipitation in vitro. RESULTS: Blue clones were found in QDO/5-bromo-4-chloro-3-indolyl-alpha-D-galactoside (X-alpha-gal) plate, eukaryotic expression vectors named as pCMV-HA-PML-C and pCMV-myc-BPHL were constructed and confirmed with double restriction enzyme digestion and co-transfected into HEK 293 cells successfully. After immunoprecipitation of HA-PML-C with anti-HA polyclonal antibody, expressed myc-BPHL protein was identified by Western blot with anti-c-myc monoclonal antibody from immunoprecipitated complex. CONCLUSION: The eukaryotic expression vector of PCMV-HA-PML-C and PCMV-myc-BPHL were constructed successfully. The interaction between PML-C and BPHL was identified by co-immunoprecipitation and yeast two-hybird technique.

[Effect of recombinant adenovirus carrying NLS-RARalpha gene on the proliferation of HL-60 cell and the differentiation of HL-60 cells induced by ATRA and relevant mechanism].

OBJECTIVE: To explore the effect and mechanism of recombined adenovirus carrying NLS-RARalpha gene on proliferation of HL-60 cells and the differentiation of HL-60 cells induced by ATRA. METHODS: HL-60 cells was infected with Ad-NLS-RARalpha and control virus Ad-KZ. The efficiency of infection was detected by FCM. The mRNA and protein levels of NLS-RARalpha were assessed by Real-time PCR (RT-PCR) and Western blot, respectively. MTT assay were applied to determine proliferation of HL-60 cells. Cell surface differentiation antigen CD11b of infected HL-60 cell induced by ATRA was examined by FCM. The mRNA and protein levels of C-MYC of infected HL-60 cell induced by ATRA were determined by Real-time PCR (RT-PCR) and Western blot assay. RESULTS: The efficiency of infection of Ad-NLS-RARalpha and Ad-KZ on HL-60 cell was 70%-80%. The mRNA and protein levels of NLS-RARalpha gene of HL-60 cells which infected with Ad-NLS-RARalpha were both obviously higher than that of the cells which infected with Ad-KZ and non-infected (P < 0.05). The proliferation ability of HL-60 cell infected with Ad-NLS-RARalpha was significantly increased (P < 0.05). The level of CD11b of HL-60 cell infected with Ad-NLS-RARalpha and induced by ATRA was clearly decreased than control groups (P < 0.05). The mRNA and protein levels of C-MYC gene of HL-60 cells infected with Ad-NLS-RARalpha and induced by ATRA were both obviously higher than that of the cells which infected with Ad-KZ and non-infected (P < 0.05). CONCLUSION: The recombined adenovirus Ad-NLS-RARalpha can increase the proliferation ability of HL-60 cell, and inhibit the differentiation of HL-60 cell through reduce the expression level of C-MYC gene.

Reduced neutralization of SARS-CoV-2 B.1.617 variant by convalescent and vaccinated sera.

Coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) is caused by severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2). The Spike protein that mediates coronavirus entry into host cells is a major target for COVID-19 vaccines and antibody therapeutics. However, multiple variants of SARS-CoV-2 have emerged, which may potentially compromise vaccine effectiveness. Using a pseudovirus-based assay, we evaluated SARS-CoV-2 cell entry mediated by the viral Spike B.1.617 and B.1.1.7 variants. We also compared the neutralization ability of monoclonal antibodies from convalescent sera and neutralizing antibodies (NAbs) elicited by CoronaVac (inactivated vaccine) and ZF2001 (RBD-subunit vaccine) against B.1.617 and B.1.1.7 variants. Our results showed that, compared to D614G and B.1.1.7 variants, B.1.617 shows enhanced viral entry and membrane fusion, as well as more resistant to antibody neutralization. These findings have important implications for understanding viral infectivity and for immunization policy against SARS-CoV-2 variants.

Immune memory in convalescent patients with asymptomatic or mild COVID-19.

It is important to evaluate the durability of the protective immune response elicited by primary infection with severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2). Here, we systematically evaluated the SARS-CoV-2-specific memory B cell and T cell responses in healthy controls and individuals recovered from asymptomatic or symptomatic infection approximately 6 months prior. Comparatively low frequencies of memory B cells specific for the receptor-binding domain (RBD) of spike glycoprotein (S) persisted in the peripheral blood of individuals who recovered from infection (median 0.62%, interquartile range 0.48-0.69). The SARS-CoV-2 RBD-specific memory B cell response was detected in 2 of 13 individuals who recovered from asymptomatic infection and 10 of 20 individuals who recovered from symptomatic infection. T cell responses induced by S, membrane (M), and nucleocapsid (N) peptide libraries from SARS-CoV-2 were observed in individuals recovered from coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19), and cross-reactive T cell responses to SARS-CoV-2 were also detected in healthy controls.

The clinical and immunological features of pediatric COVID-19 patients in China.

In December 2019, the corona virus disease 2019 (COVID-19) caused by novel coronavirus (SARS-CoV-2) emerged in Wuhan, China and rapidly spread worldwide. Few information on clinical features and immunological profile of COVID-19 in paediatrics. The clinical features and treatment outcomes of twelve paediatric patients confirmed as COVID-19 were analyzed. The immunological features of children patients was investigated and compared with twenty adult patients. The median age was 14.5-years (range from 0.64 to 17), and six of the patients were male. The average incubation period was 8 days. Clinically, cough (9/12, 75%) and fever (7/12, 58.3%) were the most common symptoms. Four patients (33.3%) had diarrhea during the disease. As to the immune profile, children had higher amount of total T cell, CD8+ T cell and B cell but lower CRP levels than adults (P < 0.05). Ground-glass opacity (GGO) and local patchy shadowing were the typical radiological findings on chest CT scan. All patients received antiviral and symptomatic treatment and the symptom relieved in 3-4 days after admitted to hospital. The paediatric patients showed mild symptom but with longer incubation period. Children infected with SARS-CoV-2 had different immune profile with higher T cell amount and low inflammatory factors level, which might ascribed to the mild clinical symptom. We advise that nucleic acid test or examination of serum IgM/IgG antibodies against SARS-CoV-2 should be taken for children with exposure history regardless of clinical symptom.

[Identification of the interactions between JTV1 and NLS-RAR alpha in vivo and in vitro].

OBJECTIVE: To identify the interactions between JTV1 and NLS-RAR alpha by Yeast two-hybrid and co-immunoprecipitation. METHODS: The plasmids of bait-protein and JTV1 protein were cotransformed into yeast AH109 to investigate their interactions in vivo. Tagged fusion protein eukaryotic expression vectors were constructed and then cotransfected into human embryo kidney 293 cells. Co-immunoprecipitation was used to investigate the interactions between NLS-RAR alpha and JTV1 in vitro. RESULTS: Blue clones were found in QDO/X-alpha-gal plates. Eukaryotic expression vectors were co-transfected into HEK 293 cells. The HA-NLS-RAR alpha protein was immunoprecipitated by anti-HA polyclonal antibody. Myc-JTV1 protein was detected by western blotting with anti-Myc monoclonal antibody from the immunoprecipitared complex. CONCLUSION: The interactions between NLS-RAR alpha and JTV1 are identified by Yeast two-hybrid and co-immunoprecipitation.

ACTL6A interacts with p53 in acute promyelocytic leukemia cell lines to affect differentiation via the Sox2/Notch1 signaling pathway.

Actin-like 6A (ACTL6A), a component of BAF chromatin remodeling complexes, is important for cell differentiation. Nevertheless, its role and mechanism in acute promyelocytic leukemia (APL) has not been reported. To identify the genes that may participate in the development of APL, we analyzed data from an APL cDNA microarray (GSE12662) in the NCBI database, and found that ACTL6A was up-regulated in APL patients. Subsequently, we investigated the function and mechanisms of ACTL6A in myeloid cell development. The expression of ACTL6A was gradually decreased during granulocytic differentiation in all-trans retinoic acid-treated NB4 and HL-60 cells, and phorbol myristate acetate-treated HL-60 cells. We also found that knockdown of ACTL6A promoted differentiation in NB4 and HL-60 cells, and decreased the levels of Sox2 and Notch1. Mechanistically, ACTL6A interacted with and was co-localized with Sox2 and p53. Meanwhile, CBL0137, an activator of p53, decreased the expression of ACTL6A and promoted differentiation in NB4 and HL-60 cells. These findings suggest that the inhibition of ACTL6A promotes differentiation via the Sox2 and Notch1 signaling pathways. Furthermore, the differentiation promoted by inhibiting ACTL6A could be regulated by p53 via its physical interaction with ACTL6A.

Salinomycin induces apoptosis and differentiation in human acute promyelocytic leukemia cells.

At present, acute promyelocytic leukemia (APL) is the most curable form of acute myeloid leukemia and can be treated using all-trans retinoic acid and arsenic trioxide. However, the current treatment of APL is associated with some issues such as drug toxicity, resistance and relapse. Therefore, other strategies are necessary for APL treatment. In the present study, we investigated the effects of salinomycin (SAL) on APL cell lines NB4 and HL-60 and determined its possible mechanisms. We observed that SAL inhibited cell proliferation, as determined by performing Cell Counting Kit-8 (CCK-8) assay, promoted cell apoptosis, as determined based on morphological changes, and increased Annexin V/propidium iodide (PI)-positive apoptotic cell percentage. Treatment with SAL increased Bax/Bcl-2 and cytochrome c expression and activated caspase-3 and -9, thus leading to poly(ADP-ribose) polymerase (PARP) cleavage and resulting in cell apoptosis. These results revealed that SAL induced cell apoptosis through activation of the intrinsic apoptosis pathway. The present study is the first to show that SAL induced the differentiation of APL cells, as determined based on mature morphological changes, increased NBT-positive cell and CD11b-positive cell percentages and increased CD11b and C/EBPß levels. Furthermore, SAL decreased the expression of ß-catenin and its targets cyclin D1 and C-myc. Results of immunofluorescence analysis revealed that SAL markedly decreased the ß-catenin level in both the nucleus and cytoplasm. Combination treatment with SAL and IWR-1, an inhibitor of Wnt signaling, synergistically triggered SAL-induced differentiation of APL cells. These findings demonstrated that SAL effectively inhibited cell proliferation accompanied by induction of apoptosis and promotion of cell differentiation by inhibiting Wnt/ß-catenin signaling. Collectively, these data revealed that SAL is a potential drug for treatment of APL.

Expression of the promyelocytic leukemia protein without the nuclear localization signal as a novel diagnostic marker for acute promyelocytic leukemia.

Promyelocytic leukemia-retinoic acid receptor α (PML-RARα) is a fusion protein generated by the t(15;17)(q22;q12) translocation associated with acute promyelocytic leukemia (APL). PML-RARα is cleaved by neutrophil elastase, an early myeloid-specific serine protease, leading to translocation of the nuclear localization signal (NLS) of the PML protein to the N-terminal of RARα, and the mutational product PML(NLS-). The present study was designed to analyze the role of the NLS in mediating PML transport into the nucleus and to evaluate the value of measuring NLS translocation in the early diagnosis of APL. PML and PML(NLS-) localization was examined by immunofluorescence (IF). The interaction between PML/PML(NLS-) and importin α was detected by an in vivo binding assay using co-immunoprecipitation and double IF labeling. Twenty-seven untreated APL patients with PML-RARα and 22 non-APL controls were evaluated. PML(NLS-) was detected in primary APL, but not non-APL cells. IF showed that PML was localized to the nucleus, interacted with importin α in vivo, and co-localized in the PML nuclear bodies. PML(NLS-) was primarily localized in the cytoplasm and the interaction with importin α was lost. IF had a sensitivity and specificity of 92.6 and 77.3%, respectively, for diagnosing APL. These data suggest that PML(NLS-) may be a novel diagnostic biomarker for APL.

Shikonin suppresses proliferation and induces apoptosis in human leukemia NB4 cells through modulation of MAPKs and c­Myc.

Acute promyelocytic leukemia (APL) is a special subtype of acute myeloid leukemia that responds to treatment with all­trans retinoic acid and arsenic trioxide. However, severe side effects and drug resistance limit the effectiveness of these treatments. Hence, new drugs for APL are required urgently. Shikonin, an active naphthoquinone derived from the Chinese medical herb Zi Cao exerts antitumor activity in several cancers. In the present study, the effects of shikonin on proliferation and apoptosis in NB4 cells, as well as related mechanisms were assessed. Treatment of NB4 cells with shikonin inhibited proliferation in a concentration­ and time­dependent manner. The cell cycle was arrested in the G1 phase. NB4 cells treated with shikonin exhibited more apoptosis and higher levels of cleaved caspase­3 and poly ADP­ribose polymerase than control cells. Western blotting results demonstrated that the expression of p­p38 mitogen­activated protein kinase (p­p38MAPK) and p­c­Jun N­terminal kinase (p­JNK) was increased significantly by shikonin treatment, while the expression of p­ERK and c­Myc was decreased. In summary, these findings indicated that shikonin inhibited cell proliferation and induced apoptosis partly through modulation of the MAPKs and downregulation of c­Myc.