Apoptotic effect of sodium acetate on a human gastric adenocarcinoma epithelial cell line.

The objective of this study was to investigate the effect of sodium acetate on the viability of the human gastric adenocarcinoma (AGS) epithelial cell line. AGS cells were exposed to a range of concentrations of sodium acetate for different periods of time, and the sodium acetate-induced cytotoxic effects, including cell viability, DNA fragmentation, apoptotic gene expression, and caspase activity, were assessed. The changes in these phenotypes were quantified by performing a lactate dehydrogenase cell viability assay, annexin V staining, terminal deoxynucleotidyl transferase-mediated dUTP nick-end labeling (TUNEL), and several caspase activity assays. In vitro studies demonstrated that the cytotoxicity of sodium acetate on the AGS cell line were dose- and time-dependent manners. No differences were found between the negative control and sodium acetate-treated cells stained with annexin V and subjected to the TUNEL assay. However, caspase-3 activity was increased in AGS cells exposed to sodium acetate. Overall, it was concluded that sodium acetate exerted an apoptotic effect in AGS cells via a caspase-dependent apoptotic pathway.

Cloning, expression, and characterization of Fe-SOD from Isöetes sinensis.

Although the palynology and sporophyte stage of Isöetes sinensis have been well studied, the biology of its gametophyte and embryo is less well understood. To date, the functions of several genes of I. sinensis and the molecular mechanisms of enzymes encoded by them remain to be studied. In the present study, the Fe-SOD gene of I. sinensis was successfully cloned using RT-PCR and rapid amplification of cDNA ends (RACE), and termed IsFeSOD. IsFeSOD has certain reference value in the classification of system evolution. The study also accumulated data for further research on the SOD gene. Bioinformatic analysis was employed to compare IsFeSOD with gene sequences obtained from other plants present in the GenBank. Furthermore, the recombinant pET32-FeSOD plasmids were transformed into Escherichia coli BL21 for expression. IsFeSOD was observed to have 1469 nucleotides that were predicted to encode 247 amino acids. The bioinformatic analysis revealed that IsFeSOD contained conserved TGGGA sequences, similar to eight other species, in addition to five other conserved sequences. The recombinant protein was about 43 kDa. Recombinant FeSOD was expressed, purified, and confirmed by western blotting. Alignment of complete Fe-SOD mRNA sequences from 9 species revealed several conserved sequences. A phylogenetic tree was constructed using MEGA4.1 and ClustalX multiple-sequence alignment programs. This study could be helpful in further characterization of SOD genes and for classification of system evolution status.