Hungatella hathewayi impairs the sensitivity of colorectal cancer cells to 5-FU through decreasing CDX2 expression.

Hungatella hathewayi (H. hathewayi), also known as Clostridium hathewayi, has been reported to be accumulated in the colorectal cancer (CRC) samples. In addition, evidence has demonstrated that inoculation with H. hathewayi promotes the proliferation of colonic epithelial cells in mice. Herein, we explored H. hathewayi role in regulating the 5-fluorouracil (5-FU) resistance in CRC cells, and investigated the underlying mechanisms. H. hathewayi abundance in CRC tissues and the corresponding adjacent normal tissues was tested using qRT-PCR. Both parental and 5-FU resistance CRC cell lines were used to assess H. hathewayi role in regulating the 5-FU resistance of CRC cells using CCK-8, flow cytometry and animal experiments. H. hathewayi abundance was significantly increased in CRC tissues, and the high level of H. hathewayi was linked to lower overall survival rate. H. hathewayi treatment significantly weakened 5-FU effects on inhibiting cell growth and inducing cell apoptosis in CRC HCT116 and HT29 cells. In addition, H. hathewayi enhanced the 5-FU resistance of HCT116/5-FU and HT29/5-FU cells (the 5-FU resistance cell lines). In mechanism, H. hathewayi decreased the expression of CDX2, and increased the expression of nuclear accumulation of ß-catenin. Overexpression of CDX2 abolished H. hathewayi-mediated enhancement in cell growth and inhibition in cell apoptosis in HCT116/5-FU and HT29/5-FU cells, as well as inhibited the expression and nuclear accumulation of ß-catenin. In conclusion, H. hathewayi abundance was increased in CRC tissues, and the high level of H. hathewayi was linked to lower overall survival rate. In mechanisam, H. hathewayi treatment enhanced the 5-FU resistance of CRC cells through modulating CDX2/ß-catenin signaling.

Spectroscopic Characterization of a Polycaprolactone-Chitosan Electrospun Scaffold Modified with Photocatalytic TiO2 Nanoparticles for Improved Wound Healing: A Complete In Vivo Evaluation.

In the current study, we hypothesized that the electrospun scaffold chitosan (CS)/polycaprolactone (PCL)/titanium dioxide (TiO2) could be prepared by combining CS, PCL, and TiO2 nanoparticles (TiO2 NPs) using an electrospinning technique for wound dressing applications. The CS/PCL/TiO2 electrospun scaffold was prepared and characterized by UV-Vis, SEM, TEM, FTIR, and XRD analyses. Based on the UV-Vis analysis, the incorporation of CS/PCL on the surface of TiO2 NPs affected their optical properties. Further, CS/PCL and CS/PCL/TiO2 were found to have uniform distribution in fiber diameter with no bead morphology, as confirmed by SEM. The XRD spectrum of the CS/PCL/TiO2 revealed that the TiO2 NPs were adequately mixed with the CS/PCL solution, exhibiting the planes of TiO2 peaks (112), (105), (204), (116), and (301), which aligned well with the lattice structure. The antibacterial activity of CS/PCL/TiO2 against Staphylococcus aureus and Escherichia coli was evaluated using the zone of inhibition method. By testing the cytocompatibility of CS/PCL/TiO2 in vitro, this dressing was found to have a less toxic nature. In addition, In Vivo wound healing studies showed that the dressing prepared with the CS/PCL/TiO2 electrospun scaffold improved wound healing compared to that prepared with CS/PCL alone. The above results strongly support the use of CS/PCL/TiO2 electrospun scaffold as an effective dressing for wound healing.

[Evodiamine Promotes Apoptosis of Glioma SHG-44 Cells and Its Mechanism].

Objective To explore the role of evodiamine in promoting the apoptosis of glioma SHG-44 cells and its mechanism.Methods The in vitro cultured glioma SHG-44 cells were divided into control group and evodiamine group(which was further divided into three subgroups according to the glycoside concentrations).Cell viability was determined by CCK-8 method,cells apoptosis rate by flow cytometry,and nucleus apoptosis by Hoechst 33258 nuclear staining.Cell morphological changes were observed by transmission electron microscope.Protein expressions of Cleaved Caspase-3 and Cleaved Caspase-9 were detected by Western blot analysis.Results Evodiamine significantly inhibited the proliferation of glioma SHG-44 cells.The apoptosis rate of Glioma cells increased in a dose-dependent manner as the evodiamine concentration increased.Evodiamine promoted the expressions of cleaved Caspase-3 and cleaved Caspase-9.Conclusion Evodiamine inhibits glioma cell proliferation by changing the expressions of cleaved Caspase-3 and cleaved Caspase-9.

Highly efficient synthesis of phytosterol linolenate in the presence of Bronsted acidic ionic liquid.

Phytosterols are effective in reducing plasma cholesterol. However, phytosterols in a free form have some disadvantages because they have a high melting point and a poor oil solubility, thereby limiting their practical application in foods. The present study was to establish a green and highly efficient method to synthesize phytosterol linolenate for the first time by employing Bronsted acidic ionic liquid (IL) as a catalyst in order to improve its oil solubility. The product was separated, analyzed and subsequently characterized using thin layer chromatography, fourier transform infrared spectroscopy and mass spectroscopy. The conversion of phytosterols could reach above 96% in a very short time (30 min) under the following optimum conditions: 3% 1-butylsulfonate-3-methylimidazolium trifluoromethanesulfonate ([BSO3HMim]OTf) as a catalyst, 110 °C and 1:1.75 M ratio of phytosterols to ethyl linolenate. The present method demonstrated that [BSO3HMim]OTf would be a potential catalyst for phytosterol ester synthesis. Most importantly was that the oil solubility of phytosterol linolenate was much greater than its corresponding free phytosterols.