Galectin-3 enhances trastuzumab resistance by regulating cancer malignancy and stemness in HER2-positive breast cancer cells.

PURPOSE: The aim of this study was to explore the role of galectin-3 in human epidermal growth factor receptor 2 (HER2)-positive breast cancer cells and the potential mechanism. METHODS: Kaplan-Meier (KM)-plot and The Cancer Genome Atlas (TCGA) databases were used to study the role of galectin-3 in the prognosis of HER2-positive breast cancer. The effects of galectin-3 on cell proliferation, migration, invasion, and colony formation ability in HER2-positive breast cancer cells were examined. The relationship between galectin-3 and important components in the HER2 pathways, including HER2, epidermal growth factor receptor (EGFR), protein kinase B (AKT), and phosphatase and tensin homolog (PTEN), was further studied. Lentivirus and CRISPR/Cas9 were used to construct stable cell lines. Cell counting kit-8 (CCK-8) and apoptosis assays were used to study the relationship between galectin-3 and trastuzumab. The effect of galectin-3 on cell stemness was studied by mammosphere formation assay. The effects of galectin-3 on stemness biomarkers and the Notch1 pathway were examined. Tumorigenic models were used to evaluate the effects of galectin-3 on tumorigenesis and the therapeutic effect of trastuzumab in vivo. RESULTS: HER2-positive breast cancer patients with a high expression level of LGALS3 (the gene encoding galectin-3) messenger RNA (mRNA) showed a poor prognosis. Galectin-3 promoted cancer malignancy through phosphoinositide 3-kinase (PI3K)/AKT signaling pathway activation and upregulated stemness by activating the Notch1 signaling pathway in HER2-positive breast cancer cells. These two factors contributed to the enhancement of trastuzumab resistance in cells. Knockout of LGALS3 had a synergistic therapeutic effect with trastuzumab both in vitro and in vivo. CONCLUSIONS: Galectin-3 may represent a prognostic predictor and therapeutic target for HER2-positive breast cancer.

Postsynthetic Modification of the Magnetic Zirconium-Organic Framework for Efficient and Rapid Solid-Phase Extraction of DNA.

In recent years, several approaches have been applied to modify metal-organic frameworks (MOFs) owing to their excellent structural tunability such as higher extraction efficiency than that of primitive crystals. Herein, Zr-based MOFs (UiO-66-NH2) with a suitable size modulated by acetic acid were successfully synthesized for effective DNA extraction. The bonding conformations and adsorption mechanism indicated a high affinity between UiO-66-NH2 and the DNA molecules. Furthermore, Fe3O4 nanoparticles were immobilized on the UiO-66-NH2 surface to allow MOFs with magnetism. The magnetic zirconium-organic framework (MZMOF) retained the intact structure of MOFs and simplified subsequent extraction operations. In the DNA recovery investigation, MZMOF showed high recovery efficiency for both short-stranded DNA (90.4%) and pseudovirus DNA (95.1%). In addition, it showed superior DNA extraction efficiency from plasma (57.6%) and swab preservation solution (86.5%). The prepared MZMOF was employed for highly specific extraction of viral DNA and cfDNA from samples. To further simplify the extraction process, MZMOF was applied to immiscible phase filtration assisted by a surface tension (IFAST) chip for facilitating rapid DNA extraction with sensitive point-of-care testing. The developed MZMOF-based extraction method has significant potential for increasing the demand for rapid and efficient nucleic acid extraction.

Concise synthesis of 2-methoxyestradiol from 17ß-estradiol through the C(sp2)-H hydroxylation.

A four-step route for the synthesis of 2-methoxyestradiol (5) starting from 17ß-estradiol (1) has been achieved with a 51% overall yield. The key step was the ruthenium-catalyzed ortho-C(sp2)-H bond hydroxylation of aryl carbamates. Using dimethyl carbamate as the directing group, [RuCl2(p-cymene)]2 as the catalyst, PhI(OAc)2 as the oxidant and trifluoroacetate/trifluoroacetic anhydride (1:1) as the co-solvent, the hydroxyl group could be singly installed at the 2-position of 3-dimethylcarbamoyloxyestradiol (2) with 65% yield. Subsequent methylation of hydroxy and removal of dimethyl carbamate afforded 2-methoxyestradiol (5).

[Detection of UGT1A1*6 single nucleotide polymorphism in oral swap samples using the cascade invader assay-based real-time PCR].

The adverse reaction to irinotecan is related to the single nucleotide polymorphism (SNP) of UGT1A1*6 genotype. The current SNP detection methods have various disadvantages, including time-consuming procedures, high- risk cross-contamination, and cumbersome operation. Hence, it is necessary to establish a new method suitable for clinical application, which is easy and simple to detect SNP with minimal risk for cross-contamination. In this study, a cascade invader assay-based real-time PCR, for UGT1A1*6 genotyping has been established by optimizing reaction conditions with DNA samples of three genotypes. The sensitivity and accuracy of the method were evaluated with DNAs derived from oral swab samples. The results showed that the method could detect the UGT1A1*6 genotypes from the oral swab samples with a detection limit of 6 ng genomic DNA with 100% accuracy. Due to its convenient and non-invasive sampling, single close-tube operation, and minimal risk for cross-contamination, the method has the potential in clinical application for individualized detection of drug-related UGT1A1*6 polymorphism and reaction to irinotecan.

[Relationship of AM fungi with non-mycorrhizal plants.] / AMçœŸèŒä¸ŽéžèŒæ ¹æ¤ç‰©çš„ç›¸äº’ä½œç”¨å ³ç³».

As a kind of globally widely distributed soil microorganism, arbuscular mycorrhizal (AM) fungi form the symbiosis with the majority of land plants, which is important for plant nutrition and ecosystem functioning. Few vascular species are considered to be nonmycorrhizal, especially those within the families Amaranthaceae, Chenopodiaceae, Carophyllaceae and Brassicaceae. At present, the interactions between these non-host plants and AM fungi are few and scattered, lacking systematic summary. In this paper, the type of non-host plants, the reason of low mycotrophy, and the effect of AM network formed by neighbor plants on AM fungi colonization on the non-host, and the possible interaction between AM fungi and non-host, as well as the material exchange between plants and AM fungi and their possible ecological functions were reviewed in order to give some new ideas on the function of the nonmycorrhizal plants in the fragile ecosystems.

The prognostic value of AGR2 expression in solid tumours: a systematic review and meta-analysis.

The prognostic value of anterior gradient-2 (AGR2) in tumours remains inconclusive. Here, we systematically reviewed the literature evidence and assessed the association between AGR2 expression and prognosis in solid tumours. The primary outcomes were overall survival (OS), disease-specific survival (DSS), and disease-free survival (DFS)/recurrence-free survival (RFS)/progression-free survival (PFS). All analyses were performed by STATA 12.0, with the hazard ratio (HR) or odds ratios (OR), and 95% confidence interval (CI) as the effect size estimate. A total of 20 studies containing 3285 cases were included. Pooled analyses revealed that AGR2 overexpression had an unfavourable impact on OS (HR 1.93, 95% CI 1.32-2.81) and time to tumour progression (TTP) (DFS/RFS/PFS) (HR 1.60 95% CI 1.06-2.40) in solid tumour patients. Subgroup analyses indicated that AGR2 overexpression in breast cancer patients was significantly associated with poor OS (HR 3.02, 95% CI 1.03-8.81) and TTP (HR 1.93, 95% CI 1.17-3.20). Excluding breast cancer, AGR2 overexpression was also found to have a significant correlation with poor OS in the remaining solid tumour patients (HR 1.51, 95% CI 1.04-2.19). Overall, AGR2 might be a potential biomarker to predict prognosis in solid tumour patients.

Mesenchymal stem cells attenuated PLGA-induced inflammatory responses by inhibiting host DC maturation and function.

The poly lactic-co-glycolic acid (PLGA) bio-scaffold is a biodegradable scaffold commonly used for tissue repair. However, implanted PLGA scaffolds usually cause serious inflammatory responses around grafts. To improve PLGA scaffold-based tissue repair, it is important to control the PLGA-mediated inflammatory responses. Recent evidence indicated that PLGA induce dendritic cell (DC) maturation in vitro, which may initiate host immune responses. In the present study, we explored the modulatory effects of mesenchymal stem cells (MSC) on PLGA-induced DCs (PLGA-DC). We found that mouse MSCs inhibited PLGA-DC dendrite formation, as well as co-stimulatory molecule and pro-inflammatory factor expression. Functionally, MSC-educated PLGA-DCs promoted Th2 and regulatory T cell differentiation but suppressed Th1 and Th17 cell differentiation. Mechanistically, we determined that PLGA elicited DC maturation via inducing phosphorylation of p38/MAPK and ERK/MAPK pathway proteins in DCs. Moreover, MSCs suppressed PLGA-DCs by partially inactivating those pathways. Most importantly, we found that the MSCs were capable of suppressing DC maturation and immune function in vivo. Also, the proportion of mature DCs in the mice that received MSC-PLGA constructs greatly decreased compared with that of their PLGA-film implantation counterparts. Additionally, MSCs co-delivery increased regulatory T and Th2 cells but decreased the Th1 and Th17 cell numbers in the host spleens. Histological analysis showed that MSCs alleviated the inflammatory responses around the grafted PLGA scaffolds. In summary, our findings reveal a novel function for MSCs in suppressing PLGA-induced host inflammatory response and suggest that DCs are a new cellular target in improving PLGA scaffold-based tissue repair.

Melatonin enhances plant growth and abiotic stress tolerance in soybean plants.

Melatonin is a well-known agent that plays multiple roles in animals. Its possible function in plants is less clear. In the present study, we tested the effect of melatonin (N-acetyl-5-methoxytryptamine) on soybean growth and development. Coating seeds with melatonin significantly promoted soybean growth as judged from leaf size and plant height. This enhancement was also observed in soybean production and their fatty acid content. Melatonin increased pod number and seed number, but not 100-seed weight. Melatonin also improved soybean tolerance to salt and drought stresses. Transcriptome analysis revealed that salt stress inhibited expressions of genes related to binding, oxidoreductase activity/process, and secondary metabolic processes. Melatonin up-regulated expressions of the genes inhibited by salt stress, and hence alleviated the inhibitory effects of salt stress on gene expressions. Further detailed analysis of the affected pathways documents that melatonin probably achieved its promotional roles in soybean through enhancement of genes involved in cell division, photosynthesis, carbohydrate metabolism, fatty acid biosynthesis, and ascorbate metabolism. Our results demonstrate that melatonin has significant potential for improvement of soybean growth and seed production. Further study should uncover more about the molecular mechanisms of melatonin's function in soybeans and other crops.

[Influence of donor mouse age on the establishment of murine acute graft versus host disease model after allogenic hematopoietic stem cell transplantation].

This study was purposed to elucidate the influence of donor mouse age on the establishment of murine acute graft versus host disease (aGVHD) model after allogenic hematopoietic stem cell transplantation. The male mice with 2-week-old, 10-week-old and 18-week-old mice (BALB/cH-2Kb) were taken as donors. The 8-week-old mice (BALB/c, H-2Kd) were selected as recipients. Each group animals were irradiated with 7.5 Gy (60)Co for total body, the recipient mice were injected intravenously with 1 × 107 bone marrow cells and 1 × 107 spleenoctyes from various donors in 4-5 hours after irradiation. Mouse transplant characteristics and survival were observed every day. The white blood cell number in peripheral blood of each group were counted at day 5, 10, 15, 20, 25 and 30 after transplantation. Furthermore, the pathological damage in the liver, spleen, lung and intestines were evaluated by sectioning and in situ hematoxylin-eosin (HE) staining. The results showed that compared with the 2-week-old and 10-week-old donor groups, mice received bone marrow (BM) cells and splenocytes from 18-week-old mice showed higher incidence of aGVHD, lower clinical GVHD scores and suffered from diarrhea, ruffled hair, a hunched posture, and diminished body weight. In contrast, mice received BM cells and splenocytes from 2-week-old donor mice indicated attenuated GVHD symptoms and survived longer. The histo-pathological analysis in 18-week-old donor group demonstrated the most serious pathological damage in the liver, spleen, lung and intestines. It is concluded that the donor age has been confired to have an obvious influence on the establishment of murine aGVHD model. This study lay an important foundation for establishing animal models and may be helpful for further study.

[Construction of mouse VCAM-1 expression vector and establishment of stably transfected MSC line C3H10T1/2].

This study was aimed to construct the mouse VCAM-1 expression vector, to establish the stably transfected MSC line and to investigate the effect of VCAM-1-modified mesenchymal stem cells (MSC) on the immunological characteristics of MSC. The cDNA of murine VCAM-1 gene was amplified by RT-PCR from the total RNA isolated from the mouse spleen; then the cDNA was inserted into the retrovirus vector PMSCVmigr-1; the recombinant plasmid was confirmed by restriction endonuclease experiments and sequencing, then designated as PMSCVmigr-1-mVCAM-1; the recombinant plasmid PMSCVmigr-1-mVCAM-1 was transfected into 293 cells by lipofecamin and the supernatant was collected to transfect MSC cell line (C3H10T1/2). Moreover, VCAM-1 expression on MSC was evaluated by FACS. Furthermore, the inhibitory effect of VCAM-1-MSC on lymphocytic transformation was tested by (3)H-TdR incorporation assay. The results indicated that the successful construction of recombinant retroviral expression plasmid of mouse VCAM-1 was confirmed by digesting and sequancing. After transfection of MSC with retroviral supernaptant, the high expression of VCAM-1 on MSC could be detected by flow cytometry. The MSC high expressing VCAM-1 could significantly inhibit the proliferation of Con A-inducing lymphocytes in dose-depentent marrer. It is concluded that recombinant retroviral encoding VCAM-1 (PMSCVmigr-1-mVCAM-1) has been successfully constructed and mouse VCAM-1 has been stably expressed in C3H10T1/2. MSC over-expressing VCAM-1 show more potent immunosuppressive effect on cellular immune reaction in vitro. Our data laid a foundation for the subsequent studying the effect of VCAM-1 transfecting into MSC on immune related disease study.

[Effect of different irradiation doses on the establishment of murine cGVHD model after MHC matched spleen stem cell transplantation].

This study was aimed to investigate the effect of different irradiation doses on the establishment of murine cGVHD model after MHC matched spleen stem cell transplantation. The male mouse BALB/c(H)-2d was totally irradiated with different radiation dose of (60)Co (TBI), then was infused with the same number of splenocytes from MHC matched DBA/2 male mice. After transplantation, the bodyweight, general appearance, hair changes, survival time and pathological damage were observed. The results indicated that compared to the control group (0 Gy) and the 7.0 Gy group, the mice irradiated with 7.5 Gy and 8.0 Gy showed cGVHD symptoms and obvious pathological damage. At the end of experiments (60 d after transplantation), all mice irradiated by 7.5 Gy survived while only 60% animals survived in the 8.0 Gy group. It is concluded that under infusion of 10(8) MHC matched splenocytes per mouse, 7.5 Gy irradiation is appropriate to efficiently establish cGVHD model. This study laid an important foundation for further studying the pathogenesis, biological characteristics, and intervention factors of cGVHD.

[Effect of intercellular adhesion molecule-1 on the migration in vitro of murine mesenchymal stem cells and its related mechanism].

This study was aimed to investigate the effect of intercellular adhesion molecule-1 (ICAM-1) on the migration in vitro of the murine mesenchymal stem cells (MSC) and its related mechanisms. The migration ability of murine MSC (C3H10T1/2), ICAM-1 transfected MSC (C3H10T1/2-MIGR1-ICAM-1) and empty vector-transfected MSC (C3H10T 1/2-MIGR1) were assayed in vitro by using the transwell system. Briefly, the cells were seeded on the membrane with 8 µm aperture and the fetal bovine serum was used as the chemotactic agent to induce MSC migration. The transmigrated cells were stained by crystal purple as well as DAPI for 8 h and 12 h respectively. The absolute cell numbers were counted and the migration rates of MSC were evaluated in each group. To explore the potential mechanisms which control the migration of MSC, the specific chemical inhibitors of MAPK pathway (SB203580, PD98059 and JNK inhibitor II) were added to the transwell system and the alteration of the MSC migration ability were evaluated at 12 h. The results showed that the migration ability at 8 h and 12 h of the ICAM-1-transfected MSC increased. Both absolute cell number and migration rate of MSC were significantly up-regulated by ICAM-1. Furthermore, the promoting effect of ICAM-1 on migration was partially suppressed by the inhibition of JNK/SAPK pathway. The transmigrated cell numbers and the migration rate decreased with the addition of JNK inhibitor II. However, the ICAM-1 promoting migration of MSC was not suppressed by the inhibitors for ERK/MAPK and p38/MAPK pathway did not work in the present study. It is concluded that ICAM-1 can induce mouse MSC migration in vitro, and the promoting effect is partially dependent on the activation of JNK/SAPK pathway.

Intercellular adhesion molecule-1 inhibits osteogenic differentiation of mesenchymal stem cells and impairs bio-scaffold-mediated bone regeneration in vivo.

Mesenchymal stem cell (MSC) loaded bio-scaffold transplantation is a promising therapeutic approach for bone regeneration and repair. However, growing evidence shows that pro-inflammatory mediators from injured tissues suppress osteogenic differentiation and impair bone formation. To improve MSC-based bone regeneration, it is important to understand the mechanism of inflammation mediated osteogenic suppression. In the present study, we found that synovial fluid from rheumatoid arthritis patients and pro-inflammatory cytokines including interleukin-1α, interleukin-1ß, and tumor necrosis factor α, stimulated intercellular adhesion molecule-1(ICAM-1) expression and impaired osteogenic differentiation of MSCs. Interestingly, overexpression of ICAM-1 in MSCs using a genetic approach also inhibited osteogenesis. In contrast, ICAM-1 knockdown significantly reversed the osteogenic suppression. In addition, after transplanting a traceable MSC-poly(lactic-co-glycolic acid) construct in rat calvarial defects, we found that ICAM-1 suppressed MSC osteogenic differentiation and matrix mineralization in vivo. Mechanistically, we found that ICAM-1 enhances MSC proliferation but causes stem cell marker loss. Furthermore, overexpression of ICAM-1 stably activated the MAPK and NF-κB pathways but suppressed the PI3K/AKT pathway in MSCs. More importantly, specific inhibition of the ERK/MAPK and NF-κB pathways or activation of the PI3K/AKT pathway partially rescued osteogenic differentiation, while inhibition of the p38/MAPK and PI3K/AKT pathway caused more serious osteogenic suppression. In summary, our findings reveal a novel function of ICAM-1 in osteogenesis and suggest a new molecular target to improve bone regeneration and repair in inflammatory microenvironments.

A pyrosequencing-based metagenomic study of methane-producing microbial community in solid-state biogas reactor.

BACKGROUND: A solid-state anaerobic digestion method is used to produce biogas from various solid wastes in China but the efficiency of methane production requires constant improvement. The diversity and abundance of relevant microorganisms play important roles in methanogenesis of biomass. The next-generation high-throughput pyrosequencing platform (Roche/454 GS FLX Titanium) provides a powerful tool for the discovery of novel microbes within the biogas-generating microbial communities. RESULTS: To improve the power of our metagenomic analysis, we first evaluated five different protocols for extracting total DNA from biogas-producing mesophilic solid-state fermentation materials and then chose two high-quality protocols for a full-scale analysis. The characterization of both sequencing reads and assembled contigs revealed that the most prevalent microbes of the fermentation materials are derived from Clostridiales (Firmicutes), which contribute to degrading both protein and cellulose. Other important bacterial species for decomposing fat and carbohydrate are Bacilli, Gammaproteobacteria, and Bacteroidetes (belonging to Firmicutes, Proteobacteria, and Bacteroidetes, respectively). The dominant bacterial species are from six genera: Clostridium, Aminobacterium, Psychrobacter, Anaerococcus, Syntrophomonas, and Bacteroides. Among them, abundant Psychrobacter species, which produce low temperature-adaptive lipases, and Anaerococcus species, which have weak fermentation capabilities, were identified for the first time in biogas fermentation. Archaea, represented by genera Methanosarcina, Methanosaeta and Methanoculleus of Euryarchaeota, constitute only a small fraction of the entire microbial community. The most abundant archaeal species include Methanosarcina barkeri fusaro, Methanoculleus marisnigri JR1, and Methanosaeta theromphila, and all are involved in both acetotrophic and hydrogenotrophic methanogenesis. CONCLUSIONS: The identification of new bacterial genera and species involved in biogas production provides insights into novel designs of solid-state fermentation under mesophilic or low-temperature conditions.