SENP1 attenuates hypoxia­reoxygenation injury in liver sinusoid endothelial cells by relying on the HIF­1α signaling pathway.

Liver sinusoidal endothelial cells (LSECs) have an important role in hepatic ischemia­reperfusion injury (I/R), but the specific molecular mechanism of action is unknown. LSEC proliferation is regulated and fenestration is maintained via the Sentrin/SUMO­specific protease 1 (SENP1)/hypoxia­inducible factor­1α (HIF­1α) signaling axis under hypoxic conditions. In the present study, a hypoxia­reoxygenation (H­R) injury model was established using mouse LSECs to explore the relationship between SENP1 and H­R injury in vitro, and the specific underlying mechanism was identified, revealing new targets for the clinical attenuation of hepatic I/R injury. Following the culture of LSECs under H­R conditions, it was demonstrated that the expression of SENP1 was upregulated by reverse transcription­quantitative polymerase chain reaction and western blotting (WB). In addition, scanning electron microscopy indicated that fenestrae damage was increased, a Cell Counting Kit­8 assay demonstrated that the proliferation of cells was impaired and flow cytometry showed that apoptosis was increased. After silencing SENP1 expression with short interfering RNA, the proliferation activity of LSECs decreased, the fenestrae damage increased, the apoptosis rate increased and the expression levels of SENP1, HIF­1α, heme oxygenase and Bcl­2 were downregulated (as demonstrated by WB), while the expression levels of apoptosis­related proteins, cleaved­caspase­3 and Bax, were upregulated. Enzyme­linked immunosorbent assay detection showed that the level of vascular endothelial growth factor in the supernatant decreased and the level of IL­6 and TNF­α increased. Following the administration of an HIF­1α signaling pathway agonist, the situation was reversed. These results therefore suggested that SENP1 attenuated the reduction in proliferation, apoptosis and fenestration of LSECs observed following H­R injury through the HIF­1α signaling pathway. In conclusion, SENP1 may attenuate H­R injury in LSECs in a HIF­1α signaling pathway­dependent manner.

RBBP7, regulated by SP1, enhances the Warburg effect to facilitate the proliferation of hepatocellular carcinoma cells via PI3K/AKT signaling.

BACKGROUND: Hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC) is characterized by aggressive progression and elevated mortality rates. This study aimed to investigate the regulatory effects of RBBP7 on HCC pathogenesis and the underlying mechanisms. METHODS: The expression and clinical feature of RBBP7 were evaluated using bioinformatics analysis and the assessment of clinical HCC samples. CCK8 and colony formation were employed to estimate cell proliferation function of RBBP7. Aerobic glycolysis levels of RBBP7 were evaluated by measuring ATP levels, lactic acid production, glucose uptake capacity, and the expression of relevant enzymes (PFKM, PKM2, and LDHA). The phosphorylation levels in PI3K/AKT signaling were measured by western blotting. The regulatory effect of transcription factors of specificity protein 1 (SP1) on RBBP7 mRNA expression was confirmed in dual-luciferase reporter assays and chromatin immunoprecipitation experiments. The proliferation- and glycolysis-associated proteins were assessed using immunofluorescence staining in vivo. RESULTS: We found that RBBP7 is expressed at high levels in HCC and predicts poor survival. Functional assays showed that RBBP7 promoted HCC proliferation and glycolysis. Mechanistically, it was demonstrated that RBBP7 activates the PI3K/AKT pathway, a crucial pathway in glycolysis, contributing to the progression of HCC. The outcomes of the dual-luciferase assay further confirmed that SP1 is capable of activating the promoter of RBBP7. CONCLUSIONS: RBBP7, which is up-regulated by SP1, promotes HCC cell proliferation and glycolysis through the PI3K/AKT pathway. The findings of this study suggest that RBBP7 is a potential biomarker for HCC.

Heme Oxygenase-1 Alleviates Ischemia-Reperfusion Injury by Inhibiting Hepatocyte Pyroptosis after Liver Transplantation in Rats.

OBJECTIVE: Heme oxygenase-1 (HO-1) is a protein involved in the inflammatory response following ischemia-reperfusion injury (IRI). Evidence suggests that pyroptosis plays an important role in IRI. However, the underlying mechanism between HO-1 and pyroptosis in IRI requires further investigation. METHODS: Using the "two-cuff" method, a Sprague Dawley rat model of liver transplantation (LT) was established using livers from donors after circulatory death. An automatic biochemical analyzer was used to detect serum alanine transaminase (ALT) and aspartate aminotransferase (AST) levels and evaluate liver function. Paraffin sections of the rat liver were stained with hematoxylin-eosin (HE) to observe the degree of pathological damage. An enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay was used to detect serum levels of interleukin (IL)-1ß and IL-18. Moreover, western blotting was used to analyze the expression of HO-1, pro-caspase-1, p22, full-gasdermin D (GSDMD), and cleaved-N-GSDMD in the liver. Immunohistochemistry was used to detect NLRP3 expression. RESULTS: HO-1 expression was time-dependent with IRI. HE staining and Suzuki score showed that necrosis was more severe at 6 h after IRI than in controls. Reactive oxygen species (ROS), ALT, and AST levels in the reperfusion were significantly higher at 6 h after IRI. Similar to HO-1 expression, pro-caspase-1, p22, and GSDMD expression in the reperfusion was time-dependent and was significantly higher at 6 h. Compared with the HO-1-shRNA (short hairpin RNA) group, the HO-1 overexpression group significantly inhibited ROS, p22, GSDMD, IL-1ß, IL-18, ALT, and AST. Immunohistochemistry revealed that NLRP3 levels were the highest in the HO-1 overexpression group. CONCLUSIONS: HO-1 improved the survival rate and IRI recovery after LT in rats. This study demonstrates that HO-1 inhibits hepatocyte pyroptosis, thereby reducing IRI after LT.

ScRNA-seq revealed disruption in CD8+ NKG2A+ natural killer T cells in patients after liver transplantation and immunosuppressive therapy.

BACKGROUND: Liver transplantation (LT) offers a good survival chance for both the patient in short or long term, but still faces many challenges in the treatment of LT, such as the side effects associated with long-term immunosuppression, which is one of the side effects that occurs in most patients. However, the dynamics of the cellular immune system composition over time during immune tolerance to LT after immunosuppressive therapy are not known. METHODS: Using single-cell transcriptome sequencing, we analyzed five peripheral blood samples (one normal individual and four patients who underwent LT and received immunosuppressive therapy for 2 months, 1 year, 3 years, and 7 years, respectively) for immune cell composition and gene expression. RESULTS: A total of 17,462 peripheral blood mononuclear cells were acquired from a normal individual without LT and patients who underwent LT and received immunosuppressive therapy for 2 months, 1 year, 3 years, and 7 years, respectively. A total of 24 cell clusters were obtained and categorized into four different cell types based on gene expression characteristics as follows: eight clusters of T cells, two clusters of B cells, two clusters of neutrophils, two clusters of monocytes, natural killer cells, and natural killer T (NKT) cells (n = 4), and six other cell clusters. Cell subset analysis, pseudotime analysis, and intercellular communication analysis revealed that the CD8+ NKT cells specifically expressed NKG2A (KLRC1, CD159A), which may be an important cell group for CD8+ NKG2A+ NKT cells in LT, thereby highlighting the heterogeneity and functional diversity in patients who undergo LT. CONCLUSIONS: We comprehensively analyzed single-cell RNA sequencing data from a normal individual and patients who underwent LT and elucidated the mechanism underlying the development of immune tolerance in LT. CD8+ NKT cells specifically expressing KLRC1 play a crucial role in LT, and dynamic monitoring of these cells may provide novel avenues for the diagnosis and treatment of LT-related immune rejection.

Immunological function and prognostic value of lymphoid-specific helicase in liver hepatocellular carcinoma.

BACKGROUND: Lymphoid-specific helicase (HELLS), a SNF2-like chromatin-remodeling enzyme, plays a key role in tumor progression via its DNA methylation function. However, the effects of HELLS on immune infiltration and prognosis in liver hepatocellular carcinoma (LIHC) remain uncertain. METHODS: The Tumor Immune Estimation Resource (TIMER) database was employed to explore the pan-cancer mRNA expression of HELLS and its correlation with immunity. GEPIA2 was used to verify the correlation between HELLS expression and survival. The role of HELLS in cancer was explored via gene set enrichment analysis (Gene Ontology and Kyoto Encyclopedia of Genes and Genomes) and the construction of gene-gene and protein-protein interaction networks (PPI). Additionally, correlations between DNA methylation, HELLS expression, and immune-related genes were explored in LIHC. HELLS expression in LIHC clinical samples was determined using qRT-PCR and western blotting. The effects of downregulated HELLS expression in hepatocellular carcinoma cells was explored via transfection experiments in vitro. RESULTS: High HELLS mRNA expression was identified in several cancers and was significantly associated with poorer prognosis in LIHC. Furthermore, HELLS expression was positively correlated with tumor-infiltrating lymphocytes and immune checkpoint genes in LIHC. Bioinformatics analysis suggested that DNA methylation of HELLS may be associated with the immune response. Results from the TCGA-LIHC dataset, clinical samples, and functional analysis indicated that HELLS contributed to tumor progression in LIHC. CONCLUSION: The study findings demonstrate that HELLS is an important factor in promoting LIHC malignancy and might serve as a potential biomarker for LIHC.

The interplay between noncoding RNAs and drug resistance in hepatocellular carcinoma: the big impact of little things.

Hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC) is the leading cause of cancer-related death in people, and a common primary liver cancer. Lacking early diagnosis and a high recurrence rate after surgical resection, systemic treatment is still an important treatment method for advanced HCC. Different drugs have distinct curative effects, side effects and drug resistance due to different properties. At present, conventional molecular drugs for HCC have displayed some limitations, such as adverse drug reactions, insensitivity to some medicines, and drug resistance. Noncoding RNAs (ncRNAs), including microRNAs (miRNAs), long noncoding RNAs (lncRNAs) and circular RNAs (circRNAs), have been well documented to be involved in the occurrence and progression of cancer. Novel biomarkers and therapeutic targets, as well as research into the molecular basis of drug resistance, are urgently needed for the management of HCC. We review current research on ncRNAs and consolidate the known roles regulating drug resistance in HCC and examine the potential clinical applications of ncRNAs in overcoming drug resistance barriers in HCC based on targeted therapy, cell cycle non-specific chemotherapy and cell cycle specific chemotherapy.

Is percutaneous drainage better than endoscopic drainage in the management of patients with malignant obstructive jaundice? A meta-analysis of RCTs.

To compare the safety and efficacy of endoscopic retrograde cholangiopancreatography (ERCP) and percutaneous transhepatic cholangial drainage (PTCD) in the treatment of malignant obstructive jaundice, a systematic review and meta-analysis of published studies was undertaken to assess the differences between the two procedures in terms of efficacy and safety. From November 2000 to November 2022, the Embase, PubMed, MEDLINE, and Cochrane databases were searched for randomized controlled trials (RCTs) on the treatment of malignant obstructive jaundice with ERCP or PTCD. Two investigators independently assessed the quality of the included studies and extracted the data. Six RCTs, including 407 patients, were included. The results of the meta-analysis showed that the overall technical success rate in the ERCP group was significantly lower than that in the PTCD group (Z=3.19, P=0.001, OR=0.31 (95% CI: 0.15-0.64)), but with a higher overall procedure-related complication incidence rate (Z=2.57, P=0.01, OR=0.55 (95% CI: 0.34-0.87)). The incidence of procedure-related pancreatitis in the ERCP group was higher than that in the PTCD group (Z=2.80, P=0.005, OR=5.29 (95% CI: 1.65-16.97)), and the differences were statistically significant. No significant difference was observed between the two groups when the clinical efficacy, postoperative cholangitis, and bleeding rate were compared.Both treatments for malignant obstructive jaundice were efficacious and safe. However, the PTCD group had a greater technique success rate and a lower incidence of postoperative pancreatitis.The present meta-analysis has been registered in PROSPERO.

Ginsenoside Rg1 Alleviates Rat Liver Ischemia-Reperfusion Ischemia Through Mitochondrial Autophagy Pathway.

Aim: The aim of this study was to elucidate the potential mechanism of Rg1 in alleviating hepatic ischemia-reperfusion (HIRI) through the mitophagy pathway. Methods: The HIRI rat models were established and divided into 4 groups: the sham group, sham+Rg1 group, ischemia/perfusion (I/R) group and I/R+Rg1 group. Then the activities of aspartate transaminase (AST) and alanine aminotransferase (ALT) were detected by automatic serum analyzer. Meanwhile, cell apoptosis and changes in liver tissues were checked by TUNEL assay and histopathological analysis, respectively. The relative protein levels were detected by western blotting. Subsequently, cell counting Kit-8 assay and cytometric analysis were used to investigate cell viability and apoptosis of liver cells. Finally, the time points of the strongest mitochondrial autophagy were explored and the mitochondrial morphology was observed by the mitochondrial transmembrane potential (MMP) in vivo and in vitro. Results: The mitophagy aggravated hepatocyte damage during liver I/R in vivo. In addition, Rg1 alleviated liver damage after liver I/R, maintained the stability of MMP and inhibited mitochondrial autophagy and signaling pathways during liver I/R in vivo. Furthermore, Rg1 could effectively increase cell viability, inhibit cell apoptosis and stabilize MMP after OGD/R injury in vitro Moreover, Rg1 exerted its protective effect on HIRI by regulating the PINK1/Parkin signaling pathway and the mitochondrial autophagy. Conclusion: Rg1 could further improve its mechanism of alleviating HIRI in apoptosis and autophagy, 2 types of regulated programmed cell death via the mitochondrial pathway.

Integrative analyses of genes related to liver ischemia reperfusion injury.

BACKGROUND: Liver ischemia reperfusion injury (LIRI) is not only a common injury during liver transplantation and major hepatic surgery, but also one of the primary factors that affect the outcome of postoperative diseases. However, there are still no reliable ways to tackle the problem. Our study aimed to find some characteristic genes associated with immune infiltration that affect LIRI, which can provide some insights for future research in the future. Therefore, it is essential for the treatment of LIRI, the elucidation of the mechanisms of LIRI, and exploring the potential biomarkers. Efficient microarray and bioinformatics analyses can promote the understanding of the molecular mechanisms of disease occurrence and development. METHOD: Data from GSE151648 were downloaded from GEO data sets, and we performed a comprehensive analysis of the differential expression, biological functions and interactions of LIRI-associated genes. Then we performed Gene ontology (GO) analysis and Kyotoencydlopedia of genes and genomes (KEGG) enrichment analysis of DEGs. At last, we performed a protein-protein interaction network to screen out hub genes. RESULTS: A total of 161 differentially expressed genes (DEGs) were identified. GO analysis results revealed that the changes in the modules were mostly enriched in the neutrophil degranulation, neutrophil activation involved in immune response, and neutrophil mediated immunity. KEGG enrichment analysis of DEGs demonstrated that LIRI mainly involved the cytokine-cytokine receptor interaction. Our data indicated that macrophages and neutrophils are closely related to LIRI. 9 hub genes were screened out in the protein-protein interaction network. CONCLUSIONS: In summary, our data indicated that neutrophil degranulation, neutrophil activation involved in immune response, neutrophil mediated immunity and cytokine-cytokine receptor interaction may play a key role in LIRI, HRH1, LRP2, P2RY6, PKD1L1, SLC8A3 and TNFRSF8, which were identified as potential biomarkers in the occurrence and development of LIRI. However, further studies are needed to validate these findings and explore the molecular mechanism of these biomarkers in LIRI.

STMN1 as a novel prognostic biomarker in HCC correlating with immune infiltrates and methylation.

BACKGROUND: Upregulation of Stathmin 1 (STMN1), a cytoplasmic phosphoprotein that controls the dynamics of cellular microtubules, is linked to malignant behavior and poor prognosis in a range of malignancies. However, little research has been done on STMN1's potential role in HCC as a single factor in DNA methylation, m6A, or immunological modulation. RESULTS: STMN1 is overexpressed in hepatocellular carcinoma, where it is related to clinicopathological parameters and affects the prognosis of HCC patients. STMN1 overexpression plays an important role in the diagnosis and prognosis of hepatocellular carcinoma. Meanwhile, methylation of 7 CpG sites of STMN1 in HCC was correlated with prognosis, and STMN1 expression was closely related to m6A modification. In addition, STMN1 expression is associated with immune cell infiltration, immune molecules, and immune checkpoints in HCC. CONCLUSION: STMN1 has a significant role in hepatocellular carcinoma diagnosis and prediction. STMN1 is implicated not just in the onset and course but also in the immunological modulation of the disease. DNA methylation and m6A are both linked to STMN1. Therefore, STMN1 could be used as a diagnostic and prognostic biomarker for HCC, as well as a target for immunotherapy.

Emerging role of long noncoding RNAs in recurrent hepatocellular carcinoma.

Hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC) remains one of the most frequent types of liver cancer and is characterized by a high recurrence rate. Recent studies have proposed that long non-coding RNAs (lncRNAs) are potential biomarkers in several recurrent tumor types. It is now well understood that invasion, migration, and metastasis are important factors for tumor recurrence. Moreover, some of the known risk factors for HCC may affect the expression levels of several types of lncRNAs and thus affect the recurrence of liver cancer through lncRNA regulation. In this paper, we review the biological functions, molecular mechanisms, and roles of lncRNAs in HCC and summarize current knowledge about lncRNAs as potential biomarkers in recurrent HCC.

Clinical outcomes after ABO-incompatible liver transplantation: A systematic review and meta-analysis.

BACKGROUND: ABO-incompatible liver transplantation (ABOi-LT) is increasingly used to overcome donor shortage. Evidence about disadvantage and advantage in comparison with ABO-compatible liver transplantation (ABOc-LT) needs to be performed in the early and late periods. Herein, We compared the short-term and long-term outcomes between ABOi-LT and ABOc-LT cohorts. METHODS: We performed a meta-analysis based on the observation studies which included outcomes at ≥1 year after ABOi-LT and ABOc-LT procedures, based on the MEDLINE (via Pubmed), the Cochrance Central Register of Controlled Trials (CENTRAL), and EMBASE (via Ovid) systems. Two researchers independently screened each study according to the pre-established inclusion and exclusion criteria to assess the quality of each study and extracted data from published studies. The primary outcome indicators were all-cause mortality and graft survival at 1, 3 and 5 years after transplantation. In the meta-analysis, we based on the value of heterogeneity using a fixed-effect and a random-effect. A fixed-effect model was used if the value of I2 was less than or equal 50%; and a random-effect model was used if the value of I2 was greater than 50%. FINDINGS: Out of 335 identified records, 29 records with 10,783 patients with liver transplants; 2137 of them were ABOi-LTs and the remaining 8646 were ABOc-LTs. There was no significant difference at 1-year, 3-year, and 5-year in all-cause mortality, death-censored graft survival and complication incidence rate between ABO-incompatible living donor liver transplantation (ABOi-LDLT) group and ABO-compatible living donor liver transplantation (ABOc-LDLT) group. Compared with ABO-compatible deceased donor liver transplantation (ABOc-DDLT), ABO-incompatible deceased donor liver transplantation (ABOi-DDLT) had a higher 1-year all-cause mortality, and the value of totally pooled odds ratio (OR) was 1.89 (1.28,2.80). However, there was no significant difference at 3-year and 5-year all-cause mortality between ABOi-DDLT and ABOc-DDLT groups. ABOi-DDLT group had a lower 1-year and 5-year death-censored graft survival than ABOc-DDLT, as the value of totally pooled OR was 1.91 (1.41,2.60) and 1.52 (1.12,2.05), respectively. No significant difference was detected at 3-year death-censored graft survival between ABOi-DDLT and ABOc-DDLT groups. ABOi-DDLT group had a higher complication incidence rate than ABOc-DDLT, and the value of totally pooled OR was 2.26 (1.53,3.33). We found no obvious bias except for the complication of living donor liver transplantation (LDLT; P = 0.038). IN CONCLUSION: The short-term and long-term outcomes were worse after ABOi-DDLT than ABOc-DDLT in the all-cause mortality, death-censored graft survival, and complication incidence rate. However, the same outcomes were essentially comparable between ABOi-LDLT vs. ABOc-LDLT cohorts. Considering the current shortage of liver donors, we believe that ABOi-LT from living donor and deceased donors can save lives under emergency situations.

Hypoxia promotes the proliferation of mouse liver sinusoidal endothelial cells: miRNA-mRNA expression analysis.

During the initial stage of liver regeneration (LR), hepatocytes and liver sinusoidal endothelial cells (LSECs) initiate regeneration in a hypoxic environment. However, the role of LSECs in liver regeneration in hypoxic environments and their specific molecular mechanism is unknown. Therefore, this study aimed to explore the miRNA-mRNA network that regulates the proliferation of LSECs during hypoxia. In this study, first, we found that the proliferation ability of primary LSECs treated with hypoxia was enhanced compared with the control group, and then whole transcriptome sequencing was performed to screen 1837 differentially expressed (DE) genes and 17 DE miRNAs. Subsequently, the bioinformatics method was used to predict the target genes of miRNAs, and 309 pairs of interacting miRNA-mRNA pairs were obtained. Furthermore, the miRNA-gene action network was established using the negative interacting miRNA-mRNA pairs. The selected mRNAs were analyzed by Gene Ontology (GO) enrichment analysis and Kyoto Encyclopedia of Genes and Genomes (KEGG) analysis, and biological processes (BP) and signal pathways related to LSEC proliferation that were significantly enriched in GO-BP and KEGG were selected. Finally, 22 DE genes and 17 DE miRNAs were screened and the network was created. We also successfully verified the significant changes in the top six genes and miRNAs using qRT-PCR, and the results were consistent with the sequencing results. This study proposed that a specific miRNA-mRNA network is associated with hypoxia-induced proliferation of LSECs, which will assist in elucidating the potential mechanisms involved in hypoxia-promoting liver regeneration during LR.

A Co-Expression Network Reveals the Potential Regulatory Mechanism of lncRNAs in Relapsed Hepatocellular Carcinoma.

BACKGROUND: The mechanistic basis for relapsed hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC) remains poorly understood. Recent research has highlighted the important roles of long non-coding RNAs (lncRNAs) in HCC. However, there are only a few studies on the association between lncRNAs and HCC relapse. METHODS: Differentially expressed lncRNAs and mRNAs between a primary HCC group and relapsed HCC group were identified using the edge R package to analyze the GSE101432 dataset. The differentially expressed lncRNAs and mRNAs were used to construct a lncRNA-mRNA co-expression network. Weighted gene co-expression network analysis followed by Gene Ontology (GO) enrichment analyses were conducted on the database. Furthermore, correlation and survival analyses were performed using The Cancer Genome Atlas database, and expression in the clinical samples was verified by qRT-PCR. Thereafter, we inputted the genes from the two groups into the HCC TNM stage and tumor grade database from TCGA. Finally, we performed Kaplan-Meier survival analysis on the lncRNAs related to relapsed HCC. RESULTS: In this study, lncRNAs and mRNAs associated with HCC relapse were identified. Two gene modules were found to be closely linked to this. The GO terms in the yellow and black modules were related to cell proliferation, differentiation, and survival, as well as some transcription-related biological processes. Through qRT-PCR, we found that the expression levels of LINC00941 and LINC00668 in relapsed HCC were higher than those in primary HCC. Further, mRNA levels of LOX, OTX1, MICB, NDUFA4L2, BAIAP2L2, and KCTD17 were changed in relapsed HCC compared to levels in primary HCC. In addition, we verified that these genes could predict the overall survival and recurrence-free survival of HCC. Moreover, we found that LINC00668 and LINC00941 could affect tumor grade and TNM stages. In total, we identified and validated two lncRNAs (LINC00941 and LINC00668) and six mRNAs (LOX, MICB, OTX1, BAIAP2L2, KCTD17, NDUFA4L2) associated with HCC relapse. CONCLUSION: In summary, we identified the key gene modules and central genes associated with relapsed HCC and constructed lncRNA-mRNA networks related to this. These genes are likely to have potential prognostic value for relapsed HCC and might shed new light on novel biomarkers or diagnostic targets for relapsed HCC.

A ferroptosis-related gene signature for graft loss prediction following renal allograft.

Allogeneic kidney transplantation (renal allograft) is the most effective treatment for advanced kidney disease. Previous studies have indicated that ferroptosis participates in the progression of acute kidney injury and renal transplant failure. However, few studies have evaluated the prognostic value of ferroptosis on renal transplantation outcomes. In this study, a total of 32 differentially expressed ferroptosis-related genes (DFGs) were identified, which were mainly enriched in infection-related pathways. Next, a ferroptosis-related gene signature, including GA-binding protein transcription factor subunit beta 1 (GABPB1), cyclin-dependent kinase inhibitor 1A (CDKN1A), Toll-like receptor 4 (TLR4), C-X-C motif chemokine ligand 2 (CXCL2), caveolin 1 (CAV1), and ribonucleotide reductase subunit M2 (RRM2), was constructed to predict graft loss following renal allograft. Moreover, receiver operating characteristic (ROC) curves (area under the ROC curve [AUC] > 0.8) demonstrated the accuracy of the gene signature and univariate Cox analysis suggested that the gene signature could play an independent role in graft loss (p < 0.05). Furthermore, the nomogram and calibration plots also indicated the good prognostic capability of the gene signature. Finally, immune-related and cytokine signaling pathways were mostly enriched in renal allograft patients with poor outcomes. Considered together, a ferroptosis-related gene signature and nomogram based on DFGs were created to predict the 1-, 2- and 3- year graft loss probability of renal allograft patients.The gene signature could serve as a valuable biomarker for predicting graft loss, contributing to improving the outcome of allogeneic kidney transplantation.

A positive-feedback loop between HBx and ALKBH5 promotes hepatocellular carcinogenesis.

BACKGROUND: Hepatitis B Virus (HBV) contributes to liver carcinogenesis via various epigenetic mechanisms. The newly defined epigenetics, epitranscriptomics regulation, has been reported to involve in multiple cancers including Hepatocellular Carcinoma (HCC). Our previous study found that HBx, HBV encodes X protein, mediated H3K4me3 modification in WDR5-dependent manner to involve in HBV infection and contribute to oncogene expression. AlkB Homolog 5 (ALKBH5), one of epitranscriptomics enzymes, has been identified to be associated with various cancers. However, whether and how ALKBH5 is dysregulated in HBV-related HCC remains unclear yet. This study aims to investigate ALKBH5 function, clinical significance and mechanism in HBV related HCC (HBV-HCC) patients derived from Chinese people. METHODS: The expression pattern of ALKBH5 was evaluated by RT-qPCR, Western blot, data mining and immunohistochemistry in total of 373 HBV-HCC tissues and four HCC cell lines. Cell Counting Kit 8 (CCK8) assay, Transwell and nude mouse model were performed to assess ALKBH5 function by both small interference RNAs and lentiviral particles. The regulation mechanism of ALKBH5 was determined in HBx and WDR5 knockdown cells by CHIP-qPCR. The role of ALKBH5 in HBx mRNA N6-methyladenosine (m6A) modification was further evaluated by MeRIP-qPCR and Actinomycin D inhibitor experiment in HBV-driven cells and HBx overexpression cells. RESULT: ALKBH5 increased in tumor tissues and predicts a poor prognosis of HBV-HCC. Mechanically, the highly expressed ALKBH5 is induced by HBx-mediated H3K4me3 modification of ALKBH5 gene promoter in a WDR5-dependent manner after HBV infection. The increased ALKBH5 protein catalyzes the m6A demethylation of HBx mRNA, thus stabilizing and favoring a higher HBx expression level. Furthermore, there are positive correlations between HBx and ALKBH5 in HBV-HCC tissues, and depletion of ALKBH5 significantly inhibits HBV-driven tumor cells' growth and migration in vitro and in vivo. CONCLUSIONS: HBx-ALKBH5 may form a positive-feedback loop to involve in the HBV-induced liver carcinogenesis, and targeting the loop at ALKBH5 may provide a potential way for HBV-HCC treatment.

Glypican-3 and hepatocyte paraffin-1 combined with alpha-fetoprotein as a novel risk scoring model for predicting early recurrence of hepatocellular carcinoma after curative resection.

BACKGROUND: At present, the predictive model of postsurgical recurrence for hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC) is not well-established. The aim of this study was to develop a novel model for prediction of postsurgical recurrence and survival for HCC. PATIENTS AND METHODS: Data from 112 patients who underwent curative liver resection from June 2014 to June 2017 in the First Affiliated Hospital of Kunming Medical University were collected retrospectively. Through the statistical analysis, we combined the results of glypican-3 (GPC3) and hepatocyte paraffin-1 (Heppar1) chemical staining in tumor tissues and preoperative alpha-fetoprotein (AFP) levels, and assigned risk scores to them, respectively, to establish an improved prognostic model for predicting recurrence in these patients. RESULTS: By univariate and multivariate analysis, AFP level [cut-off value: 382 ng/ml, area under the curve (AUC) = 0.652, 95% confidence interval (CI) = 0.539-0.765, P < 0.05] and GPC3/Heppar1 expression pattern from 10 putative prognostic factors were entered in risk factor scoring model to conjecture the tumor recurrence. At 36 months after liver resection, the recurrence rate of high-risk group in the novel risk scoring model reached 45.6%, which was significantly higher than that of low-risk group (9.1%). In this experiment, the AUC value of the model was 0.741 (95% CI = 0.644-0.839, P < 0.001), which was the highest among all the elements. CONCLUSION: The novel risk scoring model of combing AFP cut-off value and GPC3/Heppar1 were shown to be effective at predicting early recurrence of HCC after curative resection.

Melatonin attenuates hepatic ischemia-reperfusion injury in rats by inhibiting NF-κB signaling pathway.

BACKGROUND: The sterile inflammatory response is one of the key mechanisms leading to hepatic ischemia-reperfusion injury. Melatonin has been shown to prevent organ injuries, but its roles in the inflammatory response after hepatic ischemia-reperfusion injury have not been fully explored, especially in late ischemia-reperfusion injury. The present study aimed to investigate the roles and possible mechanisms of melatonin in the inflammatory response after hepatic ischemia-reperfusion injury. METHODS: Sixty Sprague-Dawley rats were randomly divided into a sham group, ischemia-reperfusion injury group (I/R group), and melatonin-treated group (M + I/R group). The rats in the I/R group were subjected to 70% hepatic ischemia for 45 min, followed by 5 or 24 h of reperfusion. The rats in the M + I/R group were injected with melatonin (10 mg/kg, intravenous injection) 15 min prior to ischemia and immediately before reperfusion. Serum and samples of ischemic liver lobes were harvested for future analysis, and the 7-day survival rate was assessed after hepatic ischemia-reperfusion surgery. RESULTS: In comparison with the I/R group, the M + I/R group showed markedly decreased expression levels of inflammatory cytokines (IL-6 and TNF-α) and numbers of apoptotic hepatocytes (P < 0.05). Immunoblotting showed that the expression levels of IL-6, p-NF-κBp65/t-NF-κBp65 and p-IκB-α/t-IκB-α in the M + I/R group were significantly lower than those in the I/R group, and immunofluorescence staining showed that the expression level of p-NF-κBp65 in the M + I/R group was lower than that in the I/R group (P < 0.05). The 7-day survival rates were 20% in the I/R group and 50% in the M + I/R group (P < 0.05). CONCLUSIONS: Melatonin downregulated the activity of the NF-κB signaling pathway in the early and late stages of hepatic ischemia-reperfusion injury, alleviated the inflammatory response, protected the liver from ischemia-reperfusion injury, and increased the survival rate.

Hypoxia maintains the fenestration of liver sinusoidal endothelial cells and promotes their proliferation through the SENP1/HIF-1α/VEGF signaling axis.

Liver sinusoidal endothelial cells (LSECs), which play a very critical role in liver regeneration, function in hypoxic environments, but few studies have elucidated the specific mechanism. As a hypoxia-sensitive gene, Sentrin/SUMO-specific protease 1(SENP1) is upregulated in solid tumors due to hypoxia and promotes tumor proliferation. We speculate that LSECs may upregulate SENP1 in hypoxic environments and that SENP1 may act on downstream genes to allow the cells to adapt to the hypoxic environment. To elucidate the reasons for the survival of LSECs under hypoxia, we designed experiments to explore the possible mechanism. First, we cultured murine LSECs in hypoxic conditions for a certain time (24 h and 72 h), and then, we observed that the proliferation ability of the hypoxia group was higher than that of the normoxia group, and the number of unique fenestrae of the LSECs in the hypoxia group was more than that of the LSECs in the normoxia group. Then, we divided the LSECs into several groups for hypoxic culture for time points (6 h, 12 h, 24 h, 36 h, and 72 h), and we found that the expression of SENP1, HIF-1α and VEGF was significantly upregulated. Then, we silenced SENP1 and HIF-1α with si-SENP1 and si-HIF-1α, respectively. SENP1, HIF-1α and VEGF were significantly downregulated, as determined by RT-PCR, WB and ELISA. Unexpectedly, the proliferation activity of the LSECs decreased and the fenestrae disappeared more in the si-SENP1 and si-HIF-1α groups than in the control group. It is concluded that LSECs cultured under hypoxic conditions may maintain fenestrae and promote proliferation through the SENP1/HIF-1α/VEGF signaling axis, thereby adapting to the hypoxic environment.