Pushing the Limits of Capacitively Coupled Contactless Conductivity Detection for Capillary Electrophoresis.

Capillary electrophoresis with capacitively coupled contactless conductivity detection (CE-C4D) has proven to be an efficient technique for the separation and detection of charged inorganic, organic, and biochemical analytes. It offers several advantages, including cost-effectiveness, nanoliter injection volume, short analysis time, good separation efficiency, suitability for miniaturization, and portability. However, the routine determination of common inorganic cations (NH4+, K+, Na+, Ca2+, Mg2+, and Li+) and inorganic anions (F-, Cl-, Br-, NO2-, NO3-, PO43-, and SO42-) in water quality monitoring typically exhibits limits of detection of about 0.3-1 µM without preconcentration. This sensitivity often proves insufficient for the applications of CE-C4D in trace analysis situations. Here, we explore methods to push the detection limits of CE-C4D through a comprehensive consideration of signal and noise sources. In particular, we (i) studied the model of C4D and its guiding roles in C4D and CE-C4D, (ii) optimized the bandwidth and noise performance of the current-to-voltage (I-V) converter, and (iii) reduced the noise level due to the strong background signal of the background electrolyte by adaptive differential detection. We characterized the system with Li+; the 3-fold signal-to-noise (S/N) detection limit for Li+ was determined at 20 nM, with a linear range spanning from 60 nM to 1.6 mM. Moreover, the optimized CE-C4D method was applied to the analysis of common mixed inorganic cations (K+, Na+, Ca2+, Mg2+, and Li+), anions (F-, Cl-, Br-, NO2-, NO3-, PO43-, and SO42-), toxic halides (BrO3-) and heavy metal ions (Pb2+, Cd2+, Cr3+, Co2+, Ni2+, Zn2+, and Cu2+) at trace concentrations of 200 nM. All electropherograms showed good S/N ratios, thus proving its applicability and accuracy. Our results have shown that the developed CE-C4D method is feasible for trace ion analysis in water quality control.

Systematic analysis of differentially expressed ZmMYB genes related to drought stress in maize.

MYB transcription factors play pivotal roles in hormone conduction signaling and abiotic stress response. In this study, 54 differentially expressed ZmMYB genes were identified and comprehensive analyses were conducted including gene's structure, chromosomal localization, phylogenetic tree, motif prediction, cis-elements and expression patterns. The results showed that 54 genes were unevenly distributed on 10 chromosomes and classified into eleven main subgroups by phylogenetic analysis, supported by motif and exon/intron analyses. The mainly stress-related cis-elements were ABRE, ARE, MBS and DRE-core. In addition, 8 core ZmMYB genes were identified by co-expression network. qRT-PCR results showed that the 8 ZmMYB genes exhibited different expression levels under different abiotic stresses, indicating that they were responsive to various abiotic stress. These results will provide insight for further functional investigation of ZmMYB genes. SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: The online version contains supplementary material available at 10.1007/s12298-021-01013-2.

Role of Neutrophil to Lymphocyte Ratio or Platelet to Lymphocyte Ratio in Prediction of Bone Metastasis of Prostate Cancer.

BACKGROUND: Accumulating evidence has revealed that inflammation might play an important role in the genesis and development of cancer. High levels of neutrophil to lymphocyte ratio (NLR) and platelet to lymphocyte ration (PLR) are parameters of systemic inflammation which have been identified to be associated with poor prognosis in PCa. Bone is one of the most common sites of metastasis from prostate cancer; however, there are few studies concerning the correlation of NLR, PLR, and bone metastases in PCa. The aim of this study was to evaluate the performance of neutrophil to lymphocyte ratio (NLR) or platelet to lymphocyte (PLR) in diagnosis of bone metastasis of prostate cancer (PCa). METHODS: Data of 74 PCa patients without metastases, 51 PCa patients with bone metastases, and 43 patients with benign prostatic hypertrophy (BPH) were retrospectively reviewed. The difference of patients' clinical and laboratory characteristics of the three groups was comparatively studied. ROC analysis was used to evaluate the benefit of adding NLR or PLR to prostate specific antigen (PSA) in prediction of bone metastases. Depending on this cutoff value, patients were divided into high-NLR or low-NLR group, high-PLR or low-PLR group. RESULTS: There were significant differences in NLR and PLR between groups with bone metastases and without bone metastases (p = 0.044; p = 0.030), while there was no significant difference between NLR and PLR of the patients with localized prostate cancer and BPH (p = 0.462; p = 0.102). NLR and PLR were correlated with PSA level in the patients with prostate cancer (p = 0.006, r = 0.247; p = 0.025, r = 0.200). The distribution of PSA showed significant differences between the high-NLR and low-NLR group, as well as between the high-PLR and low-PLR group. By applying the ROC curve method, the AUC values of PSA with NLR or PLR were 0.725 and 0.838 (0.763 - 0.913), respectively. Although PSA + PLR had the largest area, there was no statistical significance between PSA + PLR and PSA (p = 0.6992). CONCLUSIONS: NLR and PLR significantly increase in PCa patients with bone metastases and are valuable in the diagnosis of bone metastases in PCa patients.

Sirtuin-3 (SIRT3) protects pancreatic ß-cells from endoplasmic reticulum (ER) stress-induced apoptosis and dysfunction.

Insufficient insulin produced by pancreatic ß-cells in the control of blood sugar is a central feature of the etiology of diabetes. Reports have shown that endoplasmic reticulum (ER) stress is fundamentally involved in ß-cell dysfunction. In this study, we hypothesized that NAD-dependent deacetylase sirtuin-3 (SIRT3), an important regulator of cell metabolism, protects pancreatic ß-cells from ER stress-mediated apoptosis. To validate our hypothesis, a rat diabetic model was established by a high-fat diet (HFD). We found that SIRT3 expression was markedly decreased in NIT1 and INS1 cells incubated with palmitate. Palmitate treatment significantly decreased ß-cell viability and insulin secretion, and promoted malondialdehyde (MDA) formation. However, SIRT3 overexpression in NIT1 and INS1 cells reversed these effects, resulting in higher insulin secretion, decreased ß-cell apoptosis, and downregulation of the expression of ER stress-associated genes. Moreover, SIRT3 overexpression also inhibited calcium influx and the hyperacetylation of glucose-regulated protein of 78 kDa (GRP78). SIRT3 knockdown effectively enhanced the upregulation of phospho-extracellular regulated protein kinases (pERK), inositol-requiring enzyme-1 (IRE1), activating transcription factor 6 (ATF6), and C/EBP homologous protein (CHOP) induced by palmitate, and promoted palmitate-induced ß-cell apoptosis and dysfunction. Taken together, our results suggest that SIRT3 is an integral regulator of ER function and that its depletion might result in the hyperacetylation of critical ER proteins that protect against islet lipotoxicity under conditions of nutrient excess.

Challenges for the development of mutant isocitrate dehydrogenases 1 inhibitors to treat glioma.

Glioma is one of the most common types of brain tumors, and its high recurrence and mortality rates threaten human health. In 2008, the frequent isocitrate dehydrogenase 1 (IDH1) mutations in glioma were reported, which brought a new strategy in the treatment of this challenging disease. In this perspective, we first discuss the possible gliomagenesis after IDH1 mutations (mIDH1). Subsequently, we systematically investigate the reported mIDH1 inhibitors and present a comparative analysis of the ligand-binding pocket in mIDH1. Additionally, we also discuss the binding features and physicochemical properties of different mIDH1 inhibitors to facilitate the future development of mIDH1 inhibitors. Finally, we discuss the possible selectivity features of mIDH1 inhibitors against WT-IDH1 and IDH2 by combining protein-based and ligand-based information. We hope that this perspective can inspire the development of mIDH1 inhibitors and bring potent mIDH1 inhibitors for the treatment of glioma.

Long-term outcomes of high-risk percutaneous coronary interventions under extracorporeal membrane oxygenation support: An observational study.

BACKGROUND: Venoarterial extracorporeal membrane oxygenation (VA-ECMO) offers hemodynamic support for patients undergoing high-risk percutaneous coronary interventions (PCIs). However, long-term outcomes associated with VA-ECMO have not previously been studied. AIM: To explore long-term outcomes in high-risk cases undergoing PCI supported by VA-ECMO. METHODS: In the present observational cohort study, 61 patients who received VA-ECMO-supported high-risk PCI between April 2012 and January 2020 at the Sixth Medical Center of Chinese People's Liberation Army General Hospital were enrolled. The endpoint characteristics such as all-cause mortality, repeated cardiovascular diseases, and cardiac death were examined. RESULTS: Among 61 patients, three failed stent implantation due to chronic total occlusions with severely calcified lesions. One patient showed VA-ECMO intolerance because of high left ventricular afterload. PCI was successfully performed in 57 patients (93.4%). The in-hospital mortality was 23.0%, and the overall survival was 45.9%, with a median follow-up period of 38.6 (8.6-62.1) mo. CONCLUSION: VA-ECMO can be used as a support in patients undergoing high-risk PCI as it is associated with favorable long-term patient survival.

Five-year remission without disease progression in a patient with relapsed/refractory multiple myeloma with extramedullary disease treated with LCAR-B38M chimeric antigen receptor T cells in the LEGEND-2 study: a case report.

BACKGROUND: Multiple myeloma remains incurable despite treatment advancements over the last 20 years. LCAR-B38M Cells in Treating Relapsed/Refractory Multiple Myeloma was a phase 1, first-in-human, investigator-initiated study in relapsed/refractory multiple myeloma conducted at four sites in China. The study used LCAR-B38M chimeric antigen receptor-T cells expressing two B-cell maturation antigen-targeting single-domain antibodies designed to confer avidity, and a CD3ζ signaling domain with a 4-1BB costimulatory domain to optimize T-cell activation and proliferation. This chimeric antigen receptor construct is identical to ciltacabtagene autoleucel. In the LEGEND-2 study (n = 57, Xi'an site), overall response rate was 88%; median (95% CI) progression-free survival and overall survival were 19.9 (9.6-31.0) and 36.1 (26.4-not evaluable) months, respectively; and median follow-up was 25 months. This case study reports on a patient with relapsed/refractory multiple myeloma (λ light chain type) who was treated with LCAR-B38M chimeric antigen receptor T cells in the LEGEND-2 study (Xi'an site); he had received five prior lines of treatment and had extensive extramedullary lesions. CASE PRESENTATION: The patient, a 56-year-old Asian male, received cyclophosphamide (500 mg daily × 3 days) as lymphodepletion therapy and a total dose of 0.5 × 106 chimeric antigen receptor + T cells/kg split into three infusions (days 1, 24, and 84 from June to August 2016). He experienced grade 2 cytokine release syndrome after the first infusion; all symptoms resolved with treatment. No cytokine release syndrome occurred following the second and third infusions. His λ light chain levels decreased and normalized 20 days after the first infusion, and extramedullary lesions were healed as of January 2018. He has sustained remission for 5 years and received no other multiple myeloma treatments after LCAR-B38M chimeric antigen receptor T cell infusion. As of 30 October 2020, the patient is still progression-free and has maintained minimal residual disease-negative (10-4) complete response status for 52 months. CONCLUSIONS: This case provides support that treatment with LCAR-B38M chimeric antigen receptor T cells can result in long-term disease remission of 5 or more years without disease progression in a heavily pretreated patient with extensive extramedullary disease and no other treatment options.

Four-year follow-up of LCAR-B38M in relapsed or refractory multiple myeloma: a phase 1, single-arm, open-label, multicenter study in China (LEGEND-2).

BACKGROUND: LCAR-B38M is a chimeric antigen receptor T cell product with two binding domains targeting B cell maturation antigen. Our previous reports showed a remarkable efficacy of LCAR-B38M in patients with relapsed/refractory multiple myeloma (RRMM) at a median follow-up of 2 years. Here, we report long-term safety and efficacy data from a median follow-up of 4 years. METHODS: LEGEND-2 was a phase 1, single-arm, open-label study conducted in four registered sites in China. Seventy-four participants with RRMM received LCAR-B38M treatment. Lymphodepletion was performed using cyclophosphamide or cyclophosphamide plus fludarabine. LCAR-B38M, at a median dose of 0.513 × 106 cells/kg, was intravenously administered either in three split infusions or in a single infusion. The primary objective was the safety of LCAR-B38M, and the secondary objective was efficacy. RESULTS: As of May 25, 2021, the median follow-up was 47.8 months. All patients experienced ≥ 1 adverse events (AEs). Grade ≥ 3 AEs were observed in 45/74 (60.8%) patients. Cytokine release syndrome (CRS) occurred in 68/74 (91.9%) cases; 7 (9.5%) had grade ≥ 3 CRS. One patient experienced grade 1 central nervous system toxicity. The overall response rate was 87.8%. Fifty-four out of 74 (73.0%) patients achieved complete response. The median progression-free survival was 18.0 months, and the median overall survival for all patients was not reached. The median duration of response was 23.3 months. Four patients experienced viral infection more than 6 months post-infusion, and four patients developed second primary non-hematological malignancies at a median time of 11.5 months post-CAR-T cell transfer. CONCLUSIONS: The 4-year follow-up data of LCAR-B38M therapy demonstrated a favorable long-term safety profile and a durable response in patients with RRMM. Trial registration Clinicaltrials.gov NCT03090659 (retrospectively registered on March 27, 2017); ChiCTR-ONH-17012285.

Early Fever Is Associated With Clinical Outcomes in Patients With Coronavirus Disease.

Fever is one of the typical symptoms of coronavirus disease (COVID-19). We aimed to investigate the association between early fever (EF) and clinical outcomes in COVID-19 patients. A total of 1,014 COVID-19 patients at the Leishenshan Hospital were enrolled and classified into the EF and non-EF groups based on whether they had fever within 5 days of symptom onset. Risk factors for clinical outcomes in patients with different levels of disease severity were analyzed using multivariable analyses. Time from symptom onset to symptom alleviation, CT image improvement, and discharge were longer for patients with moderate and severe disease in the EF group than in the non-EF group. Multivariable analysis showed that sex, EF, eosinophil number, C-reactive protein, and IL-6 levels were positively correlated with the time from symptom onset to hospital discharge in moderate cases. The EF patients showed no significant differences in the development of acute respiratory distress syndrome, compared with the non-EF patients. The Kaplan-Meier curve showed no obvious differences in survival between the EF and non-EF patients. However, EF patients with increased temperature showed markedly lower survival than the non-EF patients with increased temperature. EF had no significant impact on the survival of critically ill patients, while an increase in temperature was identified as an independent risk factor. EF appears to be a predictor of longer recovery time in moderate/severe COVID-19 infections. However, its value in predicting mortality needs to be considered for critically ill patients with EF showing increasing temperature.

Identification and functional characterization of the novel acute monocytic leukemia associated antigen MLAA-34.

We have previously applied the method of serologic analysis of recombinant cDNA expression library (SEREX) on acute monocytic leukemia to identify monocytic leukemia-associated antigens. Using this approach, we identified a novel gene, MLAA-34, which exclusively reacted with sera from allogeneic leukemia patients but not with normal donor sera. Here, we further characterized its gene structure and explored the function. We first determined both 5' and 3' end by RLM-RACE and cloned full-length cDNA of MLAA-34 in U937 cell line. Analysis of full cDNA sequence showed that MLAA-34 is highly homologous to known human gene CAB39L, but differs from two transcript splice variants of CAB39L. Thus, we propose that MLAA-34 is a novel CAB39L's splice variant associated with acute monocytic leukemia. Because the functions of MLAA-34 and CAB39L are both very unclear, then we investigated the role of MLAA-34 in U937 cell line using RNA interference technology. The results showed that the downregulation of MLAA-34 expression significantly suppressed the proliferation of U937 cells in vitro, and increased the spontaneous apoptosis of these leukemia cells. All these data indicated that MLAA-34 may be a novel anti-apoptotic factor related closely to carcinogenesis or progression of acute monocytic leukemia. The anti-apoptotic pathways of MLAA-34 remain further exploration. This study warrants further investigations to verify MLAA-34 as a promising antigen and a molecular target for therapeutic applications in acute monocytic leukemia.

Induction of apoptosis by Hax-1 siRNA in melanoma cells.

HS1-associated protein X-1 (Hax-1) is a novel intracellular protein and recent studies suggested that it is an anti-apoptotic factor in different tumors. Hax-1 expression was upregulated in various metastatic tumors and cancer cell lines, including melanoma. To understand the role of Hax-1 in melanoma development and progression, we constructed Hax-1 short interfering RNA (siRNA) expression vectors to downregulate Hax-1 expression in a human melanoma A375 cell line. One of the two Hax-1 RNA interference (RNAi) constructs significantly reduced melanoma cell viability, which was due to induction of apoptosis in A375 cells. Molecularly, the induced apoptosis through downregulation of Hax-1 expression was mediated by activation of caspase-3 and poly-ADP-ribose polymerase (PARP) enzymatic activity in A375 cells. The data indicate that Hax-1 plays a role in suppression of apoptosis and promotion of melanoma cell growth, suggesting that this Hax-1 siRNA has a therapeutic indication in control of melanoma.

[Cloning of New Antigen Gene MLAA-34 Promoter and Identification of Core Region in Acute Monocytic Leukemia].

OBJECTIVE: To clone the promoter sequence of acute monocytic leukemia new antigen gene.MLAA-34 and identify its promoter core region. METHODS: The full-length fragment of MLAA-34 gene promoter region was amplified by PCR, then was ligated into pGL3-Basic vector, and the recombinant plasmid was cloned. Constructed a series of MLAA-34 gene promoter 5' flanking region truncated plasmid. These recombinant plasmids were transfected into U937 and HEK293 cells, and the dual luciferase reporter gene was used to detect the promoter activity of each fragment to determine the minimum active region. Transcription factor binding sites were analyzed by bioinformatics methods. RESULTS: The recombinant plasmid containing MLAA-34 promoter sequence and its truncated plasmid were successfully constructed, and the promoter activity was significantly increased as compared with the empty vector (P＜0.001). The minimal active region of MLAA-34 located between 402 bp and 200 bp. It contained multiple transcription factor binding sites such as E2F1, MZF-1, SP1, USF2 and STAT3. CONCLUSION: The promoter of luciferase reporter gene has been successfully constructed with different deletion fragments of MLAA-34, and its core promoter region may contain multiple transcription factor sequence.

[Effects of Transcription Factor MZF-1 on Transcriptive Regulation of Acute Monocytic Leukemia-related Gene MLAA-34].

OBJECTIVE: To investigate the transcriptional regulation of transcription factor MZF-1 on acute monocytic leukemia-related gene MLAA-34. METHODS: The effect of MZF-1 on the transcriptional activity of MLAA-34 gene promoter was analyzed by luciferase reporter gene detection system and site-directed mutation technique. The EMSA and ChIP assay were used to verify whether MZF-1 directly and specifically binds to the core region of MLAA-34 promoter. The over-expression vector and interference vector of MZF-1 were constructed to transfect U937 cells, and RT-PCR and Western blot were used to detect the transcription and expression changes of MLAA-34 gene. RESULTS: The transcription factor MZF-1 had a regulatory effect on MLAA-34 gene expression, and the relative luciferase activity was decreased after MZF-1 binding point mutation (P<0.01). EMSA and ChIP experiments demonstrated that MZF-1 could directly bind to MLAA-34 promoter and play a regulatory role. In the over-expression test, the increase of MZF-1 could up-regulate the expression of MLAA-34 (P<0.05). In the interference test, the decrease of MZF-1 could down-regulate the expression of MLAA-34 (P<0.05). CONCLUSION: Transcription factor MZF-1 can bind to the transcriptional regulatory region on the promoter of MLAA-34 gene and promote the transcription of MLAA-34 gene in acute monocytic leukemia.

Inhibitory effect of activin A on activation of lipopolysaccharide-stimulated mouse macrophage RAW264.7 cells.

Activin A is a member of transforming growth factor beta (TGF-beta) superfamily, which is also named restrictin-P, and can inhibit the secretion of nitric oxide (NO) and interleukin-1beta (IL-1beta) from LPS-activated mouse macrophages. In this study, the regulation effect and possible mechanism of activin A as an anti-inflammatory factor on lipopolysaccharide (LPS)-activated macrophages were investigated in vitro. It was observed that activin A could not only decrease the secretion of IL-1beta and NO, as well as the mRNA expressions of IL-1beta and iNOS, but also suppress the pinocytosis of mouse macrophage cell line RAW264.7 cells induced by LPS. In addition, activin A could obviously reduce the expressions of CD68 and CD14, as well as Toll-like receptor 4 (TLR4) on RAW264.7 cells induced by LPS, but could not influence the proliferation of RAW264.7 cells. These findings suggest that activin A may play an important down-regulation role in inflammatory factor production and phagocytosis of the activated macrophages via suppressing the maturation of LPS-induced macrophages or LPS-TLR4 signal transduction.

Lentivirus-mediated overexpression of suppressor of cytokine signaling-3 reduces neutrophilic airway inflammation by suppressing T-helper 17 responses in mice with chronic Pseudomonas aeruginosa lung infections.

The aim of the present study was to explore the effect of overexpressed suppressor of cytokine signaling­3 (SOCS3) on T-helper (Th)17 cell responses and neutrophilic airway inflammation in mice with chronic Pseudomonas aeruginosa (PA) infections. SOCS3 expression was enhanced via the administration of tail vein injections of therapeutic lentivirus in mice with chronic PA lung infections. SOCS3 expression in the blood and lung tissue was assessed using reverse transcription­quantitative polymerase chain reaction (RT­qPCR) and western blot analysis. Total and differential cell numbers and myeloperoxidase levels in the bronchoalveolar lavage (BAL) fluid were assessed, as well as the number of bacterial colonies in the lungs. Histological analysis of lung tissue was performed using hematoxylin and eosin staining and phosphorylated­signal transducer and activator of transcription­3 (p­STAT3) expression was measured by western blot analysis and immunohistochemistry. The expression of STAT3 mRNA and retinoid­related orphan receptor (ROR)γt were measured by RT­qPCR. The percentage of interleukin (IL)­17+ cells among cluster of differentiation (CD)4+ cells was calculated using flow cytometry and levels of IL­17A and IL­6 were assessed by ELISA. The expression of SOCS3 was significantly increased in CD4+ T cells following lentivirus injection and the inflammation of neutrophilic airways was notably ameliorated. Enhanced SOCS3 expression was associated with a significant decrease in the expression of p­STAT3 and RORγt in CD4+ T cells. Additionally, the percentage of IL­17+ cells among CD4+ T cells and the IL­17 contents in the BAL fluid were significantly decreased. Lentivirus­mediated overexpression of SOCS3 was revealed to ameliorate neutrophilic airway inflammation by inhibiting pulmonary Th17 responses in mice with chronic PA lung infections.

[Detection of Novel Antigen MLAA-34 Gene Mutation in Acute Monocytic Leukemia and Its Correlation with Efficacy].

OBJECTIVE: To investigate the correlation of all exone mutation in MLAA-34 gene with chemotherapeutic efficacy for leukemia. METHODS: The expression level of MLAA-34 gene in 40 patients with AML-M5 and 5 healthy volunteers as control was detected by RT-PCR and its effect on chemotherapeutic efficacy were analyzed by RT-PCR; the effect of MLAA-34 gene mutation on overall survival (OS) and progression-free survival (PFS) of AML-M5 patients was analyzed by sequencing of all 12 exoues in MLAA-34 gene, the correlation between the mutation of prognostic genes important to leukemia and the mutation of MLAA-34 gene was explored. RESULTS: The expression level of MLAA-34 gene was significantly up-regulated as compared with that of healthy volunteers, moreover this up-regulation was related with a C59T SNP site located in second exon of MLAA-34 gene, meanswhile this SNP site is affinitive to the well-known mdecular markers of AML, inclinding Fms-like tyrosine kinase (FLT-3) and DNA methyltransferase-3A(DNAMT3A). The AML-M5 patients with high expression of MLAA-34 gene poorly responded to chemotherapy, the AML-M5 patients with MLAA-34 C59T mulation had even more high expression of MLAA-34 gene and significantly short OS and PFS in comparison with those of patients without C59T mutation. CONCLUSION: The C59T mutation in MLAA-34 gene is a high risk factor for recurrence of AML, and may be a cadidate target for treatment of AML.

A phase 1, open-label study of LCAR-B38M, a chimeric antigen receptor T cell therapy directed against B cell maturation antigen, in patients with relapsed or refractory multiple myeloma.

BACKGROUND: Chimeric antigen receptor (CAR) T cell therapy has demonstrated proven efficacy in some hematologic cancers. We evaluated the safety and efficacy of LCAR-B38M, a dual epitope-binding CAR T cell therapy directed against 2 distinct B cell maturation antigen epitopes, in patients with relapsed/refractory (R/R) multiple myeloma (MM). METHODS: This ongoing phase 1, single-arm, open-label, multicenter study enrolled patients (18 to 80 years) with R/R MM. Lymphodepletion was performed using cyclophosphamide 300 mg/m2. LCAR-B38M CAR T cells (median CAR+ T cells, 0.5 × 106 cells/kg [range, 0.07 to 2.1 × 106]) were infused in 3 separate infusions. The primary objective is to evaluate the safety of LCAR-B38M CAR T cells; the secondary objective is to evaluate the antimyeloma response of the treatment based on the general guidelines of the International Myeloma Working Group. RESULTS: At data cutoff, 57 patients had received LCAR-B38M CAR T cells. All patients experienced ≥ 1 adverse events (AEs). Grade ≥ 3 AEs were reported in 37/57 patients (65%); most common were leukopenia (17/57; 30%), thrombocytopenia (13/57; 23%), and aspartate aminotransferase increased (12/57; 21%). Cytokine release syndrome occurred in 51/57 patients (90%); 4/57 (7%) had grade ≥ 3 cases. One patient reported neurotoxicity of grade 1 aphasia, agitation, and seizure-like activity. The overall response rate was 88% (95% confidence interval [CI], 76 to 95); 39/57 patients (68%) achieved a complete response, 3/57 (5%) achieved a very good partial response, and 8/57 (14%) achieved a partial response. Minimal residual disease was negative for 36/57 (63%) patients. The median time to response was 1 month (range, 0.4 to 3.5). At a median follow-up of 8 months, median progression-free survival was 15 months (95% CI, 11 to not estimable). Median overall survival for all patients was not reached. CONCLUSIONS: LCAR-B38M CAR T cell therapy displayed a manageable safety profile and demonstrated deep and durable responses in patients with R/R MM. TRIAL REGISTRATION: ClinicalTrials.gov , NCT03090659 ; Registered on March 27, 2017, retrospectively registered.

[Effects of triptolide on prostate carcinoma in mouse RM-1 cells].

OBJECTIVE: To study the effect of Triptolide (TL) on the growth of prostate carcinoma cell line, and analyze its function and mechanism in anti-prostate cancer. METHODS: MTT experiments were performed to examine the inhibiting effect of TL on the proliferation of RM-1 cells, cell morphological changes observed by acridine staining, cellular cycles and apoptosis peak analyzed by flow cytometry, the apoptosis fracture zone investigated with DNA electrophoresis, and the expressions of caspase-3 and bcl-2 mRNA in RM-1 cells examined by RT-PCR. RESULTS: The results of MTT experiments showed that after the treatment of TL (5, 10, 20, 40 and 80 ng/ml), the RM-1 cell proliferation inhibition rates were 9.8%, 25.1%, 39.2%, 48.8% and 53.2% respectively; 12, 24, 36 and 48 hours after the treatment of TL (10 and 20 ng/ml), the cell proliferation inhibition rates were 8.4%, 25.1%, 36.1%, 42.4% and 10.2%, 39.2%, 50.2% and 58.5% respectively. Acridine staining after the TL treatment revealed nucleus condensation, cell membrane invagination, irregular orange particles in the cells and apoptosis morphological changes; flow cytometry tests showed that 48 hours after the TL treatment (10, 20 ng/ml) of RM-1 cells, an obvious apoptosis peak appeared before the G1 stage; 24, 36 and 48 hours after it, DNA "trapezoid" strips could be seen; the caspase-3 mRNA expression in the TL treated cells was higher, and the bcl-2 mRNA expression was lower than in the controls. CONCLUSION: TL can decrease bcl-2 expression, increase caspase-3 expression, induce apoptosis of prostate carcinoma cells, and consequently inhibit the proliferation of RM-1 cells in mice.

IL-17A Monoclonal Antibody Partly Reverses the Glucocorticoids Insensitivity in Mice Exposed to Ozonec.

Exposure to ozone has been associated with airway inflammation and glucocorticoid insensitivity. This study aimed to observe the capacity of anti-murine interleukin-17A monoclonal antibody (IL-17mAb) to reverse ozone-induced glucocorticoid insensitivity and to detect its effects with glucocorticoids in protecting against airway inflammation. After C57/BL6 mice were exposed to ozone (2.5 ppm; 3 h) for 12 times over 6 weeks, PBS, IL-17mAb (50 ug/ml), dexamethasone (2 mg/kg), and combination administration of IL-17mAb (50 ug/ml) and dexamethasone (2 mg/kg) were intraperitoneally injected into mice at a dose of 0.1 ml, respectively, for 10 times over 5 weeks. At sacrifice, lung histology, airway inflammatory cells, levels of related cytokines in bronchoalveolar lavage fluid (BALF), and serum were analyzed, airway inflammatory cell infiltration density and mean linear intercept (Lm) were measured, the expression of IL-17A mRNA, glucocorticoid receptors (GR), NF-κB, and p38 mitogen-activated protein kinase (MAPK) phosphorylation were determined. We found that combination administration markedly reduced ozone-induced total inflammatory cells, especially neutrophils; inhibited levels of cytokines, including IL-8, IL-17A, and TNF-α in BALF; and suppressed airway inflammatory cell infiltration density and Lm. Additionally, combination administration significantly elevated levels of IFN-γ in BALF, decreased the dexamethasone-induced increase of IL-17A mRNA, and increased the expression of GR and decrement of NF-κB and p38MAPK phosphorylation, which are also related to glucocorticoids insensitivity. Collectively, combination administration shows profound efficacy in inhibiting certain cytokines, and IL-17 mAb partly improved the glucocorticoids insensitivity via modulating the enhanced production rate and improving expression of IL-17A induced by glucocorticoids administration and p38MAPK, NF-κB signaling pathway.

Upregulation of SOCS3 in lung CD4+ T cells in a mouse model of chronic PA lung infection and suppression of Th17­mediated neutrophil recruitment in exogenous SOCS3 transfer in vitro.

Neutrophilic airway inflammation in chronic lung infections caused by Pseudomonas aeruginosa (PA) is associated with T helper (Th)17 responses. Suppressor of cytokine signaling 3 (SOCS3) is the major negative modulator of Th17 function through the suppression of signal transducer and activator of transcription (STAT)3 activation. The aim of the present study was to investigate the expression of SOCS3 in lung CD4+ T cells in a mouse model of chronic PA lung infection and the effect of exogenous SOCS3 on Th17­mediated neutrophil recruitment in vitro. A mouse model of chronic PA lung infection was established and the activation of STAT3 and Th17 response in lung tissues and lung CD4+ T cells was assessed. The protein and mRNA expression of SOCS3 in lung CD4+ T cells was analyzed by western blotting and reverse transcription­quantitative polymerase chain reaction. The authors constructed a recombinant lentivirus carrying the SOCS3 gene and transferred it into lung CD4+ T cells isolated from a mouse model. These transfected cells were stimulated with interleukin (IL)­23 in vitro and the protein level of p­STAT3 and retinoid­related orphan receptor (ROR)γt was determined by western blotting. The expression of IL­17A+ cells was analyzed by flow cytometry and the level of IL­17A in cell culture supernatant was measured by ELISA. The mouse lung epithelial cell line, MLE­12, was cocultured with lung CD4+ T cells that overexpressed the SOCS3 gene and the culture supernatant was harvested and used for a chemotaxis assay. Compared with control mice, mice with chronic PA lung infection had significantly higher level of p­STAT3 and Th17 response in both lung tissues and lung CD4+ T cells. The protein and mRNA level of SOCS3 in lung CD4+ T cells increased as the chronic PA lung infection developed. Exogenous SOCS3 gene transfer in PA­infected lung CD4+ T cells decreased p­STAT3 and RORγt expression and suppressed the level of IL­17A+ cells in vitro. MLE­12 cells cocultured with SOCS3­overexpressing lung CD4+ T cells expressed a significantly lower level of neutrophil chemoattractants chemokine (C­X­C motif) ligand (CXCL) 1 and CXCL5, and recruited significantly smaller numbers of migrating neutrophils than those cocultured with control cells. SOCS3 was upregulated in lung CD4+ T cells following the activation of STAT3/Th17 axis in a mouse model of chronic PA lung infection. Exogenous SOCS3 transfer in PA­infected lung CD4+ T cells suppresses Th17­mediated neutrophil recruitment in vitro.