Upregulated circZMIZ1 promotes the proliferation of prostate cancer cells and is a valuable marker in plasma.

Increasing evidences have proved that circular RNAs (circRNAs), identified as a specific kind of non-coding RNAs, play a potential critical role in tumorigenesis including prostate cancer. However, the function of circRNAs in human prostate cancer remain largely unknown. In this study, we demonstrated that the expression of circZMIZ1 was higher in plasma of human prostate cancer than the paired benign prostatic hyperplasia (BPH) patients' plasma. Moreover, in cultured prostate cancer cells, knockdown of circZMIZ1 inhibited cell proliferation and caused cell cycle arrest at G1. Mechanistically, we also showed that circZMIZ1 could increase the expression of androgen receptor (AR) and androgen receptor splice variant 7 (AR-V7), which may be partly contributed to the occurrence and development of prostate cancer. In conclusion, these results revealed that circZMIZ1 might serve as a novel biomarker and a treatment target for prostate cancer treatment.

Neuropilin1, a novel independent prognostic factor and therapeutic target in triple-negative breast cancer.

Triple-negative breast cancer (TNBC) is the most aggressive breast cancer, and thus, has limited treatment options. Neuropilin1 (NRP1) is a multi-functional transmembrane protein that interacts with a number of signaling receptors and plays an important role in cancer progression. Previous studies demonstrated that the expression of NRP1 is activated and promotes the progression of breast cancer particularly in TNBC compared to other molecular subtypes; however, whether or not the level of NRP1 expression is related to the progression of TNBC warrants further study. In the current study, we determined the expression and function of NRP1 and evaluated the clinical significance of NRP1 in patients with TNBC. In addition, we determined whether or not an NRP1 antagonist potentiates the inhibitory effects of paclitaxel (PTX) in patients with TNBC. In our clinical study, NRP1 had higher expression in TNBC tissues than non-TNBC tissues at the same stage, and NRP1 was an independent prognostic factor. Specifically, the high expression of NRP1 was associated with shorter survival in TNBC patients. In addition, TNBC cells treated with NRP1 antagonist significantly potentiated the effect of PTX on cell proliferation, cell migration, and apoptosis. Our findings suggest that NRP1 expression can act as an independent prognostic factor for TNBC patients, and the combination of PTX and an NRP1 antagonist may be an effective treatment regimen for TNBC.

[Association between root abnormalities and related pathogenic genes in patients with generalized aggressive periodontitis].

OBJECTIVE: To explore the association between the abnormal root morphology and bone metabolism or root development related gene polymorphism in patients with generalized aggressive periodontitis. METHODS: In the study, 179 patients with generalized aggressive periodontitis were enrolled, with an average age of (27.23±5.19) years, male / female = 67/112. The average number of teeth remaining in the mouth was (26.80±1.84). Thirteen single nucleotide polymorphisms (SNPs) of nine genes which related to bone metabolism and root development were detected by matrix assisted laser desorption ionization time of flight mass spectrometry (MALDI-TOF-MS). Root abnormalities were identified using periapical radiographs. The abnormal root morphology included cone-rooted teeth, slender-root teeth, short-rooted teeth, curved-rooted teeth, syncretic-rooted molars, and molar root abnormalities. The number of teeth and incidence of abnormal root morphology in different genotypes of 13 SNPs were analyzed. RESULTS: The constituent ratio of root with root abnormality in GAgP patients was 14.49%(695/4 798). The average number of teeth with abnormal root morphology in GAgP was (3.88±3.84). The average number of teeth with abnormal root morphology in CC, CT and TT genotypes in vitamin D receptor (VDR) rs2228570 was (4.66±4.10), (3.71±3.93) and (2.68±2.68). There was significant difference between TT genotype and CC genotype (t = 2.62, P =0.01). The average number of root morphological abnormalities in CC, CT and TT genotypes of Calcitotin Receptor (CTR) gene rs2283002 was (5.02±3.70), (3.43±3.95), and (3.05±3.12). The incidence of root morphological abnormalities in CC genotype was higher than that in the patients with CT and TT, and the difference was statistically significant(87.86% vs. 65.26% & 63.64%, P=0.006, adjusted OR =3.71, 95%CI: 1.45-9.50). There was no significant difference in the incidence of abnormal root morphology between CT and TT genotypes. CONCLUSION: VDR rs2228570 and CTR rs2283002 may be associated with the occurrence of abnormal root morphology in patients with generalized aggressive periodontitis, which is worthy of further research.

Continuous nursing intervention on recovery of diabetic patients.

The aim of this study was to probe the influence of continuous nursing intervention on recovery of diabetic patients. From October 2016 to June 2017, 80 diabetic patients who received treatment in our hospital were selected and randomly divided into an intervention group and a control group. The intervention group received continuous nursing care including indirect follow-up, health education and home visit. The self-care ability and blood sugar of the two groups were compared three months later. The score of self-care ability in the intervention group was 89.64±1.64 and that in control group was 72.68±2.47, and a significant difference was observed (P less than 0.001). The fasting blood glucose level in the intervention group was 6.62±0.86 MMOL/L, and the 2-hour post-meal blood glucose level was 8.47±1.32 MMOL/L, which were both lower than those in the control group. Continuous nursing can help monitor the recovery of patients after discharge. It is helpful to improve the self-care ability of patients, control blood sugar level, and promote recovery. It is worth wide promotion.

Neutral alpha-1,4-glucosidase and fructose levels contribute to discriminating obstructive and nonobstructive azoospermia in Chinese men with azoospermia.

Nowadays, whether neutral alpha-1,4-glucosidase (NAG) and fructose levels are contributed to discriminating obstructive and nonobstructive azoospermia in Chinese azoospermic patients remains unclear. In this study, we retrospectively analysed the levels of NAG and fructose in 229 patients with obstructive azoospermia and 415 patients with nonobstructive azoospermia from three different medical central. Results indicated that NAG and fructose levels in patients with nonobstructive azoospermia were significantly higher compared with those with obstructive azoospermia (P < 0.05). According to the reference value of NAG and fructose defined by the World Health Organization (WHO, 2010), decreased level of NAG was observed in 77.3% of patients with obstructive azoospermia, which was significantly higher than those with nonobstructive azoospermia (55.2%, P < 0.0001). Low level of fructose was observed in 48.0% of patients with obstructive azoospermia, which is also obviously higher than those with nonobstructive azoospermia (31.8%, P < 0.0001). Moreover, the decrease of both NAG and fructose was only recorded in 3.7% of patients with SCO syndrome, 5.0% of patients with severe hypospermatogenesis and 18.2% of patients with maturation arrest. Therefore, our results indicated that NAG and fructose levels are contributed to discriminating obstructive and nonobstructive azoospermia in Chinese patients based on the histological types of testes.

Development of polymorphic SSR markers in the razor clam (Sinonovacula constricta) and cross-species amplification.

Next-generation sequencing provides large-scale sequencing data with relative ease and at a reasonable cost, making it possible to identify a large amount of SSR markers in a timely and cost-effective manner. On the basis of the transcriptome database of Sinonovacula constricta obtained by Illumina/Solexa pyrosequencing, 60 polymorphic SSR markers were developed and characterized in 30 individuals. The number of alleles per polymorphic locus ranged from 2 to 7 with an average of 3.75 alleles. The observed and expected heterozygosities varied from 0.050 to 1.000 and from 0.050 to 0.836, respectively. Nineteen loci significantly deviated from Hardy-Weinberg equilibrium (P < 0.01) after Bonferroni's correction for multiple tests. In addition, interspecific transferability revealed that 20 polymorphic loci in Solen linearis were first characterized in this study. To the best of our knowledge, this is the highest number of SSRs in S. constricta and the first report of cross-species amplification. These novel polymorphic SSR markers will be particularly useful for conservation genetics, evolutionary studies, genetic trait mapping, and marker assisted selection in the species.

The α-gliadin genes from Brachypodium distachyon L. provide evidence for a significant gap in the current genome assembly.

Brachypodium distachyon, is a new model plant for most cereal crops while gliadin is a class of wheat storage proteins related with wheat quality attributes. In the published B. distachyon genome sequence databases, no gliadin gene is found. In the current study, a number of gliadin genes in B. distachyon were isolated, which is contradictory to the results of genome sequencing projects. In our study, the B. distachyon seeds were found to have no gliadin protein expression by gel electrophoresis, reversed-phase high-performance liquid chromatography and Western blotting analysis. However, Southern blotting revealed a presence of more than ten copies of α-gliadin coding genes in B. distachyon. By means of AS-PCR amplification, four novel full-ORF α-gliadin genes, and 26 pseudogenes with at least one stop codon as well as their promoter regions were cloned and sequenced from different Brachypodium accessions. Sequence analysis revealed a few of single-nucleotide polymorphisms among these genes. Most pseudogenes were resulted from a C to T change, leading to the generation of TAG or TAA in-frame stop codon. To compare both the full-ORFs and the pseudogenes among Triticum and Triticum-related species, their structural characteristics were analyzed. Based on the four T cell stimulatory toxic epitopes and two ployglutamine domains, Aegilops, Triticum, and Brachypodium species were found to be more closely related. The phylogenetic analysis further revealed that B. distachyon was more closely related to Aegilops tauschii, Aegilops umbellulata, and the A or D genome of Triticum aestivum. The α-gliadin genes were able to express successfully in E. coli using the functional T7 promoter. The relative and absolute quantification of the transcripts of α-gliadin genes in wheat was much higher than that in B. distachyon. The abundant pseudogenes may affect the transcriptional and/or posttranscriptional level of the α-gliadin in B. distachyon.

Effects of feed conditioning temperature on pellet quality, growth performance, intestinal development and blood parameters of geese from 1 to 28 d of age.

A 28-d experiment was conducted to investigate the effects of feed-conditioning temperature on the pellet quality, growth performance, intestinal development, and blood parameters of geese. A total of 180 one-day-old White Yuzhou goslings were randomly allotted to 5 treatment groups, with 6 replicates containing 6 birds each. Five diets were conditioned at 65, 70, 75, 80, and 85°C. Body weight and feed intake per pen basis were recorded from the arrival to the end of the trial. Blood and small intestine samples were collected on d 28 for analysis. The results showed that the pellet durability index (PDI), pellet hardness, and gelatinisation degree of starch (GDS) increased with increasing conditioning temperature (P < 0.05). The final body weight (FBW), average daily gain (ADG) and average daily feed intake (ADFI) of goslings significantly increased when conditioning temperature increased from 65 or 70°C to 80 or 85°C (P < 0.05), accompanied by unaffected feed conversion ratio (FCR) (P > 0.05). The villus height to crypt depth ratio (VH/CD) in the duodenum and ileum improved with increasing conditioning temperature (P < 0.05). Additionally, trypsin and amylase activity were enhanced when the conditioning temperature increased from 65 to 85°C (P < 0.05). No significant differences in the carcass traits and blood parameters of goslings were observed among the groups (P > 0.05). Overall, under the present experimental conditions, increasing the steam-conditioning temperature of pelleted feed improved pellet quality, growth performance, intestinal morphology, and digestive enzyme activity in goslings. Based on broken-line regression analysis, the lower critical conditioning temperature for ADG in geese from 1 to 28 d of age was 80.95°C.

Myokines and Biomarkers of Frailty in Older Inpatients with Undernutrition: A Prospective Study.

BACKGROUND: Population aging might increase the prevalence of undernutrition in older people, which increases the risk of frailty. Numerous studies have indicated that myokines are released by skeletal myocytes in response to muscular contractions and might be associated with frailty. This study aimed to evaluate whether myokines are biomarkers of frailty in older inpatients with undernutrition. METHODS: The frailty biomarkers were extracted from the Gene Expression Omnibus and Genecards datasets. Relevant myokines and health-related variables were assessed in 55 inpatients aged ≥ 65 years from the Peking Union Medical College Hospital prospective longitudinal frailty study. Serum was prepared for enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay using the appropriate kits. Correlations between biomarkers and frailty status were calculated by Spearman's correlation analysis. Multiple linear regression was performed to investigate the association between factors and frailty scores. RESULTS: The prevalence of frailty was 13.21%. The bioinformatics analysis indicated that leptin, adenosine 5'-monophosphate-activated protein kinase (AMPK), irisin, decorin, and myostatin were potential biomarkers of frailty. The frailty group had significantly higher concentrations of leptin, AMPK, and MSTN than the robust group (p < 0.05). AMPK was significantly positively correlated with frailty (p < 0.05). The pre-frailty and frailty groups had significantly lower concentrations of irisin than the robust group (p < 0.05), whereas the DCN concentration did not differ among the groups. Multiple linear regression suggested that the 15 factors influencing the coefficients of association, the top 50% were the ADL score, MNA-SF score, serum albumin concentration, urination function, hearing function, leptin concentration, GDS-15 score, and MSTN concentration. CONCLUSIONS: Proinflammatory myokines, particularly leptin, myostatin, and AMPK, negatively affect muscle mass and strength in older adults. ADL and nutritional status play major roles in the development of frailty. Our results confirm that identification of frailty relies upon clinical variables, myokine concentrations, and functional parameters, which might enable the identification and monitoring of frailty.

Genetic diversity analysis of oriental river prawn, Macrobrachium nipponense, in Yellow River using microsatellite marker.

To assess the genetic status of this species, the genetic diversity of wild Macrobrachium nipponense from seven geographic locations in the Yellow River basin were investigated using 20 polymorphic microsatellite DNA loci. The genetic diversity between populations was indicated by the mean number of alleles per locus and mean observed heterozygosity (H) and the expected H, which was arranged from 2 to 10, from 0.4705 to 0.5731, and from 0.5174 to 0.6146, respectively. Hardy-Weinberg equilibrium analysis indicated that a deficiency of heterozygotes existed in all seven populations. Both the F(ST) and AMOVA analyses showed that there is significant difference on population differentiation among populations. The UPGMA clustering tree demonstrated that their close relationship is consistent with their geographic proximity. The data suggest that this Yellow River population has a wide genetic base that is suitable for breeding.

Relationship between dietary patterns and diabetic microvascular complications in patients with type 2 diabetes mellitus.

OBJECTIVE: This study aimed to investigate the relationship between different dietary patterns and diabetic microvascular complications in patients with type 2 diabetes mellitus. PATIENTS AND METHODS: This study was conducted based on the Chinese Chronic Disease and its Risk Factor Surveillance System. A multi-stage stratified sampling method was used to randomly select two districts (Henghualing District, Taiyuan City, and Yuzi District, Jinzhong City) and two counties (Huguan County, Changzhi City, and Jiang County, Yuncheng City) from the chronic disease surveillance sites in Shanxi Province to collect general information, dietary records, physical measurements, and laboratory tests. In total, 1,227 patients were enrolled according to the study criteria. Factor analysis was performed to construct six dietary patterns, and the relationship between dietary pattern scores and type 2 diabetic microvascular complications was analysed using binary logistic regression after correcting for confounders. RESULTS: (1) Regarding the prevalence of type 2 diabetic microvascular complications and dietary characteristics, the prevalence of microvascular complications in patients with type 2 diabetes mellitus was 55.3% and was higher in urban than in rural areas. The prevalence of diabetic kidney disease (DKD), diabetic retinopathy, and diabetic peripheral neuropathy (DPN) were 21.4%, 12.7%, and 38.0%, respectively. (2) Six dietary patterns were constructed, namely, 'animal protein', 'coarse grains and plant protein', 'nuts and fruits', 'refined grains and vegetables', 'dairy', and 'added sugars', with factor contributions of 15.42%, 9.99%, 8.23%, 8.16%, 7.56%, and 7.28% respectively, explaining 56.64% of the total dietary variation. (3) After adjusting for confounding variables, the results of binary logistic regression indicated that patients in the highest quartile of dietary pattern scores for 'nuts and fruits' experienced a 43.3% lower risk of DKD compared to those in the lowest quartile [odds ratio (OR) = 0.567; 95% confidence interval (CI), 0.359-0.894; p < 0.001]. Similarly, patients in the highest quartile of dietary pattern scores for 'animal protein' had a 42.8% lower risk of DPN compared with those in the lowest quartile (OR = 0.572; 95% CI, 0.388-0.843; p < 0.05). CONCLUSIONS: The results of this study suggest that in patients with type 2 diabetes mellitus, a 'nuts and fruits' dietary pattern reduces the risk of DKD and an 'animal protein' dietary pattern reduces the risk of DPN.

Local application of the osteogenic inducer sustained-release system promotes early bone remodeling around titanium implants.

Enhanced osseointegration and a shortened healing time are required for dental implant treatment. The aim of this study was to evaluate whether topical application of the osteogenic inducer (OI) sustained-release system over the implant promotes early bone remodeling around the implant. The mandibular canines of 15 New Zealand White rabbits were extracted. After 3 months of healing, implants coated with poly(lactic-co-glycolic acid) (PLGA)+OI, PLGA alone, or no material (control) were inserted into the canine sites. After 4 weeks, specimens were harvested from the three groups and evaluated. Implant stability recorded by Periotest revealed significantly higher values for the PLGA + OI group (-2.61 ± 0.43) than for the PLGA (-1.47 ± 0.45) and control groups (-1.08 ± 0.19) (P < 0.001). Moreover, the PLGA+OI group had improved bone volume and structural parameters around the implants at 4 weeks, as shown by significantly increased BV/TV, BSA/BV, Tb.Th, and BIC (P < 0.05), as well as decreased Tb.Sp (P = 0.010) compared with the other groups. The histological results showed more trabecular bone and bone matrix around the implants in the PLGA+OI group. Therefore, local application of the OI sustained-release system might be able to promote early bone remodeling around titanium implants and facilitate faster and better osseointegration.

Two-photon fluorescence real-time imaging on the development of early mouse embryo by stages.

Mouse zygotes are widely used in developmental biology and transgenic animal research. Two-photon laser scanning microscopy is particularly useful in four-dimensional observation of big and thick biological samples, such as mouse embryo. The early mouse embryo development from zygote to 8-cell stage compaction was observed in real-time by stages using two-photon laser scanning microscopy in this paper. During our experiment, several scanning parameters were optimized in different development stages. The initial cleavages of mouse embryo, from the zygote to 2-cell, 2-cell to 4-cell, 4-cell to 8-cell, and the compaction at 8-cell stage were observed. During the first stage, localized intracellular calcium elevation along with the cleavage furrow and the asymmetric zygote cytokinesis was detected. The relation between the asymmetry and the location of the second polar body was investigated. The rotational cleavage of mouse embryo was also observed in the experiment. These results would be helpful to further research on mammalian embryonic development.

Propofol inhibited gastric cancer proliferation via the hsa-miR-328-3p/STAT3 pathway.

PURPOSE: The aim of the present study was to elucidate the functional role of hsa-miR-328-3p/STAT3 pathway in the effects of propofol on gastric cancer proliferation. METHODS: Bioinformatics was used to analyze the molecular expression differences of hsa-miR-328-3p/STAT3 axis in stomach adenocarcinoma (n = 435) and normal samples (n = 41) from TCGA database. The expression of the above molecules in gastric cancer cells SGC-7901 and normal gastric mucosal cells GES-1 was verified via qPCR. The dual-luciferase assay was carried out to confirm the interaction between hsa-miR-328-3p and STAT3. Subsequently, the cell proliferation and the expression of the above molecules in SGC-7901 and GES-1 cells were evaluated after 10 µM propofol treatment. Finally, we analyzed whether propofol still inhibited the proliferation of gastric cancer by suppressing STAT3 pathway after hsa-miR-328-3p down-regulation. RESULTS: Compared with normal samples, the expression of hsa-miR-328-3p was significantly down-regulated in stomach adenocarcinoma samples, while the expression of STAT3 and downstream target genes (MMP2, CCND1 and COX2) was up-regulated. The results were consistent with those in GES-1 and SGC-7901 cell lines. Meanwhile, we found that hsa-miR-328-3p can bind to the 3'-UTR of the potential target gene STAT3. Furthermore, propofol significantly inhibited the proliferation of gastric cancer cell line SGC-7901, where hsa-miR-328-3p was up-regulated and the expression of STAT3 and downstream proliferation-related target genes were down-regulated. However, the growth inhibition of propofol on SGC-7901 cell was significantly reversed after the inhibition of hsa-miR-328-3p. CONCLUSIONS: To sum up, propofol suppressed the STAT3 pathway via up-regulating hsa-miR-328-3p to inhibit gastric cancer proliferation.

Identification of differential gene expression related to epirubicin-induced cardiomyopathy in breast cancer patients.

BACKGROUND: Epirubicin is a potent chemotherapeutic agent for the treatment of breast cancer. However, it may lead to cardiotoxicity and cardiomyopathy, and no reliable biomarker was available for the early prediction of epirubicin-induced cardiomyopathy. METHODS: Global gene expression changes of peripheral blood cells were studied using high-throughput RNA sequencing in three pair-matched breast cancer patients (patients who developed symptomatic cardiomyopathy paired with patients who did not) before and after the full session of epirubicin-based chemotherapy. Functional analysis was conducted using gene ontology and pathway enrichment analysis. RESULTS: We identified 13 significantly differentially expressed genes between patients who developed symptomatic epirubicin-induced cardiomyopathy and their paired control who did not. Among them, the upregulated Bcl-associated X protein was related to "apoptosis," while the downregulated 5'-aminolevulinate synthase 2 (ALAS2) was related to both "glycine, serine, and threonine metabolism" and "porphyrin and chlorophyll metabolism" in pathway enrichment analysis. CONCLUSIONS: ALAS2 and the metabolic pathways which were involved may play an important role in the development of epirubicin-induced cardiomyopathy. ALAS2 may be useful as an early biomarker for epirubicin-induced cardiotoxicity detection.

Long noncoding RNA PCAT-1 promoted ovarian cancer cell proliferation and invasion by suppressing KLF6.

Since this article has been suspected of research misconduct and the corresponding authors did not respond to our request to prove originality of data and figures, "Long noncoding RNA PCAT-1 promoted ovarian cancer cell proliferation and invasion by suppressing KLF6, by H.-P. Liu, D. Lv, J.-Y. Wang, Y. Zhang, J.-F. Chang, Z.-T. Liu, N. Tang, published in Eur Rev Med Pharmacol Sci 2019; 23 (11): 4650-4655-DOI: 10.26355/eurrev_201906_18044-PMID: 31210290" has been withdrawn. The Publisher apologizes for any inconvenience this may cause. https://www.europeanreview.org/article/18044.

MiR-188 inhibits proliferation and promotes apoptosis of lung adenocarcinoma cells by targeting SIX1 to negatively regulate ERK signaling pathway.

OBJECTIVE: To explore the effects of micro ribonucleic acid (miR)-188 on proliferation and apoptosis of lung adenocarcinoma (LUAD) cells, and its potential mechanism. MATERIALS AND METHODS: The expression level of miR-188 in LUAD cell lines was detected via quantitative Real Time-Polymerase Chain Reaction (PCR). The effects of miR-188 overexpression on proliferation and apoptosis of A549 cells were detected using methyl thiazolyl tetrazolium (MTT) assay, colony formation assay, and flow cytometry. The potential targets for miR-188 were predicted using the TargetScan Human database, and the interaction between miR-188 and target gene was determined through Dual-Luciferase reporter assay. Moreover, the associations of miR-188 and sine oculis homeobox homolog 1 (SIX1) with the extracellular signal-regulated kinase (ERK) pathway were detected via Western blotting. RESULTS: The expression of miR-188 significantly declined in LUAD cell lines (p<0.05). The overexpression of miR-188 significantly reduced the proliferation rate of A549 cells and increased the percentage of apoptotic A549 cells (p<0.05). Similarly, it was found in colony formation assay that the overexpression of miR-188 inhibited the colony formation ability of A549 cells most significantly (p<0.05). SIX1 was a direct target for miR-188, and its mRNA and protein expressions were downregulated by the overexpression of miR-188. The remarkable downregulation of phosphorylated ERK was observed in A549 cells overexpressing miR-188, while the decline in phosphorylated ERK was reversed in A549 cells overexpressing miR-188 and SIX1. CONCLUSIONS: The expression of miR-188 is downregulated in LUAD cell lines. The overexpression of miR-188 inhibits proliferation and promotes apoptosis of LUAD cells, whose functional mechanism may be related to its regulation on the ERK signaling pathway by targeting SIX1.

MiRNA-875-3p alleviates the progression of colorectal cancer via negatively regulating PLK1 level.

OBJECTIVE: To clarify the expression pattern of miRNA-875-3p in CRC and its potential regulatory effect on the progression of CRC. MATERIALS AND METHODS: MiRNA-875-3p level in 56 matched CRC tissues and adjacent normal tissues were determined. The correlation between the miRNA-875-3p level and pathological indexes of CRC patients was analyzed. Prognostic potential of miRNA-875-3p in CRC patients was assessed by introducing the Kaplan-Meier curves. Influences of miRNA-875-3p on viability, migration, and wound closure were assessed through a series of functional experiments. The interaction between miRNA-875-3p and PLK1 in regulating the progression of CRC was finally uncovered by Dual-Luciferase reporter gene and rescue experiments. RESULTS: MiRNA-875-3p was downregulated in CRC tissues and cell lines. CRC patients with low level of miRNA-875-3p suffered a higher rate of distant metastasis and worse prognosis. Overexpression of miRNA-875-3p attenuated proliferative and migratory capacities of SW480 and HT29 cells. PLK1 was confirmed to be the target gene of miRNA-875-3p. PLK1 was upregulated in CRC tissues and cell lines, which was negatively regulated by miRNA-875-3p. MiRNA-875-3p alleviated the malignant progression of CRC via negatively regulating PLK1. CONCLUSIONS: MiRNA-875-3p is downregulated in CRC, which is closely related to distant metastasis and poor prognosis of CRC patients. MiRNA-875-3p alleviates the progression of CRC through targeting and downregulating PLK1.

LncRNA SNHG1 attenuates neuropathic pain following spinal cord injury by regulating CDK4 level.

OBJECTIVE: Neuropathic pain (NP) is one of the most intractable complications of spinal cord injury (SCI). This study aims to explore the role of long non-coding RNA (lncRNA) SNHG1 in influencing SCI-induced NP. MATERIALS AND METHODS: After establishment of the spinal nerve ligation (SNL) model in rats, spinal tissues were extracted. SNHG1 level in rat spinal tissues was determined by quantitative real-time polymerase chain reaction (qRT-PCR). The role of SNHG1 in the development of NP was explored by assessing paw withdrawal threshold (PWT) and paw withdrawal latency (PWL) in model rats. The interaction between SNHG1 and CDK4 was explored by Luciferase assay and RIP (RNA-Binding Protein Immunoprecipitation). Enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay (ELISA) and qRT-PCR were conducted to determine inflammatory factor levels in rat spinal tissues. RESULTS: SNHG1 was upregulated in rats undergoing SNL. Knockdown of SNHG1 alleviated the development of NP and overexpression of SNHG1 was capable of inducing NP symptoms in uninjured rats. SNHG1 induced NP by directly regulating CDK4 level. CONCLUSIONS: SNHG1 is a novel target in the treatment of NP associated with neuroinflammation.

Features and clinical significance of the ossification centres in the odontoid process based on micro-computed tomography.

BACKGROUND: Microscopic structures of the ossification centres of the odontoid process were studied from the micro-computed tomography (CT) images of the axis, and the potential influence of the ossification centres with different microscopic structures on odontoid process fractures was analysed. MATERIALS AND METHODS: Eighteen odontoid process specimens were randomly collected and scanned by micro-CT. The obtained images were then input into the software for further observation and measurement. Incomplete absorption of the ossification centres in the base was observed, along with the anatomic structure of the regions with incomplete ossification and structural parameters of the trabecular bones. RESULTS: The microscopic structures of the trabecular bones in the ossification centres in the base of the odontoid process could be clearly visualised from the micro-CT images. Among the 18 odontoid process specimens, 11 specimens were found with incomplete absorption of the ossification centres in the axis, the prevalence reaching up to 61%. Regions with incomplete ossification varied in size and morphology, and their three-dimensional morphology was predominantly oval. Of all structural parameters examined for the trabecular bones, there were only significant differences in the degree of anisotropy between the regions with incomplete absorption of ossification centres and the average vertebral trabecular bones (p < 0.05). CONCLUSIONS: Incomplete absorption of the ossification centres in the base of the odontoid process is a relatively prevalent condition. The cavitation effect of the trabecular bones may be the primary cause for odontoid process fractures.