Long noncoding RNA EPB41L4A-AS1 functions as an oncogene by regulating the Rho/ROCK pathway in colorectal cancer.

Colorectal cancer (CRC) is one of the most common malignant tumors worldwide. In terms of cancer-related death, colon cancer ranks second and third among men and women, respectively, and the incidence is increasing annually. Accumulating evidence have indicated that long noncoding RNA (lncRNA) plays an important role in tumorigenesis. In this study, we found that lncRNA EPB41L4A-AS1 was highly expressed in CRC tissues and was associated with poor prognosis and tumor metastasis in patients with CRC. In vitro studies showed that the knockdown of EPB41L4A-AS1 inhibited the proliferation, migration, invasion, and epithelial-mesenchymal transition of CRC cells. Mechanically, we found that EPB41L4A-AS1 may participate in the development of CRC by activating the Rho/Rho-associated protein kinase signaling pathway. Collectively, these results demonstrated that EPB41L4A-AS1 can promote the proliferation, invasion, and migration of CRC, and it may be a novel biomarker for the diagnosis and targeted treatment of CRC.

Coupling Magnetic Single-Crystal Co2 Mo3 O8 with Ultrathin Nitrogen-Rich Carbon Layer for Oxygen Evolution Reaction.

Transition-metal oxides as electrocatalysts for the oxygen evolution reaction (OER) provide a promising route to face the energy and environmental crisis issues. Although palmeirite oxide A2 Mo3 O8 as OER catalyst has been explored, the correlation between its active sites (tetrahedral or octahedral) and OER performance has been elusive. Now, magnetic Co2 Mo3 O8 @NC-800 composed of highly crystallized Co2 Mo3 O8 nanosheets and ultrathin N-rich carbon layer is shown to be an efficient OER catalyst. The catalyst exhibits favorable performance with an overpotential of 331 mV@10 mA cm-2 and 422 mV@40 mA cm-2 , and a full water-splitting electrolyzer with it as anode catalyst shows a cell voltage of 1.67 V@10 mA cm-2 in alkaline. Combined HAADFSTEM, magnetic, and computational results show that factors influencing the OER performance can be attributed to the tetrahedral Co sites (high spin, t2 3 e4 ), which improve the OER kinetics of rate-determining step to form *OOH.

MiR-199a-5p loss up-regulated DDR1 aggravated colorectal cancer by activating epithelial-to-mesenchymal transition related signaling.

BACKGROUND: Discoidin domain receptors1 (DDR1) is associated with tumor progression, and its dysregulated expression has been observed in many cancers. AIM: We aim to explore molecular mechanism underlying the role of DDR1 in colorectal cancer development. METHODS: Immunohistochemistry and Western blot were applied to examine the DDR1 expression. Real-time RT-PCR and Western blot were performed to determine the expression of miR-199a-5p and DDR1. Luciferase reporter assay was used to determine whether DDR1 was a target of miR-199a-5p. Effects of miR-199a-5p and DDR1 on colorectal cell proliferation, colony formation, cell cycle progression, invasion and migration were then investigated. Western blot was used to determine the relative signal pathways. RESULTS: Increased DDR1 and decreased miR-199a-5p expression coexisted in CRC, knockdown of DDR1 or overexpression of miR-199a-5p both resulted in reduced colony formation, invasive and migratory capabilities of human CRC LOVE1 and LOVO cells. It was also found that overexpression of miR-199a-5p led to decreased DDR1, MMP2, N-cadherin and vimentin expression and increased E-cadherin expression in both CRC cell lines. However, down-regulation of miR-199a-5p resulted in the opposite effects. Dual luciferase reporter assay confirmed that miR-199a-5p could directly target DDR1 through binding to its 3'-UTR. CONCLUSIONS: Our findings indicated that up-regulation of DDR1 induced by miR-199a-5p down-regulation may contribute to the development and progression of CRC, and this effect may be associated with increased invasiveness, at least in part, via activating the EMT-related signaling.

Current application of mesotherapy in pattern hair loss: A systematic review.

BACKGROUND AND OBJECTIVE: As a minimally invasive procedure, mesotherapy has been used in the cosmetic field for half a century and gets favorable results in fat reduction, facial rejuvenation, and hair regrowth. So far, it has achieved some exciting progression in pattern hair loss (PHL), which bothers plenty of people and has cost billion dollars searching for more effective treatment. The aim of this study is to summarize the efficacy of mesotherapy treating PHL. METHODS: Cochrane Central Register of Controlled Trials (CENTRAL), PubMed, EMBASE, and Web of Science were searched until January 2021. All literature was evaluated according to established criteria. RESULTS: We got 336 studies from searched databases, and 12 studies were included after selection process. A total of 253 males and 274 females participated in 6 randomized control trials, 2 nonrandomized controlled trials, and 3 observational studies. Mesotherapy showed positive efficacy in all studies to a certain extent, and no significant side effect occurred. CONCLUSION: Mesotherapy demonstrated as an effective treatment for PHL. However, the sample size is not big enough, and studies about mesotherapy compared to other treatments are insufficient. Future research is required to claim more evidence.

Isoflurane Attenuates Cerebral Ischaemia-Reperfusion Injury via the TLR4-NLRP3 Signalling Pathway in Diabetic Mice.

Ischaemic stroke is a severe disease worldwide. Restoration of blood flow after ischaemic stroke leads to cerebral ischaemia-reperfusion injury (CIRI). Various operations, such as cardiac surgery with deep hypothermic circulatory arrest, predictably cause cerebral ischaemia. Diabetes is related to the occurrence of perioperative stroke and exacerbates neurological impairment after stroke. Therefore, the choice of anaesthetic drugs has certain clinical significance for patients with diabetes. Isoflurane (ISO) exerts neuroprotective and anti-neuroinflammatory effects in patients without diabetes. However, the role of ISO in cerebral ischaemia in the context of diabetes is still unknown. Toll-like receptor 4 (TLR4) and NOD-like receptor pyrin domain-containing protein 3 (NLRP3) inflammasome activation play important roles in microglia-mediated neuroinflammatory injury. In this study, we treated a diabetic middle cerebral artery occlusion mouse model with ISO. We found that diabetes exacerbated cerebral ischaemia damage and that ISO exerted neuroprotective effects in diabetic mice. Then, we found that ISO decreased TLR4-NLRP3 inflammasome activation in microglia and the excessive autophagy induced by CIRI in diabetic mice. The TLR4-specific agonist CRX-527 reversed the neuroprotective effects of ISO. In summary, our study indicated that ISO exerts neuroprotective effects against the neuroinflammation and autophagy observed during diabetic stroke via the TLR4-NLRP3 signalling pathway.

Mental health status among Chinese healthcare-associated infection control professionals during the outbreak of coronavirus disease 2019: A national cross-sectional survey.

ABSTRACT: Recently, the coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) epidemic has greatly threatened global public health. The responsibility of healthcare-associated infection control professionals (ICPs) is to prevent and control the nosocomial infections. The mental health status of ICPs deserves more attention, however, the correlational research is still lacking. This study aims to investigate the incidence and risk factors of mental health status among ICPs in China during the outbreak of COVID-19.A national cross-sectional survey was performed. The online questionnaire was completed by 9228 ICPs from 3776 hospitals throughout China. Data collection tools were used, including demographics data questionnaire, the Chinese version of the 12-item general health questionnaire (GHQ-12) and the Chinese version of the psychological capital questionnaire (PCQ) for medical staff. Univariate and multivariable analyses were conducted.The total score of mental health of Chinese ICPs was 3.45 ±â€Š2.57. 5608 (60.77%) ICPs might have mental health problems. The psychological capital was in the upper-middle level with an average score of 3.72 ±â€Š0.38. An increased mental health problem risk was associated with the greater self-efficacy and working in the public hospital; a significantly lower risk was obtained by working in the second-class hospital rather than in the third-class hospitals. Besides, mental health problem risk of ICPs working in hospitals of the western economic region or northeast economic region was more significant than that in hospitals of the central economic region. However, a lower risk was caused by the unmarried than married, and working years in department ≤1 year contributed to the lower risk than that >20 years. Moreover, fewer working hours per week, higher values of hope, and optimism each were contributed to a lower risk.Chinese healthcare-associated ICPs were under different levels of mental health problems in fighting against COVID-19. More importantly, we should actively deal with the mental health problem of ICPs and help them get rid of psychological disorders.

miR-198 functions as a tumor suppressor in breast cancer by targeting CUB domain-containing protein 1.

The molecular mechanisms underlying the dysregulation of microRNAs (miRs) have been previously documented in breast cancer. miR-198 has been reported to be deregulated in several human cancers. However, the detailed effects of miR-198 on breast cancer progression remain unclear. Using quantitative polymerase chain reaction analysis, we demonstrated in the present study that miR-198 was downregulated in breast cancer tissues and cell lines, and that downregulation of miR-198 was significantly correlated with lymph node metastasis. Functional studies revealed that miR-198 inhibited cell proliferation and migration and promoted cell adhesion in aggressive breast cancer cells in vitro. In addition, we observed that CUB domain-containing protein 1 (CDCP1) was a direct target of miR-198, and that knockdown of CDCP1 inhibited cell proliferation and migration, and promoted cell adhesion, which was similar to the effects of overexpression of miR-198. Taken together, we provide evidence to characterize the role of miR-198/CDCP1 interaction in breast cancer, which may be useful in breast cancer therapy.