Pleiotrophin as a potential biomarker in breast cancer patients

BACKGROUND

Pleiotrophin (PTN), a multifunctional growth factor, is up-regulated in many tumors. PTN is reported to play an important role in the regulation of several cellular processes. The objective of this study is to evaluate the clinical significance of PTN as a tumor marker in breast cancer (BC).

METHODS

Serum PTN levels were detected in 105 BC patients and 40 healthy volunteers using ELISA. In addition, PTN expression was examined in 80 BC tissues in a nested case-control study by immunohistochemistry.

RESULTS

Serum PTN levels were elevated in BC patients compared to healthy controls. Area under receiver operating characteristic (ROC) curve was 0.878 (95% CI: 0.824-0.932). The sensitivity of serum PTN was superior to CEA and CA15-3. High serum PTN levels were associated with TNM stage, histology grade, and distant metastasis. Moreover, serum PTN levels decreased significantly after surgical treatment. In BC tissues, PTN expression was significantly higher in BC tissues relative to paired paracancerous tissues. Tissue PTN expression proved to be a prognostic factor for breast cancer according to multivariable logistic regression analysis.

CONCLUSION

PTN could be considered as a potential biomarker for the presence of breast cancer.

A Fluorescent Probe for Detecting Mycobacterium tuberculosis and Identifying Genes Critical for Cell Entry

The conventional method for quantitating Mycobacterium tuberculosis (Mtb) in vitro and in vivo relies on bacterial colony forming unit (CFU) enumeration on agar plates. Due to the slow growth rate of Mtb, it takes 3-6 weeks to observe visible colonies on agar plates. Imaging technologies that are capable of quickly quantitating both active and dormant tubercle bacilli in vitro and in vivo would accelerate research toward the development of anti-TB chemotherapies and vaccines. We have developed a fluorescent probe that can directly label the Mtb cell wall components. The fluorescent probe, designated as DLF-1, has a strong affinity to the D-Ala-D-Ala unit of the late peptidoglycan intermediates in the bacterial cell wall. We demonstrate that DLF-1 is capable of detecting Mtb in both the actively replicating and dormant states in vitro at 100 nM without inhibiting bacterial growth. The DLF-1 fluorescence signal correlated well with CFU of the labeled bacteria (R² = 1 and 0.99 for actively replicating and dormant Mtb, respectively). DLF-1 can also quantitate labeled Mtb inside of cells. The utility of DLF-1 probe to quantitate Mtb was successfully applied to identify genes critical for cell invasion. In conclusion, this novel near infrared imaging probe provides a powerful new tool for enumerating Mtb with potential future use in bacterial virulence study.

Cigarette smoke extracts induce overexpression of the proto-oncogenic gene interleukin-13 receptor α2 through activation of the PKA-CREB signaling pathway to trigger malignant transformation of lung vascular endothelial cells and angiogenesis

Cigarette smoking is a major cause of lung cancer. Tumor-associated endothelial cells (TAECs) play important roles in tumor angiogenesis and metastasis. However, whether cigarette smoking can trigger genesis of lung TAECs has not been reported yet. In the current study, we used lung endothelial cell (EC) lines as a model to study the pathological effect of cigarette smoke extracts (CSEs) on human lung ECs, and found that a lower dose of 4% CSEs obviously caused abnormal morphological changes in ECs, increased the permeability of endothelial monolayer, while a higher concentration of 8% CSEs caused EC apoptosis. Strikingly, CSEs induced a 117-fold overexpression of a pro-tumorigenic interleukin-13 receptor α2 gene (IL-13Rα2, also named as CT-19) through activation of the protein kinase A (PKA) and cAMP response element-binding protein (CREB) signaling pathway. A PKA specific inhibitor H89 completely abolished CSEs-induced IL-13Rα2 overexpression. The overexpression of IL-13Rα2 in lung ECs significantly increased the tumorigenic, migratory, and angiogenic capabilities of the cells, suggesting that IL-13Rα2 promotes genesis of lung TAECs. Together, our data show that CSEs activate the PKA, CREB, and IL-13Rα2 axis in lung ECs, and IL-13Rα2 promotes the malignant transformation of lung ECs and genesis of TAECs with robust angiogenic and oncogenic capabilities. Our study provides new insight into the mechanism of CSEs-triggered lung cancer angiogenesis and tumorigenesis, suggesting that the PKA-CREB-IL-13Rα2 axis is a potential target for novel anti-lung tumor angiogenesis and anti-lung cancer drug discovery.

Effects of miR-145 on the inhibition of chondrocyte proliferation and fibrosis by targeting TNFRSF11B in human osteoarthritis

Osteoarthritis (OA) is a common cause of functional deterioration in older adults, and altered chondrogenesis is the most common pathophysiological process involved in the development of OA. MicroRNA‑145 (miR‑145) has been shown to regulate chondrocyte homeostasis. However, the function of miR‑145 in OA remains to be elucidated. In the present study, the expression levels of miR‑145 were examined in cartilage specimens from 25 patients with knee OA using reverse transcription‑quantitative polymerase chain reaction analysis. The effects of miR‑145 on the proliferation and fibrosis of the C‑20/A4 and CH8 cell lines were also investigated using 3-(4,5-dimethylth-iazol-2-yl)-2,5-diphenyltetrazolium bromide and western blot assays in vitro. The results revealed that the expression of miR-145 was decreased in the OA cartilage tissues, compared with normal cartilage tissues. The overexpression of miR‑145 by transfection of cells with miR‑145 mimics significantly inhibited C‑20/A4 and CH8 cell proliferation and fibrosis. Furthermore, tumor necrosis factor receptor superfamily, member 11b (TNFRSF11B) was identified as a direct target of miR‑145 in chondrocytes, which was confirmed using a dual‑luciferase reporter assay. The expression level of TNFRSF11B was markedly upregulated in the patients with OA, and the ectopic expression of miR‑145 was capable of suppressing the expression of TNFRSF11B. In addition, the knock down of TNFRSF11B using specific small interfering RNA also inhibited the proliferation and fibrosis of C‑20/A4 and CH8 cells in vitro. These data provide the first evidence, to the best of our knowledge, to suggest the critical function of miR‑145 in regulating the expression of TNFRSF11B, which may have important implications on the regulation of chondrocyte proliferation and fibrosis in OA.

[The application of mandarin acceptable noise level and COS in hearing aid fitting for presbyacusis]

Objective:The purpose of this study was to inquiry into the application of mandarin acceptable noise level(M-ANL) and client oriented scale of improvement in evaluation of hearing aid fitting for presbyacusis. Method:Thirty-two adults with presbycusis who used the hearing aid for the first time were selected for the study. M-ANL tests were done prior to the hearing aid fitting. Six weeks later, these patients were asked to fill in questionnaire of client oriented scale of improvement (COSI).The subjects were divided into 3 groups according to the time of hearing aid using in their daily lives: less than one hour per day, 1 to 4 hours per day and more than 4 hours per day. The relativity of M-ANL and the score of COSI were compared. Result:①There were significant differences of the M-ANL among 3 groups(P<0.05); ②The scores of COSI of group 1(less than one hour per day) was lower than group 2(1 to 4 hours per day), while there were no significant differences between the scores of group 2(1 to 4 hours per day) and group 3(more than 4 hours per day); ③There was good correlation between the score of M-ANL and COSI. Conclusion:M-ANL can forecast the satisfaction of hearing aids fitting. And COSI can play an effective role in outcome measurement.

Relationship between the mechanism of hepatitis B virus father-infant transmission and pregnancy outcome

PURPOSE

This study examined the relationship between the mechanism of hepatitis B virus (HBV) father-infant transmission via reproductive cells and pregnancy outcome.

METHODS

Abandoned in vitro fertilization (IVF) embryos of fathers with chronic HBV infection were taken as study objects. HBV mRNA in embryos was detected, and successfully transplanted embryos were followed up to determine the relationship between HBV-infected embryos and pregnancy outcome.

RESULTS

HBV mRNA signals were detected in one embryo in the group with HBV-positive fathers; the positive rate was 1/18 (5.5%). IVF embryos of HBV-positive fathers with HBV mRNA signals were successfully implanted, but early abortion occurred.

CONCLUSIONS

HBV mRNA was found in abandoned IVF embryos of HBV-infected fathers, which confirmed that HBV could not only enter early cleavage embryos via sperm but also replicate in embryos, resulting in HBV father-infant transmission. HBV may interfere with embryonic development and thus affect pregnancy outcome.

Upregulation of CD74 and its potential association with disease severity in subjects with ischemic stroke

Macrophage migration inhibitory factor (MIF) is a key cytokine/chemokine in the activation and recruitment of inflammatory T lymphocytes known to exacerbate experimental stroke severity. MIF effects are mediated through its primary cellular receptor, CD74, the MHC class II invariant chain present on all class II expressing cells, including monocytes, macrophages and dendritic cells (DC). We demonstrated previously that partial MHC class II/peptide constructs (pMHC) can effectively treat mice with experimental stroke, in part through their ability to competitively inhibit MIF/CD74 interactions and downstream signaling. However, the role of MIF and CD74 in human ischemic stroke is not yet well established. To evaluate the therapeutic potential for pMHC, we assessed MIF and CD74 expression levels and their association with disease outcome in subjects with ischemic stroke. MIF levels were assessed in blood plasma by ELISA and CD74 expression was quantified by flow cytometry and qRT-PCR in peripheral blood mononuclear cells (PBMCs) obtained from subjects with ischemic stroke and age and sex-matched healthy controls (HC). MIF levels were increased in plasma and the number of CD74⁺ cells and CD74 mRNA expression levels were significantly increased in PBMC of subjects with ischemic stroke versus HC, mainly on CD4⁺ T cells, monocytes and DC. Greater increases of CD74⁺ cells were seen in subjects with cortical vs. subcortical infarcts and the number of CD74⁺ cells in blood correlated strongly with infarct size and neurological outcomes. However, differences in MIF and CD74 expression were not affected by age, gender or lesion laterality. Increased CD74 expression levels may serve as a useful biomarker for worse stroke severity and predicted outcomes in subjects with ischemic stroke and provide a rationale for potential future treatment with pMHC constructs.

Silencing P2X7 receptor downregulates the expression of TCP-1 involved in lymphoma lymphatic metastasis

P2X₇R is an ATP-gated cation channel that participates in cell proliferation and apoptosis. TCP-1 assists with the protein folding. According to our previous research, the P2X₇R has a potential role in P388D1 lymphoid neoplasm cells dissemination to peripheral lymph nodes. In order to make a further exploration about the probable mechanism, the lymph nodes which metastasized by P2X₇R-silenced P388D1 cells or non-silenced cells were analyzed by 2DE and a MALDI-TOF-based proteomics approach. In the 64 proteins which were differentially expressed between two groups, TCP-1 was found to be significantly decreased in P2X₇R shRNA group compared to controls. This correlation was also found in subsequent experiments in vivo and in vitro. The positive correlation between P2X₇R and TCP-1 was also proved in both lymphoma and benign lymphadenopathy tissues from patients. It indicates that TCP-1 may be a crucial downstream molecular of P2X₇R and plays a novel role in lymphoid neoplasm metastasis.

The Role of miR-124 in Drosophila Alzheimer's Disease Model by Targeting Delta in Notch Signaling Pathway

Alzheimer's disease (AD) is a neurodegenerative disorder which mainly affects elderly population. MicroRNAs (miRNA) are small RNA molecules that fine-tune gene expression at posttranscriptional level and exert important functions in AD. MicroRNA-124 (miR-124) is a kind of miRNA abundantly expressed in the central nervous system. It is highly conserved from Caenorhabditis elegans to humans. However, its function in AD is still elusive. In this study, we found miR-124 was significantly down-regulated in AD flies. miR-124 mutant flies showed impaired climbing ability and shortened lifespan. In contrast, miR-124 expression rescued locomotive defects of AD flies. Using microarray analysis to test gene expression profiles of miR-124 mutant flies, we found that Notch signaling pathway was potentially targeted by miR-124. Further experiments showed that miR-124 regulated Notch ligand Delta expression by acting on specific site of Delta 3`UTR. In addition, reduced Delta expression by RNA interference extended lifespan and ameliorated learning defects of AD Drosophila. Notch inhibitor DAPT could also alleviate AD phenotypes, which confirmed our findings. In conclusion, our study indicates that miR-124 plays neuroprotective roles in AD Drosophila by targeting Delta in Notch signaling pathway, which helps further our understanding of miRNAs in the molecular pathology of AD.

Fluorescence-based assay for polyprenyl phosphate-GlcNAc-1-phosphate transferase (WecA) and identification of novel antimycobacterial WecA inhibitors

Polyprenyl phosphate-GlcNAc-1-phosphate transferase (WecA) is an essential enzyme for the growth of Mycobacterium tuberculosis (Mtb) and some other bacteria. Mtb WecA catalyzes the transformation from UDP-GlcNAc to decaprenyl-P-P-GlcNAc, the first membrane-anchored glycophospholipid that is responsible for the biosynthesis of mycolylarabinogalactan in Mtb. Inhibition of WecA will block the entire biosynthesis of essential cell wall components of Mtb in both replicating and non-replicating states, making this enzyme a target for development of novel drugs. Here, we report a fluorescence-based method for the assay of WecA using a modified UDP-GlcNAc, UDP-Glucosamine-C6-FITC (1), a membrane fraction prepared from an M. smegmatis strain, and the E. coli B21WecA. Under the optimized conditions, UDP-Glucosamine-C6-FITC (1) can be converted to the corresponding decaprenyl-P-P-Glucosamine-C6-FITC (3) in 61.5% yield. Decaprenyl-P-P-Glucosamine-C6-FITC is readily extracted with n-butanol and can be quantified by ultraviolet-visible (UV-vis) spectrometry. Screening of the compound libraries designed for bacterial phosphotransferases resulted in the discovery of a selective WecA inhibitor, UT-01320 (12) that kills both replicating and non-replicating Mtb at low concentration. UT-01320 (12) also kills the intracellular Mtb in macrophages. We conclude that the WecA assay reported here is amenable to medium- and high-throughput screening, thus facilitating the discovery of novel WecA inhibitors.

Effects of LeY glycan expression on embryo implantation

OBJECTIVE

To investigate the correlation between LeY glycan expression and embryo implantation.

MATERIALS AND METHODS

Uterine epithelial cells before implantation were transfected with FUT1siRNA to inhibit FUT1 (the gene encoding the key enzyme of LeY synthesis) expression and treated with 10 ng/ml leukemia inhibitory factor (LIF). Murine embryo implantation model in vitro was prepared by late blastocysts with identical morphology and treated uterine epithelial cells co-culture. Using RT-PCR, dot blot and observation of embryo attachment to analyze FUT1 gene expression and LeY synthesis of uterine epithelial cells and studied further the correlation of LeY expression level and embryo implantation.

RESULTS

FUT1 gene expression and LeY synthesis declined after cells were transfected with FUT1siRNA, and LIF promoted FUT1 expression and LeY synthesis. After expression of FUT1 gene was inhibited, attachment rate of embryos lowered, but LIF up-regulated FUT1 expression and increased the attachment rate of embryos.

CONCLUSIONS

These results indicated regulating FUT1 expression affected LeY synthesis, and then LeY regulated the recognition and attachment of uterus-embryo and participates in embryo implantation further.

High preoperative and postoperative levels of carcinoembryonic antigen and CYFRA 21-1 indicate poor prognosis in patients with pathological Stage I nonsmall cell lung cancer

BACKGROUND

Serum carcinoembryonic antigen (CEA) and the soluble fragment of cytokeratin 19 (CYFRA 21-1) are supposed to have a prognostic role in patients with nonsmall cell lung cancer (NSCLC) after surgery, but it has not been used as an adjunct to the tumor-node-metastasis (TNM) staging system to provide therapy options for patients with pathological Stage I NSCLC. This study was designed to investigate the effect of serum levels of CEA and CYFRA 21-1 before and after surgery on the prognosis of patients with Stage I NSCLC.

MATERIALS AND METHODS

A retrospective review was performed regarding the medical records and follow-ups of 169 patients with Stage I NSCLC before and after surgery. The patients were divided into three groups based on levels of serum CEA and CYFRA 21-1 before and after surgery: (1) continuously normal-level groups (CEA [NN] and CYFRA 21-1 [NN] groups); (2) declined to normal-level groups (CEA [HN] and CYFRA 21-1 [HN] groups); and (3) continuously high-level groups (CEA [HH] and CYFRA 21-1 [HH] groups). Survival analysis was conducted using the Kaplan-Meier method for each group. The Chi-square or Fisher exact test was employed to compare clinical and pathologic factors at the level of P < 0.05. The prognostic factor was evaluated by the Cox proportional hazards model.

RESULTS

Compared with the continuously normal-level groups, the CEA [HN] group was significantly correlated to tumor size (P = 0.011), and the CYFRA 21-1 [HN] group was significantly correlated to tumor type and pathological TNM in addition to tumor size. Five-year survivals were significantly lower (P = 0.004) in the CEA [HH] group (67.3%) and the CEA [HN] group (86.5%) than in the CEA [NN] group (85.7%) and were significantly lower (P < 0.001) in the CYFRA 21-1 [HH] group (47.2%) and the CYFRA 21-1 [HN] group (70.1%) than in the CYFRA 21-1 [NN] group (90.1%). Multivariate analysis demonstrated that tumor size (21-50 mm), CEA [HH], and CYFRA 21-1 [HH] were independent unfavorable prognostic factors for overall survival (OS), whereas tumor size (21-50 mm), CEA [HH], CYFRA 21-1 [HN], and CYFRA 21-1 [HH] were independent significant prognostic factors for progression-free survival (PFS).

CONCLUSION

Patients with a persistently high serum CEA or CYFRA 21-1 before and after surgery had shortest OS and PFS. These patients had worst prognosis. Adjuvant chemotherapy was likely to improve survival for these patients.

Propylene/propane permeation properties of ethyl cellulose (EC) mixed matrix membranes fabricated by incorporation of nanoporous graphene nanosheets

Nanopore containing graphene nanosheets were synthesized by graphene oxide and a reducing agent using a facile hydrothermal treatment in sodium hydroxide media. The as-prepared nanoporous graphene was incorporated into ethyl cellulose (EC) to prepare the mixed matrix membranes (MMMs) for C₃H₆/C₃H₈ separation. Transmission electron microscopy (TEM) photograph and X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy (XPS) analysis of nanoporous graphene nanosheets indicated that the structure of nano-pore was irregular and the oxygen-containing groups in the surface were limited. More importantly, the as-prepared MMMs presented better separation performance than that of pristine EC membrane due to simultaneous enhancement of C₃H₆ permeability and ideal selectivity. The ideal selectivity of the MMMs with 1.125 wt‰ nanoporous graphene content for C₃H₆/C₃H₈ increased from 3.45 to 10.42 and the permeability of C₃H₆ increased from 57.9 Barrer to 89.95 Barrer as compared with the pristine membrane. The presumed facilitated mechanism was that the high specific surface area of nanoporous graphene in polymer matrix increased the length of the tortuous pathway formed by nanopores for the gas diffusion as compared with the pristine graphene nanosheets, and generated a rigidified interface between the EC chains and fillers, thus enhanced the diffusivity selectivity. Therefore, it is expected that nanoporous graphene would be effective material for the C₃H₆/C₃H₈ separation.

Parthenolide ameliorates Concanavalin A-induced acute hepatitis in mice and modulates the macrophages to an anti-inflammatory state

Parthenolide, the principal sesquiterpene lactone present in medicinal plants such as feverfew, has anti-microbial, anti-inflammatory and anticancer activities. In the present study, we investigated the protective role of parthenolide against acute hepatitis in mice. Mice acute hepatitis were induced by Concanavalin A and treated by parthenolide in vivo. Results shown that parthenolide remarkably reduced the congestion and necroinflammation of the mice livers with Concanavalin A-induced acute hepatitis. Meanwhile, parthenolide treatment recover the liver function which indicated by decreased the serum alanine transaminase and alkaline phosphatase activities and promoted the expression of Ki67 in the livers of these mice. In addition, parthenolide administration suppressed the Concanavalin A-induced immune reaction, as indicated by the number of F4/80, CD49b and CD4 cells present in the liver. Furthermore, parthenolide also significantly reduced the expression of pro-inflammatory cytokines such as IFN-γ, TNF-α, IL-17A, IL-1β and IL-6 in lipopolysaccharide (LPS)-stimulated RAW264.7 cells in vitro. Moreover, parthenolide exposure decreased the phosphorylation of STAT3 and p38, and promoted the phosphorylation of p53 in RAW264.7 cells in vitro. In conclusion, parthenolide represents a drug candidate to protect the liver against Concanavalin A-induced acute hepatitis. The possible molecular mechanism involves the anti-inflammatory effects of parthenolide may by suppressing the STAT3/p38 signals and enhanced the p53 signals.

Human genome meeting 2016 : Houston, TX, USA. 28 February - 2 March 2016

O1 The metabolomics approach to autism: identification of biomarkers for early detection of autism spectrum disorder A. K. Srivastava, Y. Wang, R. Huang, C. Skinner, T. Thompson, L. Pollard, T. Wood, F. Luo, R. Stevenson O2 Phenome-wide association study for smoking- and drinking-associated genes in 26,394 American women with African, Asian, European, and Hispanic descents R. Polimanti, J. Gelernter O3 Effects of prenatal environment, genotype and DNA methylation on birth weight and subsequent postnatal outcomes: findings from GUSTO, an Asian birth cohort X. Lin, I. Y. Lim, Y. Wu, A. L. Teh, L. Chen, I. M. Aris, S. E. Soh, M. T. Tint, J. L. MacIsaac, F. Yap, K. Kwek, S. M. Saw, M. S. Kobor, M. J. Meaney, K. M. Godfrey, Y. S. Chong, J. D. Holbrook, Y. S. Lee, P. D. Gluckman, N. Karnani, GUSTO study group O4 High-throughput identification of specific qt interval modulating enhancers at the SCN5A locus A. Kapoor, D. Lee, A. Chakravarti O5 Identification of extracellular matrix components inducing cancer cell migration in the supernatant of cultivated mesenchymal stem cells C. Maercker, F. Graf, M. Boutros O6 Single cell allele specific expression (ASE) IN T21 and common trisomies: a novel approach to understand DOWN syndrome and other aneuploidies G. Stamoulis, F. Santoni, P. Makrythanasis, A. Letourneau, M. Guipponi, N. Panousis, M. Garieri, P. Ribaux, E. Falconnet, C. Borel, S. E. Antonarakis O7 Role of microRNA in LCL to IPSC reprogramming S. Kumar, J. Curran, J. Blangero O8 Multiple enhancer variants disrupt gene regulatory network in Hirschsprung disease S. Chatterjee, A. Kapoor, J. Akiyama, D. Auer, C. Berrios, L. Pennacchio, A. Chakravarti O9 Metabolomic profiling for the diagnosis of neurometabolic disorders T. R. Donti, G. Cappuccio, M. Miller, P. Atwal, A. Kennedy, A. Cardon, C. Bacino, L. Emrick, J. Hertecant, F. Baumer, B. Porter, M. Bainbridge, P. Bonnen, B. Graham, R. Sutton, Q. Sun, S. Elsea O10 A novel causal methylation network approach to Alzheimer’s disease Z. Hu, P. Wang, Y. Zhu, J. Zhao, M. Xiong, David A Bennett O11 A microRNA signature identifies subtypes of triple-negative breast cancer and reveals MIR-342-3P as regulator of a lactate metabolic pathway A. Hidalgo-Miranda, S. Romero-Cordoba, S. Rodriguez-Cuevas, R. Rebollar-Vega, E. Tagliabue, M. Iorio, E. D’Ippolito, S. Baroni O12 Transcriptome analysis identifies genes, enhancer RNAs and repetitive elements that are recurrently deregulated across multiple cancer types B. Kaczkowski, Y. Tanaka, H. Kawaji, A. Sandelin, R. Andersson, M. Itoh, T. Lassmann, the FANTOM5 consortium, Y. Hayashizaki, P. Carninci, A. R. R. Forrest O13 Elevated mutation and widespread loss of constraint at regulatory and architectural binding sites across 11 tumour types C. A. Semple O14 Exome sequencing provides evidence of pathogenicity for genes implicated in colorectal cancer E. A. Rosenthal, B. Shirts, L. Amendola, C. Gallego, M. Horike-Pyne, A. Burt, P. Robertson, P. Beyers, C. Nefcy, D. Veenstra, F. Hisama, R. Bennett, M. Dorschner, D. Nickerson, J. Smith, K. Patterson, D. Crosslin, R. Nassir, N. Zubair, T. Harrison, U. Peters, G. Jarvik, NHLBI GO Exome Sequencing Project O15 The tandem duplicator phenotype as a distinct genomic configuration in cancer F. Menghi, K. Inaki, X. Woo, P. Kumar, K. Grzeda, A. Malhotra, H. Kim, D. Ucar, P. Shreckengast, K. Karuturi, J. Keck, J. Chuang, E. T. Liu O16 Modeling genetic interactions associated with molecular subtypes of breast cancer B. Ji, A. Tyler, G. Ananda, G. Carter O17 Recurrent somatic mutation in the MYC associated factor X in brain tumors H. Nikbakht, M. Montagne, M. Zeinieh, A. Harutyunyan, M. Mcconechy, N. Jabado, P. Lavigne, J. Majewski O18 Predictive biomarkers to metastatic pancreatic cancer treatment J. B. Goldstein, M. Overman, G. Varadhachary, R. Shroff, R. Wolff, M. Javle, A. Futreal, D. Fogelman O19 DDIT4 gene expression as a prognostic marker in several malignant tumors L. Bravo, W. Fajardo, H. Gomez, C. Castaneda, C. Rolfo, J. A. Pinto O20 Spatial organization of the genome and genomic alterations in human cancers K. C. Akdemir, L. Chin, A. Futreal, ICGC PCAWG Structural Alterations Group O21 Landscape of targeted therapies in solid tumors S. Patterson, C. Statz, S. Mockus O22 Genomic analysis reveals novel drivers and progression pathways in skin basal cell carcinoma S. N. Nikolaev, X. I. Bonilla, L. Parmentier, B. King, F. Bezrukov, G. Kaya, V. Zoete, V. Seplyarskiy, H. Sharpe, T. McKee, A. Letourneau, P. Ribaux, K. Popadin, N. Basset-Seguin, R. Ben Chaabene, F. Santoni, M. Andrianova, M. Guipponi, M. Garieri, C. Verdan, K. Grosdemange, O. Sumara, M. Eilers, I. Aifantis, O. Michielin, F. de Sauvage, S. Antonarakis O23 Identification of differential biomarkers of hepatocellular carcinoma and cholangiocarcinoma via transcriptome microarray meta-analysis S. Likhitrattanapisal O24 Clinical validity and actionability of multigene tests for hereditary cancers in a large multi-center study S. Lincoln, A. Kurian, A. Desmond, S. Yang, Y. Kobayashi, J. Ford, L. Ellisen O25 Correlation with tumor ploidy status is essential for correct determination of genome-wide copy number changes by SNP array T. L. Peters, K. R. Alvarez, E. F. Hollingsworth, D. H. Lopez-Terrada O26 Nanochannel based next-generation mapping for interrogation of clinically relevant structural variation A. Hastie, Z. Dzakula, A. W. Pang, E. T. Lam, T. Anantharaman, M. Saghbini, H. Cao, BioNano Genomics O27 Mutation spectrum in a pulmonary arterial hypertension (PAH) cohort and identification of associated truncating mutations in TBX4 C. Gonzaga-Jauregui, L. Ma, A. King, E. Berman Rosenzweig, U. Krishnan, J. G. Reid, J. D. Overton, F. Dewey, W. K. Chung O28 NORTH CAROLINA macular dystrophy (MCDR1): mutations found affecting PRDM13 K. Small, A. DeLuca, F. Cremers, R. A. Lewis, V. Puech, B. Bakall, R. Silva-Garcia, K. Rohrschneider, M. Leys, F. S. Shaya, E. Stone O29 PhenoDB and genematcher, solving unsolved whole exome sequencing data N. L. Sobreira, F. Schiettecatte, H. Ling, E. Pugh, D. Witmer, K. Hetrick, P. Zhang, K. Doheny, D. Valle, A. Hamosh O30 Baylor-Johns Hopkins Center for Mendelian genomics: a four year review S. N. Jhangiani, Z. Coban Akdemir, M. N. Bainbridge, W. Charng, W. Wiszniewski, T. Gambin, E. Karaca, Y. Bayram, M. K. Eldomery, J. Posey, H. Doddapaneni, J. Hu, V. R. Sutton, D. M. Muzny, E. A. Boerwinkle, D. Valle, J. R. Lupski, R. A. Gibbs O31 Using read overlap assembly to accurately identify structural genetic differences in an ashkenazi jewish trio S. Shekar, W. Salerno, A. English, A. Mangubat, J. Bruestle O32 Legal interoperability: a sine qua non for international data sharing A. Thorogood, B. M. Knoppers, Global Alliance for Genomics and Health - Regulatory and Ethics Working Group O33 High throughput screening platform of competent sineups: that can enhance translation activities of therapeutic target H. Takahashi, K. R. Nitta, A. Kozhuharova, A. M. Suzuki, H. Sharma, D. Cotella, C. Santoro, S. Zucchelli, S. Gustincich, P. Carninci O34 The undiagnosed diseases network international (UDNI): clinical and laboratory research to meet patient needs J. J. Mulvihill, G. Baynam, W. Gahl, S. C. Groft, K. Kosaki, P. Lasko, B. Melegh, D. Taruscio O36 Performance of computational algorithms in pathogenicity predictions for activating variants in oncogenes versus loss of function mutations in tumor suppressor genes R. Ghosh, S. Plon O37 Identification and electronic health record incorporation of clinically actionable pharmacogenomic variants using prospective targeted sequencing S. Scherer, X. Qin, R. Sanghvi, K. Walker, T. Chiang, D. Muzny, L. Wang, J. Black, E. Boerwinkle, R. Weinshilboum, R. Gibbs O38 Melanoma reprogramming state correlates with response to CTLA-4 blockade in metastatic melanoma T. Karpinets, T. Calderone, K. Wani, X. Yu, C. Creasy, C. Haymaker, M. Forget, V. Nanda, J. Roszik, J. Wargo, L. Haydu, X. Song, A. Lazar, J. Gershenwald, M. Davies, C. Bernatchez, J. Zhang, A. Futreal, S. Woodman O39 Data-driven refinement of complex disease classification from integration of heterogeneous functional genomics data in GeneWeaver E. J. Chesler, T. Reynolds, J. A. Bubier, C. Phillips, M. A. Langston, E. J. Baker O40 A general statistic framework for genome-based disease risk prediction M. Xiong, L. Ma, N. Lin, C. Amos O41 Integrative large-scale causal network analysis of imaging and genomic data and its application in schizophrenia studies N. Lin, P. Wang, Y. Zhu, J. Zhao, V. Calhoun, M. Xiong O42 Big data and NGS data analysis: the cloud to the rescue O. Dobretsberger, M. Egger, F. Leimgruber O43 Cpipe: a convergent clinical exome pipeline specialised for targeted sequencing S. Sadedin, A. Oshlack, Melbourne Genomics Health Alliance O44 A Bayesian classification of biomedical images using feature extraction from deep neural networks implemented on lung cancer data V. A. A. Antonio, N. Ono, Clark Kendrick C. Go O45 MAV-SEQ: an interactive platform for the Management, Analysis, and Visualization of sequence data Z. Ahmed, M. Bolisetty, S. Zeeshan, E. Anguiano, D. Ucar O47 Allele specific enhancer in EPAS1 intronic regions may contribute to high altitude adaptation of Tibetans C. Zeng, J. Shao O48 Nanochannel based next-generation mapping for structural variation detection and comparison in trios and populations H. Cao, A. Hastie, A. W. Pang, E. T. Lam, T. Liang, K. Pham, M. Saghbini, Z. Dzakula O49 Archaic introgression in indigenous populations of Malaysia revealed by whole genome sequencing Y. Chee-Wei, L. Dongsheng, W. Lai-Ping, D. Lian, R. O. Twee Hee, Y. Yunus, F. Aghakhanian, S. S. Mokhtar, C. V. Lok-Yung, J. Bhak, M. Phipps, X. Shuhua, T. Yik-Ying, V. Kumar, H. Boon-Peng O50 Breast and ovarian cancer prevention: is it time for population-based mutation screening of high risk genes? I. Campbell, M.-A. Young, P. James, Lifepool O53 Comprehensive coverage from low DNA input using novel NGS library preparation methods for WGS and WGBS C. Schumacher, S. Sandhu, T. Harkins, V. Makarov O54 Methods for large scale construction of robust PCR-free libraries for sequencing on Illumina HiSeqX platform H. DoddapaneniR. Glenn, Z. Momin, B. Dilrukshi, H. Chao, Q. Meng, B. Gudenkauf, R. Kshitij, J. Jayaseelan, C. Nessner, S. Lee, K. Blankenberg, L. Lewis, J. Hu, Y. Han, H. Dinh, S. Jireh, K. Walker, E. Boerwinkle, D. Muzny, R. Gibbs O55 Rapid capture methods for clinical sequencing J. Hu, K. Walker, C. Buhay, X. Liu, Q. Wang, R. Sanghvi, H. Doddapaneni, Y. Ding, N. Veeraraghavan, Y. Yang, E. Boerwinkle, A. L. Beaudet, C. M. Eng, D. M. Muzny, R. A. Gibbs O56 A diploid personal human genome model for better genomes from diverse sequence data K. C. C. Worley, Y. Liu, D. S. T. Hughes, S. C. Murali, R. A. Harris, A. C. English, X. Qin, O. A. Hampton, P. Larsen, C. Beck, Y. Han, M. Wang, H. Doddapaneni, C. L. Kovar, W. J. Salerno, A. Yoder, S. Richards, J. Rogers, J. R. Lupski, D. M. Muzny, R. A. Gibbs O57 Development of PacBio long range capture for detection of pathogenic structural variants Q. Meng, M. Bainbridge, M. Wang, H. Doddapaneni, Y. Han, D. Muzny, R. Gibbs O58 Rhesus macaques exhibit more non-synonymous variation but greater impact of purifying selection than humans R. A. Harris, M. Raveenedran, C. Xue, M. Dahdouli, L. Cox, G. Fan, B. Ferguson, J. Hovarth, Z. Johnson, S. Kanthaswamy, M. Kubisch, M. Platt, D. Smith, E. Vallender, R. Wiseman, X. Liu, J. Below, D. Muzny, R. Gibbs, F. Yu, J. Rogers O59 Assessing RNA structure disruption induced by single-nucleotide variation J. Lin, Y. Zhang, Z. Ouyang P1 A meta-analysis of genome-wide association studies of mitochondrial dna copy number A. Moore, Z. Wang, J. Hofmann, M. Purdue, R. Stolzenberg-Solomon, S. Weinstein, D. Albanes, C.-S. Liu, W.-L. Cheng, T.-T. Lin, Q. Lan, N. Rothman, S. Berndt P2 Missense polymorphic genetic combinations underlying down syndrome susceptibility E. S. Chen P4 The evaluation of alteration of ELAM-1 expression in the endometriosis patients H. Bahrami, A. Khoshzaban, S. Heidari Keshal P5 Obesity and the incidence of apolipoprotein E polymorphisms in an assorted population from Saudi Arabia population K. K. R. Alharbi P6 Genome-associated personalized antithrombotical therapy for patients with high risk of thrombosis and bleeding M. Zhalbinova, A. Akilzhanova, S. Rakhimova, M. Bekbosynova, S. Myrzakhmetova P7 Frequency of Xmn1 polymorphism among sickle cell carrier cases in UAE population M. Matar P8 Differentiating inflammatory bowel diseases by using genomic data: dimension of the problem and network organization N. Mili, R. Molinari, Y. Ma, S. Guerrier P9 Vulnerability of genetic variants to the risk of autism among Saudi children N. Elhawary, M. Tayeb, N. Bogari, N. Qotb P10 Chromatin profiles from ex vivo purified dopaminergic neurons establish a promising model to support studies of neurological function and dysfunction S. A. McClymont, P. W. Hook, L. A. Goff, A. McCallion P11 Utilization of a sensitized chemical mutagenesis screen to identify genetic modifiers of retinal dysplasia in homozygous Nr2e3^rd7 mice Y. Kong, J. R. Charette, W. L. Hicks, J. K. Naggert, L. Zhao, P. M. Nishina P12 Ion torrent next generation sequencing of recessive polycystic kidney disease in Saudi patients B. M. Edrees, M. Athar, F. A. Al-Allaf, M. M. Taher, W. Khan, A. Bouazzaoui, N. A. Harbi, R. Safar, H. Al-Edressi, A. Anazi, N. Altayeb, M. A. Ahmed, K. Alansary, Z. Abduljaleel P13 Digital expression profiling of Purkinje neurons and dendrites in different subcellular compartments A. Kratz, P. Beguin, S. Poulain, M. Kaneko, C. Takahiko, A. Matsunaga, S. Kato, A. M. Suzuki, N. Bertin, T. Lassmann, R. Vigot, P. Carninci, C. Plessy, T. Launey P14 The evolution of imperfection and imperfection of evolution: the functional and functionless fractions of the human genome D. Graur P16 Species-independent identification of known and novel recurrent genomic entities in multiple cancer patients J. Friis-Nielsen, J. M. Izarzugaza, S. Brunak P18 Discovery of active gene modules which are densely conserved across multiple cancer types reveal their prognostic power and mutually exclusive mutation patterns B. S. Soibam P19 Whole exome sequencing of dysplastic leukoplakia tissue indicates sequential accumulation of somatic mutations from oral precancer to cancer D. Das, N. Biswas, S. Das, S. Sarkar, A. Maitra, C. Panda, P. Majumder P21 Epigenetic mechanisms of carcinogensis by hereditary breast cancer genes J. J. Gruber, N. Jaeger, M. Snyder P22 RNA direct: a novel RNA enrichment strategy applied to transcripts associated with solid tumors K. Patel, S. Bowman, T. Davis, D. Kraushaar, A. Emerman, S. Russello, N. Henig, C. Hendrickson P23 RNA sequencing identifies gene mutations for neuroblastoma K. Zhang P24 Participation of SFRP1 in the modulation of TMPRSS2-ERG fusion gene in prostate cancer cell lines M. Rodriguez-Dorantes, C. D. Cruz-Hernandez, C. D. P. Garcia-Tobilla, S. Solorzano-Rosales P25 Targeted Methylation Sequencing of Prostate Cancer N. Jäger, J. Chen, R. Haile, M. Hitchins, J. D. Brooks, M. Snyder P26 Mutant TPMT alleles in children with acute lymphoblastic leukemia from México City and Yucatán, Mexico S. Jiménez-Morales, M. Ramírez, J. Nuñez, V. Bekker, Y. Leal, E. Jiménez, A. Medina, A. Hidalgo, J. Mejía P28 Genetic modifiers of Alström syndrome J. Naggert, G. B. Collin, K. DeMauro, R. Hanusek, P. M. Nishina P31 Association of genomic variants with the occurrence of angiotensin-converting-enzyme inhibitor (ACEI)-induced coughing among Filipinos E. M. Cutiongco De La Paz, R. Sy, J. Nevado, P. Reganit, L. Santos, J. D. Magno, F. E. Punzalan , D. Ona , E. Llanes, R. L. Santos-Cortes , R. Tiongco, J. Aherrera, L. Abrahan, P. Pagauitan-Alan; Philippine Cardiogenomics Study Group P32 The use of “humanized” mouse models to validate disease association of a de novo GARS variant and to test a novel gene therapy strategy for Charcot-Marie-Tooth disease type 2D K. H. Morelli, J. S. Domire, N. Pyne, S. Harper, R. Burgess P34 Molecular regulation of chondrogenic human induced pluripotent stem cells M. A. Gari, A. Dallol, H. Alsehli, A. Gari, M. Gari, A. Abuzenadah P35 Molecular profiling of hematologic malignancies: implementation of a variant assessment algorithm for next generation sequencing data analysis and clinical reporting M. Thomas, M. Sukhai, S. Garg, M. Misyura, T. Zhang, A. Schuh, T. Stockley, S. Kamel-Reid P36 Accessing genomic evidence for clinical variants at NCBI S. Sherry, C. Xiao, D. Slotta, K. Rodarmer, M. Feolo, M. Kimelman, G. Godynskiy, C. O’Sullivan, E. Yaschenko P37 NGS-SWIFT: a cloud-based variant analysis framework using control-accessed sequencing data from DBGAP/SRA C. Xiao, E. Yaschenko, S. Sherry P38 Computational assessment of drug induced hepatotoxicity through gene expression profiling C. Rangel-Escareño, H. Rueda-Zarate P40 Flowr: robust and efficient pipelines using a simple language-agnostic approach;ultraseq; fast modular pipeline for somatic variation calling using flowr S. Seth, S. Amin, X. Song, X. Mao, H. Sun, R. G. Verhaak, A. Futreal, J. Zhang P41 Applying “Big data” technologies to the rapid analysis of heterogenous large cohort data S. J. Whiite, T. Chiang, A. English, J. Farek, Z. Kahn, W. Salerno, N. Veeraraghavan, E. Boerwinkle, R. Gibbs P42 FANTOM5 web resource for the large-scale genome-wide transcription start site activity profiles of wide-range of mammalian cells T. Kasukawa, M. Lizio, J. Harshbarger, S. Hisashi, J. Severin, A. Imad, S. Sahin, T. C. Freeman, K. Baillie, A. Sandelin, P. Carninci, A. R. R. Forrest, H. Kawaji, The FANTOM Consortium P43 Rapid and scalable typing of structural variants for disease cohorts W. Salerno, A. English, S. N. Shekar, A. Mangubat, J. Bruestle, E. Boerwinkle, R. A. Gibbs P44 Polymorphism of glutathione S-transferases and sulphotransferases genes in an Arab population A. H. Salem, M. Ali, A. Ibrahim, M. Ibrahim P46 Genetic divergence of CYP3A5*3 pharmacogenomic marker for native and admixed Mexican populations J. C. Fernandez-Lopez, V. Bonifaz-Peña, C. Rangel-Escareño, A. Hidalgo-Miranda, A. V. Contreras P47 Whole exome sequence meta-analysis of 13 white blood cell, red blood cell, and platelet traits L. Polfus, CHARGE and NHLBI Exome Sequence Project Working Groups P48 Association of adipoq gene with type 2 diabetes and related phenotypes in african american men and women: The jackson heart study S. Davis, R. Xu, S. Gebeab, P Riestra, A Gaye, R. Khan, J. Wilson, A. Bidulescu P49 Common variants in casr gene are associated with serum calcium levels in koreans S. H. Jung, N. Vinayagamoorthy, S. H. Yim, Y. J. Chung P50 Inference of multiple-wave population admixture by modeling decay of linkage disequilibrium with multiple exponential functions Y. Zhou, S. Xu P51 A Bayesian framework for generalized linear mixed models in genome-wide association studies X. Wang, V. Philip, G. Carter P52 Targeted sequencing approach for the identification of the genetic causes of hereditary hearing impairment A. A. Abuzenadah, M. Gari, R. Turki, A. Dallol P53 Identification of enhancer sequences by ATAC-seq open chromatin profiling A. Uyar, A. Kaygun, S. Zaman, E. Marquez, J. George, D. Ucar P54 Direct enrichment for the rapid preparation of targeted NGS libraries C. L. Hendrickson, A. Emerman, D. Kraushaar, S. Bowman, N. Henig, T. Davis, S. Russello, K. Patel P56 Performance of the Agilent D5000 and High Sensitivity D5000 ScreenTape assays for the Agilent 4200 Tapestation System R. Nitsche, L. Prieto-Lafuente P57 ClinVar: a multi-source archive for variant interpretation M. Landrum, J. Lee, W. Rubinstein, D. Maglott P59 Association of functional variants and protein physical interactions of human MUTY homolog linked with familial adenomatous polyposis and colorectal cancer syndrome Z. Abduljaleel, W. Khan, F. A. Al-Allaf, M. Athar , M. M. Taher, N. Shahzad P60 Modification of the microbiom constitution in the gut using chicken IgY antibodies resulted in a reduction of acute graft-versus-host disease after experimental bone marrow transplantation A. Bouazzaoui, E. Huber, A. Dan, F. A. Al-Allaf, W. Herr, G. Sprotte, J. Köstler, A. Hiergeist, A. Gessner, R. Andreesen, E. Holler P61 Compound heterozygous mutation in the LDLR gene in Saudi patients suffering severe hypercholesterolemia F. Al-Allaf, A. Alashwal, Z. Abduljaleel, M. Taher, A. Bouazzaoui, H. Abalkhail, A. Al-Allaf, R. Bamardadh, M. Athar

Long noncoding RNA NEAT1 is an unfavorable prognostic factor and regulates migration and invasion in gastric cancer

BACKGROUND

Long noncoding RNAs (LncRNAs) have been demonstrated as playing important roles in diverse biological processes including tumorigenesis. However, the clinical significance and biological function of LncRNA nuclear-enriched abundant transcript 1 (NEAT1) in gastric cancer are still unknown. The aim of this study was to identify the role of LncRNA NEAT1 in gastric cancer.

METHODS

The expression of LncRNA NEAT1 was detected in gastric cancer samples and cell lines by real-time PCR. The clinical and prognostic significance of LncRNA NEAT1 in gastric cancer patients was analyzed. Furthermore, the biological function of LncRNA NEAT1 on tumor cell growth and mobility were explored through MTT, colony formation, transwell migration, and invasion assays in vitro. The potential mechanism of LncRNA NEAT1 was identified by Western blot.

RESULTS

LncRNA NEAT1 was overexpressed in gastric cancer tissues and cell lines and corrected with clinical stage, histological type, lymph node metastasis, and distant metastasis. Furthermore, patients with high levels of LncRNA NEAT1 had poorer survival than those with lower levels of LncRNA NEAT1. Univariate and multivariate Cox regression analyses showed that LncRNA NEAT1 overexpression was a poor independent prognostic factor for gastric cancer patients. Moreover, knocking down LncRNA NEAT1 expression significantly suppressed the gastric cancer cell migration and invasion in vitro and regulated EMT-associated proteins expression.

CONCLUSION

LncRNA NEAT1 plays an important role on gastric cancer tumorigenesis and progression and may act as a potential biomarker for therapeutic strategy and prognostic prediction.

Cannabinoid WIN‑55,212‑2 mesylate inhibits ADAMTS‑4 activity in human osteoarthritic articular chondrocytes by inhibiting expression of syndecan‑1

A central feature of osteoarthritis (OA) is the loss of articular cartilage, which is primarily attributed to cartilage breakdown. A group of metalloproteinases termed the A disintegrin and metalloproteinase with thrombospondin motifs (ADAMTS) family are reported to be important in cartilage breakdown. Recent studies have suggested that ADAMTS-4 is a major contributor to the pathogenesis of OA and that syndecan-1 is closely associated with activation of ADAMTS-4 in human chondrocytes. Accumulating evidence also suggests that cannabinoids have chondroprotective effects. The current study explored the effects of synthetic cannabinoid WIN-55,212-2 mesylate (WIN-55) on the expression of syndecan-1 and ADAMTS-4, as well as ADAMTS-4 activity, in unstimulated and interleukin (IL)-1β-stimulated OA chondrocytes. Primary human OA articular chondrocytes were treated with WIN-55 in the presence or absence of IL-1β and cannabinoid receptor antagonists. The results of the present study demonstrated that WIN-55 inhibited ADAMTS-4 activity in unstimulated and IL-1β-stimulated primary human OA articular chondrocytes in a concentration-dependent manner. Cannabinoid receptor type 1 (CB1) and 2 (CB2) were constitutively expressed in human OA articular chondrocytes. Furthermore, selective CB2 antagonist, JTE907, but not selective CB1 antagonist, MJ15, abolished the inhibitory effect of WIN-55 on ADAMTS-4 activity. WIN55 inhibited the expression of syndecan-1 but not ADAMTS-4, and overexpression of syndecan-1 reversed the inhibitory effect of WIN-55 on the ADAMTS-4 activity in unstimulated and IL-1β-stimulated human OA articular chondrocytes. Despite having no significant effect on syndecan-1 gene promoter activity, WIN-55 markedly decreased the stability of syndecan-1 mRNA via CB2. In conclusion, to the best of our knowledge, the present study provides the first in vitro evidence supporting that the synthetic cannabinoid WIN-55 inhibits ADAMTS-4 activity in unstimulated and IL-1β-stimulated human OA articular chondrocytes by decreasing the mRNA stability/expression of syndecan-1 via CB2. This suggests a novel mechanism by which cannabinoids may prevent cartilage breakdown in OA. In addition, it also provides novel insights into the pharmacological effects of synthetic cannabinoids on OA.

Secretory pathway Ca(2+)-ATPase isoform 1 knockdown promotes Golgi apparatus stress injury in a mouse model of focal cerebral ischemia-reperfusion: In vivo and in vitro study

The present study was designed to investigate the potential role of secretory pathway Ca(2+)-ATPase isoform 1(SPCA1) in experimental focal cerebral ischemia-reperfusion injury. Cerebral ischemia-reperfusion was induced by transient middle cerebral artery occlusion (MCAO) for 2h s in Sprague-Dawley rats, and then the expression levels of SPAC1 mRNA and protein were determined. Results showed that SPCA1 level was transiently increased 1 day after reperfusion in peri-infarction area, while markedly increased in infarction core on 3day and 7 day after reperfusion. Then a SPCA1 lentivirus was used to achieve knockdown of SPCA1 gene: Ca(2+) transporting type 2C, member 1 (ATP2C1) gene. It has been observed that SPCA1 knockdown by lentivirus markedly increased cerebral infarction volume in vivo. Meanwhile, SPCA1 knockdown also facilitated per-oxidative production, including nitric oxide (NO) and 3-nitrotyrosine (3-NT) and decreased the expression of total superoxide dismutase (SOD) and manganese superoxide dismutase (MnSOD). Moreover, in vitro study showed that SPCA1 knockdown increased hydrogen peroxide (H2O2)-induced lactate dehydrogenase (LDH) leakage dose-dependently, and elevated caspase3 level in neuro-2a (N2a) cells. In addition, SPCA1 knockdown increased H2O2-induced production of nitric oxide and 3-NT dose-dependently, and reversed the increased activity of total SOD and MnSOD in neuro-2a cells. In conclusion, the present study indicated that SPCA1 could suppress over active Golgi apparatus (GA) stress thus attenuate cerebral ischemia-reperfusion injury.

High Glucose Enhances oxLDL-Induced Apoptosis in Human Renal Proximal Tubular Epithelial Cells Largely via Inducing Lectin-Like ox-LDL Receptor-1

BACKGROUND

High blood glucose is characteristic of diabetic nephropathy (DN). Both lectin-like ox-LDL receptor-1 (LOX-1) and renal tubular epithelial cells apoptosis reportedly are important for the pathogenesis and progression of DN. In this study, we explored the regulatory effects of high glucose on the expression of LOX-1 and its impact on oxLDL-induced apoptosis in human renal proximal tubular epithelial cells (HRPTEpCs).

METHODS

Primary HRPTEpCs were treated with high glucose with or without concurrent treatment with selective p38 mitogen-activated protein kinase (MAPK) inhibitor PD169316 or lentiviral knockdown of LOX-1. HRPTEpCs cultured in normal glucose concentration (5.5 mmol/l) was used as a control.

RESULTS AND CONCLUSION

High glucose concentration dependency increased the expression of LOX-1, which led to increased ox-LDL binding in HRPTEpCs. In addition, high glucose upregulated the LOX-1 gene promoter activity but not its mRNA stability in HRPTEpCs; the effect was abolished by PD169316. Furthermore, high glucose markedly enhanced oxLDL-induced apoptosis in HRPTEpCs, which was largely abolished by knockdown of LOX-1. This study demonstrates that high glucose induces the expression of LOX-1 at the gene promoter/transcription level mainly by a p38 MAPK-dependent mechanism, which enhances oxLDL-induced apoptosis in renal tubular epithelial cells. It adds new insights into the molecular mechanisms underlying DN.

Application of Fluorescent Protein Expressing Strains to Evaluation of Anti-Tuberculosis Therapeutic Efficacy In Vitro and In Vivo

The slow growth of Mycobacterium tuberculosis (Mtb), the causative agent of tuberculosis (TB), hinders development of new diagnostics, therapeutics and vaccines. Using non-invasive real-time imaging technologies to monitor the disease process in live animals would facilitate TB research in all areas. We developed fluorescent protein (FP) expressing Mycobacterium bovis BCG strains for in vivo imaging, which can be used to track bacterial location, and to quantify bacterial load in live animals. We selected an optimal FP for in vivo imaging, by first cloning six FPs: tdTomato, mCherry, mPlum, mKate, Katushka and mKeima, into mycobacteria under either a mycobacterial Hsp60 or L5 promoter, and compared their fluorescent signals in vitro and in vivo. Fluorescence from each FP-expressing strain was measured with a multimode reader using the optimal excitation and emission wavelengths for the FP. After normalizing bacterial numbers with optical density, the strain expressing L5-tdTomato displayed the highest fluorescence. We used the tdTomato-labeled M. bovis BCG to obtain real-time images of pulmonary infections in living mice and rapidly determined the number of bacteria present. Further comparison between L5-tdTomato and Hsp60-tdTomato revealed that L5-tdTomato carried four-fold more tdTomato gene copies than Hsp60-tdTomato, which eventually led to higher protein expression of tdTomato. Evaluating anti-TB efficacy of rifampicin and isoniazid therapy in vitro and in vivo using the L5-tdTomato strain demonstrated that this strain can be used to identify anti-TB therapeutic efficacy as quickly as 24 h post-treatment. These M. bovis BCG reporter strains represent a valuable new tool for evaluation of therapeutics, vaccines and virulence.