CSPG4 in cancer: multiple roles

Chondroitin sulfate proteoglycan 4 (CSPG4), also known as High Molecular Weight-Melanoma Associated Antigen, is a cell surface proteoglycan which has been recently shown to be expressed not only by melanoma cells, but also by various types of human carcinoma and sarcoma. Furthermore, at least in squamous cell carcinoma of head and neck and in basal breast carcinoma, CSPG4 is expressed by cancer stem cells. CSPG4 plays an important role in tumor cell growth and survival. These CSPG4-associated functional properties of tumor cells are inhibited by CSPG4-specific monoclonal antibodies (mAb) in vitro. Moreover, CSPG4-specific mAb can also inhibit tumor growth and metastasis in vivo. The anti-tumor effects of CSPG4-specific mAb are likely to reflect the blocking of important migratory, mitogenic and survival signaling pathways in tumor cells. These results indicate that CSPG4 is a promising new target to implement mAb-based immunotherapy of various types of cancer.

The pharmacokinetics of nitazoxanide active metabolite (tizoxanide) in goats and its protein binding ability in vitro

The pharmacokinetics of tizoxanide (T), the active metabolite of nitazoxanide (NTZ), and its protein binding ability in goat plasma and in the solutions of albumin and alpha-1-acid-glycoprotein were investigated. The plasma and protein binding samples were analyzed using a high-performance liquid chromatography (HPLC) assay with UV detection at 360 nm. The plasma concentration of T was detectable in goats up to 24 h. Plasma concentrations vs. time data of T after 200 mg/kg oral administration of NTZ in goats were adequately described by one-compartment open model with first order absorption. As to free T, the values of t(1/2Ka), t(1/2Ke), T(max), C(max), AUC, V/F((c)), and Cl((s)) were 2.51 +/- 0.41 h, 3.47 +/- 0.32 h, 4.90 +/- 0.13 h, 2.56 +/- 0.25 microg/mL, 27.40 +/- 1.54 (microg/mL) x h, 30.17 +/- 2.17 L/kg, and 7.34 +/- 1.21 L/(kg x h), respectively. After beta-glucuronidase hydrolysis to obtain total T, t(1/2ke), C(max), T(max), AUC increased, while the V/F((c)) and Cl((s)) decreased. Study of the protein binding ability showed that T with 4 microg/mL concentration in goat plasma and in the albumin solution achieved a protein binding percentage of more than 95%, while in the solution of alpha-1-acid-glycoprotein, the percentage was only about 49%. This result suggested that T might have much more potent binding ability with albumin than with alpha-1-acid-glycoprotein, resulting from its acidic property.

Bacterial community dynamics in two full-scale wastewater treatment systems with functional stability

AIMS

To characterize the bacterial community dynamics over 1 year in two full-scale wastewater treatment systems operated under constant conditions and exhibiting stable performance.

METHODS AND RESULTS

Functional stability was defined and quantified by the effluent concentration of biological oxygen demand, total nitrogen and ammonia. Community dynamics were investigated using specific PCR followed by terminal restriction fragment length polymorphism (T-RFLP) of the 16S rRNA gene. The T-RFLP results indicated that during the period of functional stability, the bacterial community structures in two full-scale wastewater treatment systems were not stable, and the average change rates every 15 days of the two systems were 22.6 ± 6.9 and 21.6 ± 7.3%, respectively. The corresponding species with dominant T-RFs were determined by clonal sequencing and T-RFLP. Based on Pareto-Lorenz distribution curves, it was observed that only a small number of micro-organisms were numerically dominant in the two systems.

CONCLUSIONS

The results of this study showed that, throughout the period of the study, the bacterial community structure changed significantly in two full-scale wastewater treatment systems despite the stable function.

SIGNIFICANCE AND IMPACT OF THE STUDY

The findings enrich the theory involving the relation between bacterial community dynamics and functional stability in full-scale wastewater treatment plants.

Aeolian sediment evidence that global cooling has driven late Cenozoic stepwise aridification in central Asia

It has been a long held view that uplift of the Tibetan Plateau dominated stepwise climatic drying in central Asia during the late Cenozoic. On the other hand, global cooling may also have forced Asian drying and the subsequent formation of aeolian deposits in north China. Until now, whether the Tibetan uplift or the global cooling has been the first-order driver controlling stepwise Asian drying has remained a contentious issue. In this study, we examine the thick aeolian silt deposit, which is regarded as a good archive of palaeoclimatic changes in central Asia and north China, in order to qualitatively reconstruct the drying process in Asia during the late Cenozoic. On the basis of our long-term field surveys, laboratory analyses and previous investigations, we have obtained time sequences of Asian drying from the early Miocene to late Pleistocene; we compare this newly reconstructed time series of Asian aridification with the time series of global cooling and Tibetan uplift to identify the first-order driver of stepwise Asian aridification. A good match between the drying and global cooling might indicate that global cooling was the most likely driver of stepwise drying in interior Asia. On the other hand, controversy regarding timing and amplitude of Tibetan uplift during the late Cenozoic suggests that the prevailing conclusion that Tibetan uplift forces Asian drying should be regarded as immature. A mechanism that global cooling drove the Asian drying is tentatively suggested.

Prognostic Value of Protease-Activated Receptor 2 Expression in Oesophageal Squamous Cell Carcinoma

Protease-activated receptor-2 (PAR-2) is essential for the initiation and development of tumours, suggesting that the detection of PAR-2 expression might serve as a clinical marker in the prediction or diagnosis of clinical outcomes of malignant neoplasia. Using immunohisto chemical methods, this study investigated whether the detection of PAR-2 protein had clinical implications for patients with oesophageal squamous cell carcinoma (OSCC). PAR-2 protein was present at a high level in primary OSCC sites but at a low level in normal oesophageal tissue. The level of PAR-2 protein in tumours was significantly correlated with the clinical stage and histological grade of disease. Patients with tumours highly positive for PAR-2 protein had a significantly worse prognosis than those with lower PAR-2 levels. Thus, the over-expression of PAR-2 is a characteristic feature of OSCC and suggests that the immuno histochemical detection of raised levels of PAR-2 may be a potentially useful prognostic indicator.

Synthesis and evaluation of chitosan-graft-polyethylenimine as a gene vector

The objective of this study was to prepare a series of chitosan-graft-polyethylenimine (chitosan-g-PEI) copolymers as gene carriers with high transfection efficiency and low cytotoxicity. Chitosan-g-PEIs with different molecular weights and segments were successfully synthesized by both oxidation and imine reactions and then characterized by 1H NMR, IR, UV and DSC. All types of Chitosan-g-PEIs prepared were found to interact efficiently with plasmid DNA (pIRES2-EGFP-p53) on DNA retardation assays. The Chitosan-g-PEI/DNA complex had a diameter of approximately 200 nm and a surface potential of zeta = +10.0 mV when the N/P ratio was 15/1. Optimal transfection efficiency of the chitosan-g-PEI/DNA complex was observed at N/P = 45/1 on HepG2 cells, with significantly lower toxicity compared with the gold standard PEI 25 kd. Moreover, the results showed that the toxicity increased with increasing molecular weight of the PEI segment in chitosan-g-PEI. Based on these results, chitosan-g-PEI with different chitosan and PEI segments of could be used for gene expression on different levels, and some of them may appear as potential candidates for gene delivery systems.

The availability of 16S rRNA for the identification of forensically important flies (Diptera: Muscidae) in China

Many species of Muscidae are cosmopolitan synanthropic insects. It is frequently found on dead bodies after death, so an accurate identification of each species is necessary for the correct estimation of the postmortem interval (PMI). Identification species of Muscidae is traditionally performed through their morphological features. However, the morphological similarity of Muscidae in the level of species usually poses a challenge for forensic entomologists. Therefore a molecular method used 16S rRNA sequence on mitochondrial DNA was established for species identification. In this study, a 289 base pair region of mitochondrial DNA (mtDNA) coding for 16S rRNA was investigated for identification of the following forensically important species of Muscidae. The specimens were from four genera, including 18 Musca domestica (Linnaeus, 1758), 2 Ophyra spinigera (Stein, 1910), 2 Ophyra chalcogaster (Wiedemann, 1824), 1 Morellia hortorum (Fallén, 1817), and 1 Fannia canicularis (Linnaeus, 1761). 16S rDNA region allowed the identification of these species of Muscidae, indicating the possibility of separation congeneric species with molecular method.

First measurement of Bose-Einstein correlations in proton-proton collisions at √s=0.9 and 2.36 TeV at the LHC

Bose-Einstein correlations have been measured using samples of proton-proton collisions at 0.9 and 2.36 TeV center-of-mass energies, recorded by the CMS experiment at the CERN Large Hadron Collider. The signal is observed in the form of an enhancement of pairs of same-sign charged particles with small relative four-momentum. The size of the correlated particle emission region is seen to increase significantly with the particle multiplicity of the event.

Transverse-momentum and pseudorapidity distributions of charged hadrons in pp collisions at square root of s = 7 TeV

Charged-hadron transverse-momentum and pseudorapidity distributions in proton-proton collisions at square root of s = 7  TeV are measured with the inner tracking system of the CMS detector at the LHC. The charged-hadron yield is obtained by counting the number of reconstructed hits, hit pairs, and fully reconstructed charged-particle tracks. The combination of the three methods gives a charged-particle multiplicity per unit of pseudorapidity dN(ch)/dη|(|η|<0.5) = 5.78 ± 0.01(stat) ± 0.23(syst) for non-single-diffractive events, higher than predicted by commonly used models. The relative increase in charged-particle multiplicity from square root of s = 0.9 to 7 TeV is [66.1 ± 1.0(stat) ± 4.2(syst)]%. The mean transverse momentum is measured to be 0.545 ± 0.005(stat) ± 0.015(syst)  GeV/c. The results are compared with similar measurements at lower energies.

Three-particle coincidence of the long range pseudorapidity correlation in high energy nucleus-nucleus collisions

We report the first three-particle coincidence measurement in pseudorapidity (Δη) between a high transverse momentum (p⊥) trigger particle and two lower p⊥ associated particles within azimuth |Δϕ|<0.7 in square root of s(NN)=200 GeV d+Au and Au+Au collisions. Charge ordering properties are exploited to separate the jetlike component and the ridge (long range Δη correlation). The results indicate that the correlation of ridge particles are uniform not only with respect to the trigger particle but also between themselves event by event in our measured Δη. In addition, the production of the ridge appears to be uncorrelated to the presence of the narrow jetlike component.

Effects of protein coding polymorphisms in the kallikrein 1 gene on baseline blood pressure and antihypertensive response to irbesartan in Chinese hypertensive patients

The aim of this study was to determine the association between coding variants in the human tissue kallikrein 1 (KLK1) gene and baseline blood pressure (BP) and antihypertensive response to irbesartan treatment in Chinese hypertensive patients. A total of 1061 hypertensives were recruited and received daily oral dosage of 150 mg irbesartan for 4 weeks. Predose BPs, BPs and blood irbesartan concentrations at postdose on the 28th day were all measured. Common functional single-nucleotide polymorphisms (SNPs) in the KLK1 gene were genotyped. On the basis of the HapMap data of Han Chinese in the Beijing population, two non-synonymous polymorphisms with minor allele frequency>0.1, SNP rs5517 (Glu162Lys) and rs5516 (Gln121Glu), were selected. Those with GG genotype in the rs5516 locus had higher average baseline systolic BP (SBP) than CC subjects (β±s.e.: 5.0±2.3, P=0.033); and no associations of rs5517 with baseline BP (diastolic BP (DBP) and SBP) and BP responses, or rs5516 with baseline DBP and BP response were observed. In a haplotype-based association test for the KLK1 gene, the Haplo-special score analyses identified that haplotype AG was marginally associated with SBP response (specific score: 1.75 for P=0.08), but not with DBP response. We did not find any associations between haplotypes (GC and AC) and BP responses. The Haplo-GLM analyses showed that, compared with haplotype GC subjects, the subjects with haplotype AG had a marginally greater SBP response (adjusted β±s.e.: 1.81±0.97, P=0.06), but DBP response did not differ. This study suggests that rs5516 in the KLK1 gene may be involved in the development of essential hypertension and in the regulation of SBP-lowering response to irbesartan in Chinese hypertensives.

Association analysis of 33 lipoprotein candidate genes in multi-generational families of African ancestry

African ancestry individuals have a more favorable lipoprotein profile than Caucasians, although the mechanisms for these differences remain unclear. We measured fasting serum lipoproteins and genotyped 768 tagging or potentially functional single nucleotide polymorphisms (SNPs) across 33 candidate gene regions in 401 Afro-Caribbeans older than 18 years belonging to 7 multi-generational pedigrees (mean family size 51, range 21-113, 3,426 relative pairs). All lipoproteins were significantly heritable (P<0.05). Gender-specific analysis showed that heritability for triglycerides was much higher (P<0.01) in women than in men (women, 0.62+/-0.18, P<0.01; men, 0.13+/-0.17, P>0.10), but the heritability for LDL cholesterol (LDL-C) was higher (P<0.05) in men than in women (men, 0.79+/-0.21, P<0.01; women, 0.39+/-0.12, P<0.01). The top 14 SNPs that passed the false discovery rate threshold in the families were then tested for replication in an independent population-based sample of 1,750 Afro-Caribbean men aged 40+ years. Our results revealed significant associations for three SNPs in two genes (rs5929 and rs6511720 in LDLR and rs7517090 in PCSK9) and LDL-C in both the family study and in the replication study. Our findings suggest that LDLR and PCSK9 variants may contribute to a variation in LDL-C among African ancestry individuals. Future sequencing and functional studies of these loci may advance our understanding of genetic factors contributing to LDL-C in African ancestry populations.

A novel polysaccharide, isolated from Angelica sinensis (Oliv.) Diels induces the apoptosis of cervical cancer HeLa cells through an intrinsic apoptotic pathway

A novel polysaccharide isolated from Angelica sinensis, named APS-1d showed cytotoxic activity towards several cancer cell lines in vitro. However, the precise antitumor mechanisms of this compound are unknown. In this study, we investigated the pro-apoptotic effects of APS-1d in human cervical cancer HeLa cells both in vitro and in vivo, and further elucidated the mechanisms of this action. Inhibition of HeLa cell proliferation was determined by MTT assay and the therapeutic efficacy of APS-1d was evaluated by human cancer xenografts in nude mice. Cell apoptosis was examined with flow cytometry and TUNEL assay. The mechanism of action of APS-1d was investigated by Western blot analysis. APS-1d decreased HeLa cell proliferation in a concentration- and time-dependent manner in vitro. In addition, APS-1d significantly inhibited tumor growth in athymic nude mice. Characteristic manifestations of apoptosis including apoptotic morphological features and the sub- G(0)/G(1) peaks were observed when the cells were treated with APS-1d. Further analysis showed that APS-1d-induced apoptosis was associated with the regulation of Bcl-2 family protein expression, a decrease in the mitochondrial membrane potential, and an increase in the cytosolic cytochrome c levels. Sequentially, APS-1d increased the activities of caspase-9, -3, and poly (ADP-ribose) polymerase in a concentration-dependent manner, however, no obvious activation of Bid and caspase-8 was observed. Pretreatment with Z-LEHD-FMK, a specific inhibitor of caspase-9, significantly attenuated APS-1d-induced cell apoptosis, and activation of caspase-3. Taken together, our studies indicate that APS-1d is capable of inhibiting HeLa cell proliferation and inducing apoptosis in these cells which primarily involves the activation of the intrinsic mitochondrial pathway.

Functional genomics in chickens: development of integrated-systems microarrays for transcriptional profiling and discovery of regulatory pathways

The genetic networks that govern the differentiation and growth of major tissues of economic importance in the chicken are largely unknown. Under a functional genomics project, our consortium has generated 30 609 expressed sequence tags (ESTs) and developed several chicken DNA microarrays, which represent the Chicken Metabolic/Somatic (10 K) and Neuroendocrine/Reproductive (8 K) Systems (http://udgenome.ags.udel.edu/cogburn/). One of the major challenges facing functional genomics is the development of mathematical models to reconstruct functional gene networks and regulatory pathways from vast volumes of microarray data. In initial studies with liver-specific microarrays (3.1 K), we have examined gene expression profiles in liver during the peri-hatch transition and during a strong metabolic perturbation—fasting and re-feeding—in divergently selected broiler chickens (fast vs. slow-growth lines). The expression of many genes controlling metabolic pathways is dramatically altered by these perturbations. Our analysis has revealed a large number of clusters of functionally related genes (mainly metabolic enzymes and transcription factors) that control major metabolic pathways. Currently, we are conducting transcriptional profiling studies of multiple tissues during development of two sets of divergently selected broiler chickens (fast vs. slow growing and fat vs. lean lines). Transcriptional profiling across multiple tissues should permit construction of a detailed genetic blueprint that illustrates the developmental events and hierarchy of genes that govern growth and development of chickens. This review will briefly describe the recent acquisition of chicken genomic resources (ESTs and microarrays) and our consortium's efforts to help launch the new era of functional genomics in the chicken.

Amplification and overexpression of the cyclin D1 gene in head and neck squamous cell carcinoma

Aims-To determine cyclin D1 gene amplification and expression levels in head and neck squamous cell carcinoma (HNSCC) patients.Methods-Total RNA and genomic DNA were isolated from 40 samples of HNSCC tissue and matched normal tissue and were hybridised with a cyclin D1 cDNA probe. Northern and Southern analyses were used to detect mRNA overexpression and cyclin D1 gene amplification, respectively.Results-15 of the 40 HNSCC samples examined (38%) showed cyclin D1 gene amplification. Of these 15 samples, all 13 from which RNA was available showed increased cyclin D1 expression.Conclusions-HNSCC patients with both amplification and overexpression of the cyclin D1 gene are at greater risk than patients who showed no cyclin D1 gene amplification; amplification and over-expression of the cyclin D1 gene may play an important role in the progression of HNSCC and in clinical outcome.