Decreased Expression of MYPT1 Contributes to Tumor Angiogenesis and Poor Patient Prognosis in Human Prostate Cancer

BACKGROUND

Our previous study demonstrated that Myosin Phosphatase Targeting subunit 1 (MYPT1) may function as a direct target of microRNA-30d, which promotes tumor angiogenesis and tumor growth of prostate cancer (PCa). Here, we aimed to investigate the clinical significance of MYPT1 expression and its functions in PCa.

METHODS

Roles of MYPT1 deregulation in tumor angiogenesis of PCa was determined in vitro and in vivo experiments. Expression patterns of MYPT1 and CD31 proteins were examined by immunohistochemistry and immunofluorescence, respectively. Associations of MYPT1/CD31 combination with various clinicopathological features and patients' prognosis of PCa were also statistically evaluated.

RESULTS

Through gain- and loss-of-function experiments, MYPT1 inhibited capillary tube formation of endothelial cells and in vivo tumor angiogenesis in a mouse model with the downregulation of VEGF and CD31 expression. In addition, MYPT1 expression was significantly decreased, while CD31 expression was dramatically increased in PCa tissues compared to benign prostate tissues. Notably, MYPT1 expression levels in PCa tissues were negatively correlated with that of CD31. Statistically, MYPT1-low/CD31- high expression was distinctly associated with high Gleason score, positive biochemical recurrence, and reduced overall survival of PCa patients. Moreover, PCa patients with MYPT1-low/CD31-high expression more frequently had shorter overall, biochemical recurrence-free and metastasis-free survivals. MYPT1/CD31 combination was identified as an independent factor to predict biochemical recurrence-free and metastasis-free survivals of PCa patients.

CONCLUSIONS

Our findings indicate that MYPT1 may inhibit angiogenesis and contribute favorable prognosis in PCa patients, implying that MYPT1 might be a potential drug candidate in anticancer therapy.

[The effect of short-term exposure to ambient NO(2) on lung function and fractional exhaled nitric oxide in 33 chronic obstructive pulmonary disease patients]

Objectives: To investigate the effect of short-term exposure to ambient NO(2) has influence on lung function and fractional exhaled nitric oxide (FeNO) in chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD) patients. Methods: A panel of doctor-diagnosed stable COPD patients (n=33) were recruited and repeatedly measured for lung function and FeNO from December 2013 to October 2014. The patients who lived in Beijing for more than one year and aged between 60 and 85 years old were included in the study. We excluded patients with asthma, bronchial tensor, lung cancer and other respiratory disorders other than chronic obstructive pulmonary disease and occupational exposure and chest trauma surgery patients. Because the frequency of each subject visiting to the hospital was different, a total of 170 times of lung function measurements and 215 times of FeNO measurements were conducted. At the same time, the atmospheric NO(2) data of Beijing environmental monitoring station near the residence of each patient during the study period were collected from 1 day to 7 days lag before the measurement. Effects of short-term NO(2) exposure on lung function and FeNO in COPD patients were estimated by linear mixed-effects models. Results: The subjects' forced vital capacity (FVC), forced expiratory volume in one second (FEV(1)), peak expiratory flow (PEF), and exhaled NO of subjects were (3.26±0.83) L, (1.66±0.61) L, (4.13±1.77) L/s, and (48.99±14.30) μg/m(3), respectively. The concentration of NO(2) was (70.3±34.2) μg/m(3) and the interquartile range (IQR) was 39.0 μg/m(3). Short-term exposure to NO(2) resulted in a significant decrease in FVC among COPD patients' which was most obvious in 2 days lag. Every quartile range increased in NO(2) (39 μg/m(3), 2 day) would cause a 1.84% (95%CI: -3.20%- -0.48%) reduction in FVC. The effects of exposure to higher concentration of NO(2) (≥58.0 μg/m(3)) on FVC estimate was -2.32% (95%CI: -4.15%- -0.48%)(P=0.02). No significant relevance of FeNO and NO(2) was observed in this study. Conclusions: Short term exposure to ambient NO(2) may bring down pulmonary function in COPD patients.

Copper-Catalyzed Oxidative Alkylation (Methylation) of Phosphonamides and Phosphinamides Using Dicumyl Peroxide

An effective and practical CuI-catalyzed methodology toward N-alkyl or N-methyl phosphonamides and phosphinamides was herein demonstrated. The transformation took place readily under the oxidative conditions, and plenty of N-alkylated (methylated) amides (30 examples) were successfully furnished in high efficiency (up to 92% yields). Dicumyl peroxide was considered to act either as the oxidant for the alkylation reaction or as methyl donator for the methylation protocol.

Oral immunisation with Taishan Pinus massoniana pollen polysaccharide adjuvant with recombinant Lactococcus lactis-expressing Proteus mirabilis ompA confers optimal protection in mice

BACKGROUND

Proteus mirabilis poses a critical burden on the breeding industry, but no efficient vaccine is available for animals.

METHOD

A recombinant Lactococcus lactis expressing the ompA of P. mirabilis was used to develop a vaccine. The mucosal and systemic immune responses of the recombinant vaccine were evaluated in mice after oral immunisation. The inhibition on P. mirabilis colonisation of vaccines was also determined. Moreover, Taishan Pinus massoniana pollen polysaccharides (TPPPS) were used as adjuvants to examine the immunomodulatory effects.

RESULTS

The pure recombinant L. lactis vaccine significantly induced the production of specific IgA and IgG, IL-2, IL-4, IFN-γ, and T lymphocyte proliferation, and the immunised mice exhibited significant resistance to P. mirabilis colonisation. Notably, the TPPPS adjuvant vaccines induced higher levels of immune responses than the pure L. lactis.

CONCLUSIONS

The L. lactis as a vaccine vehicle combined with TPPPS adjuvant provides a feasible method for preventing P. mirabilis infection.

The effect of dexmedetomidine on expressions of inflammatory factors in patients with radical resection of gastric cancer

OBJECTIVE

To investigate the effect of dexmedetomidine on the expressions of inflammatory factors, T-lymphocyte subgroups and nuclear factor kappa-B (NF-κB) in peripheral blood monocytes in the perioperative period of radical resection of gastric cancer.

PATIENTS AND METHODS

We selected 74 patients who were admitted to our hospital for radical resection of gastric cancer between January 2012 and October 2015. All patients were randomly divided into the dexmedetomidine group and the control group. Within 15 min before anesthesia induction, patients in the dexmedetomidine group received the intravenous injection of dexmedetomidine, while the same volume saline in the control group. During the operation, the initial dosage in the dexmedetomidine group was set as 1 μg/kg followed by 0.2 μg/kg•h intravenous injection to the end of operation. Three time points were selected: 15 min before anesthesia induction (T0), 1 h before the end of operation (T1) and 24 h after operation (T2). At these time points, we detected the levels of serum inflammatory factors using enzyme-linked immune sorbent assay (ELISA), immunoturbidimetry, and flow cytometer, respectively.

RESULTS

The levels of IL-1β, IL-6, TNF-α, NF-κB and CRP at T1 and T2 were significantly elevated compared with the levels at T0, and the amplitude of elevation in the control group was significantly larger than that in the dexmedetomidine group. The expression levels of T-lymphocyte subgroup in patients in both groups were decreased at T1 (compared with the levels at T0), and the decreasing extent of the ratio of CD4+ to CD8+ in the control group was significantly larger than that in the dexmedetomidine group. Meanwhile, we found that the percentages of CD3+ and CD4+ at T1 and T2 in the control group were significantly lower than those in the dexmedetomidine group.

CONCLUSIONS

Dexmedetomidine can effectively reduce the release of inflammatory factors in patients that received the radical resection of gastric cancer, and the anti-inflammation effect may be exerted through downregulating the expression of NF-κB. Besides, dexmedetomidine can also alleviate the reduction in subgroups of CD3+ and CD4+, thereby ameliorating the impaired immune functions.

Fluids in porous media. IV. Quench effect on chemical potential

It appears to be a common sense to measure the crowdedness of a fluid system by the densities of the species constituting it. In the present work, we show that this ceases to be valid for confined fluids under some conditions. A quite thorough investigation is made for a hard sphere (HS) fluid adsorbed in a hard sphere matrix (a quench-annealed system) and its corresponding equilibrium binary mixture. When fluid particles are larger than matrix particles, the quench-annealed system can appear much more crowded than its corresponding equilibrium binary mixture, i.e., having a much higher fluid chemical potential, even when the density of each species is strictly the same in both systems, respectively. We believe that the insight gained from this study should be useful for the design of functionalized porous materials.

Therapy of tacrolimus combined with corticosteroids in idiopathic membranous nephropathy

We evaluated the efficacy and safety of tacrolimus (TAC) combined with corticosteroids in treating patients with idiopathic membranous nephropathy (IMN). One hundred seventy-seven biopsy-proven IMN patients were recruited in this retrospective clinical study. Sixty patients received TAC (target blood concentration of 4–8 ng/mL) and 117 patients received daily cyclophosphamide (CYC, 100 mg) combined with prednisone. Remission rates at the end of the first, second and third month in the TAC group were significantly higher than that in the CYC group (1st: 35.0 vs 19.7%, P<0.05; 2nd: 56.7 vs 38.5%, P<0.05; 3rd: 76.7 vs 59.0%, P<0.05). In the first 3 months, daily urinary protein and serum albumin in the TAC group obtained a better improvement than that in the CYC group (P<0.05). At the end of the sixth and the twelfth month, the remission rates, daily urinary protein and serum albumin were all comparable between the two groups (P>0.05). No significant difference of relapse rate between the groups was found (16.3 vs 12.0%, P>0.05). Patients were more likely to develop glucose intolerance in the TAC group. The TAC regimen obtained more benefits in treating IMN patients, especially in the first 3 months, than the CYC regimen.

[Effect of zoledronate on protein interaction between Ca(2+)/calmodulin-dependent protein kinaseⅡ and calmodulin and expression of downstream genes during osteoclast differentiation]

Objective: To investigate the effect of zoledronate on protein interaction between Ca(2+)/calmodulin-dependent protein kinaseⅡ(CaMKⅡ) and calmodulin and protein expression of nuclear factor of activation of T cells-1 (NFATc1) and tartrate resistant acid phosphatase (TRAP) during osteoclast differentiation. Methods: Mouse RAW264.7 cells were divided into group A and B and were cultured. Group A was induced with 50 mg/L receptor activator of NF-κB ligand (RANKL) for osteoclastogenesis, and group B was treated with 1×10(-6) zoledronate for two days from day 2. Co-immunoprcipitation (Co-IP) and reverse Co-IP were used to detect the protein-binding between CaMKⅡ and calmodulin. Western-blotting and immunofluorescent cytochemistry were also used to detect the protein level of NFATc1 and TRAP in both groups. Osteoclast formation was also analyzed. Results: In group B, the number of osteoclasts, number and size of dentin resorption lacunaes were 11.3±1.5, 8.7±2.1 and (5 034.4±775.4) μm(2) respevtively, which were significantly lower than those (37.7±5.7, 23.0±4.0 and [15 042.7±1 906.0] μm(2)) in group A (P<0.01). Co-IP and reverse Co-IP examination indicated that protein-binding between CaMKⅡ and calmodulin significantly decreased by 59.8% and 50.9% in group B compared with group A (P<0.01). The protein level of calmodulin and CaMKⅡ in total cellular proteins also significantly decreased by 52.1% and 51.5% in group B compared with group A (P<0.01). NFATc1 and TRAP protein decreased by 52.4% and 38.9% in group B than in group A (P<0.01), respectively. Conclusions: Zoledronate could significantly inhibit protein-binding between CaMKⅡ and calmodulin and down-regulate protein level of NFATc1 and TRAP.

One-pot synthesis of propynoates and propynenitriles

An efficient transformation towards propynoates and propynenitriles is herein described. The practical methodology was conducted at low temperature (–78 or –60 °C) in a one-pot manner with the assistance of base rather than any transition metal catalysts. The base-induced protocol exhibits good functional group tolerance (up to 28 examples) and high efficiency (up to 92% yields) towards substituted acetylenes of great synthetic significance, which was also well demonstrated by the gram-scale reactions.

Preliminary in vitro analysis of mechanism of cardiac microvascular endothelial barrier function

To preliminarily clarify the mechanism of cardiac microvascular endothelial barrier function leading to heart failure, primary HMVEC-D cells were selected and cultured for amplification. The cells were infected with adenovirus vector containing the ADP-ribosylation factor 6 (Arf6) Q67L gene. Full-length and functional fragments of myeloid differentiation primary response 88 and ARF nucleotide-binding site opener genes were established and transfected into HEK293T cells. GTP-Arf6 pull-down experiment, fluorescent quantitative real-time PCR, immuno-coprecipitation, and transendothelial electrical resistance analysis were conducted. Interleukin-1β (IL-1β) induced increase in vascular permeability, whereas inhibitor SC514 blocked IL-1β-induced transfer of nuclear factor-κB into the nucleus, from the cytoplasm. Increase in amount of activated Arf6 promoted reduction in transendothelial electrical resistance. In addition, SecinH3 significantly inhibited increase in vascular permeability, and the progression of heart failure was significantly relieved. Cardiac microvascular endothelial barrier function can lead to heart failure. However, IL-1β induced increase in vascular permeability, which nullified the function of cardiac microvascular endothelial barrier. These findings are closely related to the activation of the Arf6-VE-cadherin signaling pathway.

Scaled Particle Theory for Multicomponent Hard Sphere Fluids Confined in Random Porous Media

The formulation of scaled particle theory (SPT) is presented for a quite general model of fluids confined in a random porous media, i.e., a multicomponent hard sphere (HS) fluid in a multicomponent hard sphere or a multicomponent overlapping hard sphere (OHS) matrix. The analytical expressions for pressure, Helmholtz free energy, and chemical potential are derived. The thermodynamic consistency of the proposed theory is established. Moreover, we show that there is an isomorphism between the SPT for a multicomponent system and that for a one-component system. Results from grand canonical ensemble Monte Carlo simulations are also presented for a binary HS mixture in a one-component HS or a one-component OHS matrix. The accuracy of various variants derived from the basic SPT formulation is appraised against the simulation results. Scaled particle theory, initially formulated for a bulk HS fluid, has not only provided an analytical tool for calculating thermodynamic properties of HS fluid but also helped to gain very useful insight for elaborating other theoretical approaches such as the fundamental measure theory (FMT). We expect that the general SPT for multicomponent systems developed in this work can contribute to the study of confined fluids in a similar way.

[Effect of air pollution on health service demand of the elderly and middle-age patients with hypertension, cardiovascular and cerebrovascular diseases: based on analysis of data from CHARLS]

OBJECTIVE

To study the association of air pollution with health service demand of the elderly and middle-age patients with cardiovascular and cerebrovascular diseases, and to provide a scientific basis for development of environmental protection policy and health service policy of the Chinese government.

METHODS

This study included survey data on self-evaluated health, outpatient service demand and inpatient service demand of the patients with hypertension, heart disease and stroke in 62 cities of 17 provinces from China Health and Retirement Longitudinal Study (CHARLS) in 2011 and 2013, and combined it with the data on the annual concentrations of inhalable particulate matter (PM(10)), sulfur dioxide(SO(2)) and nitrogen dioxide (NO(2)) of those provinces and cities. Conditional Logistic regression was carried out to assess the possible effects of air pollutants on self-evaluated health and health service utilization.

RESULTS

The results showed that turning points existed in the effects of concentrations of NO(2) and SO(2) on the health service demand of the patients with hypertension, heart disease and stroke. The inpatient service demand of the hypertension patients increased with NO(2) concentration when it was lower than 35.1 μg/m(3) and decreased with NO(2) concentration for higher value. Self-evaluated health of the patients with heart disease and stroke decreased with SO(2) concentration when it was lower than 63.8 μg/m(3) and increased with SO(2) concentration for higher value. In addition, no evidence was found for the association between PM(10) and health service demand.

CONCLUSION

Air pollution may have effects on health service demand of the patients with hypertension,cardiovascular and cerebrovascular diseases, and different air pollutants at high or low concentration may have different health effects.

Thermodynamic temperature assignment to the point of inflection of the melting curve of high-temperature fixed points

The thermodynamic temperature of the point of inflection of the melting transition of Re-C, Pt-C and Co-C eutectics has been determined to be 2747.84 ± 0.35 K, 2011.43 ± 0.18 K and 1597.39 ± 0.13 K, respectively, and the thermodynamic temperature of the freezing transition of Cu has been determined to be 1357.80 ± 0.08 K, where the ± symbol represents 95% coverage. These results are the best consensus estimates obtained from measurements made using various spectroradiometric primary thermometry techniques by nine different national metrology institutes. The good agreement between the institutes suggests that spectroradiometric thermometry techniques are sufficiently mature (at least in those institutes) to allow the direct realization of thermodynamic temperature above 1234 K (rather than the use of a temperature scale) and that metal-carbon eutectics can be used as high-temperature fixed points for thermodynamic temperature dissemination. The results directly support the developing mise en pratique for the definition of the kelvin to include direct measurement of thermodynamic temperature.

Abstract P1-14-07: Association between quantitative values of estrogen receptor expression level and pathological complete response in human epidermal growth factor 2-negative breast cancer: Should the clinical definition of triple-negative breast cancer be redefined?

Background: The American Society of Clinical Oncology/College of American Pathologists recommended that the cut-off for negative status of estrogen receptor (ER) should be &lt;1% positively staining cells, although a 10% cut-off has often been used clinically. Prior studies reported that patients with ER ranging from 1% to 9% showed survival outcomes and molecular features similar to those of patients with ER positivity of &lt;1%; however, those studies did not take into account patients' human epidermal growth factor 2 (HER2) status. This means we have yet to clarify the exact clinical definition of triple-negative breast cancer (TNBC) on the basis of response to preoperative chemotherapy. Previous studies reported that hormone receptor–positive tumors were less sensitive to systemic chemotherapies. On the basis of these facts, we hypothesized that in patients with HER2-negative breast cancer ER expression level as a continuous variable has an inverse linear association with pathological complete response (pCR) rate. Our primary objective was to determine whether a quantitative value of ER between 0% and 10% is predictive of pCR rate in HER2-negative patients treated with neoadjuvant chemotherapy. Secondary objective was to find the ideal cut-off value of ER expression.

Methods: We included newly diagnosed stage I-III HER2-negative breast cancer patients with available ER (0%≤ER&lt;10%) who were treated with neoadjuvant systemic chemotherapy. ER status was determined by immunohistochemical (IHC) staining; HER2 status was determined by IHC and/or FISH. We used univariate and multivariate logistic regression models to determine the association between baseline variables and pCR. A backward stepwise method was used to select the covariates for the multivariate analysis. Recursive partitioning and regression tree method were used to identify the potential significant cut-off of ER.

Results: The analysis included 1155 patients with newly diagnosed HER2-negative invasive breast cancer. The univariate logistic regression analysis showed that ER as a continuous variable was not a statistically significant factor for predicting pCR (ER: OR=0.98, 95%CI: 0.9-1.07, P=0.68). In the multivariate analysis, ER status again was not a significant factor for predicting pCR (OR=0.97, 95%CI 0.9-1.06, P=0.55). ER as a categorical variable, there was no significant difference of the pCR rate between 0&lt;ER&lt;1 and 1≤ER&lt;10 groups (OR=1.27, 95%CI: 0.62-2.62, P=0.52). Among ER&gt; 0 (n=229), the recommended cut-off value of ER was 5.5. However, the odds ratio of pCR rate divided by this value of 5.5 was not significant (ER≤5 vs ER&gt;5; OR 1.94 95%CI 0.54-6.95 P=0.31).

Conclusion: Evaluating ER (&lt;10%) as a continuous variable showed no association with pCR rate, and no cut-off of ER was identified with which to stratify patients into groups more or less likely to achieve pCR. A potential meaningful cut-off ER value might exist between 10% and 100% in HER2-negative patients. We will explore whether a meaningful cut-off ER value exists that will change the pCR rate and possibly lead to redefining the clinical definition of TNBC.

Citation Format: Fujii T, Kogawa T, Dong W, Moulder S, Litton JK, Tripathy D, Lim B, Shen Y, Ueno NT. Association between quantitative values of estrogen receptor expression level and pathological complete response in human epidermal growth factor 2-negative breast cancer: Should the clinical definition of triple-negative breast cancer be redefined?. [abstract]. In: Proceedings of the Thirty-Eighth Annual CTRC-AACR San Antonio Breast Cancer Symposium: 2015 Dec 8-12; San Antonio, TX. Philadelphia (PA): AACR; Cancer Res 2016;76(4 Suppl):Abstract nr P1-14-07.