Methylation-sensitive amplified polymorphism-based genome-wide analysis of cytosine methylation profiles in Nicotiana tabacum cultivars

This study aimed to investigate cytosine methylation profiles in different tobacco (Nicotiana tabacum) cultivars grown in China. Methylation-sensitive amplified polymorphism was used to analyze genome-wide global methylation profiles in four tobacco cultivars (Yunyan 85, NC89, K326, and Yunyan 87). Amplicons with methylated C motifs were cloned by reamplified polymerase chain reaction, sequenced, and analyzed. The results show that geographical location had a greater effect on methylation patterns in the tobacco genome than did sampling time. Analysis of the CG dinucleotide distribution in methylation-sensitive polymorphic restriction fragments suggested that a CpG dinucleotide cluster-enriched area is a possible site of cytosine methylation in the tobacco genome. The sequence alignments of the Nia1 gene (that encodes nitrate reductase) in Yunyan 87 in different regions indicate that a C-T transition might be responsible for the tobacco phenotype. T-C nucleotide replacement might also be responsible for the tobacco phenotype and may be influenced by geographical location.

Reduced interhemispheric resting-state functional connectivity in unmedicated bipolar II disorder

OBJECTIVE

Abnormalities in structural and functional brain connectivity have been increasingly reported in patients with bipolar disorder (BD) by recent neuroimaging studies. However, relatively little is known about the changes in functional interaction between the cerebral hemispheres in BD. The present study aimed to examine the interhemispheric functional connectivity of the whole brain in patients with BD II during resting state.

METHOD

Twenty-six patients with unmedicated BD II depression and 40 normal controls underwent the resting-state functional magnetic resonance imaging. The functional connectivity between any pair of symmetrical interhemispheric voxels (i.e., functional homotopy) was measured by voxel-mirrored homotopic connectivity (VMHC).

RESULTS

The patients with BD II showed lower VMHC than normal controls in the medial prefrontal cortex and inferior temporal gyrus. No regions of increased VMHC were detected in patients. There were no significant correlations between the VMHC values in these regions and clinical severity of BD symptoms.

CONCLUSION

These findings suggest substantial impairment of interhemispheric coordination in BD II.

The Skewness of Alpha Beta T Cell Receptors in Peripheral Blood of the Patients with Type 1 Diabetes

AIM

To detect the skewness of TCR Vα and TCR Vβ of patients with type 1 diabetes (T1D).

METHODS

The heparinized venous blood was collected from ten patients with T1D. The peripheral blood lymphocytes (PBL) were isolated and used to extract mRNA. Reverse amplyfication was performed for cDNA synthesis. The skewness of TCR Vα and Vβ was detected with real-time florescence quantitative polymerase chain reaction (RQ-PCR) and analyzed by DNA melting-curve analysis technique, respectively.

RESULTS

Among the TCR Vα genes, the skewness frequency rate (SFR) of Vα22 was 30%; both of Vα5 and Vα24 were 20%; Vα28 was the only restricted-clone gene with the SFR of 10%. In all the Vβ genes, Vβ7 and Vβ17 were the the highest expression genes, and their SFRs were both 60%. Vβ11 was near them with the SFR of 40%; the restricted clonal genes were Vβ18 and Vβ20, their SFRs were 10% and 20%, respectivley.

CONCLUSION

There are skewd genes in TCR Vα and TCR Vβ, which are probably relative to the onset of T1D.

Plasma soluble Tim-3 emerges as an inhibitor in sepsis: sepsis contrary to membrane Tim-3 on monocytes

Immune dysfunction is the main characteristic of sepsis. T cell Ig and mucin domain protein 3 (Tim-3) on the monocytes has been reported to promote immune homeostasis during sepsis, but the influences of plasm soluble Tim-3 (sTim-3) on the immune system during sepsis remain unknown. Here, 100 patients with different severities of sepsis (40 sepsis, 42 severe sepsis, and 18 septic shock) were enrolled in this study. The Tim-3 and human leukocyte antigen-DR (HLA-DR) on the circulating monocytes were detected using flow cytometry. Plasma sTim-3 was detected by enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay. Inflammatory factors and two kinds of A disintegrin and metalloprotease (ADAM) - ADAM10 and ADAM17 were assessed. The Tim-3 and HLA-DR on the monocytes decreased with increasing sepsis severity. The sTim-3 was reduced in the sepsis and severe sepsis patients but was elevated in the septic shock patients who exhibited significant immunosuppression as predicted by HLA-DR. sTim-3 levels were negatively correlated with IL-12 and TNF-α. ADAM10 and ADAM17, sheddases of Tim-3, exhibited trends toward elevations in the septic shock group. In conclusion, sTim-3 was involved in the development of sepsis. The homeostasis-promoting role of the Tim-3 on the monocytes was disrupted, while the inhibitory role of sTim-3 emerged during sepsis-induced immunosuppression.

Expression and activity of V-H+ -ATPase in gill and kidney of marbled eel Anguilla marmorata in response to salinity challenge

The full-length complementary (c)DNA of vacuolar-type-H(+) -ATPase B1 gene (vhab1) in marbled eel Anguilla marmorata with 1741 base pairs (bp) was identified. It contained a 1512 bp open reading frame encoding a polypeptide with 503 amino acids (55·9 kDa), an 83 bp 5'-untranslated region (UTR) and a 146 bp 3'-UTR. The expression levels of A. marmorata vhab1 in gill and kidney of A. marmorata were evaluated at different intervals during the exposure to various salinities (0, 10 and 25). The results indicated that the expression levels of A. marmorata vhab1 messenger (m)RNA in gill and kidney had a significant increase and reached the highest level at 1 h in brackish water (BW, salinity 10) group and 6 h in seawater (SW, salinity 25) group. Therefore, salinity did affect the relative expression level of A. marmorata vhab1 mRNA in gills, which exhibited the enhancement by c. 44 times in SW group when compared with that in fresh water. No remarkable difference in the expression of A. marmorata vhab1 mRNA was observed after 15 days of SW exposure (P > 0·05). V-H(+) -ATPase activity exhibited an increase by two- to three-fold when compared with that in gill and kidney from the control group. The consequence primarily suggested that A. marmorata vhab1 gene product in elvers from A. marmorata plays an important role in adaptation response to SW.

Surgery combined with chemotherapy for recurrent gastric cancer achieves better long-term prognosis

BACKGROUNDS

Recurrence is the most important factor associated with death of gastric cancer patients after surgery. The aim of this study was to explore the prognosis factors and the effective therapy for recurrent gastric cancer (RGC) patients after radical resection.

METHODS

The clinical data of 144 RGC patients who underwent radical resection from January 1999 to March 2004 were reviewed. The 15 clinicopathological factors and treatment modalities on the survival were analyzed. Univariate and multivariate analyses were performed to investigate the prognostic significance of these factors for RGC.

RESULTS

The early recurrence (<2 years) was found in 90 patients, while late recurrence (≥2 years) occurred in 54 patients. The 2-year cumulative survival rates were 23.8 % for recurrent patients receiving chemotherapy plus surgery vs. 1.2 % in patients having chemotherapy only (p < 0.001), while the median survival time was 11.0 months vs. 6.0 months (p < 0.001). Multivariate analysis indicated TNM stage after the first operation (p = 0.048), iASPP overexpression (p = 0.013), time to recurrence (p < 0.001) and treatment of recurrence (p < 0.001) as independent prognostic factors.

CONCLUSIONS

Surgery combined with chemotherapy for recurrent gastric cancer patients achieves ideal long-term prognosis, which should perform actively.

Role of the CKIP1 gene in proliferation and apoptosis of the human lung cancer cell line H1299

Casein kinase 2 interacting protein 1 (CKIP1) is a specific interacting protein of the casein kinase 2 (CK2) α subunit, and, by binding CK2 and other proteins, functions as an adaptor to regulate a series of cellular functions. Previous studies suggested that CKIP1 might play an important role in regulating oncogenic activities. However, few studies examining the function of CKIP1 in cancer cells have been performed. The present study aimed to investigate the role of CKIP1 in lung cancer. CKIP1 mRNA expression was detected in 5 human lung cancer cell lines (H-125, H1299, LTEP-A-2, SPC-A-1, and NCL-H446) by semi-quantitative RT-PCR, and in 10 noncancerous lung tissues and 30 non-small lung cancer tissues by real-time quantitative PCR. A lentivirus-mediated small interfering RNA (siRNA) was used to knock down CKIP1 expression in the H1299 cell line. To elucidate the impact of CKIP1 downregulation on H1299 cells, cell proliferation, DNA synthesis, and cell cycle distribution and apoptosis were measured by high content screening assay, BrdU incorporation, and flow cytometric analyses, respectively. CKIP1 mRNA was highly expressed both in H1299 cells and lung cancer tissues. We found that downregulation of CKIP1 resulted in suppression of proliferation and colony-forming ability of H1299 cells, and led to S phase cell cycle arrest and G2 phase promotion, as well as a significant enhancement of H1299 cell apoptosis. Our study indicated that high expression levels of CKIP1 were associated with the development of lung cancer, and that CKIP1 knockdown may block tumor cell growth mainly by promoting cell apoptosis.

Humanin protects against chemotherapy-induced stage-specific male germ cell apoptosis in rats

Humanin (HN) has cytoprotective action on male germ cells after testicular stress induced by heat and hormonal deprivation. To examine whether HN has protective effects on chemotherapy-induced male germ cell apoptosis, we treated four groups of adult rats with (i) vehicle (control), (ii) HN, (iii) cyclophosphamide (CP); or (iv) HN+CP. To investigate whether the protective effects of HN on germ cells require the presence of Leydig cells, another four groups of rats were pre-treated with ethane dimethanesulfonate (EDS), a Leydig cell toxicant, to eliminate Leydig cells. After 3 days, when Leydig cells were depleted by EDS, we administered: (i) vehicle, (ii) HN, (iii) CP; or (iv) HN+CP to rats. All rats were killed 12 h after the injection of HN and/or CP. Germ cell apoptosis was detected by TUNEL assay and quantified by numerical count. Compared with control and HN (alone), CP significantly increased germ cell apoptosis; HN +CP significantly reduced CP-induced apoptosis at early (I-VI) and late stages (IX-XIV) but not at middle stages (VII-VIII) of the seminiferous epithelial cycle. Pre-treatment with EDS markedly suppressed serum and intratesticular testosterone (T) levels, and significantly increased germ cell apoptosis at the middle (VII-VIII) stages. CP did not further increase germ cell apoptosis in the EDS-pre-treated rats. HN significantly attenuated germ cell apoptosis at the middle stages in EDS pre-treated rats. To investigate whether HN has any direct effects on Leydig cell function, adult Leydig cells were isolated and treated with ketoconazole (KTZ) to block testosterone synthesis. HN was not effective in preventing the reduction of T production by KTZ in vitro. We conclude that HN decreases CP and/or EDS-induced germ cell apoptosis in a stage-specific fashion. HN acts directly on germ cells to protect against EDS-induced apoptosis in the absence of Leydig cells and intratesticular testosterone levels are very low.

In vivo osteoprotegerin gene therapy preventing bone loss induced by periodontitis

OBJECTIVE

The objective of this study was to investigate the effects of osteoprotegerin (OPG) gene therapy on alveolar bone resorption caused by experimental periodontitis in rats, thus forming a foundation for potential clinical applications of OPG gene therapy in the treatment of periodontitis and peri-implantitis.

MATERIAL AND METHODS

To study the effects of OPG on alveolar bone protection, an experimental periodontitis model was used by placing a bacterial plaque retentive silk ligature in the gingival sulcus around the maxillary second molar tooth, injection of Porphyromonas gingivalis and high carbohydrate diet. A total of 30 Sprague-Dawley rats were randomly divided into three groups, with 10 rats in each group: group I (control) was treated with 10 μL normal saline injection; group II with 10 μL mock vector; and group III with 10 μL local OPG gene transfer by transfection with in vitro constructed pcDNA3.1-human OPG (pcDNA3.1-hOPG). A subperiosteal injection was done adjacent to the second molars on days 0, 7, 14 and 21. Four weeks later, all animals were killed and radiographic, histological and immunohistochemical examinations were performed. Statistical analysis included ANOVA and LSD-Bonferroni test.

RESULTS

Group III (OPG gene therapy) had significantly enhanced (p < 0.05) integrated optical density of OPG, had significantly decreased alveolar bone resorption volume and active osteoclast number (p < 0.05) through descriptive histological examination when compared with the other two groups at week 4.

CONCLUSION

Local recombinant OPG plasmid-mediated gene therapy suppresses osteoclastogenesis in vivo and inhibits alveolar bone height reduction caused by experimental periodontitis in rats. OPG gene therapy may be beneficial in preventing progressive periodontal bone loss.

A formyl peptide receptor agonist suppresses inflammation and bone damage in arthritis

BACKGROUND AND PURPOSE

Annexin A1 (AnxA1) is an endogenous anti-inflammatory protein and agonist of the formyl peptide receptor 2 (FPR2). However, the potential for therapeutic FPR ligands to modify immune-mediated disease has been little explored. We investigated the effects of a synthetic FPR agonist on joint disease in the K/BxN model of rheumatoid arthritis (RA) and RA fibroblast-like synoviocytes (FLS).

EXPERIMENTAL APPROACH

Arthritis was induced by injection of K/BxN serum at day 0 and 2 in wild-type (WT) or AnxA1(-/-) mice and clinical and histopathological manifestations measured 8-11 days later. WT mice were given the FPR agonist compound 43 (Cpd43) (6 or 30 mg·kg(-1) i.p.) for 4 days. Effects of AnxA1 and Cpd43 on RANKL-induced osteoclastogenesis were assessed in RAW 264.7 cells and human RA FLS and macrophages.

KEY RESULTS

Treatment with Cpd43 before or after the onset of arthritis reduced clinical disease severity and attenuated synovial TNF-α and osteoclast-associated gene expression. Deletion of AnxA1 in mice exacerbated arthritis severity in the K/BxN model. In vitro, Cpd43 suppressed osteoclastogenesis and NFAT activity elicited by RANKL, and inhibited IL-6 secretion by mouse macrophages. In human RA joint-derived FLS and monocyte-derived macrophages, Cpd43 treatment inhibited IL-6 release, while blocking FPR2 or silencing AnxA1 increased this release.

CONCLUSIONS AND IMPLICATIONS

The FPR agonist Cpd43 reduced osteoclastogenesis and inflammation in a mouse model of RA and exhibited anti-inflammatory effects in relevant human cells. These data suggest that FPR ligands may represent novel therapeutic agents capable of ameliorating inflammation and bone damage in RA.

Characterization of Rice Blast Resistance Gene Pi61(t) in Rice Germplasm

Identification of resistance (R) genes to races of Magnaporthe oryzae in rice (Oryza sativa) germplasm is essential for the development of rice cultivars with long-lasting blast resistance. In the present study, one major quantitative trait locus, qPi93-3, was fine mapped using a recombinant inbred line (RIL), F₈ RIL171, derived from the cross between 'Nipponbare' and '93-11'. RIL171 contained a heterozygous qPi93-3 allele which was found to be resistant against nine U.S. common races-ID1, IA1, IB49, IE1, IA45, IB1, IC17, IB45, and IH1-of M. oryzae. An F₂ mapping population consisting of 2,381 individuals derived from RIL171 was evaluated with a field isolate (race) ARB82 (IA1) of M. oryzae under greenhouse conditions. Disease reaction of a resistant/susceptible ratio of 3:1 was identified with F₂:F₃ families. In total, 12 simple sequence repeat markers spanning qPi93-3 were used for fine mapping. Consequently, qPi93-3 was delimited to 4.2 Mb between RM3246 and RM7102. Three insertion-deletion (InDel) markers located between RM3246 and RM7102, that had previously used to map Pi61(t), showed that qPi93-3 was Pi61(t). The existence of Pi61(t) in 136 rice germplasm lines from the United States Department of Agriculture rice core collection was evaluated using Pi61(t)-specific InDel markers. Pi61(t) was identified as a source of resistance in 5 of the 136 lines. The characterized germplasm will be useful for rice breeders to use for improving blast resistance.

Association of the tumour necrosis factor-α polymorphisms rs361525 and rs1800629 with susceptibility to psoriasis: a meta-analysis

BACKGROUND

Evidence has suggested that tumour necrosis factor (TNF)-α may be involved in the aetiology of psoriasis, but the underlying association of the TNF-α polymorphisms -238G/A (rs361525) and -308G/A (rs1800629) with the risk of psoriasis is still unconfirmed.

AIM

This meta-analysis was performed to determine whether the TNF-α -238G/A and -308G/A polymorphisms are associated with susceptibility to psoriasis.

METHODS

Eligible studies were identified by searching PubMed, EMBASE, CNKI (China National Knowledge Infrastructure), CBM (Chinese biomedical literature database) and WANFANG databases within a range of published years from 1990 to August 2012. The odds ratio (OR) and 95% confidence interval (CI) were used to assess the different associations.

RESULTS

In total, 17 studies with 2847 cases and 2222 controls were found for -238G/A and 20 studies with 2975 cases and 2243 controls for -308G/A. The pooled results showed an overall increased risk of psoriasis for the -238G/A polymorphism (OR = 2.06, 95% CI = 1.45-2.94, P < 0.001 for AA/GA vs. GG) and a reduced psoriasis risk with the -308G/A polymorphism (OR = 0.68, 95% CI = 0.59-0.79, P < 0.001 for AA/GA vs. GG). This association was only present in early-onset psoriasis (OR = 3.68, 95% CI = 2.17-6.24, P < 0.001 for -238G/A; OR = 0.56, 95% CI = 0.43-0.72, P < 0.001 for -308G/A), whereas there was no association (OR = 0.98, 95% CI = 0.56-1.70, P = 0.92 for -238G/A) or a unreliable association (OR = 0.66, 95% CI = 0.46-0.94, P = 0.02 for -308G/A) in late-onset psoriasis.

CONCLUSIONS

This meta-analysis suggests that the TNF-α -238 and -308 promoter polymorphisms may play different roles in conferring susceptibility to psoriasis. Functional and well-designed studies should be conducted to confirm these results.