Accumulation of low-dose BIX01294 promotes metastatic potential of U251 glioblastoma cells

BIX01294 (Bix) is known to be a euchromatic histone-lysine N-methyltransferase 2 inhibitor and treatment with Bix suppresses cancer cell survival and proliferation. In the present study, it was observed that sequential treatment with low-dose Bix notably increases glioblastoma cell migration and metastasis. It was demonstrated that U251 cells sequentially treated with low-dose Bix exhibited induced characteristic changes in critical epithelial-mesenchymal transition (EMT) markers, including E-cadherin, N-cadherin, β-catenin and zinc finger protein SNAI2. Notably, sequential treatment with Bix also increased the expression of cancer stem cell-associated markers, including sex determining region Y-box 2, octamer-binding transcription factor 4 and cluster of differentiation 133. Neurosphere formation was significantly enhanced in cells sequentially treated with Bix, compared with control cells (control: P=0.011; single treatment of Bix, P=0.045). The results of the present study suggest that accumulation of low-dose Bix enhanced the migration and metastatic potential of glioblastoma cells by regulating EMT-associated gene expression, which may be the cause of the altered properties of glioblastoma stem cells.

Intracellular and extracellular factors influencing the genotoxicity of nitric oxide and reactive oxygen species

A number of factors affect cellular responses to nitric oxide (NO^•) and reactive oxygen species (ROS), including their source, concentration, cumulative dose, target gene and biological milieu. This limits the extrapolation of data to in vivo pathological states in which NO^• and ROS may be important. The present study investigated lethality and mutagenesis in the HPRT and TK1 genes of human lymphoblastoid TK6 cells exposed to NO^• and ROS derived from two delivery methods: A reactor system and a Transwell™ co-culture. The delivery of NO^• into the medium at controlled steady-state concentrations (given in µM/min) and the production of NO^• and ROS by activated macrophages, resulted in a time-dependent decrease in total cell numbers, and an increase in mutation frequency (MF), compared with untreated controls. This increase in MF was effectively suppressed by N-methyl-L-arginine monoacetate. Single base substitutions were the most common type of spontaneous and NO^• induced mutations in HPRT, followed by exon exclusions and small deletions in both delivery systems. Among the single base pair substitutions, an equal frequency of four types of single base substitutions were identified in TK6 cells exposed to NO^• delivered by the reactor system, whereas G:C to T:A transversions and A:T to G:C transitions were more frequent in the co-culture system. Taken together, these results demonstrate that both the delivery method of NO^• and ROS, and the target genes are determinants of observed cytotoxic and mutagenic responses, indicating that these parameters need to be considered in assessing the potential effects of NO^• and ROS in vivo.

Comparison between Saliva and Nasopharyngeal Swab Specimens for Detection of Respiratory Viruses by Multiplex Reverse Transcription-PCR

Nasopharyngeal swabs (NPSs) are being widely used as specimens for multiplex real-time reverse transcription (RT)-PCR for respiratory virus detection. However, it remains unclear whether NPS specimens are optimal for all viruses targeted by multiplex RT-PCR. In addition, the procedure to obtain NPS specimens causes coughing in most patients, which possibly increases the risk of nosocomial spread of viruses. In this study, paired NPS and saliva specimens were collected from 236 adult male patients with suspected acute respiratory illnesses. Specimens were tested for 16 respiratory viruses by multiplex real-time RT-PCR. Among the specimens collected from the 236 patients, at least 1 respiratory virus was detected in 183 NPS specimens (77.5%) and 180 saliva specimens (76.3%). The rates of detection of respiratory viruses were comparable for NPS and saliva specimens (P = 0.766). Nine virus species and 349 viruses were isolated, 256 from NPS specimens and 273 from saliva specimens (P = 0.1574). Adenovirus was detected more frequently in saliva samples (P < 0.0001), whereas influenza virus type A and human rhinovirus were detected more frequently in NPS specimens (P = 0.0001 and P = 0.0289, respectively). The possibility of false-positive adenovirus detection from saliva samples was excluded by direct sequencing. In conclusion, neither of the sampling methods was consistently more sensitive than the other. We suggest that these cost-effective methods for detecting respiratory viruses in mixed NPS-saliva specimens might be valuable for future studies.

Remote Ischemic Preconditioning Enhances the Expression of Genes Encoding Antioxidant Enzymes and Endoplasmic Reticulum Stress-Related Proteins in Rat Skeletal Muscle

Purpose:

Ischemic preconditioning (IPC), including remote IPC (rIPC) and direct IPC (dIPC), is a promising method to decrease ischemia-reperfusion (IR) injury. This study tested the effect of both rIPC and dIPC on the genes for antioxidant enzymes and endoplasmic reticulum (ER) stress-related proteins.

Materials and Methods:

Twenty rats were randomly divided into the control and study groups. In the control group (n=10), the right hind limb was sham-operated. The left hind limb (IscR) of the control group underwent IR injury without IPC. In the study group (n=10), the right hind limb received IR injury after 3 cycles of rIPC. The IscR received IR injury after 3 cycles of dIPC. Gene expression was analyzed by Quantitative real-time polymerase chain reaction from the anterior tibialis muscle.

Results:

The expression of the antioxidant enzyme genes including glutathione peroxidase (GPx), superoxide dismutase (SOD) 1 and catalase (CAT) were significantly reduced in IscR compared with sham treatment. In comparison with IscR, rIPC enhanced the expression of GPx, SOD2, and CAT genes. dIPC enhanced the expression of SOD2 and CAT genes. The expression of SOD2 genes was consistently higher in rIPC than in dIPC, but the difference was only significant for SOD2. The expression of genes for ER stress-related proteins tended to be reduced in IscR in comparison with sham treatment. However, the difference was only significant for C/EBP homologous protein (CHOP). In comparison with IscR, rIPC significantly up-regulated activating transcription factor 4 and CHOP, whereas dIPC up-regulated CHOP.

Conclusion:

Both rIPC and dIPC enhanced expression of genes for antioxidant enzymes and ER stress-related proteins.

Development of novel noninvasive prenatal testing protocol for whole autosomal recessive disease using picodroplet digital PCR

We developed a protocol of noninvasive prenatal testing (NIPT), employing a higher-resolution picodroplet digital PCR, to detect genetic imbalance in maternal plasma DNA (mpDNA) caused by cell-free fetal DNA (cffDNA). In the present study, this approach was applied to four families with autosomal recessive (AR) congenital sensorineural hearing loss. First, a fraction of the fetal DNA in mpDNA was calculated. Then, we made artificial DNA mixtures (positive and negative controls) to simulate mpDNA containing the fraction of cffDNA with or without mutations. Next, a fraction of mutant cluster signals over the total signals was measured from mpDNA, positive controls, and negative controls. We determined whether fetal DNA carried any paternal or maternal mutations by calculating and comparing the sum of the log-likelihood of the study samples. Of the four families, we made a successful prediction of the complete fetal genotype in two cases where a distinct cluster was identified for each genotype and the fraction of cffDNA in mpDNA was at least 6.4%. Genotyping of only paternal mutation was possible in one of the other two families. This is the first NIPT protocol potentially applicable to any AR monogenic disease with various genotypes, including point mutations.

Discovery of CDH23 as a Significant Contributor to Progressive Postlingual Sensorineural Hearing Loss in Koreans

CDH23 mutations have mostly been associated with prelingual severe-to-profound sensorineural hearing loss (SNHL) in either syndromic or nonsyndromic SNHL (DFNB12). Herein, we demonstrate the contribution of CDH23 mutations to postlingual nonsyndromic SNHL (NS-SNHL). We screened 32 Korean adult probands with postlingual NS-SNHL sporadically or in autosomal recessive fashion using targeted panel or whole exome sequencing. We identified four (12.5%, 4/32) potential postlingual DFNB12 families that segregated the recessive CDH23 variants, qualifying for our criteria along with rapidly progressive SNHL. Three of the four families carried one definite pathogenic CDH23 variant previously known as the prelingual DFNB12 variant in a trans configuration with rare CDH23 variants. To determine the contribution of rare CDH23 variants to the postlingual NS-SNHL, we checked the minor allele frequency (MAF) of CDH23 variants detected from our postlingual NS-SNHL cohort and prelingual NS-SNHL cohort, among the 2040 normal control chromosomes. The allele frequency of these CDH23 variants in our postlingual cohort was 12.5%, which was significantly higher than that of the 2040 control chromosomes (5.53%), confirming the contribution of these rare CDH23 variants to postlingual NS-SNHL. Furthermore, MAF of rare CDH23 variants from the postlingual NS-SNHL group was significantly higher than that from the prelingual NS-SNHL group. This study demonstrates an important contribution of CDH23 mutations to poslingual NS-SNHL and shows that the phenotypic spectrum of DFNB12 can be broadened even into the presbycusis, depending on the pathogenic potential of variants. We also propose that pathogenic potential of CDH23 variants and the clinical fate of DFNB12 may be predicted by MAF.

Establishment of a Flexible Real-Time Polymerase Chain Reaction-Based Platform for Detecting Prevalent Deafness Mutations Associated with Variable Degree of Sensorineural Hearing Loss in Koreans

Many cutting-edge technologies based on next-generation sequencing (NGS) have been employed to identify candidate variants responsible for sensorineural hearing loss (SNHL). However, these methods have limitations preventing their wide clinical use for primary screening, in that they remain costly and it is not always suitable to analyze massive amounts of data. Several different DNA chips have been developed for screening prevalent mutations at a lower cost. However, most of these platforms do not offer the flexibility to add or remove target mutations, thereby limiting their wider use in a field that requires frequent updates. Therefore, we aimed to establish a simpler and more flexible molecular diagnostic platform based on ethnicity-specific mutation spectrums of SNHL, which would enable bypassing unnecessary filtering steps in a substantial portion of cases. In addition, we expanded the screening platform to cover varying degrees of SNHL. With this aim, we selected 11 variants of 5 genes (GJB2, SLC26A4, MTRNR1, TMPRSS3, and CDH23) showing high prevalence with varying degrees in Koreans and developed the U-TOP™ HL Genotyping Kit, a real-time PCR-based method using the MeltingArray technique and peptide nucleic acid probes. The results of 271 DNA samples with wild type sequences or mutations in homo- or heterozygote form were compared between the U-TOP™ HL Genotyping Kit and Sanger sequencing. The positive and negative predictive values were 100%, and this method showed perfect agreement with Sanger sequencing, with a Kappa value of 1.00. The U-TOP™ HL Genotyping Kit showed excellent performance in detecting varying degrees and phenotypes of SNHL mutations in both homozygote and heterozygote forms, which are highly prevalent in the Korean population. This platform will serve as a useful and cost-effective first-line screening tool for varying degrees of genetic SNHL and facilitate genome-based personalized hearing rehabilitation for the Korean population.

Changes of phenolic-acids and vitamin E profiles on germinated rough rice (Oryza sativa L.) treated by high hydrostatic pressure

This study was performed to investigate changes in the phenolic acid and vitamin E profiles of germinated rough rice following high hydrostatic pressure treatment (HPT). Rough rice was germinated at 37°C for two days and subjected to 0.1, 10, 30, 50, and 100MPa pressures for 24h. The total phenolic acid content increased from 85.37μg/g at 0.1MPa to 183.52μg/g at 100MPa. The highest gallic acid (4.29μg/g), catechin (9.55μg/g), p-coumaric acid (8.36μg/g), ferulic acid (14.99μg/g), salicylic acid (14.88μg/g), naringin (6.18μg/g), trans-cinnamic acid (45.23μg/g), and kaempferol (40.95μg/g) contents occurred in the sample treated at 100MPa after germination. The maximum vitamin E content of about 2.56 (BG) and 4.34mg/100g (AG) were achieved at 30MPa. These result suggest that a combination of HPT and germination are efficient method for enhancement of functionality in rough rice, and clarify the influence of HPT conditions on the vitamin E and phenolic acid in germination rough rice.

Anatomic Characteristics of Pronator Quadratus Muscle: A Cadaver Study

OBJECTIVE

To identify the anatomic characteristics of the pronator quadratus (PQ) muscle and the entry zone (EZ) of the anterior interosseous nerve (AIN) to this muscle by means of cadaver dissection.

METHODS

We examined the PQ muscle and AIN in 20 forearms from 10 fresh cadavers. After identifying the PQ muscle and the EZ of the AIN, we measured the distances from the midpoint (MidP) of the PQ muscle and EZ to the vertical line passing the tip of the ulnar styloid process (MidP_X and EZ_X, respectively) and to the medial border of the ulna (MidP_Y and EZ_Y, respectively). Forearm length (FL) and wrist width (WW) were also measured, and the ratios of MidP and EZ to FL and of MidP and EZ to WW were calculated.

RESULTS

The MidP was found to be 3.0 cm proximal to the ulnar styloid process or distal 13% of the FL and 2.0 cm lateral to the medial border of the ulna or ulnar 40% side of the WW, which was similar to the location of EZ. The results reveal a more distal site than was reported in previous studies.

CONCLUSION

We suggest that the proper site for needle insertion and motor point block of the PQ muscle is 3 cm proximal to the ulnar styloid process or distal 13% of the FL and 2 cm lateral to the medial border of the ulna or ulnar 40% side of the WW.

High-fat Diet Accelerates Intestinal Tumorigenesis Through Disrupting Intestinal Cell Membrane Integrity

Background:

Excess energy supply induces chronic low-grade inflammation in association with oxidative stress in various tissues including intestinal epithelium. The objective of this study was to investigate the effect of high-fat diet (HFD) on intestinal cell membrane integrity and intestinal tumorigenesis in Apc^Min/+ mice.

Methods:

Mice were fed with either normal diet (ND) or HFD for 12 weeks. The number of intestinal tumors were counted and biomarkers of endotoxemia, oxidative stress, and inflammation were determined. Changes in intestinal integrity was measured by fluorescein isothiocyanate (FITC)-dextran penetration and membrane gap junction protein expression.

Results:

HFD group had significantly higher number of tumors compared to ND group (P < 0.05). Blood total antioxidant capacity was lower in HFD group, while colonic 8-hydroxy-2′-deoxyguanosine level, a marker of oxidative damage, was higher in HFD group compared to that of ND group (P < 0.05). The penetration of FITC-dextran was substantially increased in HFD group (P < 0.05) while the expressions of membrane gap junction proteins including zonula occludens-1, claudin-1, and occludin were lower in HFD group (P < 0.05) compared to those in ND group. Serum concentration of lipopolysaccharide (LPS) receptor (CD14) and colonic toll-like receptor 4 (a LPS receptor) mRNA expression were significantly higher in HFD group than in ND group (P < 0.05), suggesting that significant endotoxemia may occur in HFD group due to the increased membrane permeability. Serum interleukin-6 concentration and myeloperoxidase activity were also higher in HFD group compared to those of ND group (P < 0.05).

Conclusions:

HFD increases oxidative stress disrupting intestinal gap junction proteins, thereby accelerating membrane permeability endotoxemia, inflammation, and intestinal tumorigenesis.

Resveratrol increases AdipoR1 and AdipoR2 expression in type 2 diabetic nephropathy

BACKGROUND

Adiponectin has multiple functions including insulin sensitization, anti-inflammation and antiatherogenesis in various organs. Adiponectin activates 5'-adenosine monophosphate-activated protein kinase (AMPK) and peroxisome proliferator-activated receptor (PPAR)α via the adiponectin receptor (AdipoR) 1 and 2, which are critical for regulating lipids and glucose homeostasis and for controlling oxidative stress. We investigated whether resveratrol can inhibit renal damage in type 2 diabetic db/db mice and the underlying mechanisms of its effects.

METHODS

Four groups of male C57 BLKS/J db/m and db/db mice and human glomerular endothelial cells (HGECs) were used. Resveratrol was administered to diabetic and nondiabetic mice by oral gavage for 12 weeks starting at 8 weeks of age.

RESULTS

In db/db mice, resveratrol increased serum adiponectin levels and decreased albuminuria, glomerular matrix expansion, inflammation and apoptosis in the glomerulus. Resveratrol increased the phosphorylation of AMPK and silent information regulator T1 (SIRT1), and decreased phosphorylation of downstream effectors class O forkhead box (FoxO)1 and FoxO3a via increasing AdipoR1 and AdipoR2 in the renal cortex. Furthermore, resveratrol increased expression of PPARγ coactivator (PGC)-1α, estrogen-related receptor-1α, and phosphorylated acetyl-CoA carboxylase and decreased sterol regulatory element-binding protein 1. This effect lowered the content of nonesterified fatty acid and triacylglycerol in the kidneys, decreasing apoptosis, oxidative stress and activating endothelial nitric oxide synthase. Resveratrol prevented cultured HGECs from undergoing high-glucose-induced oxidative stress and apoptosis by activating the AMPK-SIRT1-PGC-1α axis and PPARα through increases in AdipoR1 and AdipoR2 expression.

CONCLUSIONS

These results suggest that resveratrol prevents diabetic nephropathy by ameliorating lipotoxicity, oxidative stress, apoptosis and endothelial dysfunction via increasing AdipoR1 and AdipoR2 expression.

Analysis of the Effect of Silicon with Nano-Size Surface Structure on an Electrode Formed Using Screen Printing

In this paper, we report an investigation into the effects of the texturing size of silicon on the efficiency of a screen-printed Si solar cell. To accomplish this, we produced solar cells with various textured surfaces. The method we used to produce these cells included methods such as anisotropic chemical etching (texturing size of about 4 μm) using a mixed solution of KOH and IPA, reactive ion etching (texturing size of about 0.2 μm), and Ag catalyzed etching (texturing size of about 90 nm). The solar cells with an Ag-catalyzed etching textured structure showed the lowest efficiency of 11.87%, with the highest series resistance of 1.32 Ω. In the case of anisotropic chemical etching, the solar cell had the best efficiency of 17.84%, with the lowest series resistance. This means that the electrodes and silicon surfaces were not well-connected with the nano-sized textured silicon surface. The results revealed that conventional silver paste at an average of 1.6 μm is unsuitable for nano-sized textured Si solar cells.

PPARα agonist, fenofibrate, ameliorates age-related renal injury

The kidney ages quickly compared with other organs. Expression of senescence markers reflects changes in the energy metabolism in the kidney. Two important issues in aging are mitochondrial dysfunction and oxidative stress. Peroxisome proliferator-activated receptor α (PPARα) is a member of the ligand-activated nuclear receptor superfamily. PPARα plays a major role as a transcription factor that regulates the expression of genes involved in various processes. In this study, 18-month-old male C57BL/6 mice were divided into two groups, the control group (n=7) and the fenofibrate-treated group (n=7) was fed the normal chow plus fenofibrate for 6months. The PPARα agonist, fenofibrate, improved renal function, proteinuria, histological change (glomerulosclerosis and tubular interstitial fibrosis), inflammation, and apoptosis in aging mice. This protective effect against age-related renal injury occurred through the activation of AMPK and SIRT1 signaling. The activation of AMPK and SIRT1 allowed for the concurrent deacetylation and phosphorylation of their target molecules and decreased the kidney's susceptibility to age-related changes. Activation of the AMPK-FOXO3a and AMPK-PGC-1α signaling pathways ameliorated oxidative stress and mitochondrial dysfunction. Our results suggest that activation of PPARα and AMPK-SIRT1 signaling may have protective effects against age-related renal injury. Pharmacological targeting of PPARα and AMPK-SIRT1 signaling molecules may prevent or attenuate age-related pathological changes in the kidney.