Inhibitors of apoptotic proteins: new targets for anticancer therapy

IL-33-dependent NF-κB activation inhibits apoptosis and drives chemoresistance in acute myeloid leukemia

BACKGROUND

Despite recent advances in therapeutic regimens, the prognosis of acute myeloid leukemia (AML) remains poor. Following our previous finding that interleukin-33 (IL-33) promotes cell survival along with activated NF-κB in AML, we further investigated the role of NF-κB during leukemia development.

METHODS

Flow cytometry was performed to value the apoptosis and proliferation. qRT-PCR and western blot were performed to detect the expression of IL-6, active caspase 3, BIRC2, Bcl-2, and Bax, as well as activated NF-κB p65 and AKT. Finally, xenograft mouse models and AML patient samples were used to verify the findings observed in AML cell lines.

RESULTS

IL-33-mediated NF-κB activation in AML cell lines contributes to a reduction in apoptosis, an increase in proliferation rate as well as a decrease in drug sensitivity, which were reversed by NF-κB inhibitor, Bay-117085. Moreover, IL-33 decreased the expression of active caspase-3 while increasing the levels of BIRC2, Bcl-2, and Bax, and these effects were blocked by Bay-117085. Additionally, NF-κB activation induced by IL-33 increases the production of IL-6 and autocrine activation of AKT. Co-culture of bone marrow stroma with AML cells resulted in increased IL-33 expression by leukemia cells, along with decreased apoptosis level and reduced drug sensitivity. Finally, we confirmed the in vivo pro-tumor effect mediated by IL-33/ NF-κB axis using a xenograft model of AML.

CONCLUSION

Our data indicate that IL-33/IL1RL1-dependent signaling contributes to AML cell activation of NF-κB, which in turn causes autocrine IL-6-induced activation of pAKT, supporting IL-33/NF-κB/pAKT as a potential target for AML therapy.

Cleaved caspase-3 is present in the majority of glial cells in the intact rat spinal cord during postnatal life

Cell death is an essential process that occurs during the development of the central nervous system. Despite the availability of a wide range of commercially produced antibodies against various apoptotic markers, data regarding apoptosis in intact spinal cord during postnatal development and adulthood are mostly missing. We investigated apoptosis in rat spinal cord at different stages of ontogenesis (postnatal days 8, 29, and 90). For this purpose, we applied immunofluorescent detection of two widely used apoptotic markers, cleaved caspase-3 (cC3) and cleaved poly(ADP-ribose) polymerase (cPARP). Surprisingly, we found significant discrepancy between the number of cC3+ cells and PARP+ cells, with a ratio between 500:1 and 5000:1 in rat spinal cord at all postnatal time points. The majority of cC3+ cells were glial cells and did not exhibit an apoptotic phenotype. In contrast with in vivo results, in vitro analysis of primary cell cultures derived from neonatal rat spinal cord and treated with the apoptotic inductor staurosporine revealed a similar onset of occurrence of both cC3 and cPARP in cells subjected to apoptosis. Gene expression analysis of spinal cord revealed elevated expression of the Birc4 (XIAP), Birc2, and Birc5 (Survivin) genes, which are known potent inhibitors of apoptosis. Our data indicate that cC3 is not an exclusive marker of apoptosis, especially in glial cells, owing its possible presence in inhibited forms and/or its participation in other non-apoptotic roles. Therefore, cPARP appears to be a more appropriate marker to detect apoptosis.

BIRC6 Modulates the Protein Stability of Axin to Regulate the Growth, Stemness, and Resistance of Renal Cancer Cells via the β-Catenin Pathway

The mechanism underlying the development of renal cell carcinoma (RCC) remains unclear, and effective prevention and therapeutic measures are lacking. BIRC6, a protein inhibitor of apoptosis, has attracted great interest. Our data indicated that overexpression of BIRC6 elevated cell growth, colony formation, migration, and invasion of cultured RCC cells, while siRNA knockdown of BIRC6 suppressed these processes. Additionally, BIRC6 was highly expressed in RCC clinical samples along with a downregulated level of Axin. Immunoprecipitation assays found that BIRC6 interacted with Axin and the two proteins colocalized within the cytoplasm of RCC cells. Overexpression of BIRC6 promoted the ubiquitination modification of Axin, while genetic knockdown of BIRC6 suppressed it. Furthermore, overexpression of BIRC6 significantly promoted the turnover of Axin, suggesting BIRC6's inhibitory effect on Axin protein stability. BIRC6 was also upregulated in cancer stem-like cells of RCC and increased the drug resistance of RCC cells against sunitinib. Western blotting assays showed that the overexpression of BIRC6 upregulated CXCR4 protein expression and activated the β-catenin pathway. Two cell lines were then constructed with BIRC6 overexpressed by lentiviruses. Pharmacological administration of a Wnt/β-catenin inhibitor, XAV-939, or genetic knockdown of β-catenin inhibited cell growth, tumor sphere formation, colony formation, migration, and invasion of BIRC6-overexpressed cells. In vivo administration of XAV-939 markedly suppressed the tumorigenesis of BIRC6-overexpressed RCC cells in nude mice. In conclusion, we propose that BIRC6 activates the β-catenin signaling pathway via mediating the ubiquitination and degradation of Axin, promoting the growth, stemness, and drug resistance of RCC cells. This project aims to elucidate the role of BIRC6 as a potential therapeutic target and provide new insights into the clinical treatment of RCC.

Image-guided metabolomics and transcriptomics reveal tumour heterogeneity in luminal A and B human breast cancer beyond glucose tracer uptake

BACKGROUND

Breast cancer is a metabolically heterogeneous disease, and although the concept of heterogeneous cancer metabolism is known, its precise role in human breast cancer is yet to be fully elucidated.

METHODS

We investigated in an explorative approach a cohort of 42 primary mamma carcinoma patients with positron emission tomography/magnetic resonance imaging (PET/MR) prior to surgery, followed by histopathology and molecular diagnosis. From a subset of patients, which showed high metabolic heterogeneity based on tracer uptake and pathology classification, tumour centre and periphery specimen tissue samples were further investigated by a targeted breast cancer gene expression panel and quantitative metabolomics by nuclear magnetic resonance (NMR) spectroscopy. All data were analysed in a combinatory approach.

RESULTS

[18 F]FDG (2-deoxy-2-[fluorine-18]fluoro-d-glucose) tracer uptake confirmed dominance of glucose metabolism in the breast tumour centre, with lower levels in the periphery. Additionally, we observed differences in lipid and proliferation related genes between luminal A and B subtypes in the centre and periphery. Tumour periphery showed elevated acetate levels and enrichment in lipid metabolic pathways genes especially in luminal B. Furthermore, serine was increased in the periphery and higher expression of thymidylate synthase (TYMS) indicated one-carbon metabolism increased in tumour periphery. The overall metabolic activity based on [18 F]FDG uptake of luminal B subtype was higher than that of luminal A and the difference between the periphery and centre increased with tumour grade.

CONCLUSION

Our analysis indicates variations in metabolism among different breast cancer subtypes and sampling locations which details the heterogeneity of the breast tumours. Correlation analysis of [18 F]FDG tracer uptake, transcriptome and tumour metabolites like acetate and serine facilitate the search for new candidates for metabolic tracers and permit distinguishing luminal A and B. This knowledge may help to differentiate subtypes preclinically or to provide patients guide for neoadjuvant therapy and optimised surgical protocols based on individual tumour metabolism.

Oncolytic Virotherapy: An Advanced Microbial Approach for the Management of Cancer

Destruction of the tumor (cancerous) cells may be caused by live viruses, which have replicative ability and replicate selectively in tumor cells, known as oncolytic virotherapy. In comparison of conservative cancer therapy, tumor-selective replicating viruses have more advantages. These viruses have introduced new methodologies for the human cancer treatment. Numerous strategies are used in development of virotherapeutics. Virotherapy is not unusual concept, but modern advances in technology of genetic modification of oncolytic viruses have improved the ability of targeting tumor cells more specifically, it triggered the development of novel ammunition to fight cancer. An effective virotherapeutic approach with oncolytic viruses exhibits the feasibility and safety under clinical approach. New strategies are being explored to overcome basic obstacles and challenges in virotherapy. Administration of oncolytic viruses, logically, will successfully augment new treatments against many kinds of tumors. Some encouraging antitumor responses shown by combination therapy are provoking strong immunity against established cancer. Chief developments in oncolytic virotherapy have seen in past several years. Significant understandings have been provided by findings on the interface among immune comebacks and viruses, whereas potential results have shown in clinical trials.

Efficacy and Nuances of Precision Molecular Engineering for Hodgkin's Disease to a Gene Therapeutic Approach

Gene therapy is a particularly useful treatment for nervous system genetic diseases, including those induced especially by infectious organisms and antigens, and is being utilized to treat Hodgkin's disease (HD). Due to the possible clonal relationship between both disorders, immunotherapy directed against CD20 positive cells may be a more effective treatment in patients with persistent HD and NHL. HL growth can be inhibited both in vitro and in vivo by AdsIL-13Ralpha2. High-dose treatment combined with stem cell transplantation has been effective in treating HIV-negative lymphoma that has progressed to high-risk or relapsed disease. For therapy, LMP2-specific CTL will be used. Furthermore, it is possible to view the cytotoxicity of genetically modified adenoviruses that express proteins such as p27Kip1, p21Waf1, and p16INK4A as a foundational element for (2,5)-derived ALCL genetic treatment for Hodgkin's disease.

Advances in the Management of Neuroblastoma

Neuroblastoma is a malignant tumor of neuroblasts, immature nerve cells found in several areas of the body. It usually affects children under age of 5. As usual, the tumor has ability to grow rapidly and to expand vastly which ultimately leads to death. Mostly, management decisions can be drawn by the prediction of the stage of the disease as well as age at the time of its diagnosis. There are four main stages of neuroblastoma, and treatment is according to the low and high risk of the disease. Several cytotoxic agents along with other therapies (antibody therapy, gene therapy, and even immunological therapies, antiangiogenic therapy, etc.) are used. Immunotherapy also has an important treatment option used nowadays for neuroblastoma. The discovery of major neuroblastoma-predisposition gene anaplastic lymphoma kinase cause somatic transformation or gene strengthening in diagnosed neuroblastoma. Promising new antiangiogenic strategies have also been introduced for the treatment of neuroblastoma with multiple mylomas. To manage numerous myelomas and cancers, including neuroblastoma, bone marrow transplantation and peripheral blood stem cell transplantation may be used.

Arboviruses: Transmission and Host Resistance

In this review, there is a complete description of the classes of arboviruses, their evolutionary process, virus characterization, disease transmission methods; it also describes about the vectors involved in transmission and their mood of transmission, both biologically as well as non-biologically and, about host, the resistance mechanism in host, and artificial methods of preventing those viral transmissions. Arboviruses transmitted to hosts by some vectors such as mosquitoes, ticks, etc. The virus replicates in the host can be prevented by some host resistance mechanisms like RNA interference (RNAi), which degrade virus RNA by its antiviral activity, insect repellents, IGRs, and PI technology.

MicroRNA-512-3p mediates Trypanosoma cruzi-induced apoptosis during ex vivo infection of human placental explants

INTRODUCTION

Upon infection, Trypanosoma cruzi, a protozoan parasite, crosses the placental barrier and causes congenital Chagas disease. Ex vivo infection of human placental explants (HPEs) with the parasite induces apoptotic cell death. This cellular process involves changes in gene expression, which are partially regulated by miRNAs. In this study, we investigated the role of miR-512-3p, a highly expressed miRNA in the placenta, in parasite-induced apoptosis.

METHODS

HPE cells were transfected with antagomirs or mimics of miR-512-3p and subsequently challenged with the parasite. The expression levels of miR-512-3p, caspase 3, caspase 8, and Livin were measured using RT-qPCR, and apoptotic cell death was analyzed based on caspase activity and DNA fragmentation assays.

RESULTS

Targeted inhibition of miR-512-3p effectively prevented parasite-induced expression and enzymatic activity of caspase 3 and caspase 8. However, it did not completely prevent DNA fragmentation, indicating the involvement of other factors in this process. Furthermore, the findings suggest that Livin may be regulated by miR-512-3p.

DISCUSSION

Our findings suggest that miR-512-3p modulates parasite-induced apoptosis in the trophoblast. By understanding the mechanisms involved in this process, we can gain insights into the pathogenesis of congenital Chagas disease and develop targeted therapeutic strategies.

Small molecules targeting protein-protein interactions for cancer therapy

Protein-protein interactions (PPIs) are fundamental to many biological processes that play an important role in the occurrence and development of a variety of diseases. Targeting the interaction between tumour-related proteins with emerging small molecule drugs has become an attractive approach for treatment of human diseases, especially tumours. Encouragingly, selective PPI-based therapeutic agents have been rapidly advancing over the past decade, providing promising perspectives for novel therapies for patients with cancer. In this review we comprehensively clarify the discovery and development of small molecule modulators of PPIs from multiple aspects, focusing on PPIs in disease, drug design and discovery strategies, structure-activity relationships, inherent dilemmas, and future directions.

MicroRNAs as the pivotal regulators of cisplatin resistance in osteosarcoma

Osteosarcoma (OS) is an aggressive bone tumor that originates from mesenchymal cells. It is considered as the eighth most frequent childhood cancer that mainly affects the tibia and femur among the teenagers and young adults. OS can be usually diagnosed by a combination of MRI and surgical biopsy. The intra-arterial cisplatin (CDDP) and Adriamycin is one of the methods of choices for the OS treatment. CDDP induces tumor cell death by disturbing the DNA replication. Although, CDDP has a critical role in improving the clinical complication in OS patients, a high ratio of CDDP resistance is observed among these patients. Prolonged CDDP administrations have also serious side effects in normal tissues and organs. Therefore, the molecular mechanisms of CDDP resistance should be clarified to define the novel therapeutic modalities in OS. Multidrug resistance (MDR) can be caused by various cellular and molecular processes such as drug efflux, detoxification, and signaling pathways. MicroRNAs (miRNAs) are the key regulators of CDDP response by the post transcriptional regulation of target genes involved in MDR. In the present review we have discussed all of the miRNAs associated with CDDP response in OS cells. It was observed that the majority of reported miRNAs increased CDDP sensitivity in OS cells through the regulation of signaling pathways, apoptosis, transporters, and autophagy. This review highlights the miRNAs as reliable non-invasive markers for the prediction of CDDP response in OS patients.

Pan-cancer analysis of the intervertebral-disc-degeneration-related innate immunity gene NAIP

BACKGROUND

Intervertebral disc degeneration (IDD) is a progressive chronic condition that commonly causes low back pain. Cancer is among the primary reasons for deaths worldwide. Our purpose was to identify the characteristic genes of IDD and explore the potential association between IDD and cancer.

METHODS

Immune cell infiltration and differentially expressed analysis were conducted utilizing data from the GSE124272 database. Enrichment analysis of differentially expressed genes (DEGs) was performed to explore the possible mechanisms underlying IDD development. Moreover, weighted gene correlation network analysis (WGCNA) was applied to select IDD-related hub genes. The immune-related key genes were determined by intersecting DEGs, IDD-related hub genes, and immune genes. Subsequently, machine learning models based on these genes were built to identify and verify the characteristic genes. RNA sequencing and clinical data of 33 carcinoma categories were obtained from the Cancer Genome Atlas (TCGA). The association between NAIP expression and prognosis was calculated using the Kaplan-Meier analysis. To gain a deeper understanding of the impact of NAIP in tumor immunotherapy, the association between NAIP and immune infiltration and two immunotherapeutic biomarkers were explored. Ultimately, the association between NAIP and immunotherapeutic response was investigated utilizing two independent cohorts.

RESULTS

NAIP was identified as an immune-related characteristic gene between IDD and normal intervertebral disc tissue. In certain carcinoma categories, NAIP expression levels were elevated (4/33) and significantly correlated to the respective tumor stage (4/21). Survival analysis revealed that the expression levels of NAIP have prognostic significance in different cancer types. Generally, NAIP presented a strong association with immune cell infiltration and modulators. NAIP may influence immunotherapy effects through tumor mutational burden and microsatellite instability. No remarkable association between NAIP and immunotherapy response was found in either cohort.

CONCLUSION

Our study is the first to identify NAIP as an immune-related characteristic gene. Pan-cancer analysis revealed that NAIP could serve as a novel clinical prognostic marker and therapeutic target for a variety of carcinoma categories, reducing the risk of IDD in tumor patients.

1-Benzyl-5-bromo-3-hydrazonoindolin-2-ones as Novel Anticancer Agents: Synthesis, Biological Evaluation and Molecular Modeling Insights

Human health is experiencing several obstacles in the modern medical era, particularly cancer. As a result, the cancer therapeutic arsenal should be continually expanded with innovative small molecules that preferentially target tumour cells. In this study, we describe the development of two small molecule series (7a–d and 12a–e) based on the 1-benzyl-5-bromoindolin-2-one scaffold that connected through a hydrazone linker to a 4-arylthiazole (7a–d) or 4-methyl-5-(aryldiazenyl)thiazole (12a–e) moiety. The anticancer activity of all the reported indolin-2-one derivatives was assessed against breast (MCF-7) and lung (A-549) cancer cell lines. The 4-arylthiazole-bearing derivatives 7c and 7d revealed the best anticancer activity toward MCF-7 cells (IC50 = 7.17 ± 0.94 and 2.93 ± 0.47, respectively). Furthermore, the VEGFR-2 inhibitory activity for 7c and 7d was evaluated. Both molecules disclosed good inhibitory activity, and their IC50 values were equal to 0.728 µM and 0.503 µM, respectively. Additionally, the impacts of 7d on the cell cycle phases as well as on the levels of different apoptotic markers (caspase-3, caspase-9, Bax, and Bcl-2) were assessed. Molecular docking and dynamic simulations are carried out to explore the binding mode of 7d within the VEGFR-2 active site.

Structures of BIRC6-client complexes provide a mechanism of SMAC-mediated release of caspases

Tight regulation of apoptosis is essential for metazoan development and prevents diseases such as cancer and neurodegeneration. Caspase activation is central to apoptosis, and inhibitor of apoptosis proteins (IAPs) are the principal actors that restrain caspase activity and are therefore attractive therapeutic targets. IAPs, in turn, are regulated by mitochondria-derived proapoptotic factors such as SMAC and HTRA2. Through a series of cryo-electron microscopy structures of full-length human baculoviral IAP repeat-containing protein 6 (BIRC6) bound to SMAC, caspases, and HTRA2, we provide a molecular understanding for BIRC6-mediated caspase inhibition and its release by SMAC. The architecture of BIRC6, together with near-irreversible binding of SMAC, elucidates how the IAP inhibitor SMAC can effectively control a processive ubiquitin ligase to respond to apoptotic stimuli.

Association between night shift work and methylation of a subset of immune-related genes

Introduction

Night shift (NS) work has been associated with an increased risk of different conditions characterized by altered inflammatory and immune responses, such as cardio-metabolic and infectious diseases, cancer, and obesity. Epigenetic modifications, such as DNA methylation, might mirror alterations in biological processes that are influenced by NS work.

Methods

The present study was conducted on 94 healthy female workers with different working schedules and aimed at identifying whether NS was associated with plasmatic concentrations of the inflammatory proteins NLRP3 and TNF-alpha, as well as with DNA methylation levels of ten human endogenous retroviral (HERV) sequences, and nine genes selected for their role in immune and inflammatory processes. We also explored the possible role of the body mass index (BMI) as an additional susceptibility factor that might influence the effects of NS work on the tested epigenetic modifications.

Results and discussion

We observed a positive association between NS and NLRP3 levels (p-value 0.0379). Moreover, NS workers retained different methylation levels for ERVFRD-1 (p-value = 0.0274), HERV-L (p-value = 0.0377), and HERV-P (p-value = 0.0140) elements, and for BIRC2 (p-value = 0.0460), FLRT3 (p-value = 0.0422), MIG6 (p-value = 0.0085), and SIRT1 (p-value = 0.0497) genes. We also observed that the BMI modified the relationship between NS and the methylation of ERVE, HERV-L, and ERVW-1 elements. Overall, our results suggest that HERV methylation could pose as a promising biomolecular sensor to monitor not only the effect of NS work but also the cumulative effect of multiple stressors.

Dietary T-2 toxin induces transcriptomic changes in hepatopancreas of Chinese mitten crab (Eriocheir sinensis) via nutrition metabolism and apoptosis-related pathways

Long-term feed route exposure to T-2 toxin was proved to elicit growth retarding effects and induction of oxidative stress and apoptosis in Chinese mitten crab (Eriocheir sinensis). However, no study with a holistic perspective has been conducted to date to further describe the in-depth toxicological mechanism of T-2 toxin in E.sinensis. In this study, an RNA-Sequencing (RNA-seq) was used in this study to investigate the effects of feed supplementation with 0 mg/kg and 4 mg/kg T-2 toxin on the hepatopancreas transcriptome of E.sinensis and establish a hepatopancreas transcriptome library of T-2 toxin chronically exposed crabs after five weeks, where 14 differentially expressed genes (DEGs) were screened out across antioxidant, apoptosis, autophagy, glucolipid metabolism and protein synthesis. The actual expression of all the DEGs (Caspase, ATG4, PERK, ACSL, CAT, BIRC2, HADHA, HADHB, ACOX, PFK, eEFe1, eIF4ɑ, RPL13Ae) was also analyzed by real-time quantitative PCR (RT-qPCR). It was demonstrated that long-term intake of large amounts of T-2 toxin could impair antioxidant enzyme activity, promote apoptosis and protective autophagy, disrupt lipid metabolism and inhibit protein synthesis in the hepatopancreas of E.sinensis. In conclusion, this study explored the toxicity mechanism of T-2 toxin on the hepatopancreas of E.sinensis at the mRNA level, which lays the foundation for further investigation of the molecular toxicity mechanism of T-2 toxin in aquatic crustaceans.

AIDS Dementia Complex: Neurotoxicity in AIDS Patients

AIDS dementia complex (ADC) is a nervous system disorder that harms the neurons in different parts of the brain. Various features are involved in altering the normal activities of neurons. Neurotoxicity is induced due to HIV viral proteins such as gp120, SDF, Tat, etc. These proteins target macrophages, glial cells, astrocytes, and release neurotoxins. These neurotoxins proved harmful for the neurons, caused apoptotic cell death by raising calcium, glutamate level and by producing various free radicals such as nitric oxide (NO·). Lipid peroxidation and lipids rafts also play a vital role in producing toxicity and apoptotic cell death. Membrane associated oxidative stress, cognitive impairment, and high level of HNE (4-hydroxynonenal); all are involved in ADC pathogenesis.

Human Oropharyngeal Candidiasis: From Etiology to Current Treatment

Oral candidiasis is a common but most harmful oral cavity infection caused by yeast-like fungus, this condition is called Oropharyngeal candidiasis. There are various species of candida that are responsible for oral cavity fungal infection including mostly Candida albicans. Different candida infections may be acute and chronic. Cell-mediated immunity, humoral immunity, and granulocytes are the immune factors for the cause of this infection. Different antifungal drugs like nystatin, fluconazole, and amphotericin are used to treat oral cavity fungal infections.

LncRNA-mRNA integrated profiling analysis in response to white spot syndrome virus in hepatopancreas in Penaeus japonicus

Penaeus japonicas is an important shrimp species, which is exposed to stressors including a variety of epidemic diseases. To date, little is known about the mechanisms involved in the response to white spot syndrome virus (WSSV) mediated by long non-coding RNAs (lncRNAs). A total of 6544 putative lncRNAs were identified in the hepatopancreas in P. japonicas, which provides a useful lncRNA reference resource for use in future studies. In addition, a total of 444 differentially expressed mRNAs and 457 differentially expressed lncRNAs were identified at 6, 12, and 24 h after WSSV infection in the hepatopancreas of P. japonicas. Functional enrichment analysis showed that the differentially expressed mRNAs were enriched in terms related to immune response and viral infectivity such as defense response, aminopeptidase activity, whereas the differentially expressed lncRNA partner genes were enriched in ubiquitin-dependent protein catabolic process, lipoprotein metabolic process, and antigen processing and presentation. Moreover, several lncRNAs were induced by WSSV infection, indicating these lncRNAs might participate in regulating many immune processes referring to their partner genes. Co-expression analysis of the lncRNAs and their partner genes identified some high lncRNA-mRNA correlations. These results suggest that WSSV stimulates the immune response in the hepatopancreas potentially through an important coding and non-coding gene network, thereby providing valuable information regarding non-coding responses to WSSV in Penaeus species.

Lipopolysaccharide sensitizes the therapeutic response of breast cancer to IAP antagonist

Inhibitor of apoptosis protein (IAP) is a class of E3 ubiquitin ligases functioning to support cancer survival and growth. Many small-molecule IAP antagonists have been developed, aiming to degrade IAP proteins to kill cancer. We have evaluated the effect of lipopolysaccharide (LPS), a component of the bacterial outer membrane, on IAP antagonists in treating breast cancer in a mouse model to guide future clinical trials. We show that LPS promotes IAP antagonist-induced regression of triple-negative breast cancer (TNBC) from MDA-MB-231 cells in immunodeficient mice. IAP antagonists such as SM-164, AT-406, and BV6, do not kill MDA-MB-231 cells alone, but allow LPS to induce cancer cell apoptosis rapidly. The apoptosis caused by LPS plus SM-164 is blocked by toll-like receptor 4 (TLR4) or MyD88 inhibitor, which inhibits LPS-induced TNFα production by the cancer cells. Consistent with this, MDA-MB-231 cell apoptosis induced by LPS plus SM-164 is also blocked by the TNF inhibitor. LPS alone does not kill MDA-MB-231 cells because it markedly increases the protein level of cIAP1/2, which is directly associated with and stabilized by MyD88, an adaptor protein of TLR4. ER⁺ MCF7 breast cancer cells expressing low levels of cIAP1/2 undergo apoptosis in response to SM-164 combined with TNFα but not with LPS. Furthermore, TNFα but not LPS alone inhibits MCF7 cell growth in vitro. Consistent with these, LPS combined with SM-164, but not either of them alone, causes regression of ER⁺ breast cancer from MCF7 cells in immunodeficient mice. In summary, LPS sensitizes the therapeutic response of both triple-negative and ER⁺ breast cancer to IAP antagonist therapy by inducing rapid apoptosis of the cancer cells through TLR4- and MyD88-mediated production of TNFα. We conclude that antibiotics that can reduce microbiota-derived LPS should not be used together with an IAP antagonist for cancer therapy.

Molecular Pathways and Key Genes Associated With Breast Width and Protein Content in White Striping and Wooden Breast Chicken Pectoral Muscle

Growth-related abnormalities affecting modern chickens, known as White Striping (WS) and Wooden Breast (WB), have been deeply investigated in the last decade. Nevertheless, their precise etiology remains unclear. The present study aimed at providing new insights into the molecular mechanisms involved in their onset by identifying clusters of co-expressed genes (i.e., modules) and key loci associated with phenotypes highly related to the occurrence of these muscular disorders. The data obtained by a Weighted Gene Co-expression Network Analysis (WGCNA) were investigated to identify hub genes associated with the parameters breast width (W) and total crude protein content (PC) of Pectoralis major muscles (PM) previously harvested from 12 fast-growing broilers (6 normal vs. 6 affected by WS/WB). W and PC can be considered markers of the high breast yield of modern broilers and the impaired composition of abnormal fillets, respectively. Among the identified modules, the turquoise (r = -0.90, p < 0.0001) and yellow2 (r = 0.91, p < 0.0001) were those most significantly related to PC and W, and therefore respectively named “protein content” and “width” modules. Functional analysis of the width module evidenced genes involved in the ubiquitin-mediated proteolysis and inflammatory response. GTPase activator activity, PI3K-Akt signaling pathway, collagen catabolic process, and blood vessel development have been detected among the most significant functional categories of the protein content module. The most interconnected hub genes detected for the width module encode for proteins implicated in the adaptive responses to oxidative stress (i.e., THRAP3 and PRPF40A), and a member of the inhibitor of apoptosis family (i.e., BIRC2) involved in contrasting apoptotic events related to the endoplasmic reticulum (ER)-stress. The protein content module showed hub genes coding for different types of collagens (such as COL6A3 and COL5A2), along with MMP2 and SPARC, which are implicated in Collagen type IV catabolism and biosynthesis. Taken together, the present findings suggested that an ER stress condition may underly the inflammatory responses and apoptotic events taking place within affected PM muscles. Moreover, these results support the hypothesis of a role of the Collagen type IV in the cascade of events leading to the occurrence of WS/WB and identify novel actors probably involved in their onset.

ILP-2: A New Bane and Therapeutic Target for Human Cancers

Inhibitor of apoptosis protein-related-like protein-2 (ILP-2), also known as BIRC-8, is a member of the inhibitor of apoptosis protein (IAPs) family, which mainly encodes the negative regulator of apoptosis. It is selectively overexpressed in a variety of human tumors and can help tumor cells evade apoptosis, promote tumor cell growth, increase tumor cell aggressiveness, and appears to be involved in tumor cell resistance to chemotherapeutic drugs. Several studies have shown that downregulation of ILP-2 expression increases apoptosis, inhibits metastasis, reduces cell growth potential, and sensitizes tumor cells to chemotherapeutic drugs. In addition, ILP-2 inhibits apoptosis in a unique manner; it does not directly inhibit the activity of caspases but induces apoptosis by cooperating with other apoptosis-related proteins. Here, we review the current understanding of the various roles of ILP-2 in the apoptotic cascade and explore the use of interfering ILP-2, and the combination of related anti-tumor agents, as a novel strategy for cancer therapy.

Potential for reversing miR-634-mediated cytoprotective processes to improve efficacy of chemotherapy against oral squamous cell carcinoma

For advanced oral squamous cell carcinoma (OSCC), increasing sensitivity to chemotherapy is a major challenge in improving treatment outcomes, and targeting cytoprotective processes that lead to the chemotherapy resistance of cancer cells may be therapeutically promising. Tumor-suppressive microRNAs (miRNAs) can target multiple cancer-promoting genes concurrently and are thus expected to be useful seeds for cancer therapeutics. We revealed that miR-634-mediated targeting of multiple cytoprotective process-related genes, including cellular inhibitor of apoptosis protein 1 (cIAP1), can effectively increase cisplatin (CDDP)-induced cytotoxicity and overcome CDDP resistance in OSCC cells. The combination of topical treatment with miR-634 ointment and administration of CDDP was synergistically effective against OSCC tumor growth in a xenograft mouse model. Furthermore, the expression of miR-634 target genes is frequently upregulated in primary OSCC tumors. Our study suggests that reversing miR-634-mediated cytoprotective processes activated in cancer cells is a potentially useful strategy to improve CDDP efficacy against advanced OSCC.

Inhibitors of apoptosis: expression and regulation in the endometrium during the estrous cycle and at the maternal-conceptus interface during pregnancy in pigs

Objective

Caspase-mediated apoptosis plays a crucial role in the regulation of endometrial and placental function in females. Caspase activity is tightly controlled by members of the inhibitors of apoptosis proteins (IAPs) family. However, the expression and regulation of IAPs at the maternal-conceptus interface has not been studied in pigs. Therefore, we determined the expression of IAP family members baculovirus IAP repeat-containing 1 (BIRC1) to BIRC6 at the maternal-conceptus interface in pigs.

Methods

We obtained endometrial tissues from pigs at various stages of the estrous cycle and pregnancy, conceptus tissues during early pregnancy, and chorioallantoic tissues during mid- to late pregnancy and analyzed the expression of IAPs. Furthermore, we determined the effects of the steroid hormones estradiol-17β (E2) and progesterone on the expression of IAPs in endometrial explant tissue cultures.

Results

During the estrous cycle, BIRC2 and BIRC5 expression varied cyclically, and during pregnancy, endometrial BIRC1, BIRC2, BIRC3, BIRC4, and BIRC5 expression varied in a stage-specific manner. Conceptus and chorioallantoic tissues also expressed IAPs during pregnancy. The BIRC2 and BIR3 mRNAs were localized to luminal epithelial cells, and BIRC4 proteins to glandular epithelial cells in the endometrium. Exposure of endometrial tissues to E2 increased the expression of BIRC6, while progesterone increased the expression of BIRC1, BIRC4, and BIRC6 in a dose-dependent manner.

Conclusion

These results indicated that IAPs were expressed in the endometrium during the estrous cycle and at the maternal-conceptus interface during pregnancy in a stage-specific manner. In addition, steroid hormones were found to be responsible for the expression of some IAPs in pigs. Together, the results suggested that IAPs may play important roles in endometrial and placental functions by regulating caspase action and apoptosis at the maternal-conceptus interface.

Optimization of a Series of RIPK2 PROTACs

Receptor-interacting serine/threonine protein kinase 2 (RIPK2) is an important kinase of the innate immune system. Herein, we describe the optimization of a series of RIPK2 PROTACs which recruit members of the inhibitor of apoptosis (IAP) family of E3 ligases. Our PROTAC optimization strategy focused on reducing the lipophilicity of the early lead which resulted in the identification of analogues with improved solubility and increased human and rat microsomal stability. We identified a range of IAP binders that were successfully incorporated into potent RIPK2 PROTACs with attractive pharmacokinetic profiles. Compound 20 possessed the best overall profile with good solubility, potent degradation of RIPK2, and associated inhibition of TNFα release. A proof-of-concept study utilizing a slow release matrix demonstrated the feasibility of a long-acting parenteral formulation with >1 month duration. This represents an attractive alternative dosing paradigm to oral delivery, especially for chronic diseases where compliance can be challenging.

Evidence of Omics, Immune Infiltration, and Pharmacogenomic for SENP1 in the Pan-Cancer Cohort

Sentrin specific-protease 1 (SENP1) is a protein involved in deSUMOylation that is almost overexpressed in cancer. SENP1 has a determinative role in the activation of transcription programs in the innate immune responses and the development B of and C lymphocytes. We found, SENP1 possibly plays a critical role in immune infiltration and acts as an expression marker in PAAD, ESCA, and THYM. CD4+ T cells, CD8+ T cells, and macrophages were more key-related immune cells, indicating that SENP1 might be introduced as a potential target for cancer immunotherapy. We further showed that dysregulation of SENP1 is powerfully associated with decreased patient survival and clinical stage. Total SENP1 protein also increases in cancer. SENP1 is also controlled by transcription factors (TFs) CREB1, KDM5A, REST, and YY1 that regulates apoptosis, cell cycle, cell proliferation, invasion, tumorigenesis, and metastasis. These TFs were in a positive correlation with SENP1. MiR-138-5p, miR-129-1-3p, and miR-129-2-3p also inhibit tumorigenesis through targeting of SENP1. The SENP1 expression level positively correlated with the expression levels of UBN1, SP3, SAP130, NUP98, NUP153 in 32 tumor types. SENP1 and correlated and binding genes: SAP130, NUP98, and NUP153 activated cell cycle. Consistent with this finding, drug analysis was indicated SENP1 is sensitive to cell cycle, apoptosis, and RTK signaling regulators. In the end, SENP1 and its expression-correlated and functional binding genes were enriched in cell cycle, apoptosis, cellular response to DNA damage stimulus. We found that the cell cycle is the main way for tumorigenesis by SENP1. SENP1 attenuates the effect of inhibitory drugs on the cell cycle. We also introduced effective FDA-Approved drugs that can inhibit SENP1. Therefore in the treatments in which these drugs are used, SENP1 inhibition is a suitable approach. This study supplies a wide analysis of the SENP1 across The Cancer Genome Atlas (CGA) cancer types. These results suggest the potential roles of SENP1 as a biomarker for cancer. Since these drugs and the drugs that cause to resistance are applied to cancer treatment, then these two class drugs can use to inhibition of SENP1.

Role of Apoptosis in Wound Healing and Apoptosis Alterations in Microgravity

Functioning as the outermost self-renewing protective layer of the human organism, skin protects against a multitude of harmful biological and physical stimuli. Consisting of ectodermal, mesenchymal, and neural crest-derived cell lineages, tissue homeostasis, and signal transduction are finely tuned through the interplay of various pathways. A health problem of astronauts in space is skin deterioration. Until today, wound healing has not been considered as a severe health concern for crew members. This can change with deep space exploration missions and commercial spaceflights together with space tourism. Albeit the molecular process of wound healing is not fully elucidated yet, there have been established significant conceptual gains and new scientific methods. Apoptosis, e.g., programmed cell death, enables orchestrated development and cell removal in wounded or infected tissue. Experimental designs utilizing microgravity allow new insights into the role of apoptosis in wound healing. Furthermore, impaired wound healing in unloading conditions would depict a significant challenge in human-crewed exploration space missions. In this review, we provide an overview of alterations in the behavior of cutaneous cell lineages under microgravity in regard to the impact of apoptosis in wound healing. We discuss the current knowledge about wound healing in space and simulated microgravity with respect to apoptosis and available therapeutic strategies.

Manifold role of ubiquitin in Helicobacter pylori infection and gastric cancer

Infection with H. pylori induces a strong host cellular response represented by induction of a set of molecular signaling pathways, expression of proinflammatory cytokines and changes in proliferation. Chronic infection and inflammation accompanied by secretory dysfunction can result in the development of gastric metaplasia and gastric cancer. Currently, it has been determined that the regulation of many cellular processes involves ubiquitinylation of molecular effectors. The binding of ubiquitin allows the substrate to undergo a change in function, to interact within multimolecular signaling complexes and/or to be degraded. Dysregulation of the ubiquitinylation machinery contributes to several pathologies, including cancer. It is not understood in detail how H. pylori impacts the ubiquitinylation of host substrate proteins. The aim of this review is to summarize the existing literature in this field, with an emphasis on the role of E3 ubiquitin ligases in host cell homeodynamics, gastric pathophysiology and gastric cancer.

The BIRC Family Genes Expression in Patients with Triple Negative Breast Cancer

The BIRC (baculoviral IAP repeat-containing; BIRC) family genes encode for Inhibitor of Apoptosis (IAP) proteins. The dysregulation of the expression levels of the genes in question in cancer tissue as compared to normal tissue suggests that the apoptosis process in cancer cells was disturbed, which may be associated with the development and chemoresistance of triple negative breast cancer (TNBC). In our study, we determined the expression level of eight genes from the BIRC family using the Real-Time PCR method in patients with TNBC and compared the obtained results with clinical data. Additionally, using bioinformatics tools (Ualcan and The Breast Cancer Gene-Expression Miner v4.5 (bc-GenExMiner v4.5)), we compared our data with the data in the Cancer Genome Atlas (TCGA) database. We observed diverse expression pattern among the studied genes in breast cancer tissue. Comparing the expression level of the studied genes with the clinical data, we found that in patients diagnosed with breast cancer under the age of 50, the expression levels of all studied genes were higher compared to patients diagnosed after the age of 50. We observed that in patients with invasion of neoplastic cells into lymphatic vessels and fat tissue, the expression levels of BIRC family genes were lower compared to patients in whom these features were not noted. Statistically significant differences in gene expression were also noted in patients classified into three groups depending on the basis of the Scarff-Bloom and Richardson (SBR) Grading System.

Single-molecule long-read (SMRT) transcriptome sequencing of Mercenaria mercenaria reveals a powerful anti-apoptotic system critical for air exposure endurance

Mercenaria mercenaria is an economically important clam species and exhibits an outstanding resistance to multiple environmental stressors. However, our understanding of their stress adaptability is limited due to a lack of genomic information, such as transcriptome resources. In this study, single-molecule long-read (SMRT) mRNA sequencing was performed to obtain the full-length gill transcriptome reference sequences of M. mercenaria under air exposure stress. In all, 14.5 G subreads were obtained and assembled into 64,603 unigenes, among which 50,613 were successfully annotated. Additionally, 56,295 SSRs, 1457 transcription factors, and 5924 lncRNAs were identified in M. mercenaria transcriptome. Furthermore, numerous apoptosis-related transcripts were identified according to Swiss-Prot annotation and their numbers were counted. We also found that most apoptosis-related transcripts exhibited typical domains of a certain protein family through conserved domain prediction. Additionally, eight typical sequences related to apoptosis pathway were detected by RT-PCR, with the aim to show the sequential variation of gene expression levels under air exposure. These results implied that the complicated apoptosis system, especially the powerful anti-apoptotic system was critical for M. mercenaria to endure air exposure.

Genomic Instability Is an Early Event in Aluminium-Induced Tumorigenesis

Genomic instability is generally considered as a hallmark of tumorigenesis and a prerequisite condition for malignant transformation. Aluminium salts are suspected environmental carcinogens that transform mammary epithelial cells in vitro through unknown mechanisms. We report here that long-term culture in the presence of aluminium chloride (AlCl₃) enables HC11 normal mouse mammary epithelial cells to form tumours and metastases when injected into the syngeneic and immunocompetent BALB/cByJ strain. We demonstrate that AlCl₃ rapidly increases chromosomal structural abnormalities in mammary epithelial cells, while we failed to detect direct modulation of specific mRNA pathways. Our observations provide evidence that clastogenic activity—a well-recognized inducer of genomic instability—might account in part for the transforming abilities of aluminium in mammary epithelial cells.

Antioxidant and Cell Proliferation Properties of the Vietnamese Traditional Medicinal Plant Peltophorum pterocarpum

Peltophorum pterocarpum is regarded as one of the most important medicinal plants in the traditional medicine system of Vietnam. However, scientific evidence for the antioxidant effects against lipid peroxidation and the potential effects in cancer of this plant are lacking. In our experiments, 70% ethanolic extracts of P. pterocarpum leaves (LPP) and stem bark (SPP) were evaluated for their low-density lipoprotein (LDL) oxidation and cytotoxic activity against cancer cell lines. Both LPP and SPP inhibited Cu²⁺-mediated LDL by increasing the lag time of conjugated diene formation and inhibiting the generation of thiobarbituric acid reactive substances (TBARS) in a dose-dependent manner. In cancer cells, LPP and SPP triggered the most potent cytotoxic effects against human leukemia cells, CRF-SBA and HL-60, with half-maximal inhibitory concentration (IC₅₀) values ranging from 118.5 to 157.2 µg/mL. SPP exhibited significant cytotoxicity against MIA PACA2, A549, and KG cell lines with IC₅₀ values of 167.5, 244.1 and 255.0 µg/mL, respectively. Meanwhile, LPP showed cytotoxic activity against KG with an IC₅₀ value of 228.1 µg/mL. SPP mediated cytotoxicity in HL-60 and CCRF-SBA cells through the activation of the apoptosis pathway, including the activation of caspases 3, and 9 and poly (ADP-ribose) polymerase (PARP). These results suggested that SPP may prevent the development and progression of atherosclerosis and leukemia in humans.

Skim-Sequencing Based Genotyping Reveals Genetic Divergence of the Wild and Domesticated Population of Black Tiger Shrimp (Penaeus monodon) in the Indo-Pacific Region

The domestication of a wild-caught aquatic animal is an evolutionary process, which results in genetic discrimination at the genomic level in response to strong artificial selection. Although black tiger shrimp (Penaeus monodon) is one of the most commercially important aquaculture species, a systematic assessment of genetic divergence and structure of wild-caught and domesticated broodstock populations of the species is yet to be documented. Therefore, we used skim sequencing (SkimSeq) based genotyping approach to investigate the genetic structure of 50 broodstock individuals of P. monodon species, collected from five sampling sites (n = 10 in each site) across their distribution in Indo-Pacific regions. The wild-caught P. monodon broodstock population were collected from Malaysia (MS) and Japan (MJ), while domesticated broodstock populations were collected from Madagascar (MMD), Hawaii, HI, USA (MMO), and Thailand (MT). After various filtering process, a total of 194,259 single nucleotide polymorphism (SNP) loci were identified, in which 4983 SNP loci were identified as putatively adaptive by the pcadapt approach. In both datasets, pairwise F_ST estimates high genetic divergence between wild and domesticated broodstock populations. Consistently, different spatial clustering analyses in both datasets categorized divergent genetic structure into two clusters: (1) wild-caught populations (MS and MJ), and (2) domesticated populations (MMD, MMO and MT). Among 4983 putatively adaptive SNP loci, only 50 loci were observed to be in the coding region. The gene ontology (GO) and Kyoto Encyclopedia of Genes and Genomes (KEGG) analyses suggested that non-synonymous mutated genes might be associated with the energy production, metabolic functions, respiration regulation and developmental rates, which likely act to promote adaptation to the strong artificial selection during the domestication process. This study has demonstrated the applicability of SkimSeq in a highly duplicated genome of P. monodon specifically, across a range of genetic backgrounds and geographical distributions, and would be useful for future genetic improvement program of this species in aquaculture.

10H-3,6-Diazaphenothiazines triggered the mitochondrial-dependent and cell death receptor-dependent apoptosis pathways and further increased the chemosensitivity of MCF-7 breast cancer cells via inhibition of AKT1 pathways

Breast cancer is one of the leading causes of death in cancer categories, followed by lung, colorectal, and ovarian among the female gender across the world. 10H-3,6-diazaphenothiazine (PTZ) is a thiazine derivative compound that exhibits many pharmacological activities. Herein, we proceed to investigate the pharmacological activities of PTZ toward breast cancer MCF-7 cells as a representative in vitro breast cancer cell model. The PTZ exhibited a proliferation inhibition (IC50  = 0.895 µM) toward MCF-7 cells. Further, cell cycle analysis illustrated that the S-phase checkpoint was activated to achieve proliferation inhibition. In vitro cytotoxicity test on three normal cell lines (HEK293 normal kidney cells, MCF-10A normal breast cells, and H9C2 normal heart cells) demonstrated that PTZ was more potent toward cancer cells. Increase in the levels of reactive oxygen species results in polarization of mitochondrial membrane potential (ΔΨm), together with suppression of mitochondrial thioredoxin reductase enzymatic activity suggested that PTZ induced oxidative damages toward mitochondria and contributed to improved drug efficacy toward treatment. The RT2 PCR Profiler Array (human apoptosis pathways) proved that PTZ induced cell death via mitochondria-dependent and cell death receptor-dependent pathways, through a series of modulation of caspases, and the respective morphology of apoptosis was observed. Mechanistic studies of apoptosis suggested that PTZ inhibited AKT1 pathways resulting in enhanced drug efficacy despite it preventing invasion of cancer cells. These results showed the effectiveness of PTZ in initiation of apoptosis, programmed cell death, toward highly chemoresistant MCF-7 cells, thus suggesting its potential as a chemotherapeutic drug.

Evaluation of inhibitor of apoptosis genes as targets for RNAi-mediated control of insect pests

Apoptosis has been widely studied from mammals to insects. Inhibitor of apoptosis (IAP) protein is a negative regulator of apoptosis. Recent studies suggest that iap genes could be excellent targets for RNA interference (RNAi)-mediated control of insect pests. However, not much is known about iap genes in one of the well-known insect model species, Tribolium castaneum. The orthologues of five iap genes were identified in T. castaneum by searching its genome at NCBI (https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/) and UniProt (https://www.uniprot.org/) databases using Drosophila melanogaster and Aedes aegypti IAP protein sequences as queries. RNAi assays were performed in T. castaneum cell line (TcA) and larvae. The knockdown of iap1 gene induced a distinct apoptotic phenotype in TcA cells and induced 91% mortality in T. castaneum larvae. Whereas, knockdown of iap5 resulted in a decrease in cell proliferation in TcA cells and developmental defects in T. castaneum larvae which led to 100% mortality. Knockdown of the other three iap genes identified did not cause a significant effect on cells or insects. These data increase our understanding of iap genes in insects and provide opportunities for developing iap1 and iap5 as targets for RNAi-based insect pest control.

Identification of hub genes associated with RNAi-induced silencing of XIAP through targeted proteomics approach in MCF7 cells

Background

The X-linked inhibitor of apoptosis protein (XIAP) is the most potent caspase inhibitor of the IAP family in apoptosis pathway. This study aims to identify the molecular targets of XIAP in human breast cancer cells exposed to XIAP siRNA by proteomics screening. The expression of XIAP was reduced in MCF-7 breast cancer cells by siRNA. Cell viability and the mRNA expression level of this gene were evaluated by MTS and quantitative real-time PCR procedures, respectively. Subsequently, the XIAP protein level was visualized by Western blotting and analyzed by two-dimensional (2D) electrophoresis and LC–ESI–MS/MS.

Results

Following XIAP silencing, cell proliferation was reduced in XIAP siRNA transfected cells. The mRNA transcription and protein expression of XIAP were decreased in cells exposed to XIAP siRNA than si-NEG. We identified 30 proteins that were regulated by XIAP, of which 27 down-regulated and 3 up-regulated. The most down-regulated proteins belonged to the Heat Shock Proteins family. They participate in cancer related processes including apoptosis and MAPK signaling pathway. Reduced expression of HSP90B1 was associated with apoptosis induction by androgen receptor and prostate specific antigen. Suppression of XIAP resulted in the enhancement of GDIB, ENO1, and CH60 proteins expression. The network analysis of XIAP-regulated proteins identified HSPA8, HSP90AA1, ENO1, and HSPA9 as key nodes in terms of degree and betweenness centrality methods.

Conclusions

These results suggested that XIAP may have a number of biological functions in a diverse set of non-apoptotic signaling pathways and may provide an insight into the biomedical significance of XIAP over-expression in MCF-7 cells.

Increased Expression of BIRC2, BIRC3, and BIRC5 from the IAP Family in Mesenchymal Stem Cells of the Umbilical Cord Wharton's Jelly (WJSC) in Younger Women Giving Birth Naturally

The knowledge of factors affecting the viability as well as proliferation and therapeutic potential of perinatal stem cells is of great importance for the decisions concerning their collection, multiplication, and storing. The aim of this work is to evaluate the expression of the BIRC2, BIRC3, and BIRC5 genes at the level of transcription in mesenchymal stem cells derived from the umbilical cord Wharton's jelly. The study examined the relationship between the expression level of the studied genes and selected biophysical parameters of umbilical blood: pH, pCO₂, pO₂, and cHCO₃. Moreover, the relationship between the pregnant age, the type of delivery (natural delivery or cesarean section), and the level of expression of the BIRC2, BIRC3, and BIRC5 genes was assessed. The research was carried out on mesenchymal stem cells derived from the umbilical cord Wharton's jelly (WJSC) taken from 55 women immediately after delivery. Expression of the examined genes was assessed with the qPCR method using commercially available reagent kits. On the basis of the conducted research, it was demonstrated that WJSCs collected from younger women giving birth naturally, and in the acidic environment of the umbilical cord blood, are characterized by a higher expression of the BIRC2, BIRC3, and BIRC5 genes. It was shown that the expression of the BIRC2 and BIRC3 genes in Wharton's jelly mesenchymal stem cells declines with the mother's age. Our research suggests that stem cells collected from younger women giving birth naturally can be more resistant to apoptosis and show a more stem cell-like character, which can increase their therapeutic potential and clinical utility, but this conclusion needs to be approved in the next studies.

Modulatory Effect of Silymarin on Apoptosis in Testosterone -Induced Benign Prostatic Hyperplasia in Rats

Benign prostatic hyperplasia (BPH) is considered a normal part of the aging process in men, and is characterized by an imbalance between cell proliferation and apoptosis. Our study aimed to investigate the potential protective role of silymarin (SIL) against testosterone-induced BPH in rats and to elucidate the molecular mechanisms underlying SIL pro-apoptotic and anti-proliferative effects. Forty adult male Wistar rats were divided equally into four groups: control group, BPH group (3 mg/kg testosterone propionate, s.c. for 14 days, SIL group (50 mg/kg SIL, orally, once daily concomitantly with 3 mg/kg testosterone propionate s.c.) and inhibitor group (50 mg/kg SIL orally concomitantly with 3 mg/kg testosterone, s.c. and 0.5 mg/rat Z-VAD-FMK, i.p.). Silymarin induced caspase-dependent apoptosis in BPH as SIL significantly reduced prostatic Bcl-2 protein and increased Bax protein concentration. Also, SIL down-regulated survivin (Inhibitor of apoptosis protein (IAPs) gene expression in rat prostate assisting mainly caspase-dependent pathway. Silymarin significantly decreased cytochrome-c cytosolic concentration and increased caspase 3 activity compared to BPH group. Silymarin significantly increased the content of p27/^kip1 (Cyclin dependent kinase inhibitor (CDKIs) promoting cell cycle arrest. The histological features of BPH such as hypertrophy, papillary projections formation, improved in SIL group. Silymarin showed a significant anti-proliferative and pro-apoptotic role in BPH and accordingly it could be effectively and safely used as a treatment tool in cases of BPH or prostatic disorders.

COMPARISON OF THE RADIATION SENSITIVITY OF THE BREAST CANCER CELL LINE MCF7 AND HUMAN ADIPOSE-DERIVED STEM CELLS

A comparison between breast cancer cell line MCF7 and human adipose-derived stem cells (ADSC) after irradiation by the same doses of megavoltage X-rays was performed. The cell growth, the induction of apoptosis and the expression of selected genes were analyzed. Irradiated MCF7 related to its control sample grows slower than ADSC and it undergoes apoptosis in much higher levels than ADSC. This was confirmed by real-time polymerase chain reaction as well, where the expression of apoptotic genes was found to be considerably higher for MCF7 than for ADSC. From the results of this project, it could be stated that MCF7 is more radiosensitive than ADSC.

Livin Regulates H2A.XY142 Phosphorylation and Promotes Autophagy in Colon Cancer Cells via a Novel Kinase Activity

Objective: To investigate Livin-mediated regulation of H2A.X^Y142 phosphorylation via a novel kinase activity and its effect on autophagy in colon cancer cells.

Methods: The interaction between Livin and H2A.X was tested by immunoprecipitation. H2A.X–/– HCT116 cells were transfected with human influenza hemagglutinin (HA)-tagged WT or Y142F phospho-dead mutantH2A.X plasmids. GST-tagged recombinant Livin protein was used to perform in vitro pull-down experiment and kinase assay. H2A.X–/–Livin+/+ SW480 cells were co-transfected with H2A.X^WT/H2A.X^Y142F plasmid and LC3 EGFP-tagged plasmid to explore whether H2A.X^Y142F was involved in Livin-mediated autophagy induced by starvation in colon cancer cells.

Results: Co-immunoprecipitation studies confirmed that Livin interacted with H2A.X and that it was phosphorylation dependent. In vitro kinase assay confirmed that Livin could phosphorylate H2A.X. Knockdown of Livin (Livin–/–) in SW480 cells or HCT116 cells canceled the starvation-induced autophagy in colon cancer cells; H2A.X–/–Livin+/+ SW480 cells transfected with H2A.X^WT activated autophagy induced by starvation while cells transfected with H2A.X^Y142F had no significant difference; Livin-H2A.X^Y142F axis activated autophagy in colon cancer cells through transcriptionally regulating ATG5 and ATG7.

Conclusion: Livin promotes autophagy in colon cancer cells via regulating the phosphorylation of H2A.X^Y142.

Sulforaphane enhances apoptosis induced by Lactobacillus pentosus strain S-PT84 via the TNFα pathway in human colon cancer cells

Sulforaphane and Lactobacilli induce apoptosis in several cancer cells. Sulforaphane, a dietary isothiocyanate, is an attractive agent due to its potent anticancer effects. Sulforaphane suppresses the proliferation of various cancer cells in vitro and in vivo. The present study investigated the effect of sulforaphane and a co-culture with Lactobacillus-treated peripheral blood mononuclear cells (PBMCs) in human colon cancer cells. The combination markedly induced apoptosis in human colon cancer HCT116 and SW480 cells. A pan-caspase inhibitor markedly inhibited apoptosis, and a tumor necrosis factor (TNF) receptor/Fc chimera partially inhibited apoptosis in both cells. The amount of TNFα secretion in the culture supernatant was significantly increased by co-culture with Lactobacillus-treated normal human PBMCs. On the other hand, the expression of cellular inhibitor of apoptosis-2 (cIAP-2), an anti-apoptotic protein, was increased by co-culture with Lactobacillus-treated PBMCs in colon cancer cells, but sulforaphane treatment significantly suppressed the induction of cIAP-2. The present results revealed that sulforaphane enhances apoptosis in human colon cancer cells under co-culture with Lactobacillus-treated PBMCs via the TNFα signaling pathway.

Directed elimination of senescent cells attenuates development of osteoarthritis by inhibition of c-IAP and XIAP

Aging drives the accumulation of senescent cells (SnCs) by secreting factors that cause the senescence-associated secretory phenotype (SASP), including stem cells in the bone marrow, which contribute to aging-related bone degradation. Osteoarthritis (OA) is a serious chronic injury disease, and increasing age is a major risk factor. The accumulation of SnCs may accelerate the development of OA, and the accumulation of SnCs may benefit from its resistance to apoptotic stimuli. Therefore, local elimination of SnCs could be a promising treatment for OA. Apoptosis inhibitor protein (IAP) is an important antiapoptotic protein in vivo. AT-406 is a small molecule inhibitor of the IAP genes and also regulates the transcription of several genes. Here, we show that SnCs upregulate the antiapoptotic proteins c-IAP1, c-IAP2 and XIAP.The combined inhibition of c-IAP1, c-IAP2 and XIAP using siRNA or AT-406 specifically induce the apoptosis of SnCs.In addition, XIAP and STX17 bind to each other to regulate the fusion of autophagosomes and lysosomes in SnCs, which in turn, affects the fate of SnCs. It is worth noting that the clearance of SnCs attenuated the secretion of SASP and created a proregenerative environment. Most importantly, local clearance of SnCs significantly attenuated the progression of osteoarthritis in rats without significant toxic effects. Thus, local elimination of SnCs may be a potential treatment for OA. This is the first report of inhibition of IAPs for clearing SnCs and suggests that eradication of SnCs may be a new strategy for the treatment of age-related diseases.

Drawing inferences for high-dimensional linear models: A selection-assisted partial regression and smoothing approach

Drawing inferences for high-dimensional models is challenging as regular asymptotic theories are not applicable. This article proposes a new framework of simultaneous estimation and inferences for high-dimensional linear models. By smoothing over partial regression estimates based on a given variable selection scheme, we reduce the problem to low-dimensional least squares estimations. The procedure, termed as Selection-assisted Partial Regression and Smoothing (SPARES), utilizes data splitting along with variable selection and partial regression. We show that the SPARES estimator is asymptotically unbiased and normal, and derive its variance via a nonparametric delta method. The utility of the procedure is evaluated under various simulation scenarios and via comparisons with the de-biased LASSO estimators, a major competitor. We apply the method to analyze two genomic datasets and obtain biologically meaningful results.

Apoptosis regulation in adrenocortical carcinoma

Apoptosis evading is a hallmark of cancer. Tumor cells are characterized by having an impaired apoptosis signaling, a fact that deregulates the balance between cell death and survival, leading to tumor development, invasion and resistance to treatment. In general, patients with adrenocortical carcinomas (ACC) have an extremely bad prognosis, which is related to disease progression and significant resistance to treatments. In this report, we performed an integrative review about the disruption of apoptosis in ACC that may underlie the characteristic poor prognosis in these patients. Although the apoptosis has been scarcely studied in ACC, the majority of the deregulation phenomena already described are anti-apoptotic. Most importantly, in a near future, targeting apoptosis modulation in ACC patients may become a promising therapeutic.

High BIRC7 Expression Might Be an Independent Prognostic Indicator of Poor Recurrence-Free Survival in Patients With Prostate Cancer

Background:

BIRC7, which encodes Baculoviral inhibitor of apoptosis (IAP) repeat-containing protein 7, is an oncogene in multiple types of cancer. In this study, we examined the association between BIRC7 expression and the clinicopathological characteristics of prostate cancer, the independent prognostic value of BIRC7 in terms of recurrence-free survival, and the molecular mechanisms of its dysregulation.

Methods:

Data mining was performed using data from The Cancer Genome Atlas. The patients were divided into high and low BIRC7 expression groups according to the Youden index determined by receiver operating characteristic curves for recurrence. Subgroup analysis was performed according to T stages and Gleason score.

Results:

BIRC7 was significantly upregulated in prostate cancer tissues (N = 497) than in normal prostate tissues (N = 52). High BIRC7 expression group had lower ratios of overall response rate and medium-grade (Gleason score 6-7) tumors and higher proportions of nodal invasion and recurrence after surgery. Although Kaplan-Meier curves showed that high BIRC7 expression was generally associated with poor recurrence-free survival, the following subgroup analysis only confirmed the association in T3/T4 and medium-grade tumors. Multivariate analysis showed that BIRC7 expression was not an independent indicator of recurrence-free survival in T2 or high-grade tumors, but was independently associated with poor recurrence-free survival in T3/T4 tumors (hazard ratio: 4.249, 95% confidence interval: 1.563-11.546, P = .005) and in medium-grade tumors (hazard ratio: 6.041, 95% confidence interval: 1.763-20.703, P = .004). DNA amplification was associated with significantly upregulated BIRC7 expression. There was also a weak negative correlation between BIRC7 expression and its DNA methylation (Pearson r = −0.23).

Conclusion:

Based on these findings, we infer that BIRC7 upregulation might serve as a valuable biomarker of increased recurrence risk in advanced T stages and medium-grade prostate cancer. Its expression is at least regulated by both copy number alteration and DNA methylation.

Herpes Simplex Virus Type 1 Infection of the Central Nervous System: Insights Into Proposed Interrelationships With Neurodegenerative Disorders

Herpes simplex virus type 1 (HSV-1) is highly prevalent in humans and can reach the brain without evident clinical symptoms. Once in the central nervous system (CNS), the virus can either reside in a quiescent latent state in this tissue, or eventually actively lead to severe acute necrotizing encephalitis, which is characterized by exacerbated neuroinflammation and prolonged neuroimmune activation producing a life-threatening disease. Although HSV-1 encephalitis can be treated with antivirals that limit virus replication, neurological sequelae are common and the virus will nevertheless remain for life in the neural tissue. Importantly, there is accumulating evidence that suggests that HSV-1 infection of the brain both, in symptomatic and asymptomatic individuals could lead to neuronal damage and eventually, neurodegenerative disorders. Here, we review and discuss acute and chronic infection of particular brain regions by HSV-1 and how this may affect neuron and cognitive functions in the host. We review potential cellular and molecular mechanisms leading to neurodegeneration, such as protein aggregation, dysregulation of autophagy, oxidative cell damage and apoptosis, among others. Furthermore, we discuss the impact of HSV-1 infection on brain inflammation and its potential relationship with neurodegenerative diseases.

miR-1260b, mediated by YY1, activates KIT signaling by targeting SOCS6 to regulate cell proliferation and apoptosis in NSCLC

Non-small cell lung cancer (NSCLC) is one of the most common aggressive malignancies. miRNAs have been identified as important biomarkers and regulators of NSCLC. However, the functional contributions of miR-1260b to NSCLC cell proliferation and apoptosis have not been studied. In this study, miR-1260b was upregulated in NSCLC plasma, tissues, and cell lines, and its high expression was correlated with tumor size and progression. Functionally, miR-1260b overexpression promoted cell proliferation and cell cycle, conversely inhibited cell apoptosis and senescence. Mechanically, miR-1260b negatively regulated SOCS6 by directly binding to its 3′-UTR. Furthermore, miR-1260b-mediated suppression of SOCS6 activated KIT signaling. Moreover, YY1 was an upstream regulator of miR-1260b. This study is the first to illustrate that miR-1260b, mediated by YY1, activates KIT signaling by targeting SOCS6 to regulate NSCLC cell proliferation and apoptosis, and is a potential biomarker and therapeutic target for NSCLC. In sum, our work provides new insights into the molecular mechanisms of NSCLC involved in cell proliferation and apoptosis.