The preparation of HL-60 cells vaccine expressing BCG heat shock protein 70 and detection of its immunogenicity in vitro

A Nanotherapy of Octanoic Acid Ameliorates Cardiac Arrest/Cardiopulmonary Resuscitation-Induced Brain Injury via RVG29- and Neutrophil Membrane-Mediated Injury Relay Targeting

Treatment of cardiac arrest/cardiopulmonary resuscitation (CA/CPR)-induced brain injury remains a challenging issue without viable therapeutic options. Octanoic acid (OA), a lipid oil that is mainly metabolized in the astrocytes of the brain, is a promising treatment for this type of injury owing to its potential functions against oxidative stress, apoptosis, inflammation, and ability to stabilize mitochondria. However, the application of OA is strictly limited by its short half-life and low available concentration in the target organ. Herein, based on our previous research, an OA-based nanotherapy coated with a neutrophil membrane highly expressing RVG29, RVG29-H-NP_OA, was successfully constructed by computer simulation-guided supramolecular assembly of polyethylenimine and OA. The in vitro and in vivo experiments showed that RVG29-H-NP_OA could target and be distributed in the injured brain focus via the relay-targeted delivery mediated by RVG29-induced blood-brain barrier (BBB) penetration and neutrophil membrane protein-induced BBB binding and injury targeting. This results in enhancements of the antioxidant, antiapoptotic, mitochondrial stability-promoting and anti-inflammatory effects of OA and exhibited systematic alleviation of astrocyte injury, neuronal damage, and inflammatory response in the brain. Due to their systematic intervention in multiple pathological processes, RVG29-H-NP_OA significantly increased the 24 h survival rate of CA/CPR model rats from 40% to 100% and significantly improved their neurological functions. Thus, RVG29-H-NP_OA are expected to be a promising therapeutic for the treatment of CA/CPR-induced brain injury.

Display of human and rabbit monocyte chemoattractant protein-1 on human embryonic kidney 293T cell surface

Monocyte chemoattractant protein-1 (MCP-1/CCL2) is a protein that is secreted immediately upon endothelial injury, and thereby it plays a key role in inflammation via recruitment of leucocytes to the site of inflammation at the beginning and throughout the inflammatory processes. Aim of this study was to develop two separate cell lines displaying either human MCP-1 (HMCP-1) or rabbit MCP-1 (RMCP-1) on their surface. A DNA fragment containing HMCP-1- or RMCP-1-encoding sequence was inserted into a pcDNA plasmid. Escherichia coli cells strain TOP 10F' was separately transformed with the pcDNA/RMCP-1 or /HMCP-1 ligation mixture. Following the cloning and construct verification, human embryonic kidney cell line (HEK 293T) was transfected with either of the linearized plasmids. Plasmid integration into the genomic DNA of HEK 293T cells was verified by polymerase chain reaction (PCR). HMCP-1 and RMCP-1 expression was evaluated at RNA and protein levels by real-time PCR and flow cytometry, respectively. PCR products of the expected sizes were amplified from the chromosomal DNA of transfected HEK 293T cells, i.e. 644 bp for H-MCP1 and 737 bp for RMCP-1 constructs. Real-time PCR revealed that the copy numbers of RMCP1 and HMCP1 mRNA per cell were 294 and 500, respectively. Flow cytometry analysis indicated 85% for RMCP-1 and 87% for HMCP-1 expression levels on the surface of transfected cells, when compared with an isotype control. The experiments thus confirmed that the MCP-1 genes were integrated into the HEK 293T genomic DNA and the encoded proteins were stably expressed on the cell surface.

Effect of thymosin α₁ on the phenotypic and functional maturation of dendritic cells from children with acute lymphoblastic leukemia

To determine the effect of thymosin α1 (Tα1) on the phenotypic and functional maturation of HL‑60 cells, freeze‑thaw antigen‑loaded dendritic cells (DCs) were derived from peripheral blood mononuclear cells (PBMCs) of children with acute lymphoblastic leukemia (ALL). The DCs were generated from the PBMC samples that were collected from the PB of 10 consecutive ALL children. On day 3 of culturing, the cells in the antigen + no Tα1 (AN) and antigen + Tα1 (AT) groups were incubated with 100 µl lysates obtained from freeze‑thaw cycling. After 5 days of incubation, the AT group was administered with 100 ng/ml Tα1. On day 8, the DCs were stained with fluorescein isothiocyanate‑conjugated cluster of differentiation (CD)1a, CD83 and HLA‑DR antibodies and analyzed by flow cytometry. In addition, the killing activity of cytotoxic T lymphocytes (CTLs) from the different groups on wild‑type leukemia cells was measured. The DCs in the AT group exhibited more apparent, characteristic dendritic morphologies than the control and AN group DCs. Furthermore, the lowest expression level of CD1a, and the highest expression of CD83 and HLA‑DR were observed in the AT group when compared with the AN and control groups (P<0.05). The lactate dehydrogenase release assay demonstrated that the killing rate of CTL in the AT group was significantly higher than that in the control and AN groups (P<0.01). Thus, Tα1 may markedly promote the phenotypic and functional maturation of DCs, and may serve as a suitable immunomodulator of DC‑based immunotherapy for treatment of hematological malignancies.