TargetCrys: protein crystallization prediction by fusing multi-view features with two-layered SVM.

The accurate prediction of whether a protein will crystallize plays a crucial role in improving the success rate of protein crystallization projects. A common critical problem in the development of machine-learning-based protein crystallization predictors is how to effectively utilize protein features extracted from different views. In this study, we aimed to improve the efficiency of fusing multi-view protein features by proposing a new two-layered SVM (2L-SVM) which switches the feature-level fusion problem to a decision-level fusion problem: the SVMs in the 1st layer of the 2L-SVM are trained on each of the multi-view feature sets; then, the outputs of the 1st layer SVMs, which are the "intermediate" decisions made based on the respective feature sets, are further ensembled by a 2nd layer SVM.

Antidepressant-like effects of Xiaochaihutang in a neuroendocrine mouse model of anxiety/depression.

Ethnopharmacological Relevance: Hyperactivity of hypothalamic-pituitary-adrenal (HPA) axis is often observed in the pathophysiology of depression. Antidepressant therapy can restore hippocampal neurogenesis to rescue the HPA axis regulation defects. Xiaochaihutang (XCHT), a famous Chinese herbal formula, has been used clinically in depressive disorders in China.

Amygdala EphB2 Signaling Regulates Glutamatergic Neuron Maturation and Innate Fear.

Unlabelled: The amygdala serves as emotional center to mediate innate fear behaviors that are reflected through neuronal responses to environmental aversive cues. However, the molecular mechanism underlying the initial neuron responses is poorly understood. In this study, we monitored the innate defensive responses to aversive stimuli of either elevated plus maze or predator odor in juvenile mice and found that glutamatergic neurons were activated in amygdala.

Antioxidant and cytotoxic lignans from the roots of Bupleurum chinense.

In the search for biologically active compounds from the roots of Bupleurum chinense D C., phytochemical investigation of its ethanol extract led to the isolation and identification of a new 8-O-4' neolignan glucoside, saikolignanoside A (1), along with eight known lignans (2-9). Their structures were determined on the basis of IR, UV, HRESIMS, and NMR spectroscopic analyses.

Hepatoprotective effect of apple polyphenols against concanavalin A-induced immunological liver injury in mice.

Apple polyphenols (AP), a polyphenol extracted from the unripe apple, has been reported to improve acute hepatotoxicity induced by CCl4 in mice due to its significant antioxidant activity. In this study, the hepatoprotective effect of AP against concanavalin A (Con A)-induced immunological liver injury in mice was investigated. Mice were treated with AP daily for seven days prior to a single intravenous administration of Con A.

Targeting ALDH1A1 by disulfiram/copper complex inhibits non-small cell lung cancer recurrence driven by ALDH-positive cancer stem cells.

The existence of cancer stem cells (CSCs) in non-small cell lung cancer (NSCLC) has profound implications for cancer therapy. In this study, a disulfiram/copper (DSF/Cu) complex was evaluated in vitro and in vivo for its efficacy to inhibit CSCs, which drive recurrence of NSCLC. First, we investigated whether DSF/Cu could inhibit ALDH-positive NSCLC stem cells in vitro and tumors derived from sorted ALDH-positive CSCs in vivo.

Colonization of toxigenic Clostridium difficile among ICU patients: a prospective study.

Background: A prospective study was performed to investigate the prevalence of colonization among ICU patients and to examine whether asymptomatic carriers were the source of subsequent C. difficile infection (CDI) and acquisition of toxigenic C. difficile.

Baicalin promotes hippocampal neurogenesis via SGK1- and FKBP5-mediated glucocorticoid receptor phosphorylation in a neuroendocrine mouse model of anxiety/depression.

Antidepressants increase hippocampal neurogenesis by activating the glucocorticoid receptor (GR), but excessive GR activation impairs hippocampal neurogenesis, suggesting that normal GR function is crucial for hippocampal neurogenesis. Baicalin was reported to regulate the expression of GR and facilitate hippocampal neurogenesis, but the underlying molecular mechanisms are still unknown. In this study, we used the chronic corticosterone (CORT)-induced mouse model of anxiety/depression to assess antidepressant-like effects of baicalin and illuminate possible molecular mechanisms by which baicalin affects GR-mediated hippocampal neurogenesis.

Eupatilin inhibits the apoptosis in H9c2 cardiomyocytes via the Akt/GSK-3β pathway following hypoxia/reoxygenation injury.

Eupatilin, a pharmacologically active flavone derived from the Artemisia plant species, has been reported to have anti-oxidant, anti-inflammatory, anti-allergic, and neuroprotective activities against cerebral ischemia/reperfusion (I/R). However, the role of eupatilin in myocardial I/R injury remains unclear. In the present study, we aimed to investigate the potential molecular mechanisms against hypoxia/reoxygenation (H/R) induced cardiomyocytes apoptosis in vitro.

Serum metabonomics study of anti-depressive effect of Xiao-Chai-Hu-Tang on rat model of chronic unpredictable mild stress.

Xiao-Chai-Hu-Tang (XCHT) has been proven to be effective for the clinical treatment of depression. However, the mechanisms of definite antidepressant-like effects and detailed metabolic biomarkers were still unclear in this prior study. Here, we have investigated the metabolic profiles and potential biomarkers in a chronic unpredictable mild stress model after treatment with XCHT.

Predictive role of the overexpression for CXCR4, C-Met, and VEGF-C among breast cancer patients: A meta-analysis.

Background: The overexpression of CXCR4, C-Met and VEGF-C present widely in breast tumors, they may be markers of resistance to treatment. However, the studies are still controversial. Thus, this meta-analysis aims to research the relationship between the overexpression of CXCR4, C-Met, VEGF-C and clinical prognosis among breast cancer patients.

Simvastatin downregulated C35 expression and inhibited the proliferation of colon cancer cells Lovo and HT29 in vitro.

The aim of this study was to investigate the antitumor effect of simvastatin in human colon cancer and the possible underlying mechanism. We found that simvastatin dose-dependently inhibited the proliferation of human colon cancer cells Lovo and HT29 using a MTT assay. Real-time PCR and Western blotting assays showed that simvastatin significantly suppressed C35 expression at both mRNA and protein levels.

A Systematic Analysis of the Relationship of CDH13 Promoter Methylation and Breast Cancer Risk and Prognosis.

Background: CDH13 (cadherin 13) is a special cadherin cell adhesion molecule, and the methylation of its promoter causes inactivation in a considerable number of human cancers. To explore the association between CDH13 promoter methylation and breast cancer risk and prognosis, we systematically integrated published articles to investigate the diagnostic performance of the CDH13 methylation test for breast cancer. An independent DNA methylation microarray dataset from The Cancer Genome Atlas project (TCGA) project was used to validate the results of the meta-analysis.

SVCT2, a potential therapeutic target, protects against oxidative stress during ethanol-induced neurotoxicity via JNK/p38 MAPKs, NF-κB and miRNA125a-5p.

Sodium vitamin C transporter 2 (SVCT2) plays a key role in transporting ascorbic acid (AA), an important intracellular antioxidant, into neurons. It is well known that ethanol (EtOH) abuse causes significant neurodegeneration, as well as endogenous AA release in certain encephalic regions. Here, we identified that SVCT2 forms part of a self-defense mechanism that protects against oxidative stress in binge drinking rats, and SVCT2 levels are correlated with antioxidants and neuronal injury.

Efficacy and Safety of Vasopressin Receptor Antagonists for Euvolemic or Hypervolemic Hyponatremia: A Meta-Analysis.

Hyponatremia, defined as a nonartifactual serum sodium level <135 mmol/L, is the most common fluid and electrolyte abnormality in clinical practice. Traditional managements (fluid restriction, hypertonic saline and loop diuretics, etc.) are difficult to maintain or ineffective.

Lossless Compression of JPEG Coded Photo Collections.

The explosion of digital photos has posed a significant challenge to photo storage and transmission for both personal devices and cloud platforms. In this paper, we propose a novel lossless compression method to further reduce the size of a set of JPEG coded correlated images without any loss of information. The proposed method jointly removes inter/intra image redundancy in the feature, spatial, and frequency domains.

Entecavir-Associated Thrombocytopenia in a Decompensated Cirrhotic Patient: A Case Report and Literature Review.

Drug-associated thrombocytopenia is common and curable, but there were few reports about entecavir-associated thrombocytopenia.We report here a case of a 65-year-old female patient with decompensated cirrhosis. The patient developed a fatal thrombocytopenia while under entecavir treatment.

Ephrin-B3 coordinates timed axon targeting and amygdala spinogenesis for innate fear behaviour.

Innate emotion response to environmental stimuli is a fundamental brain function that is controlled by specific neural circuits. Dysfunction of early emotional circuits may lead to neurodevelopmental disorders such as autism and schizophrenia. However, how the functional circuits are formed to prime initial emotional behaviours remain elusive.

The role of the insular cortex in naloxone-induced conditioned place aversion in morphine-dependent mice.

A negative emotional state resulting from the withdrawal of drug addiction is thought to be an important factor that triggers and exacerbates relapse. Since the insular cortex is a key brain structure involved in the modulation of negative emotions, we investigated whether the integrity of the insular cortex was important for motivational aversion associated with morphine withdrawal as well as whether this kind of negative emotion induced neuroadaptation in the insular cortex. In this present study, a sensitive mouse conditioned place aversion (CPA) model measuring the motivational aversion of morphine withdrawal was first established.

Aggregated single-walled carbon nanotubes attenuate the behavioural and neurochemical effects of methamphetamine in mice.

Methamphetamine (METH) abuse is a serious social and health problem worldwide. At present, there are no effective medications to treat METH addiction. Here, we report that aggregated single-walled carbon nanotubes (aSWNTs) significantly inhibited METH self-administration, METH-induced conditioned place preference and METH- or cue-induced relapse to drug-seeking behaviour in mice.

Novel cinnamohydroxamic acid derivatives as HDAC inhibitors with anticancer activity in vitro and in vivo.

A novel series of cinnamohydroxamic acid derivatives were synthesized and their biological activities against HDAC were assessed. Our results showed that the compound with more strong inhibitory activity to HDAC would exhibited more significant anti-proliferative effect on tumor cells. Among these compounds, 7e displayed clearly inhibitory effects on HDAC and tumor cell growth.

Neuroprotective oleanane triterpenes from the roots of Bupleurum chinense.

The discovery of new natural compounds with pharmacological properties is an increasingly important field, and a continuous phytochemical investigation of the roots of Bupleurum chinense D.C. has led to the isolation of 17 triterpenoids, including three new oleanane triterpenes (1-3) together with 14 known ones.

[Biological characteristics of drug induced tumor cells and its medicine prevention and treatment].

Recently, the incidence and mortality of cancer has raised. More and more cytotoxic drugs and molecular targeted medicines have been used in clinic. However, most drugs just display a short-term anti- tumor effect.

Expression of IARS2 gene in colon cancer and effect of its knockdown on biological behavior of RKO cells.

Objective: To investigate the expression level of IARS2 gene in colon cancer tissues and various cell strains of the cancer; to explore cytologically the effect of IARS2 gene knockdown on proliferation, apoptosis and cell cycle of RKO cells in the cancer.

Methods: Real-time, fluorescence-based quantitative PCR (qPCR) was used to detect the expression of IARS2 gene in human colon cancer and surrounding tissues and in various cell strains of the cancer; the RNA interference target of IARS2 gene was designed and the target was detected by Western blot; the IARS2-siRNA lentiviral vector was established and used to infect the RKO cells of colon cancer; qPCR was employed to determine the effect of gene knockdown; changes of the RKO cells in growth, apoptosis, cell cycle and clone formation were observed after IARS2 gene knockdown.

Results: The expression of IARS2 gene was higher in human colon cancer tissues than in surrounding tissues; there was expression of IARS2 gene in colon cancer cells, and the expression level of IARS2 gene mRNA was higher in the RKO cells than in the SW480, HCT116, DLD1, HT-29 and SW620 cells.