Obesity, but not high-fat diet, is associated with bone loss that is reversed via CD4CD25Foxp3 Tregs-mediated gut microbiome of non-obese mice.

Osteoporosis is characterized by decreased bone mass, microarchitectural deterioration, and increased bone fragility. High-fat diet (HFD)-induced obesity also results in bone loss, which is associated with an imbalanced gut microbiome. However, whether HFD-induced obesity or HFD itself promotes osteoclastogenesis and consequent bone loss remains unclear.

Coptisine, a protoberberine alkaloid, relaxes mouse airway smooth muscle via blockade of VDLCCs and NSCCs.

Background/aims: Recently, effective and purified ingredients of traditional Chinese medicine (TCM) were extracted to play crucial roles in the treatment of pulmonary diseases. Our previous research focused on TCM drug screening aimed at abnormal airway muscle contraction during respiratory diseases. Coptisine, an effective ingredient extracted from bitter herbs has shown a series of antioxidant, antibacterial, cardioprotective and neuroprotective pharmacological properties.

Relaxant Action of Diclofenac Sodium on Mouse Airway Smooth Muscle.

Diclofenac sodium (DCF) is a nonsteroidal anti-inflammatory drug (NSAID) and is widely used as an analgesic and anti-inflammatory agent. Herein, we found that DCF could relax high K (80 mM K)-/ACh-precontracted tracheal rings (TRs) in mice. This study aimed to elucidate the underlying mechanisms of DCF-induced relaxations.

Benidipine, an anti-hypertensive drug, relaxes mouse airway smooth muscle.

Aims: Benidipine is a dihydropyridine (DHP) derived Ca antagonist, can block triple Ca channels (L, N, and T). It has been used as a safety anti-hypertensive drug because of its long-acting relaxant effect on vascular smooth muscle (VSM). However, whether benidipine has similar pharmacological actions in airway smooth muscle (ASM) is unknown.

Deficiency of MTMR14 impairs male fertility in Mus musculus.

Calcium signalling is critical for successful fertilization. In spermatozoa, capacitation, hyperactivation of motility and acrosome reactions are all mediated by increases in intracellular Ca2+. Our previous reports have shown that deficiency of MTMR14, a novel phosphoinositide phosphatase, induces a muscle disorder by disrupting Ca2+ homeostasis.

HLA-B*58:01 and rs9263726 have a linkage, but not absolute linkage disequilibrium in Han Chinese population.

HLA-B*58:01 has been demonstrated to be associated with allopurinol-induced severe cutaneous adverse reactions. Since HLA-B*58:01 is too complicated to be identified, it is necessary to select an appropriate surrogate biomarker. In Japan, the rs9263726 allele was considered as a surrogate biomarker for HLA-B*58:01, but this was not the case with the Australian cohort.

Chloroform Extract of L. Relaxes Mouse Airway Smooth Muscle.

L. belongs to the Asteraceae family, which is indigenous to China. It has valuable pharmacological properties, such as antimalarial, anti-inflammatory, and anticancer properties.

Relaxing Effect of TSU-68, an Antiangiogenic Agent, on Mouse Airway Smooth Muscle.

Background/aims: Recently, some small-molecule compounds that were designed for cancer therapy have acquired new roles in the treatment of pulmonary diseases. However, drug screening aimed at abnormal muscle contraction is still limited. TSU-68 is a potent, orally administered, small-molecule agent that can reduce the vascular endothelial growth factor (VEGF)-induced Ca2+ increase in endothelial cells.

Detection of Circulating Tumor Cells and Circulating Tumor Microemboli in Gastric Cancer.

Purpose: Gastric cancer studies indicated a potential correlation between circulating tumor cells (CTCs) in peripheral blood and tumor relapse/metastasis. The prevalence and significance of circulating tumor microemboli (CTM) in gastric cancer remain unknown. We investigated the prevalence and prognostic value of CTCs and CTM for progression-free survival (PFS) and overall survival (OS) in gastric cancer patients.

Nelumbo nucifera leaves extracts inhibit mouse airway smooth muscle contraction.

Background: Alkaloids extracted from lotus leaves (AELL) can relax vascular smooth muscle. However, whether AELL has a similar relaxant role on airway smooth muscle (ASM) remains unknown. This study aimed to explore the relaxant property of AELL on ASM and the underlying mechanism.

Feasibility of a novel one-stop ISET device to capture CTCs and its clinical application.

Introduction: Circulating tumor cells (CTCs) play a crucial role in cancer metastasis. In this study, we introduced a novel isolation method by size of epithelial tumor cells (ISET) device with automatic isolation and staining procedure, named one-stop ISET (osISET) and validated its feasibility to capture CTCs from cancer patients. Moreover, we aim to investigate the correlation between clinicopathologic features and CTCs in colorectal cancer (CRC) in order to explore its clinical application.

Mice lacking myotubularin-related protein 14 show accelerated high-fat diet-induced lipid accumulation and inflammation.

The phosphoinositide phosphatase, myotubularin-related protein 14 (MTMR14), has been reported to play an important role in the regulation of muscle performance, autophagy, and aging in mice. We previously showed that MTMR14-knockout (KO) mice gain weight earlier than their wild-type (WT) littermates even on a normal chow diet (NCD), suggesting that this gene might also be involved in regulating metabolism. In the present study, we evaluated the effect of MTMR14 deficiency on high-fat diet (HFD)-induced obesity, lipid accumulation, metabolic disorders, and inflammation in WT and MTMR14-KO mice fed with NCD or HFD.

Deficiency of myotubularin-related protein 14 influences body weight, metabolism, and inflammation in an age-dependent manner.

Background: Myotubularin-related protein 14 (MTMR14) is a novel phosphoinositide phosphatase with roles in the maintenance of normal muscle performance, autophagy, and aging in mice. Our initial pilot study demonstrated that MTMR14 knock out (KO) mice gain weight earlier than their wild-type (WT) littermates, which suggests that this gene may also be involved in metabolism regulation.

Results: The present study evaluated the role of MTMR14 in the development of aging-associated obesity.

Comparison of droplet digital PCR and conventional quantitative PCR for measuring gene mutation.

Early detection of epidermal growth factor receptor () mutation, particularly T790M mutation, is of clinical significance. The aim of the present study was to compare the performances of amplification refractory mutation system-based quantitative polymerase chain reaction (ARMS-qPCR) and droplet digital polymerase chain reaction (ddPCR) approaches in the detection of mutation and explore the feasibility of using ddPCR in the detection of samples with low mutation rates. gene mutations in plasmid samples with different T790M mutation rates (0.

KHDC1A, a novel translational repressor, induces endoplasmic reticulum-dependent apoptosis.

RNA binding proteins are characterized as a new family of apoptosis inducers; however, the mechanism by which they induce apoptosis is poorly understood. KHDC1 family members were recently identified as K-homology (KH)-domain containing RNA binding proteins that are unique to eutherian mammals and highly expressed in oocytes. In this study, we report that the expression of KHDC1A induces caspase-3 dependent apoptosis and inhibits mRNA translation, and the translational repression is independent of apoptosis.

KHDC1B is a novel CPEB binding partner specifically expressed in mouse oocytes and early embryos.

mRNAs required for meiotic maturation and early embryonic development are stored in growing oocytes. These transcripts are translationally repressed until hormonal cues trigger ovulation. Errors in translation underlie some cases of human infertility and are associated with ovarian germ cell tumors.

A sperm component, HSD-3.8 (SPAG1), interacts with G-protein beta 1 subunit and activates extracellular signal-regulated kinases (ERK).

HSD-3.8 cDNA (accession number AF311312) encodes a human sperm component. A 0.