Publications by authors named "Cheng-Chieh Yu"

Chondrosarcoma is a malignant bone tumor that emerges from abnormalities in cartilaginous tissue and is related with lung metastases. Nicotinamide phosphoribosyltransferase (NAMPT) is an adipocytokine reported to enhance tumor metastasis. Our results from clinical samples and the Gene Expression Omnibus data set reveal that NAMPT levels are markedly higher in chondrosarcoma patients than in normal individuals.

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Dormancy is an essential biological process for the propagation of many life forms through generations and stressful conditions. Early embryos of many mammals are preservable for weeks to months within the uterus in a dormant state called diapause, which can be induced in vitro through mTOR inhibition. Cellular strategies that safeguard original cell identity within the silent genomic landscape of dormancy are not known.

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Dormancy is a key feature of stem cell function in adult tissues as well as in embryonic cells in the context of diapause. The establishment of dormancy is an active process that involves extensive transcriptional, epigenetic, and metabolic rewiring. How these processes are coordinated to successfully transition cells to the resting dormant state remains unclear.

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Chondrosarcoma is a malignant bone tumor that is characterized by high metastatic potential and marked resistance to radiation and chemotherapy. The knowledge that adipokines facilitate the initiation, progression, metastasis, and treatment resistance of various tumors has driven several in vitro and in vivo investigations into the effects of adipokines resistin, leptin, and adiponectin upon the development and progression of chondrosarcomas. Another adipokine, visfatin, is known to regulate tumor progression and metastasis, although how this molecule may affect chondrosarcoma metastasis is unclear.

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Article Synopsis
  • Hexanucleotide repeat expansions in the C9orf72 gene are the leading genetic cause of frontotemporal dementia and amyotrophic lateral sclerosis, with haploinsufficiency being a proposed mechanism for disease development.
  • The study developed new, highly specific monoclonal antibodies for C9orf72, revealing it to be a low-abundance cytoplasmic protein primarily present in brain tissues, with reduced levels seen in mutation carriers' cerebellum.
  • Findings indicate C9orf72's potential role in regulating synaptic vesicle functions through interactions with RAB3 proteins, supporting haploinsufficiency as a mechanism in C9orf72-related pathogenesis.
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Seasonal influenza viruses impact public health annually due to their continual evolution. However, the current inactivated seasonal vaccines provide poor protection against antigenically drifted viruses and require periodical reformulation through hit-and-miss predictions about which strains will circulate during the next season. To reduce the impact caused by vaccine mismatch, we investigated the drift-tolerance of virus-like particles (VLP) as an improved vaccine candidate.

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Valproic acid (VPA), with inhibition activity mainly toward histone deacetylase (HDAC) and Glycogen Synthase Kinase (GSK)-3, and lithium, with inhibition activity mainly toward GSK-3, are both prescribed in clinical as mood-stabilizers and anticonvulsants for the control of bipolar disorder. This study aims to compare the immuno-modulation activities of VPA and lithium, especially on the differentiation and functions of dendritic cells (DC). Our data show that treatment with VPA or lithium effectively alleviated the severity of collagen-induced arthritis triggered by LPS in mice.

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Avian influenza A(H6N1) virus is one of the most common viruses isolated from migrating birds and domestic poultry in many countries. The first and only known case of human infection by H6N1 virus in the world was reported in Taiwan in 2013. This led to concern that H6N1 virus may cause a threat to public health.

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Article Synopsis
  • A novel avian influenza A (H7N9) virus was first identified in March 2013 in China and has caused severe infections in humans, showing two major infection peaks in 2013 and 2014.
  • Taiwan is at high risk of H7N9 infection due to its proximity to China, with four confirmed imported cases identified through surveillance efforts initiated in April 2013.
  • Genetic analysis of the viruses from imported cases revealed variations in their internal genes compared to the prototype virus, highlighting the need for enhanced surveillance and sharing of viral genetic data to control future outbreaks.
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New variants of the influenza A(H1N1)pdm09 and A(H3N2) viruses were detected in Taiwan between 2012 and 2013. Some of these variants were not detected in clinical specimens using a common real-time reverse transcription-PCR (RT-PCR) assay that targeted the conserved regions of the viral matrix (M) genes. An analysis of the M gene sequences of the new variants revealed that several newly emerging mutations were located in the regions where the primers or probes of the real-time RT-PCR assay bind; these included three mutations (G225A, T228C, and G238A) in the A(H1N1)pdm09 virus, as well as one mutation (C163T) in the A(H3N2) virus.

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