Plasticizers are recognized as environmental pollutants that may be associated with a range of health concerns, including impacts on growth, development, and oncogenic risks. Previous research demonstrated that prolonged exposure to di-(2-ethylhexyl) phthalate and its metabolite mono-(2-ethylhexyl) phthalate contributes to chemotherapeutic drug resistance and stemness in colorectal cancer cells. Aloe vera, an herbaceous plant with a long-standing history in traditional medicine, has attracted considerable attention for its diverse pharmacological properties.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFRecent advancements have elucidated the multifaceted roles of the Schlafen (SLFN) family, including SLFN5, SLFN11, SLFN12, SLFN13, and SLFN14, which are implicated in immunological responses. However, little is known about the roles of this gene family in relation to malignancy development. The current study aimed to explore the diagnostic and prognostic potential of Schlafen family genes in colorectal adenocarcinoma (COAD) through bioinformatics analysis.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFPlasticizers are considered as environmental pollution released from medical devices and increased potential oncogenic risks in clinical therapy. Our previous studies have shown that long-term exposure to di-ethylhexyl phthalate (DEHP)/mono-ethylhexyl phthalate (MEHP) promotes chemotherapeutic drug resistance in colorectal cancer. In this study, we investigated the alteration of glycosylation in colorectal cancer following long-term plasticizers exposure.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFSialylation of glycoproteins is modified by distinct sialyltransferases such as ST3Gal, ST6Gal, ST6GalNAc, or ST8SIA with α2,3-, α2,6-, or α2,8-linkages. Alteration of these sialyltransferases causing aberrant sialylation is associated with the progression of colon cancer. However, among the ST8- sialyltransferases, the role of ST8SIA6 in colon cancer remains poorly understood.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFAn outbreak of SARS-CoV-2 coronavirus (COVID-19) first detected in Wuhan, China, has created a public health emergency all over the world. The pandemic has caused more than 340 million confirmed cases and 5.57 million deaths as of 23 January 2022.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFHigh-density lipoprotein (HDL) plays a vital role in lipid metabolism and anti-inflammatory activities; a dysfunctional HDL impairs cholesterol efflux pathways. To understand HDL's role in patients with Alzheimer's disease (AD), we analyzed the chemical properties and function. HDL from AD patients (AD-HDL) was separated into five subfractions, H1-H5, using fast-protein liquid chromatography equipped with an anion-exchange column.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFLow-density lipoprotein (LDL) is heterogeneous, composed of particles with variable atherogenicity. Electronegative L5 LDL exhibits atherogenic properties in vitro and in vivo, and its levels are elevated in patients with increased cardiovascular risk. Apolipoprotein E (APOE) content is increased in L5, but what role APOE plays in L5 function remains unclear.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFThe emergence of drug resistance to is problematic in the clinical setting. Therefore, developing new antifungal drugs is in high demand. Our previous work indicated that the antimicrobial peptide P-113Tri exhibited higher antifungal activity against planktonic cells, biofilm cells, and clinical isolates of species compared to its parental peptide P-113.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFChronic granulomatous disease (CGD) is a primary immunodeficiency disease caused by defects in the leukocyte NADP oxidase. We previously reported that sarcoplasmic/endoplasmic reticulum calcium pump (SERCA) inhibitors could be used to rescue mutant H338Y-gp91phox protein of a particular type of CGD with a mutation, leading to endoplasmic reticulum (ER) retention of the mutant protein. In this study, we developed a novel mouse model with the mutation on a Cybb knockout background and investigated the therapeutic effects of ER-targeted delivery of the SERCA inhibitor, curcumin, with poly(lactic-coglycolic acid) (PLGA) nanoparticles (NPs).
View Article and Find Full Text PDFEnterovirus A71 (EV-A71) is a major pathogen that causes hand-foot-and-mouth disease (HFMD), which occasionally results in severe neurological complications. In this study, we developed four EV-A71 (rgEV-A71) strains by reverse genetics procedures as possible vaccine candidates. The four rgEV-A71 viruses contained various codon-deoptimized VP1 capsid proteins (VP1-CD) and showed replication rates and antigenicity similar to that of the wild-type virus, while a fifth virus, rg4643C4VP-CD, was unable to form plaques but was still able to be examined by median tissue culture infectious dose (TCID) titers, which were similar to those of the others, indicating the effect of CD on plaque formation.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFOral cancer with high incidence rates is occurring in many countries including in India, Pakistan, Bangladesh, Sri Lanka and Taiwan. Smoking, alcoholism, and betel nut chewing are considered to be the main risk factors for oral cancer. Further, deaths from oral cancer have increased year by year.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFProtein glycosylation is one of the most complicated but significant post-translational modifications. Minor alterations in glycan structure can considerably affect the biology of a cell. Therefore, direct monitoring of glycan patterns of glycoproteins is closely related to cancer progression as well as metastasis.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFThe globo-series glycosphingolipids (GSLs) SSEA3, SSEA4, and Globo-H specifically expressed on cancer cells are found to correlate with tumor progression and metastasis, but the functional roles of these GSLs and the key enzyme β1,3-galactosyltransferase V (β3GalT5) that converts Gb4 to SSEA3 remain largely unclear. Here we show that the expression of β3GalT5 significantly correlates with tumor progression and poor survival in patients, and the globo-series GSLs in breast cancer cells form a complex in membrane lipid raft with caveolin-1 (CAV1) and focal adhesion kinase (FAK) which then interact with AKT and receptor-interacting protein kinase (RIP), respectively. Knockdown of β3GalT5 disrupts the complex and induces apoptosis through dissociation of RIP from the complex to interact with the Fas death domain (FADD) and trigger the Fas-dependent pathway.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFEnterovirus A71 (EV-A71) has emerged as a major pathogen causing hand, foot, and mouth disease, as well as neurological disorders. The host immune response affects the outcomes of EV-A71 infection, leading to either resolution or disease progression. However, the mechanisms of how the mammalian innate immune system detects EV-A71 infection to elicit antiviral immunity remain elusive.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFHelium, a minor component of natural gas and radioactive minerals, is most commonly used as a carrier in gas chromatography-mass spectrometry (GC-MS). Its scarcity leads to limited availability and higher costs. In this experiment, hydrogen from a safe source of a hydrogen generator was tested as a substitutive carrier gas for the detection of adulterant in traditional Chinese medicine (TCM) and food supplements by GC-MS analysis.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFIt is generally agreed that human influenza virus preferentially binds to α-2,6-linked sialic acid-containing receptors, and mutations that change the binding preference may alter virus infectivity and host tropism. Limited information is available on the glycan-binding specificity of epidemic influenza viruses. In this study, we systemically investigated the glycan-binding preferences of human influenza A(H3N2) viruses isolated from 1999 to 2007 in Taiwan using a high-throughput carbohydrate array.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFPhthalates are widely used as plasticizers. Humans can be exposed to phthalates through ingestion, inhalation, or treatments that release di(2-ethylhexyl) phthalate (DEHP) and its metabolite, mono(2-ehylhexyl) phthalate (MEHP), into the body from polyvinyl chloride-based medical devices. Phthalate exposure may induce reproductive toxicity, liver damage, and carcinogenesis in humans.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFBackground: Enterovirus A71 (EV-A71) infection can induce fatal encephalitis in young children. Clinical reports show that interleukin-6 (IL-6) levels in the serum and cerebrospinal fluid of infected patients with brainstem encephalitis are significantly elevated. We used a murine model to address the significance of endogenous IL-6 in EV-A71 infection.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFGlycosylation is a protein post translational modification which plays important role in protein function, stabilization, trafficking, and turnover. Alteration of protein glycosylation is a common phenomenon during tumor progression, migration, invasion, angiogenesis, as well as metastasis. Hence, aberrant glycan structures and the induced corresponding anti-carbohydrate antibodies are potential biomarkers for cancer diagnosis.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFThe leukocyte adhesion cascade involves multiple events that efficiently localize circulating leukocytes into the injured sites to mediate inflammatory responses. From rolling to firm adhesion, the interactions between adhesion molecules have pivotal roles in increasing the avidity of leukocytes to endothelial cells. Thrombomodulin (TM), an essential anticoagulant protein in the vasculature, is also expressed on leukocytes.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFThe discovery of cancer stem cells (CSCs), which are responsible for self-renewal and tumor growth in heterogeneous cancer tissues, has stimulated interests in developing new cancer therapies and early diagnosis. However, the markers currently used for isolation of CSCs are often not selective enough to enrich CSCs for the study of this special cell population. Here we show that the breast CSCs isolated with CD44(+)CD24(-/lo)SSEA-3(+) or ESA(hi)PROCR(hi)SSEA-3(+) markers had higher tumorigenicity than those with conventional markers in vitro and in vivo.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFMolecules derived from cinnamon have demonstrated diverse pharmacological activities against infectious pathogens, diabetes and inflammatory diseases. This study aims to evaluate the effect of the cinnamon-derived molecule IND02 on the adhesion of leukocytes to host cells. The anti-inflammatory ability of IND02, a pentameric procyanidin type A polyphenol polymer isolated from cinnamon alcohol extract, was examined.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFAberrant glycosylation changes normal cellular functions and represents a specific hallmark of cancer. Lewisy (Ley) carbohydrate upregulation has been reported in a variety of cancers, including oral squamous cell carcinoma (OSCC). A high level of Ley expression is related to poor prognosis of patients with oral cancer.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFUnlabelled: Because the pathogenesis of enterovirus 71 (EV71) remains mostly ambiguous, identifying the factors that mediate viral binding and entry to host cells is indispensable to ultimately uncover the mechanisms that underlie virus infection and pathogenesis. Despite the identification of several receptors/attachment molecules for EV71, the binding, entry, and infection mechanisms of EV71 remain unclear. Herein, we employed glycoproteomic approaches to identify human nucleolin as a novel binding receptor for EV71.
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