Publications by authors named "Ding-An Zhou"

Novel components in the noncanonical Hippo pathway that mediate the growth, metastasis, and drug resistance of breast cancer (BC) cells need to be identified. Here, we showed that expression of SAM and SH3 domain-containing protein 1 (SASH1) is negatively correlated with expression of mitogen-activated protein kinase kinase kinase kinase 4 (MAP4K4) in a subpopulation of patients with luminal-subtype BC. Downregulated SASH1 and upregulated MAP4K4 synergistically regulated the proliferation, migration, and invasion of luminal-subtype BC cells.

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Immunotherapy is currently one of the most viable therapies for head and neck squamous cell carcinoma (HNSCC), characterized by high immune cell infiltration. The Wnt-signaling inhibitor and immune activation mediator, Dickkopf-1 (DKK1), has a strong correlation with tumor growth, tumor microenvironment, and, consequently, disease prognosis. Nevertheless, it is still unclear how DKK1 expression, HNSCC prognosis, and tumor-infiltrating lymphocytes are related.

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Cytochrome P450 (CYP) family CYP11B2/CYP11B1 chimeric genes have been shown to arise from unequal crossing over of the genes encoding aldosterone synthase (CYP11B2) and 11β-hydroxylase (CYP11B1) during meiosis. The activity deficiency or impaired activity of aldosterone synthase and 11β-hydroxylase resulting from these chimeric genes are important reasons for 11β-hydroxylase deficiency (11β-OHD). Here,two patients with pseudoprecocious puberty and hypokalemia hypertension and three carriers in a consanguineous marriage family were studied.

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Dyschromatosis universalis hereditaria (DUH) is characterized by diffuse symmetrically distributed hypopigmented macules mixed with hyperpigmentation. DUH is divided into three types by Online Mendelian inheritance in man (OMIM) that is, DUH1 (OMIM 127500), DUH2 (OMIM 612715) and DUH3 (OMIM 615402) according to the different linkage regions. Although each condition possesses corresponding phenotypic characteristics and the prognosis for each is somewhat different, these disorders are highly overlapped and difficult to differentiate in the clinical setting.

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Dyschromatosis universalis hereditaria (DUH) is a pigmentary genodermatosis characterized by a mixture of hyperpigmented and hypopigmented macules distributed randomly over the body. Although Sterile Alpha motif- and SH3 domain-containing protein 1 (SASH1) and ATP-binding cassette subfamily B, member 6 (ABCB6) have been identified as causative genes for this disorder, some cases involve unknown pathogenic genes. In this study, whole-exome sequencing, data analysis, and Sanger sequencing were utilized for a four-generation extended Chinese family with DUH.

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Objectives: Platelet count is an independent predictor of mortality in patients with cancer. It remains unknown whether the platelet count is related to in-hospital mortality in severely ill patients with tumours.

Design: A retrospective study based on a dataset from a multicentre cohort.

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The SAM and SH3 domain‑containing 1 (SASH1) genes have been identified as the causal genes of dyschromatosis universalis hereditaria (DUH); these genes cause the pathological phenotypes of DUH, and SASH1 variants have been shown to regulate the abnormal pigmentation phenotype in human skin in various genodermatoses. However, investigations into the mutated SASH1 gene have been limited to in vitro studies. In the present study, to recapitulate the molecular pathological phenotypes of individuals with DUH induced by SASH1 mutations, a heterozygous BALB/c mouse model, in which the human SASH1 c.

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Compared to single gemcitabine treatment, the combination of gemcitabine and erlotinib has shown effective response in patients with locally advanced or metastatic pancreatic cancer. However, the combination therapy has not proven effective in patients with pancreatic cancer after R0 or R1 resection. In the present study, a nude mice model of orthotopic xenotransplantation after tumor resection was established using pancreatic cancer cell lines, BxPC-3 and PANC‑1.

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We previously reported that three point mutations in SASH1 and mutated SASH1 promote melanocyte migration in dyschromatosis universalis hereditaria (DUH) and a novel p53/POMC/Gαs/SASH1 autoregulatory positive feedback loop is regulated by SASH1 mutations to induce pathological hyperpigmentation phenotype. However, the underlying mechanism of molecular regulation to cause this hyperpigmentation disorder still remains unclear. In this study, we aimed to investigate the molecular mechanism undergirding hyperpigmentation in the dyschromatosis disorder.

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p53-Transcriptional-regulated proteins interact with a large number of other signal transduction pathways in the cell, and a number of positive and negative autoregulatory feedback loops act upon the p53 response. P53 directly controls the POMC/α-MSH productions induced by ultraviolet (UV) and is associated with UV-independent pathological pigmentation. When identifying the causative gene of dyschromatosis universalis hereditaria (DUH), we found three mutations encoding amino acid substitutions in the gene SAM and SH3 domain containing 1 (SASH1), and SASH1 was associated with guanine nucleotide-binding protein subunit-alpha isoforms short (Gαs).

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Previous studies have indicated that immune dysregulation is an important cause of HCV‑mediated damage to the liver. Co‑stimulation signals, including programmed cell death protein 1 (PD‑1) and inducible T‑cell co‑stimulator (ICOS), have been demonstrated to be involved in the pathogenesis of HCV. The purpose of this study was to investigate the soluble PD‑1 (sPD‑1) and soluble ICOS (sICOS) serum levels in chronic HCV patients, and to elucidate the association of sPD‑1 and sICOS levels with pathological injury of chronic HCV infection.

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One important function of melanocytes (MCs) is to produce and transfer melanin to neighbouring keratinocytes (KCs) to protect epithelial cells from UV radiation. The mechanisms regulating the specific migration and localisation of the MC lineage remain unknown. We have found three heterozygous mutations that cause amino acid substitutions in the SASH1 gene in individuals with a kind of dyschromatosis.

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Statins are being widely used for the therapy and prevention of several types of tumors, including human chronic myelogenous leukemia, but the underlying molecular mechanisms still remain unknown. Therefore, inhibition of cell proliferation, apoptosis and involved molecules were investigated in K562 cells after incubation with simvastatin.The results showed that simvastatin diminished K562 cell proliferation and induced apoptosis.

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Background: Statins, a family of 3-hydroxy-3-methylglutaryl CoA (HMG CoA) reductase inhibitors, are being investigated for the therapy and prevention of cancers. Here we aimed to investigate the effects of simvastatin on chronic myelogenous leukemia (CML) cells in vitro and in vivo, and to elucidate the mechanisms.

Methods: Cell proliferation and cell cycle were measured after K562 cells were incubated with simvastatin, and differentially expressed genes were determined by oligonucleotide microarray.

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