Glucocorticoids: Dose-related effects on osteoclast formation and function via reactive oxygen species and autophagy.

Whether glucocorticoids directly enhance or interrupt osteoclastogenesis is still a controversial subject. In this study, we ascertained the dose-dependent positive effects of glucocorticoids on osteoclastogenesis in vivo and in vitro as well as investigated the mechanism in vitro. As the dose of glucocorticoids increased, osteoclastogenesis was stimulated at 0.

Histochemical analysis of testis specific gene 13 in human normal and malignant tissues.

Testis-specific gene 13 (TSGA13) is abundantly expressed in testis. As previous studies of TSGA13 expression pattern have all been based on mRNA analysis, it is imperative to investigate its actual protein expression. Here, we first examined TSGA13 gene tree and protein homology among species, and found that TSGA13 is relatively well conserved.

Increased expression of metastasis-associated in colon cancer-1 in renal cell carcinoma is associated with poor prognosis.

Metastasis-associated in colon cancer-1 (MACC1) expression in tumor specimens is an independent prognostic indicator of metastasis, which has recently gained considerable attention in cancer research, due to its overexpression in several types of carcinoma. However, MACC1 expression patterns and its possible role in renal cell carcinoma remain unknown. This study aimed to investigate MACC1 expression in renal cell carcinoma via immunohistochemical analysis and determine the relationship between MACC1 expression and cancer prognosis.

Precise Molecular Fission and Fusion: Quantitative Self-Assembly and Chemistry of a Metallo-Cuboctahedron.

Inspiration for molecular design and construction can be derived from mathematically based structures. In the quest for new materials, the adaptation of new building blocks can lead to unexpected results. Towards these ends, the quantitative single-step self-assembly of a shape-persistent, Archimedean-based building block, which generates the largest molecular sphere (a cuboctahedron) that has been unequivocally characterized by synchrotron X-ray analysis, is described.

A combination of YM-155, a small molecule survivin inhibitor, and IL-2 potently suppresses renal cell carcinoma in murine model.

YM155, a small molecule inhibitor of the antiapoptotic protein survivin, has been developed as a potential anti-cancer drug. We investigated a combination therapy of YM155 and interleukin-2 (IL-2) in a mouse model of renal cell carcinoma (RCC). YM155 caused cell cycle arrest and apoptosis in renal cancer (RENCA) cells.

MAPK-mediated enhanced expression of vacuolar H(+)-ATPase confers the improved adaption to NaCl stress in a halotolerate peppermint (Mentha piperita L.).

Vacuolar H(+)-ATPase (V-H(+)-ATPase) has been proved to be of importance in maintenance of ion homeostasis inside plant cells under NaCl stress. In this study, the expression levels and salt-tolerate function of V-H(+)-ATPase genes were investigated in the roots and leaves of a halotolerate peppermint (Mentha × piperita L.) Keyuan-1 treated with different concentrations of NaCl.

Mitogen-activated protein kinase phosphatase-1: a critical phosphatase manipulating mitogen-activated protein kinase signaling in cardiovascular disease (review).

Mitogen-activated protein kinase (MAPK) cascades are important players in the overall representation of cellular signal transduction pathways, and the deregulation of MAPKs is involved in a variety of diseases. The activation of MAPK signals occurs through phosphorylation by MAPK kinases at conserved threonine and tyrosine (Thr-Xaa-Tyr) residues. The mitogen-activated protein kinase phosphatases (MKPs) are a major part of the dual-specificity family of phosphatases and specifically inactivate MAPKs by dephosphorylating both phosphotyrosine and phosphoserine/phosphothreonine residues within the one substrate.

Self-assemblied nanocomplexes based on biomimetic amphiphilic chitosan derivatives for protein delivery.

A bio-inspired nanocarrier was developed for protein delivery based on biodegradable amphiphilic chitosan derivative (DCA-PCCs) with hydrophilic cell membrane mimic phosphorylcholine (PC) and hydrophobic deoxycholic acid (DCA) moieties, which was synthesized via the combination of Atherton-Todd reaction and carbodiimide coupling reaction. Using bovine serum albumin (BSA) as model protein, it was found that DCA-PCCs with suitable degree of substitution of PC and DCA moieties can load proteins by forming nanocomplexes via a solvent evaporation method. The physicochemical characteristics of BSA/DCA-PCCs nanocomplexes were investigated by Zetasizer, atomic force microscopy (AFM) and Fourier-transform infrared (FT-IR) spectroscopy.

Directed flexibility: self-assembly of a supramolecular tetrahedron.

Self-assembly of a tribenzo-27-crown-9 ether functionalized with six terpyridines generated (85%) an expanded tetrahedral structure comprised of four independent triangular surfaces interlinked by crown ether vertices.

Cellulase-assisted extraction, characterization, and bioactivity of polysaccharides from Polygonatum odoratum.

Cellulase-assisted extraction of polysaccharides from Polygonatum odoratum (CPP) was optimized by response surface methodology (RSM) and the extracted CPP's preliminary chemical characteristics, as well as antioxidant and immunomodulatory activities were also investigated. The optimal extraction parameters comprised an extraction temperature of 58.21 °C, an extraction time of 3.

Prevalence of myopia in schoolchildren in Ejina: the Gobi Desert Children Eye Study.

Purpose: To determine the prevalence and associations of myopia in schoolchildren in provincial Western China.

Methods: In the school-based observational cross-sectional Gobi Desert Children Eye Study, cylcoplegic refractometry as part of a comprehensive ophthalmic examination was performed in all schools in the oasis region of Ejina. Out of 1911 eligible children, 1565 (81.

Oxidative damage induced by heat stress could be relieved by nitric oxide in Trichoderma harzianum LTR-2.

Trichoderma harzianum is an important commercial biocontrol fungal agent. The temperature has been shown to be an important parameter and strain-specific to the mycelia growth of fungi, but less report makes the known of the mechanisms in T. harzianum.

Sanguinarine inhibits Rac1b-rendered cell survival enhancement by promoting apoptosis and blocking proliferation.

Aim: Small GTPase Rac1 is a member of the Ras superfamily, which plays important roles in regulation of cytoskeleton reorganization, cell growth, proliferation, migration, etc. The aim of this study was to determine how a constitutively active Rac1b regulated cell proliferation and to investigate the effects of the Rac1b inhibitor sanguinarine.

Methods: Three HEK293T cell lines stably overexpressing GFP, Rac1-GFP or Rac1b-GFP were constructed by lentiviral infection.

Three new asperentin derivatives from the algicolous fungus Aspergillus sp. F00785.

Three new asperentin-type compounds, 6-O-α-d-ribosylasperentin (1) and 6-O-α-d-ribosyl-8-O-methylasperentin (2) and 5-hydroxyl-6-O-methylasperentin (3), along with asperentin (4) and its known analogues (5-9), were isolated from a halotolerant Aspergillus sp. strain F00785, an endotrophic fungus from marine alga. Their structures were determined using extensive NMR and HRESIMS spectroscopic analysis, including the X-ray crystallographic data for the assignment of the absolute configurations of compound 9.

In vitro drug release and biological evaluation of biomimetic polymeric micelles self-assembled from amphiphilic deoxycholic acid-phosphorylcholine-chitosan conjugate.

Novel biomimetic amphiphilic chitosan derivative, deoxycholic acid-phosphorylcholine-chitosan conjugate (DCA-PCCs) was synthesized based on the combination of Atherton-Todd reaction for coupling phosphorylcholine (PC) and carbodiimide coupling reaction for linking deoxycholic acid (DCA) to chitosan. The chemical structure of DCA-PCCs was characterized by (1)H and (31)P nuclear magnetic resonance (NMR). The self-assembly of DCA-PCCs in water was analyzed by fluorescence measurements, dynamic laser light-scattering (DLS), zeta potential and transmission electron microscopy (TEM) technologies.

Probing a hidden world of molecular self-assembly: concentration-dependent, three-dimensional supramolecular interconversions.

A terpyridine-based, concentration-dependent, facile self-assembly process is reported, resulting in two three-dimensional metallosupramolecular architectures, a bis-rhombus and a tetrahedron, which are formed using a two-dimensional, planar, tris-terpyridine ligand. The interconversion between these two structures is concentration-dependent: at a concentration higher than 12 mg mL(-1), only a bis-rhombus, composed of eight ligands and 12 Cd(2+) ions, is formed; whereas a self-assembled tetrahedron, composed of four ligands and six Cd(2+) ions, appears upon sufficient dilution of the tris-terpyridine-metal solution. At concentrations less than 0.

Efficacy of intravesical Bacillus Calmette-Guérin therapy against tumor immune escape in an orthotopic model of bladder cancer.

The aim of this study was to evaluate the antitumor immune response of the Bacillus Calmette-Guérin (BCG) in an orthotopic bladder cancer model. The murine bladder cancer cell line MBT-2 was transurethrally implanted in the bladder of syngeneic female C3H/He mice. The animals were randomly divided into three treatment groups: Phosphate-buffered saline (PBS), low-dose BCG and high-dose BCG.

High-level hemicellulosic arabinose predominately affects lignocellulose crystallinity for genetically enhancing both plant lodging resistance and biomass enzymatic digestibility in rice mutants.

Rice is a major food crop with enormous biomass residue for biofuels. As plant cell wall recalcitrance basically decides a costly biomass process, genetic modification of plant cell walls has been regarded as a promising solution. However, due to structural complexity and functional diversity of plant cell walls, it becomes essential to identify the key factors of cell wall modifications that could not much alter plant growth, but cause an enhancement in biomass enzymatic digestibility.

Some aspects of salinity responses in peppermint (Mentha × piperita L.) to NaCl treatment.

Salinity is a major stress that adversely affects plant growth and crop production. Understanding the cellular responses and molecular mechanisms by which plants perceive and adopt salinity stress is of fundamental importance. In this work, some of the cellular signaling events including cell death, reactive oxygen species (ROS) generation, and the behaviors of organelles were analyzed in a salt-tolerant species (Keyuan-1) of peppermint (Mentha × piperita L.

Bioactive surface modification of metal oxides via catechol-bearing modular peptides: multivalent-binding, surface retention, and peptide bioactivity.

A series of multivalent dendrons containing a bioactive osteogenic growth peptide (OGP) domain and surface-binding catechol domains were obtained through solid phase synthesis, and their binding affinity to hydroxyapatite, TiO2, ZrO2, CeO2, Fe3O4 and gold was characterized using a quartz crystal microbalance with dissipation (QCM-d). Using the distinct difference in binding affinity of the bioconjugate to the metal oxides, TiO2-coated glass slides were selectively patterned with bioactive peptides. Cell culture studies demonstrated the bioavailability of the OGP and that OGP remained on the surface for at least 2 weeks under in vitro cell culture conditions.

Acute impact of pacing at different cardiac sites on left ventricular rotation and twist in dogs.

Objectives: We evaluated the acute impact of different cardiac pacing sites on two-dimensional speckle-tracking echocardiography (STE) derived left ventricular (LV) rotation and twist in healthy dogs.

Methods: Twelve dogs were used in this study. The steerable pacing electrodes were positioned into right heart through the superior or inferior vena cava, into LV through aorta across the aortic valve.

Risk factors influencing the recurrence of papillary thyroid carcinoma: a systematic review and meta-analysis.

Objective: To evaluate the risk factors influencing the recurrence of papillary thyroid carcinoma.

Methods: This meta-analysis used MEDLINE (PubMed), EMBASE and CNKI including all cohort studies reporting the risk factors influencing the recurrence after the initial operation on PTC up to February 23, 2014. Software RevMan 5.