Altered nucleocytoplasmic export of adenosine-rich circRNAs by PABPC1 contributes to neuronal function.

Circular RNAs (circRNAs) are upregulated during neurogenesis. Where and how circRNAs are localized and what roles they play during this process have remained elusive. Comparing the nuclear and cytoplasmic circRNAs between H9 cells and H9-derived forebrain (FB) neurons, we identify that a subset of adenosine (A)-rich circRNAs are restricted in H9 nuclei but exported to cytosols upon differentiation.

RNAlight: a machine learning model to identify nucleotide features determining RNA subcellular localization.

Different RNAs have distinct subcellular localizations. However, nucleotide features that determine these distinct distributions of lncRNAs and mRNAs have yet to be fully addressed. Here, we develop RNAlight, a machine learning model based on LightGBM, to identify nucleotide k-mers contributing to the subcellular localizations of mRNAs and lncRNAs.

SCAPTURE: a deep learning-embedded pipeline that captures polyadenylation information from 3' tag-based RNA-seq of single cells.

Single-cell RNA-seq (scRNA-seq) profiles gene expression with high resolution. Here, we develop a stepwise computational method-called SCAPTURE to identify, evaluate, and quantify cleavage and polyadenylation sites (PASs) from 3' tag-based scRNA-seq. SCAPTURE detects PASs de novo in single cells with high sensitivity and accuracy, enabling detection of previously unannotated PASs.

Increased Macroautophagy in Interferon-Gamma-Producing T Cells from Patients with Newly Diagnosed Systemic Lupus Erythematosus.

Background: Imbalance of interferon-gamma (IFN-γ), interleukin (IL)-4, and IL-17 producing by T cells is confirmed to contribute to the pathogenesis of systemic lupus erythematosus (SLE). Autophagy is now emerging as a core player in the development and the function of the immune system. Therefore, we investigated the autophagic behavior in IFN-γ-, IL-4-, and IL-17-producing T cells from patients with SLE.

WITHDRAWN Monocyte chemoattractant protein-1 promoter-2518 G allele increases renal damage in systemic lupus erythematosus patients: result from a meta-analysis.

Ahead of Print article withdrawn by publisher. Not clarified suspected conflict of interest.

Salvia miltiorrhiza injection restores apoptosis of fibroblast-like synoviocytes cultured with serum from patients with rheumatoid arthritis.

Salvia miltiorrhiza injection (SMI) is a water‑soluble agent, derived from Salvia miltiorrhiza (SM), that is traditionally used to treat cardiovascular and cerebrovascular diseases. Furthermore it has been demonstrated to possess the ability to induce apoptosis of tumor cells. However, it remains unclear whether SMI can induce apoptosis of rheumatoid arthritis (RA) fibroblast‑like synoviocytes (FLS), which are hyperplastic in RA due to defective apoptosis.

Hydroxychloroquine facilitates autophagosome formation but not degradation to suppress the proliferation of cervical cancer SiHa cells.

Hydroxychloroquine (HCQ), the hydroxylated analog of chloroquine, is an antimalarial lysomotropic agent that inhibits autophagy due to lysosomal acidification, and subsequently blocks the fusion of autophagosomes with lysosomes which leads to the accumulation of autophagosomes that may accelerate tumor cell death. Given these hypothesis the aim of this study was to investigate the effects of HCQ in the inhibition of autophagy and the induction of apoptosis in cervical cancer SiHa cells. Cervical cancer SiHa cells were cultured with Hank's balanced salt solution (HBSS) as positive control of autophagy or treated with HCQ as part of the experimental groups.

[Effects of danshen injection on the proliferation of rheumatoid arthritis fibroblast-like synoviocytes cultured with human serum].

Objective: To investigate the effects of Danshen Injection (DSI) on the proliferation of rheumatoid arthritis fibroblast-like synoviocytes (RA FLSs) cultured in RA patients' serum.

Methods: The RA FLSs harvested from RA patients' synovial fluid were primarily cultured by routines. The cells were cultured with 10% inactivated human serum (the healthy human serum and the RA patients' serum) for 24 h.

Autophagy appears during the development of the mouse lower first molar.

Odontogenesis consists of a series of consecutive tooth morphogenesis stages, in which apoptosis is involved to eliminate the unnecessary cells. Autophagy, a lysosome or endosome-mediated self-degradation process, is indicated to participate in embryogenesis and tissue morphogenesis associated with apoptosis. This study hypothesized that autophagy may be involved and associated with apoptosis in odontogenesis.

[The association of vitamin D receptor gene ApaI and BsmI polymorphism with systemic lupus erythematosus].

Objective: To determine the distribution of vitamin D receptor (VDR) gene ApaI and BsmI polymorphism in systemic lupus erythematosus (SLE) and the association with SLE in Chinese Han patients.

Methods: Genomic DNA from 244 Chinese SLE patients and 162 sex and ethnically matched controls were typed for VDR ApaI and BsmI polymorphism combination by polymerase chain reaction restriction fragment length polymorphism (PCR-RFLP). Clinical characteristics were analyzed between different ApaI and BsmI genotypes.

[Relationship of vitamin D receptor gene Fok I polymorphism with systemic lupus erythematosus].

Aim: To investigate the relationship of vitamin D receptor (VDR) gene Fok I polymorphism with systemic lupus erythematosus (SLE) and to observe VDR mRNA levels in Chinese Han SLE patients.

Methods: Genomic DNAs from 271 Chinese SLE patients and 130 healthy controls were determined for Fok I polymorphism by polymerase chain reaction restriction fragment length polymorphism (PCR-RFLP), and VDR mRNA levels from 48 Chinese SLE patients and 38 healthy controls were detected by real-time polymerase chain reaction (RT-PCR).

Results: Gene frequencies of allelic F and f were significantly different between the SLE patients and the controls (P=0.

[Detecting anti-megakaryocyte antibodies in serum of systemic lupus erythematosus patients by indirect immunofluorescence].

This study was purposed to investigate the mechanism of thrombocytopenia in patients with systemic lupus erythematosus (SLE) through detecting anti-megakaryocyte antibodies in SLE patients. The serum anti-megakaryocyte antibodies in 36 SLE cases with thrombocytopenia were detected by using indirect immunofluorescence, the detected results were compared with detected results of 30 SLE cases without thrombocytopenia and 30 healthy persons. The results showed that the positive incidences of anti-megakaryocyte antibody in serum of 36 SLE cases with thrombocytopenia, 30 SLE cases without thrombocytopenia and 30 healthy persons were 19.

Circulating Dickkopf-1 and osteoprotegerin in patients with early and longstanding rheumatoid arthritis.

Background: Rheumatoid arthritis (RA) is characterized by inflammation of the synovial membrane, leading to invasion of synovial tissue into the adjacent cartilage matrix with degradation of articular cartilage and bone as a consequence. Dickkopf-1 (DKK-1) and osteoprotegerin (OPG) have been demonstrated to be key molecules involved in bone erosion and bone remodeling. The aim of this study was to explore the potential role of DKK-1 and OPG in different stage of RA.

Expression of FLICE-inhibitory protein in synovial tissue and its association with synovial inflammation in juvenile idiopathic arthritis.

Objective: To examine the expression of FLICE-inhibitory protein (FLIP) in juvenile idiopathic arthritis (JIA) and analyze its correlation with synovial inflammation.

Methods: The expression of FLIP was assessed in 11 JIA and 3 normal synovial tissue samples by reverse transcription-polymerase chain reaction (RT-PCR) and immunohistochemistry. The cell types expressing FLIP were further characterized, and the correlation of FLIP expression with the degree of synovial inflammation, as well as the activity of caspase 8 was then analyzed.

Potential Role of Dentin Sialoprotein by Inducing Dental Pulp Mesenchymal Stem Cell Differentiation and Mineralization for Dental Tissue Repair.

INTRODUCTION: Dentin sialoprotein (DSP) is a dentin extracellular matrix protein, a unique marker of dentinogenesis and plays a vital role in odontoblast differentiation and dentin mineralization. Recently, studies have shown that DSP induces differentiation and mineralization of periodontal ligament stem cells and dental papilla mesenchymal cells in vitro and rescues dentin deficiency and increases enamel mineralization in animal models. THE HYPOTHESIS: DSP as a nature therapeutic agent stimulates dental tissue repair by inducing endogenous dental pulp mesenchymal stem/progenitor cells into odontoblast-like cells to synthesize and to secrete dentin extracellular matrix forming new tertiary dentin as well as to regenerate a functional dentin-pulp complex.

Expression of CC chemokine ligand 5 in patients with rheumatoid arthritis and its correlation with disease activity and medication.

Objective: To determine the levels of CC chemokine ligand 5 (CCL5) in serum and synovial fluid (SF) from patients with rheumatoid arthritis (RA) and their relations with disease activity and medication.

Methods: CCL5 in serum and SF was quantified by enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay (ELISA) in 28 RA patients and 21 osteoarthritis (OA) patients. In RA patients, the correlations of CCL5 levels in serum and SF with disease activity were analyzed.

Sonic hedgehog signaling is critical for cytodifferentiation and cusp formation in developing mouse molars.

The present study was designed to investigate the direct role of Shh molecule on cytodifferentiation and cusp formation. Affi-gel blue beads soaked in exogenous Shh-N, Shh antibody or BSA control protein were implanted between the epithelium and mesenchyme of isolated molar germs at the cap stage. The recombinants were grafted for culture under the kidney capsules respectively.

[Membrane and cytoplasmic expression of urokinase-type plasminogen activator receptor in synovial tissues of rheumatoid arthritis patients].

Objective: To investigate the production of membrane-expressed urokinase-type plasminogen activator receptor (muPAR) and cytoplasmic-expressed uPAR (cuPAR) in synovial tissue from patients with rheumatoid arthritis (RA) and analyze their relationship with the severity of synovial inflammation in RA.

Methods: MuPAR and cuPAR were measured with indirect immunofluorescence (IIF) and immunoperoxidase histochemical analysis of the synovial tissue sections from 18 patients with RA, 10 patients with osteoarthritis (OA) and 4 healthy subjects. The association of uPAR expression with the severity of synovitis in RA was then analyzed.