5-Hydroxytryptamine promotes hepatocellular carcinoma proliferation by influencing β-catenin.

5-Hydroxytryptamine (5-HT), a neurotransmitter and vasoactive factor, has been reported to promote proliferation of serum-deprived hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC) cells but the detailed intracellular mechanism is unknown. As Wnt/β-catenin signalling is highly dysregulated in a majority of HCC, this study explored the regulation of Wnt/β-catenin signalling by 5-HT. The expression of various 5-HT receptors was studied by quantitative real-time polymerase chain reaction (qPCR) in HCC cell lines as well as in 33 pairs of HCC tumours and corresponding adjacent non-tumour tissues.

Anti-proliferative activities of sinigrin on carcinogen-induced hepatotoxicity in rats.

Liver cancer is one of the leading causes of cancer death worldwide. A very high incidence of new liver cancer cases is diagnosed every year, and metastasis has been found to correlate to poor prognoses in humans. Better treatments for liver cancer are thus clearly needed.

Combination of phytochemicals as adjuvants for cancer therapy.

Newer treatments of advanced human cancer are based on combination of cancer drugs that have different mechanism of actions yet the combination strategy may potentiate the anti-cancer effects and cytotoxicity. Recent studies suggest that cancer growth can be inhibited more effectively by combination of phytochemicals that affect different pathways. The apoptotic activity can be modulated by intrinsic and extrinsic molecules.

Active phytochemicals from Chinese herbs as therapeutic agents for the heart.

Naturally occurring plant alkaloids, in particular those identified from herbal medicines, are finding therapeutic use. Heart diseases can be well managed with specific formulations of herbal medicines. The combined action of multiple constituents of herbal medicines works with therapeutic benefits in humans.

Structural and functional insight into the mechanism of an alkaline exonuclease from Laribacter hongkongensis.

Alkaline exonuclease and single-strand DNA (ssDNA) annealing proteins (SSAPs) are key components of DNA recombination and repair systems within many prokaryotes, bacteriophages and virus-like genetic elements. The recently sequenced β-proteobacterium Laribacter hongkongensis (strain HLHK9) encodes putative homologs of alkaline exonuclease (LHK-Exo) and SSAP (LHK-Bet) proteins on its 3.17 Mb genome.

Functional characterization of an alkaline exonuclease and single strand annealing protein from the SXT genetic element of Vibrio cholerae.

Background: SXT is an integrating conjugative element (ICE) originally isolated from Vibrio cholerae, the bacterial pathogen that causes cholera. It houses multiple antibiotic and heavy metal resistance genes on its ca. 100 kb circular double stranded DNA (dsDNA) genome, and functions as an effective vehicle for the horizontal transfer of resistance genes within susceptible bacterial populations.

Effects of oxymatrine from Ku Shen on cancer cells.

Oxymatrine is one of active constituents isolated from Ku Shen, which is the dried root of Sophora flavescens Ait. The herb used in different herbal formulations is commonly known with specific pharmacological properties for treatment of liver disorders and other diseases such as arrhythmia, eczema and skin disorders, leukopenia and bronchitis. Sophora flavescens Ait is known to enhance liver functions and reduce hepatotoxicity due to oxidative stress and liver injury.

Catheter-directed thrombolysis with the Endowave system in the treatment of acute massive pulmonary embolism: a retrospective multicenter case series.

Purpose: To evaluate the efficacy of thrombolysis with the EndoWave peripheral infusion system in the treatment of patients with massive pulmonary embolism (PE) as compared to patients treated with catheter-directed thrombolysis.

Materials And Methods: Ten patients (five men and five women; age range, 31-85 years; mean age, 54.20 years) with massive acute PE (17 lesions) were treated with ultrasonography (US)-assisted catheter-directed thrombolysis with the Endowave system.

Potential and cytotoxicity of cis-platinum complex with anti-tumor activity in combination therapy.

The use of anticancer agents forms an important part for treatment of cancer of various types. Complexes with cis-platinum compounds have been used for the prevention and treatment of cancers. Quite a number of these metal-containing complexes have been isolated, chemically prepared and characterized for the treatment of cancer.

Pharmacological activity of cardiovascular agents from herbal medicine.

Some of the active phytochemicals in herbal medicine are finding therapeutic use. For example, patients with heart disease are reported to benefit from treatment with herbal medicine with fewer side effects. Previous studies showed the inhibitory effects of tetramethylpyrazine, an active component of medicinal herb, on phosphodiesterase that is associated with heart disease and the cardio-protective effects of other herbal medicine that was used to protect ischemia-reperfusion injury of rat hearts.

Deciphering signaling control by phosphoproteome using mass spectrometry.

Analysis of changes in genes and protein profiles provides invaluable information to understand the activities and functions of proteins. However, their activities are further regulated by post-translational modifications, such as glycosylation and phosphorylation. Cell growth and apoptotic pathways are good examples of demonstrating the roles of phosphorylation in activation of protein cascades upon stimulation.

Identification of histidine-60 interaction with copper in activation of Chironomidae ferrochelatase.

Site-directed mutagenesis study of the conserved residue in ferrochelatase of chironomidae showed the binding interaction of copper with histidine-60. The activities of the variants increase by > 4-fold with H60N and 2 fold with H60D. The study identifies for the first time that the highly conserved H60 is a key molecular determinant in directing a catalytically competent mode of metal binding in the active site.

Activation of p53 by specific agents in potential cancer therapy.

Tumor suppressor genes can promote p53-mediated apoptosis. Apoptosis is an important protective mechanism for normal cell growth. Aberrant regulation of p53 expression is linked to cancer development.

Cloning and characterization of chironomidae ferrochelatase: copper activation of the purified ferrochelatase.

All organisms utilize ferrochelatase (EC 4.99.1.

Transcriptional regulation of fosl-1 by licorice in rat Clone 9 cells.

Licorice is a commonly used herbal medicine for treatment of liver disorders. Its biological activities have been widely studied. However, little information on its transcriptional regulation has been reported.

Inhibition of glycyrrhizic acid on aflatoxin B1-induced cytotoxicity in hepatoma cells.

Aflatoxin B(1) (AFB(1)) causes oxidative stress and ROS formation via metabolic activation of AFB(1). Glycyrrhizic acid (GA) has been reported to have antioxidative properties. The present study was to investigate the effect of GA, a major component of licorice on AFB(1)-induced cytotoxicity in human hepatoma cell line (HepG2).

Simultaneous detection of trichloroethylene alcohol and acetate in rat urine by gas chromatography-mass spectrometry.

In order to better understand the cytotoxic effects of trichloroethylene (TCE) and its metabolites in TCE-induced carcinogenicity, it is necessary to determine the molecular species in biological samples. We have developed an efficient gas chromatography-mass spectrometry assay for the quantitative analysis of trichloroethylene alcohol and acetate. This method utilizes a simple esterification procedure, and a single liquid-liquid extraction with hexane-dichloromethane (1:1) that allows >90% recovery of the metabolites, followed by gas chromatography-mass spectrometry.

Herbal medicine in the treatment of cancer.

Many of the classes of phytochemicals in herbal medicine are finding therapeutic use. In particular, cancer patients are reported to benefit from treatment with herbal medicine and survivability in many cases is significantly enhanced. Recent studies showed the anti-oxidative and superoxide scavenging activities of individual active components of herbal medicine for their inhibitory activities on lipid peroxidation and anti-cancer properties.

Induction of UDP-glucuronosyltransferase 1A8 mRNA by 3-methylcholanthene in rat hepatoma cells.

UDP-glucuronosyltransferases (UGTs) catalyze the glucuronidation of a broad spectrum of endobiotic and xenobiotic compounds, which leads to the excretion of hydrophilic glucuronides via bile or urine. By a mechanism of exon sharing, isoforms of the UGT1 family are made from the complex gene locus by an alternative combination of one of the unique first exons with the other commonly used exons. This study demonstrates that the expression of the UGT1 gene UGT1A6, 1A7 and 1A8 is regulated at the transcriptional level by 3-methylcholanthene (3-MC) in rat hepatoma H-4-II-E cells.

Induction of rcl, a novel growth-related gene by coptidis rhizoma in rat H4IIE cells.

Exposure of rat hepatoma cells to a low concentration of Coptidis Rhizoma reduces cell viability and probably induces apoptotic cell death. However, Coptidis Rhizoma treatment increased the expression of a putative c-myc-responsive gene rcl and could increase the activity of a transcription factor in inhibiting the growth of cancer cells. This increase was accompanied by an increment in the expression of mRNA for c-myc-responsive gene.