von Willebrand factor D and EGF domains is an evolutionarily conserved and required feature of blastemas capable of multitissue appendage regeneration.

Regenerative ability varies tremendously across species. A common feature of regeneration of appendages such as limbs, fins, antlers, and tails is the formation of a blastema-a transient structure that houses a pool of progenitor cells that can regenerate the missing tissue. We have identified the expression of von Willebrand factor D and EGF domains (vwde) as a common feature of blastemas capable of regenerating limbs and fins in a variety of highly regenerative species, including axolotl (Ambystoma mexicanum), lungfish (Lepidosiren paradoxa), and Polpyterus (Polypterus senegalus).

Whole transcriptome analysis reveals correlation of long noncoding RNA ZEB1-AS1 with invasive profile in melanoma.

Melanoma is the deadliest form of skin cancer, and little is known about the impact of deregulated expression of long noncoding RNAs (lncRNAs) in the progression of this cancer. In this study, we explored RNA-Seq data to search for lncRNAs associated with melanoma progression. We found distinct lncRNA gene expression patterns across melanocytes, primary and metastatic melanoma cells.

Deep evolutionary origin of limb and fin regeneration.

Salamanders and lungfishes are the only sarcopterygians (lobe-finned vertebrates) capable of paired appendage regeneration, regardless of the amputation level. Among actinopterygians (ray-finned fishes), regeneration after amputation at the fin endoskeleton has only been demonstrated in polypterid fishes (Cladistia). Whether this ability evolved independently in sarcopterygians and actinopterygians or has a common origin remains unknown.

miR-450a Acts as a Tumor Suppressor in Ovarian Cancer by Regulating Energy Metabolism.

Dysregulation of miRNA expression is associated with multiple diseases, including cancers, in which small RNAs can have either oncogenic or tumor suppressive functions. Here we investigated the potential tumor suppressive function of miR-450a, one of the most significantly downregulated miRNAs in ovarian cancer. RNA-seq analysis of the ovarian cancer cell line A2780 revealed that overexpression of miR-450a suppressed multiple genes involved in the epithelial-to-mesenchymal transition (EMT).

miR-30-HNF4γ and miR-194-NR2F2 regulatory networks contribute to the upregulation of metaplasia markers in the stomach.

Objective: Intestinal metaplasia and spasmolytic polypeptide-expressing metaplasia (SPEM) are considered neoplastic precursors of gastric adenocarcinoma and are both marked by gene expression alterations in comparison to normal stomach. Since miRNAs are important regulators of gene expression, we sought to investigate the role of miRNAs on the development of stomach metaplasias.

Design: We performed miRNA profiling using a quantitative reverse transcription-PCR approach on laser capture microdissected human intestinal metaplasia and SPEM.

Macrophages promote progression of spasmolytic polypeptide-expressing metaplasia after acute loss of parietal cells.

Background & Aims: Loss of parietal cells causes the development of spasmolytic polypeptide-expressing metaplasia (SPEM) through transdifferentiation of chief cells. In the presence of inflammation, SPEM can advance into a more proliferative metaplasia with increased expression of intestine-specific transcripts. We used L635 to induce acute SPEM with inflammation in mice and investigated the roles of inflammatory cells in the development of SPEM.

Proteomic profiling of paraffin-embedded samples identifies metaplasia-specific and early-stage gastric cancer biomarkers.

Early diagnosis and curative resection are the predominant factors associated with increased survival in patients with gastric cancer. However, most gastric cancer cases are still diagnosed at later stages. Since most pathologic specimens are archived as FFPE samples, the ability to use them to generate expression profiles can greatly improve cancer biomarker discovery.

Heterogeneity in mouse spasmolytic polypeptide-expressing metaplasia lineages identifies markers of metaplastic progression.

Objectives: Spasmolytic polypeptide-expressing metaplasia (SPEM) develops as a preneoplastic lesion in the stomachs of mice and humans after parietal cell loss. To identify the commonalities and differences between phenotypic SPEM lineages, SPEM were studied from three different mouse models of parietal cell loss: with chronic inflammation with Helicobacter felis infection; with acute inflammation with L635 treatment; and without inflammation following DMP-777 treatment.

Design: RNA transcripts from laser capture microdissected normal chief cells and SPEM lineages were compared using gene microarray.

Novel primate-specific genes, RMEL 1, 2 and 3, with highly restricted expression in melanoma, assessed by new data mining tool.

Melanoma is a highly aggressive and therapy resistant tumor for which the identification of specific markers and therapeutic targets is highly desirable. We describe here the development and use of a bioinformatic pipeline tool, made publicly available under the name of EST2TSE, for the in silico detection of candidate genes with tissue-specific expression. Using this tool we mined the human EST (Expressed Sequence Tag) database for sequences derived exclusively from melanoma.

Suppression subtractive hybridization profiles of radial growth phase and metastatic melanoma cell lines reveal novel potential targets.

Background: Melanoma progression occurs through three major stages: radial growth phase (RGP), confined to the epidermis; vertical growth phase (VGP), when the tumor has invaded into the dermis; and metastasis. In this work, we used suppression subtractive hybridization (SSH) to investigate the molecular signature of melanoma progression, by comparing a group of metastatic cell lines with an RGP-like cell line showing characteristics of early neoplastic lesions including expression of the metastasis suppressor KISS1, lack of alphavbeta3-integrin and low levels of RHOC.

Methods: Two subtracted cDNA collections were obtained, one (RGP library) by subtracting the RGP cell line (WM1552C) cDNA from a cDNA pool from four metastatic cell lines (WM9, WM852, 1205Lu and WM1617), and the other (Met library) by the reverse subtraction.

Identification of unannotated exons of low abundance transcripts in Drosophila melanogaster and cloning of a new serine protease gene upregulated upon injury.

Background: The sequencing of the D.melanogaster genome revealed an unexpected small number of genes (~ 14,000) indicating that mechanisms acting on generation of transcript diversity must have played a major role in the evolution of complex metazoans. Among the most extensively used mechanisms that accounts for this diversity is alternative splicing.

The use of Open Reading frame ESTs (ORESTES) for analysis of the honey bee transcriptome.

Background: The ongoing efforts to sequence the honey bee genome require additional initiatives to define its transcriptome. Towards this end, we employed the Open Reading frame ESTs (ORESTES) strategy to generate profiles for the life cycle of Apis mellifera workers.

Results: Of the 5,021 ORESTES, 35.

Myosin-V colocalizes with MHC class II in blood mononuclear cells and is up-regulated by T-lymphocyte activation.

Myosin-V is involved in organelle and vesicle trafficking in Saccharomyces cerevisiae and in other eukaryotic cells from yeast to human. In the present study, we determined by FACS that the major subpopulations of the peripheral blood mononuclear cells express myosin-V with similar fluorescence intensity. Confocal microscopy showed intense labeling for myosin-V at the centrosomal region and a punctate staining throughout the cytoplasm, frequently associated with the central microtubule arrays and the actin-rich cortex.