An automatic measurement method for the response of Caenorhabditis elegans to chemicals.

Background: Caenorhabditis elegans is a widely used model animal. Chemotaxis assay is one of the experiments that study the effects of different chemicals on nematodes. It is mainly used to study the effects of different chemicals on the perception behavior of nematodes.

Genotoxicity Evaluation of Titanium Dioxide Nanoparticles In Vivo and In Vitro: A Meta-Analysis.

Background: Recent studies have raised concerns about genotoxic effects associated with titanium dioxide nanoparticles (TiO NPs), which are commonly used. This meta-analysis aims to investigate the potential genotoxicity of TiO NPs and explore influencing factors.

Methods: This study systematically searched Chinese and English literature.

Investigation on the potential adverse outcome pathway of the sensitive endpoint for nephrotoxicity induced by gardenia yellow based on an integrated strategy using bioinformatics analysis and in vitro testing validation.

To explore the potential the adverse outcome pathway of Gardenia Yellow (GY)-induced sensitive endpoint for nephrotoxicity, an integrated strategy was applied in the present study. Using bioinformatic analysis, based on the constructed Protein-protein interaction networks, Gene Ontology function and Kyoto Encyclopedia of Genes and Genomes pathway enrichment analysis on the core target network were performed to illustrate the potential gene targets and signal pathways. Then, the most enriched pathway was validated with Cell counting kit-8 assays and Western blot analysis in embryonic kidney epithelial 293 cell models.

An automatic recognition method of nematode survival rate based on bright field and dark field experimental images.

Background: The survival rate of experimental animals is a very important index in chemical toxicity evaluation experiments. The calculation of nematode survival rate is used in many experiments.

Objective: Traditional survival rate quantification methods require manual counting.

PM induce lifespan reduction, insulin/IGF-1 signaling pathway disruption and lipid metabolism disorder in .

Introduction: Exposure to fine particulate matter (PM), especially PM, can induce various adverse health effects in populations, including diseases and premature death, but the mechanism of its toxicity is largely unknown.

Methods: Water-soluble components of PM (WS-PM) were collected in the north of China in winter, and combined in two groups with the final concentrations of 94 μg/mL (C group, AQI ≤ 100) and 119 μg/mL (C group, 100 < AQI ≤ 200), respectively. The acute and long-term toxic effects of WS-PM samples were evaluated in several aspects such as development, lifespan, healthspan (locomotion behavior, heat stress tolerance, lipofucin).

A repeated dose 28-day oral toxicity study of sodium dehydroacetate (DHA-S) in Wistar rats.

Sodium dehydroacetate (DHA-S) is a food additive and preservative. The present study was conducted to investigate the potential toxicity of repeated oral doses of DHA-S. DHA-S was administered orally by gavage to Wistar rats at doses of 0, 50, 100, or 200 mg/kg BW/day for 28 days, after which growth indicators, clinical pathology, organ weights, and histopathology were determined.

Effects of commercial beverages on the neurobehavioral motility of .

To study the effects of different types of commercially available drinks/beverages on neurobehavior using the model organism , and critically review their potential health hazards. Eighteen kinds of beverages from the supermarket were randomly selected and grouped into seven categories namely functional beverage, tea beverage, plant protein beverage, fruit juice beverage, dairy beverage, carbonated beverage and coffee beverage. The pH value, specific gravity and osmotic pressure were also examined.

Effects of lanthanum nitrate on behavioral disorder, neuronal damage and gene expression in different developmental stages of Caenorhabditis elegans.

Rare earth elements (REEs) are widely used in the industry, agriculture, biomedicine, aerospace, etc, and have been shown to pose toxic effects on animals, as such, studies focusing on their biomedical properties are gaining wide attention. However, environmental and population health risks of REEs are still not very clear. Also, the REEs damage to the nervous system and related molecular mechanisms needs further research.

Comet Assay Evaluation of Lanthanum Nitrate DNA Damage in C57-ras Transgenic Mice.

Due to the wide application of rare-earth elements (REEs) in the last decades, lanthanum has increasingly entered the environment and has gradually accumulated in the human body through the food chain. Lanthanum is worth paying attention in terms of food safety. Although the genotoxicity of lanthanum has been studied in vitro, data on its DNA damage in vivo rodent are limited, moreover, which have also presented some controversy.

Synthetic peptide, Ala-Arg-Glu-Gly-Glu-Met, abolishes pro-proliferative and anti-apoptotic effects of high glucose in vascular smooth muscle cells.

Apoptosis plays a critical role in normal vascular development and atherosclerosis. However, high glucose has been reported to generate a certain level of ROS that can inhibit vascular smooth muscle cell (VSMC) apoptosis, with the underlying mechanism remaining unclear. In this study, a synthetic peptide AREGEM (Ala-Arg-Glu-Gly-Glu-Met) exhibited antioxidative effects and was used to investigate its function in VSMCs during hyperglycaemia.

Pathogenesis of emerging severe fever with thrombocytopenia syndrome virus in C57/BL6 mouse model.

The discovery of an emerging viral disease, severe fever with thrombocytopenia syndrome (SFTS), caused by SFTS virus (SFTSV), has prompted the need to understand pathogenesis of SFTSV. We are unique in establishing an infectious model of SFTS in C57/BL6 mice, resulting in hallmark symptoms of thrombocytopenia and leukocytopenia. Viral RNA and histopathological changes were identified in the spleen, liver, and kidney.

Suppression of AMPK activation via S485 phosphorylation by IGF-I during hyperglycemia is mediated by AKT activation in vascular smooth muscle cells.

As a metabolic sensor, the serine/threonine protein kinase AMP-activated protein kinase (AMPK) promotes the adaptation of cells to signals arising from nutrients, hormones, and growth factors. The ability of IGF-I to stimulate protein synthesis is suppressed by AMPK, therefore, these studies were undertaken to determine whether IGF-I modulates AMPK activity. IGF-I dose-dependently suppressed phosphorylation of AMPK T172, and it stimulated AMPK S485 phosphorylation in vascular smooth muscle cells (VSMC).

AMP-activated protein kinase inhibits IGF-I signaling and protein synthesis in vascular smooth muscle cells via stimulation of insulin receptor substrate 1 S794 and tuberous sclerosis 2 S1345 phosphorylation.

AMP-activated protein kinase (AMPK) inhibits IGF-I actions, but the mechanism by which AMPK functions is undefined. This study identified signaling events that were induced by AMPK that mediated inhibition of IGF-I-stimulated phosphoinosotide-3-kinase (PI3K) pathway activation. The AMPK activator metformin stimulated AMPK Thr172 phosphorylation and inhibited IGF-I-stimulated phosphorylation of Akt/tuberous sclerosis 2 (TSC2)/mammalian target of rapamycin (mTOR)/p70S6 kinase (p70S6K).

Primary functional identification of gene TMSG-1.

TMSG-1 was a tumor metastasis-related gene identified using mRNA differential display, whose expression level was lower in cancer cell lines with higher metastatic potential and in tumor tissue with metastasis. TMSG-1 was transfected to prostate cancer cell line (PC-3M-1E8) with high metastatic potential to observe the effects of increased expression of TMSG-1 on V-ATPase activity, intracellular pH and cell apoptosis. Subcellular localization of the encoded protein of TMSG-1 was determined by using GFP.

[Biological implications of the inhibition of survivin by RNA interference in human androgen-independent prostate carcinoma with highly metastatic potential].

Objective: To determine the expression level of survivin in androgen-independent prostate carcinoma, and to investigate the biological role of survivin in invasion and metastasis of androgen-independent prostate carcinoma.

Methods: Highly metastatic prostatic cancer cell line PC-3M-1E8 was stably transfected with pSilencer plasmid targeting survivin expression by RNA interference. The biological effects were observed, including anchorage-independent growth, in vitro invasion by soft agar colony formation and Boyden chamber assay, and also in vivo tumorigenesis in nude mice.

[Monoclonal antibody against G3BP: preparation, characterization and its application in analysis of human tumors].

Objective: To better understand the molecular mechanism of tumorigenesis and progression, the monoclonal antibody against G3BP (Ras-GAP SH3 binding protein), which serves as an important downstream effector of Ras signaling, was prepared, characterized and utilized in analysis of various human tumors.

Methods: By using the prokaryotic expression vector pGEX-5X1, GST-G3BP fusion protein was expressed in E. coli BL21 under induction of IPTG.

YMDD variants of HBV DNA polymerase gene: rapid detection and clinicopathological analysis with long-term lamivudine therapy after liver transplantation.

Aim: To look for a rapid low-cost technique for the detection of HBV variants.

Methods: Two patients who underwent orthotopic liver transplantation (OLT) for HBV infection were treated with lamivudine (100 mg daily) and HBV infection recurred in the grafted livers. The patients were monitored intensively for liver enzymes, hepatitis B surface antigen (HBsAg) and HBV DNA in serum.

[Monoclonal antibodies against human tumor metastasis suppressor gene-1 TMSG-1: preparation, characterization and application].

Objective: In order to clarify the exact molecular weight of tumor metastasis suppressor gene-1 (TMSG-1) protein and its cellular localization, a monoclonal antibody against TMSG-1 was prepared, characterized and applied to evaluate the metastatic potential of human tumors.

Methods: A dominant epitope-TMSG-1(15)-derived from TMSG-1 was synthesized based on Fmoc method, and the hapten was conjugated to Imject Maleimide activated mcKLH as a carrier protein. The antigen preparation was used to immunize BAL B/C mice.

Monoclonal antibodies against human tumor metastasis suppressor gene-1 (TMSG-1): preparation, characterization, and application.

To better understand the molecular mechanism of metastasis, the monoclonal antibody against tumor metastasis suppressor gene-1 (TMSG-1, one novel gene) was prepared, characterized, and applied in estimating the metastatic potential of human tumors. A dominant epitope, TMSG-1(15)--derived from TMSG-1--was automatically synthesized based on the Fmoc method, and the hapten was conjugated to Imject Maleimide activated mcKLH as a carrier protein. The antigen solution was used to immunize BALB/C mice.

[Thymosin beta10 expression and actin filament organization in tumor cell lines with different metastatic potential].

Objective: To investigate the expression of thymosin beta10 (Tbeta10) and related changes of actin filament organization in human tumor cell lines with different metastatic potential.

Methods: Four groups of nine human tumor cell lines with different metastatic potential were analyzed for the expression of Tbeta10 mRNA detected by northern-blot and its peptide by immunohistochemical staining. The filamentous actin (F-actin) was stained with TRITC-phalloidin to detect changes in actin organization.

Differential thymosin beta 10 expression levels and actin filament organization in tumor cell lines with different metastatic potential.

Background: To investigate the differential expression levels of thymosin beta 10 (T beta 10) and the corresponding changes of actin filament organization in human tumor cell lines with different metastatic potential.

Methods: Four groups of nine human tumor cell lines with different metastatic potential were analyzed for the amount of T beta 10 mRNAs by Northern blot and for their peptide expression levels by immunohistochemistry. The filamentous actin (F-actin) was observed by staining of TRITC-phalloidin to detect changes in actin organization.

[The effects of TMSG-1 gene transfection on metastatic phenotype of pg cancer cells].

Objective: To observe the relationship between TMSG-1 gene and tumor metastatic phenotype.

Methods: TMSG-1 cDNA fragment which contained full length open reading frame of TMSG-1 gene was cloned into pcDNA3 plasmid to reconstruct sense and antisense eukaryotic expression plasmids of TMSG-1 gene containing neo selection marker. Both sense and antisense eukaryotic expression plasmids of TMSG-1 gene were transfected into the highly metastatic subclone PG-BE1 by LipofectAMINE method and the positive clones were selected by G418.