Voltage-Dependent Anion Channel-1, a Possible Ligand of Plasminogen Kringle 5.

Kringle 5, the fifth fragment of plasminogen, is known to be important for inhibiting the proliferation and migration of vascular endothelial cell (VEC), while not having any effects on normal endothelial cells. Therefore, it may be a potential tumor therapy candidate. However, the ligand of the Kringle 5 in VEC has not yet been identified.

PTEN-mRNA engineered mesenchymal stem cell-mediated cytotoxic effects on U251 glioma cells.

Mesenchymal stem cells (MSCs) have been considered to have potential as ideal carriers for the delivery of anticancer agents since the capacity for tumor-oriented migration and integration was identified. In contrast to DNA-based vectors, mRNA synthesized may be readily transfected and is mutagenesis-free. The present study was performed in order to investigate the effects of phosphatase and tensin homolog (PTEN) mRNA-engineered MSCs on human glioma U251 cells under indirect co-culture conditions.

ANGPTL8/betatrophin alleviates insulin resistance via the Akt-GSK3β or Akt-FoxO1 pathway in HepG2 cells.

Angiopoietin-like protein 8 (ANGPTL8)/betatrophin, a newly identified protein, is primarily expressed in the liver and regulates the glucose metabolic transition during fasting and re-feeding in mice with or without insulin resistance. These findings strongly suggest that ANGPTL8/betatrophin could be a novel glucose-lowering candidate medicine for type 2 diabetes. However, the molecular mechanisms by which ANGPTL8/betatrophin regulates glucose metabolism are poorly understood in human.

Cloning, expression and identification of an isoform of human stromal cell derived factor-1α.

Human stromal cell derived factor-1α (hSDF-1α), a chemotactic factor of stem cells, regulates inflammation, promotes the mobilization of stem cells and induces angiogenesis following ischemia. Six SDF-1 isoforms, SDF-1α, SDF-1β, SDF-1γ, SDF-1δ, SDF-1ε and SDF-1ϕ, which all contain a signal peptide at the N-terminus, have been reported. In the present study a special isoform of hSDF-1α is described that does not contain the N-terminal signal peptide sequence.

PDX-1 mRNA-induced reprogramming of mouse pancreas-derived mesenchymal stem cells into insulin-producing cells in vitro.

Pancreatic islet transplantation has remained an effective therapy for type 1 diabetes since 2000. Its widespread use has been prohibited by the shortage of suitable donors. It is critical to explore an applicable alternative for β-cell replacement.

Two-step chromatographic method for separation and purification of nerve growth factor from venom of Chinese cobra.

By selecting the different combination schemes, a simple, fast and highly efficient method for separation and purification of nerve growth factor (NGF) from venom of Chinese cobra is reported in this paper. This purification process consists of a two-step chromatographic separation on DEAE-Sepharose F.F.