Mexenone protects mice from LPS-induced sepsis by EC barrier stabilization.

Blood vessels permit the selective passage of molecules and immune cells between tissues and circulation. Uncontrolled inflammatory responses from an infection can increase vascular permeability and edema, which can occasionally lead to fatal organ failure. We identified mexenone as a vascular permeability blocker by testing 2,910 compounds in the Clinically Applied Compound Library using the lipopolysaccharide (LPS)-induced vascular permeability assay.

Bioprinting of pre-vascularized constructs for enhancedneo-vascularization.

Pre-vascularization has been receiving significant attention for developing implantable engineered 3D tissues. While various pre-vascularization techniques have been developed to improve graft vascularization, the effect of pre-vascularized patterns onneo-vessel formation has not been studied. In this study, we developed a functional pre-vascularized construct that significantly promotes graft vascularization and conductedevaluations of the micro-vascular patterns (VPs) in various printed designs.

Quantification and visualization of metastatic lung tumors in mice.

Histopathological examination is important for the diagnosis of various diseases. Conventional histopathology provides a two-dimensional view of the tissues, and requires the tissue to be extracted, fixed, and processed using histotechnology techniques. However, there is an increasing need for three-dimensional (3D) images of structures in biomedical research.

Tonicity-responsive enhancer-binding protein promotes stemness of liver cancer and cisplatin resistance.

Background: High recurrence and chemoresistance drive the high mortality in hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC). Although cancer stem cells are considered to be the source of recurrent and chemoresistant tumors, they remain poorly defined in HCC. Tonicity-responsive enhancer binding protein (TonEBP) is elevated in almost all HCC tumors and associated with recurrence and death.

Label-free optical projection tomography for quantitative three-dimensional anatomy of mouse embryo.

Recent progress in three-dimensional optical imaging techniques allows visualization of many comprehensive biological specimens. Optical clearing methods provide volumetric and quantitative information by overcoming the limited depth of light due to scattering. However, current imaging technologies mostly rely on the synthetic or genetic fluorescent labels, thus limits its application to whole-body visualization of generic mouse models.

G-protein-coupled receptor 81 promotes a malignant phenotype in breast cancer through angiogenic factor secretion.

G-protein-coupled receptor 81 (GPR81) functions as a receptor for lactate and plays an important role in the regulation of anti-lipolytic effects in adipocytes. However, to data, a role for GPR81 in the tumor microenvironment has not been clearly defined. Here, GPR81 expression in breast cancer patients and several breast cancer cell lines was significantly increased compared with normal mammary tissues and cells.

Spiraeoside inhibits mast cells activation and IgE-mediated allergic responses by suppressing phospholipase C-γ-mediated signaling.

Mast cells are responsible for IgE-mediated allergic responses through the secretion of various inflammatory cytokines and mediators. Therefore, the pharmacological regulation of mast cell activation is an important goal in the development of novel anti-allergic drugs. In this study, we found that spiraeoside (SP) inhibits mast cell activation and allergic responses in vivo.

Combination treatment with doxorubicin and gamitrinib synergistically augments anticancer activity through enhanced activation of Bim.

Background: A common approach to cancer therapy in clinical practice is the combination of several drugs to boost the anticancer activity of available drugs while suppressing their unwanted side effects. In this regard, we examined the efficacy of combination treatment with the widely-used genotoxic drug doxorubicin and the mitochondriotoxic Hsp90 inhibitor gamitrinib to exploit disparate stress signaling pathways for cancer therapy.

Methods: The cytotoxicity of the drugs as single agents or in combination against several cancer cell types was analyzed by MTT assay and the synergism of the drug combination was evaluated by calculating the combination index.

DJ-1 contributes to adipogenesis and obesity-induced inflammation.

Adipose tissue functions as an endocrine organ, and the development of systemic inflammation in adipose tissue is closely associated with metabolic diseases, such as obesity and insulin resistance. Accordingly, the fine regulation of the inflammatory response caused by obesity has therapeutic potential for the treatment of metabolic syndrome. In this study, we analyzed the role of DJ-1 (PARK7) in adipogenesis and inflammation related to obesity in vitro and in vivo.

Periostin-binding DNA aptamer inhibits breast cancer growth and metastasis.

Periostin is an extracellular matrix (ECM) protein that is overexpressed in a variety of human cancers, and its functions appear to be linked to tumor growth, metastasis, and angiogenesis. Recent clinical evidence suggests that aberrant periostin expression is correlated with poor outcome in patients with breast cancer. To identify novel tools to regulate the functional role of periostin, we generated benzyl-d(U)TP-modified DNA aptamers that were directed against human periostin (PNDAs) and characterized their functional roles in breast cancer progression.

Kinetic modeling of 3'-deoxy-3'-18F-fluorothymidine for quantitative cell proliferation imaging in subcutaneous tumor models in mice.

Unlabelled: 3'-Deoxy-3'-(18)F-fluorothymidine ((18)F-FLT) is a thymidine analog that was developed for measuring tumor proliferation with PET. The aim of this study was to establish a kinetic modeling analysis method for quantitative (18)F-FLT PET studies in subcutaneous tumor models in mice.

Methods: To explore the validity of an image-derived left ventricular input function, we measured equilibrium constants for plasma and whole blood and metabolite fractions in blood after (18)F-FLT injection.