FAM171B stabilizes vimentin and enhances CCL2-mediated TAM infiltration to promote bladder cancer progression.

Background: Invasion and metastasis are the main causes of unfavourable prognosis in patients diagnosed with bladder cancer. The efficacy of immunotherapy in bladder cancer remains suboptimal due to the presence of an immunosuppressive microenvironment. The novel protein family with sequence similarity 171B (FAM171B) has been identified, but its precise role and mechanism in bladder cancer remain unclear.

The inhibition of GLUT1-induced glycolysis in macrophage by phloretin participates in the protection during acute lung injury.

The increased level of glycolysis in macrophage aggravates lipopolysaccharide (LPS)-induced acute lung injury (ALI). Glucose transporter 1 (GLUT1) serves as a ubiquitously expressed glucose transporter, which could activate inflammatory response by mediating glycolysis. Phloretin (PHL), an apple polyphenol, is also an inhibitor of GLUT1, possessing potent anti-inflammatory effects in various diseases.

Vasoactive intestinal peptide increases VEGF expression to promote proliferation of brain vascular endothelial cells via the cAMP/PKA pathway after ischemic insult in vitro.

Vasoactive intestinal peptide (VIP) enhances angiogenesis in rats with focal cerebral ischemia. In the present study, we investigated the molecular mechanism of the proangiogenic action of VIP using an in vitro ischemic model, in which rat brain microvascular endothelial cells (RBMECs) are subjected to oxygen and glucose deprivation (OGD). Western blotting and immunocytochemistry were carried out to examine the expression of VIP receptors and vascular endothelial growth factor (VEGF) in cultured RBMECs.

Vasoactive intestinal peptide protects against ischemic brain damage induced by focal cerebral ischemia in rats.

Vasoactive intestinal peptide (VIP) exerts neuroprotective effects under various neurotoxic conditions in vitro. In the present study, we investigated the effects of VIP on transient ischemic brain damage. Focal cerebral ischemia was induced using middle cerebral artery occlusion (MCAO) for 120 min in the adult rat brain.

Cyclooxygenase-2 inhibitor NS398 enhances radiosensitivity of radioresistant esophageal cancer cells by inhibiting AKT activation and inducing apoptosis.

This study aimed to evaluate the radiosensitizing effect of a COX-2 inhibitor, NS398, and its mechanism in radioresistant esophageal cancer Eca109R50Gy cells. NS398 enhanced radiosensitivity of Eca109R50Gy cells, characterized by redistribution of cell cycle, inhibition of DNA-dependent protein kinase catalytic subunit expression and induction of apoptosis. NS398 also reduced phospho-AKT level, upregulated expression of Bax and both procaspase-3 and active caspase-3, and downregulated Bcl-2 expression.

[The protective roles of tiangui gengnian soft capsule on brain in aged female rats and its mechanism].

Objective: To investigate the brain-protective and anti-aging effects and the mechanism of action of Tiangui Gengnian Soft Capsule (TGSC), a Chinese herbal preparation composed of sea buckthorn fatty acids.

Methods: Sixteen-month-old female rats were administered via gastric perfusion with low, medium and high doses (0.72 g/kg, 1.

[The reproductive system impairment of adult male rats induced by cocaine].

Objective: To investigate the reproductive system impairment induced by cocaine in adult male rats and the possible underlying mechanism.

Methods: Thirty adult male rats were randomly divided into experimental and control groups, with 15 rats in each group. Rats of the experimental group were injected cocaine hydrochloride (15 mg/kg body weight) subcutaneously daily for four weeks.

Bisphenol A exposure induces apoptosis and upregulation of Fas/FasL and caspase-3 expression in the testes of mice.

There are controversies about adverse effects of bisphenol A (BPA), a ubiquitous xenoestrogen, on reproduction and development of male animals. To understand BPA action and assess its risk more completely, we examined the impact of BPA at high doses on the testes of pubertal male Kunming (China) mice. BPA at 0 (control), 160, 480, and 960 mg/kg/day was given by gavage to mice from postnatal days (PND) 31-44, followed by observation of morphology and detection of apoptosis and expressions of Fas/FasL and active caspase-3 on PND 45, 60, and 90 by terminal deoxynucleotidyl transferase (TdT)-mediated dUTP nick end labeling, immunohistochemistry, and Western blotting.

[Expression of TRAIL gene eukaryotic expression vector modulated by the human telomerase reverse transcriptase gene core promoter in ovarian cancer cell line SKOV3].

Aim: To construct the TRAIL gene eukaryotic expression vector modulated by the human telomerase reverse transcription gene core promoter and to evaluate the expression of the TRAIL gene in ovarian cancer cell line SKOV3 in vitro.

Methods: The amplified TRAIL gene fragment was subsequently cloned into hTERT promoter-pIRES2-EGFP vector and CMVpromoter-pIRES2-EGFP vector. The hTERT promoter-pIRES2-EGFP-TRAIL and CMVpromoter-pIRES2-EGFP-TRAIL eukaryotic expression vectors were obtained, respectively.

Prenatal restraint stress impairs learning and memory and hippocampal PKCbeta1 expression and translocation in offspring rats.

Prenatal stress results in various learning, behavioral and emotional alterations observed in later life. However, the mechanisms underlying these effects of prenatal stress are not fully understood. In the present study we examined the impact of prenatal stress (an unpredictable restraint stress) during gestational days 13 to 20 on the performance in Morris water maze and passive avoidance training in 1- and 3-month-old rat offspring.

Caspase-3 antisense oligodeoxynucleotides inhibit apoptosis in gamma-irradiated human leukemia HL-60 cells.

To study the inhibitory effects of caspase-3 mRNA antisense oligodeoxynucleotides (ASODNs) on apoptosis, we designed four ASODNs targeting different regions of caspase-3 mRNA and transfected them into human leukemia HL-60 cells. The transfected cells were given 10 Gy gamma-irradiation followed by incubation for 18 h and measurement of apoptosis and caspase-3 expression. Our results showed that ASODN-2 targeting the 5' non-coding region of sites -62 to -46, and ASODN-3 targeting the 5' coding region of sites -1 to 16, both reduced apoptosis measured by gel electrophoresis and flow cytometry.

[Gender-dependent difference of NF-kappaB expression in the hippocampus of prenatally stressed offspring rats].

In this study, immunohistochemistry and Western blot were used to determine whether the expression of NF-kappaB in the hippocampus of prenatally stressed offspring rats is gender-dependent. The results were as follows: In the female offspring rats, the expressions of p65 in the hippocampal dentate gyrus in mid-term stress (MS) and late-term stress (LS) groups were significantly less than that in the control group (P<0.01).

Overexpression of PTEN suppresses growth and induces apoptosis by inhibiting the expression of survivin in bladder cancer cells.

The tumor suppressor gene PTEN, which encodes a multifunctional phosphatase protein, is mutated in a variety of human cancers. Several reports have indicated that it has growth-suppressive and proapoptosis properties and displayed an altered expression pattern during human oncogenesis. Overexpression of PTEN leads to decreasing cell growth and tumorigenicity in vitro and in vivo.

[Expression, purification, and serum antibody detection of HPV16 E6 in cervical cancer patients].

Background & Objective: Human papillomavirus type 16 (HPV16) is the predominant high-risk type of HPV in cervical cancer tissues. Serum antibody responded to HPV16-related proteins is associated with the development of cervical cancer. This study was to construct and purify recombinant HPV16 E6 protein, detect its corresponding serum antibody among different populations, and explore the correlation of HPV16 E6 serum antibody reaction to cervical cancer.

[Caspase-3 antisense oligodeoxynucleotides inhibit caspase-3 expression and apoptosis of gamma-irradiated HL-60 cells].

It has been shown that gamma -irradiation induces apoptosis of the human promyeloid leukemia cell line HL-60, but the mechanism remains unclear. To explore the effect of caspase-3 in this apoptotic model, antisense oligodeoxynucleotides (ASODNs) targeting 5'-noncoding region (ASODN-1) and initial translation region (ASODN-2) of caspase-3 mRNA were designed, synthesized and introduced into HL-60 cells by means of liposome-mediated transfection followed by gamma-irradiation in the present study. The TUNEL assay was used for morphological analysis of HL-60 cell apoptosis.

[Construction of TRAIL gene eukaryotic expression vector modulated by hTERT gene core promoter and its effect on apoptosis of ovarian cancer cells].

Aim: To construct the TNF-related apoptosis inducing ligand(TRAIL) gene eukaryotic expression vector modulated by human telomerase reserse transcriptase (hTERT) gene core promoter and to study its effect on apoptosis of ovarian cancer cells.

Methods: Genomic RNA was extracted from human placenta tissues and the fragment of TRAIL was obtained by RT-PCR. The amplified gene fragment was subsequently cloned into hTERTpromoter-pIRES2-EGFP vector and CMV promoter-pIRES2-EGFP vector after sequencing.

[Construction of tumor cell-specific expression vector modulated by human telomerase reserse transcription gene core promoter].

Aim: To construct the tumor cell-specific expression vector modulated by human telomerase reserse transcription gene (hTERT) core promoter.

Methods: The hTERT gene core promoter fragment was amplified by PCR using the total genomic DNA from SKOV3 cells as template. The amplified gene fragment was subsequently cloned into pIRES2-EGFP vector.

Effect of vector-expressed shRNAs on hTERT expression.

Aim: To study the effect of short hairpin RNAs (shRNAs) expressed from DNA vector on hTERT expression.

Methods: Oligonucleotides coding for four shRNAs against hTERT were cloned into a mammalian shRNA expression vector pUC18U6 to form pUC18U6ht1-4, which were then introduced into HepG2 cells by using liposome-mediated transfection. HepG2 cells transfected by pUC18U6 and pUC18U6GFPsir, which expressed shRNA against green fluorescent protein (GFP), were used as controls.

[The effect of short hairpin RNA on hTERT expression].

Aim: To study the effect of short hairpin RNA (shRNA) on hTERT expression.

Methods: Oligonucleotides encoding shRNA against hTERT was cloned into a mammalian shRNA expression vector pUC18U6 to form pUC18U6ht which was transfected into HepG2 cells by using liposome. HepG2 cells transfected by pUC18U6 and pUC18U6GFPsir which expressed shRNA against green fluorescent protein were used as controls.

[Quantitation of human telomerase reverse transcriptase mRNA with real-time fluorescent RT-PCR].

Aim: To establish a real-time fluorescent RT-PCR assay to quantify human telomerase reverse transcriptase (hTERT) mRNA.

Methods: Total cellular RNA was isolated from HepG2 cells using Trizol reagent, which was then reverse-transcribed into cDNA. By using a pair of gene-specific primers and a TaqMan MGB probe, cDNA of hTERT was quantified with real-time fluorescent PCR.