Effects of NCSTN Mutation on Hair Follicle Components in Mice.

Background And Objectives: Hidradenitis suppurativa (HS)/acne inversa is an intractable skin disease that is characterized by destructive lesions - primarily on the flexural areas. Although its etiology is unknown, genetics is considered to be a factor of its pathology - mutations in γ-secretase genes have been identified in certain familial HS patients, and follicular occlusion is widely accepted as the primary cause of HS. But, no relationship between these mutations and the components of hair follicles has been reported.

Improved detection of common variants in coronary artery disease and blood pressure using a pleiotropy cFDR method.

Plenty of genome-wide association studies (GWASs) have identified numerous single nucleotide polymorphisms (SNPs) for coronary artery disease (CAD) and blood pressure (BP). However, these SNPs only explain a small proportion of the heritability of two traits/diseases. Although high BP is a major risk factor for CAD, the genetic intercommunity between them remain largely unknown.

New insights into metronomic chemotherapy-induced immunoregulation.

Chemotherapy is the mainstay of treatment in mid-advanced tumors. Considering their toxicity on hematopoietic cells, chemotherapeutics are often considered as immunosuppressive inducers. However, recently accumulating data indicate that some chemotherapeutic agents with specific administration schedules also display some positive immunological effect to contribute to tumor elimination.

Cancer stem cells niche: a target for novel cancer therapeutics.

Nowadays, cancer has been a frequent disease, and the first or second most common cause of death worldwide. Despite a better understanding of the biology of cancer cells, the therapy of most cancers has not significantly changed for the past four decades. It is because conventional chemotherapies and/or radiation therapies are usually designed to eradicate highly proliferative cells.

Monophosphoryl lipid A-induced delayed preconditioning in rat small intestine is mediated by calcitonin gene-related peptide.

Background: Protective effects of ischemic preconditioning in rat small intestine have been shown to be related to the release of calcitonin gene-related peptide.

Aims: The purpose of the present study was to explore whether monophosphoryl lipid A participated in the protective process of the delayed ischemic preconditioning in the peripheral vascular bed (the anse intestinalis of rat), and whether endogenous calcitonin gene-related peptide is a mediator in this process.

Methods: Intestinal ischemia was induced by occlusion of the superior mesenteric artery for 30 min, followed by reperfusion for 60 min.

[TAp63gamma-induced apoptosis mediated by apoptosis inducing factor in human esophageal squamous carcinoma EC9706 cells].

Objective: To study the molecular mechanism of TAp63gamma-induced cell apoptosis.

Methods: Transcription and protein expression of apoptosis inducing factor and p63 were investigated by immunohistochemistry and RT-PCR in human esophageal squamous carcinoma cell line EC9706 respectively. Twenty-four hours after transfection with pcDNA3.