Novel Bacterial Cellulose/Gelatin Hydrogels as 3D Scaffolds for Tumor Cell Culture.

Three-dimensional (3D) cells in vitro culture are becoming increasingly popular in cancer research because some important signals are lost when cells are cultured in a two-dimensional (2D) substrate. In this work, bacterial cellulose (BC)/gelatin hydrogels were successfully synthesized and were investigated as scaffolds for cancer cells in vitro culture to simulate tumor microenvironment. Their properties and ability to support normal growth of cancer cells were evaluated.

Effects of a diet with or without physical activity on angiopoietin-like protein 8 concentrations in overweight/obese patients with newly diagnosed type 2 diabetes: a randomized controlled trial.

Angiopoietin-like protein 8 (ANGPTL8) is a newly discovered adipokine plays an important role in energy homoeostasis, obesity and type 2 diabetes (T2D). Although lifestyle modification in obesity and T2D is known to offer metabolic benefits, there is paucity of comprehensive data on change in ANGPTL8. We investigated the effect of lifestyle intervention on ANGPTL8 concentrations.

Retracted Article: Long non-coding RNA KCNQ1OT1 promotes osteosarcoma progression by increasing β-catenin activity.

: Long non-coding RNA KCNQ1OT1 has been associated with the development of different types of cancers. The present research investigated the role of KCNQ1OT1 in osteosarcoma. : Expression level of KCNQ1OT1 in osteosarcoma and paired non-cancerous tissue specimens from 56 osteosarcoma patients and its association with patients' clinicopathological features was investigated.

Metformin suppresses gastric cancer progression through calmodulin‑like protein 3 secreted from tumor‑associated fibroblasts.

Gastric cancer is one of the most common malignant tumor types worldwide, with a high morbidity and associated mortality. The interaction between gastric cancer cells and their microenvironment has a significant role in their maintenance and progression. Gastric tumor‑associated fibroblasts (TAFs) are among the major regulators of the gastric cancer microenvironment.

Expression changes of autophagy-related proteins in AKI patients treated with CRRT and their effects on prognosis of adult and elderly patients.

Background: Sepsis is one of the common death factors in intensive care unit, which refers to the systemic inflammatory response syndrome caused by infection. It has many complications such as acute renal injury, shock, multiple organ dysfunction, and failure. The mortality of acute renal injury is the highest among the complications, which is a serious threat to the safety of patients and affects the quality of life.

Effect of intraperitoneal or intracerebroventricular injection of streptozotocin on learning and memory in mice.

Alteration of behavior and PSD proteins in cerebral cortex and hippocampal synaptosome in the Alzheimer's disease (AD) mouse model were determined. AD was established by intraperitoneal injection of streptozotocin (STZ) in neonatal mice (intraperitoneal AD group) or intracerebroventricular injection of STZ in adult mice (intracerebroventricular AD group). Body weight and blood sugar level were measured.

Expression of KIAA1456 in lung cancer tissue and its effects on proliferation, migration and invasion of lung cancer cells.

The expression of human transfer ribonucleic acid (tRNA) methyltransferase 9-like (KIAA1456) protein in lung cancer tissue and its effects on certain genes involved in the proliferation, migration and invasion of lung cancer cells were investigated. Immunohistochemistry was applied to stain lung cancer tissue and adjacent tissue sections of 90 lung cancer patients, so as to evaluate the difference in the expression level of KIAA1456 between two tissues. The correlation of KIAA1456 expression with clinicopathological parameters of lung cancer was analyzed.

SEGF: A Novel Method for Gene Fusion Detection from Single-End Next-Generation Sequencing Data.

With the development and application of next-generation sequencing (NGS) and target capture technology, the demand for an effective analysis method to accurately detect gene fusion from high-throughput data is growing. Hence, we developed a novel fusion gene analyzing method called single-end gene fusion (SEGF) by starting with single-end DNA-seq data. This approach takes raw sequencing data as input, and integrates the commonly used alignment approach basic local alignment search tool (BLAST) and short oligonucleotide analysis package (SOAP) with stringent passing filters to achieve successful fusion gene detection.

Efficacy of SRM-IV Vestibular Function Diagnosis and Treatment System in Treating Benign Paroxysmal Positional Vertigo.

Background: We determined the diagnostic and therapeutic effects of SRM-IV vestibular function diagnosis and treatment system on benign paroxysmal positional vertigo (BPPV).

Methods: Overall, 120 patients with BPPV diagnosed in the outpatient and in-patient departments of the Vertigo Treatment Center of the First People's Hospital of Xuzhou from January 2013 to December 2015 were selected for this study. They were randomly divided into three groups.

E2F1/SP3/STAT6 axis is required for IL-4-induced epithelial-mesenchymal transition of colorectal cancer cells.

Colorectal cancer (CRC) is a type of cancer with a mortality rate among the highest worldwide owing to its high rate of metastasis. Therefore, inflammation-associated metastasis in the development of CRC is currently a topic of considerable interest. In the present study, the pro-inflammatory cytokine interleukin-4 (IL-4) was identified to promote the epithelial-mesenchymal transition (EMT) of CRC cells.

High Mobility Group Box Protein 1 Serves as a Potential Prognostic Marker of Lung Cancer and Promotes Its Invasion and Metastasis by Matrix Metalloproteinase-2 in a Nuclear Factor-B-Dependent Manner.

Several studies have reported a significant role of high mobility group box protein 1 (HMGB1) in lung cancer. Nevertheless, there is a lack of knowledge regarding the expression of HMGB1 and its correlation with the clinicopathological features of lung cancer. In addition, the potential molecular mechanisms underlying the role of HMGB1 in lung cancer are still unknown.

Analysis of differential gene expression caused by cervical intraepithelial neoplasia based on GEO database.

The aim of the present study was to identify the differentially expressed genes between cervical intraepithelial neoplasias (CIN) and adjacent normal tissue, and to construct a protein-protein interaction (PPI) network. A CIN dataset was obtained from Gene Expression Omnibus, and data of gene expression in CIN and adjacent normal tissue were extracted from GSE64217. The differentially expressed genes were selected using software package and heat map was drawn using the 'pheatmap' package.

Comparison of efficiency of inhaled and intravenous corticosteroid on pregnant women with COPD and the effects on the expression of PCT and hs-CRP.

The efficiency of inhaled and systemic corticosteroids on pregnant women with chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD) was investigated. The study also compared the effects of the administration on the expression of inflammatory mediator procalcitonin (PCT) and high-sensitivity C-reactive protein (hs-CRP). A total of 120 pregnant COPD patients were recruited and randomly allocated into the following three groups: Intravenous corticosteroid treatment group (n=42), inhaled corticosteroid treatment group (n=38), and control group (without any corticosteroid treatment, n=40).

The role of high-mobility group protein box 1 in lung cancer.

High-mobility group protein box 1(HMGB1)is a ubiquitous highly conserved nuclear protein. Acting as a chromatin-binding factor, HMGB1 binds to DNA and plays an important role in stabilizing nucleosome formation, facilitating gene transcription, DNA repairing, inflammation, cell differentiation, and regulating the activity of steroid hormone receptors. Currently, HMGB1 is discovered to be related to development, progression, and targeted therapy of lung cancer, which makes it an attractive biomarker, and therapeutic target.

Sagittal abdominal diameter and Framingham risk score in non-dialysis chronic kidney disease patients.

Background: Chronic kidney disease (CKD) is very common now and is associated with high overall and cardiovascular mortality. Numerous studies have reported that abdominal obesity is a risk factor for cardiovascular mortality. We investigated the link between sagittal abdominal diameter (SAD) and Framingham risk score in non-dialysis CKD patients.

Study of candidate gene cHRNA4 for familial epilepsy syndrome.

Objective: To screen a three-generation familial partial epilepsy with variable foci (FPEVF) family with epilepsy to identify the cHRNA4 gene (a candidate gene).

Patients And Methods: A total of 18 members of the three-generation FPEVF family with partial epilepsy were selected, and 18 blood samples were collected for investigation. Among them, five members were affected by epilepsy, and another 13 members were not affected.

Glycyrrhizin Suppresses the Growth of Human NSCLC Cell Line HCC827 by Downregulating HMGB1 Level.

Lung cancer has very high mortality and glycyrrhizin was found to significantly inhibit the growth of lung cancer cells and tissues in mice. However, the detailed inhibitory role of glycyrrhizin in the growth of lung cancer is still unclear. In this study, we first found that glycyrrhizin inhibited the growth of lung tumor in PDX mice.

Effects of carbamazepine combined with vitamin B12 on levels of plasma homocysteine, hs-CRP and TNF-α in patients with epilepsy.

The efficacy of carbamazepine combined with vitamin B12 in epilepsy treatment by comparing levels of plasma homocysteine (Hcy), serum TNF-α and hs-CRP in patients with epilepsy before and after treatment was investigated. Fifty-eight patients with epilepsy who were admitted and received treatment in The First People's Hospital of Xuzhou were recruited as subjects, and fifty-eight healthy volunteers were recruited as the control group. Patients were treated with carbamazepine combined with vitamin B12 for a period of three months.

Ras-related protein Rap2c promotes the migration and invasion of human osteosarcoma cells.

Ras-related protein (Rap)2a and Rap2b are members of the GTP-binding protein family, and serve an important function in tumor progression. However, the associations between Rap2c and cancer cell functions have not yet been reported. Osteosarcoma is a type of bone cancer; its high degree of invasion is considered to be a major treatment challenge.

Influence of exposure to nicotine during pregnancy on the learning and memory for adult offspring.

We aimed to investigate the indirect influence of exposure to nicotine during pregnancy on the learning and memory of adult offspring mice. Thirty pregnant C57 mice were randomly divided into either the control group (CON) or the nicotine group (NIC), with 15 mice each. The CON group was given access to drug-free water, and the NIC group was given 60 g/ml nicotine in drinking water.

NFYB-induced high expression of E2F1 contributes to oxaliplatin resistance in colorectal cancer via the enhancement of CHK1 signaling.

As a third-generation platinum drug, oxaliplatin has been widely applied in colorectal cancer (CRC); however, acquired resistance to oxaliplatin has become a major obstacle. In the present study, we found that the nuclear transcription factor Y subunit beta (NFYB) and E2F transcription factor 1 (E2F1) expression levels were significantly higher in oxaliplatin-resistant DLD1 and RKO CRC (OR-CRC) cells than in non-resistant cells. Additionally, highly expressed NFYB transactivated the E2F1 gene, which is important to maintain oxaliplatin resistance in OR-CRC cells.

The efficacy of gastrodin in combination with folate and vitamin B12 on patients with epilepsy after stroke and its effect on HMGB-1, IL-2 and IL-6 serum levels.

This study evaluated the efficacy of gastrodin in combination with folate (FOL) and vitamin-B12 (V-B12) on patients with epilepsy after stroke (EAS) and its effect on high-mobility group protein B1 (HMGB-1), interleukin-1 (IL-1), and IL-6 serum levels. The clinical data of 92 EAS patients admitted for treatment between April, 2014 and March, 2016 were collected. These patients were randomly divided into control and observation groups (n=46 each) using computer software.

A Multi-center Study on Improvement in Life Quality of Pediatric Patients with Asthma via Continuous Care.

Background: To analyze and summarize the effect of continuous care on the life quality and control of asthma of pediatric patients with asthma discharged from multiple hospitals.

Methods: Retrospective analysis was carried out on 172 pediatric patients with asthma aged between 6 and 11 yr old randomly selected from those admitted to five hospitals between January 2014 and December 2015. Among these 172 patients, only 86 (intervention group) received the continuous care between January 2015 and December 2015, while the rest (control group) did not receive from January 2014 and December 2014.

Adiponectin attenuates endoplasmic reticulum stress and alveolar epithelial apoptosis in COPD rats.

Objective: The present study was designed to evaluate the effect of Adiponectin (APN) against alveolar epithelial apoptosis in chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD) rat models.

Materials And Methods: Thirty-six male Sprague-Dawley (SD) rats were randomly assigned to three groups: Sham group, COPD group, and COPD + APN group (2.5 ug/kg/day).

Imidazole improves cognition and balances Alzheimer's-like intracellular calcium homeostasis in transgenic Drosophila model.

Aims: The characteristic of Alzheimer's disease (AD) is the accumulation and aggregation of amyloid-β (Aβ). So far, we already know that the dysregulation of intracellular calcium homeostasis is considered to be associated with Aβ neurotoxicity. Meantime, we also found that the channels formed by Aβ are electronegative as calcium channels.