Associations between AT-rich Interactive Domain 5B gene Polymorphisms and Risk of Childhood Acute Lymphoblastic Leukemia: a Meta-analysis

Zeng, Hui,Wang, Xue-Bin,Cui, Ning-Hua,Nam, Seungyoon,Zeng, Tuo,Long, Xinghua Asian Pacific Journal of Cancer Prevention 2014 Asian Pacific journal of cancer prevention Vol.15 No.15

Previous genome-wide association studies (GWAS) have implicated several single nucleotide polymorphisms (SNPs) in the AT-rich interactive domain 5B (ARID5B) gene with childhood acute lymphoblastic leukemia (ALL). However, replicated studies reported some inconsistent results in different populations. Using meta-analysis, we here aimed to clarify the nature of the genetic risks contributed by the two polymorphisms (rs10994982, rs7089424) for developing childhood ALL. Through searches of PubMed, EMBASE, and manually searching relevant references, a total of 14 articles with 16 independent studies were included. Odds ratios (ORs) with 95% confidence intervals (95%CI) were calculated to assess the associations. Both SNPs rs10994982 and rs7089424 showed significant associations with childhood ALL risk in all genetic models after Bonferroni correction. Furthermore, subtype analyses of B-lineage ALL provided strong evidence that SNP rs10994982 is highly associated with the risk of developing B-hyperdiploid ALL. These results indicate that SNPs rs10994982 and rs7089424 are indeed significantly associated with increased risk of childhood ALL.

How Technology and Innovation Drive Two Emerging Giants : China and India?

Zeng, Zhi Hua Institute for International Trade and Cooperation 2006 Asian International Studies Review Vol.7 No.1

Being the two must populous, and rapidly catching up developing countries, China and India's emergence is briskly the global growth dynamism and economic structure, and has been receiving great global attention all over the world. This paper is intended to examine these two countries' successes from a knowledge and innovation perspective, and to highlight some policy measures for ensuring long-term success. According to the author, the success of these two countries can be mainly attributed to : 1) successful economic reforms backed with clear visions and strategies from the top leadership in the face of crises; 2) tapping into the global knowledge and technologies through FDI foreign direct investment(mainly China) or Diaspora (especially India); 3) the creation of critical mass of innovation and human capital capabilities through a large pool of scientists and engineers and skilled labors; and 4) catching newly emerging knowledge-intensive industries such as information and communications technology(ICTs) and software. To maintain the current dynamisms and ensure continued success, both China and India need to take some effective measures to strengthen their long-term institutional, innovative, and human capacities. These mainly include improving the governance and the overall investment climate; spurring science and technology(S&T) and innovation activities, especially those of the private sector, and strengthening technology diffusion; enhancing R&D efficiency through better linkage with the production sector; further tapping into the global knowledge and technology stock; further leveraging the innovation clusters; improving the quality of education, especially that of the higher education, and establishing a lifelong learning system through a solid accreditation, certification, and qualification system, and extensive use of modern technologies.

Myeloid-Derived Suppressor Cells Are Associated with Viral Persistence and Downregulation of TCR ζ Chain Expression on CD8⁺ T Cells in Chronic Hepatitis C Patients

Zeng, Qing-Lei,Yang, Bin,Sun, Hong-Qi,Feng, Guo-Hua,Jin, Lei,Zou, Zheng-Sheng,Zhang, Zheng,Zhang, Ji-Yuan,Wang, Fu-Sheng Korean Society for Molecular and Cellular Biology 2014 Molecules and cells Vol.37 No.1

Myeloid-derived suppressor cells (MDSCs) play an important role in impairing the function of T cells. We characterized MDSCs in two chronic hepatitis C (CHC) cohorts: a cross-sectional group that included 61 treatment-naive patients with CHC, 14 rapid virologic response (RVR) cases and 22 early virologic response (EVR) cases; and a longitudinal group of 13 cases of RVR and 10 cases of EVR after pegylated-interferon-${\alpha}$/ribavirin treatment for genotype 1b HCV infection. Liver samples from 32 CHC patients and six healthy controls were subjected to immunohistochemical analysis. MDSCs frequency in treatment-naive CHC was significantly higher than in RVR, EVR, or healthy subjects and was positively correlated with HCV RNA. Patients infected with HCV genotype 2a had a significantly higher frequency of MDSCs than those infected with genotype 1b. Decreased T cell receptor (TCR) ${\zeta}$ expression on $CD8^+$ T cells was significantly associated with an increased frequency of MDSCs in treatment-naive CHC patients and was restored by L-arginine treatment in vitro. Increased numbers of liver arginase-$1^+$ cells were closely associated with the histological activity index in CHC. The TCR ${\zeta}$ chain was significantly downregulated on hepatic $CD8^+$ T cells in CHC. During antiviral follow up, MDSCs frequency in peripheral blood mononuclear cells was directly correlated with the HCV RNA load in the plasma and inversely correlated with TCR ${\zeta}$ chain expression in $CD8^+$ T cells in both RVR and EVR cases. Notably, the RVR group had a higher frequency of MDSCs at baseline than the EVR group. Collectively, this study provides evidence that MDSCs might be associated with HCV persistence and downregulation of CD8 ${\zeta}$ chain expression.

Symmetric Conformal Mapping for Surface Matching and Registration

Zeng, Wei,Hua, Jing,Gu, Xianfeng David Society for Computational Design and Engineering 2009 International Journal of CAD/CAM Vol.9 No.1

Recently, various conformal geometric methods have been presented for non-rigid surface matching and registration. This work proposes to improve the robustness of conformal geometric methods to the boundaries by incorporating the symmetric information of the input surface. We presented two symmetric conformal mapping methods, which are based on solving Riemann-Cauchy equation and curvature flow respectively. Experimental results on geometric data acquired from real life demonstrate that the symmetric conformal mapping is insensitive to the boundary occlusions. The method outperforms all the others in terms of robustness. The method has the potential to be generalized to high genus surfaces using hyperbolic curvature flow.

Clinicopathological Features and Prognosis of Gastroenteropancreatic Neuroendocrine Tumors: Analysis from a Single-institution

Zeng, Yu-Jie,Liu, Lu,Wu, Heng,Lai, Wei,Cao, Jie-Zhi,Xu, He-Yang,Wang, Jie,Chu, Zhong-Hua Asian Pacific Journal of Cancer Prevention 2013 Asian Pacific journal of cancer prevention Vol.14 No.10

Background: The gastroenteropancreatic neuroendocrine neoplasm (GEP-NEN) is the most common type of neuroendocrine neoplasm. We summarized data in our centre to investigate the clinicopathological features, diagnostic methods, therapeutic approaches and prognosis for this neoplasm to increase knowledge of this disease in Asian populations. Method: A total of 122 patients treated at Sun Yet-san Memorial Hospital of Sun Yat-sen University between January 2000 and December 2011 were analyzed retrospectively. Results: Pancreas was the most common site of involvement (65/122, 53.3%); this disease has no special symptoms; positive rates of chromogranin A (CgA) and synaptophysin (Syn) were 81.1% and 87.7%, respectively. The positive rate of Syn had statistical difference among the three grades, but not CgA. Some 68 patients had G1 tumors, 32 G2 tumors and 22 G3 tumors, and Chi-square test showed that higher grading was correlated with worse prognosis (${\chi}^2=32.825$, P=0.0001). A total of 32 patients presented with distant metastasis, and 8 cases emerged during following up. Cox proportional hazards regression modeling showed that the tumor grade (P=0.01), lymphatic metastasis (P=0.025) and distant metastasis (P=0.031) were predictors of unfavorable prognosis. The overall 5-year survival rate was 39.6%, the 5-year survival rate of G1 was 55.7%, and the G2 and G3 were 34.2% and 0%, respectively. Conclusions: The incidence of gastroenteropancreatic neuroendocrine tumors has risen over the last 12 years. All grades of these diseases metastasize readily, and further research regarding the treatment of patients after radical surgery is needed to prolong disease-free survival.

Saturated Aldehydes C6–C10 Emitted from Ashleaf Maple (Acer negundo L.) Leaves at Different Levels of Light Intensity, O2, and CO2

Zeng-hui Hu,Ying-bai Shen,Xiao-hua Su 한국식물학회 2009 Journal of Plant Biology Vol.52 No.4

Aldehydes, a group of volatile organic compounds (VOCs) often detected in the atmosphere, play a key role in atmospheric chemistry and plant resistance to stresses. We used gas chromatography/mass spectrometry to examine the volatiles of saturated aldehydes C6–C10 that were emitted from cuttings of ashleaf maple (Acer negundo L.) under varying levels of light intensity (80, 400, and 800 μmol m−2 s−1), O2 (2% and 50%), and CO2 (600, 1,000, and 1,200 ppm). An apparent, positive correlation was found between light intensity and emissions, and their release also was significantly enhanced by higher O2 concentrations. In contrast, emissions clearly were negatively correlated with CO2 levels. We speculate that the reactive oxygen species (ROS) generated during photosynthesis contribute to these elevated emissions. However, the mechanism for this ROS trigger is unknown.

Biosorption of Methylene Blue from Aqueous Solution Using Xanthoceras sorbifolia Seed Coat Pretreated by Steam Explosion

Zeng-Yu Yao,Jian-Hua Qi 강원대학교 산림과학연구소 2016 Journal of Forest Science Vol.32 No.3

Xanthoceras sorbifolia seed coat (XSSC) is a processing residue of the bioenergy crop. This work aimed to evaluate the applicability of using the steam explosion to modify the residue for dye biosorption from aqueous solutions by using methylene blue as a model cationic dye. Equilibrium, kinetic and thermodynamic parameters for the biosorption of methylene blue on the steam-exploded XSSC (SE-XSSC) were evaluated. The kinetic data followed the pseudo-second- order model, and the rate-limiting step was the chemical adsorption. Intraparticle diffusion was one of the rate-controlling factors. The equilibrium data agreed well with the Langmuir isotherm, and the biosorption was favorable. The steam-explosion pretreatment strongly affected the biosorption in some respects. It reduced the adsorption rate constant and the initial sorption rate of the pseudo-second-order model. It enhanced the adsorption capacity of methylene blue at higher temperatures while reduced the capacity at lower ones. It changed the biosorption from an exothermic process driven by both the enthalpy and the entropy to an endothermic one driven by entropy only. It increased the surface area and decreased the pH point of zero charge of the biomass. Compared with the native XSSC, SE-XSSC is preferable to MB biosorption from warmer dye effluents.

Association between the CYP1A2 rs762551 Polymorphism and Bladder Cancer Susceptibility: a Meta-Analysis Based on Case-Control Studies

Zeng, Yong,Jiang, Hua-Yong,Wei, Li,Xu, Wei-Dong,Wang, Ya-Jie,Wang, Ya-Di,Liu, Chuan Asian Pacific Journal of Cancer Prevention 2015 Asian Pacific journal of cancer prevention Vol.16 No.16

Background: Previous studies evaluated associations between the CYP1A2 rs762551 polymorphism and bladder cancer risk. However, the results were inconsistent. We therefore performed a meta-analysis of the published case-control studies to assess in detail the association between CYP1A2 rs762551 polymorphism and bladder cancer risk. Materials and Methods: PubMed, Embase and Web of Science were searched to identify relevant studies and the pooled odds ratio (OR) and 95 % confidence interval (95%CI) were calculated. Results: A total of seven articles including 3,013 cases and 2,771 controls were finally included. Overall, a significant association was found between the CYP1A2 rs762551 polymorphism and bladder cancer susceptibility for CC vs AA (OR=0.82, 95% CI=0.69~0.99), but no significant associations were found for the other three models (AC vs AA: OR=0.91, 95% CI=0.81~1.02; the dominant model: OR=0.90, 95% CI=0.80~1.00; the recessive model: OR=0.84, 95% CI =0.72~1.00). In the subgroup analysis by ethnicity, we detected significant associations between the CYP1A2 rs762551 polymorphism and bladder cancer susceptibility for GA vs GG (OR = 0.78, 95% CI =0.64~0.96) and for the recessive model (OR=0.80, 95% CI=0.66~0.96) in Caucasians, but not for Asians. Conclusions: The results from the meta-analysis suggested that the CYP1A2 rs762551 polymorphism is a protective factor for bladder cancer, especially in Caucasians.

Strategies of Functional Food for Cancer Prevention in Human Beings

Zeng, Ya-Wen,Yang, Jia-Zheng,Pu, Xiao-Ying,Du, Juan,Yang, Tao,Yang, Shu-Ming,Zhu, Wei-Hua Asian Pacific Journal of Cancer Prevention 2013 Asian Pacific journal of cancer prevention Vol.14 No.3

Functional food for prevention of chronic diseases is one of this century's key global challenges. Cancer is not only the first or second leading cause of death in China and other countries across the world, but also has diet as one of the most important modifiable risk factors. Major dietary factors now known to promote cancer development are polished grain foods and low intake of fresh vegetables, with general importance for an unhealthy lifestyle and obesity. The strategies of cancer prevention in human being are increased consumption of functional foods like whole grains (brown rice, barley, and buckwheat) and by-products, as well some vegetables (bitter melon, garlic, onions, broccoli, and cabbage) and mushrooms (boletes and Tricholoma matsutake). In addition some beverages (green tea and coffee) may be protective. Southwest China (especially Yunnan Province) is a geographical area where functional crop production is closely related to the origins of human evolution with implications for anticancer influence.

Effect of fenpropathrin on the viability and homing ability of worker bees Apis mellifera

Chun-hua Liao,Jie Wu,Zi-long Wang,Zhi Jiang Zeng,Xiaobo Wu 한국응용곤충학회 2017 Journal of Asia-Pacific Entomology Vol.20 No.4

To explore the effect of fenpropathrin on survival and homing ability of honeybees Apis mellifera L., the newly emerged honeybee workers (< 12 h old) were randomly divided into 4 groups with 3 replicates in each group. Fenpropathrin (1/2 LD50, 1/4 LD50, 1/8 LD50 and 0% LD50) was added on the thorax of the bees. The viability of worker bees and their homing rate at 1 km distance away from colonies were analyzed, and the expression levels of two memory related genes (GluRA and Nmdar 1) in 20-day–old worker bees were also quantified. Overall, the lifespan and homing rates were significantly decreased with the increase of fenpropathrin dose (P < 0.05), but there was no significant difference between the least group (1/8 LD50) and the control group (0% LD50) (P > 0.05). The relative expression of Nmdar1 was decreased significantly with the increasing doses of fenpropathrin and the lower expression level of Nmdar 1 was found in the fenpropathrin-treaded groups. The expression level of GluRA of workers in 1/8 LD50 group and the control group were significantly higher than that in 1/2 LD50 group and 1/4 LD50 group (P < 0.05), whereas the expression level of GluRA of workers in 1/4 LD50 group was significantly higher than that in 1/2 LD50 group (P < 0.05), and there is no significant difference between 1/8 LD50 group and the control group (P > 0.05). In conclusion, the use of fenpropathrin for agricultural crops may show negative influence on the viability and homing ability of worker bees Apis mellifera L.