Combined Assessment of Serum Alpha-Synuclein and Rab35 is a Better Biomarker for Parkinson’s Disease

Hung-Li Wang,Chin-Song Lu,Tu-Hsueh Yeh,Yu-Ming Shen,Yi-Hsin Weng,Ying-Zu Huang,Rou-Shayn Chen,Yu-Chuan Liu,Yi-Chuan Cheng,Hsiu-Chen Chang,Ying-Ling Chen,Yu-Jie Chen,Yan-Wei Lin,Chia Chen Hsu,Huang-Li 대한신경과학회 2019 Journal of Clinical Neurology Vol.15 No.4

Background and Purpose It is essential to develop a reliable predictive serum biomarker for Parkinson’s disease (PD). Te accumulation of alpha-synuclein (αSyn) and up-regulated expression of Rab35 participate in the etiology of PD. Te purpose of this investigation was to determine whether the combined assessment of serum αSyn and Rab35 is a useful predictive biomarker for PD. Methods Serum levels of αSyn or Rab35 were determined in serum samples from 59 sporadic PD patients, 19 progressive supranuclear palsy (PSP) patients, 20 multiple system atrophy (MSA) patients, and 60 normal controls (NC). Receiver operating characteristics (ROC) curves were calculated to determine the diagnostic accuracy of αSyn or/and Rab35 in discriminating PD patients from NC or atypical parkinsonian patients. Results The levels of αSyn and Rab35 were increased in PD patients. The serum level of Rab35 was positively correlated with that of αSyn in PD patients. Compared to analyzing αSyn or Rab35 alone, the combined analysis of αSyn and Rab35 produced a larger area under the ROC curve and performed better in discriminating PD patients from NC, MSA patients, or PSP patients. When age was dichotomized at 55, 60, 65, or 70 years, the combined assessment of αSyn and Rab35 for classifying PD was better in the group below the cutof age than in the group above the cutof age. Conclusions Combined assessment of serum αSyn and Rab35 is a better biomarker for discriminating PD patients from NC or atypical parkinsonian patients, and is a useful predictive biomarker for younger sporadic PD patients.

Characterization of Protein Arginine Methyltransferases in Porcine Brain

Hung, Chien-Jen,Chen, Da-Huang,Shen, Yi-Ting,Li, Yi-Chen,Lin, Yi-Wei,Hsieh, Mingli,Li, Chuan Korean Society for Biochemistry and Molecular Biol 2007 Journal of biochemistry and molecular biology Vol.40 No.5

Protein arginine methylation is a posttranslational modification involved in various cellular functions including cell signaling, protein subcellular localization and transcriptional regulation. We analyze the protein arginine methyltransferases (PRMTs) that catalyze the formation of methylarginines in porcine brain. We fractionated the brain extracts and determined the PRMT activities as well as the distribution of different PRMT proteins in subcellular fractions of porcine brain. The majority of the type I methyltransferase activities that catalyze the formation of asymmetric dimethylarginines was in the cytosolic S3 fraction. High specific activity of the methyltransferase was detected in the S4 fraction (high-salt stripping of the ultracentrifugation precipitant P3 fraction), indicating that part of the PRMT was peripherally associated with membrane and ribosomal fractions. The amount and distribution of PRMT1 are consistent with the catalytic activity. The elution patterns from gel filtration and anion exchange chromatography also indicate that the type I activity in S3 and S4 are mostly from PRMT1. Our results suggest that part of the type I arginine methyltransferases in brains, mainly PRMT1, are sequestered in an inactive form as they associated with membranes or large subcellular complexes. Our biochemical analyses confirmed the complex distribution of different PRMTs and implicate their regulation and catalytic activities in brain.

Developing a Data Model of Product Manufacturing Flow for an IC Packaging WIP System

Lin, Long-Chin,Chen, Wen-Chin,Sun, Chin-Huang,Tsai, Chih-Hung The Korean Society for Quality Management 2005 The Asian Journal on Quality Vol.6 No.3

The IC packaging industry heavily relies on shop floor information, necessitating the development of a model to flexibly define shop floor information and timely handle manufacturing data. This study presents a novel data model of product manufacturing flow to define shop floor information to effectively respond to accelerated developments in IC package industry. The proposed data model consists of four modules: operation template setup, general process setup, enhanced bill of manufacture (EBOMfr) setup, and work-order process setup. The data model can flexibly define the required shop floor information and decision rules for shop floor product manufacturing flow, allowing one to easily adopt changes of the product and on the shop floor. However, to handle floor dynamics of the IC packaging industry, this work also proposes a WIP (i.e. work-in-process) system for monitoring and controlling the product manufacturing flow on the shop floor. The WIP system integrates the data model with a WIP execution module. Furthermore, an illustrative example, the MIRL WIP System, developed by Mechanical Industrial Research Laboratories of Industrial Technology Research Institute, demonstrates the effectiveness of the proposed model.

Hydrodynamic coupling distance between a falling sphere and downstream wall

Lin, Cheng-Chuan,Huang, Hung-Tien,Yang, Fu-Ling Techno-Press 2018 Coupled systems mechanics Vol.7 No.4

In solid-liquid two phase flow, the knowledge of how descending solid particles affected by the presence of downstream wall is important. This work studies at what interstitial distance the velocity of a vertically descending sphere is affected by a downstream wall as a consequence of wall-modified hydrodynamic forces through a validated dynamic model. This interstitial distance-the hydrodynamic coupling distance ${\delta}_c-is$ found to decay monotonically with the approach Stokes number St which compares the particle inertia to viscous drag characterized by the quasi-steady Stokes' drag. The scaling relation ${\delta}_c-St-1$ decays monotonically as literature below the value of St equal to 10. However, the faster diminishing rate is found above the threshold value from St=10-40. Furthermore, an empirical relation of ${\delta}_c-St$ shows dependence on the drop height which clearly indicates the non-negligible effect of unsteady hydrodynamic force components, namely the added mass force and the history force. Finally, we attempt a fitting relation which embedded the particle acceleration effect in the dependence of fitting constants on the diameter-scaled drop height.

Salt Processed Food and Gastric Cancer in a Chinese Population

Lin, Si-Hao,Li, Yuan-Hang,Leung, Kayee,Huang, Cheng-Yu,Wang, Xiao-Rong Asian Pacific Journal of Cancer Prevention 2014 Asian Pacific journal of cancer prevention Vol.15 No.13

To investigate the association between salt processed food and gastric cancer, a hospital based case-control study was conducted in a high risk area of China. One hundred and seven newly diagnosed cases with histological confirmation of gastric cancer and 209 controls were recruited. Information on dietary intake was collected with a validated food frequency questionnaire. Unconditional logistic regression was applied to estimate the odds ratios with adjustment for other potential confounders. Comparing the high intake group with never consumption of salt processed foods, salted meat, pickled vegetables and preserved vegetables were significantly associated with increased risk of gastric cancer. Meanwhile, salt taste preference in diet showed a dose-response relationship with gastric cancer. Our results suggest that consumption of salted meat, pickled and preserved vegetables, are positively associated with gastric cancer. Reduction of salt and salt processed food in diets might be one practical measure to preventing gastric cancer.

Arsenic Toxicity on Duck Spermatozoa and the Ameliorating Effect of L-Ascorbic Acid

Lin, Chai-Ching,Huang, Chia-Cherng,Chen, Ming-Cheng,Huang, Andrew Jeng-Fang,Chiou, Hung-Yi Asian Australasian Association of Animal Productio 2002 Animal Bioscience Vol.15 No.1

The objectives of this study were to understand the possible mechanism of duck sperm toxicity induced by arsenic exposure in vivo, and to investigate the roles of the antioxidant L-ascorbic acid in ameliorating the arsenic-induced sperm impairment. To test the acute toxicity, the percentages of mortality of mature drakes treated with different concentrations of trivalent sodium arsenite, As (III), and pentavalent sodium arsenate, As (V) were measured. The LD50 value of As (III) for mature drakes was $4.89{\pm}1.49$ ppm. Although As (V) didn't cause any deaths even at a concentration of 40 ppm, the chronic toxicity of As (V) on sperm quality was shown by a decreased fertilization rate. When the concentrations of As (V) were above 0.4 ppm, fertilization rates were lower than those of 0.04 ppm and control. Drakes treated with 40 ppm of As (V) had the highest malondialdehyde (MDA) level in the testis tissue, $3.100{\pm}0.218{\mu}mole/g$ testis. This showed that 40 ppm of As (V) significantly induced lipid peroxidation in testis tissue. For the 1.2 ppm As (III) treatment, several significant effects were observed: (1) sperm motility was decreased most dramatically by $52.0{\pm}9.1$% after three days of incubation; (2) fertilization rate of artificially inseminated semen was the lowest, $26.4{\pm}15.4$; (3) the MDA concentration in testis tissue, $7.846{\pm}0.246{\mu}mole/g$ testis, was significantly higher than the others (p<0.05); (4) the sperm number, $1.17{\pm}0.40({\times}10^9)$, was significantly lower than with the 60 ppb and control treatments (p<0.05); (5) a black appearance and soft texture was observed in the testis tissue. The antioxidant L-ascorbic acid administered along with 1.2 ppm As (III) decreased the toxicity of arsenic. The ameliorating effects included: improved sperm motility, increased sperm number and fertilization rate, and decreased MDA concentration in the testis tissue. This study suggests that the toxicity of the trivalent arsenic on sperm quality is partly from free radicals generated by its metabolic pathway, and the antioxidant ascorbic acid ameliorates arsenic-caused sperm impairment.

Anterior Transarticular Crossing Screw Fixation for Atlantoaxial Joint Instability: A Biomechanical Study

Hang Xiao,Zhiping Huang,Panjie Xu,Junyu Lin,Qingan Zhu,Wei Ji 대한척추신경외과학회 2023 Neurospine Vol.20 No.3

Objective: To evaluate the biomechanical stability of anterior transarticular crossing screw (ATCS) and compare it with anterior transarticular screw (ATS) which may provide basic evidence for clinical application. Methods: Eight human fresh cadaveric specimens (occiput-C4) were tested with 5 conditions including the intact status, the injury status (type II odontoid fracture), the injury+ATS fixation status (traditional bilateral ATS fixation); the injury+unilateral ATCS fixation status; and the injury+bilateral ATCS fixation status. Specimens were applied to a pure moment of 1.5 Nm in flexion-extension, lateral bending, and axial rotation, respectively. The range of motions (ROMs) and the neutral zones (NZs) of C1 to C2 segment were calculated and compared between 5 status. Results: ATS and ATCS fixations significantly reduced the motions in all directions when compared with the intact and injury statues (p < 0.05). In flexion-extension, the ROMs of ATS, unilateral ATCS, and bilateral ATCS were 4.7° ± 2.5°, 4.1° ± 1.9°, and 3.2° ± 1.2°, respectively. Bilateral ATCS resulted in a significant decrease in ROM in flexion-extension when compared with ATS and unilateral ATCS (p = 0.035 and p = 0.023). In lateral bending and axial rotation, there was no significant difference in ROM between the 3 fixations (p > 0.05). Three fixations resulted in similar NZs in all directions (p > 0.05). Conclusion: ATCS is a biomechanically effective alternative or supplemental method for atlantoaxial instability

Establishing a Nomogram for Stage IA-IIB Cervical Cancer Patients after Complete Resection

Zhou, Hang,Li, Xiong,Zhang, Yuan,Jia, Yao,Hu, Ting,Yang, Ru,Huang, Ke-Cheng,Chen, Zhi-Lan,Wang, Shao-Shuai,Tang, Fang-Xu,Zhou, Jin,Chen, Yi-Le,Wu, Li,Han, Xiao-Bing,Lin, Zhong-Qiu,Lu, Xiao-Mei,Xing, H Asian Pacific Journal of Cancer Prevention 2015 Asian Pacific journal of cancer prevention Vol.16 No.9

Background: This study aimed to establish a nomogram by combining clinicopathologic factors with overall survival of stage IA-IIB cervical cancer patients after complete resection with pelvic lymphadenectomy. Materials and Methods: This nomogram was based on a retrospective study on 1,563 stage IA-IIB cervical cancer patients who underwent complete resection and lymphadenectomy from 2002 to 2008. The nomogram was constructed based on multivariate analysis using Cox proportional hazard regression. The accuracy and discriminative ability of the nomogram were measured by concordance index (C-index) and calibration curve. Results: Multivariate analysis identified lymph node metastasis (LNM), lymph-vascular space invasion (LVSI), stromal invasion, parametrial invasion, tumor diameter and histology as independent prognostic factors associated with cervical cancer survival. These factors were selected for construction of the nomogram. The C-index of the nomogram was 0.71 (95% CI, 0.65 to 0.77), and calibration of the nomogram showed good agreement between the 5-year predicted survival and the actual observation. Conclusions: We developed a nomogram predicting 5-year overall survival of surgically treated stage IA-IIB cervical cancer patients. More comprehensive information that is provided by this nomogram could provide further insight into personalized therapy selection.

HUA ENHANCER1 Is Involved in Posttranscriptional Regulation of Positive and Negative Regulators in <i>Arabidopsis</i> Photomorphogenesis

Tsai, Huang-Lung,Li, Yi-Hang,Hsieh, Wen-Ping,Lin, Meng-Chun,Ahn, Ji Hoon,Wu, Shu-Hsing American Society of Plant Biologists 2014 The Plant cell Vol.26 No.7

<P>This work reports that the expression of <I>HEN1</I>, a small regulatory RNA methyltransferase essential for microRNA biogenesis, is activated by light signaling pathways to regulate <I>Arabidopsis</I> photomorphogenesis. The expression of positive (<I>HY5</I>) and negative (<I>TCPs</I>) regulators is tuned by miR157d and miR319, respectively, in deetiolating seedlings, demonstrating a posttranscriptional control in the photomorphogenic development.</P>

Chrysophanol-induced Necrotic-like Cell Death through an Impaired Mitochondrial ATP Synthesis in Hep3B Human Liver Cancer Cells

Chien-Hang Ni,Jing-Gung Chung,Po-Yuan Chen,Hsu-Feng Lu,Jai-Sing Yang,Hui-Ying Huang,Shin-Hwar Wu,Siu-Wan Ip,Chin-Tung Wu,Su-Yin Chiang,Jaung-Geng Lin,W. Gibson Wood 대한약학회 2012 Archives of Pharmacal Research Vol.35 No.5

Liver cancer is the most common form of cancer in Taiwan and it usually responds to chemotherapy. However, patients often have side effects to the chemotherapeutic drugs. Thus new agents are urgently required to treat liver cancer. Chrysophanol, one of the anthraquinone derivatives, was reported to inhibit some human cancer cell growth which may be due to the induction of apoptosis similar to other anthraquinone derivatives though such actions have not been reported. In the present study, we reported that chrysophanol inhibits cell growth in Hep3B liver cancer cells based on the following observations: 1) induc cell morphological changes; 2) decreased percentage of viable cells; 3) induced S phase arrest of cell cycle progression; 4) induced DNA damage as measured by comet assay and DAPI staining. Chrysophanolinduced cell death however, seems to be related to necrotic processes rather than typical apoptosis. Chrysophanol induced reactive oxygen species and Ca2+ production and decreased mitochondrial membrane potential (ΔΨm) and ATP levels in Hep3B cells. No effects were observed on known protein regulators of apoptosis such as Bax and Bcl-2. Chrysophanolinduced cell death took place independently of caspase-8 and -9. Based on our findings, we propose that chrysophanol reduces cellular ATP levels causing a drop in energy resulting in necrotic-like cell death.