Study on Anti-Proliferative Activity in Cancer Cells and Preliminary Structure–Activity Relationship of Pseudo-Peptide Chiral Thioureas

Peng Liao,Shi-Qin Hu,Hong Zhang,Liang-Bi Xu,Jing-Zi Liu,Bin He,Shang-Gao Liao,Yong-Jun Li 대한화학회 2018 Bulletin of the Korean Chemical Society Vol.39 No.3

In our previous studies, we have shown that thiourea compounds containing phosphate esters have potent antitumor activity and can be used as a novel strategy for the development of antitumor agents. Herein, a series of novel phosphonate thioureas 5–38 have been synthesized, which were fully characterized by 1H NMR, 13C NMR spectrum, elemental analysis. Three human cancer cell lines (Bcap-37, BGC-823, and PC-3) have been used to investigate these compounds’ antitumor activities. After the summarization of the structure–activity relationships, we found that the variation of R, R1, and R2 in these novel phosphonate thioureas contribute to the antitumor activities. All these SAR-guided efforts may lead to novel antitumor drugs in the market in the near future.

Characterization and expression analysis of inositolphosphorylceramide synthase family genes in rice (Oryza sativa L.)

Pengfei Liao,Jinqiu Huang,Puguo Tong,Wang Nie,Xin Yan,Yingmei Feng,Hui Peng,Xiaojue Peng,Shao-Bo Li 한국유전학회 2017 Genes & Genomics Vol.39 No.5

Genes encoding inositolphosphorylceramide synthase (IPCS), which play essential roles in sphingolipid biosynthesis, have been known to be widely distributed in plants. However, reports on identification, expression, and function analysis of plant IPCS family genes are very limited. In this study, a total of three OsIPCS genes were identified in the rice database, and their full-length coding regions were amplified by RT-PCR. These genes had 12–13 exons, and they encoded proteins of 313–326 amino acids with molecular mass of 35.8–37.6 kDa and isoelectric point of 10.99–12.61. Importantly, two typical and conserved motifs (D3 and D4) in plants were found in all the three putative OsIPCS proteins, indicating high similarity of OsIPCSs to the other plant IPCS proteins, which were confirmed by phylogenetic analysis. The transcripts of OsIPCS genes appeared in different rice organs including seedling roots, stems and leaves, and young panicles, but each gene showed a unique organ-specific expression pattern. Meanwhile, we found that all the three OsIPCS genes showed responses to stresses like drought, cold and salt, but their expression patterns were also to some extent different under stress treatments. Especially, under cold stress, OsIPCS1 and OsIPCS2 were significantly up-regulated in roots and stems but down-regulated in leaves, while OsIPCS3 was significantly up-regulated in all the measured organs. Actually, putative abiotic-stress regulatory elements were identified in the promoters of these genes. Our data suggest that OsIPCS genes should play important roles during rice growth and adversity adaptation.

Augmenter of Liver Regeneration Alleviates Renal Hypoxia-Reoxygenation Injury by Regulating Mitochondrial Dynamics in Renal Tubular Epithelial Cells

Xiao-hui Liao,Rui-ting Long,Jun-bo Peng,Li-li Huang,Gui-ping Jiang,Yue-juan Liao,Hang Sun,Yu-dong Hu 한국분자세포생물학회 2019 Molecules and cells Vol.42 No.12

Mitochondria are highly dynamic organelles that constantly undergo fission and fusion processes that closely related to their function. Disruption of mitochondrial dynamics has been demonstrated in acute kidney injury (AKI), which could eventually result in cell injury and death. Previously, we reported that augmenter of liver regeneration (ALR) alleviates renal tubular epithelial cell injury. Here, we gained further insights into whether the renoprotective roles of ALR are associated with mitochondrial dynamics. Changes in mitochondrial dynamics were examined in experimental models of renal ischemia-reperfusion (IR). In a model of hypoxia-reoxygenation (HR) injury in vitro, dynamin-related protein 1 (Drp1) and mitochondrial fission process protein 1 (MTFP1), two key proteins of mitochondrial fission, were downregulated in the Lv-ALR + HR group. ALR overexpression additionally had an impact on phosphorylation of Drp1 Ser637 during AKI. The inner membrane fusion protein, Optic Atrophy 1 (OPA1), was significantly increased whereas levels of outer membrane fusion proteins Mitofusin-1 and -2 (Mfn1, Mfn2) were not affected in the Lv-ALR + HR group, compared with the control group. Furthermore, the mTOR/4E-BP1 signaling pathway was highly activated in the Lv-ALR + HR group. ALR overexpression led to suppression of HR-induced apoptosis. Our collective findings indicate that ALR gene transfection alleviates mitochondrial injury, possibly through inhibiting fission and promoting fusion of the mitochondrial inner membrane, both of which contribute to reduction of HK-2 cell apoptosis. Additionally, fission processes are potentially mediated by promoting tubular cell survival through activating the mTOR/4E-BP1 signaling pathway.

The appropriate shape of the boundary transition section for a mountain-gorge terrain model in a wind tunnel test

Peng Hu,Yongle Li,Rui Kang,Haili Liao 한국풍공학회 2015 Wind and Structures, An International Journal (WAS Vol.20 No.1

Characterization of wind flows over a complex terrain, especially mountain-gorge terrain (referred to as the very complex terrain with rolling mountains and deep narrow gorges), is an important issue for design and operation of long-span bridges constructed in this area. In both wind tunnel testing and numerical simulation, a transition section is often used to connect the wind tunnel floor or computational domain bottom and the boundary top of the terrain model in order to generate a smooth flow transition over the edge of the terrain model. Although the transition section plays an important role in simulation of wind field over complex terrain, an appropriate shape needs investigation. In this study, two principles for selecting an appropriate shape of boundary transition section were proposed, and a theoretical curve serving for the mountain-gorge terrain model was derived based on potential flow theory around a circular cylinder. Then a two-dimensional (2-D) simulation was used to compare the flow transition performance between the proposed curved transition section and the traditional ramp transition section in a wind tunnel. Furthermore, the wind velocity field induced by the curved transition section with an equivalent slope of 30 was investigated in detail, and a parameter called the \'velocity stability factor\' was defined; an analytical model for predicting the velocity stability factor was also proposed. The results show that the proposed curved transition section has a better flow transition performance compared with the traditional ramp transition section. The proposed analytical model can also adequately predict the velocity stability factor of the wind field.

Inter-Cell Interference Mitigation in LTE-Advanced Heterogeneous Networks by Dynamic Subframes Assignment Guaranteeing Fairness

Peng Li,Changrong Liao 보안공학연구지원센터 2016 International Journal of Smart Home Vol.10 No.12

Dense network deployment is an important approach to meet the requirements of the future mobile communications. LTE-Advanced Heterogeneous Networks (HetNets) has been introduced by the 3rd Generation Partnership Project (3GPP) to increase cell throughput, offload data from macro-cell and improve indoor coverage. However, it also brings serious inter-cell interference with the co-channel deployment. Although the Almost Blank Subframes (ABS) scheme, one solution of Enhanced Inter-Cell Interference Coordination (eICIC), mitigates the interference, it results in undesirable fairness, huge difference of users’ throughput in the system and even the incapability of communication. To address this problem, we introduce Dynamic Subframes Assignment Guaranteeing Fairness (DSAGF), in which the ABS pattern is set to mitigate inter-cell interference while guaranteeing fairness. As demonstrated in the simulation results, DSAGF significant decline in outage ratios of user equipments, narrowing difference of users’ throughput, and improvement for fairness with inter-cell interference mitigation.

Numerical simulation of the neutral equilibrium atmospheric boundary layer using the SST k-ω turbulence model

Peng Hu,Yongle Li,C.S. Cai,Haili Liao,G.J. Xu 한국풍공학회 2013 한국풍공학회지 Vol.17 No.1

Modeling an equilibrium atmospheric boundary layer (ABL) in an empty computational domain has routinely been performed with the k-ε turbulence model. However, the research objects of structural wind engineering are bluff bodies, and the SST k-ω turbulence model is more widely used in the numerical simulation of flow around bluff bodies than the k-ε turbulence model. Therefore, to simulate an equilibrium ABL based on the SST k-ω turbulence model, the inlet profiles of the mean wind speed U, turbulence kinetic energy k, and specific dissipation rate ω are proposed, and the source terms for the U, k and ω are derived by satisfying their corresponding transport equations. Based on the proposed inlet profiles, numerical comparative studies with and without considering the source terms are carried out in an empty computational domain, and an actual numerical simulation with a trapezoidal hill is further conducted. It shows that when the source terms are considered, the profiles of U, k and ω are all maintained well along the empty computational domain and the accuracy of the actual numerical simulation is greatly improved. The present study could provide a new methodology for modeling the equilibrium ABL problem and for further CFD simulations with practical value.

Vitexin Inhibits Gastric Cancer Growth and Metastasis through HMGB1-mediated Inactivation of the PI3K/AKT/mTOR/HIF-1α Signaling Pathway

Peng Zhou,Zi-Han Zheng,Tao Wan,Jie Wu,Chuan-Wen Liao,Xue-Jun Sun 대한위암학회 2021 Journal of gastric cancer Vol.21 No.4

Purpose: Gastric cancer (GC) has high morbidity and mortality and is a serious threat to public health. The flavonoid compound vitexin is known to exhibit anti-tumor activity. In this study, we explored the therapeutic potential of vitexin in GC and its underlying mechanism. Materials and Methods: The viability, migration, and invasion of GC cells were determined using MTT, scratch wound healing, and transwell assays, respectively. Target molecule expression was determined by western blotting. Tumor growth and liver metastasis were evaluated in vivo using nude mice. Protein expression in the tumor tissues was examined by immunohistochemistry. Results: Vitexin inhibited GC cell viability, migration, invasion, and epithelial-mesenchymal transition (EMT) in a dose-dependent manner. Vitexin treatment led to the inactivation of phosphatidylinositol-3-kinase (PI3K)/AKT/hypoxia-inducible factor-1α (HIF-1α) pathway by repressing HMGB1 expression. Vitexin-mediated inhibition in proliferation, migration, invasion and EMT of GC cells were counteracted by hyper-activation of PI3K/AKT/HIF-1α pathway or HMGB1 overexpression. Finally, vitexin inhibited the xenograft tumor growth and liver metastasis in vivo by suppressing HMGB1 expression. Conclusions: Vitexin inhibited the malignant progression of GC in vitro and in vivo by suppressing HMGB1-mediated activation of PI3K/Akt/HIF-1α signaling pathway. Thus, vitexin may serve as a promising therapeutic agent for the treatment of GC.

A Data-Consistency Scheme for the Distributed-Cache Storage of the Memcached System

Liao, Jianwei,Peng, Xiaoning Korean Institute of Information Scientists and Eng 2017 Journal of Computing Science and Engineering Vol.11 No.3

Memcached, commonly used to speed up the data access in big-data and Internet-web applications, is a system software of the distributed-cache mechanism. But it is subject to the severe challenge of the loss of recently uncommitted updates in the case where the Memcached servers crash due to some reason. Although the replica scheme and the disk-log-based replay mechanism have been proposed to overcome this problem, they generate either the overhead of the replica synchronization or the persistent-storage overhead that is caused by flushing related logs. This paper proposes a scheme of backing up the write requests (i.e., set and add) on the Memcached client side, to reduce the overhead resulting from the making of disk-log records or performing the replica consistency. If the Memcached server fails, a timestamp-based recovery mechanism is then introduced to replay the write requests (buffered by relevant clients), for regaining the lost-data updates on the rebooted Memcached server, thereby meeting the data-consistency requirement. More importantly, compared with the mechanism of logging the write requests to the persistent storage of the master server and the server-replication scheme, the newly proposed approach of backing up the logs on the client side can greatly decrease the time overhead by up to 116.8% when processing the write workloads.

Effect of Hydrogen-rich Water on Vase Life and Quality in Cut Lily and Rose Flowers

Peng-Ju Ren,Xin Jin,Wei-Biao Liao,Meng Wang,Li-Juan Niu,Xue-Ping Li,Xiao-Ting Xu,Yong-Chao Zhu 한국원예학회 2017 Horticulture, Environment, and Biotechnology Vol.58 No.6

Hydrogen gas (H2) functions as an important signaling molecule in diverse plant developmental processes. H2 is thought to delay postharvest ripening and senescence in fruit. However, little is known about the influence ofH2 on flower senescence. This study was conducted to determine whether H2 treatment could improve vase life andquality in cut lily (Lilium spp.) and rose (Rosa hybrid L.) flowers. Treatment with 0.5% and 1% hydrogen-rich water(HRW) increased vase life and maximum flower diameter in lily. In addition, 50% HRW treatment significantlyincreased vase life and maximum flower diameter in cut rose flowers. The fresh weight and leaf relative watercontent in cut lilies and roses were enhanced by proper doses of HRW. Compared with the control, HRW treatmentdecreased leaf stomata size in cut lily and rose flowers. HRW treatment significantly reduced leaf malondialdehydecontents and electrolyte leakage in cut lilies. Antioxidant enzyme activities were also improved by HRW treatment incut lily and rose flowers. These results suggest that exogenously applied H2 might improve vase life and postharvestquality in cut flowers by maintaining proper water balance and membrane stability and by reducing stomata size andoxidative damage.

Genomic Characteristics and the Potential Clinical Implications in Oligometastatic Non–Small Cell Lung Cancer

Rongxin Liao,Kehong Chen,Jinjin Li,Hengqiu He,Guangming Yi,Mingfeng Huang,Rongrong Chen,Lu Shen,Xiaoyue Zhang,Zaicheng Xu,Zhenzhou Yang,Yuan Peng 대한암학회 2023 Cancer Research and Treatment Vol.55 No.3

Purpose Oligometastatic non–small cell lung cancer (NSCLC) patients have been increasingly regarded as a distinct group that could benefit from local treatment to achieve a better clinical outcome. However, current definitions of oligometastasis are solely numerical, which are imprecise because of ignoring the biological heterogeneity caused by genomic characteristics. Our study aimed to profile the molecular alterations of oligometastatic NSCLC and elucidate its potential difference from polymetastasis. Materials and Methods We performed next-generation sequencing to analyze tumors and paired peripheral blood from 77 oligometastatic and 21 polymetastatic NSCLC patients to reveal their genomic characteristics and assess the genetic heterogeneity. Results We found ERBB2, ALK, MLL4, PIK3CB, and TOP2A were mutated at a significantly lower frequency in oligometastasis compared with polymetastasis. EGFR and KEAP1 alterations were mutually exclusive in oligometastatic group. More importantly, oligometastasis has a unique significant enrichment of apoptosis signaling pathway. In contrast to polymetastasis, a highly enriched COSMIC signature 4 and a special mutational process, COSMIC signature 14, were observed in the oligometastatic cohort. According to OncoKB database, 74.03% of oligometastatic NSCLC patients harbored at least one actionable alteration. The median tumor mutation burden of oligometastasis was 5.00 mutations/Mb, which was significantly associated with smoking, DNA damage repair genes, TP53 mutation, SMARCA4 mutation, LRP1B mutation, ABL1 mutation. Conclusion Our results shall help redefine oligometastasis beyond simple lesion enumeration that will ultimately improve the selection of patients with real oligometastatic state and optimize personalized cancer therapy for oligometastatic NSCLC.