Diagnostic Value of Superoxide Dismutase in Tuberculous and Malignant Pleural Effusions

Wang, Xin-Feng,Wu, Yan-Hua,Jiao, Jin,Guan, Cui-Ping,Yang, Xiao-Guang,Wang, Mao-Shui Asian Pacific Journal of Cancer Prevention 2013 Asian Pacific journal of cancer prevention Vol.14 No.2

The aim of this study was to investigate the diagnostic value of superoxide dismutase (SOD) in tuberculous pleural effusions (TPEs) and malignant pleural effusions (MPEs). Pleural effusion (PE) samples from 100 patients were classified on the basis of diagnosis as TPE (n=57) and MPE (n=43). The activity of SOD was determined by pyrolgallol assay. A significant difference was observed in SOD activity (P<0.01) between TPE and MPE, levels of being significantly higher in TPE compared to MPE. With a threshold value of 41 U/L, the area under the ROC curve was 0.653, SOD had a sensitivity of 61.4% and a specificity of 61.0% for differential diagnosis. Thus, SOD activity in PE was not a good biomarker in differentiating TPE and MPE. To the best of our knowledge, five SOD isoforms may be present in PE. Identification of which SOD contributes to the difference of SOD level between TPE and MPE is very important for illustrating mechanisms and improving the differential diagnostic value.

The genome of the mesopolyploid crop species Brassica rapa

Wang, Xiaowu,Wang, Hanzhong,Wang, Jun,Sun, Rifei,Wu, Jian,Liu, Shengyi,Bai, Yinqi,Mun, Jeong-Hwan,Bancroft, Ian,Cheng, Feng,Huang, Sanwen,Li, Xixiang,Hua, Wei,Wang, Junyi,Wang, Xiyin,Freeling, Michael Nature Publishing Group, a division of Macmillan P 2011 Nature genetics Vol.43 No.10

We report the annotation and analysis of the draft genome sequence of Brassica rapa accession Chiifu-401-42, a Chinese cabbage. We modeled 41,174 protein coding genes in the B. rapa genome, which has undergone genome triplication. We used Arabidopsis thaliana as an outgroup for investigating the consequences of genome triplication, such as structural and functional evolution. The extent of gene loss (fractionation) among triplicated genome segments varies, with one of the three copies consistently retaining a disproportionately large fraction of the genes expected to have been present in its ancestor. Variation in the number of members of gene families present in the genome may contribute to the remarkable morphological plasticity of Brassica species. The B. rapa genome sequence provides an important resource for studying the evolution of polyploid genomes and underpins the genetic improvement of Brassica oil and vegetable crops.

CEA, AFP, CA125, CA153 and CA199 in Malignant Pleural Effusions Predict the Cause

Wang, Xin-Feng,Wu, Yan-Hua,Wang, Mao-Shui,Wang, Yun-Shan Asian Pacific Journal of Cancer Prevention 2014 Asian Pacific journal of cancer prevention Vol.15 No.1

Determination of the cause of malignant pleural effusions is important for treatment and management, especially in cases of unknown primaries. There are limited biomarkers available for prediction of the cause of malignant pleural effusion in clinical practice. Hence, we evaluated pleural levels of five tumor biomarkers (CEA, AFP, CA125, CA153 and CA199) in predicting the cause of malignant pleural effusion in a retrospective study. Kruskal-Wallis or Mann-Whitney U tests were carried out to compare levels of tumor markers in pleural effusion among different forms of neoplasia - lung squamous cell carcinoma, adenocarcinoma, or small cell carcinoma, mesothelioma, breast cancer, lymphoma/leukemia and miscellaneous. Receiver operator characteristic analysis was performed to evaluate sensitivity and specificity of biomarkers. The Kruskal-Wallis test showed significant differences in levels of pleural effusion CEA (P<0.01), AFP (P<0.01), CA153 (P<0.01) and CA199 (P<0.01), but not CA125 (P>0.05), among the seven groups. Receiver operator characteristic analysis showed that, compared with other four tumor markers, CA153 was the best biomarker in diagnosing malignant pleural effusions of lung adenocarcinoma (area under curve (AUC): 0.838 (95%confidence interval: 0.787, 0.888); cut-off value: 10.2U/ml; sensitivity: 73.2% (64.4-80.8)%, specificity: 85.2% (77.8-90.8)%), lung squamous cell carcinoma (AUC: 0.716 (0.652, 0.780); cut-off value: 14.2U/ml; sensitivity: 57.6% (50.7-64.3)%, specificity: 91.2% (76.3-98.0)%), and small-cell lung cancer (AUC: 0.812 (0.740, 0.884); cut-off value: 9.7U/ml; sensitivity: 61.5% (55.0-67.8)%, specificity: 94.1% (71.2-99.0)%); CEA was the best biomarker in diagnosing MPEs of mesothelioma (AUC: 0.726 (0.593, 0.858); cut-off value: 1.43ng/ml; sensitivity: 83.7% (78.3-88.2)%, specificity: 61.1% (35.8-82.6)%) and lymphoma/leukemia (AUC: 0.923 (0.872, 0.974); cut-off value: 1.71ng/ml; sensitivity: 82.8% (77.4-87.3)%, specificity: 92.3% (63.9-98.7)%). Thus CA153 and CEA appear to be good biomarkers in diagnosing different causes of malignant pleural effusion. Our findings implied that the two tumor markers may improve the diagnosis and treatment for effusions of unknown primaries.

MiR-150-5p Suppresses Colorectal Cancer Cell Migration and Invasion through Targeting MUC4

Wang, Wei-Hua,Chen, Jie,Zhao, Feng,Zhang, Bu-Rong,Yu, Hong-Sheng,Jin, Hai-Ying,Dai, Jin-Hua Asian Pacific Journal of Cancer Prevention 2014 Asian Pacific journal of cancer prevention Vol.15 No.15

Growing evidence suggests that miR-150-5p has an important role in regulating genesis of various types of cancer. However, the roles and the underlying mechanisms of miR-150-5p in development of colorectal cancer (CRC) remain largely unknown. Transwell chambers were used to analyze effects on cell migration and invasion by miR-150-5p. Quantitative real-time PCR (qRT-PCR), Western blotting and dual-luciferase 3' UTR reporter assay were carried out to identify the target genes of miR-150-5p. In our research, miR-150-5p suppressed CRC cell migration and invasion, and MUC4 was identified as a direct target gene. Its effects were partly blocked by re-expression of MUC4. In conclusiomn, miR-150-5p may suppress CRC metastasis through directly targeting MUC4, highlighting its potential as a novel agent for the treatment of CRC metastasis.

Identification and Characterization of the Antifungal Substances of a Novel Streptomyces cavourensis NA4s

( Hua Qi Pan ),( Su Ya Yu ),( Chun Feng Song ),( Nan Wang ),( Hui Ming Hua ),( Jiang Chun Hu ),( Shu Jin Wang ) 한국미생물 · 생명공학회 2015 Journal of microbiology and biotechnology Vol.25 No.3

A new actinomycete strain NA4 was isolated from a deep-sea sediment collected from the South China Sea and showed promising antifungal activities against soilborne fungal pathogens. It was identified as Streptomyces cavourensis by morphological, physiological, and phylogenetic analyses based on its 16S rRNA gene sequence. The main antifungal components were isolated and identified from the fermentation culture as bafilomycins B1 and C1. These compounds exhibited significant antifungal activities and a broad antifungal spectrum. The results suggest that the Streptomyces cavourensis NA4 and bafilomycins B1 and C1 could be used as potential biocontrol agents for soilborne fungal diseases of plants.

Implementation of online model updating with ANN method in substructure pseudo-dynamic hybrid simulation

Yan Hua Wang,Jing Lv,Yan Feng,Bo Wen Dai,Cheng Wang,Jing Wu,Zi Yan Chen 국제구조공학회 2021 Smart Structures and Systems, An International Jou Vol.28 No.2

Substructure pseudo-dynamic hybrid simulation (SPDHS) is an advanced structural seismic testing method which combines physical experiment and numerical simulation. Generally, the key components which display nonlinearity first are taken as experimental substructures for actual test, and the remaining parts are modeled in simulation. Model updating techniques can be effectively applied to enhance the model precision of nonlinear numerical elements. Specifically, the constitutive model of the experimental substructure is identified online by the instantaneously-measured data, and the corresponding numerical elements with similar hysteretic behaviors are updated synchronously. Artificial neural network (ANN) can recognize the system which cannot be represented by definite numerical model, and thus avoids the structural response distortion caused by the inherent numerical model defects. In this study, a framework for online model updating in SPDHS with ANN method is expanded to implement actual test validation. Moreover, the effectiveness of ANN method is demonstrated by practical tests of a two-story frame model with bending dampers. Additionally, the unscented Kalman filter technique and offline ANN identification approach are both examined in the test validation. The experimental results show that, under the identical loading history, the online ANN method can significantly reduce the model errors and improve the accuracy of SPDHS.

Correlation of CT Perfusion Images with VEGF Expression in Solitary Brain Metastases

Zhang, Jian-Hua,Wang, Ming-Sheng,Pan, Hai-Hong,Li, Shu-Feng,Wang, Zhong-Qiu,Chen, Wang-Sheng Asian Pacific Journal of Cancer Prevention 2012 Asian Pacific journal of cancer prevention Vol.13 No.4

Objectives: To obtain permeability surface (PS) values using multi-slice helical CT perfusion imaging and to evaluate the spatial distribution correlation between PS values and vascular endothelial growth factor (VEGF) expression in solitary brain metastases. Methods: Imaging was performed on 21 patients, PS values being calculated from the central, border and peripheral parts of tumours. VEGF expression was determined by immunohistochemical staining. Results: Rim enhancement was found in 16 cases, the border of the tumour featuring PS elevation with high VEGF expression in 13 cases. In the 5 cases with nodular enhancement, the border and the central part had high permeability and VEGF expression was high in all cases, the correlation being significant (P<0.01). Conclusion: VEGF expression in brain metastases positively correlates with PS values from CT perfusion imaging, so that the latter can be used in the surveillance of angiogenic activity in brain metastases.

Molecular Cloning and Function Analysis of an Anthocyanidin Synthase Gene from Ginkgo biloba, and Its Expression in Abiotic Stress Responses

Feng Xu,Hua Cheng,Rong Cai,Lin Ling Li,Jie Chang,Jun Zhu,Feng Xia Zhang,Liu Ji Chen,Yan Wang,Shu Han Cheng,Shui Yuan Cheng 한국분자세포생물학회 2008 Molecules and cells Vol.26 No.6

Anthocyanidin synthase (ANS, leucoanthocyanidin oxygenase), a 2-oxoglutarate iron-dependent oxygenase, catalyzed the penultimate step in the biosynthesis of the anthocyanin class of flavonoids, from the colorless leucoanthocyanidins to the colored anthocyanidins. The full-length cDNA and genomic DNA sequences of ANS gene (designated as GbANS) were isolated from Ginkgo biloba for the first time. The full-length cDNA of GbANS contained a 1062-bp open reading frame (ORF) encoding a 354-amino-acid protein. The genomic DNA analysis showed that GbANS gene had three exons and two introns. The deduced GbANS protein showed high identities to other plant ANSs. The conserved amino acids (H-X-D) ligating ferrous iron and residues (R-X-S) participating in 2-oxoglutarate binding were found in GbANS at the similar positions like other ANSs. Southern blot analysis indicated that GbANS belonged to a multi-gene family. The expression analysis by real-time PCR showed that GbANS expressed in a tissue-specific manner in G. biloba. GbANS was also found to be up-regulated by all of the six tested abiotic stresses, UV-B, abscisic acid, sucrose, salicylic acid, cold and ethylene, consistent with the promoter region analysis of GbANS. The recombinant protein was successfully expressed in E. coli strain with pET-28a vector. The in vitro enzyme activity assay by HPLC indicated that recombinant GbANS protein could catalyze the formation the cyanidin from leucocyanidin and conversion of dihydroquercetin to quercetin, suggesting GbANS is a bifunctional enzyme within the anthocyanidin and flavonol biosynthetic pathway.

Laparoscopic left hepatectomy in swine: a safe and feasible technique

Hua Zhang,Tao Liu,Yue Wang,Hai-feng Liu,Jian-tao Zhang,Yan-shuang Wu,Lei Lei,Hong-bin Wang 대한수의학회 2014 Journal of Veterinary Science Vol.15 No.3

A purely laparoscopic four-port approach was created forleft hepatectomy in pigs. A polyethylene loop was placed onthe left two hepatic lobes for traction and lift. Next,penetrating ligation of the lobes using of a double row of silksutures was performed to control bleeding. A direct hepatictransection was completed using a monopolar hook electrodewithout meticulous dissection of the left hepatic vein. Theraw surface of the liver was coagulated and sealed with fibringlue. Lobes were retrieved through an enlarged portal. Laparoscopic hepatic lobectomy was completed in all pigswithout the use of specialized instruments and with a meanoperative time of 179 ± 9 min. No significant perioperativecomplications were observed. The average weight of eachresected lobe was 180 ± 51 g. Complete blood count as well asserum organics and enzyme levels normalized after about 2weeks. During necropsy, adhesion of the hepatic raw surfaceto the gastric wall and omentum were observed. No otherabnormalities were identified. This minimally invasive lefthepatectomy technique in swine could serve as a usefulmodel for investigating liver diseases and regeneration, andoffer preclinical information to improve hepatobiliary surgical procedures.

Study on the Performance Characteristics of Centrifugal Pump with Drag-reducing Surfactant Additives

Wang, Lu,Li, Feng-Chen,Dong, Yong,Cai, Wei-Hua,Su, Wen-Tao Korean Society for Fluid machinery 2011 International journal of fluid machinery and syste Vol.4 No.2

The performance characteristics of centrifugal pump were measured experimentally when running with tap water and drag-reducing surfactant (Octadecyl dimethyl amine oxide (OB-8)) solutions. Tests have been performed on five cases of surfactant solutions with different concentrations (0ppm (tap water), 200ppm, 500ppm, 900ppm and 1500ppm) and four different rotating speeds of pump (1500rpm, 2000rpm, 2500rpm and 2900rpm). Compared with tap water case, the experimental results show that the total pump heads for surfactant solution cases are higher. And the pump efficiency with surfactant solutions also increases, but the shaft power for surfactant solutions cases decreases compared to t hat for tap water. There exists an optimal temperature for surfactant solutions, which maximizes the pump efficiency.