Clinical Study of Thalidomide Combined with Dexamethasone for the Treatment of Elderly Patients with Newly Diagnosed Multiple Myeloma

Chen, Hai-Fei,Li, Zheng-Yang,Tang, Jie-Qing,Shen, Hong-Shi,Cui, Qing-Ya,Ren, Yong-Ya,Qin, Long-Mei,Jin, Ling-Juan,Zhu, Jing-Jing,Wang, Jing,Ding, Jie,Wang, Ke-Yuan,Yu, Zi-Qiang,Wang, Zhao-Yue,Wu, Tian Asian Pacific Journal of Cancer Prevention 2012 Asian Pacific journal of cancer prevention Vol.13 No.9

Objective: To investigate the relationship between the efficacy and safety of different doses of thalidomide (Thal) plus dexamethasone (Dex) as the initial therapy in elderly patients with newly diagnosed multiple myeloma (MM). Methods: Clinical data of 28 elderly patients with newly diagnosed MM who underwent the TD regimen as the initial therapy were analyzed retrospectively. The patients were divided into two groups according to the maximal sustained dose of Thal: lower dose (group A) and higher dose (group B). The overall response rate (ORR), progression free survival (PFS), overall survival (OS), and adverse events (AES) were compared between the two groups. Results: A total of 28 patients were followed up with a median of 18 months. The ORR was 60.1%. The median response time and PFS were 2.0 and 17.0 months, respectively. The mean sustained dose of Thal in group B was significantly higher than group A (292.9 mg v 180.4 mg, P=0.01). There was no significantly difference in ORR (57.1% v 64.3%, P=1.00) and PFS (9.63months v 17.66 months, P=0.73) between groups A and B. During the follow up, only five patients died (<40%) and, therefore, median OS values were not available. It is estimated, however, that the mean survival time in the two groups was 35.6 and 33.4 months (P>0.05), respectively. All of the patients tolerated the treatment well. The incidence of AES in patients with a grading above 3 in group B was significantly higher than in group A (P=0.033). Conclusions: The TD regimen results in a high response rate and manageable AES as the initial therapy in elderly patients with MM. TD should be considered as the front line regimen for the treatment of elderly patients with MM in areas with financial constraints. The clinical response can be achieved at a low dose Thal with minimal toxicity.

Mitochondrial genomes of the Dorcus velutinus complex (Coleoptera: Lucanidae) with the large intergenic spacer showing unique short sequence repeats and their implications for systematics

Chen Yong-Jing,Kim Sangil,Wan Xia 한국응용곤충학회 2021 Journal of Asia-Pacific Entomology Vol.24 No.1

Mitochondrial genomes of the three lucanid species in the Dorcus velutinus complex – Dorcus velutinus Thomson, D. ursulus Arrow and D. tenuihirsutus Kim and Kim – were assembled and analyzed through next generation sequencing. The mitogenome sequences were used to infer phylogenetic relationships among Dorcus species. Our analyses revealed that the newly sequenced mitogenomes are comparable in their size, content, and gene arrangement to other lucanid mitogenomes reported to date. However, we confirmed the presence of a large intergenic spacer (IGS) between trnS (UCN) and ND1 genes, whose length varied from 170 bp (in D. tenuihirsutus) to 193 bp (in D. ursulus and D. velutinus). Within this IGS region, a short sequence fragment (TACTAAATT) was found uniquely across the three species of Dorcus velutinus complex. Our phylogenetic analyses show that the D. velutinus complex constitutes a distinct clade with a significant divergence from other species of the genus Dorcus sensu stricto. Furthermore, we reaffirm the validity of D. tenuihirsutus – a species originally described from Korea – as a distinct species, though the taxonomic status of D. ursulus remains to be studied further. Finally, we find the presence and location of large IGSs to be useful for studying evolutionary history and species delimi tation in stag beetles.

Effect of the Oxygen Flux Ratio on the Structural and the Optical Properties of Silver-oxide Films Deposited by Using the Direct-current Reactive Magnetron Sputtering Method

Xiao-Yong Gao,Hong-Liang Feng,Zeng-Yuan Zhang,Jiao-Min Ma,Meng-Ke Zhao,Chao Chen,Jin-Hua Gu,Shi-E Yang,Yong-Sheng Chen,Jing-Xiao Lu 한국물리학회 2011 THE JOURNAL OF THE KOREAN PHYSICAL SOCIETY Vol.58 No.2

Using values of the oxygen flux ratio (OFR = [O2]/[Ar]) ranging from 0 to 0.5, authors deposited a series of silver-oxide (Ag_xO) films on glass substrates by direct-current reactive magnetron sputtering (DC sputtering) at a substrate temperature of 150 ℃. The effect of the OFR on the film’s structural and optical properties was systematically investigated by using X-ray diffractometry, scanning electron microscopy and spectrophotometry. The Ag_xO films deposited clearly show an evolution of the film’s phase structure from the biphased (Ag + Ag_2O) structure to the biphased (AgO + Ag_2O) structure and then to the single-phased (Ag_2O) structure as value of the OFR increases. Accordingly, the film’s surface morphology, related to the film’s crystalline structure, clearly changes from a loose and porous surface structure to a compact surface structure and then to a pyramid-like surface structure with increasing value of the OFR. The novel porous structure may be attributed to the interruption of the silver’s growth course by the AgO on the film’s surface. Notably, a single-phased Ag_2O film is deposited by DC-sputtering at OFR = 0.5 due to the dual effects of thermal decomposition of the AgO phase and a combination reaction of AgO and Ag to Ag_2O. The oscillations both in the film’s reflectivity and transmissivity spectra are strengthened with increasing OFR, indicating an evolution from the metallic behavior of the biphased (Ag + Ag_2O) film to the dielectric behavior of the biphased (Ag_2O + AgO) film and the single-phased Ag2O film. The fitted optical absorption edges of the Ag_2O and the Ag_xO films deposited at values of the OFR of 0.5 and 0.33 are approximately 2.43 eV and 2.34 eV, respectively. The absorption edges are closely related to the direct interband transitions.

Novel genetic variants of sine oculis homeobox homolog 3 gene are associated with body weight and average daily gain in Bos taurus

Xian-Yong Lan,Chu-Zhao Lei,Yong-Tao Huai,Chuan-Ying Pan,Jing Wang,Yong-Zhen Huang,Hong Chen 한국유전학회 2011 Genes & Genomics Vol.33 No.6

Sine oculis homeobox homolog 3 (Six3) gene is responsible for normal mammalian pituitary development, and its genetic variations or deficiency will cause hypopituitarism, suggesting that this gene is a potential candidate gene for studying association with growth traits in animals. Herein, genetic variants within bovine Six3 gene was screened in 1031 individuals from four Chinese indigenous cattle breeds. Two novel polymorphisms (NC_007309:g.2515G>A and NC_007309:g.2607T>C) locating at positions nt1707 and nt1799 of intron 1 in bovine Six3gene, were found, and could be genotyped by TaqI ACRS PCR-RFLP and Alw26I PCR-RFLP, respectively. The frequencies of allele “A” of TaqI locus varied from 0.004 to 0.309,as well as the frequencies of allele “C” of Alw26I locus waved from 0.025 to 0.340. Association analysis revealed no significant association of TaqI locus with growth traits in Nanyang breed. However, significant relationships between Alw26I locus and body weight (BW) and average daily gain (ADG) in Nanyang breed was found (p<0.05). The individuals with genotype TC had greater body weight and average daily gain than those with genotype TT at 18 months old. Furthermore, based on combinated genotypes from these two loci, diplotypes was found to be associated with growth traits (p<0.05).The individuals with dihaplotype GG-TC had greater body weight and average daily gain at 18 month-old than those of other dihaplotypes. Therefore, the TaqI and Alw26I genetic variants of bovine Six3 gene were recommended as DNA markers related to growth traits through marker-assisted selection for genetics and breeding in cattle.

Unilateral ureteral obstruction causes gut microbial dysbiosis and metabolome disorders contributing to tubulointerstitial fibrosis

Lin Chen,Dan-Qian Chen,Jing-Ru Liu,Jun Zhang,Nosratola D. Vaziri,Shougang Zhuang,Hua Chen,Ya-Long Feng,Yan Guo,Ying-Yong Zhao 생화학분자생물학회 2019 Experimental and molecular medicine Vol.51 No.-

Chronic kidney disease (CKD) increases the risk and prevalence of cardiovascular disease (CVD) morbidity and mortality. Recent studies have revealed marked changes in the composition of the microbiome and the metabolome and their potential influence in renal disease and CVD via the accumulation of microbial-derived uremic toxins. However, the effect of unilateral ureteral obstruction (UUO) on the gut microbiome and circulating metabolites is unknown. Male Sprague-Dawley rats were randomized to UUO and sham-operated control groups. Renal histology, colonic microbiota, and plasma metabolites were examined two weeks later. We employed 16S rRNA sequence and untargeted metabolomic analyses to explore the changes in colonic microbiota and plasma metabolites and their relationship with tubulointerstitial fibrosis (TIF). The UUO rats exhibited tubular atrophy and dilatation, interstitial fibrosis and inflammatory cell infiltration in the obstructed kidney. UUO rats showed significant colonic enrichment and depletion of genera. Significant differences were identified in 219 plasma metabolites involved in lipid, amino acid, and bile acid metabolism, which were consistent with gut microbiota-related metabolism. Interestingly, tryptophan and its metabolites kynurenine, 5-hydroxytryptophan and 5-hydroxytryptamine levels, which were linked with TIF, correlated with nine specific genera. Plasma tryptophan level was positively correlated with Clostridium IV, Turicibacter, Pseudomonas and Lactobacillales, and negatively correlated with Oscillibacter, Blautia, and Intestinimonas, which possess the genes encoding tryptophan synthase (K16187), indoleamine 2,3-dioxygenase (K00463) and tryptophan 2,3-dioxygenase (K00453) and their corresponding enzymes (EC:1.13.11.52 and EC:1.13.11.11) that exacerbate TIF. In conclusion, UUO results in profound changes in the gut microbiome and circulating metabolites, events that contribute to the pathogenesis of inflammation and TIF.

Effects of transcription factor SOX11 on the biological behavior of neuroblastoma cell and potential regulatory mechanism

Jing-Ru Huang,Yong Li,Peng Chen,Ji-Xiu Wei,Xia Yang,Qiong-Qian Xu,Jia-Bo Chen 대한외과학회 2024 Annals of Surgical Treatment and Research(ASRT) Vol.106 No.5

Purpose: This study aimed to analyze the expression and prognosis of SRY-box transcription factor 11 (SOX11) in neuroblastoma (NB), as well as the biological function and potential regulatory mechanism of SOX11 in NB. Methods: Public RNA sequencing was used to detect the expression level of SOX11. The Kaplan-Meier curve and hazard ratios (HR) were used to determine the prognostic value of SOX11 in NB. Functional analyses were performed using CCK8, wound healing assay, and transwell invasion assay. Finally, the potential target genes of SOX11 were predicted by Harmonizonme (Maayan Laboratory) and Cistrome Data Browser (Cistrome Project) database to explore the potential molecular mechanism of SOX11 in NB. Results: Compared with normal adrenal tissue, the expression of SOX11 in NB tissue was significantly upregulated. The Kaplan-Meier curve showed that high expression of SOX11 was associated with poor prognosis in children with NB (HR, 1.719; P = 0.049). SOX11 knockdown suppressed the migration capacity of SK-N-SH cells but did not affect proliferation and invasion capacity. Enhancer of zeste homolog 2 (EZH2) may be a potential downstream target gene for the transcription factor SOX11 to play a role in NB. Conclusion: The transcription factor SOX11 was significantly upregulated in NB. SOX11 knockdown suppressed the migration capacity of NB cell SK-N-SH. SOX11 may promote the progression of NB by targeting EZH2.

Incremental fuzzy clustering based on a fuzzy scatter matrix

Yongli Liu,Hengda Wang,Tianyi Duan,Jingli Chen,Hao Chao 한국정보처리학회 2019 Journal of information processing systems Vol.15 No.2

For clustering large-scale data, which cannot be loaded into memory entirely, incremental clustering algorithmsare very popular. Usually, these algorithms only concern the within-cluster compactness and ignore thebetween-cluster separation. In this paper, we propose two incremental fuzzy compactness and separation (FCS)clustering algorithms, Single-Pass FCS (SPFCS) and Online FCS (OFCS), based on a fuzzy scatter matrix. Firstly, we introduce two incremental clustering methods called single-pass and online fuzzy C-meansalgorithms. Then, we combine these two methods separately with the weighted fuzzy C-means algorithm, sothat they can be applied to the FCS algorithm. Afterwards, we optimize the within-cluster matrix and betweenclustermatrix simultaneously to obtain the minimum within-cluster distance and maximum between-clusterdistance. Finally, large-scale datasets can be well clustered within limited memory. We implemented experimentson some artificial datasets and real datasets separately. And experimental results show that, compared withSPFCM and OFCM, our SPFCS and OFCS are more robust to the value of fuzzy index m and noise.

Thermodynamics and Kinetics of Lysozyme Adsorption onto Two Kinds of Weak Cation Exchangers

Yong-Mei Cheng,Xiong-Hua Jin,Dong Gao,Hai-Feng Xia,Jing-Hua Chen 한국생물공학회 2013 Biotechnology and Bioprocess Engineering Vol.18 No.5

The present work investigated the adsorption behaviors of lysozyme onto weak cation exchangers at different temperatures. The adsorption isotherm, adsorption thermodynamics and adsorption kinetics were studied. The results indicate that the adsorption of lysozyme onto acrylic acid copolymer based beads (Hydrolite D115) is spontaneous and exothermic, while that onto agarose based beads (CM Sepharose 6 Fast Flow) is also spontaneous, but endothermic. The pseudo second-order kinetic model fits well to the dynamic adsorption experimental data, and the kinetic results are also in concert with the adsorption thermodynamics.

Alterations of mRNA and lncRNA profiles associated with the extracellular matrix and spermatogenesis in goats

Chen Haolin,Miao Xiaomeng,Xu Jinge,Pu Ling,Li Liang,Han Yong,Mao Fengxian,Ma Youji 아세아·태평양축산학회 2022 Animal Bioscience Vol.35 No.4

Objective: Spermatozoa are produced within the seminiferous tubules after sexual maturity. The expression levels of mRNAs and lncRNAs in testicular tissues are different at each stage of testicular development and are closely related to formation of the extracellular matrix (ECM) and spermatogenesis. Therefore, we set out to study the expression of lncRNAs and mRNAs during the different developmental stages of the goat testis.Methods: We constructed 12 RNA libraries using testicular tissues from goats aged 3, 6, and 12 months, and studied the functions of mRNAs and lncRNAs using the gene ontogeny (GO) and Kyoto encyclopedia of genes and genomes (KEGG) databases. Relationships between differentially expressed genes (DEGs) were analyzed by lncRNA-mRNA coexpression network and protein-protein interaction network (PPI). Finally, the protein expression levels of matrix metalloproteinase 2 (MMP2), insulin-like growth factor 2 (IGF2), and insulin-like growth factor-binding protein 6 (IGFBP6) were detected by western blotting.Results: We found 23, 8, and 135 differentially expressed lncRNAs and 161, 12, and 665 differentially expressed mRNAs that were identified between 3 vs 6, 6 vs 12, and 3 vs 12 months, respectively. GO, KEGG, and PPI analyses showed that the differential genes were mainly related to the ECM. Moreover, MMP2 was a hub gene and co-expressed with the lncRNA TCONS-0002139 and TCONS-00093342. The results of quantitative reverse-transcription polymerase chain reaction verification were consistent with those of RNA-seq sequencing. The expression trends of MMP2, IGF2, and IGFBP6 protein were the same as that of mRNA, which all decreased with age. IGF2 and MMP2 were significantly different in the 3 vs 6-month-old group (p<0.05).Conclusion: These results improve our understanding of the molecular mechanisms involved in sexual maturation of the goat testis. Objective: Spermatozoa are produced within the seminiferous tubules after sexual maturity. The expression levels of mRNAs and lncRNAs in testicular tissues are different at each stage of testicular development and are closely related to formation of the extracellular matrix (ECM) and spermatogenesis. Therefore, we set out to study the expression of lncRNAs and mRNAs during the different developmental stages of the goat testis. Methods: We constructed 12 RNA libraries using testicular tissues from goats aged 3, 6, and 12 months, and studied the functions of mRNAs and lncRNAs using the gene ontogeny (GO) and Kyoto encyclopedia of genes and genomes (KEGG) databases. Relationships between differentially expressed genes (DEGs) were analyzed by lncRNA-mRNA coexpression network and protein-protein interaction network (PPI). Finally, the protein expression levels of matrix metalloproteinase 2 (MMP2), insulin-like growth factor 2 (IGF2), and insulin-like growth factor-binding protein 6 (IGFBP6) were detected by western blotting. Results: We found 23, 8, and 135 differentially expressed lncRNAs and 161, 12, and 665 differentially expressed mRNAs that were identified between 3 vs 6, 6 vs 12, and 3 vs 12 months, respectively. GO, KEGG, and PPI analyses showed that the differential genes were mainly related to the ECM. Moreover, MMP2 was a hub gene and co-expressed with the lncRNA TCONS-0002139 and TCONS-00093342. The results of quantitative reverse-transcription polymerase chain reaction verification were consistent with those of RNA-seq sequencing. The expression trends of MMP2, IGF2, and IGFBP6 protein were the same as that of mRNA, which all decreased with age. IGF2 and MMP2 were significantly different in the 3 vs 6-month-old group (p<0.05). Conclusion: These results improve our understanding of the molecular mechanisms involved in sexual maturation of the goat testis.

Improvement of the Thermostability of Xylanase from Thermobacillus composti through Site-Directed Mutagenesis

( Yong-sheng Tian ),( Jing Xu ),( Lei-chen ),( Xiao-yan Fu ),( Ri-he Peng ),( Quan-hong Yao ) 한국미생물생명공학회(구 한국산업미생물학회) 2017 Journal of microbiology and biotechnology Vol.27 No.10

Thermostability is an important property of xylanase because high temperature is required for its applications, such as wood pulp bleaching, baking, and animal feedstuff processing. In this study, XynB from Thermobacillus composti, a moderately thermophilic gram-negative bacterium, was modified via site-directed mutagenesis (based on its 3D structure) to obtain thermostable xylanase, and the properties of this enzyme were analyzed. Results revealed that the half-life of xylanase at 65°C increased from 10 to 50 min after a disulfide bridge was introduced between the α-helix and its adjacent β-sheet at S98 and N145. Further mutation at the side of A153E named XynB-CE in the C-terminal of this α-helix enhanced the half-life of xylanase for 60 min at 65°C. Therefore, the mutant may be utilized for industrial applications.