Localization of QTLs for Husk Proportion and Lignin Content Using a High-Density Genetic Linkage Map of Brassica napus

Fu You Fu,Lie Zhao Liu,You Rong Chai,Li Chen,Tao Yang,Ai Fen Ma,Cun Ming Qu,Lin Jiang,Zheng Sheng Zhang,Jia Na Li 한국유전학회 2007 Genes & Genomics Vol.29 No.3

Husk proportion (HP) and lignin content (LC) are two important traits of seed quality of B. napus. Efficient selection of these two traits is an important way to improve the seed quality in meal improvement. A set of recombinant inbred lines (RILs) of B. napus (GH06 × Zhongyou 821) was used for mapping QTLs of HP and LC in a two-year study in different environments. 509 markers (78 SSR markers, 66 RAPD markers and 365 SRAP markers) were mapped on 26 linkage groups with an average length of 73.96 cM. The map covered a total of 1923 cM, and the average distance between two adjacent markers was 3.78 cM. Analysis of variance of LC and HP indicated that. LC might not be significantly affected by environment (F = 2.96 < 3.02) and HP might be affected by genotype × environment interactions. A total of 15 significant QTLs were detected in eight linkage groups with a LOD threshold value of 2.5 (LR ≥ 11.5) by CIM, explaining 4.99-16.14% of phenotype variation. Some QTLs of LC and HP were detected in near regions of the same linkage groups, such as qLCBB05-6-1 and qLCWZ06-6-1, qLCBB05-10-2 and qLCBB06-10-1 and qLCWZ06-10-2, qHPBB05-9-3 and qHPBB06-9-1, qHPBB05-10-4 and qHPBB06-10-2 and qHPBB06-10-3 and qHPWZ06-10-1. This study indicates that the repeatedly detected QTLs of LC and HP might be major-effect QTLs of LC and HP.

Advanced glycation end products promote meniscal calcification by activating the mTOR-ATF4 positive feedback loop

Yang Sheng,Xie JiaJun,Pan ZhiJie,Guan HongMei,Tu YueSheng,Ye YuanJian,Huang ShouBin,Fu ShiQiang,Li KangXian,Huang ZhiWei,Li XiaoQi,Shi ZhanJun,Li Le,Zhang Yang 생화학분자생물학회 2024 Experimental and molecular medicine Vol.56 No.-

The meniscus is vital for maintaining knee homeostasis and function. Meniscal calcification is one of the earliest radiological indicators of knee osteoarthritis (KOA), and meniscal calcification is associated with alterations in biomechanical properties. Meniscal calcification originates from a biochemical process similar to vascular calcification. Advanced glycation end products (AGEs) and their receptors (RAGEs) reportedly play critical roles in vascular calcification. Herein, we investigated whether targeting AGE-RAGE is a potential treatment for meniscal calcification. In our study, we demonstrated that AGE-RAGE promotes the osteogenesis of meniscal cells and exacerbates meniscal calcification. Mechanistically, AGE-RAGE activates mTOR and simultaneously promotes ATF4 accumulation, thereby facilitating the ATF4-mTOR positive feedback loop that enhances the osteogenic capacity of meniscal cells. In this regard, mTOR inhibits ATF4 degradation by reducing its ubiquitination, while ATF4 activates mTOR by increasing arginine uptake. Our findings substantiate the unique role of AGE-RAGE in the meniscus and reveal the role of the ATF4-mTOR positive feedback loop during the osteogenesis of meniscal cells; these results provide potential therapeutic targets for KOA.

Three Component Solvent-free Synthesis of Chroman-2,4-dione-based Heterocyclic Ketene Aminal (HKA) Derivatives by “GAP” Chemistry

Fu-Chao Yu,Xiao-Pan Hao,Xiu-Yang Jiang,Sheng-jiao Yan,Jun Lin 대한화학회 2014 Bulletin of the Korean Chemical Society Vol.35 No.6

A concise and efficient one-pot synthesis of chroman-2,4-dione-based HKA derivatives by three component reaction of HKAs, triethoxymethane and 4-hydroxycoumarin derivatives under solvent-free and catalyst-free conditions is described. This protocol has many advantages, in that the GAP (Group-Assistant-Purification) chemistry process is involved in this method. As a result, the experimenter can avoid cumbersome process steps such as traditional chromatography and recrystallization purifications. The desired products can be easily obtained by washing the crude products with 95% EtOH.

Two Androstane Derivatives from the Cultures of Fungus Marasmiellus ramealis (Bull.) Singer

Yang, Ning-Ning,Ma, Qing-Yun,Huang, Sheng-Zhuo,Dai, Hao-Fu,Guo, Zhi-Kai,Yu, Zhi-Fang,Zhao, You-Xing Korean Chemical Society 2014 Bulletin of the Korean Chemical Society Vol.35 No.11

A new androstane derivative, $4{\beta}$-methyl-15-oxa-$14{\beta}$-androstane-7-ene-$4{\alpha}$-carboxylic acid (1) and a known one $4{\beta}$-methyl-15-oxa-$14{\beta}$-androstane-7-ene-$4{\alpha}$-hydroxyl (2) were isolated from the EtOAc extract of the cultures of the fungus Marasmiellus ramealis (Bull.) Singer. Their structures were elucidated on the basis of 1D and 2D NMR as well as MS spectroscopic data analysis. The inhibitory activity of two isolates against acetylcholinesterase (AChE) revealed that compound 1 exhibited definitely inhibitory activity.

Up-regulation of Insulin-like Growth Factor Binding Protein-3 Is Associated with Brain Metastasis in Lung Adenocarcinoma

Yang, Lishi,Li, Junyang,Fu, Shaozhi,Ren, Peirong,Tang, Juan,Wang, Na,Shi, Xiangxiang,Wu, Jingbo,Lin, Sheng Korean Society for Molecular and Cellular Biology 2019 Molecules and cells Vol.42 No.4

The brain is the most common metastatic site of lung adenocarcinoma; however, the mechanism of this selective metastasis remains unclear. We aimed to verify the hypothesis that exposure of tumor cells to the brain microenvironment leads to changes in their gene expression, which promotes their oriented transfer to the brain. A549 and H1299 lung adenocarcinoma cells were exposed to human astrocyte-conditioned medium to simulate the brain microenvironment. Microarray analysis was used to identify differentially expressed genes, which were confirmed by quantitative real-time PCR and western blotting. Knockdown experiments using microRNAs and the overexpression of genes by cell transfection were performed in addition to migration and invasion assays. In vitro findings were confirmed in clinical specimens using immunohistochemistry. We found and confirmed a significant increase in insulin-like growth factor binding protein-3 (IGFBP3) levels. Our results also showed that the up-regulation of IGFBP3 promoted A549 cell epithelial-mesenchymal transition, migration, and invasion, while the knockdown of IGFBP3 resulted in decreased cell motility. We also found that Transforming growth factor-${\beta}$ (TGF-${\beta}$)/Mothers against decapentaplegic homolog 4 (Smad4)-induced epithelial-mesenchymal transition was likely IGFBP3-dependent in A549 cells. Finally, expression of IGFBP3 was significantly elevated in pulmonary cancer tissues and intracranial metastatic tissues. Our data indicate that up-regulation of IGFBP3 might mediate brain metastasis in lung adenocarcinoma, which makes it a potential therapeutic target.

Lobaplatin-TACE Combined with Radioactive ¹²⁵I Seed Implantation for Treatment of Primary Hepatocellular Carcinoma

Peng, Sheng,Yang, Qiu-Xia,Zhang, Tao,Lu, Ming-Jian,Yang, Guang,Liu, Zhen-Yin,Zhang, Rong,Zhang, Fu-Jun Asian Pacific Journal of Cancer Prevention 2014 Asian Pacific journal of cancer prevention Vol.15 No.13

Aim: To investigate the efficacy and safety of lobaplatin-transcatheter arterial chemoembolization (TACE) combined with radioactive $^{125}I$ seed implantation in treatment of primary hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC). Methods: 75 patients with primary HCC were enrolled in the study, among them 43 receiving lobaplatin-TACE (TACE group) and 32 lobaplatin-TACE combined with $^{125}I$ seed implantation (TACE+$^{125}I$ group). After treatment, the local remission rates and postoperative complications of two groups were compared using the Pearson Chi-square test. Overall survival in the two groups was calculated using Kaplan-Meier survival curves and the differences were tested using Log-rank test. Results: There were 7 cases of complete response (CR), 13 of partial response (PR), 6 of stable disease (SD) and 17 of progressive disease (PD) in the TACE group, with 13 cases of CR, 9 of PR, 5 of SD and 5 of PD in the TACE+$^{125}I$ group. The disease control rates of TACE and TACE+$^{125}I$ group were 60.5% (26/43) and 84.4% (27/32), respectively, with a significant difference between them (P < 0.05). The survival rates at 6, 12 and 18 months in the TACE group were 100.0%, 81.8% and 50.0%, respectively, and those in TACE+$^{125}I$ group were 100.0%, 93.8% and 65.6%. The mean survival times in the TACE and TACE+$^{125}I$ groups were 19.5 and 22.9 months, respectively. There was a significant difference in the overall survival rate between two groups (P < 0.05). No serious complications were encountered in either group. Conclusion: Lobaplatin-TACE combined with $^{125}I$ seed implantation is favorable and safe for treatment of primary HCC.

Expression profiles of circular RNAs in sheep skeletal muscle

Cao, Yang,You, Shuang,Yao, Yang,Liu, Zhi-Jin,Hazi, Wureli,Li, Cun-Yuan,Zhang, Xiang-Yu,Hou, Xiao-Xu,Wei, Jun-Chang,Li, Xiao-Yue,Wang, Da-Wei,Chen, Chuang-Fu,Zhang, Yun-Feng,Ni, Wei,Hu, Sheng-Wei Asian Australasian Association of Animal Productio 2018 Animal Bioscience Vol.31 No.10

Objective: Circular RNAs (circRNAs) are a newfound class of non-coding RNA in animals and plants. Recent studies have revealed that circRNAs play important roles in cell proliferation, differentiation, autophagy and apoptosis during development. However, there are few reports about muscle development-related circRNAs in livestock. Methods: RNA sequencing analysis was employed to identify and annotate circRNAs from longissimus dorsi of sheep. Reverse transcription followed by real-time quantitative (q) polymerase chain reaction (PCR) analysis verified the presence of these circRNAs. Targetscan7.0 and miRanda were used to analyse the interaction of circRNA-microRNA (miRNA). To investigate the function of circRNAs, an experiment was conducted to perform enrichment analysis hosting genes of circRNAs using gene ontology (GO) and Kyoto encyclopedia of genes and genomes (KEGG) pathways. Results: About 75.5 million sequences were obtained from RNA libraries of sheep skeletal muscle. These sequences were mapped to 729 genes in the sheep reference genome. We identified 886 circRNAs, including numerous circular intronic RNAs and exonic circRNAs. Reverse transcription PCR (RT-PCR) and DNA sequencing analysis confirmed the presence of several circRNAs. Real-Time RT-PCR analysis exhibited resistance of sheep circRNAs to RNase R digestion. We found that many circRNAs interacted with muscle-specific miRNAs involved in growth and development of muscle, especially circ776. The GO and KEGG enrichment analysis showed that hosting genes of circRNAs was involved in muscle cell development and signaling pathway. Conclusion: The study provides comprehensive expression profiles of circRNAs in sheep skeletal muscle. Our study offers a large number of circRNAs to facilitate a better understanding of their roles in muscle growth. Meanwhile, we suggested that circ776 could be analyzed in future study.

Multimorbidity Pattern and Risk for Mortality Among Patients With Dementia: A Nationwide Cohort Study Using Latent Class Analysis

Che-Sheng Chu,Shu-Li Cheng,Ya-Mei Bai,Tung-Ping Su,Shih-Jen Tsai,Tzeng-Ji Chen,Fu-Chi Yang,Mu-Hong Chen,Chih-Sung Liang 대한신경정신의학회 2023 PSYCHIATRY INVESTIGATION Vol.20 No.9

Objective Individuals with dementia are at a substantially elevated risk for mortality; however, few studies have examined multimorbidity patterns and determined the inter-relationship between these comorbidities in predicting mortality risk.Methods This is a prospective cohort study. Data from 6,556 patients who were diagnosed with dementia between 1997 and 2012 using the Taiwan National Health Insurance Research Database were analyzed. Latent class analysis was performed using 16 common chronic conditions to identify mortality risk among potentially different latent classes. Logistic regression was performed to determine the adjusted association of the determined latent classes with the 5-year mortality rate.Results With adjustment for age, a three-class model was identified, with 42.7% of participants classified as “low comorbidity class (cluster 1)”, 44.2% as “cardiometabolic multimorbidity class (cluster 2)”, and 13.1% as “FRINGED class (cluster 3, characterized by FRacture, Infection, NasoGastric feeding, and bleEDing over upper gastrointestinal tract).” The incidence of 5-year mortality was 17.6% in cluster 1, 26.7% in cluster 2, and 59.6% in cluster 3. Compared with cluster 1, the odds ratio for mortality was 9.828 (95% confidence interval [CI]=6.708–14.401; p<0.001) in cluster 2 and 1.582 (95% CI=1.281–1.953; p<0.001) in cluster 3.Conclusion Among patients with dementia, the risk for 5-year mortality was highest in the subpopulation characterized by fracture, urinary and pulmonary infection, upper gastrointestinal bleeding, and nasogastric intubation, rather than cancer or cardiometabolic comorbidities. These findings may improve decision-making and advance care planning for patients with dementia.

Validation of Pharyngeal Acid Reflux Episodes Using Hypopharyngeal Multichannel Intraluminal Impedance-pH

Yen-Yang Chen,Chen-Chi Wang,Ying-Cheng Lin,John Y Kao,Chun-Yi Chuang,Yung-An Tsou,Ja-Chih Fu,Sheng-Shun Yang,Chi-Sen Chang,Han-Chung Lien 대한소화기 기능성질환∙운동학회 2023 Journal of Neurogastroenterology and Motility (JNM Vol.29 No.1

Background/AimsHypopharyngeal multichannel intraluminal impedance-pH (HMII-pH) technology incorporating 2 trans-upper esophageal sphincter impedance channels has been developed to detect pharyngeal reflux. We used the HMII-pH technique to validate the candidate pharyngeal acid reflux (PAR) episodes based on the dual-pH tracings and determined the interobserver reproducibility. MethodsWe conducted a cross-sectional study in tertiary centers in Taiwan. Ninety patients with suspected laryngopharyngeal reflux and 28 healthy volunteers underwent HMII-pH test when off acid suppressants. Candidate PAR episodes were characterized by pharyngeal pH drops of at least 2 units and reaching a nadir pH of 5 within 30 seconds during esophageal acidification. Two experts manually independently identified candidate PAR episodes based on the dual-pH tracings. By reviewing the HMII-pH tracings, HMII-pH-proven PAR episodes were subsequently confirmed. The consensus reviews of HMII-pH-proven PAR episodes were considered to be the reference standard diagnosis. The interobserver reproducibility was assessed. ResultsA total of 105 candidate PAR episodes were identified. Among them 84 (80.0%; 95% CI, 71.0-87.0%) were HMII-pH-proven PAR episodes (82 in 16 patients and 2 in 1 healthy subject). Patients tended to have more HMII-pH-proven PAR episodes than healthy controls (median and percentile values [25th, 75th, and 95th percentiles]: 0 [0, 0, 3] vs 0 [0, 0, 0], P = 0.067). The concordance rate in diagnosing HMII-pH-proven PAR episodes between 2 independent observers was 92.2%. ConclusionOur preliminary data showed that 80.0% (71.0-87.0%) of the proposed candidate PAR episodes were HMII-pH-proven PAR episodes, among which the interobserver reproducibility was good.

S100A14 Promotes the Growth and Metastasis of Hepatocellular Carcinoma

Zhao, Fu-Tao,Jia, Zhan-Sheng,Yang, Qun,Song, Le,Jiang, Xiao-Jing Asian Pacific Journal of Cancer Prevention 2013 Asian Pacific journal of cancer prevention Vol.14 No.6

Background: S100A14 has recently been implicated in the progress of several types of cancers. This study aimed to investigate the clinical significance and possible mechanisms of action of S100A14 in the invasion and metastasis of hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC). Methods: S100A14 expression in HCC was detected at mRNA and protein levels and its prognostic significance was assessed. Functional roles of S100A14 in HCC were investigated using MTT, BrdU, wound healing, transwell invasion assay and HCC metastatic mouse model. Results: S100A14 was significantly elevated in HCC tissues, correlated with multiple tumor nodes, high Edmondson-Steiner grade and vascular invasion. Multivariate Cox analysis showed that the S100A14 expression level was a significant and independent prognostic factor for overall survival (OS) of HCC patients (hazard ratio=1.98, 95% confidence interval=1.14-3.46, P=0.013). S100A14 promoted cell proliferation, invasion and metastasis of HCC in vitro and in vivo. Conclusion: These results suggest S100A14 is a novel prognostic marker and therapeutic target for HCC.