HCV-Specific Interleukin-21+CD4+ T Cells Responses Associated with Viral Control through the Modulation of HCV-Specific CD8+ T Cells Function in Chronic Hepatitis C Patients

Guo-Hua Feng,Fu-Sheng Wang,Ji-Yuan Zhang,Qing-Lei Zeng,Lei Jin,Junliang Fu,Bin Yang,Ying Sun,Tianjun Jiang,Xiangsheng Xu,Zheng Zhang,Jinhong Yuan,Liyuan Wu 한국분자세포생물학회 2013 Molecules and cells Vol.36 No.4

Interleukin-21 (IL-21)+CD4+ T cells are involved in the immune response against hepatitis B virus (HBV) by secreting IL-21. However, the role of IL-21+CD4+ T cells in the immune response against chronic hepatitis C (CHC) virus infection is poorly understood. This study aimed to investigate the role of IL-21+CD4+ T cells in CHC patients and the potential mechanisms. The study subjects in-cluded nineteen CHC patients who were grouped by viral load (low, < 106 RNA copies/ml, n = 8; high, > 106 RNA copies/ml, n = 11). The peripheral frequency of HCV-specific IL-21+CD4+ T cells was higher in the low viral load group and was negatively correlated with the serum HCV RNA viral load in all CHC patients. Meanwhile, IL-21+ cells accumulated in the liver in the low viral load group. In vitro, IL-21 treatment increased the expression of proliferation markers and cytolytic molecules on HCV-specific CD8+ T cells. In summary, these findings suggest that HCV-specific IL-21+CD4+ T cells might contribute to HCV control by rescuing HCV-specific CD8+ T cells in CHC patients.

Intravenous Flurbiprofen Axetil Enhances Analgesic Effect of Opioids in Patients with Refractory Cancer Pain by Increasing Plasma β-Endorphin

Wu, Ting-Ting,Wang, Zhi-Gang,Ou, Wu-Ling,Wang, Jun,Yao, Guo-Qing,Yang, Bo,Rao, Zhi-Guo,Gao, Jian-Fei,Zhang, Bi-Cheng Asian Pacific Journal of Cancer Prevention 2014 Asian Pacific journal of cancer prevention Vol.15 No.24

Background: The study aimed to investigate the analgesic effect of a combination of intravenous flurbiprofen axetil and opioids, and evaluate the relationship between refractory pain relief and plasma ${\beta}$-endorphin levels in cancer patients. Materials and Methods: A total of 120 cancer patients was randomly divided into two groups, 60 patients took orally morphine sulfate sustained-release tablets in group A, and another 60 patients receiving the combination treatment of intravenous flurbiprofen axetil and opioid drugs in group B. After 7 days, pain relief, quality of life improvement and side effects were evaluated. Furthermore, plasma ${\beta}$-endorphin levels were measured by radioimmunoassay. Results: With the combination treatment of intravenous intravenous flurbiprofen axetil and opioids, the total effective rate of pain relief rose to 91.4%, as compared to 82.1% when morphine sulfate sustained-release tablet was used alone. Compared with that of group A, the analgesic effect increased in group B (p=0.031). Moreover, satisfactory pain relief was associated with a significant increase in plasma ${\beta}$-endorphin levels. After the treatment, plasma ${\beta}$-endorphin level in group B was $62.4{\pm}13.5pg/ml$, which was higher than that in group A ($45.8{\pm}11.2pg/ml$) (p<0.05). Conclusions: Our results suggest the combination of intravenous flurbiprofen axetil and opioids can enhance the analgesic effect of opioid drugs by increasing plasma ${\beta}$-endorphin levels, which would offer a selected and reliable strategy for refractory cancer pain treatment.

Two type III polyketide synthases from Polygonum cuspidatum: gene structure, evolutionary route and metabolites

Guo, Yan-Wu,Guo, Hui-Li,Li, Xing,Huang, Li-Li,Zhang, Bo-Ning,Pang, Xiao-Bin,Liu, Ben-Ye,Ma, Lan-Qing,Wang, Hong 한국식물생명공학회 2013 Plant biotechnology reports Vol.7 No.3

In our recent work (Ma et al., in Planta 229(3):457-469, 2009a and 229(4):1077-1086, 2009b), two three-intron type III PKS genes, PcPKS1 and PcPKS2, were isolated from Polygonum cuspidatum Sieb. et Zucc. Phylogenetic and functional analyses revealed PcPKS1 is a three-intron chalcone synthase (CHS) gene, and PcPKS2 is found to be a three-intron benzalacetone synthase (BAS) gene. The regular CHS encoded by a single intron gene have not been isolated and characterized from P. cuspidatum. In this work a further CHS with one intron (PcPKS3) and a stilbene synthase (STS) gene with three-intron (PcPKS5) were isolated and characterized by functional and phylogenetic analyses. In comparison with PcPKS1, a bifunctional enzyme with both CHS and BAS activity, the enzymatic product of recombinant PcPKS3 was naringenin, bis-noryangonin (BNY) and 4-coumaroyltriacetic acid lactone (CTAL) occurred as side products. The PcPKS5 synthesized resveratrol and a trace amount of naringenin from p-coumaroyl-CoA. To our knowledge, PcPKS5 is the first reported three-intron STS gene in flowering plants. In this work, we speculated that this involved a possible evolutionary route of plant-specific type III PKS superfamily in P. cuspidatum.

Experimental Investigation on Inelastic Behavior of Composite Box Girder under Negative Moment

Qing-Tian Su,Guo-Tao Yang,Chong Wu 한국강구조학회 2012 International Journal of Steel Structures Vol.12 No.1

The mechanical behavior of negative bending moment zone in composite girder is very complex. The nonlinear characteristics due to the cracking of concrete slab need careful studies. In this experimental research, two specimens of steelconcrete composite box girder with inclined webs under hogging moment were cautiously conducted and tested. The relative slips between the steel and concrete, load-displacement relationship, the strain distribution of the steel girder, the reinforcements and the concrete slab, and the cracking behavior of the concrete slab were measured during the tests. The relatively small slips on the surfaces between the concrete slab and the top flange of the steel girder showed the full shear connection composite behavior of the girders. The initial cracking load was compared with the calculation results from linear analysis and nonlinear analysis based maximum strain. The strain of the steel web measured at different positions along the vertical direction showed the establishment of plane section assumption and the variation of neutral axis in the loading process. Moreover, shear lag effect was found in the strain distribution of the bottom flanges. The strain of concrete slab and the crack spacing showed the effect of the longitudinal reinforcement ratio on the cracking behavior of the concrete. The maximum crack width was observed in the loading process and compared with the calculation results according the design codes. The influence of reinforcement ratio on the strain of reinforcement and on the load capacity in serviceability limit state was studied in the context and it was found that the reinforcement ratio play an important role on the crack control of composite girder under hogging moment.

Pesticide-induced changes in fecundity and rice stripe virus transmission ability in Laodelphax striatellus (Homoptera: Delphacidae)

Guo-Qing Yang,Xin Gao,Nan-Nan Zhang,Dan-Yu Chen,Fang Liu,Jian-Xiang Xu,Jin-Cai Wu 한국응용곤충학회 2017 Journal of Asia-Pacific Entomology Vol.20 No.3

The widespread use of pesticides in rice has caused the resurgence of the small brown planthopper (SBPH), Laodelphax striatellus. In addition to inciting damage by feeding on phloem cells, SBPH also functions as a vector for rice stripe virus (RSV), which can cause serious yield losses. In general, studies focused on pesticide-induced stimulation of SBPH populations have focused on the insects; little information is available on the impact of pesticides on RSV transmission by SBPH. The present study investigated the effects of two pesticides (validamycin and triazophos) on the fecundity and RSV transmission ability of SBPH. Our results demonstrated that the fecundity of non-viruliferous (naïve) or viruliferous SBPH was enhanced by exposure to triazophos at the LC20 and validamycin at 200 mg L−1. Meanwhile, the increased number of eggs produced by viruliferous females treated with pesticides was larger than those from naïve females. Exposure to validamycin caused an increase in horizontal transmission of RSV; furthermore, vertical viral transmission rates of SBPH were significantly increased by exposure to triazophos. The present study provides valuable information for understanding the mechanisms underlying the resurgence of SBPH and subsequent outbreaks of RSV.

Resistance selection with cadmium and changes in the activities of antioxidases in Boettcherisca peregrina (Diptera: Sarcophagidae)

Guo-Xing Wu,Xi Gao,Qing Tan,Zheng-Yue Li,Cui Hu,Gong-yin Ye 한국응용곤충학회 2014 Journal of Asia-Pacific Entomology Vol.17 No.2

In order to establish a physiological link between antioxidases and the resistance level of insects to cadmium(Cd), natural populations of Boettcherisca peregrina (Diptera: Sarcophagidae)weremaintained for 20 generationsand reared either on an uncontaminated diet or on a diet contaminated with cadmium (Cd) at a concentrationequivalent to the median lethal concentration (LC50) as determined every five generations. A relatively susceptiblestrain (S) and a Cd-resistant strain (R) were selected. Themetal accumulation, growth and development, reproduction,and antioxidant enzyme activities in these strains were analyzed. The results showed that R-strain organismshad enhanced juvenile survivorship, increased Cd accumulation, and increased adult female fecundity whencompared with S-strain. The larval enzyme activities of superoxide dismutase (SOD), catalase (CAT), glutathionereductase (GR), and glutathione S-transferase (GST) in R-strain larvae were higher than those in S-strain larvaewhen fed diets with or without Cd. This indicates that Cd resistance in B. peregrina larvae is mediated by SOD,CAT, GR, and GST.

Protein-protein Interaction Network Analyses for Elucidating the Roles of LOXL2-delta72 in Esophageal Squamous Cell Carcinoma

Wu, Bing-Li,Zou, Hai-Ying,Lv, Guo-Qing,Du, Ze-Peng,Wu, Jian-Yi,Zhang, Pi-Xian,Xu, Li-Yan,Li, En-Min Asian Pacific Journal of Cancer Prevention 2014 Asian Pacific journal of cancer prevention Vol.15 No.5

Lysyl oxidase-like 2 (LOXL2), a member of the lysyl oxidase (LOX) family, is a copper-dependent enzyme that catalyzes oxidative deamination of lysine residues on protein substrates. LOXL2 was found to be overexpressed in esophageal squamous cell carcinoma (ESCC) in our previous research. We later identified a LOXL2 splicing variant LOXL2-delta72 and we overexpressed LOXL2-delta72 and its wild type counterpart in ESCC cells following microarray analyses. First, the differentially expressed genes (DEGs) of LOXL2 and LOXL2-delta72 compared to empty plasmid were applied to generate protein-protein interaction (PPI) sub-networks. Comparison of these two sub-networks showed hundreds of different proteins. To reveal the potential specific roles of LOXL2- delta72 compared to its wild type, the DEGs of LOXL2-delta72 vs LOXL2 were also applied to construct a PPI sub-network which was annotated by Gene Ontology. The functional annotation map indicated the third PPI sub-network involved hundreds of GO terms, such as "cell cycle arrest", "G1/S transition of mitotic cell cycle", "interphase", "cell-matrix adhesion" and "cell-substrate adhesion", as well as significant "immunity" related terms, such as "innate immune response", "regulation of defense response" and "Toll signaling pathway". These results provide important clues for experimental identification of the specific biological roles and molecular mechanisms of LOXL2-delta72. This study also provided a work flow to test the different roles of a splicing variant with high-throughput data.

Multiplex Real-time PCR for RRM1, XRCC1, TUBB3 and TS mRNA for Prediction of Response of Non-small Cell Lung Cancer to Chemoradiotherapy

Wu, Guo-Qiu,Liu, Nan-Nan,Xue, Xiu-Lei,Cai, Li-Ting,Zhang, Chen,Qu, Qing-Rong,Yan, Xue-Jiao Asian Pacific Journal of Cancer Prevention 2014 Asian Pacific journal of cancer prevention Vol.15 No.10

Background: This study was aimed to establish a novel method to simultaneously detect expression of four genes, ribonucleotide reductase subunit M1(RRM1), X-ray repair cross-complementing gene 1 (XRCC1), thymidylate synthase (TS) and class III ${\beta}$-tubulin (TUBB3), and to assess their application in the clinic for prediction of response of non-small cell lung cancer (NSCLC) to chemoradiotherapy. Materials and Methods: We have designed four gene molecular beacon (MB) probes for multiplex quantitative real-time polymerase chain reactions to examine RRM1, XRCC1, TUBB3 and TS mRNA expression in paraffin-embedded specimens from 50 patients with advanced or metastatic carcinomas. Twenty one NSCLC patients receiving cisplatin-based first-line treatment were analyzed. Results: These molecular beacon probes could specially bind to their target genes in homogeneous solutions. Patients with low RRM1 and XRCC1 mRNA levels were found to have apparently higher response rates to chemoradiotherapy compared with those with high levels of RRM1 and XRCC1 expression (p<0.05). The TS gene expression level was not significantly associated with chemotherapy response (p>0.05). Conclusions: A method of simultaneously detecting four molecular markers was successfully established and applied for evaluation of chemoradiotherapy response. It may be a useful tool in personalized cancer therapy.

Rs7574865 polymorphism of STAT4 and risk of anti-tuberculosis drug-induced hepatotoxicity in Chinese Han

Guo Chen,Wei Mao,Shou‑Quan Wu,Yu Wang,Gui‑Yi Ji,Miao‑Miao Zhang,Qian‑Qian Liu,Jian‑Qing He 한국유전학회 2017 Genes & Genomics Vol.39 No.11

Anti-tuberculosis drug-induced hepatotoxicity (ATDH) is the most frequent, and potentially fatal adverse effect in the treatment of tuberculosis (TB). The rs7574865 polymorphism in the signal transducer and activator of transcription 4 gene (STAT4) was reported to be associated with drug-induced liver injury. However, there was no study aimed to this association in Chinese patients. The aim of this study was to investigate the influence of STAT4 polymorphisms on the susceptibility to ATDH in a Chinese Han population. A total of 280 TB patients with the prescription of anti-TB therapy, of Chinese Han origin, were enrolled. They were followed up for 3 months and demographic, clinical, laboratory and therapeutic data at each visit were collected. Two single nucleotide polymorphisms (SNPs) (rs7574865 and rs7582694) of STAT4 were genotyped with the MassARRAY platform. The associations between SNPs and ATDH risk were analyzed by logistic regression adjusting for confounding factors. A total of 24 patients were diagnosed with ATDH and considered as the case group, and 33 patients were lost to follow-up; the remaining 223 subjects without ATDH were considered as the control group. There was strong linkage disequilibrium (LD) between rs7574865 and rs7582694 ( r2 = 0.928 and D′ = 1). No significant association was found between SNPs or haplotypes of STAT4 and ATDH after correction for confounding factors. This prospective study is the first to investigate the association of genetic polymorphisms of STAT4 and ATDH in Chinese individuals. There was no significant association between the rs7574865 of STAT4 and ATDH in a Chinese Han population.

Two type III polyketide synthases from Polygonum cuspidatum: gene structure, evolutionary route and metabolites

Lan-Qing Ma,Yan-Wu Guo,Hui-Li Guo,Xing Li,Li-Li Huang,Bo-Ning Zhang,Xiao-Bin Pang,Ben-Ye Liu,Hong Wang 한국식물생명공학회 2013 Plant biotechnology reports Vol.7 No.3

In our recent work (Ma et al., in Planta229(3):457–469, 2009a and 229(4):1077–1086, 2009b),two three-intron type III PKS genes, PcPKS1 and PcPKS2,were isolated from Polygonum cuspidatum Sieb. et Zucc. Phylogenetic and functional analyses revealed PcPKS1 is athree-intron chalcone synthase (CHS) gene, and PcPKS2 isfound to be a three-intron benzalacetone synthase (BAS)gene. The regular CHS encoded by a single intron genehave not been isolated and characterized from P. cuspidatum. In this work a further CHS with one intron (PcPKS3)and a stilbene synthase (STS) gene with three-intron(PcPKS5) were isolated and characterized by functionaland phylogenetic analyses. In comparison with PcPKS1, abifunctional enzyme with both CHS and BAS activity, theenzymatic product of recombinant PcPKS3 was naringenin,bis-noryangonin (BNY) and 4-coumaroyltriacetic acidlactone (CTAL) occurred as side products. The PcPKS5synthesized resveratrol and a trace amount of naringeninfrom p-coumaroyl-CoA. To our knowledge, PcPKS5 is thefirst reported three-intron STS gene in flowering plants. Inthis work, we speculated that this involved a possibleevolutionary route of plant-specific type III PKS superfamilyin P. cuspidatum.