Review : Epidemiology of Hepatocellular Carcinoma in the Asia-Pacific Region

( Ran Xu Zhu ),( Wai Kay Seto ),( Ching Lung Lai ),( Man Fung Yuen ) 대한간학회 2016 Gut and Liver Vol.10 No.3

Hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC) is the predominant primary liver cancer in many countries and is the third most common cause of cancer-related death in the Asia-Pacific region. The incidence of HCC is higher in men and in those over 40 years old. In the Asia-Pacific region, chronic hepatitis B virus and hepatitis C virus infections are the main etiological agents; in particular, chronic hepatitis B infection (CHB) is still the major cause in all Asia-Pacific countries except for Japan. Over the past two decades, the incidence of HCC has remained stable in countries in the region except for Singapore and Hong Kong, where the incidence for both sexes is currently decreasing. Chronic hepatitis C infection (CHC) is an important cause of HCC in Japan, representing 70% of HCCs. Over the past several decades, the prevalence of CHC has been increasing in many Asia-Pacific countries, including Australia, New Zealand, and India. Despite advancements in treatment, HCC is still an important health problem because of the associated substantial mortality. An effective surveillance program could offer early diagnosis and hence better treatment options. Antiviral treatment for both CHB and CHC is effective in reducing the incidence of HCC. (Gut Liver 2016;10:332-339)

Molecular Cloning, Identification and Characteristics of a Novel Isoform of Carbamyl Phosphate Synthetase 1 in Human Testis

( Ran Huo ),( Hui Zhu ),( Li Lu ),( Lan Lan Ying ),( Min Xu ),( Zhi Yang Xu ),( Jian Min Li ),( Zuo Min Zhou ),( Jia Hao Sha ) 생화학분자생물학회 2005 BMB Reports Vol.38 No.1

A gene coding a novel isoform of carbamyl phosphate synthetase I (CPSI) was cloned from a human testicular library. As shown by cDNA microarray hybridization, this gene was expressed at a higher level in human adult testes than in fetal testes. The full length of its cDNA was 3831 bp, with a 3149 bp open reading frame, encoding a 1050-amino-acid protein. The cDNA sequence was deposited in the GenBank (AY317138). Sequence analysis showed that it was homologous to the human CPS1 gene. The putative protein contained functional domains composing the intact large subunit of carbamoyl phosphate synthetase, thus indicated it has the capability of arginine biosynthesis. A multiple tissue expression profile showed high expression of this gene in human testis, suggesting the novel alternative splicing form of CPS1 may be correlated with human spermatogenesis.

A liquid phase deposited porous flower-like HNaV6O16⋅4H2O film developed for a novel adsorbent to remove Pb2+, Cu2+, Mn2+ and Cd2+

Xu Hai-Yan,Yang Yi Cai,Li Dong-Cai,Wu Ran Ran,Wang Ai-Guo,Sun Dao-Sheng,Zhang Feng-Jun,오원춘 한국세라믹학회 2023 한국세라믹학회지 Vol.60 No.3

Heavy metal ion pollution of water resources is becoming increasingly serious, and adsorption is one of the most effective strategies for removing heavy metal ions. In the paper, hydrated hydrogen sodium vanadium oxide (HNaV 6O164H2O) fi lm developed for heavy metal ion adsorption was prepared directly via a low-temperature liquid-phase deposition approach. The prepared film shows an interesting porous flower-like morphology and has large spacing ( d = 10.87 Å). The highest adsorption capacity of the obtained HNaV 6O164H2O fi lm for Pb 2+, Cu 2+, Cd 2+ and Mn 2+ is 513 mg/g (2565 mg/m 2), 430 mg/g (2150 mg/m 2), 134 mg/g (875 mg/m 2) and 175 mg/g (670 mg/m 2), respectively. The adsorption percentage of the sample decreased from 92.2 to 86.3% after 4 cycles. The adsorption process follows the Langmuir adsorption isotherm and the pseudo second-order dynamic model, indicating that heavy metal ion adsorption by the fi lm is a single molecular layer chemical adsorption. In combination with various characterizations and comparison tests of samples after adsorption, the adsorption mechanisms include surface electrostatic attraction, complexation, and cation exchange. The results indicate that the fi lm is a potential material to remove heavy metal ions from the aqueous solution.

Molecular Cloning, Identification and Characteristics of a Novel Isoform of Carbamyl Phosphate Synthetase I in Human Testis

Huo, Ran,Zhu, Hui,Lu, Li,Ying, Lanlan,Xu, Min,Xu, Zhiyang,Li, Jianmin,Zhou, Zuomin,Sha, Jiahao Korean Society for Biochemistry and Molecular Biol 2005 Journal of biochemistry and molecular biology Vol.38 No.1

A gene coding a novel isoform of carbamyl phosphate synthetase I (CPS1) was cloned from a human testicular library. As shown by cDNA microarray hybridization, this gene was expressed at a higher level in human adult testes than in fetal testes. The full length of its cDNA was 3831 bp, with a 3149 bp open reading frame, encoding a 1050-amino-acid protein. The cDNA sequence was deposited in the GenBank (AY317138). Sequence analysis showed that it was homologous to the human CPS1 gene. The putative protein contained functional domains composing the intact large subunit of carbamoyl phosphate synthetase, thus indicated it has the capability of arginine biosynthesis. A multiple tissue expression profile showed high expression of this gene in human testis, suggesting the novel alternative splicing form of CPS1 may be correlated with human spermatogenesis.

Effects of Modified MMT on Mechanical Properties of EVA/MMT Nanocomposites and Their Foams

Xu, Zheng Run,Park, Hae Youn,Kim, Ho Young,Seo, Kwan Ho WILEY-VCH Verlag 2008 Macromolecular symposia Vol.264 No.1

<P>In this study, nanocomposites of poly(ethylene-co-vinyl acetate) with two kinds of organically modified montmorillonite (OMMT) were prepared by melt intercalation. Their structures and mechanical properties were characterized by X-ray diffraction (XRD) and tensile test respectively. Especially, foaming of these nanocomposites mixed with chemical blowing agent was carried out through compression molding. Influences of OMMT on foaming ratio and mechanical properties were investigated by density test, tensile test and tear test. Results revealed that both kinds of OMMT with proper content increased tensile strength and Young's modulus of nanocomposites without a compromise of elongation at break. For foaming, OMMTs apparently improved foaming ratio and in particular, one of them can improve tear strength, tensile strength, Young's modulus and elongation although the density was decreased.</P>

Visual Fatigue Reduction Based on Depth Adjustment for DIBR System

( Ran Liu ),( Yingchun Tan ),( Fengchun Tian ),( Hui Xie ),( Guoqin Tai ),( Weimin Tan ),( Junling Liu ),( Xiaoyan Xu ),( Chaibou Kadri ),( Naana Abakah ) 한국인터넷정보학회 2012 KSII Transactions on Internet and Information Syst Vol.6 No.4

A depth adjustment method for visual fatigue reduction for depth-image-based rendering (DIBR) system is proposed. One important aspect of the method is that no calibration parameters are needed for adjustment. By analyzing 3D image warping, the perceived depth is expressed as a function of three adjustable parameters: virtual view number, scale factor and depth value of zero parallax setting (ZPS) plane. Adjusting these three parameters according to the proposed parameter modification algorithm when performing 3D image warping can effectively change the perceived depth of stereo pairs generated in DIBR system. As the depth adjustment is performed in simple 3D image warping equations, the proposed method is facilitative for hardware implementation. Experimental results show that the proposed depth adjustment method provides an improvement in visual comfort of stereo pairs as well as generating comfortable stereoscopic images with different perceived depths that people desire.

Association Between TP53 Arg72Pro Polymorphism and Hepatocellular Carcinoma Risk: A Meta-analysis

Xu, Chang-Tao,Zheng, Fang,Dai, Xin,Du, Ji-Dong,Liu, Hao-Run,Zhao, Li,Li, Wei-Min Asian Pacific Journal of Cancer Prevention 2012 Asian Pacific journal of cancer prevention Vol.13 No.9

Background: Previous studies on the association between the TP53 Arg72Pro polymorphism and hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC) risk obtained controversial findings. This study aimed to quantify the strength of the association by meta-analysis. Methods: We searched PubMed and Wangfang databases for published studies on the association between the TP53 Arg72Pro polymorphism and HCC risk, using the pooled odds ratio (OR) with its 95% confidence intervals (95% CI) for assessment. Results: 10 studies with a total of 2,026 cases and 2,733 controls were finally included into this meta-analysis. Overall, the TP53 Arg72Pro polymorphism was not associated with HCC risk (all P values greaterth HCC risk in Caucasians in three genetic models (For Pro versus Arg, OR = 1.20, 95%CI 1.03-1.41; For ProPro versus ArgArg, OR = 1.74, 95%CI 1.23-2.47; For ProPro versus ArgPro/ArgArg, OR = 1.85, 95%CI 1.33-2.57). However, there was no significant association between the TP53 Arg72Pro polymorphism and HCC risk in East Asians (all P values greater than 0.10). No evidence of publication bias was observed. Conclusion: Meta-analyses of available data suggest an obvious association between the TP53 Arg72Pro and HCC risk in Caucasians. However, the TP53 Arg72Pro polymorphism may have a race-specific effect on HCC risk and further studies are needed to elucidate this possible effect.

Poly(vinylidene fluoride)/Plasma-Treated BaTiO3 Nanocomposites with Enhanced Electroactive Phase

Ran Ding,Lei Gong,Ming-ming Li,Shu-hua Chen,Shi-ping Zhan,Xu-dong Sun,Cheng Zhang,Tao Shao 한국고분자학회 2018 Macromolecular Research Vol.26 No.11

Functional C=O and C-O groups are successfully fixated onto the surface of a high dielectric constant material barium titanate (BaTiO3) via non-thermal plasma. The strong dipole interaction exists between these functional groups and CH2 or CF2 groups of poly(vinylidene fluoride) (PVDF), resulting in the enhancement of the electroactive γ-phase of PVDF/BaTiO3 nanocomposites on one hand; on the other hand the dispersion of BaTiO3 is enhanced in the PVDF matrix, where the smaller spherulite size and better hydrophilic property are observed in the PVDF/plasmatreated BaTiO3 nanocomposite, comparing with the untreated ones. Therefore, the PVDF/plasma-treated BaTiO3 nanoparticles exhibited higher dielectric constant and lower dielectric loss than the PVDF/BaTiO3 nanoparticles.

Distinct evolution of toll‑like receptor signaling pathway genes in cetaceans

Ran Tian,Inge Seim,Zepeng Zhang,Ying Yang,Wenhua Ren,Shixia Xu,Guang Yang 한국유전학회 2019 Genes & Genomics Vol.41 No.12

Background The relatively rapid spread and diversity of marine pathogens posed an initial and ongoing challenge for cetaceans (whales, dolphins, and porpoises), descendants of terrestrial mammals that transitioned from land to sea approximately 56 million years ago. Toll-like receptors (TLRs) play important roles in regulating immunity against pathogen infections by detecting specific molecular patterns and activating a wide range of downstream signaling pathways. The ever-increasing catalogue of mammalian genomes offers unprecedented opportunities to reveal genetic changes associated with evolutionary and ecological processes. Objective This study aimed to explore the molecular evolution of TLR signaling pathway genes in cetaceans. Methods Genes involved in the TLR signaling pathway were retrieved by BLAST searches using human coding sequences as queries. We tested each gene for positive selection along the cetacean branches using PAML and Hyphy. Physicochemical property changes of amino acids at all positively selected residues were assessed by TreeSAAP and visualized with WebLogo. Bovine and dolphin TLR4 was assessed using human embryonic kidney cell line HEK293, which lacks TLR4 and its co-receptor MD-2. Results We demonstrate that eight TLR signaling pathway genes are under positive selection in cetaceans. These include key genes in the response to Gram-negative bacteria: TLR4, CD14, and LY96 (MD-2). Moreover, 41 out of 65 positively selected sites were inferred to harbor substitution that dramatically changes the physicochemical properties of amino acids, with most of them situated in or adjacent to functional regions. We also found strong evidence that positive selection occurred in the lineage of the Yangtze finless porpoise, likely reflecting relatively recent adaptions to a freshwater milieu. Species-specific differences in TLR4 response were observed between cetacean and terrestrial species. Cetacean TLR4 was significantly less responsive to lipopolysaccharides from a terrestrial E. coli strain, possibly a reflection of the arms race of host–pathogen co-evolution faced by cetaceans in an aquatic environment. Conclusion This study provides further impetus for studies on the evolution and function of the cetacean immune system.

FoxM1 as a Novel Therapeutic Target for Cancer Drug Therapy

Xu, Xin-Sen,Miao, Run-Chen,Wan, Yong,Zhang, Ling-Qiang,Qu, Kai,Liu, Chang Asian Pacific Journal of Cancer Prevention 2015 Asian Pacific journal of cancer prevention Vol.16 No.1

Background: Current cancer therapy mainly focuses on identifying novel targets crucial for tumorigenesis. The FoxM1 is of preference as an anticancer target, due to its significance in execution of mitosis, cell cycle progression, as well as other signal pathways leading to tumorigenesis. FoxM1 is partially regulated by oncoproteins or tumor suppressors, which are often mutated, lost, or overexpressed in human cancer. Since sustaining proliferating signaling is an important hallmark of cancer, FoxM1 is overexpressed in a series of human malignancies. Alarge-scale gene expression analysis also identified FoxM1 as a differentially-expressed gene in most solid tumors. Furthermore, overexpressed FoxM1 is correlated with the prognosis of cancer patients, as verified in a series of malignancies by Cox regression analysis. Thus, extensive studies have been conducted to explore the roles of FoxM1 in tumorigenesis, making it an attractive target for anticancer therapy. Several antitumor drugs have been reported to target or inhibit FoxM1 expression in different cancers, and down-regulation of FoxM1 also abrogates drug resistance in some cancer cell lines, highlighting a promising future for FoxM1 application in the clinic.