Upregulation of PITX2 Promotes Letrozole Resistance Via Transcriptional Activation of IFITM1 Signaling in Breast Cancer Cells

Ying-ying Xu,Hai-ru Yu,Jia-yi Sun,Zhao Zhao,Shuang Li,Xin-feng Zhang,Zhi-xuan Liao,Ming-ke Cui,Juan Li,Chan Li,Qiang Zhang 대한암학회 2019 Cancer Research and Treatment Vol.51 No.2

Purpose Although the interferon  (IFN) signaling and the paired-like homeodomain transcription factor 2 (PITX2) have both been implicated in the progression of breast cancer (BCa), it remains obscure whether these two pathways act in a coordinated manner. We therefore aimed to elucidate the expression and function of PITX2 during the pathogenesis of endocrine resistance in BCa. Materials and Methods PITX2 expression was assessed in BCa tissues using quantitative reverse transcription polymerase chain reaction (RT-qPCR) and immunohistochemistry and in experimentally induced letrozole-resistant BCa cells using RT-qPCR and immunoblotting. Effects of PITX2 deregulation on BCa progression was determined by assessing MTT, apoptosis and xenograft model. Finally, using multiple assays, the transcriptional regulation of interferon-inducible transmembrane protein 1 (IFITM1) by PITX2 was studied at both molecular and functional levels. Results PITX2 expression was induced in letrozole-resistant BCa tissues and cells, and PITX2 induction by IFN signaling powerfully protected BCa cells against letrozole insult and potentiated letrozole-resistance. Mechanistically, PITX2 enhanced IFN-induced AKT activation by transactivating the transcription of IFITM1, thus rendering BCa cells unresponsive to letrozoleelicited cell death. Additionally, ablation of IFITM1 expression using siRNA substantially abolished IFN-elicited AKT phosphorylation, even in the presence of PITX2 overexpression, thus sensitizing BCa cells to letrozole treatment. Conclusion These results demonstrate that constitutive upregulation of PITX2/IFITM1 cascade is an intrinsic adaptive mechanism during the pathogenesis of letrozole-resistance, and modulation of PITX2/IFITM1 level using different genetic and pharmacological means would thus have a novel therapeutic potential against letrozole resistance in BCa.

Two New α-Pyrones and Other Components from the Cladodes of Opuntia dillenii

Ying Kun Qiu,Yan Yan Zhao,De Qiang Dou,Bi Xia Xu,Ke Liu 대한약학회 2007 Archives of Pharmacal Research Vol.30 No.6

The aqueous ethanolic extract from the fresh cladodes of Opuntia dillenii HAW. was found to show anti-inflammatory activity. Two new α-pyrones, named opuntioside II (1) and opuntioside III (2), were isolated from the extract together with six known compounds. The structures of the new compounds were determined on the basis of chemical and physicochemical evidence.

Comparative study of thermal gelation properties and molecular forces of actomyosin extracted from normal and pale, soft and exudative-like chicken breast meat

Ke Li,Jun-Ya liu,Lei Fu,Ying-Ying Zhao,Yan-Hong Bai 아세아·태평양축산학회 2019 Animal Bioscience Vol.32 No.5

Objective: The objectives of this study were to investigate the thermal gelation properties and molecular forces of actomyosin extracted from two classes of chicken breast meat qualities (normal and pale, soft and exudative [PSE]-like) during heating process to further improve the understanding of the variations of functional properties between normal and PSE-like chicken breast meat. Methods: Actomyosin was extracted from normal and PSE-like chicken breast meat and the gel strength, water-holding capacity (WHC), protein loss, particle size and distribution, dynamic rheology and protein thermal stability were determined, then turbidity, active sulfhydryl group contents, hydrophobicity and molecular forces during thermal-induced gelling formation were comparatively studied. Results: Sodium dodecyl sulphate-polyacrylamide gel electrophoresis showed that protein profiles of actomyosin extracted from normal and PSE-like meat were not significantly different (p>0.05). Compared with normal actomyosin, PSE-like actomyosin had lower gel strength, WHC, particle size, less protein content involved in thermal gelation forming (p<0.05), and reduced onset temperature (To), thermal transition temperature (Td), storage modulus (G′) and loss modulus (G″). The turbidity, reactive sulfhydryl group of PSE-like actomyosin were higher when heated from 40°C to 60°C. Further heating to 80°C had lower transition from reactive sulfhydryl group into a disulfide bond and surface hydrophobicity. Molecular forces showed that hydrophobic interaction was the main force for heat-induced gel formation while both ionic and hydrogen bonds were different significantly between normal and PSE-like actomyosin (p<0.05). Conclusion: These changes in chemical groups and inter-molecular bonds affected protein-protein interaction and protein-water interaction and contributed to the inferior thermal gelation properties of PSE-like meat.

Surfactant PVA-Stabilized Co–Mo Nanocatalyst Supported by Graphene Oxide Sheets Toward the Hydrolytic Dehydrogenation of Ammonia Borane

Xin Zhao,Dandan Ke,Shumin Han,Yuan Li,Hongming Zhang,Ying Cai 성균관대학교(자연과학캠퍼스) 성균나노과학기술원 2019 NANO Vol.14 No.11

By adding surfactant polyvinyl alcohol (PVA) and controlling the preparation process, we successfully synthesized Co–Mo catalysts. For further improving the dispersion, reduced graphene oxide sheets as catalyst carrier were introduced to synthesize Co–Mo@rGO composite catalyst as highly efficient catalysts for hydrolytic dehydrogenation of ammonia borane. The introduction of Mo for preparing Co–Mo@rGO catalyst helped to form alloy catalyst with better structure, better dispersity and smaller particle size. When the molar ratio of Co and Mo was 0.75 : 0.25, the bimetallic composite catalyst exhibited superior activity with TOF value of 16.29 mol H2 · min -1 · mol Co-Mo -1. The activation energy of the reaction was calculated to be 43.72 kJ · mol -1. Furthermore, the reusability tests reveal that waxberry-like Co–Mo still show good catalytic activity with 80.3 % of their initial activity in five successive runs. The enhanced catalytic activities were due to the synergistic interaction between graphene sheets and waxberry-like Co–Mo NPs, which was beneficial to improve the dispersion and stability of bimetallic NPs. Also, ligand effects on the formation of waxberry-like structure and amorphous state further promoted the catalytic activity.

Two New ${\alpha}$-Pyrones and Other Components from the Cladodes of Opuntia dillenii

Qiu, Ying-Kun,Zhao, Yan-Yan,Dou, De-Qiang,Xu, Bi-Xia,Liu, Ke 대한약학회 2007 Archives of Pharmacal Research Vol.30 No.6

The aqueous ethanolic extract from the fresh cladodes of Opuntia dillenii HAW. was found to show anti-inflammatory activity. Two new ${\alpha}$-pyrones, named opuntioside II (1) and opuntioside III (2), were isolated from the extract together with six known compounds. The structures of the new compounds were determined on the basis of chemical and physicochemical evidence.

Effect of bamboo shoot dietary fiber on gel properties, microstructure and water distribution of pork meat batters

Li Ke,Liu Jun-Ya,Fu Lei,Zhao Ying-Ying,Zhu He,Zhang Yan-Yan,Zhang Hua,Bai Yan-Hong 아세아·태평양축산학회 2020 Animal Bioscience Vol.33 No.7

Objective: To develop healthier comminuted meat products to meet consumer demand, the gel properties, rheological properties, microstructure and water distribution of pork meat batters formulated with various amounts of bamboo shoot dietary fiber (BSDF) were investigated. Methods: Different levels of BSDF (0% to 4%) were added to pork batters, and the pH, color, water-holding capacity, texture and rheological properties of pork batters were determined. Then, pork batters were analyzed for their microstructure and water distribution using scanning electron microscopy (SEM) and low-field nuclear magnetic resonance (LF-NMR). Results: Compared with the control, BSDF addition into meat batters showed a significant reduction in L*-value and a significant increase in b*-value (p<0.05). BSDF addition of up to 4% reduced the pH value of pork batters by approximately 0.15 units; however, the cooking loss and expressible water loss decreased significantly (p<0.05) with the increased addition of BSDF. The hardness and gel strength were noticeably enhanced (p<0.05) as the content of BSDF increased. The rheological results showed that BSDF added into pork batters produced higher storage modulus (G′) and loss modulus (G″) values. The SEM images suggested that the addition of BSDF could promote pork batters to form a more uniform and compact microstructure. The proportion of immobilized water increased significantly (p<0.05), while the population of free water was decreased (p<0.05), indicating that BSDF improved the water-holding capability of pork batters by decreasing the fraction of free water. Conclusion: BSDF could improve the gel properties, rheological properties and water distribution of pork meat batters and decrease the proportion of free water, suggesting that BSDF has great potential as an effective binder in comminuted meat products.

Effects of Ca2+ ion substitution on the structure and magnetism of SrRuO3: Elusive magnetism

Zhang Wen-Ying,Yue Cai-Xia,Zhao De-Wei,Li Guo-Ke,Ma Li,Zhen Cong-Mian,Hou Deng-Lu 한국물리학회 2020 Current Applied Physics Vol.20 No.12

SrRuO3 is an orthogonally distorted perovskite (Pbnm) structure whose ferromagnetism is often viewed as an itinerant ferromagnet. Although SrRuO3 has been studied for more than half a century, its structure, magnetism and transport properties are still poorly understood. In this paper, the structure and magnetic evolution of SrRuO3 are discussed in depth through the substitution of Ca2+ for Sr2+ at A sites. The results show that as the Ca substitution increases, the lattice constant decreases, the orthogonal distortion becomes larger, and the saturation magnetization MS, Curie temperature TC and Weiss temperature θp decrease accordingly. Eventually, the ferromagnetic SrRuO3 changes to paramagnetic CaRuO3. The critical exponent β of samples with different substitution contents was obtained by fitting the experimental results, and the value for SrRuO3 (β = 0.55) was similar to that obtained by mean field theory. However, the value increases with the substitution x of Ca, which can’t be explained by any scaling theory. The results show that the increase in the value of β is related to the magnetic disorder caused by different magnetic interactions. Analysis using the Rhodes-Wohlfarth criterion indicates that Sr1-xCaxRuO3 has both itinerant-electron and localized-electron magnetism, which is consistent with the theoretical predictions.

Predictive Value of Exercise Blood Pressure Changes for Orthostatic Hypotension in Patients With Parkinson’s Disease

Yi Qin,Zhao-hui Jin,Zhen-ying Zhang,Ke-ke Chen,Xin Yu,Hong-jiao Yan,Rui-dan Wang,Yuan Su,Ai-xian Liu,Jia-ning Xi,Bo-yan Fang 대한신경과학회 2023 Journal of Clinical Neurology Vol.19 No.1

Background and Purpose Orthostatic hypotension (OH) is common in patients with Parkinson’s disease (PD). Early recognition OH is required with sensitive assessments. The purpose of this study was to determine whether blood pressure (BP) changes during exercise can predict the occurrence of OH in PD. Methods This prospective cohort study included 80 consecutive patients with PD. All patients agreed to participate in a baseline evaluation and cardiopulmonary exercise test (CPET). According to the initial active standing test (AST), those without OH (PD-nonOH) at baseline had their AST results followed up for 6 months. The main outcome was defined as whether patients without OH at baseline would develop OH after 6 months. Logistic regression analysis was applied to identify the relevant variables. A nomogram was constructed based on clinical features and identified variables. The concordance index (C-index) and area under the receiver operating characteristic curve (AUC) were used to evaluate the accuracy and predictive ability of the nomogram, respectively. Results CPET results indicated that peak load, peak heart rate, heart rate recovery at 1 min, and systolic BP change (ΔSBP) were lower in those with OH than in the PD-nonOH group (p<0.05) at baseline. Logistic regression analysis indicated that peak load and ΔSBP during CPET had significant effects on OH (p<0.05). Age, sex, peak load, and ΔSBP were used to construct the nomogram model (C-index=0.761). The prediction model had an AUC of 0.782 (95% confidence interval=0.649–0.889) and a specificity and sensitivity of 70.0% and 81.8%, respectively. Conclusions This study has identified predictive factors for OH development in patients with PD. CPET could be used as a complementary examination to identify patients at a high risk of OH.

Profiles of Bacillus spp. Isolated from the Rhizosphere of Suaeda glauca and Their Potential to Promote Plant Growth and Suppress Fungal Phytopathogens

( Ping Lu ),( Ke Jiang ),( Ya-qiao Hao ),( Wan-ying Chu ),( Yu-dong Xu ),( Jia-yao Yang ),( Jia-le Chen ),( Guo-hong Zeng ),( Zhou-hang Gu ),( Hong-xin Zhao ) 한국미생물 · 생명공학회 2021 Journal of microbiology and biotechnology Vol.31 No.9

Members of the genus Bacillus are known to play an important role in promoting plant growth and protecting plants against phytopathogenic microorganisms. In this study, 21 isolates of Bacillus spp. were obtained from the root micro-ecosystem of Suaeda glauca. Analysis of the 16S rRNA genes indicated that the isolates belong to the species Bacillus amyloliquefaciens, Bacillus velezensis, Bacillus subtilis, Bacillus pumilus, Bacillus aryabhattai and Brevibacterium frigoritolerans. One of the interesting findings of this study is that the four strains B1, B5, B16 and B21 are dominant in rhizosphere soil. Based on gyrA, gyrB, and rpoB gene analyses, B1, B5, and B21 were identified as B. amyloliquefaciens and B16 was identified as B. velezensis. Estimation of antifungal activity showed that the isolate B1 had a significant inhibitory effect on Fusarium verticillioides, B5 and B16 on Colletotrichum capsici (syd.) Butl, and B21 on Rhizoctonia cerealis van der Hoeven. The four strains grew well in medium with 1-10% NaCl, a pH value of 5-8, and promoted the growth of Arabidopsis thaliana. Our results indicate that these strains may be promising agents for the biocontrol and promotion of plant growth and further study of the relevant bacteria will provide a useful reference for the development of microbial resources.

Types of Control in Acupuncture Clinical Trials Might Affect the Conclusion of the Trials: A Review of Acupuncture on Pain Management

Haiyong Chen,Zhipeng Ning,Wing Lok Lam,Wai-Yee Lam,Ying Ke Zhao,Jerry Wing Fai Yeung,Bacon Fung-Leung Ng,Eric Tat-Chi Ziea,Lixing Lao 사단법인약침학회 2016 Journal of Acupuncture & Meridian Studies Vol.9 No.5

Analgesic effects of acupuncture have been extensively studied in various clinical trials. However, the conclusion remains controversial, even among large scale randomized controlled trials. This study aimed to evaluate the association between the conclusion of the trials and the types of control used in those trials via systematic review. Published randomized controlled trials of acupuncture for pain were retrieved from electronic databases (Medline, AMED, Cochrane libraries, EMBASE, PsycINFO, Clinicaltrials.gov, and CAB Abstracts) using a prespecified search strategy. One hundred and thirty-nine studies leading to 166 pairs of acupuncture-control treatment effect comparisons (26 studies comprised of 53 intervention-control pairs) were analyzed based on the proportion of positive conclusions in different control designs. We found that treatment effects of acupuncture compared with nontreatment controls had the highest tendency to yield a positive conclusion (84.3%), compared with nonneedle-insertion controls (53.3%). Whereas with needle-insertion controls, the lowest tendency of positive conclusions was observed (37.8%). Consistently, in studies reporting successful blinding, a higher tendency of positive findings on the treatment effect of acupuncture was found in the noninsertion sham controls compared with that in the insertion sham controls. We conclude that the type of control is likely to affect the conclusion in acupuncture analgesic trials. Appropriate control should be chosen according to the aims of studies. Analgesic effects of acupuncture have been extensively studied in various clinical trials. However, the conclusion remains controversial, even among large scale randomized controlled trials. This study aimed to evaluate the association between the conclusion of the trials and the types of control used in those trials via systematic review. Published randomized controlled trials of acupuncture for pain were retrieved from electronic databases (Medline, AMED, Cochrane libraries, EMBASE, PsycINFO, Clinicaltrials.gov, and CAB Abstracts) using a prespecified search strategy. One hundred and thirty-nine studies leading to 166 pairs of acupuncture-control treatment effect comparisons (26 studies comprised of 53 intervention-control pairs) were analyzed based on the proportion of positive conclusions in different control designs. We found that treatment effects of acupuncture compared with nontreatment controls had the highest tendency to yield a positive conclusion (84.3%), compared with nonneedle-insertion controls (53.3%). Whereas with needle-insertion controls, the lowest tendency of positive conclusions was observed (37.8%). Consistently, in studies reporting successful blinding, a higher tendency of positive findings on the treatment effect of acupuncture was found in the noninsertion sham controls compared with that in the insertion sham controls. We conclude that the type of control is likely to affect the conclusion in acupuncture analgesic trials. Appropriate control should be chosen according to the aims of studies.