Silencing of long noncoding RNA HOXA11-AS inhibits the Wnt signaling pathway via the upregulation of HOXA11 and thereby inhibits the proliferation, invasion, and self-renewal of hepatocellular carcinoma stem cells

Jun-Cheng Guo,Yi-Jun Yang,Jin-Fang Zheng,Jian-Quan Zhang,Min Guo,Xiang Yang,Xiang-Ling Jiang,Li Xiang,You Li,Huang Ping,Liu Zhuo 생화학분자생물학회 2019 Experimental and molecular medicine Vol.51 No.-

Hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC) is a major cause of cancer-related deaths, but its molecular mechanisms are not yet well characterized. Long noncoding RNAs (lncRNAs) play crucial roles in tumorigenesis, including that of HCC. However, the role of homeobox A11 antisense (HOXA11-AS) in determining HCC stem cell characteristics remains to be explained; hence, this study aimed to investigate the effects of HOXA11-AS on HCC stem cell characteristics. Initially, the expression patterns of HOXA11-AS and HOXA11 in HCC tissues, cells, and stem cells were determined. HCC stem cells, successfully sorted from Hep3B and Huh7 cells, were transfected with short hairpin or overexpression plasmids for HOXA11-AS or HOXA11 overexpression and depletion, with an aim to study the influences of these mediators on the self-renewal, proliferation, migration, and tumorigenicity of HCC stem cells in vivo. Additionally, the potential relationship and the regulatory mechanisms that link HOXA11-AS, HOXA11, and the Wnt signaling pathway were explored through treatment with Dickkopf-1 (a Wnt signaling pathway inhibitor). HCC stem cells showed high expression of HOXA11-AS and low expression of HOXA11. Both HOXA11-AS silencing and HOXA11 overexpression suppressed the self-renewal, proliferation, migration, and tumorigenicity of HCC stem cells in vivo, as evidenced by the decreased expression of cancer stem cell surface markers (CD133 and CD44) and stemness-related transcription factors (Nanog, Sox2, and Oct4). Moreover, silencing HOXA11-AS inactivated the Wnt signaling pathway by decreasing the methylation level of the HOXA11 promoter, thereby inhibiting HCC stem cell characteristics. Collectively, this study suggested that HOXA11-AS silencing exerts an antitumor effect, suppressing HCC development via Wnt signaling pathway inactivation by decreasing the methylation level of the HOXA11 promoter.

Physical properties and chemical composition of the cores in the California molecular cloud

Zhang, Guo-Yin,Xu, Jin-Long,Vasyunin, A. I.,Semenov, D. A.,Wang, Jun-Jie,Dib, Sami,Liu, Tie,Liu, Sheng-Yuan,Zhang, Chuan-Peng,Liu, Xiao-Lan,Wang, Ke,Li, Di,Wu, Zhong-Zu,Yuan, Jing-Hua,Li, Da-Lei,Gao, Springer-Verlag 2018 Astronomy and astrophysics Vol.620 No.-

<P><I>Aims.</I> We aim to reveal the physical properties and chemical composition of the cores in the California molecular cloud (CMC), so as to better understand the initial conditions of star formation.</P><P><I>Methods.</I> We made a high-resolution column density map (18.2′′) with <I>Herschel</I> data, and extracted a complete sample of the cores in the CMC with the fellwalker algorithm. We performed new single-pointing observations of molecular lines near 90 GHz with the IRAM 30m telescope along the main filament of the CMC. In addition, we also performed a numerical modeling of chemical evolution for the cores under the physical conditions.</P><P><I>Results.</I> We extracted 300 cores, of which 33 are protostellar and 267 are starless cores. About 51% (137 of 267) of the starless cores are prestellar cores. Three cores have the potential to evolve into high-mass stars. The prestellar core mass function (CMF) can be well fit by a log-normal form. The high-mass end of the prestellar CMF shows a power-law form with an index <I>α</I> = −0.9 ± 0.1 that is shallower than that of the Galactic field stellar mass function. Combining the mass transformation efficiency (<I>ε</I>) from the prestellar core to the star of 15 ± 1% and the core formation efficiency (CFE) of 5.5%, we suggest an overall star formation efficiency of about 1% in the CMC. In the single-pointing observations with the IRAM 30m telescope, we find that 6 cores show blue-skewed profile, while 4 cores show red-skewed profile. [HCO<SUP>+</SUP>]/[HNC] and [HCO<SUP>+</SUP>]/[N2H<SUP>+</SUP>] in protostellar cores are higher than those in prestellar cores; this can be used as chemical clocks. The best-fit chemical age of the cores with line observations is ~5 × 10<SUP>4</SUP> yr.</P>

Spatial analysis of tuberculosis treatment outcomes in Shanghai: implications for tuberculosis control

Zhang Jing,Shen Xin,Yang Chongguang,Chen Yue,Guo Juntao,Wang Decheng,Zhang Jun,Lynn Henry,Hu Yi,Pan Qichao,Zhang Zhijie 한국역학회 2022 Epidemiology and Health Vol.44 No.-

OBJECTIVES: Tuberculosis (TB) treatment outcomes are a key indicator in the assessment of TB control programs. We aimed to identify spatial factors associated with TB treatment outcomes, and to provide additional insights into TB control from a geographical perspective.METHODS: We collected data from the electronic TB surveillance system in Shanghai, China and included pulmonary TB patients registered from January 1, 2009 to December 31, 2016. We examined the associations of physical accessibility to hospitals, an autoregression term, and random hospital effects with treatment outcomes in logistic regression models after adjusting for demographic, clinical, and treatment factors.RESULTS: Of the 53,475 pulmonary TB patients, 49,002 (91.6%) had successful treatment outcomes. The success rate increased from 89.3% in 2009 to 94.4% in 2016. The successful treatment outcome rate varied among hospitals from 78.6% to 97.8%, and there were 12 spatial clusters of poor treatment outcomes during the 8-year study period. The best-fit model incorporated spatial factors. Both the random hospital effects and autoregression terms had significant impacts on TB treatment outcomes, ranking 6th and 10th, respectively, in terms of statistical importance among 14 factors. The number of bus stations around the home was the least important variable in the model.CONCLUSIONS: Spatial autocorrelation and hospital effects were associated with TB treatment outcomes in Shanghai. In highly-integrated cities like Shanghai, physical accessibility was not related to treatment outcomes. Governments need to pay more attention to the mobility of patients and different success rates of treatment among hospitals.

Low Microsomal Epoxide Hydrolase Expression is Associated with Bladder Carcinogenesis and Recurrence

Zhang, Zhe,Yu, Xiu-Yue,Zhang, Guo-Jun,Guo, Kun-Feng,Kong, Chui-Ze Asian Pacific Journal of Cancer Prevention 2012 Asian Pacific journal of cancer prevention Vol.13 No.2

Microsomal epoxide hydrolase (mEH) plays a significant role in the metabolism of numerous xenobiotics and is associated with several forms of cancer. Here, we investigated the role of mEH expression in bladder carcinogenesis, subsequent progression and recurrence. The expression of mEH was analyzed by Western blot in 50 bladder urothelial carcinoma and 20 normal epithelial tissues. There was a significantly higher mEH expression in the normal epithelium (P<0.05) and mEH expression was lower in high stage than in low stage tumors (P<0.05). Further, immunohistochmistry in 106 bladder urothelial carcinoma demonstrated mEH expression to be negatively correlated with histological grade, pT stage and recurrence (P<0.05). These findings suggest the important role of mEH in bladder carcinogenesis, cancer development and recurrence, providing support for efforts to develop mEH-based gene therapy.

A facile and reliable route to prepare highly dispersive ammonium dimolybdate uniform crystals from commercial molybdenum oxide

Jun Zhang,Yanhui Guo,Weiwei Lu,Xuming Guo,Mingchen Xu,Hongbo Guo 한국공업화학회 2012 Journal of Industrial and Engineering Chemistry Vol.18 No.5

Highly dispersive ammonium dimolybdate crystals with high purity have been prepared through reaction–evaporation–crystallization united route using commercial molybdenum oxide as starting material. The as-prepared ammonium dimolybdate uniform crystals were systematically characterized by X-ray powder diffraction, transmission-reflection optical microscope, Fourier transform infrared spectroscopy and TG-DSC thermal analysis. The Fsss grain diameter, loose packed density, and crystal-grain size distribution were also measured by the Malvern laser particle sizer. These collective characterization and analysis reveal that the ammonium dimolybdate grains are non-agglomerated uniform crystals with well normal distribution and geometric shape. The average Fsss diameter, d(0.5) and loose packed density are 433.316 mm, 470.981 mm and 1.592 g cm3, respectively, which could well meet the quality requirements for the subsequent production of molybdenum powders.

Effect of Bcl-2 on Apoptosis and Transcription Factor NF-κB Activation Induced by Adriamycin in Bladder Carcinoma BIU87 Cells

Zhang, Guo-Jun,Zhang, Zhe Asian Pacific Journal of Cancer Prevention 2013 Asian Pacific journal of cancer prevention Vol.14 No.4

Resistance to apoptosis is a major obstacle preventing effective therapy for malignancies. Bcl-2 plays a significant role in inhibiting apoptosis. We reconstructed a stable human Bcl-2 transfected cell line, BIU87-Bcl-2, that was derived from the transfection of human bladder carcinoma cell line BIU87 with a plasmid vector containing recombinant Bcl-2 [pcDNA3.1(+)-Bcl-2]. A cell line transfected with the plasmid alone [pcDNA3.1(+)-neo] was also established as a control. BIU87 and BIU87-neo proved sensitive to adriamycin induced apoptosis, while BIU87-Bcl-2 was more resistant. In view of the growing evidence that NF-${\kappa}B$ may play an important role in regulating apoptosis, we determined whether Bcl-2 could modulate the activity of NF-${\kappa}B$ in bladder carcinoma cells. Stimulation of BIU87, BIU87-neo and BIU87-Bcl-2 with ADR resulted in an increase expression of NF-${\kappa}B$ (p<0.001). The expression of NF-${\kappa}B$ in BIU87-Bcl-2 was higher than in the other two cases, with a concomitant reduction in the $I{\kappa}B{\kappa}$ protein level. These results suggest that the overexpression of Bcl-2 renders human bladder carcinoma cells resistant to adriamycin-induced cytotoxicity and there is a link between Bcl-2 and the NF-${\kappa}B$ signaling pathway in the suppression of apoptosis.

Molecular characterization and inhibition analysis of the acetylcholinesterase gene from the silkworm maggot, Exorista sorbillans

( Guo Jun Lang ),( Ming Yan Zhang ),( Bao Ling Li ),( Lin Lin Yu ),( Xing Meng Lu ),( Chuan Xi Zhang ) 생화학분자생물학회 (구 한국생화학분자생물학회) 2010 BMB Reports Vol.43 No.8

Several organophosphorus (OP) insecticides can selectively kill the silkworm maggot, Exorista sorbillans (Es) (Diptera: Tachinidae), while not obviously affecting the host (Bombyx mori) larvae, but the mechanism is not yet clear. In this study, the cDNA encoding an acetylcholinesterase (AChE) from the field Es was isolated. One point mutation (Gly353Ala) was identified. The Es-353G AChE and Es-353A AChE were expressed in baculovirus- insect cell system, respectively. The inhibition results showed that for eserine and Chlorpyrifos, Es-353A AChE was significantly less sensitive than Es-353G AChE. Meanwhile, comparison of the I(50) values of eserine, dichlorvos, Chlorpyrifos and omethoate of recombinant Es AChEs with its host (Bombyx mori) AChEs indicated that, both Es AChEs are more sensitive than B. mori AChEs. The results give an insight of the mechanism that some OP insecticides can selectively kills Es while without distinct effect on its host, B. mori. [BMB reports 2010; 43(8): 573-578]

Effects of Stellate Ganglion Block on the Peri-operative Vasomotor Cytokine Content and Intrapulmonary Shunt in Patients with Esophagus Cancer

Guo, Wei,Jin, Xiao-Ju,Yu, Jun,Liu, Yang,Zhang, Jian-Ping,Yang, Da-Wei,Zhang, Lei,Guo, Jiang-Rong Asian Pacific Journal of Cancer Prevention 2014 Asian Pacific journal of cancer prevention Vol.15 No.21

Objective: To investigate the effects of stellate ganglion block (SGB) on the peri-operative vasomotor cytokine content and intrapulmonary shunt in patients with esophagus cancer who underwent thoracotomy. Materials and Methods: Forty patients undergoing elective resection of esophageal cancer patients who had I~II American Society of Anesthesiologist (ASA) were randomly divided into total intravenous anesthesia group (group N, n=20) and total intravenous anesthesia combined with SGB group (group S, n=20, 0.12 mL/kg 1% lidocaine was used for SGB 10 min before induction). Heart rate (HR), mean arterial pressure (MAP), central venous pressure (CVP), mean pulmonary arterial pressure (MPAP) and continuous cardiac output (CCO) were continuously monitored. The blood from internal jugular vein was drawn respectively before induction ($T_0$), and 30 min ($T_1$), 60 min ($T_2$) and 120 min ($T_3$) after one-lung ventilation (OLV), and 30 min (T4) after two-lung ventilation. The contents of plasma endothelin (ET), nitric oxide (NO) and calcitonin gene-related peptide (CGRP) were detected with enzyme linked immunosorbent assay (ELISA). Meanwhile, arterial and mixed venous blood samples were collected for determination of blood gas and calculation of intrapulmonary shunt fraction (Qs/Qt). Results: During OLV, ET contents were increased significantly in two groups (P<0.05), and no significant difference was presented (P>0.05). NO content in group S was obviously higher than in group N at T3 (P<0.05), whereas CGRP content in group N was markedly lower than in group S at each time point (P<0.05). Qs/Qt was significantly increased in both groups after OLV, but there was no statistical significant regarding the Qs/Qt at each time point between two groups. Conclusions: Total intravenous anesthesia combined with SGB is conducive to regulation of perioperative vasomotor cytokines in thoracotomy, and has little effect on intrapulmonary shunt at the time of OLV.

A Continuous Abnormal Speech Detection Method Based on Time Domain features Weighted

He Jun,Ji-chen Yang,Qing-hua Zhang,Guo-xi Sun,Jian-bing Xiong 보안공학연구지원센터 2014 International Journal of Control and Automation Vol.7 No.12

In this brief, a novel pathological continuous speech detection method based on time domain features weighted. First, different optimal threshold for time domain features, including zero crossing ratio, short-time energy and autocorrelation, are obtained from training speech data. Second, a difference evaluation technique is proposed, and with it, the difference of the same time domain feature selected from testing speech data and training speech data were obtained. Finally, to distinguish a given speech well, a novel weighting method based on difference evaluation for each kinds of time domain is employed, respectively. Experiments were conducted on the pathological speech database to prove the power and effectiveness of the proposed method. Results obtained shown that this method outperforms other early proposed time domain feature method, creating a more reliable technique for pathological continuous speech detection.

ROOM-TEMPERATURE FERROMAGNETISM IN SnO 2 NANOFIBERS AND NANOTUBES PREPARED BY ELECTROSPINNING

JIAN-GUO ZHAO,WEI-YING ZHANG,ZHAO-JUN LIU,ZHONG-LI LIU,YA-JUAN ZHANG,ER-QING XIE,XIU-YUN AN,YONG-FENG CHEN,CHANG-YOU ZHANG 성균관대학교(자연과학캠퍼스) 성균나노과학기술원 2014 NANO Vol.9 No.2

SnO 2 nano¯bers and nanotubes were synthesized by electrospinning method. Magnetizationmeasurement indicates that the SnO 2 nano¯bers and nanotubes annealed in air at 500?C exhibitthe room-temperature ferromagnetism and the ferromagnetism of nanotubes is stronger than thenano¯bers. Selected area electron di®raction, X-ray di®raction and Raman measurements showthat all the samples possess a typical rutile structure and no other impurity phases are observed. The results of the Raman spectra also indicate that there are lots of defects existing in thefabricated samples. The observed room-temperature ferromagnetism in SnO 2 nano¯bers andnanotubes possibly originates from oxygen vacancies. The ¯eld cooled (FC) and zero-¯eld-cooled(ZFC) magnetization curves indicate that the Curie temperature T C is above 300 K.