LncRNA ZFAS1 contributes to osteosarcoma progression via miR-520b and miR-520e-mediated inhibition of RHOC signaling

ABSTRACT Objectives: We examined the expression of Lnc-ZFAS1 in osteosarcoma and comprehensively evaluated its effects on osteosarcoma in vitro and vivo. Moreover, we revealed the regulatory mechanism between Lnc-ZFAS1 and miR-520b/miR-520e-mediated RHOC and provided a novel clue for ameliorating osteosarcoma. Method: The expression of Long non-coding RNA Zinc Finger Antisense 1 (LncRNA ZFAS1) osteosarcoma tissues and normal tissues in the TCGA database was analyzed. Then, LncRNA ZFAS1 expression was further verified in clinical samples and osteosarcoma cell lines (U2OS and KHOS), as well as the human osteoblast cell line hFOB1.19 by qRT-PCR. Thereafter, LncRNA ZFAS1 was overexpressed or silenced to explore its effects on cell proliferation, apoptosis, migration, invasion, and Epithelial-Mesenchymal Transition (EMT). The fundamental mechanism through which Lnc-ZFAS1 affects osteosarcoma progression was further investigated and verified. Results: We found that LncRNA ZFAS1 was upregulated in osteosarcoma, and Lnc-ZFAS1 overexpression facilitated osteosarcoma cells proliferation, migration, invasion and EMT, while Lnc-ZFAS1 silence exerted reverse influence. Mechanistically, Lnc-ZFAS1 functionally acted as a sponger of microRNA-520b (miR-520b) and micro-RNA-520e (miR-520e) to up-regulate Ras Homologue C (RHOC). In addition, depleted Lnc-ZFAS1 restrained osteosarcoma cells proliferation, migration, and invasion, which could be rescued by RHOC overexpression. Lnc-ZFAS1 was upregulated in osteosarcoma and Lnc-ZFAS1 could exert promoted impact upon osteosarcoma cells proliferation, migration, invasion, and EMT in vitro. Conclusions: Lnc-ZFAS1 acted sponger of miR-520b and miR-520e to promote RHOC, indicating that Lnc-ZFAS1/miR-520b/RHOC and Lnc-ZFAS1/miR-520e/RHOC axes might serve as potential therapeutic strategies against osteosarcoma.

Enhanced serum interferon-lambda 1/interleukin-29 levels in patients with psoriasis vulgaris

Abstract Background: Interferon (IFN)-λ1, also named Interleukin (IL)-29, is a new member of the Type III IFN or IFN-λ family. IL-29 plays an important role in the pathogenesis of many types of autoimmune and inflammatory diseases. Objective: To study the role of IL-29 in the pathogenesis of psoriasis vulgaris. Methods: The authors detected the serum levels of IL-29 in forty-one patients with psoriasis vulgaris, twenty-three patients with atopic dermatitis and thirty-eight age and gender-matched controls by sandwich Enzyme-Linked Immunosorbent Assay (ELISA). The effects of IL-29 on the expression of cytokines, such as IL-6, IL-17, IL-8, IL-4, IL10, Interferon (IFN-γ) and Tumor Necrosis Factor-α (TNF-α), in PBMCs and HaCat cells were determined by real-time quantitative PCR. Results: Our data indicated that serum IL-29 levels were significantly elevated in patients with psoriasis vulgaris when compared with atopic dermatitis patients and the control group. Moreover, Serum levels of IL-29 were closely associated with the severity of psoriasis vulgaris. Furthermore, IL-29 up-regulated the mRNA expression levels of IL-6, IL-17 and TNF-α in PBMCs from psoriasis vulgaris patients. In addition, IL-29 enhanced the IL-6 and IL-8 expression from the HaCat cells. Conclusion: This study provides the first observations on the association of IL-29 and psoriasis vulgaris and showed elevated IL-29 serum levels. The authors suggest that IL-29 may play a role in the pathogenesis of psoriasis vulgaris.

Effect of XIAOJI Decoction combined with FOLFOX on expression profiles of serumcytokinesinpatientswithadvancedcolorectalcancer:liquid chip technology analysis / 中国肿瘤生物治疗杂志

@#Objective: To investigate the effects of XIAOJI Decoction combined with FOLFOX chemotherapy on serum cytokine expression profile in patients with advanced colorectal carcinoma by liquid chip technology. Methods: Fourteen patients with advanced colorectal carcinoma, who met the inclusion criteria and were treated in the Department of Oncology, Higher Education Mega Center Hospital of Guangdong Provincial Hospital of Traditional Chinese Medicine during January 1, 2018 and December 31, 2018 were retrospectively analyzed in this study. The patients were divided into chemotherapy group (n=7, treated with 5-Fluorouracil + Calcium Folic Acid+Oxaliplatin (FOLFOX)) and combined treatment group (n=7, treated with XIAOJI Decoction + FOLFOX) according to therapeutic scheme. The curative efficacy was evaluated after 6 treatment courses. The expression profile of cytokines in blood serum of patients was examined by liquid chip technology after every 2 courses. Results: Fourteen patients received a total of 84 cycles of therapy. Survival analyses showed that the progress-free survival time (PFS) and overall survival time (OS) of two groups couldn't be compared due to insufficient samples, although the combined treatment group had longer PFS (10 months vs 6 months) and OS (17 months vs 12 months) than the chemotherapy group.As to adverse reactions, the rates of leucopenia, diarrhea, nausea, peripheral neuritis and alopecia in two groups were comparable, while the severity in combined treatment group were lighter than that in chemotherapy group. In comparison with the combined treatment group, concentrations of serum BDNF and IL-2 were statistically higher in the chemotherapy group (P<0.05). By comparing the cytokine concentrations at different collection time points before and after the treatment, it showed that the concentration of serum IL-2 in chemotherapy group was higher than that in combined treatment group after 2 courses of treatment (P<0.05). In total, there were 19 cytokines showed a tendency to be higher in combined treatment group than chemotherapy group during different treatment periods. Conclusion: Combined treatment of XIAOJI Decoction with FOLFOX for advanced colorectal carcinoma is a treatment option worth exploring, and liquid chip analysis showed that the mechanism may be related to the reduction of serum LI-2 and BDNF levels in patients.

Association between MTHFR A1298C Polymorphism and Male Infertility: A Meta-analysis / 华中科技大学学报（医学）（英德文版）

There have been several epidemiological studies evaluating the potential association between the methylenetetrahydrofolate reductase (MTHFR) A1298C polymorphism and the risk of male infertility.However,the results obtained were inconsistent.Therefore,we performed a meta-analysis to further examine the association between the MTHFR A1298C polymorphism and male infertility.A comprehensive search was conducted to identify all eligible studies from the online literature databases published prior to January 15th,2016.A total of 20 studies with 4293 cases and 4507 controls were included.An odds ratio (OR) and a 95％ confidence interval (95％ CI) were calculated to assess the strength of the association.A cumulative meta-analysis,sensitivity analysis and assessment of the publication bias were also performed in this study.The results showed that in the overall analysis,the association between the MTHFR A1298C polymorphism and male infertility was not significant.A stratified analysis by ethnicity revealed a significant increase in the risk of male infertility in the Asian population with the MTHFR A1298C polymorphism (especially in the heterozygote model:OR=l.20,95％ CI=1.01-1.44,P=0.994;the dominant model:OR=1.23,95％ CI=1.04-1.45,P=0.996;and the allele model:OR=l.20,95％ CI=1.04-1.39,P=0.985) but not in the Caucasian population.In the stratified analyses,no significant association was observed between the different types of male infertility.This meta-analysis suggests the MTHFR A1298C polymorphism may be a potential risk factor for male infertility,especially in the Asian population.