Update on the role and mechanism of erythropoietin receptor in acute kidney injury and repair or fibrosis / 生理学报

Acute kidney injury (AKI) is a common critical disease clinically with high morbility and mortality and some survival patients also progress to chronic kidney disease. Renal ischemia-reperfusion (IR) is one of the main causes of AKI, in which, its repair and potential fibrosis, apoptosis, inflammation and phagocytosis play important roles. During the progression of IR-induced AKI, the expression of erythropoietin homodimer receptor (EPOR)2 and EPOR and β common receptor formed heterodimer receptor (EPOR/βcR) is changed dynamically. Moreover, (EPOR)2 and EPOR/βcR may synergistically participate in renoprotection at the stage of AKI and early repair, whereas at the late stage of AKI, the (EPOR)2 induces renal fibrosis and the EPOR/βcR facilitates repair and remodelling. The underlying mechanism, signaling pathways and the different effect turning point of (EPOR)2 and EPOR/βcR have not been well defined. It has been reported that EPO, according to its 3D structure, derived helix B surface peptide (HBSP) and cyclic HBSP (CHBP) only bind to EPOR/βcR. Synthesized HBSP, therefore, provides an effective tool to distinguish the different roles and mechanisms of both receptors, with the (EPOR)2 promoting fibrosis or the EPOR/βcR leading to repair/remodelling at the late stage of AKI. This review discusses the similarities and differences of (EPOR)2 and EPOR/βcR in their impacts on apoptosis, inflammation and phagocytosis in AKI, repair and fibrosis post IR, associated mechanisms, signaling pathways and outcomes.

Role of Flow Cytometry in the Diagnosis of Chronic Myeloid Leukemia / 中国实验血液学杂志

OBJECTIVE@#To analyze the immunological phenotype of chronic myeloid leukemia (CML), and explore its characteristics and significance.@*METHODS@#The immunophenotypes of 40 CML children and 40 controls were analyzed by multicolor flow cytometry. CD45/SSC, as the basic gate, was used to delineate neutrophils. Then, the distribution of cluster differentiation (CD) molecules on the surface of granulocytes was analyzed in three ranges (≥1%, ≥5%, and ≥20%), and the expression rates of CD molecules (≥1% included in the statistical analysis) and the mean fluorescence intensity (MFI) were compared between the two groups.@*RESULTS@#The proportion of granulocytes in the CML group was (82.1±6.4)%, which was significantly higher than (57.8±11.8)% in the control group (P <0.001). The expression rates of CD15/CD11b/CD33/CD13 in CML and control groups were high, and both distributed in the range of ≥20%. The differentiation trajectory of CD33/CD13 was normal and there were no significant differences in the expression rate and MFI between the two groups. However, both the expression rate of CD11b and CD15 MFI in the CML group were significantly lower than those in the control group (P <0.001). There were no significant differences in the expression rate and MFI of CD10 between the two groups, and the expression levels of CD10 between the two groups were consistent in different distributions. In the CML group, there was a large number of cases with abnormal high expression of CD56, 52.5% of the cases had a CD56 expression rate of ≥5%, and 42.5% had a CD56 expression rate of ≥20%, while the control group did not express CD56 (<1%). The expression distribution of CD117 was different between the two groups. In the range of expression rate ≥5%, there were 35.0% cases in the CML group, while only 2.5% in the control group. The expression rate of CD117 in the CML group was higher than that in the control group (P <0.001), though there was no significant difference in MFI.@*CONCLUSION@#The immunophenotyping of CML is characterized by increased proportion of mature neutrophils, decreased CD15 MFI, decreased proportion of CD11b and abnormal high expression of CD56 and CD117. Flow cytometric analysis of immunophenotype can effectively distinguish normal granulocytes from chronic granulocytes, and help in the diagnosis of CML.

Research progress on the regulation and mechanism of reactive oxygen species on tumor immune checkpoints / 药学学报

Immune checkpoints (ICs) are immunosuppressive molecules expressed on immune cells, which can regulate immune cells' activation. Immune checkpoint inhibitors (ICIs) which can block the interaction of immune checkpoints and their ligands, improve the cytotoxic effect of the immune system on tumor cells. Immunotherapy such as employing ICIs has gradually become a conventional therapeutic strategy for cancer treatment. However, the low response rate and the emergence of drug resistance have seriously affected the clinical efficacy of ICIs. Reactive oxygen species (ROS) are electronic reduction products of active oxygen, as well as natural by-products of cell metabolism, which can be used as regulators of intercellular signals. Tumor microenvironment (TME) is often in the state of oxidative stress (OS), which is the imbalance between oxidative system and antioxidant system. ROS can affect the interaction with its ligands by regulating the expression and activity of immune checkpoints in TME, thus affecting the anti-tumor effect of immune cells. Accumulating studies have shown that ROS could regulate tumor immune checkpoints through several pathways. Due to different types and stages of tumor, it would be clinical beneficial to understand the mechanistic link of ROS on tumor immune checkpoint, and choose appropriate ROS regulators combined with immune checkpoint inhibitors to maximize anti-tumor effects. This article reviews the common metabolic sources and characteristics of ROS, the regulatory effect and mechanism of ROS on tumor immune checkpoints and its therapeutic application.

BRD4 inhibitors kill ABC-DLBCL cells by targeting BTK / 中国病理生理杂志

AIM:To investigate the effect of bromodomain-containing protein 4(BRD4)inhibitors on the via-bility and apoptosis of activated B cell-like diffuse large B-cell lymphoma(ABC-DLBCL)cells and the molecular mecha-nism. METHODS:The ABC-DLBCL cells were treated with BRD4 inhibitors JQ1 and I-BET-762,and Bruton tyrosine kinase(BTK)inhibitor ibrutinib. The viability and death of the cells were determined by CCK-8 assay and PI staining,re-spectively. The mRNA levels of BTK,phospholipase Cγ(PLCγ),LYN,SYK,interleukin-6(IL-6),MYC,protein ki-nase Cβ(PKCβ),mucosa-associated lymphoid tissue lymphoma translocation protein 1(MALT1),MYC and RELA were detected by real-time PCR. The protein levels of BTK,PLCγ,MYC and RELA were determined by Western blot. Super-enhancer around BTK gene was revealed by bioinformatics analysis. RESULTS:The ABC-DLBCL cells were sensitive to BRD4/super-enhancer inhibitors such as JQ1 and I-BET-762. Both JQ1 and I-BET-762 inhibited the chronic active B-cell receptor(BCR)/nuclear factorκB(NFκB)signaling through reducing the transcription of BTK,but they had minimal ef-fect on other components in BCR/NFκB signaling. Interestingly,there was no super-enhancer around BTK gene,and the inhibitory effect of JQ1 was likely due to disruption of BRD4 binding within BTK gene. Inhibition of BRD4 had synergic ef-fect with BTK inhibitor ibrutinib. Moreover,inhibition of BRD4 induced significant cell death in ibrutinib-resistant ABC-DLBCL cells. CONCLUSION:Inhibitors of BRD4 induce ABC-DLBCL cell death via blocking BCR/NFκB signaling and has synergic effect with BTK inhibitor. Inhibition of BRD4 might be a promising strategy for treatment of ABC-DLBCL,es-pecially ibrutinib-resistant ABC-DLBCL.

Research progress on breast cancer's mechanism of lung pre-metastatic niche formation and Traditional Chinese medicine intervention / 中国药理学通报

Breast cancer is currently one of the caneers with the highest incidence.Clinically, most breast eaneer patients often die due to distant metastasis.In the complex easeade of metasta¬sis, the formation of the pre-metastasis niche ( PMN) has been considered to he cnrcial in the process of distant metastasis of tumors in recent years.Tumors at the primary site secrete tumor- derived secretory factors (TDSF) , extracellular vesicles ( EV) and so on to metastasize target organs.thereby changing the mi- croenvironment of the target organs to adapt to the subsequent distant metastasis of the tumor.Breast cancer is a kind of cancer number of studies have revealed the mechanism of the breast cancer pre-metastatic niche, showing that inhibiting the PMN can reduce breast cancer metastasis.The multi-target and multi- component features of traditional Chinese medicine have been re¬ported to effectively interfere with the formation of PMN.This review summarizes the breast cancer's mechanism of lung pre- metastatic niche formation and traditional Chinese medicine in¬tervention.

Ethics review characteristics of clinical research of acupuncture and moxibustion / 中国针灸

The elements of ethical review related to clinical research of acupuncture and moxibustion is discussed to provide ideas for various institutions to carry out relevant ethical review. It is believed that the ethical review of clinical research of acupuncture and moxibustion needs to focus on the specificity of acupuncture and moxibustion. Starting from the basic theory of traditional Chinese medicine, the theory of meridians and acupoints and the theory of syndrome differentiation along meridians, the key contents of ethical review such as intervention methods, grouping design and placebo control should be considered, so as to standardize the clinical research of acupuncture and moxibustion and protect the health and rights and interests of participants.

Study on influence of TRPA1 in gastric cancer based on cellular metabolomics and mechanism / 中国药理学通报

Aim To explore the effect of THPA1 in the metasta- sis of gastric cancer and the underlying mechanism. Methods The correlation between TRPA1 and the survival time of gastric cancer patients was analyzed using Kaplan-Meier plotter data base. The expressions of TRPA1 in different cells were detected by Western blot. Docking was used to explore the binding poten tial between cardamonin and TRPA1. Long-term dynamic cell imaging, CCK-8 and Transwell were used to evaluate the effects of HC-030031 and cardamonin on the proliferation and migration of MKN-45 cells. The differential metabolites between normal gastric epithelial cells and gastric cancer cells were studied by GC-MS. Results The expression of TRPA1 in gastric cancer patients was significantly negatively correlated with their surviv al. TRPA1 was overexpressed in gastric cancer cells. And the migration of gastric cancer cells was positively correlated with the expression and activation of TRPA1. Cardamonin had similar pharmacological effects with HC-030031, both of which could reduce the migration of gastric cancer cells. The metabolic path ways of asparagine and myo-inositol were found to be different between gastric cancer cells and normal gastric epithelial cells by cell metabolomics analysis. Conclusions TRPAI may be an indicator for detecting gastric cancer metastasis. Cardamonin in hibits metastasis by binding to TRPAI, meanwhile restrains the activation of TRPAI. Cardamonin may inhibit the function of TRPAI by binding to TRPAI, playing a role in inhibiting gastric cancer metastasis.

Advance of synergism of immune checkpoint blockade and anti-angiogenesis in cancer treatment / 中国药理学通报

Immune checkpoint inhibitor ( ICI) activates the host' s anti-tumor immune response by blocking negative regulatory immune signals. A series of clinical trials showed that ICI could effectively induce tumor regression in a subset of advanced cancer patients. Anti-angiogenesis drugs commonly used to block tumor angiogenesis can inhibit the growth of tumors, but they cannot improve the survival of patients with limitations in application such as drug resistance. Tumor immune response is closely related to angiogenesis. In turn, tumor angiogenesis highly depends on immunosuppressive microenvironment. Recent studies have indicated that ICI resistance could be alleviated by combination therapy with anti-angiogenesis treatment, and the efficacy of combination therapy was superior to that of monotherapy. The reciprocal regulation between tumor vascular normalization and immune reprogramming forms a reinforcing loop that reconditions the tumor immune microenvironment to induce durable antitumor immunity. This review clarifies the latest understanding of ICI combined anti-angiogenesis therapy and provides ideas for subsequent research.

Role of β-adrenergic receptors in development of breast cancer / 中国药理学通报

; β-adrenergic receptors (β-ARs) are widely found in organs of the human body and play an important role in regulating heart function, blood vessel dilation, energy metabolism, etc. Studies have shown that β-ARs are abnormally high in breast cancer cells, which can promote the occurrence and development of breast cancer by affecting the growth and metabolism of breast cancer, invasive metastasis, and angiogenesis. Clinical studies have shown that blocking β-ARs signaling improves the prognosis of breast cancer patients, so β-ARs may be a potential treatment target for breast cancer. This paper summarizes the role of β-ARs in the development of breast cancer, with a view to providing some reference for follow-up research and clinical treatment.

Research progress of breast cancer driver genes and precision therapy / 中国药理学通报

A large number of genetic mutations occur in the development of tumors, but only driver mutations determine the evolutionary direction of tumors. A variety of algorithmic tools and stationary analysis processes are available to search for driver genes with driver mutations. AS driver genes are different in different times and spaces, they are not the same in different stages of the development of breast cancer, leading to the different sensitivity of breast cancer patients to targeted therapy, which has become a major challenge for targeted therapy of breast cancer. This article reviews the progress and challenges of precision therapy for breast cancer from the perspective of driver genes.