Hsa_circ_0002162 has a critical role in malignant progression of tongue squamous cell carcinoma through targeting miR-33a-5p

The aim of this study was to explore the effect of hsa_circ_0002162 on regulating cell proliferation, apoptosis, and invasion, and investigate its potential target microRNA (miRNA) in tongue squamous cell carcinoma (TSCC). Hsa_circ_0002162 expression was detected in human TSCC cell lines and human oral keratinocytes (HOK) cell line. Cell proliferation, apoptosis, invasion, and candidate target miRNA expressions were detected in hsa_circ_0002162 knockdown-treated CAL-27 cells and hsa_circ_0002162 overexpression-treated SCC-9 cells. In the rescue experiment, miR-33a-5p knockdown plasmid was transfected into hsa_circ_0002162 knockdown-treated CAL-27 cells, while miR-33a-5p overexpression plasmid was transfected into hsa_circ_0002162 overexpression-treated SCC-9 cells. Subsequently, cell proliferation, apoptosis, and invasion were detected, and then luciferase reporter assay was performed. Hsa_circ_0002162 expression was increased in human TSCC cell lines SCC-9, CAL-27, HSC-4, and SCC-25 compared with HOK. In CAL-27 cells, hsa_circ_0002162 knockdown inhibited cell proliferation and invasion and promoted apoptosis. In SCC-9 cells, hsa_circ_0002162 overexpression enhanced cell proliferation and invasion and suppressed apoptosis. Furthermore, a negative regulation of hsa_circ_0002162 on miR-33a-5p (but not miR-302b-5p and miR-545-5p) was observed. In the rescue experiment, miR-33a-5p knockdown increased cell proliferation and invasion, and decreased apoptosis in hsa_circ_0002162 knockdown-treated CAL-27 cells, whereas miR-33a-5p overexpression decreased cell proliferation and invasion, but increased apoptosis in hsa_circ_0002162 overexpression-treated SCC-9 cells. The luciferase reporter assay showed the direct binding of hsa_circ_0002162 to miR-33a-5p. In conclusion, hsa_circ_0002162 had an important role in malignant progression of TSCC through targeting miR-33a-5p.

Diversity and antimicrobial activity of culturable fungi associated with sea anemone Anthopleura xanthogrammica

Background: The main objective of this study was to isolate fungi associated with Anthopleura xanthogrammica and measure their antimicrobial and enzymatic activities. A total of 93 fungal strains associated with A. xanthogrammica were isolated in this study, of which 32 isolates were identified using both morphological characteristics and internal transcribed spacer (ITS) sequence analysis. The antibacterial activities of 32 fungal isolates were tested against Bacillus subtilis, Staphylococcus aureus, Escherichia coli, Edwardsiella tarda, Vibrio harveyi, Fusarium oxysporum, and Pyricularia oryzae by agar diffusion assay. Extracellular hydrolytic enzyme activities of the fungal isolates were determined by agar diffusion assays. Enzyme activities were detected from clear halo size. Results: The isolated fungi belonged to 18 genera within 7 taxonomic orders of 1 phylum. The genera Aspergillaceae were the most diverse and common. The antimicrobial activities of 32 isolates were evaluated, and 19 (59.4%) of fungi isolate displayed unique antimicrobial activities. All fungal strains displayed at least one enzyme activity. The most common enzyme activities in the fungi isolates were amylase and protease, while the least common were pectinase and xylanase. Conclusions: This is first report on the sea anemone-derived fungi with antimicrobial and enzyme activities. Results indicated that sea anemone is a hot spot of fungal diversity and a rich resource of bioactive natural products.