Circular RNA NF1-419 enhances autophagy to ameliorate senile dementia by binding Dynamin-1 and Adaptor protein 2 B1 in AD-like mice.

Recent studies have demonstrated circular RNAs (circRNAs) to be widely expressed and to have important physiological functions. However, the expression, regulation, and function of circRNAs in neuroglial cells are unknown. Herein, we characterized the expression, regulation, and function of circRNAs in astrocytes. Astrocyte circRNAs were identified by computational analysis of newborn SD rat primary astrocytes cultured with 20 g/L D-galactose. In this manner, 7376 circRNAs were identified, among which most circRNAs (5754) were derived from annot_exons, whereas 27 were antisense, 853 were exon/intron, 329 were intergenic, 41 were intronic, and 372 were one exon. Among these, circNF1-419 was demonstrated to regulate autophagy, in over-expressing circNF1-419 transfected astrocytes, through the PI3K-I/Akt-AMPK-mTOR and PI3K-I/Akt-mTOR signaling pathways. An adenovirus associated virus packaging system (virus titer 1 ×1012), over-expressing circNF1-419 and injected into mouse cerebral cortex, showed autophagy enhancing activity by binding the proteins Dynamin-1 and Adaptor protein 2 B1 (AP2B1). This binding regulated aging markers (p21, p35/25, and p16) and inflammatory factors (TNF-α and NF-κB), and reduced the expression of Alzheimer's disease marker proteins (Tau, p-Tau, Aß1-42, and APOE), which delayed senile dementia. Transcriptome analysis of the brain showed that circNF1-419 improved other signaling pathways, especially those related to the synapses of SAMP8 mice. These findings provide novel insights into circNF1-419 and its potential usefulness for the diagnosis and treatment of dementia by regulating Dynamin-1 and AP2B1 mediated autophagy.

Oligosaccharides from Morinda officinalis Slow the Progress of Aging Mice by Regulating the Key Microbiota-Metabolite Pairs.

The gut microbiota is considered an important factor in the progression of Alzheimer's disease (AD). Active research on the association between the metabolome and the gut microbiome is ongoing and can provide a large amount of beneficial information about the interactions between the microbiome and the metabolome. Previous studies have shown that the oligosaccharides from Morinda officinalis (OMO) can delay the progress of AD in model animals by regulating the diversity of the gut microbiome and metabolic components, and the correlation between the gut microbiome and metabolic components still needs to be further verified. This study applied a new two-level strategy to investigate and ensure the accuracy and consistency of the results. This strategy can be used to determine the association between the gut microbiome and serum metabolome in APP/PS1 transgenic mice and C57BL/6J male mice. The "4C0d-2 spp.-Cholesterol," "CW040 spp.-L-valine," "CW040 spp.-L-acetylcarnitine," "RF39 spp.-L-valine," "TM7-3 spp.-L-valine," and "TM7-3 spp.-L-acetylcarnitine" associations among specific "microbiota-metabolite" pairs were further identified based on univariate and multivariate correlation analyses and functional analyses. The key relevant pairs were verified by an independent oligosaccharide intervention study, and the gut microbiome and serum metabolome of the OMO intervention group were similar to those of the normal group. The results indicate that OMO can significantly suppress Alzheimer's disease by regulating the key microbiota-metabolite pairs. Therefore, this two-level strategy is effective in identifying the principal correlations in large datasets obtained from combinations of multiomic studies and further enhancing our understanding of the correlation between the brain and gut in patients with AD.

Effects of Oligosaccharides From Morinda officinalis on Gut Microbiota and Metabolome of APP/PS1 Transgenic Mice.

Alzheimer's disease (AD), a progressive neurodegenerative disorder, lacks preclinical diagnostic biomarkers and therapeutic drugs. Thus, earlier intervention in AD is a top priority. Studies have shown that the gut microbiota influences central nervous system disorders and that prebiotics can improve the cognition of hosts with AD, but these effects are not well understood. Preliminary research has shown that oligosaccharides from Morinda officinalis (OMO) are a useful prebiotic and cause substantial memory improvements in animal models of AD; however, the mechanism is still unclear. Therefore, this study was conducted to investigate whether OMO are clinically effective in alleviating AD by improving gut microbiota. OMO were administered to APP/PS1 transgenic mice, and potential clinical biomarkers of AD were identified with metabolomics and bioinformatics. Behavioral experiments demonstrated that OMO significantly ameliorated the memory of the AD animal model. Histological changes indicated that OMO ameliorated brain tissue swelling and neuronal apoptosis and downregulated the expression of the intracellular AD marker Aß1-42. 16S rRNA sequencing analyses indicated that OMO maintained the diversity and stability of the microbial community. The data also indicated that OMO are an efficacious prebiotic in an animal model of AD, regulating the composition and metabolism of the gut microbiota. A serum metabolomics assay was performed using UHPLC-LTQ Orbitrap mass spectrometry to delineate the metabolic changes and potential early biomarkers in APP/PS1 transgenic mice. Multivariate statistical analysis showed that 14 metabolites were significantly upregulated, and 8 metabolites were downregulated in the model animals compared to the normal controls. Thus, key metabolites represent early indicators of the development of AD. Overall, we report a drug and signaling pathway with therapeutic potential, including proteins associated with cognitive deficits in normal mice or gene mutations that cause AD.

The study of plasma levels of sCD40 and sCD40L in Alzheimer’s disease and mild cognitive impairment / 中国神经精神疾病杂志

Objective To explore the plasma levels of soluble CD40 (sCD40) and soluble CD40 ligand (sCD40L) in the patients with Alzheimer’s disease (AD) and those with amnestic mild cognitive impairment (aMCI). Methods The levels of plasma sCD40 and sCD40L were measured in 20 patients with AD, 35 patients with aMCI, and 32 cognitively normal controls (NC) using commercially available ELISAs. The cognitive function of AD and aMCI patients was mea?sured by mini-mental state examination (MMSE). Results There were significant differences in plasma sCD40 among AD, aMCI and NC groups (P<0.05) as the medians (the upper and lower quartiles) of plasma levels were 123.3 (97.4, 149.5) pg/mL, 102.9 (63.6, 124.0) pg/mL and 70.66 (51.0, 90.8) pg/mL, respectively. There were significant differences in plasma sCD40L among AD, aMCI and NC groups (P<0.05) as plasma levels were 537.0 (316.0, 1134.0) pg/mL, 316.0 (190.0,546.0) pg/mL and 167.0 (107.5,478.0) pg/mL. A negative correlation between the plasma concentrations of sCD40L and the MMSE scores was found in aMCI patients (r=-0.736, P<0.001). Conclusions There are relevant chang?es of plasma sCD40 and sCD40L levels in patients with AD and aMCI. The present results suggest that plasma levels of sCD40 and sCD40L may be appropriate biomarkers for AD patients and indicate that CD40-CD40L signaling may be in?volved in AD pathophysiology.

The relationship of apolipoprotein E allelic frequency and serum lipid levels in patients with Alzheimer′s disease / 实用医学杂志

Objective To investigate the relationship of apolipoprotein E (ApoE) allelic frequency and serum lipid levels in patients with Alzheimer′s disease (AD). Methods DNA microarray was used to detect the ApoE genotypes of AD patients (n = 200) and age-matched non-demented elderly control subjects (n = 159). Serum lipid levels was measured by Immunoturbidimetric assay at the same time. We analyzed the ApoE genotype distribution and the relationship of apolipoprotein E ( ApoE ) allelic frequency and serum lipid levels . Results The ApoE ε4 allelic frequencies (25.5%) in AD group is higher than that of the control group (7.9%) (P 0.05). Conclusion The ApoE levels are negatively related to ApoE ε4 allele frequency and have no significant differences with the same genotype in AD and the control group,which suggests that lower serum ApoE levels in AD patients is caused by higher ApoE ε4 allelic frequency in AD than in healthy population.

ApoE genotyping by DNA microarray assay and the relationship between ApoE allelic frequency and serum ApoE levels / 中华检验医学杂志

Objective To investigate the application value of apolipoprotein E (ApoE) genotyping by DNA microarray technology and the relationship between ApoE allelic frequency and serum ApoE levels in both healthy individuals and patients with Alzheimer ′s disease (AD).Methods This research is case-control study.DNA microarray was used to detect the ApoE genotypes of AD patients (n =280) and age-matched non-demented elderly control subjects ( n =230) .The cases and controls were collected in Guangzhou Huiai Hospital during July 2014 to September 2015.The accuracy of genotype results was verified by DNA sequencing.Serum ApoE levels were measured by immunoturbidimetric assay .The ApoE genotype distribution and the relationship between ApoE allelic frequency and serum ApoE levels were analyzed.The “t” test was used to compare the ApoE levels of AD patients and controls , variance analysis was used to analyze ApoE levels in the persons with different genotype .Results DNA microarray technology genotyping results were completely consistent with the results of DNA sequencing .In AD group, the ApoE genotype distribution were 2.9%(8 /280) for ε2ε3, 1.8% (5/280) for ε2ε4, 46.8% (131/280)for ε3ε3,45.4%(127 /280) for ε3ε4 and 3.1%(9 /280) for ε4ε4.While in the control group, the ApoE genotype distribution were 0.9%(2 /230) for ε2ε2, 12.6% (29/230)for ε2ε3, 1.3%(3 /230) forε2ε4, 70.0% (161 /230) for ε3ε3 and 15.2% (35 /230) for ε3ε4.The average serum concentrations of ApoE were (33.29 ±10.87)mg/L in AD patients and (41.28 ±10.95)mg/L in the controls.Among all participants, the average serum levels of ApoE were (50.86 ±6.21) mg/L for ε2 carriers, (38.78 ± 12.07)mg/L for ε3 carriers and (30.47 ±7.68)mg/L for ε4 carriers.In AD group,ApoE level of ε2, ε3,ε4 carriers is (50.31 ±9.08)mg/L, (38.30 ±7.60) mg/L and (32.86 ±5.93)mg/L respectively.In the control group, the ApoE level of ε2, ε3, ε4 carriers is (51.00 ±5.53)mg/L, (41.01 ±10.09)mg/L and (32.86 ±5.93)mg/L respectively.The ApoE levels of persons with different ApoE alleles are ε2 >ε3 >ε4. The difference is significant (F =89.6, P 0.05) .Conclusions DNA microarray technology possesses high efficiency and favorable accuracy.The ε2 allele is associated with a higher ApoE concentration , ε3 allele with a mediate concentration and ε4 allele with a lowest concentration.Serum concentrations of ApoE showed no significant difference between AD patients and the healthy groups who have the same genotype .The primary cause of the low serum ApoE levels in AD patients is that the ApoE ε4 allelic frequencies of them are higher than that of the healthy persons.

Effects and mechanism of CD+4 CD+25 regulatory T cells in colitis treated by Yin Yang equilibrated preparation / 中国基层医药

Objective To explore the effects and mechanism in patients with ulcerative colitis (UC) treated by Yin Yang equilibrated preparation. Method 82 patients with UC as treatment group and 35 health parsons as control group underwent the testing. The serum and mucosal of all testing persons were taken pre and post treatment to detect CD+4 CD+25 regulatory T cells(Tregs) by flow cytometry at the end of one month,treating with SASP and Yin Yang equilibrated preparation. Result Compared with normal control group,the proportion of CD+4 CD+25 Tregs was markedly decreased in PB and mucesal of group A and B(P <0.01). But it was significanfly increased in therapeutic groups of SASP and Yin Yang equilibrated preparation, and their CD+4 CD+25 Tregs in PB and mucosal were much more than the control group at the end of one month after treating with SASP and Yin Yang equilibrated preparation(P <0.01 or P< 0.05). Conclusion CD+4 CD+25 Tregs with strong immune suppression play a central role in the initia-tion and development of UC,and the Yin Yang equilibrated preparation might exert its therapeutic effects on UC by the regulation of number and function of CD+4 CD+25 Tregs.