TBRG4 silencing promotes progression of squamous cell carcinoma via regulation of CAV-1 expression and ROS formation.

Esophageal cancer is the eighth most common cancer globally. Transforming growth factor ß regulator 4 (TBRG4) and caveolin-1 (CAV-1) are implicated in tumor progression. The aim of this study was to investigate the expressions of TBRG4 and CAV-1 in esophageal squamous cell carcinoma (ESCC), and their relationship with reactive oxygen species (ROS) formation. Human ESCC cell lines (EC9706, TE-1, and Eca109), and normal esophageal mucosal cell line (Het-1) were used in this study. The silencing of TBRG4 and/or CAV-1 by sh-RNA or overexpression of CAV-1 after TBRG4 knockdown was used to assess ROS levels. The results showed that down-regulation of TBRG4 reduced CAV-1 expression, and promoted ROS formation in ESCCs (p < 0.01). However, CAV-1 overexpression increased the expression level of TBRG4, but decreased ROS level in EC9706 cells (p < 0.01). Similarly, TBRG4 knockdown significantly reduced CAV-1 expression, promoted ROS formation, and caused cell cycle arrest at G0/G1 phase (p < 0.01). Caveolin-1 (CAV-1) knockdown also promoted cell apoptosis, cellular ROS formation and cell cycle arrest at G0/G1 phase (p < 0.01). However, CAV-1 overexpression in sh-TBRG4-treated EC9706 cells significantly upregulated TBRG4 expression, but significantly reduced the level of ROS, and inhibited cell-cycle arrest and apoptosis (p < 0.01). The enhancements in bcl-2/bax ratio, cytochrome c expression, and ROS levels by sh-TBRG4 were significantly reversed by CAV-1 overexpression in EC9706 cells. These results show that the upregulated expression of TBRG4 or CAV-1 promotes ESCC progression via regulation of intracellular ROS levels and inhibition of mitochondria-dependent apoptotic pathway.

A Low-Cost Metal-Free Photocatalyst Based on Black Phosphorus.

An efficient metal-free photocatalyst composed of black phosphorus (BP) and graphitic carbon nitride (CN) is prepared on a large scale by ball milling. Using economical urea and red phosphorus (RP) as the raw materials, the estimated materials cost of BP/CN is 0.235 Euro per gram. The BP/CN heterostructure shows efficient charge separation and possesses abundant active sites, giving rise to excellent photocatalytic H2 evolution and rhodamine B (RhB) degradation efficiency. Without using a co-catalyst, the metal-free BP/CN emits H2 consistently at a rate as large as 786 µmol h-1 g-1 and RhB is decomposed in merely 25 min during visible-light irradiation. The corresponding electron/hole transfer and catalytic mechanisms are analyzed and described. The efficient metal-free catalyst is promising in visible-light photocatalysis and the simple ball-milling synthetic method can be readily scaled up.

Efficiently Enhancing Visible Light Photocatalytic Activity of Faceted TiO2 Nanocrystals by Synergistic Effects of Core-Shell Structured Au@CdS Nanoparticles and Their Selective Deposition.

Integrating wide bandgap semiconductor photocatalysts with visible-light-active inorganic nanoparticles (such as Au and CdS) as sensitizers is one of the most efficient methods to improve their photocatalytic activity in the visible light region. However, as for all such composite photocatalysts, a rational design and precise control over their architecture is often required to achieve optimal performance. Herein, a new TiO2-based ternary composite photocatalyst with superior visible light activity was designed and synthesized. In this composite photocatalyst, the location of the visible light sensitizers was engineered according to the intrinsic facet-induced effect of well-faceted TiO2 nanocrystals on the spatial separation of photogenerated carriers. Experimentally, core-shell structured Au@CdS nanoparticles acting as visible light sensitizers were selectively deposited onto photoreductive {101} facets of well-faceted anatase TiO2 nanocrystals through a two-step in situ photodeposition route. Because the combination of Au@CdS and specific {101} facets of TiO2 nanocrystals facilitates the transport of charges photogenerated under visible light irradiation, this well-designed ternary composite photocatalyst exhibited superior activity in visible-light-driven photocatalytic H2 evolution, as expected.

Association of gastrointestinal gland cancer susceptibility loci with esophageal carcinoma among the Chinese Han population: a case-control study.

Esophageal carcinoma (EC) is a common malignancy worldwide. Previous studies indicated that gastrointestinal gland cancer and EC share some susceptibility loci. Our aim was to identify new single nucleotide polymorphisms (SNPs) associated with EC by investigating whether known gastrointestinal cancers susceptibility loci are found in EC patients. A Chinese Han population case-control study was conducted to assess SNP associations with EC risk. Twenty-six SNPs were selected from gastrointestinal cancer susceptibility loci, and 360 EC patients and 310 controls were genotyped for these SNPs using Sequenom MassARRAY technology. The association of SNP frequencies with EC was analyzed by chi-square tests, and genetic model analysis. After Hardy-Weinberg equilibrium (HWE) p value screening, we excluded two SNPs. Based on chi-square tests, the minor alleles of rs13294589 (p = 0.046) and rs4924935 (p = 0.046) were correlated with reduced EC risk and rs4269383 (p = 0.010) and rs10953615 (p = 0.036) were correlated with increased EC risk. In the genetic model analyses, we found that the minor alleles "T" of rs401681, "A" of rs10088262, and "C" of rs4924935 may reduce the risk of EC. rs401681 has previously been reported to be associated with EC. To the best of our knowledge, we are the first to report an association of the other five SNPs with EC. Our findings provide evidence for the genetic variants associated with susceptibility to EC in the Chinese Han population, which might be used as potential molecular markers for detecting susceptibility to EC in Chinese Han people.