Knockdown the moyamoya disease susceptibility gene, RNF213, upregulates the expression of basic fibroblast growth factor and matrix metalloproteinase-9 in bone marrow derived mesenchymal stem cells.

Moyamoya disease (MMD) is a chronic, progressive cerebrovascular occlusive disease. Ring finger protein 213 (RNF213) is a susceptibility gene of MMD. Previous studies have shown that the expression levels of angiogenic factors increase in MMD patients, but the relationship between the susceptibility gene RNF213 and these angiogenic mediators is still unclear. The aim of the present study was to investigate the pathogenesis of MMD by examining the effect of RNF213 gene knockdown on the expression of matrix metalloproteinase-9 (MMP-9) and basic fibroblast growth factor (bFGF) in rat bone marrow-derived mesenchymal stem cells (rBMSCs). Firstly, 40 patients with MMD and 40 age-matched normal individuals (as the control group) were enrolled in the present study to detect the levels of MMP-9 and bFGF in serum by ELISA. Secondly, Sprague-Dawley male rat BMSCs were isolated and cultured using the whole bone marrow adhesion method, and subsequent phenotypic analysis was performed by flow cytometry. Alizarin red and oil red O staining methods were used to identify osteogenic and adipogenic differentiation, respectively. Finally, third generation rBMSCs were transfected with lentivirus recombinant plasmid to knockout expression of the RNF213 gene. After successful transfection was confirmed by reverse transcription-quantitative PCR and fluorescence imaging, the expression levels of bFGF and MMP-9 mRNA in rBMSCs and the levels of bFGF and MMP-9 protein in the supernatant of the culture medium were detected on the 7th and 14th days after transfection. There was no significant difference in the relative expression level of bFGF among the three groups on the 7th day. For the relative expression level of MMP-9, there were significant differences on the 7th day and 14th day. In addition, there was no statistically significant difference in the expression of bFGF in the supernatant of the RNF213 shRNA group culture medium, while there was a significant difference in the expression level of MMP-9. The knockdown of the RNF213 gene affects the expression of bFGF and MMP-9. However, further studies are needed to determine how they participate in the pathogenesis of MMD. The findings of the present study provide a theoretical basis for clarifying the pathogenesis and clinical treatment of MMD.

Lattice Incorporation of Cu2+ into the BaCe0.7Zr0.1Y0.1Yb0.1O3-δ Electrolyte on Boosting Its Sintering and Proton-Conducting Abilities for Reversible Solid Oxide Cells.

Lattice modification by incorporating heteroatoms could effectively and precisely tune their intrinsic properties to get improved sinterability and electrochemical performance. Here, by introducing Cu2+ into the interstitial position of a ABO3-type perovskite, a 2 times higher protonic conductivity (1.9 × 10-2 S cm-1 at 700 °C) and low-temperature (1200 °C) sinterability were achieved for the BaCe0.68Zr0.1Y0.1Yb0.1Cu0.02O3-δ (BCZYYC2) electrolyte, compared to the precursor electrolyte. Meanwhile, the modified BCZYYC2 also exhibits excellent chemical stability in high-temperature and high-humidity conditions, as well as good compatibility with the components of cell. When used as the electrolyte in reversible fuel cell (FC)/electrolysis cell (EC) operational modes, the reversible solid oxide cell with the BCZYYC2 electrolyte illustrates prominent FC (0.85 W cm-2 at 700 °C) and EC (-1.96 A cm-2 at 700 °C and 1.3 V) performances with high film-electrolyte conductivity (8.7 × 10-3 S cm-1 at 700 °C). Additionally, an obvious increase in current density is observed during the short-term stability test, which has shown great promise for their practical application.