[Expression of large tumor suppressor homolog 2 gene and its promotor methylation in oral squamous cell carcinoma].

Objective: To investigate the expression of large tumor suppressor homolog 2 (LATS2) gene and its promotor methylation in oral squamous cell carcinoma (OSCC). Methods: Reverse transcription-PCR (RT-PCR) and pyrosequencing were used to detect the mRNA and promotor methylation of LATS2 gene in 72 OSCC specimens and normal oral mucosa tissues. Western blotting was used to detect the LATS2 protein in six OSCC specimens and normal oral mucosa tissues. Results: All cases had expression of LATS2 mRNA in normal oral mucosa tissues, but the expression was down-regulated significantly, only 47% (34/72) in 72 cases of OSCC showed LATS2 mRNA expression. The expression was correlated with the degree of tumor differentiation and lymph node metastasis (P<0.05). The results of pyrosequencing show that 68% of promotor methylation (49/72) in 72 cases of OSCC. Furthermore, there was significant correlation between the mRNA and promotor methylation of LATS2 gene (χ(2)=16.980, P<0.01). All the six specimens had the low LATS2 protein expression. Conclusions: The promotor methylation of LATS2 gene may play an important role in the occurrence of OSCC.

NDEL1 was decreased in the CA3 region but increased in the hippocampal blood vessel network during the spontaneous seizure period after pilocarpine-induced status epilepticus.

Nuclear distribution factor E homolog like 1 (NDEL1) plays an important role in mitosis, neuronal migration, and microtubule organization during brain development by binding to disrupted-in-schizophrenia-1 (DISC1) or lissencephaly (LIS1). Although some evidence has suggested that DISC1 expression is altered in epilepsy, few studies have reported the relationship between NDEL1 and the etiology of epilepsy. In present study, we first investigated the expression of NDEL1 and its binding protein DISC1 after pilocarpine-induced epilepsy in male C57BL/6 mice. Data revealed that the mRNA and protein expression of NDEL1 and DISC1 in the whole hippocampus increased during the spontaneous seizure period after status epilepticus (SE). Interestingly, however, the expression of NDEL1 was decreased in the cornu ammonis 3 (CA3) and dentate gyrus (DG) regions. Moreover, SE also increased the number of blood vessels that fed the CA3 and DG regions of the hippocampus and increased the incidence of abnormalities in capillary network formation where NDEL1 protein was expressed positively. Meanwhile, the expression of phosphorylated ERK (p-ERK) was also increased during the spontaneous seizure period, with a similar expression pattern as NDEL1 and DISC1. Based on these results, we hypothesize that NDEL1 might interact with DISC1 to activate ERK signaling and function as a potential protective factor during the spontaneous seizure period after pilocarpine-induced SE.

Separation of fine particulate matter emitted from gasoline and diesel vehicles using chemical mass balancing techniques.

Samples of fine particulate matter were collected in a roadway tunnel near Houston, TX over a period of 4 days during two separate sampling periods: one sampling period from 1200 to 1400 local time and another sampling period from 1600 to 1800 local time. During the two sampling periods, the tunnel traffic contained roughly equivalent numbers of heavy-duty diesel trucks. However, during the late afternoon sampling period, the tunnel contained twice as many light-duty gasoline-powered vehicles. The effect of this shift in the vehicle fleet affects the overall emission index (grams pollutant emitted per kilogram carbon in fuel) for fine particles and fine particulate elemental carbon. Additionally, this shift in the fraction of diesel vehicles in the tunnel is used to determine if the chemical mass balancing techniques used to track emissions from gasoline-powered and diesel-powered emissions accurately separates these two emission categories. The results show that the chemical mass balancing calculations apportion roughly equal amounts of the particulate matter measured to diesel vehicles between the two periods and attribute almost twice as much particulate matter in the late afternoon sampling period to gasoline vehicles. Both of these results are consistent with the traffic volume of gasoline and diesel vehicles in the tunnel in the two separate periods and validate the ability for chemical mass balancing techniques to separate these two primary sources of fine particles.