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Cadmium (Cd) removal from soil is crucial as Cd enters the food chain and affect food safety, thus impose severe threaten to human health. We developed PPC@PC-Fe, a dual-functional core-shell sphere for efficient soil Cd reduction. The shell (PPC) was composed of encapsulated citric acid (CA) in a polylactic acid (PLA) and polyethylene glycol (PEG) network, which endows a function of activating Cd; and the core (PC-Fe) consisted of a polyacrylic acid/carboxymethyl chitosan (PAA/CMC) hydrogel with Fe3O4 nanoparticles to adsorb adjacent activated Cd. Upon water contact, the shell dissolved, releasing CA to activate soil Cd. Simultaneously, the swellable PC-Fe core absorbed water and expanded in size, promoting the disintegration of PLA in the shell, which triggered the automatic separation of core from shell, enabling the exposed PC-Fe core to rapidly adsorb Cd. Furthermore, the PC-Fe core can be magnetically removed after adsorption of Cd. Soil culture tests showed that 2 % PPC@PC-Fe reduced soil Cd from 6.009 mg/kg to 4.834 mg/kg in 10 days, with the acid-soluble Cd being the predominantly target to be activated and remove. This study demonstrates an effective stepwise activation and adsorption mechanism by a single carrier, with simple magnetic collection minimizing secondary pollution. It offers an innovative approach to the remediation of cadmium-contaminated sites in the field.
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In tumor research, the occurrence and origin of tumors are the fundamental problems. In the 1970s, the basic discussion of the developmental biology problem of tumors was proposed, and it was believed that tumorigenesis is closely related to developmental biology. Tumors are abnormal biological structures in organisms, and their biological behavior is very similar to that of the early embryo. Many tumor-related genes also serve regulatory roles in the normal development and differentiation of embryos. However, it remains unclear whether gene expression in early embryos has any similarities with tumor cells. In this study, to compare the similarities and differences in gene expression between early embryos and tumor cells, reverse transcription-quantitative PCR was conducted to determine and compare the relative expression levels of nine tumor-related genes in the brain glioma cell line, T98G, and in the early embryo of Spodoptera litura, which is fast-growing, low-cost, easily accessible and easy to observe. The expression of tumor-related genes in early embryos and the similarity of regulatory mechanisms between early embryonic development and tumor growth were explored. In conclusion, tumor growth may be regarded as an abnormal embryogenic activation that happens in the organs of adult individuals.
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BACKGROUND: Alzheimer's disease (AD) is clinically characterized as a progressive cognitive impairment and behavioral disorder. Pathological hallmarks of AD include extracellular senile plaques (SPs), intracellular neurofibrillary tangles (NFTs) and massive neuronal loss. Although the exact cause of AD is not well understood, a mounting body of evidence has demonstrated that the pathogenesis of AD is associated with oxidative stress, neu-roinflammation, and amyloid beta (Aß) induced neural apoptosis. Moreover, overexpression of ß-secretase 1 (BACE1), Aß, mammalian target of rapamycin (mTOR), and Tau proteins are closely related to cognitive symptoms in AD. Studies have demonstrated that artemether, an antimalarial drug with acceptable side effects, possesses protective effects against neuroinflammation and oxidative stress. Importantly, artemether can easily penetrate the blood brain barrier, thereby representing an ideal drug candidate for AD treatment. METHODS: The effect of artemether on memory protection and the associated molecular mechanisms were investigated in an Aß25-35 induced cognitive impairments rat model. RESULTS: Results of the in vivo study showed that oral administration of artemether significantly attenuated Aß25-35-induced cognitive impairment in rats. Results of the in vitro study revealed that artemether significantly downregulated the endogenous expression of Aß, BACE1, mTOR, and Tau proteins in N2a cells. CONCLUSIONS: The beneficial effect of artemether against Aß 25-35-induced cognitive impairments was attributable to the downregulation of the expression of Aß, BACE1, mTOR, and Tau proteins, suggesting the potential of artemether as an effective, neuronal protective, and multi-targeted drug candidate for AD treatment.
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Enfermedad de Alzheimer , Disfunción Cognitiva , Enfermedad de Alzheimer/inducido químicamente , Enfermedad de Alzheimer/tratamiento farmacológico , Enfermedad de Alzheimer/genética , Secretasas de la Proteína Precursora del Amiloide/genética , Péptidos beta-Amiloides , Animales , Arteméter , Ácido Aspártico Endopeptidasas/genética , Disfunción Cognitiva/inducido químicamente , Disfunción Cognitiva/tratamiento farmacológico , Fragmentos de Péptidos , Ratas , Serina-Treonina Quinasas TOR , Proteínas tauRESUMEN
The incidence and associated mortality of lung cancer in tin miners in Gejiu County and farmers in Xuanwei Country, Yunnan Province have been very high in the world. Current published literatures on the molecular mechanisms of lung cancer initiation and progression in Gejiu and Xuanwei County are still controversial. Studies confirmed that microRNA-34a (miR-34a) functioned as a vital tumor suppressor in tumorigenesis and progression. However, the role and precise mechanisms of miR-34a and its regulatory gene network in initiation and progression of lung cancer in Gejiu and Xuanwei County, Yunnan Province, have not been elucidated. In the current study, we first found that miR-34a was downregulated in Gejiu lung squamous carcinoma YTMLC-90, Xuanwei lung adenocarcinoma XWLC-05, and other non-small cell lung carcinoma (NSCLC) cell lines, and miR-34a overexpression inhibited cell proliferation, migration and invasion, as well as induced cell apoptosis in YTMLC-90 and XWLC-05 cells. Our findings revealed that miR-34a is critical and cannot be considered as the area-specific non-coding RNA in initiation and progression of lung cancer in Gejiu and Xuanwei County. Next we revealed that miR-34a overexpression suppressed lung cancer growth and metastasis partially via increasing PTEN but reducing CDK6 expression that might lead to subsequent inactivation of PI3K/AKT pathway. Furthermore, our findings demonstrated that YY1 functioned as a tumor suppressor gene in initiation and progression of lung cancer in Gejiu and Xuanwei County. In conclusion, our findings in the study confirmed that miR-34a overexpression could simultaneously suppress tumor growth and metastasis and play a vital role in tumorigenesis and progression of NSCLC via increasing PTEN and YY1 expression, but decreasing CDK6. Most interestingly, our findings also raised doubts about the current ideas about these area-specific diseases.
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Cell-cell communication is necessary for cellular immune response. Hemichannel closure disrupts communication between intracellular and extracellular environments during polydnavirus-induced immunosuppression in invertebrates. However, the effects of hemichannel closure on cellular immune response are unclear. Here, we examined apoptotic body formation triggered by hemichannel closure in hemocytes of Spodoptera litura infected with bracovirus from the parasitic wasp, Microplitis bicoloratus. We showed that Microplitis bicoloratus bracovirus (MbBV) induced apoptotic cell disassembly, accompanied by hemichannel closure. Hemocyte apoptotic body formation was caused by the dysregulation of the innexins (Inxs), Inx1, Inx2, Inx3, and Inx4, during the MbBV-mediated inhibition of pI3K/AKT signaling and activation of caspase-3, which cleaved gap junction Inx proteins. Our results showed that hemichannel opening or closure in response to various stimuli, which induces the modulation of Inx levels, could inhibit or activate apoptotic body formation, respectively. Therefore, the "hemichannel open and close" model may regulate the cellular immune response.
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Microplitis bicoloratus bracovirus (MbBV) inhibits the immune response of the host Spodoptera litura by disrupting nuclear factor (NF)-κB signaling and downstream gene expression. However, the underlying molecular mechanisms are not well understood. Herein, we report that viral ankyrin (Vank) proteins interacted with host dorsal-interacting protein 3 (Dip3) to selectively inhibit the transcription of eukaryotic translation initiation factor 4 E (eIF4E). Dip3 and Vank proteins were co-expressed and colocalized in the nucleus. Furthermore, ectopic expression of Dip3 rescued the transcription of some NF-κB-dependent genes suppressed by Vank proteins, including eIF4E. Co-immunoprecipitation and pull-down assays confirmed that Vank proteins interacted with and bound to full-length Dip3, which including MADF, DNA-binding protein, BESS, and protein-protein interaction motifs as well as non-motif sequences. In vivo, RNAi-mediated dip3 silencing decreased eIF4E levels and was accompanied by an immunosuppressive phenotype in S. litura. Our results provided novel insights into the regulation of host transcription during immune suppression by viral proteins that modulate nuclear NF-κB signaling.
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Factor 4E Eucariótico de Iniciación/metabolismo , Himenópteros/inmunología , Proteínas de Insectos/metabolismo , Polydnaviridae/patogenicidad , Proteínas Virales/metabolismo , Animales , Regulación de la Expresión Génica/inmunología , Interacciones Microbiota-Huesped/genética , Interacciones Microbiota-Huesped/inmunología , Himenópteros/genética , Himenópteros/metabolismo , Himenópteros/virología , Evasión Inmune/genética , Polydnaviridae/metabolismoRESUMEN
Lung cancer is the most prevalent and observed type of cancer in Xuanwei County, Yunnan, South China. Lung cancer in this area is called Xuanwei lung cancer. However, its pathogenesis remains largely unknown. To date, a number of studies have shown that microRNA (miR)218 functions as a tumor suppressor in multiple types of cancer. However, the role of miR218 and its regulatory gene network in Xuanwei lung cancer have yet to be investigated. The current study identified that the expression levels of miR218 in XWLC05 cells were markedly lower compared with those in immortalized lung epithelial BEAS2B cells. The present study also demonstrated that overexpression of miR218 could decrease cell proliferation, invasion, viability and migration in Xuanwei lung cancer cell line XWLC05 and NSCLC cell line NCIH157. Additionally, the results revealed that overexpression of miR218 could induce XWLC05 and NCIH157 cell apoptosis by arresting the cell cycle at G2/M phase. Finally, the present study demonstrated that overexpression of miR218 could lead to a significant increase in phosphatase and tensin homolog (PTEN) and YY1 transcription factor (YY1), and a decrease in Bcell lymphoma 2 (BCL2) and BMI1 protooncogene, polycomb ring finger (BMI1) at the mRNA and protein level in XWLC05 and NCIH157 cell lines. However, we did not observe any remarkable difference in the roles of miR218 and miR218mediated regulation of BCL2, BMI1, PTEN and YY1 expression in the progression of Xuanwei lung cancer. In conclusion, miR218 could simultaneously suppress cell proliferation and tumor invasiveness and induce cell apoptosis by increasing PTEN and YY1 expression, while decreasing BCL2 and BMI1 in Xuanwei lung cancer. The results demonstrated that miR218 might serve a vital role in tumorigenesis and progression of Xuanwei lung cancer and overexpression of miR218 may be a novel approach for the treatment of Xuanwei lung cancer.
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Carcinoma de Pulmón de Células no Pequeñas/genética , Regulación hacia Abajo , Neoplasias Pulmonares/genética , MicroARNs/genética , Carcinoma de Pulmón de Células no Pequeñas/metabolismo , Ciclo Celular , Línea Celular Tumoral , Movimiento Celular , Proliferación Celular , Supervivencia Celular , China , Regulación Neoplásica de la Expresión Génica , Humanos , Neoplasias Pulmonares/metabolismo , Fosfohidrolasa PTEN/genética , Fosfohidrolasa PTEN/metabolismo , Complejo Represivo Polycomb 1/genética , Complejo Represivo Polycomb 1/metabolismo , Proteínas Proto-Oncogénicas c-bcl-2/genética , Proteínas Proto-Oncogénicas c-bcl-2/metabolismo , Factor de Transcripción YY1/genética , Factor de Transcripción YY1/metabolismoRESUMEN
Eukaryotic initiation factor 4E (eIF4E) is regulated during the innate immune response. However, its translational regulation under innate immune suppression remains largely unexplored. Microplitis bicoloratus bracovirus (MbBV), a symbiotic virus harbored by the parasitoid wasp, Microplitis bicoloratus, suppresses innate immunity in parasitized Spodoptera litura. Here, we generated eIF4E dsRNA and used it to silence the eIF4E gene of S. litura, resulting in a hallmark immunosuppressive phenotype characterized by increased apoptosis of hemocytes and retardation of head capsule width development. In response to natural parasitism, loss of eIF4E function was associated with similar immunosuppression, and we detected no significant differences between the response to parasitism and treatment with eIF4E RNAi. Under MbBV infection, eIF4E overexpression significantly suppressed MbBV-induced increase in apoptosis and suppressed apoptosis to the same extent as co-expression of both eIF4E and eIF4A. There were no significant differences between MbBV-infected and uninfected larvae in which eIF4E was overexpressed. More importantly, in the eIF4E RNAi strain, eIF4A RNAi did not increase apoptosis. Collectively, our results indicate that eIF4E plays a nodal role in the MbBV-suppressed innate immune response via the eIF4E-eIF4A axis.
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Interacciones Huésped-Parásitos/inmunología , Proteínas de Insectos/inmunología , Polydnaviridae/inmunología , Spodoptera/inmunología , Animales , Apoptosis/genética , Apoptosis/inmunología , Línea Celular , Factor 4A Eucariótico de Iniciación/genética , Factor 4A Eucariótico de Iniciación/inmunología , Factor 4A Eucariótico de Iniciación/metabolismo , Factor 4E Eucariótico de Iniciación/genética , Factor 4E Eucariótico de Iniciación/inmunología , Factor 4E Eucariótico de Iniciación/metabolismo , Femenino , Inmunidad Innata , Proteínas de Insectos/genética , Proteínas de Insectos/metabolismo , Interferencia de ARN , Transducción de Señal/inmunología , Spodoptera/parasitología , Simbiosis/inmunología , Avispas/inmunología , Avispas/microbiologíaRESUMEN
In the parasitoid/polydnavirus/host system, polydnaviruses protect larva development in the host hemocoel by suppressing the host immune response. However, the negative effects on the parasitoid and the strategy of the parasitoid to deal with this disadvantage are still unknown. Microplitis bicoloratus bracovirus induces granulocyte apoptosis to suppress immune responses, resulting in an apoptotic haemolymph environment in which immature M. bicoloratus larva develop. Here, we determined the transcriptional profiles of immature M. bicoloratus across five time-points throughout the immature developmental process from egg to third instar. Dynamic gene expression pattern analysis revealed clear rapid changes in gene expression characteristic of each developmental stage, indicating faster sequential unambiguous functional division during development. Combined with the proteome of the host haemolymph, immature parasitoids likely secreted a Cu/Zn superoxide dismutase to reduce reactive oxygen species generation by symbiotic bracovirus. These data established a basis for further studies of parasitoid/host interactions and identified a novel positive self-protection mechanism for the parasitoid.
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Granulocitos/fisiología , Hemolinfa/inmunología , Polydnaviridae/fisiología , Spodoptera/fisiología , Superóxido Dismutasa-1/metabolismo , Animales , Apoptosis , Regulación del Desarrollo de la Expresión Génica , Hemocitos/fisiología , Interacciones Huésped-Patógeno , Terapia de Inmunosupresión , Larva , Proteoma , Especies Reactivas de Oxígeno/metabolismo , SimbiosisRESUMEN
Bracovirus is one of the two polydnavirus genera. Here, we used a cryo-EM analysis to reveal the near-native morphology of two nucleocapsid-containing model bracoviruses: Microplitis bicoloratus bracovirus (MbBV) and Microplitis mediator bracovirus (MmBV). MbBV and MmBV nucleocapsids have discernable cap structures in two distal regions with relatively high electron density. Adjacent to the end-cap structures are two electron-lucent rings. Some nucleocapsids were uniformly electron-dense and had a distinctive "helix-tail-like structure". Cryo-EM revealed inconsistent nucleocapsid diameters of 34-69.9 nm in MbBV and 46-69.9 nm in MmBV, and the largest observed cylindrical area length was expanded to 126 nm.
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Nucleocápside/ultraestructura , Polydnaviridae/ultraestructura , Avispas/virología , Animales , Microscopía por Crioelectrón , Nucleocápside/química , Nucleocápside/aislamiento & purificación , Polydnaviridae/química , Virión/química , Virión/aislamiento & purificación , Virión/ultraestructuraRESUMEN
BACKGROUND: In South China (Gejiu City, Yunnan Province), lung cancer incidence and associated mortality rate is the most prevalent and observed forms of cancer. Lung cancer in this area is called Gejiu squamous cell lung carcinoma (GSQCLC). Research has demonstrated that overexpression of miR-21 occurs in many cancers. However, the unique relationship between miR-21 and its target genes in GSQCLC has never been investigated. The molecular mechanism involved in GSQCLC must be compared to other non-small cell lung cancers in order to establish a relation and identify potential therapeutic targets. METHODOLOGY/PRINCIPAL FINDINGS: In the current study, we initially found overexpression of miR-21 occurring in non-small cell lung cancer (NSCLC) cell lines when compared to the immortalized lung epithelial cell line BEAS-2B. We also demonstrated that high expression of miR-21 could increase tumor cell proliferation, invasion, viability, and migration in GSQCLC cell line (YTMLC-90) and NSCLC cell line (NCI-H157). Additionally, our results revealed that miR-21 could suppress YTMLC-90 and NCI-H157 cell apoptosis through arresting cell-cycle at G2/M phase. Furthermore, we demonstrated that PTEN, RECK and Bcl-2 are common target genes of miR-21 in NSCLC. Finally, our studies showed that down-regulation of miR-21 could lead to a significant increase in PTEN and RECK and decrease in Bcl-2 at the mRNA and protein level in YTMLC-90 and NCI-H157 cell lines. However, we have not observed any remarkable difference in the levels of miR-21 and its targets in YTMLC-90 cells when compared with NCI-H157 cells. CONCLUSIONS/SIGNIFICANCE: miR-21 simultaneously regulates multiple programs that enhance cell proliferation, apoptosis and tumor invasiveness by targeting PTEN, RECK and Bcl-2 in GSQCLC. Our results demonstrated that miR-21 may play a vital role in tumorigenesis and progression of lung squamous cell carcinoma and suppression of miR-21 may be a novel approach for the treatment of lung squamous cell carcinoma.
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Carcinoma de Células Escamosas/genética , Proteínas Ligadas a GPI/genética , Neoplasias Pulmonares/genética , MicroARNs/fisiología , Fosfohidrolasa PTEN/genética , Proteínas Proto-Oncogénicas c-bcl-2/genética , Apoptosis/genética , Apoptosis/fisiología , Línea Celular Tumoral , Movimiento Celular/genética , Movimiento Celular/fisiología , Proliferación Celular/genética , Proliferación Celular/fisiología , China , Regulación Neoplásica de la Expresión Génica/genética , Humanos , MicroARNs/genética , Reacción en Cadena en Tiempo Real de la Polimerasa , Cicatrización de Heridas/genética , Cicatrización de Heridas/fisiologíaRESUMEN
To explore the inhibitive effect of artemether on glioma growth and angiogenesis in brain tumor bearing SD rat. MTT assay was used to evaluate the inhibitory effect of artemether treatment on C6 glioma cells. Forty SD rats which were subcutaneous planted with SD rat C6 glioma cell to establish SD rat orthotopic glioma model were divided resourcefully into 5 groups. each group was 8 rats. Length-path (a mm) and short-path (b mm) of tumor each rat was measured. Tumor volume was calculated using the following formula: V (mm(3)) = a(2)bpi/6. Microvessel density (MVD) in different therapy groups was significantly lower than that in normal saline control group and brain glioma volume in different therapy groups was significantly smaller than that in normal saline control group. There were remarkably inhibitory effects of artmeter on brain glioma growth and angiogenesis in SD rats and the mechanism that artemether inhibited brain glioma growth might be penetrating the blood-brain barrier and inhibiting angiogenesis.