Discovery of Novel N-(Anthracen-9-ylmethyl) Benzamide Derivatives as ZNF207 Inhibitors Promising in Treating Glioma.

Targeting tumor stemness is an innovative approach to cancer treatment. Zinc Finger Protein 207 (ZNF207) is a promising target for weakening the stemness of glioma cells. Here, a series of novel N-(anthracen-9-ylmethyl) benzamide derivatives against ZNF207 were rationally designed and synthesized. The inhibitory activity was evaluated, and their structure-activity relationships were summarized. Among them, C16 exhibited the most potent inhibitory activity, as evidenced by its IC50 values ranging from 0.5-2.5 µM for inhibiting sphere formation and 0.5-15 µM for cytotoxicity. Furthermore, we found that C16 could hinder tumorigenesis and migration and promote apoptosis in vitro. These effects were attributed to the downregulation of stem-related genes. The in vivo evaluation demonstrated that C16 exhibited efficient permeability across the blood-brain barrier and potent efficacy in both subcutaneous and orthotopic glioma tumor models. Hence, C16 may serve as a potential lead compound targeting ZNF207 and has promising therapeutic potential for glioma.

Preparation of ReNiO3 (Re = Pr, Sm, Eu) and proton conductivity.

ReNiO3 (Re = Pr, Sm, Eu) solid electrolytes were prepared by the sol-gel method, which were sintered in a pure oxygen atmosphere of 20 MPa at 1000 °C for 24 hours. The DC resistivities of the three materials in air and in a hydrogen-containing atmosphere were tested respectively. The resistivities in the hydrogen-containing atmosphere were about 102, 104, and 105 times higher than those in air and XPS analysis showed that after 10%H2-Ar treatment, the proportion of Ni2+ of PrNiO3, SmNiO3 and EuNiO3 increased successively. The proton transport number of PrNiO3 was lower than 0.5 at 50-500 °C, and SmNiO3 and EuNiO3 were almost pure proton conductors below 200 °C. The conductivities of SmNiO3 and EuNiO3 were 1.08 × 10-4 S cm-1 and 1.83 × 10-5 S cm-1 at 200 °C in 5%H2-Ar. The hydrogen sensing properties of SmNiO3 and EuNiO3 show that the measurement results of the two materials were accurate in the range of 0.5-10% H2.

TRPV4 Promotes Metastasis in Melanoma by Regulating Cell Motility through Cytoskeletal Rearrangement.

The abnormal expression of Transient Receptor Potential cation channel subfamily V member 4 (TRPV4) is closely related to the progression of multiple tumors. In addition, TRPV4 is increasingly being considered a potential target for cancer therapy, especially in tumor metastasis prevention. However, the biological correlation between TRPV4 and tumor metastasis, as well as the specific role of TRPV4 in malignant melanoma metastasis, is poorly understood. In this study, we aimed to examine the role of TRPV4 in melanoma metastasis through experiments and clinical data analysis, and the underlying anticancer mechanism of Baicalin, a natural compound, and its inhibitory effect on TRPV4 with in vivo and in vitro experiments. Our findings suggested that TRPV4 promotes metastasis in melanoma by regulating cell motility via rearranging the cytoskeletal, and Baicalin can inhibit cancer metastasis, whose mechanisms reverse the recruitment of activated cofilin to leading-edge protrusion and the increasing phosphorylation level of cortactin, which is provoked by TRPV4 activation.

System analysis based on the cancer-immunity cycle identifies ZNF207 as a novel immunotherapy target for hepatocellular carcinoma.

BACKGROUND: Immune checkpoint inhibitors as monotherapies for advanced hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC) fail to achieve satisfying results, while combination therapies show greater efficacy. Therefore, identifying new combined targets for immune checkpoint inhibitors could be promising. METHODS: We combined the cancer-immunity cycle score with weighted gene coexpression network and system analyses to screen immunosuppressive targets in HCC. In vitro and in vivo experiments were used to assess the effect of zinc finger protein 207 (ZNF207) on HCC immunity. RNA sequencing, metabolomic, cytokine array analysis, dual-luciferase reporter gene assay, and ChIP quantitative PCR assay were used to investigate the role of ZNF207 in tumor immunity regulation. RESULTS: The system analysis and experimental verification revealed ZNF207 as an immunosuppressive target in HCC. Hypoxia-induced upregulation of ZNF207 promoted HCC progression in immunocompetent mice while being associated with decreased CD8+ T-cell infiltration and increased exhaustion. Mechanistically, the mitogen-activated protein kinase (MAPK)-chemokine C-X3-C-motif ligand axis was involved in ZNF207-mediated CD8+ T-cell chemotaxis. Furthermore, ZNF207 transcriptionally regulated indoleamine 2,3-dioxygenase 1 and elevated kynurenine levels, leading to the exhaustion of CD8+ T cells. Patients with lower ZNF207 expression were more sensitive to antiprogrammed cell death protein 1 (PD1) therapy, and silencing ZNF207 could be beneficial to anti-PD1 combination therapy. CONCLUSION: Our study implicates ZNF207 in suppressing the HCC microenvironment and showed the feasibility of targeting ZNF207 during anti-PD1 therapy in HCC.

Tumor-tagging by oncolytic viruses: A novel strategy for CAR-T therapy against solid tumors.

Chimeric antigen receptor (CAR) T cell therapy is one of the most promising immunotherapies in the past decade. It brings hope for cure to patients with previously refractory hematological malignancies. However, when translating this strategy into non-hematologic malignancies, the antitumor activity from multiple clinical studies seemed to be subtle or transient. The less satisfying efficacy in solid tumors might at least due to antigen heterogeneity, suboptimal CAR-T cell trafficking and tumor immunosuppressive environment. Here, we will review the updating strategies to challenge the therapeutic impediments of CAR-T therapy in non-hematologic malignancies. We mainly focus on the combination with oncolytic viruses (OV), the born allies for CAR-T cells. In addition to previously reported OVs-arming strategy, we discuss recently proposed tumor-tagging concept by OVs as CAR-T targets, as well as the possible improvements. Overall, tumor-tagging strategy by OVs combination with CAR-T would be a novel and promising solution for the heterogeneity and immunosuppressive microenvironment of solid tumors.

Hypoxia-induced myeloid derived growth factor promotes hepatocellular carcinoma progression through remodeling tumor microenvironment.

Purpose: Exploring and studying the novel target of hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC) has been extremely important for its treatment. The principal objective of this project is to investigate whether myeloid derived growth factor (MYDGF) could accelerate the progression of HCC, and how it works. Methods: Cell proliferation, clonal formation, sphere formation and xenograft tumor experiments were used to prove the critical role of MYDGF in HCC progression. Tumor angiogenesis, immune cell infiltration, macrophage chemotaxis and inflammatory cytokines detection were utilized to clarify how MYDGF remodeled the tumor microenvironment (TME) to accelerate the progress of HCC. Results: Here, we reported a secretory protein MYDGF, which could be induced by hypoxia, was significantly upregulated in HCC and associated with poor clinical outcomes. Using bioinformatics and experimental approaches, we found that MYDGF promotes cell proliferation in vitro and in vivo through a mechanism that might involve enhanced self-renewal of liver CSCs. Furthermore, MYDGF can also promote tumor angiogenesis, induce macrophages to chemotaxis into tumor tissue, and then release various inflammatory cytokines, including IL-6 and TNF-α, which ultimately aggravate inflammation of tumor microenvironment and accelerate HCC progression. Conclusions: We provided evidence that MYDGF could directly affect the self-renewal of liver CSCs, and indirectly aggravate the inflammatory microenvironment to accelerate the progression of HCC.

Radix et Rhizoma Ginseng chemoprevents both initiation and promotion of cutaneous carcinoma by enhancing cell-mediated immunity and maintaining redox homeostasis.

BACKGROUND: Radix et Rhizoma Ginseng (thereafter called ginseng) has been used as a medicinal herb for thousands of years to maintain people's physical vitality and is also a non-organ-specific cancer preventive and therapeutic traditional medicine in several epidemiologic and preclinical studies. Owing to few toxic side effects and strong enhancement on body immunity, ginseng has admirable application potential and value in cancer chemoprevention. The study aims at investigating the chemopreventive effects of ginseng on cutaneous carcinoma and the underlying mechanisms. METHODS: The mouse skin cancer model was induced by 7,12-dimethylbenz[a]anthracene/12-O-tetradecanoylphorbol-13-acetate. Ultraperformance liquid chromatography/mass spectrometry was used for identifying various ginsenosides, the main active ingredients of ginseng. Comprehensive approaches (including network pharmacology, bioinformatics, and experimental verification) were used to explore the potential targets of ginseng. RESULTS: Ginseng treatment inhibited cutaneous carcinoma in terms of initiation and promotion. The content of Rb1, Rb2, Rc, and Rd ginsenosides was the highest in both mouse blood and skin tissues. Ginseng and its active components well maintained the redox homeostasis and modulated the immune response in the model. Specifically, ginseng treatment inhibited the initiation of skin cancer by enhancing T-cell-mediated immune response through upregulating HSP27 expression and inhibited the promotion of skin cancer by maintaining cellular redox homeostasis through promoting nuclear translocation of Nrf2. CONCLUSION: According to the study results, ginseng can be potentially used for cutaneous carcinoma as a chemopreventive agent by enhancing cell-mediated immunity and maintaining redox homeostasis with multiple components, targets, and links.

Relieving Sore Throat Formula Exerts a Therapeutic Effect on Pharyngitis through Immunoregulation and NF-κB Pathway.

Relieving Sore Throat Formula (RSTF) is a formula approved by the China Food and Drug Administration and has been used for the treatment of pharyngitis in clinic for many years. However, the potential pharmacological mechanism still remains unknown. We combined multiple methods including bioinformatics data digging, network pharmacology analysis, and pathway analysis to predict the potential target of RSTF. We verified our in silico prediction results with an in vivo/vitro antibacterial effect test, mouse phagocytic index test, proliferation, transformation, and migration of mouse spleen lymphocytes. Alteration of NF-κB pathway was determined by Western blotting, immunofluorescence, and PCR. The in vivo experiments demonstrated that the RSTF could significantly relieve the symptoms of pharyngitis. A rat saliva secretion test showed that RSTF can effectively relieve the xerostomia symptom. A phenol red excretion test showed that RSTF has an eliminating phlegm effect. A hot plate method and granuloma experiment proved that RSTF also have analgesic and anti-inflammatory effects. In silico prediction demonstrates that 70 active compounds of RSTF were filtered out through ADME screening and 84 putative targets correlated with different diseases. Pathway enrichment analysis showed that the candidate targets were mostly related to the response to bacteria and immunity signalling pathways, which are known contributors to pharyngitis. Experimental results confirmed that RSTF exerted therapeutic effects on pharyngitis mainly by antibacterial effect and downregulation of NF-κB activities. It is demonstrated both in silico and in vivo/vitro that RSTF exerted therapeutic effects on pharyngitis mainly through an antibiotic effect and downregulation of NF-κB signalling pathway.

Exploring the 'cold/hot' properties of traditional Chinese medicine by cell temperature measurement.

Context: It is common sense that chewing a mint leaf can cause a cooling feeling, while chewing ginger root will produce a burning feeling. In Traditional Chinese Medicine (TCM), this phenomenon is referred to as 'cold/hot' properties of herbs. Herein, it is reported that TCM with different "cold/hot" properties have different effects on the variation of cells.Objective: To explore the intrinsic 'cold/hot' properties of TCM from the perspective of cellular and molecular biology.Materials and methods: A375 cells were selected using Cancer Cell Line Encyclopaedia (CCLE) analysis and western blots. Hypaconitine and baicalin were selected by structural similarity analysis from 56 and 140 compounds, respectively. A wireless thermometry system was used to measure cellular temperature change induced by different compounds. Alteration of intracellular calcium influx was investigated by means of calcium imaging.Results: The IC50 values of GSK1016790A, HC067047, hypaconitine, and baicalin for A375 cells are 8.363 nM, 816.4 µM, 286.4 µM and 29.84 µM, respectively. And, 8 µM hypaconitine induced obvious calcium influx while 8 µM baicalin inhibited calcium influx induced by TRPV4 activation. Cellular temperature elevated significantly when treated with GSK1016790A or hypaconitine, while the results were reversed when cells were treated with HC067047 or baicalin.Discussion and conclusions: The changes in cellular temperature are speculated to be caused by the alteration of intracellular calcium influx mediated by TRPV4. In addition, the 'cold/hot' properties of compounds in TCM can be classified by using cellular temperature detection.

A Complex Role for Calcium Signaling in Colorectal Cancer Development and Progression.

Clinical data suggest that many malignant cancers are associated with hypercalcemia. Hypercalcemia can facilitate the proliferation and metastasis of gastric and colon tumors, and has been considered a hallmark of end-stage disease. However, it has also been reported that dietary calcium or vitamin D supplementation could reduce the risk of many types of cancers. In particular, the intestines can absorb considerable amounts of calcium via Ca2+-permeable ion channels, and hypercalcemia is common in patients with colorectal cancer. Thus, this review considers the role of calcium signaling in the context of colorectal cancer and summarizes the functions of specific regulators of cellular calcium levels in the proliferation, invasion, metastasis, cell death, and drug resistance of colorectal cancer cells. The data reveal that even a slight upregulation of intracellular Ca2+ signaling can facilitate the onset and progression of colorectal cancer, while continuous Ca2+ influx and Ca2+ overload may cause tumor cell death. This dual function of Ca2+ signaling adds nuance to the debate over the hallmarks of colorectal cancer, and may even provide new directions and strategies for clinical interventions.

Transient receptor potential ion-channel subfamily V member 4: a potential target for cancer treatment.

The transient receptor potential ion-channel superfamily consists of nonselective cation channels located mostly on the plasma membranes of numerous animal cell types, which are closely related to sensory information transmission (e.g., vision, pain, and temperature perception), as well as regulation of intracellular Ca2+ balance and physiological activities of growth and development. Transient receptor potential ion channel subfamily V (TRPV) is one of the largest and most diverse subfamilies, including TRPV1-TRPV6 involved in the regulation of a variety of cellular functions. TRPV4 can be activated by various physical and chemical stimuli, such as heat, mechanical force, and phorbol ester derivatives participating in the maintenance of normal cellular functions. In recent years, the roles of TRPV4 in cell proliferation, differentiation, apoptosis, and migration have been extensively studied. Its abnormal expression has also been closely related to the onset and progression of multiple tumors, so TRPV4 may be a target for cancer diagnosis and treatment. In this review, we focused on the latest studies concerning the role of TRPV4 in tumorigenesis and the therapeutic potential. As evidenced by the effects on cancerogenesis, TRPV4 is a potential target for anticancer therapy.

Catalpol ameliorates advanced glycation end product-induced dysfunction of glomerular endothelial cells via regulating nitric oxide synthesis by inducible nitric oxide synthase and endothelial nitric oxide synthase.

Catalpol (Cat.) is an iridoid glucoside extracted from the root of Rehmannia glutinosa Libosch. In this study, we investigated whether Cat. could protect the mouse glomerular endothelial cells against the deleterious effect induced by advanced glycation end products (AGEs) and explored potential mechanisms. We found that 10 µM Cat. showed a protective effect on dead cells stimulated by AGEs. Cat. significantly decreased the expression of p-NF-κBp65 and inducible nitric oxide synthase (iNOS) and increased the expression of phosphorylated-endothelial nitric oxide synthase (p-eNOS; Ser1177), PI3K, p-Akt (Thr308), and total-Akt. Moreover, Cat. restored the integrity of glomerular endothelial barrier by increasing endothelial tight gap junction protein and ameliorated the endothelial hyperpermeability induced by AGEs via modulating the nitric oxide (NO) production. Additionally, Cat. attenuated the massive release of NO induced by AGEs, inhibiting the macrophage infiltration by modulating the NO production, accompanied by the decrease in the release of monocyte chemoattractant protein-1 and intercellular cell adhesion molecule-1 in vitro. Therefore, Cat. ameliorated AGEs-induced endothelial dysfunction via inhibiting the NF-κB/iNOS pathway and activating the PI3K/Akt/eNOS pathway. © 2019 IUBMB Life, 71(9):1268-1283, 2019.

Advanced Fuel Cell Based on New Nanocrystalline Structure Gd0.1Ce0.9O2 Electrolyte.

Lowering the operating temperature is a universal R&D challenge for the development of low-temperature (<600 °C) solid oxide fuel cells (SOFCs) that meet the demands of commercialization. Regarding the traditional electrolyte materials of SOFCs, bulk diffusion is the main ionic conduction mechanism, which is primarily affected by the bulk density and operating temperatures. In this study, we report a new mechanism for the Ce0.9Gd0.1O2-δ (GDC) electrolyte based on a nanocrystalline structure with surface or grain boundary conduction, exhibiting an extremely high ionic conductivity of 0.37 S·cm-1 at 550 °C. The fuel cell with the nanocrystalline structure GDC electrolyte (0.5 mm in thickness) can deliver a remarkable peak power density of 591.8 mW·cm-2 at 550 °C, which is approximately 3.5 times higher than that for the cell with the GDC electrolyte densified at 1550 °C. An amorphous layer enriched by oxygen vacancies was found at the surface of the nano-GDC particles in the fuel cell test atmosphere, which was attributed to the ion conduction channel of the grain boundary diffusion. The ionic conduction at the interfaces between the particles was discovered to be the dominant conduction mechanism of the nanocrystalline structure GDC electrolyte. Oxygen ions and protons were determined to be the charge carriers in this interfacial conduction phenomenon, and the conduction of oxygen ions was dominant.

NaOH-embedded three-dimensional porous boron nitride for efficient formaldehyde removal.

Volatile organic compounds, especially formaldehyde (HCHO), are considered to be great sources of contaminants in indoor air. However, design and preparation of safe, cost-affordable, and reusable materials for HCHO removal at ambient conditions are still remarkably challenging. Here, we have developed a kind of novel NaOH-embedded three-dimensional porous boron nitride (NaOH-3D BN) with high and hierarchical porosities, which exhibit excellent removal performance for HCHO. The as-prepared 3D BN is used as an adsorbent and catalytic support, while the embedded NaOH is applied as a catalyst, giving rise to catalytic transformation from high-toxic HCHO to less-toxic formate and methoxy salts at room temperature. Furthermore, their effective reusability has been confirmed. Given the high removal and reusability performance as well as no use of precious materials, the NaOH-3D BN is envisaged to be valuable practically for indoor air purification.