Sulforaphane triggers iron overload-mediated ferroptosis in gastric carcinoma cells by activating the PI3K/IRP2/DMT1 pathway.

OBJECTIVE: Increasing evidence indicates that prolonged exposure to sulforaphane (SFN) can improve malignancies. However, the role of iron in SFN-triggered death in gastric carcinoma cells and the underlying molecular mechanisms remain unclear. Thus, the current study explored the effects of SFN on iron overload-mediated ferroptosis and the PI3K/IRP2/DMT1 pathway in gastric carcinoma cells. METHODS: We utilized the MGC-803 cell line to assess whether SFN affected iron metabolism and whether this effect contributed to cell death. Pharmacological inhibition of iron metabolism also was performed to determine the molecular mechanism underlying SFN-triggered iron overload and the disturbance in iron metabolism. RESULTS: Our data revealed that SFN treatment altered iron homeostasis and led to iron overload in vitro. Interestingly, SFN-stimulated cell death resulted from ferroptosis, a recently identified iron-dependent form of regulated cell death. Furthermore, an iron chelator, deferiprone, ameliorated the SFN-triggered mitochondrial dysfunction and reduced the iron overload. In addition, we found that the SFN-triggered iron overload was regulated by the PI3K/IRP2/DMT1 signaling pathway. CONCLUSION: We discovered that disturbance in iron metabolism might be involved in the SFN-triggered cell death in gastric carcinoma cells. Blockade of the PI3K/IRP2/DMT1 axis could provide a feedback effect on SFN-induced ferroptosis to protect tumor cells from growth.

Association between serum baseline C1q and IgG levels and the efficacy of combined immunotherapy in patients with esophageal squamous cell carcinoma: a retrospective study.

BACKGROUND: To assess the clinical value of serum complement component 1q (C1q) and immunoglobulin G (IgG) levels in predicting the response to combined immunotherapy in patients with esophageal squamous cell carcinoma. METHODS: We conducted a retrospective study of 44 patients with esophageal squamous cell carcinoma who received combined immunotherapy in our hospital. Serum IgG and C1q levels were collected before and three weeks after immunotherapy treatment, together with other data on clinical and demographic characteristics. RESULTS: Twenty seven patients (61.4%) showed partial response (PR), 13 (29.5%) stable disease (SD), and 4 (9.1%) progressive disease (PD). None of the patients presented complete response (CR). The PR group displayed lower IgG and higher C1q levels both before and after immunotherapy than patients showing SD or PD. The IgG reduction (59.3%) and C1q increment (70.3%) in the PR group three weeks post-treatment were significantly larger than those in patients showing SD or PD. Moreover, the pretreatment C1q level and the post-treatment change of C1q levels were strongly associated with the immunotherapy response. CONCLUSIONS: High pre- and post-treatment C1q levels and reduced post-treatment IgG levels correlate with efficacy of combined immunotherapy in patients with esophageal squamous cell carcinoma. Serum baseline C1q level may predict immunotherapy response in such patients.

Clinical application of percutaneous endoscopic gastrostomy with the Introducer method using ultrathin gastroscopy / 中国内镜杂志

Objective To evaluate the clinical application and security of percutaneous endoscopic gastrostomy (PEG) with the Introducer method using ultrathin gastroseopy in dysphagia patients. Methods Clinical data of 22 cases dysphagia patients implemented with PEG with the Introducer method using ultrathin gastroseopy or conventional gastroseopy were retrospectively analyzed, the clinical effect and the complication were observed. Results 22 patients underwent PEG with the Introducer method using conventional gastroscopy (6 cases) or ultrathin gastroscopy (16 cases). Among the 16 patients underwent PEG using ultrathin gastroseopy by transnasal or peroral approach, 2 cases with trimus by received radiotherapy for nasopharyngeal cancer and 14 cases with pharyngeal or esophagus narrowing, could not completed PEG by conventional gastroscopy. The average procedure time of PEG was (12.2 ± 2.9) min in conventional gastroscopy group and (11.8 ± 3.2) min in control group. No complications were observed in these patients, but the patients in ultrathin gastroseopy group reported less discomfort associated with the procedure. 17 patients with advanced nasopharyngeal carcinoma and esophagus cancer who received PEG could completely finished 6 cycles of concurrent chemoradiotherapy. Paired-sample t test of nutrition indicators (hemoglobin, albumin and RBC) before and after the treatment showed significant difference (P < 0.05). Conclusion PEG with the introducer method using ultrathin gastroseopy is a safe and effective method of enteral nutrition, Ultrathin gastroscopy reduces the discomfort of the procedure, especially in patients with serious trimus and pharyngeal or esophagus narrowing. For patients with advanced nasopharyngeal carcinoma, preventative PEG improved the tolerance of chemoradiotherapy,reduce the incidence of adverse events.

Clinical application of percutaneous endoscopic gastrostomy with the Introducer method using ultrathin gastroscopy / 中国内镜杂志

Objective To evaluate the clinical application and security of percutaneous endoscopic gastrostomy (PEG) with the Introducer method using ultrathin gastroseopy in dysphagia patients. Methods Clinical data of 22 cases dysphagia patients implemented with PEG with the Introducer method using ultrathin gastroseopy or conventional gastroseopy were retrospectively analyzed, the clinical effect and the complication were observed. Results 22 patients underwent PEG with the Introducer method using conventional gastroscopy (6 cases) or ultrathin gastroscopy (16 cases). Among the 16 patients underwent PEG using ultrathin gastroseopy by transnasal or peroral approach, 2 cases with trimus by received radiotherapy for nasopharyngeal cancer and 14 cases with pharyngeal or esophagus narrowing, could not completed PEG by conventional gastroscopy. The average procedure time of PEG was (12.2 ± 2.9) min in conventional gastroscopy group and (11.8 ± 3.2) min in control group. No complications were observed in these patients, but the patients in ultrathin gastroseopy group reported less discomfort associated with the procedure. 17 patients with advanced nasopharyngeal carcinoma and esophagus cancer who received PEG could completely finished 6 cycles of concurrent chemoradiotherapy. Paired-sample t test of nutrition indicators (hemoglobin, albumin and RBC) before and after the treatment showed significant difference (P < 0.05). Conclusion PEG with the introducer method using ultrathin gastroseopy is a safe and effective method of enteral nutrition, Ultrathin gastroscopy reduces the discomfort of the procedure, especially in patients with serious trimus and pharyngeal or esophagus narrowing. For patients with advanced nasopharyngeal carcinoma, preventative PEG improved the tolerance of chemoradiotherapy,reduce the incidence of adverse events.

Lysobacter korlensis sp. nov. and Lysobacter bugurensis sp. nov., isolated from soil.

Two Gram-reaction-negative, rod-shaped, gliding, yellow-pigmented bacterial strains, designated ZLD-17(T) and ZLD-29(T), were isolated from arid soil samples collected from Xinjiang Province, north-west China, and subjected to analysis using a polyphasic taxonomic approach. Both novel strains required 1.0-2.0 % (w/v) sea salts for optimal growth. Phylogenetic analysis based on 16S rRNA gene sequences indicated that these two strains belong to the genus Lysobacter within the class Gammaproteobacteria. Strain ZLD-17(T) showed highest 16S rRNA gene sequence similarities to Lysobacter capsici KCTC 22007(T) (96.9 %), Lysobacter spongiicola DSM 21749(T) (96.8 %) and Lysobacter koreensis KCTC 12204(T) (96.8 %), whereas strain ZLD-29(T) showed highest sequence similarities to Lysobacter niastensis DSM 18481(T) (96.0 %) and Lysobacter enzymogenes DSM 2043(T) (95.9 %). 16S rRNA gene sequence similarity between ZLD-17(T) and ZLD-29(T) was 96.1 %. The DNA G+C contents of strains ZLD-17(T) and ZLD-29(T) were 67.9 and 68.2 mol%, respectively. The major cellular fatty acids of both strains were summed feature 3 (iso-C15:0 2-OH and/or C16:1ω7c), iso-C17:1ω9c, iso-C16:0, C16:0 and iso-C11:0 3-OH; their predominant isoprenoid quinone was Q-8 and their major polar lipids were diphosphatidylglycerol, phosphatidylethanolamine and phosphatidylglycerol. Based on their phenotypic characteristics, phylogenetic position as determined by 16S rRNA gene sequence analysis and chemotaxonomic data, strains ZLD-17(T) ( = CCTCC AB 207174(T)  = KCTC 23076(T)) and ZLD-29(T) ( = CCTCC AB 207175(T) = KCTC 23077(T)) represent two novel species of the genus Lysobacter, for which the names Lysobacter korlensis sp. nov. and Lysobacter bugurensis sp. nov. are proposed, respectively.

Bacillus deserti sp. nov., a novel bacterium isolated from the desert of Xinjiang, China.

A Gram-positive, rod-shaped, motile and spore-forming bacterium, designated ZLD-8(T), was isolated from a desert soil sample collected from Xinjiang Province in north-west China, and subjected to a polyphasic taxonomic analysis. This isolate grew optimally at 30°C and pH 7.0. It grew with 0-4% NaCl (optimum, 0-1%). Comparative 16S rRNA gene sequence analysis showed that strain ZLD-8(T) was closely related to members of the genus Bacillus, exhibiting the highest 16S rRNA gene sequence similarity to Bacillus kribbensis DSM 17871(T) (98.0%). The levels of 16S rRNA gene sequence similarity with respect to other Bacillus species with validly published names were less than 96.3%. The DNA G + C content of strain ZLD-8(T) was 40.1 mol%. The strain contained MK-7 as the predominant menaquinone. The diagnostic diamino acid in the cell-wall peptidoglycan was meso-diaminopimelic acid. The major polar lipids were diphosphatidylglycerol, phosphatidylglycerol and phosphatidylethanolamine. The major fatty acids (>5% of total fatty acids) were anteiso-C15:0 (39.56%), iso-C14:0 (25.69%), C16:1 ω7c alcohol (10.13%) and iso-C15:0 (5.27%). These chemotaxonomic results supported the affiliation of strain ZLD-8(T) to the genus Bacillus. However, low DNA-DNA relatedness values and distinguishing phenotypic characteristics allowed genotypic and phenotypic differentiation of strain ZLD-8(T) from recognized Bacillus species. On the basis of the polyphasic evidence presented, strain ZLD-8(T) is considered to represent a novel species of the genus Bacillus, for which the name Bacillus deserti sp. nov. is proposed. The type strain is ZLD-8(T) (=CCTCC AB 207173(T) = KCTC 13246(T)).

Deinococcus soli sp. nov., a gamma- and uv-radiation-resistant bacterium from north-west China.

An ionizing- and UV-radiation-resistant bacterial strain, designated ZLM-202T, was isolated from an arid soil sample collected from Xinjiang Province, north-west China. The soil sample was irradiated before serial dilution plating was performed using twofold-diluted marine agar. Phylogenetic analysis based on 16S rRNA gene sequences indicated that strain ZLM-202T was a member of the genus Deinococcus, exhibiting sequence similarities of 86.3-92.2% to the type strains of recognized Deinococcus species. Strain-ZLM-202 was strictly aerobic and showed optimum growth at 30-37 degrees C and pH 7.0. The major respiratory menaquinone was MK-8. The major fatty acids were 16:1 omega7c, 16:0, 15:1 omega6c, 15:0 iso and 16:1 omega5c. L-ornithine was detected in its peptidoglycan. The polar lipid profile consisted mainly of various unknown phosphoglycolipids, aminophospholipids, glycolipids and phospholipids. The DNA G + C content was 65.5 mol. %. The strain was shown to be extremely resistant to gamma radiation (> 10 kGy) and UV light (> 600 J m(-2)). On the basis of the phylogenetic, chemotaxonomic and phenotypic data, strain ZLM-202T represents a novel species of the genus Deinococcus, for which the name Deinococcus soli sp. nov. is proposed. The type strain is ZLM-202T (= CCTCC AB 208223T = KCTC 13419T).

Nesterenkonia alba sp. nov., an alkaliphilic actinobacterium isolated from the black liquor treatment system of a cotton pulp mill.

An alkaliphilic actinobacterium, designated strain CAAS 252(T), was isolated from the black liquor treatment system of a cotton pulp mill in Wuhan, China. Cells of strain CAAS 252(T) were Gram-positive, non-motile, non-endospore-forming, short rod-shaped, and grew optimally at 42 degrees C and pH 9-10 in the presence of 3 % (w/v) NaCl. Strain CAAS 252(T) contained MK-7, MK-8 and MK-9 as the major menaquinones and anteiso-C(17 : 0), anteiso-C(15 : 0) and C(16 : 0) as the predominant cellular fatty acids and had a peptidoglycan type of A4alpha, Lys-Gly-d-Asp. The DNA G+C content was 60.2 mol%. Based on analysis of 16S rRNA gene sequences (94.7-96.8 % similarity), DNA-DNA hybridization (<70 % relatedness) and chemotaxonomic characteristics, strain CAAS 252(T) belonged to the genus Nesterenkonia, but differed from all recognized species. Therefore, it is proposed that strain CAAS 252(T) represents a novel species of the genus Nesterenkonia, for which the name Nesterenkonia alba sp. nov. is proposed. The type strain is CAAS 252(T) (=CCTCC AB 207011(T)=DSM 19423(T)).

Coupling continuous ultrasound-assisted extraction with ultrasonic probe, solid-phase extraction and high-performance liquid chromatography for the determination of sodium Danshensu and four tanshinones in Salvia miltiorrhiza bunge.

A dynamic continuous ultrasound-assisted extraction with high intensity ultrasonic probe (CUAE-HIUP) combined with solid-phase extraction (SPE) for preconcentration and clean-up of the extract prior to high-performance liquid chromatography (HPLC) determination of the main biological active ingredients, sodium Danshensu and four tanshinones (dihydrotanshione I, tanshinone I, cryptotanshinone and tanshinone IIA) from root of Salvia miltiorrhiza bunge has been developed. An experimental design (Plackett-Burman design, 2(6)x3/16) was used to optimize the CUAE-HIUP procedure and the SPE step. Detection limits of 1.2-4.2 x 10(-6) mg mL(-1) were achieved with the preconcentration efficiency of more than 10-folds by the SPE procedure. The repeatability and within-laboratory reproducibility of the whole process, expressed as relative standard deviations (RSDs), were 1.5-3.6%, 1.6-3.1%, respectively. As compared with the conventional extraction techniques such as room temperature extraction (24 h), Soxhlet (4 h) and even microwave-assisted extraction (2 min), CUAE-HIUP achieved the highest extraction yield (98.9%) and the least amount (10 mL) of solvent compared with the other techniques (16 mL) in only 3 min. The method was successfully applied to the determination of the five biological active ingredients in root of S. miltiorrhiza bunge and Danshen-containing pharmaceutical formulations.

New high-performance liquid chromatographic method for sensitive determination of pheomelanin in biological materials by precolumn fluorescence derivatization with naphthalene-2,3-dicarboxaldehyde.

Pheomelanin is an important type of melanin distributed in the skin, eye and hair in the mammal, which is of great social, clinical and cosmetic significance. In this study, a new HPLC method with fluorescence detection is described originally for the sensitive determination of pheomelanin in biological materials. The pheomelanin polymer is decomposed into two specific degradation products, 3-amino-4-hydroxyphenylalanine (3-AHP) and 4-amino-3- hydroxyphenylalanine (4-AHP) with hydriodic acid. Then the two AHP isomers are derivatized using a fluorescent probe naphthalene-2,3-dicarboxaldehyde in the presence of cyanide. The resulting highly stable 2-substituted 1-cyanobenz[f] isoindole derivatives were separated on a 5NH(2)-MS aminopropyl packed HPLC column with binary isocratic elution profile and detected fluorimetrically. The assay shows high sensitivity of 0.11nM (2.2fmol per injection, the lowest reported) at signal-to-noise ratio of 3 for each AHPs, good accuracy and precision (RSDs<3.1%), and linearity (range of 0.02-10microM, r>0.995). The results obtained by using fluorescence detection have been compared with other detection systems (electrochemical and UV). The sensitivity can increase from 100 to respect electrochemical detection and 30000 times respect UV detection. The method has been used for the quantitative determination of pheomelanin in various biological samples, including cell cultures from five types of melanoma cell lines of human and rat origin, hair samples of various colors, melanoma tissue and the urines from human melanoma patients and healthy subjects. This original application of HPLC-fluorescence detection represents a powerful tool for investigating pheomelanin synthesis in vitro and in vivo under physiological and pathophysiological conditions.

A novel method for evaluating free radical scavenging abilities of antioxidants using ultraviolet induction of bacteriophage lambda.

A novel biological method used to evaluate free radical scavenging abilities of antioxidants using ultraviolet (UV) induction of bacteriophage lambda in lysogenic Escherichia coli kappa12 (lambda+) has been developed. This method is based on the induction of bacteriophage lambda from lysogenic cycle to lytic cycle by ultraviolet irradiation, and formation of free radicals during the course of induction. In the experiments, 10(8)cells/ml and 30s (39J/m2) were determined as the cell density of the lysogenic bacterium and UV irradiation time, respectively. The reliability of this method was demonstrated by electron paramagnetic resonance (EPR) spectroscopy and spin trapping with DMPO. This method had good reproducibility with intra-day variations (RSD, %) of less than 4% and inter-day variations (RSD, %) of less than 5%, respectively. By this method, the free radical scavenging abilities (ID50) of well-known antioxidants such as glutathione, superoxide dismutase (SOD), catalase (CAT) and carotenoids were determined quantitatively. The results were consistent with the ones obtained by conventional methods for evaluating free radical scavenging abilities. This developed method is reliable and uses common instruments and inexpensive, stable reagents, thus it could be utilized as a routine laboratory quantitative assay to screen a large number of substances that have potential to scavenge the free radical.

[Electrofusion of building coupling system for degrading anthracene and fusants' choices].

Some researches have been carried out for the electro fusion of building coupling system for degrading anthracene and the choices of fusants. During the experiments, total rate of fusion stable in alternation current frequency 500 kHz, impulse intensity 300 V/cm, impulse width 5 micros, amount of impulse 2 and alternation current intensity 20-40 V/cm were found. The resistant plate with erythromycin and ampicillin can screen the fusant of autochthonous bacterium and surfactant-producing bacterium. The resistant plate with anthracene and karnamicin can screen the fusant of autochthonous bacterium and efficient anthracene-degradation bacterium. The new fusants were found to have stable fluorescent characteristics.