Integrated analysis of the potential roles of microRNA-messenger RNA networks in prostate adenocarcinoma.

Background: Prostate adenocarcinoma is a frequent cancer among men with high incidence and mortality rates. Biomarkers are useful for the treatment of cancers, so we need to explore the regulatory network of prostate adenocarcinoma. Method: The database from University of California Santa Cruz was used to determine expression of messenger RNAs and microRNAs. Weighted correlation network analysis was used for classifying genes. Search Tool for Recurring Instances of Neighboring Genes and Cytoscape were used for the construction of PPI network and selection of hub genes. The microRNAs were predicted in miRactDB. The relations between microRNAs and messenger RNAs were assessed by Statistical Product and Service Solutions. The prognostic value was evaluated through Kaplan-Meier method. Kyoto Encyclopedia of Genes and Genomes, Gene Ontology and Gene Set Enrichment Analysis were used for predicting potential function. Results: 10 hub genes were all overexpressed in tumor tissues compared to normal tissues, but only aurora kinase B and nucleolar and spindle associated protein 1 were both significantly related to disease-free interval and progression-free interval time.Aurora kinase B and nucleolar and spindle associated protein 1 were negatively related to hsa-miR-1-3p, hsa-miR-133a-3p, hsa-miR-133b and hsa-miR-221-3p but positively related to hsa-miR-15b-5p, hsa-miR-21-5p, hsa-miR-106b-5p, hsa-miR-183-5p, hsa-miR-191-5p, hsa-miR-210-3p, hsa-miR-425-5p and hsa-miR-653-5p. All microRNAs except has-miR-653-5p significantly were related to the disease-free interval and progression-free interval time. The functions of microRNAs were enriched in cell cycle. Conclusion: We identified hub messenger RNAs and core microRNAs and established a novel messenger RNA-microRNA network associated with the prognosis of prostate adenocarcinoma.

[Effect of pH Value on Autotrophic Denitrification Process of Zero Valent Iron Substrate].

Using a substrate with zero valent iron and nitrate, the research determined the change of pH value in the iron autotrophic denitrification process and the effect of pH on zero valent iron autotrophic denitrification activated sludge using batch experiments and a continuous flow fermenter denitrification rate. Batch experiments were carried out with four reactor bottles with sludge addition. The initial pH values were 6.2, 6.7, 7.5, and 8.8, respectively, and there was an initial pH of 6.7 in a bottle without sludge addition. The results showed that the initial pH value of 6.7 obtained the highest nitrogen removal rate. For the bottle without sludge addition, the pH rose to about 10. The pH value of the four batch experiments was concentrated between 7.5-7.8 in the follow-up process, so there was no significant difference in the effects of pH on denitrifying bacteria. However, the pH value in the fermenter can be controlled stably by an acid-base pump. With five pH gradients of 6, 6.5, 7, 7.5, and 8, the adaptability and activity of microorganisms under a constant pH value were observed separately. The sludge activity was the highest at pH 6.5, and the highest nitrogen removal rate was 1.35 mg·(L·h)-1.

[Activated Sludge Mineralization and Solutions in the Process of Zero-Valent Iron Autotrophic Denitrification].

We studied the inoculation of activated sludge from domestic sewage treatment plants. The reaction of reducing nitrate by zero-valent iron was started in the up-flow anaerobic reactor. After 52 d of operation, a nitrogen removal rate of 29.3 g·(m3·d)-1 was achieved. Ferric iron and iron oxide coated on the sludge formed in the operation process caused the mineralization and slowly decreased the sludge activity. The methods of the "supplement and replacement of the sludge in the reactor" and "changing the reflux mode of the reactor" were applied. Using the method of the supplement and replacement of the sludge in the reactor, by discharging a part of the sludge in the reactor and adding the extra dosage from the anaerobic denitrifying sludge for the treatment of wastewater, after 22 d of operation, the conversion rate of nitrate-nitrogen was 33.0 g·(m3·d)-1 and the concentration of nitrite-nitrogen was 16.50 mg·L-1. The effluent average concentration of ammonia-nitrogen decreased from 12.38 mg·L-1 to 3.58 mg·L-1 and the nitrogen removal rate was recovered from 9.9 g·(m3·d)-1to 15.0 g·(m3·d)-1. The biological reaction weakened the chemical reduction of nitrate by zero-valent iron. Using the method of changing the reflux mode of the reactor, the reflux tank was arranged outside the reaction column using hydraulic circulation. The increase in the erosion of the upper layer of the sedimentation tank would bring out ferric iron and iron oxide with the outflow water and they would be deposited in the reflux tank. The corresponding ferric iron of transformation of nitrate settled in the external reflux tank was 58% at the ascending velocity of 3.49 m·h-1. The nitrate-nitrogen conversion rate was 34.3 g·(m3·d)-1, the effluent concentration of nitrite-nitrogen was 0.22 mg·L-1, and ammonia-nitrogen was 0.75 mg·L-1. Ammonia and nitrite did not extensively accumulate. The nitrogen removal rate was 33.4 g·(m3·d)-1, which solved the problem of the mineralized sludge in the long-term reactor operation. In summary, the method of reforming the reflux mode of the reactor performed better than the method of the supplement and replacement of sludge in the reactor.

Nucleic acid quantification using nicking-displacement, rolling circle amplification and bio-bar-code mediated triple-amplification.

In the present study, an inductively-coupled plasma-mass spectrometry (ICP-MS)-based triple-amplification system, by combination of nicking-displacement, rolling circle amplification (RCA) and bio-bar-code probes, was fabricated for the detection of DNA target. By using this system, hepatitis B virus (HBV) DNA target down to 3.2×10(-17)M was detected by DNA probes labeled with Au nanoparticles (AuNPs). Single nucleotide polymorphisms in genes can also be effectively discriminated. In addition, we proved that this strategy is capable of detecting the target in complicated biological samples and holds great potential application in biomedical research.

[Decision tree diagnostic model of Gan-dan damp-heat syndrome and Gan-stagnancy pi-deficiency syndrome in patients with chronic hepatitis B].

OBJECTIVE: To establish a clinical data based practical diagnostic model for Chinese medicine syndrome differentiation in patients with chronic hepatitis B (CHB), by way of seeking a combination of symptoms, signs and laboratory criteria associated with the typical syndromes of the disease. METHODS: A syndromatologic and laboratory investigation on 88 symptoms, 20 signs, and 14 laboratory indexes, was conducted in 1004 CHB patients. The clinical data of typical syndromes were selected and analyzed using Logistic regression analysis, decision tree and Bayesian network analysis in combination to establish a diagnostic model for effectively identifying the typical syndromes in CHB. RESULTS: The most typical syndromes revealed in the 1004 CHB patients were the Gan-dan damp-heat syndrome (340 patients, accounting for 33.86%) and the Gan-stagnancy with Pi-deficiency syndrome (366 patients, 36.45%). Based on the clinical data from patients with the two syndromes, 16 symptoms/signs and 3 laboratory indicators, provided with statistical significance, were selected using Logistic regression analysis. Then, a diagnostic model for differential the two syndromes, which was proved to have an accurate diagnosic rate of 74.36%, was formed by decision tree method. It was found that white tongue coating, light red tongue, yellow sclera, eye dryness, blood levels of alanine aminotransferase and HBeAg appeared to be the effective combination of indexes that may be helpful to differentiate the two syndromes. And the significance of the above-mentioned indexes was also verified by a Bayesian network approach. CONCLUSION: A decision tree model for diagnosing the two typical syndromes in CHB patients, the Gan-dan damp-heat syndrome and the Gan-stagnancy with Pi-deficiency syndrome, was established, which could be helpful for shifting the diagnosis of syndrome from experience-based to the data-model-based form, to make the syndrome diagnosis more objectively.