Although some features of plaque instability can be observed in genetically modified mouse models, atherothrombosis induction in mice has been attested to be difficult. We sought to test the hypothesis that alterations in blood thrombogenicity might have an essential role in the development of atherothrombosis in ApoE-/- mice. In a mouse model of plaque destabilization established in our laboratory, we targeted blood thrombogenicity by systemically overexpressing murine prothrombin via adenovirus-mediated gene transfer. Systemic overexpression of prothrombin increased blood thrombogenicity, and remarkably, precipitated atherothrombotic events in 70% of the animals. The affected plaques displayed features of culprit lesions as seen in human coronary arteries, including fibrous cap disruption, luminal thrombosis, and plaque hemorrhage. Treatment with aspirin and clopidogrel substantially reduced the incidence of atherothrombosis in this model. Mechanistically, increased inflammation, apoptosis and upregulation of metalloproteinases contributed to the development of plaque destabilization and atherothrombosis. As conclusions, targeting blood thrombogenicity in mice can faithfully reproduce the process of atherothrombosis as occurring in human coronary vessels. Our results suggest that blood-plaque interactions are critical in the development of atherothrombosis in mice, substantiating the argument that changes in blood coagulation status may have a determinant role in the onset of acute coronary syndrome.

It is increasingly recognized that vitamin D3 (VitD3) has an anti-inflammatory activity. The present study investigated the effects of maternal VitD3 supplementation during pregnancy on LPS-induced placental inflammation and fetal intrauterine growth restriction (IUGR). All pregnant mice except controls were intraperitoneally injected with LPS (100 μg/kg) daily from gestational day (GD)15-17. In VitD3 + LPS group, pregnant mice were orally administered with VitD3 (25 μg/kg) before LPS injection. As expected, maternal LPS exposure caused placental inflammation and fetal IUGR. Interestingly, pretreatment with VitD3 repressed placental inflammation and protected against LPS-induced fetal IUGR. Further analysis showed that pretreatment with VitD3, which activated placental vitamin D receptor (VDR) signaling, specifically suppressed LPS-induced activation of nuclear factor kappa B (NF-κB) and significantly blocked nuclear translocation of NF-κB p65 subunit in trophoblast gaint cells of the labyrinth layer. Conversely, LPS, which activated placental NF-κB signaling, suppressed placental VDR activation and its target gene expression. Moreover, VitD3 reinforced physical interaction between placental VDR and NF-κB p65 subunit. The further study demonstrates that VitD3 inhibits placental NF-κB signaling in VDR-dependent manner. These results provide a mechanistic explanation for VitD3-mediated anti-inflammatory activity. Overall, the present study provides evidence for roles of VDR as a key regulator of placental inflammation.

To better address the problem of drug resistance during cancer chemotherapy and explore the possibility of manipulating drug response phenotypes, we developed a network-based phenotype mapping approach (P-Map) to identify gene candidates that upon perturbed can alter sensitivity to drugs. We used basal transcriptomics data from a panel of human lymphoblastoid cell lines (LCL) to infer drug response networks (DRNs) that are responsible for conferring response phenotypes for anthracycline and taxane, two common anticancer agents use in clinics. We further tested selected gene candidates that interact with phenotypic differentially expressed genes (PDEGs), which are up-regulated genes in LCL for a given class of drug response phenotype in triple-negative breast cancer (TNBC) cells. Our results indicate that it is possible to manipulate a drug response phenotype, from resistant to sensitive or vice versa, by perturbing gene candidates in DRNs and suggest plausible mechanisms regulating directionality of drug response sensitivity. More important, the current work highlights a new way to formulate systems-based therapeutic design: supplementing therapeutics that aim to target disease culprits with phenotypic modulators capable of altering DRN properties with the goal to re-sensitize resistant phenotypes.

Cocoa tea (Camellia ptilophylla) is a naturally decaffeinated tea plant. Previously we found that cocoa tea demonstrated a beneficial effect against high-fat diet induced obesity, hepatic steatosis, and hyperlipidemia in mice. The present study aimed to investigate the anti-adipogenic effect of cocoa tea in vitro using preadipocytes 3T3-L1. Adipogenic differentiation was confirmed by Oil Red O stain, qPCR and Western blot. Our results demonstrated that cocoa tea significantly inhibited triglyceride accumulation in mature adipocytes in a dose-dependent manner. Cocoa tea was shown to suppress the expressions of key adipogenic transcription factors, including peroxisome proliferator-activated receptor gamma (PPAR γ) and CCAAT/enhancer binding protein (C/EBP α). The tea extract was subsequently found to reduce the expressions of adipocyte-specific genes such as sterol regulatory element binding transcription factor 1c (SREBP-1c), fatty acid synthase (FAS), Acetyl-CoA carboxylase (ACC), fatty acid translocase (FAT) and stearoylcoenzyme A desaturase-1 (SCD-1). In addition, JNK, ERK and p38 phosphorylation were inhibited during cocoa tea inhibition of 3T3-L1 adipogenic differentiation. Taken together, this is the first study that demonstrates cocoa tea has the capacity to suppress adipogenesis in pre-adipocyte 3T3-L1 similar to traditional green tea.

Conidiation patterning is evolutionarily complex and mechanism concerning conidiogenous cell differentiation remains largely unknown. Magnaporthe oryzae conidiates in a sympodial way and uses its conidia to infect host and disseminate blast disease. Arrestins are multifunctional proteins that modulate receptor down-regulation and scaffold components of intracellular trafficking routes. We here report an alpha-arrestin that regulates patterns of conidiation and contributes to pathogenicity in M. oryzae. We show that disruption of ARRDC1 generates mutants which produce conidia in an acropetal array and ARRDC1 significantly affects expression profile of CCA1, a virulence-related transcription factor required for conidiogenous cell differentiation. Although germ tubes normally develop appressoria, penetration peg formation is dramatically impaired and Δarrdc1 mutants are mostly nonpathogenic. Fluorescent analysis indicates that EGFP-ARRDC1 puncta are well colocalized with DsRed2-Atg8, and this distribution profile could not be altered in Δatg9 mutants, suggesting ARRDC1 enters into autophagic flux before autophagosome maturation. We propose that M. oryzae employs ARRDC1 to regulate specific receptors in response to conidiation-related signals for conidiogenous cell differentiation and utilize autophagosomes for desensitization of conidiogenous receptor, which transmits extracellular signal to the downstream elements of transcription factors. Our investigation extends novel significance of autophagy-associated alpha-arrestin signaling to fungal parasites.

Ebola virus infections cause a deadly hemorrhagic disease for which no vaccines or therapeutics has received regulatory approval. Here we show isolation of three (Q206, Q314 and Q411) neutralizing monoclonal antibodies (mAbs) against the surface glycoprotein (GP) of Ebola virus identified in West Africa in 2014 through sequential immunization of Chinese rhesus macaques and antigen-specific single B cell sorting. These mAbs demonstrated potent neutralizing activities against both pseudo and live Ebola virus independent of complement. Biochemical, single particle EM, and mutagenesis analysis suggested Q206 and Q411 recognized novel epitopes in the head while Q314 targeted the glycan cap in the GP1 subunit. Q206 and Q411 appeared to influence GP binding to its receptor NPC1. Treatment with these mAbs provided partial but significant protection against disease in a mouse model of Ebola virus infection. These novel mAbs could serve as promising candidates for prophylactic and therapeutic interventions against Ebola virus infection.

Although 70-80% of newly diagnosed ovarian cancer patients respond to first-line therapy, almost all relapse and five-year survival remains below 50%. One strategy to increase five-year survival is prolonging time to relapse by improving first-line therapy response. However, no biomarker today can accurately predict individual response to therapy. In this study, we present analytical and prospective clinical validation of a new test that utilizes primary patient tissue in 3D cell culture to make patient-specific response predictions prior to initiation of treatment in the clinic. Test results were generated within seven days of tissue receipt from newly diagnosed ovarian cancer patients obtained at standard surgical debulking or laparoscopic biopsy. Patients were followed for clinical response to chemotherapy. In a study population of 44, the 32 test-predicted Responders had a clinical response rate of 100% across both adjuvant and neoadjuvant treated populations with an overall prediction accuracy of 89% (39 of 44, p < 0.0001). The test also functioned as a prognostic readout with test-predicted Responders having a significantly increased progression-free survival compared to test-predicted Non-Responders, p = 0.01. This correlative accuracy establishes the test's potential to benefit ovarian cancer patients through accurate prediction of patient-specific response before treatment.

Grapevine is an important and extensively grown fruit crop, which is severely hampered by drought worldwide. So, comprehending the impact of drought on grapevine genetic resources is necessary. In the present study, RNA-sequencing was executed using cDNA libraries constructed from both drought-stress and control plants. Results generated 12,451 differentially expressed genes (DEGs), out of which 8,021 genes were up-regulated, and 4,430 were down-regulated. Further physiological and biochemical investigations were also performed to validate the biological processes associated with the development of grapevine in response to drought stress. Results also revealed that decline in the rate of stomatal conductance, in turn, decrease the photosynthetic activity and CO2 assimilation in the grapevine leaves. Reactive oxygen species, including stress enzymes and their related proteins, and secondary metabolites were also activated in the present study. Likewise, various hormones also induced in response to drought stress. Overall, the present study concludes that these DEGs play both positive and negative roles in drought tolerance by regulating various biological pathways of grapevine. Nevertheless, our findings have provided valuable gene information for future studies of abiotic stress in grapevine and various other fruit crops.

Proteus vulgaris L-amino acid deaminase (pvLAAD) belongs to a class of bacterial membrane-bound LAADs mainly express in genus Proteus, Providencia and Morganella. These LAADs employ a non-cleavable N-terminal twin-arginine translocation (Tat) peptide to transport across membrane and bind to bacterial surface. Recent studies revealed that a hydrophobic insertion sequence (INS) in these LAADs also interacts with bacterial membrane. However, the functional significance of INS-membrane interaction is not clear. In this study, we made site-directed mutagenesis on the surface-exposed hydrophobic residues of pvLAAD INS, and we found that these mutations impaired the INS-membrane interaction but did not affect pvLAAD activity in the solution. We further found that when cell membrane is present, the catalytic activity can be increased by 8~10 folds for wild-type but not INS-mutated pvLAAD, indicating that the INS-membrane interaction is necessary for increasing activity of pvLAAD. Molecular dynamic (MD) simulations suggested that INS is flexible in the solution, and its conformational dynamics could lead to substrate channel distortion. Circular dichroism (CD) spectroscopy experiments indicated that bacterial membrane was able to maintain the conformation of INS. Our study suggests the function of the membrane binding of INS is to stabilize pvLAAD structure and increase its catalytic activity.

Statins are well known to have muscle toxicity problem. Herba Cistanches (HC) is a Chinese herb traditionally used for pain in the loins and knees. Our previous in vitro study suggested that it could protect against statin-induced muscle toxicity. However, its in vivo protective effect has never been investigated. The objective of this study was to determine if the aqueous extract of HC (HCE) could prevent simvastatin-induced muscle toxicity in rats, and whether HCE could also exert beneficial effects on reducing high-fat diet-induced hypercholesterolemia and elevated liver cholesterol, thereby reducing the dose of simvastatin when used in combined therapy. From our results, HCE significantly restored simvastatin-induced reduction in muscle weights and reduced elevated plasma creatine kinase in rats. HCE also improved simvastatin-induced reduction in muscle glutathione levels, muscle mitochondrial membrane potential, and reduced simvastatin-induced muscle inflammation. Furthermore, HCE could exert reduction on liver weight, total liver lipid levels and plasma lipid levels in high-fat-fed mice. In conclusion, our study provided in vivo evidence that HCE has potential protective effect on simvastatin-induced toxicity in muscles, and also beneficial effects on diet-induced non-alcoholic fatty liver and hyperlipidemia when being used alone or in combination with simvastatin at a reduced dose.

Site-directed mutagenesis for large plasmids is a difficult task that cannot easily be solved by the conventional methods used in many laboratories. In this study, we developed an effective method for Site-directed Mutagenesis for Large Plasmids (SMLP) based on a PCR technique. The SMLP method combines several effective approaches, including a high-efficiency DNA polymerase for the large DNA amplification, two independent PCR reactions and a fast recombinational ligation. Using this method, we have achieved a variety of mutants for the filamin A gene (7.9 kb) cloned in the pcDNA (5.4 kb) or the pLV-U6-CMV-EGFP (9.4 kb) plasmids, indicating that this method can be applied to site-directed mutagenesis for the plasmids up to 17.3 kb. We show that the SMLP method has a greater advantage than the conventional methods tested in this study, and this method can be applied to substitution, deletion, and insertion mutations for both large and small plasmids as well as the assembly of three fragments from PCR reactions. Altogether, the SMLP method is simple, effective, and beneficial to the laboratories that require completing the mutagenesis of large plasmids.

The sigma 2 receptor (σ2R) was recently identified as an endoplasmic reticulum (ER) membrane protein known as transmembrane protein 97 (TMEM97). Studies have shown that σ2R/TMEM97 binding compounds are neuroprotective, suggesting a role of σ2R/TMEM97 in neurodegenerative processes. To understand the function of σ2R/TMEM97 in neurodegeneration pathways, we characterized ischemia-induced retinal ganglion cell (RGC) degeneration in TMEM97-/- mice and found that RGCs in TMEM97-/- mice are resistant to degeneration. In addition, intravitreal injection of a selective σ2R/TMEM97 ligand DKR-1677 significantly protects RGCs from ischemia-induced degeneration in wildtype mice. Our results provide conclusive evidence that σ2R/TMEM97 plays a role to facilitate RGC death following ischemic injury and that inhibiting the function of σ2R/TMEM97 is neuroprotective. This work is a breakthrough toward elucidating the biology and function of σ2R/TMEM97 in RGCs and likely in other σ2R/TMEM97 expressing neurons. Moreover, these findings support future studies to develop new neuroprotective approaches for RGC degenerative diseases by inhibiting σ2R/TMEM97.

This cross-sectional study aims to investigate the prevalence and causes of visual impairment (VI) and blindness in Jiangsu Province, China in 2022 during the COVID-19 pandemic. Participants (n = 13,208, aged 18-93) underwent comprehensive ocular examinations. The prevalence and causes of binocular VI (presenting visual acuity [VA] ≥ 20/400 and < 20/63 in the better eye) and blindness (presenting VA < 20/400 in the better eye) were assessed according to the World Health Organization (WHO) criteria. The estimation of refractive error prevalence was conducted using the following classification: myopia ≤  - 0.50 diopters (D), high myopia ≤  - 6.00 D, hyperopia ≥ 0.50 D, and anisometropia ≥ 1.00 D. The overall prevalence of binocular VI and blindness was 21.04% (95% confidence interval [CI] 20.35-21.74%) and 0.47% (95% CI 0.37-0.60%). The highest prevalence of binocular VI was in the population aged 18-24 years old (46.29%, [95% CI 44.30-48.28%]), those with education at university and above (43.47%, [95% CI 41.93-45.02%]), students (54.96%, [95% CI 52.73-57.17%]). Uncorrected refractive error (URE) was the leading cause of presenting binocular VI (93.40%) and blindness (50.79%). The prevalence of myopia was 54.75% (95% CI 53.90-55.60%). Actions are needed to control URE and myopia within the adult Chinese population, with a particular emphasis on the younger, well-educated demographic.

Acupuncture treatment is amazing but controversial. Up to now, the mechanism of treating diseases by acupuncture and moxibustion is still unclear, especially the occurrence of the molecular events in local acupoints. Herein, we report an extremely stable microsensor by modifying carbon nanotube (CNT) to the tip surface of acupuncture needle and applying this CNT-modified acupuncture needle for real time monitoring of serotonin (5-HT) in vivo. To stabilize CNT modification on the needle tip surface, poly(3,4-ethylenedioxythiophene)(PEDOT) was employed as glue water to stick CNT on the needle. The detection limit of the CNT-modified needle was found to be approximately 50 nM and 78 nM in the PBS and the cell medium, respectively. In addition, the needle showed good selectivity to some inflammatory mediators and some electroactive molecules. For the first time, the CNT-modified needle could be directly probed into rat body for real time monitoring of 5-HT in vivo, showing a great potential for better understanding the mechanism of acupuncture treatment.

Cannabidiol (CBD) is a non-psychoactive component of marijuana, which has anti-inflammatory effects. It has also been approved by FDA for various orphan diseases for exploratory trials. Herein, we investigated the effects of CBD on liver injury induced by chronic plus binge alcohol feeding in mice. CBD or vehicle was administered daily throughout the alcohol feeding study. At the conclusion of the feeding protocol, serums samples, livers or isolated neutrophils were utilized for molecular biology, biochemistry and pathology analysis. CBD significantly attenuated the alcohol feeding-induced serum transaminase elevations, hepatic inflammation (mRNA expressions of TNFα, MCP1, IL1β, MIP2 and E-Selectin, and neutrophil accumulation), oxidative/nitrative stress (lipid peroxidation, 3-nitrotyrosine formation, and expression of reactive oxygen species generating enzyme NOX2). CBD treatment also attenuated the respiratory burst of neutrophils isolated from chronic plus binge alcohol fed mice or from human blood, and decreased the alcohol-induced increased liver triglyceride and fat droplet accumulation. Furthermore, CBD improved alcohol-induced hepatic metabolic dysregulation and steatosis by restoring changes in hepatic mRNA or protein expression of ACC-1, FASN, PPARα, MCAD, ADIPOR-1, and mCPT-1. Thus, CBD may have therapeutic potential in the treatment of alcoholic liver diseases associated with inflammation, oxidative stress and steatosis, which deserves exploration in human trials.

Emerging evidence indicates the existence of a new class of cancer genes that act as "signal linkers" coordinating oncogenic signals between mutated and differentially expressed genes. While frequently mutated oncogenes and differentially expressed genes, which we term Class I cancer genes, are readily detected by most analytical tools, the new class of cancer-related genes, i.e., Class II, escape detection because they are neither mutated nor differentially expressed. Given this hypothesis, we developed a Machine Learning-Assisted Network Inference (MALANI) algorithm, which assesses all genes regardless of expression or mutational status in the context of cancer etiology. We used 8807 expression arrays, corresponding to 9 cancer types, to build more than 2 × 108 Support Vector Machine (SVM) models for reconstructing a cancer network. We found that ~3% of ~19,000 not differentially expressed genes are Class II cancer gene candidates. Some Class II genes that we found, such as SLC19A1 and ATAD3B, have been recently reported to associate with cancer outcomes. To our knowledge, this is the first study that utilizes both machine learning and network biology approaches to uncover Class II cancer genes in coordinating functionality in cancer networks and will illuminate our understanding of how genes are modulated in a tissue-specific network contribute to tumorigenesis and therapy development.

Here we describe a method for fabricating a primary human Small Intestine-on-a-Chip (Intestine Chip) containing epithelial cells isolated from healthy regions of intestinal biopsies. The primary epithelial cells are expanded as 3D organoids, dissociated, and cultured on a porous membrane within a microfluidic device with human intestinal microvascular endothelium cultured in a parallel microchannel under flow and cyclic deformation. In the Intestine Chip, the epithelium forms villi-like projections lined by polarized epithelial cells that undergo multi-lineage differentiation similar to that of intestinal organoids, however, these cells expose their apical surfaces to an open lumen and interface with endothelium. Transcriptomic analysis also indicates that the Intestine Chip more closely mimics whole human duodenum in vivo when compared to the duodenal organoids used to create the chips. Because fluids flowing through the lumen of the Intestine Chip can be collected continuously, sequential analysis of fluid samples can be used to quantify nutrient digestion, mucus secretion and establishment of intestinal barrier function over a period of multiple days in vitro. The Intestine Chip therefore may be useful as a research tool for applications where normal intestinal function is crucial, including studies of metabolism, nutrition, infection, and drug pharmacokinetics, as well as personalized medicine.

Renal cell carcinoma (RCC) is a kidney cancer that is originated from the lined proximal convoluted tubule, and its major histological subtype is clear cell RCC (ccRCC). This study aimed to retrospectively analyze single-cell RNA sequencing (scRNA-seq) data from the Gene Expression Omnibus (GEO) database, to explore the correlation among the evolution of tumor microenvironment (TME), clinical outcomes, and potential immunotherapeutic responses in combination with bulk RNA-seq data from The Cancer Genome Atlas (TCGA) database, and to construct a differentiation-related genes (DRG)-based prognostic risk signature (PRS) and a nomogram to predict the prognosis of ccRCC patients. First, scRNA-seq data of ccRCC samples were systematically analyzed, and three subsets with distinct differentiation trajectories were identified. Then, ccRCC samples from TCGA database were divided into four DRG-based molecular subtypes, and it was revealed that the molecular subtypes were significantly correlated with prognosis, clinicopathological features, TME, and the expression levels of immune checkpoint genes (ICGs). A DRG-based PRS was constructed, and it was an independent prognostic factor, which could well predict the prognosis of ccRCC patients. Finally, we constructed a prognostic nomogram based on the PRS and clinicopathological characteristics, which exhibited a high accuracy and a robust predictive performance. This study highlighted the significance of trajectory differentiation of ccRCC cells and TME evolution in predicting clinical outcomes and potential immunotherapeutic responses of ccRCC patients, and the nomogram provided an intuitive and accurate method for predicting the prognosis of such patients.

Previous studies demonstrated that acute alcohol intoxication caused hepatic lipid accumulation. The present study showed that acute alcohol intoxication caused hepatic lipid accumulation in Tlr4-wild-type mice but not in Tlr4-mutant mice. Hepatic sterol-regulatory element binding protein (SREBP)-1, a transcription factor regulating fatty acid and triglyceride (TG) synthesis, was activated in alcohol-treated Tlr4-wild-type mice but not in Tlr4-mutant mice. Hepatic Fas, Acc, Scd-1 and Dgat-2, the key genes for fatty acid and TG synthesis, were up-regulated in alcohol-treated Tlr4-wild-type mice but not in Tlr4-mutant mice. Additional experiment showed that hepatic MyD88 was elevated in alcohol-treated Tlr4-wild-type mice but not in Tlr4-mutant mice. Hepatic NF-κB was activated in alcohol-treated Tlr4-wild-type mice but not in Tlr4-mutant mice. Moreover, hepatic GSH content was reduced and hepatic MDA level was elevated in alcohol-treated Tlr4-wild-type mice but not in Tlr4-mutant mice. Hepatic CYP2E1 was elevated in alcohol-treated Tlr4-wild-type mice but not in Tlr4-mutant mice. Hepatic p67phox and gp91phox, two NADPH oxidase subunits, were up-regulated in alcohol-treated Tlr4-wild-type mice but not in Tlr4-mutant mice. Alpha-phenyl-N-t-butylnitrone (PBN), a free radical spin-trapping agent, protected against alcohol-induced hepatic SREBP-1 activation and hepatic lipid accumulation. In conclusion, Tlr4-mutant mice are resistant to acute alcohol-induced hepatic SREBP-1 activation and hepatic lipid accumulation.

Well-timed progression of primordial folliculogenesis is essential for mammalian female fertility. Progesterone (P4) inhibits primordial follicle formation under physiological conditions; however, P4 receptor that mediates this effect and its underlying mechanisms are unclear. In this study, we used an in vitro organ culture system to show that progesterone receptor membrane component 1 (PGRMC1) mediated P4-induced inhibition of oocyte meiotic prophase I and primordial follicle formation. We found that membrane-impermeable BSA-conjugated P4 inhibited primordial follicle formation similar to that by P4. Interestingly, PGRMC1 and its partner serpine1 mRNA-binding protein 1 were highly expressed in oocytes in perinatal ovaries. Inhibition or RNA interference of PGRMC1 abolished the suppressive effect of P4 on follicle formation. Furthermore, P4-PGRMC1 interaction blocked oocyte meiotic progression and decreased intra-oocyte cyclic AMP (cAMP) levels in perinatal ovaries. cAMP analog dibutyryl cAMP reversed P4-PGRMC1 interaction-induced inhibition of meiotic progression and follicle formation. Thus, our results indicated that PGRMC1 mediated P4-induced suppression of oocyte meiotic progression and primordial folliculogenesis by decreasing intra-oocyte cAMP levels.