Biomedical subjects

Liang Zhang

Publications and source records attributed to Liang Zhang.

At least 19 recordsLinked to original sources

PubMed2026

Magnetite facilitates phage-bacteria interactions and phage-associated metabolic coordination for medium-chain fatty acid biosynthesis under ammonia stress.

Medium-chain fatty acid (MCFA) production from waste activated sludge (WAS) is considered to rely on the syntrophic interactions among distinct functional microorganisms. Whether phages represent an overlooked ecological component involved in MCFA biosynthesis remains unclear. MCFA production is often inhibited by high total ammonia nitrogen (TAN). Conductive materials have been proposed as effective strategies to enhance or recover MCFA production under TAN stress. Therefore, the inhibition-recovery system could provide a useful framework for investigating whether viral ecological responses are associated with MCFA-related metabolic processes. In this study, magnetite (Fe3O4) was selected as the recovery strategy of MCFA production under TAN stress. Results showed that a total of 3915 vOTUs and 118 metagenome-assembled genomes were recovered from the anaerobic bioreactors subjected to three conditions: Control (without TAN stress), TAN stress, and TAN stress with Fe3O4 presence. Under high TAN environment (∼5 g/L), MCFA production reduced by 49% (1.3 g COD/L) in comparison to that without high TAN stress. The ecological coupling between temperate phages and MCFA-related bacterial hosts was weakened, accompanied by substantial decreases in the abundance and transcriptional abundance of phage-associated auxiliary metabolic genes (AMGs) related to MCFA synthesis (e.g., fatty acid biosynthesis, acyl-chain metabolism). In the presence of Fe3O4 (i.e., 10 g/L), MCFA production was four and two times higher than those with and without high TAN stress. In addition to enhanced phage-bacteria ecological coupling and increased the abundance and transcription of AMGs related to MCFA formation, Fe3O4 increased the abundance and expressions of electron-transfer-related AMGs (e.g., cbb3-type cytochrome c oxidase, type IV pilus assembly genes) and QS-related LuxR-family and HTH-type regulators, indicating that such indirect pathway could be largely overlooked during MCFA synthesis. This is also the first-time reporting that phages could represent an ecological layer responsive to iron oxide. Analyses of publicly available metagenomes collected from MCFA-oriented anaerobic systems further confirmed that phages could be broadly associated with the metabolic processes involved in MCFA biosynthesis. Taken together, this study reveals that phages could serve as an overlooked ecological layer associated with MCFA metabolism and provide a viral-ecology perspective for understanding TAN inhibition and iron oxide-mediated recovery during WAS-to-MCFA bioconversion.

Ammonia inhibition↗

PubMed2026

ATF4-histone 2-hydroxyisobutyrylation feedback loop drives sepsis-induced inflammation.

BACKGROUND AND PURPOSE: The role and mechanisms of lysine 2-hydroxyisobutyrylation (Khib) in the acute inflammatory phase of sepsis remain unclear. We investigated the function and underlying mechanisms of histone H4 lysine 5 2-hydroxyisobutyrylation (H4K5-hib) in sepsis-induced inflammation in vivo and in vitro. EXPERIMENTAL APPROACH: Acute sepsis was induced by caecal ligation and puncture (CLP) in mice, and inflammatory responses were modelled in lipopolysaccharide (LPS)-stimulated macrophages. CUT&Tag-seq was used to identify genomic targets associated with H4K5-hib and activating transcription factor 4 (ATF4). Immunofluorescence, Western blotting, qPCR, dual-luciferase assays, and ELISA were performed to investigate the underlying mechanisms. KEY RESULTS: H4K5-hib levels were increased in macrophages during the acute inflammatory phase of sepsis. LPS stimulation enhanced H4K5-hib enrichment at the ATF4 promoter, thereby promoting ATF4 transcription. Inhibition of EP300-mediated 2-hydroxyisobutyrylation or mutation of H4K5 abolished ATF4 activation. Increased H4K5-hib activated the ATF4/NLRP3 signalling axis, promoting inflammasome assembly and amplifying inflammatory responses. ATF4 directly bound to the EP300 promoter and enhanced its transcription, forming a positive feedback loop that further increased H4K5-hib levels. In CLP-induced sepsis, pharmacological inhibition of EP300 or ATF4 reduced H4K5-hib levels and suppressed NLRP3 inflammasome activation. CONCLUSION AND IMPLICATIONS: These findings reveal a previously unrecognized epigenetic mechanism underlying sepsis-induced inflammation and identify the EP300/ATF4/H4K5-hib positive feedback loop as a potential therapeutic target for sepsis.

Animals↗

PubMed2026

Personalized functional topography-based multisite brain age prediction modeling reveals divergent neurodevelopment in major depression.

Major depressive disorder (MDD) is associated with widespread alterations in functional brain networks across the lifespan. However, heterogeneity in atypical brain development among patients with MDD remains largely uncharacterized. Using a multisite resting-state functional MRI dataset consisting of 1,105 MDD patients and 1,065 healthy controls, we constructed a harmonized multicenter brain age prediction model based on individualized functional topography and identified two patient subgroups with positive or negative brain age gaps (BAGs). In patients with a positive BAG (BAG+), expansion of the salience network (SAL) into the dorsolateral prefrontal and ventrolateral prefrontal cortices, in addition to contraction of the sensorimotor and dorsal attention networks (DAN), contributes to accelerated brain aging. Conversely, in the negative BAG (BAG-) group, SAL expansion into the orbitofrontal cortex (OFC) and contraction of the visual and sensorimotor networks (SMN) were linked to delayed brain development. These subgroups also exhibited distinct neurodevelopmental trajectories. Clinically, BAG+ patients showed stronger associations between higher-order network topography and mood symptoms, whereas BAG- patients exhibited links between visual/default mode network topography and insomnia. At the molecular level, both groups showed enrichment of genes related to synaptic signaling but displayed distinct expression patterns and divergent expression trajectories in key neurodevelopmental gene sets. Notably, antidepressant treatment modulated the brain in ways that were specific to each subgroup. These findings reveal heterogeneous neurodevelopmental profiles in MDD with distinct biological and clinical signatures, offering insights into personalized precision medicine for this disorder.

Humans↗

PubMed2025

Stage-dependent proteomic alterations in aqueous humor of diabetic retinopathy patients based on data-independent acquisition and parallel reaction monitoring.

BACKGROUND: Diabetic retinopathy (DR), a microvascular complication of diabetes mellitus (DM), represents the predominant cause of preventable vision loss in working-age populations globally. While the pathophysiological mechanisms underlying DR progression remain incompletely understood, our study employs comprehensive proteomic profiling of aqueous humor (AH) to identify stage-specific biomarkers and therapeutic targets in type 2 diabetes mellitus (T2DM) patients across DR progression. METHODS: Utilizing data-independent acquisition (DIA) mass spectrometry, we quantified AH proteomes in a discovery cohort comprising 24 subjects: 18 T2DM patients stratified by DR severity [6 non-DR, 6 non-proliferative DR (NPDR), 6 proliferative DR (PDR)] and 6 cataract controls without diabetes (non-DM). Validation cohort analysis (including 10 AH samples in each group) was performed using parallel reaction monitoring (PRM) strategy for verification of target proteins. Comprehensive bioinformatics analyses included gene set enrichment analysis (GSEA), weighted gene co-expression network analysis (WGCNA), Kyoto encyclopedia of genes and genomes (KEGG) enrichment analysis, protein-protein interaction (PPI) network construction, receiver operating characteristic (ROC) curve analysis, and ConnectivityMap (Cmap)-based drug prediction. RESULTS: Proteomic profiling identified 739 quantifiable AH proteins (62% extracellular) with clear separation among the four clinical stages in the discovery cohort. GSEA uncovered altered expression of proteins mainly related to complement and coagulation cascades, folate metabolism, and the selenium micronutrient network in patients with DR. WGCNA-derived protein modules yielded 83 PRM-validated targets, including 5 hub proteins differentiating NPDR from non-DR and 33 hub proteins showed significant upregulation in PDR versus NPDR comparison. Clinical correlation analysis identified F2, FGG, FGB, RBP4, AMBP, VTN, C8A, CPB2, and C2 associated with clinical traits. C6, FAM3C, SPP1, and JCHAIN levels were altered post-anti-VEGF treatment. Pharmacological prediction identified potential therapeutic compounds, including perindopril, triciribine, and XAV-939 for NPDR, and topiramate, triciribine, and vecuronium for PDR. CONCLUSION: This study established a comprehensive AH proteomic signature of DR progression, offering insights into the pathogenesis of DR and highlighting potential biomarkers and novel therapeutic targets.

Humans↗

PubMed2025

Phase separation of hnRNPA1 and TERRA regulates telomeric stability.

Telomeres are the complexes composed of repetitive DNA sequences and associated proteins located at the end of chromatin. As a result of the DNA replication ending issue, telomeric DNA shortens during each cell cycle. The shelterin protein complex caps telomeric ends and forms a high-order protein-DNA structure to protect telomeric DNA. The stability of telomeres is critical for cellular function and related to the progression of many human diseases. Telomeric repeat-containing RNA (TERRA) is a noncoding RNA transcribed from telomeric DNA regions. TERRA plays an essential role in regulating and maintaining the stability of telomeres. Heterogeneous nuclear ribonucleoproteins (hnRNPs) are RNA-binding proteins associated with complex and diverse biological processes. hnRNPA1 can recognize both TERRA and telomeric DNA. Previous research reported that hnRNPA1, TERRA, and POT1, a component of the shelterin complex, work coordinately and displace replication protein A from telomeric single-stranded DNA after DNA replication, promoting telomere capping to preserve genomic integrity. However, the detailed molecular mechanism has remained unclear for >20 years. Here, our study revealed the molecular structure through which the hnRNPA1 UP1 domain interacts with TERRA and identified critical residues on the interacting surface between UP1 and TERRA. Furthermore, we proved that nucleic acids significantly increase the phase-separating ability of hnRNPA1, while disrupting the UP1-TERRA interaction extraordinarily affects hnRNPA1 droplet formation both in vitro and in vivo. Taken together, these data reveal the molecular mechanism of the phase separation of hnRNPA1 and TERRA and the potential contribution of the droplets to maintaining genomic stability.

Heterogeneous Nuclear Ribonucleoprotein A1↗

PubMed2007

Exploration of the Ca2+ interaction modes of the nifedipine calcium channel antagonist.

A comprehensive study is carried out using quantum chemical computation and molecular dynamics (MD) simulations to gain insight into the interaction between Ca(2+) ions and the most important class of calcium channel antagonists--nifedipine. First, the chelating structures and energetic characters of nifedipine-Ca(2+) in the gas phase are explored, and 25 isomers are found. The most favorable chelating mode is a tridentate one, that is, Ca(2+) binds to two carbonyl O atoms and one nitryl O atom, where Ca(2+) is above the plane of the three O atoms to form a pyramidal structure. Accurate geometric structures, relative stabilities, vertical and adiabatic binding energies, and charge distributions are discussed. The differences in the geometries and energies among these isomers are analyzed from the contributions of chelating sites, electrostatics and polarizations, steric repulsions, and charge distributions. The interconversions among isomers with similar geometries and energies are also investigated because of the importance of the geometric transformation in the biological system. Furthermore, certain numbers of water molecules are added to the nifedipine-Ca(2+) system to probe the effect of water. A detailed study is performed on the hydrated geometries on the basis of the most stable isomer 1. Stepwise hydration can weaken the nifedipine-Ca(2+) interaction, and the chelating sites of nifedipine are gradually replaced by the added water molecules. Hexacoordination is found to be the most favorable geometry no matter how many water molecules were added, which can be verified by the MD simulations. The transfer of water molecules from the inner shell to the outer shell is also supported by MD simulations of the hexahydrated complexes.

Calcium↗

PubMed2007

Identification of early salt stress response genes in tomato root by suppression subtractive hybridization and microarray analysis.

High salinity is one of the most serious threats to crop production. To understand the molecular basis of plant responses to salt stress better, suppression subtractive hybridization (SSH) and microarray approaches were combined to identify the potential important or novel genes involved in the early stage of tomato responses to severe salt stress. First, SSH libraries were constructed for the root tissue of two cultivated tomato (Solanum lycopersicum) genotypes: LA2711, a salt-tolerant cultivar, and ZS-5, a salt-sensitive cultivar, to compare salt treatment and non-treatment plants. Then a subset of clones from these SSH libraries were used to construct a tomato cDNA array and microarray analysis was carried out to verify the expression changes of this set of clones upon a high concentration of salt treatment at various time points compared to the corresponding non-treatment controls. A total of 201 non-redundant genes that were differentially expressed upon 30 min of severe salt stress either in LA2711 or ZS-5 were identified from microarray analysis; most of these genes have not previously been reported to be associated with salt stress. The diversity of the putative functions of these genes indicated that salt stress resulted in a complex response in tomato plants.

Cell Wall↗

PubMed2006

Lexatumumab (TRAIL-receptor 2 mAb) induces expression of DR5 and promotes apoptosis in primary and metastatic renal cell carcinoma in a mouse orthotopic model.

Tumor necrosis factor-related apoptosis-inducing ligand (TRAIL) induces apoptosis in a variety of tumorigenic and transformed cell lines but not in many normal cells. Hence, TRAIL-agonist compounds have the potential of being excellent cancer therapeutic agents with minimal cytotoxicity. Here, we examine the efficacy of the TRAIL-receptor 2 agonist, lexatumumab (Human Genome Sciences, Inc., Rockville, MD), and identify molecular pathways that differentiate between lexatumumab-sensitive and lexatumumab-resistance renal cancer cells. In an orthotopic metastatic mouse model, we first demonstrate that lexatumumab was effective in reducing the tumor burden of primary and metastatic lexatumumab-sensitive xenografts. We demonstrate that lexatumumab-sensitive cells were capable of triggering both the extrinsic and the intrinsic apoptotic pathways as demonstrated by caspase 8 and caspase 9 activations, respectively, after treatment with lexatumumab. In addition, expression of c-FLIP(L) protein, an important regulator of TRAIL-induced apoptosis, decreased, while expression of the TRAIL-receptor 2, DR5, increased. This study serves as a pre-clinical model for using TRAIL-like therapies for patients with advanced RCC.

Animals↗

PubMed2006

Differentially expressed genes between primary cancer and paired lymph node metastases predict clinical outcome of node-positive breast cancer patients.

The axillary lymph node status remains the most valuable prognostic factor for breast cancer patients. However, approximately 20-30% of node-positive patients remain free of distant metastases within 15-30 years. It is important to develop molecular markers that are able to predict for the risk of distant metastasis and to develop patient-tailored therapy strategies. We hypothesize that the lymph node metastases may represent the most metastatic fraction of the primary cancers. Therefore, we sought to identify the differentially expressed genes by microarray between the primary tumors and their paired lymph node metastases samples collected from 26 patients. A set of 79 differentially expressed genes between primary cancers and metastasis samples was identified to correctly separate most of primary cancers from lymph node metastases. And decreased expression of matrix metalloproteinase 2, fibronectin, osteoblast specific factor 2, collagen type XI alpha 1 in lymph node metastases were further confirmed by real-time RT-PCR performed on 30 specimen pairs. This set of genes also classified 35 primary cancers into two groups with different prognosis: "high risk group" and "low risk group." Patients in "high risk group" had a 4.65-fold hazard ratio (95% CI 1.02-21.13, P = 0.047) to develop a distant metastasis within 43 months comparing with the "low risk group." This suggested that the gene signature consisting of 79 differentially expressed genes between primary cancers and lymph node metastases could also predict clinical outcome of node-positive patients, and that the molecular classification based on the gene signature could guide patient-tailored therapy.

Breast Neoplasms↗

PubMed2006

Suitability of the retrograde tracer Dil for electrophysiological studies of brainstem neurons: adverse ramifications for G-protein coupled receptor agonists.

Despite the acknowledged advantages of studying identified populations of neurons, few studies have convincingly established that fluorescent retrograde tracers do not alter the passive membrane properties, action potential characteristics, or effects of drugs on the labeled neurons. Whole-cell patch clamp recordings were made from spinally-projecting serotonergic neurons in the rostral ventromedial medulla (RVM) and spinally-projecting noradrenergic neurons in the locus coeruleus (LC) that were retrogradely labeled with 1,1'-dioactadecyl-3,3,3',3'-tetramethylindocarbodyanine perchlorate (Dil). The passive membrane and the action potential properties of Dil-labeled (0.2%) and non-labeled serotonergic neurons in the RVM did not differ. Similarly, the passive membrane and action potential properties of non-labeled noradrenergic LC neurons did not differ from neurons labeled with 0.2% or 5% Dil. Although the mu opioid receptor agonist [D-Ala(2)-NMePhe(4)-Gly-ol(5)]enkephalin (DAMGO) produced equivalent outward currents in non-labeled noradrenergic LC neurons and those labeled with 0.2% Dil, significantly smaller currents were recorded in LC neurons labeled with 5% Dil. Baclofen, a gamma-aminobutryic acid(B) receptor agonist, also produced smaller currents in RVM neurons labeled with 5% Dil compared to 0.2% Dil. These results indicate that 0.2% Dil is suitable for retrograde labeling of brainstem neurons in vivo for subsequent in vitro electrophysiological study. However, 5% Dil is likely to confound studies of the postsynaptic actions of G-protein coupled receptor ligands.

Amino Acids↗

PubMed2006

Bioelectric properties of chloride channels in human, pig, ferret, and mouse airway epithelia.

The development of effective therapies for cystic fibrosis (CF) requires animal models that can appropriately reproduce the human disease phenotype. CF mouse models have demonstrated cAMP-inducible, non-CF transmembrane conductance regulator (non-CFTR) chloride transport in conducting airway epithelia, and this property is thought to be responsible for the lack of a spontaneous CF-like phenotype in the lung. Thus, an understanding of species diversity in airway epithelial electrolyte transport and CFTR function is critical to developing better models for CF. Two species currently being used in attempts to develop better animal models of CF include the pig and ferret. In the study reported here, we sought to comparatively characterize the bioelectric properties of in vitro polarized airway epithelia--from human, mouse, pig and ferret--grown at the air-liquid interface (ALI). Bioelectric properties analyzed include amiloride-sensitive Na(+) transport, 4,4'-diisothiocyanato-stilbene-2,2'-disulfonic acid (DIDS)-sensitive Cl(-) transport, and cAMP-sensitive Cl(-) transport. In addition, as an index for CFTR functional conservation, we evaluated the ability of four CFTR inhibitors, including glibenclamide, 5-nitro-2-(3-phenylpropyl-amino)-benzoic acid, CFTR (inh)-172, and CFTR(inh)-GlyH101, to block cAMP-mediated Cl(-) transport. Compared with human epithelia, pig epithelia demonstrated enhanced amiloride-sensitive Na(+) transport. In contrast, ferret epithelia exhibited significantly reduced DIDS-sensitive Cl(-) transport. Interestingly, although the four CFTR inhibitors effectively blocked cAMP-mediated Cl(-) secretion in human airway epithelia, each species tested demonstrated unique differences in its responsiveness to these inhibitors. These findings suggest the existence of substantial species-specific differences at the level of the biology of airway epithelial electrolyte transport, and potentially also in terms of CFTR structure/function.

Amino Acid Sequence↗

PubMed2006

Helicobacter pylori acyl carrier protein: expression, purification, and its interaction with beta-hydroxyacyl-ACP dehydratase.

Acyl carrier protein (ACP) is an essential component in the type II fatty acid biosynthesis (FAS II) process and is responsible for the acyl group transfer within a series of related enzymes. In this work, the ACP from Helicobacter pylori strain SS1 was cloned and the gene sequence of Hpacp was deposited in the GenBank database (Accession No.: AY904356). Two forms of HpACP (apo, holo) were successfully purified and characterized. The thermal stability of these two forms was quantitatively investigated by CD spectral analyses. The results revealed that the holo-HpACP was more stable than apo-HpACP according to the transition midpoint temperature(Tm). Moreover, the interaction of HpACP with the related enzyme (beta-hydroxyacyl-ACP dehydratase, HpFabZ) was determined by GST-pull down assay and surface plasmon resonance (SPR) technique in vitro, the results showed that HpACP displays a strong binding affinity to HpFabZ (KD=1.2 x 10(-8)M). This current work is hoped to supply useful information for better understanding the ACP features of Helicobacter pylori SS1 strain.

Acyl Carrier Protein↗

PubMed2006

Unique biologic properties of recombinant AAV1 transduction in polarized human airway epithelia.

The choice of adeno-associated virus serotypes for clinical applications is influenced by the animal model and model system used to evaluate various serotypes. In the present study, we sought to compare the biologic properties of rAAV2/1, rAAV2/2, and rAAV2/5 transduction in polarized human airway epithelia using viruses purified by a newly developed common column chromatography method. Results demonstrated that apical transduction of human airway epithelia with rAAV2/1 was 100-fold more efficient than rAAV2/2 and rAAV2/5. This transduction profile in human airway epithelia (rAAV2/1 >> rAAV2/2 = rAAV2/5) was significantly different from that seen following nasal administration of these vectors to mouse lung (rAAV2/5 > rAAV2/1 >> rAAV2/2), emphasizing differences in transduction of these serotypes between these two species. In stark contrast to rAAV2/2 and rAAV2/5, rAAV2/1 transduced both the apical and basolateral membrane of human airway epithelia with similar efficiency. However, the overall level of transduction across serotypes did not correlate with vector internalization. We hypothesized that differences in post-entry processing of these serotypes might influence the efficiency of apical transduction. To this end, we tested the effectiveness of proteasome inhibitors to augment nuclear translocation and gene expression from the three serotypes. Augmentation of rAAV2/1 apical transduction of human polarized airway epithelia was 10-fold lower than that for rAAV2/2 and rAAV2/5. Cellular fractionation studies demonstrated that proteasome inhibitors more significantly enhanced rAAV2/2 and rAAV2/5 translocation to the nucleus than rAAV2/1. These results demonstrate that AAV1 transduction biology in human airway epithelia differs from that of AAV2 and AAV5 by virtue of altered ubiquitin/proteasome sensitivities that influence nuclear translocation.

Animals↗

PubMed2006

An ex vivo preparation of mature mice spinal cord to study synaptic transmission on motoneurons.

Mammalian spinal cord motoneurons are highly susceptible to chemical and mechanical disturbances, which imposes substantial difficulties for electrophysiological investigation in acute in vitro preparations. The aim of the present study was to establish an isolated spinal cord preparation from adult mice and to examine the synaptic activities of motoneurons in vitro. We removed the lumbo-sacral cord from the vertebral canal by hydraulic extrusion and maintained the isolated cord in vitro for extracellular recordings. Population spikes of motoneurons were evoked by electrical stimulation of dorsal roots (orthodromic) or ventral roots (antidromic) and these evoked responses could be continuously monitored for 5-6 h. The orthodromic population spikes were reversibly suppressed by the AMPA/kainate receptor antagonist 2,3-dihyro-6-nitro-7-sulfamoylbenzo quinoxaline (NBQX, 10 microM) but they persisted in the presence of the NMDA receptor antagonist D(-)-2-amino-5-phosphonovaleric acid (AP5, 50 microM). The antidromic population spikes exhibited evident paired pulse inhibition when evoked at inter-stimulus intervals of pound 6 ms. Histological examination revealed that basic morphological features of the lumbo-sacral motoneurons were preserved after 3-4 h of in vitro maintenance. This in vitro preparation is ideally suited for the electrophysiological study of synaptic transmission on adult mouse spinal motoneurons.

2-Amino-5-phosphonovalerate↗

PubMed2006

[Genetic regulatory pathway of gene related breast cancer metastasis: primary study by linear differential model and k-means clustering].

OBJECTIVE: To investigate the potential genetic regulatory pathway of gene related breast cancer metastasis. METHODS: Microarray technique was used to identify the gene expression profile and to screen the differential expression genes in breast cancer with special emphasis on the metastasis factors. A gene chip was available, obtained from the surgical samples, including breast cancer primary tissues and metastasis tissues, of 30 female patients with breast cancer at different clinical stages. Then potential genetic regulatory pathway of gene related breast cancer metastasis was analyzed with a linear differential model and k-means clustering. RESULTS: Twenty-seven differential expression genes were identified. It was suggested that the potential regulatory pathway of gene related to breast cancer metastasis is made up of GRP, BPAG1, and SFRP2 genes. CONCLUSION: The metastasis of breast cancer is related to the cancerization caused by the abnormal expression of multiple genes. It is reliable to analyze the Genetic regulatory pathway of gene related breast cancer metastasis by using multiple bio-informatic measures.

Breast Neoplasms↗

PubMed2006

[Cytokine-induced killer cell fusion to lower recurrence of hepatocellular carcinoma after transcatheter arterial chemoembolization sequentially combined with radiofrequency ablation: a randomized trial].

OBJECTIVE: To ed evaluate the clinical effects of autologous cytokine-induced killer cell (CIK) fusion to lower recurrence of primary hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC) and the anti-hepatitis B virus (HBV) effect after transcatheter arterial chemoembolization (TACE) sequentially combined with radiofrequency ablation (RFA). METHODS: Sixty-four HCC patients underwent TACE sequentially combined with RFA without residual tumor or extrahepatic metastasis were randomly divided into 2 groups: study group (n = 33), receiving autologous CIK fusion of the dose of (1.1 - 1.5) x 10(10) via the peripheral vein or hepatic artery, firstly once every 3 - 4 weeks for 4 times, and then once every 4 weeks for 4 times; and control group (n = 31). All patients were followed up for 1 year. RESULTS: In the study group, 29 patients (29/33) were recurrence-free during the 1 year follow-up, 3 had recurrence in the liver 5, 6, and 7 months later respectively, and 1 patient had lymphoadenopathy in the hepatic portal 9 months later. In the control group, 23 patients (68.01%) were recurrence-free, 7 had recurrence in the liver within 1 year, and 1 had lung metastasis 11 months later. In the study group, the number of the patients with the HBV DNA content < 1 x 10(3) before treatment was 19, and increased to 29 after the treatment; 2 of the 19 patients who were HBsAg positive before the treatment became HBsAg negative after the treatment, and number of the patients with the HBV DNA content of 10(3) - 10(4) was 3 before the treatment, and became 13 after the treatment among which 1 patient had his HBV DNA content dropping from 1.6 x 10(7) to 1.6 x 10(4). In the control group, only 1 patient showed his HBV DNA content dropping from 1.1 x 10(5) to below 10(3). CONCLUSION: Capable of reducing recurrence, prolonging the recurrence-free span, and attacking HBV, autologous CIK fusion after TACE sequentially combined with RFA is an effective novel therapeutic strategy for HCC.

Adult↗

PubMed2006

Genomewide oligonucleotide microarray analysis on placentae of pre-eclamptic pregnancies.

OBJECTIVE: Human placentae from normal and pre-eclamptic pregnancies were evaluated for possible changes in gene expression by microarray analysis to uncover new clues for the research of the etiology of pre-eclampsia. METHODS: Placentae from five normal pregnancies and five pregnancies complicated by pre-eclampsia were collected. mRNA levels of five pre-eclamptic placentae were examined using genome-wide 70-mer oligonucleotide microarrays (CapitalBio, Beijing, China) in comparison with the pooled control consisting of total RNA from five normotensive placentae. RESULTS: Ninety-six genes were found consistently down- or up-regulated in at least four pre-eclamptic samples. Most of them were related to an imbalance of reactive oxygen metabolites in placenta, abnormal trophoblast invasion, disorders of lipoprotein metabolism and signal transduction, or some that have been reported to have close correlation to the pathology of pre-eclampsia. The microarray data were also confirmed by the measurement of real-time PCR. CONCLUSION: DNA microarray is a high throughput and time-saving method to monitor altered gene expression. The results could provide interesting clues to the etiology of pre-eclampsia and lead to further studies in a more targeted fashion.

Adult↗

PubMed2006

Tailoring (n,m) structure of single-walled carbon nanotubes by modifying reaction conditions and the nature of the support of CoMo catalysts.

The (n,m) population distribution of single-walled carbon nanotubes obtained on supported CoMo catalysts has been determined by photoluminescence and optical absorption. It has been found that the (n,m) distribution can be controlled by varying the gaseous feed composition, the reaction temperature, and the type of catalyst support used. When using CO as a feed over CoMo/SiO2 catalysts, increasing the synthesis temperature results in an increase in nanotube diameter, without a change in the chiral angle. By contrast, by changing the support from SiO2 to MgO, nanotubes with similar diameter but different chiral angles are obtained. Finally, keeping the same reaction conditions but varying the composition of the gaseous feed results in different (n,m) distribution. The clearly different distributions obtained when varying catalysts support and/or reaction conditions demonstrate that the (n,m) distribution is a result of differences in the growth kinetics, which in turn depends on the nanotube cap-metal cluster interaction.

Journal Article↗