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Biomedical subjects

X Qin

Publications and source records attributed to X Qin.

At least 55 records · Page 3Linked to original sources

Heterozygous DNA mismatch repair gene PMS2-knockout mice are susceptible to intestinal tumor induction with N-methyl-N-nitrosourea.

PMS2-deficient (PMS2(-/-)) mice are hypersensitive to N-methyl-N-nitrosourea (MNU)-induced thymic lymphomas based on the failure to initiate mismatch repair (MMR) at O(6)-methylguanine:T mismatches formed after MNU exposure. However, heterozygous PMS2 knockout (PMS2(+/-)) mice do not develop spontaneous tumors, suggesting that they have sufficient MMR function to prevent genomic instability. We hypothesized that in PMS2(+/-) mice, exogenous carcinogens may either mutationally knockout the remaining normal allele leading cells to develop tumors or introduce sufficient DNA adducts and mismatches to overload the lower capacity for MMR, leading in either case to an increased rate of tumor production. In the present study, PMS2(+/-) mice and their littermate PMS2(+/+) mice were monitored for tumor incidence following MNU treatment. Mice were given 50 mg MNU/kg i.p. when 5 weeks old. They demonstrated a similar incidence of thymic lymphomas, suggesting that expression of the single normal PMS2 allele is sufficient to protect the thymus and implying that a single dose of MNU may not efficiently knock out the remaining PMS2 allele in the thymus. Surprisingly, PMS2(+/-) mice were significantly more likely to develop intestinal tumors-both adenomas and adenocarcinomas-after MNU than were PMS2(+/+) mice (2.34 +/- 0.34 tumors per mouse versus 1.34 +/- 0.25 tumors per mouse; P < 0.05). The intestinal tumors were located mainly in the small intestine. However, these tumors in both the PMS2(+/-) mice and PMS2(+/+) mice did not show microsatellite instability characteristic of loss of MMR. These results suggest that a single normal PMS2 allele can protect thymus but not intestine from MNU carcinogenesis. Organ-specific factors might influence MMR- mediated resistance to methylating agents. Heterozygous PMS2 knockout mice may be used as a promising animal model for intestinal tumorigenesis studies involving environmental carcinogens.

Adenosine Triphosphatases↗

Protection against malignant progression of spontaneously developing liver tumors in transgenic mice expressing O(6)-methylguanine-DNA methyltransferase.

To study the effect of O(6)-methylguanine-DNA methyltransferase (MGMT) on carcinogenesis, we have previously generated MGMT transgenic mice overexpressing the bacterial MGMT gene, ada, and demonstrated that high MGMT levels in the liver suppress induction of liver tumors after treatment with an alkylating hepatocarcinogen. To examine the effects of life-long elevation of MGMT activity on mouse spontaneous liver tumor development, ada-transgenic and control non-transgenic mice were compared. We also examined mutations at codon 61 of the H-ras oncogene, reported as a hot spot in mouse liver tumors, using a direct DNA sequencing method. The results revealed no significant difference in tumor incidence or mutation spectrum, but interestingly, ada-transgenic mice were found to have fewer malignant tumors and survived longer, indicating a possible protective role of MGMT against malignant conversion.

Animals↗

Analysis of a gene cluster of Enterococcus faecalis involved in polysaccharide biosynthesis.

Previously, we described a gene cluster of Enterococcus faecalis OG1RF that produced an antigenic polysaccharide when cloned in Escherichia coli. The polysaccharide antigen was not detectable in E. faecalis strains, however. Here, we show by reverse transcriptase-PCR that the 16 genes in this region are transcribed in OG1RF. Gene disruption of orfde4, encoding a putative glycosyl transferase, and orfde6, a putative dTDP-rhamnose biosynthesis gene, generated two OG1RF mutants. The mutants showed delayed killing and a higher 50% lethal dose in a mouse peritonitis model. In addition, two mucoid E. faecalis isolates from patients with chronic urinary tract infections were found to produce the polysaccharide antigen.

Animals↗

Effects of Enterococcus faecalis fsr genes on production of gelatinase and a serine protease and virulence.

Three agr-like genes (fsrA, fsrB, and fsrC, for Enterococcus faecalis regulator) were found upstream of the previously reported gelatinase gene (gelE) and a downstream putative serine protease gene (sprE; accession number Z12296) of Enterococcus faecalis OG1RF. The deduced amino acid sequence of fsrA shows 26% identity and 38% similarity to Staphylococcus aureus AgrA (the response regulator of the accessory gene regulator system in the agr locus), FsrB shows 23% identity and 41% similarity to S. aureus AgrB, and FsrC shows 23% identity and 36% similarity to S. aureus AgrC (the sensor transducer of Agr system). Northern blot analysis suggested that gelE and sprE are cotranscribed and that fsrB and fsrC are also cotranscribed in OG1RF. Northern blot analysis of fsrA, fsrB, fsrC, gelE, and sprE insertion mutants showed that fsrB, fsrC, gelE, and sprE are not expressed in fsrA, fsrB, and fsrC mutants, while insertion in an open reading frame further upstream of fsrA did not effect the expression of these genes, suggesting that agr-like genes may be autoregulated and that they regulate gelE and sprE expression, as further confirmed by complementation of fsr gene mutations with a 6-kb fragment which contains all three fsr genes in the shuttle vector, pAT18. Testing of 95 other isolates of E. faecalis showed that 62% produced gelatinase (Gel(+)), while 91% (including all Gel(+) strains) hybridized to a gelE probe; 71% (including all Gel(+) strains) hybridized to an fsr probe, corroborating the conclusion that both gelE and fsr are necessary for gelatinase production. Testing of fsrA, fsrB, and sprE mutants in a mouse peritonitis model showed that sprE and agr-like gene mutants resulted in highly significantly prolonged survival compared to the parent strain OG1RF, a finding similar to what we had previously shown for a gelE mutant. These results suggest that sprE and agr-like genes contribute to the virulence of E. faecalis OG1RF in this model.

Amino Acid Sequence↗

Enterococcus faecalis adhesin, ace, mediates attachment to extracellular matrix proteins collagen type IV and laminin as well as collagen type I.

Adhesin-mediated binding to extracellular matrix (ECM) proteins is thought to be a crucial step in the pathogenic process of many bacterial infections. We have previously reported conditional adherence of most Enterococcus faecalis isolates, after growth at 46 degrees C, to ECM proteins collagen types I and IV and laminin; identified an E. faecalis-specific gene, ace, whose encoded protein has characteristics of a bacterial adhesin; and implicated Ace in binding to collagen type I. In this study, we constructed an ace disruption mutant from E. faecalis strain OG1RF that showed marked reduction in adherence to collagen types I and IV and laminin when compared to the parental OG1RF strain after growth at 46 degrees C. Polyclonal immune serum raised against the OG1RF-derived recombinant Ace A domain reacted with a single approximately 105-kDa band of mutanolysin extracts from OG1RF grown at 46 degrees C, while no band was detected in extracts from OG1RF grown at 37 degrees C, nor from the OG1RF ace mutant grown at 37 or 46 degrees C. IgGs purified from the anti-Ace A immune serum inhibited adherence of 46 degrees C-grown E. faecalis OG1RF to immobilized collagen type IV and laminin as well as collagen type I, at a concentration as low as 1 microg/ml, and also inhibited the 46 degrees C-evoked adherence of two clinical isolates tested. We also showed in vitro interaction of collagen type IV with Ace from OG1RF mutanolysin extracts on a far-Western blot. Binding of recombinant Ace A to immobilized collagen types I and IV and laminin was demonstrated in an enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay and was shown to be concentration dependent. These results indicate that Ace A mediates the conditional binding of E. faecalis OG1RF to collagen type IV and laminin in addition to collagen type I.

Animals↗

Comparison of Escherichia coli O157:H7 antigen detection in stool and broth cultures to that in sorbitol-MacConkey agar stool cultures.

We evaluated the Meridian IC-STAT direct fecal and broth culture antigen detection methods with samples from children infected with Escherichia coli O157:H7 and correlated the antigen detection results with the culture results. Stools of 16 children who had recently had stool cultures positive for this pathogen (population A) and 102 children with diarrhea of unknown cause (population B) were tested with the IC-STAT device (direct testing). Fecal broth cultures were also tested with this device (broth testing). The results were correlated to a standard of the combined yield from direct culture of stools on sorbitol-MacConkey (SMAC) agar and culture of broth on SMAC agar. Eleven (69%) of the population A stool specimens yielded E. coli O157:H7 when plated directly on SMAC agar. Two more specimens yielded this pathogen when the broth culture was similarly plated. Of these 13 stool specimens, 8 and 13 were positive by direct and broth testing (respective sensitivities, 62 and 100%). Compared to the sensitivity of a simultaneously performed SMAC agar culture, the sensitivity of direct testing was 73%. Three (3%) of the population B stool specimens contained E. coli O157:H7 on SMAC agar culture; one and three of these stool specimens were positive by direct and broth testing, respectively. The direct and broth IC-STAT tests were 100% specific with samples from children from population B. Direct IC-STAT testing of stools is rapid, easily performed, and specific but is insufficiently sensitive to exclude the possibility of infection with E. coli O157:H7. Performing the IC-STAT test with a broth culture increases its sensitivity. However, attempts to recover E. coli O157:H7 by culture should not be abandoned but, rather, should be increased when the IC-STAT test result is positive.

Antigens, Bacterial↗

Studies on human pregnancy-induced insulin-like growth factor (IGF)-binding protein-4 proteases in serum: determination of IGF-II dependency and localization of cleavage site.

Insulin-like growth factor (IGF)-binding protein-4 (IGFBP-4), a consistent inhibitor of IGF action, is subject to proteolytic cleavage by the IGF-II-dependent IGFBP-4 protease. However, regulation of the IGF-II-dependent IGFBP-4 protease in vivo is not known. As IGFBP proteases are known to be triggered during pregnancy, we systematically evaluated the changes in IGFBP-4 proteolysis by serum collected throughout human pregnancy. Results from in vitro protease assays using recombinant IGFBP-4 revealed that IGFBP-4 proteolysis determined in both the presence and absence of exogenous IGF-II significantly increased during the first and second trimesters and reached a plateau by the third trimester. However, in the absence of IGF-II, IGFBP-4 proteolysis by pregnancy serum was only observed after prolonged incubation. IGF-II dose dependently increased IGFBP-4 proteolysis by pregnancy serum, with maximal stimulation observed at a concentration of 0.7 mol/L relative to IGFBP-4. In contrast, IGF-II at an equimolar dose had little effect on proteolysis of recombinant human IGFBP-3, whereas excess IGF-II reproducibly inhibited recombinant human IGFBP-3 proteolysis by pregnancy serum. Although IGF-II enhanced IGFBP-4 proteolysis, results from N-terminal sequence and mass spectrometric analyses of IGFBP-4 proteolytic fragments demonstrate that the cleavage site (Met135-Lys136) in human IGFBP-4 was not altered by IGF-II. Deletion of the residues 121-141 containing this cleavage site blocked IGFBP-4 proteolysis. These findings demonstrate that the increase in IGFBP-4 proteolysis during pregnancy was accounted for mainly by the IGF-II-dependent IGFBP-4 proteolysis. Because IGFBP-4 is a potent inhibitor of IGF actions, it can be speculated that the pregnancy-induced IGFBP-4 proteases may play an important role in regulating fetal growth.

Adult↗

Brain expression of presenilins in sporadic and early-onset, familial Alzheimer's disease.

BACKGROUND: Mutations in the presenilin proteins cause early-onset, familial Alzheimer's disease (FAD). MATERIALS AND METHODS: We characterized the cellular localization and endoproteolysis of presenilin 2 (PS2) and presenilin 1 (PS1) in brains from 25 individuals with presenilin-mutations causing FAD, as well as neurologically normal individuals and individuals with sporadic Alzheimer's disease (AD). RESULTS: Amino-terminal antibodies to both presenilins predominantly decorated large neurons. Regional differences between the broad distributions of the two presenilins were greatest in the cerebellum, where most Purkinje cells showed high levels of only PS2 immunoreactivity. PS2 endoproteolysis in brain yielded multiple amino-terminal fragments similar in size to the PS1 amino-terminal fragments detected in brain. In addition, two different PS2 amino-terminal antibodies also detected a prominent 42 kDa band that may represent a novel PS2 form in human brain. Similar to PS1 findings, neither amino-terminal nor antiloop PS2 antibodies revealed substantial full-length PS2 in brain. Immunocytochemical examination of brains from individuals with the N141I PS2 mutation or eight different PS1 mutations, spanning the molecule from the second transmembrane domain to the large cytoplasmic loop domain, revealed immunodecoration of no senile plaques and only neurofibrillary tangles in the M139I PS1 mutation stained with PS1 antibodies. CONCLUSIONS: Overall presenilin expression and the relative abundance of full-length and amino-terminal fragments in presenilin FAD cases were similar to control cases and sporadic AD cases. Thus, accumulation of full-length protein or other gross mismetabolism of neither PS2 nor PS1 is a consequence of the FAD mutations examined.

Age of Onset↗

[Effect of combined treatment of 60Co gamma-ray and EMS on antioxidase activity and ODAP content in Lathyrus sativus].

Lathyrus sativus seeds were treated with 60Co gamma-ray and EMS(ethyl methane sulfonate), and their emergence rate and SOD, POD and CAT activities were determined. The result indicated that the treatment decreased the emergence rate. The activities of SOD and POD were changed in accordance with the increase of irradiation dose and EMS concentration, while that of CAT had no obvious change. After treatment, the ODAP content in Lathyrus sativus decreased. Amutant was developed, with toxin content of 0.1%, compared to 0.2% in control.

Amino Acids, Diamino↗

[The relationship between clinical types of postinfarction angina and stenosis of ischemia-related artery].

OBJECTIVE: To approach the pathogenesis of postinfarction angina and set up its treatment guidelines. METHODS: 67 patients with postinfarction angina undergoing coronary angiography during the hospitalization were studied. RESULTS: (1) According to the clinical classification of angina pectoris, spontaneous angina is the most common type (43.9%); mixed angina is second (25.7%), effort angina and variant angina are relatively low frequency (16.7% & 13.6%). (2) Stenosis >or= 90% in the ischemia-related artery accounted for the anginal symptoms constituted 100%, 82.8%, 72.7% and 44.4% of the cases with mixed angina, spontaneous angina, effort angina and variant angina respectively. (3) Postinfarction angina caused by non infarction-related artery was relatively less frequent (8.9%). CONCLUSIONS: Severe residual stenosis of infarction-related artery is the main pathologic factor on the pathogenesis of postinfarction angina, so early interventional therapy or bypass surgery should be taken.

Adult↗

[Prognostic factors of clinical curative effect for malignant obstructive jaundice].

OBJECTIVE: To explore prognostic factors for clinical treatment of patients with malignant obstructive jaundice. METHODS: 17 variables from 216 consecutive patients with malignant obstructive jaundice admitted from 1990 to 1997 were included for statistical analysis. RESULTS: The overall mortality was 19.9% (43/216), and the morbidity 37.5% (81/216). The morbidity of radical operation was higher than that of palliative operation (P < 0.01). There was a highly significant correlation between mortality, morbidity, ASA grade and duration of jaundice (P < 0.01). No correlation was seen between the mortality, type of operation and cause of jaundice. There was a highly significant correlation between the morbidity and the type of operation. CONCLUSIONS: The choice of operation in patients with malignant obstructive jaundice is radical operation. Early diagnosis and choice of treatment are essential to improving carative effect.

Adult↗

[The devitalization of tumor suppressor genes in oral squamous cell carcinoma].

OBJECTIVE: To study the expression of anti-oncogenes nm23, P16, P53 of squamous cell carcinoma within one sample. METHODS: A total of 27 cases of oral squamous cell carcinoma came from our the First Clinical College, China Medical University from 1997 to 1998, and none of them had the history of radioactivity therapy or chemical therapy. In them, 8 cases were in the early period, and 19 cases were in the late period. 15 cases were male and 12 cases were female. The samples were fixed in formaldehyde solution, embedded with paraffin, sliced in 5 microns, and analysed by ABC immunohistochemistry staining. The first antibodies were anti-P16, anti-nm23, anti-P53 respectively. The criteria of judgment were the following: For nm23, the case that cytoplasm or nucleus were buffy particles or ball was positive. For P16, the case that nucleus were brown was positive, while the case with the light brown cytoplasm and unstained nucleus was negative. The stained nucleus of interstitial cells were treated as the control. For p53, the positive protein product was assembled in the carcinoma cell nucleus, so the nucleus with buffy or brown particles was positive. According to the criteria, 5 high power sights were selected from each case, more than one hundred cells were counted. The case that the positive cells was more than 30 percentage was high expression, and less than 30 percentage was low expression. Two doctors completed the procedure respectively, and only the same results could be qualified. RESULTS: In the 27 cases, the devitalization of nm23 and p16 was showed in low expression, p53 in high expression. The devitalization rate: p16 was 66.7%, nm23 was 48.1%, and p53 was 25.9%. In 14 cases, combined mutation of two inhibitory genes were seen. 9 cases were p16 and nm23, among them, 4 cases had transferred to cervical lymph nodes (In all the cases, there were 6 cases who had cervical lymph node transference). CONCLUSION: p16 genetic changes are more often detected in oral squamous cell carcinoma than the other genetic changes; In a large portion of cases, there were combined genetic changes instead of single gene mutation.

Adult↗

The effect of left ventricular diastolic dysfunction on the pathogenesis of angina decubitus.

OBJECTIVE: To investigate the effect of left ventricular diastolic dysfunction on the pathogenesis of angina decubitus (AD). METHODS: The study population consisted of three groups: 20 individuals without cardiovascular studied as group I. Group II included 20 patents with coronary artery disease and without AD. Thirty-one patients with AD and ejection fraction (EF) > 50% were studied as group III. Group II and III were matched for age, EF and extent of coronary artery disease. RESULTS: Left ventriculography (LVG) showed that left ventricular (LV) first 1/3 filling fraction (1/3FF) was significantly lower in group III than in group II and I (both P < 0.001), but LV late 1/3 FF was much higher in group III than in group II and I (P < 0.05, P < 0.01). Left ventricular end-diastolic pressure (LVEDP) was markedly increased before and after LVG in group II and III as compared with group I (both P < 0.05, both P < 0.001). The difference of LVEDP caused by left atrial contraction (left atrial contraction pressure difference, LACPD) before and after LVG was much higher in group III than in group I ( P < 0.01, P < 0.001). However, there we significant differences in LVEDP and in LACPD between before and after LVG only in group III (both P < 0.01). CONCLUSION: The patients with AD have LV diastolic dysfunction, which may be closely related to the pathogenesis of angina decubitus.

Adult↗

[Wavelet transform and its application in spectral analysis].

Recently, a new mathematical technique known as wavelet transform(WT) has become the focus of many science areas. In analytical chemistry, wavelet transform has been mainly utilized for signal smoothing, de-noising and compression. In this paper, the wavelet transform theory is introduced and its applications in spectral analysis are reviewed.

Algorithms↗

The 9-cis-epoxycarotenoid cleavage reaction is the key regulatory step of abscisic acid biosynthesis in water-stressed bean.

Abscisic acid (ABA), a cleavage product of carotenoids, is involved in stress responses in plants. A well known response of plants to water stress is accumulation of ABA, which is caused by de novo synthesis. The limiting step of ABA biosynthesis in plants is presumably the cleavage of 9-cis-epoxycarotenoids, the first committed step of ABA biosynthesis. This step generates the C(15) intermediate xanthoxin and C(25)-apocarotenoids. A cDNA, PvNCED1, was cloned from wilted bean (Phaseolus vulgaris L.) leaves. The 2, 398-bp full-length PvNCED1 has an ORF of 615 aa and encodes a 68-kDa protein. The PvNCED1 protein is imported into chloroplasts, where it is associated with the thylakoids. The recombinant protein PvNCED1 catalyzes the cleavage of 9-cis-violaxanthin and 9'-cis-neoxanthin, so that the enzyme is referred to as 9-cis-epoxycarotenoid dioxygenase. When detached bean leaves were water stressed, ABA accumulation was preceded by large increases in PvNCED1 mRNA and protein levels. Conversely, rehydration of stressed leaves caused a rapid decrease in PvNCED1 mRNA, protein, and ABA levels. In bean roots, a similar correlation among PvNCED1 mRNA, protein, and ABA levels was observed. However, the ABA content was much less than in leaves, presumably because of the much smaller carotenoid precursor pool in roots than in leaves. At 7 degrees C, PvNCED1 mRNA and ABA were slowly induced by water stress, but, at 2 degrees C, neither accumulated. The results provide evidence that drought-induced ABA biosynthesis is regulated by the 9-cis-epoxycarotenoid cleavage reaction and that this reaction takes place in the thylakoids, where the carotenoid substrate is located.

Abscisic Acid↗

Mice defective in the DNA mismatch gene PMS2 are hypersensitive to MNU induced thymic lymphoma and are partially protected by transgenic expression of human MGMT.

DNA mismatch repair (MMR) stabilizes the cellular genome. Mice defective in the MMR gene PMS2 are susceptible to spontaneous thymic lymphoma and sarcomas. To determine the sensitivity of PMS2 knockout mice to environmental carcinogens and the protective effect of O6-methylguanine DNA methyltransferase (MGMT), heterozygous PMS2 knockout mice and human MGMT (hMGMT) transgenic mice were mated and the PMS2-/- and PMS2+/+ with or without hMGMT offspring were treated at 5 weeks of age with 50 mg/kg N-methyl-N-nitrosourea (MNU). MNU produces carcinogenic O6-methylguanine (O6-meG) adducts, resulting in thymic lymphoma in mice, which can be prevented in normal mice by overexpression of hMGMT. A significantly higher incidence of thymic lymphomas was observed in MNU-treated PMS2-/- mice, compared to wildtype PMS2+/+ mice (100 vs 52%; P < 0.001). The mean latency of lymphomas was also significantly shortened in PMS2-/- mice (81 vs 102 days, P < 0.01). Transgenic expression of hMGMT significantly but incompletely blocked MNU lymphomagenesis in PMS2-/- mice. The incidence of lymphomas in PMS2-/-/hMGMT+ mice was reduced to 80% (P < 0.01) and mean latency increased to 91 days (P < 0.05). Thymic lymphomagenesis was efficiently blocked in PMS2+/+/hMGMT+ mice with rapid repair of O6-meG. Since O6-meG:T mismatches in MMR+ cells may trigger mismatch repair resulting in abortive repair and cell death whereas in the absence of MMR, these mismatches are converted to A:T, we predicted that G to A point mutations in codon 12 of the K-ras gene would occur. In this study, we found G to A point mutations in codon 12 of the K-ras gene in many tumors. Thus, in MMR deficient tissues, methylating agents induce point mutations in cells with a higher rate of cell survival which together are potently carcinogenic in the thymus. These data suggest that PMS2 defective lymphomas may arise by the concerted action of environmental and perhaps endogenous methylation of DNA coupled to genomic instability.

Adenosine Triphosphatases↗

Matrix metalloproteinase deficiencies affect contact hypersensitivity: stromelysin-1 deficiency prevents the response and gelatinase B deficiency prolongs the response.

Matrix metalloproteinases (MMPs) are expressed by T cells and macrophages, but there is a paucity of evidence for their role in immune responses. We have studied mice with deficiencies of stromelysin-1 (MMP-3) or gelatinase B (MMP-9) in a dinitrofluorobenzene (DNFB)-induced model of contact hypersensitivity (CHS). Stromelysin-1-deficient mice showed a markedly impaired CHS response to topical DNFB, although they responded normally to cutaneously applied phenol, an acute irritant. Lymphocytes from lymph nodes of DNFB-sensitized stromelysin-1-deficient mice did not proliferate in response to specific soluble antigen dinitrobenzenesulfonic acid, but did proliferate identically to lymph node lymphocytes from wild-type mice when presented with the mitogen Con A. An intradermal injection of stromelysin-1 immediately before DNFB sensitization rescued the impaired CHS response to DNFB in stromelysin-1-deficient mice. Unlike stromelysin-1-deficient mice, gelatinase B-deficient mice exhibited a CHS response comparable to wild-type controls at 1 day postchallenge, but the response persisted beyond 7 days in contrast to the complete resolution observed in wild-type mice by 7 days. However, gelatinase B-deficient mice had a normal rate of resolution of acute inflammation elicited by cutaneous phenol. Gelatinase B-deficient mice failed to show IL-10 production at the site of CHS, an essential feature of resolution in control mice. These results indicate that stromelysin-1 and gelatinase B serve important functions in CHS. Stromelysin-1 is required for initiation of the response, whereas gelatinase B plays a critical role in its resolution.

Animals↗