Search

Cisplatin is a first-line chemotherapeutic agent for the treatment of many types of cancer, but the emergence of chemoresistance hinders its application. Thus, a better understanding of cisplatin-induced DNA damage response (DDR) would help to overcome this problem. Previously, we have identified a panel of microRNAs with altered expression after cisplatin treatment in HeLa cells. In the current study, we focused on one of them, miR-191, and investigated its function in cisplatin-induced DDR. We found that overexpression of miR-191 sensitized HeLa cells to the cytotoxic effects of cisplatin, resulted in decreased viable cells. However, overexpression of miR-191 did not cause changes in apoptotic cell ratio but rather induced significant G2/M arrest in HeLa cell treated with cisplatin. Additionally, enhanced cisplatin-induced DNA damage was observed. Through bioinformatic analysis and verified by dual-luciferase assay, it was demonstrated that the chromosome condensation 2 regulator (RCC2) gene is a target for miR-191 regulation. Furthermore, the downregulation of RCC2 by siRNA mimics the effects of miR-191, in which greater DNA damage was observed upon cisplatin treatment. Taken together, our study indicates that miR-191 may be an important player in cisplatin-induced DDR, and it elicits its function, at least partially, through the regulation of RCC2.

Background Pyropia is an economically advantageous genus of red macroalgae, which has been cultivated in the coastal areas of East Asia for over 300 years. Realizing estimation of macroalgae biomass in a high-throughput way would great benefit their cultivation management and research on breeding and phenomics. However, the conventional method is labour-intensive, time-consuming, manually destructive, and prone to human error. Nowadays, high-throughput phenotyping using unmanned aerial vehicle (UAV)-based spectral imaging is widely used for terrestrial crops, grassland, and forest, but no such application in marine aquaculture has been reported. Results In this study, multispectral images of cultivated Pyropia yezoensis were taken using a UAV system in the north of Haizhou Bay in the midwestern coast of Yellow Sea. The exposure period of P. yezoensis was utilized to prevent the significant shielding effect of seawater on the reflectance spectrum. The vegetation indices of normalized difference vegetation index (NDVI), ratio vegetation index (RVI), difference vegetation index (DVI) and normalized difference of red edge (NDRE) were derived and indicated no significant difference between the time that P. yezoensis was completely exposed to the air and 1 h later. The regression models of the vegetation indices and P. yezoensis biomass per unit area were established and validated. The quadratic model of DVI (Biomass = − 5.550DVI2 + 105.410DVI + 7.530) showed more accuracy than the other index or indices combination, with the highest coefficient of determination (R2), root mean square error (RMSE), and relative estimated accuracy (Ac) values of 0.925, 8.06, and 74.93%, respectively. The regression model was further validated by consistently predicting the biomass with a high R2 value of 0.918, RMSE of 8.80, and Ac of 82.25%. Conclusions This study suggests that the biomass of Pyropia can be effectively estimated using UAV-based spectral imaging with high accuracy and consistency. It also implied that multispectral aerial imaging is potential to assist digital management and phenomics research on cultivated macroalgae in a high-throughput way.

Background TMPRSS2: ETS gene fusion occurs recurrently in a high proportion of prostate cancer (PCa) patients in Western countries. However, for Chinese PCa patients, no solid conclusion could be drawn from the present studies, as the results varied considerably between the limited reports. Results In this study, we evaluated the prevalence of such gene rearrangements in a small number of Chinese PCa patients and discovered that 6 out of 27 (22.2%) were found to harbor the TMPRSS2: ERG fusion, the ratio was much lower than that in Western countries. Furthermore, we first identified TMPRSS2: EGR1 gene fusion, suggesting other chromosome rearrangements besides ETS gene family harbor in prostate cancer. The hybrid transcript was predicted to encode a truncated EGR1 protein by ORF finder, which might play a key role in prostate cancer. Conclusions We reported that the total occurrence rate of TMPRSS2: ERG fusion gene in this small group of Chinese patients was lower than the reported frequencies in European descent patients but comparable to other reported frequencies in Asian populations. The occurrence of TMPRSS2: EGR1 gene fusion suggested other chromosome rearrangements in prostate cancer.

Kaposi's sarcoma-associated herpesvirus (KSHV) may be transmitted via sexual contacts, but limited information is available on KSHV infection status among sexually transmitted infection (STI) patients in China. The main objective of the present study was to determine the KSHV seroprevalence and its risk factors among male STI patients. A cross-sectional survey was conducted in three prefectures of Anhui province, China, between June and September 2013. A total of 1,600 male patients who visited an STI clinic were invited, and 1,372 participated in the study. Data were abstracted from the medical records for all the patients. Blood samples were collected and tested for antibodies to KSHV, HIV, HCV, and syphilis. Factors associated with KSHV seropositivity were examined using multivariable logistic regression analysis. The overall prevalence of KSHV, HIV, HCV, and syphilis was 13.3%, 0.7%, 0.6%, and 12.5%, respectively. After adjusting for potential confounders, KSHV infection was significantly associated with ever having anal sex with men (19 out of 30 males, OR: 8.64, 95%CI: 1.92-38.79) and HIV infection (six out of nine HIV-positive individuals, OR: 8.39, 95%CI: 1.80-39.04). There were no significant associations of KSHV infection with drug use, heterosexual sex behaviors, syphilis, and HCV. Our finding has shown that a relatively moderate prevalence of KSHV was found among male STI patients. While an increased risk for KSHV infection was observed among participants with homosexual contacts. Routine KSHV testing is recommended for male individuals attending STI clinics.

This study examines the clinical utility of the increased lactate/albumin ratio as an indicator of multiple-organ dysfunction syndrome (MODS) and mortality in severe sepsis and septic shock.We designed a prospective cohort study in an intensive care unit, and 54 patients with severe sepsis or septic shock were included. Data were used to determine a relationship between lactate/albumin ratio and the development of MODS and mortality. These associations were determined by the Mann-Whitney test, multiple logistic regression, plotting the receiver operating characteristic curve and Spearman test.Lactate/albumin ratio level was higher in MODS patients on day 1 (median [interquartile range, or IQR], 2.295 [1.818-3.065]; n = 30, P.0001) than in those without (median [IQR], 1.550 (1.428-1.685); n = 24), and on day 2, (median [IQR], 1.810 [1.377-2.448]; n = 26, P = .0022) it was higher than in those without (median [IQR], 1.172 (1.129-1.382); n = 23) on day 2. We found that lactate/albumin ratio was an independent predictor of the development of MODS (odds ratio, 5.5; P = .033; 95% confidence interval, 1.1-26.1) during intensive care unit stay. The area under the receiver operating characteristic curve showed that lactate/albumin ratio could predict MODS (0.8458) and mortality (0.8449). Furthermore, the higher the Acute Physiology and Chronic Health Evaluation II score, the more lactate/albumin ratio was discovered on day 1 (r = 0.5315, P.0001) and day 2 (r = 0.5408, P.0001), whereas the lower partial pressure of oxygen in arterial blood/fraction of inspired oxygen ratio, the more lactate/albumin ratio was illustrated on day 1 (r = -0.5143, P.0001) and day 2 (r = -0.5420, P.0001).Increased lactate/albumin ratio correlates with the development of MODS and mortality in patients with severe sepsis and septic shock.

This study examines the clinical utility of increased neutrophil gelatinase-associated lipocalin (NGAL) as an indicator of mortality and multiple organ dysfunction syndrome (MODS) in severe sepsis and septic shock.We designed a prospective cohort study in an intensive care unit, and 123 patients with severe sepsis or septic shock were included. Data were used to determine a relationship between NGAL and the development of MODS and mortality. These associations were determined by the Mann-Whitney U test, log-rank test, Cox proportional hazards regression analyses, and plotting the receiver operating characteristic curve.Patients with high NGAL (75th percentile) had increased risk of mortality and MODS compared with patients with low NGAL (log-rank test, P0.05). There were 39 patients (32%) with mortality during follow-up at 12 months, 10 patients (8%) with MODS on day 1, and 37 patients (30%) on day 7. The area under the receiver operating characteristic curve showed that high NGAL could predict mortality (0.6385) during intensive care unit stay. After adjustment for confounding risk factors chosen by backward elimination by Cox regression analysis, high NGAL remained an independent predictor of mortality and MODS (hazard ratios, 2.128 [95% confidence interval, 1.078-4.203; P = 0.030] and 1.896 [95% confidence interval, 1.012-3.552; P = 0.046], respectively).High plasma NGAL independently predicts mortality and MODS in severe sepsis and septic shock.

Objectives Peripheral leucocyte telomere length has been suggested to be inversely associated with hypertension risk. Both telomere length and hypertension risk can be modified by certain dietary factors, such as fruit and vegetables. This study was to examine the potential effect of these dietary factors on the association between telomere length and hypertension risk. Study design A community-based case–control study. Participants 271 hypertensive patients and 455 normotensive controls aged 40–70 years and living in Yinzhou, Zhejiang Province, China. Outcome measures Peripheral leucocyte relative telomere length (RTL) was measured using quantitative real-time PCR. Dietary intake was assessed by a brief semiquantitative food frequency questionnaire. The association between RTL and hypertension risk was analysed using logistic regression, and the modulatory effect of dietary intake on RTL-related hypertension risk was analysed using likelihood ratio tests. Results Among controls, longer age-adjusted RTL was associated with higher vegetable intake (p=0.01). Individuals with longer age-adjusted RTL (based on median value) were 30% less likely to have hypertension (OR=0.70, 95% CI 0.52 to 0.96; p=0.03). The observed RTL-hypertension relationship appeared to be modified by vegetable intake—longer RTL was significantly associated with lower hypertension risk only in those with greater vegetable consumption (OR=0.28, 95% CI 0.14 to 0.57; p

In China, KSHV seroprevalence varies considerably among different regions and ethnicities. But in Xinjiang province, located in the northwestern China, there is a very high seroprevalence of KSHV in adults of Kazak and Ughur ethnicities. However, KSHV prevalence in children and the risk factors associated with the acquisition of infection are currently not known. The aim of this study was to investigate the prevalence of KSHV infection and identify associated socioeconomic or behavioural risk factors and the humoral immune response among children in this population. This is a cross-sectional study (N = 178) to screen children and their caregivers from Xinjiang for total KSHV antibodies, KSHV neutralizing antibodies and HIV infection. Structured questionnaires were utilized to investigate risk factors associated with KSHV prevalence. KSHV seroprevalence in children and caregivers in Xinjiang was 48.3% and 64.7%, respectively. Neutralizing antibody was detected in most seropositive caregivers (93.8%) but was detected in only 5.8% of the infected children. A significant association was observed between child KSHV seroprevalence and sharing of food among family members. These results suggest that similar to other endemic areas in Africa, KSHV infection in the minority populations of Xinjiang is likely to be occurring during early childhood, probably via horizontal transmission through saliva, and results in high seroprevalence in the adult population.