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The long non-coding RNA (lncRNA) forebrain embryonic zinc finger protein 1 antisense RNA1 (FEZF1-AS1) was recently identified as an oncogenic gene in several types of tumors. The biological function of FEZF1-AS1 in rectal cancer progression, however, remains unknown. In the present study, we discover that FEZF1-AS1 is significantly upregulated in rectal cancer tissues and cells. Knocking down of FEZF1-AS1 suppresses cell proliferation, migration, and invasion in vitro, and tumorigenesis in vivo. Furthermore, FEZF1-AS1 functions as a competing endogenous RNA (ceRNA) for miR-632, resulting in the suppression of family with sequence similarity 83, member A (FAM83A). Overall, our findings reveal that FEZF1-AS1/miR-632/FAM83A axis plays an oncogenic role in rectal cancer progression, suggesting that it may be a novel therapeutic target for rectal cancer.

Objective: Polyvinylpyrrolidone (PVP) is a commonly used biomedical polymer material with good water solubility, biocompatibility, low immunogenicity, and low toxicity. The aim of this study is to investigate the antioxidant mechanism and clinical potential of PVP modified selenium nanoparticles (PVP-Se NPs) as a new radioprotective agent., Methods: A laser particle size analyzer and transmission electron microscope were used to characterize PVP-Se nanoparticles prepared by chemical reduction. Human umbilical vein endothelial cells (HUVECs) were used to evaluate the radiation protective effects of PVP-Se NPs. SD rats were employed as an in vivo model to identify the most effective concentration of PVP-Se NPs and assess their potential radioprotective properties. Western blot (WB) was used to detect the expression of nuclear factor kappa-B (NF-κB) and mitogen-activated protein kinase (MAPK) signaling proteins in human umbilical vein endothelial cells (HUVECs) and rat liver and kidney tissues., Results: PVP-Se NPs could reduce the oxidative stress injury and inflammatory response caused by X-ray irradiation in HUVECs and rats, and inhibit cell apoptosis by modulating NF-κB and MAPK signaling pathways. PVP-Se NPs could increase HUVECs viability, reduce apoptosis, inhibit inflammatory factors IL-1β, IL-6 and TNF-α, improve the survival rate of rats, promote antioxidant enzyme activities in cells and rats, reduce malondialdehyde concentration in serum, and reduce the expression of inflammatory factors such as IL-1β, IL-6 and TNF-α in cell supernatant and liver and kidney tissues. PVP-Se NPs could significantly reduce the phosphorylation levels of NF-κB and MAPK pathway-associated proteins in HUVECs and rat liver and kidney tissues ( p < 0.05)., Conclusion: PVP-Se NPs can protect against radiation-induced oxidative damage by modulating NF-kB and MAPK pathways, providing a theoretical basis and experimental data for their use as an effective radioprotective agent., Competing Interests: The authors declare that the research was conducted in the absence of any commercial or financial relationships that could be construed as a potential conflict of interest., (Copyright © 2024 Li, Lu, Jiang and Wang.)

Background: Gastric cancer is one of the cancers with wide incidence, difficult treatment and high mortality in the world, especially in Asia and Africa. In our previous work, a novel o -aminobenzamide analogue F8 was identified as an early preclinical candidate for treatment of undifferentiated gastric cancer (IC 50 of 0.26 μM for HGC-27). However, the poor water solubility of compound F8 prevents its further progress in preclinical studies. Aim: To improve the water solubility and drug-likeness of F8 via salt formation. Method: Different acids and F8 were reacted to obtain different salt forms. Physicochemical property screening, pharmacokinetic property research, and antitumor biological activity evaluation in vitro and in vivo were used to obtain the optimal salt form with the best druggability. Results: our continuous efforts have finally confirmed F8·2HCl as the optimal salt form with maintained in vitro antitumor activity, improved water solubility and pharmacokinetic properties. Importantly, the F8·2HCl displayed superior in vivo antitumor efficacy (TGI of 70.1% in 75 mg/kg) in HGC-27 xenograft model. The further immunohistochemical analysis revealed that F8·2HCl exerts an antitumor effect through the regulation of cell cycle-related protein (CDK2 and p21), apoptosis-related protein Cleaved Caspase-3, proliferation marker Ki67, and cell adhesion molecule E-cadherin. In addition, F8·2HCl showed acceptable safety in the in vivo acute toxicity assay. Conclusion: Salting is an effective means to improve the drug-like properties of compound F8 , and F8·2HCl can serve as a promising therapeutic agent against undifferentiated gastric cancer., Competing Interests: The authors declare that the research was conducted in the absence of any commercial or financial relationships that could be construed as a potential conflict of interest., (Copyright © 2023 Li, He, Li, Xiong, Peng, Wang, Zhuo, Jiang, Lu and Wang.)

Objective: To explore the value of serum activin A (ACT-A) level in early identification of moderate and severe acute pancreatitis (AP)., Methods: A prospective case control study was conducted. A total of 120 patients with AP admitted to department of hepatobiliary surgery of Affiliated Nanhua Hospital of Hengyang Medical College of University of South China between October 2020 and April 2022 were recruited. According to the revised Atlanta classification, all patients were classified into mild AP group and moderate-to-severe AP group. The blood samples within 24 hours of onset were drawn, and the serum ACT-A and C-reactive protein (CRP) levels were detected by enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay (ELISA). The Ranson score and the modified CT severity index (MCTSI) were performed. Pearson correlation method was used to analyze the correlation of various parameters. The receiver operator characteristic curve (ROC curve) was plotted to analyze the predictive value of ACT-A and CRP for moderate-to-severe AP., Results: A total of 120 patients with AP were enrolled, including 83 patients with mild AP and 37 patients with moderate-to-severe AP. Serum ACT-A and CRP levels within 24 hours of onset in the moderate-to-severe AP group were significantly higher than those in the mild AP group [ACT-A (ng/L): 140.4±37.7 vs. 53.9±30.5, lg CRP: 1.42±0.91 vs. 0.77±0.70, both P < 0.01], and the Ranson score and MCTSI score were also significantly higher than those in the mild AP group (Ranson score: 5.3±1.3 vs. 1.8±1.6, MCTSI score: 5.5±1.0 vs. 2.7±1.2, both P < 0.01). Correlation analysis showed that the serum ACT-A level was positively correlated with serum CRP level, Ranson score and MCTSI score (R 2 value was 0.272, 0.841, 0.616, respectively, all P < 0.05). ROC curve analysis showed that the serum ACT-A, CRP and Ranson score had predictive value for moderate-to-severe AP. The area under the ROC curve (AUC) was 0.948 [95% confidence interval (95%CI) was 0.909-0.986], 0.711 (95%CI was 0.606-0.815), 0.946 (95%CI was 0.910-0.982), respectively. When serum ACT-A > 112.6 ng/L, the sensitivity and specificity of predicting moderate-to-severe AP were 78.38% and 96.39%, respectively, which was better than serum CRP with sensitivity and specificity of 72.92% and 66.27%, respectively, and the specificity was better than Ranson score (71.08%)., Conclusions: ACT-A can be detected in the early stage of AP, and it is positively correlated with the disease severity, which can early identify moderate-to-severe AP.

Circular RNA&#95;0001313 (circ&#95;0001313), also known as circCCDC66, is a novel circRNA that recently found to be upregulated in colon cancer tissues and promote colon cancer progression. However, the role of circ&#95;0001313 in regulating radio-sensitivity of colon cancer and its molecular mechanism remain undetermined. Here we found circ&#95;0001313 was significantly upregulated and miR-338-3p was downregulated in radio-resistant colon cancer tissues compared to radio-sensitive tissues. Radiation treatment in colon cells triggered a remarkable upregulation of circ&#95;0001313 and a downregulation of miR-338-3p. Knockdown of circ&#95;0001313 reduced cell viability, colony formation rate and increased caspase-3 activity in colon cancer cells under irradiation. Moreover, circ&#95;0001313 act as a sponge for miR-338-3p in colon cancer cells. Furthermore, miR-338-3p could reverse the effects of circ&#95;0001313 knockdown on cell viability, colony formation, and caspase-3 activity. These findings revealed that knockdown of circ&#95;0001313 could induce radio-sensitivity of colon cancer cells by negatively regulating miR-338-3p., (Copyright © 2019 Elsevier GmbH. All rights reserved.)

Purpose: This study investigated the effectiveness of a clamp method combined with bipolar coagulation for anatomical hepatectomy in the treatment of hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC)., Methods: In this prospective case-control study, three liver dissection methods were used: clamping combined with bipolar electric coagulation (group A), CUSA (Cavitron ultrasonic surgical aspirator) (group B), and ultrasonic knife (group C). Intraoperative blood loss, intraoperative blood transfusion volume, operation time, postoperative complications, aspartate aminotransferase (AST) levels, drainage volume and exhaust time, and length of postoperative hospital stay were compared among the three groups., Results: Patients in group A had shorter operation times than those in group B (p<0.05), but more intraoperative blood loss. Patients in group A had shorter operations times than those in group B (p<0.05) and less intraoperative blood lost compared with group C. No statistically significant differences were found for postoperative exhaust time and length of postoperative hospital stay among groups (p>0.05)., Conclusion: The clamps method combined with bipolar electric coagulation for liver dissection requires no special equipment and has effects similar to CUSA and ultrasonic knife dissection. Therefore, this technique is worth promoting as a common liver dissection method for anatomical hepatectomy in the treatment of primary HCC.