Diagnotic Value of the Combined Determination of Telomerase Activity in Induced Sputum, Pleural Effusion and Fiberobronchoscopic Biopsy Samples in Lung Cancer

Background and objective It has been proven that telomerase activation correlates with the carcinogenesis, aggressiveness and turnover of lung cancer. Telomerase is one of the improtant molecular biomarkers for diagnosis and targeting therapy in lung cancer. The aim of this study is to investigate the diagnostic value of the combined determination of telomerase activity in induced sputum, pleural effusion and fiberobronchoscopic biopsy in lung cancer patients. Methods The technique of TRAP (telomeric repeat amplification protocal)-PCR-ELISA was employed to detect telomease levels of induced sputum, pleural effusion and fiberobronchoscopic biopsy in 80 lung cancer patients with pleural effusion and 50 benign pulmonary disease patients with pleural effusion. Results Telomemse levels of induced sputum, pleural effusion and fiberobronchoscopic biopsy were all significantly higher in patients with lung cancer than those with benign pulmonary disease (P < 0.001). There was no significant difference in the level of telomerase activity between different pathologic types (P>0.05). The sensitivity of induced sputum, pleural effusion and fiberobronchoscopic biopsy were 62.5% (50/80), 46.3% (37/80) and 60.0% (48/80), respectively. The specificity were 72.0% (36/50), 66.0% (33/50) and 70.0% (35/50), respectively. The overall accuracy were 66.2% (86/130), 53.8% (70/130) and 63.8% (83/130), respectively. The sensitivity, specificity and overall accuracy of combined induced sputum, pleural effusion and fiberobronchoscopic biopsy were 85.0% (68/80), 78.0% (39/50) and 82.3% (107/130), respectively. The sensitivity of telomease level in combined detection for diagnosis of lung cancer was much higher than that in single sample detection (P < 0.01). Conclusion The sensitivity of telomease activity in combined three samples was the highest. It can further improve the accuracy for the diagnosis of lung cancer with pleural effusion

A new survival model based on ferroptosis-related genes for prognostic prediction in clear cell renal cell carcinoma

In this study, we analyzed the clinical significance of ferroptosis-related genes (FRGs) in 32 cancer types in the GSCA database. We detected a 2-82% mutation rate among 36 FRGs. In clear cell renal cell carcinoma (ccRCC; n=539) tissues from the The Cancer Genome Atlas database, 30 of 36 FRGs were differentially expressed (up- or down-regulated) compared to normal kidney tissues (n=72). Consensus clustering analysis identified two clusters of FRGs based on similar co-expression in ccRCC tissues. We then used LASSO regression analysis to build a new survival model based on five risk-related FRGs (CARS, NCOA4, FANCD2, HMGCR, and SLC7A11). Receiver operating characteristic curve analysis confirmed good prognostic performance of the new survival model with an area under the curve of 0.73. High FANCD2, CARS, and SLC7A11 expression and low HMGCR and NCOA4 expression were associated with high-risk ccRCC patients. Multivariate analysis showed that risk score, age, stage, and grade were independent risk factors associated with prognosis in ccRCC. These findings demonstrate that this five risk-related FRG-based survival model accurately predicts prognosis in ccRCC patients, and suggest FRGs are potential prognostic biomarkers and therapeutic targets in several cancer types

Heterotrimeric G protein α and β subunits antagonistically modulate stomatal density in Arabidopsis thaliana

AbstractStomata are essential for efficient gas and water-vapor exchange between the atmosphere and plants. Stomatal density and movement are controlled by a series of signal molecules including phytohormones and peptides as well as by environmental stimuli. It is known that heterotrimeric G-proteins play an important role in the ABA-inhibited stomatal opening. In this study, the G-protein signaling pathway was also found to regulate stomatal density on the lower epidermis of Arabidopsis cotyledons. The loss-of-function mutation of the G-protein α-subunit (GPA1) showed a reduction in stomatal density, while overexpression of the constitutively active form of GPA1QL increased stomatal density, indicating a positive role of the active form of GPA1 in stomatal development. In contrast, stomatal density increased in the null mutant of the G-protein β-subunit (AGB1) but decreased in transgenic lines that overexpressed AGB1. Stomatal analysis of the gpa1 agb1 double mutants displayed an average value of stomatal density compared to the single mutants. Taken together, these results suggest that the stomatal density in Arabidopsis is modulated by GPA1 and AGB1 in an antagonistic manner

The Effect of Magnetic Composites (γ-Al₂O₃/TiO₂/γ-Fe₂O₃) as Ozone Catalysts in Wastewater Treatment

Using municipal sewage as a source of reclaimed water is an important way to alleviate the shortage of water resources. At present, advanced oxidation technology (AOPs), represented by ozone oxidation, is widely used in wastewater treatment. In this study, γ-Al2O3, a low-cost traditional ozone catalyst, was selected as the matrix. By modifying magnetic γ-Fe2O3 with a titanate coupling agent, in situ deposition, and calcination, the final formation of a γ-Al2O3/TiO2/γ-Fe2O3 micrometer ozone catalyst was achieved. A variety of material characterization methods were used to demonstrate that the required material was successfully prepared. The catalyst powder particles have strong magnetic properties, form aggregates easily, and have good precipitation and separation properties. Subsequently, ibuprofen was used as the degradation substrate to investigate the ozone catalytic performance of the prepared catalyst, and this proved that it had good ozone catalytic activity. The degradation process was also analyzed. The results showed that in the ozone system, some of the ibuprofen molecules will be oxidized to form 1,4-propanal phenylacetic acid, which is then further oxidized to form 1,4-acetaldehyde benzoic acid and p-phenylacetaldehyde. Finally, the prepared catalyst was applied to the actual wastewater treatment process, and it also had good catalytic performance in this context. GC–MS detection of the water samples after treatment showed that the types of organic matter in the water were significantly reduced, among which nine pollutants with high content, such as bisphenol A and sulfamethoxazole, were not detected after treatment

Sigma receptor knockdown augments dysfunction and apoptosis of beta cells induced by palmitate

Sigma-1 receptor (Sig-1R) is located in the endoplasmic reticulum (ER) and clustered on the mitochondria related endoplasmic membranes, which are involved in the regulation of nervous system disease. Here, we designed Sig-1R silence MIN6 cells and studied the influence of Sig-1R silence on beta cells. We showed Sig-1R inactivation in MIN6 cells could not only decrease cell proliferation but also inhibit cell cycle, and this inhibitory effect on cell cycle might be achieved by regulating the FoxM1/Plk1/Cenpa pathway.  Moreover, Sig-1R deficiency increased MIN6 cells sensitivity to lipotoxicity, exaggerated palmitate (PA)-induced apoptosis, and impaired insulin secretion. On the other hand, ER chaperone GRP78 and ER proapoptotic molecules CHOP increased in Sig-1R knockdown MIN6 cells. The ATP level decreased and reactive oxygen species (ROS) increased in this kind of cells. Furthermore not only GRP78 and CHOP levels, but also ATP and ROS levels changed more in Sig-1R silence cells after cultured with PA. Therefore, Sig-1R deficiency exaggerated PA induced beta cells apoptosis by aggravating ER stress and mitochondrial dysfunction. Together, our study showed that Sig-1R might influence the proliferation, apoptosis, and function of beta cells. </jats:p