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Nucleic Acids Res 2021 Apr 13. Epub 2021 Apr 13.

Department of Biochemistry and Molecular Biology, School of Basic Medical Sciences, Capital Medical University, Beijing 100069, China.

Although overexpression of EZH2, a catalytic subunit of the polycomb repressive complex 2 (PRC2), is an eminent feature of various cancers, the regulation of its abundance and function remains insufficiently understood. We report here that the PRC2 complex is physically associated with ubiquitin-specific protease USP7 in cancer cells where USP7 acts to deubiquitinate and stabilize EZH2. Interestingly, we found that USP7-catalyzed H2BK120ub1 deubiquitination is a prerequisite for chromatin loading of PRC2 thus H3K27 trimethylation, and this process is not affected by H2AK119 ubiquitination catalyzed by PRC1. Read More

Eur J Cardiothorac Surg 2021 Apr;59(3):633-640

Department of General Thoracic Surgery, Osaka University Graduate School of Medicine, Suita, Japan.

Objectives: With improvements in the outcome of treatment for non-small-cell lung cancer (NSCLC), other diseases may account for a high death rate after surgery in patients with stage I NSCLC. In the present study, we analysed the associations between the clinical factors and non-cancer death after surgery in these patients.

Methods: The records of 514 patients with stage I NSCLC who underwent surgery were retrospectively reviewed; a proportional hazards model for the subdistribution of a competing risk was conducted to define the risk factors for non-cancer death. Read More

Nucleic Acids Res 2021 Apr 13. Epub 2021 Apr 13.

Department of Bioscience and Biotechnology, Graduate School of Bioresource and Bioenvironmental Sciences, Kyushu University, Fukuoka, Japan.

The eukaryotic replisome is comprised of three family-B DNA polymerases (Polα, δ and ϵ). Polα forms a stable complex with primase to synthesize short RNA-DNA primers, which are subsequently elongated by Polδ and Polϵ in concert with proliferating cell nuclear antigen (PCNA). In some species of archaea, family-D DNA polymerase (PolD) is the only DNA polymerase essential for cell viability, raising the question of how it alone conducts the bulk of DNA synthesis. Read More

Cells Tissues Organs 2021 Apr 13:1-30. Epub 2021 Apr 13.

Institute on Membrane Technology, National Research Council of Italy, CNR-ITM, Rende, Italy.

To date, the creation of biomimetic devices for the regeneration and repair of injured or diseased tissues and organs remains a crucial challenge in tissue engineering. Membrane technology offers advanced approaches to realize multifunctional tools with permissive environments well-controlled at molecular level for the development of functional tissues and organs. Membranes in fiber configuration with precisely controlled, tunable topography, and physical, biochemical, and mechanical cues, can direct and control the function of different kinds of cells toward the recovery from disorders and injuries. Read More

Acta Haematol 2021 Apr 13:1-11. Epub 2021 Apr 13.

Department of Hematology, Anhui Provincial Hospital, Cheeloo College of Medicine, Shandong University, Jinan, China.

Background: Although the use of cord blood transplantation (CBT) is becoming more frequent in acute leukemia, considering the relationship between the low stem cell dose and graft failure, whether use of CBT for adolescents and young adults (AYAs) is appropriate remains uncertain.

Methods: A retrospective registry-based analysis of clinical outcomes and immune reconstitution was conducted for 105 AYAs and 187 children with acute leukemia who underwent single-unit CBT using myeloablative conditioning (MAC) without antithymocyte globulin (ATG).

Results: Outcomes were similar between AYAs and children, except for nonrelapse mortality (NRM) and recovery rates of neutrophils and platelets. Read More

Pharmacology 2021 Apr 13:1-11. Epub 2021 Apr 13.

Pharmacological Research Center of Medicinal Plants, Mashhad University of Medical Sciences, Mashhad, Iran.

Background: Our liver has a variety of vital functions including removing poisons, storing energy, immunological roles, and secretory and excretory functions. It may face some kinds of diseases caused by viruses, hepatotoxic chemicals, drugs, alcohol, and inherited disorders. Oxidative stress and inflammation are in the core of mechanisms of liver damages induced by viruses or chemical agents. Read More

J Innate Immun 2021 Apr 13:1-27. Epub 2021 Apr 13.

Institute for Clinical Chemistry and Laboratory Medicine, Medical Faculty, Technische Universität Dresden, Dresden, Germany.

Metabolic disorders, such as obesity, type 2 diabetes mellitus, and nonalcoholic fatty liver disease, are characterized by chronic low-grade tissue and systemic inflammation. During obesity, the adipose tissue undergoes immunometabolic and functional transformation. Adipose tissue inflammation is driven by innate and adaptive immune cells and instigates insulin resistance. Read More

Kidney Blood Press Res 2021 Apr 13:1-10. Epub 2021 Apr 13.

School of Physical Education, Shaanxi Normal University, Xi'an, China.

Background: Hypertensive nephropathy is one of the major causes of ESRD. Exercise has been considered a nonpathological therapy for hypertension and its complications, yet mechanisms remain unclear. We sought to investigate whether periodic swimming could ameliorate hypertension-induced kidney dysfunction and its underlying mechanisms. Read More

Biofabrication 2021 Apr 13. Epub 2021 Apr 13.

Brain Science Institute, Korea Institute of Science and Technology Brain Science Institute, 5, Hwarang-ro 14 gil, Seongbuk-gu, Seoul, Seongbok-gu, 02792, Korea (the Republic of).

The neurovascular unit (NVU) comprises multiple types of brain cells, including brain endothelial cells, astrocytes, pericytes, neurons, microglia, and oligodendrocytes. Each cell type contributes to the maintenance of the molecular transport barrier and brain tissue homeostasis. Several disorders and diseases of the central nervous system, including neuroinflammation, Alzheimer's disease, stroke, and multiple sclerosis, have been associated with dysfunction of the NVU. Read More

Bioinspir Biomim 2021 Apr 13. Epub 2021 Apr 13.

College of Engineering, University of Georgia, Driftmier Engineering Center, 597 DW Brooks Drive, Athens, Georgia, 30602, UNITED STATES.

Lessons about artificial sensor design may be taken from evolutionarily perfected physiological systems. Mechanosensory cells in human skin are exquisitely sensitive to gentle touch and enable us to distinguish objects of different stiffnesses and textures. These cells are embedded in soft epidermal layers of gel-like consistency. Read More

Biofabrication 2021 Apr 13. Epub 2021 Apr 13.

Seoul National University Bundang Hospital, bundang-gu, Seongnam, 13620, Korea (the Republic of).

During thyroid surgery, some parathyroid glands fail to maintain their function, therefore, they are unavoidably detached from the patient. For the purpose of re-preservation of the function, they are minced into small segments and transplanted into the fat or muscle layer. Yet, this method of auto-grafting the parathyroid glands is frequently unsuccessful due to its poor interaction and engraftment with the native tissue, eventually leading to the dysfunction of the parathyroid hormone (PTH) secretion. Read More

Aging (Albany NY) 2021 Apr 12;13. Epub 2021 Apr 12.

Guangdong Key Laboratory for Genome Stability and Disease Prevention, Department of Pathology, Shenzhen University School of Medicine, Shenzhen 518060, Guangdong, P.R. China.

Mounting evidence has shown that miRNA-150 expression is upregulated in gastric cancer (GC) and is associated with gastric carcinogenesis, but the underlying oncogenic mechanism remains elusive. Here, we discovered that miRNA-150 targets the tumor suppressor SUFU to promote cell proliferation, migration, and the epithelial-mesenchymal transition (EMT) via the dual activation of Hedgehog (Hh) and Wnt signaling. MiRNA-150 was highly expressed in GC tissues and cell lines, and the level of this miRNA was negatively related to that of SUFU. Read More

J Phys Act Health 2021 Apr 12:1-7. Epub 2021 Apr 12.

Introduction: Benefits of regular physical exercise were demonstrated as preventive and coadjuvant nonpharmacological anticancer therapy. However, the role of exercise in modulating prostate cancer behavior has yet to be established.

Methods: Prostate tumors were induced in C57BL/6 male mice (n = 28) by subcutaneous inoculation of a suspension of murine androgen-independent RM1 cells (1. Read More

Differentiation 2021 Apr 8;119:1-9. Epub 2021 Apr 8.

College of Pharmacy, Inje University, Gimhae, 50834, South Korea.

Taxol (paclitaxel), a chemotherapeutic agent for several cancers, can adversely affect the peripheral nervous system. Recently, its negative impact on cognitive function in cancer patients has become evident. In rodents, taxol impaired learning and memory, with other possible negative effects on the brain. Read More

Curr Opin Genet Dev 2021 Apr 10;69:122-128. Epub 2021 Apr 10.

Department of Entomology, Washington State University, Pullman, WA, 99163 USA. Electronic address:

The elaborate ornaments and weapons of sexual selection, such as the vast array of horns observed in scarab beetles, are some of the most striking outcomes of evolution. How these novel traits have arisen, develop, and respond to condition is governed by a complex suite of interactions that require coordination between the environment, whole-animal signals, cell-cell signals, and within-cell signals. Endocrine factors, developmental patterning genes, and sex-specific gene expression have been shown to regulate beetle horn size, shape, and location, yet no overarching mechanism of horn shape has been described. Read More

Spectrochim Acta A Mol Biomol Spectrosc 2021 Mar 19;257:119726. Epub 2021 Mar 19.

Centre of Excellence for Biophotonics, Department of Atomic and Molecular Physics, Manipal Academy of Higher Education, Manipal, Karnataka 576104, India. Electronic address:

Crystalloid fluids, a subset of intravenous (IV) fluid solutions are commonly used in clinical settings. The influence of these fluids on the functions of blood components are least explored. Raman spectroscopy combined with optical trapping has been widely used to evaluate the impact of external stress agents on red blood cells. Read More

Spectrochim Acta A Mol Biomol Spectrosc 2021 Mar 31;257:119764. Epub 2021 Mar 31.

Ministry of Education Key Laboratory of Resource Biology and Modern Biotechnology in Western China, The College of Life Sciences, Northwest University, Xi'an, Shaanxi Province 710069, PR China. Electronic address:

Hydrogen sulfide (HS) played crucial roles in biological processes and daily life, and the abnormal level of HS was associated with many physiological processes. In this paper, we designed and developed a dicyanomethylene-4H-chromene (DCM)-based near-infrared (NIR) fluorescent probe DCM-NO guided by theoretical calculation. The probe displayed excellent selectivity towards HS with a fast response time (3 min) and low detection limit (fluorescence 25. Read More

Spectrochim Acta A Mol Biomol Spectrosc 2021 Apr 1;257:119769. Epub 2021 Apr 1.

Institute of Agricultural Engineering, ARO, the Volcani Center, Bet Dagan 50250, Israel. Electronic address:

Bovine mastitis (BM) is the most common inflammatory disease in the dairy sector worldwide, originated from bacterial invasion onto the mammary gland. Early BM detection is crucial for identifying new pathogenic infections within the dairy herd, which can be alleviated by antimicrobial therapy. N-acetyl-β-D-glucosaminidase (NAGase) is a prominent BM inflammatory biomarker secreted onto the blood circulation upon pathogenesis and then released into milk, capable of separating healthy quarters from subclinical and clinical BM cases. Read More

Biophys Chem 2021 Apr 2;273:106588. Epub 2021 Apr 2.

Cancer Research Lab., Interactive Research School for Health Affairs (IRSHA), Bharati Vidyapeeth Deemed to be University, Pune-Satara Road, Pune 411043, Maharashtra, India. Electronic address:

Histone deacetylase 8 (HDAC8) has emerged as a promising drug target for cancer therapeutics development. HDAC8 has been reported to regulate cancer cell proliferation, invasion and promote metastasis through modulation of cell cycle associated proteins. Of late, phytocompounds have been demonstrated to exhibit anticancer and anti-HDAC8 activity. Read More

Pathol Res Pract 2021 Mar 24;222:153416. Epub 2021 Mar 24.

Department of Pathology, Shihezi University School of Medicine & the First Affiliated Hospital to Shihezi University School of Medicine, Shihezi, 832002, Xinjiang, China; Department of Pathology, Central People's Hospital of Zhanjiang and Zhanjiang Central Hospital, Guangdong Medical University, Zhanjiang, China. Electronic address:

Synovial sarcoma (SS) is an aggressive malignancy of an unknown tissue origin that is characterized by biphasic differentiation. A possible basis of the pathogenesis of SS is pathognomonic t(X;18) (p11.2; q11. Read More

Biochem Biophys Res Commun 2021 Apr 10;556:199-206. Epub 2021 Apr 10.

Division of Allergy, Pulmonary and Critical Care Medicine, Department of Medicine, Vanderbilt University Medical Center, Nashville, TN, USA. Electronic address:

Circulating cell-free hemoglobin (CFH) contributes to endothelial injury in several inflammatory and hemolytic conditions. We and others have shown that CFH causes increased endothelial permeability, but the precise mechanisms of CFH-mediated endothelial barrier dysfunction are not fully understood. Based on our previous study in a mouse model of sepsis demonstrating that CFH increased apoptosis in the lung, we hypothesized that CFH causes endothelial barrier dysfunction through this cell death mechanism. Read More

Acta Histochem 2021 Apr 10;123(4):151712. Epub 2021 Apr 10.

Department of Biology and Anatomical Sciences, School of Medicine, Shahid Beheshti University of Medical Sciences, Tehran, Iran. Electronic address:

Scrotal hyperthermia leads to altered spermatogenesis due to heat-related oxidative stress. One of the main causes of infertility in men is oxidative stress, which refers to an imbalance in the levels of reactive oxygen species (ROS) and antioxidants. Therefore, this study aimed to evaluate the effects of chronic scrotal hyperthermia on testicular tissue structure, sperm parameters, and oxidative stress in adult mice. Read More

Int Immunopharmacol 2021 Apr 10;96:107610. Epub 2021 Apr 10.

Department of Radiation Oncology, Peking Union Medical College Hospital, Chinese Academy of Medical Sciences & Peking Union Medical College, Beijing, China. Electronic address:

Background: Immune checkpoint inhibitors (ICIs) have been used as a novel treatment for diffuse gliomas, but the efficacy varies with patients, which may be associated with the tumor mutational burden (TMB) and immune infiltration. We aimed to explore the relationship between the two and their impacts on the prognosis.

Methods: The data of the training set were downloaded from The Cancer Genome Atlas (TCGA). Read More

Colloids Surf B Biointerfaces 2021 Apr 7;203:111752. Epub 2021 Apr 7.

Key Laboratory of Functional Polymer Materials (Ministry of Education), College of Chemistry, Nankai University, Tianjin, 300071, China; Collaborative Innovation Center of Chemical Science and Engineering (Tianjin), Tianjin, 300071, China. Electronic address:

The severe side-effects and drug resistance development of conventional chemotherapy are mainly caused by poor tumor penetration as well as nonspecific biodistribution and insufficient cellular uptake of drugs. Herein a branched arginine-rich polymer was synthesized and co-administration of this polymer with doxorubicin, a model drug of chemotherapeutic agents, overcame simultaneously the three obstacles shown above. Co-incubation of the polymer promoted doxorubicin penetration deeply into multicellular tumor spheroids and internalization into cancer cells. Read More

J Reprod Immunol 2021 Apr 8;145:103319. Epub 2021 Apr 8.

Experimental Obstetrics and Gynecology, Medical Faculty, Otto-von-Guericke University, Magdeburg, Germany; Department of Environmental Immunology, Helmholtz Centre for Environmental Research -UFZ-, Leipzig, Germany. Electronic address:

Preterm birth (PTB) is one of the most frequent pregnancy complications. It affects millions of babies each year worldwide and is associated with increased morbidity and mortality. PTB-associated alterations in the maternal immune response may have a direct effect on the developing fetal immune system. Read More

J Infect Public Health 2021 Feb 20;14(5):577-587. Epub 2021 Feb 20.

Department of Biotechnology, Prathyusha Engineering College, Chennai 602025, India. Electronic address:

Background: In this study, a biologically active molecule, di-methyl flubendazole isolated from the extract of Carica papaya leaves confirmed by using GC-MS, H NMR, and C NMR analysis was applied to synthesize silver nanoparticles (AgNPs). The AgNPs with plant sources an alternative therapeutic agent for synthetic compound used in cancer chemotherapy.

Methods: The AgNPs were characterized using UV, FT-IR, XRD, FESEM with EDX and TEM. Read More

Bioelectrochemistry 2021 Mar 31;140:107813. Epub 2021 Mar 31.

Department of Bionano Engineering, Center for Bionano Intelligence Education and Research, Hanyang University, Ansan 426-791, South Korea. Electronic address:

Discovering new anticancer agents and analyzing their activities is a vital part of drug development, but it requires a huge amount of time and resources, leading to the increasing demands for more-effective techniques. Herein, a novel and simple cell-based electrochemical biosensor, referred to as a cytosensor, was proposed to investigate the electrochemical behavior of human skin malignant melanoma (SK-MEL28) cells and the anticancer effect of saponin on cell viability. To enhance both electrocatalytic properties and biocompatibility, gold nanoparticles were electrochemically deposited onto a conductive substrate, and poly-L-lysine was further added to the electrode surface. Read More

Bioelectrochemistry 2021 Mar 26;140:107808. Epub 2021 Mar 26.

Institute of Biophysics, The Czech Academy of Sciences, v.v.i., Královopolská 135, 61265 Brno, Czech Republic. Electronic address:

In this paper we compare electrochemical behavior of two homolog proteins, namely anterior gradient 2 (AGR2) and anterior gradient 3 (AGR3), playing an important role in cancer cell biology. The slight variation in their protein structures has an impact on protein adsorption and orientation at charged surface and also enables AGR2 and AGR3 to form heterocomplexes. We confirm interaction between AGR2 and AGR3 (i) in vitro by immunochemical and constant current chronopotentiometric stripping (CPS) analysis and (ii) in vivo by bioluminescence resonance energy transfer (BRET) assay. Read More

Cell Immunol 2021 Mar 26;364:104346. Epub 2021 Mar 26.

Department of Surgery, University of Maryland School of Medicine, Baltimore, United States; Center for Vascular and Inflammatory Diseases, University of Maryland School of Medicine, Baltimore, United States; Department of Microbiology and Immunology, University of Maryland School of Medicine, Baltimore, United States. Electronic address:

Myeloid-derived suppressor cells (MDSC) are a heterogeneous population of immature myeloid cells that expand in inflammatory conditions including transplantation. MDSCs may be capable of controlling rejection. The critical mechanisms underlying MDSC mediated alloregulation remain unexplored. Read More