• Asian Pacific Journal of Cancer Prevention
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• 제15권19호
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• pp.8197-8201
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• 2014

Background: Telomerase reverse transcriptase (TERT) and cleft lip and palate trans-membrane 1 like (CLPTM1L) genes located on chromosome 5p15.33 are known to influence the susceptibility to various cancers. Here, we examined the association of TERT and CLPTM1L single nucleotide polymorphisms (SNPs) with hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC). Materials and Methods: Genotyping of TERT SNP rs2736098 and CLPTM1L SNP rs401681 was performed using TaqMan allelic discrimination assays in a case-control study of 201 HCC cases and 210 controls in a Chinese male population. Odds ratios (ORs) and 95% confidence intervals (CIs) were estimated using logistic regression analyses. Results: Both the rs2736098 T allele of TERT and the rs401681 T allele of CLPTM1L were associated with a significantly increased risk of HCC (adjusted odds ratio [OR]=1.605, 95% confidence interval [CI]=1.164-2.213; adjusted OR=1.399, 95%CI=1.002-1.955, respectively). Individuals carrying both TERT and CLPTM1L risk genotypes had an even higher risk of HCC (adjusted OR=4.420, 95%CI= 2.319-8.425). The TERT rs2736098 T allele was also significantly associated with the level of the HCC clinical indicator alpha-fetoprotein (P=0.026). Conclusions: Our results show that genetic variants of TERT and CLPTM1L may contribute to HCC susceptibility in Chinese males.

• Asian Pacific Journal of Cancer Prevention
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• 제16권8호
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• pp.3137-3140
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• 2015

Objective: To explore the immune reconstitution of $CD4^+T$ cells after allogeneic hematopoietic stem cell transplantation (Allo-HSCT) and its relationship with invasive fungal infection (IFI) in patients with hematological malignancies. Materials and Methods: Forty-seven patients with hematological malignancies undergoing Allo-HSCT in Binzhou Medical University Hospital from February, 2010 to October, 2014 were selected. At 1, 2 and 3 months after transplantation, the immune subpopulations and concentration of cytokines were assessed respectively using flow cytometry (FCM) and enzyme linked immunosorbent assay (ELISA). The incidence of IFI after transplantation and its correlation with immune reconstitution of $CD4^+T$ cells were investigated. Results: The number of $CD4^+T$ cells and immune subpopulations increased progressively after transplantation as time went on, but the subpopulation cell count 3 months after transplantation was still significantly lower than in the control group (p<0.01). In comparison to the control group, the levels of interleukin-6 (IL-6) and IL-10 after transplantation rose evidently (p<0.01), while that of transforming growth factor-${beta}$ (TGF-${beta}$) was decreased (p<0.01). There was no statistically significant difference level of interferon-${\gamma}$ (IFN-${\gamma}$) (p>0.05). The incidence of IFI was 19.2% (9/47), and multivariate logistic regression revealed that IFI might be related to Th17 cell count (p<0.05), instead of Th1, Th2 and Treg cell counts as well as IL-6, IL-10, TGF-${beta}$ and IFN-${\gamma}$ levels (p>0.05). Conclusions: After Allo-HSCT, the immune reconstitution of $CD4^+T$ cells is delayed and Th17 cell count decreases obviously, which may be related to occurrence of IFI.

• The Korean Journal of Physiology and Pharmacology
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• 제24권5호
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• pp.423-431
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• 2020

This study aimed to evaluate the effect of curcumin on brain hypoxic-ischemic (HI) damage in neonatal rats and whether the phosphoinositide 3-kinase (PI3K)/Akt/vascular endothelial growth factor (VEGF) signaling pathway is involved. Brain HI damage models were established in neonatal rats, which received the following treatments: curcumin by intraperitoneal injection before injury, insulin-like growth factor 1 (IGF-1) by subcutaneous injection after injury, and VEGF by intracerebroventricular injection after injury. This was followed by neurological evaluation, hemodynamic measurements, histopathological assessment, TUNEL assay, flow cytometry, and western blotting to assess the expression of p-PI3K, PI3K, p-Akt, Akt, and VEGF. Compared with rats that underwent sham operation, rats with brain HI damage showed remarkably increased neurological deficits, reduced right blood flow volume, elevated blood viscosity and haematocrit, and aggravated cell damage and apoptosis; these injuries were significantly improved by curcumin pretreatment. Meanwhile, brain HI damage induced the overexpression of p-PI3K, p-Akt, and VEGF, while curcumin pretreatment inhibited the expression of these proteins. In addition, IGF-1 treatment rescued the curcumin-induced down-regulated expression of p-PI3K, p-Akt, and VEGF, and VEGF overexpression counteracted the inhibitory effect of curcumin on brain HI damage. Overall, pretreatment with curcumin protected against brain HI damage by targeting VEGF via the PI3K/Akt signaling pathway in neonatal rats.

• Parasites, Hosts and Diseases
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• 제57권5호
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• pp.553-559
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• 2019

The Alataw Pass, near the Ebinur Lake Wetland (northwest of China) and Taldykorgan (east of Kazakhstan), is a natural habitat for wild rodents. To date, little has been done on the surveillance of Bartonella spp. and Wolbachia spp. from fleas in the region. Here we molecularly detected Bartonella spp. and Wolbachia spp. in wild rodent fleas during January and October of 2016 along the Alataw Pass-Kazakhstan border. A total of 1,706 fleas belonging to 10 species were collected from 6 rodent species. Among the 10 flea species, 4 were found to be positive for Wolbachia, and 5 flea species were positive for Bartonella. Molecular analysis indicated that i) B. rochalimae was firstly identified in Xenopsylla gerbilli minax and X. conforms conforms, ii) B. grahamii was firstly identified in X. gerbilli minax, and iii) B. elizabethae was firstly detected in Coptopsylla lamellifer ardua, Paradoxopsyllus repandus, and Nosopsyllus laeviceps laeviceps. Additionally, 3 Wolbachia endosymbionts were firstly found in X. gerbilli minax, X. conforms conforms, P. repandus, and N. laeviceps laeviceps. BLASTn analysis indicated 3 Bartonella species showed genotypic variation. Phylogenetic analysis revealed 3 Wolbachia endosymbionts were clustered into the non-Siphonaptera Wolbachia group. These findings extend our knowledge of the geographical distribution and carriers of B. rochalimae, B. grahamii, B. elizabethae, and Wolbachia spp. In the future, there is a need for China-Kazakhstan cooperation to strengthen the surveillance of flea-borne pathogens in wildlife.

• Asian Pacific Journal of Cancer Prevention
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• 제13권9호
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• pp.4607-4611
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• 2012

Objective: Endometrial cancer (EC) is the most common gynecologic malignancy. Identification of potential biomarkers of EC would be helpful for the detection and monitoring of malignancy, improving clinical outcomes. Methods: The Weighted Gene Co-expression Network Analysis method was used to identify prognostic markers for EC in this study. Moreover, underlying molecular mechanisms were characterized by KEGG pathway enrichment and transcriptional regulation analyses. Results: Seven gene co-expression modules were obtained, but only the turquoise module was positively related with EC stage. Among the genes in the turquoise module, COL5A2 (collagen, type V, alpha 2) could be regulated by PBX (pre-B-cell leukemia homeobox 1)1/2 and HOXB1(homeobox B1) transcription factors to be involved in the focal adhesion pathway; CENP-E (centromere protein E, 312kDa) by E2F4 (E2F transcription factor 4, p107/p130-binding); MYCN (v-myc myelocytomatosis viral related oncogene, neuroblastoma derived [avian]) by PAX5 (paired box 5); and BCL-2 (B-cell CLL/lymphoma 2) and IGFBP-6 (insulin-like growth factor binding protein 6) by GLI1. They were predicted to be associated with EC progression via Hedgehog signaling and other cancer related-pathways. Conclusions: These data on transcriptional regulation may provide a better understanding of molecular mechanisms and clues to potential therapeutic targets in the treatment of EC.

• Asian Pacific Journal of Cancer Prevention
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• 제15권6호
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• pp.2911-2916
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• 2014

Oxaliplatin is a first-line therapy for colorectal cancer, but cancer cell resistance to the drug compromises its efficacy. To explore mechanisms of drug resistance, we treated colorectal cancer cells (HCT116 and SW620) long-term with oxaliplatin and established stable oxaliplatin-resistant lines (HCT116-OX and SW620-OX). Compared with parental cell lines, $IC_{50}$s for various chemotherapeutic agents (oxaliplatin, cisplatin and doxorubicin) were increased in oxaliplatin-resistant cell lines and this was accompanied by activation of nuclear factor erythroid-2 p45-related factor 2 (Nrf2) and NADPH quinone oxidoreductase 1 (NQO1). Furthermore, luteolin inhibited the Nrf2 pathway in oxaliplatin-resistant cell lines in a dose-dependent manner. Luteolin also inhibited Nrf2 target gene [NQO1, heme oxygenase-1 (HO-1) and $GST{\alpha}1/2$] expression and decreased reduced glutathione in wild type mouse small intestinal cells. There was no apparent effect in Nrf2-/- mice. Luteolin combined with other chemotherapeutics had greater anti-cancer activity in resistant cell lines (combined index values below 1), indicating a synergistic effect. Therefore, adaptive activation of Nrf2 may contribute to the development of acquired drug-resistance and luteolin could restore sensitivity of oxaliplatin-resistant cell lines to chemotherapeutic drugs. Inhibition of the Nrf2 pathway may be the mechanism for this restored therapeutic response.

• Asian Pacific Journal of Cancer Prevention
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• 제15권24호
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• pp.10893-10898
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• 2015

Several molecular markers have been proposed as predictors of outcome in patients with glioblastomas. We investigated the prognostic significance of $O^6$-methylguanine-DNA methyltransferase (MGMT) promoter methylation and TP53 mutation status dependent on isocitrate dehydrogenase 1 (IDH1) mutation in glioblastoma patients. A cohort of 78 patients with histologically confirmed glioblastomas treated with radiation therapy and chemotherapy were reviewed retrospectively. We evaluated the prognostic value of MGMT promoter methylation and TP53 mutation status with regard to progression-free survival (PFS) and overall survival (OS). It was revealed that mutations in IDH1, promoter methylation of MGMT, TP53 mutation, age, Karnofsky performance status (KFS), and extension of resection were independent prognostic factors. In patients with an IDH1 mutation, those with an MGMT methylation were associated with longer PFS (p=0.016) and OS (p=0.013). Nevertheless, the presence of TP53 mutation could stratify the PFS and OS of patients with IDH1 wild type (p=0.003 and 0.029 respectively, log-rank). The MGMT promoter methylation and TP53 mutation were associated with a favorable outcome of patients with and without mutant IDH1, respectively. The results indicate that glioblastomas with MGMT methylation or TP53 mutations have improved survival that may be influenced by IDH1 mutation status.

• Asian Pacific Journal of Cancer Prevention
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• 제13권11호
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• pp.5409-5413
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• 2012

At present, multiple myeloma (MM) remains an incurable disease and cologenic cells may be responsible for disease relapse. It has been proposed that CD20+/CD138- NCI-H929 cells could be hallmarks of MM clonogenic cells. Here, the immunology phenotype of NCI-H929 cells is described. Only a small population of CD20+/CD138- cells (<1%) was found in the NCI-H929 cell line, but CD20+/CD138- cells were not detected. We found that CD20+/CD138+ cells were able to exhibit cologenic capacity by colony formation assay and continuous passage culture. Proteins were analyzed by 1D-SDS-PAGE and TMT based quantitative differential liquid chromatography tandem mass spectrometry (LC-MS/MS). 1,082 non-redundant proteins were identified, 658 of which were differentially expressed with at least a 1.5-fold difference. 205 proteins in CD20+ cells were expressed at higher levels and 453 proteins were at lower levels compared with CD20- cells. Most proteins had catalytic and binding activity and mainly participated in metabolic processes, cell communication and molecular transport. These results proved that there are different biological features and protein expression profile between CD20+ and CD20- cells in the NCI-H929 cell line.

• Asian Pacific Journal of Cancer Prevention
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• 제15권2호
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• pp.647-650
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• 2014

Objective: To explore the efficiency of single application of lobaplatin in tran-scatheter arterial chemoembolization (TACE) for patients with a primary hepatic carcinoma who were unable or unwilling to undergo surgery. Methods: 173 patients with primary hepatic carcinoma diagnosed by imaging or pathology were randomly divided into experimental and control groups and respectively treated with lobaplatin and pirarubicin hydrochloride as chemotherapeutic drugs for TACE. The amount of iodipin was regulated according to the tumor number and size, and then gelatin sponge or polyvinyl alcohol particles were applied for embolisms. The efficiency of treatment in the two groups was compared with reference to survival time and therapeutic response. Results: The experimental group (single lobaplatin as chemotherapy drug) was superior to control group (single pirarubicin hydrochloride as chemotherapy drug) in the aspects of survival time and therapeutic response, with statistical significance. Conclusions: Single lobaplatin can be as a chemotherapy drug in TACE and has better efficiency in the aspects of mean survival time and therapeutic response, deserving to be popularized in the clinic.

• Animal Bioscience
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• 제37권8호
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• pp.1428-1439
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• 2024

Objective: Compared to Mimas pigeons, Shiqi pigeons exhibit greater tolerance to coarse feeding because of their abundant gut microbiota. Here, to investigate the potential of utilizing intestinal flora derived from Shiqi pigeons, the intestinal flora and body indices of Mimas squabs were evaluated after fecal microbiota transplantation (FMT) from donors. Methods: A total of 90 one-day-old squabs were randomly divided into the control group (CON), the low-concentration group (LC) and the high-concentration group (HC): gavaged with 200 μL of bacterial solution at concentrations of 0, 0.1, and 0.2 g/15 mL, respectively. Results: The results suggested that FMT improved the body weight of Mimas squabs in the HC and LC groups (p<0.01), and 0.1 g/15 mL was the optimal dose during FMT. After 16S rRNA sequencing was performed, compared to those in the CON group, the abundance levels of microflora, especially Lactobacillus, Muribaculaceae, and Megasphaera (p<0.05), in the FMT-treated groups were markedly greater. Random forest analysis indicated that the main functions of key microbes involve pathways associated with metabolism, further illustrating their important role in the host body. Conclusion: FMT has been determined to be a viable method for augmenting the weight and intestinal microbiota of squabs, representing a unique avenue for enhancing the economic feasibility of squab breeding.