Expression of telomerase inhibitor Pinx1 in leukemia cells and its correlation with telomerase activity

AIM:To study the expression of telomerase inhibitor Pinx1 in acute leukemia cells and during the differentiation of acute promyelocytic leukemia cells,and to realize its effect on telomerase activity.METHODS:Realtime quantitative PCR with fluorescence probe hybridization was used to measure the expression of Pinx1 and hTERT mRNA in acute leukemia cells and during differentiation of NB4 cells induced by ATRA.The correlations between Pinx1 and hTERT expression were also analyzed.RESULTS:Pinx1 mRNA expression in acute leukemia samples (0.00312,5.42×10-4-0.024) was significantly higher than that in normal bone marrow mononuclear cells (7.89×10-4,0-0.00863,P<0.01).The expression of Pinx1 mRNA had significant positive correlation with hTERT mRNA expression (r=0.296,P<0.05).Pinx1 mRNA expression decreased during differentiation,its expression was positive correlated with hTERT mRNA expression (r=0.900,P<0.05).CONCLUSIONS:As an inhibitor of telomerase,however,Pinx1 also had the same direction of regulation with telomerase activity in acute leukemia cells,suggesting its expression variation may be a subsequent reaction induced by that of hTERT to stabilize telomerase activity.The exact mechanisms remained to be verified.     

Effect of extract of Oratosquilla oratoria on telomerase activity in human nasopharyngeal carcinoma cell line

AIM: To study the inhibitory effect and its mechanisms of the extract of Oratosquilla oratoria (EOS) on the activity of telomerase in human nasopharyngeal carcinoma cell line CNE-2Z. METHODS: MTT assay was used to determine the effect of different doses of EOS on the proliferation of CNE-2Z cells. The activity of telomerase was analyzed by TRAP-ELISA. The mRNA expression of hTERT was determined by RT-PCR, and the protein expression of c-Myc was detected by Western blotting. RESULTS: EOS inhibited the proliferation of CNE-2Z cells in a dose-dependent manner (P<0.01). Telomerase activity was decreased, the mRNA expression of hTERT and c-Myc in CNE-2Z cells was also decreased (P<0.01) by the treatment of EOS. The correlation between the down-regulatory expression of hTERT mRNA and inhibitory expression of c-Myc protein (P<0.05) under the condition of EOS exposure was observed. CONCLUSION: EOS inhibits the proliferation of CNE-2Z cells by reducing the activity of telomerase, which is related with the inhibitory expression of hTERT mRNA caused by the decrease in c-Myc production.     

Regulation of MMP-2 and TIMP-3 expression by uPA signal transduction system in human bone giant cell tumor

AIM: To study effects of urokinase-type plasminogen activator (uPA) signal transduction on expression of matrix metalloproteinase-2 (MMP-2) and tissue inhibitor of matrix metalloproteinase-3 (TIMP-3) in giant cell tumor of bone (GCT). METHODS: Expression of uPAR, MMP-2 and TIMP-3 in GCT tissue was detected by immunohistochemistry. Phosphorylation level of mitogen-activated protein kinase (p44) in uPA/uPAR signal pathway in cultured GCT cells was detected by immunoprecipitation. The expression of MMP-2 and TIMP-3 in cultured cells after treatment with uPA-ATF or anti-uPAR antibody was also detected by Western blotting. RESULTS: 1) Urokinase-type plasminogen activator receptor (uPAR) was positive on the cell membrane and in cytoplasm of some mononuclear stromal cells (MSCs) and multinucleated giant cells (MGCs); 2) MMP-2 was positive in the cytoplasm and on the cell membrane of almost all of MSCs and some of MGCs. The polar distribution of MMP-2 in the cytoplasm of MGCs was especially obvious; 3) The expression of TIMP-3 of some MSCs and MGCs in GCT was much lower than MMP-2. The positive signal also showed a prominent polarity; 4) After treatment with uPA-ATF, the phosphorylation level of p44 in GCT cultured cells was much higher than the control. Addition of anti-uPAR antibody in the cells remarkably down-regulated the phosphorylation level of p44 as compared with the control group, suggesting that uPA-ATF participates cell signal transduction and this reaction can be inhibited by anti-uPAR antibody; 5) uPA-ATF cell signal pathway up-regulated expression of MMP-2 and TIMP-3, while anti-uPAR antibody down-regulated the expression of MMP-2 and TIMP-3. CONCLUSION: These results demonstrate for the first time that uPA-ATF directly regulates the expression of MMP-2 and TIMP-3 by signal transduction pathway, and the over-expression of MMP-2 and TIMP-3 may play an important role in local osteolysis of GCT.     

Ectopic hTERT gene expression in human bone marrow mesenchymal stem cells

AIM: To investigate the effect of transfection of hTERT gene into human mesenchymal stem cells (MSCs) on their telomerase activity and life-span.METHODS: Human MSCs were transfected with a pEGFP-hTERT plasmid by liposome-mediated transfection. Then the hTERT mRNA expression in MSCs was detected by RT-PCR. The activity of telomerase in transfected MSCs was detected by PCR and ELISA. The telomerase-positive MSCs was cultured in vitro and induced into neuron-like cells with EGF and bFGF. Neuron-specific markers (NF-M, MAP₂) were detected by RT-PCR.RESULTS: hTERT fragment was identified in the hTERT-transfeced cells but not in the untransfected human bone marrow MSCs. The untransfected human MSCs remained telomerase-negative but the hTERT-transfected cells showed robust telomerase activity. The telomerase-negative MSCs entered a nondividing state and senesced after about 20 to 25 passages. In test group, however, telomerase-positive MSCs to date had undergone 35 passages. RT-PCR analysis showed that telomerase-positive MSCs expressed neuron-specific markers, such as NF-M or MAP₂ after induced with EGF and bFGF in vitro. CONCLUSION: Ectopic expression of the hTERT gene in human MSCs reconstitutes telomerase activity. The transfection of hTERT gene into human MSCs extends their replicative life span and maintains their multipotent differentiation capacity.     

Construction of recombinant retrovirus vector carrying hTERT and transfected to MSCs in human cord blood

AIM:To construct a recombinant retrovirus vector carrying hTERT for establishing UCBMSCs with hTERT (hTERT-MSCs) to overcome their limited life span and detecting whether telomerized UCBMSCs line maintained long-term self-renewal and differentiation capacity. METHODS:The whole cDNA was generated by PCR amplifications from the plasmid pEGFP-hTERT-C1. The hTERT segments were subcloned into pLNCX2. The target cells were infected with these retroviral particles. The stably transfected cells were selected by neomycin and expanded life span which were designated hTERT-MSCs was observed. The expression of hTERT in mRNA level was detected by RT-PCR and the telomerase activity was measured by TRAP (PCR)-ELISA assay. The hTERT-MSCs were induced with 5-azacytidine to cardiac muscle cells and the specific marker of myocardiocyte was detected. RESULTS:The constructed plasmids were digested with restriction endonucleases (BglⅡand NotⅠ). Two characteristic segments including 6.1 kb and 3.6 kb were obtained. The hTERT-MSCs expressed hTERT in mRNA level. The telomerase activity of hTERT-MSCs was positive. The growth kinetics of hTERT-MSCs was higher than those in UCBMSCs. The hTERT-MSCs were induced to myocardiocyte. CONCLUSION:The hTERT recombinant retrovirus vector has been successfully constructed. The hTERT gene activates the telomerase and prolongs the life-span of cells. No effect of hTERT gene on some type of differentiation potential of MSCs is present.     

Experimental study of endothelin-1 gene expression in uterine tube tissue

AIM: The distribution of endothelin-1(ET-1) in uterine tube and its source were investigated in order to find out relation between endothelin-1 and function of uterine tube. METHODS: The distribution of endothelin-1 and the expression of ET-1 mRNA in the rabbits uterine tubes were studied using SABC immunohistochemistry and in situ hybridization histochemistry with digoxigenin-labelled rat ET-1 cRNA probe. RESULTS: ET-1 granules with red color were seen in the uterine tube epithelial cells and they were located mainly above the cell nucleus and under the cell surface membrane. Less ET-1 granules were seen in the myometrium of uterine tube. ET-1 mRNA positive hybridization signals with deep blue were distributed in the uterine tube epithelial cells. These signals were strong and dense. They were distributed mainly above the nucleus and near the cell surface membrane. ET-1 mRNA positive hybridization signal was not seen in the myometrium of uterine tube.CONCLUSION: Our results indicate that epithelial cells of rabbit's uterine tube epithelial cells secrete ET-1.     

The expression of 53BP1 and 53BP2 gene in nasopharyngeal carcinoma

AIM:To investigate the expression map of two p53 binding proteins 53BP1 and 53BP2 in nasopharyngeal carcinoma (NPC) tissue. METHODS:The expression of 53BP1 and 53BP2 mRNA in NPC biopsy and control group are tested by RT-PCR. The expression of two mRNA in NPC paraffin section are examined by in situ hybridization. RESULTS:No expression of 53BP1 mRNA was found in NPC tissue and control group. However, expression of 53BP2 was detected in NPC biopsy and control group by RT-PCR, specific expressoin found cancerous nest in NPC paraffin section by in situ hybridization. CONCLUSION:The high expression of 53BP2 may be related to the development of NPC.     

Mechanism of vascular endothelial growth factor in diabetic rat retinopathy

AIM: To study the molecular mechanism of vascular endothelial growth factor (VEGF) in pathogenesis of diabetes in rats. METHODS: The diabetic rat model was established by using streptozocin. The animals were divided into normal control (C group), diabetic for one month (M₁ group), for three months (M₃ group) and for five months (M₅ group). In situ hybridization and immunohistochemistry were conduced to observe the expression of VEGF on retinal digest preparation and paraffin section. RESULTS: 1. On paraffin section: the positive rate of VEGF expression in M₅ group was 67% by in situ hybridization and 89% by immunohistochemistry. There was only 34% positive expression of VEGF in M₃ group by immunohistochemistry. 2. On retinal digest preparation: the VEGF positive expression rate in M₅ group was 34% by in situ hybridization and 56% by immunohistochemistry. CONCLUSION: Both endothelial cells and Mural cells and Müller cells express VEGF. The source of VEGF may be from the paracrine pathway in early stage of diabetic retinopathy.     

Effect of conditioned medium of human multiple myeloma RPMI 8226 cells on osteoclastogenesis of RAW264.7 cells

AIM: To investigate the osteoclastogenic effect of conditioned medium of human multiple myeloma RPMI 8226 cells on preosteoclast RAW264.7 cells. METHODS: The protein expression of soluble receptor activator of NF-κB ligand (sRANKL) was detected by Western blotting. The morphological changes of RAW264.7 cells were observed after tartrate-resistant acid phosphatase (TRAP) staining. The mRNA expression of TRAP and cathepsin K was evaluated by RT-PCR. RESULTS: The result of Western blotting showed that conditioned medium of RPMI 8226 cells contained sRANKL. RPMI 8226 cell conditioned medium induced RAW264.7 cells to differentiate into TRAP-positive multinuclear osteoclasts. Human neutralized RANKL monoclonal antibody suppressed the differentiation of preosteoclasts in a dose-dependent manner, which was induced by 30% RPMI 8226 cell conditioned medium. RPMI 8226 cell conditioned medium increased the mRNA expression of TRAP and cathepsin K in RAW264.7 cells. CONCLUSION: The sRANKL in conditioned medium of human multiple myeloma RPMI 8226 cells has the bioactivity to induce preosteoclast RAW264.7 cells to differentiate into TRAP-positive multinuclear osteoclasts. Human neutralized RANKL monoclonal antibody suppresses the differentiation of preosteoclasts induced by sRANKL in a dose-dependent manner.     

Effect of tea-polyphenols on the activation of NF-κB and the expression of TGF-β1 mRNA in THP-1 cells incubated with VLDL,LDL or ox-LDL

AIM:To investigate the effect of tea-polyphenols (TP) on the activation of NF-κB and the expression of TGF-β₁ mRNA in THP-1 cells (a human acute monocytic leukemia cell line). METHODS:THP-1 cells were incubated with the different concentrations of TP, VLDL, LDL or ox-LDL. In the THP-1 cellls, the nuclear malposition rate of NF-κB was detected with immunohistochemistry technique, the positive index of the TGF-β₁ mRNA expression was detected by hybridization in situ, and accumulation of total cholesterol (TC) in cells incubated with 0.4-40 μg/L TP was determined with oxidase assay. RESULTS:The nuclear malposition rate of NF-κB, the positive index of the TGF-β₁ mRNA expression and TC in THP-1 cells incubated with 0.4-40 μg/L of TP were lower than those with 0 μg/L of TP in TP-V group, TP-L group and TP-O (P＜0.05). The differences of these markers in THP-1 cells incubated with more than 40 μg/L TP in TP-V group, TP-L group and TP-O were not statistically significant, compared with TP-C group (P＞0.05). CONCLUSION:TP inhibited the activation of NF-κB, the expression of TGF-β₁ mRNA and the foam cell formation in the mono-macrophage.     

Effect of TNF-related apoptosis inducing ligand on the biological activity of hepatocarcinoma cell line

AIM: To explore the effect of TNF-related apoptosis inducing ligand (TRAIL), a new apoptotic inducing molecule on the biological activity of hepatocarcinoma cell line. METHODS: The expression of membrane binding TRAIL on HepG2 cells was detected by immuno-cytochemistry. Quantity of secretory TRAIL was assayed by ELISA method. The cytotoxicity and apoptosis induced by TRAIL was detected by MTT and TUNEL method, respectively. The telomerase activity of HepG2 cells was detected by TRAP-PCR assay kit. The expression of hTERT, the catalytic subunit of telomerase, was detected by FCM. RESULTS: TRAIL was constitutively expressed on the membrane of HepG2 cell line. Soluble TRAIL was also expressed to a certain degree. Cytotoxicity assay showed that TRAIL significantly inhibited the growth of hepatocarcinoma cells. TUNEL assay indicated that TRAIL induced apoptosis in hepatocarcinoma cells. Detection of telomerase activity showed that TRAIL inhibited telomerase activity and the expression of telomerase catalytic subunit. CONCLUSION: TRAIL is an effective molecule to inhibit the growth of hepatocarcinoma through multiple pathways, such as inducing apoptosis and inhibiting the activity of telomerase.     

Expression of IgG in bladder carcinoma and the effect of the antibody against human IgG on tumor cell apoptosis

AIM: To investigate the expression of immunoglobulin G (IgG) in bladder transitional carcinoma cells (BTCC) and the effect of the antibody against human IgG on tumor cell apoptosis.METHODS: The expression of IgG of BTCC was detected by immunohistochemistry, Western blotting, enzyme linked immunosorbent assay (ELISA) and flow cytometry (FCM). The expression of IgG mRNA was tested by hybridization in situ method and RT-PCR in vitro. Antiproliferation effects of the antibody of antihuman IgG on T24 and BIU-87 cell lines were measured by MTT assay. Cell apoptosis was assessed by FCM.RESULTS: The expression of IgG was 91.1％ (51/56) in clinical cases, and 45.4％ (5/11) in normal controls. Immunohistochemistry and Western blotting showed that the IgG was significantly expressed in T24 and BIU-87. FCM indicated the IgG was mainly expressed in cytoplasma. No IgG was detected by ELISA in supernatant of cell culture medium. RT-PCR and hybridization in situ demonstrated IgG mRNA was significantly expressed in two cell lines. Under the treatment of 25 mg/L of goat nonspecific IgG and the antibody of antihuman IgG, the inhibition ratio of cell growth in T24 and BIU-87 were (4.73±3.73)% vs (24.98±3.81)% and (5.36±1.53)% vs (22.70±3.72)%, respectively (P<0.05). The percentages of apoptotic cells in T24 and BIU-87 were 2.3% vs 20.7% and 1.3% vs 15.3%, respectively.CONCLUSION: IgG is significantly expressed in bladder transitional carcinoma cell. The antibody of antihuman IgG inhibits cancer cell growth and induces tumor cell apoptosis.