Cholesterol-sensitive action sites in promoter of prohibitin gene

AIM: To verify the cholesterol-sensitive sites in the promoter of prohibitin (PHB) gene. METHODS: A series of successive PHB promoter truncated segments were amplified by PCR and cloned into pGL3-Basic luciferase reporter vector. Human prostate cancer PC-3 cells were transfected with the recombinant plasmids and then cultured in normal medium (NM) or cholesterol-depleted medium (CDM). The activity of PHB promoter was detected by luciferase activity analysis to find the cholesterol-sensitive region of approximately 200 bp in PHB promoter. Point mutations in sterol regulatory element (SRE) homologous loci of this 200　bp region were made to confirm the cholesterol-sensitive role of this SRE site. RESULTS: Plasmids with PHB promoter segments were successfully constructed. Luciferase activity in PC-3 cells transfected with PHB promoter segment pPHB-179 (-35/+138) plasmid was significantly decreased compared with the cells transfected with the whole PHB promoter pPHB-1192 plasmid (P<0.05). After point mutation was made in the SRE homologous locus located at -117 to -108 bp and this plasmid was transfected into PC-3 cells, the luciferase activity in these cells was significant decreased compared with the cells transfected with pPHB-1192 plasmid (P<0.05). CONCLUSION: Cholesterol regulates the activity of PHB promoter in human prostate cancer PC-3 cells. The cholesterol-sensitive site in PHB promoter is located at -117 to -108 bp of SRE homologous locus. PHB may become a new target of gene therapy for prostate cancer.     

Construction of human prostate-specific membrane antigen expression vector and identification of tissue specificity

AIM: To construct a prostate-specific expression vector of promoter and enhancer of human prostate-specific membrane antigen (PSMA).METHODS: The promoter and enhancer of PSMA were amplified by PCR separately. The two segments were cloned into the expression vector pGL3-Basic, a prostate-specific expression vector pGL3-PSMP-PSME was constructed. The vector was transfected into prostatic carcinoma cell PC-3M and four kinds of non-prostatic carcinoma cells by lipofectamine. The activity of luciferase of transfected cells and tissue specificity of vector was examined at 48 hours after transfection. RESULTS: With DNA sequence of the vector pGL3-PSMP-PSME, the segment of clone was proved correct. The activity of luciferase of the pGL3-PSMP-PSME was expressed distinctly in PC-3M and was not expressed in other nonprostate cell lines. CONCLUSION: The prostate-specific expression vector was constructed successfully. It lays foundation for studying target gene therapy of the prostate cancer.     

Effect of estrogen receptor 2 on the cell proliferation in prostate cancer cell line PC-3M

AIM: To construct the recombination plasmid pcDNA3.1-hERβ with the human estrogen receptor 2 (ESR2) full length cDNA and transfect it into hormone-independent prostate cancer PC-3M cell line, and to study the effects of ESR2 on proliferation in transfected cells. METHODS: The complete cDNA of ESR2 was obtained from human ovary tissue by RT-PCR technique and cloned into eukaryotic expression vector pcDNA3.1 by using gene recombination technique to construct the pcDNA3.1-hERβ recombination plasmid. The plasmid was detected by endonuclease digestion and DNA sequencing and was transfected into PC-3M cells. MTT and FCAS assay were used to test the effects of ESR2 on the ability of proliferation in PC-3M cells. RT-PCR and Western blotting were used to detect the expressions of cyclinD1 and P21Cip1. RESULTS: The results of sequencing and endonuclease digestion demonstrated that the construction of pcDNA3.1-hERβ recombination plasmid was successful. The sequence analysis suggested that the ESR2 sequence detected by PCR was identical to that published in GenBank, and the product of endonuclease was as long as the complete human ESR2 gene. 48 h after transfected the pcDNA3.1-hERβ into PC-3M cells, the expression of ESR2 mRNA and protein levels increased significantly detected by RT-PCR and Western blotting. Compared to the cells transfected with vector as control, the PC-3M cells transfected with pcDNA3.1-hERβ showed that cell population decreased and proliferation activity degraded. FCAS showed that the cells in G0/G1 stage increased and in S stage or G2/M stage decreased. RT-PCR and Western blotting showed that the expression of cyclinD1 gene reduced and expression of P21Cip1 increased. CONCLUSION: The recombination of plasmid pcDNA3.1-hERβ is constructed and transfected into the PC-3M cells successfully. The activity of cell proliferation is inhibited after pcDNA3 transfection.1-hERβ. It is possible that ESR2 inhibits cell proliferation by the expression of proliferation related genes cyclinD1 and P21Cip1.     

TNF-α exacerbates cholesterol accumulation via down-regulating LXRα promoter activity in HepG2 cells

AIM: To investigate the exacerbating effect of tumor necrosis factor alpha (TNF-α) on lipid accumulation in HepG2 cells by inhibiting liver X receptor alpha (LXRα) signaling pathway. METHODS: Luciferase reporter plasmid driven by the LXRα promoter (pGL3-Basic-LXRα-P) was constructed and transfected into HepG2 cells to detect the LXRα promoter activity. HepG2 cells were incubated with serum-free medium (control), 20 μg/L TNF-α (TNF-α), 100 mg/L LDL (LDL) and 20 μg/L TNF-α plus 100 mg/L LDL (LDL+TNF-α), respectively. The effects of TNF-α on cholesterol accumulation were examined by oil red O staining and quantitative intracellular cholesterol assay. The expression of LXRα, ABCA1 and ABCG1 at mRNA and protein levels was examined by real-time PCR and Western blotting. RESULTS: The pGL3-Basic-LXRα-P was constructed successfully. TNF-α decreased the activity of LXRα promoter in the absence or presence of LDL. Inflammatory stress inhibited the expression of LXRα, ABCA1and ABCG1 at mRNA and protein levels. The cholesterol efflux was increased after loading of LDL, while TNF-α decreased intracellular cholesterol efflux. The results of oil red O staining and quantitative intracellular cholesterol assay demonstrated that inflammatory stress increased cholesterol levels in HepG2 cells. CONCLUSION: TNF-α exacerbates the cholesterol accumulation in hepatic cells via inhibiting LXRα promoter activity and gene expression.     

Expression of histone chaperone ASF1B in prostate cancer cells and its effect on cell viability in vitro

AIM To investigate the expression of histone chaperone anti-silencing function 1B （ASF1B） in prostate cancer cells and its effect on cell viability in vitro. METHODS Human prostate cancer PC-3 cells were used, and knockdown of ASF1B was conducted by small interfering RNA （siRNA） transfection into the cells. The cells were divided into control group, siRNA negative control vector （mock） group and siRNA-ASF1B group. The viability of the PC-3 cells treated with ASF1B-siRNA for 12, 24 and 48 h was measured by MTT assay. Flow cytometry was used to analyze cell apoptosis and cell cycle distribution. The mRNA expression of apoptosis-related molecules was detected by RT-qPCR, and the expression levels of MAPK/JNK/ERK signaling pathway-related proteins were determined by Western blot. RESULTS The protein level of ASF1B in the normal cells （benign prostatic hyperplasia） was significantly lower than that in the PC-3 cells （P<0.01）. Compared with control group and mock group, the protein expression level of ASF1B in the PC-3 cells transfected with siRNA-ASF1B plasmid and the viability of the PC-3 cells were significantly decreased （P<0.01）. The apoptotic rate of the PC-3 cells transfected with siRNA-ASF1B plasmid was significantly higher than that in control group （P<0.01）, and the cell cycle was arrested at G₁ phase. The mRNA levels of p53, caspase-3, Bax and PARP-1 in the PC-3 cells transfected with siRNA-ASF1B plasmid were up-regulated compared with those in control group and Mack group （P<0.01）. In addition, the protein levels of MAP2K4 and p-JNK in the PC-3 cells in siRNA-ASF1B group were significantly higher than those in mock group （P<0.01）, while the protein level of p-ERK was significantly lower than that in mock group （P<0.01）. CONCLUSION ASF1B silencing induces G₁ arrest and promotes apoptosis of PC-3 cells. Activating MAPK/JNK/ERK signaling pathway may be a possible contributor to the anti-prostate cancer effect of siRNA-ASF1B.     

NKX3.1 down-regulates bcl-2 gene expression in prostate cancer PC-3 cells

AIM: To investigate the effect of NKX3.1 on the gene expression of bcl-2 and apoptosis in prostate cancer PC-3 cells. METHODS: The eukaryotic expression plasmid pcDNA3.1- NKX3.1 was transiently transfected into PC-3 cells. RT-PCR and Western blotting were used to detect the effects of NKX3.1 on the expression of bcl-2 gene. Down-regulatory effect of NKX3.1 on bcl-2 gene was detected by EMSA. Flow cytometry and apoptotic body staining were carried out to study the effects of NKX3.1 on apoptosis of PC-3 cells. RESULTS: The mRNA and protein expression of bcl-2 in PC-3 cells was down-regulated by over-expression of NKX3.1. The EMSA result showed that NKX3.1 interacted with the NKX3.1 binding elements in upstream regulatory region of bcl-2 gene. The results of flow cytometry showed that the number of apoptotic PC-3 cells increased by 1.41-fold after NKX3.1 transfection to PC-3 cells. NKX3.1 increased the apoptotic bodies stained by Hoechst 33258 significantly. CONCLUSION: NKX3.1 down-regulates the expression of anti-apoptotic gene bcl-2 and induces the apoptosis of prostate cancer PC-3 cells.     

Effects of rs35100176 polymorphism in IPO8 promoter on gene expression

AIM: To investigate the effect of rs35100176 CCT insertion/deletion polymorphism in the promoter region of importin 8 (IPO8) gene on its mRNA expression. METHODS: A 342-bp fragment of IPO8 gene promoter containing the rs35100176 polymorphism was amplified from 49 DNA samples and sequenced. The IPO8 promoter fragments containing CCT 3-nucleotide insertion or deletion were amplified using the corresponding homozygote DNA samples. The PCR products were sequenced and inserted into the luciferase reporter vector pGL3-Basic. Recombinant vectors were transfected into the cells by Fugene 6.0 and the expression of the reporter gene was detected by a dual-luciferase reporter assay system. The mRNA expression level of IPO8 was detected by real-time PCR in 3-nucleotide insertion or deletion homozygote cells. RESULTS：The sequencing results showed that there were 3 kinds of genotypes in the rs35100176 polymorphism, CCT/CCT,CCT/- and -/-, and the gene frequencies were 1837%, 5510% and 2653%, respectively. The recombinant expression vectors pGL3-3N Insertion and pGL3-3N Deletion were successfully constructed. The luciferase assay showed that pGL3-3N Insertion produced significantly lower luciferase activity than that by pGL3-3N Deletion. Real-time PCR showed that HEK293 cells with 3-nucleotide insertion homozygote expressed relative lower IPO8 mRNA than Saos-2 cells with 3-nucleotide deletion homozygote. CONCLUSION：The CCT 3-nucleotide insertion variant decreases the promoter activity of IPO8, thus affecting the gene expression.     

Roles of microRNA-29a in expression of Bcl-2 and Mcl-1 in rat cardiomyocytes

AIM: To investigate the regulatory mechanisms of microRNA-29a (miR-29a) on the expression of Bcl-2 and Mcl-1 in rat cardiomyocytes (CM cells). METHODS: The CM cells were isolated from the hearts of newborn rats and transfected with miR-29a mimic (100 nmol/L) by Lipofectamine RNAiMAX. The expression of Bcl-2 and Mcl-1 at mRNA and protein levels was detected by real-time fluorescence quantitative PCR and Western blotting. The luciferase assay was performed in HEK293T cells and CM cells, which were co-transfected with plasmid DNA and miRNA using Lipofectamine 2000. RESULTS: Transfection of miR-29a mimics significantly reduced the expression levels of Bcl-2 and Mcl-1 in CM cells as compared with the control cells (P<0.05). In addition, HEK293T cells co-transfected with miR-29a mimic and Bcl-2-3’UTR-WT or Mcl-1-3’UTR-WT plasmid significantly reduced the luciferase activity as compared with control group (P<0.05). While CM cells transfected with miR-29a inhibitor and Bcl-2-3’UTR-WT or Mcl-1-3’UTR-WT plasmid in succession, the luciferase activity was increased inversely (P<0.05). CONCLUSION: miR-29a may regulate apoptosis by targeting the bcl-2 and mcl-1 genes.     

Role of translationally controlled tumor protein in PRL-3-promoted metastasis of colon cancer cells

AIM: To study the role of translationally controlled tumor protein (TCTP) in the proliferation, migration and invasion of phosphatase of regenerating liver-3(PRL-3)-promoted colon cancer cells.METHODS: The vectors pAcGFP-C3 and pAcGFP-C3-PRL-3 were constructed and transfected into the colon cancer cell line LoVo.LoVo-PRL-3 cells stably expressing PRL-3 and LoVo-control cells were established. The expression levels of PRL-3 and TCTP in both cells were detected by Western blotting and real-time PCR. The specific siRNA sequence for TCTP mRNA and control-siRNA were synthesized and transfected into the LoVo-PRL-3 cells. TCTP expression at mRNA and protein levels in LoVo-PRL-3 was detected by Western blotting and real-time PCR 24 h, 48 h and 72 h after transfection. The proliferation, migration and invasion abilities of LoVo-control cells, LoVo-PRL-3 cells, TCTP-siRNA and control-siRNA cells were detected by CCK-8 assay and the method of Transwell cell culture chambers.RESULTS: The expression of TCTP at mRNA and protein levels in LoVo cells was significantly increased after PRL-3 transfection (P<0.05). TCTP mRNA was significantly inhibited 24 h, 48 h and 72 h after transfection of TCTP-siRNA (P<0.01). TCTP protein was also significantly inhibited 48 h and 72 h after transfection (P<0.01). Compared with LoVo-control cells, the proliferation, migration and invasion abilities of LoVo-PRL-3 cells were significantly enhanced (P<0.05). However, lowering the up-regulated expression of TCTP in LoVo-PRL-3 cells inhibited the proliferation, migration and invasion abilities (P<0.05). CONCLUSION: PRL-3 promotes proliferation, migration and invasion of colon cancer cells by up-regulating the TCTP expression. siRNA targeting TCTP may be an effective method for prevention and treatment of colon cancer cell metastasis.     

Hsa-miR-218 inhibits growth of cervical cancer HeLa cells by targeting to LASP1

AIM: To study the effect of hsa-miR-218 on cervical cancer HeLa cell growth and the underlying molecular mechanism.METHODS: The lentivirus expression vector pmiR-218 targeting to hsa-miR-218 was constructed. pmiR-218 was transfected into HeLa cells. The number of viable HeLa cells was counted by the method of Trypan blue exclusion. The inhibitory rate of cell activity was detected by WST-8 assay. The expression of LIM and SH3 protein 1(LASP1) at mRNA and protein levels was determined by real-time PCR and Western blot. The interaction between miR-218 and LASP1 was examined using a luciferase reporter assay.RESULTS: The lentivirus expression vector pmiR-218 targeting to hsa-miR-218 was constructed successfully and confirmed by DNA sequencing. Over-expression of miR-218 inhibited the activity of HeLa cells with the inhibitory rates of 15%, 26% and 65% at 24 h, 48 h and 72 h, respectively. The difference between transfection group and blank control/negative control group was statistically significant. The luciferase activity was reduced when co-transfection with miR-218 mimics and LASP1-3,UTR plasmid. The relative expression of miR-218 was increased after transfection with pmiR-218. Over-expression of miR-218 down-regulated the LASP1 expression at mRNA and protein levels by 25% and 75% respectively. Compared with blank control group and negative control group, the difference was statistically significant(P<0.05).CONCLUSION: pmiR-218 effectively inhibits the growth of HeLa cells in a time-dependent manner. miR-218 targets to the 3,UTR of LASP1, thus down-regulating the expression of LASP1 in HeLa cells.     

Roles of maspin in biological behaviors of PC-3 prostate cancer cells

AIM: To investigate the roles of maspin in the biological behaviors of prostate cancer cells. METHODS: Specific shRNA targeting maspin gene was designed. The plasmid targeting maspin gene was constructed and lentiviral expression system was used for transfection. qRT-PCR and Western blotting were performed to identify the stable maspin-shRNA-transfected PC-3 cells. The expression of apoptosis-related genes was analyzed by qRT-PCR. Dynamic observation of cell growth and doubling time were conducted by an xCELLigence system. The cell death upon proteasome inhibitor treatment was determined by flow cytometry analysis. The expression levels of RelA and RelB were detected by Western blotting. RESULTS: The recombinant plasmid containing maspin-shRNA was successfully constructed. Limited dilution was performed to obtain monoclonal PC-3-siMaspin cells. The doubling time of PC-3-siMaspin cells was 26.83 h while that of PC-3-control cells was 37.95 h. The mRNA expression of bcl-2 and A20 in PC-3-siMaspin cells was increased, while that of bax and bim was down-regulated. The cell death rates of PC-3-control cells and PC-3-siMaspin cells after treated with MG-132 were 27.1% ?5.6% and 7.5% ?2.3% at 8 h, 24.2% ?3.7% and 8.2% ?2.5% at 24 h, and 28.7% ?3.7% and 7.6%?2.5% at 36 h after treatment,respectively. RelA expression was decreased in PC-3-control cells treated with MG-132 while that in PC-3-siMaspin cells stayed unchanged. CONCLUSION: Maspin expression is increased in androgen-independent prostate cancer PC-3 cells. Maspin silencing significantly reduces the doubling time and accelerates the cell growth. Maspin silencing markedly reduces the sensitivity of PC-3 cells to proteasome inhibitor, which may be linked to the abolishment of RelA degradation.     

miR-335 regulates proliferation of human osteosarcoma MG-63 cells by targeting Sp1

AIM：To investigate the regulatory role of miR-335 on the proliferation of human osteosarcoma cell line MG-63. METHODS：Luciferase reporter gene assay was used to detect the specific binding ability of miR-335 to Sp1 3’-untranslated region (UTR). Real-time PCR and Western blotting were used to evaluate the expression of Sp1 mRNA and protein, respectively. MTT assay was used to analyze the proliferation of MG-63 cells. RESULTS：The luciferase reporter gene assay showed that miR-335 targeted Sp1 3’-UTR. Western blotting and real-time PCR showed that miR-335 inhibited the protein expression of Sp1, but had no effect on the mRNA expression of Sp1. Transfection of Sp1 expression plasmid increased the protein and mRNA expression of Sp1. MTT assay showed the viability of MG-63 cells transfected with miR-335 was significantly decreased compared with negative control. Transfection of Sp1 expression plasmid partly reversed the inhibitory effect of miR-335 on the proliferation of MG-63 cells. CONCLUSION: miR-335 inhibits the proliferation of human osteosarcoma MG-63 cells, which may be related to its targeting on Sp1 3’-UTR and the subsequent down-regulation of Sp1 expression.     

Macrophage migration inhibitory factor gene expression is suppressed by using antisense RNA mediated by expression vector

AIM:To study the potential of using antisense RNA mediated by expression vector to suppress MIF expression. METHODS:MIF gene was sub-cloned into plasmid pcDNA3 to construct MIF antisense RNA expression vector, pcDNA3-antiMIF, which was identified by restriction enzyme digestion and DNA sequencing. By using lipofectamine 2000, plasmid pcDNA3 and pcDNA3-antiMIF were transfected into MIF expression cells, 293-MIF, separately. 60 h later, the 293-MIF cells were collected and used to determine the MIF mRNA expression by real-time quantitive PCR. Plasmid pcDNA3-antiMIF was transformed into HUVECs, named HUVECs-antiMIF, to express MIF antisense RNA. HUVECs-antiMIF was screened by sulfate G418 and identified by PCR and RT-PCR analysis. Then the MIF expression vector, pSecTag-MIF, was transfected into HUVECs-antiMIF, and the MIF mRNA expression in HUVECs-antiMIF was determined by quantitative PCR. RESULTS:Restriction enzyme digestion and DNA sequencing analysis showed that MIF antisense RNA expression vector, pcDNA3-antiMIF, was constructed correctly. The results of quantitative PCR showed that MIF mRNA expression was suppressed by MIF antisense RNA at level about 32% (P<0.05) in 293-MIF cells. The HUVECs-antiMIF, which expressed MIF antisense RNA, was obtained and identified by PCR and RT-PCR assay. The results of quantitative PCR revealed that MIF mRNA expression was also down-regulated by about 40% (P<0.05) in HUVECs-antiMIF cells. CONCLUSION:MIF expression was suppressed efficiently by MIF antisense RNA mediated by expression vector, and the HUVECs-antiMIF was established to express MIF antisense RNA.     

庆祝《园艺学报》创刊50 周年

今年是《园艺学报》创刊发行50周年。50年来,《园艺学报》坚持为学术交流服务,为促进学科发展作贡献的办刊原则,以"科学性;创新性;对生产和科研有参考启迪作用"的标准,收录和发表了大量高水平的论文,记载了几代科技工作者呕心沥血创新之作,反映了中国园艺科学技术和园艺产业的发展历程。     

Role of B7-H6 over-expression in NK cell-mediated apoptosis of hepatocytes

AIM: To investigate the role of B7 homologue 6 (B7-H6) over-expression in natural killer (NK) cell-mediated hepatocyte apoptosis. METHODS: The full-length fragment of B7-H6 gene was amplified by PCR and subcloned into linearized eukaryotic expression vector pIRES2-EGFP to construct recombinant B7-H6 over-expression vector pIRES2-EGFP-B7-H6. The recombinant plasmid was identified by double digestion, PCR and sequencing, and was then transfected into L02 cells. The expression of EGFP was observed by fluorescence microscopy and the transfection efficiency was evaluated by flow cytometry. B7-H6 expression was confirmed by qRT-PCR and Western blot. The L02 cells transfected with pIRES2-EGFP-B7-H6 recombinant plasmid were co-cultured with NK-92 cells at different effector/target ratios, and the cytotoxicity of NK-92 cells was evaluated by CCK-8 assay.RESULTS: The strong green fluorescence in the L02 cells was observed under fluorescence microscope 48 h after transfection. The transfection efficiency reached 92.6%. The expression of B7-H6 at mRNA and protein levels was remarkably increased 48 h after transfection. The cytotoxicity of NK-92 cells against L02 cells transfected with pIRES2-EGFP-B7-H6 plasmid was significantly higher than that of the null vector transfection group (P<0.05).CONCLUSION: The recombinant eukaryotic expression vector pIRES2-EGFP-B7-H6 was constructed successfully. The cytotoxic effect of NK-92 cells against L02 cells can be enhanced by transfecting L02 cells with pIRES2-EGFP-B7-H6 plasmid.