Research progress on autophagy in treatment of glioma

Autophagy is a transport pathway from the cytoplasm to the lysosome, which is a major intracellular degradation/recycling system ubiquitous in eukaryotic cells. Autophagy regulation has achieved some gratifying results in the treatment of glioma. It is currently an exciting field of clinical development. In chemotherapy or radiotherapy, autophagy-related drugs are currently used in vitro and in vivo for treating tumors with significant effects. Autophagy inducers and inhibitors may potentially block tumor formation and enhance the anti-cancer immune response. A more comprehensive understanding of the role of autophagy in different stages of glioma development may guide the development of new therapeutic strategies.     

Cepharanthine induces autophagy via PI3K/AKT/mTOR signaling pathway in ovarian cancer SKOV3 cells

AIM: To investigate the autophagy of human ovarian cancer SKOV3 cells induced by cepharanthine and to explore its mechanism. METHODS: The effect of cepharanthine on the viability of ovarian cancer SKOV3 cells was measured by CCK-8 assay. The SKOV3 cells were treated with cepharanthine, and then the formation of autophagosome was observed with acridine orange staining under fluorescence microscope. The protein levels of LC3, AKT, p-AKT, mTOR, p-mTOR and GAPDH in the SKOV3 cells treated with cepharanthine were determined by Western blot.RESULTS: Cepharanthine significantly inhibited the viability of ovarian cancer SKOV3 cells in a dose-dependent manner (P<0.05). The number of the intracellular acidic autophagosomes with bright red fluorescence was significantly increased after cepharanthine treatment in the SKOV3 cells. The expression of LC3-Ⅱ in SKOV3 cells was significantly enhanced after cepharanthine treatment. Furthermore, treatment with cepharanthine in the SKOV3 cells also resulted in a significant down-regulation of phosphorylated form of AKT and mTOR (P<0.01), while the total protein level was not changed. Combination of cepharanthine and 3-methyladenine resulted in a substantial decrease in the cell viability compared with using cepharanthine alone.CONCLUSION: Cepharanthine significantly inhibits the growth of human ovarian cancer SKOV3 cells and induces the autophagy, which may be correlated with down-regulation of PI3K/AKT/mTOR signaling pathway.     

Regulatory effect of astragaloside IV on SDF-1α/CXCR4 in EPCs

AIM: To investigate the effects of astragaloside IV (AS-IV) on chemokine receptor 4 (CXCR4) and stromal cell-derived factor 1α (SDF-1α) in endothelial progenitor cells (EPCs) and its mechanism. METHODS: Rat bone marrow-derived EPCs were cultured in vitro. The proliferation, adhesion, migration, apoptosis and tube formation capacity of EPCs treated with AS-IV and AMD3100, a specific blocker of CXCR4, were observed. The effects of AS-IV on the expression of SDF-1α/CXCR4 at mRNA and protein levels and the protein level of p-CXCR4 in the EPCs were determined. RESULTS: AS-IV significantly enhanced the proliferation, adhesion, migration and tube formation abilities of EPCs, reduced the apoptosis of EPCs, and up-regulated the mRNA and protein expression of SDF-1α and CXCR4 and the p-CXCR4 protein level in the EPCs. On the other hand, AMD3100 blocked the up-regulating effect of AS-IV on the mRNA and protein expression of CXCR4 and the p-CXCR4 protein level in the EPCs, but did not affect the effect of AS-IV on the expression of SDF-1α. CONCLUSION: AS-IV might enhance the biological function of EPCs by regulating the expression of SDF-1α/CXCR in EPCs.     

miR-204 inhibits proliferation of Hodgkin lymphoma cells by targeting Sirt1/p53 signaling pathway

AIM: To investigate the effect of microRNA-204 (miR-204) on the proliferation of Hodgkin lymphoma cells and the underlying mechanism. METHODS: The expression of miR-204 and Sirt1 mRNA in Hodgkin lymphoma tissues was detected by RT-qPCR. After transfection with miR-204 mimic, Sirt1 siRNA and miR-204 mimic+pcDNA3.1-Sirt1 into the L428 cells, the cell viability and BrdU incorporation were measured by CCK-8 assay and BrdU assay, respectively. The protein levels of Sirt1 and acetylated p53 (ac-p53) were determined by Western blot.The targeting relationship between miR-204 and Sirt1 was verified by double luciferase reporter assay. RESULTS: The low expression of miR-204 and the high mRNA expression of Sirt1 were found in the Hodgkin lymphoma tissues. Compared with control group, the cell viability, BrdU incorporation and the protein levels of Sirt1 and ac-p53 were significantly decreased after L428 cells were transfected with miR-204 mimic or Sirt1 siRNA (P<0.05). Compared with miR-204 mimic alone group, the cell viability, BrdU incorporation and the protein levels of Sirt1 and ac-p53 were increased after L428 cells were co-transfected with miR-204 mimic and pcDNA3.1-Sirt1 (P<0.05). The results of double luciferase reporter assay confiermed that Sirt1 was the target gene of miR-204. CONCLUSION: The inhibitory effect of miR-204 on the proliferation of L428 cells may be achieved by inhibiting the expression of Sirt1 and promoting the up-regulation of ac-p53.     

Doxycycline upregulates autophagy to modulate the levels of inflammatory cytokines in LPS-stimulated THP-1 cells

AIM:To analyze the effect of autophagy on inflammatory response regulated by doxycycline in lipopolysaccharide (LPS)-stimulated THP-1 cells and to investigate its molecular mechanism. METHODS:A human monocyte/macrophage cell line THP-1 was stimulated with LPS to establish an cell model of inflammatory response, and the cells were treated with doxycycline. The cytokines, such as tumor necrosis factor-α (TNF-α) and interleukin-8 (IL-8), in cell culture supernatant were measured by ELISA for evaluating the inflammatory levels. For determining the level of autophagy and its effect on inflammatory cell signaling pathways, the protein levels of LC3B, nuclear factor κB (NF-κB) and phosphorylated mammalian target of rapamycin (p-mTOR) were determined by Western blot. 3-Methyladenine (3-MA), an autophagy inhibitor, and rapamycin, an autophagy inducer, were used to study the effect of autophagy on inflammatory response regulated by doxycycline in LPS-stimulated THP-1 cells. RESULTS:The levels of TNF-α and IL-8 were increased rapidly and peaked at 12 h in LPS-stimulated THP-1 cells (P<0.05). Doxycycline significantly inhibited LPS-induced cytokine production in the THP-1 cells. Doxycycline up-regulated LPS-induced autophagy in THP-1 cells and doxycycline itself was an autophagy inducer. The protein levels of p-mTOR was up-regulated by LPS and down-regulated by doxycycline, suggesting that doxycycline induced autophagy via mTOR-dependent pathway while LPS through mTOR-independent pathway. Further studies showed that the combination of LPS, rapamycin and doxycycline inhibited the protein levels of NF-κB, and rapamycin increased the inhibitory effect of doxycycline on cytokine releases. Conversely, 3-MA, the autophagy inhibitor, attenuated the inhibitory effect of doxycycline on NF-κB and cytokine production. CONCLUSION:Autophagy is involved in the process of doxycycline modulating LPS-induced inflammatory response in the THP-1 cells.     

Notch1 promotes renal tubulointerstitial fibrosis in renal tissues of diabetic mice by inhibiting autophagy through Akt/mTOR signaling pathway

AIM: To observe the changes of Notch1 expression and autophagy in the renal tissues of diabetic mice, and to explore the regulatory effect of Notch1 on tubulointerstitial fibrosis by inhibiting autophagy in diabetic nephro-pathy. METHODS: The mice were randomly divided into normal control group (db/m mice) and diabetes group (db/db mice), with 8 rats in each group. After 12 weeks of feeding, the mice were sacrificed and the corresponding biochemical indexes were measured. The protein expression of Notch1 in the renal tubular epithelial cells was observed by immunohistochemical staining. The protein levels of Notch1, PTEN, p-Akt (Thr308), Akt, p-mTOR (Ser2448), mTOR, LC3, P62, collagen type Ⅰ (Col-Ⅰ) and collagen type Ⅲ (Col-Ⅲ) were determined by Western blot. RESULTS: Compared with the db/m mice, the blood glucose, glycosylated hemoglobin, serum creatinine, triglyceride and total cholesterol were increased in the db/db mice (P<0.01). Renal tubular epithelial cell vacuolar degeneration, renal tubular expansion and interstitial inflammatory cell infiltration in db/db mouse renal tissues with HE staining were observed. The images of Masson staining showed collagenous fiber-like substance deposition in the glomerular capillaries and renal interstitium, and disarrangement of tubular structure in the renal tissues of db/db mice. The protein expression levels of PTEN and LC3-Ⅱ were decreased (P<0.01 or P<0.05), while the protein levels of Notch1, P62, p-mTOR (Ser2448), p-Akt (Thr308), Col-I and Col-III were increased in the db/db mice as compared with the db/m mice (P<0.01). However, no significant change of total mTOR and Akt proteins between the 2 groups was found. CONCLUSION: Notch1 protein expression was increased, PTEN expression was significantly reduced, Akt/mTOR pathway was activated, autophagy was inhibited, and fibrosis was aggravated in the renal tissues of the diabetic mice.     

Neuroprotective effect of novel Rho kinase inhibitor FSD-C10 on a mouse model of Alzheimer disease

AIM: To explore the neuroprotective effect of novel Rho kinase inhibitor FSD-C10 on Alzheimer disease (AD) model of APP/PS1 double transgenic (Tg) mice. METHODS: Male APP/PS1 Tg mice (n=20) at 8 months of age were randomly divided into 2 groups:model group and FSD-C10 treatment group. The mice were treated with normal saline or FSD-C10 (25 mg·kg^-1·d^-1) by intraperitoneal injection, once daily for 2 months. Age-and sex-matched wild-type (WT) mice without treatment were used as the control. The Morris water maze (MWM) test and SMART 3.0 behavioral record system were applied to examine and analyze the spatial cognitive function of the mice. The protein levels and distribution of Aβ, p-tau and synapse-associated proteins such as synaptophysin, α-amino-3-hydroxy-5-methyl-4-isoxazolepropionic acid receptor (AMPAR) and postsynaptic density protein 95 (PSD-95) were determined by immunofluorescence staining. The protein levels of phosphorylated amyloid precursor protein at Thr668[p-APP(Thr668)], beta-site APP-cleaving enzyme 1 (BACE1) and synapse-associated proteins in the brain were analyzed by Western blot. RESULTS: Compared with model group, FSD-C10 treatment significantly improved the cognitive function of the APP/PS1 Tg mice, accompanied by reduced Aβ deposition and p-tau level, increased protein level of p-APP (Thr668) in the central nervous system, decreased expression of BACE1, and increased expression of synapse-associated proteins in the brain of the mice (P<0.05). CONCLUSION: FSD-C10 has neuroprotective potential in the APP/PS1 Tg mice. The mechanism may be related to enhancing the non-amyloidogenic APP cleavage pathway, reducing the production of Aβ oligomers, the deposition of senile plaques and the amount of tau protein, up-regulating synapse-associated proteins, and increasing synaptic plasticity.     

苦瓜新品种比较试验

以本课题组选育的苦瓜新品种如玉171、1702、如玉162、1614、1613、如玉136、如玉119、如玉135、如玉146、如玉129为试验材料,以新翠为对照,开展苦瓜新品种比较试验,对苦瓜的长势、抗病性、产量等方面进行调查研究,筛选出高产优质且抗病性强的如玉162、如玉171与如玉119共3个苦瓜新品种,为苦瓜新品种的示范与推广提供技术支撑。     

苦瓜新品种淮农青1号的选育

为了选育早熟、产量高、抗病性强、微苦的苦瓜新品种,以B19强雌系为母本,以B118苦瓜自交系为父本,进行杂交、分离后,经系统选育,培育出苦瓜新品种——淮农青1号。其早熟,果皮翠绿色,长纺锤形,口感脆嫩;前期平均667 m2产量1 126.2 kg,比对照增产25.5%,平均667 m~2总产量达2 740.8 kg,比对照增产26.3%;中抗白粉病,适合江苏省春季大棚栽培。     

芒果MinSPS1基因的克隆及表达载体的构建

蔗糖磷酸合成酶(sucrose phosphate synthase, SPS)既是调控蔗糖合成的关键酶又是限速酶,为了研究其在芒果果实中蔗糖合成的作用机理,本研究从芒果果肉中克隆得到一个与蔗糖合成相关的基因,将其命名为MinSPS1,其cDNA全长序列为3 344 bp,开放阅读框为3 168 bp,编码1 055个氨基酸,蛋白质分子量为118.13 k D,等电点为6.08,对MinSPS1基因编码的蛋白进行系统发育分析,发现其与柑橘具有较近的亲缘关系。采用qRT-PCR对该基因在后熟处理的贵妃芒果肉中的表达量进行分析,结果显示在完熟期贵妃芒果肉中表达量较高,而在青熟期表达量较低。本研究为深入了解芒果蔗糖合成的分子机理,进一步构建了p CAMBIA1301-MiSPS1过表达载体,为MinSPS1的功能鉴定提供理论依据。