Project description:Ossification of the posterior longitudinal ligament (OPLL) is formed by heterogeneous ossification of posterior longitudinal ligament. The patho-mechanism of OPLL is still largely unknown. Recently, disorders of metabolism are thought to be the center of many diseases such as OPLL. Advanced glycation end product (AGE) are accumulated in many extracellular matrixes such as ligament fibers, and it can functions as cellular signal through its receptor (RAGE), contributing to various events such as atherosclerosis or oxidative stress. However, its role in OPLL formation is not yet known. Therefore, we performed high-through-put RNA sequencing on primary posterior longitudinal ligament cells treated with different doses of AGEs (1µM, 5µM and negative control), with or without BMP2 (1µM).
Project description:Ossification of the posterior longitudinal ligament (OPLL) is formed by heterogeneous ossification of posterior longitudinal ligament. The patho-mechanism of OPLL is still largely unknown. Recently, disorders of metabolism are thought to be the center of many diseases such as OPLL. Advanced glycation end product (AGE) are accumulated in many extracellular matrixes such as ligament fibers, and it can functions as cellular signal through its receptor (RAGE), contributing to various events such as atherosclerosis or oxidative stress. However, its role in OPLL formation is not yet known. Therefore, we performed high-through-put RNA sequencing on primary posterior longitudinal ligament cells treated with different doses of AGEs (1µM, 5µM and negative control), with or without BMP2 (1µM). mRNA profiles of Primary human posterior longitudinal ligament cells stimulated with various stimuli (Control, 1µM AGE-BSA, 5µM AGE-BSA, 1µM AGE-BSA with BMP2, 5µM AGE-BSA with BMP2) were generated by deep sequencing on Ion Proton
Project description:Glyoxalase 1 (Glo1) is a critical enzyme responsible for the clearance of toxic dicarbonyls, which modify proteins to produce advanced glycation end products (AGEs). Glo1 has been recently implicated in the progression of metabolic disorders, however underlying mechanisms are poorly understood. We aim to investigate the role of Glo1 in metabolic perturbations and determine whether AGEs mediate the Glo1 activities in obesity and metabolic health.
Project description:The PTEN tumor suppressor controls cell death and survival by regulating functions of various molecular targets. Whilst the role of PTEN lipid-phosphatase activity on PtdIns(3,4,5)P3 and inhibition of PI3K pathway is well characterized, the biological relevance of PTEN protein-phosphatase activity remains undefined. Using knock-in (KI) mice harbouring cancer-associated and functionally relevant missense mutations, we show that although loss of PTEN lipid-phosphatase function cooperates with oncogenic PI3K to promote rapid mammary tumorigenesis, the additional loss of PTEN protein-phosphatase activity triggered an extensive cell death response evident in early and advanced mammary tumors. Omics and drug-targeting studies revealed that PI3Ks act to reduce glucocorticoid receptor (GR) levels, which are rescued by loss of PTEN protein-phosphatase activity to restrain cell survival. The dual regulation of GR by PI3K and PTEN functions as a rheostat that can be exploited for the treatment of PTEN-loss driven cancers.
Project description:MicroRNAs have been demonstrated to be deregulated in multiple myeloma (MM). We have previously reported the downregulation of miR-214 in MM compared to normal plasma cells. In the present study, we have explored the functional role of miR-214 in myeloma pathogenesis. Ectopic expression of miR-214 reduced cell growth and induced apoptosis of myeloma cells. In order to identify the potential direct target genes of miR-214 which could be involved in the biological pathways regulated by this miRNA, gene expression profiling of H929 myeloma cell line transfected with precursor miR-214 was carried out. Functional analysis revealed significant enrichment for DNA replication, cell cycle phase and DNA binding. We show that miR-214 directly down-regulates the expression of PSMD10, which encodes the oncoprotein gankyrin, and ASF1B, a histone chaperone required for DNA replication, by binding to their 3'-UTR. In addition, gankyrin inhibition induced an increase of P53 mRNA levels and subsequent up-regulation in CDKN1A (p21Waf1/Cip1) and BAX transcripts, which are direct transcriptional targets of p53. In conclusion, we demonstrate that miR-214 function as a tumor suppressor in myeloma by a positive regulation of p53 and inhibition of DNA replication. H929 cell line was transfected with Pre-miR™ miRNA precursors pre-miR-214 or pre-miR™ miRNA negative, non-targeting control#1 (Ambion) at 50 nM concentration, using the nucleofector II system with C-16 program (Amaxa). The experiments were performed in triplicates.
Project description:The alarmins myeloid-related protein (MRP) 8 and MRP14 are the dominant cytoplasmic proteins in phagocytes. After release by activated phagocytes extracellular MRP8/MRP14 complexes promote inflammation in many diseases, including infections, allergies, autoimmune diseases, rheumatoid arthritis or inflammatory bowel disease. As receptors for the pro-inflammatory effects of human MRP8, the active component of the MRP8/MRP14-complex, Toll-like receptor (TLR) 4 and the multi-ligand receptor of advanced glycation end products (RAGE) are controversial discussed. Using a comparative bioinformatics analysis between genome-wide response patterns of monocytes to MRP8, endotoxin and different cytokines we demonstrated a dominant role of TLR4 during MRP8-mediated phagocyte activation. The relevance of this signaling pathway could be confirmed in independent cell models for TLR4 and RAGE dependent signaling in mouse and man. In addition to well-known proinflammatory functions of MRP8 our systems biology approach unraveled a novel anti-apoptotic effect of MRP8 on monocytes which was confirmed in independent functional experiments. Our data define the dominance of the TLR4-MRP8 axis in activation of human phagocytes which represents a novel attractive target for modulation of overwhelming innate immune responses. We used microarrays to detail the global programme of gene expression underlying cellularisation and identified distinct classes of up-regulated genes during this process. Human blood monocyte stimulated with various stimuli (control, MRP8, LPS, TNF, IL1) were selected for RNA extraction and hybridization on Affymetrix microarrays.
Project description:<p>The information available in the literature concerning the beneficial effects of <em>Dendrobium officinale</em> flowers on the skin is limited. Therefore, the present study aimed to investigate the <em>in vitro</em> biological potency of its aqueous extract and screen its active components. The aqueous extract of <em>D. officinale</em> flowers was found to have potential antioxidant capacity (through 2,2-diphenyl-1-picrylhydrazyl (DPPH), 2,2'-azino-bis(3-ethylbenzothiazoline-6-sulfonic acid) (ABTS), the ferric reducing ability of plasma (FRAP) and intracellular reactive oxygen species (ROS) level analyses in primary human epidermal keratinocytes), anti-cyclooxygenase2 (COX-2) effect, anti-glycation potency and anti-aging effects. A total of 34 compounds were identified using ultra-performance liquid chromatography-electrospray ionisation-quadrupole-time-of-flight-mass spectrometry (UPLC-ESI-QTOF-MS/MS). Online ABTS radical UPLC-photodiode array detection (PDA) analysis demonstrated that 1-O-caffeoyl-β-D-glucoside, vicenin-2, luteolin-6-C-β-D-xyloside-8-C-β-D-glucoside, quercetin-3-O-sophoroside, rutin, isoquercitrin and quercetin 3-O-(6''-O-malonyl)-β-D-glucoside are the major potential antioxidants. In addition, 16 components were further analysed using antioxidant assays (DPPH, ABTS and FRAP); COX-2 and advanced glycation end product (AGE) inhibitory activities were assessed. All selected compounds exerted significant ABTS radical scavenging ability and effective AGE suppressive activities. However, only certain compounds, such as rutin and isoquercitrin, displayed selective and significant antioxidant abilities, as shown by DPPH and FRAP, as well as potent COX-2 inhibitory capacity, whereas the remaining compounds displayed relatively weak or no effects. This indicates that specific components contributed to different functionalities. Our finding justified that <em>D. officinale</em> and its active compound targeted related enzymes and highlighted their potential application in anti-aging.</p>