Project description:There are unique stressors in the spaceflight environment. Exposure to such stressors is associated with adverse effects on astronauts' health, including increased cancer and cardiovascular disease risks. Small extracellular vesicles (sEVs, i.e., exosomes) play a vital role in intercellular communication and regulate various biological processes contributing to their role in disease pathogenesis. To assess whether spaceflight alters sEVs transcriptome profile, sEVs were isolated from the blood plasma of 3 astronauts at two different time points: 10 days before launch (L-10) and 3 days after return (R+3) from the Shuttle mission. Human adult ventricular cardiomyocyte cells (AC16) were treated with L-10 and R+3 astronauts-derived exosomes for 24 hours. Total RNA was isolated and analyzed for gene expression profiling using Affymetrix microarrays. Enrichment analysis was performed using Enrichr. Transcription factor enrichment analysis using the ENCODE/ChEA Consensus TF database identified gene sets related to the polycomb repressive complex 2 (PRC2) and Vitamin D receptor (VDR) in AC16 cells treated with R+3 compared to cells treated with L-10 astronauts-derived exosomes. Further analysis of the histone modifications using datasets from the Roadmap Epigenomics Project confirmed enrichment in gene sets related to the H3K27me3 repressive mark. Interestingly, analysis of previously published H3K27me3–chromatin immunoprecipitation sequencing (ChIP-Seq) ENCODE datasets showed enrichment of H3K27me3 in the VDR promoter. Collectively, our results suggest that astronaut-derived sEVs may epigenetically repress the expression of the VDR in human adult cardiomyocytes c by promoting the activation of the PRC2 complex and H3K27me3 levels.
Project description:Exosomes were isolated from plasma and saliva of healthy individuals and head and neck cancer (HNSCC) patients. miRNA profiling of plasma- and saliva-derived exosomes was performed using nCounter SPRINT system. Diagnostic panels were selected from the exosomal miRNA profile.
Project description:Despite a significant progress in the treatment of Acute Respiratory Distress Syndrome (ARDS), our ability to identify early patients and predict outcome remains limited. In this study, we aimed to characterize small RNA content of plasma exosomes from ARDS patients in order to identify potential diagnostic biomarkers of the disease. For the first time, we profiled miRNA expression levels in plasma-derived exosomes from ARDS patients (n=8) compared to healthy subjects (n=10) by small RNA-seq. It allowed us to identify 12 exosomal miRNAs differentially expressed in ARDS context (padj<0.05).
Project description:Ionizing radiation (IR) therapy for malignant tumors can damage adjacent tissues, leading to severe wound complications. Plasma-derived exosome treatment has recently emerged as a safe and impactful cell-free therapy. Herein, we aimed to determine whether plasma-derived exosomes could improve the healing of post-radiation wound. Rat plasma-derived exosomes (RP-Exos) were locally injected on cutaneous wounds created on the backs of irradiated rats and boosted the healing process as well as the deposition and remodeling of the extracellular matrix with collagen formation. Subsequently, the effects of RP-Exos were further evaluated on irradiated fibroblasts in vitro. The results suggested that exosomes promoted fibroblast proliferation, migration, cell cycle progression, and cell survival. Moreover, transcriptome sequencing, analysis, and quantitative polymerase chain reaction validation were performed to identify the underlying molecular mechanisms. RP-Exos enhanced the expression of cell proliferation and radioresistance-related genes, and yet downregulated ferroptosis pathway in irradiated fibroblasts. Inhibition of ferroptosis by RP-Exos was further confirmed through colorimetric assay, fluorescence probe and flow cytometry in ferroptosis-induced fibroblasts. Our results suggest that RP-Exos regulate cell proliferation and ferroptosis in radiated fibroblasts, thereby boosting the healing of radiated wounds. These findings support plasma-derived exosomes as a potential therapeutic method for post-radiation wound complications.
Project description:Purpose:Early diagnosis of nasopharyngeal carcinoma (NPC) is vital to improve the prognosis of these patients. However, early diagnosis of NPC is typically challenging.Therefore, we explored the roles and mechanisms of exosomes in plasma of patients with early-stage NPC. Methods: Exosomes in plasma were extracted by ultra-high-speed centrifugation.Western blot and transmission electron microscopy (TEM) were used to verify the purity of exosomes. The sequencing data (6 plasma samples from healthy volunteers vs. 6 NPC plasma samples) were analyzed by principal component analysis (PCA), DESeq2, gene ontology (GO), kyoto encyclopedia of genes and genomes (KEGG), and TargetScan. The differentially expressed miRNAs (DEmiRNAs) were obtained from the dataset (GSE118720) downloaded from the Gene Expression Omnibus (GEO) repository. Additionally, the datasets downloaded from the GEO database (GSE12452, GSE13597, GSE53819, GSE64634) were used to predict the target genes and functions of hsa-miR-1301-3p. qPCR was applied to verify the differences in the expressions of hsa-miR-1301-3p between 10 normal plasma and 10 NPC plasma samples. Results:Western blot, TEM, and Nanoparticle Tracking Analysis showed adequate purity of the extracted exosomes. RNA-seq analysis revealed 21 upregulated miRNAs, and 10 downregulated miRNAs in plasma exosomes of early-stage NPC patients. GO analysis showed that the target genes of DEmiRNAs were mainly enriched in DNA synthesis and transcription regulation. KEGG analysis revealed that DEmiRNAs were mainly enriched in PI3K-Akt and MAPK signaling pathways. Moreover, the expression of hsa-mir-1301-3p was verified to be significantly upregulated in enlarged samples of plasma exosomes. Conclusions:We identified several DEmiRNAs extracted from tumor-derived exosomes between normal plasma and early-stage NPC plasma. Bioinformatics analyses indicated that these DEmiRNAs may be related to NPC development. Our study may provide novel insights into underlying biomarkers and mechanisms of plasma exosomes in early-stage NPC.
Project description:Cardiac myxoma (CM) is an important aetiology of stroke in young adults, and its diagnosis is difficult in patients having stroke because of the lack of diagnostic biomarkers. Tumour-derived exosomes play a crucial role in tumour growth, metastasis, and immune regulation, and monitor disease development. We established an RNA-sequencing dataset for long non-coding RNA (lncRNA), microRNA (miRNA), and messenger RNA (mRNA) in the plasma and tumour-derived exosomes from four patients with cardiac myxoma-related ischaemic stroke (CM-IS) and six patients with cardiac myxoma without ischaemic stroke (non-IS CM). Clean data (15.48 Gb) were obtained for lncRNAs and mRNAs. Moreover, 5,533 lncRNAs, 1,331 known miRNAs, and 412 new miRNAs were identified. Finally, gene expression profiles and differentially expressed genes were analysed in 20 samples. In the plasma samples, 74 miRNAs, 12 lncRNAs, and 693 mRNAs were identified. Tumour-derived tissue samples contained 61 miRNAs, 67 lncRNAs, and 433 mRNAs. This dataset provides a significant resource for relevant researchers to explore the potential dysregulated lncRNAs, miRNAs, and mRNAs of plasma and tumour-derived exosomes in CM-IS versus CM without stroke.
Project description:Cardiac myxoma (CM) is an important aetiology of stroke in young adults, and its diagnosis is difficult in patients having stroke because of the lack of diagnostic biomarkers. Tumour-derived exosomes play a crucial role in tumour growth, metastasis, and immune regulation, and monitor disease development. We established an RNA-sequencing dataset for long non-coding RNA (lncRNA), microRNA (miRNA), and messenger RNA (mRNA) in the plasma and tumour-derived exosomes from four patients with cardiac myxoma-related ischaemic stroke (CM-IS) and six patients with cardiac myxoma without ischaemic stroke (non-IS CM). Clean data (15.48 Gb) were obtained for lncRNAs and mRNAs. Moreover, 5,533 lncRNAs, 1,331 known miRNAs, and 412 new miRNAs were identified. Finally, gene expression profiles and differentially expressed genes were analysed in 20 samples. In the plasma samples, 74 miRNAs, 12 lncRNAs, and 693 mRNAs were identified. Tumour-derived tissue samples contained 61 miRNAs, 67 lncRNAs, and 433 mRNAs. This dataset provides a significant resource for relevant researchers to explore the potential dysregulated lncRNAs, miRNAs, and mRNAs of plasma and tumour-derived exosomes in CM-IS versus CM without stroke.
Project description:Background: Hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC) is a common malignant primary tumor. Camels have high economic and social values, but their potential medical value has not been studied. This study aimed to investigate the effects of thin and normal camel plasma-derived exosomes on HCC. Methods: Plasma was obtained from thin and normal camels, and used to isolate exosomes by ultracentrifugation. The exosomes were then characterized by transmission electron microscopy and Nano particle tracking analyzer. In vivo imaging of nude mice and hematoxylin eosin (HE) staining of liver tissues were used to explore the effects of the exosomes on tumor growth. Finally, the differences of the two exosomes were further analyzed using small RNA sequencing and proteomics. Results: In vivo imaging and HE staining showed that no significant differences were found in fluorescence value and liver tissue morphology between the control mice and the mice treated with the exosomes from thin camels; while the fluorescence value and the live histology changes were alleviated in the mice with the exosomes from normal camels. After sequencing and proteomic analysis, 40 DE-miRNAs (15 down-regulated and 25 up-regulated) and 172 DEPs (77 up-regulated and 95 down-regulated) were identified in the plasma-derived exosomes from normal camels. These identified DE-miRNAs and DEPs were significantly enriched in many signaling pathways. Conclusions: Normal camel plasma-derived exosomes may inhibit the growth of HCC cells through regulating pathways of Ras, Rap1, PI3K-Akt, MAPK, AMPK, and canonical Wnt signaling pathways.