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XIWEI ZHAO^1,#, JINSONG WANG^1,2,#, YIFAN XU¹, JIAN ZHOU^5,*, LEI HU^1,3,4,*
BIOCELL, Vol.47, No.7, pp. 1431-1438, 2023, DOI:10.32604/biocell.2023.028217
Abstract Atherosclerotic cardiovascular disease (ASCVD) includes a group of disorders of the heart and blood vessels and accounts for major morbidity and premature death worldwide. Periodontitis is a chronic inflammatory disease with the gradual destruction of supporting tissues around the teeth, including gingiva, periodontal ligament, alveolar bone, and cementum. Periodontitis has been found to potentially increase the risk of ASCVD. Generally, oral microorganisms and inflammation are the major factors for periodontitis to the incidence of ASCVD. Recently, evidence has shown that the loss of masticatory function is another important factor of periodontitis to the incidence of ASCVD. In this review, we… More >

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JIAHAO ZHANG^1,2,3, JIE REN⁴, ZIRUI LI^1,2,3,*, YIXING GOU^1,2,3,*
BIOCELL, Vol.47, No.7, pp. 1439-1447, 2023, DOI:10.32604/biocell.2023.028628
Abstract Circulating tumor cells (CTCs) are essential biomarkers for liquid biopsies, which are important in the early screening, prognosis, and real-time monitoring of cancer. However, CTCs are less abundant in the peripheral blood of patients, therefore, their isolation is necessary. Recently, the use of microfluidics for CTC sorting has become a research hotspot owing to its low cost, ease of integration, low sample consumption, and unique advantages in the manipulation of micron-sized particles. Herein, we review the latest research on microfluidics-based CTC sorting. Specifically, we consider active sorting using external fields (electric, magnetic, acoustic, and optical tweezers) and passive sorting using… More >

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XIA MU^1,2,#, YUBING HU^3,#, DANDAN WU^1,#, HONGYU YANG^1,2,*
BIOCELL, Vol.47, No.7, pp. 1449-1458, 2023, DOI:10.32604/biocell.2023.026704
（This article belongs to the Special Issue: Recent Advancement in Cancer Molecular Signaling)
Abstract Oral squamous cell carcinoma (OSCC) is a malignant tumor triggered by the accumulation of multiple gene mutations in oral epithelial cells. Different OSCC-related biomarkers have been reported in circulation in the peripheral blood that support the occurrence and development of OSCC. Recent advances in high-throughput and highly sensitive detection methods have overcome the limitation of the low concentration of most peripheral blood biomarkers. Hence, blood biomarker detection has become an efficient screening tool for the early diagnosis of OSCC. The growing data available in public cancer and gene databases have provided new foundations for OSCC research. In particular, the identification… More >

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XINGBO WU, DAN PAN, SHOUYI TANG, YINGQIANG SHEN^*
BIOCELL, Vol.47, No.7, pp. 1459-1472, 2023, DOI:10.32604/biocell.2023.028790
（This article belongs to the Special Issue: Recent Advancement in Cancer Molecular Signaling)
Abstract The term “undruggable” is to describe molecules that are not targetable or at least hard to target pharmacologically. Unfortunately, some targets with potent oncogenic activity fall into this category, and currently little is known about how to solve this problem, which largely hampered drug research on human cancers. Ras, as one of the most common oncogenes, was previously considered “undruggable”, but in recent years, a few small molecules like Sotorasib (AMG-510) have emerged and proved their targeted anti-cancer effects. Further, myc, as one of the most studied oncogenes, and tp53, being the most common tumor suppressor genes, are both considered… More >

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UMAPATHY PRAKASH¹, SUBRAMANIAM RAJESH BHARATHIDEVI^1,*, RAMYA R. NADIG², RAJIV RAMAN², GIRISH SHIV RAO², MUNA BHENDE²
BIOCELL, Vol.47, No.7, pp. 1473-1482, 2023, DOI:10.32604/biocell.2023.027804
（This article belongs to the Special Issue: Genetic Polymorphism and Metabolic inflammation in Development of Insulin Resistance and Metabolic Syndrome)
Abstract Zinc alpha 2 glycoprotein (ZAG) is a 41 KDa secretory soluble glycoprotein found in different body fluids like the serum, saliva, sweat, breast milk, and urine. It is also found in tissues like the testis, epididymis, kidney, spleen, liver, lungs, heart, and brain. ZAG is an adipokine with multiple roles, including lipid mobilization, modulating glucose metabolisms, improving insulin sensitivity, inhibiting tumor proliferation through RNAse activity, and suppressing inflammation. Low levels of zinc and ZAG are linked to metabolic syndrome and are also reported as potential biomarkers for diabetic nephropathy. Interestingly zinc has been found to regulate the binding of ZAG… More >

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LETIAN JIN, HETING CHEN, QI RUAN, RUI LIU, YIFENG FAN, XIUFANG XU, DAJIANG WANG^*, JIAHUI LU^*
BIOCELL, Vol.47, No.7, pp. 1483-1498, 2023, DOI:10.32604/biocell.2023.028457
（This article belongs to the Special Issue: Immunotherapy for Breast Cancer)
Abstract During the chemotherapy of tumors, the cytotoxic effect of drugs is vital to kill tumor cells, and the delivery of a chemotherapeutic agent is of great importance for optimal therapeutic effects. The high in vivo clearance rate and low delivery efficiency of conventional chemotherapeutic agents affect the therapeutic effect. In recent years, the responsive drug delivery nanosystem has received increasing concern owing to its excellent biocompatibility, stable delivery performance, and controlled drug release strategies. To lucidly explain the cytocidal and immunotherapeutic effects of such responsive nanosystems in breast cancer, this review discusses the various stimuli and responses of drug-loaded liposomal… More >

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GIULIA CHIABOTTO^1,*, STEFANIA BRUNO^2,*
BIOCELL, Vol.47, No.7, pp. 1499-1508, 2023, DOI:10.32604/biocell.2023.028121
（This article belongs to the Special Issue: Cell-Based Regenerative Therapies)
Abstract Renal fibrosis and inflammation are common pathological features of chronic kidney disease (CKD). Since currently available treatments can only delay the progression of CKD, the outcome of patients with CKD is still poor. One therapeutic option for the prevention of CKD-related complications could be the use of mesenchymal stromal cells (MSCs), which have shown beneficial effects in tissue fibrosis and regeneration after damage. However, safety issues, such as cellular rejection and carcinogenicity, limit their clinical application. Among the bioactive factors secreted by MSCs, extracellular vesicles (EVs) have shown the same beneficial effect of MSCs, without any notable side effects. This… More >

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BINWU BAO, JINPENG WANG, YANXIA LI, FEN FENG, ZHONGXIANG JI, ZHUOMA LUORENG^*, XINGPING WANG^*
BIOCELL, Vol.47, No.7, pp. 1509-1518, 2023, DOI:10.32604/biocell.2023.028646
（This article belongs to the Special Issue: Cellular and Molecular Toxicology in Reproductive and Developmental Biology)
Abstract Bovine oocytes are one of the indispensable cells in cattle reproduction and have become a research hot spot in cattle reproduction in recent years. The maturation process of oocytes is mainly regulated by enzymes, hormones, cytokines, and other molecules. The factors affecting cattle oocyte maturation have been previously studied to clarify the molecular mechanisms of cattle oocyte maturation. In this review article, phospholipid protein-3-kinase/protein kinase B, mitogen-activated protein kinase/extracellular signal-regulated kinase, Janus kinase/signal transducer and activator of transcription, epidermal growth factor receptor/extracellular signal-regulated kinase, and other signaling pathways related to oocyte maturation are discussed. In addition, the molecular mechanisms of… More >

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BOWEN PENG¹, YUN GE¹, GANG YIN^2,3,*
BIOCELL, Vol.47, No.7, pp. 1519-1535, 2023, DOI:10.32604/biocell.2023.027026
（This article belongs to the Special Issue: Bioinformatics Study of Diseases)
Abstract Background: Tanshinone IIA, one of the main ingredients of Danshen, is used to treat hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC). However, potential targets of the molecule in the therapy of HCC are unknown. Methods: In this study, we collected the tanshinone IIA targets from public databases for investigation. We screened differentially expressed genes (DEGs) across HCC and normal tissues using mRNA expression profiles from The Cancer Genome Atlas (TCGA). Univariate Cox regression analysis and least absolute shrinkage and selection operator (LASSO) Cox regression models were used to identify and construct the prognostic gene signature. Results: Finally, we discovered common genes across tanshinone IIA… More >

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YUE CAO, LIN HU, YISHU TANG^*
BIOCELL, Vol.47, No.7, pp. 1537-1548, 2023, DOI:10.32604/biocell.2023.027205
（This article belongs to the Special Issue: Recent Advancement in Cancer Molecular Signaling)
Abstract Backgrounds: Both hepatitis B virus X protein (HBx) and microRNA-221 (miR-221) have been implicated in the development of hepatitis B virus (HBV)-related hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC). The present study demonstrates that HBx promotes HCC cell proliferation via the C-X-C motif chemokine ligand 12-C-X-C chemokine receptor type 4 (CXCL12-CXCR4) axis. We predict that HBx/miR-221-mediated CXCL12/CXCR4 signaling induces NKT cells to promote HBV-related HCC. Methods: After miR-221 mimic, miR-221 mimic negative control, miR-221 inhibitor, miR-221 inhibitor negative control were transfected into cells, the expression of CXCL12 and miR-221 was detected by qPCR and western blot. Then we constructed a stable HBV-HCC cell line.… More >

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LI CHEN^1,2, FANGFANG LI², SHOUYAN CAO², XIA LI², CHAO ZHOU², SAI HAN^1,*, YOUZHONG ZHANG^1,*
BIOCELL, Vol.47, No.7, pp. 1549-1560, 2023, DOI:10.32604/biocell.2023.027308
Abstract Background: This study was designed to investigate the roles of RASAL2 in cervical cancer (CC). Methods: Fifty-four CC tissues and 33 adjacent tissues were obtained from CC patients admitted to our hospital between March 2012 and June 2014. Real-time polymerase chain reaction and western blotting were performed to analyze the expression of RASAL2 mRNA and protein in these tissues, CC cell lines, and normal cervical cells. Over-expression and silencing of RASAL2 were induced after transfection, and the migration, invasion, and proliferation of the CC cell lines were examined. Results: RASAL2 mRNA and protein expressions were significantly down-regulated in CC tissues… More >

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WENQI CHEN^1,#, XIAOYANG CHU^2,#, YANG ZENG^3,#, YOUSHENG YAN⁴, YIPENG WANG⁴, DONGLAN SUN¹, DONGLIANG ZHANG⁵, JING ZHANG^1,*, KAI YANG^4,*
BIOCELL, Vol.47, No.7, pp. 1561-1569, 2023, DOI:10.32604/biocell.2023.028851
Abstract Background: Receptor tyrosine kinase-like orphan receptor 2 (ROR2) has a vital role in osteogenesis. However, the mechanism underlying the regulation of ROR2 in osteogenic differentiation is still poorly comprehended. A previous study by our research group showed that a novel compound heterozygous ROR2 variation accounted for the autosomal recessive Robinow syndrome (ARRS). This study attempted to explore the impact of the ROR2: c.904C>T variant specifically on the osteogenic differentiation of BMSCs. Methods: Coimmunoprecipitation (CoIP)-western blotting was carried out to identify the interaction between ROR2 and Wnt5a. Double-immunofluorescence staining was used for determining the expressions and co-localization of ROR2 and Wnt5a… More >

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ZHENGHONG FENG¹, BING GAO¹, YU GAO², JIANHUI WU^1,*
BIOCELL, Vol.47, No.7, pp. 1571-1582, 2023, DOI:10.32604/biocell.2023.029106
（This article belongs to the Special Issue: Physiology and Molecular Biology of Plant Stress Tolerance)
Abstract Background:Potentilla sericea is a heavy metal hyperaccumulator landscaping plant. MYB transcription factors play an important role in regulating plant stress response to adversity. However, there are few studies on MYB transcription factors in stress tolerance in Potentilla sericea. In this study, the gene was successfully cloned from Potentilla sericea. Methods: Bioinformatic analysis and real-time quantitative PCR (qPCR) methods were used to evaluate this gene. The transgenic A. thaliana were obtained by flower dipping and the gene function was identified by determining physiological indicators under cadmium stress. Results: The open reading frame of is 942 bp, which encodes 313 amino acids… More >

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YUE GUAN^1,#, TINGTING ZHANG^2,#, JIANAN YU³, JIAWEI LIU⁴, WENYUAN LI⁵, YUJIA ZHENG⁶, JIALE WANG³, YUE LIU³, FENGGUO ZHAI^2,7,*
BIOCELL, Vol.47, No.7, pp. 1583-1594, 2023, DOI:10.32604/biocell.2023.028016
（This article belongs to the Special Issue: Physiology and Molecular Biology of Plant Stress Tolerance)
Abstract Background: A preliminary miRNA screening showed that expression levels of rno-miRNA-27a-3p were significantly increased in the serum and brain tissues of rats undergoing cerebral ischemia. In recent years, there is evidence of the protective capacity of the saponins extracted from panax ginseng and its primary active ingredient ginsenosideRg1oncerebral ischemic injury. Methods: Fetal rat neurons (FRNs) were cultured in glucose-and-serum-free medium and exposed to hypoxia to establish a cerebral ischemia model in vitro (oxygen and glucose deprivation model, OGD). Antioxidant indexes (CAT, SOD), inflammatory markers (MPO, TNF-α and IL-6), and the expression of apoptosis and proliferation associated proteins (NF kB-p65, Caspase… More >

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XIRU XU^1,#, YUAN FANG^1,#, BIAO ZHANG^1,*, SHICHAO TENG¹, XIANG WU¹, JING ZHANG¹, XIAOQUN GU², MEIXIA MA³
BIOCELL, Vol.47, No.7, pp. 1595-1609, 2023, DOI:10.32604/biocell.2023.027697
Abstract Background: While the Bushen Yizhi Formula can treat Alzheimer’s disease (AD), the yet to be ascertained specific mechanism of action was explored in this work. Methods: Different concentrations of the Bushen Yizhi Formula and amyloid-beta peptide (Aβ) were used to treat rat pheochromocytoma cells (P12) and human neuroblastoma cells (SH-SY5Y). Cell morphological changes were observed to determine the in vitro cell damage. Cell Counting Kit (CCK)-8 assay and flow cytometry were employed to identify cell viability and apoptosis/cell cycle, respectively. Western blotting and immunohistochemistry were employed to measure the expressions of endoplasmic reticulum stress (ERS)-related proteins (GRP78 and CHOP), p-IRE1α,… More >

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JINFANG HU^1,#, JIANGEN AO^2,#, LONGSHENG FU^1,#, YAOQI WU¹, FENG SHAO³, TIANTIAN XU¹, MINGJIN JIANG⁴, SHAOFENG XIONG¹, YANNI LV^1,*
BIOCELL, Vol.47, No.7, pp. 1611-1622, 2023, DOI:10.32604/biocell.2023.028684
（This article belongs to the Special Issue: Bioinformatics Study of Diseases)
Abstract Background: The attenuation function of Dalbergia odorifera leaves on cerebral ischemia-reperfusion (I/R) is little known. The candidate targets for the Chinese herb were extracted from brain tissues through the high-affinity chromatography. The molecular mechanism of D. odorifera leaves on cerebral I/R was investigated. Methods: Serial affinity chromatography based on D. odorifera leaves extract (DLE) affinity matrices were applied to find specific binding proteins in the brain tissues implemented on C57BL/6 mice by intraluminal middle cerebral artery occlusion for 1 h and reperfusion for 24 h. Specific binding proteins were subjected to mass-spectrometry to search for the differentially expressed proteins between… More >

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QIAO ZHOU^2,3,4, JIAN LIU^1,2,*, LING XIN¹, YANYAN FANG^1,2, LEI WAN^1,2, DAN HUANG^1,2, JIANTING WEN^1,2
BIOCELL, Vol.47, No.7, pp. 1623-1643, 2023, DOI:10.32604/biocell.2023.028331
Abstract Objective: On the basis of data mining, systematic pharmacology, molecular docking, and experiment validation, the oxidative-inflammatory molecular targets of Coicis Semen in the therapy of osteoarthritis (OA) were explored. Methods: The association rule analysis was effectively applied to highlight the correlation between Coicis Semen and oxidative inflammation indices. The random walk model was subsequently used to evaluate the clinical efficacy of Coicis Semen. Network pharmacology was used to predict network targets. The binding affinity of the active ingredient in Coicis Semen to the key target of OA was also successfully predicted. Results: Coicis Semen showed a significant reduction in oxidative-inflammatory… More >

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JING JIN^1,2,#, XIE LI^1,#, TING QIU^1,#, LEI SONG¹, YUANYUE CUI¹, GUANGYA ZHANG^3,4, SHU LI², WENCHENG ZHAO^5,*
BIOCELL, Vol.47, No.7, pp. 1645-1650, 2023, DOI:10.32604/biocell.2023.029493
Abstract Background: This work aimed to reveal the expression profiles of tRNA-derived small RNAs (tsRNAs) in diabetes. Methods: Thirty-five diabetes patients and thirty-three controls were enrolled. The serum samples of 4 diabetes patients and 4 controls were subjected to tRF and tiRNA polymerase chain reaction (PCR) Array analysis. Then quantitative PCR (qPCR) validation was performed on all the samples. Bioinformatics analyses were conducted to explore their functions. Results: We found 115 tsRNAs that significantly differed between the two groups. 3′tiR-080-ProTGG(mt) was selected for further qPCR validation in all participants, and it was significantly decreased in diabetes patients compared with controls. Bioinformatics… More >

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JAMES L. ROSENBERG¹, WILLIAM WOOLLEY¹, IHSAN ELNUNU¹, JULIA KAMML², DAVID S. KAMMER², CLAIRE ACEVEDO^1,3,*
BIOCELL, Vol.47, No.7, pp. 1651-1659, 2023, DOI:10.32604/biocell.2023.028014
Abstract Age and diabetes have long been known to induce an oxidative reaction between glucose and collagen, leading to the accumulation of advanced glycation end-products (AGEs) cross-links in collagenous tissues. More recently, AGEs content has been related to loss of bone quality, independent of bone mass, and increased fracture risk with aging and diabetes. Loss of bone quality is mostly attributed to changes in material properties, structural organization, or cellular remodeling. Though all these factors play a role in bone fragility disease, some common recurring patterns can be found between diabetic and age-related bone fragility. The main pattern we will discuss… More >

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SEUNGHYUN AHN¹, JUNG-YEON LEE¹, JIHA SUNG^1,2, HYUN JOO KIM³, SEYEON PARK^1,2,*
BIOCELL, Vol.47, No.7, pp. 1661-1673, 2023, DOI:10.32604/biocell.2023.027984
（This article belongs to the Special Issue: Expert Opinions and Future Trends on Stem Cells, Biomaterials and Growth Factors)
Abstract Background: Although the GABAA receptor (GABAAR) has been proposed as the main action site for sevoflurane, isoflurane, halothane, enflurane, propofol, and benzodiazepines (BZDs), binding of these anesthetics with high-resolution structures of the GABAAR have been rarely examined by comparative docking analyses. Moreover, various combinations of ligands on more GABAARs with various subtypes need to be analyzed to understand the elaborate action mechanism of GABAARs better because some GABAA ligands showed specificity toward the distinct subtypes of the GABAAR. Methods: We performed in silico docking analysis to compare the binding modes of sevoflurane, isoflurane, halothane, enflurane, propofol, and BZDs to the… More >

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