DAIXIN ZHAO¹, QINGYU WANG², JIANBO WANG^1,*

BIOCELL, Vol.48, No.2, pp. 271-281, 2024, DOI:10.32604/biocell.2023.029094

Abstract Background: Esophageal cancer (ESCA) is a common digestive tract tumor. As a result, optimization of the early diagnosis of ESCA and identifying the contributing prognostic genes is urgently required. Herein, the prognosis of mitochondrial autophagy-related genes was analyzed in different subtypes of ESCA, and prognostic models were constructed to identify the immune cell infiltration with significant differences between subtypes. Methods: The Cancer Genome Atlas database was searched to download 185 ESCA samples, covering gene expression level data and clinical follow-up data, and 179 samples from the Gene Expression Omnibus database for subsequent validation analysis. The… More >

XITONG ZHAO, TIANJUAN JU, XINWEI LI, CHANGFENG LIU, LULU WANG^*, LI-AN WU^*

BIOCELL, Vol.48, No.1, pp. 47-64, 2024, DOI:10.32604/biocell.2023.045591

Abstract Dental stem cells (DSCs) have attracted significant interest as autologous stem cells since they are easily accessible and give a minimal immune response. These properties and their ability to both maintain self-renewal and undergo multi-lineage differentiation establish them as key players in regenerative medicine. While many regulatory factors determine the differentiation trajectory of DSCs, prior research has predominantly been based on genetic, epigenetic, and molecular aspects. Recent evidence suggests that DSC differentiation can also be influenced by autophagy, a highly conserved cellular process responsible for maintaining cellular and tissue homeostasis under various stress conditions. This… More >

TIANKAI DI^1,2,#, ZHIFEI ZHOU^3,#, FEN LIU^4,#, YUJIANG CHEN^5,*, LULU WANG^1,*

BIOCELL, Vol.48, No.1, pp. 33-45, 2024, DOI:10.32604/biocell.2023.031638

Abstract Autophagy is a widespread biological process that controls cellular growth, survival, development, and death. Circadian rhythm is a recurring reaction of living organisms and behaviors to variations in surrounding brightness and obscurity. Most of the fundamental physiological processes in mammals, such as the sleep-wake pattern and the rhythm of nutrition and energy metabolism, are governed by circadian rhythms. Research has indicated that autophagy exhibits a specific circadian pattern in both normal and abnormal conditions. Autophagy can modulate circadian rhythms by breaking down proteins that regulate the circadian clock. The potential regulatory connection between the two More >

LIPING YE^1,2,3,#, HUIYAN SUN^4,#, XINHUA LIANG^2,#, WENXU PAN², LI XIANG^2,3, WENJUN DU², LANLAN GENG², WANFU XU^2,3,*, SITANG GONG^1,2,3,*

BIOCELL, Vol.47, No.12, pp. 2709-2719, 2023, DOI:10.32604/biocell.2023.044295

Abstract Introduction: Helicobacter pylori is a risk factor for the development of peptic ulcers with autophagy dysfunction. Omeprazole was widely known as the first-line regimen for H. pylori-associated gastritis. Objectives: The objective of this work was to assess the role of omeprazole on cell pyroptosis and autophagy. Methods: The clinical samples were collected. Quantitative polymerase chain reaction, western blotting, enzyme linked immunosorbent assay, and immunofluorescence (IF) analysis were conducted to reveal the mechanism of omeprazole on cell pyroptosis and autophagy. Results: The results revealed that omeprazole could decrease cell pyroptosis, which was attributed to the downregulation of cleaved caspase-1 expression,… More >

JINJIN FU^1,#, XIAOYUE FENG^2,#, JUAN WEI², XIANG GENG¹, YU GONG¹, FENGDONG LI¹, SHAOHUA ZHUANG¹, JIN HUANG¹, FANGYU WANG^2,*

BIOCELL, Vol.47, No.12, pp. 2627-2639, 2023, DOI:10.32604/biocell.2023.042586

Abstract Background: This study aimed to elucidate the potential mechanisms through which bone marrow-derived mesenchymal stem cells (BM-MSCs) may be effective in alleviating experimental colitis induced by treatment with 2,4,6-trinitrobenzene-sulfonate acid (TNBS), specifically through autophagy modulation. Methods: BM-MSCs were collected from BALB/c mice for subsequent experiments. The study employed cell counting kits (CCK-8) to investigate the impact of the MSC-conditioned medium (M medium) on the proliferation of RAW264.7 macrophages. The GFP-mRFP-LC3 adenovirus was transfected into RAW264.7 to detect autophagic flux. The gene expression of cytokines was assessed through quantitative reverse transcription polymerase chain reaction (qRT-PCR). Western blot… More >

FAYU SHAN¹, LANLAN LIANG¹, CHONG FENG¹, HONGBAO XU¹, ZIROU WANG¹, WEILI LIU¹, LINGLING PU¹, ZHAOLI CHEN¹, GANG CHEN^2,*, XINXING WANG^1,*

Oncology Research, Vol.31, No.4, pp. 481-493, 2023, DOI:10.32604/or.2023.029064

Abstract Background: Oral squamous cell carcinoma (OSCC) is a common malignant tumor. Recently, Laminin Gamma 2 (LAMC2) has been shown to be abnormally expressed in OSCC; however, how LAMC2 signaling contributes to the occurrence and development of OSCC and the role of autophagy in OSCC has not been fully explored. This study aimed to analyze the role and mechanism of LAMC2 signaling in OSCC and the involvement of autophagy in OSCC. Methods: To explore the mechanism by which LAMC2 is highly expressed in OSCC, we used small interfering RNA (siRNA) to knock down LAMC2 to further… More >

TAO LI^#, XIN FU^#, JIE WANG, WEI SHANG, XIAOTONG WANG, LINYUN ZHANG, JUN LI^*

Oncology Research, Vol.31, No.3, pp. 345-359, 2023, DOI:10.32604/or.2023.028724

Abstract Temozolomide (TMZ) resistance is a major obstacle in glioma treatment. Nuclear protein-1 (NUPR1) is a regulator of glioma progression. This study investigated the mechanism of NUPR1 in TMZ resistance in hypoxia-treated glioma cells and its mechanism in modulating autophagy. We treated TMZ-resistant cells U251-TMZ and T98G-TMZ to normoxia or hypoxia and silenced NUPR1 in hypoxia-treated U251-TMZ and T98G-TMZ cells to assess cell viability, proliferation, apoptosis, LC3-II/LC3-I and p62 expressions, and autophagic flux under different concentrations of TMZ. We found that hypoxia upregulated NUPR1 expression and autophagy while NUPR1 silencing suppressed hypoxia-induced TMZ resistance and autophagy… More > Graphic Abstract

ZICHEN SHAO^1,2,#, CHUNG-YI CHEN^3,#, XUZHOU CHEN¹, HANWU CHEN¹, MENGQIAO SU^1,2, HUI SUN^1,2, YIDAN LI^1,2, BINGHUA TU¹, ZITONG WANG¹, CHI-MING LIU^1,*

BIOCELL, Vol.47, No.6, pp. 1389-1396, 2023, DOI:10.32604/biocell.2023.028222

Abstract Background: Benign prostatic hyperplasia (BPH) is a common condition in middle-aged and elderly men. Enlargement of the prostate causes lower urinary tract symptoms. Capsaicin is a phytochemical extracted from chili peppers and exerts many pharmacological actions, such as anti-tumor and anti-inflammatory effects. Methods: Our study investigated the effect of capsaicin in vitro and in a mouse model in vivo. A prostatic stromal myofibroblast cell line (WPMY-1) was co-incubated with testosterone (1 µM) and different concentrations of capsaicin (10–100 µM) for 24 and 48 h. Capsaicin (10–100 µM) significantly inhibited testosterone-treated WPMY-1 cell growth at 48 h by MTT… More >

OMER ERDOGAN¹, GULEN MELIKE DEMIRBOLAT², OZGE CEVIK^1,*

BIOCELL, Vol.47, No.5, pp. 1051-1063, 2023, DOI:10.32604/biocell.2023.028129

Abstract Background: Raloxifene, a selective estrogen receptor modulator, is also known to be a lysosomotropic agent. The bioavailability of raloxifene is around 2% due to extensive hepatic transport. Exosomes are nanosized vesicles that are naturally released from cells. Method: In this study, exosomes released from HeLa cervical cancer cells were loaded with raloxifene to increase its bioavailability, and an aptamer was attached to the exosome membrane for targeting only HeLa cells. Characterization of exosomes isolated from HeLa cells was performed by transmission electron microscopy, zeta sizer, and western blotting. In addition, the cytotoxic, apoptotic, autophagic, and lysosomotropic More >

YINGHUA LUO^1,#, YU ZHANG^2,#, TONG ZHANG^2,#, YANNAN LI², HUI XUE², JINGLONG CAO², WENSHUANG HOU², JIAN LIU², YUHE CUI², TING XU², CHENGHAO JIN^2,3,*

BIOCELL, Vol.47, No.5, pp. 965-975, 2023, DOI:10.32604/biocell.2023.027729

Abstract Marine collagen peptides (MCPs) are natural products prepared by hydrolyzing marine collagen protein through a variety of chemical methods or enzymes. MCPs have a range of structures and biological activities and are widely present in marine species. MCPs also have a small molecular weight, are easily modified, and absorbed by the body. These properties have attracted great interest from researchers studying antioxidant, anti-tumor, and anti-aging activities. MCPs of specific molecular weights have significant anti-tumor activity and no toxic side effects. Thus, MCPs have the potential use as anti-cancer adjuvant drugs. Free radicals produced by oxidation More >