SARA SOLTANIAN¹, HELIA RIAHIRAD¹, ATHAREH PABARJA¹, MOHAMMAD REZA KARIMZADEH², KOLSOUM SAEIDI^3,4

BIOCELL, Vol.41, No.2-3, pp. 33-40, 2017, DOI:10.32604/biocell.2017.41.033

Abstract Cancer stem cells (CSCs) are a small subpopulation of cancer cells whose resistance to chemotherapy and radiotherapy plays a pivotal role in treatment failure, tumor recurrence and metastasis. Today, the ability of many phytochemicals in targeting of CSCs has been identified. Kaempferol is a plant phytoestrogen that was recognized as a useful agent for targeting cancer cells by apoptosis induction, cell cycle arrest and inhibition of angiogenesis, migration, and invasion of cancer cells. In this study, we compared the effect of docetaxel as a common breast cancer chemotherapy drug and kaempferol on MCF-7 breast CSCs. Results showed that both docetaxel… More >

Mian LIU¹, Xumeng ZHANG^{2, *}

BIOCELL, Vol.41, No.1, pp. 19-26, 2017, DOI:10.32604/biocell.2017.41.019

Abstract Bladder, kidney, prostate and testicular carcinoma are the top four genitourinary cancers in China. Here we analyzed mRNA and miRNA expression profiles of carcinomas of the bladder (TCC), kidney (ccRCC) and testis (TGCT) to uncover their specific regulatory mechanisms. The gene expression profiles of GSE31617 were downloaded from GEO database, which contained 27 samples, including 10 TCC, 7 TGCT and 10 ccRCC. Specific up- and downregulated differentially expressed genes (DEGs) and differentially expressed microRNAs (DEmiRNAs) of each cancer were selected and target genes of DEmiRNAs were predicted. Gene interaction network of the shared genes and target genes of DEmiRNAs of… More >

Chunhua YANG^1,2,3, Ye TIAN^1,2,3

BIOCELL, Vol.43, No.3, pp. 207-214, 2019, DOI:10.32604/biocell.2019.07258

Abstract Sperm-associated antigen 9 (SPAG9) expression is increased in prostate tissues of prostate cancer patients. This experimental study aimed to investigate the role of SPAG9 in bone metastasis of prostate cancer. Immunohistochemical analysis showed that SPAG9 staining was positive in 81.67% of 240 cases of prostatic carcinoma but only in 6.67% of 120 cases of benign prostate hyperplasia. Strong PAG9 staining was positively correlated with Gleason score and bone metastasis in 240 prostate cancer patients (p < 0.05), but not with the age or serum prostatespecific antigen level (p > 0.05). PC-3 cells were transfected with shRNA against SPAG9, and CCK-8… More >

Tong MA^{1, §}, Fafen WANG^{2, §}, Xiaohui WANG¹

BIOCELL, Vol.43, No.3, pp. 191-198, 2019, DOI:10.32604/biocell.2019.06989

Abstract Cervical cancer (CC), has been identified as one of the most frequent malignant tumors all over the world, with high mortality in females. A growing number of investigations have confirmed that long noncoding RNAs (lncRNAs) play a crucial role in the progression of multiple cancers. Nonetheless, the biological function and regulatory mechanism of LINC01772 in CC haven’t been explored so far. In this study, LINC01772 expression was found to be upregulated in tissues and cells of CC. Knocking down LINC01772 suppressed CC cell proliferation, migration and epithelial-mesenchymal transition (EMT) process. Through molecular mechanism assays, LINC01772 was verified to be bound… More >

Dairong LI¹, Xianlu ZHUO^1,2, Lumi HUANG¹, Xiaohui JI¹, Donglin WANG¹

BIOCELL, Vol.43, No.3, pp. 139-144, 2019, DOI:10.32604/biocell.2019.06460

Abstract X-ray repair cross-complementing protein 1 (XRCC1) could repair cisplatin-induced DNA damage. XRCC1 Arg399Gln and Arg194Trp variants alter XRCC1 expression and function, leading to changes in cancer sensitivity to cisplatin treatment. This study aimed to investigate the effects of XRCC1 Arg399Gln and Arg194Trp polymorphisms on cell viability, apoptosis and XRCC1 expression in cisplatin-sensitive A549 and cisplatin-resistant A549/DDP nonsmall cell lung cancer (NSCLC) cells. Plasmids carrying XRCC1 Arg399Gln and Arg194Trp were constructed and transfected into A549 and A549/DDP cells. RT–PCR, Western blot, MTT assay, and flow cytometry analysis were performed to assess cell viability, apoptosis, and XRCC1 expression. Compared to control cells,… More >

Xiaoning Qin¹, Liqing Yuan², Hongxun Ruan¹, Lin Lin¹

BIOCELL, Vol.43, No.2, pp. 89-98, 2019, DOI:10.32604/biocell.2019.06352

Abstract Interleukin-22 (IL-22) is a member of IL-10 cytokine family which is expressed in activated T cells predominantly and in activated natural killer cells at lower levels. Previous studies have demonstrated the link between elevated levels of IL-22 and disease severity of psoriasis, Crohn’s disease, rheumatoid arthritis and interstitial lung diseases. However, the function of IL-22 in the development and progression of colorectal cancer (CRC) remains elusive. In this study, we first evaluated the IL-22/IL-22R1 level in CRC patients, and found that tumor tissues have more active expression of IL-22 and IL-22R1 than normal tissues, presenting correlation with the degree of… More >

Hala Abdulaziz M ALWARTHAN¹, Mohammad Saud AL ANAZI¹, Narasimha R. PARINE¹, Ramesa Shafi BHAT^1,*, Ghadah ALAMRO¹, Ftoon ALJARBOU¹, Sooad K AL-DAIHAN¹

BIOCELL, Vol.43, No.2, pp. 51-58, 2019, DOI:10.32604/biocell.2019.07019

Abstract Tankyrase1 plays an essential role in cancer progression by regulating telomere length. The study aimed to determine expression of TNKS1 and its regulation in colorectal cancer (CRC) in 20 samples from Saudi patients. mRNA expression of TNKS1 in CRC and paired normal tissues was measured by qRT-PCR. Epigenetic modification of TNKS1 promoter was determined by methylation-specific PCR while somatic mutation was analyzed by Sanger sequencing in exon 10 of the gene. All cancerous and normal tissues expressed TNKS1, but level of expression in CRC tissues was significantly associated with tumor stage though no other parameters; age, gender, and tumor location,… More >

Moharam Habibnejad Korayem^1,*, Zahra Rastegar²

Molecular & Cellular Biomechanics, Vol.16, No.2, pp. 109-122, 2019, DOI:10.32604/mcb.2019.04706

Abstract The mechanical properties of single cells have been recently identified as the basis of an emerging approach in medical applications since they are closely related to the biological processes of cells and human health conditions. The problem in hand is how to measure mechanical properties in order to obtain them more accurately and applicably. Some of the cell’s properties such as elasticity module and adhesion have been measured before using various methods; nevertheless, comprehensive tests for two healthy and cancerous cells have not been performed simultaneously. As a Nanoscale device, AFM has been used for some biological cells, however for… More >

Zahra Niki Boroujeni¹, Atefeh Shirkav¹, Seyed Ahmad Aleyasin^1,*

Molecular & Cellular Biomechanics, Vol.16, No.1, pp. 41-58, 2019, DOI:10.32604/mcb.2019.04366

Abstract Today, prognosis, diagnosis and treatment of cancers are progressing with non-invasive methods, including investigation and modification of the DNA methylation profile in cancer cells. One of the effective factors in regulating gene expression in mammals is DNA methylation. Methylation alterations of genes by external factors can change the expression of genes and inhibit the cancer. In the present study, we investigated the effect of Down syndrome critical region 1 gene (DSCR1) ectopic expression on the methylation status of the BCL-XL, ITGA6, TCF3, RASSF1A, DOK7, VIM and CXCR4 genes in breast cancer cell lines. The effect of DSCR1 ectopic expression on… More >

Zahra Niki Boroujeni¹, Atefeh Shirkav¹, Seyed Ahmad Aleyasin^1,*

Molecular & Cellular Biomechanics, Vol.15, No.4, pp. 215-227, 2018, DOI:10.32604/mcb.2018.01813

Abstract Down syndrome critical region 1 gene (DSCR1) is an anti-angiogenesis gene that inhibits the growth of tumor cells. In this study, the role of autophagy and apoptosis in DSCR1-induced cytotoxicity were investigated in MDA-MB-468 breast cancer cells. Lentivirus vector harboring DSCR1 (LV-DSCR1⁺) was constructed in HEK 293 cells and the optimal dosage of lentivirus vector for infection was determined by the MTT assay. After infection of cells using LV-DSCR1⁺, acridine orange and ethidium bromide staining was performed to investigation of apoptosis and autophagy. Expression of DSCR1 and marker genes for angiogenesis (VEGF), apoptosis (Bax and Bcl2) and autophagy (LC3 and… More >