YU LU¹, TSUTOMU MIYAMOTO^1,*, HODAKA TAKEUCHI¹, FUMI TSUNODA¹, NAOKI TANAKA^2,3,4, TANRI SHIOZAWA¹

Oncology Research, Vol.31, No.3, pp. 239-253, 2023, DOI:10.32604/or.2023.026067

Abstract Endometrial carcinoma (EMC) is associated with obesity; however, the underlying mechanisms have not yet been elucidated. Peroxisome proliferator-activated receptor alpha (PPARα) is a nuclear receptor that is involved in lipid, glucose, and energy metabolism. PPARα reportedly functions as a tumor suppressor through its effects on lipid metabolism; however, the involvement of PPARα in the development of EMC remains unclear. The present study demonstrated that the immunohistochemical expression of nuclear PPARα was lower in EMC than in normal endometrial tissues, suggesting the tumor suppressive nature of PPARα. A treatment with the PPARα activator, irbesartan, inhibited the EMC cell lines, Ishikawa and… More >

GUANQIONG HU¹, RISHENG HUANG², LUELUE LU¹, QINSHI PAN³, XIAOXIN CHEN^1,*

BIOCELL, Vol.47, No.6, pp. 1243-1251, 2023, DOI:10.32604/biocell.2023.027763

Abstract Background: Transforming growth factor-β1 (TGF-β1) is a pleiotropic cytokine that plays a central role in the pathogenesis of idiopathic pulmonary fibrosis (IPF). While previous studies have revealed a cross-talk between vitamin D and TGF-β1 signaling, it is still unclear how they interact with each other to regulate the progression of IPF. Methods: In this work, we searched for a novel mediator of TGF-β1 activity in lung fibroblasts and examined its regulation by vitamin D. In addition, we investigated the mechanism underlying the interaction between vitamin D and TGF-β1 signaling in lung fibroblast activation. Bioinformatic analysis was performed to identify TGF-β1… More >

XIANGCHAO DING^1,#, YANG ZHAO^2,#, XINGHUA ZHANG¹, HUIQING LIN^1,*

BIOCELL, Vol.47, No.5, pp. 1117-1126, 2023, DOI:10.32604/biocell.2023.026715

Abstract Background: Long-chain non-coding RNA (lncRNA) LINC00609 is a potential tumor suppressor, but the mechanism of action in non-small cell lung cancer (NSCLC) is yet to be understood.Objectives: The effects of LINC00609 on A549 cell proliferation, apoptosis, and cell cycle arrest were investigated. Methods: The LINC00609 levels in NSCLC and normal tissues were analyzed by bioinformatics. Expressions of LINC00609, miR-128-3p, and Rho family GTPase 3 (RND3) in NSCLC cells (A549) were determined by qRT-PCR. Bioinformatics analysis predicted target genes and dual-luciferase reporter assays to ensure that LINC00609 targeted miR-128-3p and miR-128-3p targeted RND3. The proliferation of cells was determined using EDU… More >

WEI XIA¹, NING YANG², XIAOYAN FENG³, TING XIN¹, YONGLE JING¹, YUMING LI^4,*, CHENGZHI LU^1,5,*

BIOCELL, Vol.47, No.4, pp. 837-847, 2023, DOI:10.32604/biocell.2023.026161

Abstract Background: Preeclampsia (PE), characterized by hypertension and proteinuria, leads to serious maternal and infant complications. Uridine-cytidine kinase 2 (UCK2) belongs to the UCK family, a class of enzymes that catalyzes the conversion of uridine and cytidine to monophosphate form. However, the role of UCK2 in PE has not been reported. Methods: The expression of UCK2 was detected in the placenta of PE patients and N(ω)-nitro-L-arginine methyl esterinduced PE mouse model. Through forced up-regulation or down-regulation of UCK2 in vitro, we examined the effects of UCK2 on the proliferation, apoptosis, migration, and invasion of trophoblast cells. Stattic, the inhibitor of STAT3… More >

XIAOSU SONG, FEN GAO, HONG LI, WEIWEI QIN, CHANJUAN CHAI, GUOJUAN SHI, HUIYU YANG^*

BIOCELL, Vol.47, No.4, pp. 849-858, 2023, DOI:10.32604/biocell.2023.026545

Abstract Background: Vascular smooth muscle cells (VSMCs) undergo a conversion from a contractile phenotype to a proliferative synthetic phenotype, contributing to the pathogenesis of cardiovascular diseases. Semaphorin 7A (SEMA7A) is a glycosylphosphatidylinositol-anchored membrane protein that plays an important role in vascular homeostasis by regulating endothelial cell behaviors. However, the expression and role of SEMA7A in VSMCs remain unclear.Methods: In this study, we screened for VSMC-regulating genes in publicly available datasets and analyzed the expression of SEMA7A in human coronary artery smooth muscle cells (hCASMCs) treated with platelet-derived growth factor-BB (PDGF-BB). The effects of SEMA7A overexpression and knockdown on hCASMC proliferation and… More >

YIFAN XU^1,#, DONGMEI CHENG^1,#, LEI HU¹, XIN DONG², LIYING LV², CHEN ZHANG², JIAN ZHOU^1,3,4,*

BIOCELL, Vol.47, No.4, pp. 825-836, 2023, DOI:10.32604/biocell.2023.026122

Abstract The Wnt/β-catenin signaling pathway is the main target of tooth regeneration regulation. Treatment of cells with AZD2858 stimulates the Wnt/β-catenin signaling pathway, yet the function of this pathway in tooth regeneration remains unclear. Here, we found that AZD2858 promotes the accumulation of β-catenin in the nuclei of stem cells from the apical papilla (SCAPs) and enhances cell proliferation. Single-cell sequencing was performed on SCAPs treated with AZD2858. Eight clusters were identified, namely SCAPs-CNTNAP2, SCAPs-DTL, SCAPs-MYH11, SCAPs-MKI67, SCAPs-CXCL8, SCAPs-TPM2, SCAPs-IFIT2 and SCAPs-NEK10. The pseudo-time trajectory analysis showed that AZD2858 enhanced the evolution of SCAPs from SCAPs-TMP2 clusters to SCAPs-MYH11, SCAPs-CNTNAPs and… More >

GANG WANG^#, MINGPING QIAN^#, WEI JIAN, JUHANG CHU, YIXIANG HUANG^*

Oncology Research, Vol.31, No.1, pp. 63-70, 2023, DOI:10.32604/or.2022.028168

Abstract Circular RNA (circRNA), as a newly discovered non-coding RNA with important regulatory potential, is closely related to the occurrence and progression of various tumors. This study aimed to investigate has_circ_0000069 expression in breast cancer and its influence on cellular activities. Using real-time quantitative polymerase chain reaction, has_circ_0000069 levels were measured in 137 pairs of tissue specimens, as well as cancer cell lines. The cellular activities of cell lines were determined by cell counting kit-8 (CCK-8) and Transwell assays. The potential targeting miRNAs were predicted and verified using an online database and dual-luciferase reporter assay. Has_circ_0000069 was highly expressed in breast… More >

NA HU^1,2,#, SHIQING ZHANG^2,3,#, AQUAN JIN², LIANYING GUO², ZHENYUN QU², JUN WANG^2,*

Oncology Research, Vol.30, No.2, pp. 89-97, 2022, DOI:10.32604/or.2022.027058

Abstract We aimed to explore the molecular mechanism that were involved in SPINK1-induced proliferation and clonogenic survival of human colorectal carcinoma (CRC) HT29 cells. Initially, we generated HT29 cells either permanently silencing or overexpressing SPINK1 protein. The results showed that SPINK1 overexpression (OE) significantly stimulated the proliferation and clonal formation of HT29 cells at the varied time points. Secondly, we found SPINK1 OE enhanced the ratio of LC3II/LC3I and the level of autophagy-related gene 5 (ATG5), whereas SPINK1 knockdown (Kd) reversed the above outcome under normal culturing and/or fasting condition in the cells, indicating its role in autophagy enhancement. Moreover, LC3-GFP-transfected… More >

YONGDAE YOON^1,#, SOONJAE HWANG^1,2,#, FATEMA TUJ SAIMA^3,#, MOON YOUNG KIM^1,3,4, SOON KOO BAIK^1,3,4,*, YOUNG WOO EOM^1,3,*

BIOCELL, Vol.47, No.3, pp. 669-676, 2023, DOI:10.32604/biocell.2023.025365

Abstract Background: Activated hepatic stellate cells (HSCs) are closely involved in the initiation, perpetuation, and resolution of liver fibrosis. Pro-inflammatory cytokine levels are positively correlated with the transition from liver injury to fibrogenesis and contribute to HSC pathophysiology in liver fibrosis. Methods: In this study, we investigated the effect of the pro-inflammatory cytokine interleukin (IL)-1β on the proliferation and signaling pathways involved in fibrogenesis in LX-2 cells, an HSC cell line, using western blotting and cell proliferation assays. Results: IL-1β increased the proliferation rate and α-smooth muscle actin (SMA) expression of LX-2 cells in a dose-dependent manner. Within 1 h after… More >

Linpei Wang^1,#, Xiaoqiu Ma^2,#, Youqi Chen¹, Jiahui Zhang¹, Jiawei Zhang¹, Wei Wang^1,*, Shaojian Chen^3,*

Oncologie, Vol.24, No.4, pp. 897-912, 2022, DOI:10.32604/oncologie.2022.025693

Abstract Background: MicroRNA-145-5p (miR-145-5p) reportedly inhibits hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC) by targeting ARF6, SPATS2, CDCA3, KLF5, and NRAS, indicating that miR-145-5p plays an important role in the occurrence and development of HCC by regulating the expression of various genes. In this study, we aimed to explore novel downstream targets of miR-145-5p and elucidate the potential mechanism of miR-145-5p in HCC. Materials and Methods: A bioinformatics analysis was performed to determine the clinical significance of miR-145-5p and alpha/beta hydrolase domain-containing protein 17C (ABHD17C) in patients with HCC. The ability of Hep3B cells to proliferate, migrate, and invade was examined after overexpression of miR-145-5p… More >