QINGJIAN HE¹, HUIXIN ZHU^2,3, SHANHONG FANG^4,5,*

BIOCELL, Vol.48, No.2, pp. 205-216, 2024, DOI:10.32604/biocell.2023.045109

Abstract Introduction: Dexamethasone (Dex) caused impaired osteoblast differentiation and oxidative stress (OS) in bone marrow mesenchymal stem cells (BMSCs). This work sought to elucidate the precise molecular pathway through which Dex influences osteogenic differentiation (OD) and OS in BMSCs. Methods: The expression of Runt-related transcription factor 1 (RUNX1) and alpha-2 macroglobulin (A2M) was assessed in Dex-treated BMSCs using qRT-PCR and Western Blot. Following the functional rescue experiments, cell proliferation was determined by MTT assay, reactive oxygen species (ROS) expression by DCFH-DA fluorescent probe, lactate dehydrogenase (LDH), superoxide dismutase (SOD), catalase (CAT), and glutathione peroxidase (Gpx) expression by kits, OD by alkaline… More >

VAN THI TUONG NGUYEN^1,2, KHUONG DUY PHAM^1,2,3, HUONG THI QUE CAO^1,2, PHUC VAN PHAM^1,2,*

BIOCELL, Vol.48, No.2, pp. 173-189, 2024, DOI:10.32604/biocell.2023.043664

Abstract Mesenchymal stem cells (MSCs) have been proposed in regenerative medicine, especially for angiogenic purposes, due to their potential to self-renew, differentiate, and regulate the microenvironment. Peripheral vascular diseases, which are associated with reduced blood supply, have been treated but not cured. An effective therapy is to recover blood supply via vessel regeneration in the affected area, and MSCs appear to be promising for such conditions. Several studies aimed to explore the role of MSCs in performing angiogenesis and have revealed numerous potential methods to enhance MSC capacity in vessel formation. Efforts have been made to modify standard MSCs to optimize… More > Graphic Abstract

WEIXUE WANG^#, TONGTONG WANG^#, YAN ZHANG, TING DENG, HAIYANG ZHANG^*, YI BA^*

Oncology Research, Vol.32, No.3, pp. 489-502, 2024, DOI:10.32604/or.2023.046676

Abstract Different from necrosis, apoptosis, autophagy and other forms of cell death, ferroptosis is a mechanism that catalyzes lipid peroxidation of polyunsaturated fatty acids under the action of iron divalent or lipoxygenase, leading to cell death. Apatinib is currently used in the third-line standard treatment of advanced gastric cancer, targeting the anti-angiogenesis pathway. However, Apatinib-mediated ferroptosis in vascular endothelial cells has not been reported yet. Tumor-secreted exosomes can be taken up into target cells to regulate tumor development, but the mechanism related to vascular endothelial cell ferroptosis has not yet been discovered. Here, we show that exosomes secreted by gastric cancer… More >

GANG LIU^1,#, LEI SHI^1,#, BIN WANG¹, ZEHUI WU¹, HAIYUAN ZHAO¹, TIANYU ZHAO², LIANGHUI SHI^1,*

Oncology Research, Vol.32, No.3, pp. 585-596, 2024, DOI:10.32604/or.2023.029349

Abstract The role of lncRNA KCNQ1 opposite strand/antisense transcript 1 (KCNQ1OT1) in colon cancer involves various tumorigenic processes and has been studied widely. However, the mechanism by which it promotes colon cancer remains unclear. Retroviral vector pSEB61 was retrofitted in established HCT116-siKCN and SW480-siKCN cells to silence KCNQ1OT1. Cellular proliferation was measured using CCK8 assay, and flow cytometry (FCM) detected cell cycle changes. RNA sequencing (RNA-Seq) analysis showed differentially expressed genes (DEGs). Gene ontology (GO) and Kyoto Encyclopedia of Genes and Genomes (KEGG) pathway enrichment analyses were carried out to analyze enriched functions and signaling pathways. RT-qPCR, immunofluorescence, and western blotting… More >

DAOLUN YU¹, DEYONG SHE², KAI GE¹, LEI YANG¹, RUINA ZHAN¹, SHAN LU^3,*, YAFEI CAI^4,*

BIOCELL, Vol.48, No.1, pp. 139-147, 2024, DOI:10.32604/biocell.2023.045884

Abstract Background: SMAD family proteins (SMADs) are crucial transcription factors downstream of transforming growth factor beta (TGF-ß)/SMAD signaling pathways that have been reported to play a pivotal role in mammalian reproduction. However, the role of SMAD family member 8 (SMAD8, also known as SMAD9), a member of the SMAD family, in mammalian reproduction remains unclear. Methods: We employed RNA interference techniques to knock down Smad8 expression in mouse granulosa cells (GCs) to investigate the effects of Smad8 on GC growth and steroidogenesis. Results: Our findings revealed a significant decrease in the proliferative capacity and a substantial increase in the apoptosis rate… More >

Mingda Yin^1,#, Rui Luo^1,#, Tana Liang¹, Qi Wen¹, Xiaotian Liang¹, Yanpeng Wen¹, Xuemei Hu¹, Zhiyan Wang¹, Chang Gao¹, Wenjing Ren¹, Fenglan Huang^1,2,3,4,5,*

Phyton-International Journal of Experimental Botany, Vol.93, No.1, pp. 97-117, 2024, DOI:10.32604/phyton.2023.031228

Abstract Castor is one of the top 10 oil crops in the world and has extremely valuable uses. Castor inflorescences directly affect yield, so the study of inflorescence development is very important in increasing castor yield. Our previous studies have shown that the PIP5K gene family (PIP5Ks) is associated with inflorescence development. In this study, to determine the function of each PIP5K gene in castor, a female Lm-type castor line, aLmAB2, was used to determine the relative expression levels of the PIP5Ks in castor inflorescences. Six PIP5K genes were heterologously overexpressed in Arabidopsis thaliana, the relative expression of each gene and… More >

Pier Paolo Bassareo^1,2,3,*, Aurelio Secinaro⁴, Paolo Ciliberti⁵, Massimo Chessa^6,7, Marco Alfonso Perrone^5,8, Kevin Patrick Walsh^1,2,3, Colin Joseph Mcmahon^2,3

Congenital Heart Disease, Vol.18, No.6, pp. 595-610, 2023, DOI:10.32604/chd.2023.046229

Abstract Background: Congenital absence of pericardium (CAP), also known as pericardial agenesis, represents an uncommon cardiac abnormality and mostly incidental finding. It can be subdivided into complete and partial (left or right-sided) forms. Because of its infrequency, just case reports and a few case series have been released so far. This paper represents the largest systematic review in the field. Nine features (age at diagnosis, type, gender, clinical presentation, electrocardiography, imaging (ultrasounds, CT/MRI), concomitant cardiac defects, and outcome) were analysed. Methods: The electronic database PubMed was investigated from its establishment up to July 15^th, 2023. Just case reports and case series… More >

XIANGDONG SUN^1,2,#, HUIJUAN WEN^1,2,#, FAZHAN LI^1,2, IHTISHAM BUKHARI^1,2, FEIFEI REN^1,2, XIA XUE^1,2, PENGYUAN ZHENG^1,2,*, YANG MI^1,2,*

Oncology Research, Vol.32, No.2, pp. 283-296, 2024, DOI:10.32604/or.2023.044618

Abstract Nicotinamide adenine dinucleotide (NAD+) plays an essential role in cellular metabolism, mitochondrial homeostasis, inflammation, and senescence. However, the role of NAD+-regulated genes, including coding and long non-coding genes in cancer development is poorly understood. We constructed a prediction model based on the expression level of NAD+ metabolism-related genes (NMRGs). Furthermore, we validated the expression of NMRGs in gastric cancer (GC) tissues and cell lines; additionally, β-nicotinamide mononucleotide (NMN), a precursor of NAD+, was used to treat the GC cell lines to analyze its effects on the expression level of NMRGs lncRNAs and cellular proliferation, cell cycle, apoptosis, and senescence-associated secretory… More > Graphic Abstract

ZEPENG DONG, CHENYE ZHAO, SHIBO HU, KUI YANG, JUNHUI YU^*, XUEJUN SUN, JIANBAO ZHENG^*

BIOCELL, Vol.47, No.12, pp. 2735-2745, 2023, DOI:10.32604/biocell.2023.043422

Abstract Objectives: Angiogenesis plays a significant role in the occurrence and development of inflammatory bowel disease (IBD). The aim of this study is to explore potential angiogenesis related genes (ARGs) in IBD through bioinformatics analysis and in vivo experiments. Methods: GSE57945, GSE87466, and GSE36807 were obtained from the Gene Expression Omnibus database. GSE57945 was used as the training set, while GSE87466 and GSE36807 were used as the validation set. The key ARGs associated with IBD were identified using the least absolute shrinkage and selection operator (LASSO) and random forest methods. These identified ARGs were then utilized to construct a diagnostic model… More >

FATEMEH HEIDARI^1,2, REIHANEH SEYEDEBRAHIMI^1,2, PIAO YANG³, MOHSEN ESLAMI FARSANI^1,2, SHIMA ABABZADEH^2,4, NASER KALHOR⁵, HAMED MANOOCHEHRI⁶, MOHSEN SHEYKHHASAN^7,*, MARYAM AZIMZADEH^8,9,*

BIOCELL, Vol.47, No.12, pp. 2597-2608, 2023, DOI:10.32604/biocell.2023.043351

Abstract Exosomes are small vesicles that carry molecules from one cell to another. They have many features that make them interesting for research, such as their stability, low immunogenicity, size of the nanoscale, toxicity, and selective delivery. Exosomes can also interact with viruses in diverse ways. Emerging research highlights the significant role of exosomes in viral infections, particularly in the context of diseases like COVID-19, HIV, HBV and HCV. Understanding the intricate interplay between exosomes and the human immune system holds great promise for the development of effective antiviral therapies. An important aspect is gaining clarity on how exosomes influence the… More >