Anatomic Twist to a Straightforward Ablation

Atrioventricular (AV) junction ablation for treatment of refractory atrial fibrillation is a well defined, standardized procedure and the simplest of commonly performed radiofrequency ablations in the field of cardiac electrophysiology. We report successful AV junction ablation using an inferior approach in a case of inferior vena cava interruption. Inability during the procedure to initially pass the ablation catheter into the right ventricle, combined with low amplitude electrograms, led to suspicion of an anatomic abnormality. This was determined to be a heterotaxy syndrome with inferior vena cava interruption and azygos continuation, draining in turn into the superior vena cava. Advancing Schwartz right 0 (SRO) sheath through the venous abnormality into the right atrium allowed adequate catheter stability to successfully induce complete AV block with radiofrequency energy.     

转录因子Twist的siRNA筛选、腺病毒构建及功能检测

目的 筛选特异性沉默人的Twist基因的siRNA序列,构建siTwist腺病毒并在MG63及143B骨肉瘤细胞中进行功能鉴定.方法 体外退火获得4组siTwist双链DNA序列,克隆至含有Twist基因的pSOS-Twist质粒中获得pSOS-siTwist质粒,脂质体转染HEK293细胞,GFP检测筛选有功能的siTwist片段,将筛选出的siTwist序列构建腺病毒,感染143B骨肉瘤细胞.通过RT-PCR、Western 印迹检测Twist的表达.siTwist与Twist腺病毒共感染MG63骨肉瘤细胞,细胞计数及细胞侵袭实验检测siTwist对Twist的抑制作用.结果 在HEK293细胞中,4组siTwist中有2组GFP的表达明显降低,且siTwist腺病毒能抑制143B骨肉瘤细胞中内源性的Twist表达,Twist腺病毒能促进MG63骨肉瘤细胞的增殖和转移,而两组siTwist与Twist共感染组MG63细胞的增殖及迁徙率均明显低于Twist组（P〈0.05）.结论 筛选出两对特异性沉默Twist基因的siRNA片段,并成功构建腺病毒,转染细胞后能有效抑制内源性和外源性的Twist表达,为研究Twist在骨肉瘤细胞增殖和转移中的作用及具体机制提供了有效的分子工具.     

Twist1在肿瘤发生中的作用

Twist1作为bHLH转录因子起初被发现在胚胎发育中起关键作用. 最近10年研究证明,它在多种癌的发生、发展中发挥重要作用. 本文结合多种信号通路（如MAPK、STAT、NF κB）以及与其基因表达调控相关的转录因子、翻译后修饰、microRNA等综述Twist1表达调节. 同时,根据其参与癌的发展及作用方式,结合细胞间联系、肿瘤微环境、侵袭和迁移、化疗抗性、上皮 间质转化（EMT）、细胞衰老与程序性死亡、肿瘤干细胞等,概括Twist1在肿瘤发生中的作用.     

Twist 在胸腺上皮性肿瘤中的表达及预后意义

目的:检测Twist在胸腺上皮性肿瘤的表达及其与预后的关系。方法:应用免疫组织化学pv6000法检测Twist在87例胸腺上皮性肿瘤(胸腺瘤71例,胸腺癌16例)中的表达情况,分析其与患者各项临床病理指标及预后的关系。结果:Twist蛋白在胸腺癌的阳性表达(81.3%)显著高于胸腺瘤组织(11.3%),其阳性表达的差异存在统计学意义(P<0.001),其在胸腺瘤各亚型之间表达的差异无统计学意义(P>0.05)。Twist阳性表达与胸腺上皮性肿瘤术后发生远处转移呈正相关关系(r=0.40,P=0.001)。Kaplan-Meier生存分析显示Twist阳性表达患者术后生存期低于Twist阴性表达患者(P<0.001)。结论:检测Twist蛋白表达情况对于鉴别胸腺瘤与胸腺癌可能有重要的参考价值,Twist阳性表达可能与术后发生远处转移有关并影响患者术后生存期。     

Twist2的生物学功能及其分子机制

碱性螺旋-环-螺旋(Basic helix-loop-helix protein,bHLH)家族成员Twist2对间质细胞系的发生和发育起转录调节作用,经直接或间接机制发挥分子开关功能,从而激活或抑制靶基因。Twist2能直接结合DNA上 E-box保守序列,招募共激活物或抑制剂;能与E蛋白调节因子发生蛋白-蛋白相互作用,干扰激活或抑制功能。Twist2无义突变导致Setleis综合征。对Twist2的早期研究多集中在骨骼发育,随后在多种肿瘤中发现其有表达差异,研究表明Twist2在肿瘤的上皮-间质转化(Epithelial-mesenchymal transition,EMT)中发挥着重要作用。Twist2参与了多条通路的调控,其调控作用的发挥受到时空表达、磷酸化、二聚化和细胞定位的调节,在机体的正常发育、体内平衡和疾病发生机制中研究Twist2的作用显得尤为重要。文章对Twist2在成骨分化、肿瘤形成和EMT中的作用及其分子机制进行综述,以便帮助了解Twist2的生物学功能,为进一步在疾病的诊断、发展、以及治疗等方面的转化应用研究提供依据。     

Generation of a Twist1 conditional null allele in the mouse

Twist1 is the mouse ortholog of TWIST1, the human gene mutated in Saethre-Chotzen syndrome. Previously, a Twist1 null allele was generated by gene targeting in mouse embryonic stem cells. Twist1 heterozygous mice develop polydactyly and a craniofacial phenotype similar to Saethre-Chotzen patients. Mice homozygous for the Twist1 null allele die around embryonic day 11.5 (E11.5) with cranial neural tube closure and vascular defects, hindering in vivo studies of Twist1 function at later stages of development. Here, we report the generation of a Twist1 conditional null allele in mice that functions like a wild-type allele but can be converted to a null allele upon Cre-mediated recombination.     

SRC-1 and Twist1 Expression Positively Correlates with a Poor Prognosis in Human Breast Cancer

To evaluate the possible prognostic value of Steroid Receptor Coactivator-1 (SRC-1) and Twist1 expression in human breast cancer, we examined SRC-1 and Twist1 expression using immunohistochemistry on tissue microarray sections containing 137 breast cancer specimens. All patients were followed up for a median of 5 years following surgery. Survival curves were generated using the Kaplan-Meier method. Multivariate analysis was performed using the Cox proportional hazard regression model to assess the prognostic values. The results showed a positive correlation between SRC-1 and Twist1 expression at protein levels (P < 0.001). Also, SRC-1 expression positively correlated with HER2 expression (P = 0.024). The protein expression of Twist1 positively associated with lymph node metastasis (P < 0.001), but inversely correlated with PR status (P = 0.041). Patients with SRC-1 or Twist1-positive expression exhibited poorer overall survival (OS) and disease-free survival (DFS) than did those with SRC-1 or Twist1-negative expression (P < 0.05 for all). In addition, SRC-1-negativeive/Twist1-negative patients had the best OS and DFS (P < 0.01 for both). In multivariate survival analysis, SRC-1 expression, tumor stage, and PR were found to be independent prognostic factors related to OS (P = 0.019, < 0.001 and 0.02, respectively) and Twist1 expression, lymph node status and PR were independent predictors of DFS (P = 0.006, 0.001 and 0.029, respectively). These results suggest that a combined SRC-1/Twist1 expression status could improve the prognostic judgment for breast cancer patients.     

Twist对小鼠乳腺癌细胞基因表达谱的调控研究

摘要 Twist是一个bHLH（basic Helix-loop-Helix）类型的转录因子,近年来研究发现,Twist在乳腺癌中的表达显著升高,并能促进乳腺癌的转移。为了探索Twist促进乳腺癌转移的分子机制,本文采用RNA干扰技术在小鼠乳腺癌细胞株4T1中沉默Twist的表达,通过全基因组基因芯片技术检测了Twist沉默前后4T1细胞基因表达谱的差异性。体内实验结果证明Twist表达被沉默后4T1细胞的肺转移能力明显被抑制。芯片结果表明：表达差异显著的基因有167条,其中与肿瘤相关的基因有26条,包括15条上调基因和11条下调基因。这些基因中可能存在能被Twist调控并与肿瘤转移相关的基因,为以后研究Twist影响乳腺癌转移的分子机制提供了帮助。