Restudy of the upper age limit of Beijing Man site

The chronological position of Beijing Man site was restudied by U-series dating of two calcite samples taken from a stalagmitic flowstone layer intercalated in 1–2 layers. Based on the weighted mean of three measurements performed on the purer one, the upper age limit of this site be 421 ₋₅₄ ⁺¹¹⁰ ka B.P., much greater than former evaluation of 230 ka based on U-series dating of fossil bones. The reliability of the obtained results was discussed.     

MicroRNA-150 Predicts a Favorable Prognosis in Patients with Epithelial Ovarian Cancer,and Inhibits Cell Invasion and Metastasis by Suppressing Transcriptional Repressor ZEB1

MicroRNA (miR)-150 has been reported to be dramatically downregulated in human epithelial ovarian cancer (EOC) tissues and patients’ serum compared to normal controls. This study aimed to investigate clinical significance and molecular mechanisms of miR-150 in EOC. In the current study, quantitative real-time PCR analysis showed that miR-150 was significantly downregulated in human EOC tissues compared to normal tissue samples. Then, we demonstrated the significant associations of miR-150 downregulation with aggressive clinicopathological features of EOC patients, including high clinical stage and pathological grade, and shorter overall and progression-free survivals. More importantly, the multivariate analysis identified miR-150 expression as an independent prognostic biomarker in EOC. After that, luciferase reporter assays demonstrated that Zinc Finger E-Box Binding Homeobox 1 (ZEB1), a crucial regulator of epithelial-to-mesenchymal transition (EMT), was a direct target of miR-150 in EOC cells. Moreover, we found that the ectopic expression of miR-150 could efficiently inhibit cell proliferation, invasion and metastasis by suppressing the expression of ZEB1. Furthermore, we also observed a significantly negative correlation between miR-150 and ZEB1 mRNA expression in EOC tissues (rs = –0.45, P<0.001). In conclusion, these findings offer the convincing evidence that aberrant expression of miR-150 may play a role in tumor progression and prognosis in patients with EOC. Moreover, our data reveal that miR-150 may function as a tumor suppressor and modulate EOC cell proliferation, and invasion by directly and negatively regulating ZEB1, implying the re-expression of miR-150 might be a potential therapeutic strategy for EOC.     

Synthesis and biological evaluation of 1-substituted-3-(6-methylpyridin-2-yl)-4-([1,2,4]triazolo[1,5-a]pyridin-6-yl)pyrazoles as transforming growth factor-β type 1 receptor kinase inhibitors

A series of 1-substituted-3-(6-methylpyridin-2-yl)-4-([1,2,4]triazolo[1,5-a]pyridin-6-yl)pyrazoles 14a-ae, 16a, 16b, and 21a-c has been prepared and evaluated for their ALK5 inhibitory activity in an enzyme assay and in a cell-based luciferase reporter assay. The 4-([1,2,4]triazolo[1,5-a]pyridin-6-yl)-N-(4-methoxyphenyl)-3-(6-methylpyridin-2-yl)-1H-pyrazole-1-carbothioamide (14n) inhibited ALK5 phosphorylation with IC(50) value of 0.57 nM and showed 94% inhibition at 100 nM in a luciferase reporter assay using HaCaT cells permanently transfected with p3TP-luc reporter construct.     

Near Neutral pH Redox Flow Battery with Low Permeability and Long‐Lifetime Phosphonated Viologen Active Species

A highly stable phosphonate‐functionalized viologen is introduced as the redox‐active material in a negative potential electrolyte for aqueous redox flow batteries (ARFBs) operating at nearly neutral pH. The solubility is 1.23 m and the reduction potential is the lowest of any substituted viologen utilized in a flow battery, reaching ?0.462 V versus SHE at pH = 9. The negative charges in both the oxidized and the reduced states of 1,1′‐bis(3‐phosphonopropyl)‐[4,4′‐bipyridine]‐1,1′‐diium dibromide ( BPP?Vi ) effect low permeability in cation exchange membranes and suppress a bimolecular mechanism of viologen decomposition. A flow battery pairing BPP?Vi with a ferrocyanide‐based positive potential electrolyte across an inexpensive, non‐fluorinated cation exchange membrane at pH = 9 exhibits an open‐circuit voltage of 0.9 V and a capacity fade rate of 0.016% per day or 0.00069% per cycle. Overcharging leads to viologen decomposition, causing irreversible capacity fade. This work introduces extremely stable, extremely low‐permeating and low reduction potential redox active materials into near neutral ARFBs.     

High-level production of poly (β-<Emphasis Type="SmallCaps">l</Emphasis>-malic acid) with a new isolated <Emphasis Type="Italic">Aureobasidium pullulans</Emphasis> strain

Poly (β-l-malic acid) (PMLA) is a water-soluble polyester with many attractive properties in chemical industry and medicine development. However, the low titer of PMLA in the available producer strains limits further industrialization efforts and restricts its many potential applications. In order to solve this problem, a new strain with the distinguished high productivity of PMLA was isolated from fresh plants samples. It was characterized as the candidate of Aureobasidium pullulans based on the morphology and phylogenetic analyses of the internal transcribed spacer sequences. After the optimization of culture conditions, the highest PMLA concentration (62.27 g l⁻¹) could be achieved in the shake flask scale. In addition, the contribution of the carbon flux to exopolysaccharide (EPS) and PMLA could be regulated by the addition of CaCO₃ in the medium. This high-level fermentation process was further scaled up in the 10 l benchtop fermentor with a high PMLA concentration (57.2 g l⁻¹) and productivity (0.35 g l⁻¹ h⁻¹), which are the highest level in all the literature. Finally, the suitable acid hydrolysis conditions of PMLA were also investigated with regard to the production of l-malic acid, and the kinetics of PMLA acid hydrolysis was modeled to simulate the whole degradation process. The present work paved the road to produce this multifunctional biomaterial (PMLA) at industrial scale and promised one alternative method to produce l-malic acid in the future.     

Role of PCK2 in the proliferation of vascular smooth muscle cells in neointimal hyperplasia

Vascular smooth muscle cell (VSMC) proliferation is a hallmark of neointimal hyperplasia (NIH) in atherosclerosis and restenosis post-balloon angioplasty and stent insertion. Although numerous cytotoxic and cytostatic therapeutics have been developed to reduce NIH, it is improbable that a multifactorial disease can be successfully treated by focusing on a preconceived hypothesis. We, therefore, aimed to identify key molecules involved in NIH via a hypothesis-free approach. We analyzed four datasets ({"type":"entrez-geo","attrs":{"text":"GSE28829","term_id":"28829"}}GSE28829, {"type":"entrez-geo","attrs":{"text":"GSE43292","term_id":"43292"}}GSE43292, {"type":"entrez-geo","attrs":{"text":"GSE100927","term_id":"100927"}}GSE100927, and {"type":"entrez-geo","attrs":{"text":"GSE120521","term_id":"120521"}}GSE120521), evaluated differentially expressed genes (DEGs) in wire-injured femoral arteries of mice, and determined their association with VSMC proliferation in vitro. Moreover, we performed RNA sequencing on platelet-derived growth factor (PDGF)-stimulated human VSMCs (hVSMCs) post-phosphoenolpyruvate carboxykinase 2 (PCK2) knockdown and investigated pathways associated with PCK2. Finally, we assessed NIH formation in Pck2 knockout (KO) mice by wire injury and identified PCK2 expression in human femoral artery atheroma. Among six DEGs, only PCK2 and RGS1 showed identical expression patterns between wire-injured femoral arteries of mice and gene expression datasets. PDGF-induced VSMC proliferation was attenuated when hVSMCs were transfected with PCK2 siRNA. RNA sequencing of PCK2 siRNA-treated hVSMCs revealed the involvement of the Akt-FoxO-PCK2 pathway in VSMC proliferation via Akt2, Akt3, FoxO1, and FoxO3. Additionally, NIH was attenuated in the wire-injured femoral artery of Pck2-KO mice and PCK2 was expressed in human femoral atheroma. PCK2 regulates VSMC proliferation in response to vascular injury via the Akt-FoxO-PCK2 pathway. Targeting PCK2, a downstream signaling mediator of VSMC proliferation, may be a novel therapeutic approach to modulate VSMC proliferation in atherosclerosis.     

循环包装回收技术在筛选肝癌细胞相关耐药基因中的应用

肝癌先天性多表达多药耐药基因,严重影响肝癌的化疗效果,筛选肝癌细胞中的耐药基因,研究其耐药机制有助于提高肝癌化疗效果,提高肝癌的治愈率。首先构建肝癌细胞逆转录病毒的cDNA文库,感染成纤维细胞,使得逆转录病毒基因整合进细胞,加药筛选,存活细胞中的基因再次包装成病毒,用于下一轮筛选。采用循环包装回收(Cyclical packaging rescue,CPR)技术进行肝癌细胞耐药基因的筛选即是通过病毒包装将基因从细胞中钓取出来,相比于常规筛选方法,仅通过一轮筛选可能会出现很多假阳性基因,采用CPR技术则是通过多轮筛选,很大程度减少了假阳性细胞的出现。通过该方法经过四轮筛选获得核糖体蛋白S11(RPS11)、核糖体蛋白L6(RPL6)、核糖体蛋白L11(RPL11)、核糖体蛋白L24(RPL24)等几种基因,经初步检测,增加了细胞的耐药性。     

Petalonia improves glucose homeostasis in streptozotocin-induced diabetic mice

The anti-diabetic potential of Petalonia binghamiae extract (PBE) was evaluated in vivo. Dietary administration of PBE to streptozotocin (STZ)-induced diabetic mice significantly lowered blood glucose levels and improved glucose tolerance. The mode of action by which PBE attenuated diabetes was investigated in vitro using 3T3-L1 cells. PBE treatment stimulated 3T3-L1 adipocyte differentiation as evidenced by increased triglyceride accumulation. At the molecular level, peroxisome proliferator-activated receptor γ (PPARγ) and terminal marker protein aP2, as well as the mRNA of GLUT4 were up-regulated by PBE. In mature adipocytes, PBE significantly stimulated the uptake of glucose and the expression of insulin receptor substrate-1 (IRS-1). Furthermore, PBE increased PPARγ luciferase reporter gene activity in COS-1 cells. Taken together, these results suggest that the in vivo anti-diabetic effect of PBE is mediated by both insulin-like and insulin-sensitizing actions in adipocytes.