Study on the Effect of Kidney Transplantation on the Health of the Patients’ Offspring: A Report on 252 Chinese Children

Even though the incidence of pregnancies in the female recipients is lower and also chronic renal disease in male patients is associated with impaired spermatogenesis, the health of the children born to these patients was not studied. In this report, we discuss information on the growth and development of offspring of 248 male and female kidney recipient patients. Physical and routine clinical measurements of the 252 offspring (129 male and 123 female) born to these transplantation patients were made along with the intelligence tests. In some of these children chest X-ray and immune indices were assessed. Among the recipients, 219 males fathered 223 children with an average birth weight of 3,255 ± 374 g and 29 female recipients gave birth to 29 children with an average birth weight of 2,923 ± 551. While most of these children were normal, we noticed a case of soft double toe, a case of short tongue tie, five cases of marginal mental retardation, three cases of proteinuria, six cases of microscopic hematuria, 15 cases of low hemoglobin, and 21 cases with recurrent respiratory tract infections. We conclude that kidney transplantation has no significant impact on the growth, development, health, and intelligence of the offspring born to recipients.     

Population Differences in Brain Morphology and Microstructure among Chinese,Malay, and Indian Neonates

We studied a sample of 75 Chinese, 73 Malay, and 29 Indian healthy neonates taking part in a cohort study to examine potential differences in neonatal brain morphology and white matter microstructure as a function of ethnicity using both structural T2-weighted magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) and diffusion tensor imaging (DTI). We first examined the differences in global size and morphology of the brain among the three groups. We then constructed the T2-weighted MRI and DTI atlases and employed voxel-based analysis to investigate ethnic differences in morphological shape of the brain from the T2-weighted MRI, and white matter microstructure measured by fractional anisotropy derived from DTI. Compared with Malay neonates, the brains of Indian neonates’ tended to be more elongated in anterior and posterior axis relative to the superior-inferior axis of the brain even though the total brain volume was similar among the three groups. Although most anatomical regions of the brain were similar among Chinese, Malay, and Indian neonates, there were anatomical variations in the spinal-cerebellar and cortical-striatal-thalamic neural circuits among the three populations. The population-related brain regions highlighted in our study are key anatomical substrates associated with sensorimotor functions.     

Identification of metastasis-associated proteins by proteomic analysis and functional exploration of interleukin-18 in metastasis

Very little is currently known about mechanisms underlying cancer metastasis. In the present study, metastasis-associated proteomes were separated and identified by comparative proteomic analysis, and the metastasis-related function of candidate protein interleukin-18 (IL-18) was further elucidated. First, a pair of highly and poorly metastatic sublines (termed PLA801D and PLA801C, respectively), originating from the same parental PLA801 cell line, was identified by spontaneous tumorigenicity and metastasis in vivo and characterized by metastatic phenotypes analysis in vitro. Subsequently, a proteomic approach was used to compare the protein expression profiles between PLA801C and PLA801D sublines. Eleven proteins were identified and further verified by one-dimensional Western blotting, Northern blot and/or semiquantitative reverse transciptase polymerase chain reaction analysis. Compared with those in poorly metastatic PLA801C subline, cytokeratin 18, tissue transglutaminase, Rho GDP-dissociation inhibitor 1, tropomyosin, fibroblast type, IL-18 and annexin I were significantly up-regulated, while protein disulfide isomerase, heat shock protein 60, peroxiredoxin 1, chlorine intracellular channel protein 1 (CLI1) and creatine kinase, B chain were significantly down-regulated in the highly metastatic PLA801D subline. Intriguingly, all the identified candidate proteins except for CLI1 have been shown to be somehow associated with distinct aspects of tumor metastasis such as cell growth, motility, invasion, adhesion, apoptosis and tumor immunity, etc. Considering that IL-18 was present in highly metastatic PLA801D but absent in poorly metastatic PLA801C, the association of IL-18 with metastasis was further elucidated by introducing IL-18 sense/IL-18 antisense into PLA801C/PLA801D sublines simultaneously. The results demonstrated that ectopically expressed IL-18 promoted cell motility in vitro and down-regulated E-cadherin expression of PLA801C transfectants, while IL-18 antisense remarkably decreased cell invasion potency in vitro and notably increased E-cadherin expression of PLA801D transfectants, indicating that IL-18 might play a role in metastasis by inhibiting E-cadherin expression.     

<Emphasis Type="Italic">Pseudomonas stutzeri</Emphasis> as a novel biocatalyst for pyruvate production from<Emphasis Type="SmallCaps"> DL</Emphasis>-lactate

Pseudomonas stutzeri SDM oxidized dl-lactic acid (25.5 g l^-1) into pyruvic acid (22.6 g l^-1) over 24 h. Both NAD⁺-independent d-lactate dehydrogenase and NAD⁺-independent l-lactate dehydrogenase were found for the first time in the bioconversion of lactate to pyruvate based on the enzyme activity assay and proteomic analysis. Jianrong Hao and Cuiqing Ma contributed equally to this work     

Surface Vulnerability of Cerebral Cortex to Major Depressive Disorder

Major depressive disorder (MDD) is accompanied by atypical brain structure. This study first presents the alterations in the cortical surface of patients with MDD using multidimensional structural patterns that reflect different neurodevelopment. Sixteen first-episode, untreated patients with MDD and 16 matched healthy controls underwent a magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) scan. The cortical maps of thickness, surface area, and gyrification were examined using the surface-based morphometry (SBM) approach. Increase of cortical thickness was observed in the right posterior cingulate region and the parietal cortex involving the bilateral inferior, left superior parietal and right paracentral regions, while decreased thickness was noted in the parietal cortex including bilateral pars opercularis and left precentral region, as well as the left rostral-middle frontal regions in patients with MDD. Likewise, increased or decreased surface area was found in five sub-regions of the cingulate gyrus, parietal and frontal cortices (e.g., bilateral inferior parietal and superior frontal regions). In addition, MDD patients exhibited a significant hypergyrification in the right precentral and supramarginal region. This integrated structural assessment of cortical surface suggests that MDD patients have cortical alterations of the frontal, parietal and cingulate regions, indicating a vulnerability to MDD during earlier neurodevelopmental process.     

CD40 ligand induces RIP1-dependent,necroptosis-like cell death in low-grade serous but not serous borderline ovarian tumor cells

Ovarian high-grade serous carcinomas (HGSCs) and invasive low-grade serous carcinomas (LGSCs) are considered to be distinct entities. In particular, LGSCs are thought to arise from non-invasive serous borderline ovarian tumors (SBOTs) and show poor responsiveness to conventional chemotherapy. The pro-apoptotic effects of CD40 ligand (CD40L) have been demonstrated in HGSC, though the underlying mechanisms are not fully understood. Conversely, the therapeutic potential of the CD40L-CD40 system has yet to be evaluated in LGSC. We now show that CD40 protein is focally expressed on tumor cells in two of five primary LGSCs compared with no expression in eight primary SBOTs. Treatment with CD40L or agonistic CD40 antibody decreased the viability of LGSC-derived MPSC1 and VOA1312 cells, but not SBOT3.1 cells. Small interfering RNA (siRNA) targeting CD40 was used to show that it is required for these reductions in cell viability. CD40L treatment increased cleaved caspase-3 levels in MPSC1 cells though, surprisingly, neither pan-caspase inhibitor nor caspase-3 siRNA reversed or even attenuated CD40L-induced cell death. In addition, CD40-induced cell death was not affected by knockdown of the mitochondrial proteins apoptosis-inducing factor (AIF) and endonuclease G (EndoG). Interestingly, CD40L-induced cell death was blocked by necrostatin-1, an inhibitor of receptor-interacting protein 1 (RIP1), and attenuated by inhibitors of RIP3 (GSK''872) or MLKL (mixed lineage kinase domain-like; necrosulfonamide). Our results indicate that the upregulation of CD40 may be relatively common in LGSC and that CD40 activation induces RIP1-dependent, necroptosis-like cell death in LGSC cells.Epithelial ovarian cancer accounts for approximately 90% of all ovarian malignancies and is the leading cause of gynecological cancer death in developed countries.^{1, 2} Recently, differences in molecular alterations and clinicopathological features have established a dualistic model dividing ovarian serous carcinomas into high-grade serous carcinoma (HGSC) and low-grade serous carcinoma (LGSC) subtypes. HGSCs are more common and are thought to develop directly from the ovarian surface epithelium or from serous tubal intra-epithelial carcinomas in the fallopian tube. In contrast, LGSCs are rare and are generally considered to develop from benign serous cystadenomas through serous borderline ovarian tumors (SBOT). SBOTs are slow-growing, non-invasive epithelial neoplasms that have a better prognosis compared with other types of ovarian cancer.^{3, 4, 5} Our previous studies have shown that the inhibition of p53 or treatment of epidermal growth factor or transforming growth factor-β1 increases SBOT cell invasion by inducing epithelial–mesenchymal transition, which suggests a possible mechanism that mediates the progression from SBOT to LGSC.^{6, 7, 8, 9} However, many of SBOTs recur as LGSCs that display poor responsiveness to conventional chemotherapy and for which survival rates are <50%.^{1, 3, 10} Thus, the development of novel, targeted therapeutic strategies is likely required to significantly improve patient survival.CD40, a transmembrane glycoprotein belonging to the tumor necrosis factor receptor superfamily, is expressed by a wide range of cell types including immune, endothelial and epithelial cells. Engagement of CD40 with its ligand, CD40L, has been shown to have important roles in a variety of physiological and pathological processes, especially in immunity.^{11, 12} In addition, CD40 expression has been demonstrated in several types of cancer, including colon, lung, cervical, bladder and prostate cancer.¹³ However, reported functions of CD40 in tumor cells vary, with both pro-apoptotic and anti-proliferative effects observed depending on the cellular context.^{14, 15, 16} Alternatively, some studies have shown that CD40 activation may promote the neoplastic transformation and growth of normal cells.^{17, 18, 19} Expression of CD40 has been demonstrated in ovarian cancer cell lines and tumor samples, but not in normal ovarian tissue, suggesting that CD40 may have an important role in ovarian tumors.^{20, 21, 22, 23, 24} Indeed, CD40L-CD40 signaling has been shown to induce growth-inhibitory effects in HGSC cells,^{20, 21, 23, 24, 25} however, the therapeutic potential of CD40 in LGSC and SBOT has not been evaluated.In the present study, we report for the first time elevated CD40 expression in a significant proportion of LGSCs compared with SBOTs. Moreover, CD40 expression is elevated in LGSC-derived MPSC1 and VOA1312 cells compared with SBOT3.1 cells, and CD40 activation induces cell death via CD40 only in LGSC-derived cells. Neither pan-caspase inhibitor nor caspase-3 small interfering RNA (siRNA) has any effect on CD40L-induced MPSC1 cell death. Moreover, CD40L-induced cell death was unaffected by individual or combined knockdown of the mitochondrial proteins apoptosis-inducing factor (AIF) and endonuclease G (EndoG). Interestingly, our results suggest that receptor-interacting protein 1 (RIP1), RIP3 and MLKL are involved in CD40-induced MPSC1 cell death. These results demonstrate that CD40 induces RIP1-dependent, necroptosis-like cell death in LGSC cells.     

Fluorescence spectrometric study on the interaction of tamibarotene with bovine serum albumin

The interaction between tamibarotene and bovine serum albumin (BSA) was studied using fluorescence quenching technique and ultraviolet–visible spectrophotometry. The results of experiments showed that tamibarotene could strongly quench the intrinsic fluorescence of BSA by a dynamic quenching mechanism. The apparent binding constant, number of binding site and corresponding thermodynamic parameters at different temperatures were calculated respectively, and the main interaction force between tamibarotene and BSA was proved to be hydrophobic force. Synchronous fluorescence spectra showed that tamibarotene changed the molecular conformation of BSA. When BSA concentration was 1.00 × 10^?6 mol L^?1, the quenched fluorescence ΔF had a good linear relationship with the concentration of tamibarotene in the range 1.00 × 10^?6 to 12.00 × 10^?6 mol L^?1 with the detection limit of 6.52 × 10^?7 mol L^?1. Copyright © 2010 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.     

大果木姜子的甘油三酯组成

采用光谱法和胰酯酶分解法对大果木姜子油酯中分得的结晶C—I组成进行了分析,结果表明C—I是由11种甘油三酯组成。其中2-位为月硅酸的甘油三酯占91.80％,1,3-位脂肪酸主要为癸酸和月桂酸,甘油三酯的组成中,CLC占62.24％,LLC占24.50％。