PRPF6 promotes androgen receptor/androgen receptor-variant 7 actions in castration-resistant prostate cancer cells

Androgen receptor (AR) and its variants play vital roles in development and progression of prostate cancer. To clarify the mechanisms involved in the enhancement of their actions would be crucial for understanding the process in prostate cancer and castration-resistant prostate cancer transformation. Here, we provided the evidence to show that pre-mRNA processing factor 6 (PRPF6) acts as a key regulator for action of both AR full length (AR-FL) and AR variant 7 (AR-V7), thereby participating in the enhancement of AR-FL and AR-V7-induced transactivation in prostate cancer. In addition, PRPF6 is recruited to cis-regulatory elements in AR target genes and associates with JMJD1A to enhance AR-induced transactivation. PRPF6 also promotes expression of AR-FL and AR-V7. Moreover, PRPF6 depletion reduces tumor growth in prostate cancer-derived cell lines and results in significant suppression of xenograft tumors even under castration condition in mouse model. Furthermore, PRPF6 is obviously highly expressed in human prostate cancer samples. Collectively, our results suggest PRPF6 is involved in enhancement of oncogenic AR signaling, which support a previously unknown role of PRPF6 during progression of prostate cancer and castration-resistant prostate cancers.     

Severe tick infestation in a hare and potential risk for transmitting pathogens to humans

Severe tick infestation was found in a hare in a suburban area of Nanchang, Jiangxi Province, China. We sampled ticks and identified them based on their morphologic characteristics. Three species, Ixodes sinensis, which is commonly found in China and can experimentally transmit Borrelia burgdorferi, Rhipicephalus haemaphysaloides, and Haemaphysalis longicornis which can transmit Lyme disease were detected with an optical microscope and a stereomicroscope. Risk of spreading ticks from suburban to urban areas exists due to human transportation and travel between the infested and non-infested areas around Nanchang.     

Synthesis and evaluation of a novel ‘off-on’ chemical sensor based on rhodamine B and the 2,5-pyrrolidinedione moiety for selective discrimination of glutathione and its bioimaging in living cells

A new “turn-on” fluorescent probe, RDMBM, based on the rhodamine B dye and the 2,5-pyrrolidinedione moiety was synthesized and characterized. Its sensing behavior toward various amino acids was evaluated via UV–vis and fluorescence spectroscopic techniques. The observed spectral changes showed that RDMBM displays high selectivity and sensitivity toward GSH in MeOH/H₂O (1:2, v/v, pH 7.40, Tris-HCl buffer, 1?mM) solution and that it undergoes 1:1 covalent binding with GSH. More importantly, the hydrogenation and ring-opening of the nitrogen atom in the spirane structure of rhodamine B derivatives were tightly bound to the induction effects of different groups. Furthermore, fluorescence imaging applications demonstrated that RDMBM can be successfully used for the detection of GSH in human breast cancer cells MCF-7.     

Lifetime of Enhanced Graphene Surface Plasmon and Superstrate Sensitivity

Plasmonics - We investigated the field enhancement and lifetime of tuning surface plasmon in zero-thickness nanostructured graphene patches. The graphene surface plasmon (GSP) resonance mechanism...