Glennpacheco3876
Clinically amyopathic dermatomyositis (CADM) is a subtype of dermatomyositis (DM) characterized by low-grade or absent muscle inflammation but frequent and rapidly progressive interstitial lung disease (RP-ILD) and skin ulcers with anti-melanoma differentiation-associated gene 5 (anti-MDA5) autoantibodies. Basic leucine zipper transcription factor ATF-like 2 (BATF2) is thought to function as an inhibitor of tumours and inflammation. Here, we aimed to investigate the roles of BATF2 in Th cell differentiation of CADM with an anti-MDA5 autoantibody (anti-MDA5
CADM).
Naive CD4
T cells from human peripheral blood mononuclear cells (PBMCs) of healthy controls (HCs) were isolated and then cultured with IL-12, TGF-β or TGF-β plus IL-6 following anti-CD3 and anti-CD28 stimulations. The expression of BATF2 was measured by real-time PCR. The percentages of Th1, Th17 and Treg CD4
T cells were detected by flow cytometry. BATF2 knockdown of CD4
T cells was performed using small interfering RNAs (siRNAs).
The expression of BATF2 in PBMCs was higher in anti-MDA5
CADM patients than in healthy controls. The BATF2 mRNA expression was increased under Th1 and Treg polarization but decreased under Th17 polarization. Th17cell activation-associated genes were possibly increased while Th1 and Treg cell differentiation-associated genes were inhibited by posttranscriptional gene silencing of BATF2 in CD4
T cells.
BATF2 promoted Th1 and Treg cell differentiation but suppressed Th17cell activation in anti-MDA5
CADM.
BATF2 promoted Th1 and Treg cell differentiation but suppressed Th17 cell activation in anti-MDA5+ CADM.Waste product deposition and light stress in the retinal pigment epithelium (RPE) are crucial factors in the pathogenesis of various retinal degenerative diseases, including age-related macular degeneration (AMD), a leading cause of vision loss in elderly individuals worldwide. Given that autophagy in the RPE suppresses waste accumulation, determining the molecular mechanism by which autophagy is compromised in degeneration is necessary. Using polarized human RPE sheets, we found that bis-retinoid N-retinyl-N-retinylidene ethanolamine (A2E), a major toxic fluorophore of lipofuscin, causes significant impairment of autophagy and the simultaneous upregulation of Rubicon, a negative regulator of autophagy. Importantly, this impairment was reversed in Rubicon-specific siRNA-treated RPE sheets. In a retinal functional analysis using electroretinograms (ERGs), mice with the RPE-specific deletion of Rubicon showed no significant differences from control cre-expressing mice but presented partially but significantly enhanced amplitudes compared with Atg7 knockout mice. We also found that an inflammatory reaction in the retina in response to chronic blue light irradiation was alleviated in mice with the RPE-specific deletion of Rubicon. In summary, we propose that upregulating basal autophagy by targeting Rubicon is beneficial for protecting the RPE from functional damage with ageing and the inflammatory reaction caused by light-induced cellular stress.Cell migration is a complex and important process in cancer progression. Vimentin has pivotal roles in cancer cell migration, and various signaling pathways including the AKT pathway are involved in cancer cell migration via vimentin regulation. Recent studies have revealed that voltage-gated potassium (Kv) channels have important functions in cancer cell migration; however, the exact mechanism is still unclear. In the present study, we focused on Kv3 channels with vimentin in cancer migration using human cervical cancer cells (HeLa) and canine mammary tumor cells (CHMp). Cancer cell migration was significantly inhibited, and vimentin expression was significantly decreased by Kv3 blocker, BDS-II. The Kv3 blocker also inactivated the AKT pathway in HeLa cells. In addition, reduced expressions of vimentin and Kv3.4 were observed in HeLa cells when treated with AKT blocker, MK2206. These results suggest that Kv3 channels play important roles in cancer cell migration by regulating vimentin and having closely related with the AKT pathway in human cervical cancer cells.Osteoporosis is becoming increasingly prevalent with individual aging. Recent studies found that bone marrow mesenchymal stem cells (MSCs) undergo senescence along with the progression of age-related osteoporosis, leading to a decreased rate of new bone formation and fracture repair. The underlying mechanism of MSC senescence in the aged bone marrow has not been clarified yet. Here we found that MSCs from aged mice (12-month-old, O-MSCs) exhibited apparent senescent phenotypes compared with those from young controls (2-month-old, Y-MSCs), including lower proliferation rate, impaired self-renewal capacity, increased p16Ink4a expression and shifted differentiation balance to favor adipocytes over osteoblasts. Bmi-1, one of the main factors that regulate stem cell self-renewal, is dramatically decreased in O-MSCs. Knocking-down of Bmi-1 in Y-MSCs lead to cellular senescence, while over-expression of it rejuvenated O-MSCs. We further showed that the level of IL-1α is much higher in the bone marrow fluid of aged mice, which significantly inhibited Bmi-1 expression in MSCs. Our present study indicated that IL-1α, a key component of the senescence-associated secretory phenotype (SASP), is elevated in the aged bone marrow microenvironment, leading to decreased Bmi-1 expression in MSCs and consequently, MSC senescence.The dimensional overlap (DO) theory categorizes various stimulus-response compatible effects (e.g., the manual Stroop, Simon, and SNARC effects) into two main types stimulus-stimulus (S-S) and stimulus-response (S-R) dimensional overlap effects. The S-S type effect (e.g., the manual Stroop) occurs in the semantic-representation stage, while the S-R type effect (e.g., Simon) occurs in the response-selection stage. However, the processing stage of the SNARC effect, which is also categorized as an S-R type, remains controversial. To investigate this issue, we adopted a modified numeral parity judgment task that could simultaneously induce manual Stroop, Simon, and SNARC effects. According to the additive-factor logic, two effects occur in the same processing stage if they are interactive. In our task, we checked the interaction among the three effects to identify the locus of the SNARC effect. In two experiments with different target numbers (exp1 1, 2, 7, 8; exp2 0, 1, 2, 3, 6, 7, 8, 9), the manual Stroop, Simon, and SNARC effects were all observed, showing longer response times and higher error rates in the incongruent conditions than in the congruent conditions. Most importantly, only the interaction between SNARC and Simon effects was observed in the two experiments. This result suggests that the SNARC effect, as an S-R type effect like the Simon effect, occurs in the response-selection stage. In addition, the noninteraction of the manual Stroop and Simon effects and the manual Stroop and SNARC effects in our study repeatedly verifies the independence of the S-S and S-R effects. Our results further support the classification of the DO theory.Helicobacter pylori (H. pylori) infection is closely associated with the development of gastric inflammatory diseases and cancer. However, the continued abuse and misuse of antibiotics has accelerated the spread of antibiotic-resistant strains, which poses a tremendous challenge for antibiotic-based H. pylori treatment. In this study, a H. pylori-targeting photodynamic therapy (PDT) system is proposed that multiple 3'-sialyllactose (3SL)-conjugated, poly-l-lysine-based photosensitizer (p3SLP). p3SLP facilitates H. pylori-targeting PDT via the specific interaction between 3SL and sialic acid-binding adhesin (SabA) in the H. pylori membrane. p3SLP can be orally administered to H. pylori infected mice and irradiated using an endoscopic laser system. The gastrointestinal pathological analysis of the H. pylori-infected mice demonstrated significant H. pylori specific antibacterial effects of PDT without side effects to normal tissue. In addition, an anti-inflammatory response was observed at the site of infection after p3SLP treatment. Consequently, this study demonstrates the superior efficacy of anti-H. pylori PDT with p3SLP in H. pylori-infected mice, and this approach shows great potential for replacing antibiotic-based therapy.Transplantation of differentiated neurons derived from either human embryonic stem cells (hESCs) or induced pluripotent stem cells (iPSCs) is an emerging therapeutic strategy for various neurodegenerative diseases. One important aspect of transplantation is the accessibility to track and control the activity of the stem cells-derived neurons post-transplantation. Recently, the characteristics of organic nanoparticles (NPs) with aggregation-induced emission (AIE) have emerged as efficient cell labeling reagents, where positive outcomes were observed in long-term cancer cell tracing in vivo. In the current study, we designed, synthesized, and analyzed the biocompatibility of AIE-NPs in cultured neurons such as in mouse neuronal progenitor cells (NPCs) and hESC-derived neurons. Our data demonstrated that AIE-NPs show high degree of penetration into cells and presented intracellular long-term retention in vitro without altering the neuronal proliferation, differentiation, and viability. Furthermore, we have tracked AIE-NPs labeled neuronal grafts in mouse brain striatum in various time points post-transplantation. We demonstrated prolonged cellular retention of AIE-NPs labeled neuronal grafts 1 month post-transplantation in mouse brain striatum. Lastly, we have shown activation of brain microglia in response to AIE-NPs labeled grafts. Together, these findings highlight the potential application of AIE-NPs in neuronal transplantation.Cell chirality has been demonstrated to be important for controlling cell functions. However, it is not clear how the chirality of the extracellular microenvironment regulates cell adhesion and cytoskeletal structures and therefore affects gene transfection. In this study, the chirality of focal adhesions and the cytoskeleton of single human mesenchymal stem cells (hMSCs) was controlled by specially designed micropatterns, and its influence on gene transfection was investigated. Micropatterns with different cell adhesion areas and swirling stripe lines were prepared by micropatterning fibronectin on polystyrene surfaces. The chiral micropatterns induced the formation of chiral focal adhesions and chiral cytoskeletal structures. Gene transfection efficiency was enhanced with increasing adhesion area, while hMSCs on left-handed and right-handed swirling micropatterns showed the same level of gene transfection. When the swirling angle was changed from 0°, 30°, and 60° to 90°, the gene transfection efficiency at a swirling angle of 60° was the lowest. The influence of cell chirality on gene transfection was strongly associated with cellular uptake capacity, DNA synthesis and cytoskeletal mechanics. The results demonstrated that cytoskeletal swirling had a significant influence on gene transfection.This study evaluated the immunomodulatory effect of two types of phytochemicals, i.e. rutin and β-carotene, and two types of vitamins, i.e. α-tocopherol and l-ascorbic acid on improving innate immune responses to highly pathogenic porcine reproductive and respiratory syndrome virus (HP-PRRSV). Monocyte-derived macrophages (MDM) from eight PRRSV-seronegative pigs were inoculated with HP-PRRSV and subsequently stimulated with rutin, β-carotene, α-tocopherol, and l-ascorbic acid in the absence or presence of either polyinosinicpolycytidylic acid or lipopolysaccharide. Sapitinib The mRNA expression levels of myxovirus resistance 1, interferon regulatory factor 3 (IRF3), IRF7, 2'-5'-oligoadenylatesynthetase 1, stimulator of interferon genes (STING), osteopontin (OPN), interferon alpha (IFNα), IFNβ, IFNγ, interleukin-10 (IL-10), tumor necrosis factor alpha (TNFα), and transforming growth factor beta (TGFβ) were evaluated by real-time PCR. Compared with control MDM, HP-PRRSV significantly suppressed mRNA expressions of all immune-related genes except IL-10 and TGFβ.