Pancreatic cancer (PC) is an aggressive malignancy with one of the worst outcomes among all cancers. It is the fourth leading cause of cancer death in the United States with a very low five-year survival rate. The high mortality of PC could, in part, be due to their drug resistance characteristics and high propensity for metastasis. Recently, cancer stem cells (CSCs) and epithelial-mesenchymal transition (EMT)-type cells, which shares molecular characteristics with CSCs, have been believed to play critical roles in drug resistance and cancer metastasis as demonstrated in several human malignancies including PC. Thus, the discovery of molecular knowledge of drug resistance and metastasis in relation to CSCs and EMT in PC is becoming an important area of research, and such knowledge is likely to be helpful in the discovery of newer drugs as well as designing novel therapeutic strategies for the treatment of PC with better outcome. In this brief review, we will summarize the current knowledge regarding the CSCs and EMT in the context of drug resistance and metastasis in PC, the molecular events occurring in CSCs and EMT, and the design of novel therapeutic strategies targeting CSCs and EMT-type cells to increase drug sensitivity and suppression of metastasis toward better treatment outcome of patients diagnosed with PC.
There are generally two kinds of DNA microarray used for genomic-scale gene expression profiling of mRNA: cDNA and DNA chip, but both of them suffer from some drawbacks. To meet more requirements, another oligonucleotide microarray with long was produced. This type of microarray had the advantages of low cost, minimal Cross-hybridization, flexible and easy to make, which is most fit for small laboratories with special purposes. In this paper, we devised different probes with different probe lengths, GC contents and gene positions to optimization the probe design. Experiments showed 70 mer probes are suitable for both sufficient sensitivity and reasonable costs. Higher G-C content produces stronger signal intensity thus better sensitivity and probes designed at 3 untranslated region of gene within the range of 300 pb should be best for both sensitivity and specificity.
Androgen Receptor (AR) signaling is critically important during the development and progression of prostate cancer (PCa). The AR signaling is also important in the development of castrate resistant prostate cancer (CRPC) where AR is functional even after androgen deprivation therapy (ADT); however, little is known regarding the transcriptional and functional regulation of AR in PCa. Moreover, treatment options for primary PCa for preventing the occurrence of CRPC is limited; therefore, novel strategy for direct inactivation of AR is urgently needed. In this study, we found loss of miR-34a, which targets AR, in PCa tissue specimens, especially in patients with higher Gleason grade tumors, consistent with increased expression of AR. Forced overexpression of miR-34a in PCa cell lines led to decreased expression of AR and prostate specific antigen (PSA) as well as the expression of Notch-1, another important target of miR-34a. Most importantly, BR-DIM intervention in PCa patients prior to radical prostatectomy showed re-expression of miR-34a, which was consistent with decreased expression of AR, PSA and Notch-1 in PCa tissue specimens. Moreover, BR-DIM intervention led to nuclear exclusion both in PCa cell lines and in tumor tissues. PCa cells treated with BR-DIM and 5-aza-dC resulted in the demethylation of miR-34a promoter concomitant with inhibition of AR and PSA expression in LNCaP and C4-2B cells. These results suggest, for the first time, epigenetic silencing of miR -34a in PCa, which could be reversed by BR-DIM treatment and, thus BR-DIM could be useful for the inactivation of AR in the treatment of PCa.
ObjectiveThere are limited clinical treatments for temporomandibular joint (TMJ) pathologies, including degenerative disease, disc perforation and heterotopic ossification (HO). One barrier hindering the development of new therapies is that animal models recapitulating TMJ diseases are poorly established. The objective of this study was to develop an animal model for TMJ cartilage degeneration and disc pathology, including disc perforation and soft tissue HO.MethodsNew Zealand white rabbits (n = 9 rabbits) underwent unilateral TMJ disc perforation surgery and sham surgery on the contralateral side. A 2.5 mm defect was created using a punch biopsy in rabbit TMJ disc. The TMJ condyles and discs were evaluated macroscopically and histologically after 4, 8 and 12 weeks. Condyles were blindly scored by four independent observers using OARSI recommendations for macroscopic and histopathological scoring of osteoarthritis (OA) in rabbit tissues.ResultsHistological evidence of TMJ condylar cartilage degeneration was apparent in experimental condyles following disc perforation relative to sham controls after 4 and 8 weeks, including surface fissures and loss of Safranin O staining. At 12 weeks, OARSI scores indicated experimental condylar cartilage erosion into the subchondral bone. Most strikingly, HO occurred within the TMJ disc upon perforation injury in six rabbits after 8 and 12 weeks.ConclusionWe report for the first time a rabbit TMJ injury model that demonstrates condylar cartilage degeneration and disc ossification, which is indispensible for testing the efficacy of potential TMJ therapies.
In the original version of this Article, the affiliation details for Jadranka Loncarek and Vito Mennella were incorrectly given as 'Cell Biology Program, The Hospital for Sick Children, Department of Biochemistry, University of Toronto, 555 University Avenue, Toronto, ON, M5G 1X8, Canada' and 'Laboratory of Protein Dynamics and Signaling, Center for Cancer Research, National Cancer Institute, 1050 Boyles Street, Frederick, MD, 21702, USA', respectively. This has now been corrected in both the PDF and HTML versions of the Article.
In the realm of animal phenotyping, manual measurements are frequently utilised. While machine-generated data show potential for enhancing high-throughput breeding, additional research and validation are imperative before incorporating them into genetic evaluation processes. This research presents a method for managing meat sheep and collecting data, utilising the Sheep Data Recorder system for data input and the Sheep Body Size Collector system for image capture. The study aimed to investigate the genetic parameter changes of growth traits in Ujumqin sheep by comparing machine-generated measurements with manual measurements. The dataset consisted of 552 data points from the offspring of 75 breeding rams and 399 breeding ewes. Six distinct random regression models were assessed to pinpoint the most suitable model for estimating genetic parameters linked to growth traits. These models were distinguished based on the inclusion or exclusion of maternal genetic effects, maternal permanent environmental effects, and covariance between maternal and direct genetic effects. Fixed factors such as individual age, individual sex, and ewe age were taken into account in the analysis. The genetic parameters for the yearling growth traits of Ujumqin sheep were calculated using ASReml software. The Akaike information criterion, the Bayesian information criterion, and fivefold cross-validation were employed to identify the optimal model. Research findings indicate that the most accurate models for manually measured data revealed heritability estimates of 0.12 ± 0.15 for BW, 0.05 ± 0.07 for body slanting length, 0.03 ± 0.07 for withers height, 0.15 ± 0.12 for hip height, 0.11 ± 0.11 for chest depth, 0.13 ± 0.13 for shoulder width, and 0.53 ± 0.15 for chest circumference. The optimal models for machine-predicted data showed heritability estimates of 0.1 ± 0.09 for body slanting length, 0.14 ± 0.12 for withers height, 0.55 ± 0.15 for hip height, 0.34 ± 0.15 for chest depth, 0.26 ± 0.15 for shoulder width, and 0.47 ± 0.16 for chest circumference. In manually measured data, genetic correlations ranged from 0.35 to 0.99, while phenotypic correlations ranged from 0.07 to 0.90. In machine data, genetic correlations ranged from -0.05 to 0.99, while phenotypic correlations ranged from 0.03 to 0.84. The results suggest that machine-based estimations may lead to an overestimation of heritability, but this discrepancy does not impact the selection of breeding models.
Obesity‐associated alterations in adipocyte metabolism are important to the development of metabolic disorders, including type 2 diabetes, a leading cause of chronic disease and death in the United States. However, we have limited understanding of the role of white adipocyte oxygen consumption in the development of obesity and its complications. Of particular interest, long‐chain acyl‐CoA synthetases (ACSL) catalyze the addition of a coenzyme‐A group to fatty acids (FA) within cells and have been hypothesized to direct FA to distinct fates within cells. Intriguingly, the ACSL4 isoform is suggested to preferentially activate polyunsaturated fatty acids, but little is known about its function in regulating adipocyte metabolism. Previously, we have demonstrated that mice with adipocyte‐specific ACSL4 ablation (Ad‐KO) on a high fat diet (HFD) are protected against obesity‐associated body weight & fat mass gain and insulin resistance compared to their wildtype littermates (ACSL4 floxed ) without any phenotypic differences on a low fat diet (Killion et al., FASEB Journal , 2015; 29:743.1). The purpose of the current research is to investigate the role of ACSL4 in regulating obesity‐associated adipocyte dysfunction, including adipocyte oxygen consumption and systemic energy expenditure. Energy expenditure in ACSL4 floxed and Ad‐KO mice was measured by TSE metabolic chamber system before mice were switched to HFD, 3 weeks of HFD, and 7 weeks of HFD (before body composition differences are observed between ACSL4 floxed and Ad‐KO mice). Interestingly, after 7 weeks on HFD, but not earlier, rates of energy expenditure (kcal/gram lean mass/day) were 10% higher in Ad‐KO mice than ACSL4 floxed littermates without differences in food intake or activity. To specifically determine the role of white adipocyte oxygen consumption, gonadal white adipocytes were isolated from mice after 12 weeks of HFD and ex vivo oxygen consumption of isolated adipocytes was measured using a Clark electrode. Remarkably, isolated adipocytes from Ad‐KO mice have 4‐fold higher rates of basal respiration in the presence of glucose (nmol O 2 /min/10 6 adipocytes) without differences in FCCP uncoupled respiration or changes in UCP1 expression compared to ACSL4 floxed littermates. In conclusion, adipocyte ablation of ACSL4 significantly protects against diet‐induced obesity‐associated decreases in adipocyte oxygen consumption and whole body energy expenditure without beiging of white adipocytes. Support or Funding Information Funding for this work is supported by NIH Training Grant 5T32DK062032‐20, DK098606‐02, P30‐DK‐46200, USDA agreement #58‐1950‐7‐70, and NIH K01DK094943.
Newly formed centrioles in cycling cells undergo a maturation process that is almost two cell cycles long before they become competent to function as microtubule-organizing centers and basal bodies. As a result, each cell contains three generations of centrioles, only one of which is able to form cilia. It is not known how this long and complex process is regulated. We show that controlled Plk1 activity is required for gradual biochemical and structural maturation of the centrioles and timely appendage assembly. Inhibition of Plk1 impeded accumulation of appendage proteins and appendage formation. Unscheduled Plk1 activity, either in cycling or interphase-arrested cells, accelerated centriole maturation and appendage and cilia formation on the nascent centrioles, erasing the age difference between centrioles in one cell. These findings provide a new understanding of how the centriole cycle is regulated and how proper cilia and centrosome numbers are maintained in the cells.
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