Functional Analysis of Dunaliella salina Calmodulin Kinase Gene

[Objectives] This study was conducted to investigate the function of Dunaliella salina calmodulin kinase(CaM K) gene.[Methods] The sense and antisense gene fragments(223 bp) and spacer sequence(129 bp) of D.salina calmodulin kinase gene were cloned and inserted into the downstream part of the35 S promoter of the eukaryotic expression vector pM DCMGN-Cat.The siRNA expression system of CaM K gene was successfully constructed.The p CaM K-RNAi expression vector was transformed into D.salina cells by the LiA c/PEG-mediated method,giving transgenic D.salina.The expression of CaM K gene was then analyzed by real-time fluorescence quantitative PCR.[Results]The expression of CaM K gene in the transgenic D.salina was significantly reduced,by 70% compared with the control group,suggesting that the expression of CaM K gene was significantly inhibited.The examination of the growth status of D.salina showed that D.salina cell division and proliferation were also affected.It is proved that CaM K gene has a positive regulation effect on the division and proliferation of D.salina cells.[Conclusions] The study provides important information for further elucidating the function and action mechanism of D.salina calmodulin kinase gene.

SOD1抑制与活性氧信号转导的调控

铜锌超氧化物歧化酶(Copper-zinc Superoxide Dismutase, SOD1)是胞内广泛存在的抗氧化酶,催化O■歧化为H_2O_2和O_2,维持胞内活性氧物种(ROS)内稳态。癌细胞的生长、增殖都依赖于适度高浓度的H_2O_2,高表达的SOD1维持癌细胞内较高水平的H_2O_2和ROS内稳态。抑制癌细胞内SOD1的活性,可以有效调节ROS信号通路,抑制癌细胞的生长、增殖,阻滞癌细胞周期,促进癌细胞凋亡。因此,通过抑制其活性调控癌细胞内ROS信号网络并选择性杀死癌细胞已经成为抗癌药物设计的一个重要方向。本文主要总结了各类SOD1抑制剂,以及SOD1抑制对ROS信号转导的调控,分析了SOD1特异抑制选择性杀死癌细胞的机制。

Procalcitonin and Liver Disease: A Literature Review

Procalcitonin(PCT)is a widely used biomarker for the diagnosis of bacterial infections.It is produced by various organs and the liver is considered to be the most important site of production.Severe liver dysfunction has been shown to influence PCT levels.Patients with no sources of infection who have liver disease are observed to have increased serum levels of PCT,thereby reducing the diagnostic utility and value within this particular patient subset.Here,we have summarized the relationship between PCT and liver disease,including liver cirrhosis,liver failure,and liver transplantation.

Validation of Non-invasive Fibrosis Scores for Predicting Advanced Fibrosis in Metabolic-associated Fatty Liver Disease

Background and Aims:Metabolic-associated fatty liver disease(MAFLD)is a newly proposed terminology from 2020;yet,the applicability of conventional noninvasive fi-brosis models is still unknown for it.We aimed to evaluate the performance of conventional noninvasive fibrosis scores in MAFLD.Methods:The NHANES 2017-2018 datasets were used to compare the performances of different non-invasive fibrosis scores in MAFLD,including the aspartate aminotransferase(AST)to platelet ratio index(APRI),body mass index(BMI)-AST/alanine aminotransferase(ALT)ratio and diabetes score(BARD),fibrosis-4 index(FIB-4),and NAFLD fibrosis score(NFS).Moreover,Asian patients with biopsy-proven MAFLD were enrolled to further validate the findings.Results:A total of 2,622 participants in the Na-tional Health and Nutrition Examination Survey(NHANES)cohort and 293 patients with MAFLD in the Asian cohort were included.Patients in the Asian cohort had a lower BMI and higher liver enzymes(p<0.001).The area under the receiver operating characteristic curve(AUROC)of NFS was the largest in the NHANES cohort and Asian cohorts(0.679 and 0.699,respectively).The AUROC of NFS was followed by APRI,FIB-4,and BARD in the NHANES cohort(0.616,0.601,and 0.589,respectively).In the Asian cohort,the AUROC of APRI,FIB-4,and BARD for predicting advanced fibrosis were 0.625,0.683,and 0.615,respectively.The performance of FIB-4 was better in the Asian cohort than that in the NHANES cohort.Conclusions:NFS is better for predicting advanced fibrosis in MAFLD.FIB-4 can be an al-ternative choice for MAFLD with high liver enzymes when NFS is unavailable.Novel efficient noninvasive fibrosis scor-ing systems are highly required for patients with MAFLD.

The Association between Meteorological Factors and the Prevalence of Acute-on-chronic Liver Failure:A Population-based Study,2007-2016

Background and Aims:The aim of this study was to inves-tigate the effect(s)of meteorological factors on the preva-lence of acute-on-chronic liver failure(ACLF)based on 10-years'worth of population data.Methods:We retrospec-tively collected ACLF case data from January 2007 to Decem-ber 2016 from three major hospitals in Fuzhou City,China.Climatic data,including rainfall,mean temperature,differen-ces in temperature(delta temperature)and mean humidity for each month were downloaded from the China Climatic Data Service Center.Following data collection,Poisson regression analysis was used to estimate the effect(s)of climatic factors on the risk of the prevalence of ACLF.Results:The population consisted of a total of 3510 cases,with a mean age of 44.7±14.8 years-old and with 79.8%being male.Upon analyzing the population data,we found a growing trend and seasonal pattern of monthly counts of ACLF-related hospitalization throughout the past decade.Specifically,the primary peak of ACLF prevalence was in January and the secondary peak was in July.Poisson regression showed mean temperature(risk ratio=0.991,95%CI=0.986–0.996)and mean humidity(risk ra-tio=1.011,95%CI=1.006–1.017)to be independently cor-related with the monthly cases of ACLF.The results suggest that every unit increase of mean temperature(1°C)and mean humidity(1%)are associated with 0.991-and 1.011-fold changes of ACLF cases,respectively.Rainfall and delta temper-ature did not appear to affect the prevalence of this disease.Conclusions:The hospitalization for ACLF peaks in January and July.Low temperature and high humidity appear to func-tion as factors contributing to this seasonal pattern.