Objective To observe the expression of caspase-3 and transposition of Omi/HtrA2 in H9C2 by erythropoietin and/or Omi/HtrA2 silencing to explore the related anti-apoptotic mechanisms.Methods The cultured H9C2 cardiomyocytes were divided into control group,H/R group (anoxia 2 h and re-oxygenation 24 h), and different concentrations of EPO treatment groups.The release rate of lactate dehydrogenase (LDH)in cell supernatant was measured in each group.Expressions of cleaved caspase-3 and Omi/HtrA2 were measured by Western blot;then the transposition of Omi/HtrA2 between cytoplasm and mitochondria was observed.Specific siRNA interfering fragment was transfected into H9C2 cardiomyocytes by liposome method.Its silencing effect on Omi/HtrA2 was measured by RT-PCR and Western blot.The survival rate,release rate and expression of cleaved caspase-3 were measured.And the expression of Omi/HtrA2 was measured in cytoplasm and mitochondria in H9C2 (transposition of Omi/HtrA2 ).Results Compared with H/R group,the release of LDH and expression of cleaved caspase-3 were decreased; the transposition of Omi/HtrA2 from mitochondria to cytoplasm in H/R treatment groups was increased compared with control group,while that in EPO (20 IU/mL)group decreased.si-HtrA2 group transfected with siRNA showed a decreased release of LDH and expression of cleaved caspase-3 with all significant variances (P <0.05).Conclusion EPO exerts a cytoprotective effect by inhibiting the transposition of Omi/HtrA2 and hence the activation of caspases-3 pathway.

Objective: To investigate the effect and mechanism of helix B surface peptide (HBSP) on myocardial ischemia reperfusion injury (MIRI) in experimental mice.
Methods: The MIRI model was established by ligation of anterior descending coronary artery of the mice for 45 min and followed by corresponding treatment at 5 min before reperfusion. A total of 64 male ICR mice were randomly assigned to 4 group:①Sham group,②MIRI group, the mice received normal saline at 5 min before reperfusion,③HBSP group, MIRI mice received HBSP at 5 min before reperfusion and④HBSP+PD98059 group, MIRI mice received PD98059 (a speciifc blocker of ERK1/2) at 20 min before reperfusion and followed by HBSP at 5 min before reperfusion.n=16 in each group, all animals were treated for 2 hours. The area of myocardial infarction (MI) was detected by TTC-EB double staining method, the myocardial apoptosis rate was examined by TUNEL method, the levels of protein expression of ERK1/2 and phosphorylation of ERK1/2 were measured by Western blot analysis.
Results: Compared with MIRI group, HBSP group presented decreased MI area, decreased myocardial apoptosis rate and increased phopsphorylation level of ERK1/2, allP<0.05. Compared with HBSP group, HBSP+PD98059 group showed decreased phopsphorylation level of ERK1/2, increased myocardial apoptosis rate and increased MI area, allP<0.05.
Conclusion: HBSP may reduce the MI area via inhibiting myocardial apoptosis and therefore, protecting the experimental mice from MIRI; the mechanism might be related to the activation of ERK1/2 pathway.

OBJECTIVETo evaluate the possible role of tight junction protein Occludin in nasal polyps.

METHODSThe expression of Claudin-1, Occludin and ZO-1 in nasal polyps (n = 20) and healthy uncinate mucosa (n = 15) were examined using immunohistochemical staining, real-time quantitative polymerase chain reaction (PCR) and Western blot analysis. The regulatory effects of proinflammatory cytokines (IFN-γ, IL-13, IL-17, TGF-β, TGF-α) on the expression of Occludin in cultured human nasal epithelial cells were investigated.

RESULTSThe immunohistochemical results showed that Claudin-1, Occludin and ZO-1 were detected both in the nasal polyp group and the control group. The expression sites were the cell membrane and cytoplasm of nasal mucosa epithelial cells. The mean optical density of Claudin-1, Occludin and ZO-1 were 0.187 ± 0.076,0.172 ± 0.109 and 0.098 ± 0.035 respectively in the nasal polyp group and were significantly lower than those in the control group (0.312 ± 0.101, 0.220 ± 0.069 and 0.233 ± 0.093 respectively), the differences were significant (t = 9.345, t = 3.301, t = 13.323, all P < 0.01).RT-PCR results showed that the relative expression of Occludin mRNA was 0.000 117 ± 0.000 035 in the nasal polyp group and was significantly lower than that in the control group(0.000 464 ± 0.000 134), and the difference was significant (Z = -5.0, P < 0.01) . There was no statistically significant difference in the relative expression of Claudin-1 and ZO-1 mRNA between the nasal polyp group and the control group (P > 0.05) . After the cultured human nasal epithelial cells were stimulated by IL-13, IL-17, IFN-γ and other proinflammatory cytokines, the relative expression of Occludin mRNA was 0.631 ± 0.039, 0.581 ± 0.029 and 0.648 ± 0.040, respectively. Compared with the unstimulated control group, the differences were statistically significant (t = 16.299, 24.669 and 14.995 respectively, all P < 0.05).Western blot analyse showed that the relative grayscale in the above proinflammatory cytokines stimulation groups was 0.650 ± 0.061,0.482 ± 0.106 and 0.536 ± 0.109, respectively. Compared with the unstimulated control group, the differences were statistically significant (t = 9.880, 8.442 and 7.310 respectively, all P < 0.05).

CONCLUSIONSThe reduced expression of Occludin might be involved in the pathogenesis of nasal polyps.

Claudin-1 ; Cytokines ; Epithelial Cells ; Humans ; Interleukin-13 ; Interleukin-17 ; Nasal Mucosa ; Nasal Polyps ; metabolism ; Occludin ; genetics ; metabolism ; RNA, Messenger ; Tight Junctions ; metabolism ; Transforming Growth Factor alpha ; Zonula Occludens-1 Protein

Retinoid X receptor α (RXRα) and its N-terminally truncated version tRXRα play important roles in tumorigenesis, while some RXRα ligands possess potent anti-cancer activities by targeting and modulating the tumorigenic effects of RXRα and tRXRα. Here we describe NSC-640358 (N-6), a thiazolyl-pyrazole derived compound, acts as a selective RXRα ligand to promote TNFα-mediated apoptosis of cancer cell. N-6 binds to RXRα and inhibits the transactivation of RXRα homodimer and RXRα/TR3 heterodimer. Using mutational analysis and computational study, we determine that Arg316 in RXRα, essential for 9-cis-retinoic acid binding and activating RXRα transactivation, is not required for antagonist effects of N-6, whereas Trp305 and Phe313 are crucial for N-6 binding to RXRα by forming extra π-π stacking interactions with N-6, indicating a distinct RXRα binding mode of N-6. N-6 inhibits TR3-stimulated transactivation of Gal4-DBD-RXRα-LBD by binding to the ligand binding pocket of RXRα-LBD, suggesting a strategy to regulate TR3 activity indirectly by using small molecules to target its interacting partner RXRα. For its physiological activities, we show that N-6 strongly inhibits tumor necrosis factor α (TNFα)-induced AKT activation and stimulates TNFα-mediated apoptosis in cancer cells in an RXRα/tRXRα dependent manner. The inhibition of TNFα-induced tRXRα/p85α complex formation by N-6 implies that N-6 targets tRXRα to inhibit TNFα-induced AKT activation and to induce cancer cell apoptosis. Together, our data illustrate a new RXRα ligand with a unique RXRα binding mode and the abilities to regulate TR3 activity indirectly and to induce TNFα-mediated cancer cell apoptosis by targeting RXRα/tRXRα.
Apoptosis ; drug effects ; Cell Line, Tumor ; Enzyme Activation ; drug effects ; Humans ; Ligands ; Molecular Docking Simulation ; Nuclear Receptor Subfamily 4, Group A, Member 1 ; genetics ; metabolism ; Oximes ; metabolism ; pharmacology ; Protein Conformation ; Proto-Oncogene Proteins c-akt ; metabolism ; Pyrazoles ; metabolism ; pharmacology ; Retinoid X Receptor alpha ; chemistry ; genetics ; metabolism ; Thiazoles ; metabolism ; pharmacology ; Transcription, Genetic ; drug effects ; Transcriptional Activation ; drug effects ; Tumor Necrosis Factor-alpha ; metabolism