1.Direct activation of expression vector withβ-casein gene promoter using engineered TALE transcription factors in mouse fibroblasts
Wenhui PI ; Long LIANG ; Hong TANG ; Yiyuan ZHANG ; Yanhua GUO ; Limin WANG ; Chunhe XIANG ; Ping ZHOU ; Shouren LIU
Acta Laboratorium Animalis Scientia Sinica 2014;(5):13-16
Objective TALE-TFs were adopted to provide a new way in detection of the expression result ofβ-ca-sein gene promoter-interesting gene expression cassettes in mouse fibroblasts.Methods TALE-TFs of eukaryotic expres-sion plasmid and expression cassette withβ-casein gene promoter and red fluorescent protein reporter gene were co-nucleo-fected into mouse fibroblasts by Amaxa nucleofector.Results and Conclusion β-casein gene promoter was activated by artificial TALE-TFs in the mouse fibroblasts.The way is a new expression verification system instead of mammary epithelial cells with fibroblasts.
2.Effects of social isolation on the cognition and expression of 5-HT2C receptor and ADAR1 in BALB/c mice
Hong XU ; Weizhi YU ; Ying XUE ; Dong AN ; Wei CHEN ; Jin LIANG ; Yue XING ; Zhaoyang XIAO ; Yiping SUN ; Yiyuan TANG ; Shengming YIN
Chinese Journal of Behavioral Medicine and Brain Science 2017;26(5):385-389
ObjectiveTo explore the effects of social isolation on the cognition and expression of 5-HT2C receptor(5-HT2CR) and adenosine deaminase that act on RNA 1(ADAR1) in BALB/c mice.MethodsThe healthy BALB/c mice were isolated for 2,4,and 8 weeks individually since postnatal 21 days respectively to set up isolation mice model,the same age mice without isolation were regarded as control group.The new object location and the new object recognition tests were used to measure the spatial and non-spatial cognitive function,and western blot was used to measure the protein expression of 5-HT2CR and ADAR1.ResultsThe new object location test showed that the spatial discrimination index (DI) of BALB/c mice isolated for 2 weeks was decreased significantly compared with the control group(control group was (0.075±0.340),isolation group was (-0.653±0.308),P<0.05),and no obvious difference was found for the group isolated for 4 and 8 weeks.The new object recognition test showed that the non-spatial DI of BALB/c mice isolated for 2 and 4 weeks were decreased significantly compared with the control group(control 2 weeks group was (0.088±0.210),isolation 2 weeks group was (-0.945±0.194),P<0.05;control 4 weeks group was (0.105±0.267),isolation 4 weeks group was (-0.506±0.215),P<0.05),and no obvious difference was found for the group isolated for 8 weeks.Compared with the control group the expression of 5-HT2CR and ADAR1 in the hippocampus were decreased significantly for the group isolated for 2 weeks.(5-HT2CR:control group was (1.025±0.144),isolation group was (0.891±0.026),P<0.05.ADAR1: control group was (0.839±0.120),isolation group was (0.629±0.094),P<0.05).ConclusionsTwo week social isolation results in the decrease of spatial and non-spatial cognitive function in BALB/c mice,in the meanwhile,social isolation stress results in the obvious decrease of 5-HT2C receptor and ADAR1 protein expression in the hippocampus of BALB/c mice.
3.Diagnosis and treatment of nephroblastoma with WAGR syndrome
Yiyuan LIANG ; Hongcheng SONG ; Ning SUN ; Weiping ZHANG ; Jun TIAN ; Minglei LI ; Chengru HUANG
Chinese Journal of Urology 2022;43(2):96-100
Objective:To discuss the diagnosis and treatment 0f WAGR syndrome.Methods:The clinical data of 10 cases of WAGR syndrome children admitted to our hospital from January 2008 to November 2019 were respectively analyzed including the clinical features, diagnosis, and surgical treatments. There were 6 males and 4 females, aged from 13 to 36 months, with an average of 23.6 months. 9 cases were diagnosed as iris absence due to ocular abnormalities in infancy, and 1 case was diagnosed as iris absence due to ocular abnormalities by physical examination because of renal mass. There were 2 boys with cryptorchidism, and 2 boys with hypospadias, 1 of which did not received operation because of mild hypospadias, and another undergoing surgery. There were no abnormality of genitourinary system in the remaining 5 cases. There were 7 cases of unilateral nephroblastoma, with 1 case at the left and 6 cases at the right, and there were 3 cases of bilateral nephroblastoma. Abdominal doppler ultrasound and enhanced abdominal CT were performed for all patients. Abdominal doppler ultrasound indicated solid mass in renal parenchyma or non-uniform echo zone. Abdominal enhanced CT indicated renal tumor with diameter of 1.8 cm-12.7 cm and locally non-uniform enhanced echo. Among the 7 cases of unilateral nephroblastoma, 4 underwent nephrectomy, 1 underwent tumor enucleation, and 2 underwent tumor enucleation for unilateral tumor complicated with nephrogenic rests. There were 3 cases of bilateral nephroblastoma, 2 cases undergoing unilateral tumor enucleation firstly and contralateral tumor enucleation following chemotherapy. One case underwent unilateral tumor nephrectomy followed by contralateral tumor enucleation. One case of unilateral nephrogenic rests did not undergo renal tumor surgery. Preoperative chemotherapy was performed in 7 patients, including 3 bilateral nephroblastoma, 1 unilateral nephroblastoma combined with contralateral nephroblastoma, and 3 unilateral tumors larger enough to pass the midline. The chemotherapy regimen was VCR+ ACTD in 5 cases, VCR+ ACTD+ CTX+ DOX/CDDP+ VP16 and VCR+ CTX+ DOX in another 2 cases respectively.Results:All 10 cases were diagnosed as nephroblastoma. There were 3 patients without preoperative chemotherapy which belongs to COG stageⅠ(1 case) and STAGEⅢ(2 cases); Preoperative chemotherapy was performed in 2 patients with SIOP stage Ⅱ, 2 patients with SIOP stage Ⅲ, and 3 patients with SIOP stageⅤ. Nine children received regular chemotherapy after surgery, among which 1 child in stage Ⅰ received DD4A chemotherapy regimens, 2 children in stage Ⅱ received DD4A and EE4A regimen respectively, and 3 of the 4 children in stage Ⅲ received regular chemotherapy after surgery, including EE4A(1 case)and DD4A(2 cases). EE4A(1 case)and DD4A(2 cases) chemotherapy were performed in 3 patients with stage Ⅴ according to their unilateral tumor stage. Ten cases were followed up, with 9 of the 10 cases having no tumor recurrence or metastasis, and death in 1 case. At present, abdominal doppler ultrasound of 1 child with nephrogenic rests showed no obvious progress. The renal function of 9 children was not significantly abnormal during the regular follow-up. The results of intelligence screening showed that 6 of the 10 patients were significantly behind their peers, and 4 had no obvious abnormality compared with their peers. Gene tests were performed 3 times after surgery, and the results showed the deletion of 11p13 and adjacent distal genes.Conclusions:WAGR syndrome is rare in clinical practice, and renal ultrasound should be monitored after diagnosis to detect renal tumors in early stage. For bilateral cases, renal function should be preserved as long as possible in order to reduce the probability of renal failure. Long-term follow-up of nephroblastoma with this syndrome is particularly important.
4.Thyroxine promotes the progression of integrin α vβ 3-positive differentiated thyroid cancer through the ERK1/2 pathway
Yiqian LIANG ; Xi JIA ; Yuanbo WANG ; Huijie LI ; Yiyuan YANG ; Yuemin ZHANG ; Hui XU ; Aimin YANG ; Rui GAO
Chinese Journal of Nuclear Medicine and Molecular Imaging 2023;43(8):452-458
Objective:To explore whether thyroxine (T 4) could promote differentiated thyroid cancer (DTC) progression by binding to integrin α vβ 3in vitro and its downstream mechanism. Methods:Papillary thyroid cancer cell lines TPC-1, K1 and follicular thyroid cancer (FTC) cell line FTC133 were cultured in vitro, and the expressions of integrin α vβ 3 in those 3 DTC cell lines were determined with immunofluorescence and flow cytometry analysis. After the treatment of T 4, tetraiodo thyroacetic acid (Tetrac) and Arg-Gly-Asp (RGD) peptide alone or in combination, the proliferation and metastatic potential of DTC cell lines were detected by cell counting kit-8 (CCK-8), Transwell migration and invasion assays. The small interfering RNA (siRNA) transfection was used to verify whether integrin α v or β 3 subunit knockdown could reverse the effect of T 4 on DTC cells. The expression levels of downstream signaling proteins phosphorylated extracellular signal-regulated kinase (p-ERK)1/2 and total extracellular signal-regulated kinase (ERK)1/2 were detected by Western blot. The effects of mitogen-activated protein kinase kinase (MEK)1/2 inhibitor (GSK1120212) on the proliferation, migration and invasion of T 4-treated cells were detected. One-way analysis of variance and Tukey test were used for data analysis. Results:The integrin α vβ 3 expressions in TPC-1, K1 and FTC133 cells were all positive, with the relative mean fluorescence intensity (MFI) of 61.93±18.61, 16.89±2.43 and 32.36±0.83, and the percentages of positive cells of (94.38±1.30)%, (74.11±3.87)% and (50.67±1.78)%, respectively ( F values: 13.36 and 217.30, P=0.006 and P<0.001). Compared with control group, the proliferation, migration and invasion in the three DTC cell lines treated with T 4 were significantly enhanced (96 h, F values: 62.67-297.50, q values: 13.15-20.73, all P<0.001). T 4-induced cell proliferation, migration and invasion were markedly reversed by Tetrac or RGD (96 h, q values: 8.61-17.54, all P<0.001). T 4-induced cell proliferation, migration and invasion were also significantly inhibited by the knockdown of integrin α v or β 3 subunit (72 h, F values: 7.75-70.98, q values: 4.77-15.21, all P<0.05). Western blot results showed that the phosphorylation levels of ERK1/2 in DTC cells were significantly increased by T 4 treatment, and the T 4-induced activation of ERK1/2 signaling pathway could be blocked by Tetrac, RGD, integrin α v or β 3 subunit knockdown. T 4-induced cell proliferation, migration and invasion were significantly reversed by GSK1120212 (96 h, F values: 47.53-151.40, q values: 10.32-16.65, all P<0.001). Conclusion:T 4 can promote cell proliferation and metastasis of DTC cells by binding to integrin α vβ 3 and activating the ERK1/2 pathway.
5.Diagnosis and treatment of unilateral ectopic ureter in children
Yiyuan LIANG ; Hongcheng SONG ; Ning SUN ; Weiping ZHANG ; Jun TIAN ; Minglei LI ; Chengru HUANG
Chinese Journal of Urology 2019;40(8):583-586
Objective To discuss the diagnosis and treatment of unilateral ectopic ureter in children.Methods The clinical data of 41 cases of ureteral ectopic children admitted to our hospital from January 2014 to June 2018 were retrospectively analyzed including the clinical features,diagnosis,surgical treatments.There were 4 males and 37 females patients,aged from 0.4 to 12.7 years,with an average of 3.5 years old.Urinary incontinence was the main manifestation in 35 cases,including 14 cases with urinary tract infection.Preoperative ultrasonography and IVP examination were performed in all the 41 children.The dynamic radionuclide renal imaging was performed in the children who showed no renal inhencement with IVP.There were 27 cases of ipsilateral renal duplication and 9 cases of ipsilateral renal dysplasia.Ectopic fusion of kidney with ipsilateral ectopic ureter has one case on each side,and bilateral renal duplication with ectopic fusion of kidney with left ureteral ectopic in 1 case.The ipsilateral kidneys were normal in 2 cases.There were 27 cases with renal duplication,24 cases with upper renal dysplasia due to upper heminephrectomy,3 cases with well upper renal function,2 cases with lower superior ureteral pelvis anastomosis,and 1 case with ureterocystostomy.Laparoscopic dysplasia nephrectomy was performed on 9 patients with renal dysplasia,and nephrectomy was performed on 3 patients with renal dysplasia with ectopic renal fusion.Ureterocystostomy was performed in 2 cases with normal kidney.Results All 41 patients were followed up for 4-57 months,with an average of 25.3 months.Among the 35 children with urinary incontinence before the operation,33 cases had complete disappearance of urinary incontinence symptoms,and 2 cases had urgent urinary incontinence after the operation,presenting as frequent and small amount of urine discharge,with a strong sense of urination urgency.The micturition interval was shortened,ranging from 30 to 40min in the daytime,and 2 to 3 hours at night.The parents of the children were required to remind them to micturate regularly.Of the 41 cases,3 developed urinary tract infection 6-10 months after operation,and cured by antibiotics without recurrence.Conclusions Ectopic ureter is relatively rare,but urinary incontinence is the most common clinical manifestation.Ultrasound examination could be the preferred examination method.IVP further identified the patients with ectopic ureter who had kidney combined with malformation and renal function.The surgical treatments are mainly based on the corresponding renal function,and the prognosis is good.