OBJECTIVES: To elucidate the anti-aging effect of β-sitosterol (BS), an important component in the fruits of Alpinia oxyphylla Miq., in C. elegans and its regulatory effect on ETS-5 gene to modulate ferroptosis. METHODS: C. elegans treated with 10 µg/mL BS were monitored for survival time and changes in body length, motility, and reproductive function. The effect of ETS-5 gene knockdown on survival time of C. elegans was observed, and the changes in fat accumulation and lipid redox homeostasis in the transfected C. elegans were assessed using Oil Red O staining and by detecting MDA levels and the GSH/GSSG ratio. The mRNA expression levels of ferroptosis-related genes (FTN-1, GPX-1 and AAT-9) were detected using qPCR. The effects of BS treatment and ETS-5 knockdown on AAT-9 enzyme activity in C. elegans were examined. The effect of BS on nuclear localization of FEV (the human homolog of ETS-5) was validated in cultured human umbilical venous endothelial cells (HUVECs). RESULTS: Both BS treatment and ETS-5 knockdown significantly prolonged the lifespan, promoted lipid accumulation and reduced lipid peroxidation in C. elegans. ETS-5 knockdown resulted in upregulated expressions of the ferroptosis repressors GPX-1, AAT-9 and FTN-1 and increased the GSH/GSSG ratio in C. elegans. CONCLUSIONS BS inhibits ferroptosis in C. elegans by suppressing the expression of ETS-5 transcription factor and hence the activity of AAT-9 enzyme, a key gene for ferroptosis, which in turn prolongs the lifespan of C. elegans.
Animals ; Caenorhabditis elegans/physiology* ; Ferroptosis/drug effects* ; Alpinia/chemistry* ; Sitosterols/pharmacology* ; Longevity/drug effects* ; Fruit/chemistry* ; Humans

Objective To elucidate the anti-aging effect of β-sitosterol(BS),an important component in the fruits of Alpinia oxyphylla Miq.,in C.elegans and its regulatory effect on ETS-5 gene to modulate ferroptosis.Methods C.elegans treated with 10 μg/mL BS were monitored for survival time and changes in body length,motility,and reproductive function.The effect of ETS-5 gene knockdown on survival time of C.elegans was observed,and the changes in fat accumulation and lipid redox homeostasis in the transfected C.elegans were assessed using Oil Red O staining and by detecting MDA levels and the GSH/GSSG ratio.The mRNA expression levels of ferroptosis-related genes(FTN-1,GPX-1 and AAT-9)were detected using qPCR.The effects of BS treatment and ETS-5 knockdown on AAT-9 enzyme activity in C.elegans were examined.The effect of BS on nuclear localization of FEV(the human homolog of ETS-5)was validated in cultured human umbilical venous endothelial cells(HUVECs).Results Both BS treatment and ETS-5 knockdown significantly prolonged the lifespan,promoted lipid accumulation and reduced lipid peroxidation in C.elegans.ETS-5 knockdown resulted in upregulated expressions of the ferroptosis repressors GPX-1,AAT-9 and FTN-1 and increased the GSH/GSSG ratio in C.elegans.Conclusion BS inhibits ferroptosis in C.elegans by suppressing the expression of ETS-5 transcription factor and hence the activity of AAT-9 enzyme,a key gene for ferroptosis,which in turn prolongs the lifespan of C.elegans.

Objective To explore the molecular mechanism of cerebroprotein hydrolysate-1(CH-1)in improving cognitive impairment of VD at animal level,and to determine the regulatory effect of CH-1 on Nrf2/ARE signaling pathway.Methods Thirty-six SD rats were randomly divided into sham operation group,VD group,low-and high-dose groups,with 9 rats in each group.VD model was established by bilateral common carotid artery ligation,and CH-1 was injected intraperitone-ally for 3 weeks.Morris water maze test and new object recognition test were performed to evalu-ate cognitive function.Hippocampal tissues was collected for immunohistochemistry/Western blot analysis.Results Compared with the sham operation group,the VD group exhibited significantly prolonged escape latency at 2-4 d of Morris water maze test,and up-regulated expression of ubiquitinated protein,LC3 Ⅱ/Ⅰ ratio,P65 and Beclin1 protein in the hippocampus,while down-regulated P62 expression(P＜0.05).Obviously shortened escape latency was observed in the high-dose group at 3-4 d and the low-dose group at 4 d than the VD group(P＜0.05).The resi-dence time in target quadrant,number of platform crossings,total exploration time of novel object recognition in the high-dose group and the total exploration time of novel object recognition in the low-dose group were significantly longer than those in VD group(P＜0.05).The expression levels of ubiquitinated,LC3 Ⅱ/Ⅰ ratio,P65 and Beclin1 were significantly lower in the low-dose group and high-dose group than the VD group(P＜0.05).The expression level of P62 protein in the VD group,low-and high-dose group were significantly increased in a dose-dependent manner(2.78±0.44,1.80±0.24 vs 3.67±0.34;2.37±0.26,1.53±0.09 vs 2.92±0.19;2.74±0.14,1.81±0.19 vs 3.93±0.50;2.28±0.17,1.72±0.17 vs 3.17±0.31,P＜0.05).Conclusion CH-1 can effectively improve the cognitive ability of VD rats and reduce the autophagy of hippocampal neurons.This therapeutic effect may be closely related to its enhancing activity of Nrf2/ARE signaling pathway.

Objective To explore the molecular mechanism of cerebroprotein hydrolysate-1(CH-1)in improving cognitive impairment of VD at animal level,and to determine the regulatory effect of CH-1 on Nrf2/ARE signaling pathway.Methods Thirty-six SD rats were randomly divided into sham operation group,VD group,low-and high-dose groups,with 9 rats in each group.VD model was established by bilateral common carotid artery ligation,and CH-1 was injected intraperitone-ally for 3 weeks.Morris water maze test and new object recognition test were performed to evalu-ate cognitive function.Hippocampal tissues was collected for immunohistochemistry/Western blot analysis.Results Compared with the sham operation group,the VD group exhibited significantly prolonged escape latency at 2-4 d of Morris water maze test,and up-regulated expression of ubiquitinated protein,LC3 Ⅱ/Ⅰ ratio,P65 and Beclin1 protein in the hippocampus,while down-regulated P62 expression(P＜0.05).Obviously shortened escape latency was observed in the high-dose group at 3-4 d and the low-dose group at 4 d than the VD group(P＜0.05).The resi-dence time in target quadrant,number of platform crossings,total exploration time of novel object recognition in the high-dose group and the total exploration time of novel object recognition in the low-dose group were significantly longer than those in VD group(P＜0.05).The expression levels of ubiquitinated,LC3 Ⅱ/Ⅰ ratio,P65 and Beclin1 were significantly lower in the low-dose group and high-dose group than the VD group(P＜0.05).The expression level of P62 protein in the VD group,low-and high-dose group were significantly increased in a dose-dependent manner(2.78±0.44,1.80±0.24 vs 3.67±0.34;2.37±0.26,1.53±0.09 vs 2.92±0.19;2.74±0.14,1.81±0.19 vs 3.93±0.50;2.28±0.17,1.72±0.17 vs 3.17±0.31,P＜0.05).Conclusion CH-1 can effectively improve the cognitive ability of VD rats and reduce the autophagy of hippocampal neurons.This therapeutic effect may be closely related to its enhancing activity of Nrf2/ARE signaling pathway.

Increasing understanding of the pathogenesis of rheumatoid arthritis (RA) has remarkably promoted the development of effective therapeutic regimens of RA. Nevertheless, the inadequate response to current therapies in a proportion of patients, the systemic toxicity accompanied by long-term administration or distribution in non-targeted sites and the comprised efficacy caused by undesirable bioavailability, are still unsettled problems lying across the full remission of RA. So far, these existing limitations have inspired comprehensive academic researches on nanomedicines for RA treatment. A variety of versatile nanocarriers with controllable physicochemical properties, tailorable drug release pattern or active targeting ability were fabricated to enhance the drug delivery efficiency in RA treatment. This review aims to provide an up-to-date progress regarding to RA treatment using nanomedicines in the last 5 years and concisely discuss the potential application of several newly emerged therapeutic strategies such as inducing the antigen-specific tolerance, pro-resolving therapy or regulating the immunometabolism for RA treatments.

Animals ; Chromosomal Proteins, Non-Histone ; chemistry ; genetics ; metabolism ; Humans ; Models, Molecular ; Mutation ; Transcription Factors ; chemistry ; genetics ; metabolism

[ ABSTRACT] AIM:To investigate the expression relevance of transcription factors GATA-1 and GATA-2 in the bone marrow CD71 +cells of a high-altitude polycythemia (HAPC) rat model.METHODS:Male SD rats (n=48) were randomly divided into normal control group and HAPC model group .HAPC model was established at an altitude of 4 300 m in the natural environment and verified by the morphology and quantity of the bone marrow cells and hematologic parameters detection .A relative change in the trend of bone marrow CD 71 +cell numbers was detected by flow cytometry analysis .The expression of GATA-1 and GATA-2 at mRNA and protein levels in the CD 71 +cells was examined by RT-qPCR and West-ern blot .CD71 +cells were cultured under hypoxic condition and transfected with the optimal interference sequence of GA -TA-1shRNA1 for 96 h.The expression of GATA-1 and GATA-2 at mRNA and protein levels was detected by RT-qPCR and Western blot .RESULTS:The establishment of the animal model with HAPC was successful as the bone marrow smears and the hematologic parameters showed compared with the control .The quantity of the bone marrow CD 71 +cells of HAPC rats were significantly increased and the expression of GATA-1 at mRNA and protein levels in the CD 71 +cells were higher than those of the control .The expression of GATA-2 at mRNA and protein levels was similar to that of the control .The correla-tion analysis showed that the expression of GATA-1 was negatively correlated with that of GATA-2 in the control, while no obvious correlation between them was observed in the HAPC rats .The expression of GATA-1 at mRNA and protein levels in HAPC group was lower than that in control group after interfered by GATA-1 shRNA1 for 96 h, but no obvious diversity of GATA-2 expression between the 2 groups was observed .CONCLUSION:GATA-1 and GATA-2 are abnormally expressed and their negative correlation is destroyed in HAPC , which may be one of the pathogenesis of HAPC .

Objective To explore the influence ofhypoxia-inducible factor-2 αlpha (HIF-2α) on the expression of erythroid-specific transcription factor GATA-1 in bone marrow CD71+ cells of rat model with high altitude polycythemia (HAPC).Methods A total of 48 male SD rats were selected and randomly divided into normal control group and HAPC group.HAPC model was established at an altitude of 4 300 meters in the natural environment and verified by bone marrow cell classification and counting,hematologic parameters and serum EPO detection.Bone marrow CD71 + cells were separated by a combination of methods with density gradient centrifugation and magnetic activated cell sorting.The changes of expression level of HIF-2α,GATA-1 mRNA and proteins were detected by Q-PCR and Western blot.CD71 + cells were cultured under hypoxia condition and transfected with selected optimal HIF-2α shRNAi3 for 96 h.And the expression level of HIF-2α and GATA-1 mRNA and proteins were detected by Q-PCR and Western blot.Results The results of bone marrow cell counts,the hematologic parameters and the serum EPO content showed that the HAPC rat model was successfully established.The expression of HIF-2α and GATA-1 mRNA and protein in bone marrow CD71 + cells of HAPC group was higher than that in control group (P＜0.05).And HIF-2α and GATA-1 of HAPC group were positively correlated at the expression levels of mRNA and protein,respectively (r=0.923,P＜0.01;r=0.838,P＜0.01).However,the expression of HIF-2α and GATA-1 mRNA and protein in HAPC group was significantly lower than that in control groups after interfered by HIF-2α shRNAi3 for 96 h (P＜0.05).Conclusion The effect of HIF-2α on GATA-1 expression may be correlated with the pathogenesis of HAPC.