Modulation of miRNA Expression by Dietary Polyphenols in apoE Deficient Mice: A New Mechanism of the Action of Polyphenols

Background: Polyphenols are the most abundant antioxidants in the human diet and are widespread constituents of fruits and beverages, such as tea, coffee or wine. Epidemiological, clinical and animal studies support a role of polyphenols in the prevention of various diseases, such as cardiovascular diseases, cancers or neurodegenerative diseases. Recent findings suggest that polyphenols could interact with cellular signaling cascades regulating the activity of transcription factors and consequently affecting the expression of genes. However, the impact of polyphenol on the expression of microRNA, small non-coding RNAs, has not yet been studied. The aim of this study was to investigate the impact of dietary supplementation with polyphenols at nutritional doses on miRNA expression in the livers of apolipoprotein E-deficient mice (apoE(-/-)) jointly with mRNA expression profiling. [br/] Methodology/Principal Findings: Using microarrays, we measured the global miRNA expression in the livers of wild-type (C57B6/J) mice or apoE(-/-) mice fed diets supplemented with one of nine different polyphenols or a control diet. This analysis revealed that knock-out of the apoE gene induced significant modulation in the expression of miRNA. Moreover, changes in miRNA expression were observed after polyphenol supplementation, and five miRNAs (mmu-miR-291b-5p, mmu-miR-296-5p, mmu-miR-30c-1*, mmu-miR-467b* and mmu-miR-374*) were identified as being commonly modulated by these polyphenols. We also observed that these polyphenols counteracted the modulation of miRNA expression induced by apoE mutation. Pathway analyses on these five miRNA-target genes revealed common pathways, some of which were also identified from a pathway analysis on mRNA profiles. [br/] Conclusion:This in vivo study demonstrated for the first time that polyphenols at nutritional doses modulate the expression of miRNA in the liver. Even if structurally different, all polyphenols induced a similar miRNA expression profile. Common pathways were identified from both miRNA-target and mRNA analysis, revealing cellular functions that could be regulated by polyphenols at both the miRNA and mRNA level

Investigations on key aspects of solution growth L-Alanine strontium chloride trihydrate single crystal for non-linear optical and photonic applications

In the modern era materials with high NLO efficiency, better mechanical and thermal properties are on leading edge and highly demanded for their efficient use in optical communication and fibers optics. In the present course of work, authors have grown successfully single crystals of L-alanine strontium chloride trihydrate(LASRT) by slow evaporation solution and slow cooling techniques so as to meet the demand of industries. Structure of the grown crystal with lattice parameters were confirmed by employing powder XRD technique. Mechanical strain present in the lattice is determined as -7.066 x 10(-2) by Williamson-Hall relation. The newly grown crystals were subjected to HRXRD to assess crystal perfection and various types of defects. In this research, quality of the grown crystals is found moderately good. The specimen has better transmission nearly 44% as indicated by UV-Vis spectra. Various remarkable parameters like optical band gap, reflectance, refractive index, extinction coefficient and electrical susceptibility are determined. Some important electronic parameters are calculated by using Claussius-Mossottee relation. Thermal properties were also investigated in detail by subjecting the crystals to TGA/DTA measurements. By photo acoustic analysis, thermal diffusivity (alpha) is found 1.8816 x 10(-6) m(2)/s which indicates large heat bearable capacity of the grown sample. Mechanical stability of LASRT is determined larger than already reported LOMHCl and LLHBr single crystals by Nano-indentation technique. Results for nonlinear optical testing, crystalline perfection and optoelectronic parameters indicate its suitability for laser applications

Human peripheral blood leukocyte engraftment into SCID mice: critical role of CD4(+) T cells

We examined the influence of donor T lymphocytes on human peripheral blood leukocytes (PBL) engraftment into severe combined immune deficient (SCID) mice. Mice were injected with unfractionated or subset-depleted human PBL, and treated at various times with OKT3, a cytotoxic monoclonal antibody against human CD3(+) T lymphocytes. PBL engraftment, high levels of human Ig, and high incidence of lymphoproliferative disease (lpd) were found in mice transplanted with unfractionated PBL and CD8- or CD14-depleted PBL, and in mice treated with OKT3 at distance from PBL transfer. Animals xenografted with CD3- or CD4-depleted PBL, or treated at transplantation time with OKT3, had very low levels of human Ig and did not develop lpd. PBL engraftment was minimal or absent in these animals, as determined by immunohistochemistry, dot-blot, and RT-PCR analyses. These results demonstrate that the presence of donor CD4(+) T lymphocytes at transplantation time is necessary for observing human PBL engraftment into SCID mice, an essential condition for human Ig production and lpd development