Effects of parenteral nutrition of ω-3 polyunsaturated fatty acid, arginine and glutamine on cellular immune status of patients following liver cancer surgery

Purpose: To study the effects of parenteral nutrition (TPN), ω-3  polyunsaturated fatty acid (PUFA), Larginine (Arg), and glutamine on cellular immunity of patients who have done the liver cancer (LC) surgery.Methods: Seventy-five (75) LC patients were randomly divided into 5  groups (A - E; 15 cases each), group A, B, C, D and E, in which patients were treated with TPN, TPN + fish oil, TPN + Arg, TPN + glutamine, and TPN + ω-3 PUFA + Arg + glutamine, respectively. Before and after surgery, CD3 +, CD4 + and CD8 + were measured by antibody-sensitized erythrocyte rosette test, and IL-6, IL-10 and TNF-a were assayed with double-antibody sandwich enzyme-linked immunoassay (DAS-ELISA). IgA and IgM were measured nephelometrically.Results: The levels of CD3 +, CD4 + and CD8 + in group A showed no  obvious change after surgery (p > 0.05). However, CD3 + and CD4 +  increased in groups B, C and D, while CD8 + decreased in group E (p < 0.05). IL-6 in group E was lower than that in any of the other four groups (p < 0.05). IL-10 in group A was lower than that in groups B, C and D, but lower than in group E (p < 0.05). The levels of TNF-a in groups B and C were lower than those in group A, but higher than that in group E (p < 0.05) but lower than in group D. IgA in group E was higher than in the other groups (p < 0.05), while IgM level in group E was lower than in groups A, B and C (p < 0.05).Conclusion: Immunosuppressive status and cellular immunity of patients  after liver cancer surgery may be improved by a combination therapy of TPN, ω-3 PUFAs, Arg and glutamine.Keywords: Polyunsaturated fatty acid, Arginine, Glutamine, Parenteral nutrition, Hepatoma, Cellular immunit

The divergent DSL ligand Dll3 does not activate Notch signaling but cell autonomously attenuates signaling induced by other DSL ligands

Mutations in the DSL (Delta, Serrate, Lag2) Notch (N) ligand Delta-like (Dll) 3 cause skeletal abnormalities in spondylocostal dysostosis, which is consistent with a critical role for N signaling during somitogenesis. Understanding how Dll3 functions is complicated by reports that DSL ligands both activate and inhibit N signaling. In contrast to other DSL ligands, we show that Dll3 does not activate N signaling in multiple assays. Consistent with these findings, Dll3 does not bind to cells expressing any of the four N receptors, and N1 does not bind Dll3-expressing cells. However, in a cell-autonomous manner, Dll3 suppressed N signaling, as was found for other DSL ligands. Therefore, Dll3 functions not as an activator as previously reported but rather as a dedicated inhibitor of N signaling. As an N antagonist, Dll3 promoted Xenopus laevis neurogenesis and inhibited glial differentiation of mouse neural progenitors. Finally, together with the modulator lunatic fringe, Dll3 altered N signaling levels that were induced by other DSL ligands

Lysosomal tracking with a cationic naphthalimide using multiphoton fluorescence lifetime imaging microscopy

A naphthalimide-based chemosensing motif capable of turning on the fluorescence emission in solution and in vitro is reported.</p

Single-Cell Transcriptome Analyses Reveal Signals to Activate Dormant Neural Stem Cells

SummaryThe scarcity of tissue-specific stem cells and the complexity of their surrounding environment have made molecular characterization of these cells particularly challenging. Through single-cell transcriptome and weighted gene co-expression network analysis (WGCNA), we uncovered molecular properties of CD133+/GFAP− ependymal (E) cells in the adult mouse forebrain neurogenic zone. Surprisingly, prominent hub genes of the gene network unique to ependymal CD133+/GFAP− quiescent cells were enriched for immune-responsive genes, as well as genes encoding receptors for angiogenic factors. Administration of vascular endothelial growth factor (VEGF) activated CD133+ ependymal neural stem cells (NSCs), lining not only the lateral but also the fourth ventricles and, together with basic fibroblast growth factor (bFGF), elicited subsequent neural lineage differentiation and migration. This study revealed the existence of dormant ependymal NSCs throughout the ventricular surface of the CNS, as well as signals abundant after injury for their activation

A Meta-Analysis of Caspase 9 Polymorphisms in Promoter and Exon Sequence on Cancer Susceptibility

BACKGROUND: Caspases are important regulators and executioners in apoptosis pathway and have been defined as either tumor suppressors or oncogenes. Polymorphisms in promoter and exon of caspase 9 were shown to confer genetic susceptibility to multiple cancers, but the results were inconsistent. To accomplish a more precise estimation of the relationship, a meta-analysis was performed. METHODOLOGY/PRINCIPAL FINDINGS: We assessed published studies of the association between caspase 9 polymorphisms and cancer risk from nine studies with 5,528 subjects for rs4645978, six studies with 2,403 subjects for rs105276 and two studies for rs4645981. Overall meta-analysis indicated that no evidence of an association between rs4645978 and cancers was found. Through the stratified analysis, statistically significant reduced cancer risks were observed among Caucasians (AG vs AA: OR = 0.81, 95% CI = 0.66-0.99, P(heterogeneity) = 0.150 and the dominant model: OR = 0.86, 95% CI = 0.75-0.99, P(heterogeneity) = 0.290) and prostate cancer. As for rs105276, Ex5+32G>A polymorphism was found with protective effect in overall meta-analysis (AA vs GG: OR = 0.75, 95% CI = 0.60-0.92, P(heterogeneity) = 0.887; A vs G: OR = 0.85, 95% CI = 0.77-0.95, P(heterogeneity) = 0.739 and the recessive model: OR = 0.68, 95% CI = 0.56-0.82, P(heterogeneity) = 0.309) and Asians group. While for rs4645981, a statistically significant increase in risk of lung cancer was shown in Asians (T vs C: OR = 1.23, 95% CI = 1.07-1.42, P(heterogeneity) = 0.399 and the dominant model: OR = 1.22, 95% CI = 1.04-1.43, P(heterogeneity) = 0.660). CONCLUSIONS/SIGNIFICANCE: Our meta-analysis suggests that the caspase 9 rs4645978 most likely contributes to decreased susceptibility to cancer in Caucasians and prostate cancer. The A allele of rs105276 might be a protective factor for cancer, especially for Asians. However, it seems that rs4645981 confers increased susceptibility to lung cancer in Asians

Occupational exposure to formaldehyde, hematotoxicity and leukemia-specific chromosome changes in cultured myeloid progenitor cells - Response

There are concerns about the health effects of formaldehyde exposure, including carcinogenicity, in light of elevated indoor air levels in new homes and occupational exposures experienced by workers in health care, embalming, manufacturing and other industries. Epidemiological studies suggest that formaldehyde exposure is associated with an increased risk of leukemia. However, the biological plausibility of these findings has been questioned because limited information is available on formaldehyde’s ability to disrupt hematopoietic function. Our objective was to determine if formaldehyde exposure disrupts hematopoietic function and produces leukemia-related chromosome changes in exposed humans. We examined the ability of formaldehyde to disrupt hematopoiesis in a study of 94 workers in China (43 exposed to formaldehyde and 51 frequency-matched controls) by measuring complete blood counts and peripheral stem/progenitor cell colony formation. Further, myeloid progenitor cells, the target for leukemogenesis, were cultured from the workers to quantify the level of leukemia-specific chromosome changes, including monosomy 7 and trisomy 8, in metaphase spreads of these cells. Among exposed workers, peripheral blood cell counts were significantly lowered in a manner consistent with toxic effects on the bone marrow and leukemia-specific chromosome changes were significantly elevated in myeloid blood progenitor cells. These findings suggest that formaldehyde exposure can have an adverse impact on the hematopoietic system and that leukemia induction by formaldehyde is biologically plausible, which heightens concerns about its leukemogenic potential from occupational and environmental exposures

Extensive Promoter-Centered Chromatin Interactions Provide a Topological Basis for Transcription Regulation

Higher-order chromosomal organization for transcription regulation is poorly understood in eukaryotes. Using genome-wide Chromatin Interaction Analysis with Paired-End-Tag sequencing (ChIAPET), we mapped long-range chromatin interactions associated with RNA polymerase II in human cells and uncovered widespread promoter-centered intragenic, extragenic, and intergenic interactions. These interactions further aggregated into higher-order clusters, wherein proximal and distal genes were engaged through promoter-promoter interactions. Most genes with promoter-promoter interactions were active and transcribed cooperatively, and some interacting promoters could influence each other implying combinatorial complexity of transcriptional controls. Comparative analyses of different cell lines showed that cell-specific chromatin interactions could provide structural frameworks for cell-specific transcription, and suggested significant enrichment of enhancer-promoter interactions for cell-specific functions. Furthermore, genetically-identified disease-associated noncoding elements were found to be spatially engaged with corresponding genes through long-range interactions. Overall, our study provides insights into transcription regulation by three-dimensional chromatin interactions for both housekeeping and cell-specific genes in human cells

Motion Estimation of Non-Cooperative Space Objects Based on Monocular Sequence Images

The motion estimation of non-cooperative space objects is an important prerequisite for successfully completing on-orbit servicing, debris removing and asteroid exploration missions. The motion estimation of non-cooperative space objects is a challenging task because of the lack of prior information about the object in unknown scenarios. In this paper, a motion estimation method of non-cooperative space objects for autonomous navigation based on a monocular sequence of images is proposed. The rotational attitude estimation of the non-cooperative space object is realized by matching the feature points of adjacent frame images, and the conditions required for translational estimation are discussed. This method has small calculation costs and runs stably, which meets the requirements of real-time computation on-board. As a result, this method implements the estimation of the complete unknown information of the object, including the attitude quaternion and angular velocity. Numerical simulations and results verify the effectiveness of the proposed method