Clinical significance of a point mutation in DNA polymerase beta (POLB) gene in gastric cancer.

Gastric cancer (GC) is a major cause of global cancer mortality. Genetic variations in DNA repair genes can modulate DNA repair capability and, consequently, have been associated with risk of developing cancer. We have previously identified a T to C point mutation at nucleotide 889 (T889C) in DNA polymerase beta (POLB) gene, a key enzyme involved in base excision repair in primary GCs. The purpose of this study was to evaluate the mutation and expression of POLB in a larger cohort and to identify possible prognostic roles of the POLB alterations in GC. Primary GC specimens and their matched normal adjacent tissues were collected at the time of surgery. DNA, RNA and protein samples were isolated from GC specimens and cell lines. Mutations were detected by PCR-RFLP/DHPLC and sequencing analysis. POLB gene expression was examined by RT-PCR, tissue microarray, Western blotting and immunofluorescence assays. The function of the mutation was evaluated by chemosensitivity, MTT, Transwell matrigel invasion and host cell reactivation assays. The T889C mutation was detected in 18 (10.17%) of 177 GC patients. And the T889C mutation was associated with POLB overexpression, lymph nodes metastases and poor tumor differentiation. In addition, patients with- the mutation had significantly shorter survival time than those without-, following postoperative chemotherapy. Furthermore, cell lines with T889C mutation in POLB gene were more resistant to the treatment of 5-fluorouracil, cisplatin and epirubicin than those with wild type POLB. Forced expression of POLB gene with T889C mutation resulted in enhanced cell proliferation, invasion and resistance to anticancer drugs, along with increased DNA repair capability. These results suggest that POLB gene with T889C mutation in surgically resected primary gastric tissues may be clinically useful for predicting responsiveness to chemotherapy in patients with GC. The POLB gene alteration may serve as a prognostic biomarker for GC

Clinical Significance of a Point Mutation in DNA Polymerase Beta (POLB) Gene in Gastric Cancer.

Gastric cancer (GC) is a major cause of global cancer mortality. Genetic variations in DNA repair genes can modulate DNA repair capability and, consequently, have been associated with risk of developing cancer. We have previously identified a T to C point mutation at nucleotide 889 (T889C) in DNA polymerase beta (POLB) gene, a key enzyme involved in base excision repair in primary GCs. The purpose of this study was to evaluate the mutation and expression of POLB in a larger cohort and to identify possible prognostic roles of the POLB alterations in GC. Primary GC specimens and their matched normal adjacent tissues were collected at the time of surgery. DNA, RNA and protein samples were isolated from GC specimens and cell lines. Mutations were detected by PCR-RFLP/DHPLC and sequencing analysis. POLB gene expression was examined by RT-PCR, tissue microarray, Western blotting and immunofluorescence assays. The function of the mutation was evaluated by chemosensitivity, MTT, Transwell matrigel invasion and host cell reactivation assays. The T889C mutation was detected in 18 (10.17%) of 177 GC patients. And the T889C mutation was associated with POLB overexpression, lymph nodes metastases and poor tumor differentiation. In addition, patients with- the mutation had significantly shorter survival time than those without-, following postoperative chemotherapy. Furthermore, cell lines with T889C mutation in POLB gene were more resistant to the treatment of 5-fluorouracil, cisplatin and epirubicin than those with wild type POLB. Forced expression of POLB gene with T889C mutation resulted in enhanced cell proliferation, invasion and resistance to anticancer drugs, along with increased DNA repair capability. These results suggest that POLBgene with T889C mutation in surgically resected primary gastric tissues may be clinically useful for predicting responsiveness to chemotherapy in patients with GC. The POLB gene alteration may serve as a prognostic biomarker for GC

A Point Mutation in DNA Polymerase β (POLB) Gene Is Associated with Increased Progesterone Receptor (PR) Expression and Intraperitoneal Metastasis in Gastric Cancer

Increased expression of progesterone receptor (PR) has been reported in gastric cancer (GC). We have previously identified a functional T889C point mutation in DNA polymerase beta (POLB), a DNA repair gene in GC. To provide a detailed analysis of molecular changes associated with the mutation, human cDNA microarrays focusing on 18 signal transduction pathways were used to analyze differential gene expression profiles between GC tissues with T889C mutant in POLB gene and those with wild type. Among the differentially expressed genes, notably, PR was one of the significantly up-regulated genes in T889C mutant POLB tissues, which were subsequently confirmed in POLB gene transfected AGS cell line. Interestingly, patients with T889C mutation and PR positivity were associated with higher incidence of intraperitoneal metastasis (IM). In vitro studies indicate that PR expression was upregulated in AGS cell line when transfected with T889C mutant expression vector. Cotransfection of T889C mutant allele and PR gene induced cell migration in the cell line. These data demonstrated that T889C mutation-associated PR overexpression results in increased IM. Therefore, T889C mutation-associated PR overexpression may serve as a biomarker for an adverse prognosis for human GC

Toxicity and Behavior-Altering Effects of Three Nanomaterials on Red Imported Fire Ants and Their Effectiveness in Combination with Indoxacarb

The red imported fire ant (Solenopsis invicta Buren) is one of the 100 worst invasive alien species in the world. At present, the control of red imported fire ants is still mainly based on chemical control, and the most commonly used is indoxacarb bait. In this study, the contact and feeding toxicity of 16 kinds of nanomaterials to workers, larvae, and reproductive ants were evaluated after 24 h, 48 h, and 72 h. The results showed that the mortality of diatomite, Silica (raspberry-shaped), and multi-walled carbon nanotubes among workers reached 98.67%, 97.33%, and 68%, respectively, after contact treatment of 72 h. The mortality of both larval and reproductive ants was less than 20% after 72 h of treatment. All mortality rates in the fed treatment group were below 20% after 72 h. Subsequently, we evaluated the digging, corpse-removal, and foraging behaviors of workers after feeding with diatomite, Silica (raspberry-shaped), and multi-walled carbon nanotubes for 24 h, which yielded inhibitory effects on the behavior of red imported fire ants. The most effective was diatomite, which dramatically decreased the number of workers that dug, extended the time needed for worker ant corpse removal and foraging activities, decreased the number of workers that foraged, and decreased the weight of the food carried by the workers. In addition, we also evaluated the contact and feeding toxicity of these three nanomaterials in combination with indoxacarb on red imported fire ants. According to contact toxicity, after 12 h of contact treatment, the death rate among the red imported fire ants exposed to the three materials combined with indoxacarb reached more than 97%. After 72 h of exposure treatment, the mortality rate of larvae was more than 73% when the nanomaterial content was above 1% and 83% when the diatomite content was 0.5%, which was significantly higher than the 50% recorded in the indoxacarb control group. After 72 h of feeding treatment, the mortality of diatomite, Silica (raspberry-shaped), and multi-walled carbon nanotubes combined with indoxacarb reached 92%, 87%, and 98%, respectively. The death rates of the three kinds of composite ants reached 97%, 67%, and 87%, respectively. The three kinds of composite food had significant inhibitory effects on the behavior of workers, and the trend was largely consistent with the effect of nanomaterials alone. This study provides technical support for the application of nanomaterials in red imported fire ant control

Modeling the Enablers of Consumers’ E-Shopping Behavior: A Multi-Analytic Approach

The evolution of e-commerce amid the positive growth forecast of the e-commerce market has sparked scholarly interest in e-shopping antecedents to better understand customer behavior and ensure sustainable e-shopping services. The purpose of this study is to investigate the relationship between the enablers of customers’ e-shopping intention and e-shopping behavior in the post-pandemic period. Personal innovativeness, service quality, perceived risk, and trust were incorporated into the Unified Theory of Technology Acceptance and Usage (UTAUT) original framework and UTAUT 2 in this study. To explore the relationship among the study variables, data were collected from 420 shoppers via an online survey using a convenience sampling technique. The obtained data were analyzed using a multi-analytic approach, such as structural equation modeling and artificial neural networks (SEM-ANN). The empirical findings showed that trust, habit, and e-shopping intention significantly influence consumers’ e-shopping behavior. Furthermore, the results indicated that personal innovativeness, facilitating conditions, performance expectancy, habit, effort expectancy, perceived risk, price value, hedonic motivation, service quality, and trust were all significantly linked to e-shopping intention. The study revealed that effort expectancy acts as a mediator between service quality and e-shopping behavior. This research provides valuable insights into e-shopping behavior in developing countries during the post-pandemic era. By providing a more comprehensive and accurate understanding of the factors that influence e-shopping behavior, hybrid SEM-ANN analysis can help managers and policymakers arrive at better-informed decisions to promote and encourage e-shopping

Screening and Simple Identification of Drought-resistant Lines in Sugarcane Breeding

Six sugarcane plant lines were selected from seedlings owing to good performance in agronomic characters under drought conditions. A special test with drought stress to death under groove was carried out to select the best drought tolerant clones among them. The proportion of bound water to free water content in leaves, cell cytoplasm membrane permeability in leaves, yield components, etc., which were regarded as reasonable indexes to identify drought resistance of sugarcane, were measured. The results showed that both YT06-868 and YT05 -339 were winners. The two were high-class drought-resistant clones. On some measured indexes, both of them had higher values than ROC22 (the main check variety) and on the other ones, they both had the same values as ROC22. The drought resistance of YT05-291 was moderate and between ROC22 and ROC16 (the secondary check variety), while the others had poor drought-resistant according to these indexes

Establishment and Analysis of Energy Consumption Model of Heavy-Haul Train on Large Long Slope

AC heavy-haul trains produce a huge amount of regenerative braking energy when they run on long downhill sections. If this energy can be used by uphill trains in the same power supply section, a reduction in coal transportation cost and an improvement in power quality would result. To accurately predict the energy consumption and regenerative braking energy of heavy-haul trains on large long slopes, a single-particle model of train dynamics was used. According to the theory of railway longitudinal section simplification, the energy consumption and the regenerative braking energy model of a single train based on the train attributes, line conditions, and running speed was established. The model was applied and verified on the Shenshuo Railway. The results indicate that the percentage error of the proposed model is generally less than 10%. The model is a convenient and simple research alternative, with strong engineering feasibility. Based on this foundation, a model of train energy consumption was established under different interval lengths by considering the situation of regenerative braking energy in the multi-train operation mode. The model provides a theoretical foundation for future train diagram layout work with the goal of reducing the total train energy consumption