Small interfering RNA mediated multi-target therapy of cancer

Abstract: It has been reviewed that as many as hundreds genes are dysregulated in various kinds of cancers, yet most therapies are targeted toward a single gene. Recently, the mode of cancer treatment has been changed by a shift in thinking from mono-target to multi-target therapies. There is considerable evidence that these have a higher possibility of success than mono-target therapy, and multi-target therapy should remain the most attractive avenue for future treatment strategies. In this article, we attempt to provide evidence for the role of small interfering RNA in multi-target therapy of cancer

In vivo real-time imaging of gemcitabine-leaded growth inhibition in the orthotopic transplantation model of human pancreatic tumor

AbstractHuman xenograft mouse models, which have been used in cancer research for over a century, provided significant advances for our understanding of this multifaceted family of diseases. Orthotopic transplantation tumor models are emerging as the preference for cancer research due to the increasing clinical relevance over subcutaneous mouse models. In this study, a stable luciferase-expressed Capan-2 cell line was constructed and the expression of luciferase was tested. The results showed that the luminorescence intensity of Capan-2Luc cells was associated with the number of cells and the minimal detectable cell population was 600cells/well. We established an orthotopic transplantation model of pancreatic cancer using Capan-2Luc cell line in athymic mice and investigated the inhibitory effects of gemcitabine (Gem) in vitro and in vivo. Optical imaging system was applied to evaluate the tumor growth of orthotopic transplantation model in vivo. The results suggested that the orthotopic transplantation model of pancreatic cancer was well established and the luminorescence intensity of Gem-treated group was markedly lower than that of control group with an inhibitory rate of 56.8% (P<0.001). Our orthotopic transplantation model of pancreatic cancer and real-time imaging observation method established in this study could be an ideal model and a useful tool for therapeutic approaches for pancreatic cancers

Ocular surface heat effects on ocular hemodynamics detected by real-time measuring device

AIM: To investigate the ocular hemodynamic effects of applying a hot compress to the eye. METHODS: The right eyes of five New Zealand white rabbits, both male and female, were hot-compressed for 18min. An independently designed novel ocular contact-type temperature measuring device was used to measure the ocular surface temperature before and after the heating. Relevant retrobulbar hemodynamic parameters such as peak systolic velocity (PSV), end diastolic velocity (EDV), and resistance index (RI) of each of the central retinal artery (CRA), long posterior ciliary artery (LPCA), and ophthalmic artery (OA), as well as the mean velocity (Vm) of the central retinal vein (CRV), were measured using a color Doppler flow imaging (CDFI) technique and expressed as mean values with standard deviation (mean±SD). A statistical analysis was conducted based on a paired t-test and the Wilcoxon signed-rank test. RESULTS: The employed real-time temperature measuring device was able to accurately measure ocular surface temperature during the hot-compress process. The temperature increased after the hot compress was applied. Analysis showed that the PSV and EDV values of the CRA and LPCA significantly increased after the application of the hot compress, as did the Vm of the CRV. There were no significant changes in the EDV of the OA nor the RI of each artery. CONCLUSION: This experiment, which is the first of its kind, confirms that the retrobulbar blood flow velocities can increase upon heating the ocular surface. This simple method may be useful in the future

Type I Interferons: Distinct Biological Activities and Current Applications for Viral Infection

The interferons (IFNs) are a primary defense against pathogens because of the strong antiviral activities they induce. IFNs can be classified into three groups: type I, type II and type III, according to their genetic, structural, and functional characteristics and their receptors on the cell surface. The type I IFNs are the largest group and include IFN-α, IFN-β, IFN-ε, IFN-ω, IFN-κ, IFN-δ, IFN-τ and IFN-ζ. The use of IFNs for the treatment of viral infectious diseases on their antiviral activity may become an important therapeutic option, for example, IFN-α is well known for the successful treatment of hepatitis B and C virus infections, and interest is increasing in the antiviral efficacy of other novel IFN classes and their potential applications. Therefore, in this review, we summarize the recent progress in the study of the biological activities of all the type I IFN classes and their potential applications in the treatment of infections with immunodeficiency virus, hepatitis viruses, and influenza viruses

Laparoscopic based renal denervation in a canine neurogenic hypertension model

Background: Previous renal denervation (RDN) studies showed controversial results in reducing blood pressure. The aim of this study was to provide evidence supporting the effectiveness of laparoscopic-based renal denervation (L-RDN) in treating hypertension. Methods: Sixteen Beagle dogs were randomly divided into RDN group (n = 12) and sham group (n = 4). Neurogenic hypertension was generated in all dogs via carotid artery route. L-RDN was performed in the RDN group, with sham operation performed as a control. Blood pressure (BP) changes were recorded at 2, 4, 6, and 8 weeks after the procedure. Changes in serum creatinine (sCr), blood urea nitrogen (BUN) and level of norepinephrine (NE) were analyzed. Histological changes of kidney and renal arteries were also evaluated. Results: BP and NE levels were significantly elevated after hypertension induction (p < 0.01). Systolic and diastolic BP of RDN group were decreased by 15.5 mmHg and 7.3 mmHg (p < 0.0001 and p = 0.0021, respectively) at the eighth week after L-RDN. Invasive systolic and diastolic BP of RDN group were significantly decreased by 14.5 mmHg and 15.3 mmHg (p < 0.0001). In contrast, there was no significant decrease in blood pressure in the sham group. In addition, RDN group but not the sham group showed a significant decrease in NE levels (p < 0.001), while no significant changes in sCr and BUN were observed in both groups. Pathological examinations showed no discernible damage, tear, or dissection to the renal arteries in RND group. Conclusions: L-RDN lowered BP and NE levels in hypertensive dogs without affecting renal artery morphology and kidney function

A boracite metal-organic framework displaying selective gas sorption and guest-dependent spin-crossover behaviour

NNSF of China [21021061, 20923004]; Specialized Research Fund for the Doctoral Program of Higher Education [20110121110012]A metal-organic framework, [{Fe(NCS)(2)}(3)(TPB)(4)]center dot x(guest) [1 center dot x(guest), TPB = 1,3,5-tris(4-pyridyl)benzene], shows selective gas adsorption and guest-dependent spin-crossover behaviour

Proton-Boron Fusion Yield Increased by Orders of Magnitude with Foam Targets

A novel intense beam-driven scheme for high yield of the tri-alpha reaction 11B(p,{\alpha})2{\alpha} was investigated. We used a foam target made of cellulose triacetate (TAC, C_9H_{16}O_8) doped with boron. It was then heated volumetrically by soft X-ray radiation from a laser heated hohlraum and turned into a homogenous, and long living plasma. We employed a picosecond laser pulse to generate a high-intensity energetic proton beam via the well-known Target Normal Sheath Acceleration (TNSA) mechanism. We observed up to 10^{10}/sr {\alpha} particles per laser shot. This constitutes presently the highest yield value normalized to the laser energy on target. The measured fusion yield per proton exceeds the classical expectation of beam-target reactions by up to four orders of magnitude under high proton intensities. This enhancement is attributed to the strong electric fields and nonequilibrium thermonuclear fusion reactions as a result of the new method. Our approach shows opportunities to pursue ignition of aneutronic fusion

Corrigendum to: The TianQin project: current progress on science and technology

In the originally published version, this manuscript included an error related to indicating the corresponding author within the author list. This has now been corrected online to reflect the fact that author Jun Luo is the corresponding author of the article