miR-22 represses cancer progression by inducing cellular senescence

The microRNA miR-22 targets CDK6, SIRT1, and Sp1—genes involved in regulation of the senescence program—to suppress cell growth and proliferation

Live imaging of transforming growth factor-β activated kinase 1 activation in Lewis lung carcinoma 3LL cells implanted into syngeneic mice and treated with polyinosinic: Polycytidylic acid

Transforming growth factor-β activated kinase 1 (TAK1) has been shown to play a crucial role in cell death, differentiation, and inflammation. Here, we live-imaged robust TAK1 activation in Lewis lung carcinoma 3LL cells implanted into the s.c. tissue of syngeneic C57BL/6 mice and treated with polyinosinic:polycytidylic acid (PolyI:C). First, we developed and characterized a Förster resonance energy transfer-based biosensor for TAK1 activity. The TAK1 biosensor, named Eevee-TAK1, responded to stress-inducing reagents such as anisomycin, tumor necrosis factor-α, and interleukin1-β. The anisomycin-induced increase in Förster resonance energy transfer was abolished by the TAK1 inhibitor (5z)-7-oxozeaenol. Activity of TAK1 in 3LL cells was markedly increased by PolyI:C in the presence of macrophages. 3LL cells expressing Eevee-TAK1 were implanted into mice and observed through imaging window by two-photon excitation microscopy. During the growth of tumor, the 3LL cells at the periphery of the tumor showed higher TAK1 activity than the 3LL cells located at the center of the tumor, suggesting that cells at the periphery of the tumor mass were under stronger stress. Injection of PolyI:C, which is known to induce regression of the implanted tumors, induced marked and homogenous TAK1 activation within the tumor tissues. The effect of PolyI:C faded within 4 days. These observations suggest that Eevee-TAK1 is a versatile tool to monitor cellular stress in cancer tissues. The TAK1 FRET biosensor enables visualization of the stress response in vivo

Novel predictive factors for patient discomfort and severe cough during bronchoscopy: A prospective questionnaire analysis.

During bronchoscopy, discomfort is mainly caused by an unavoidable cough; however, there are no reports of any predictive factors for strong cough during bronchoscopy identified before the procedure. To clarify the factors underlying the discomfort status and predictive factors for strong cough during bronchoscopy, we prospectively evaluated patients who underwent bronchoscopy at Kyorin University Hospital between March 2018 and July 2019. Before and after bronchoscopy, the enrolled patients answered a questionnaire regarding the procedure. At the same time, bronchoscopists evaluated cough severity using a four-grade cough scale. We evaluated patient characteristics and predictive factors associated with bronchoscopy from the perspective of discomfort and strong cough. A total of 172 patients were ultimately enrolled in this study. On multivariate logistic regression analysis, comparison of the subjective data between the discomfort and comfort groups revealed that factors that were more common in the former group were younger age (OR = 0.96, p = 0.002), less experienced bronchoscopist (OR = 2.08, p = 0.047), and elevation of cough score per 1 point (OR = 1.69, p < 0.001). Furthermore, the predictive factors for strong cough prior to performing bronchoscopy were female sex (OR = 2.57, p = 0.009), EBUS-TBNA (OR = 2.95, p = 0.004), and prolonged examination time of more than 36 min (OR = 2.32, p = 0.022). Regarding patients' discomfort, younger age, less experienced bronchoscopist, and the elevation of cough score per 1 point were important factors for discomfort in bronchoscopy. On the other hand, female sex, EBUS-TBNA, and prolonged examination time were crucial factors for strong cough

Additional file 1: of Phase I/II study of induction chemotherapy using carboplatin plus irinotecan and sequential thoracic radiotherapy (TRT) for elderly patients with limited-disease small-cell lung cancer (LD-SCLC): TORG 0604

The list of the ethics committees (IRBs) which approved this study. (DOCX 13 kb