Cigarette smoke extract induces migration of rat vascular smooth muscle cells through regulation of expressions of MOB2 and LATS1

Purpose: To study the impact of cigarette smoke extract (CSE) on the migratory capacity of rat vascular smooth muscle cells (VSMCs), and the likely mechanism of action involved. Methods: Rat VSMCs were exposed to varying concentrations of CSE. The migration capacity of the cells was determined by Transwell migration assay and scratch test. Protein and RNA expression levels of LATS1 (large tumor suppressor kinase 1) and MOB2 (monopolar spindle-one-binder protein 2) were assayed using immunoblotting and quantitative real-time-polymerase chain reaction (qRT-PCR), respectively. Results: The results showed that within a certain concentration range, the migratory capacity of VSMCs increased as the concentration of CSE increased (p < 0.05). In contrast, the protein and RNA expressions of LATS1 and MOB2 were negatively correlated with CSE concentrations (p < 0.05). Conclusion: CSE promotes abnormal migration of rat VSMCs by inhibiting the expressions of LATS1 and MOB2 associated with Hippo signaling pathway. Thus, smoking may induce vascular remodeling and cardiovascular events via this mechanism

Hypothetical Proteins of <i>Mycoplasma synoviae</i> Reannotation and Expression Changes Identified via RNA-Sequencing

Mycoplasma synoviae infection rates in chickens are increasing worldwide. Genomic studies have considerably improved our understanding of M. synoviae biology and virulence. However, approximately 20% of the predicted proteins have unknown functions. In particular, the M. synoviae ATCC 25204 genome has 663 encoding DNA sequences, among which 155 are considered encoding hypothetical proteins (HPs). Several of these genes may encode unknown virulence factors. This study aims to reannotate all 155 proteins in M. synoviae ATCC 25204 to predict new potential virulence factors using currently available databases and bioinformatics tools. Finally, 125 proteins were reannotated, including enzymes (39%), lipoproteins (10%), DNA-binding proteins (6%), phase-variable hemagglutinin (19%), and other protein types (26%). Among 155 proteins, 28 proteins associated with virulence were detected, five of which were reannotated. Furthermore, HP expression was compared before and after the M. synoviae infection of cells to identify potential virulence-related proteins. The expression of 14 HP genes was upregulated, including that of five virulence-related genes. Our study improved the functional annotation of M. synoviae ATCC 25204 from 76% to 95% and enabled the discovery of potential virulence factors in the genome. Moreover, 14 proteins that may be involved in M. synoviae infection were identified, providing candidate proteins and facilitating the exploration of the infection mechanism of M. synoviae