Peripheral Nerve Injury Induces Dynamic Changes of Tight Junction Components

Tight junctions seal off physical barriers, regulate fluid and solute flow, and protect the endoneurial microenvironment of the peripheral nervous system. Physical barriers in the peripheral nervous system were disrupted after nerve injury. However, the dynamic changes of tight junction components after peripheral nerve injury have not been fully determined yet. In the current study, by using previously obtained deep sequencing outcomes and bioinformatic tools, we found that tight junction signaling pathway was activated after peripheral nerve injury. The investigation of the temporal expression patterns of components in tight junction signaling pathway suggested that many claudin family members were down-regulated after nerve injury. Moreover, we examined the effects of matrix metalloproteinases 7 and 9 (MMP7 and MMP9) on tight junction genes both in vitro and in vivo and found that MMP7 and MMP9 modulated the expressions of genes coding for claudin 1, claudin 10, and claudin 22. Our study revealed the dynamic changes of tight junction components after peripheral nerve injury and thus might contribute to the understanding of the molecular mechanisms underlying peripheral nerve injury and regeneration

Overlapping Mechanisms of Peripheral Nerve Regeneration and Angiogenesis Following Sciatic Nerve Transection

Peripheral nervous system owns the ability of self-regeneration, mainly in its regenerative microenvironment including vascular network reconstruction. More recently, more attentions have been given to the close relationship between tissue regeneration and angiogenesis. To explore the overlap of molecular mechanisms and key regulation molecules between peripheral nerve regeneration and angiogenesis post peripheral nerve injury, integrative and bioinformatic analysis was carried out for microarray data of proximal stumps after sciatic nerve transection in SD rats. Nerve regeneration and angiogenesis were activated at 1 day immediately after sciatic nerve transection simultaneously. The more obvious changes of transcription regulators and canonical pathways suggested a phase transition between 1 and 4 days of both nerve regeneration and angiogenesis after sciatic nerve transection. Furthermore, 16 differentially expressed genes participated in significant biological processes of both nerve regeneration and angiogenesis, a few of which were validated by qPCR and immunofluorescent staining. It was demonstrated that STAT3, EPHB3, and Cdc42 co-expressed in Schwann cells and vascular endothelial cells to play a key role in regulation of nerve regeneration and angiogenesis simultaneously response to sciatic nerve transection. We provide a framework for understanding biological processes and precise molecular correlations between peripheral nerve regeneration and angiogenesis after peripheral nerve transection. Our work serves as an experimental basis and a valuable resource to further understand molecular mechanisms that define nerve injury-induced micro-environmental variation for achieving desired peripheral nerve regeneration

Transcription factor SS18L1 regulates the proliferation, migration and differentiation of Schwann cells in peripheral nerve injury

Transcription factors bind to specific DNA sequences, modulate the transcription of target genes, and regulate various biological processes, including peripheral nerve regeneration. Our previous analysis showed that SS18L1, a gene encoding the transcription factor SS18-like protein 1, was differentially expressed in the distal sciatic nerve stumps after rat sciatic nerve transection injury, but its effect on peripheral nerve injury has not been reported. In the current study, we isolated and cultured primary Schwann cells, and examined the role of SS18L1 for the biological functions of the cells. Depletion of SS18L1 by siRNA in Schwann cells enhanced cell proliferation and inhibited cell migration, as determined by EdU assay and transwell migration assay, respectively. In addition, silencing of SS18L1 inhibited Schwann cell differentiation induced by HRG and cAMP. Bioinformatics analyses revealed an interaction network of SS18L1, including DF2, SMARCD1, SMARCA4, and SMARCE1, which may be implicated in the regulatory functions of SS18L1 on the proliferation, migration and differentiation of Schwann cells. In conclusion, our results revealed a temporal expression profile of SS18L1 in peripheral nerve injury and its potential roles during the process of nerve recovery

Synthesis and Downconversion Emission Property of Yb2O3:Eu3+ Nanosheets and Nanotubes

Ytterbium oxide (Yb2O3) nanocrystals with different Eu3+ (1%, 2%, 5%, and 10%) doped concentrations were synthesized by a facile hydrothermal method, subsequently by calcination at 700°C. The crystal phase, size, and morphology of prepared samples were characterized by X-ray diffraction (XRD) and transmission electron microscopy (TEM). The results show that the as-prepared Yb2O3 nanocrystals with sheet- and tube-like shape have cubic phase structure. The Eu3+ doped Yb2O3 nanocrystals were revealed to have good down conversion (DC) property and intensity of the DC luminescence can be modified by Eu3+ contents. In our experiment the 1% Eu3+ doped Yb2O3 nanocrystals showed the strongest DC luminescence among the obtained Yb2O3 nanocrystals

Systemic functional enrichment and ceRNA network identification following peripheral nerve injury

Abstract Peripheral nerve injury is a worldwide clinical issue that impacts patients’ quality of life and causes huge society and economic burden. Injured peripheral nerves are able to regenerate by themselves. However, for severe peripheral nerve injury, the regenerative abilities are very limited and the regenerative effects are very poor. A better understanding of the mechanisms following peripheral nerve injury will benefit its clinical treatment. In this study, we systematically explored the dynamic changes of mRNAs and long non-coding RNAs (lncRNAs) in the injured sciatic nerve segments after nerve crush, identified significantly involved Gene ontology (GO) terms and Kyoto Enrichment of Genes and Genomes (KEGG) pathways, and innovatively analyzed the correlation of differentially expressed mRNAs and lncRNAs. After the clustering of co-expressed mRNAs and lncRNAs, we performed functional analysis, selected GO term “negative regulation of cell proliferation”, and constructed a competing endogenous RNA (ceRNA) network of LIF and HMOX1 gene in this GO term. This study is the first to provide a systematic dissection of mRNA-microRNA (miRNA)-lncRNA ceRNA network following peripheral nerve injury and thus lays a foundation for further investigations of the regulating mechanisms of non-coding RNAs in peripheral nerve repair and regeneration

Synthesis, Tunable Multicolor Output, and High Pure Red Upconversion Emission of Lanthanide-Doped Lu2O3 Nanosheets

Yb3+ and Ln3+ (Ln = Er, Ho) codoped Lu2O3 square nanocubic sheets were successfully synthesized via a facile hydrothermal method followed by a subsequent dehydration process. The crystal phase, morphology, and composition of hydroxide precursors and target oxides were characterized by X-ray diffraction (XRD), field emission scanning electron microscope (FE-SEM), and energy-dispersive X-ray spectroscope (EDS). Results present the as-prepared Lu2O3 crystallized in cubic phase, and the monodispersed square nanosheets were maintained both in hydroxide and oxides. Moreover, under 980 nm laser diode (LD) excitation, multicolor output from red to yellow was realized by codoped different lanthanide ions in Lu2O3. It is noteworthy that high pure strong red upconversion emission with red to green ratio of 443.3 of Er-containing nanocrystals was obtained, which is beneficial for in vivo optical bioimaging

Benefits of Community-based Treatment for Patients with Schizophrenia: Based on Long-acting Injectable Antipsychotic Agents

Schizophrenia could affect the social and occupational functions of patients in the long term. Community-based mental health services and management models promote mental health by improving accessibility, acceptability, affordability, practicality and scalability. In the community management model, long-acting injectable antipsychotic agents are one of the main strategies for the treatment of schizophrenia, but there is a lack of relevant evidence. This paper systematically and comprehensively discussed the benefits of long-acting injectable antipsychotic agents in patients with schizophrenia, including effectiveness and safety, compliance, attitude to use, social function recovery and community rehabilitation. The results of this study showed that long-acting injectable antipsychotic agents can exert superior efficacy than oral drugs in the community rehabilitation of schizophrenia patients under different community management modes, not only reflected in the disease recurrence rate and readmission rate, but also in the recovery of social functioning and the reduction of accident rate and other aspects of excellent performance. However, the overall prescription rate of long-acting injectable antipsychotic agents is still low in China. The main reasons include insufficient information sharing between medical institutions and communities in primary level, low community medical services and treatment rate, low follow-up rate of patients, and less community psychiatric rehabilitation. This study can provide some references for the community treatment of schizophrenia patients in China, explore more community treatment programs, and improve the treatment effect and quality of life of schizophrenia patients in China