Apoptotic effect of selenium mushroom extract from Qinba on multiple myeloma cells

Qinba selenium mushroom is a mushroom belonging to the Basidiomycetes family, which is believed to have anti- oxidant, anti-tumoral and antimutagenic activities. However, the efficacy of Qinba selenium mushroom against multiple myeloma has not been confirmed. The present study aimed to investigate the apoptotic effect of FA-2-b-β, the selenium mushroom extract from Qinba on multiple myeloma (MM) cells. The MM RPMI-8226 cells were treated with FA-2-b-β at different concentrations and time points. MM RPMI8226 cell proliferation and apoptosis were detected by the Cell Counting Kit-8 (CCK-8) assay and Annexin V/propidium iodide (PI) assay, RT-QPCR and western blotting analyses were performed to determine the proteins and pathways involved. The results of the present study demonstrated that FA-2-b-β has high antiproliferative activities and strong pro-apoptotic effects on MM RPMI-8226 cells, and its pharmacological effects on proliferation changes occurred in a dose- and time-dependent manner. In addition, we found that FA2-b-β was able to induce cell apoptosis and promote cell cycle arrest at G0/G1 phase. In summary, the results illustrate the involvement of FA-2-b-β in mediating G0/G1 cell cycle arrest and apoptosis in MM RPMI8226 cells, which suggested that FA-2-b-β might have therapeutic potential against multiple myeloma as an effective compound, and may provide useful information for the development of a novel therapeutic target in this area

A statistical examination of the link between environmental performance and legal practices: an evaluation of China’s strategies for residual legislative power allocation

This study investigates the correlation between the environmental legal practices of different countries and their environmental performance. It entails an empirical analysis of cross-sectional environmental data collected from 34 countries, including members of the Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development (OECD) and the BRICs nations (Brazil, Russia, India, China, and South Africa). Then the study explores the correlation between a country’s environmental performance and both the environmental policy stringency and regulatory enforcement. The findings from this global assessment are subsequently corroborated through an examination of China’s environmental time series data spanning a decade, revealing a significant relationship between a country’s environmental performance and regulatory enforcement. These results validate the Incomplete Law Theory within the field of environmental law. Moreover, as the second most populous and the third-largest country in terms of land area globally, China’s environmental protection strategies and performance play a pivotal role in influencing international environmental outcomes. Consequently, the study conducts a case study on China’s environmental legal practices and provides suggestions for enhancing China’s allocation strategies of residual legislative power. The study advocates for the optimization of residual legislative power allocation within local environmental law enforcement agencies and a balanced distribution of public and private residual legislative power. This approach reinforces the government’s role in strategic formulation

Comparative mRNA and miRNA expression in European mouflon (Ovis musimon) and sheep (Ovis aries) provides novel insights into the genetic mechanisms for female reproductive success

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Biological behaviors and proteomics analysis of hybrid cell line EAhy926 and its parent cell line A549

<p>Abstract</p> <p>Background</p> <p>It is well established that cancer cells can fuse with endothelial cells to form hybrid cells spontaneously, which facilitates cancer cells traversing the endothelial barrier to form metastases. However, up to now, little is known about the biologic characteristics of hybrid cells. Therefore, we investigate the malignant biologic behaviors and proteins expression of the hybrid cell line EAhy926 with its parent cell line A549.</p> <p>Methods</p> <p>Cell counting and flow cytometry assay were carried out to assess cell proliferation. The number of cells attached to the extracellular matrix (Matrigel) was measured by MTT assay for the adhesion ability of cells. Transwell chambers were established for detecting the ability of cell migration and invasion. Tumor xenograft test was carried out to observe tumorigenesis of the cell lines. In addition, two-dimensional electrophoresis (2-DE) and mass spectrometry were utilized to identify differentially expressed proteins between in Eahy926 cells and in A549 cells.</p> <p>Results</p> <p>The doubling time of EAhy926 cell and A549 cell proliferation was 25.32 h and 27.29 h, respectively (P > 0.1). Comparing the phase distribution of cell cycle of EAhy926 cells with that of A549 cells, the percentage of cells in G0/G1 phase, in S phase and in G2/M phase was (63.7% ± 2.65%) VS (60.0% ± 3.17%), (15.4% ± 1.52%) VS (13.8% ± 1.32%), and (20.9% ± 3.40%) VS (26.3% ± 3.17%), respectively (P > 0.05). For the ability of cell adhesion of EAhy926 cells and A549 cells, the value of OD in Eahy926 cells was significantly higher than that in A549 cells (0.3236 ± 0.0514 VS 0.2434 ± 0.0390, P < 0.004). We also found that the migration ability of Eahy926 cells was stronger than that of A549 cells (28.00 ± 2.65 VS 18.00 ± 1.00, P < 0.01), and that the invasion ability of Eahy926 cells was significantly weak than that of A549 cells (15.33 ± 0.58 VS 26.67 ± 2.52, P < 0.01). In the xenograft tumor model, expansive masses of classic tumor were found in the A549 cells group, while subcutaneous inflammatory focuses were found in the EAhy926 cells group. Besides, twenty-eight proteins were identified differentially expressed between in EAhy926 cells and in A549 cells by proteomics technologies.</p> <p>Conclusion</p> <p>As for the biological behaviors, the ability of cell proliferation in Eahy926 cells was similar to that in A549 cells, but the ability in adhesion and migration of Eahy926 cells was higher. In addition, Eahy926 cells had weaker ability in invasion and could not form tumor mass. Furthermore, there were many differently expressed proteins between hybrid cell line Eahy926 cells and A549 cells, which might partly account for some of the differences between their biological behaviors at the molecular level. These results may help to understand the processes of tumor angiogenesis, invasion and metastasis, and to search for screening method for more targets for tumor therapy in future.</p

Povezanost polimorfizma pojedinačnog nukleotida gena ARID4A i kvalitete sperme kineskog vodenog bivola

ARID4A (AT-rich interaction domain 4A) is closely related to animal sperm quality traits. In the present study, the association between ARID4A gene polymorphisms of Chinese water buffalo (Bubalus bubalis) with sperm quality traits was examined, including ejaculate volume, sperm concentration, post-thaw sperm motility, and sperm abnormality of buffalo semen. Seven single-nucleotide polymorphisms (SNPs) of ARID4A gene were detected in 156 Chinese water buffaloes by Sanger sequencing and identifying overlap peaks. Among the SNPs, six were associated with at least one sperm quality trait. In brief, g.21192G>C, g.21285C>G, and g.21364A>G could be used as potential markers for selecting semen with low sperm abnormality, high ejaculate volume, sperm concentration, and sperm motility. Furthermore, 10 haplotypes (H1: -CTCGG, H2: GTGGCA, H3: GCGGCA, H4: GCTGCA, H5: GCTCGA, H6: GTGGGG, H7: GCTCCG, H8: -CGGGA, H9: GCGGCG, and H10: GTTGCA) were formed by the six SNPs through linkage disequilibrium analysis, and then 14 different combined haplotypes were collected. Correlation analysis showed that the combined H1H2 haplotype had the highest genotype frequency. Notably, the combined H1H2 haplotype had low sperm concentration, low sperm motility, and high sperm abnormality. The combined H2H3 haplotype could be used as a potential molecular marker for selecting semen with high sperm motility. In general, we illustrated a significant correlation between SNPs in ARID4A and sperm quality traits of Chinese water buffalo, which may be useful in the marker-assisted selection of buffalo breeding. This study was the first to analyze the genetic polymorphisms of ARID4A and association with sperm qualities of Chinese buffalo.Gen ARID4A (engl AT-rich interaction domain 4A) usko je povezan s kvalitetom sperme. U ovom je radu istraživana povezanost polimorfizma gena ARID4A u kineskih vodenih bivola (Bubalus bubalis) s kvalitetom sperme, uključujući volumen ejakulata, koncentraciju sperme, pokretljivost spermija nakon odmrzavanja i abnormalnost spermija u sjemenu bivola. U 156 kineskih vodenih bivola otkriveno je sedam polimorfizama pojedinačnog nukleotida (SNPs) gena ARID4A Sangerovim sekvenciranjem i identifikacijom preklopljenih vrhova. Među SNP-ovima njih je šest bilo povezano s barem jednim svojstvom kvalitete spermija. Ukratko, g. 21192G>C, g. 21285C>G i g. 21364A>G mogu se upotrijebiti kao potencijalni markeri za selekciju sjemena s niskom abnormalnošću spermija, većim volumenom ejakulata, većom koncentracijom i pokretljivošću spermija. Nadalje, šest SNP-ova formiralo je 10 haplotipova (H1: -CTCGG, H2: GTGGCA, H3: GCGGCA, H4: GCTGCA, H5: GCTCGA, H6: GTGGGG, H7: GCTCCG, H8: -CGGGA, H9: GCGGCG i H10: GTTGCA) analizom povezanosti nepodudarnosti te je ustanovljeno 14 različitih kombiniranih haplotipova. Analiza korelacije pokazala je da kombinirani haplotip H1H2 ima najveću učestalost. Kombinirani haplotip H1H2 imao je najmanju koncentraciju sperme, slabu pokretljivost seprmija i znatnu abnormalnost spermija. Kombinirani haplotip H2H3 može se upotrijebiti kao potencijalni molekularni marker za odabir sjemena s većom pokretljivošću. Općenito je pokazana znakovita korelacija između SNP-ova u ARID4A i kvalitete sperme kineskog vodenog bivola, što može biti korisno u selekciji bivola potpomognutoj markerima. Ovo je prvo istraživanje koje je analiziralo genske polimorfizme ARID4A i njihovu povezanost s kvalitetom sjemena kineskih vodenih bivola

Modelling the Effects of Climatic Factors on the Biomass and Rodent Distribution in a Tibetan Grassland Region in China

To identify the main climatic factors from 2007 to 2009 that influence biomass and rodent distribution, 576 fixed sample plots within 81 million km2 of different climatic grassland in Tibet were monitored. The aboveground biomass, the total burrows, the active burrows, the burrow index, and the rodent density in the plots were measured yearly in October. The monthly precipitation and the average temperatures from April to November were obtained for four successive years (2006-2009). Correlative and modelling analyses between the aboveground biomass, the rodent density, and the climatic factors were performed. The results showed that biomass and rodent density were significantly correlated with the climatic factors. Using ridge regression analyses, models of the biomass and rodent density with respect to the monthly precipitations and average temperatures of the previous year were developed. The raw testing data demonstrated that the models can be used approximately to predict biomass and rodent density

Balmer-alpha and Balmer-beta Stark line intensity profiles for high-power hydrogen inductively coupled plasmas

National Magnetic Confinement Fusion Science Program of China [2011GB108011, 2010GB103001]; Major International (Regional) Project Cooperation and Exchanges [11320101005]We compare Balmer-alpha (H-alpha) and Balmer-beta (H-beta) emissions from high-power (1.0-6.0 kW) hydrogen inductively coupled plasmas (ICPs), and propose region I (0.0-2.0 kW), region II (2.0-5.0 kW), and region III (5.0-6.0 kW). In region I, both H a emission intensity (I-alpha) and H-beta emission intensity (I-beta) increase with radio frequency (RF) power, which is explained by the corona model and Boltzmann's law, etc. However, in region II, I-alpha almost remains constant while I-beta rapidly achieves its maximum value. In region III, I a slightly increases with RF power, while I-beta decreases with RF power, which deviates significantly from the theoretical explanation for the H-alpha and H-beta emissions in region I. It is suggested that two strong electric fields are generated in high-power (2.0-6.0 kW) hydrogen ICPs: one is due to the external electric field of high-power RF discharge, and the other one is due to the micro electric field of the ions and electrons around the exited state hydrogen atoms in ICPs. Therefore, the strong Stark effect can play an important role in explaining the experimental results

Salmon Calcitonin Exerts an Antidepressant Effect by Activating Amylin Receptors

Depressive disorder is defined as a psychiatric disease characterized by the core symptoms of anhedonia and learned helplessness. Currently, the treatment of depression still calls for medications with high effectiveness, rapid action, and few side effects, although many drugs, including fluoxetine and ketamine, have been approved for clinical usage by the Food and Drug Administration (FDA). In this study, we focused on calcitonin as an amylin receptor polypeptide, of which the antidepressant effect has not been reported, even if calcitonin gene-related peptides have been previously demonstrated to improve depressive-like behaviors in rodents. Here, the antidepressant potential of salmon calcitonin (sCT) was first evaluated in a chronic restraint stress (CRS) mouse model of depression. We observed that the immobility duration in CRS mice was significantly increased during the tail suspension test and forced swimming test. Furthermore, a single administration of sCT was found to successfully rescue depressive-like behaviors in CRS mice. Lastly, AC187 as a potent amylin receptor antagonist was applied to investigate the roles of amylin receptors in depression. We found that AC187 significantly eliminated the antidepressant effects of sCT. Taken together, our data revealed that sCT could ameliorate a depressive-like phenotype probably via the amylin signaling pathway. sCT should be considered as a potential therapeutic candidate for depressive disorder in the future