A Daphnane Diterpenoid Isolated from Wikstroemia polyantha Induces an Inflammatory Response and Modulates miRNA Activity

MicroRNAs (miRNAs) are endogenously expressed single-stranded ∼21–23 nucleotide RNAs that inhibit gene expression post-transcriptionally by binding imperfectly to elements usually within the 3′untranslated region (3′UTR) of mRNAs. Small interfering RNAs (siRNAs) mediate site-specific cleavage by binding with perfect complementarity to RNA. Here, a cell-based miRNA reporter system was developed to screen for compounds from marine and plant extracts that inhibit miRNA or siRNA activity. The daphnane diterpenoid genkwanine M (GENK) isolated from the plant Wikstroemia polyantha induces an early inflammatory response and can moderately inhibit miR-122 activity in the liver Huh-7 cell line. GENK does not alter miR-122 levels nor does it directly inhibit siRNA activity in an in vitro cleavage assay. Finally, we demonstrate that GENK can inhibit HCV infection in Huh-7 cells. In summary, the development of the cell-based miRNA sensor system should prove useful in identifying compounds that affect miRNA/siRNA activity

Self-Adjusting Reject Options in Prototype Based Classification

Villmann T, Kaden M, Bohnsack A, et al. Self-Adjusting Reject Options in Prototype Based Classification. In: Merényi E, Mendenhall MJ, O'Driscoll P, eds. Advances in Self-Organizing Maps and Learning Vector Quantization - Proceedings of the 11th International Workshop WSOM 2016, Houston, Texas, USA, January 6-8, 2016. Advances in Intelligent Systems and Computing. Vol 428. Cham: Springer International Publishing; 2016: 269-279