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Objective To investigate the effects of long non-coding RNA DUXAP8 on the proliferation, cell cycle and apoptosis of ovarian cancer cells by regulating miR-4677-3p. Methods The expression of DUXAP8 and miR-4677-3p in ovarian cancer tissues and cell lines (SKOV3, OV90 and CaOV3) was detected by RT-qPCR. Then SKOV3 cells were divided into 6 groups, namely, si-NC group, si-DUXAP8 group, miR-NC group, miR-4677-3p group, si-DUXAP8+anti-miR-NC group and si-DUXAP8+anti-miR-4677-3p group. CCK-8 assay and clone formation assay were adopted to detect cell viability, flow cytometry to observe cell apoptosis and cycle, Western blotting to measure the expression levels of Cyclin D1, Bcl-2 and Bax, and dual luciferase reporter assay system to analyze the relationship of DUXAP8 and miR-4677-3p. Results When compared with adjacent tissues and normal ovarian epithelial cells, the expression level of DUXAP8 was significantly lower in ovarian cancer tissues (0.98±0.25 vs 4.14±0.72) and that of SKOV3, OV90, CaOV3 was obviously higher (1.03±0.08 vs 3.26±0.33、2.75±0.29、2.54±0.26, all P < 0.05). Interference with DUXAP8 or overexpression of miR-4677-3p inhibited the proliferation, reduced the rate of apoptosis, and arrested the cell cycle of ovarian cancer cells (P < 0.05). DUXAP8 regulated the expression of miR-4677-3p, and inhibiting miR-4677-3p partially restore and interfere with the effects of DUXAP8 on the proliferation, cycle and apoptosis of ovarian cancer cells (P < 0.05). Conclusion Interference with DUXAP8 can inhibit the proliferation of ovarian cancer cells, induce cell apoptosis, and block cell cycle, the mechanism may be related to the up-regulation of miR-4677-3p.

Recently, researchers have been attempting to control pluripotent stem cell fate or generate self-organized tissues from stem cells. Advances in bioengineering enable generation of organotypic structures, which capture the cellular components, spatial cell organization and even some functions of tissues or organs in development. However, only a few engineering tools have been utilized to regulate the formation and organization of spatially complex tissues derived from stem cells. Here, we provide a review of recent progress in the culture of organotypic structures in vitro, focusing on how microengineering approaches including geometric confinement, extracellular matrix (ECM) property modulation, spatially controlled biochemical factors, and external forces, can be utilized to generate organotypic structures. Moreover, we will discuss potential technologies that can be applied to further control both soluble and insoluble factors spatiotemporally in vitro. In summary, advanced engineered approaches have a great promise in generating miniaturized tissues and organs in a reproducible fashion, facilitating the cellular and molecular understanding of embryogenesis and morphogenesis processes. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Purpose: A novel portable system has been used to evaluate spatial knee movement, but its accuracy and repeatability is not known. The aim of this study was to investigate the accuracy and repeatability of the measurement., Methods: Ten healthy participants were included, and the knee motion trajectory during walking were assessed. Six evaluations were conducted (three days by two raters) for each participant. The motion parameters at the key points and the range of motion were statistically analyzed. Intraclass correlation coefficients (ICC), standard error of the measurement (SEM), and the Bland-Altman method were used., Results: For intra-rater repeatability, 1) the ICC values range from 0.75 to 0.9 for rotations; and 0.64 to 0.96 for translations. Among the ICC values, 100% of rotations and 90% of translations were not less than 0.70; 2) among the SEM values, 100% of rotations were not more than 5°, while 73.3% of translations were less than 3 mm. For inter-rater repeatability, 1) the ICC values range from 0.68 to 0.99 for rotations; and 0.57 to 0.93 for translations. Among the ICC values, 95.6% of rotations and 82.2% of translations were not less than 0.70; 2) among the SEM values, 100% of rotations were not more than 5°, and 48.9% of translations were less than 3 mm. The Bland-Altman plots showed good agreement for intra- and inter- repeatability., Conclusions: The results indicated that the accuracy and repeatability of the measurement were acceptable, except for the inter-rater repeatability for translation. This may help researchers and physicians better interpret the measurement data.

Inspired by proteins that generate membrane curvature, sense the underlying membrane geometry, and migrate driven by curvature gradients, we explore the question: Can colloids, adhered to lipid bilayers, also sense and respond to membrane geometry? We report the migration of Janus microparticles adhered to giant unilamellar vesicles elongated to present spatially varying curvatures. In our experiments, colloids migrate only when the membranes are tense, suggesting that they migrate to minimize membrane area. By determining the energy dissipated along a trajectory, the energy field is inferred to depend on the local deviatoric curvature, like curvature driven capillary migration on interfaces between immiscible fluids. In this latter system, energy gradients are larger, so colloids move deterministically, whereas the paths traced by colloids on vesicles have significant fluctuations. By addressing the role of Brownian motion, we show that the observed migration is analogous to curvature driven capillary migration, with membrane tension playing the role of interfacial tension. Since this motion is mediated by membrane shape, it can be turned on and off by dynamically deforming the vesicle. While particle-particle interactions on lipid membranes have been considered in many contributions, we report here an exciting and previously unexplored modality to actively direct the migration of colloids to desired locations on lipid bilayers.