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Objective To establish a novel approach for diagnosing early- and midstage esophageal squamous cell carcinoma (ESCC). Methods The tumor suppressor gene phospholysine phosphohistidine inorganic pyrophosphate phosphatase (LHPP)–based miRNA signature was identified using next-generation sequencing and 3 biological online prediction systems. This retrospective study established and validated an ESCC prediction model using a test cohort and a validation cohort. Results Immunohistochemical staining and real-time quantitative polymerase chain reaction (RT-qPCR) results showed that LHPP protein levels were significantly lower in tissues with early- and midstage ESCC than in adjacent tissues (P  <.01). Further, we confirmed that miR-15b-5p, miR-424-5p, miR-497-5p, miR-363-5p, and miR-195-5p inhibited LHPP. These 5 miRNAs were significantly elevated in the plasma of early- and midstage ESCC (P  <.05). An ESCC prediction model combining these 5 miRNAs was established. Finally, in the external validation cohort, the model exhibited high discriminative value (sensitivity/specificity: 84.4%/93.3%). Conclusions The prediction model has potential implications for diagnosis of early- and midstage ESCC. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Tilianin is a flavonoid glycoside with potential applications in the prevention and treatment of myocardial infarction, but its specific targets and pharmacological mechanisms are unclear. Therefore, in this study, a reverse screening and molecular docking approach was used to predict the pharmacological targets and mechanisms of tilianin on myocardial infarction based on network pharmacology and experimental validation. Firstly, we screened various databases to obtain potential core targets of tilianin. Secondly, we used protein-protein interaction, gene ontology, Kyoto Encyclopedia of Genes and Genomes, and ClueGO to correlate the key targets before molecular docking of new target genes. Finally, the gene expression of tilianin in HL-1 cells was experimentally validated with quantitative real-time polymerase chain reaction and immunofluorescence. The result showed that tilianin may significantly modulate pro-inflammatory effects in the tumor necrosis factor-a signaling pathway, which activates and regulates various cellular activities. Molecular docking revealed that protein kinase B1, proto-oncogene cellular sarcoma, tumor necrosis factor-a, matrix metalloproteinase-9, nitric oxide synthetase 2, mitogen-activated protein kinase 14 and phosphatase and tensin homolog-induced kinase 1 may be the key targets for the systematic regulatory effect of tilianin against myocardial infarction. Finally, quantitative real-time polymerase chain reaction and immunofluorescence results showed that tilianin significantly influences the expression of the key genes in myocardial infarction. Using network bioinformatic analysis, molecular docking techniques, and experimental validation, we predicted and preliminarily validated potential target sites for tilianin. These findings provide a new perspective for further exploration of the mechanism of action of tilianin in myocardial infarction therapy. Meanwhile, this study provides an objective basis for further experimental studies in the future. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Objective: Passive smoking is associated with an increased risk of type 2 diabetes (T2DM). We tested whether the protein tyrosine phosphatase receptor type D (PTPRD) gene rs17584499 single-nucleotide polymorphism is associated with (T2DM) and whether its interaction with passive smoking affects women's susceptibility to T2DM. Methods: The subjects were from a community-based survey conducted in Nanchang, China, between May 2017 and June 2018. The study included 160 women with 79 T2DM patients as the T2DM group and 81 healthy volunteers without diabetes as the control group. Peripheral blood genomic DNA was extracted to detect the genotype of the target site of the PTPRD gene. Logistic regression analysis was performed to study the association between the rs17584499 SNP and the risk of T2DM and to analyse the influence of the interaction between genes and passive smoking on susceptibility to T2DM. Results: After adjusting for age, LDL-C, HDL-C, TC, TG, FINS, IL-18, hs-CRP, and cotinine, binary logistic regression analysis did not find a significant association between rs17584499 and susceptibility to diabetes. After stratifying according to passive smoking, we found that passive smoking women with the CT/TT genotype had a higher risk of T2DM compared with the CC genotype (OR = 3.50, 95 % CI = 1.18~10.44, p = 0.02), but no significant difference was found in non-passive smoking. Conclusions: This study shows that the T allele of rs17584499 may be a risk factor for female T2DM and that there is a synergistic effect between passive smoking and PTPRD rs17584499 on the susceptibility to T2DM among females. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Mitophagy is one of the important targets for the prevention and treatment of myocardial ischemia/reperfusion injury (MIRI). Moderate mitophagy can remove damaged mitochondria, inhibit excessive reactive oxygen species accumulation, and protect mitochondria from damage. However, excessive enhancement of mitophagy greatly reduces adenosine triphosphate production and energy supply for cell survival, and aggravates cell death. How dysfunctional mitochondria are selectively recognized and engulfed is related to the interaction of adaptors on the mitochondrial membrane, which mainly include phosphatase and tensin homolog deleted on chromosome ten (PTEN)-induced kinase 1/Parkin, hypoxia-inducible factor-1 α/Bcl-2 and adenovirus e1b19k Da interacting protein 3, FUN-14 domain containing protein 1 receptor-mediated mitophagy pathway and so on. In this review, the authors briefly summarize the main pathways currently studied on mitophagy and the relationship between mitophagy and MIRI, and incorporate and analyze research data on prevention and treatment of MIRI with Chinese medicine, thereby provide relevant theoretical basis and treatment ideas for clinical prevention of MIRI. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

As the haemolymph supplier of the tachypleus amebocyte lysate industry in China, Chinese horseshoe crab (Tachypleus tridentatus) inevitably undergoes air‐exposure stress during transportation and haemolymph collection. In this study, the effects of air‐exposure stress and subsequent recovery process on the activities of phosphatases, antioxidant enzymes and haemocyanin concentration in Chinese horseshoe crab were investigated to understand its ability to resist air‐exposure stress. Results showed no significant effects on the total antioxidant capacity (T‐AOC), superoxide dismutase (SOD), catalase (CAT), malondialdehyde (MDA) and alkaline phosphatase (AKP) between the control and experimental groups during the air‐exposure stress period (0–4 hr), except acid phosphatase (ACP). During the subsequent recovery period in water, significant differences in plasma T‐AOC levels and SOD, CAT, AKP and ACP activities were observed between both groups. No significant effects of CAT activity, SOD activity, MDA content and T‐AOC level were noted between the two groups after 12 hr of recovery. However, the AKP and ACP activities of the experimental group were significantly lower than those of the control group. Results revealed that air exposure may affect the activities of most non‐specific immune enzymes in the plasma of Chinese horseshoe crab, showing a 'delayed" interference effect. Nevertheless, tested antioxidant enzymes have a strong recovery ability and can generally recover to the control group level after 12 hr. Haemocyanin concentration was not affected by air‐exposure stress during the whole experiment. Hereby, Chinese horseshoe crab can strongly resist air‐exposure stress. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Alpine wetlands are important ecosystems, but an increased availability of soil nutrients may affect their soil nitrous oxide (N2O) fluxes and key enzyme activities. We undertook a 3-year experiment of observing nitrogen (N) and/or phosphorus (P) addition to alpine wetland soils of the Tibetan Plateau, China, with measurements made of soil extracellular enzyme activities and soil N2O fluxes. Our study showed that soil N2O flux was significantly increased by 72% and 102% following N and N+P additions, respectively. N addition significantly increased acid phosphatase (AP) and β-1, 4-N-acetyl-glucosaminidase (NAG) activities by 32% and 26%, respectively. P addition alone exerted a neutral effect on soil AP activities, while increasing NAG activities. We inferred that microbes produce enzymes based on ‘resource allocation theory’, but that a series of constitutive enzymes or the treatment duration interfere with this response. Our findings suggest that N addition increases N- and P-cycling enzyme activities and soil N2O flux, whereas P addition exerts a neutral effect on P-cycling enzyme activities and N2O flux after 3 years of nutrient applications to an alpine wetland. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

River mouth areas of eutrophic lakes have frequent cyanobacterial blooms and high organophosphate mineralization rates. To determine the genetic background of the high organophosphate mineralization rate in river mouth areas of eutrophic lakes, we compared the diversity and abundance of bacterial alkaline phosphatase PhoX-encoding genes in the river mouth areas and the lake center within the large eutrophic Lake Taihu, China. Results showed that the seasonal average values of phosphorus content, bacterial alkaline phosphatase activity, diversity, and abundance of bacterial phoX in the river mouths were significantly higher than those in the lake center, and 47% of all identified genotypes were present only in the river mouths. The genotypes most similar to alphaproteobacterial phoX dominated in both regions, with 72% and 64% of the total genotypes in the lake center and river mouths, respectively. More than 40% of the total phoX genotypes were only found in the river mouths, however, indicating the special microbial nature in this hypereutrophic habitat. The differences in contents of dissolved organic carbon and phosphorus were related to the divergences of bacterial phoX genotypes in these two contrasting habitats. Because some dominant genotypes most similar to phoX genes of alphaproteobacterial genus were observed only in the river mouth areas, such as Microvirga sp. WSM3557, and because the hydraulic retention time of Lake Taihu is insufficient to shape the special bacterial groups in the river mouths, allochthonous inputs of nutrients and bacterial species could make contributions to explain the different organophosphate mineralization rates in these two contrasting habitats of the large eutrophic lake. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Combining organic materials with chemical fertilizers is gradually becoming the primary fertilization strategy in China for increasing soil phosphorus (P) concentration; however, the relationships between soil available P, P composition and phosphatase activities in treatments with long-term crop straw or animal manure combined with chemical NPK fertilizers are not fully understood. In this study, a field fertilization experiment was conducted in a light sandy loam soil from the Huang-Huai-Hai Plain of China to determine the variation in soil available P, P composition and phosphatase activities with 23 years of continuous application of maize straw or cattle manure in combination with chemical fertilizers at the depth of 0–20 cm, with special attention paid to their relationships. The experiment was arranged in a randomized block design with three replications for each treatment, including the unfertilized control (CK), chemical nitrogen (N) with phosphorus (P) and potassium (K) (NPK), NPK plus maize straw (NPKS), and NPK plus cattle manure (NPKM). Results indicated that all fertilization treatments significantly increased soil P concentration and crop yields. Among the fertilization treatments, NPKM treatment showed the significantly highest total P and available P concentrations, while no significant difference in either wheat or maize yield between NPK, NPKS and NPKM treatments was found. Compared to the application of chemical NPK fertilizers alone, the NPKS treatment significantly increased soil organic P, pyrophosphate and orthophosphate concentrations, as well as soil phosphatase activities. The increase in orthophosphate concentration under the NPKS treatment may be associated with the hydrolysis of organic P and pyrophosphate catalyzed by acid phosphomonoesterase (AcP), phosphodiesterase (PD) and inorganic pyrophosphatase (IPP), which was conducive to keeping soil available P concentration under NPKS treatment at an appropriate level that could not only satisfy crop P demand but also have no negative impacts on the environment. However, the increase of orthophosphate and available P concentrations under NPKM treatment may be primarily related to the manure P inputs, and although NPKM treatment significantly increased soil inorganic P concentration in comparison to other fertilization treatments, it also increased the risk of P leaching. Overall, from the perspective of P nutrient management, our results suggest that NPKS treatment might be an effective long-term fertilization practice in the light sandy loam soil of Huang-Huai-Hai Plain of China. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Background: Studies suggest that brain-derived neurotrophic factor (BDNF) exerts effects on the neuronal function of hippocampal neurons and increases hippocampal mitogen-activated protein kinase phosphatase-1 (MKP-1) expression, which causes depressive behaviors in rat or mouse. Here we focus on the change of serum MKP-1, BDNF, testosterone (T), and estradiol (E2) levels, in order to test the hypothesis that dysregulation of MKP-1, BDNF, T, and E2 are associated with depression in perimenopausal women. Methods: Women with depression, after meeting criteria in the International Statistical Classification of Diseases and Related Health Problems, 10th Revision, for mental and behaviural disorders and the 17-item Hamilton Depression Rating Scale (HDRS), were included in the study. Psychosocial data and blood samples were obtained from the subjects in the study, including 38 perimenopausal and 32 young women with depression, 26 healthy control perimenopausal women, and 34 young women. Results: Serum MKP-1 levels were higher and T was lower in the women with depression compared to controls ( p<0.05), and depressed perimenopausal women exhibited the highest serum MKP-1 levels and lowest T levels. Logistic regression analyses showed that MKP-1 levels were positively correlated with HDRS scores in the women, and T levels were inversely correlated with HDRS scores in the perimenopausal women ( p<0.05). Conclusions: This study suggests that high serum MKP-1 levels are associated with depression in women, and this association did not appear to be confounded by age. Further, the results provide evidence of association between depressive symptom severity and increasing serum MKP-1 levels in women, and decreasing T levels in perimenopausal women. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Phosphatase-mediated phosphorus (P) mineralization is one of the critical processes in biogeochemical cycling of P and determines soil P availability in forest ecosystems; however, the regulation of soil phosphatase activity remains elusive. This study investigated the potential extracellular activities of acid phosphomonoesterase (AcPME) and phosphodiesterase (PDE) and how they were related to key edaphic properties in the L horizon (undecomposed litter) and F/H horizon (fermented and humified litter) and the underlying mineral soil at the 0–15 cm depth in eight mature subtropical forests in China. AcPME activity decreased significantly in the order of F/H horizon > L horizon > mineral soil horizon, while the order for PDE activity was L horizon = F/H horizon > mineral soil horizon. AcPME ( X axis) and PDE ( Y axis) activities were positively correlated in all horizons with significantly higher slope in the L and F/H horizons than in the mineral soil horizon. Both AcPME and PDE activities were positively related to microbial biomass C, moisture content and water-holding capacity in the L horizon, and were positively related to soil C:P, N:P and C:N ratios and fine root (diameter ≤ 2 mm) biomass in the mineral soil horizon. Both enzyme activities were also interactively affected by forest and horizon, partly due to the interactive effect of forest and horizon on microbial biomass. Our results suggest that modulator(s) of the potential extracellular activity of phosphatases vary with horizon, depending on the relative C, P and water availability of the horizon. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Fuchs' endothelial dystrophy is a common type of posterior CD characterized by the development of gutta in the Descemet membrane. Recently, TCF4 was considered as a major risk gene for European FED cases. However, another recent report has shown that rs613872 was not associated with Singaporean Chinese FEDs. Recent reports indicate the genotypic heterogeneity of FEDs in different ethnic populations. It is thus essential to understand whether these genes affect the occurrence of FEDs and non-Fuchs' CD in the local population. In the present study, we screened several reported SNPs (rs2286812, rs17595731 and rs613827 in TCF4; rs7640737 and rs2292245 in PTPRG) in FED and non-Fuchs' patients with corneal dystrophies of southern Chinese. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Dam construction causes phosphorus (P) accumulation in reservoir sediments and significantly affects the generation of available P. However, the effect of dam construction on the activity of sediment alkaline phosphatase (ALP), which is encoded by the bacterial phoD gene and participates in P mineralization, in river sediments remains unclear. Here, we investigated the ALP activities in 78 sediment samples collected from the cascade reservoir regions located in the Lancang River and the Jinsha River, two highly regulated rivers in southwestern China. The abundance and community composition of phoD -harboring bacteria were determined based on the phoD gene using quantitative real-time PCR and MiSeq sequencing, respectively. Comparison of control and affected sites indicated that dam construction significantly increased sediment ALP activity in both rivers. The abundances of phoD -harboring bacteria increased and their community compositions varied in response to dam construction; the relative abundances of the dominant genera Methylobacterium and Bradyrhizobium were particularly higher in affected site than control site. Co-occurrence network analyses revealed much higher network connectivity and relative abundances of keystone species in affected sites. Some microbial factors including phoD -harboring bacterial abundances, network clustering coefficients, and relative abundance of keystone species were positively correlated with ALP activity. The relative abundance of keystone species was identified as the most important microbial factor contributing to variation in ALP activity based on structural equation modeling analysis. These findings enhance our understanding of how dam construction affects the functions of phoD -harboring bacteria and their role in the P biogeochemical cycle in highly regulated rivers. • Sediment alkaline phosphatase activity was markedly enhanced by dam construction. • Damming altered the abundance and community composition of phoD -harboring bacteria. • Damming enhanced connectivity and cooperation in phoD -harboring bacterial network. • Keystone species of phoD -harboring bacteria were enriched in reservoir sediments. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Conclusion: Focal adhesion kinase (FAK) and integrin-linked kinase (ILK) are highly expressed in salivary adenoid cystic carcinoma (SACC), especially metastatic SACC, suggesting their potential role as prognostic markers for SACC. Objectives: This study aimed to investigate the expression of FAK, ILK, and phosphatase and tensin homolog deleted on chromosome ten (PTEN) in SACC tissues and the clinical significance. Methods: PAK and ILK expression in samples from 50 cases of SACC and 12 subjects with normal salivary glands was detected by immunohistochemical analysis. PAK and ILK expression in SACC cell lines was detected by RT-PCR and Western blot analysis. Results: The positive rate of PAK and ILK staining was 94% (47/50) and 48% (24/50) in SACC, respectively, significantly higher than in normal salivary gland tissues ( p < 0.05). However, the positive rate of PTEN staining was 30% (15/50), significantly lower than in normal salivary gland tissues ( p < 0.05). Pearson analysis showed that FAK expression was positively correlated with ILK expression but negatively correlated with PTEN expression in SACC tissues. FAK and ILK expression was positively associated with advanced stage, solid histological subtype, perineural invasion, and distant metastasis of SACC ( p < 0.05). In addition, FAK and ILK expression at both mRNA and protein levels was significantly higher in highly metastatic SACC-LM cells than low-metastatic SACC-83 cells. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Aim: The aim of this study was to explore the effect of Src-homology-2-domain-containing protein, tyrosine phosphatase 2 (SHP-2) on the proliferation of cervical cancer cells. Material and Methods: A total of 45 patients with cervical cancer (stage I-III), 32 with cervical intraepithelial neoplasia and 20 healthy subjects were consecutively recruited. The levels of SHP-2 and interferon (IFN)-β expression in cervical tissues were characterized by immunohistochemistry and statistically analyzed by logistic regression. Following knockdown of SHP-2 expression by a siRNA or pre-treatment with a specific peptide, the effect of SHP-2 expression in THP-1 cells on the growth and survival of SiHa cells and on IFN-β production was determined by co-culture assays, 3-(4,5)-dimethylthiazol (-z-y 1)-3,5-diphenyltetrazolium bromide, and enzyme immunosorbent assay. Results: The levels of SHP-2 expression in cervical cancer tissues were significantly higher than that in cervical intraepithelial neoplasia and uterine myoma tissues ( P < 0.05, respectively), and negatively correlated with the levels of IFN-β expression in these tissues (R = −0.582, P < 0.05). Knockdown of SHP-2 expression with SHP-2 siRNA or treatment with the SHP-2-specific blocking peptide in THP-1 cells significantly increased the production of IFN-β ( P < 0.05, respectively) and inhibited the proliferation of SiHa cells in a co-culture system of THP-1 and SiHa cells ( P < 0.05, respectively). Conclusions: SHP-2 phosphatase promotes cervical cancer cell proliferation through inhibiting IFN-β production. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Abstract: A new saponin, cristatain (1), together with four other saponins, celosin A (2), celosin B (3), celosin C (4) and celosin D (5) were isolated from the seeds of Celosia cristata L. (Amaranthaceae). Their structures were established by chemical and spectroscopic analyses. For the first time, the saponins were found in C. cristata L. In addition, compound 1 exhibited significant hepatoprotective effect on carbon tetrachloride (CCl4)- and N,N-dimethylformamide (DMF)–induced hepatotoxicity in mice, which were evidenced by significant decreases in the values of asparate aminotransferase (AST), alanine aminotransferase (ALT) and alkaline phosphatase (ALP) of serum and histopathological examinations compared to controls. [Copyright &y& Elsevier]

This article examines research wherein acute toxicity testing was implemented via mouse bioassays to study the deleterious effects of an Anabaena flos-aquae strain that was isolated from Lake Dianchi in China. Species of the genera Anabaena are known to produce cyanotoxins that pose risks to environmental and human health and have been observed in eutrophic freshwaters of China. Alterations took place within injected mice's serum biochemical parameters, including alkaline phosphatase, aspartate amino transferase, albumin content, and blood urea nitrogen. Histopathological observations were also conducted with hematoxylin and eosin stain under light microscopy.