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MicroRNAs (miRNAs) are small yet versatile gene tuners that regulate a variety of cellular processes, including cell growth and proliferation. The aim of this study was to explore how miR‐448‐5p affects airway remodeling and transforming growth factor‐β1 (TGF‐β1)‐stimulated epithelial‐mesenchymal transition (EMT) by targeting Sine oculis homeobox homolog 1 (Six1) in asthma. Asthmatic mice models with airway remodeling were induced with ovalbumin solution. MiRNA expression was evaluated using quantitative real‐time polymerase chain reaction. Transfection studies of bronchial epithelial cells were performed to determine the target genes. A luciferase reporter assay system was applied to identify whether Six1 is a target gene of miR‐448‐5p. In the current study, we found that miR‐448‐5p was dramatically decreased in lung tissues of asthmatic mice and TGF‐β1‐stimulated bronchial epithelial cells. In addition, the decreased level of miR‐448‐5p was closely associated with the increased expression of Six1. Overexpression of miR‐448‐5p decreased Six1 expression and, in turn, suppressed TGF‐β1‐mediated EMT and fibrosis. Next, we predicted that Six1 was a potential target gene of miR‐448‐5p and demonstrated that miR‐448‐5p could directly target Six1. An SiRNA targeting Six1 was sufficient to suppress TGF‐β1‐induced EMT and fibrosis in 16HBE cells. Furthermore, the overexpression of Six1 partially reversed the protective effect of miR‐448‐5p on TGF‐β1‐mediated EMT and fibrosis in bronchial epithelial cells. Taken together, the miR‐448‐5p/TGF‐β1/Six1 link may play roles in the progression of EMT and pulmonary fibrosis in asthma. In this study, we provide experimental evidence that miR‐448‐5p is essential for EMT and pulmonary fibrosis in asthmatic mice. Moreover, we reveal that a novel posttranscriptional regulatory mechanism of Six1 expression is mediated by miR‐448‐5p. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Introduction: The aim of the study was to conduct a systematic review to explore the therapeutic effect of transcatheter arterial chemoembolization (TACE) combined with portal vein embolization (PVE) for patients with hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC)., Methods: Chinese and English databases (PubMed, Web of Science, Cochrane Library, China National Knowledge Infrastructure, Wanfang database, and VIP database) were searched from database inception to August 15, 2023. Studies comparing TACE combined with PVE versus TACE alone for patients with HCC were included. The degree of heterogeneity was assessed using I2 statistics and a Q test. The effect size was represented by risk ratio and mean difference (MD), and the effect size range was estimated using a 95% confidence interval (CI)., Results: Eight eligible studies were included in the systematic review, involving 689 participants. The results showed that the future liver residual (FLR) of patients treated with TACE combined with PVE was significantly higher than that of those treated with PVE alone (MD = 3.99%; 95% CI: 1.03-6.94). Furthermore, compared with PVE alone, TACE combined with PVE had a positive effect on disease-free survival (odds ratio [OR] = 2.16; 95% CI: 1.20-3.88), recurrence rate (OR = 0.79; 95% CI: 0.07-9.42), and complications (OR = 0.53; 95% CI: 0.30-0.96). There was no statistically significant impact on mortality with TACE combined with PVE treatment., Conclusion: The combination of TACE with PVE can significantly reduce the FLR of patients with HCC, with higher disease-free survival, lower recurrence rate, and fewer complications., (© 2024 S. Karger AG, Basel.)

Background: Risk factors for colorectal cancer (CRC) affect the way patients are subsequently treated and their prognosis. Dual-energy computerized tomography (DECT) is an advanced imaging technique that enables the quantitative evaluation of lesions. This study aimed to evaluate the quality of DECT images based on the Mono+ algorithm in CRC, and based on this, to assess the value of DECT in the diagnosis of CRC risk factors., Methods: This prospective study was performed from 2021 to 2023. A dual-phase DECT protocol was established for consecutive patients with primary CRC. The signal-to-noise ratio (SNR), contrast-to-noise ratio (CNR), overall image quality, lesion delineation, and image noise of the dual-phase DECT images were assessed. Next, the optimal energy-level image was selected to analyze the iodine concentration (IC), normalized iodine concentration (NIC), effective atomic number, electron density, dual-energy index (DEI), and slope of the energy spectrum curve within the tumor for the high- and low-risk CRC groups. A multifactor binary logistic regression analysis was used to construct a differential diagnostic regression model for high- and low-risk CRC, receiver operating characteristic (ROC) curves were plotted, and the area under the curve (AUC) was calculated to assess the diagnostic value of the model., Results: A total of 74 patients were enrolled in this study, of whom 41 had high-risk factors and 33 had low-risk factors. The SNR and CNR were best at 40 keV virtual monoenergetic imaging (VMI) based on the Mono+ algorithm (VMI+) (SNR 8.79±1.27, P<0.001; CNR 14.89±1.77, P=0.027). The overall image quality and lesion contours were best at 60 keV VMI+ and 40 keV VMI+, respectively (P=0.001). Among all the DECT parameters, the arterial phase (AP)-IC, NIC, DEI, energy spectrum curve, and venous phase-NIC differed significantly between the two groups. The AP-IC was the optimal DECT parameter for predicting high- and low-risk CRC with AUC, sensitivity, specificity, and cut-off values of 0.96, 97.06%, 87.80%, and 2.94, respectively, and the 95% confidence interval (CI) of the AUC was 0.88-0.99. Integrating the clinical factors and DECT parameters, the AUC, sensitivity, specificity, and predictive accuracy of the model were 0.99, 100.00%, 92.68%, and 94.67%, respectively, and the 95% CI of the AUC was 0.93-1.00., Conclusions: The DECT parameters based on 40 keV noise-optimized VMI+ reconstruction images depicted the CRC tumors best, and the clinical DECT model may have significant implications for the preoperative prediction of high-risk factors in CRC patients., Competing Interests: Conflicts of Interest: All authors have completed the ICMJE uniform disclosure form (available at https://qims.amegroups.com/article/view/10.21037/qims-23-291/coif). All authors report that this work was supported by a grant from the Joint Project of Chongqing Health Commission and Science and Technology Bureau (No. 2021MSXM220). The authors have no other conflicts of interest to declare., (2024 Quantitative Imaging in Medicine and Surgery. All rights reserved.)

Gandou decoction (GDD) is a traditional Chinese medicine prescription that has been widely used to treat copper metabolism disorders in China with remarkable clinical effect and lower toxicity. However, evaluation of the complexation ability of copper ions is challenging, which hinders screening and discovery of coordinate active ingredients in GDD. An analytical method is needed to determinate the complexation ability of chemical constituents with copper ions. In this study, a rapid and accurate method based on ultra-high performance liquid chromatography (UHPLC) was developed to determine the complexing ability of rhubarb with copper ions. First, the optimal coordination reaction conditions between active ingredients of rhubarb and copper ions were determined. The samples were separated using an Agilent Eclipse Plus C18 column (50 mm×2.1 mm, 1.8 μm) with 5 μL injection volumes. The mobile phase was gradient eluted with methanol and water containing 0.1% (v/v) phosphoric acid at a flow rate of 0.3 mL/min. The detection wavelength was 254 nm and the column temperature was 30 ℃. Under the optimized chromatographic conditions, the rhubarb constituents were effectively separated. Next, peak areas of rhubarb were calculated before and after the coordination reaction between copper ions. The complexing ability of active ingredients in rhubarb with copper ions was evaluated by calculating the rate of changes of their chromatographic peak areas. Finally, ultra performance liquid chromatography-quadrupole time-of-flight mass spectrometry (UPLC-Q-TOF-MS) was used to identify the coordination active ingredients in rhubarb extract. Focusing on the coordination reaction conditions between active ingredients of rhubarb and copper ions revealed that the active ingredients of rhubarb and copper ions reached equilibrium by coordination reaction at pH 9 for 12 h. Methodological evaluation revealed the good stability and repeatability of the method. Under these conditions, 20 major components of rhubarb were identified by UPLC-Q-TOF-MS. According to the coordination rate of each component and copper ions, eight components with strong coordination were screened out (gallic acid 3- O - β -D-(6'- O -galloyl)-glucopyranoside, aloe emodin-8- O - β -D-glucoside, sennoside B, l- O -galloyl-2- O -cinnamoyl-glucoside, chysophanol-8- O - β -D-(6″- O -acetyl)-glucoside, aloe-emodin, rhein and emodin). The respective complexation rates of the components were 62.50%, 29.94%, 70.58%, 32.77%, 34.61%, 26.07%, 28.73% and 31.78%. Compared with other reported methods, the presently developed method can be used to screen the active ingredients of traditional Chinese medicines that have complexing ability with copper ions, especially in complex mixture systems. This study describes an effective detection technology for evaluating and screening the complexing ability of other traditional Chinese medicines with metal ions.

The aim of this study was to perform a preliminary investigation of the pathogenesis of bacterial meningitis-induced brain injury by establishing rat pneumococcal meningitis models. Infant Wistar rats were intracranially inoculated with different concentrations of Streptococcus pneumoniae. Rats were sacrificed at different time points to observe clinical symptoms and pathological changes in brain tissues. Twenty-four hours after intracranial inoculation with Streptococcus pneumoniae, regardless of high or low concentrations of bacterial inoculation, all rats developed bacterial meningitis with manifestations such as lethargy and seizures. Pathological changes in brain tissues included subarachnoid and intraventricular inflammation, vasodilation and vascular congestion, and cortical neuronal necrosis. The number of rats with seizures, the degree of cerebral vascular disease, and the extent of neuronal damage were associated with the concentration of bacterial inoculum. Thirty days after infection, brain tissue weight significantly reduced. The pathological changes induced by inoculation with pneumococcal meningitis in Wistar rats were similar to those seen in the human brain. The possible mechanisms of brain damage caused by meningitis are cerebrovascular inflammation and disruption of regional cerebral blood flow.

Objective: To prepare a glypican-3 (GPC3)-targeting hepatocellular carcinoma MR molecular probe and to evaluate its targeting specificity using HepG2 cells., Methods: Poly(lactic-co-glycolic acid) (PLGA) nanoparticles were prepared by a double emulsion solvent evaporation method, and the surfaces were connected with anti-GPC3 mono-antibody and paramagnetic substance Gd3+. The physical properties of the probes were investigated using fluorescence microscopy, electron microscopy, Malvern particle size analysis, inductively coupled plasma atomic emission spectroscopy (ICP-AES) and 1.5T MR imaging. The specificity of the probes to target cultured HepG2 cells was determined by laser confocal microscopy. The signal characteristics, including signal-to-noise ratio (SNR), after co-incubation with HepG2 cells were analyzed by 1.5T MR imaging. Significance of differences between multiple groups (target group, non-target group, and control group) was assessed by one-way analysis of variance, and between two groups was assessed by the LSD-t test. A difference was considered to be statistically significant at P less than 0.05., Results: The GPC3-targeting hepatocellular carcinoma MR molecular probes were successfully prepared. The nanoparticles had a spherical shape, size of 495 +/- 17.5 nm, uniform size distribution, good dispersibility, no obvious aggregation, and could significantly increase the T1 signal. Using the ICP-AES measurement, 1 mol PLGA carried about 12 mol Gd3+, and as the Gd3+ concentration increased, the T1 signal increased. The prepared MR molecular probes could specifically target HepG2 cells, and could increase the T1 signal. The SNR value of the target group was 3.45 +/- 0.21, of the non-target group was 1.43 +/- 0.07, and of the control group was 1.12 +/- 0.03. The SNR value of the target group was significantly higher than that of the non-target group and the control group (P less than 0.05); there was no significant difference between the non-target group and the control group (P more than 0.05)., Conclusion: PLGA nanoparticles, anti-GPC3 mono-antibody and paramagnetic Gd3+ can be used to successfully prepare GPC3-targeting hepatocellular carcinoma MR molecular probes which are capable of specifically targeting HepG2 cells in vitro and being detected by 1.5T MR imaging. These MR molecular probes may represent a useful noninvasive imaging method for detecting early hepatocellular carcinoma in vivo.

The MDMV (Maize Dwarf Mosaic Virus, MDMV) CP (Coat Protein, CP) gene was cloned by RT-PCR method and introduced into the embryonic calli derived from immature embryos of elite inbred 18-599hong and 18-599bai via particle bombardment. Bombarded calli were selected on selection medium containing 5-10 mg/L (PPT) Bialaphos. From resistant calli, 79 plantlets were regenerated. 18 of 79 were grown and harvested. The results of Southern blotting and PCR analysis demonstrated that MDMV CP have been integrated into the genome of the transgenic plants. PCR-positive progeny plants were artificially inoculated with MDMV strain B, and the average chlorosis of the functional leaves of each plant was investigated. The typical symptoms were observed from the leaves of the control inbreds. while, the presence of the MDMV CP gene provided resistance to inoculation with MDMV strain B.

By using the matured embryos of Japonica rice variety Zhonghua No. 11 as explants, rice transformation was performed by Agrobacterium-mediated co-cultivation method, resulting in 1489 independent transgenic rice plants that carry a T-DNA insertion. Genomic DNA gel-blot and PCR analyses showed that 69.8% of the total lines contain the inserted T-DNA. The flanking sequence of T-DNA in transgenic rice plants was analyzed using Tail-PCR. In addition, we have evaluated 1066 T1 transgenic lines on heading days, plant height and panicles per hill, and found different types of mutants from a number of lines.