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Cajaninstilbene acid (CSA), Longistylin A (LLA) and Longistylin C (LLC) are three characteristic stilbenes isolated from pigeon pea, exhibiting antibacterial activities against Staphylococcus aureus and even methicillin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus (MRSA). The results showed that LLA had the highest antibacterial activity against the tested strains following by LLC and CSA. Besides, the results implied that these stilbenes effectively inhibited the levels of adhesion and virulence genes and downregulate the production of ɑ-hemolysin. This study showed that stilbenes from pigeon pea have anti-Staphylococcus potential, and they also inhibited bacterial proliferation, biofilm formation, and key gene expressions related to adhesion and virulence of MRSA. It is the first time that the anti-S. aureus and MRSA activities of the three stilbenes has been systematically reported. These current findings provide insight into the anti-MRSA mechanism of stilbenes from pigeon pea, indicating these compounds may be used as antimicrobial agents or additives for food with health functions, and contribute to the development as well as application of pigeon pea in food science.

PDF file - 226K, TABLE S1: List of miRNAs on human chromosome 3p and the changes of their genome copies determined by genomic real-time PCR; TABLE S2: Clinical significance of the expression of miR-128 in breast cancer patients; TABLE S3: Invariable analysis of clinical outcome according to the expression of miR-128 in breast cancer patients (85 cases); TABLE S4: List of mRNAs predicted to be targeted by miR-128 by all the three programs: MiRanda, Pictar and TargetScan; TABLE S5: qRT-PCR analysis of the effect of forced expression of miR-128 in MDA-MB-231 cells or depleted expression of miR-128 in MCF-10A cells on mRNA levels of several key genes functionally involved in oncogenicity and neoplastic progression; TABLE S6: Sequences of the oligonucleotides for miRNAs, siRNAs, construct-making and ChIP assays; TABLE S7: Sequence of the oligonucleotides for real-time PCR experiments; TABLE S8: List of proteins tested by antibodies and characteristics of the corresponding antibodies used

PDF file - 1291K, FIGURE S1: Representative data of genomic real-time PCR screening for DNA copy numbers of aberrant microRNAs on human chromosome 3p in breast carcinoma and the correlation between expression levels of miR-128 and ARPP21; FIGURE S2: miR-128 depletion confers non-tumorigenic MCF-10A cells with a malignant phenotype in vitro; FIGURE S3: Forced expression of miR-128 alters the morphology and reduces migration and invasion of MCF-7 cells in vitro, whereas miR-128 depletion confers non-tumorigenic HBL-100 cells with a malignant phenotype in vitro; FIGURE S4: miR-128 depletion confers a malignant phenotype on non-tumorigenic MCF-10A cells in vivo and miR-128 represses the CD44+CD24 Neg/Low population in mammary carcinoma cells; FIGURE S5: Interactions between miR-128 and its binding targets; FIGURE S6: Luciferase assay for promoter activity

PDF file - 190K, Includes patient and specimen data, reagent information, miRNA and siRNA transfection, and statistical analysis. Also includes supplementary references

This study investigated the composition of pathogenic microorganisms, clinical features, and therapeutic strategies of infective artery rupture of renal allografts in recipients receiving deceased donor (DD) kidneys.We retrospectively studied the clinical data of the DD kidney transplant recipients with donor-associated infection at Tongji Hospital, Wuhan, China from January 1, 2015 to December 31, 2018, related recipients and corresponding donors. We collected the entire results of pathogenic microorganisms cultured from these related ruptured kidneys and then analyzed their distribution and differences.A total of 1440 kidney transplants from DD were performed in our center. The total incidence of infective artery rupture in kidney transplants was about 0.76% (11/1440), and the annual incidence ranged from 0.25% to 1.03%. The microbial culture results revealed that 11 recipients suffered from infective artery rupture and 3 recipients who accepted the kidney from same donor had the donor-associated pathogens, including 9 fungal strains (28.1%) and 23 bacterial strains (71.9%). There were 4 recipients infected with multi-drug-resistant Staphylococcus and Klebsiella pneumoniae from the above 11 recipients, of which, 10 recipients underwent graft loss, and one died of septic shock. The microbial cultures of the remaining 3 recipients who received appropriate anti-infective regimens turned negative eventually, and the patients were discharged successfully without significant complications.Renal recipients with infections derived from DDs were at high risk of artery rupture, graft loss, or even death. Appropriate anti-infective treatment is essential to reduce the incidence of artery rupture and mortality.

Steroid-refractory (SR) acute graft-versus-host disease (aGVHD) is one of the leading causes of early mortality after allogeneic hematopoietic stem cell transplantation (allo-HSCT). We investigated the efficacy, safety, prognostic factors, and optimal therapeutic protocol for SR-aGVHD patients treated with basiliximab in a real-world setting. Nine hundred and forty SR-aGVHD patients were recruited from 36 hospitals in China, and 3683 doses of basiliximab were administered. Basiliximab was used as monotherapy (n = 642) or in combination with other second-line treatments (n = 298). The cumulative incidence of overall response rate (ORR) at day 28 after basiliximab treatment was 79.4% (95% confidence interval [CI] 76.5%-82.3%). The probabilities of nonrelapse mortality and overall survival at 3 years after basiliximab treatment were 26.8% (95% CI 24.0%-29.6%) and 64.3% (95% CI 61.2%-67.4%), respectively. A 1:1 propensity score matching was performed to compare the efficacy and safety between the monotherapy and combined therapy groups. Combined therapy did not increase the ORR; conversely, it increased the infection rates compared with monotherapy. The multivariate analysis showed that combined therapy, grade III-IV aGVHD, and high-risk refined Minnesota aGVHD risk score before basiliximab treatment were independently associated with the therapeutic response. Hence, we created a prognostic scoring system that could predict the risk of having a decreased likelihood of response after basiliximab treatment. Machine learning was used to develop a protocol that maximized the efficacy of basiliximab while maintaining acceptable levels of infection risk. Thus, real-world data suggest that basiliximab is safe and effective for treating SR-aGVHD.

Mixed crystal strategy is an effective approach of improving the luminescence properties of optical materials and has been adopted widely in many systems. In this paper, the La-mixed Gd2Si2O7:Ce polycrystalline samples were successfully synthesized by a sol-gel method. The crystal structure and luminescence properties were confirmed and discussed by XRD, UV-Vis luminescence spectra, and XEL, respectively. The vacuum ultraviolet excitation spectra and thermoluminescence glow curves were also systematically investigated and discussed at varied temperature. A combination of the first-principles calculations and optical characterization experiments was employed to study the electronic band structure of host material, revealing that the band gap is narrowed and the 5d1 level of Ce3+ shifts to higher energy as the La content increases. The luminescence thermo-stability and activation energy were also measured and calculated. It indicates that thermo-stability is strongly dependent on the La concentration. An effective approach is developed to tune the electronic band structure, luminescence properties and thermostability of (Gd1–xLax)2Si2O7:Ce scintillator by adjusting La/Gd ratio.

Two new phenolic glycosides (

Two new withaphysalin-type withanolides (18-O-ethylwithaphysalin R and 5-O-ethylphysaminimin C

Arginine methylations can regulate important biological processes and affect many cellular activities, and the enzymes that catalyze the methylations are protein arginine methyltransferases (PRMTs). The biological consequences of arginine methylations depend on the methylation states of arginine that are determined by the PRMT's product specificity. Nevertheless, it is still unclear how different PRMTs may generate different methylation states for the target proteins. PRMT7 is the only known member of type III PRMT that produces monomethyl arginine (MMA) product. Interestingly, its E181D and E181D/Q329A mutants can catalyze, respectively, the formation of asymmetrically dimethylated arginine (ADMA) and symmetrically dimethylated arginine (SDMA). The reasons as to why the mutants have the abilities to add the second methyl group and E181D (E181D/Q329A) has the unique product specificity in generating ADMA (SDMA) have not been understood. Here, quantum mechanics/molecular mechanics (QM/MM) molecular dynamics (MD) and potential of mean force (PMF) free-energy simulations are performed for the E181D and E181D/Q329A mutants to understand the origin for their ability to generate, respectively, ADMA and SDMA. The simulations show that the free-energy barrier for adding the second methyl group to MMA in E181D (E181D/Q329A) to produce ADMA (SDMA) is considerably lower than the corresponding barriers in wild type and E181D/Q329A (wild type and E181D), consistent with experimental observations. Some important factors that contribute to the change of the activity and product specificity due to the E181D and E181D/Q329A mutations are identified based on the data from the simulations and analysis. It is shown that the transferable methyl group (from SAM) and N

We studied the profitable phytoremediation method with commercial chrysanthemum (Chrysanthemum indicum L.) in order to remediate the soils contaminated with heavy metals and generate economy income from the contaminated sites. A field experiment was carried out to remediate the contaminated soil through growing the commercial chrysanthemum plants in a farmland polluted with heavy metals of Cd and Zn due to application of creek sediments in the western suburb of Shanghai, Southeast China, since June 2013. After the consecutive 3 years of phytoremediation, Cd and Zn contents in the soil were reduced by 78.1% and 28.4%, respectively. We also found that the rice grain growing on the 3-year phytoremediated soil met the requirements of dietary safety, so did the vegetable growing on the 5-year phytoremediated soil. Growing chrysanthemum plants as a method of phytoremediation can not only remove a large amount of toxic heavy metals from the contaminated soil but also be highly profitable from the sales of chrysanthemum flowers.

Clinical staging, Gleason score, and prostate-specific antigen (PSA) have been accepted as factors for evaluating the prognosis of prostate cancer (PCa). With the in-depth study of iron metabolism and the development of multiparametric magnetic resonance imaging technology, we used q-Dixon magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) to measure the iron content of the PCa patients' lesions, and used enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay (ELISA) to measure the iron metabolism indicators in the patients' serum samples, combined with the patients' postoperative clinical data for analysis. We found that the serum indexes were correlated with the T2 star values, International Society of Urological Pathology (ISUP) grade, and pathological classification in PCa patients (all Plt; 0.001) but not in benign prostatic hyperplasia (BPH) patients (all Pgt; 0.05). The utilization of q-Dixon-based MRI and serum indexes allows the noninvasive measurement of iron content in prostate lesions and the assessment of differential iron metabolism between PCa and BPH, which may be helpful for evaluating the prognosis of PCa.

Many drugs for anti-tumour have been developed, nevertheless, seeking new anticancer drug is the focus of ongoing investigation. Withanolides have been reported to possess potent antiproliferative activity. Literature findings revealed that a diversity of withanolides were obtained fromThe EtOAc fraction ofOur findings might offer valuable clues for the utilization of withanolides as lead compounds for antineoplastic or antibacterial drug development.

To investigate nitrate and nitrite content in fresh vegetables, 264 samples were randomly collected in the farmers’ markets in Shanghai, Southeast China. The results indicate that 25.0% of the fresh vegetables were critically or more contaminated by nitrate [>1440 mg/kg FW (Fresh weight)]. Generally, leafy vegetables were more highly enriched in nitrate than root-tuber and fruit vegetables. About 22.6% of the leafy vegetables had a nitrate content exceeding the limit for edible permission (>3000 mg/kg FW). Nitrite content in the fresh vegetables was all within the safe level (

There should be a heightened index of suspicion for Parvovirus B19 (PVB19)-related anemia in organ transplant recipients. Thus far, there is no consensus or recommendation for clinical routine monitoring methods of PVB19 recipients to allow tailoring of immunosuppression.We conducted a retrospective study to evaluate the utility of the function (represented by the abilities to secrete IFN-γ) and numbers of lymphocyte subsets in monitoring PVB19 infections in renal recipients posttransplant. The enrolled 109 patients were split into 2 groups according to whether the recipients had an occurrence of PVB19 infection: 37 (33.94%) recipients developed PVB19 infection and 72 (66.06%) immune-stable recipients.The PVB19 infected group had significantly lower absolute counts and functions of different lymphocyte subsets compared with immune-stable recipients. We showed that the frequencies of IFN-γ + CD4 + T cells, IFN-γ + CD8 + T cells, and IFN-γ + NK cells increased markedly after treatment when compared to the occurrence in patients with timepoint before therapy, especially the percentages of IFN-γ + CD4 + T cells were significantly higher. Receiver operating characteristic (ROC) analysis showed that the optimal infection indicator was IFN-γ + NK cells frequency, with an auROC curve of 0.925. Concomitantly, Cox regression analysis indicated that the post-therapy increasing level of IFN-γ secreting function was significantly predictive of recurrent infections (P 0.001).We recommend prospective risk stratification for the high-risk population at risk of early-onset PVB19 infection and its recurrence involves screening strategies of immune-based surveillance with the sensitive IFN-γ + secreting monitoring for antiviral prophylaxis and preemptive therapy goal. Clinical Trial Notation: clinical trial registration number: chiCTR-ROC-17010756.

It is common that initial gaps exist between the steel tube and the core concrete in concrete-filled steel tubular structural members, which might affect the performance of the structure. This article aims to study the effects of the gaps on the cyclic behaviour of circular concrete-filled steel tubular members. A total of 24 concrete-filled steel tubular specimens were tested under constant axial load and cyclically lateral loads, where the main testing parameters included the types of gap, the gap ratio, the axial load level and the steel ratio. The failure mode, lateral load versus lateral displacement hysteretic curve and load versus displacement envelope curve of concrete-filled steel tubular specimens with pre-designed gaps were experimentally investigated and compared with those of the reference ones without any gap. The effects of gaps on the ultimate strength, ductility and dissipated energy of the concrete-filled steel tubular members were quantitatively evaluated according to the test results. The influence of gaps on circular concrete-filled steel tubes under different loading conditions, such as axial compressive loading, pure bending, eccentrically compressive loading and cyclic lateral loading, was also compared and discussed.

This paper studies the behaviour of sea sand concrete-filled stainless steel tube (CFSST) stub columns under axial compression through experimental investigations. A total of 48 specimens were tested, including circular and square stainless steel tubes filled with three types of core concrete, including natural river sand concrete, desalted sea sand concrete and natural sea sand concrete. The effects of key parameters such as the tubular thickness of stainless steel, the cross-sectional configuration and the types of concrete infill on the behaviour of these innovative composite columns were investigated. The confinement effects of CFSST with sea sand concrete were evaluated and compared with that of CFSST with conventional river sand concrete. Testing results showed that the tested CFSST columns showed generally high strength and excellent ductility, while the confinement effect of stainless steel on the sea sand concrete is as reliable as that on the river sand concrete counterpart. Comparisons were made between the test results and the predicted ultimate sectional capacity using the existing specifications AISC360–10 (2010), EC4 (2004) and DBJ/T13-51-2010 (2010). These codes are proved reasonably conservative for predicting the sectional strength of sea sand concrete-filled stainless steel tubular stub columns.

Concrete-encased concrete-filled steel tube members (concrete-encased CFST) are innovative composite structural elements which are having gradually increasing utilization in high-rise buildings and bridge structures. In practice, the inner CFST component is generally erected first and thus subjected to constructional load before the outer reinforced concrete (RC) component is formed. Afterward, the whole composite cross-section is under long-term sustained load in the service stage. This paper studies the structural behaviour of such composite columns under combined preload and long-term sustained load through a series of experimental tests. Concrete-encased CFST columns under different loading conditions, together with their CFST counterparts, are tested and compared. The main parameters include preload ratio, loading age and sectional configuration. Influence of these parameters on the structural behaviour in terms of failure mode, bearing capacity, stiffness and ductility are evaluated. Finally, a simplified design method is recommended to account for the influences of combined preload and long-term sustained load on the ultimate strength of the concrete-encased CFST columns, where the combined effects can be reflected by a corresponding set of coefficients.

Given that airway obstruction in asthma is not always fully reversible, reduced bronchodilator reversibility (BDR) may be a special asthma phenotype.To explore the characteristics of BDRAfter baseline assessments, all patients were classified into BDRSubjects with BDRWe identified that BDR

Disorders and long-range hoppings can induce exotic phenomena in condensed matter and artificial systems. We study the topological and dynamical properties of the quasiperiodic Su–Schrier–Heeger model with long-range hoppings. It is found that the interplay of quasiperiodic disorder and long-range hopping can induce topological Anderson insulator phases with non-zero winding numbers ω = 1 , 2 , and the phase boundaries can be consistently revealed by the divergence of zero-energy mode localization length. We also investigate the nonequilibrium dynamics by ramping the long-range hopping along two different paths. The critical exponents extracted from the dynamical behavior agree with the Kibble–Zurek mechanic prediction for the path with W = 0.90 . In particular, the dynamical exponent of the path crossing the multicritical point is numerical obtained as 1 / 6 ∼ 0.167 , which agrees with the unconventional finding in the previously studied XY spin model. Besides, we discuss the anomalous and non-universal scaling of the defect density dynamics of topological edge states in this disordered system under open boundary condictions.

We aimed to assess serum neurofilament light chain (sNfL) levels in autism spectrum disorder (ASD) and to investigate whether they are related to the severity of disease.The cohorts consisted of 166 children aged 3-8 (83 children diagnosed with ASD and 83 children with typically-developing). sNfL were analyzed using Single Molecule Array (Simoa) technology. ASD symptom severity was assessed according to the Chinese version of the Childhood Autism Rating Scale (CARS) score.The mean age of those included ASD was 5.1 years (standard deviations [S.D.]: 1.7) and 78.3 % were boys. The mean (SD) sNfL concentrations were significantly (P 0.001) higher in ASD than in TP children (10.2[5.0] pg/mL and 7.1[3.2]pg/mL). For each 1 pg/mL increase of sNfL, the risk of ASD would increase by 19 % (with the ORThe data showed that sNfL was elevated in ASD and related to symptom severity, suggesting that sNfL may play a role in ASD progression.

Recently, increasing studies showed that long noncoding RNAs (lncRNAs) play critical roles in tumor progression. However, the function and underlying mechanism of HOMEOBOX A11 antisense RNA (HOXA11-AS) on renal cancer remain unclear. In the current study, our data showed that the expression of HOXA11-AS was significantly upregulated in clear cell renal cell carcinoma (ccRCC) tissues and cell lines. High HOXA11-AS expression was associated with the advanced clinical stage, tumor stage, and lymph node metastasis. Function assays showed that HOXA11-AS inhibition significantly suppressed renal cancer cells growth, invasion, and ETM phenotype. In addition, underlying mechanism revealed that HOXA11-AS could act as a competing endogenous RNA (ceRNA) that repressed miR-146b-5p expression, which regulated its downstream target MMP16 in renal cancer. Taken together, our findings suggested that HOXA11-AS could promote renal cancer cells growth and invasion by modulating miR-146b-5p-MMP16 axis. Thus, our findings suggested that HOXA11-AS could serve as potential therapeutic target for the treatment of renal cancer.

Ketamine is a non-competitive antagonist of N-methyl-D-aspartate receptors (NMDARs). Growing evidence suggests that a single dose of ketamine produces a series of rapid and remarkable antidepressant properties. However, the mechanisms remain unclear. In our study, the antidepressant properties of a single dose of ketamine (10 mg/kg, i.p.) in mice exposed to chronic unpredictable stress (CUS) were assessed using the open-field test (OFT) and the forced swimming test (FST). Early growth response 1 (Egr-1) and postsynaptic density protein 95 (PSD-95) mRNA and protein expression levels were examined using qRT-PCR and western blot, respectively. Dendritic spine density in the CA1 region of the hippocampus was detected by Golgi staining. AMPAR currents in hippocampal slices were measured by electrophysiology. Our study showed that CUS induced a significant depression-like behavior accompanied by an upregulation of Egr-1 and downregulations of PSD-95, spine density, and AMPAR currents in the hippocampus, and a single dose of ketamine rapidly restored these changes. Interestingly, a single dose of Ro-25-6981 (an GluN2B antagonist, 10 mg/kg, i.p.) or Egr-1 siRNA, but not NVP AAM077 (an GluN2A antagonist, 10 mg/kg, i.p.), could produce the same antidepressant effects as ketamine. These data demonstrate that ketamine may produce its rapid antidepressant effects by downregulating the expression of Egr-1 via blocking GluN2B in the hippocampus.

miR-214 is an important oncomiRNA and is upregulated in various types of cancer, including gastric cancer. However, the molecular mechanism underlying the ectopic expression and function of miR-214 in gastric cancer is largely undefined. In this study, we found that miR-214 induces the Warburg effect and promotes the migration and proliferation of human gastric cancer cells. According to the mechanistic analysis, miR-214 expression is induced by environmental hypoxia, and miR-214 mediates hypoxia-induced functions. We then explored the molecular mechanism by which miR-214 enhances the Warburg effect in gastric cancer cells and identified the adenosine A2A receptor (A2AR) and PR/SET domain 16 (PRDM16) genes as the direct targets of miR-214. In conclusion, miR-214 inhibits A2AR and PRDM16 expression and enhances the Warburg effect in gastric cancer cells, thus promoting the proliferation and migration of gastric cancer cells. This study highlights an important role for the hypoxia-miR-214-PRDM16/A2AR pathway in the tumourigenesis of gastric cancer and may facilitate the development of new therapeutics against hypoxic tumours.

Over the years, plant-derived substances have been developed as effective substitutes for synthetic insecticides because of their safety and environmental friendliness. In this study, we investigated the insecticidal properties of four polyacetylenes isolated from Bidens pilosa, a traditional edible herb, against Plutella xylostella (L.), Spodoptera litura, Mythimna separata (Walker), Spodoptera exigua (Hubner), Helicoverpa armigera and Ostrinia furnacalis (Guene’e). The polyacetylenes 1-4 showed potent insecticidal activities with LD50 values ranging from 0.133 to 4.084 μg/larva in the contact toxicity assay and with LC50 values ranging from 0.070 to 2.561 mg/mL in the stomach toxicity assay. Among these four compounds, compound 1 exhibited the highest insecticidal activity, comparable with the activity of commercial pesticide pyrethrins. The results of in vitro glutathione S-transferases (GSTs) and acetylcholinesterase (AChE) assays indicated these polyacetylenes exerted inhibitory effects on GSTs or (and) AChE in P. xylostella. Meanwhile, their anti-inflammatory properties were investigated using the q-PCR assay. These compounds proved to be non-cytotoxic against human keratinocytes (HaCaT) in MTT assay. These findings suggested that compounds 1-4 have the potential to be developed as skin-safe insecticidal agents.

The translucent GGAG:Ce/glass composites are prepared successfully by ball-milling, tableting, and pressureless sintering. The thickness of composites is about 400 μm. The x-ray diffraction (XRD), differential scanning calorimetry (DSC), density of composite materials are measured and discussed systematically. The scanning electron microscopy (SEM) and energy dispersive spectrometer (EDS) elemental mapping are employed to analyze the particle size, the shape of powders, and the distribution of GGAG:Ce particles in the glass matrix, respectively. The decay time, ultraviolet, (UV), x-ray excitation luminescence spectra, and temperature spectra are studied. The results show that the composite materials have high light output, good thermostability, and short decay time. The method adopted in this work is an effective method to reduce the preparation time and cost of the sample. The ultralow afterglow indicates that the composite materials have an opportunity to be used for x-ray detection and imaging.

// Yan-Feng Huang 1 , Da-Jian Zhu 2 , Xiao-Wu Chen 3 , Qi-Kang Chen 2 , Zhen-Tao Luo 3 , Chang-Chun Liu 3 , Guo-Xin Wang 3 , Wei-Jie Zhang 3 and Nv-Zhu Liao 2 1 Department of Traditional Chinese Medicine, Shunde Hospital of Southern Medical University, Guangdong 528300, China 2 Department of Gastrointestinal Surgery, Shunde Women and Children’s Hospital Affiliated to Jinan University, Guangdong 528300, China 3 Department of Gastrointestinal Surgery, Shunde Hospital of Southern Medical University, Guangdong 528300, China Correspondence to: Da-Jian Zhu, email: zhudajian2016@126.com Keywords: curcumin, colorectal cancer, irinotecan, ROS, ER stress Received: May 13, 2016 Accepted: February 27, 2017 Published: April 04, 2017 ABSTRACT Although initially effective against metastatic colorectal cancer (CRC), irinotecan-based chemotherapy leads to resistance and adverse toxicity. Curcumin is well known for its anti-cancer effects in many cancers, including CRC. Here, we describe reactive oxygen species (ROS) generation and endoplasmic reticulum (ER) stress as important mechanisms by which curcumin enhances irinotecan’s effects on CRC cells. CRC cell lines were treated with curcumin and/or irinotecan for 24 h, and then evaluated using cell proliferation assays, cell apoptosis assays, cell cycle analysis, intracellular Ca 2+ measurements, ROS measurements and immunoblotting for key ER stress-related proteins. We found that cell viability was inhibited and apoptosis was increased, accompanied by ROS generation and ER stress activation in CRC cells treated with curcumin alone or in combination with irinotecan. Blocking ROS production attenuated the expression of two markers of ER stress: binding of immunoglobulin protein (BIP) and CCAAT/enhancer-binding protein homologous protein (CHOP). Blocking CHOP expression using RNA interference also inhibited ROS generation. These results demonstrated that curcumin could enhance the effects of irinotecan on CRC cells by inhibiting cell viability and inducing cell cycle arrest and apoptosis, and that these effects may be mediated, in part, by ROS generation and activation of the ER stress pathway.

Background: Hypoxia was a common feature for accelerating tumor metastasis by both inducting epithelial-mesenchymal transition (EMT) of tumor cells and polarization of tumor-associated macrophages (TAMs). The association and roles between hypoxia, EMT and TAMs in the biological behavior of gastric cancer (GC) for the time being recurrence is unclear. Material and methods: hypoixa by expression of hypoxia-inducible factor-1 alpha (HIF-1α), polarized functional status of infiltrated TAMs by immunohistochemical staining of CD68 and CD163, and the expression of E-cadherin as EMT property had been evaluated in 236 patients consecutive with histologically confirmed GC. Clinical significance was assessed for all these patients. Results: High expression of HIF-1α was found in patients with aggressive features, especially for recurrent patients. High infiltration of TAMs and abnormal expression of EMT-marker were also related to aggressive characteristics and predicted poor prognosis in GC. Meanwwhile, there existed a significant correlation among expression of HIF-1α, infiltration of TAMs and EMT marker in GC tissues. Multivariate Cox analysis revealed that high expression of HIF-1α combined TAMs infiltration were independent prognostic factors for disease-specific survival rate. Conclusion: HIF-1α is an unfavorable indicator for prognosis, may promote tumor progression through the induction of EMT and establishment of a pro-tumor immunosuppressive microenvironment. Further investigation into the therapeutic effects of blocking hypoxia is possible a potential strategy for GC treatment.