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Background: Non small cell lung cancer (NSCLC) is one of the main causes of death in human diseases. In this study, we aimed to explore the prognostic value of serum circ_0048856 in patients with NSCLC and its relationship with miR-1287-5p.Methods: The expression levels of circ_0048856 and miR-1287-5p in serum of NSCLC patients and healthy people were detected by qRT-PCR. The relationships between circ_0048856 expression and clinical data were evaluated via χ2 test. Overall survival analysis was carried out via Kaplan-Meier method with log rank test. Cox regression analysis was taken to evaluate the prognostic ability of circ_0048856 in NSCLC. Luciferase reporter gene was used to detect the targeting relationship between circ_0048856 and miR-1287-5p.Results: The expression of circ_0048856 in serum of NSCLC patients was significantly higher than that of healthy volunteers (P < 0.001). And its high expression was significantly correlated with TNM stage (P = 0.002) and lymph node metastasis (P < 0.001). In addition, Kaplan Meier log rank test analysis showed that the overall survival of patients with high expression of circ_0048856 was significantly shorter than that of patients with low expression of circ_0048856 (log rank test, P = 0.002). Serum circ_0048856 expression is an independent prognostic biomarker in NSCLC patients. Furthermore, we found that miR-1287-5p is a direct downstream miRNA of circ_0048856 through luciferase reporter gene analysis, and there is a negative correlation between circ_0048856 and miR-1287-5p.Conclusion: Serum circ_0048856 is an independent prognostic biomarker in patients with NSCLC. Circ_0048856 can participate in the progression of NSCLC by targeting miR-1287-5p.

Present study was aimed to explore the diagnostic value and mechanism of exosome derived circular RNA (circ)_0048856 in non-small cell lung cancer (NSCLC) development.Exosomes protein markers, CD63 and CD9, were examined by Western blot. Real time quantitative reverse transcriptase - polymerase chain reaction (qRT-PCR) was used to detect the relative expression of circ_0048856 and miR-1287-5p. Proliferation of NSCLC cell was detected by MTT assay. Transwell assay was utilized to evaluated the migration and invasion of NSCLC cells. Apoptosis rate was examined by Flow cytometry. Double luciferase report assay was used to assess the targeting association between circ_0048856 and miR-1287-5p. Diagnostic value of circ_0048856 for NSCLC was estimated by receiver operating characteristic (ROC) curve. Animal models were constructed to explore the function of exosomal circ_0048856 in NSCLC.Diameter of exosomes in NSCLC serum was ranged between 75 and 150 nm. Exosomes circ_0048856 was enhanced in NSCLC serum and cell lines (P 0.001). Exosome derived circ_0048856 had high diagnostic value for NSCLC. Area under the curve (AUC) was 0.943 (95%CI=0.904-0.982, P 0.001). at the optimal cutoff value of 1.800, the sensitivity was 0.880, and specificity was 0.800. Exosome circ_0048856 facilitated proliferation, migration and invasion, inhibited apoptosis of NSCLC cells. MiR-1287-5p could be effaced by circ_0048856. MiR-1287-5p reversed the biological behavior changes of NSCLC cells which induced by circ_0048856. In vivo, exosomal circ_0048856 could significantly promote tumor growth (P 0.001).Exosomes derived circ_0048856 was elevated in NSCLC serum and cell lines. Exosome circ_0048856 promoted the NSCLC development by targeting miR-1287-5p. Exosome circ_0048856 had high diagnostic value for NSCLC.

MicroRNA (miRNA/miR)-124 is widely accepted as the suppressor of different tumors. The present study aimed to improve understanding of the potential role of miR-124 in breast cancer. The gene expression profile change derived from the overexpression of miR-124 was investigated using RNA sequencing and bioinformatics analysis of the breast cancer cell line SKBR3. The results demonstrated that the gene expression profile of SKBR3 cells significantly changed. In addition, the transcription factor activating enhancer-binding protein 4 (TFAP4) gene was identified among the top 10 differentially expressed genes, and was identified as a novel target gene of miR-124 using a dual-luciferase reporter assay. TFAP4 knockdown in notably impaired SKBR3 cell migration and proliferation, which was consistent with decreasing migration and proliferation ability following overexpression of miR-124. Taken together, these results suggest that overexpression of miR-124 can suppress the migration and proliferation of SKBR3 cells by tarsgeting TFAP4. Thus, TFAP4 may act as a novel therapeutic target of breast cancer.

Background Long non coding RNAs (lncRNAs) have been validated to be involved in the complicated biological processes during tumor progression. LINC01207 has been identified as an oncogene in several cancer types. However, the function of LINC01207 and its underlying molecular mechanism in gastric cancer (GC) are poorly understood. Methods The expression level of LINC01207, miR-1301-3p and PODXL mRNA was detected in GC tissues and cells by RT-qPCR. The level of PODXL protein was examined by western blot. Colony formation assay, EdU assay, TUNEL assay, caspase-3 activity test and transwell assays were carried out to analyze the effect of LINC01207 on GC cell proliferation, apoptosis, migration and invasion. The interaction between RNAs was confirmed by luciferase reporter assay, RNA pull-down assay and RIP assay. Results LINC01207 was expressed at high level in GC tissues and cells. Silencing of LINC01207 impaired GC cell proliferation, migration and invasion but promoted cell apoptosis. Mechanistically, LINC01207 acted as a ceRNA by sponging miR-1301-3p to upregulate PODXL. Besides, miR-1301-3p silencing or PODXL overexpression could abolish the inhibitory effect of LINC01207 knockdown on GC cell growth and migration. CCCTC-binding factor (CTCF) could transcriptionally activate LINC01207 in GC cells. Conclusions CTCF-induced activation of LINC01207 contributes to GC progression through regulating miR-1301-3p/PODXL axis.

Background Cutaneous melanoma is an aggressive cancer with increasing incidence and mortality rates worldwide. Metastasis is one of the primary elements that influence the prognosis of patients with cutaneous melanoma. This study aims to clarify the potential mechanism underlying the low survival rate of metastatic melanoma and to search for novel target genes to improve the survival rate of patients with metastatic tumors. Methods Gene expression dataset and clinical data were downloaded from The Cancer Genome Atlas portal. Differentially expressed genes (DEGs) were identified, and their functions were studied through gene ontology and Kyoto Encyclopedia of Genes and Genomes enrichment analyses. Survival and multivariate Cox regression analyses were used to screen out candidate genes that could affect the prognosis of patients with metastatic melanoma. Results After a series of comprehensive statistical analysis, 464 DEGs were identified between primary tumor tissues and metastatic tissues. Survival and multivariate Cox regression analyses revealed four vital genes, namely, POU2AF1, ITGAL, CXCR2P1, and MZB1, that affect the prognosis of patients with metastatic melanoma. Conclusion This study provides a new direction for studying the pathogenesis of metastatic melanoma. The genes related to cutaneous metastatic melanoma that affect the overall survival time of patients were identified.

In this study, we found that four novel peptides designed by molecular modeling techniques were successfully applicated with cytotoxicity on colon cancer cells sw620. First, the interactions between the Herstatin and the HER2 were explored by ational-designed approaches, which were combined with homology modeling, protein/protein docking, and structural superimposition analysis. Then, based on the results derived from theoretical analysis, four novel peptides were designed, synthesized, and experimentally evaluated for biological function; it was found that they showed a remarkable enhancement on Herceptin to inhibit the genesis and development of colon cancers, and no significant side effects on normal colon cells NCM460 were observed but Doxorubicin had. These results indicated that it is a feasible way to use the well-designed peptides derived from Herstatin to enhance the efficacy of clinical drugs Herceptin and to kill colon cancer cells selectively without harming normal colon cells. We believe that our research might provide a new way to develop the potential therapies for colon cancers.

High efficiency and cost-effective remediation technologies are needed to remove tetrachloroethylene (PCE) from the source zones in soil and groundwater systems. This work evaluated the ability of a biodegradable surfactant (Tween 80) coupled with an effective oxidant (Fe 2+ (activation agent)–citrate (chelating agent) activated persulfate (PS, oxidant)) to remove PCE from porous media. Batch experiments were used to optimize the oxidant by testing the effects of PS, citrate, and Fe 2+ concentrations on the PCE degradation. The optimal molar ratio of PS/citrate/Fe 2+ /PCE was 15:15:5:1 for PCE degradation in presence of the surfactant. Four sandbox experiments were performed to compare the effectiveness of the surfactant and the combination of the surfactant with the optimized oxidant in the removal of PCE from homogeneous and heterogeneous porous media. PCE saturation distributions in the sandboxes were quantified using a light transmission system. In addition, the PCE, PS, and Cl − concentrations in the effluents were also monitored during the experiments. While the Tween 80 solution removed about 52% and 67% of PCE from the homogeneous and heterogeneous porous media; the combination solution was more effective with removal rates of 80% and 84%, respectively. The enhanced PCE removal was due to the combined effects of the surfactant solubilization and PS oxidation: (1) Tween 80-enhanced solubilization resulted in an enlarged effective contact and reaction between PCE and PS; and (2) PS degraded the PCE from the soluble phase and thus facilitated its dissolution from the source zone, resulting in more efficient use of Tween 80. Findings from this work indicate that the combination of surfactant and oxidant can provide an effective way for the remediation of PCE in soils and groundwater.

A non-covalent modified boron nitride(n-CMBN) was obtained by non-covalent modification successfully and used to prepare poly(ether ether ketone)(PEEK) composites. The non-covalent modifier is polyetherimide(PEI), which has high compatibility with PEEK. Particularly, only a small amount of PEI was used to modify BN, which made the thermal conductivity of 30 wt% n-CMBN/PEEK reached 1.01 W·(m·K)−1, 16% higher than that of BN/PEEK. Modified Hashin-Shtrikman model demonstrated that n-CMBN/PEEK possessed 7% lower total thermal resistance compared with BN/PEEK. Moreover, the tensile strength and elongation at break remains above 99.0 MPa and 14.6% respectively, demonstrating the relatively good mechanical properties in high thermally conductive composites. The introduction of 10 wt% n-CMBN decrease the friction coefficient of PEEK composites, which was as low as 0.33 of 30% lower than that of PEEK. In addition, the 5% weight loss temperature were above 557 °C, exhibiting the excellent heat resistant.

Understanding the migration of dense non-aqueous phase liquids (DNAPLs) in complex subsurface systems is important for evaluating contamination source zones and designing remediation schemes after spill events. Six sandbox experiments were performed to explore the individual effect of flow velocity, and the combined effect of flow velocity and layered lenses on a DNAPL (PCE) migration in porous media. DNAPL saturation was measured using a light transmission system, and saturation distribution was quantified by spatial moments. The experimental results show that large flow velocity significantly promotes lateral and vertical migration of the low-viscosity DNAPL, while when layered lenses exist, the infiltration rate decreases and horizontal spread increases. Migration processes were numerically simulated, and the modelling results tested against experimental results. Furthermore, migration of DNAPLs with different viscosities was simulated to explore the combined effects of flow velocity and geological heterogeneity. Simulation results show that enhanced heterogeneity makes low-viscosity DNAPLs migrate along preferential pathways, resulting in irregular DNAPL morphology. Layered lenses combined with heterogeneity complicate the effect of flow velocity on the migration of low-viscosity DNAPLs by changing percolation paths. Results also demonstrate that flow velocity exhibits relatively little influence on the migration of medium/high-viscosity DNAPLs, which is predominantly controlled by viscosity and heterogeneity. Enhanced heterogeneity has a larger effect on migration behavior. Findings indicate that the migration paths and position of the source zone could change significantly, due to the combined effect of groundwater flow velocity and geological heterogeneity; thus, comprehensive hydrogeological investigation is needed to characterize the source zone.

Fluorescence spectroscopy is a rapid and non-destructive method for monitoring water quality. In this work, wavelet analysis, together with independent component analysis (ICA), was applied for component recognition of seriously overlapped, multi-component, three dimensional fluorescence spectra. Wavelet analysis extracts the features of the spectra and amplifies differences among phenolic homologs. ICA analysis in blind signal separation was used to separate single component before multiple linear regression (MLR). The proposed method increases the correct classification rate and enriches the spectra library. As such, it is a useful alternative to traditional techniques in component recognition.

Dendritic cell (DC) vaccines are currently one of the most effective approaches to treat melanoma. The immunogenicity of antigens loaded into DCs determines the treatment effects. Patients treated with autologous antigen-loaded DC vaccines achieve the best therapeutic effects. In China, most melanoma patients cannot access their autologous antigens because of formalin treatment of tumor tissue after surgery. In the present study, we purified heat shock protein 70 (HSP70)-peptide complexes (PCs) from human melanoma cell lines A375, A875, M21, M14, WM‑35, and SK‑HEL‑1. We named the purified product as M‑HSP70‑PCs, and determined its immunological activities. Autologous HSP70‑PCs purified from primary tumor cells of melanoma patients (nine cases) were used as controls. These two kinds of tumor antigenic complexes loaded into DCs were used to stimulate an antitumor response against tumor cells in the corresponding patients. Mature DCs pulsed with M‑HSP70‑PCs stimulated autologous T cells to secrete the same levels of type I cytokines compared with the autologous HSP70‑PCs. Moreover, DCs pulsed with M‑HSP70‑PCs induced CD8+ T cells with an equal ability to kill melanoma cells from patients compared with autologous HSP70‑PCs. Next, we used these PC‑pulsed autologous DCs and induced autologous specific CD8+ T cells to treat one patient with melanoma of the nasal skin and lung metastasis. The treatment achieved a good effect after six cycles. These findings provide a new direction for DC-based immunotherapy for melanoma patients who cannot access autologous antigens.

A near-infrared laser spectrometer was utilized to determine basic line parameters of 3 selected transitions around 1.56µm at temperature up to 1000K. The line strengths, N2 broadening coefficients and corresponding temperature dependence were experimentally analyzed and compared with theoretical predictions.

When purified from a tumor, certain heat shock protein 70 (HSP70)-peptide complexes (PCs) can function as effective vaccines against the tumor from which the complexes were isolated. The immunogenic mechanisms of HSP70 preparations imply that tumor-derived HSP70-PCs exhibit antigens associated with antigen-presenting cells such as dendritic cells (DCs), inducing antigen-specific cytotoxic CD8+ T cells. However, some important membrane-resident tumor-associated peptides, such as the HER-2/neu (c-erbB2) oncogenic protein, cannot be purified from HSP70 by traditional methods. In the present study, a new approach for the purification of HSP70-PCs from HER-2-overexpressing breast cancer cells was established. The detergent 3-[(3-cholamidopropyl)dimethylammonio]-1-propanesulfonate (CHAPS) was used to obtain more effectual tumor peptides. The new purified product was named HSP70-HER-2-PC, and its immunological activities were determined. Traditionally purified HSP70-PCs (without CHAPS) and recombinant human HSP70-HER-2 protein complexes (recombined in vitro) were used as controls. These three HSP70-associated tumor antigenic complex pulsed dendritic cells (DCs) were used to stimulate an antitumor response. The mature DCs pulsed with HSP70-HER-2-PCs stimulated autologous T cells to secrete higher levels of type I cytokine compared to the two control groups. Moreover, DCs pulsed with HSP70-HER-2-PCs induced the most specific CD8+ T cells that specifically killed the same tumor cells. These findings provide a basis for new approaches in enhancing HSP70-based immunotherapy for HER-2-associated or other membrane antigenic peptide-related cancers.

A new carbon-supported PdNi (PdNi/C) catalyst is prepared by a simple simultaneous reduction reaction with sodium borohydride in glycol solution. The results show that the performance of PdNi/C catalyst for formic acid oxidation is greatly improved compared with that of Pd/C. X-ray diffraction (XRD) results show that Ni exists in the catalyst both as NiO and as PdNi alloy. The value of the apparent activation energy shows that the activity of formic acid oxidation on the PdNi/C is more sensitive to temperature compared with Pd/C.

The LHX genes play an important role in a number of developmental processes. Potential roles of LHXs have been demonstrated in various neoplastic tissues as tumor suppressors or promoters depending on tumor status and types. The aim of this study was to investigate the function role of LHXs in the human colorectal cancer (CRC). The gene expression changes of LHXs in CRC tissues compared with noncancerous colorectal tissues was detected using real-time quantitative reverse transcriptase-polymerase chain reaction (QRT-PCR) analysis and immunohositochemistry. And we identified the gene LHX4 that were significantly upregulated in CRC by QRT-PCR analysis and immunohistochemistry. Furthermore, we discovered that LHX4 promoted cancer cell proliferation in vitro, and LHX4 expression correlated with elevated β-catenin levels in CRC and β-catenin function was required for LHX4's oncogenic effects. Mechanistically, LHX4 facilitate TCF4 to bind to β-catenin and form a stable LHX4/TCF4/β-catenin complex and transactive its downstream target gene. LHX4 mutations that disrupt the LHX4-β-catenin interaction partially prevent its function in tumor cells. All in all, LHX4 is a commonly activated tumor promoter that activate Wnt/β-catenin signaling in cancer cells of CRC.

The objective of the study was to explore the inhibitive role of cyclin D1 gene silence in laryngeal squamous cell carcinoma by lentivirus-mediated RNA interference.Cd1-RNAi-Lentivirus and the control lentivirus (GFP-Lentivirus) were transfected into Hep-2 cells. Reverse transcriptase polymerase chain reaction was performed to explore the cyclin D1 expression level in Cd1-RNAi-Lentivirus-transfected Hep 2 cells. The apoptosis and viability of Cd1-RNAi-Lentivirus-treated Hep-2 cells were measured with flow cytometry and methyl thiazolyl tetrazoliym assay. In an animal experiment, 10 mice bearing Hep-2 cell tumor were intratumorally injected with Cd1-RNAi-Lentivirus; and the other 10 mice were injected with GFP-Lentivirus. Terminal deoxytransferase-mediated dUTP nick end labeling stains and transmission electron microscope were used to observe the apoptosis in the xenografts.Cyclin D1 was knocked down after Cd1-RNAi-Lentivirus was transfected into Hep-2 cells. The proliferative ability of Hep-2 cells was significantly inhibited by Cd1-RNAi-Lentivirus, and a significant apoptosis of Hep-2 cells was also observed after Cd1-RNAi-Lentivirus transfection. The average weight and volume of tumors in the Cd1-RNAi-Lentivirus-treated group were significantly lower than those in the control group (P.01). The significant apoptosis was detected with terminal deoxytransferase-mediated dUTP nick end labeling stain and transmission electron microscope.The present findings suggest that cyclin D1 gene silence by lentivirus-mediated RNA interference can inhibit growth and promote apoptosis of laryngeal squamous cell carcinoma.

In this paper, we prepared carbon doped nanocrystalline ZnO by pyrolyzed zinc stearate at 250°C and 300°C respectively. The XRD curves indicate the sample has polycrystalline hexagonal wurtzite structure. The XRD data of the sample prepared at 250°C and 300°C has a bigger angle shift about 0.05°and 0.3°respectively. That indicate the structure of the sample has some changes. The EDS indicate the sample contains Zn, O and C. So the XRD shift may attribute to the C. The XPS indicate the C doped in the crystal lattice of ZnO of the sample prepared at 300°C, and the sample prepared at 250°C may be only a few of C doped in the crystal lattice of ZnO. The PL of the sample prepared at 300°C only has a weak ultraviolet emission, which indicates C modified the nanocrystalline ZnO surface as a non-radiative recombination center. In this process C could non-radiatively recombine the carries on the nanocrystallin ZnO surface. The sample prepared at 250°C has a strong visible emission at about 530 nm. This emission band could be attributed to oxygen vacancy because C schlepped some oxygen on the nanocrystalline ZnO surface.

According to the X-ray fluorescence (XRF) spectral characteristics of heavy metals in soil, the application of XRF spectra de-noising using biorthogonal wavelet packet transform technology is analyzed. Wavelet pack decomposition and threshold setting are particularly discussed. Through spectra de-noising, the linear fitting relationship between concentration and intensity of Ni is meliorated. Experimental results demonstrate that this method can effectively overcome the noise interference and preserve characteristic spectra. This method is very useful to increase the accuracy of quantitative analysis, especially for analyzing trace elements in soil.

In this paper, we consider a perturbed compound Poisson risk model with stochastic premiums and constant interest force. We obtain the upper bound and Lundberg-Cramér approximation for the infinite-time ruin probability, and consider the asymptotic formula for the finite-time ruin probability when the claim size is heavy-tailed. We show that the model in our paper has similar results to the classical risk process and some existing generalized models.