Comprehensive Characterization And Clinical Relevance of CLEC4G Expression Across Human Cancers

Liver and lymph node sinusoidal endothelial cell C-type lectin (CLEC4G) interacts with the surface glycoproteins of enveloped viruses and mediates immune evasion for viruses. Recent studies have indicated that the expression of CLEC4G affects the development and microenvironment of tumors. In the present study, we revealed comprehensive characterization of CLEC4G expression across human cancers. We first explored the effect of CLEC4G expression on overall survival (OS) across human cancers. High expression of CLEC4G was beneficial in lung adenocarcinoma (LUAD) and detrimental in kidney renal clear cell carcinoma (KIRC) and uveal melanoma (UVM) in terms of OS. Enrichment analysis of the 14 cancer-related signatures suggested that CLEC4G regulated tumor metastasis and immune response. Enrichment analysis of the immunophenotypes and cancer-immunity cycles indicated that CLEC4G was involved in regulation of macrophages and Treg cells, which affected tumor immune response. We also observed correlations between CLEC4G expression and checkpoint molecular expression in different cancer types. Taken together, the present study revealed the comprehensive characterization of CLEC4G expression across human cancers, predicting the roles of CLEC4G in the development and immune microenvironment of tumors.

GROWTH AND EXPRESSION PATTERN OF GROWTH-RELATED GENES IN THE FAST-GROWING GIANT GOURAMI Osphronemus goramy

Growth improvement of the giant gourami through molecular assisted selection offers a breakthrough solution regarding the slow growth problem in culturing the fish species. However, gene molecular expression studies and gene mapping information are scarce for this species. This study aimed to evaluate the growth, expression of the growth-related genes and compare the gene expressions between fast-growing (FG) and slow-growing (SG) fish. The polymorphism screenings were also conducted within the GH sequence of the FG and SG populations. Fish growth was analyzed by measuring length and weight once a month. The expression levels of GH, IGF1, AMPK, ARS-I, ALT, and AST genes were analyzed using real-time PCR. Twenty-five days old fish were reared for 30 days. The fish were continuously reared separately based on their body weight (BW) for 85 days until reaching 140 days old. At the end of the rearing period, the BW growth rate of the FG population was 1.569-fold higher, and body length (BL) growth was 1.056-fold higher than the SG population. FG fish have higher gene expression than the SG fish, indicating the important role of gene expression in fish growth. The polymorphisms screening within the GH sequences showed no significant difference between FG and SG fish of giant gourami. These research results provide valuable information in developing the marker-assisted selection for growth traits in giant gourami.

Sarcopenia and Ghrelin System in the Clinical Outcome and Prognosis of Gastroenteropancreatic Neuroendocrine Neoplasms

Background: Malnutrition and sarcopenia affect clinical outcomes and treatment response in cancer patients. Patients with neuroendocrine neoplasms (NENs) may present with additional symptoms related to tumor localization in the gastrointestinal tract and hormone secretion, increasing the risk and effects of sarcopenia. Aim: To explore the presence of malnutrition and sarcopenia in gastroenteropancreatic (GEP)-NEN patients, their relation to tumor characteristics, patient outcomes, survival and the molecular expression of ghrelin system components in the tumor. Patients and methods: One-hundred-and-four patients were included. Anthropometric, biochemical and CT-scans at diagnosis were evaluated. The expression levels of key ghrelin system components were assessed in 63 tumor samples. Results: Nutritional parameters were similar in GEP-NEN tumors of different origin. Relapsed disease was associated with decreased BMI. Patients who presented with weight loss at diagnosis had significantly lower overall survival (108 (25–302) vs. 263 (79–136) months). Ghrelin O-acyltransferase (GOAT) enzyme expression was higher in these patients. The prevalence of sarcopenia using CT images reached 87.2%. Mortality was observed only in patients with sarcopenia. Muscle evaluation was correlated with biochemical parameters but not with the expression of ghrelin system components. Conclusion: Survival is related to the nutritional status of patients with GEP-NENs and also to the molecular expression of some relevant ghrelin system components. Routine nutritional evaluation should be performed in these patients, in order to prescribe appropriate nutritional support, when necessary, for increasing quality of life and improving clinical outcomes.

miR-378d suppresses malignant phenotype of ESCC cells through AKT signaling

Background Post-resistance progress in paclitaxel (PTX) treatment remains a major challenge in tumor treatment. A high dose of PTX was used for cell lines to analyze the changes in molecular expression. The miR-378d was sharply reduced in surviving cells, but the role of miR-378d in Esophageal squamous cell carcinoma (ESCC) remained unclear. Methods We analyzed the relationship between miR-378d expression and the clinicopathological features of ESCC. We constructed miR-378d silent expression cell lines to study phenotypes and molecular mechanisms. Results The miR-378d expression was associated with good prognosis in patients with ESCC. miR-378d inhibition promoted chemo-resistance, monoclonal formation, EMT, migration, invasion, stemness, and metastasis of ESCC cells. miR-378d can target downregulated AKT1. Conclusions Therefore, miR-378d expression is a good prognostic factor of patients with ESCC and regulates the malignant phenotype of tumor cells through AKT.

Comparative proteomics reveals Cryptosporidium parvum manipulation of the host cell molecular expression and immune response

Cryptosporidium is a life-threating protozoan parasite belonging to the phylum Apicomplexa, which mainly causes gastroenteritis in a variety of vertebrate hosts. Currently, there is a re-emergence of Cryptosporidium infection; however, no fully effective drug or vaccine is available to treat Cryptosporidiosis. In the present study, to better understand the detailed interaction between the host and Cryptosporidium parvum, a large-scale label-free proteomics study was conducted to characterize the changes to the proteome induced by C. parvum infection. Among 4406 proteins identified, 121 proteins were identified as differentially abundant (> 1.5-fold cutoff, P < 0.05) in C. parvum infected HCT-8 cells compared with uninfected cells. Among them, 67 proteins were upregulated, and 54 proteins were downregulated at 36 h post infection. Analysis of the differentially abundant proteins revealed an interferon-centered immune response of the host cells against C. parvum infection and extensive inhibition of metabolism-related enzymes in the host cells caused by infection. Several proteins were further verified using quantitative real-time reverse transcription polymerase chain reaction and western blotting. This systematic analysis of the proteomics of C. parvum-infected HCT-8 cells identified a wide range of functional proteins that participate in host anti-parasite immunity or act as potential targets during infection, providing new insights into the molecular mechanism of C. parvum infection.

Structural Abnormalities of Spermatozoa in Triploid Gynogenetic Crucian Carp (Carassius auratus)

The spermatozoa of triploid gynogenetic crucian carp (Carassius auratus) (3nDTCC) possess a spermatogenesis process with a normal genetic background. However, the genetic materials of these spermatozoa do not completely inherit gynogenetic progeny in general. Understanding the intrinsic mechanism may be helpful for developing breeding strategies of gynogenetic fishes. In this study, the spermatozoa ultrastructure was systematically studied in diploid red crucian carp and 3nDTCC to demonstrate their cytological structural differences. In addition, the artificial breeding tests of 3nDTCC(♀) with different ploidy spermatozoa were performed to verify the contributions of genetic materials from 3nDTCC spermatozoa to the gynogenesis progeny. Furthermore, the mRNA expression of centriole-related genes (i.e., cep57, cetn1, rootletin, and nek2) involved in spermatozoa packaging was also determined by quantitative real-time PCR (qPCR) to illustrate the molecular expression characteristics of the spermatozoa packaging process in 3nDTCC. The results reveal the adaptive features of spermatozoa in 3nDTCC, including the loose midpiece structure, abnormal head structure, and abnormal expression of centriole-related genes, which may influence the motility of spermatozoa and make it not involved normally in the genetic composition of the gynogenesis offspring.

ProFiT: eine MS-basierte Methode zur Skelettmuskelfasertypisierung

Skeletal muscle tissue is composed of different fiber types which differ in their metabolic activity and molecular expression patterns. Mass spectrometric analyses revealed muscle fiber-specific traits but the number of detected proteins is limited due to low protein abundance and high dynamic range. We have developed a new LC-MS/MS method to circumvent the bottleneck of low protein abundance and we have applied this method to measure fiber type-specific phosphoproteomes for the first time.