Project description:BackgroundHigh frequency of loss of heterozygosity (LOH) was found at D7S486 in primary gastric cancer (GC). And we found a high frequency of LOH region on 7q31 in primary GC from China, and identified D7S486 to be the most frequent LOH locus. This study was aimed to determine what genes were affected by the LOH and served as tumor suppressor genes (TSGs) in this region. Here, a high-throughput single nucleotide polymorphisms (SNPs) microarray fabricated in-house was used to analyze the LOH status around D7S486 on 7q31 in 75 patients with primary GC. Western blot, immunohistochemistry, and RT-PCR were used to assess the protein and mRNA expression of TESTIN (TES) in 50 and 140 primary GC samples, respectively. MTS assay was used to investigate the effect of TES overexpression on the proliferation of GC cell lines. Mutation and methylation analysis were performed to explore possible mechanisms of TES inactivation in GC.ResultsLOH analysis discovered five candidate genes (ST7, FOXP2, MDFIC, TES and CAV1) whose frequencies of LOH were higher than 30%. However, only TES showed the potential to be a TSG associated with GC. Among 140 pairs of GC samples, decreased TES mRNA level was found in 96 (68.6%) tumor tissues when compared with matched non-tumor tissues (p < 0.001). Also, reduced TES protein level was detected in 36 (72.0%) of all 50 tumor tissues by Western blot (p = 0.001). In addition, immunohistochemical staining result was in agreement with that of RT-PCR and Western blot. Down regulation of TES was shown to be correlated with tumor differentiation (p = 0.035) and prognosis (p = 0.035, log-rank test). Its overexpression inhibited the growth of three GC cell lines. Hypermethylation of TES promoter was a frequent event in primary GC and GC cell lines. However, no specific gene mutation was observed in the coding region of the TES gene.ConclusionsCollectively, all results support the role of TES as a TSG in gastric carcinogenesis and that TES is inactivated primarily by LOH and CpG island methylation.
Project description:BackgroundIn our previous study, we identified a candidate tumor suppressor gene, testin LIM domain protein (TES), in primary gastric cancer (GC). TES contains three LIM domains, which are specific interacting regions for the cell adhesion and cytoskeleton regulatory proteins. Mena is a known cytoskeleton regulator that regulates the assembly of actin filaments and modulates cell adhesion and motility by interacting with Lamellipodin (Lpd). Therefore, we hypothesized that TES plays a role as tumor suppressor in GC through interacting with Mena. This study aimed to investigate the tumor suppressive functions of TES in GC.MethodsWe explored the tumor suppressive effect of TES in GC by in vitro cell proliferation assay, colony formation assay, cell cycle analysis, Transwell assays, and in vivo tumorigenicity and metastasis assays. The interaction of TES and Mena was investigated through immunoprecipitation-based mass spectrometry. We also analyzed the expression of TES and Mena in 172 GC specimens using immunohistochemistry and investigated the clinicopathological and prognostic significance of TES and Mena in GC.ResultsTES suppressed GC cell proliferation and colony formation, induced cell cycle arrest, and inhibited tumorigenicity in vitro. Additionally, it inhibited GC cell migration and invasion in vitro and suppressed metastasis in vivo. TES interacted with Mena, and inhibited the interaction of Mena with Lpd. Transwell assays suggested that TES suppressed migration and invasion of GC cells in a Mena-dependent fashion. In GC patients with high Mena expression, the expression of TES was associated with tumor infiltration (P = 0.005), lymph node metastasis (P = 0.003), TNM stage (P = 0.003), and prognosis (P = 0.010). However, no significant association was observed in GC patients with low Mena expression.ConclusionsWe believe that TES functions as a Mena-dependent tumor suppressor. TES represents a valuable prognostic marker and potential target for GC treatment.
Project description:Regarding our paper "PhTx3-4, a Spider Toxin Calcium Channel Blocker, Reduces NMDA-Induced Injury of the Retina", published in Toxins 2016, 8, doi:10.3390/toxins8030070 [1].[...].
Project description:Title: Gene Expression in Ara-C Resistance in AML A microarray study of altered gene expression in acute myeloid leukemia cell lines Keywords: cell type comparison Keywords: Expression profiling by array
Project description:Morphogenesis of tubular structures is a common event during embryonic development. The signals providing cells with topographical cues to define a cord axis and to form new compartments surrounded by a basement membrane are poorly understood. Male gonadal differentiation is a late event during organogenesis and continues into postnatal life. The cellular changes resemble the mechanisms during embryonic life leading to tubular structures in other organs. Testicular cord formation is dependent on and first recognized by SRY-dependent aggregation of Sertoli cells leading to the appearance of testis-specific cord-like structures. Here we explored whether testicular cells use topographical cues in the form of nanostructures to direct or stimulate cord formation and whether embryonic stem cells (ES) or soluble factors released from those cells have an impact on this process. Using primary cell cultures of immature rats we first revealed that variable nanogratings exerted effects on peritubular cells and on Sertoli cells (at less than <1000 cells/mm(2)) by aligning the cell bodies towards the direction of the nanogratings. After two weeks of culture testicular cells assembled into a network of cord-like structures. We revealed that Sertoli cells actively migrate towards existing clusters. Contractions of peritubular cells lead to the transformation of isolated clusters into cord-like structures. The addition of mouse ES cells or conditioned medium from ES cells accelerated this process. Our studies show that epithelial (Sertoli cell) and mesenchymal (peritubular cells) cells crosstalk and orchestrate the formation of cords in response to physical features of the underlying matrix as well as secretory factors from ES cells. We consider these data on testicular morphogenesis relevant for the better understanding of mechanisms in cord formation also in other organs which may help to create optimized in vitro tools for artificial organogenesis.
Project description:An in vitro system to study testicular maturation in rats, an important model organism for reproductive toxicity, could serve as a platform for high-throughput drug and toxicity screening in a tissue specific context. In vitro maturation of somatic cells and spermatogonia in organ culture systems has been reported. However, this has been a challenge for organoids derived from dissociated testicular cells. Here, we report generation and maintenance of rat testicular organoids in microwell culture for 28 days. We find that rat organoids can be maintained in vitro only at lower than ambient O2 tension of 15% and organoids cultured at 34°C have higher somatic cell maturation and spermatogonial differentiation potential compared to cultures in 37°C. Upon exposure to known toxicants, phthalic acid mono-2-ethylhexyl ester and cadmium chloride, the organoids displayed loss of tight-junction protein Claudin 11 and altered transcription levels of somatic cell markers that are consistent with previous reports in animal models. Therefore, the microwell-derived rat testicular organoids described here can serve as a novel platform for the study of testicular cell maturation and reproductive toxicity in vitro.