Articles

Mammalian microRNA: an important modulator of host-pathogen interactions in human viral infections

MicroRNAs (miRNAs), which are small non-coding RNAs expressed by almost all metazoans, have key roles in the regulation of cell differentiation, organism development and gene expression. Thousands of miRNAs re...

Authors: Chet Raj Ojha, Myosotys Rodriguez, Seth M. Dever, Rita Mukhopadhyay and Nazira El-Hage

A disease spectrum for ITPA variation: advances in biochemical and clinical research

Human ITPase (encoded by the ITPA gene) is a protective enzyme which acts to exclude noncanonical (deoxy)nucleoside triphosphates ((d)NTPs) such as (deoxy)inosine 5′-triphosphate ((d)ITP), from (d)NTP pools. Unti...

Authors: Nicholas E. Burgis

Therapeutic effect of berberine on TDP-43-related pathogenesis in FTLD and ALS

In the central nervous system regions of the sporadic and familial FTLD and ALS patients, TDP-43 has been identified as the major component of UBIs inclusions which is abnormally hyperphosphorylated, ubiquitin...

Authors: Cheng-Fu Chang, Yi-Chao Lee, Kuen-Haur Lee, Hui-Ching Lin, Chia-Ling Chen, Che-Kun James Shen and Chi-Chen Huang

RNA binding protein Nova1 promotes tumor growth in vivo and its potential mechanism as an oncogene may due to its interaction with GABA_A Receptor-γ2

The mechanism of Nova1’s role in hepatocellular carcinoma has not been delineated. Also its interaction with GABA_A receptor γ2 in HCC is unveiled. This study is aimed to make it clear the distribution, prognostic...

Authors: Yi-An Zhang, Hai-Ning Liu, Ji-Min Zhu, Dan-Ying Zhang, Xi-Zhong Shen and Tao-Tao Liu

Rab-mediated vesicle trafficking in cancer

A large group of small Rab GTPases which mediate secretory and endosomal membrane transport, as well as autophagosome biogenesis, are essential components of vesicle trafficking machinery. Specific Rab protein...

Authors: Hong-Tai Tzeng and Yi-Ching Wang

Glycine N-methyltransferase deficiency in female mice impairs insulin signaling and promotes gluconeogenesis by modulating the PI3K/Akt pathway in the liver

Glycine N-methyltransferase (GNMT) is abundantly expressed in the normal liver but is down-regulated in liver cancer tissues. GNMT knockout (Gnmt−/−) mice can spontaneously develop chronic hepatitis, fatty liv...

Authors: Yi-Jen Liao, Tzong-Shyuan Lee, Yuh-Ching Twu, Shih-Ming Hsu, Ching-Ping Yang, Chung-Kwe Wang, Yu-Chih Liang and Yi-Ming Arthur Chen

Administration of AMD3100 in endotoxemia is associated with pro-inflammatory, pro-oxidative, and pro-apoptotic effects in vivo

Chemokine receptor 4 (CXCR4) is a multifunctional G protein-coupled receptor that is activated by its natural ligand, C-X-C motif chemokine 12 (CXCL12). As a likely member of the lipopolysaccharide (LPS)-sensi...

Authors: Semjon Seemann and Amelie Lupp

Phage display as a promising approach for vaccine development

Bacteriophages are specific antagonists to bacterial hosts. These viral entities have attracted growing interest as optimal vaccine delivery vehicles. Phages are well-matched for vaccine design due to being hi...

Authors: Leili Aghebati-Maleki, Babak Bakhshinejad, Behzad Baradaran, Morteza Motallebnezhad, Ali Aghebati-Maleki, Hamid Nickho, Mehdi Yousefi and Jafar Majidi

Cellular effects induced by 17-β-estradiol to reduce the survival of renal cell carcinoma cells

Renal cell carcinoma (RCC) is an adult malignancy with 2:1 men-to-women ratio, which implies the possible role of sex hormones in RCC carcinogenesis. One of the predominant sex hormones in women before menopau...

Authors: Sheng-Tang Wu, Wei-Chi Ku, Chi-Jung Huang, Yen-Chieh Wang, Chih-Ming Lin and Shao-Kuan Chen

Sumoylation of IkB attenuates NF-kB-induced nitrosative stress at rostral ventrolateral medulla and cardiovascular depression in experimental brain death

Small ubiquitin-related modifier (SUMO) is a group of proteins that participates in post-translational modifications. One known SUMO target is the transcription factor nuclear factor-kB (NF-kB) that plays a pi...

Authors: Ching-Yi Tsai, Faith C. H. Li, Carol H. Y. Wu, Alice Y. W. Chang and Samuel H. H. Chan

A phase I clinical study of immunotherapy for advanced colorectal cancers using carcinoembryonic antigen-pulsed dendritic cells mixed with tetanus toxoid and subsequent IL-2 treatment

To better evaluate and improve the efficacy of dendritic cell (DC)-based cancer immunotherapy, we conducted a clinical study of patients with advanced colorectal cancer using carcinoembryonic antigen (CEA)-pul...

Authors: Ko-Jiunn Liu, Tsu-Yi Chao, Jang-Yang Chang, Ann-Lii Cheng, Hui-Ju Ch’ang, Woei-Yau Kao, Yu-Chen Wu, Wei-Lan Yu, Tsai-Rong Chung and Jacqueline Whang-Peng

Role of vasoactive intestinal peptide in osteoarthritis

Vasoactive intestinal peptide (VIP) plays important roles in many biological functions, such as, stimulation of contractility in the heart, vasodilation, promoting neuroendocrine-immune communication, lowering...

Authors: Wei Jiang, Hua Wang, Yu-sheng Li and Wei Luo

Hypoxia and its implications in rheumatoid arthritis

Alterations in tissue oxygen pressure contribute to a number of diseases, including rheumatoid arthritis (RA). Low partial pressure of oxygen, a condition known as hypoxia, is a relevant feature in RA since it...

Authors: Celia María Quiñonez-Flores, Susana Aideé González-Chávez and César Pacheco-Tena

WSB1: from homeostasis to hypoxia

The wsb1 gene has been identified to be important in developmental biology and cancer. A complex transcriptional regulation of wsb1 yields at least three functional transcripts. The major expressed isoform, WSB1 ...

Authors: Moinul Haque, Joseph Keith Kendal, Ryan Matthew MacIsaac and Douglas James Demetrick

CSC-3436 switched tamoxifen-induced autophagy to apoptosis through the inhibition of AMPK/mTOR pathway

Triple-negative breast cancer (TNBC) lacks specific therapeutic target and limits to chemotherapy and is essential to develop novel therapeutic regimens. Increasing studies indicated that tamoxifen, a selectiv...

Authors: Sheng-Tang Wu, Guang-Huan Sun, Tai-Lung Cha, Chien-Chang Kao, Sun-Yran Chang, Sheng-Chu Kuo and Tzong-Der Way

A prognostic predictor panel with DNA methylation biomarkers for early-stage lung adenocarcinoma in Asian and Caucasian populations

The incidence of lung adenocarcinoma (LUAD) is increasing worldwide with different prognosis even in early-stage patients. We aimed to identify a prognostic panel with multiple DNA methylation biomarkers to pr...

Authors: I-Ying Kuo, Jayu Jen, Lien-Huei Hsu, Han-Shui Hsu, Wu-Wei Lai and Yi-Ching Wang

Motor neuron-derived Thsd7a is essential for zebrafish vascular development via the Notch-dll4 signaling pathway

Development of neural and vascular systems displays astonishing similarities among vertebrates. This parallelism is under a precise control of complex guidance signals and neurovascular interactions. Previousl...

Authors: Lawrence Yu-Min Liu, Min-Hsuan Lin, Zih-Yin Lai, Jie-Peng Jiang, Yi-Ching Huang, Li-En Jao and Yung-Jen Chuang

Autophagy is associated with cell fate in the process of macrophage-derived foam cells formation and progress

Autophagy participates in plaque formation and progression; however, its association with foam cells’ fate is unknown. To investigate autophagy features and its effect on the fate of different-stage macrophage...

Authors: Xiaopeng Liu, Yue Tang, Yongchun Cui, Hong Zhang and Dong Zhang

Vitamin D3/VDR resists diet-induced obesity by modulating UCP3 expression in muscles

The impact of vitamin D3 (VD3) on obesity has been reported in the past. Our study was aimed at investigating the possible mechanisms by which VD3 affects obesity induced by a high fat diet.

Authors: Yue Fan, Kumi Futawaka, Rie Koyama, Yuki Fukuda, Misa Hayashi, Miyuki Imamoto, Takashi Miyawaki, Masato Kasahara, Tetsuya Tagami and Kenji Moriyama

Recombinant Newcastle disease virus expressing P53 demonstrates promising antitumor efficiency in hepatoma model

Numerous studies have demonstrated that the NDV-mediated gene therapy is a promising new approach for treatment of cancers. P53 plays a vital role in tumor suppression and surveillance. Therefore, we hypothesi...

Authors: Ying An, Tianyan Liu, Jinjiao He, Hongsong Wu, Rui Chen, Yunye Liu, Yunzhou Wu, Yin Bai, Xiaochen Guo, Qi Zheng, Chang Liu, Jiechao Yin, Deshan Li and Guiping Ren

A new age for biomedical applications of Ribosome Inactivating Proteins (RIPs): from bioconjugate to nanoconstructs

Ribosome-inactivating proteins (RIPs) are enzymes (3.2.2.22) that possess N-glycosilase activity that irreversibly inhibits protein synthesis. RIPs have been found in plants, fungi, algae, and bacteria; their ...

Authors: Elio Pizzo and Antimo Di Maro

Zinc finger proteins in cancer progression

Zinc finger proteins are the largest transcription factor family in human genome. The diverse combinations and functions of zinc finger motifs make zinc finger proteins versatile in biological processes, inclu...

Authors: Jayu Jen and Yi-Ching Wang

Plasma total antioxidant capacity and peroxidation biomarkers in psoriasis

Systemic biomarkers of oxidative stress can be relevant for assessment of psoriasis severity, for prediction of the outcome of therapy and of the development of comorbidities. In this review we aimed to evalua...

Authors: Ilaria Peluso, Arturo Cavaliere and Maura Palmery

Green tea extract catechin improves internal cardiac muscle relaxation in RCM mice

Diastolic dysfunction refers to an impaired relaxation and an abnormality in a heart’s filling during diastole while left ventricular systolic function is preserved. Diastolic dysfunction is commonly observed ...

Authors: Xiaoqin Wang, Zhengyu Zhang, Gang Wu, Changlong Nan, Wen Shen, Yimin Hua and Xupei Huang

Erinacine A-enriched Hericium erinaceus mycelium ameliorates Alzheimer’s disease-related pathologies in APPswe/PS1dE9 transgenic mice

The fruiting body of Hericium erinaceus has been demonstrated to possess anti-dementia activity in mouse model of Alzheimer’s disease and people with mild cognitive impairment. However, the therapeutic potential ...

Authors: Tzeng Tsai-Teng, Chen Chin-Chu, Lee Li-Ya, Chen Wan-Ping, Lu Chung-Kuang, Shen Chien-Chang, Huang F. Chi-Ying, Chen Chien-Chih and Young-Ji Shiao

Effects of exogenous nicotinamide adenine dinucleotide (NAD+) in the rat heart are mediated by P2 purine receptors

Recently, NAD+ has been considered as an essential factor, participating in nerve control of physiological functions and intercellular communication. NAD+ also has been supposed as endogenous activator of P1 a...

Authors: Vladislav S. Kuzmin, Ksenia B. Pustovit and Denis V. Abramochkin

Integrated miRNA and mRNA expression profiling in fetal hippocampus with Down syndrome

Down syndrome (DS), caused by triplication of human chromosome 21, is the most common aneuploidies. The main characteristic of DS patients is intellectual disability. MicroRNAs (miRNAs) play important regulato...

Authors: Wei-li Shi, Zhong-zhen Liu, Hong-dan Wang, Dong Wu, Hui Zhang, Hai Xiao, Yan Chu, Qiao-fang Hou and Shi-xiu Liao

Resveratrol attenuates cortical neuron activity: roles of large conductance calcium-activated potassium channels and voltage-gated sodium channels

Resveratrol, a phytoalexin found in grapes and red wine, exhibits diverse pharmacological activities. However, relatively little is known about whether resveratrol modulates the ion channels in cortical neuron...

Authors: Ya-Jean Wang, Ming-Huan Chan, Linyi Chen, Sheng-Nan Wu and Hwei-Hisen Chen

Characterization of a murine xenograft model for contrast agent development in breast lesion malignancy assessment

The aim of the study was to develop a nude mouse xenograft model implanted with both benign and malignant xenografts as the preliminary candidate screening tool for contrast agent development in lesion maligna...

Authors: Tsung-Hsien Yen, Gi-Da Lee, Jyn-Wen Chai, Jiunn-Wang Liao, Jia-Yu Lau, Li-Che Hu and Kuo-Chih Liao

Betulinic acid synergically enhances BMP2-induced bone formation via stimulating Smad 1/5/8 and p38 pathways

Healing of bone defects is a dynamic and orchestrated process that relies on multiple growth factors and cell types. Bone morphogenetic protein 2 (BMP2) is a key growth factor for bone healing, which stimulate...

Authors: Hyuck Choi, Byung-Chul Jeong, Min-Suk Kook and Jeong-Tae Koh

Dynamics of airway response in lung microsections: a tool for studying airway-extra cellular matrix interactions

The biological configuration of extracellular matrix (ECM) plays a key role in how mechanical interactions of the airway with its parenchymal attachments affect the dynamics of airway responses in different pu...

Authors: Mohammad Afzal Khan

Peroxisome proliferator-activated receptor-gamma dependent pathway reduces the phosphorylation of dynamin-related protein 1 and ameliorates hippocampal injury induced by global ischemia in rats

Dynamin-related protein 1 (Drp1) is a mitochondrial fission protein that, upon phosphorylation at serine 616 (p-Drp1(Ser616)), plays a pivotal role in neuronal death after ischemia. In the present study, we hy...

Authors: Yao-Chung Chuang, Tsu-Kung Lin, Ding-I Yang, Jenq-Lin Yang, Chia-Wei Liou and Shang-Der Chen

Immunocytochemical study of TOP2A and Ki-67 in cervical smears from women under routine gynecological care

Cervical cancer is one of the most common female cancers and is caused by human papillomavirus (HPV). Viral infection leads to cell cycle deregulation by inactivating p53 and retinoblastoma protein by viral on...

Authors: Adrya Lúcia Peres, Keilla Maria Paz e Silva, Rosângela Ferreira Frade de Araújo, José Luiz de Lima Filho, Mário Ribeiro de Melo Júnior, Danyelly Bruneska Gondim Martins and Nicodemos Teles de Pontes Filho

Cytotoxicity and cell cycle arrest induced by andrographolide lead to programmed cell death of MDA-MB-231 breast cancer cell line

Breast cancer is considered as an increasing major life-threatening concern among the malignancies encountered globally in females. Traditional therapy is far from satisfactory due to drug resistance and vario...

Authors: Malabika Banerjee, Subrata Chattopadhyay, Tathagata Choudhuri, Rammohan Bera, Sanjay Kumar, Biswajit Chakraborty and Samir Kumar Mukherjee

Mesenchymal stem cells (MSCs) as skeletal therapeutics–an update

Mesenchymal stem cells hold the promise to treat not only several congenital and acquired bone degenerative diseases but also to repair and regenerate morbid bone tissues. Utilizing MSCs, several lines of evid...

Authors: Hamid Saeed, Muhammad Ahsan, Zikria Saleem, Mehwish Iqtedar, Muhammad Islam, Zeeshan Danish and Asif Manzoor Khan

The genetics and screening of familial hypercholesterolaemia

Familial Hypercholesterolaemia is an autosomal, dominant genetic disorder that leads to elevated blood cholesterol and a dramatically increased risk of atherosclerosis. It is perceived as a rare condition. How...

Authors: Raymond Henderson, Maurice O’Kane, Victoria McGilligan and Steven Watterson

Drosophila mitochondrial topoisomerase III alpha affects the aging process via maintenance of mitochondrial function and genome integrity

Mitochondria play important roles in providing metabolic energy and key metabolites for synthesis of cellular building blocks. Mitochondria have additional functions in other cellular processes, including prog...

Authors: Han-Zen Tsai, Ren-Kuo Lin and Tao-Shih Hsieh

Erratum to: Phosphotriesterase-related protein sensed albuminuria and conferred renal tubular cell activation in membranous nephropathy

Authors: Chao-Wen Cheng, Li-Chien Chang, Tzu-Ling Tseng, Chia-Chao Wu, Yuh-Feng Lin and Jin-Shuen Chen

Impact of stress on oocyte quality and reproductive outcome

Stress is an important factor that affects physical and mental status of a healthy person disturbing homeostasis of the body. Changes in the lifestyle are one of the major causes that lead to psychological str...

Authors: Shilpa Prasad, Meenakshi Tiwari, Ashutosh N. Pandey, Tulsidas G. Shrivastav and Shail K. Chaube

A glimpse of the ERM proteins

In all eukaryotes, the plasma membrane is critically important as it maintains the architectural integrity of the cell. Proper anchorage and interaction between the plasma membrane and the cytoskeleton is crit...

Authors: Godwin A. Ponuwei

Efficient derivation of dopaminergic neurons from SOX1⁻ floor plate cells under defined culture conditions

Parkinson’s disease (PD) is a severe neurodegenerative disease associated with loss of dopaminergic neurons. Derivation of dopaminergic neurons from human embryonic stem cells (hESCs) could provide new therape...

Authors: Mingming Li, Yu Zou, Qiqi Lu, Ning Tang, Alexis Heng, Intekhab Islam, Huei Jinn Tong, Gavin S. Dawe and Tong Cao

Electroacupuncture preconditioning reduces ROS generation with NOX4 down-regulation and ameliorates blood-brain barrier disruption after ischemic stroke

Electroacupuncture (EA) is a modern application based on combination of traditional manual acupuncture and electrotherapy that is frequently recommended as an adjuvant treatment for ischemic stroke. EA precond...

Authors: Yeon Suk Jung, Sae-Won Lee, Jung Hwa Park, Hyung Bum Seo, Byung Tae Choi and Hwa Kyoung Shin

Molecular typing, virulence traits and antimicrobial resistance of diabetic foot staphylococci

Diabetes mellitus is a major chronic disease that continues to increase significantly. One of the most important and costly complications of diabetes are foot infections that may be colonized by pathogenic and an...

Authors: Carla Mottola, Teresa Semedo-Lemsaddek, João J. Mendes, José Melo-Cristino, Luís Tavares, Patrícia Cavaco-Silva and Manuela Oliveira

Knockdown of zebrafish YY1a can downregulate the phosphatidylserine (PS) receptor expression, leading to induce the abnormal brain and heart development

Yin Yang 1 (YY1) is a ubiquitously expressed GLI-Kruppel zinc finger-containing transcriptional regulator. YY1 plays a fundamental role in normal biologic processes such as embryogenesis, differentiation, and ...

Authors: Wei-Lun Shiu, Kuan-Rong Huang, Jo-Chi Hung, Jen-Leih Wu and Jiann-Ruey Hong

Betulinic acid enhances TGF-β signaling by altering TGF-β receptors partitioning between lipid-raft/caveolae and non-caveolae membrane microdomains in mink lung epithelial cells

TGF-β is a key modulator in the regulation of cell proliferation and migration, and is also involved in the process of cancer development and progression. Previous studies have indicated that TGF-β responsiven...

Authors: C. L. Chen, C. Y. Chen, Y. P. Chen, Y. B. Huang, M. W. Lin, D. C. Wu, H. T. Huang, M. Y. Liu, H. W. Chang, Y. C. Kao and P. H. Yang

Journal of Biomedical Science Reviewer Acknowledgement 2015

The editors of Journal of Biomedical Science would like to thank all our reviewers who have contributed to the journal in Volume 22 (2015).

Authors: Wen-Chang Chang

CD44-mediated monocyte transmigration across Cryptococcus neoformans-infected brain microvascular endothelial cells is enhanced by HIV-1 gp41-I90 ectodomain

Cryptococcus neoformans (Cn) is an important opportunistic pathogen in the immunocompromised people, including AIDS patients, which leads to fatal cryptococcal meningitis with high mor...

Authors: Xiaolong He, Xiaolu Shi, Santhosh Puthiyakunnon, Like Zhang, Qing Zeng, Yan Li, Swapna Boddu, Jiawen Qiu, Zhihao Lai, Chao Ma, Yulong Xie, Min Long, Lei Du, Sheng-He Huang and Hong Cao

Identifying N-linked glycan moiety and motifs in the cysteine-rich domain critical for N-glycosylation and intracellular trafficking of SR-AI and MARCO

The accumulation of soluble oligomeric amyloid-β peptide (oAβ) proceeding the formation of senile plaques contributes to synaptic and memory deficits in Alzheimer’s disease. Our previous studies have indentifi...

Authors: Huey-Jen Tsay, Yung-Cheng Huang, Yi-Jen Chen, Yun-Hao Lee, Shu-Meng Hsu, Keng-Chang Tsai, Cheng-Ning Yang, Fong-Lee Huang, Feng-Shiun Shie, Lin-Chien Lee and Young-Ji Shiao

Novel synthetic benzimidazole-derived oligosaccharide, M3BIM, prevents ex vivo platelet aggregation and in vivo thromboembolism

Thrombus formation, a phenomenon primarily related to increased platelet activation, plays a key role in cardiovascular and cerebrovascular diseases. Although the established antiplatelet agents, such as aspir...

Authors: Ting-Lin Yen, Ming-Ping Wu, Chi-Li Chung, Wen-Bin Yang, Thanasekaran Jayakumar, Pitchairaj Geraldine, Chih-Ming Chou, Chia-Yau Chang, Wan-Jung Lu and Joen-Rong Sheu

Multiple signaling factors and drugs alleviate neuronal death induced by expression of human and zebrafish tau proteins in vivo

The axonal tau protein is a tubulin-binding protein, which plays important roles in the formation and stability of the microtubule. Mutations in the tau gene are associated with familial forms of frontotempora...

Authors: Bo-Kai Wu, Rey-Yue Yuan, Huang-Wei Lien, Chin-Chun Hung, Pung-Pung Hwang, Rita Pei-Yeh Chen, Chun-Che Chang, Yung-Feng Liao and Chang-Jen Huang