Many studies have shown that omega-3 fatty acids may play critical roles in cardiovascular diseases. Myocardial infarction (MI) typically results from a thrombotic occlusion of a coronary artery ...leading to myocardial ischemia. Thus, this study aims to examine the association between omega-3 fatty acids and MI.
A two-sample Mendelian randomization study was used to explore the causal relationship between circulating omega-3 fatty acids and the risk of MI performed by MR-Egger regression, inverse-variance weighted (IVW), weighted median, and weighted mode.
Five single-nucleotide polymorphisms strongly related to circulating omega-3 fatty acids were selected as instrumental variables from a published genome-wide association study (GWAS) meta-analysis including 13,544 subjects. We extracted summary data for the risk of MI from another GWAS meta-analysis including 171,875 individuals (43,676 cases and 128,199 controls). The genetically predicted lower circulating omega-3 increased the risk of myocardial infarction showed by the results of IVW odds ratio (OR) = 1.224, 95% CI = 1.045-1.433,
= 0.012, weighted median method (OR = 1.171, 95% CI = 1.042-1.315,
= 0.008), and weighted mode (OR = 1.149, 95% CI = 1.002-1.317,
= 0.117), although the result of MR-Egger was not significant (OR = 0.950, 95% CI = 0.513-1.760,
= 0.880) with a wider confidence interval.
The findings from our Mendelian randomization analysis suggest that the association between omega-3 fatty acid levels and MI is likely causal.
Although the upregulation of autotaxin (ATX) is associated with many solid tumours, its role in pancreatic neuroendocrine neoplasms (pNEN) has not been well elucidated. The expression of ATX in pNEN ...tissues and pNEN cell line BON1 was analysed by Western blot, PCR and immunocytochemistry upon exposure to interleukin-6 (IL-6). Additionally, pNEN cell line BON1 was transfected with siRNAs against ATX or signal transducer and activator of transcription 3 (STAT3) and assessed by in vitro invasion assays. The following results were obtained. The expression of ATX in pNEN tissues was significantly increased compared with that in normal pancreatic tissues. High ATX expression was strongly correlated with tumour grade, lymph node metastasis and tumour-node-metastasis stage. Furthermore, ATX downregulation notably inhibited the metastatic capacity of pNEN cells, whereas STAT3 knockdown was found to downregulate the expression of ATX. ATX expression was upregulated in BON1 cells upon stimulation with IL-6, and this was accompanied by activation/phosphorylation of STAT3. Western blot analysis of human pNEN tissue extracts confirmed increased ATX expression and STAT3 phosphorylation with elevated expression levels of IL-6. In conclusion, ATX is upregulated in pNEN and is correlated with the metastatic capacity of pNEN cells, potentially via interaction with STAT3 activation.
HE4 expression in lung cancer, a meta-analysis Zhong, Hai; Qian, Yingying; Fang, Surong ...
Clinica chimica acta,
July 2017, 2017-Jul, 2017-07-00, 20170701, Letnik:
470
Journal Article
Recenzirano
The prognostic role of Human epididymis protein 4 (HE4) expression in lung cancer remains controversial. We performed this meta-analysis to assess the prognostic value of HE4 expression in lung ...cancer.
A systematic literature search was conducted to identify eligible studies in PubMed, Embase and Wanfang databases. The pooled hazard ratios (HRs) and their 95% confidence intervals (CIs) were used to assess the relationship.
A total of 1412 patients from 8 studies were included in this meta-analysis. The results of univariate analysis (HR=1.73, 95% CI: 1.19–2.52, P=0.004) and multivariate analysis (HR=2.49, 95% CI: 1.89–3.28, P<0.001) demonstrated that high HE4 expression in lung cancer patients was correlated with poor overall survival (OS). We observed through further stratified analysis of the results of the univariate analysis that high HE4 expression was associated with worse OS in Asian lung cancer patients (HR=2.48, 95% CI: 1.88–3.26, P<0.001). However, there was no significant association between high HE4 expression and poor OS in Caucasian patients (HR=1.12, 95% CI: 0.80–1.55, P=0.513).
High serum HE4 level was a marker of poor prognosis in lung cancer patients, particularly in Asian patients with lung cancer.
•A meta-analysis assessed high HE4 expression associated with overall survival in lung cancer patients.•A total of 1412 patients from 8 studies were included in this meta-analysis.•High serum HE4 level was a marker of poor prognosis in lung cancer patients, particularly in Asian patients with lung cancer.
Abstract In contrast to two-dimensional (2D) monolayer materials, van der Waals layered transition metal dichalcogenides exhibit rich polymorphism, making them promising candidates for novel ...superconductor, topological insulators and electrochemical catalysts. Here, we highlight the role of hydrostatic pressure on the evolution of electronic and crystal structures of layered ZrS 2 . Under deviatoric stress, our electrical experiments demonstrate a semiconductor-to-metal transition above 30.2 GPa, while quasi-hydrostatic compression postponed the metallization to 38.9 GPa. Both X-ray diffraction and Raman results reveal structural phase transitions different from those under hydrostatic pressure. Under deviatoric stress, ZrS 2 rearranges the original ZrS 6 octahedra into ZrS 8 cuboids at 5.5 GPa, in which the unique cuboids coordination of Zr atoms is thermodynamically metastable. The structure collapses to a partially disordered phase at 17.4 GPa. These complex phase transitions present the importance of deviatoric stress on the highly tunable electronic properties of ZrS 2 with possible implications for optoelectronic devices.
Emerging evidence has suggested that patients with ischemic stroke (IS) and/or transient ischemic attack (TIA) are more likely to exhibit myocardial disorders, which can be reflected by transthoracic ...echocardiography (TTE). ATP binding cassette transporter 1 (ABCB1) plays an important role in the development and progression of atherosclerotic pathology. The objective of the current study was to investigate the associations of ABCB1 C3435T polymorphism with echocardiographic performances among patients with acute ischemic stroke. Patients with IS or TIA, who were hospitalized and received TTE between October 2016 to March 2019, were enrolled in this study. Demographic data and echocardiographic parameters of each participant were recorded. We included 122 patients, with the respective distribution of 12.30%, 48.36%, and 39.34% in CC, CT, and TT genotypes. There were significant differences among the three ABCB1 types, with respect to RV (
P
= 0.036). The presence of the TT genotype was associated with increased MVE (OR = 0.13,
P
= 0.02) but correlated with decreased RV (OR = −1.46,
P
= 0.02). Our study indicated that ABCB1 C3435T polymorphism is associated with echocardiographic parameters among patients with acute ischemic stroke. The presence of the TT genotype is associated with diastolic function and cardiac hypertrophy.
The high-pressure structural, vibrational and electrical properties for realgar were investigated by in-situ Raman scattering and electrical conductivity experiments combined with first-principle ...calculations up to ~30.8 GPa. It was verified that realgar underwent an isostructural phase transition at ~6.3 GPa and a metallization at a higher pressure of ~23.5 GPa. The isostructural phase transition was well evidenced by the obvious variations of Raman peaks, electrical conductivity, crystal parameters and the As–S bond length. The phase transition of metallization was in closely associated with the closure of bandgap rather than caused by the structural phase transition. And furthermore, the metallic realgar exhibited a relatively low compressibility with the unit cell volume V0 = 718.1.4 Å3 and bulk modulus B0 = 36.1 GPa.
Display omitted
•The structural, vibrational and electrical properties of realgar are studied up to ~30.8 GPa.•A ~6.3 GPa of isostructural phase transitionin realgar is well verified.•The realgar undergoes a ~23.5 GPa of metallization phase transition.•The metallization is in closely related to the closure of band gap.
The structural, vibrational and electronic properties of ZnSe under different pressure environments up to ∼40.0 GPa were investigated using a diamond anvil cell in conjunction with ac impedance ...spectroscopy, Raman spectroscopy and high–resolution transmission electron microscopy. Under the non–hydrostatic condition, ZnSe exhibited a structural phase transition from a zinc–blende to a cinnabar structure at ∼4.9 GPa, indicated by the obvious splitting of the transverse optical mode in the Raman spectra and a noticeable variation in the slope of the electrical conductivity. With increasing pressure, metallization appeared at ∼12.5 GPa, which was characterized by the high–pressure Raman spectroscopy and temperature–dependent electrical conductivity results. When the pressure was increased up to ∼30.0 GPa, another phase transition was identified by the appearance of a new peak in the Raman spectra. Compared to the non–hydrostatic condition, a roughly 2.0 GPa delay of transition pressure for ZnSe was observed at the hydrostatic condition. However, the structural phase transformation was found to be irreversible only under the non–hydrostatic condition. The unique properties displayed by ZnSe under different pressure environments may be attributed to the constrained interlayer interaction owing to the presence of the pressure medium.
The structural, vibrational, and electronic characteristics in orpiment were performed in the diamond anvil cell (DAC), combined with a series of experimental and theoretical research, including ...Raman spectroscopy, impedance spectroscopy, atomic force microscopy (AFM), high-resolution transmission electron microscopy (HRTEM), and first-principles theoretical calculations. The isostructural phase transition at ~25.0 GPa was manifested as noticeable changes in the compressibility, bond lengths, and slope of the conductivity, as well as in a continuous change in the pressure dependence of the unit cell volume. Furthermore, a pressure-induced metallization occurred at ~42.0 GPa, accompanied by reversible electrical conductivity. We also determined the metallicity of orpiment at 45.0 GPa by first-principles theoretical calculations, and the results were in good agreement with the results of the temperature-dependent conductivity measurements. The HRTEM and AFM images of the recovered sample confirmed that orpiment remains in the crystalline phase with an intact layered structure and available crystal-shaped clusters. These high-pressure behaviors of orpiment present some crucial information on the structural phase transition, metallization, amorphization and superconductivity for the
₂
₃-type of engineering materials at high pressure.
Acephalic spermatozoa syndrome is a rare genetic and reproductive disease. Recent studies have shown that approximately 33–47% of patients with acephalic spermatozoa syndrome have SUN5 mutations, but ...the molecular mechanism underlying this phenomenon has not been elucidated. In this study, we generated Sun5 knockout mice and found that the head-to-tail linkage was broken in Sun5
–/–
mice, which was similar to human acephalic spermatozoa syndrome. Furthermore, ultrastructural imaging revealed that the head-tail coupling apparatus (HTCA) and the centrosome were distant from the nucleus at steps 9–10 during spermatid elongation. With the manchette disappearing at steps 13–14, the head and the tail segregated. To explore the molecular mechanism underlying this process, bioinformatic analysis was performed and showed that Sun5 may interact with Nesprin3. Further coimmunoprecipitation (Co-IP) and immunofluorescence assays confirmed that Sun5 and Nesprin3 were indeed bona fide interaction partners that formed the linker of the nucleoskeleton and cytoskeleton (LINC) complex participating in the connection of the head and tail of spermatozoa. Nesprin3 was located posterior and anterior to the nucleus during spermiogenesis in wild-type mice, whereas it lost its localization at the implantation fossa of the posterior region in Sun5
–/–
mice. Without correct localization of Nesprin3 at the nuclear membrane, the centrosome, which is the originator of the flagellum, was distant from the nucleus, which led to the separation of the head and tail. In addition, isobaric tag for relative and absolute quantitation results showed that 47 proteins were upregulated, and 56 proteins were downregulated, in the testis in Sun5
–/–
mice, and the downregulation of spermatogenesis-related proteins (Odf1 and Odf2) may also contribute to the damage to the spermatozoa head-to-tail linkage. Our findings suggested that Sun5 is essential for the localization of Nesprin3 at the posterior nuclear membrane, which plays an essential role in the sperm head-tail connection.
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