Abstract. The cytotoxicity test is one of the biological evaluation and screening tests that use tissue cells in vitro to observe the cell growth, reproduction and morphological effects by medical devices. Cytotoxicity is preferred as a pilot project test and an important indicator for toxicity evaluation of medical devices as it is simple, fast, has a high sensitivity and can save animals from toxicity. Three types of cytotoxicity test are stated in the International Organization for Standardization 109993-5: Extract, direct contact and indirect contact tests. The xCELLigence real-time cell analysis system shows a significant potential in regards to cytotoxicity in recent years. The present review provides a brief insight into the in vitro cytotoxicity testing of medical devices.

Tibetan barley (Hordeum vulgare L., qingke) is the principal cereal cultivated on the Tibetan Plateau for at least 3,500 years, but its origin and domestication remain unclear. Here, based on deep-coverage whole-genome and published exome-capture resequencing data for a total of 437 accessions, we show that contemporary qingke is derived from eastern domesticated barley and it is introduced to southern Tibet most likely via north Pakistan, India, and Nepal between 4,500 and 3,500 years ago. The low genetic diversity of qingke suggests Tibet can be excluded as a center of origin or domestication for barley. The rapid decrease in genetic diversity from eastern domesticated barley to qingke can be explained by a founder effect from 4,500 to 2,000 years ago. The haplotypes of the five key domestication genes of barley support a feral or hybridization origin for Tibetan weedy barley and reject the hypothesis of native Tibetan wild barley.

Background Tumor necrosis factor-alpha (TNF-α) plays a central role in the molecular pathogenesis of periodontal disease. However, the epigenetic regulation attributable to microbial and inflammatory signals at the biofilm gingival interface are poorly understood. In this study, we investigated the DNA methylation alteration within the TNFA promoter in human gingival biopsies from different stages of periodontal disease, and explored the regulatory mechanism of TNFA transcription by DNA methylation. Methods Gingival biopsies were harvested from 17 chronic periodontitis patients and 18 subjects with periodontal health. Another 11 subjects participated in an experimentally induced gingivitis study, and gingival biopsies were collected at the baseline, induction, and resolution phase. To confirm that TNFA promoter methylation modulated TNFA transcription we treated THP.1 cells with a DNA methyltransferase inhibitor, 5-aza-2-deoxycytidine and used a RAW 294.7 cell line transfected with a TNFA promoter-specific luciferase reporter system with or without methlyaiton, Results In gingival biopsies from subjects with severe chronic periodontitis two individual CpG sites within the TNFA promoter (at -163bp and -161bp) displayed increased methylation in periodontitis samples as compared to gingival health (16.1±5.1% vs. 11.0±4.6%, p=0.02, 19.8±4.1% vs. 15.4±3.6%, p=0.04, respectively). The methylation level at -163bp was inversely associated with the transcription level of TNFA (p=0.018). However, no significant difference in the TNFA promoter methylation pattern was observed in samples biopsied during the induction or resolution phase of experimentally induced gingivitis, which represented a reversible periodontal lesion. THP.1 cells treated with 5-aza-2-deoxycytidine demonstrated a time-dependent increase in TNFA messenger level. We also found that the luciferase activity decreased 2.6 fold in a construct containing an in vitro methylated TNFA promoter as compared to the unmethylated insert (p=0.03). Conclusion Although the biopsy samples represented a mixed cell population, the change in promoter methylation status in chronic periodontal disease suggested that DNA methylation may be an important regulatory mechanism in controlling TNFA transcriptional expression in disease.

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BackgroundThe purpose of this study was to (1) identify specific miRNAs in growth hormones (GH)-secreting pituitary adenomas; (2) determine the relationship between the expression of these miRNAs and tumor size, somatostatin analogs treatment, and responsiveness to somatostatin analogs (SSA).MethodsFifteen GH-secreting adenomas patients were treated with lanreotide for 4 months before surgery. Patients with 50% reduction of GH secretion by lanreotide were considered as SSA responders, while patients with less than 50% of GH reduction were considered as SSA nonresponders. We analyzed the miRNAs in 21 GH-secreting pituitary adenomas and 6 normal pituitaries by miRCURY™ LNA array and some differentially expressed miRNAs were validated by quantitative real-time PCR.ResultsFifty-two miRNAs were differentially expressed between GH-secreting pituitary adenomas and normal pituitaries. Differential expression of 9 miRNAs was observed between micro- and macro-adenomas. Thirteen miRNAs were differentially expressed between tumor samples from lanreotide-treated patients and those from lanreotide-untreated patients. Seven miRNAs were differentially expressed between SSA responders or GH nonresponders. Several identified miRNAs may be involved in cell proliferation, apoptosis, cancer development and progression.ConclusionsOur results indicate that altered miRNAs expression is involved in GH-secreting pituitary adenomas transformation, which will shed light on the mechanisms for the treatment of acromegaly by SSA. Identification and characterization of the targets of altered miRNAs genes may elucidate molecular mechanisms involved in the pathogenesis of pituitary adenoma.

Purpose: Inactivation of p16 gene by CpG methylation is a frequent event in oral epithelial dysplasia. To investigate the predictive value of p16 methylation on malignant potential in oral epithelial dysplasia, we carried out the prospective cohort study. Experimental Design: One hundred one patients with histologically confirmed mild or moderate oral epithelial dysplasia were included in the present cohort study. p16 Methylation status of the oral epithelial dysplasia lesions from 93 cases was obtained by methylation-specific PCR. Progression of the oral epithelial dysplasia lesions was examined in 78 cases histologically during a 45.8 months follow-up period. The association between p16 methylation and progression of oral epithelial dysplasia was analyzed.Results: Of the 93 enrolled cases, 15 cases were lost during the follow-up because of changes of contact information, with a compliance of 83.9%. p16 Methylation was detectable in oral epithelial dysplasia lesions from 32 (41.0%) of 78 enrolled patients. Oral epithelial dysplasia-related squamous cell carcinomas were observed in 22 patients (28.2%) during the follow-up. Rate of progression to oral cancer in patients with the p16-methylated oral epithelial dysplasia was significantly higher than that with the p16-unmethylated oral epithelial dysplasia (43.8% versus 17.4%; adjusted odds ratio, 3.7; P = 0.013), especially for patients at the baseline age of ≥60 years (adjusted odds ratio, 12.0; P = 0.003) and patients with moderate oral epithelial dysplasia (adjusted odds ratio, 15.6; P = 0.022). The overall sensitivity and specificity of prediction of malignant transformation of oral epithelial dysplasia by p16 methylation were 63.6% and 67.9%, respectively. Conclusion: p16 Methylation was correlated with malignant transformation of oral epithelial dysplasia and is a potential biomarker for prediction of prognosis of mild or moderate oral epithelial dysplasia. (Clin Cancer Res 2009;15(16):5178-83)

Purpose Metastasis is the leading cause of death for gastric carcinoma (GC). An epigenetic biomarker panel for predicting GC metastasis could have significant clinical impact on the care of GC patients. The main purpose of this study is to characterize the methylation differences between GCs with and without metastasis. Experimental Design Genome-wide DNA methylation profiles between 4 metastatic and 4 non-metastatic GCs and their surgical margins (SM) were analyzed using methylated-CpG island amplification with microarray. The methylation states of 73 candidate genes were further analyzed in GC patients in a discovery cohort (n=108) using DHPLC, bisulfite-sequencing, and MethyLight. The predictive values of potential metastasis-methylation biomarkers were validated in GC patient cohorts in China (n=330), Japan (n=129), and Korea (n=153). Results The GC genome showed significantly higher proportions of hypomethylation in the promoter and exon-1 regions, as well as increased hypermethylation of intragenic fragments when compared to SMs. Significant differential methylation was validated in the CGIs of 15 genes (Ps<0.05) and confirmed using bisulfite-sequencing. These genes included BMP3, BNIP3, CDKN2A, ECEL1, ELK1, GFRA1, HOXD10, KCNH1, PSMD10, PTPRT, SIGIRR, SRF, TBX5, TFPI2, and ZNF382. Methylation changes of GFRA1, SRF and ZNF382 resulted in up- or down-regulation of their transcription. Most importantly, the prevalence of GFRA1, SRF, and ZNF382 methylation alterations was consistently and coordinately associated with GC metastasis and the patients’ overall survival throughout discovery and validation cohorts in China, Japan and Korea. Conclusion Methylation changes of GFRA1, SRF, and ZNF382 may be a potential biomarker set for prediction of GC metastasis.

Objective: To investigate whether 4-month preoperative lanreotide treatment would improve the surgical cure rate of newly diagnosed acromegalic patients with macroadenomas. Design: A prospective, randomised study. Methods: After a baseline evaluation, patients were randomly assigned to 4-month preoperative treatment with lanreotide (starting with 30 mg/2 weeks i.m. and increasing to 30 mg/week i.m. at week 8 if mean GH O2.5 mg/l on GH day curves; pretreatment group, Group 1) or to transsphenoidal surgery (direct surgery group, Group 2). Cure was evaluated 4 months postoperatively primarily by fasting IGF1 less than or equal to age-adjusted upper limit of normal. Results: A pool of 108 patients was randomly divided into two groups. Five patients in each group were lost to follow-up during the study period, so 49 patients in each group were analysed. At baseline, no difference was observed between the two groups. Cure was established in 24 of 49 (49.0%, 95% confidence interval (CI), 35.0-63.0%) pretreated patients (Group 1) versus 9 of 49 (18.4%, 95% CI, 7.6-29.