BackgroundHigh-level occupational exposures to some industrial chemicals have been associated with liver diseases, including nonalcoholic fatty liver disease (NAFLD). However, the potential role of low-level environmental pollution on liver disease in the general population has not been evaluated.ObjectiveWe determined whether environmental pollutants are associated with an elevation in serum alanine aminotransferase (ALT) activity and suspected NAFLD in U.S. adults.MethodsThis cross-sectional cohort study evaluated adult participants without viral hepatitis, hemochromatosis, or alcoholic liver disease from the National Health and Nutrition Examination Survey (NHANES) for 2003–2004. ALT elevation was defined in men as ≥ 37 IU/L (age18–20 years) and ≥ 48 IU/L (age ≥ 21 years) and in women as ≥ 30 IU/L (age 18–20 years) and ≥ 31 IU/L (age ≥ 21 years). Adjusted odds ratios (ORs) for ALT elevation were determined across exposure quartiles for 17 pollutant subclasses comprising 111 individual pollutants present with at least a 60% detection rate. Adjustments were made for age, race/ethnicity, sex, body mass index, poverty income ratio, and insulin resistance. Individual pollutants from subclasses associated with ALT elevation were subsequently analyzed.ResultsThe overall prevalence of ALT elevation was 10.6%. Heavy metals and polychlorinated biphenyls (PCBs) were associated with dose-dependent increased adjusted ORs for ALT elevation. Within these subclasses, increasing whole-blood levels of lead and mercury and increasing lipid-adjusted serum levels of 20 PCBs were individually associated with ALT elevation.ConclusionsPCB, lead, and mercury exposures were associated with unexplained ALT elevation, a proxy marker of NAFLD, in NHANES 2003–2004 adult participants.

Microarrays identified miRNAs differentially expressed and 4-hydroxytamoxifen (4-OHT) regulated in MCF-7 endocrine- sensitive versus resistant LY2 human breast cancer cells. 97 miRNAs were differentially expressed in MCF-7 versus LY2 cells. Opposite expression of miRs- 10a, 21, 22, 29a, 93, 125b, 181, 200a, 200b, 200c, 205, and 222 was confirmed. Bioinformatic analyses to impute the biological significance of these miRNAs identified 36 predicted gene targets from those regulated by 4-OHT in MCF-7 cells. Agreement in the direction of anticipated regulation was detected for 12 putative targets. These miRNAs with opposite expression between the two cell lines may be involved in endocrine resistance.

IntroductionThe orphan nuclear receptor COUP-TFII plays an undefined role in breast cancer. Previously we reported lower COUP-TFII expression in tamoxifen/endocrine- resistant versus sensitive breast cancer cell lines. The identification of COUP-TFII-interacting proteins will help to elucidate its mechanism of action as a transcriptional regulator in breast cancer.ResultsFLAG-affinity purification and multidimensional protein identification technology (MudPIT) identified nucleolin among the proteins interacting with COUP-TFII in MCF-7 tamoxifen-sensitive breast cancer cells. Interaction of COUP-TFII and nucleolin was confirmed by coimmunoprecipitation of endogenous proteins in MCF-7 and T47D breast cancer cells. In vitro studies revealed that COUP-TFII interacts with the C-terminal arginine-glycine repeat (RGG) domain of nucleolin. Functional interaction between COUP-TFII and nucleolin was indicated by studies showing that siRNA knockdown of nucleolin and an oligonucleotide aptamer that targets nucleolin, AS1411, inhibited endogenous COUP-TFII-stimulated RARB2 expression in MCF-7 and T47D cells. Chromatin immunoprecipitation revealed COUP-TFII occupancy of the RARB2 promoter was increased by all-trans retinoic acid (atRA). RARβ2 regulated gene RRIG1 was increased by atRA and COUP-TFII transfection and inhibited by siCOUP-TFII. Immunohistochemical staining of breast tumor microarrays showed nuclear COUP-TFII and nucleolin staining was correlated in invasive ductal carcinomas. COUP-TFII staining correlated with ERα, SRC-1, AIB1, Pea3, MMP2, and phospho-Src and was reduced with increased tumor grade.ConclusionsOur data indicate that nucleolin plays a coregulatory role in transcriptional regulation of the tumor suppressor RARB2 by COUP-TFII.

BACKGROUND Neurulation requires precise, spatio-temporal expression of numerous genes and coordinated interaction of signal transduction and gene regulatory networks, disruption of which may contribute to the etiology of neural tube (NT) defects. MicroRNAs are key modulators of cell and tissue differentiation. In order to define potential roles of miRNAs in development of the murine NT, miRNA microarray analysis was conducted to establish expression profiles, and identify miRNA target genes and functional gene networks. METHODS miRNA expression profiles in murine embryonic NTs derived from gestational days 8.5, 9.0 and 9.5 were defined and compared utilizing miRXplore™ microarrays from Miltenyi Biotech GmbH. Gene expression changes were verified by TaqMan™ quantitative Real-Time PCR. clValid R package and the UPGMA (hierarchical) clustering method were utilized for cluster analysis of the microarray data. Functional associations among selected miRNAs were examined via Ingenuity Pathway Analysis. RESULTS miRXplore™ chips enabled examination of 609 murine miRNAs. Expression of approximately 12% of these was detected in murine embryonic NTs. Clustering analysis revealed several developmentally regulated expression clusters among these expressed genes. Target analysis of differentially expressed miRNAs enabled identification of numerous target genes associated with cellular processes essential for normal NT development. Utilization of Ingenuity Pathway Analysis revealed interactive biological networks which connected differentially expressed miRNAs with their target genes, and highlighted functional relationships. CONCLUSIONS The present study defined unique gene expression signatures of a range of miRNAs in the developing NT during the critical period of NT morphogenesis. Analysis of miRNA target genes and gene interaction pathways revealed that specific miRNAs may direct expression of numerous genes encoding proteins which have been shown to be indispensable for normal neurulation. This study is the first to identify miRNA expression profiles and their potential regulatory networks in the developing mammalian NT.

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