Introduction: Regarding the limited ability of the damaged cartilage cells to self-renew, which is due to their specific tissue structure, subtle damages can usually cause diseases such as osteoarthritis. In this work, using laser photobiomodulation and an interesting source of growth factors cocktail called the synovial fluid, we analyzed the chondrogenic marker genes in treated hair follicle dermal papilla cells as an accessible source of cells with relatively high differentiation potential. Methods: Dermal papilla cells were isolated from rat whisker hair follicle (Rattus norvegicus) and established cell cultures were treated with a laser (gallium aluminum arsenide diode Laser (λ=780 nm, 30 mW) at 5 J/cm2 ), the synovial fluid, and a combination of both. After 1, 4, 7, and 14 days, the morphological changes were evaluated and the expression levels of four chondrocyte marker genes (Col2a1, Sox-9, Col10a1, and Runx-2) were assessed by the quantitative real-time polymerase chain reaction. Results: It was monitored that treating cells with laser irradiation can accelerate the rate of proliferation of cells. The morphology of the cells treated with the synovial fluid altered considerably as in the fourth day they surprisingly looked like cultured articular chondrocytes. The gene expression analysis showed that all genes were up-regulated until the day 14 following the treatments although not equally in all the cell groups. Moreover, the cell groups treated with both irradiation and the synovial fluid had a significantly augmented expression in gene markers. Conclusion: Based on the gene expression levels and the morphological changes, we concluded that the synovial fluid can have the potential to make the dermal papilla cells to most likely mimic the chondrogenic and/or osteogenic differentiation, although this process seems to be augmented by the irradiation of the low-level laser.
The expression signatures of miRNAs provide exciting opportunities in the diagnosis, prognosis, and therapy of leukemia. Since miRNAs can function as either oncogenes or tumor suppressor genes in leukemogenesis, the potential of using these small RNAs as therapeutic targets opens up new opportunities for leukemia therapy by either inhibiting or augmenting their activity.
The pathogenesis of systemic lupus erythematosus (SLE) is influenced by both genetic factors and epigenetic modifications; the latter is a result of exposure to various environmental factors. Epigenetic modifications affect gene expression and alter cellular functions without modifying the genomic sequences. CpG-DNA methylation, histone modifications, and miRNAs are the main epigenetic factors of gene regulation. In SLE, global and gene-specific DNA methylation changes have been demonstrated to occur in CD4+ T-cells. Moreover, histone acetylation and deacetylation inhibitors reverse the expression of multiple genes involved in SLE, indicating histone modification in SLE. Autoreactive T-cells and B-cells have been shown to alter the patterns of epigenetic changes in SLE patients. Understanding the molecular mechanisms involved in the pathogenesis of SLE is critical for the introduction of effective, target-directed and tolerated therapies. In this review, we summarize the recent findings that highlight the importance of epigenetic modifications and their mechanisms in SLE.
Abstract. In this study we aimed to examine the effects of genetic variants of GSTM1 and GSTP1 (Ile105Val and Ala114Val) on GST activity, seminal oxidative stress and sperm chromatin status in infertile men with oligoasthenoteratozoospermia (OAT). The study population (n = 121) consisted of 95 infertile men with OAT and 26 controls with normozoospermia. Multiplex polymerase chain reaction (PCR) and polymerase chain reaction-restriction fragment length polymorphism (PCR-RFLP) methods were utilized to detect the aforesaid genetic variants. We measured GST activity and total antioxidant capacity (TAC) of seminal plasma by spectrophotometry. Sperm chromatin integrity and maturity were assessed using toluidine blue and chromomycin A3 (CMA3-positive sperm) staining, respectively. The analysis showed that subgroups of GSTM1 null and GSTP1 C/T+T/T genotypes in comparison with GSTM1 present and GSTP1 wild type (C/C) genotypes did not have statistically significant differences in both OAT or normozoospermic men considering sperm concentration and motility, percentage of CMA3-positive sperm, seminal plasma TAC, sperm chromatin integrity and GST activity. Thus, the findings of our study suggest that there are no significant associations between GSTM1 and GSTP1 polymorphisms and sperm parameters at conventional or at molecular levels including OS status, sperm chromatin integrity or maturity in Iranian infertile men with OAT and normozoospermia. However, these polymorphisms could be related to the fertility status of the studied population but not evaluated in this study.
Combining biosensors with nanoscience provides great advantages such as being label-free and real time, highly sensitive, and small in size, as well as providing a low limit of detection and integration to other systems. That is why plasmonics finds various applications in drug detection, food safety, agriculture, photothermal therapy, etc. In this paper, we have fabricated a two-dimensional plasmonic grating biosensor using a soft lithography technique, which has eliminated some disadvantages of conventional plasmonic structures like expensive fabrication cost, inflexibility, and lack of mass production. On the other hand, we benefited from infrared neural stimulation for regulating membrane depolarization, which was based on photothermal mechanism and provided a contact-free and high spatial/temporal resolution. Eventually, the membrane depolarization of two different cell types of Hep G2 and mesenchymal stem cells cultured on two-dimensional plasmonic structure has been investigated under infrared neural stimulation. After preparing the soft plasmonic crystal, its reflection spectra and respective ellipsometry parameters were analyzed before and after cell culture with/without stimulation (near-infrared immune region ∼1450 nm). By comparing the obtained ellipsometry results for HEP G2 and mesenchymal stem cells, it is observed that the behavior of two cell types with respect to IR stimulation was the same as well as providing us the possibility of distinguishing the level of membrane depolarization under various stimulating frequencies. The strength of this integrated system for membrane depolarization detection has been shown experimentally, which can open new avenues toward neuroplasmonic application in the future.
Nitrogen-containing plasma polymerization is of considerable interest for tissue engineering due to their properties on cell adhesion and mesenchymal stem cells (MSCs) response. In this study, low-pressure RF plasma of acetylene and nitrogen was used to deposit nitrogen-containing plasma polymerized coatings on several substrates. Deposition kinetics and surface characteristics of coatings were investigated in terms of RF power and gas flow ratio. OES was used to monitor the plasma process and investigate the relation between the film structure and plasma species. Presence of several bonds and low concentration of amine functional groups were determined using FTIR and Colorimetric methods. Contact angle goniometry results indicated about 30% increase in surface hydrophilicity. Stability of coatings in air and two different liquid environments was examined by repeating surface free energy measurements. Deposited films exhibited acceptable stability during the storage duration. Surface roughness measured by AFM was found to decrease with growing concentration of nitrogen. The deposition rate increased with increasing RF power and decreased with growing concentration of nitrogen. Zeta potential measurements of coatings revealed the negative potential on the surface of the thin films. Temporary suppression of collagen X in the presence of plasma coatings was confirmed by RT-PCR results.
Objectives. The B-cell-specific moloney leukemia virus insertion site 1 (the Bmi-1) gene is an important member in the family of polycomb group (PcG) genes that plays an oncogenic role in several types of cancer, but it's expression as a prognostic marker in pediatric brain tumors has not been indicated. Materials and Methods. The Bmi-1 gene expression, clinic pathological and prognostic significance in a series of pediatric brain tumors were examined by real-time PCR method in 56 pediatric brain tumors. Results. The Bmi-1 gene expression in various types of pediatric brain tumors compared to that in normal brain tissue was 4.85-fold. The relative expression varied from 8.64-fold in ependymomas to 2.89-fold in other types. Expression level in high-grade tumors compared to that in low-grade tumors was 2.5 times. In univariate survival analysis of the pediatric brain tumors, a significant association of high expression of the Bmi-1 with patient survival was demonstrated. In multivariate analysis, the Bmi-1 high expression provided significant independent prognostic factors. Conclusion. Increased expression of the Bmi-1 in pediatric brain tumors may be important in the acquisition of an aggressive phenotype. In addition, it can be used as a strong and independent molecular marker of prognosis in pediatric brain tumors.
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