A small proportion of cancer cells have stem-cell-like properties, are resistant to standard therapy and are associated with a poor prognosis. The metabolism of such drug-resistant cells differs from that of nearby non-resistant cells. In this study, the metabolism of drug-resistant lung adenocarcinoma cells was investigated. The expression of genes associated with oxidative phosphorylation in the mitochondrial membrane was negatively correlated with the prognosis of lung adenocarcinoma. Because the mitochondrial membrane potential (MMP) reflects the functional status of mitochondria and metastasis is the principal cause of death due to cancer, the relationship between MMP and metastasis was evaluated. Cells with a higher MMP exhibited greater migration and invasion than those with a lower MMP. Cells that survived treatment with cisplatin, a standard chemotherapeutic drug for lung adenocarcinoma, exhibited increased MMP and enhanced migration and invasion compared with parental cells. Consistent with these findings, inhibition of mitochondrial activity significantly impeded the migration and invasion of cisplatin-resistant cells. RNA-sequencing analysis indicated that the expression of mitochondrial complex genes was upregulated in cisplatin-resistant cells. These results suggested that drug-resistant cells have a greater MMP and that inhibition of mitochondrial activity could be used to prevent metastasis of drug-resistant lung adenocarcinoma cells.

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Intubated patients are at risk of oral health problems. Although a variety of oral care regimens for intubated patients have been studied, there is a lack of research on the effects of combination oral care that includes tooth brushing, chlorhexidine and cold water. This open-labelled, randomized, controlled trial aimed to evaluate the effects of combination oral care on oral health status. Participants aged 20 years and older were recruited on the first day after intubation through convenience sampling in a medical intensive care unit. Random assignment was performed using an internet randomization service. The primary outcome was oral health status. Data were collected during May and June 2013. Participants were randomized to one of two groups (23 intervention and 21 control). The final analysis included 18 patients with combination oral care and 17 in the control group. The intervention group had better oral health (effect size = 1.56), less dry mouth and higher salivary pH than the control group. Any additional burden of providing combination oral care to patients who are mechanically ventilated is worthwhile in terms of clinical outcomes.

SummaryFlavonoids, compounds that possess diverse health-promoting benefits, are lacking in the endosperm of rice. Therefore, to develop transgenic lines that produce flavonoids, we transformed a white rice cultivar, Oryza sativa japonica cv. Hwa-Young, with maize C1 and R-S regulatory genes. Expression of these transgenes was restricted to the endosperm using the promoter of a rice prolamin gene. The pericarp of the C1 / R-S homozygous lines became dark brown in accordance with their maternal genotype, whereas the endosperm turned chalky, similar to the opaque kernel phenotype. Analysis via high-performance liquid chromatography (HPLC) revealed that numerous kinds of flavonoids were produced in these transgenic kernels. To identify individual flavonoids, the number of HPLC peaks was reduced through moderate acid hydrolysis, followed by ethyl acetate partitioning. Amongst the major flavonoids, dihydroquercetin (taxifolin), dihydroisorhamnetin (3 ′ -O -methyl taxifolin) and 3 ′ -O -methyl quercetin were identified through liquid chromatography/mass spectrometry/mass spectrometry and nuclear magnetic resonance analyses. Fluorescence labelling with diphenylboric acid showed that the flavonoids were highly concentrated in the cells of four to five outer endosperm layers. More importantly, a high fluorescence signal was present in the cytosol of the inner endosperm layers. However, the overall signal in the inner layers was significantly lower because starch granules and protein bodies occupied most of the cytosolic space. Our estimate of the total flavonoid content in the transgenic kernels suggests that C1 / R-S rice has the potential to be developed further as a novel variety that can produce various flavonoids in its endosperm.

CD38 is a bifunctional enzyme synthesizing (ADP-ribosyl cyclase) and degrading (cyclic ADP-ribose (cADPR) hydrolase) cADPR, a potent Ca 2؉ mobilizer from intracellular pools. CD38 internalization has been proposed as a mechanism by which the ectoenzyme produced intracellular cADPR, and thiol compounds have been shown to induce the internalization of CD38. Here, we show that the disulfide bond between Cys-119 and Cys-201 in CD38 may be involved in CD38 dimerization and internalization. We tested the effect of a reducing agent, L-2-oxothiazolidine-4-carboxylic acid (OTC), a prodrug of cysteine, on CD38 internalization in pancreatic islets. OTC enhanced insulin release from isolated islets as well as CD38 internalization and cytoplasmic Ca 2؉ level. Furthermore, islet cells treated with antisense CD38 oligonucleotide showed inhibition of OTCinduced insulin secretion. Intake of OTC in db/db mice ameliorated glucose tolerance, insulin secretion, and morphology of islets when compared with control mice. These data indicate that OTC improves glucose tolerance by enhancing insulin secretion via CD38/cADPR/ Ca 2؉ signaling machinery. Thus, OTC may represent a novel class of antidiabetic drug.