Molecular biology reports
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Molecular biology reports · Mar 2013
A (S)-(+)-decursin derivative, (S)-(+)-3-(3,4-dihydroxy-phenyl)-acrylic acid 2,2-dimethyl-8-oxo-3,4-dihydro-2H,8H-pyrano[3,2-g]-chromen-3-yl-ester, attenuates the development of atopic dermatitis-like lesions in NC/Nga mice.
(S)-(+)-decursin is a biological coumarin compound isolated from Angelica gigas Nakai. (S)-(+)-decursin and its analogue have a variety of pharmacological activities. In the present study, the anti-inflammatory effect of a (S)-(+)-decursin derivative, (S)-(+)-3-(3,4-dihydroxy-phenyl)-acrylic acid 2,2-dimethyl-8-oxo-3,4-dihydro-2H,8H-pyrano [3,2-g]-chromen-3-yl-ester (Compound 6, C6), on in vitro and in vivo atopic dermatitis was investigated. C6 suppressed the secretion of IL-6, IL-8, and monocyte chemotactic protein-1 increase by the house dust mite extract in the eosinophilic leukemia cell line and THP-1 cells. ⋯ The levels of IL-4, IL-5, IL-13, and eotaxin increased after treatment with concanavalin A in mouse splenocytes. The cytokine levels of the C6-treated group were lower than those of the control group. Taken together, C6 may attenuate atopic dermatitis-like lesions through its anti-inflammatory effect, such as inhibition of IgE and inflammatory cytokines, and it may be valuable as a therapeutic drug for the treatment of atopic dermatitis.
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Molecular biology reports · Feb 2013
Meta AnalysisThe l58Val/Met polymorphism of catechol-O-methyl transferase gene and prostate cancer risk: a meta-analysis.
The association between COMT Val158Met polymorphism and prostate cancer has been evaluated. However, the results of these studies on the association remain conflicting. To derive a more precise estimation of the relationship, a meta-analysis was performed. ⋯ Collectively, the results of the present study suggest that significant associations of COMT Val158Met polymorphisms with prostate cancer were observed (for additive model: OR = 1.068, 95 % CI = 1.002-1.138, P (heterogeneity) = 0.363, P = 0.043; for dominant model: OR = 1.266, 95 % CI = 1.057-1.517, P (heterogeneity) = 0.000, P = 0.011; for recessive model: OR = 1.050, 95 % CI = 0.961-1.146, P (heterogeneity) = 0.558, P = 0.279; and Val allele versus Met allele OR = 0.932, 95 % CI = 0.894-0.971, P (heterogeneity) = 0.272, P = 0.001). In the subgroup analysis, we detected no significant association between the COMT 158 Val/Met genotype and prostate cancer risk in Caucasian and Asian populations, while the contrary result for additive model (OR = 2.43, 95 % CI = 1.08-5.43, P (heterogeneity) = 0.04, P = 0.03) in Asian populations. The result of this meta-analysis suggests that COMT l58Val/Met polymorphism might be contributed to the overall prostate cancer risk.
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Molecular biology reports · Feb 2013
α-Tocopherol prevents lymphoma by improving antioxidant defence system of mice.
Increased level of ROS causes oxidative stress and leads to various pathological conditions including cancer. Therefore antioxidants should contribute to cancer prevention by improving antioxidant defense system and thereby protecting the cell from oxidative damage. In the present study we have validated the hypothesis by evaluating the antioxidant action of α-tocopherol. ⋯ The effect of α-tocopherol is further analyzed on general characteristics of lymphoma growth like body weight, longevity, accumulation of ascites fluid, angiogenesis in peritoneum, morphology of liver and abundance of lymphocytes. The antioxidant α-tocopherol is found to check lymphoma growth. The results suggest that α-tocopherol contributes to lymphoma prevention by improving antioxidant defence system of mice.
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Molecular biology reports · Jan 2013
A novel WDR62 mutation causes primary microcephaly in a Pakistani family.
Autosomal recessive primary microcephaly (MCPH) is a heterogeneous disorder which mainly affects neurodevelopment. Generally, MCPH patients exhibit mild brain structural anomalies and simplified cerebral cortex, but few recently identified genes are associated with severe brain malformations. Here, we report a five generation Pakistani family with three affected individuals presenting primary microcephaly, intellectual disability, schizencephaly and hypoplasia of corpus callosum. ⋯ A homozygous deletion mutation c.1143delA was detected in exon 9 of WDR62 gene, in all affected individuals, which resulted in frameshift and protein truncation (p. H381PfsX48). This study supports the frequent involvement of WDR62 in patients with gross brain malformations.
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Molecular biology reports · Dec 2012
Interactions of interleukin-12A and interleukin-12B polymorphisms on the risk of intracranial aneurysm.
Several lines of evidence indicate that inflammatory processes play pivotal role in the development of intracranial aneurysm (IA). Recently, polymorphisms in the interleukin-12 (IL-12) gene were shown to be associated with immune-mediated inflammatory disease. The aim of this study was to investigate the interactions of IL-12A and IL-12B polymorphisms on the risk of IA in a Chinese population. ⋯ In the stratified analysis by gender, the IL-12B rs3212227 AC/CC genotypes had an increased risk of IA compared with the AA genotype in male patients (AC/CC vs. AA: OR = 4.63, 95 % CI: 1.92-11.16). These findings suggest that the IL-12A and IL-12B independently and jointly be involved in the susceptibility to IA.