| 1. |
- Sampson, Joshua N., et al.
(författare)
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Analysis of Heritability and Shared Heritability Based on Genome-Wide Association Studies for 13 Cancer Types
- 2015
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Ingår i: Journal of the National Cancer Institute. - : Oxford University Press (OUP). - 0027-8874 .- 1460-2105. ; 107:12
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Tidskriftsartikel (refereegranskat)abstract
- Background: Studies of related individuals have consistently demonstrated notable familial aggregation of cancer. We aim to estimate the heritability and genetic correlation attributable to the additive effects of common single-nucleotide polymorphisms (SNPs) for cancer at 13 anatomical sites. Methods: Between 2007 and 2014, the US National Cancer Institute has generated data from genome-wide association studies (GWAS) for 49 492 cancer case patients and 34 131 control patients. We apply novel mixed model methodology (GCTA) to this GWAS data to estimate the heritability of individual cancers, as well as the proportion of heritability attributable to cigarette smoking in smoking-related cancers, and the genetic correlation between pairs of cancers. Results: GWAS heritability was statistically significant at nearly all sites, with the estimates of array-based heritability, h(l)(2), on the liability threshold (LT) scale ranging from 0.05 to 0.38. Estimating the combined heritability of multiple smoking characteristics, we calculate that at least 24% (95% confidence interval [CI] = 14% to 37%) and 7% (95% CI = 4% to 11%) of the heritability for lung and bladder cancer, respectively, can be attributed to genetic determinants of smoking. Most pairs of cancers studied did not show evidence of strong genetic correlation. We found only four pairs of cancers with marginally statistically significant correlations, specifically kidney and testes (rho = 0.73, SE = 0.28), diffuse large B-cell lymphoma (DLBCL) and pediatric osteosarcoma (rho = 0.53, SE = 0.21), DLBCL and chronic lymphocytic leukemia (CLL) (rho = 0.51, SE = 0.18), and bladder and lung (rho = 0.35, SE = 0.14). Correlation analysis also indicates that the genetic architecture of lung cancer differs between a smoking population of European ancestry and a nonsmoking Asian population, allowing for the possibility that the genetic etiology for the same disease can vary by population and environmental exposures. Conclusion: Our results provide important insights into the genetic architecture of cancers and suggest new avenues for investigation.
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| 2. |
- Song, Lu, et al.
(författare)
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Vacancy-ordered yttria stabilized zirconia as a low-temperature electronic conductor achieved by laser melting
- 2019
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Ingår i: Journal of the European Ceramic Society. - : Elsevier BV. - 0955-2219 .- 1873-619X. ; 39:4, s. 1374-1380
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Tidskriftsartikel (refereegranskat)abstract
- Laser melting is known to be capable in initiating thorough evolution in microstructure and bringing novel functional performance in metals. But realization of this potential in ceramics only reaches a preliminary stage that needs further investigation. Here we demonstrate zirconia, traditionally an insulative ceramic at low temperature, could be transformed into an electronic conductor with the conductivity on order of 10(-3) S.cm(-1) at room temperature by a simple laser melting process without inducing metallic phases. Transmission electron microscopy and ab-initio simulation show that oversaturated oxygen vacancies, together with their ordered metastable distribution along < 001 >, are introduced during this non-equilibrium process, and result in a clear defect level significantly narrowing bandgap to less than 1 eV, leading to the considerable electronic conductivity. These results identify a strategy of utilizing this non-equilibrium method in oxide ceramics to realize some unconventional performances determined by metastable structure thoroughly altered down to atomic level.
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| 3. |
- Sun, Jia-Qi, et al.
(författare)
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Spatholobus suberectus Column Extract Inhibits Estrogen Receptor Positive Breast Cancer via Suppressing ER MAPK PI3K/AKT Pathway
- 2016
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Ingår i: Evidence-based Complementary and Alternative Medicine. - : Hindawi Limited. - 1741-427X .- 1741-4288.
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Tidskriftsartikel (refereegranskat)abstract
- Although Chinese herbal compounds have long been alternatively applied for cancer treatment in China, their treatment effects have not been sufficiently investigated. The Chinese herb Spatholobus suberectus is commonly prescribed to cancer patients. HPLC analysis has shown that the main components of Spatholobus suberectus are flavonoids that can be classified as phytoestrogens, having a structure similar to estrogen. This study was designed to investigate the effects of Spatholobus suberectus column extract (SSCE) on the estrogen receptor-positive (ER+) breast cancer cell line MCF-7 and its possible molecular mechanism. In our study, MTT assay was performed to evaluate cell viability. The results show that SSCE (80, 160, and 320 mu g/ml) significantly decreased the viability of MCF-7 cells. SSCE also triggered apoptosis, arrested the cell cycle at the G0/G1 phase, and inhibited cell migration. A dual-luciferase reporter system showed that SSCE suppressed intranuclear p-ER activity; Western blot analysis confirmed the repressed expression of phosphorylated-ER alpha (p-ER alpha), ERK1/2, p-ERK1/2, AKT, p-AKT, p-mTOR, PI3K, and p-PI3K, indicating that SSCE suppressed the MAPK PI3K/AKT signaling pathway. Collectively, our results suggest that SSCE causes apoptosis, an arrest in the G0/G1 phase, and a decrease in migration in ER+ MCF-7 cells via hypoactivity of the ER and suppression of the MAPK PI3K/AKT pathway.
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| 4. |
- Zhang, Yi, et al.
(författare)
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Elemene inhibits the migration and invasion of 4T1 murine breast cancer cells via heparanase
- 2017
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Ingår i: Molecular Medicine Reports. - : Spandidos Publications. - 1791-2997 .- 1791-3004. ; 16:1, s. 794-800
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Tidskriftsartikel (refereegranskat)abstract
- Elemene (ELE), a natural plant drug extracted from Curcumae Rhizoma, has been widely used for cancer treatment in China for more than 20 years. Although it is reported to be a broad-spectrum anticancer drug, the mechanism underlying the action of ELE in the treatment of breast cancer remains to be fully elucidated. Heparanase, a mammalian endo-D-glucuronidase, is involved in degradation of the extracellular matrix (ECM), and thus promotes tumor progression and metastasis. The downregulation of heparanase can effectively reduce tumor malignant behaviors. In the present study, the inhibitory effects of ELE were evaluated in breast cancer cells using a Cell Counting kit 8 assay. The migratory and invasive capabilities of cancer cells were investigated using a wound healing assay, real-time cell analysis and a Transwell assay. In addition, western blot analysis was used to assess alterations in the expression levels of key proteins. The present results confirmed the antiproliferative and antimetastatic effects of ELE, using low-molecular weight heparin (LMWH) as a positive control. In addition, ELE was demonstrated to downregulate the expression of heparanase, and decrease the phosphorylation of extracellular signal-regulated kinase and AKT. These findings suggested that ELE may be a promising agent targeting heparanase in the treatment of breast cancer.
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| 5. |
- Zhang, Yi, et al.
(författare)
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Gubenyiliu II Inhibits Breast Tumor Growth and Metastasis Associated with Decreased Heparanase Expression and Phosphorylation of ERK and AKT Pathways
- 2017
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Ingår i: Molecules. - : MDPI AG. - 1431-5157 .- 1420-3049. ; 22:5
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Tidskriftsartikel (refereegranskat)abstract
- Gubenyiliu II (GYII), a Traditional Chinese Medicine (TCM) formula used in our hospital, has shown beneficial effects in cancer patients. In this study, we investigated the molecular mechanisms underlying the beneficial effects of GYII on murine breast cancer models. GYII showed significant inhibitory effects on tumor growth and metastasis in the murine breast cancer model. Additionally, GYII suppressed the proliferation of 4T1 and MCF-7 cells in a dose-dependent manner. A better inhibitory effect on 4T1 cell proliferation and migration was found in the decomposed recipes (DR) of GYII. Moreover, heparanase expression and the degree of angiogenesis were reduced in tumor tissues. Western blot analysis showed decreased expression of heparanase and growth factors in the cells treated with GYII and its decomposed recipes (DR2 and DR3), and thereby a reduction in the phosphorylation of extracellular signal-regulated kinase (ERK) and serine-threonine kinase (AKT). These results suggest that GYII exerts anti-tumor growth and anti-metastatic effects in the murine breast cancer model. The anti-tumor activity of GYII and its decomposed recipes is, at least partly, associated with decreased heparanase and growth factor expression, which subsequently suppressed the activation of the ERK and AKT pathways.
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| 6. |
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| 7. |
- Burnham, Denis, et al.
(författare)
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Universality and language-specific experience in the perception of lexical tone and pitch
- 2015
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Ingår i: Applied Psycholinguistics. - 0142-7164 .- 1469-1817. ; 36:6, s. 1459-1491
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Tidskriftsartikel (refereegranskat)abstract
- Two experiments focus on Thai tone perception by native speakers of tone languages (Thai, Cantonese, and Mandarin), a pitch–accent (Swedish), and a nontonal (English) language. In Experiment 1, there was better auditory-only and auditory–visual discrimination by tone and pitch–accent language speakers than by nontone language speakers. Conversely and counterintuitively, there was better visual-only discrimination by nontone language speakers than tone and pitch–accent language speakers. Nevertheless, visual augmentation of auditory tone perception in noise was evident for all five language groups. In Experiment 2, involving discrimination in three fundamental frequency equivalent auditory contexts, tone and pitch–accent language participants showed equivalent discrimination for normal Thai speech, filtered speech, and violin sounds. In contrast, nontone language listeners had significantly better discrimination for violin sounds than filtered speech and in turn speech. Together the results show that tone perception is determined by both auditory and visual information, by acoustic and linguistic contexts, and by universal and experiential factors.
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| 8. |
- Chen, Geng, et al.
(författare)
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Heisenberg-scaling measurement of the single-photon Kerr non-linearity using mixed states
- 2018
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Ingår i: Nature Communications. - : Springer Science and Business Media LLC. - 2041-1723. ; 9
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Tidskriftsartikel (refereegranskat)abstract
- Improving the precision of measurements is a significant scientific challenge. Previous works suggest that in a photon-coupling scenario the quantum fisher information shows a quantum-enhanced scaling of N-2, which in theory allows a better-than-classical scaling in practical measurements. In this work, utilizing mixed states with a large uncertainty and a post-selection of an additional pure system, we present a scheme to extract this amount of quantum fisher information and experimentally attain a practical Heisenberg scaling. We performed a measurement of a single-photon's Kerr non-linearity with a Heisenberg scaling, where an ultra-small Kerr phase of. 6 x 10(-8) rad was observed with a precision of similar or equal to 3.6 x 10(-10) rad. From the use of mixed states, the upper bound of quantum fisher information is improved to 2N(2). Moreover, by using an imaginary weak-value the scheme is robust to noise originating from the self-phase modulation.
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| 9. |
- Dong, Jingran, et al.
(författare)
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Kinetics and mechanism of oxidation of the anti-tubercular prodrug isoniazid and its analog by iridium(IV) as models for biological redox systems
- 2017
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Ingår i: Dalton Transactions. - : Royal Society of Chemistry (RSC). - 1477-9234 .- 1477-9226. ; 46:26, s. 8377-8386
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Tidskriftsartikel (refereegranskat)abstract
- A complex reaction mechanism of oxidation of the anti-tubercular prodrug isoniazid (isonicotinic hydrazide, INH) by [IrCl6]2− as a model for redox processes of such drugs in biological systems has been studied in aqueous solution as a function of pH between 0 and 8.5. Similar experiments have been performed with its isomer nicotinic hydrazide (NH). All reactions are overall second-order, first-order in [IrCl6]2− and hydrazide, and the observed second-order rate constants k′ have been determined as a function of pH. Spectrophotometric titrations indicate a stoichiometry of [Ir(IV)]:[hydrazide] = 4:1. HPLC analysis shows that the oxidation product of INH is isonicotinic acid. The derived reaction mechanism, based on rate law, time-resolved spectra and stoichiometry, involves parallel attacks by [IrCl6]2− on all four protolytic species of INH and NH as rate-determining steps, depending on pH. These steps are proposed to generate two types of hydrazyl free radicals. These radicals react further in three rapid consecutive processes, leading to the final oxidation products. Rate constants for the rate-determining steps have been determined for all protolytic species I–IV of INH and NH. They are used to calculate reactivity–pH diagrams. These diagrams demonstrate that for both systems, species IV is ca. 105 times more reactive in the redox process than the predominant species III at the physiological pH of 7.4. Thus, species IV will be the main reactant, in spite of the fact that its concentration at this pH is extremely low, a fact that has not been considered in previous work. The results indicate that pH changes might be an important factor in the activation process of INH in biological systems also, and that in such systems this process most likely is more complicated than previously assumed
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| 10. |
- Ganda, Anjali, et al.
(författare)
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Plasma metabolite profiles, cellular cholesterol efflux, and non-traditional cardiovascular risk in patients with CKD
- 2017
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Ingår i: Journal of Molecular and Cellular Cardiology. - : Elsevier BV. - 1095-8584 .- 0022-2828. ; 112, s. 114-122
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Tidskriftsartikel (refereegranskat)abstract
- BACKGROUND: Patients with chronic kidney disease (CKD) experience high rates of atherosclerotic cardiovascular disease and death that are not fully explained by traditional risk factors. In animal studies, defective cellular cholesterol efflux pathways which are mediated by the ATP binding cassette transporters ABCA1 and ABCG1 are associated with accelerated atherosclerosis. We hypothesized that cholesterol efflux in humans would vary in terms of cellular components, with potential implications for cardiovascular disease.METHODS: We recruited 120 CKD patients (eGFR<30mL/min/1.73m(2)) and 120 control subjects (eGFR ≥60mL/min/1.73m(2)) in order to measure cholesterol efflux using either patients' HDL and THP-1 macrophages or patients' monocytes and a flow cytometry based cholesterol efflux assay. We also measured cell-surface levels of the common β subunit of the IL-3/GM-CSF receptor (IL-3Rβ) which has been linked to defective cholesterol homeostasis and may promote monocytosis. In addition, we measured plasma inflammatory cytokines and plasma metabolite profiles.RESULTS: There was a strong positive correlation between cell-surface IL-3Rβ levels and monocyte counts in CKD (P<0.001). ABCA1 mRNA was reduced in CKD vs. control monocytes (P<0.05), across various etiologies of CKD. Cholesterol efflux to apolipoprotein A1 was impaired in monocytes from CKD patients with diabetic nephropathy (P<0.05), but we found no evidence for a circulating HDL-mediated defect in cholesterol efflux in CKD. Profiling of plasma metabolites showed that medium-chain acylcarnitines were both independently associated with lower levels of cholesterol transporter mRNA in CKD monocytes at baseline (P<0.05), and with cardiovascular events in CKD patients after median 2.6years of follow-up.CONCLUSIONS: Cholesterol efflux in humans varies in terms of cellular components. We report a cellular defect in ABCA1-mediated cholesterol efflux in monocytes from CKD patients with diabetic nephropathy. Unlike several traditional risk factors for atherosclerotic cardiovascular disease, plasma metabolites inversely associated with endogenous cholesterol transporters predicted cardiovascular events in CKD patients. (Funded by the National Institute of Diabetes and Digestive and Kidney Diseases and others.).
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