| 1. |
- Fan, Yue, et al.
(author)
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Unveiling inflammatory and prehypertrophic cell populations as key contributors to knee cartilage degeneration in osteoarthritis using multi-omics data integration
- 2024
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In: Annals of the Rheumatic Diseases. - : BMJ Publishing Group Ltd. - 0003-4967 .- 1468-2060. ; 83:7, s. 926-944
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Journal article (peer-reviewed)abstract
- OBJECTIVES: Single-cell and spatial transcriptomics analysis of human knee articular cartilage tissue to present a comprehensive transcriptome landscape and osteoarthritis (OA)-critical cell populations.METHODS: Single-cell RNA sequencing and spatially resolved transcriptomic technology have been applied to characterise the cellular heterogeneity of human knee articular cartilage which were collected from 8 OA donors, and 3 non-OA control donors, and a total of 19 samples. The novel chondrocyte population and marker genes of interest were validated by immunohistochemistry staining, quantitative real-time PCR, etc. The OA-critical cell populations were validated through integrative analyses of publicly available bulk RNA sequencing data and large-scale genome-wide association studies.RESULTS: We identified 33 cell population-specific marker genes that define 11 chondrocyte populations, including 9 known populations and 2 new populations, that is, pre-inflammatory chondrocyte population (preInfC) and inflammatory chondrocyte population (InfC). The novel findings that make this an important addition to the literature include: (1) the novel InfC activates the mediator MIF-CD74; (2) the prehypertrophic chondrocyte (preHTC) and hypertrophic chondrocyte (HTC) are potentially OA-critical cell populations; (3) most OA-associated differentially expressed genes reside in the articular surface and superficial zone; (4) the prefibrocartilage chondrocyte (preFC) population is a major contributor to the stratification of patients with OA, resulting in both an inflammatory-related subtype and a non-inflammatory-related subtype.CONCLUSIONS: Our results highlight InfC, preHTC, preFC and HTC as potential cell populations to target for therapy. Also, we conclude that profiling of those cell populations in patients might be used to stratify patient populations for defining cohorts for clinical trials and precision medicine.
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| 2. |
- Liu, Li, et al.
(author)
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Involvement of yes-associated protein 1 activation in the matrix degradation of human-induced-pluripotent-stem-cell-derived chondrocytes induced by T-2 toxin and deoxynivalenol alone and in combination
- 2024
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In: International Journal of Molecular Sciences. - : MDPI. - 1661-6596 .- 1422-0067. ; 25:2
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Journal article (peer-reviewed)abstract
- T-2 toxin and deoxynivalenol (DON) are two prevalent mycotoxins that cause cartilage damage in Kashin-Beck disease (KBD). Cartilage extracellular matrix (ECM) degradation in chondrocytes is a significant pathological feature of KBD. It has been shown that the Hippo pathway is involved in cartilage ECM degradation. This study aimed to examine the effect of YAP, a major regulator of the Hippo pathway, on the ECM degradation in the hiPS-derived chondrocytes (hiPS-Ch) model of KBD. The hiPS-Ch injury models were established via treatment with T-2 toxin/DON alone or in combination. We found that T-2 toxin and DON inhibited the proliferation of hiPS-Ch in a dose-dependent manner; significantly increased the levels of YAP, SOX9, and MMP13; and decreased the levels of COL2A1 and ACAN (all p values < 0.05). Immunofluorescence revealed that YAP was primarily located in the nuclei of hiPS-Ch, and its expression level increased with toxin concentrations. The inhibition of YAP resulted in the dysregulated expression of chondrogenic markers (all p values < 0.05). These findings suggest that T-2 toxin and DON may inhibit the proliferation of, and induce the ECM degradation, of hiPS-Ch mediated by YAP, providing further insight into the cellular and molecular mechanisms contributing to cartilage damage caused by toxins.
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| 3. |
- Rocafort, Mercedes, et al.
(author)
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Cell Wall Carbohydrate Dynamics during the Differentiation of Infection Structures by the Apple Scab Fungus, Venturia inaequalis
- 2023
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In: Microbiology Spectrum. - : American Society for Microbiology. - 2165-0497. ; 11:3
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Journal article (peer-reviewed)abstract
- Scab, caused by the biotrophic fungal pathogen Venturia inaequalis, is the most economically important disease of apples. During infection, V. inaequalis colonizes the subcuticular host environment, where it develops specialized infection structures called runner hyphae and stromata. These structures are thought to be involved in nutrient acquisition and effector (virulence factor) delivery, but also give rise to conidia that further the infection cycle. Despite their importance, very little is known about how these structures are differentiated. Likewise, nothing is known about how these structures are protected from host defenses or recognition by the host immune system. To better understand these processes, we first performed a glycosidic linkage analysis of sporulating tubular hyphae from V. inaequalis developed in culture. This analysis revealed that the V. inaequalis cell wall is mostly composed of glucans (44%) and mannans (37%), whereas chitin represents a much smaller proportion (4%). Next, we used transcriptomics and confocal laser scanning microscopy to provide insights into the cell wall carbohydrate composition of runner hyphae and stromata. These analyses revealed that, during subcuticular host colonization, genes of V. inaequalis putatively associated with the biosynthesis of immunogenic carbohydrates, such as chitin and b-1,6-glucan, are downregulated relative to growth in culture, while on the surface of runner hyphae and stromata, chitin is deacetylated to the less-immunogenic carbohydrate chitosan. These changes are anticipated to enable the subcuticular differentiation of runner hyphae and stromata by V. inaequalis, as well as to protect these structures from host defenses and recognition by the host immune system. IMPORTANCE Plant-pathogenic fungi are a major threat to food security. Among these are subcuticular pathogens, which often cause latent asymptomatic infections, making them difficult to control. A key feature of these pathogens is their ability to differentiate specialized subcuticular infection structures that, to date, remain largely understudied. This is typified by Venturia inaequalis, which causes scab, the most economically important disease of apples. In this study, we show that, during subcuticular host colonization, V. inaequalis downregulates genes associated with the biosynthesis of two immunogenic cell wall carbohydrates, chitin and b-1,6-glucan, and coats its subcuticular infection structures with a less-immunogenic carbohydrate, chitosan. These changes are anticipated to enable host colonization by V. inaequalis and provide a foundation for understanding subcuticular host colonization by other plant-pathogenic fungi. Such an understanding is important, as it may inform the development of novel control strategies against subcuticular plant-pathogenic fungi.
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| 4. |
- Wang, Ying, et al.
(author)
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Screening for differentially expressed circRNA between Kashin–Beck disease and osteoarthritis patients based on circRNA chips
- 2020
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In: Clinica Chimica Acta. - : Elsevier. - 0009-8981 .- 1873-3492. ; 501, s. 92-101
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Journal article (peer-reviewed)abstract
- Objective: This research aims to explore differentially expressed circRNA between OA and KBD and potential diagnostic biomarkers.Methods: Total RNA was extracted from 5 pairs of KBD and OA knee joint cartilage specimens, and the expression of circRNAs was analyzed by Chip Scanning Analysis. The microarray data was verified by quantitative polymerase chain reaction (qRT-PCR). CircRNA-miRNA network was constructed to predict targeting microRNAs of circRNA genes. Peripheral blood samples from 25 KBD patients and 25 OA patients were collected for verification by qRT-PCR. Diagnostic value was evaluated by the area under the receiver operator characteristic (ROC) curve.Results: A total of 1627 circRNAs were differentially expressed between OA and KBD. Five bone and joint disease-related circRNAs were chosen for qRT-PCR validation. The difference in expression profile of hsa_circRNA_0020014 was confirmed by qRT-PCR, and its circRNA-miRNA regulation network was set up. The ROC curve demonstrated that hsa_circ_0020014_CBC1 in peripheral blood could distinguish patients with KBD and OA.Conclusion: The expression profiles of circRNA were significantly different between OA and KBD. hsa_circRNA_0020014 is a potential biomarker for differential diagnosis between these two diseases.
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| 5. |
- Xiao, Tianxiao, et al.
(author)
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Autonomous self-healing hybrid energy harvester based on the combination of triboelectric nanogenerator and quantum dot solar cell
- 2024
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In: Nano Energy. - : Elsevier BV. - 2211-2855 .- 2211-3282. ; 125
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Journal article (peer-reviewed)abstract
- Realization of multi-source energy harvesting with one single device would maximize power output. Thus, it is emerging as a promising strategy towards renewable energy generation and has attracted worldwide attention in the past decades. Capable of capturing mechanical energy that is ubiquitous in the ambient environment, triboelectric nanogenerator (TENG) has been considered a novel yet effective source towards next-generation energy harvesting. In this work, a flexible hybrid energy harvester (HEH) is developed via the rational integration of autonomous self-healing TENG and high bending-stable lead sulfide quantum dot (PbS QD) solar cell, enabling independent electricity generation by two different mechanisms. The single-electrode mode TENG component with self-healing is realized by a polydimethylsiloxane/Triton X-100 (PDMS/TX100) mixture as the dielectric layer and the shared gold (Au) electrode, which generates 0.39 µA of output current (Iout), 24.6 V of output voltages (Vout), 15.4 nC of transfer charges (Qsc), and 7.80 mW m−2 of output power peak density. The thin-film solar cell component is based on a PbS QD layer as the light absorber with a planar structure fabricated under low-cost and compatible conditions, achieving 22.8 mA cm−2 of short-circuit current density (Jsc) and 4.92% of power conversion efficiency (PCE). As a proof of concept, an electronic watch is successfully powered by harnessing ambient mechanical and solar energy with a hybridized energy cell. This approach will offer more opportunities to construct a versatile platform towards remote monitoring and smart home systems.
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| 6. |
- Zhang, Yanan, et al.
(author)
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Dysregulation of Cells Cycle and Apoptosis in Human Induced Pluripotent Stem Cells Chondrocytes Through p53 Pathway by HT-2 Toxin : An in vitro Study
- 2021
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In: Frontiers in Genetics. - : Frontiers Media S.A.. - 1664-8021. ; 12
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Journal article (peer-reviewed)abstract
- Kashin–Beck disease (KBD) mainly damages growth plate of adolescents and is susceptible to both gene and gene–environmental risk factors. HT-2 toxin, which is a primary metabolite of T-2 toxin, was regarded as one of the environmental risk factors of KBD. We used successfully generated KBD human induced pluripotent stem cells (hiPSCs) and control hiPSCs, which carry different genetic information. They have potential significance in exploring the effects of HT-2 toxin on hiPSC chondrocytes and interactive genes with HT-2 toxin for the purpose of providing a cellular disease model for KBD. In this study, we gave HT-2 toxin treatment to differentiating hiPSC chondrocytes in order to investigate the different responses of KBD hiPSC chondrocytes and control hiPSC chondrocytes to HT-2 toxin. The morphology of HT-2 toxin-treated hiPSC chondrocytes investigated by transmission electron microscope clearly showed that the ultrastructure of organelles was damaged and type II collagen expression in hiPSC chondrocytes was downregulated by HT-2 treatment. Moreover, dysregulation of cell cycle was observed; and p53, p21, and CKD6 gene expressions were dysregulated in hiPSC chondrocytes after T-2 toxin treatment. Flow cytometry also demonstrated that there were significantly increased amounts of late apoptotic cells in KBD hiPSC chondrocytes and that the mRNA expression level of Fas was upregulated. In addition, KBD hiPSC chondrocytes presented stronger responses to HT-2 toxin than control hiPSC chondrocytes. These findings confirmed that HT-2 is an environmental risk factor of KBD and that p53 pathway interacted with HT-2 toxin, causing damaged ultrastructure of organelles, accelerating cell cycle in G1 phase, and increasing late apoptosis in KBD hiPSC chondrocytes.
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| 7. |
- Zhang, Yanan, et al.
(author)
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Identifying discriminative features for diagnosis of Kashin-Beck disease among adolescents
- 2021
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In: BMC Musculoskeletal Disorders. - : BioMed Central. - 1471-2474. ; 22:1
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Journal article (peer-reviewed)abstract
- INTRODUCTION: Diagnosing Kashin-Beck disease (KBD) involves damages to multiple joints and carries variable clinical symptoms, posing great challenge to the diagnosis of KBD for clinical practitioners. However, it is still unclear which clinical features of KBD are more informative for the diagnosis of Kashin-Beck disease among adolescent.METHODS: We first manually extracted 26 possible features including clinical manifestations, and pathological changes of X-ray images from 400 KBD and 400 non-KBD adolescents. With such features, we performed four classification methods, i.e., random forest algorithms (RFA), artificial neural networks (ANNs), support vector machines (SVMs) and linear regression (LR) with four feature selection methods, i.e., RFA, minimum redundancy maximum relevance (mRMR), support vector machine recursive feature elimination (SVM-RFE) and Relief. The performance of diagnosis of KBD with respect to different classification models were evaluated by sensitivity, specificity, accuracy, and the area under the receiver operating characteristic (ROC) curve (AUC).RESULTS: Our results demonstrated that the 10 out of 26 discriminative features were displayed more powerful performance, regardless of the chosen of classification models and feature selection methods. These ten discriminative features were distal end of phalanges alterations, metaphysis alterations and carpals alterations and clinical manifestations of ankle joint movement limitation, enlarged finger joints, flexion of the distal part of fingers, elbow joint movement limitation, squatting limitation, deformed finger joints, wrist joint movement limitation.CONCLUSIONS: The selected ten discriminative features could provide a fast, effective diagnostic standard for KBD adolescents.
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