Chlorogenic acid promotes fatty acid beta-oxidation to increase hESCs proliferation and lipid synthesis.

Cell metabolism plays a crucial role in regulating the pluripotency of human embryonic stem cells (hESCs). Chlorogenic acid (CGA), an essential dietary polyphenol, exhibits diverse pharmacological effects on metabolism regulation. This study examines the effects of CGA on cell metabolism in hESCs using the H9 model.

Low-dose exposure to microplastics retards meiotic maturation via HDAC3 insufficiency.

Microplastics (MPs) are considered one of the main causes of male and female infertility. However, the reproductive toxicity and its related mechanisms are currently understood primarily through animal models with acute exposure to MPs. In this study, we demonstrate that low-dose exposure to polystyrene microplastics (PSMPs) leads to severely abnormal reproduction in females, manifested by oocyte meiotic maturation defect.

Acetylation at lysine 27 on maternal H3.3 regulates minor zygotic genome activation.

Zygotic genome activation (ZGA) initiates transcription in early embryogenesis and requires extensive chromatin remodeling, including rapid incorporation of the histone variant H3.3. The distinct sources of H3.

Maternal factor Trim75 contributes to zygotic genome activation program in mouse early embryos.

Background: Zygotic genome activation (ZGA) is an important event in the early embryo development, and human embryo developmental arrest has been highly correlated with ZGA failure in clinical studies. Although a few studies have linked maternal factors to mammalian ZGA, more studies are needed to fully elucidate the maternal factors that are involved in ZGA.

Methods And Results: In this study, we utilized published single-cell RNA sequencing data from a Dux-mediated mouse embryonic stem cell to induce a 2-cell-like transition state and selected potential drivers for the transition according to an RNA velocity analysis.

Functional evaluation of LTR-derived lncRNAs in porcine oocytes and zygotes with RNA-seq and small RNA-seq.

Long noncoding RNAs (lncRNAs) are increasingly being recognized as modulators of early embryonic development in mammals. However, they are seldom investigated in pigs. Here, to annotate full-length RNA transcripts, we performed annotation using a newly developed computational pipeline-an RNA-seq and small RNA-seq combined strategy-using our previously obtained RNA-seq and small RNA-seq data from porcine oocytes and zygotes.

Downregulation of circLIFR exerts cancer-promoting effects on hepatocellular carcinoma .

Hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC) is one of the most fatal malignant tumors worldwide. Circular RNAs (circRNAs) are a special type of RNA that lacks the 5' and 3' ends. The functional roles of circRNAs in HCC remain largely unknown.

Characterization of the small RNA transcriptomes of cell protrusions and cell bodies of highly metastatic hepatocellular carcinoma cells via RNA sequencing.

Increasing evidence suggest that hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC) HCCLM3 cells initially develop pseudopodia when they metastasize, and microRNAs (miRNAs/miRs) and circular RNAs (circRNAs) have been demonstrated to serve important roles in the development, progression and metastasis of cancer. The present study aimed to isolate the cell bodies (CBs) and cell protrusions (CPs) from HCCLM3 cells, and screen the miRNAs and circRNAs associated with HCC infiltration and metastasis in CBs and CPs. The Boyden chamber assay has been confirmed to effectively isolate the CBs and CPs from HCCLM3 cells via observation of microtubule immunofluorescence, DAPI staining and nuclear protein H3 western blotting.

Maternally inherited diabetes is associated with a homoplasmic T10003C mutation in the mitochondrial tRNA(Gly) gene.

In this report, we investigate molecular pathogenic mechanism of a diabetes-associated homoplasmic mitochondrial tRNA mutation in a Han Chinese family with maternally transmitted diabetes mellitus. Of 10 adult matrilineal relatives, 5 individuals suffered from diabetes (4 subjects with only diabetes, one subject with both diabetes and hearing impairment), while other five matrilineal relatives (one with hearing loss) had glucose intolerance. The average age at onset of diabetes in matrilineal relatives was 50 years.

The protective effect and underlying mechanism of metformin on neointima formation in fructose-induced insulin resistant rats.

Background: Insulin resistance is strongly associated with the development of type 2 diabetes and cardiovascular disease. However, the underlying mechanisms linking insulin resistance and the development of atherosclerosis have not been fully elucidated. Moreover, the protective effect of antihyperglycemic agent, metformin, is not fully understood.

Evaluating mitochondrial DNA in cancer occurrence and development.

Abnormal mitochondria have long been hypothesized to be involved in tumorigenesis. Mitochondrial DNA (mtDNA) mutations have been found in various cancer cells, yet their role in tumorigenesis remains largely unknown. Our long-term goal is to understand the role of mtDNA polymorphism and mtDNA mutations in tumorigenesis.

Association of vitamin D receptor polymorphisms with the risk of prostate cancer in the Han population of Southern China.

Background: Molecular epidemiological studies have shown that gene polymorphisms of vitamin D receptor (VDR) are associated with prostate cancer risks. However, previous results from many molecular studies remain inconsistent.

Methods: Blood samples were collected from 122 prostate cancer patients and 130 age-matched control subjects in the Han population of Southern China.

Analysis of mitochondrial DNA mutations in D-loop region in thyroid lesions.

Background: Mitochondrial defects have been associated with various human conditions including cancers.

Methods: We analyzed the mutations at the mitochondrial DNA (mtDNA) in patients with different thyroid lesions. In particular, in order to investigate if the accumulation of mtDNA mutations play a role in tumor progression, we studied the highly variable main control region of mtDNA, the displacement-loop (D-loop) in patients with non-tumor nodular goiters, with benign thyroid adenomas, and with malignant thyroid carcinomas.

Maternally inherited aminoglycoside-induced and nonsyndromic hearing loss is associated with the 12S rRNA C1494T mutation in three Han Chinese pedigrees.

We report here the clinical, genetic and molecular characterization of three Han Chinese pedigrees with maternally transmitted aminoglycoside-induced and nonsyndromic bilateral hearing loss. Clinical evaluation revealed the wide range of severity, age-at-onset and audiometric configuration of hearing impairment in matrilineal relatives in these families. The penetrances of hearing loss in these pedigrees were 28%, 20%, and 15%, with an average of 21%, when aminoglycoside-induced deafness was included.

[Study on the mitochondrial DNA variation in patients with type 2 diabetes mellitus].

Objective: To explore the relationship between type 2 diabetes mellitus (T2DM) and the mutations in the fragment of mitochondrial DNA (mtDNA) from nucleotides 3153 to 3551, which have shown high frequency of point mutation.

Methods: One hundred and ninety-one normal controls and 222 patients with T2DM were screened by polymerase chain reaction-restriction fragment length polymorphism (PCR-RFLP), T-A cloning sequencing and denatured high performance liquid chromatography (DHPLC) techniques.

Results: The prevalence of mtDNA mutations in the patient group (24.

Very low penetrance of hearing loss in seven Han Chinese pedigrees carrying the deafness-associated 12S rRNA A1555G mutation.

Mutations in mitochondrial DNA (mtDNA) have been found to be associated with sensorineural hearing loss. We report here the clinical, genetic and molecular characterizations of seven Han Chinese pedigrees with aminoglycoside-induced and nonsyndromic bilateral hearing loss. Clinical evaluation revealed the variable phenotype of hearing impairment including severity, age-at-onset and audiometric configuration in these subjects.

[Detecting of mtDNA mutations at position A3243G and G3316A in patients with type 2 diabetes mellitus in Wenzhou].

To investigate the frequencies of mitochondria DNA (mtDNA) tRNA(Leu (UUR)) point mutation A3243G and NADH dehydronase subunit 1(ND1) gene point mutation G3316A in Wenzhou area of Zhejiang Province, and to explore the correlation between these mutations and the clinical manifestations in patients with type 2 mellitus diabetes(T2DM). Two hundreds and forty-four unrelated patients with T2DM and 156 healthy subjects without family history of T2DM were enrolled in Wenzhou area in this study and screened for the point mutations mentioned above with polymerase chain reaction (PCR) and restricted fragment length polymorphism(RFLP) analysis. The heterogeneous mutations were confirmed with DNA sequencing and denaturing high performance liquid chromatography (DHPLC) following T-A cloning of PCR products.

Maternally transmitted diabetes mellitus associated with the mitochondrial tRNA(Leu(UUR)) A3243G mutation in a four-generation Han Chinese family.

We report here the characterization of a four-generation Han Chinese family with maternally transmitted diabetes mellitus. Six (two males/four females) of eight matrilineal relatives in this family exhibited diabetes. The age of onset in diabetes varies from 15 years to 33 years, with an average of 26 years.