Fumaric acid attenuates the eotaxin-1 expression in TNF-α-stimulated fibroblasts by suppressing p38 MAPK-dependent NF-κB signaling

Revisiting the Injury Mechanism of Goat Sperm Caused by the Cryopreservation Process from a Perspective of Sperm Metabolite Profiles

Semen cryopreservation results in the differential remodeling of the molecules presented in sperm, and these alterations related to reductions in sperm quality and its physiological function have not been fully understood. Given this, this study aimed to investigate the cryoinjury mechanism of goat sperm by analyzing changes of the metabolic characteristics in sperm during the cryopreservation process. The ultra-high-performance liquid chromatography-quadrupole time-of-flight mass spectrometry (UHPLC-QTOF-MS) technique was performed to explore metabolite profiles of fresh sperm (C group), equilibrated sperm (E group), and frozen-thawed sperm (F group). In total, 2570 metabolites in positive mode and 2306 metabolites in negative mode were identified, respectively. After comparative analyses among these three groups, 374 differentially abundant metabolites (DAMs) in C vs. E, 291 DAMs in C vs. F, and 189 DAMs in E vs. F were obtained in the positive mode; concurrently, 530 DAMs in C vs. E, 405 DAMs in C vs. F, and 193 DAMs in E vs. F were obtained in the negative mode, respectively. The DAMs were significantly enriched in various metabolic pathways, including 31 pathways in C vs. E, 25 pathways in C vs. F, and 28 pathways in E vs. F, respectively. Among them, 65 DAMs and 25 significantly enriched pathways across the three comparisons were discovered, which may be tightly associated with sperm characteristics and function. Particularly, the functional terms such as TCA cycle, biosynthesis of unsaturated fatty acids, sphingolipid metabolism, glycine, serine and threonine metabolism, alpha-linolenic acid metabolism, and pyruvate metabolism, as well as associated pivotal metabolites like ceramide, betaine, choline, fumaric acid, L-malic acid and L-lactic acid, were focused on. In conclusion, our research characterizes the composition of metabolites in goat sperm and their alterations induced by the cryopreservation process, offering a critical foundation for further exploring the molecular mechanisms of metabolism influencing the quality and freezing tolerance of goat sperm. Additionally, the impacts of equilibration at low temperature on sperm quality may need more attentions as compared to the freezing and thawing process.

Hyperforin modulates MAPK/CCL11 signaling to reduce the inflammatory response of nasal mucosal epithelial cells caused by allergic rhinitis by targeting BCL6

Hyperforin is a type of bicyclic tetraketone with four isoprenoid chains extracted from Hypericum perforatum L. that has multiple biological activities such as anti-diabetes, antitumor and anti-inflammation. However, the role and potential mechanism of hyperforin in allergic rhinitis (AR) remains to be clarified. In the present study, cell viability was analyzed using Cell Counting Kit-8 assay, while inflammation was detected using ELISA and reverse transcription-quantitative PCR. Epithelial cell barrier damage was measured using western blotting and immunofluorescence staining. The expression levels of B-cell lymphoma 6 (BCL6) and the p38 MAPK/C-C motif chemokine 11 (CCL11) pathway were detected using western blotting. In addition, the association between hyperforin and BCL6 was analyzed by SWISS TargetPrediction, DisGeNET, Gene Ontology and Pathway databases. Molecular docking was performed using AutoDockTools 1.5.6 and Discovery Studio 4.5 software. The data demonstrated that there were 16 interlinking target genes of hyperforin with AR, in which BCL6 was the most relevant one with hyperforin in AR. The binding between hyperforin and BCL6 was verified, and molecular docking was modeled. The results revealed that hyperforin inhibited IL-13-induced nasal epithelial inflammatory cytokine release and repressed the damage to the cellular barrier from IL-13 stimulation. In addition, hyperforin activated BCL6 expression and significantly suppressed the expression of p38 MAPK/CCL11. Silencing of BCL6 reversed the effects of hyperforin on IL-13-induced inflammation and barrier damage. In summary, the present results revealed that hyperforin suppressed IL-13-induced nasal epithelial cell inflammation and barrier damage by targeting BCL6/p38 MAPK/CCL11, which may provide promising therapeutic targets for AR.

From Allergy to Cancer-Clinical Usefulness of Eotaxins

Simple Summary

Eotaxins are small proteins included in the group of chemokines. They act mainly on blood cells called eosinophils which are involved in the pathogenesis of inflammatory processes. This connection leads to involvement of eotaxins in the pathogenesis of all inflammatory related diseases, such as allergic diseases and cancer. This paper summarizes the current knowledge about eotaxins, showing their usefulness as markers that can be used not only in the detection of these diseases, but also to determine the effectiveness of treatment.

Abstract

Eotaxins are proteins which belong to the group of cytokines. These small molecules are secreted by cells that are mainly involved in immune-mediated reactions in the course of allergic diseases. Eotaxins were discovered in 1994 and their main role was considered to be the selective recruitment of eosinophils. As those blood cells are involved in the course of all inflammatory diseases, including cancer, we decided to perform an extensive search of the literature pertaining to our investigation via the MEDLINE/PubMed database. On the basis of available literature, we can assume that eotaxins can be used as markers for the detection and determination of origin or type of allergic disease. Many publications also confirm that eotaxins can be used in the determination of allergic disease treatment. Moreover, there are also studies indicating a connection between eotaxins and cancer. Some researchers revealed that CCL11 (C-C motif chemokine ligand 11, eotaxin-1) concentrations differed between the control and tested groups indicating their possible usefulness in cancer detection. Furthermore, some papers showed usefulness of eotaxins in determining the treatment efficacy as markers of decreasing inflammation. Therefore, in this paper we present the current knowledge on eotaxins in the course of allergic and cancerous diseases.

Male-biased zebrafish sex differentiation and metabolomics profile changes caused by dydrogesterone

Some progestins, including the widely used dydrogesterone (DDG), have been shown to cause male-biased sex ratio in teleost. However, there is a gap to fully understand the mechanisms of the sex differentiation disturbance by progestins, particularly from the metabolic aspect. We thus aimed to examine the sex changes by exposing zebrafish embryos to 4.4 (L), 44 (M) and 440 (H) ng/L DDG for up to 140 days, and investigated metabolomic profile changes during the critical period of sex differentiation at fry stage (35 dpf). DDG increased the percentage of male zebrafish in a dose-dependent manner, with 98% male fish in the high concentration group. In zebrafish fry, DDG increased the levels of some free fatty acids, monoglycerides, acylcarnitines, organic acids, free amino acids, while decreased lysophospholipids, uric acid and bile acids. DDG exposure also decreased the nucleoside monophosphates and UDP-sugars while increased nucleosides and their bases. These metabolite changes, namely increase in n-3 PUFAs (polyunsaturated fatty acids), myo-inositol, taurine, palmitoleic acid, oleic acid, lactic acid, fumaric acid, and uracil, and decrease in uric acid and bile acids, might account for the male-biased sex ratio in zebrafish. It appears that many of these metabolites could inhibit several pathways that regulate zebrafish gonad differentiation, including NF-κB/COX-2 and Wnt/β-catenin pathways, and activate p53 pathway. Thus we proposed a hypothesis that DDG might induce oocytes apoptosis through the above pathways and finally lead to female-to-male sex reversal. The results from this study suggest that DDG at environmentally relevant concentrations could affect zebrafish metabolomic profiles and finally disturb fish sex differentiation.

Tumor necrosis factor α knockout impaired tumorigenesis in chronic myeloid leukemia cells partly by metabolism modification and miRNA regulation

Purpose

Half of the chronic myeloid leukemia (CML) patients with sustained deep molecular response suffer from relapse after discontinuation mainly because tyrosine kinase inhibitors (TKIs) cannot eradicate leukemia stem cells (LSCs). In addition, tumor necrosis factor α (TNF-α) is highly detected in CML patients. Our aim was to explore whether TNF-α is a potential target for LSC elimination.

Materials and methods

We applied a CRISPR/Cas9 gene editing technique, colony-forming cell assay, subcutaneous tumor models, miRNA-seq and liquid chromatography-mass spectroscopy (LC-MS) on metabonomics to explore the feasibility and mechanism of TNF-α as a new therapeutic target for CML.

Results

We demonstrated that TNF-α knockout remarkably decreased the proliferative, colony-forming and in vivo tumorigenesis capacities of the CML K562 cell line. The apoptosis was increased when TNF-α knockout cells were cultured with imatinib. The mechanisms involved in the abovementioned phenomena were that TNF-α knockout inhibited the citrate cycle and increased starch, sucrose, amino sugar and nucleotide sugar metabolism. In addition, differentially expressed miRNAs between TNF-α knockout and control cells were involved in the cell cycle, CML, P13K-Akt and pathways in cancer.

Conclusion

We identified that TNF-α may serve as a new target therapy for CML and described the metabolic pathways associated with TNF-α in CML cells for the first time.

Caffeic acid phenethyl ester alleviates asthma by regulating the airway microenvironment via the ROS-responsive MAPK/Akt pathway

In the pathophysiology of asthma, structural cell dysfunction and concomitant microenvironment changes in airways are crucial to pathological progression, which involves oxidative stress. Caffeic acid phenethyl ester (CAPE) is an active anti-oxidative component obtained from propolis, and has been shown to have beneficial effects on several respiratory disorders, such as chronic obstructive pulmonary disease and lung cancer. However, the impact of CAPE on asthma is not well understood. Therefore, this study investigated the advantages of using CAPE to treat asthma and demonstrated the roles of CAPE in the regulation of airway microenvironments. In ovalbumin (OVA)-sensitized mice, CAPE treatments notably reduced airway hyperresponsiveness, attenuated extensive inflammatory cell infiltration and inhibited goblet cell hyperplasia and collagen deposition and fibrosis. In addition, CAPE improved the airway microenvironment in a dose-dependent manner by inhibiting OVA-induced increases in immunoglobulin E, tumor necrosis factor alpha (TNF-α), transforming growth factor-β1 (TGF-β1), interleukin (IL)-4 and IL-13 and suppressing matrix metalloproteinase-9 and alpha-smooth muscle actin expression as well as malondialdehyde production. To determine the underlying mechanisms responsible for these effects, we used TNF-α-stimulated BECs and TGF-β1-challenged human ASMCs to explore the impacts of CAPE on pro-inflammatory proteins and ASMC proliferation. The results indicated that CAPE significantly limited the secretion of eotaxin-1, monocyte chemoattractant protein-1, IL-8 and intercellular adhesion molecule-1 and dramatically inhibited the proliferation of ASMCs. These effects were shown to be associated with decreased reactive oxidant species (ROS) levels. The phosphorylation of Akt and Mitogen-Activated Protein Kinase (MAPK) caused by increased ROS was significantly decreased by CAPE, which implied a contribution of ROS-MAPK/Akt signaling to the attenuation of asthma. Our findings indicated for the first time that CAPE alleviates airway inflammation and remodeling in chronic asthma by balancing the airway microenvironment, which highlights a novel profile of CAPE as a potent agent for asthma management.

An emerging role for eotaxins in neurodegenerative disease

Eotaxins are C-C motif chemokines first identified as potent eosinophil chemoattractants. They facilitate eosinophil recruitment to sites of inflammation in response to parasitic infections as well as allergic and autoimmune diseases such as asthma, atopic dermatitis, and inflammatory bowel disease. The eotaxin family currently includes three members: eotaxin-1 (CCL11), eotaxin-2 (CCL24), and eotaxin-3 (CCL26). Despite having only ~30% sequence homology to one another, each was identified based on its ability to bind the chemokine receptor, CCR3. Beyond their role in innate immunity, recent studies have shown that CCL11 and related molecules may directly contribute to degenerative processes in the central nervous system (CNS). CCL11 levels increase in the plasma and cerebrospinal fluid of both mice and humans as part of normal aging. In mice, these increases are associated with declining neurogenesis and impaired cognition and memory. In humans, elevated plasma levels of CCL11 have been observed in Alzheimer's disease, amyotrophic lateral sclerosis, Huntington's disease, and secondary progressive multiple sclerosis when compared to age-matched, healthy controls. Since CCL11 is capable of crossing the blood-brain barrier of normal mice, it is plausible that eotaxins generated in the periphery may exert physiological and pathological actions in the CNS. Here, we briefly review known functions of eotaxin family members during innate immunity, and then focus on whether and how these molecules might participate in the progression of neurodegenerative diseases.

Morin Attenuates Ovalbumin-Induced Airway Inflammation by Modulating Oxidative Stress-Responsive MAPK Signaling

Asthma is one of the most common inflammatory diseases characterized by airway hyperresponsiveness, inflammation, and remodeling. Morin, an active ingredient obtained from Moraceae plants, has been demonstrated to have promising anti-inflammatory activities in a range of disorders. However, its impacts on pulmonary diseases, particularly on asthma, have not been clarified. This study was designed to investigate whether morin alleviates airway inflammation in chronic asthma with an emphasis on oxidative stress modulation. In vivo, ovalbumin- (OVA-) sensitized mice were administered with morin or dexamethasone before challenge. Bronchoalveolar lavage fluid (BALF) and lung tissues were obtained to perform cell counts, histological analysis, and enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay. In vitro, human bronchial epithelial cells (BECs) were challenged by tumor necrosis factor alpha (TNF-α). The supernatant was collected for the detection of the proinflammatory proteins, and the cells were collected for reactive oxygen species (ROS)/mitogen-activated protein kinase (MAPK) evaluations. Severe inflammatory responses and remodeling were observed in the airways of the OVA-sensitized mice. Treatment with morin dramatically attenuated the extensive trafficking of inflammatory cells into the BALF and inhibited their infiltration around the respiratory tracts and vessels. Morin administration also significantly suppressed goblet cell hyperplasia and collagen deposition/fibrosis and dose-dependently inhibited the OVA-induced increases in IgE, TNF-α, interleukin- (IL-) 4, IL-13, matrix metalloproteinase-9, and malondialdehyde. In human BECs challenged by TNF-α, the levels of proteins such as eotaxin-1, monocyte chemoattractant protein-1, IL-8 and intercellular adhesion molecule-1, were consistently significantly decreased by morin. Western blotting and the 2',7'-dichlorofluorescein assay revealed that the increases in intracellular ROS and MAPK phosphorylation were abolished by morin, implying that ROS/MAPK signaling contributes to the relief of airway inflammation. Our findings indicate for the first time that morin alleviates airway inflammation in chronic asthma, which probably occurs via the oxidative stress-responsive MAPK pathway, highlighting a novel profile of morin as a potent agent for asthma management.