Angiopoietin-2 Promotes Mechanical Stress-induced Extracellular Matrix Degradation in Annulus Fibrosus Via the HIF-1α/NF-κB Signaling Pathway

Increased Expression of Inflammatory Cytokines and Discogenic Neck Pain

OBJECTIVE

Although neck pain has become a serious economic and social problem worldwide, the etiology remains poorly understood. The aim of current study is to explore the possible pathogenesis of discogenic neck pain by analyzing the relationship between inflammatory cytokines and discogenic neck pain and provide a valuable reference for the prevention and treatment of discogenic neck pain.

METHODS

A total of 111 cervical disc samples were collected between October 1, 2021, and October 1, 2022: 38 samples from the discogenic neck pain group, 41 samples from the symptomatic control group, and 32 samples from the normal control group. The concentration of nitric oxide (NO), interleukin (IL)-1, interleukin (IL)-6, and tumor necrosis factor alpha (TNF-α) was determined using the enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay in each sample, and the degeneration degree of the target discs were evaluated using T2-weighted sagittal magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) according to the Miyazaki disc degeneration grading system. Whether the differences among the three groups were statistically significant was tested using one-way analysis of variance and an unpaired t-test, respectively.

RESULTS

The differences of the baseline characteristics were not statistically significant between the discogenic neck pain group and the symptomatic control group (p > 0.05). The expression of inflammatory cytokines in disc samples from the discogenic neck pain group (NO: 9.89 ± 1.75, IL-1β: 10.74 ± 1.92, IL-6:31.65 ± 2.46, and TNF-α: 5.96 ± 1.91) was increased in comparison with the disc samples from both the symptomatic control group (NO: 7.15 ± 2.78, IL-1β: 8.03 ± 1.87, IL-6: 25.79 ± 2.12, and TNF-α: 4.18 ± 2.87) and the normal control group (NO: 6.11 ± 1.37, IL-1β: 5.84 ± 2.25, IL-6: 20.65 ± 1.26, and TNF-α: 2.05 ± 0.58). The differences were statistically significant (p < 0.001). Further, there were no statistical differences in the degree of degeneration between discogenic neck pain group and symptomatic control group.

CONCLUSIONS

The increased expression of inflammatory cytokines in diseased cervical intervertebral discs might play a key role in the pathogenesis of discogenic neck pain. Although inflammation is involved in intervertebral disc degeneration, there is no linear positive correlation between the concentration of inflammatory cytokines and the degree of disc degeneration.

Analysis of global research hotspots and trends in immune cells in intervertebral disc degeneration: A bibliometric study

Intervertebral disc degeneration is an important pathological basis for spinal degenerative diseases. The imbalance of the immune microenvironment and the involvement of immune cells has been shown to lead to nucleus pulposus cells death. This article presents a bibliometric analysis of studies on immune cells in IDD in order to clarify the current status and hotspots. We searched the WOSCC, Scopus and PubMed databases from 01/01/2001 to 08/03/2023. We analyzed and visualized the content using software such as Citespace, Vosviewer and the bibliometrix. This study found that the number of annual publications is increasing year on year. The journal study found that Spine had the highest number of articles and citations. The country/regions analysis showed that China had the highest number of publications, the USA had the highest number of citations and total link strength. The institutional analysis found that Shanghai Jiao Tong University and Huazhong University of Science Technology had the highest number of publications, Tokai University had the highest citations, and the University of Bern had the highest total link strength. Sakai D and Risbud MV had the highest number of publications. Sakai D had the highest total link strength, and Risbud MV had the highest number of citations. The results of the keyword analysis suggested that the current research hotspots and future directions continue to be the study of the mechanisms of immune cells in IDD, the therapeutic role of immune cells in IDD and the role of immune cells in tissue engineering for IDD.

Lycorine inhibits pancreatic cancer cell growth and neovascularization by inducing Notch1 degradation and downregulating key vasculogenic genes

Pancreatic cancer is highly metastatic and lethal with an increasing incidence globally and a 5-year survival rate of only 8%. One of the factors contributing to the high mortality is the lack of effective drugs in the clinical setting. We speculated that effective compounds against pancreatic cancer exist in natural herbs and explored active small molecules among traditional Chinese medicinal herbs. The small molecule lycorine (MW: 323.77) derived from the herb Lycoris radiata inhibited pancreatic cancer cell growth with an IC50 value of 1 μM in a concentration-dependent manner. Lycorine markedly reduced pancreatic cancer cell viability, migration, invasion, neovascularization, and gemcitabine resistance. Additionally, lycorine effectively suppressed tumor growth in mouse xenograft models without obvious toxicity. Pharmacological studies revealed that the levels and half-life of Notch1 oncoprotein in the pancreatic cancer cells Panc-1 and Patu8988 were notably reduced. Moreover, the expression of the key vasculogenic genes Semaphorin 4D (Sema4D) and angiopoietin-2 (Ang-2) were also significantly inhibited by lycorine. Mechanistically, lycorine strongly triggered the degradation of Notch1 oncoprotein through the ubiquitin-proteasome system. In conclusion, lycorine effectively inhibits pancreatic cancer cell growth, migration, invasion, neovascularization, and gemcitabine resistance by inducing degradation of Notch1 oncoprotein and downregulating the key vasculogenic genes Sema4D and Ang-2. Our findings provide a new therapeutic candidate and treatment strategy against pancreatic cancer.