Journal: Nutrients

Article Title: Essential Oils, Pituranthos chloranthus and Teucrium ramosissimum , Chemosensitize Resistant Human Uterine Sarcoma MES-SA/Dx5 Cells to Doxorubicin by Inducing Apoptosis and Targeting P-Glycoprotein

doi: 10.3390/nu13051719

Figure Lengend Snippet: Effects of Pituranthos chloranthus (PC) and Teucrium ramosissimum Desf. (TR) extracts on normal primary human uterine fibroblast cells (HUF) and primary murine Bone Marrow-Derived Macrophages (BMDM) viability. After treatment of primary HUF and murine BMDM with increasing concentrations (0–100 µg/mL) of PC and TR for 72 h, the percentage of viable cells was assessed using the (3-(4,5-dimethylthiazol-2-yl)-2,5-diphenyltetrazolium bromide (MTT) assay. ( A ) Dose–response curves of PC-treated HUF (left panel) and TR-treated HUF (right panel). ( B ) Dose–response curves of PC-treated BMDM (left panel) and TR-treated BMDM (right panel). Data are expressed as a mean percentage of control growth ± Standard Deviation (SD) of two representative experiments ( n = 6 replicates per concentration).

Article Snippet: Primary human uterine fibroblast normal cells (HUF) were obtained from the ATCC.

Techniques: Derivative Assay, MTT Assay, Control, Standard Deviation, Concentration Assay

Journal: International Journal of Molecular Sciences

Article Title: High-Content Imaging and Machine Learning Classify Phenotypical Change in Coronary Artery Endothelial Cells Caused by BPS

doi: 10.3390/ijms27073259

Figure Lengend Snippet: Representative high-content microscopy images of human coronary artery endothelial cells (HCAEC) exposed to vehicle control (CTRL) or 0.1 µM Bisphenol S (BPS) for 96 h and stained using the PhenoVue Cell Painting assay. For each condition, a representative field acquired at 40× magnification and a higher-magnification inset are shown. Rows correspond to the individual fluorescence channels: Hoechst 33342 (nuclei), PhenoVue Fluor 488 Concanavalin A (endoplasmic reticulum and intracellular membranes), PhenoVue 512 nucleic acid stain (RNA/nucleoli), PhenoVue Fluor 555 wheat germ agglutinin (plasma membrane), PhenoVue 641 mitochondrial stain (mitochondria), and the merged image. White boxes represent the part of the image used for the related inset. Scale bar: 50 µm, 40× objective.

Article Snippet: Primary human coronary artery endothelial cells (HCAEC; ATCC ® PCS-100-020TM, Innovation, VA, USA) were cultured according to the supplier’s recommendations.

Techniques: Microscopy, Control, Staining, Fluorescence, Clinical Proteomics, Membrane

Journal: Molecular medicine reports

Article Title: Long non‑coding RNA SNHG14 affects the proliferation and apoptosis of childhood acute myeloid leukaemia cells by modulating the miR‑193b‑3p/MCL1 axis.

doi: 10.3892/mmr.2020.11729

Figure Lengend Snippet: Figure 1. SNHG14 gene expression is upregulated in bone marrow tissues of patients with AML and AML cell lines. (A) Relative expression of SNHG14 in 57 AML bone marrow tissues and NBM. (B) Relative expression of SNHG14 in AML cell lines and human normal bone marrow CD34+ cells. **P<0.01 vs. CD34+ cells. The 2‑ΔΔCq method was used to analyse the relative mRNA expression level using GAPDH as an internal control. AML, acute myeloid leukaemia; NBM, normal marrow tissues; SNHG14, small nucleolar RNA host gene 14.

Article Snippet: Human normal bone marrow CD34+ cells and AML cell lines (MV‐4‐11, AML‐193, HL‐60, and KG‐1 cells) were obtained from the American Type Culture Collection and cultured in Dulbecco's modified Eagle's medium (DMEM; HyClone; GE Healthcare) containing 10% FBS (Gibco; Thermo Fisher Scientific, Inc.) at 37°C.

Techniques: Gene Expression, Expressing, Control

Journal: Molecular medicine reports

Article Title: Long non‑coding RNA SNHG14 affects the proliferation and apoptosis of childhood acute myeloid leukaemia cells by modulating the miR‑193b‑3p/MCL1 axis.

doi: 10.3892/mmr.2020.11729

Figure Lengend Snippet: Figure 3. miR‑193b‑3p is a target of SNHG14 in AML cells. (A) Starbase was used to predict the binding site between SNHG14 and miR‑193b‑3p. (B) Relative expression of miR‑193b‑3p in MV‑4‑11 and AML‑193 cells following SNHG14 silencing. **P<0.01 vs. blank control. (C) The target association between SNHG14 and miR‑193b‑3p was determined using an RNA immunoprecipitation assay. **P<0.01 vs. Anti‑IgG. (D) The target association between SNHG14 and miR‑193b‑3p was determined using a dual luciferase reporter gene assay. **P<0.01 vs. miR‑NC. (E) Relative expression of miR‑193b‑3p in 57 AML bone marrow tissues and NBM was detected by RT‑qPCR. (F) Spearman's correlation analysis was performed to evaluate the correlation between SNHG14 and miR‑193b‑3p expression. (G) Relative expression of miR‑193b‑3p in AML cell lines and human normal bone marrow CD34+ cells. **P<0.01 vs. CD34+ cells. The 2‑ΔΔCq method was used to analyse the relative mRNA expression level using U6 as an internal control. SNHG14, small nucleolar RNA host gene 14; miR, microRNA; si, small interfering RNA; NC, negative control; wt, wildtype; mut, mutated; NBM, normal marrow tissues; AGO2, protein argonaute‑2; AML, acute myeloid leukaemia.

Article Snippet: Human normal bone marrow CD34+ cells and AML cell lines (MV‐4‐11, AML‐193, HL‐60, and KG‐1 cells) were obtained from the American Type Culture Collection and cultured in Dulbecco's modified Eagle's medium (DMEM; HyClone; GE Healthcare) containing 10% FBS (Gibco; Thermo Fisher Scientific, Inc.) at 37°C.

Techniques: Binding Assay, Expressing, Control, RNA Immunoprecipitation, Luciferase, Reporter Gene Assay, Small Interfering RNA, Negative Control

Journal: Molecular medicine reports

Article Title: Long non‑coding RNA SNHG14 affects the proliferation and apoptosis of childhood acute myeloid leukaemia cells by modulating the miR‑193b‑3p/MCL1 axis.

doi: 10.3892/mmr.2020.11729

Figure Lengend Snippet: Figure 5. miR‑193b‑3p targets MCL1 in AML cells. (A) TargetScan was used to predict the binding site between miR‑193b‑3p and MCL1. (B) A dual luciferase reporter gene assay was employed to verify the target association between miR‑193b‑3p and MCL1. **P<0.01 vs. miR‑NC. (C) Relative expression of MCL1 in 57 AML bone marrow tissues and NBM was detected by RT‑qPCR. (D) Spearman's correlation analysis was performed to evaluate the correlation between MCL1 and miR‑193b‑3p expression. (E) Spearman's correlation analysis was performed to evaluate the correlation between MCL1 and SNHG14 expression. (F) Relative expression of miR‑193b‑3p in AML cell lines and human normal bone marrow CD34+ cells. **P<0.01 vs. CD34+ cells. The 2‑ΔΔCq method was used to analyse the relative mRNA expression level using GAPDH as an internal control. SNHG14, small nucleolar RNA host gene 14; miR, microRNA; NC, negative control; wt, wildtype; mut, mutated; NBM, normal marrow tissues; AML, acute myeloid leukaemia; MCL1, MCL1 apoptosis regulator BCL2 family member.

Article Snippet: Human normal bone marrow CD34+ cells and AML cell lines (MV‐4‐11, AML‐193, HL‐60, and KG‐1 cells) were obtained from the American Type Culture Collection and cultured in Dulbecco's modified Eagle's medium (DMEM; HyClone; GE Healthcare) containing 10% FBS (Gibco; Thermo Fisher Scientific, Inc.) at 37°C.

Techniques: Binding Assay, Luciferase, Reporter Gene Assay, Expressing, Control, Negative Control

Journal: Frontiers in pharmacology

Article Title: The Anticancer Effects of the Pro-Apoptotic Benzofuran-Isatin Conjugate (5a) Are Associated With p53 Upregulation and Enhancement of Conventional Chemotherapeutic Drug Efficiency in Colorectal Cancer Cell Lines.

doi: 10.3389/fphar.2022.923398

Figure Lengend Snippet: FIGURE 7 | Compound 5a decreases HT29 and SW620 cell viability without affecting the viability of normal colon epithelial CCD 841 cells and enhances irinotecan (IRI), 5-fluorouracil (5-FU), and oxaliplatin (OXA) cytotoxic effects on HT29 and SW620 cells. (A) HT29, SW620, and the normal colon epithelial CCD 841 cell lines were exposed to different concentrations (5-10-20 μM) of Compound 5a for 24 h. Cell viability was measured by the MTT assay at 540 nm regarding the cellular metabolic activity. Bar graph showing the cell viability percentage and the data are expressed as mean ± SD (n = 3). ***p < 0.001 and ****p < 0.0001 vs. Control. Half-maximal inhibitory concentrations (IC50) of Compound 5a on HT29 and SW620 cell viability were determined. HT29 (B,C) and SW620 (D,E) cells were treated with different concentrations of the chemotherapeutic drugs IRI, 5-FU, and OXA for 24 h in the presence (C,E) or absence (B,D) of various concentrations (5-10-20 μM) of Compound 5a. Cell cytotoxicity was measured by the MTT assay at 540 nm. Bar graph showing the cell viability percentage and the data are expressed as mean ± SD (n = 3). Half- maximal inhibitory concentrations (IC50) of each chemotherapeutic drug on HT29 and SW620 cell viability were also determined.

Article Snippet: Human normal colon epithelial cell (CCD841 CoTr), colorectal adenocarcinoma HT29, and mCRC SW620 cell lines were obtained from American Type Culture Collection (ATCC, Manassas, VA, United States) and grown in a complete medium composed of DMEM supplemented with 10% heatinactivated fetal bovine serum (FBS), 100 μg/ml streptomycin, 100 IU/ml penicillin and 2 mmol/l L-glutamine.

Techniques: MTT Assay, Activity Assay, Control

Journal: Cells

Article Title: TMAO-Triggered Endothelial–Mesenchymal Transition and Microvesicle Release as Mediators of Vascular Smooth Muscle Cell Osteogenic Differentiation and Vascular Calcification

doi: 10.3390/cells15050466

Figure Lengend Snippet: Endothelial cell-derived exosomes influence vascular smooth muscle cell phenotype and calcification-related gene expression. HAVSMCs were incubated for 8 days with 10 µg/mL exosomes derived from endothelial cells (ECs) in ECM (control), TNFα, TGFβ, or varying concentrations of TMAO (1–100 μM). ( A – D ) qPCR analysis of osteogenic markers RUNX2 and OPN, confirming transcriptional reprogramming toward an osteoblast-like phenotype. ( E ) TNAP (Tissue Non-Specific Alkaline Phosphatase) involved in vascular calcification and osteogenic transformation of VSMCs. Data are presented as mean ± SD from four independent biological replicates. Statistical significance was determined by one-way ANOVA, followed by Tukey’s post hoc test. * p < 0.05, ** p < 0.01, *** p < 0.001 vs. SMCM control.

Article Snippet: HAVSMCs (ATCC ® PCS-100-012TM) were cultured in Smooth Muscle Cell Growth Medium (SMCM, ScienCell, Carlsbad, CA, USA) supplemented with 2% FBS and 1% Pen-Strep under standard conditions (37 °C, 5% CO 2 ).

Techniques: Derivative Assay, Gene Expression, Incubation, Control, Transformation Assay

Journal: Cells

Article Title: TMAO-Triggered Endothelial–Mesenchymal Transition and Microvesicle Release as Mediators of Vascular Smooth Muscle Cell Osteogenic Differentiation and Vascular Calcification

doi: 10.3390/cells15050466

Figure Lengend Snippet: Differential effects of endothelial cell-derived exosomes on calcification of HAVSMCs, assessed by Alizarin Red staining. ( A – G ) Representative images of Alizarin Red staining in HAVSMCs after 8 days of culture with 10 µg/mL endothelial cell-derived exosomes (EC-EXOs) obtained from endothelial cell maintenance medium (ECM EC EXO), TNFα-stimulated EC exosomes (TNFα EC EXO), TGFβ-stimulated EC exosomes (TGFβ EC EXO), TMAO-treated EC exosomes (1 µM, 10 µM, and 50 µM TMAO EC EXO), and control smooth muscle cell medium (SMCM). ( H ) Quantification of Alizarin Red stain intensity was normalized to total protein concentration. Data are presented as mean ± SD from four independent biological replicates. Statistical significance was determined by one-way ANOVA, followed by Tukey’s post hoc test. * p < 0.05 vs. SMCM control.

Article Snippet: HAVSMCs (ATCC ® PCS-100-012TM) were cultured in Smooth Muscle Cell Growth Medium (SMCM, ScienCell, Carlsbad, CA, USA) supplemented with 2% FBS and 1% Pen-Strep under standard conditions (37 °C, 5% CO 2 ).

Techniques: Derivative Assay, Staining, Control, Protein Concentration

Journal: Cells

Article Title: TMAO-Triggered Endothelial–Mesenchymal Transition and Microvesicle Release as Mediators of Vascular Smooth Muscle Cell Osteogenic Differentiation and Vascular Calcification

doi: 10.3390/cells15050466

Figure Lengend Snippet: β-catenin inhibition attenuates endothelial exosome-induced β-catenin activation in HAVSMCs. ( A , C ) Representative Western blot images showing non-phosphorylated (active) β-catenin protein expression in human aortic vascular smooth muscle cells (HAVSMCs) treated with endothelial cell-derived exosomes (EC-EXOs) obtained from TNFα-, TGFβ-, or TMAO-stimulated endothelial cells, in the presence or absence of the β-catenin transcriptional inhibitor ICG-001 for 8 days. β-actin was used as a loading control. ( B , D ) Quantitative densitometric analysis demonstrates a significant increase in β-catenin protein levels following EC-EXO treatment, which was markedly reduced upon β-catenin inhibition with ICG-001. Protein expression levels were normalized to β-actin and expressed as fold change relative to vehicle-treated controls. Data are presented as mean ± standard deviation (SD) from three independent biological replicates. Statistical significance was determined by one-way ANOVA followed by Tukey’s post hoc test to assess differences between EC-EXO treatment groups and the effect of β-catenin inhibition. * p < 0.05, ** p < 0.01, *** p < 0.001.

Article Snippet: HAVSMCs (ATCC ® PCS-100-012TM) were cultured in Smooth Muscle Cell Growth Medium (SMCM, ScienCell, Carlsbad, CA, USA) supplemented with 2% FBS and 1% Pen-Strep under standard conditions (37 °C, 5% CO 2 ).

Techniques: Inhibition, Activation Assay, Western Blot, Expressing, Derivative Assay, Control, Standard Deviation

Journal: Cells

Article Title: TMAO-Triggered Endothelial–Mesenchymal Transition and Microvesicle Release as Mediators of Vascular Smooth Muscle Cell Osteogenic Differentiation and Vascular Calcification

doi: 10.3390/cells15050466

Figure Lengend Snippet: β-catenin inhibition suppresses endothelial exosome-induced osteogenic gene expression in HAVSMCs. ( A – E ) Quantitative real-time PCR analysis of osteogenic gene expression in HAVSMCs treated with endothelial cell-derived exosomes (EC-EXOs) from TNFα-, TGFβ-, or TMAO-stimulated endothelial cells, in the presence of the β-catenin inhibitor ICG-001. Relative mRNA expression levels of ( A ) SM22A, ( B ) αSMA, ( C ) RUNX2, ( D ) osteopontin (OPN), and ( E ) tissue-nonspecific alkaline phosphatase (TNAP) were normalized to housekeeping genes and expressed relative to vehicle-treated control cells (0.1% v / v DMSO). EC-EXO co-treatment with ICG-001 significantly attenuated the expression of RUNX2, OPN, and TNAP, indicating that β-catenin signaling is required for endothelial exosome-induced osteogenic reprogramming of HAVSMCs. Data are presented as mean ± SD from three independent biological replicates. Statistical significance was assessed using one-way ANOVA, followed by post-hoc analysis. * p < 0.05, ** p < 0.01, *** p < 0.001, vs. CTL vehicle.

Article Snippet: HAVSMCs (ATCC ® PCS-100-012TM) were cultured in Smooth Muscle Cell Growth Medium (SMCM, ScienCell, Carlsbad, CA, USA) supplemented with 2% FBS and 1% Pen-Strep under standard conditions (37 °C, 5% CO 2 ).

Techniques: Inhibition, Gene Expression, Real-time Polymerase Chain Reaction, Derivative Assay, Expressing, Control

Journal: Cells

Article Title: TMAO-Triggered Endothelial–Mesenchymal Transition and Microvesicle Release as Mediators of Vascular Smooth Muscle Cell Osteogenic Differentiation and Vascular Calcification

doi: 10.3390/cells15050466

Figure Lengend Snippet: Uptake kinetics of MemBright-labeled endothelial cell-derived exosomes by HAVSMC. Representative confocal microscopy images showing the time-dependent uptake of MemBright-labeled endothelial cell-derived exosomes by human aortic vascular smooth muscle cells (HAVSMCs). ( A ) HAVSMCs treated with control endothelial cell-derived exosomes (CTL EC EXO). ( B ) HAVSMCs treated with exosomes derived from endothelial cells exposed to 50 µM TMAO (TMAO EC EXO). Exosomes were labeled with MemBright (green), and cell nuclei were counterstained with Hoechst (blue). Images were acquired immediately after exosome addition (T = 0 h) and after 1, 3, and 4 h of incubation. Merged images illustrate progressive internalization and intracellular accumulation of exosomes over time, with 20× objective. All images were captured using a Leica confocal laser scanning microscope under identical acquisition settings. Scale bar: 194 µm.

Article Snippet: HAVSMCs (ATCC ® PCS-100-012TM) were cultured in Smooth Muscle Cell Growth Medium (SMCM, ScienCell, Carlsbad, CA, USA) supplemented with 2% FBS and 1% Pen-Strep under standard conditions (37 °C, 5% CO 2 ).

Techniques: Labeling, Derivative Assay, Confocal Microscopy, Control, Incubation, Laser-Scanning Microscopy

Journal: Cells

Article Title: TMAO-Triggered Endothelial–Mesenchymal Transition and Microvesicle Release as Mediators of Vascular Smooth Muscle Cell Osteogenic Differentiation and Vascular Calcification

doi: 10.3390/cells15050466

Figure Lengend Snippet: miR-222-3p overexpression promotes osteogenic signaling in HAVSMCs through activation of β-catenin pathway. ( A ) Quantitative PCR analysis confirming successful transfection of HAVSMCs with miR-222-3p mimic compared with the results for scrambled mimic control. Relative miR-222-3p expression levels were normalized to miR5S and expressed as fold change. ( B – F ) Quantitative PCR analysis of gene expression levels of RUNX2, OPN and TNAP in HAVSMCs after miR-222-3p mimic transfection for 48 h. ( G ) Representative Western blot images showing β-catenin protein expression in HAVSMCs following transfection with scrambled mimic or miR-222-3p mimic. ( H ) Quantitative densitometric analysis of protein expression levels of β-catenin protein expression levels were normalized to housekeeping protein and expressed relative to scrambled control. Data are presented as mean ± SD from independent biological replicates. Statistical significance was determined using unpaired two-tailed Student’s t -test. * p < 0.05, ** p < 0.01, *** p < 0.001 vs. scrambled mimic control.

Article Snippet: HAVSMCs (ATCC ® PCS-100-012TM) were cultured in Smooth Muscle Cell Growth Medium (SMCM, ScienCell, Carlsbad, CA, USA) supplemented with 2% FBS and 1% Pen-Strep under standard conditions (37 °C, 5% CO 2 ).

Techniques: Over Expression, Activation Assay, Real-time Polymerase Chain Reaction, Transfection, Control, Expressing, Gene Expression, Western Blot, Two Tailed Test