Journal: BMC Biology

Article Title: Identification of Epinastine as CD96/PVR inhibitor for cancer immunotherapy

doi: 10.1186/s12915-025-02132-y

Figure Lengend Snippet: Virtual screening of small molecules from the FDA-approved drug library. A Crystal structure of CD96 in complex with PVR (PDB Code: 6ARQ), with the binding interface highlighted in blue. B Detailed depiction of amino acids involved in the CD96/PVR interaction, with residues shown in stick representation. C Relationship between molecular weight and S-value for selected small molecules. Red indicates molecules with molecular weights between 250 and 700 and S-values of -5 or less. D-F Results of further screening of small molecules interacting with the CD96/PVR binding interface. G Distribution of S-values for the final 15 selected small molecules

Article Snippet: 1729 small molecules were obtained from FDA-approved drug library (Topscience, Shanghai, China).

Techniques: Drug discovery, Binding Assay, Molecular Weight

Journal: Advanced Science

Article Title: VDLIN: A Deep Learning‐Based Platform for Methylcobalamin‐Inspired Immunomodulatory Compound Screening

doi: 10.1002/advs.202413775

Figure Lengend Snippet: Co7 induces Ifnb1 expression via the TLR4 signaling pathway. A) Volcano plot illustrating the distribution of differentially expressed genes (DEGs) between the Co7 and DMSO treatment groups after 3 h in RAW 264.7 cells. Fold changes are presented as log 2 transformations. Red dots represent DEGs upregulated in the Co7 group. B) Protein‐protein interaction (PPI) network analysis of differentially expressed genes (DEGs) in the Co7‐treated group compared to the DMSO group, revealing significant enrichment in pathways associated with the innate immune response and type I interferon signaling. C) KEGG pathway enrichment analysis of DEGs induced by Co7, highlighting associations with innate immune response pathways. D) Co7 (50 µmol/L) exhibiting strong antiviral effects against VSV in RAW 264.7 and HT29 cells. E) Co7 significantly reduced the inflammatory response induced by LPS, VSV, EMCV, and HSV in RAW 264.7 cells. F) Volcano plot representing the differential gene expression analysis between Co7‐ and LPS‐treated RAW 264.7 cells after 3 h of treatment. Fold changes are displayed as log 2 transformations. Red dots indicate genes upregulated in the Co7 group, while blue dots represent downregulated genes compared to LPS treatment. G) Western blot analysis demonstrating that Co7 inhibited the expression of iNOS and COX2, as well as the phosphorylation of NF‐κB‐P65 at the protein level in RAW 264.7 cells. H) Co7 significantly reduced the mortality rate in mice (n = 10 per group) following LPS challenge (20 mg/kg), compared to the PBS control group. RT‐qPCR data were presented as means ± SEM from three independent experiments. Statistical significance was determined using one‐way ANOVA with Bonferroni's multiple comparisons test (left three panels in E), paired‐samples t‐test (D, right panel of EMCV and HSV in E), or the log‐rank test (H). * P < 0.05, ** P < 0.01, and *** P < 0.001.

Article Snippet: Each inhibitor was dissolved in anhydrous DMSO and diluted to its respective working concentration: C29 (10 μM, S6597, Selleck) served as a TLR2 inhibitor; Procyanidin B1 (30 μM, HY‐N0795, MedChemExpress) acted as a TLR4 inhibitor; MyD88‐IN‐1 (30 μM, HY‐149992, MedChemExpress) was used to inhibit MyD88; Pepinh‐TRIF TFA (30 μM, HY‐P2565, MedChemExpress) functioned as a TRIF inhibitor; and GSK8612 (5 μM, T5540, TargetMol) inhibited TBK1/IKKε.

Techniques: Expressing, Gene Expression, Western Blot, Phospho-proteomics, Control, Quantitative RT-PCR

Journal: Blood

Article Title: MDH1-mediated malate-aspartate NADH shuttle maintains the activity levels of fetal liver hematopoietic stem cells

doi: 10.1182/blood.2019003940

Figure Lengend Snippet: STAT3 transactivates Mdh1 expression to maintain FL-HSC activities. (A) Mdh1 luciferase reporter and different doses of Stat3 were cotransfected into 293T cells, followed by the determination of luciferase activities (n = 3). (B) ChIP assays were analyzed with 293T cells cotransfected with pGL4.27-mdh1 promoter vector and Stat3 plasmid or control plasmid. Input control and amplification of the Stat3-binding sequence of Mdh1 were determined by semiquantitative PCR. (C) Bisulfite sequencing analysis of the methylation patterns of the CpG islands in the Mdh1 promoter in CD45+ SoNar-high and -low FL hematopoietic cell fractions is shown. Each row represents a unique DNA clone; filled and open circles represent methylated and unmethylated CpGs, respectively. (D) Quantification data of methylated and unmethylated CpGs (n = 3). (E) Protein levels of pSTAT3, STAT3, and MDH1 were measured in CD45+ SoNar-high and -low FL cells. Ratios of pSTAT3/STAT3 and MDH1/actin were quantified and normalized against SoNar-high#1 cells. (F) Representative flow cytometric analysis of intracellular level of pSTAT3 of total CD45+ FL hematopoietic cells and FL-HSCs. Mean fluorescence intensity (MFI) of each group was shown (isotype control, yellow and green lines). (G) Quantification of MFI of intracellular level of pSTAT3 in panel F (n = 3). (H) Immunoblotting assay showed protein levels of pSTAT3, STAT3, and MDH1 in total CD45+ FL hematopoietic cells and FL-HSCs. Ratios of pSTAT3/STAT3 and MDH1/actin were quantified and normalized against total cells. (I) Representative flow cytometric analysis of intracellular level of pSTAT3 of CD45+ SoNar-high and -low FL-HSCs. MFI of each group is shown (isotype control, yellow and green lines). (J) Quantification of MFI of intracellular level of pSTAT3 in panel I (n = 3). (K) Protein level of MDH1 was measured in Stat3-overexpressed SoNar 32D cells and control cells by immunoblotting. Ratios of STAT3/actin and MDH1/actin were quantified and normalized against control cells. (L) Stat3-overexpressed SoNar 32D cells and control cells were evaluated for the ratios of SoNar fluorescence, and representative images are shown. Scale bar, 10 μm. (M) Quantification of the ratios of SoNar fluorescence in panel L. A total of 30 SoNar 32D cells were analyzed (n = 3). (N) Working model for the connections between FL-HSC activities and Mdh1-mediated malate-aspartate shuttle as indicated by SoNar. Data are represented as mean ± standard error of the mean. Student 2-tailed unpaired t test (G,J,M) and 2-way analysis of variance with Sidak’s multiple comparison test (D) were used for the comparison. *P < .05, ***P < .001.

Article Snippet: To test the effect of STAT3 inhibitor on MDH1 expression, purified Lin − Sca-1 + c-Kit + FL-HSCs and adult HSCs were treated with 10 or 20 μM of STAT3 inhibitor C188-9 (TargetMol) for 24 hours according to the previous study 37 and subjected to determination of pSTAT3, STAT3, or MDH1 level by western blot.

Techniques: Expressing, Luciferase, Plasmid Preparation, Control, Amplification, Binding Assay, Sequencing, Methylation Sequencing, Methylation, Fluorescence, Western Blot, Comparison