MIN LIU^1,*, XIA LI², JUN LIU¹, YU LIU¹

BIOCELL, Vol.48, No.10, pp. 1475-1487, 2024, DOI:10.32604/biocell.2024.053227 - 02 October 2024

Abstract Background: Alveolar macrophage pyroptosis exacerbates inflammatory lung diseases, and tanshinone IIA is known for its anti-inflammatory properties. Thus, understanding how tanshinone IIA affects alveolar macrophage pyroptosis is essential. Methods: NR8383 cells were exposed to lipopolysaccharide (LPS) and adenosine triphosphate (ATP). We assessed cell viability, pyroptosis, and the expression of triggering receptors expressed on myeloid cells 2 (TREM2), p-β-catenin, β-catenin, and pyroptosis-related factors. We also examined the interaction between tanshinone IIA and TREM2. Results: Co-stimulation with LPS and ATP significantly reduced NR8383 cell viability, increased pyroptosis, and upregulated pyroptosis-associated factors. Treatment with tanshinone IIA mitigated these effects.… More >

YU TANG¹, WENXIAO HU^2,*, YAJUN PENG¹, XIANGDONG LING²

BIOCELL, Vol.48, No.10, pp. 1503-1516, 2024, DOI:10.32604/biocell.2024.052692 - 02 October 2024

Abstract Background: Podocyte injury is crucial in diabetic kidney disease (DKD) progression, and the mechanism remains unclear. The previous studies indicated Diosgenin played a key role in inhibiting podocyte injury progression. However, more research is needed to explore Diosgenin in inhibiting-molecular mechanisms in the process of podocyte injury. Methods: The content of Diosgenin in HeShenwan was detected by High-Performance Liquid Chromatography-mass spectrometry (HPLC-MS) method. The podocyte injury model was constructed by high glucose (HG)-induced mpc5 cells. The Cell Counting Kit-8 (CCK-8) assay was utilized to evaluate the activity of mpc5 cells. Pyroptosis in mpc5 cells was… More > Graphic Abstract

QIN LIU^1,#, CHUNYAN NIU^2,#,*, QIANG ZHANG³, SHIQIN SUN⁴, YUE CHEN², YONGQIANG SHI²

BIOCELL, Vol.48, No.5, pp. 759-769, 2024, DOI:10.32604/biocell.2024.048551 - 06 May 2024

Abstract Background: Nonalcoholic fatty liver disease (NAFLD) is a global health concern with the acid sphingomyelinase (ASM)/ceramide (CE) pathway and the NOD-like receptor family, pyrin domain-containing protein 3 (NLRP3) inflammasome identified as pivotal players in lipid disorders and inflammation. This study explores the interaction mechanism between the ASM/CE pathway and NLRP3 in NAFLD cell models, aiming to understand the impact of amitriptyline (Ami), an ASM inhibitor, on lipid deposition and hepatocyte injury by regulating the ASM/CE-NLRP3 pathway. Methods: HepG2 and HL-7702 cells were exposed to free fatty acids (FFAs) to establish the NAFLD model. The cells… More >

WEI ZHENG¹, CHENG LIU^2,*

BIOCELL, Vol.48, No.2, pp. 293-301, 2024, DOI:10.32604/biocell.2023.044211 - 23 February 2024

Abstract Objective: Intracranial aneurysm (IA) represents a devastating disease with high rates of disability and mortality, which is initiated by dysfunction of endothelial cells (ECs). Evidence suggests the dysregulation of the E3 ubiquitin ligase family during EC injury. In this work, the role of an E3 ubiquitin ligase, casitas B lymphoma-B (CBL-B), was explored in human brain microvascular EC (HBMEC) function through the NLRP3 pathway. Methods: In vitro IA model was induced by treating HBMECs with oxidized low-density lipoprotein (ox-LDL). The levels of CBL-B and pyroptosis-related proteins NLRP3, ASC, cleaved caspase-1, and GSDME-N were determined by real-time-quantitative… More >

JINJIN FU^1,#, XIAOYUE FENG^2,#, JUAN WEI², XIANG GENG¹, YU GONG¹, FENGDONG LI¹, SHAOHUA ZHUANG¹, JIN HUANG¹, FANGYU WANG^2,*

BIOCELL, Vol.47, No.12, pp. 2627-2639, 2023, DOI:10.32604/biocell.2023.042586 - 27 December 2023

Abstract Background: This study aimed to elucidate the potential mechanisms through which bone marrow-derived mesenchymal stem cells (BM-MSCs) may be effective in alleviating experimental colitis induced by treatment with 2,4,6-trinitrobenzene-sulfonate acid (TNBS), specifically through autophagy modulation. Methods: BM-MSCs were collected from BALB/c mice for subsequent experiments. The study employed cell counting kits (CCK-8) to investigate the impact of the MSC-conditioned medium (M medium) on the proliferation of RAW264.7 macrophages. The GFP-mRFP-LC3 adenovirus was transfected into RAW264.7 to detect autophagic flux. The gene expression of cytokines was assessed through quantitative reverse transcription polymerase chain reaction (qRT-PCR). Western blot… More >

WEI LU^1,*, KAN GUO², DIANMEI XI¹, ZHAOXIA XIA¹

BIOCELL, Vol.47, No.9, pp. 1995-2008, 2023, DOI:10.32604/biocell.2023.024591 - 28 September 2023

Abstract Background: Mesenchymal stem cell (MSC)-derived exosomes are closely related to pyroptosis in diabetic nephropathy (DN). This study aimed to explore the protective effect of exosomal miR-30a-5p on podocyte pyroptosis in DN. Methods: Streptozotocin was used to establish the mouse model of DN. Human bone marrow MSC-derived exosomes were extracted and identified via transmission electron microscopy, nanoparticle tracking analysis, and western blotting. MiR-30a-5p mimics and non-control (NC) mimics were transfected into MSCs and podocytes, and exosomes were isolated from the MSCs. High glucose (HG)-induced podocyte model was established to determine the effect of exosomal miR-30a-5p on pyroptosis… More >

BINFEN HOU¹, LI ZHAO¹, T IANHAO ZHAO¹, MINGMING YANG¹, WANWAN ZHU¹, XIAODONG CHEN², XIQUAN KE¹, ZHENZENG MA¹, LIN GU¹, MENG WANG¹, MIN DENG^1,*

BIOCELL, Vol.47, No.1, pp. 175-186, 2023, DOI:10.32604/biocell.2022.021359 - 26 September 2022

Abstract Aim: Gastric cancer (GC) is one of the most common malignant tumors. Chrysophanol has been reported to possess antitumor effects on a variety of cancers; however, its role in GC remains unclear. This study aimed to investigate the effects of chrysophanol on the proliferation, pyroptosis, migration, and invasion of GC cells. Methods: Human GC cell lines MKN 28 and AGS cells were treated with different concentrations of chrysophanol, then cell proliferation, migration, invasion and pyroptosis were determined by CCK-8, colony-forming assay, wound healing assay, Transwell assay, and flow cytometry. Cell migration and invasion were reassessed in… More >

LEI FU¹, JINGWEN JIANG², XUEWU CHEN², FENGTING ZHU², HUI ZHANG²

BIOCELL, Vol.46, No.5, pp. 1289-1297, 2022, DOI:10.32604/biocell.2022.016726 - 06 January 2022

Abstract The levels of hsa circular RNA_0002198 (hsa_circ_0002198) have been found to be significantly upregulated in keloid dermal fibroblasts. However, the functional role of hsa_circ_0002198 in keloid fibroblasts and the underlying molecular mechanism for its effects have not been reported. In this study, the levels of hsa_circ_0002198 and nucleotide-binding and oligomerization domain, leucine rich repeat and pyrin domain containing 3 (NLRP3) expression in keloid scar tissues and adjacent normal skin tissues were determined by quantitative real-time PCR and western blotting, respectively. In vitro models of keloid tissue were created by culturing primary keloid fibroblasts obtained from patients.… More >

PANPAN WANG^1,2, GANG LI³, LI GAO^1,2, CHUANJIANG ZHAO^1,2

BIOCELL, Vol.46, No.5, pp. 1197-1207, 2022, DOI:10.32604/biocell.2022.016607 - 06 January 2022

Abstract Periodontal disease is the leading cause of tooth loss, which is also a high-risk factor for other diseases including oral cancer and cardiovascular disease. Periodontitis is one of the most common type of periodontal diseases. Interleukin-1β (IL-1β) plays a key role in the pathogenesis of periodontitis. However, the mechanism how IL-1β is produced during periodontitis is still unclear. In the present study, we found that human β-defensin 2 (hBD2) enhances IL-1β production through an LPS-primed human acute monocytic leukemia (THP-1) macrophage model. Inhibition of P2X purinoceptor 7 (P2X7) reduced hBD2-enhanced IL-1β production. Incubation of LPS-primed More >

ZHENGUO SHI^#,*, QIAOYUN WU^#, HAIYAN SHI, SONGTIE YING, LIANG TAO

BIOCELL, Vol.46, No.4, pp. 979-988, 2022, DOI:10.32604/biocell.2022.015345 - 15 December 2021

Abstract NLRP3 inflammasome-mediated cell pyroptosis aggravates the development of cerebral ischemia/reperfusion (I/R) injury, and the aim of this study is to investigate the potential utilization of the Chinese medicine, Puerarin, in treating this disease. Through conducting in vitro and in vivo experiments, the present study illustrated that Puerarin regulated LncRNA double homeobox A pseudogene 8 (DUXAP8)/miR-223-3p axis to inactivate NLRP3-mediated pyroptotic cell death, resulting in the attenuation of I/R injury. Specifically, the cerebral I/R injury in rat models and hypoxia/reoxygenation (H/R) in primary hippocampus neuron (PHN) cells were inducted, which were subsequently exposed to Puerarin treatment. As expected,… More >