Polydopamine nanoparticles camouflaged with stem cell membranes could effectively target tumor sites and showed excellent performance in synergistic chemoimmunotherapy for PCa bone metastases.

Histone modification plays an important role in maintaining pluripotency and self-renewal of embryonic stem cells (ESCs). The histone acetyltransferase MOF is a key regulator of ESCs; however, the role of MOF in the process of reprogramming back to induced pluripotent stem cells (iPSCs) remains unclear. In this study, we investigated the function of MOF on the generation of iPSCs. We show that iPSCs contain high levels of MOF mRNA, and the expression level of MOF protein is dramatically upregulated following reprogramming. Most importantly, overexpression of MOF improves reprogramming efficiency and facilitates the formation of iPSCs, whereas small hairpin RNA (shRNA)-mediated knockdown of MOF impairs iPSCs generation during reprogramming. Further investigation reveals that MOF interacts with the H3K4 methyltransferase Wdr5 to promote endogenous Oct4 expression during the reprogramming process. Knockdown of MOF reduces H4K16ac and H3K4me3 modification at the Oct4 promoter. In conclusion, our data indicate that MOF is an important epigenetic regulator that is critical for efficient reprogramming.

Ginsenoside Rg3, a bioactive constituent isolated from Panax ginseng, exhibits antitumorigenic, antioxidative, antiangiogenic, neuroprotective and other biological activities are associated with the regulation of multiple genes. DNA methylation patterns, particularly those in the promoter region, affect gene expression, and DNA methylation is catalyzed by DNA methylases. However, whether ginsenoside Rg3 affects DNA methylation is unknown. High performance liquid chromatography assay, MspI/HpaII polymerase chain reaction (PCR) and reverse transcription-quantitative PCR were performed to assess DNA methylation. It was demonstrated that 20(S)-ginsenoside Rg3 treatment resulted in increased inhibition of cell growth, compared with treatment with 20(R)-ginsenoside Rg3 in the human HepG2 hepatocarcinoma cell line. It was additionally revealed that treatment with 20(S)-ginsenoside Rg3 reduced global genomic DNA methylation, altered cystosine methylation of the promoter regions of P53, B cell lymphoma 2 and vascular endothelial growth factor, and downregulated the expression of DNA methyltransferase (DNMT) 3a and DNMT3b more than treatment with 20(R)-ginsenoside Rg3 in HepG2 cells. These results revealed that the modulation of DNA methylation may be important in the pharmaceutical activities of ginsenoside Rg3.

Aims/IntroductionTo investigate the ability of human amniotic fluid stem cells (hAFSCs) to differentiate into insulin‐producing cells.Materials and Methods hAFSCs were induced to differentiate into pancreatic cells by a multistep protocol. The expressions of pancreas‐related genes and proteins, including pancreatic and duodenal homeobox‐1, insulin, and glucose transporter 2, were detected by polymerase chain reaction and immunofluorescence. Insulin secreted from differentiated cells was tested by enzyme‐linked immunosorbent assay.Results hAFSCs were successfully isolated from amniotic fluid that expressed the pluripotent markers of embryonic stem cells, such as Oct3/4, and mesenchymal stem cells, such as integrin β‐1 and ecto‐5′‐nucleotidase. Here, we first obtained the hAFSCs that expressed pluripotent marker stage‐specific embryonic antigen 1. Real‐time polymerase chain reaction analysis showed that pancreatic and duodenal homeobox‐1, paired box gene 4 and paired box gene 6 were expressed in the early phase of induction, and then stably expressed in the differentiated cells. The pancreas‐related genes, such as insulin, glucokinase, glucose transporter 2 and Nkx6.1, were expressed in the differentiated cells. Immunofluorescence showed that these differentiated cells co‐expressed insulin, C‐peptide, and pancreatic and duodenal homeobox‐1. Insulin was released in response to glucose stimulation in a manner similar to that of adult human islets.ConclusionsThe present study showed that hAFSCs, under selective culture conditions, could differentiate into islet‐like insulin‐producing cells, which might be used as a potential source for transplantation in patients with type 1 diabetes mellitus.