Previous studies have shown that both copper (Cu) and vascular endothelial growth factor (VEGF) reduce the size of hypertrophic cardiomyocytes, but the Cu-induced regression is VEGF dependent. Studies in vivo have shown that hypertrophic cardiomyopathy is associated with a depression in cytochrome c oxidase (COX) activity, which could be involved in VEGF-mediated cellular function. The present study was undertaken to test the hypothesis that COX is a determinant factor in Cu-induced regression of cardiomyocyte hypertrophy. Primary cultures of neonatal rat cardiomyocytes were treated with phenylepherine (PE) at a final concentration of 100 microM in cultures for 48 h to induce cell hypertrophy. The hypertrophic cells were then treated with Cu sulfate at a final concentration of 5 microM in cultures for 24 h with a concomitant presence of PE to examine the effect of Cu on the regression of cardiomyocyte hypertrophy. Cell size changes were determined by flow cytometry, protein content, and molecular markers. Gene silencing was applied to study the effect of COX activity change on the regression of cardiomyocyte hypertrophy. PE treatment decreased COX activity in hypertrophic cardiomyocytes, and Cu addition restored the activity along with the regression of cell hypertrophy. Gene silencing using siRNA targeting COX-I significantly inhibited COX activity and blocked the Cu-induced regression of cell hypertrophy. VEGF alone also restored COX activity; but under the condition of COX inhibition by gene silencing, VEGF-induced regression of cell hypertrophy was suppressed. This study demonstrates that both Cu and VEGF can restore COX activity that is depressed in hypertrophic cardiomyocytes, and COX plays a determinant role in both Cu- and VEGF-induced regression of cardiomyocyte hypertrophy.

Natural killer (NK) cell neoplasms are unusual disorders. In this study we compared results of flow cytometric immunophenotype (FCI) with cytomorphology, histopathology and clinical findings in a series of patients with NK cell neoplasms with peripheral blood and/or bone marrow involvement, and the FCI of neoplastic and normal NK cells were compared. Retrospective data and specimens (bone marrow aspiration or peripheral blood) from 71 cases of NK cell neoplasms were obtained. All patients have been demonstrated laboratory and clinical features consistent with NK cell neoplasms, and the subtypes were determined by integrated clinical estimation. Routine 4-color flow cytometry (FCM) using a NK/T cell related antibody panels was performed. NK cell neoplasms were divided into two major subtypes by FCI, namely malignant NK cell lymphoma, including extranodal nasal type NK cell lymphoma (ENKL, 11 cases) and aggressive NK cell lymphoma/leukemia (ANKL, 43 cases), and relative indolent chronic lymphoproliferative disorder of NK cell (CLPD-NK, 17 cases). The former exhibited stronger CD56-expressing, larger forward scatter (FSC) and more usually CD7- and CD16-missing. FCI of CLPD-NK was similar to normal NK cells, but CD56-expressing was abnormal, which was negative in five cases and partially or dimly expressed in eight cases. Cytomorphologic abnormal cells were found on bone marrow slides of 4 cases of ENKL and 30 cases of ANKL. Eight cases of ENKL were positive in bone marrow biopsies, and other three cases were negative. In 32 cases of ANKL which bone marrow biopsies were applied, 21 cases were positive in the first biopsies. Lymphocytosis was found only in six cases of CLPD-NK by cytomorphology, and biopsy pathology was not much useful for diagnosing CLPD-NK. These results suggest that FCM analysis of bone marrow and peripheral blood was superior to cytomorphology, bone marrow biopsy, and immunohistochemistry in sensitivity and early diagnosis for ANKL, stage III/IV ENKL and CLPD-NK. FCI could not only define abnormal NK cells but also determine the malignant classification. It is beneficial for clinical management and further study of NK cell neoplasms.

Chemokine ligand 12(CXCL12) mediates signaling through chemokine receptor 4(CXCR4), which is essential for the homing and maintenance of Hematopoietic stem cells (HSCs) in the bone marrow. FLT3-ITD mutations enhance cell migration toward CXCL12, providing a drug resistance mechanism underlying the poor effects of FLT3-ITD antagonists. However, the mechanism by which FLT3-ITD mutations regulate the CXCL12/CXCR4 axis remains unclear. We analyzed the relationship between CXCR4 expression and the FLT3-ITD mutation in 466 patients with de novo AML to clarify the effect of FLT3-ITD mutations on CXCR4 expression in patients with AML. Our results indicated a positive correlation between the FLT3-ITD mutant-type allelic ratio (FLT3-ITD MR) and the relative fluorescence intensity (RFI) of CXCR4 expression in patients with AML (r = 0.588, P ≤ 0.0001). Moreover, the levels of phospho(p)-STAT5, Pim-1 and CXCR4 proteins were positively correlated with the FLT3-ITD MR, and the mRNA levels of CXCR4 and Pim-1 which has been revealed as one of the first known target genes of STAT5, were upregulated with an increasing FLT3-ITD MR(P < 0.05). Therefore, FLT3-ITD mutations upregulate the expression of CXCR4 in patients with AML, and the downstream signaling intermediates STAT5 and Pim-1 are also involved in this phenomenon and subsequently contribute to chemotherapy resistance and disease relapse in patients with AML. However, the mechanism must be confirmed in further experiments. The combination of CXCR4 antagonists and FLT3 inhibitors may improve the sensitivity of AML cells to chemotherapy and overcome drug resistance.

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We concluded that TNF-α played an important role in the pathogenesis of ALI and acted as an initiating cytokine at the early stage of ECC-induced ALI.