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Zhen Xiao

Publications and source records attributed to Zhen Xiao.

12 recordsLinked to original sources
PubMed2007

Analysis of the extracellular matrix vesicle proteome in mineralizing osteoblasts.

Many key processes central to bone formation and homeostasis require the involvement of osteoblasts, cells responsible for accumulation and mineralization of the extracellular matrix (ECM). During this complex and only partially understood process, osteoblasts generate and secrete matrix vesicles (MVs) into the ECM to initiate mineralization. Although they are considered an important component of mineralization process, MVs still remain a mystery. To better understand their function and biogenesis, a proteomic analysis of MVs has been conducted. MVs were harvested by two sample preparation approaches and mass spectrometry was utilized for protein identification. A total of 133 proteins were identified in common from the two MV preparations, among which were previously known proteins, such as annexins and peptidases, along with many novel proteins including a variety of enzymes, osteoblast-specific factors, ion channels, and signal transduction molecules, such as 14-3-3 family members and Rab-related proteins. To compare the proteome of MV with that of the ECM we conducted a large-scale proteomic analysis of collagenase digested mineralizing osteoblast matrix. This analysis resulted in the identification of 1,327 unique proteins. A comparison of the proteins identified from the two MV preparations with the ECM analysis revealed 83 unique, non-redundant proteins identified in all three samples. This investigation represents the first systematic proteomic analysis of MVs and provides insights into both the function and origin of these important mineralization-regulating vesicles.

Animals↗
PubMed2006

Proteomic profiling identifies cyclooxygenase-2-independent global proteomic changes by celecoxib in colorectal cancer cells.

Celecoxib, a selective inhibitor of the enzyme cyclooxygenase-2 (COX-2), has been shown to be a promising chemoprevention agent. The chemopreventive efficacy of celecoxib is believed to be a consequence of its COX-2-dependent and COX-2-independent effects on a variety of cellular processes including proliferation, apoptosis, angiogenesis, and immunosurveillance. In an attempt to identify proteomic markers modulated by celecoxib that are independent of its inhibitory effect on COX-2, the colorectal cancer cell line HCT-116, a nonexpresser of COX-2, was treated with celecoxib. We used the powerful, state-of-the-art two-dimensional difference gel electrophoresis technology coupled with mass spectrometric sequencing to compare global proteomic profiles of HCT-116 cells before and after treatment with celecoxib. Among the differentially expressed proteins identified following celecoxib treatment were proteins involved in diverse cellular functions including glycolysis, protein biosynthesis, DNA synthesis, mRNA processing, protein folding, phosphorylation, redox regulation, and molecular chaperon activities. Our study presents a comprehensive analysis of large-scale celecoxib-modulated proteomic alterations, at least some of which may be mechanistically related to the COX-2-independent chemopreventive effect of celecoxib.

Blotting, Western↗
PubMed2006

Proteomic profiling of differentiating osteoblasts.

The major event that triggers osteogenesis is the transition of mesenchymal stem cells into bone-forming, differentiating osteoblast cells. Osteoblast differentiation is the primary event of bone formation, exemplified by the synthesis, deposition and mineralization of extracellular matrix. Osteoblast differentiation is controlled tightly by sequential activation of diverse transcription factors that regulate the expression of specific genes. The spatial and temporal regulation of the differentiation process is not completely understood at the cellular or molecular level. Recent advances in mass spectrometry-based proteomics have allowed for the systematic qualitative and quantitative profiling of differentiating osteoblasts, enabling a better understanding of the multiple factors and signaling events that control the differentiation process at a molecular level. This review focuses on recent developments in the proteomic analysis of differentiating osteoblasts, including advances, challenges and future prospects of using mass spectrometry to investigate the local and systemic factors regulating bone formation and its homeostasis.

Animals↗
PubMed2006

Plasma proteomic profiling: search for lung cancer diagnostic and early detection markers.

Environmental and occupational exposure to asbestos is among the established risk factors for lung cancer, the leading cause of cancer-related deaths in the United States. This link between exposure to asbestos and the excessive death rate from lung cancer was evident in a study of former workers of an asbestos pipe insulation manufacturing plant in Tyler, TX. We performed comparative proteomic profiling of plasma samples that were collected from nine patients within 12 months before death and their age-, race- and exposure-matched disease-free controls on strong anion exchange chips using surface-enhanced laser desorption ionization time-of-flight mass spectrometry. A distance-dependent K-nearest neighbor (KNN) classification algorithm identified spectral features of m/z values 7558.9 and 15103.0 that were able to distinguish lung cancer patients from disease-free individuals with high sensitivity and specificity. The high correlation between the intensities of these two peaks (r=0.987) strongly suggests that they are the doubly and singly charged ions of the same protein product. Examination of these proteomic markers in the plasma samples of subjects from >5 years before death from lung cancer suggested that they are related to the early development of lung cancer. Validation of these biomarkers would have significant implications for the early detection of lung cancer and better management of high-risk patients.

Adult↗
PubMed2006

[Proliferation inhibition and apoptosis induction of K562 cells by D-limonene].

This study was aimed to investigate the effect of D-limonene on K562 leukemia cells and its mechanism. Inhibitory effect of D-limonene on proliferation of K562 leukemia cells was assayed by MTT method and cell apoptosis was detected by flow cytometry and DNA agarose gel electrophoresis, the morphologic change of K562 cells was observed by microscopy. The results showed that when K562 cells were treated with 0.125 - 1.0 mmol/L of D-limonene for 48 hours, the proliferation of K562 cells was obviously inhibited in dose-dependent manner. Typical morphological changes and the typical DNA ladder on agarose gel electrophoresis for analysis of cellular apoptosis were significantly appeared in D-limonene treated K562 cells. Simultaneously, the sub-G1 peak was found in FCM analysis. It is concluded that the D-limonene can inhibit proliferation of K562 cells in dose-dependent manner, cause cell detained at G1 phase and induce apoptosis of K562 cells.

Antineoplastic Agents↗
PubMed2005

Proteomic patterns: their potential for disease diagnosis.

Alterations in proteins abundance, structure, or function, act as useful indicators of pathological abnormalities prior to development of clinical symptoms and as such are often useful diagnostic and prognostic biomarkers. The underlying mechanism of diseases such as cancer are, however, quite complicated in that often multiple dysregulated proteins are involved. It is for this reason that recent hypotheses suggest that detection of panels of biomarkers may provide higher sensitivities and specificities for disease diagnosis than is afforded with single markers. Recently, a novel approach based on the analysis of protein patterns has emerged that may provide a more effective means to diagnose diseases, such as ovarian and prostate cancer. The method is based on the use of surface-enhanced laser desorption/ionization (SELDI) time-of-flight mass spectrometry (TOF-MS) to detect differentially captured proteins from clinical samples, such as serum and plasma. This analysis results in the detection of "proteomic" patterns that have been shown in recent investigations to distinguish diseased and unaffected subjects to varying degrees. This review will discuss the basics of SELDI protein chip technology and highlight its recent applications in disease biomarker discovery with emphasis on cancer diagnosis.

Alzheimer Disease↗
PubMed2004

Serum proteomic profiles suggest celecoxib-modulated targets and response predictors.

Cyclooxygenase-2 is a valid target for cancer prevention and treatment. This has been shown in preclinical and clinical cancer prevention studies by using a cyclooxygenase-2 inhibitor, celecoxib. When used in a randomized cancer prevention clinical trial on patients with the inherited autosomal dominant condition, familial adenomatous polyposis, celecoxib proved efficacious. However, a remarkable heterogeneity in patients' responses to the chemopreventive effects of celecoxib was observed. Proteomic profiling of sera from these patients identified several markers, the expression of which was specifically modulated after treatment with celecoxib. A decision tree algorithm identified classifiers for response to celecoxib with relatively high sensitivity but moderate to low specificity. In particular, a spectral feature at m/z 16,961.4 was identified as a strong discriminator between response and nonresponse to celecoxib at the highest dose.

Adenomatous Polyposis Coli↗
PubMed2004

Gaseous and particulate air pollution in the Lanzhou Valley, China.

Gaseous and particulate matter measurements were performed from January 1999 to December 2001 to assess seasonal and diurnal patterns of air pollutions in the Lanzhou Valley, China. The objectives are the determination of the temporal variability of total suspended particulate (TSP) matter and PM10 levels, and their relationship with the SO2 and NOx emissions and desert dust intrusions from the dust sources in the Hexi Corridor in Gansu Province. The results showed that concentrations of gaseous and particulate pollutants undergo seasonal variations characterized by a winter maximum levels for SO2 (0.094-0.208 mg/m3) and NO2 (0.068-0.089 mg/m3) and a spring maximum levels for TSP (0.885-1.037 mg/m3). Linear regression analysis indicated that the diurnal mean TSP/PM10 ratio may approximate to 3.0, and that the annual NO2/NOx ratio was approximately 0.86, with its highest monthly average of 0.91 in June and its lowest monthly average of 0.788 in January. The origin of PM10 episodes was investigated by correlating the PM10 episodes in the Lanzhou Valley with the high wind speeds in Jinchang (dust sources) in the Hexi Corridor, and also, by comparing the PM10 levels with the SO2 and NOx concentrations. Most of the 'high PM10 episodes' (1-h mean maximum >1.0 mg/m3) were attributed to the desert dust intrusions from the Hexi Corridor. The influence of the industrial and domestic emissions in the PM10 levels was evidenced during most of the periods with the PM10 levels less than 1.0 mg/m3.

Journal Article↗
PubMed2004

Direct ampholyte-free liquid-phase isoelectric peptide focusing: application to the human serum proteome.

In this study, we utilized a multidimensional peptide separation strategy combined with tandem mass spectrometry (MS/MS) for the identification of proteins in human serum. After enzymatically digesting serum with trypsin, the peptides were fractionated using liquid-phase isoelectric focusing (IEF) in a novel ampholyte-free format. Twenty IEF fractions were collected and analyzed by reversed-phase microcapillary liquid chromatography (microLC)-MS/MS. Bioinformatic analysis of the raw MS/MS spectra resulted in the identification of 844 unique peptides, corresponding to 437 proteins. This study demonstrates the efficacy of ampholyte-free peptide autofocusing, which alleviates peptide losses in ampholyte removal strategies. The results show that the separation strategy is effective for high-throughput characterization of proteins from complex proteomic mixtures.

Blood Proteins↗
PubMed2004

Monitoring sub-nanogram amount of acetylspiramycin in human urine using flow injection analysis with chemiluminescence detection.

AIM: To establish a new and simple flow injection method for the rapid determination of acetylspiramycin (ASPM). METHODS: ASPM was determined by chemiluminescence (CL) method combined with flow injection (FI) technology, which was based on the inhibitive effect of ASPM on the chemiluminescence reaction of the luminol-K3Fe (CN)6 system. RESULTS: The decrease of chemiluminescence intensity was proportional to the logarithm of ASPM concentration (0.1-100) microgram.L-1, the detection limit was 40 ng.L-1 (3 sigma). The whole process, including sampling and washing, could be completed in 0.5 min with a RSD less than 3.0% (n = 5). CONCLUSION: The FI-CL method is of both high sensitivity and good selectivity giving a throughput of 120 h-1. The proposed method was applied successfully to the determination of ASPM in pharmaceutical preparations and human urine without any pre-treatment. It was found that the ASPM concentration reached its maximum after being orally administrated for two hours.

Anti-Bacterial Agents↗
PubMed2003

Identification of MHC class II-restricted T-cell epitopes in prostate-specific membrane antigen.

An effective tumor vaccine may be required to induce both CTLs and T-helper (Th) responses against tumor-associated antigens. CD4+ Th cells that recognize MHC class II-restricted epitopes play a central role in the initiation and maintenance of antitumor immune responses. Prostate-specific membrane antigen (PSMA) is highly expressed in prostate cancer and thus is a potential target for prostate cancer immunotherapy. In this study, we attempted to identify Th epitopes derived from PSMA for enhancing prostate cancer vaccine by eliciting PSMA-specific Th responses. We first screened a panel of six epitope peptide candidates selected with the TEPITOPE program and found that all six peptides induced peptide-specific T-cell proliferation from one or more donors with estimated T-cell precursor frequencies of 0-4.17 x 10(-6). We then established peptide-specific T-cell clones for five of these six peptides and demonstrated that the T-cell clone specific for the PSMA(459) epitope (NYTLRVDCTPLMYSL) can recognize processed antigens from recombinant PSMA proteins. The PSMA(459) peptide was found to induce CD4+ T-cell responses in healthy individuals and prostate cancer patients with different HLA-DR alleles. To test the potential clinical application, human HLA-DR4 transgenic mice were immunized with PSMA(459) peptide and we found that PSMA(459) peptide immunization activated T cells that specifically responded to antigenic peptides derived from PSMA proteins and PSMA-positive tumor. Thus, the naturally processed Th epitope PSMA(459) could be included in prostate tumor vaccines to enhance PSMA-specific CTL responses.

Alleles↗