1 4819 114 OCCURRENCE OF TOXICITY AND CELL PROLIFERATION AFTER A SINGLE GAVAGE ADMINISTRATION OF CHLOROFORM TO MALE F344 RATS. CHLOROFORM, AN INDUSTRIAL SOLVENT AND ONE OF THE MOST COMMON ENVIRONMENTAL CONTAMINANTS WHICH PRODUCES CARCINOGENIC EFFECTS IN THE LIVER AND KIDNEY OF RODENTS, IS NOT GENOTOXIC IN MOST TRADITIONAL BACTERIAL AND MAMMALIAN TEST SYSTEMS. ITS CARCINOGENIC POTENTIAL APPEARS ATTRIBUTABLE TO THE SUSTAINED CELL TURNOVER (REGENERATIVE HYPERPLASIA) WHICH RESULTS FROM CHRONIC CHLOROFORM TOXICITY. IN THIS PRESENT STUDY, CELL PROLIFERATION (REPLICATIVE DNA SYNTHESIS, RDS) AND HISTOPATHOLOGICAL CHANGES IN HEPATOCYTES AND RENAL TUBULAR EPITHELIAL CELLS WERE ASSESSED IN MALE F344 RATS FOLLOWING A SINGLE GAVAGE CHLOROFORM EXPOSURE (50, 150 OR 500 MG/KG). IN ADDITION, BIOCHEMICAL PARAMETERS (BUN, GOT, LDH AND NAG) WERE EXAMINED USING PLASMA AND URINE SAMPLES. CELL PROLIFERATION AND HISTOPATHOLOGICAL CHANGES (E.G. HYPERTROPHY, NECROSIS, VACUOLATION) WERE ONLY SEEN AT THE DOSE OF 500 MG/KG IN THE LIVER AND KIDNEY. AT THE SAME DOSE, ALL BIOCHEMICAL MARKERS WERE INCREASED AT THE 24 TO 48 HR TIME POINTS. THESE RESULTS OBTAINED ARE THUS IN LINE WITH EARLIER FINDINGS POINTING TO EPIGENETIC CARCINOGENICITY. 1998 2 1826 25 EFFECTS OF HISTONE DEACETYLASE INHIBITOR ON EXTRACELLULAR MATRIX PRODUCTION IN HUMAN NASAL POLYP ORGAN CULTURES. BACKGROUND: NASAL POLYPOSIS IS ASSOCIATED WITH A CHRONIC INFLAMMATORY CONDITION OF THE SINONASAL MUCOSA AND INVOLVES MYOFIBROBLAST DIFFERENTIATION AND EXTRACELLULAR MATRIX (ECM) ACCUMULATION. EPIGENETIC MODULATION BY HISTONE DEACETYLASE (HDAC) INHIBITORS INCLUDING TRICHOSTATIN A (TSA) HAS BEEN REPORTED TO HAVE INHIBITORY EFFECTS ON MYOFIBROBLAST DIFFERENTIATION IN LUNG AND RENAL FIBROBLASTS. THE PURPOSE OF THIS STUDY WAS TO INVESTIGATE THE INHIBITORY EFFECT OF TSA ON MYOFIBROBLAST DIFFERENTIATION AND ECM PRODUCTION IN NASAL POLYP ORGAN CULTURES. METHODS: NASAL POLYP TISSUES FROM 18 PATIENTS WERE ACQUIRED DURING ENDOSCOPIC SINUS SURGERY. AFTER ORGAN CULTURE, NASAL POLYPS WERE STIMULATED WITH TGF-BETA1 AND THEN TREATED WITH TSA. ALPHA-SMOOTH MUSCLE ACTIN (ALPHA-SMA), FIBRONECTIN, AND COLLAGEN TYPE I EXPRESSION LEVELS WERE EXAMINED BY REVERSE TRANSCRIPTION-POLYMERASE CHAIN REACTION (PCR), REAL-TIME PCR, WESTERN BLOT, AND IMMUNOFLUORESCENT STAINING. HDAC2, HDAC4, AND ACETYLATED H4 EXPRESSION LEVELS WERE ASSAYED BY WESTERN BLOT. CYTOTOXICITY WAS ANALYZED BY THE TERMINAL DEOXYNUCLEOTIDYL TRANSFERASE BIOTIN-DUTP NICK END LABELING ASSAY. RESULTS: THE EXPRESSION LEVELS OF ALPHA-SMA, FIBRONECTIN, AND COLLAGEN TYPE 1 WERE INCREASED IN NASAL POLYP AFTER TRANSFORMING GROWTH FACTOR (TGF) BETA1 TREATMENT. TSA-INHIBITED TGF-BETA1 INDUCED THESE GENE AND PROTEIN EXPRESSION LEVELS. FURTHERMORE, TSA SUPPRESSED PROTEIN EXPRESSION LEVELS OF HDAC2 AND HDAC4. HOWEVER, TSA INDUCED HYPERACETYLATION OF HISTONES H4. TREATMENT WITH TGF-BETA1 WITH OR WITHOUT TSA DID NOT HAVE CYTOTOXIC EFFECT. CONCLUSION: THESE FINDINGS PROVIDE NOVEL INSIGHTS INTO THE EPIGENETIC REGULATION IN MYOFIBROBLAST DIFFERENTIATION AND ECM PRODUCTION OF NASAL POLYP. TSA COULD BE A CANDIDATE OF A THERAPEUTIC AGENT FOR REVERSING THE TGF-BETA1-INDUCED ECM SYNTHESIS THAT LEADS TO NASAL POLYP DEVELOPMENT. 2013 3 4052 22 MALIGNANT TRANSFORMATION OF A DYSEMBRYOPLASTIC NEUROEPITHELIAL TUMOR (DNET) CHARACTERIZED BY GENOME-WIDE METHYLATION ANALYSIS. DYSEMBRYOPLASTIC NEUROEPITHELIAL TUMORS (DNET) ARE CONSIDERED TO BE RARE, BENIGN, AND ASSOCIATED WITH CHRONIC EPILEPSY. WE PRESENT THE CASE OF A 28-YEAR-OLD MAN WITH A HISTORY OF EPILEPSY SINCE AGE 12. SURGERY OF AN OCCIPITAL CORTICAL LESION IN 2009 REVEALED A DNET. FIVE YEARS LATER, A RECURRENT TUMOR AT THE EDGE OF THE RESECTION CAVITY WAS REMOVED, AND THE TISSUE UNDERWENT AN INTENSIVE DIAGNOSTIC WORKUP. THE FIRST TUMOR WAS UNEQUIVOCALLY CHARACTERIZED AS A DNET, BUT NEUROPATHOLOGICAL DIAGNOSTICS OF THE RECURRENT TUMOR REVEALED A GLIOBLASTOMA. AFTER 6 MONTHS, ANOTHER RECURRENT TUMOR WAS DETECTED NEXT TO THE LOCATION OF THE ORIGINAL TUMOR, AND THIS WAS ALSO RESECTED. AN ILLUMINA 450 K BEADCHIP METHYLATION ARRAY WAS PERFORMED TO CHARACTERIZE ALL OF THE TUMORS. THE METHYLATION PROFILE OF THESE TUMORS SIGNIFICANTLY DIFFERED FROM OTHER GLIOBLASTOMA AND EPILEPSY-ASSOCIATED TUMOR PROFILES AND REVEALED A DNET-LIKE METHYLATION PROFILE. THUS, MOLECULAR CHARACTERIZATION OF THESE RECURRENT TUMORS SUGGESTS MALIGNANT TRANSFORMATION OF A PREVIOUSLY BENIGN DNET. WE FOUND INCREASED COPY NUMBER CHANGES IN THE RECURRENT DNET TUMORS AFTER MALIGNANT TRANSFORMATION. MODERN HIGH-THROUGHPUT ANALYSIS ADDS ESSENTIAL MOLECULAR INFORMATION IN ADDITION TO STANDARD HISTOPATHOLOGY FOR PROPER IDENTIFICATION OF RARE BRAIN TUMORS THAT PRESENT WITH AN UNUSUAL CLINICAL COURSE. 2016 4 6813 21 [EPILEPSY-ASSOCIATED TUMORS OF THE CENTRAL NERVOUS SYSTEM: EPILEPSY SURGERY AND ONCOLOGICAL ASPECTS]. BACKGROUND: AMONG THE TUMORS ASSOCIATED WITH CHRONIC EPILEPSY, DYSEMBRYOPLASTIC NEUROEPITHELIAL TUMOR AND GANGLIOGLIOMA ARE THE MOST COMMON BESIDES ANGIOCENTRIC GLIOMA, PLEOMORPHIC XANTHOASTROCYTOMA AND PILOCYTIC ASTROCYTOMA. THESE TUMORS ARE USUALLY CONSIDERED AS BEING BENIGN. OBJECTIVE: TO DETERMINE THE BEST CONSERVATIVE AND SURGICAL TREATMENT OF TUMORS ASSOCIATED WITH EPILEPSY. MATERIAL AND METHODS: THIS ARTICLE PRESENTS CASE REPORTS OF MALIGNANT TRANSFORMATION OF A DYSEMBRYOPLASTIC NEUROEPITHELIAL TUMOR AND OF A TUMOR INITIALLY DIAGNOSED AS A GANGLIOGLIOMA BASED ON MAGNETIC RESONANCE IMAGING (MRI) CRITERIA. DESCRIPTION OF REFERENCES IN THE LITERATURE ON EPILEPSY SURGERY AND THE NEURO-ONCOLOGY OF EPILEPSY-ASSOCIATED TUMORS. RESULTS: IN THE CASE OF THE INITIALLY HISTOPATHOLOGICALLY DIAGNOSED DYSEMBRYOPLASTIC NEUROEPITHELIAL TUMOR, A MALIGNANT TRANSFORMATION OCCURRED 5 YEARS AFTER INCOMPLETE RESECTION. THE DIFFERENTIATION FROM A GLIOBLASTOMA WAS POSSIBLE THROUGH THE ANALYSIS OF THE METHYLATION PROFILE. IN ANOTHER CASE A TUMOR ASSUMED TO BE A GANGLIOGLIOMA SHOWED AN INCREASE IN SIZE AFTER 6 YEARS. INITIAL HISTOPATHOLOGICAL RESULTS REVEALED A GLIOBLASTOMA. THE ANALYSIS OF THE METHYLATION PROFILE SUGGESTED THE DIAGNOSIS OF AN ANAPLASTIC PLEOMORPHIC XANTHOASTROCYTOMA AND AS A DIFFERENTIAL DIAGNOSIS AN ANAPLASTIC GANGLIOGLIOMA. TUMOR PROGRESS CORRELATED WITH THE WORSENING OF SEIZURES. CONCLUSION: RECENT STUDIES HAVE SHOWN THAT IN THE TREATMENT OF PREDOMINANTLY BENIGN EPILEPSY-ASSOCIATED TUMORS NEURO-ONCOLOGICAL ASPECTS SHOULD ALSO BE TAKEN INTO ACCOUNT IN ADDITION TO THE EPILEPTOLOGICAL CONSIDERATIONS. IN THE CASE OF MALIGNANT TRANSFORMATION EPIGENETIC SCREENING (METHYLATION PROFILES) CAN HELP TO CLASSIFY THE TUMOR ENTITY MORE PRECISELY. 2016 5 334 23 ALTERATIONS IN DEOXYRIBONUCLEIC ACID (DNA) METHYLATION PATTERNS OF CALCA, TIMP3, MMP2, AND IGF2R ARE ASSOCIATED WITH CHRONIC CYSTITIS IN A CYCLOPHOSPHAMIDE-INDUCED MOUSE MODEL. OBJECTIVE: TO DETERMINE WHETHER EPIGENETIC CHANGES OCCUR DURING CYCLOPHOSPHAMIDE-INDUCED CHRONIC BLADDER INFLAMMATION IN MICE. MATERIALS AND METHODS: EPIGENETIC CHANGES PLAY A ROLE IN THE REGULATION OF INFLAMMATORY GENES IN NONCANCER DISEASES SUCH AS ASTHMA AND CHRONIC OBSTRUCTIVE PULMONARY DISEASE. HOWEVER, EPIGENETIC (DEOXYRIBONUCLEIC ACID [DNA] METHYLATION) CHANGES DURING CHRONIC BLADDER INFLAMMATION HAVE NOT BEEN PREVIOUSLY DESCRIBED. CHRONIC CYSTITIS WAS INDUCED IN 3 GROUPS OF ADULT CD-1 MALE MICE USING MULTIPLE WEIGHT-BASED INTRAPERITONEAL CYCLOPHOSPHAMIDE INJECTIONS DURING A 3-MONTH PERIOD. HISTOPATHOLOGIC AND METHYLIGHT ASSAYS WERE PERFORMED ON SPECIMENS WITH CHRONIC BLADDER INFLAMMATION AT MULTIPLE POINTS TO MONITOR CYSTITIS PROGRESSION AND DNA METHYLATION CHANGES COMPARED WITH THE CONTROL SPECIMENS. RESULTS: HISTOPATHOLOGIC ANALYSIS SHOWED THE MOST EXTENSIVE EDEMA AND UROTHELIAL SLOUGHING AT THE 1-MONTH POINT. METHYLIGHT ANALYSES REVEALED STATISTICALLY SIGNIFICANT CHANGES IN DNA METHYLATION ASSOCIATED WITH THE CALCA, TIMP3, MMP2, AND IGF2R GENES IN THE CHRONIC BLADDER INJURY MODEL. THE CHANGES IN DNA METHYLATION ASSOCIATED WITH CHRONIC CYSTITIS WERE DNA HYPOMETHYLATION OF THE CALCA GENE IN THE CONTROL TISSUE AND DNA HYPERMETHYLATION FOR THE CALCA, TIMP3, MMP2, AND IGF2R GENES COMPARED WITH THAT IN THE CONTROL TISSUE. CONCLUSION: DNA METHYLATION CHANGES WERE NOTED IN THE CALCA, TIMP3, MMP2, AND IGF2R GENES DURING CHRONIC CYSTITIS IN A MURINE MODEL. EPIGENETIC CHANGES APPEAR TO PLAY A ROLE IN THE REGULATION OF INFLAMMATORY BLADDER GENES DURING CHRONIC CYSTITIS; HOWEVER, ADDITIONAL STUDIES ARE NEEDED TO ELUCIDATE THE PATHWAYS ASSOCIATED WITH THESE GENES. 2013 6 3935 27 LIVER-SPECIFIC KNOCKDOWN OF CLASS IIA HDACS HAS LIMITED EFFICACY ON GLUCOSE METABOLISM BUT ENTAILS SEVERE ORGAN SIDE EFFECTS IN MICE. HISTONE DEACETYLASES (HDACS) ARE IMPORTANT REGULATORS OF EPIGENETIC GENE MODIFICATION THAT ARE INVOLVED IN THE TRANSCRIPTIONAL CONTROL OF METABOLISM. IN PARTICULAR CLASS IIA HDACS HAVE BEEN SHOWN TO AFFECT HEPATIC GLUCONEOGENESIS AND PREVIOUS APPROACHES REVEALED THAT THEIR INHIBITION REDUCES BLOOD GLUCOSE IN TYPE 2 DIABETIC MICE. IN THE PRESENT STUDY, WE AIMED TO EVALUATE THE POTENTIAL OF CLASS IIA HDAC INHIBITION AS A THERAPEUTIC OPPORTUNITY FOR THE TREATMENT +OF METABOLIC DISEASES. FOR THAT, SIRNAS SELECTIVELY TARGETING HDAC4, 5 AND 7 WERE SELECTED AND USED TO ACHIEVE A COMBINATORIAL KNOCKDOWN OF THESE THREE CLASS IIA HDAC ISOFORMS. SUBSEQUENTLY, THE HEPATOCELLULAR EFFECTS AS WELL AS THE IMPACT ON GLUCOSE AND LIPID METABOLISM WERE ANALYZED IN VITRO AND IN VIVO. THE TRIPLE KNOCKDOWN RESULTED IN A STATISTICALLY SIGNIFICANT DECREASE OF GLUCONEOGENIC GENE EXPRESSION IN MURINE AND HUMAN HEPATOCYTE CELL MODELS. A SIMILAR HDAC-INDUCED DOWNREGULATION OF HEPATIC GLUCONEOGENESIS GENES COULD BE ACHIEVED IN MICE USING A LIVER-SPECIFIC LIPID NANOPARTICLE SIRNA FORMULATION. HOWEVER, THE EFFICACY ON WHOLE BODY GLUCOSE METABOLISM ASSESSED BY PYRUVATE-TOLERANCE TESTS WERE ONLY LIMITED AND DID NOT OUTWEIGH THE SAFETY FINDINGS OBSERVED BY HISTOPATHOLOGICAL ANALYSIS IN SPLEEN AND KIDNEY. MECHANISTICALLY, AFFYMETRIX GENE EXPRESSION STUDIES PROVIDE EVIDENCE THAT CLASS IIA HDACS DIRECTLY TARGET OTHER KEY FACTORS BEYOND THE DESCRIBED FORKHEAD BOX (FOXP) TRANSCRIPTION REGULATORS, SUCH AS HEPATOCYTE NUCLEAR FACTOR 4 ALPHA (HNF4A). DOWNSTREAM OF THESE FACTORS SEVERAL ADDITIONAL PATHWAYS WERE REGULATED NOT MERELY INCLUDING GLUCOSE AND LIPID METABOLISM AND TRANSPORT. IN CONCLUSION, THE LIVER-DIRECTED COMBINATORIAL KNOCKDOWN OF HDAC4, 5 AND 7 BY THERAPEUTIC SIRNAS AFFECTED MULTIPLE PATHWAYS IN VITRO, LEADING IN VIVO TO THE DOWNREGULATION OF GENES INVOLVED IN GLUCONEOGENESIS. HOWEVER, THE EFFECTS ON GENE EXPRESSION LEVEL WERE NOT PARALLELED BY A SIGNIFICANT REDUCTION OF GLUCONEOGENESIS IN MICE. COMBINED KNOCKDOWN OF HDAC ISOFORMS WAS ASSOCIATED WITH SEVERE ADVERSE EFFECTS IN VIVO, CHALLENGING THIS APPROACH AS A TREATMENT OPTION FOR CHRONIC METABOLIC DISORDERS LIKE TYPE 2 DIABETES. 2020 7 3981 28 LONG-TERM EPIGENETIC THERAPY WITH ORAL ZEBULARINE HAS MINIMAL SIDE EFFECTS AND PREVENTS INTESTINAL TUMORS IN MICE. RECENT SUCCESSES IN THE APPLICATION OF EPIGENETIC DRUGS FOR THE TREATMENT OF MYELODYSPLASTIC SYNDROME HAVE RAISED QUESTIONS ON THE SAFETY OF LONG-TERM ADMINISTRATION OF DNA METHYLATION INHIBITORS. WE TREATED PREWEANED CANCER PRONE APC(MIN/+) (MIN) MICE CONTINUOUSLY WITH THE DNA METHYLATION INHIBITOR ZEBULARINE IN THEIR DRINKING WATER TO DETERMINE THE EFFECTS OF THE DRUG ON NORMAL MOUSE DEVELOPMENT AS WELL AS CANCER PREVENTION. ZEBULARINE CAUSED A TISSUE-SPECIFIC REDUCTION IN DNA METHYLATION AT B1 SHORT INTERSPERSED NUCLEOTIDE ELEMENTS IN THE SMALL AND LARGE INTESTINES OF FEMALE MIN MICE BUT NOT IN OTHER ORGANS EXAMINED AFTER CHRONIC ORAL TREATMENT. NO SIGNIFICANT DIFFERENCE IN THE AVERAGE WEIGHTS OF MICE WAS OBSERVED DURING THE TREATMENT. IN ADDITION, ANALYSIS OF GLOBAL GENE EXPRESSION OF COLONIC EPITHELIAL CELLS FROM THE FEMALES INDICATED THAT ONLY 3% TO 6% OF THE GENES WERE AFFECTED IN THEIR EXPRESSION. WE DID NOT DETECT TOXICITY AND ABNORMALITIES FROM THE HISTOPATHOLOGIC ANALYSIS OF LIVER AND INTESTINAL TISSUES. LASTLY, WE TESTED WHETHER PREVENTION OF TUMORIGENESIS CAN BE ACHIEVED WITH CHRONIC ORAL ADMINISTRATION OF ZEBULARINE IN MIN MICE. THE AVERAGE NUMBER OF POLYPS IN MIN FEMALES DECREASED FROM 58 TO 1, WHEREAS THE AVERAGE POLYP NUMBER REMAINED UNAFFECTED IN MIN MALES POSSIBLY DUE TO DIFFERENTIAL ACTIVITY OF ALDEHYDE OXIDASE. TAKEN TOGETHER, OUR RESULTS SHOW FOR THE FIRST TIME THAT LONG-TERM ORAL ADMINISTRATION OF ZEBULARINE CAUSES A GENDER-SPECIFIC ABROGATION OF INTESTINAL TUMORS WHILE CAUSING A TISSUE-SPECIFIC DNA DEMETHYLATION. IMPORTANTLY, PROLONGED TREATMENT OF MICE WITH EPIGENETIC DRUGS RESULTED IN ONLY MINOR DEVELOPMENTAL AND HISTOLOGIC CHANGES. 2008 8 126 41 A TOXICOGENOMICS APPROACH TO IDENTIFY NEW PLAUSIBLE EPIGENETIC MECHANISMS OF OCHRATOXIN A CARCINOGENICITY IN RAT. OCHRATOXIN A (OTA) IS A MYCOTOXIN OCCURRING NATURALLY IN A WIDE RANGE OF FOOD COMMODITIES. IN ANIMALS, IT HAS BEEN SHOWN TO CAUSE A VARIETY OF ADVERSE EFFECTS, NEPHROCARCINOGENICITY BEING THE MOST PROMINENT. BECAUSE OF ITS HIGH TOXIC POTENCY AND THE CONTINUOUS EXPOSURE OF THE HUMAN POPULATION, OTA HAS RAISED PUBLIC HEALTH CONCERNS. THERE IS SIGNIFICANT DEBATE ON HOW TO USE THE RAT CARCINOGENICITY DATA TO ASSESS THE POTENTIAL RISK TO HUMANS. IN THIS CONTEXT, THE QUESTION OF THE MECHANISM OF ACTION OF OTA APPEARS OF KEY IMPORTANCE AND WAS STUDIED THROUGH THE APPLICATION OF A TOXICOGENOMICS APPROACH. MALE FISCHER RATS WERE FED OTA FOR UP TO 2 YEARS. RENAL TUMORS WERE DISCOVERED DURING THE LAST 6 MONTHS OF THE STUDY. THE TOTAL TUMOR INCIDENCE REACHED 25% AT THE END OF THE STUDY. GENE EXPRESSION PROFILE WAS ANALYZED IN GROUPS OF ANIMALS TAKEN IN INTERVALS FROM 7 DAYS TO 12 MONTHS. TISSUE-SPECIFIC RESPONSES WERE OBSERVED IN KIDNEY VERSUS LIVER. FOR SELECTED GENES, MICROARRAY DATA WERE CONFIRMED AT BOTH MRNA AND PROTEIN LEVELS. IN KIDNEY, SEVERAL GENES KNOWN AS MARKERS OF KIDNEY INJURY AND CELL REGENERATION WERE SIGNIFICANTLY MODULATED BY OTA. THE EXPRESSION OF GENES KNOWN TO BE INVOLVED IN DNA SYNTHESIS AND REPAIR, OR GENES INDUCED AS A RESULT OF DNA DAMAGE, WAS ONLY MARGINALLY MODULATED. VERY LITTLE OR NO EFFECT WAS FOUND AMONGST GENES ASSOCIATED WITH APOPTOSIS. ALTERATIONS OF GENE EXPRESSION INDICATING EFFECTS ON CALCIUM HOMEOSTASIS AND A DISRUPTION OF PATHWAYS REGULATED BY THE TRANSCRIPTION FACTORS HEPATOCYTE NUCLEAR FACTOR 4 ALPHA (HNF4ALPHA) AND NUCLEAR FACTOR-ERYTHROID 2-RELATED FACTOR 2 (NRF2) WERE OBSERVED IN THE KIDNEY BUT NOT IN THE LIVER. PREVIOUS DATA HAVE SUGGESTED THAT A REDUCTION IN HNF4ALPHA MAY BE ASSOCIATED WITH NEPHROCARCINOGENICITY. MANY NRF2-REGULATED GENES ARE INVOLVED IN CHEMICAL DETOXICATION AND ANTIOXIDANT DEFENSE. THE DEPLETION OF THESE GENES IS LIKELY TO IMPAIR THE DEFENSE POTENTIAL OF THE CELLS, RESULTING IN CHRONIC ELEVATION OF OXIDATIVE STRESS IN THE KIDNEY. THE INHIBITION OF DEFENSE MECHANISM APPEARS AS A HIGHLY PLAUSIBLE NEW MECHANISM, WHICH COULD CONTRIBUTE TO OTA CARCINOGENICITY. 2006 9 3294 21 HIGH INCIDENCE OF MGMT AND RARBETA PROMOTER METHYLATION IN PRIMARY GLIOBLASTOMAS: ASSOCIATION WITH HISTOPATHOLOGICAL CHARACTERISTICS, INFLAMMATORY MEDIATORS AND CLINICAL OUTCOME. GLIOBLASTOMAS, THE MOST FREQUENT PRIMARY BRAIN TUMORS IN ADULTS, ARE CHARACTERIZED BY A HIGHLY AGGRESSIVE, INFLAMMATORY AND ANGIOGENIC PHENOTYPE. METHYLATION OF CPG ISLANDS IN CANCER-RELATED GENES MAY SERVE AS AN EPIGENETIC BIOMARKER FOR GLIOBLASTOMA DIAGNOSIS AND PROGNOSIS. THE AIM OF THIS STUDY WAS TO ANALYZE THE METHYLATION STATUS OF FOUR CRITICAL TUMOR-ASSOCIATED GENES (MGMT, RARBETA, RASSF1A, CDH13), AND INVESTIGATE POSSIBLE LINKS WITH INFLAMMATORY (INTERLEUKIN [IL]-6, IL-8) AND ANGIOGENIC MEDIATORS (VASCULAR ENDOTHELIAL GROWTH FACTOR [VEGF], CYCLOOXYGENASE [COX]-2) AND CLINICAL OUTCOME IN 23 GLIOMA SAMPLES (6 GRADE II ASTROCYTOMAS, 17 GRADE IV GLIOBLASTOMAS). RARBETA AND MGMT GENES WERE MORE FREQUENTLY METHYLATED IN 70.58% AND 58.8% OF GLIOBLASTOMAS, RESPECTIVELY. RASSF1A AND CDH13 DISPLAYED A SIMILAR METHYLATION FREQUENCY (23.52%) IN GLIOBLASTOMAS. NO GENE METHYLATION WAS OBSERVED IN GRADE II ASTROCYTOMAS. TUMOR GRADE CORRELATED POSITIVELY WITH MGMT AND RARBETA METHYLATION (P = 0.005 AND P = 0.019, RESPECTIVELY) AND THE EXTENT OF NECROSIS (P = 0.001 AND P = 0.003). INTERESTINGLY, THE MARKER OF CHRONIC INFLAMMATION, IL-6, WAS POSITIVELY ASSOCIATED WITH METHYLATION OF MGMT (P = 0.004), RARBETA (P = 0.002), AND RASSF1A (P = 0.0081) AS WELL AS THE TOTAL NUMBER OF METHYLATED GENES (P < 0.0001), INDICATING THE IMPORTANT ROLE OF IL-6 IN MAINTAINING PROMOTER METHYLATION OF THESE GENES. VEGF EXPRESSION CORRELATED POSITIVELY WITH MGMT AND RARBETA METHYLATION ALTHOUGH THESE RELATIONSHIPS WERE OF MARGINAL SIGNIFICANCE (P = 0.0679 AND P = 0.0757). KAPLAN-MEIER UNIVARIATE SURVIVAL ANALYSIS INDICATED AN UNFAVORABLE SURVIVAL PERIOD IN PATIENTS WITH MGMT METHYLATION COMPARED WITH THOSE WITHOUT METHYLATION (P = 0.0474). OUR STUDY HIGHLIGHTS THE IMPLICATION OF MGMT AND RARBETA METHYLATION IN THE AGGRESSIVE PHENOTYPE OF PRIMARY GLIOBLASTOMAS. THE ASSOCIATION OF MGMT METHYLATION WITH CLINICAL OUTCOME INDICATES ITS POTENTIAL PROGNOSTIC VALUE. 2010 10 2766 26 EXPRESSION, POLYMORPHISM AND METHYLATION PATTERN OF INTERLEUKIN-6 IN PERIODONTAL TISSUES. PERIODONTITIS IS CONSIDERED AN INFLAMMATORY DISORDER OF BACTERIAL ETIOLOGY THAT RESULTS IN PERIODONTAL TISSUE DESTRUCTION, AS A RESULT OF COMPLEX INTERACTIONS BETWEEN PERIODONTAL PATHOGENS, HOST AND IMMUNE RESPONSE. GENETIC AND EPIGENETIC MECHANISMS MAY MODULATE THE INDIVIDUAL RESPONSE SINCE IT IS ABLE TO INFLUENCE THE GENE EXPRESSION. THE AIM OF THIS STUDY WAS TO EVALUATE THE IMPACT OF -174 G/C POLYMORPHISM AND THE METHYLATION STATUS OF THE PROMOTER REGION OF IL-6 GENE ON THE EXPRESSION OF IL-6 IN GINGIVAL SAMPLES FROM INDIVIDUALS WITH CHRONIC PERIODONTITIS. GINGIVAL BIOPSIES WERE COLLECTED FROM 21 PATIENTS WITH CHRONIC PERIODONTITIS AND 21 CONTROLS. HISTOLOGIC SECTIONS STAINED BY HEMATOXYLIN-EOSIN WERE USED FOR HISTOPATHOLOGICAL EVALUATION. THE IL-6 GENE EXPRESSION WAS ASSESSED BY QUANTITATIVE REAL-TIME PCR. THE POLYMORPHISM IL-6 -174 C/G WAS STUDIED BY POLYMERASE CHAIN REACTION (PCR) AMPLIFICATION AND RESTRICTION ENDONUCLEASE DIGESTION (HSPII). METHYLATION-SPECIFIC POLYMERASE CHAIN REACTION WAS USED TO VERIFY THE DNA METHYLATION PATTERN. THE NUMBER OF INFLAMMATORY CELLS IN TISSUE FRAGMENTS FROM INDIVIDUALS WITH CHRONIC PERIODONTITIS WAS HIGHER THAN IN THE CONTROL GROUP AND THE INFLAMMATORY INFILTRATE WAS PREDOMINANTLY MONONUCLEAR. THE EXPRESSION OF IL-6 WAS HIGHER IN THE GROUP WITH PERIODONTITIS. IN POLYMORPHISM ASSAY, NO STATISTICAL DIFFERENCE IN THE DISTRIBUTION OF GENOTYPES AND ALLELES IN BOTH GROUPS WERE OBSERVED. THE MOST OF SAMPLES WERE PARTIALLY METHYLATED. NO DIFFERENCE WAS OBSERVED IN METHYLATION PATTERN FROM TWO DIFFERENT REGIONS OF THE IL-6 GENE AMONG GROUPS. THE HIGH EXPRESSION OF IL-6 IS AN IMPORTANT FACTOR RELATED TO CHRONIC PERIODONTITIS, BUT WAS NOT ASSOCIATED WITH METHYLATION STATUS OR THE -174 (G/C) GENETIC POLYMORPHISM, SUGGESTING THAT OTHER MECHANISMS ARE INVOLVED IN THIS GENE TRANSCRIPTION REGULATION. 2013 11 1035 25 CLASS I HISTONE DEACETYLASE INHIBITION IMPROVES PANCREATITIS OUTCOME BY LIMITING LEUKOCYTE RECRUITMENT AND ACINAR-TO-DUCTAL METAPLASIA. BACKGROUND AND PURPOSE: PANCREATITIS IS A COMMON INFLAMMATION OF THE PANCREAS WITH RISING INCIDENCE IN MANY COUNTRIES. DESPITE IMPROVEMENTS IN DIAGNOSTIC TECHNIQUES, THE DISEASE IS ASSOCIATED WITH HIGH RISK OF SEVERE MORBIDITY AND MORTALITY AND THERE IS AN URGENT NEED FOR NEW THERAPEUTIC INTERVENTIONS. IN THIS STUDY, WE EVALUATED WHETHER HISTONE DEACETYLASES (HDACS), KEY EPIGENETIC REGULATORS OF GENE TRANSCRIPTION, ARE INVOLVED IN THE DEVELOPMENT OF THE DISEASE. EXPERIMENTAL APPROACH: WE ANALYSED HDAC REGULATION DURING CERULEIN-INDUCED ACUTE, CHRONIC AND AUTOIMMUNE PANCREATITIS USING DIFFERENT TRANSGENIC MOUSE MODELS. THE FUNCTIONAL RELEVANCE OF CLASS I HDACS WAS TESTED WITH THE SELECTIVE INHIBITOR MS-275 IN VIVO UPON PANCREATITIS INDUCTION AND IN VITRO IN ACTIVATED MACROPHAGES AND PRIMARY ACINAR CELL EXPLANTS. KEY RESULTS: HDAC EXPRESSION AND ACTIVITY WERE UP-REGULATED IN A TIME-DEPENDENT MANNER FOLLOWING INDUCTION OF PANCREATITIS, WITH THE HIGHEST ABUNDANCE OBSERVED FOR CLASS I HDACS. CLASS I HDAC INHIBITION DID NOT PREVENT THE INITIAL ACINAR CELL DAMAGE. HOWEVER, IT EFFECTIVELY REDUCED THE INFILTRATION OF INFLAMMATORY CELLS, INCLUDING MACROPHAGES AND T CELLS, IN BOTH ACUTE AND CHRONIC PHASES OF THE DISEASE, AND DIRECTLY DISRUPTED MACROPHAGE ACTIVATION. IN ADDITION, MS-275 TREATMENT REDUCED DNA DAMAGE IN ACINAR CELLS AND LIMITED ACINAR DE-DIFFERENTIATION INTO ACINAR-TO-DUCTAL METAPLASIA IN A CELL-AUTONOMOUS MANNER BY IMPEDING THE EGF RECEPTOR SIGNALLING AXIS. CONCLUSIONS AND IMPLICATIONS: THESE RESULTS DEMONSTRATE THAT CLASS I HDACS ARE CRITICALLY INVOLVED IN THE DEVELOPMENT OF ACUTE AND CHRONIC FORMS OF PANCREATITIS AND SUGGEST THAT BLOCKADE OF CLASS I HDAC ISOFORMS IS A PROMISING TARGET TO IMPROVE THE OUTCOME OF THE DISEASE. 2017 12 3720 21 INHIBITION OF CLASS I HISTONE DEACETYLASES ABROGATES TUMOR GROWTH FACTOR BETA EXPRESSION AND DEVELOPMENT OF FIBROSIS DURING CHRONIC PANCREATITIS. PANCREATIC FIBROSIS IS THE HALLMARK OF CHRONIC PANCREATITIS, A HIGHLY DEBILITATING DISEASE FOR WHICH THERE IS CURRENTLY NO CURE. THE KEY EVENT AT THE BASIS OF PANCREATIC FIBROSIS IS THE DEPOSITION OF EXTRACELLULAR MATRIX PROTEINS BY ACTIVATED PANCREATIC STELLATE CELLS (PSCS). TRANSFORMING GROWTH FACTOR BETA (TGFBETA) IS A POTENT PROFIBROTIC FACTOR IN THE PANCREAS AS IT PROMOTES THE ACTIVATION OF PSC; THUS, PHARMACOLOGIC INTERVENTIONS THAT EFFECTIVELY REDUCE TGFBETA EXPRESSION HARBOR CONSIDERABLE THERAPEUTIC POTENTIAL IN THE TREATMENT OF CHRONIC PANCREATITIS. IN THIS STUDY, WE INVESTIGATED WHETHER TGFBETA EXPRESSION IS REDUCED BY PHARMACOLOGIC INHIBITION OF THE EPIGENETIC MODIFIERS HISTONE DEACETYLASES (HDACS). TO ADDRESS THIS AIM, CHRONIC PANCREATITIS WAS INDUCED IN C57BL/6 MICE WITH SERIAL INJECTIONS OF CERULEIN, AND THE SELECTIVE CLASS 1 HDAC INHIBITOR MS-275 WAS ADMINISTERED IN VIVO IN A PREVENTIVE AND THERAPEUTIC MANNER. BOTH MS-275 REGIMENS POTENTLY REDUCED DEPOSITION OF EXTRACELLULAR MATRIX AND DEVELOPMENT OF FIBROSIS IN THE PANCREAS AFTER 4 WEEKS OF CHRONIC PANCREATITIS. REDUCED PANCREATIC FIBROSIS WAS CONCOMITANT WITH LOWER EXPRESSION OF PANCREATIC TGFBETA AND CONSEQUENT REDUCED PSC ACTIVATION. IN SEARCH OF THE CELL TYPES TARGETED BY THE INHIBITOR, WE FOUND THAT MS-275 TREATMENT ABROGATED THE EXPRESSION OF TGFBETA IN ACINAR CELLS STIMULATED BY CERULEIN TREATMENT. OUR STUDY DEMONSTRATES THAT MS-275 IS AN EFFECTIVE ANTIFIBROTIC AGENT IN THE CONTEXT OF EXPERIMENTAL CHRONIC PANCREATITIS AND THUS MAY CONSTITUTE A VALID THERAPEUTIC INTERVENTION FOR THIS SEVERE DISEASE. 2018 13 3647 28 INCREASED REELIN PROMOTER METHYLATION IS ASSOCIATED WITH GRANULE CELL DISPERSION IN HUMAN TEMPORAL LOBE EPILEPSY. MESIAL TEMPORAL SCLEROSIS (MTS) IS THE MOST COMMON LESION IN CHRONIC, INTRACTABLE TEMPORAL LOBE EPILEPSIES (TLE) AND CHARACTERIZED BY SEGMENTAL NEURONAL CELL LOSS IN MAJOR HIPPOCAMPAL SEGMENTS. ANOTHER HISTOPATHOLOGICAL HALLMARK INCLUDES GRANULE CELL DISPERSION (GCD), AN ARCHITECTURAL DISTURBANCE OF THE DENTATE GYRUS ENCOUNTERED IN APPROXIMATELY 50% OF PATIENTS WITH MESIAL TEMPORAL SCLEROSIS. REELIN, WHICH PLAYS A KEY ROLE DURING HIPPOCAMPAL DEVELOPMENT AND MAINTENANCE OF LAMINAR ORGANIZATION, IS SYNTHESIZED AND RELEASED BY CAJAL-RETZIUS CELLS OF THE DENTATE MOLECULAR LAYER, AND PREVIOUS STUDIES HAVE SHOWN THAT REELIN TRANSCRIPT LEVELS ARE DOWNREGULATED IN HUMAN TEMPORAL LOBE EPILEPSIES SPECIMENS. TO INVESTIGATE WHETHER EPIGENETIC SILENCING BY REELIN PROMOTER METHYLATION MAY BE AN UNDERLYING PATHOGENETIC MECHANISM OF GCD, DNA WAS HARVESTED FROM 3 MICRODISSECTED HIPPOCAMPAL SUBREGIONS (I.E. MOLECULAR AND GRANULE CELL LAYERS OF THE DENTATE GYRUS AND PRESUBICULUM) FROM 8 MTS SPECIMENS WITH GCD, 5 TLE SAMPLES WITHOUT GCD, AND 3 AUTOPSY CONTROLS. PROMOTER METHYLATION WAS ANALYZED AFTER BISULFITE TREATMENT, CLONING, AND DIRECT SEQUENCING; IMMUNOHISTOCHEMISTRY WAS PERFORMED TO IDENTIFY CAJAL-RETZIUS CELLS. REELIN PROMOTER METHYLATION WAS FOUND TO BE GREATER IN TLE SPECIMENS THAN IN CONTROLS; PROMOTER METHYLATION CORRELATED WITH GCD AMONG TLE SPECIMENS (P < 0.0002). NO OTHER CLINICAL OR HISTOPATHOLOGICAL PARAMETER (I.E. SEX, AGE, SEIZURE DURATION, MEDICATION OR EXTENT, OF MTS) CORRELATED WITH PROMOTER METHYLATION. THESE DATA SUPPORT A COMPROMISED REELIN-SIGNALING PATHWAY AND IDENTIFY PROMOTER METHYLATION AS AN EPIGENETIC MECHANISM IN THE PATHOGENESIS OF TLE. 2009 14 3726 28 INHIBITION OF HISTONE METHYLTRANSFERASE EZH2 SUPPRESSES ENDOMETRIOTIC VESICLE DEVELOPMENT IN A RAT MODEL OF ENDOMETRIOSIS. ENDOMETRIOSIS IS A PAINFUL GYNECOLOGICAL DISEASE WITH NO CURE AND LIMITED THERAPEUTIC OPTIONS. IT HAS BEEN HYPOTHESIZED THAT EPIGENETIC DRUGS CAN BE USED AS A NONHORMONAL TREATMENT FOR ENDOMETRIOSIS. THIS STUDY WAS CONDUCTED TO STUDY THE EFFICACY OF AN INHIBITOR OF THE HISTONE METHYLTRANSFERASE EZH2 USING AN ESTABLISHED RAT MODEL OF ENDOMETRIOSIS. WE HYPOTHESIZED THAT TREATMENT WILL BLOCK OR REDUCE THE NUMBER OF ENDOMETRIOTIC VESICLES IN THIS MODEL. WE CONDUCTED A PRECLINICAL DRUG STUDY IN FEMALE RATS WITH EXPERIMENTAL ENDOMETRIOSIS (UTERINE TISSUE TRANSPLANTED NEXT TO THE INTESTINAL MESENTERY) OR CONTROL SHAM (SUTURES ONLY). RATS WITH ENDOMETRIOSIS OR SHAM SURGERY RECEIVED EITHER TREATMENT WITH EZH2 INHIBITOR (5 MG/KG OR 10 MG/KG) OR VEHICLE (0.1%, 67% DMSO) EVERY OTHER DAY DURING 4 WEEKS. AFTER TREATMENT COMPLETION, THE NUMBER, AREA, VOLUME, AND WEIGHT OF VESICLES WERE EVALUATED. RT [2] PROFILER ARRAYS FOR NEUROPATHIC AND INFLAMMATION, EPITHELIAL TO MESENCHYMAL TRANSITION, INFLAMMATORY RESPONSE, AND AUTOIMMUNITY PATHWAYS WERE USED TO EXAMINE GENE EXPRESSION CHANGES IN THE VESICLES THAT DEVELOPED. TREATMENT WITH EZH2 INHIBITOR (10 MG/KG) SUPPRESSED THE DEVELOPMENT OF VESICLES, BY SIGNIFICANTLY DECREASING THE TOTAL VESICLE NUMBER, AREA, VOLUME, AND WEIGHT. IN ADDITION, EZH2 INHIBITION SIGNIFICANTLY INCREASED THE EXPRESSION OF CACNA1B AND FKBP1A GENES, INVOLVED IN PAIN AND PROLIFERATION, RESPECTIVELY. EZH2 INHIBITION SUPPRESSES THE GROWTH OF VESICLES WITHOUT APPARENT DETRIMENTAL EFFECTS TO OTHER ORGANS. TREATMENT WITH THIS EPIGENETIC INHIBITOR LEADS TO UPREGULATION OF A LIMITED NUMBER OF GENES RELATED TO ENDOMETRIOSIS-RELEVANT PATHWAYS. IN CONCLUSION, THESE DATA SUPPORT FOLLOW-UP STUDIES TO EVALUATE ITS POTENTIAL AS A THERAPEUTIC APPROACH FOR ENDOMETRIOSIS. 2020 15 1236 24 CURCUMIN AMELIORATES NEPHROSCLEROSIS VIA SUPPRESSION OF HISTONE ACETYLATION INDEPENDENT OF HYPERTENSION. BACKGROUND: ALTHOUGH HISTONE ACETYLATION, AN EPIGENETIC MODIFICATION, HAS BEEN REPORTED TO BE RELATED TO THE PROGRESSION OF VARIOUS DISEASES, ITS INVOLVEMENT IN NEPHROSCLEROSIS IS UNCLEAR. METHODS: DAHL SALT-SENSITIVE RATS WERE USED AS A MODEL OF NEPHROSCLEROSIS IN THIS STUDY. THE RATS WERE DIVIDED INTO THREE GROUPS: (I) NORMAL-SALT DIET GROUP, (II) HIGH-SALT DIET GROUP (HS), AND (III) HS ADMINISTERED DAILY WITH CURCUMIN, A HISTONE ACETYLTRANSFERASE INHIBITOR (HS+C). AT 6 WEEKS AFTER THE TREATMENT, THE KIDNEYS WERE DISSECTED. MORPHOLOGIC CHANGES WERE ASSESSED BY MASSON'S TRICHROME STAINING. THE NUMBER OF MACROPHAGES, FIBROBLASTS AND THE CELLS EXPRESSING ACETYLATED HISTONE H3 AT LYS 9 (H3K9) WERE ASSESSED BY IMMUNOHISTOCHEMISTRY. RESULTS: ALTHOUGH BOTH HS AND HS+C RATS REVEALED A MARKED INCREASE IN SYSTOLIC BLOOD PRESSURE, SERUM CREATININE WAS INCREASED ONLY IN HS RATS AT 6 WEEKS. IN THE HS RATS, NEPHROSCLEROSIS WAS INDUCED, ACCOMPANYING A SIGNIFICANT ACCUMULATION OF MACROPHAGES AND FIBROBLASTS. THE INFLAMMATION AND FIBROSIS WAS MARKEDLY SUPPRESSED IN THE HS+C GROUP. THE LEVEL OF HISTONE ACETYLATION AT LYS 9 WAS ENHANCED IN THE HS RATS, WHEREAS CURCUMIN ADMINISTRATION SUPPRESSED THE HISTONE ACETYLATION. MOREOVER, IN THE HS RATS, INTERLEUKIN-6 GENE EXPRESSION WAS ASSOCIATED WITH ACETYLATED H3K9, AS REVEALED BY CHROMATIN IMMUNOPRECIPITATION ASSAY. CONCLUSIONS: OUR RESULTS SUGGESTED THAT CURCUMIN AMELIORATES NEPHROSCLEROSIS VIA SUPPRESSION OF HISTONE ACETYLATION, INDEPENDENTLY OF HYPERTENSION. 2016 16 5345 29 RAPID CHANGES IN EXPRESSION OF CLASS I AND IV HISTONE DEACETYLASES DURING EPILEPTOGENESIS IN MOUSE MODELS OF TEMPORAL LOBE EPILEPSY. A PROMINENT ROLE OF EPIGENETIC MECHANISMS IN MANIFESTATION OF EPILEPSY HAS BEEN PROPOSED. THUS ALTERED HISTONE H3 AND H4 ACETYLATION HAS BEEN DEMONSTRATED IN EXPERIMENTAL MODELS OF TEMPORAL LOBE EPILEPSY (TLE). WE NOW INVESTIGATED CHANGES IN THE EXPRESSION OF THE CLASS I AND CLASS IV HISTONE DEACETYLASES (HDAC) IN TWO COMPLEMENTARY MOUSE TLE MODELS. UNILATERAL INTRAHIPPOCAMPAL INJECTION OF KAINIC ACID (KA) INDUCED A STATUS EPILEPTICUS LASTING 6 TO 24H, DEVELOPMENT OF SPONTANEOUS LIMBIC SEIZURES (2 TO 3 DAYS AFTER KA INJECTION) AND CHRONIC EPILEPSY, AS REVEALED BY TELEMETRIC RECORDINGS OF THE EEGS. MICE WERE KILLED AT DIFFERENT INTERVALS AFTER KA INJECTION AND EXPRESSION OF HDAC MRNAS WAS INVESTIGATED BY IN SITU HYBRIDIZATION. WE OBSERVED MARKED DECREASES IN THE EXPRESSION OF HDACS 1, 2 AND 11 (BY UP TO 75%) IN THE GRANULE CELL AND PYRAMIDAL CELL LAYERS OF THE HIPPOCAMPUS DURING THE ACUTE STATUS EPILEPTICUS (2 TO 6H AFTER KA INJECTION). THIS WAS FOLLOWED BY INCREASED EXPRESSION OF ALL CLASS I HDAC MRNAS IN ALL PRINCIPAL CELL LAYERS OF THE HIPPOCAMPUS AFTER 12 TO 48 H. IN THE CHRONIC PHASE, 14 AND 28 DAYS AFTER KA, ONLY MODEST INCREASES IN THE EXPRESSION OF HDAC1 MRNA WERE OBSERVED IN GRANULE AND PYRAMIDAL CELLS. IMMUNOHISTOCHEMISTRY USING AN ANTIBODY DETECTING HDAC2 REVEALED RESULTS CONSISTENT WITH THE MRNA DATA AND INDICATES ALSO EXPRESSION IN GLIAL CELLS ON THE INJECTION SIDE. SIMILAR CHANGES AS SEEN IN THE KA MODEL WERE OBSERVED AFTER A PILOCARPINE-INDUCED STATUS EPILEPTICUS EXCEPT THAT DECREASES IN HDACS 2, 3 AND 8 WERE ALSO SEEN AT THE CHRONIC 28 DAY INTERVAL. THE PROMINENT DECREASES IN HDAC EXPRESSION DURING STATUS EPILEPTICUS ARE CONSISTENT WITH THE PREVIOUSLY DEMONSTRATED INCREASED EXPRESSION OF NUMEROUS PROTEINS AND WITH THE AUGMENTED ACETYLATION OF HISTONE H4. IT IS SUGGESTED THAT RESPECTIVE PUTATIVE GENE PRODUCTS COULD FACILITATE PROCONVULSIVE AS WELL AS ANTICONVULSIVE MECHANISMS. THE INCREASED EXPRESSION OF ALL CLASS I HDACS DURING THE "SILENT PHASE", ON THE OTHER HAND, MAY BE RELATED TO DECREASED HISTONE ACETYLATION, WHICH COULD CAUSE A DECREASE IN EXPRESSION OF CERTAIN PROTEINS, A MECHANISM THAT COULD ALSO PROMOTE EPILEPTOGENESIS. THUS, ADDRESSING HDAC EXPRESSION MAY HAVE A THERAPEUTIC POTENTIAL IN INTERFERING WITH A STATUS EPILEPTICUS AND WITH THE MANIFESTATION OF TLE. 2015 17 614 25 BINGE ALCOHOL-INDUCED MICROVESICULAR LIVER STEATOSIS AND INJURY ARE ASSOCIATED WITH DOWN-REGULATION OF HEPATIC HDAC 1, 7, 9, 10, 11 AND UP-REGULATION OF HDAC 3. BACKGROUND: BINGE, AS WELL AS CHRONIC, ALCOHOL CONSUMPTION AFFECTS GLOBAL HISTONE ACETYLATION LEADING TO CHANGES IN GENE EXPRESSION. IT IS BECOMING INCREASINGLY EVIDENT THAT THESE HISTONE-ASSOCIATED EPIGENETIC MODIFICATIONS PLAY AN IMPORTANT ROLE IN THE DEVELOPMENT OF ALCOHOL-MEDIATED HEPATIC INJURY. METHODS: C57BL/6 MICE WERE GAVAGED 3 TIMES (12-HOUR INTERVALS) WITH ETHANOL (ETOH; 4.5 G/KG). HEPATIC HISTONE DEACETYLASE (HDAC) MRNAS WERE ASSESSED BY QRT-PCR. TOTAL HDAC ACTIVITY WAS ESTIMATED BY A COLORIMETRIC HDAC ACTIVITY/INHIBITION ASSAY. HISTONE ACETYLATION LEVELS WERE EVALUATED BY WESTERN BLOT. LIVER STEATOSIS AND INJURY WERE EVALUATED BY HISTOPATHOLOGY, PLASMA AMINOTRANSFERASE (ALT) ACTIVITY, AND LIVER TRIGLYCERIDE ACCUMULATION. EXPRESSION OF FATTY ACID SYNTHASE (FAS) AND CARNITINE PALMITOYL TRANSFERASE 1A (CPT1A) WAS ALSO EXAMINED. HDAC 9 ASSOCIATION WITH FAS PROMOTER WAS ANALYZED. RESULTS: BINGE ALCOHOL EXPOSURE RESULTED IN ALTERATIONS OF HEPATIC HDAC MRNA LEVELS. DOWN-REGULATION OF HDAC CLASS I (HDAC 1), CLASS II (HDAC 7, 9, 10), AND CLASS IV (HDAC 11) AND UP-REGULATION OF HDAC CLASS I (HDAC 3) GENE EXPRESSION WERE OBSERVED. CORRESPONDENT TO THE DECREASE IN HDAC ACTIVITY, AN INCREASE IN HEPATIC HISTONE ACETYLATION WAS OBSERVED. THESE MOLECULAR EVENTS WERE ASSOCIATED WITH MICROVESICULAR HEPATIC STEATOSIS AND INJURY CHARACTERIZED BY INCREASED HEPATIC TRIGLYCERIDES (48.02 +/- 3.83 VS. 19.90 +/- 3.48 MG/G LIVER, P < 0.05) AND ELEVATED PLASMA ALT ACTIVITY (51.98 +/- 6.91 VS. 20.8 +/- 0.62 U/L, P < 0.05). HEPATIC STEATOSIS WAS ASSOCIATED WITH AN INCREASE IN FAS AND A DECREASE IN CPT1A MRNA AND PROTEIN EXPRESSION. FAS PROMOTER ANALYSIS REVEALED THAT BINGE ETOH TREATMENT DECREASED HDAC 9 OCCUPANCY AT THE FAS PROMOTER RESULTING IN ITS TRANSCRIPTIONAL ACTIVATION. CONCLUSIONS: DEREGULATION OF HEPATIC HDAC EXPRESSION LIKELY PLAYS A MAJOR ROLE IN THE BINGE ALCOHOL-INDUCED HEPATIC STEATOSIS AND LIVER INJURY BY AFFECTING LIPOGENESIS AND FATTY ACID BETA-OXIDATION. 2012 18 793 30 CELLULAR RE- AND DE-PROGRAMMING BY MICROENVIRONMENTAL MEMORY: WHY SHORT TGF-BETA1 PULSES CAN HAVE LONG EFFECTS. BACKGROUND: FIBROSIS POSES A SUBSTANTIAL SETBACK IN REGENERATIVE MEDICINE. HISTOPATHOLOGICALLY, FIBROSIS IS AN EXCESSIVE ACCUMULATION OF COLLAGEN AFFECTED BY MYOFIBROBLASTS AND THIS CAN OCCUR IN ANY TISSUE THAT IS EXPOSED TO CHRONIC INJURY OR INSULT. TRANSFORMING GROWTH FACTOR (TGF)-BETA1, A CRUCIAL MEDIATOR OF FIBROSIS, DRIVES DIFFERENTIATION OF FIBROBLASTS INTO MYOFIBROBLASTS. THESE CELLS EXHIBIT ALPHA-SMOOTH MUSCLE ACTIN (ALPHA-SMA) AND SYNTHESIZE HIGH AMOUNTS OF COLLAGEN I, THE MAJOR EXTRACELLULAR MATRIX (ECM) COMPONENT OF FIBROSIS. WHILE HORMONES STIMULATE CELLS IN A PULSATILE MANNER, LITTLE IS KNOWN ABOUT CELLULAR RESPONSE KINETICS UPON GROWTH FACTOR IMPACT. WE THEREFORE STUDIED THE EFFECTS OF SHORT TGF-BETA1 PULSES IN TERMS OF THE INDUCTION AND MAINTENANCE OF THE MYOFIBROBLAST PHENOTYPE. RESULTS: TWENTY-FOUR HOURS AFTER A SINGLE 30 MIN TGF-BETA1 PULSE, TRANSCRIPTION OF FIBROGENIC GENES WAS UPREGULATED, BUT SUBSIDED 7 DAYS LATER. IN PARALLEL, COLLAGEN I SECRETION RATE AND ALPHA-SMA PRESENCE WERE ELEVATED FOR 7 DAYS. A SECOND PULSE 24 H LATER EXTENDED THE DURATION OF EFFECTS TO 14 DAYS. WE COULD NOT ESTABLISH EPIGENETIC CHANGES ON FIBROGENIC TARGET GENES TO EXPLAIN THE LONG-LASTING EFFECTS. HOWEVER, ECM DEPOSITED UNDER SINGLY PULSED TGF-BETA1 WAS ABLE TO INDUCE MYOFIBROBLAST FEATURES IN PREVIOUSLY UNTREATED FIBROBLASTS. DEPENDENT ON THE AGE OF THE ECM (1 DAY VERSUS 7 DAYS' FORMATION TIME), THIS PROPERTY WAS DIMINISHED. VICE VERSA, MYOFIBROBLASTS WERE CULTURED ON FIBROBLAST ECM AND CELLS OBSERVED TO EXPRESS REDUCED (IN COMPARISON WITH MYOFIBROBLASTS) LEVELS OF COLLAGEN I. CONCLUSIONS: WE DEMONSTRATED THAT SHORT TGF-BETA1 PULSES CAN EXERT LONG-LASTING EFFECTS ON FIBROBLASTS BY CHANGING THEIR MICROENVIRONMENT, THUS LEAVING AN IMPRINT AND CREATING A RECIPROCAL FEED-BACK LOOP. THEREFORE, THE ECM MIGHT ACT AS MID-TERM MEMORY FOR PATHOBIOCHEMICAL EVENTS. WE WOULD EXPECT THIS MICROENVIRONMENTAL MEMORY TO BE DEPENDENT ON MATRIX TURNOVER AND, AS SUCH, TO BE ERASABLE. OUR FINDINGS CONTRIBUTE TO THE CURRENT UNDERSTANDING OF FIBROBLAST INDUCTION AND MAINTENANCE, AND HAVE BEARING ON THE DEVELOPMENT OF ANTIFIBROTIC DRUGS. 2013 19 781 23 CELL-FREE FILTRATES (CFF) AS VECTORS OF A TRANSMISSIBLE PATHOLOGIC TISSUE MEMORY CODE: A HYPOTHETICAL AND NARRATIVE REVIEW. CELLULAR MEMORY IS A CONTROVERSIAL CONCEPT REPRESENTING THE ABILITY OF CELLS TO "WRITE AND MEMORIZE" STRESSFUL EXPERIENCES VIA EPIGENETIC OPERATORS. THE PROGRESSIVE COURSE OF CHRONIC, NON-COMMUNICABLE DISEASES SUCH AS TYPE 2 DIABETES MELLITUS, CANCER, AND ARTERIOSCLEROSIS, IS LIKELY DRIVEN THROUGH AN ABNORMAL EPIGENETIC REPROGRAMMING, FOSTERING THE HYPOTHESIS OF A CELLULAR PATHOLOGIC MEMORY. ACCORDINGLY, CULTURED DIABETIC AND CANCER PATIENT-DERIVED CELLS RECALL BEHAVIORAL TRAITS AS WHEN IN THE DONOR'S ORGANISM IRRESPECTIVE TO CULTURE TIME AND CONDITIONS. HERE, WE ANALYZE THE DATA OF STUDIES CONDUCTED BY OUR GROUP AND LED BY A CASCADE OF HYPOTHESIS, IN WHICH WE AIMED TO VALIDATE THE HYPOTHETICAL EXISTENCE AND TRANSMISSIBILITY OF A CELLULAR PATHOLOGIC MEMORY IN DIABETES, ARTERIOSCLEROTIC PERIPHERAL ARTERIAL DISEASE, AND CANCER. THESE EXPERIMENTS WERE BASED ON THE ADMINISTRATION TO OTHERWISE HEALTHY ANIMALS OF CELL-FREE FILTRATES PREPARED FROM HUMAN PATHOLOGIC TISSUE SAMPLES REPRESENTATIVE OF EACH DISEASE CONDITION. THE ADMINISTRATION OF EACH PATHOLOGIC TISSUE HOMOGENATE CONSISTENTLY INDUCED THE FAITHFUL RECAPITULATION OF: (1) DIABETIC ARCHETYPICAL CHANGES IN CUTANEOUS ARTERIOLES AND NERVES. (2) NON-THROMBOTIC ARTERIOSCLEROTIC THICKENING, COLLAGENOUS ARTERIAL ENCROACHMENT, ABERRANT ANGIOGENESIS, AND VASCULAR REMODELING. (3) PRE-MALIGNANT AND MALIGNANT EPITHELIAL AND MESENCHYMAL TUMORS IN DIFFERENT ORGANS; ALL EVOCATIVE OF THE DONOR'S TISSUE HISTOPATHOLOGY AND WITH NO BARRIERS FOR INTERSPECIES TRANSMISSION. WE HYPOTHESIZE THAT HOMOGENATES CONTAIN PATHOLOGIC TISSUE MEMORY CODES REPRESENTED IN SOLUBLE DRIVERS THAT "INFILTRATE" HOST'S ANIMAL CELLS, AND ULTIMATELY IMPOSE THEIR PHENOTYPIC SIGNATURES. THE IDENTIFICATION AND VALIDATION OF THE ACTORS IN BEHIND MAY PAVE THE WAY FOR FUTURE THERAPIES. 2022 20 476 34 ARSENIC INDUCES FIBROGENIC CHANGES IN HUMAN KIDNEY EPITHELIAL CELLS POTENTIALLY THROUGH EPIGENETIC ALTERATIONS IN DNA METHYLATION. ARSENIC CONTAMINATION IS A SIGNIFICANT PUBLIC HEALTH ISSUE, AND KIDNEY IS ONE OF THE TARGET ORGAN FOR ARSENIC-INDUCED ADVERSE EFFECTS. RENAL FIBROSIS IS A WELL-KNOWN PATHOLOGICAL STAGE FREQUENTLY OBSERVED IN PROGRESSIVE CHRONIC KIDNEY DISEASE (CKD). EPIDEMIOLOGICAL STUDIES IMPLICATE ARSENIC EXPOSURE TO CKD, BUT THE ROLE OF ARSENIC IN KIDNEY FIBROSIS AND THE UNDERLYING MECHANISM IS STILL UNCLEAR. IT IS IN THIS CONTEXT THAT THE CURRENT STUDY EVALUATED THE EFFECTS OF LONG-TERM ARSENIC EXPOSURE ON THE CELLULAR RESPONSE IN MORPHOLOGY, AND MARKER GENES EXPRESSION WITH RESPECT TO FIBROSIS USING HUMAN KIDNEY 2 (HK-2) EPITHELIAL CELLS. RESULTS OF THIS STUDY REVEALED THAT IN ADDITION TO INCREASED GROWTH, HK-2 CELLS UNDERWENT PHENOTYPIC, BIOCHEMICAL AND MOLECULAR CHANGES INDICATIVE OF EPITHELIAL-MESENCHYMAL TRANSITION (EMT) IN RESPONSE TO THE EXPOSURE TO ARSENIC. MOST IMPORTANTLY, THE ARSENIC-EXPOSED CELLS ACQUIRED THE PATHOGENIC FEATURES OF FIBROSIS AS SUPPORTED BY INCREASED EXPRESSION OF MARKERS FOR FIBROSIS, SUCH AS COLLAGEN I, FIBRONECTIN, TRANSFORMING GROWTH FACTOR BETA, AND ALPHA-SMOOTH MUSCLE ACTIN. UPREGULATION OF FIBROSIS ASSOCIATED SIGNALING MOLECULES SUCH AS TISSUE INHIBITOR OF METALLOPROTEINASES-3 AND MATRIX METALLOPROTEINASE-2 AS WELL AS ACTIVATION OF AKT WAS ALSO OBSERVED. ADDITIONALLY, THE EXPRESSION OF EPIGENETIC GENES (DNA METHYLTRANSFERASES 3A AND 3B; METHYL-CPG BINDING DOMAIN 4) WAS INCREASED IN ARSENIC-EXPOSED CELLS. TREATMENT WITH DNA METHYLATION INHIBITOR 5-AZA-2'-DC REVERSED THE EMT PROPERTIES AND RESTORED THE LEVEL OF PHOSPHO-AKT. TOGETHER, THESE DATA FOR THE FIRST TIME SUGGEST THAT LONG-TERM EXPOSURE TO ARSENIC CAN INCREASE THE RISK OF KIDNEY FIBROSIS. ADDITIONALLY, OUR DATA SUGGEST THAT THE ARSENIC-INDUCED FIBROTIC CHANGES ARE, AT LEAST IN PART, MEDIATED BY DNA METHYLATION AND THEREFORE POTENTIALLY CAN BE REVERSED BY EPIGENETIC THERAPEUTICS. 2019