Smoc2

Odontoblastic differentiation of human stem cells from the apical papilla (hSCAPs) is crucial for continued root development and dentin formation in immature teeth with apical periodontitis (AP). Fat mass and obesity-associated protein (FTO) has been reported to regulate bone regeneration and osteogenic differentiation profoundly. However, the effect of FTO on hSCAPs remains unknown. This study aimed to identify the potential function of FTO in hSCAPs' odontoblastic differentiation under normal and inflammatory conditions and to investigate its underlying mechanism preliminarily...

BACKGROUND: This study aimed to construct a nomogram based on CAF features to predict the cancer-specific survival (CSS) rates of locally advanced rectal cancer (LARC) patients. METHODS: The EPIC algorithm was employed to calculate the proportion of CAFs. based on the differentially expressed genes between the high and low CAF proportion subgroups, prognostic genes were identified via LASSO and Cox regression analyses. They were then used to construct a prognostic risk signature...

Metabolic dysfunction-associated steatotic liver disease (MASLD) and its progressive form, metabolic dysfunction-associated steatohepatitis (MASH), pose significant risks of severe fibrosis, cirrhosis, and hepatocellular carcinoma. Despite their widespread prevalence, the molecular mechanisms underlying the development and progression of these common chronic hepatic conditions are not fully understood. Here, we conducted the most extensive meta-analysis of hepatic gene expression datasets from liver biopsy samples to date, integrating 10 RNA-sequencing and microarray datasets (1,058 samples)...

Introduction: Heparin binding proteins (HBPs) with roles in extracellular matrix assembly are strongly correlated to β-amyloid (Aβ) and tau pathology in Alzheimer's disease (AD) brain and cerebrospinal fluid (CSF). However, it remains challenging to detect these proteins in plasma using standard mass spectrometry-based proteomic approaches. Methods: We employed heparin affinity chromatography, followed by off-line fractionation and tandem mass tag mass spectrometry (TMT-MS), to capture and enrich HBPs in plasma obtained from AD (n=62) and control (n=47) samples...

Lung cancer poses a global health challenge, necessitating advanced diagnostics for improved outcomes. Intensive efforts are ongoing to pinpoint early detection biomarkers, such as genomic variations and DNA methylation, to elevate diagnostic precision. We conducted long-read sequencing on cancerous and adjacent non-cancerous tissues from a patient with lung adenocarcinoma. We identified somatic structural variations (SVs) specific to lung cancer by integrating data from various SV calling methods and differentially methylated regions (DMRs) that were distinct between these two tissue samples, revealing a unique methylation pattern associated with lung cancer...

BACKGROUND: Heart failure (HF) is a major public health issue with high mortality and morbidity. This study aimed to find potential diagnostic markers for HF by the combination of bioinformatics analysis and machine learning, as well as analyze the role of immune infiltration in the pathological process of HF. METHODS: The gene expression profiles of 124 HF patients and 135 nonfailing donors (NFDs) were obtained from six datasets in the NCBI Gene Expression Omnibus (GEO) public database...

Dysfunction of the neurovascular unit stands as a significant pathological hallmark of Alzheimer's disease (AD) and age-related neurodegenerative diseases. Nevertheless, detecting vascular changes in the brain within bulk tissues has proven challenging, limiting our ability to characterize proteomic alterations from less abundant cell types. To address this challenge, we conducted quantitative proteomic analyses on both bulk brain tissues and cerebrovascular-enriched fractions from the same individuals, encompassing cognitively unimpaired control, progressive supranuclear palsy (PSP), and AD cases...

BACKGROUND: We aimed to investigate the relationship between histone deacetylase 2 (HDAC2) and SPARC-related modular calcium binding 2 (SMOC2) and the role of SMOC2 in gallbladder cancer (GBC). METHODS: The expression of HDAC2 and SMOC2 in GBC and normal cells was detected by quantitative real-time reverse transcription polymerase chain reaction (qRTPCR), which was also used to detect the mRNA stability of SMOC2. The combination between HDAC2 and SMOC2 was detected by Chromatin immunoprecipitation (ChIP) assay...

Flow-induced shear stress affects renal epithelial cells in the nephron tubule with potential implications for differential functionalities of the individual segments. Disruptions of cellular mechanosensation or flow conditions are associated with the development and progression of various renal diseases. This study investigates the effects of flow on the transcriptome of various renal tubular epithelial cell types. We analyzed the transcriptome of induced renal epithelial cells (iREC) cultured under physiological flow (0...

Osteoporosis disproportionately affects older women, yet gender differences in human osteoblasts remain unexplored. Identifying mechanisms and biomarkers of osteoporosis will enable the development of preventative and therapeutic approaches. Transcriptome data of 187 osteoblast samples from men and women were compared. Differentially expressed genes (DEGs) were identified, and weighted gene co-expression network analysis (WGCNA) was used to discover co-expressed modules. Enrichment analysis was performed to annotate DEGs...

Recent studies have demonstrated that human maxillary sinus mesenchymal stem cells (hMSMSCs) have osteogenic potential and can be osteogenically induced. Here, we investigated pivotal molecular functions and candidates that contribute to the osteogenic differentiation of hMSMSCs. Human maxillary sinus membranes were harvested from 3 patients with jaw deformities. hMSMSCs from human maxillary sinus membranes were osteogenically induced for 0 or 21 days. Subsequently, their functional profiles were analysed by RNA sequencing and validated by quantitative PCR...

A widespread degenerative condition of the aorta, abdominal aortic aneurysm (AAA), severely endangers the health of middle-aged and elderly people. SPARC related modular calcium binding2 (SMOC2) is upregulated in the carotid arteries of rats with atherosclerotic lesions, but its function in AAA is still unknown. Therefore, the aim of this research was to evaluate the function of SMOC2 in AAA. The results showed that in the AAA tissues, SMOC2 expression was upregulated compared with healthy controls. Overexpression of SMOC2 promoted vascular smooth muscle cells (VSMCs) proliferation, migration, and extracellular matrix (ECM) degradation...

Heart failure (HF) is a major global cause of morbidity and mortality. This study aimed to elucidate the role of secreted protein acidic and rich in cysteine-related modular calcium-binding protein 2 (SMOC2) in HF development and its underlying mechanism. Using a rat HF model, SMOC2 expression was examined and then knocked down via transfection to assess its impact on cardiac function and damage. The study also evaluated the effects of SMOC2 knockdown on autophagy-related molecules and the transforming growth factor beta 1 (TGF-β1)/SMAD family member 3 (Smad3) signaling pathway...

Background: Osteoporosis is a major causative factor of the global burden of disease and disability, characterized by low bone mineral density (BMD) and high risks of fracture. We aimed to identify putative causal proteins and druggable targets of osteoporosis. Methods: This study utilized the largest GWAS summary statistics on plasma proteins and estimated heel BMD (eBMD) to identify causal proteins of osteoporosis by mendelian randomization (MR) analysis. Different GWAS datasets were used to validate the results...

Autosomal dominant Alzheimer's disease (ADAD) offers a unique opportunity to study pathophysiological changes in a relatively young population with few comorbidities. A comprehensive investigation of proteome changes occurring in ADAD could provide valuable insights into AD-related biological mechanisms and uncover novel biomarkers and therapeutic targets. Furthermore, ADAD might serve as a model for sporadic AD, but in-depth proteome comparisons are lacking. We aimed to identify dysregulated CSF proteins in ADAD and determine the degree of overlap with sporadic AD...

Despite the availability of several effective and promising treatment methods, heart failure (HF) remains a significant public health concern that requires advanced therapeutic strategies and techniques. Dilated cardiomyopathy (DCM) is a crucial factor that contributes to the development and deterioration of HF. The aim of the present study was to identify novel biomarkers and biological pathways to enhance the diagnosis and treatment of patients with DCM-induced HF using weighted gene co-expression network analysis (WGCNA)...

Muscular strength has been positively associated with better brain health indicators during childhood obesity. However, the molecular mechanisms underlying the positive impact of muscular strength in brain health are poorly understood. We aimed to study the association of muscular strength with neurology-related circulating proteins in plasma in children with overweight/obesity and to explore the role of cardiorespiratory fitness (CRF) as a confounder. The participants were 86 Caucasian children (10.1 ± 1...

Despite distant metastases being the critical factor affecting patients' survival, they remain poorly understood. Our study thus aimed to molecularly characterize colorectal cancer liver metastases (CRCLMs) and explore whether molecular profiles differ between Synchronous (SmCRC) and Metachronous (MmCRC) colorectal cancer. This characterization was performed by whole exome sequencing, whole transcriptome, whole methylome, and miRNAome. The most frequent somatic mutations were in APC, SYNE1, TP53 , and TTN genes...

Objective: Single-cell RNA sequencing (scRNA-seq) was used to analyze the developing mouse molars, in order to construct a spatiotemporal development atlas of pulp cells, and further to reveal the developmental process and regulatory mechanism of tooth development. Methods: Ten mandibular first molars from C57BL/6 mice in postnatal day (PN) 0 and 3 were respectively dissected and digested to obtain single-cell suspensions. scRNA-seq was performed on 10× Genomics platform. PN 7 mouse molar scRNA-seq data were obtained from our previous study...

BACKGROUND: Green feed diet in ruminants exerts a beneficial effect on rumen metabolism and enhances the content of milk nutraceutical quality. At present, a comprehensive analysis focused on the identification of genes, and therefore, biological processes modulated by the green feed in buffalo rumen has never been reported. We performed RNA-sequencing in the rumen of buffaloes fed a total mixed ration (TMR) + the inclusion of 30% of ryegrass green feed (treated) or TMR (control), and identified differentially expressed genes (DEGs) using EdgeR and NOISeq tools...