AIM We evaluated the capability of "microRNA sponges" in sequestering and inhibiting the over-expressed miR-221 in HCC cell lines. BACKGROUND Advanced hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC) is a serious public health problem, with no effective cure at present. It has been demonstrated that the deregulation of microRNAs expression contributes to tumorigenesis. In HCC, miR-221 was shown to be up-regula...

This report is intended to inform the reader about our experiences and strategies in programming an artificially intelligent Othello client. More specifically, we will describe what went right, what went wrong, and what we would do if we were to do it again. There is a brief discussion on various searching, training, and evaluation techniques, accompanied by analysis on what we found to work th...

While Amoeba proteus has long been the subject of extensive cytological and cytochemical studies, investigations with the electron microscope have been limited principally to the nuclear membrane (1-3). The observations reported herein were made in the course of studies intended to correlate cytochemistry (4) with knowledge of fine structure obtained with the electron microscope. I t is felt th...

BACKGROUND/AIMS MicroRNAs (miRNAs, miRs) have emerged as critical regulators of cancer cell proliferation. The effect of miR-221 on cancer cell growth could be significantly changeable in different cell lines. Although miR-221 was reported to promote the cell growth of pancreatic ductal adenocarcinoma (PDAC) cells, its role in Capan-2 cell line is largely unknown. METHODS Capan-2 cells were t...

Dicer processes microRNAs (miRs) into active forms in a wide variety of tissues, including the liver. To determine the role of Dicer in liver regeneration, we performed a series of in vivo and in vitro studies in a murine 2/3 hepatectomy model. Dicer was downregulated after 2/3 hepatectomy, and loss of Dicer inhibited liver regeneration associated with decreased cyclin A2 and miR-221, as well a...

BACKGROUND To investigate the effect of miR-221-5p on cell proliferaton and metastasis of human prostate cancer in vitro and vivo. METHODS We established PC3 cell lines with stable overexpression or silencing of miRNA-221-5p via lentivirus infection. miRNA-221-5p and its target gene SOCS1 expression levels in the stable cells were analyzed by real-time polymerase chain reaction (RT-PCR) and w...

The result of a referendum delivers a signi…cant amount of information about social preferences to each composite member of the society. This paper argues that, beyond this obvious fact, the choice of an authority not to o¤er a referendum, although permitted to do so, may enhance the information individuals posses about social preferences as well. The addition of a referendum option in the rule...

MicroRNAs are a class of small non-coding, endogenous RNAs involved in cancer development and progression. MicroRNA-221 (mir-221) has been reported to have both an oncogenic and tumor-suppressive role in human tumors, but the role of miR-221 in ovarian cancer is poorly understood. In the present study, the expression levels of miR-221 and the apoptosis protease activating factor 1 (APAF1) prote...

Hepatitis B virus X protein (HBx) plays an important role in the development of hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC). Emerging evidence has shown the association between aberrantly expressed miR-221 and cancer development; however, little is known concerning its potential role in hepatitis B virus (HBV)-related HCC. In the present study, functional studies demonstrated that HBx leads to the promotion...