(C) 2010 Wiley Periodicals, Inc. J Appl Polym Sci 117: 1-7, 2010″
“Oncogenic activation of the Wnt/beta-catenin signaling pathway is common in human

cancers. The secreted frizzled-related proteins (SFRPs) function as negative regulators of Wnt signaling and have important implications Autophagy inhibitor ic50 in carcinogenesis. Because there have been no reports about the role of SFRP3 in hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC), we investigated the level of methylation and transcription of SFRP3. Four HCC cell lines, 60 HCCs, 23 cirrhosis livers, 37 chronic hepatitis livers, and 30 control livers were prescreened for SFRP3 promoter methylation by methylation-specific polymerase chain reaction (MS-PCR) and bisulfite sequencing. SFRP3 promoter methylation was observed in 100%, 60%, 39.1%, 16.2%, and 0% in HCC cell lines, primary HCCs, cirrhosis livers, chronic hepatitis livers, and control livers, respectively. Demethylation treatment with 5-aza-2′-deoxycytidine in HCC cells restored or increased the SFRP3 mRNA expression. We next used quantitative MS-PCR (QMSP) to analyze the methylation level of SFRP3 in 60 HCCs and their corresponding nontumor tissues. Methylation of SFRP3 promoter region in HCCs increased significantly

compared with control tissues. There is a positive correlation between promoter hypermethylation and SFRP3 mRNA downregulation. Our DNA Damage inhibitor data suggest that promoter hypermethylation selleckchem of SFRP3 is a common event in HCCs and plays an important role in regulation of SFRP3 mRNA expression.”
“The nature and effect of the stresses on root growth in crops subject to drying

is reviewed. Drought is a complex stress, impacting on plant growth in a number of interacting ways. In response, there are a number of ways in which the growing plant is able to adapt to or alleviate these stresses. It is suggested that the most significant opportunity for progress in overcoming drought stress and increasing crop yields is to understand and exploit the conditions in soil by which plant roots are able to maximize their use of resources. This may not be straightforward, with multiple stresses, sometimes competing functions of roots, and conditions which impact upon roots very differently depending upon what soil, what depth or what stage of growth the root is at. Several processes and the interaction between these processes in soil have been neglected. It is our view that drought is not a single, simple stress and that agronomic practice which seeks to adapt to climate change must take account of the multiple facets of both the stress induced by insufficient water as well as other interacting stresses such as heat, disease, soil strength, low nutrient status, and even hypoxia. The potential for adaptation is probably large, however.