In 2008 we published the first set of guidelines for standardizing research in autophagy. Since then, research on this topic has continued to accelerate, and many new scientists have entered the field. Our knowledge base and relevant new technologies have also been expanding. Accordingly, it is important to update these guidelines for monitoring autophagy in different organisms. Various reviews have described the range of assays that have been used for this purpose. Nevertheless, there continues to be confusion regarding acceptable methods to measure autophagy, especially in multicellular eukaryotes.

For example, a key point that needs to be emphasized is that there is a difference between measurements that monitor the numbers or volume of autophagic elements (e.g., autophagosomes or autolysosomes) at any stage of the autophagic process versus those that measure flux through the autophagy pathway (i.e., the complete process including the amount and rate of cargo sequestered and degraded). In particular, a block in macroautophagy that results in autophagosome accumulation must be differentiated from stimuli that increase autophagic activity, defined as increased autophagy induction coupled with increased delivery to, and degradation within, lysosomes (in most higher eukaryotes and some protists such as Dictyostelium) or the vacuole (in plants and fungi). In other words, it is especially important that investigators new to the field understand that the appearance of more autophagosomes does not necessarily equate with more autophagy. In fact, in many cases, autophagosomes accumulate because of a block in trafficking to lysosomes without a concomitant change in autophagosome biogenesis, whereas an increase in autolysosomes may reflect a reduction in degradative activity. It is worth emphasizing here that lysosomal digestion is a stage of autophagy and evaluating its competence is a crucial part of the evaluation of autophagic flux, or complete autophagy.

Here, we present a set of guidelines for the selection and interpretation of methods for use by investigators who aim to examine macroautophagy and related processes, as well as for reviewers who need to provide realistic and reasonable critiques of papers that are focused on these processes. These guidelines are not meant to be a formulaic set of rules, because the appropriate assays depend in part on the question being asked and the system being used. In addition, we emphasize that no individual assay is guaranteed to be the most appropriate one in every situation, and we strongly recommend the use of multiple assays to monitor autophagy. Along these lines, because of the potential for pleiotropic effects due to blocking autophagy through genetic manipulation, it is imperative to target by gene knockout or RNA interference more than one autophagy-related protein. In addition, some individual Atg proteins, or groups of proteins, are involved in other cellular pathways implying that not all Atg proteins can be used as a specific marker for an autophagic process. In these guidelines, we consider these various methods of assessing autophagy and what information can, or cannot, be obtained from them. Finally, by discussing the merits and limits of particular assays, we hope to encourage technical innovation in the field.

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Guidelines for the use and interpretation of assays for monitoring autophagy (3rd edition)

CA : A Cancer Journal for Clinicians

Turmeric, derived from the plant Curcuma longa, is a gold-colored spice commonly used in the Indian subcontinent, not only for health care but also for the preservation of food and as a yellow dye for textiles. Curcumin, which gives the yellow color to turmeric, was first isolated almost two centuries ago, and its structure as diferuloylmethane was determined in 1910. Since the time of Ayurveda (1900 Bc) numerous therapeutic activities have been assigned to turmeric for a wide variety of diseases and conditions, including those of the skin, pulmonary, and gastrointestinal systems, aches, pains, wounds, sprains, and liver disorders. Extensive research within the last half century has proven that most of these activities, once associated with turmeric, are due to curcumin. Curcumin has been shown to exhibit antioxidant, anti-inflammatory, antiviral, antibacterial, antifungal, and anticancer activities and thus has a potential against various malignant diseases, diabetes, allergies, arthritis, Alzheimer's disease, and other chronic illnesses. These effects are mediated through the regulation of various transcription factors, growth factors, inflammatory cytokines, protein kinases, and other enzymes. Curcumin exhibits activities similar to recently discovered tumor necrosis factor blockers (e.g., HUMIRA, REMICADE, and ENBREL), a vascular endothelial cell growth factor blocker (e.g., AVASTIN), human epidermal growth factor receptor blockers (e.g., ERBITUX, ERLOTINIB, and GEFTINIB), and a HER2 blocker (e.g., HERCEPTIN). Considering the recent scientific bandwagon that multitargeted therapy is better than monotargeted therapy for most diseases, curcumin can be considered an ideal "Spice for Life".

Curcumin: The Indian solid gold

In 2008, we published the first set of guidelines for standardizing research in autophagy. Since then, this topic has received increasing attention, and many scientists have entered the field. Our knowledge base and relevant new technologies have also been expanding. Thus, it is important to formulate on a regular basis updated guidelines for monitoring autophagy in different organisms. Despite numerous reviews, there continues to be confusion regarding acceptable methods to evaluate autophagy, especially in multicellular eukaryotes. Here, we present a set of guidelines for investigators to select and interpret methods to examine autophagy and related processes, and for reviewers to provide realistic and reasonable critiques of reports that are focused on these processes. These guidelines are not meant to be a dogmatic set of rules, because the appropriateness of any assay largely depends on the question being asked and the system being used. Moreover, no individual assay is perfect for every situation, calling for the use of multiple techniques to properly monitor autophagy in each experimental setting. Finally, several core components of the autophagy machinery have been implicated in distinct autophagic processes (canonical and noncanonical autophagy), implying that genetic approaches to block autophagy should rely on targeting two or more autophagy-related genes that ideally participate in distinct steps of the pathway. Along similar lines, because multiple proteins involved in autophagy also regulate other cellular pathways including apoptosis, not all of them can be used as a specific marker for bona fide autophagic responses. Here, we critically discuss current methods of assessing autophagy and the information they can, or cannot, provide. Our ultimate goal is to encourage intellectual and technical innovation in the field.

Guidelines for the use and interpretation of assays for monitoring autophagy (4th edition)

Curcumin and cancer: An “old-age” disease with an “age-old” solution

To investigate curcumin (diferuloylmethane) induced apoptosis and its molecular mechanism of action in B-NHL cell line Raji cells. Raji cells were cultured in RPMI-1640 medium and treated with curcumin in different concentrations. 3-(4,5-Dimethyl-2-thiazolyl)-2,5-diphenyl-2H-tetrazolium (MTT) assay was used to detect growth inhibition and Hoechst 33258 staining was used to detect apoptosis. Immunocytochemistry and Western blot were used to detect the expressions of histone deacetylase 1, 3, and 8 (HDAC1, HDAC3, and HDAC8) and acetylated histone H4 (Ac-histone H4) protein. Curcumin inhibited the proliferation of B-NHL cell line Raji cells with a 36-h IC50 value of 24.1±2.0 μmol/L. Hoechst 33258 staining showed that curcumin could induce Raji cell apoptosis. The expression levels of HDAC1, HDAC3, and HDAC8 proteins were downregulated following curcumin treatment in Raji cells, whereas Ac-histone H4 protein expression was upregulated after treatment with curcumin. Curcumin, as a new member of the histone deacetylase inhibitors, can inhibit the expression of class I HDACs (HDAC1, HDAC3, and HDAC8), and can increase the expression of Ac-histone H4 in Raji cells. Curcumin plays an important role in regulating B-NHL cell line Raji cell proliferation and apoptosis.

/pdf/curcumin-a-potent-anti-tumor-reagent-is-a-novel-histone-4csaowdz8k.pdf

Curcumin, a potent anti-tumor reagent, is a novel histone deacetylase inhibitor regulating B-NHL cell line Raji proliferation.

Curcumin, the active chemical of the Asian spice turmeric, exhibits anticancer activity in several human cancer cell lines. We previously have proved that curcumin was a new member of the histone deacetylases (HDAC) inhibitors, while constitutive nuclear factor kappa B (NF-kappaB) is believed to be a crucial event for enhanced proliferation and survival of malignant cells. Here, we investigate the effect of curcumin on the activation of NF-kappaB signal molecule in Raji cells to explore its relationship with HDACs or p300/CREB binding protein (CBP). Curcumin presented striking proliferation inhibition potency on Raji cells in vitro, with the IC(50) value for 24 hr being 25 micromol/l. Significant decreases in the amounts of p300, HDAC1 and HDAC3 were detected after treatment with curcumin. These suppressing effects were more pronounced when the administered dose increased. The protection degradation of HDAC1 and p300 by MG-132 could be partially reversed by curcumin. Furthermore, curcumin could also prevent degradation of I kappaB alpha and inhibit nuclear translocation of the NF-kappaB/p65 subunit, as well as expression of Notch 1, induced by tumour necrosis factor-alpha. The results suggest that the depressive effect of curcumin on NF-kappaB signal transduction pathway may be mediated via the various components of the HDACs and p300/Notch 1 signal molecules, and may represent a new remedy for acute leukaemia.

Curcumin, both histone deacetylase and p300/CBP-specific inhibitor, represses the activity of nuclear factor kappa B and Notch 1 in Raji cells.

An outbreak of the novel coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) occurred in Wuhan, China, in December 2019, which then rapidly spread to more than 80 countries. However, detailed information on the characteristics of COVID-19 in children is still scarce. Five patients with non-respiratory symptoms as the first manifestation were hospitalized from the emergency department, and were later confirmed to have COVID-19, between 23 January and 20 February 2020, at the Wuhan Children's Hospital. SARS-CoV-2 nucleic acid detection was positive for all the patients. Four of the patients were male and one was female, and their ages ranged from 2-months to 5.6 years. All lived in Wuhan. One patient had a clear history of exposure to SARS-CoV-2, one had a suspected history of exposure, while the others had no exposure history. For three of the five patients, the primary onset disease required an emergency operation or treatment, and included intussusception, acute suppurative appendicitis perforation with local peritonitis, and traumatic subdural hemorrhage with convulsion, while for the other two it was acute gastroenteritis (including one patient with hydronephrosis and a stone in his left kidney). During the course of the disease, four of the five patients had a fever, whereas one case had no fever or cough. Two patients had leukopenia, and one also had lymphopenia. In the two cases of severe COVID-19, the levels of CRP, PCT, serum ferritin, IL-6, and IL-10 were significantly increased, whereas the numbers of CD3+, CD4+, CD8+ T lymphocytes, and CD16 + CD56 natural killer cells were decreased. We also found impaired liver, kidney, and myocardial functions; the presence of hypoproteinemia, hyponatremia, and hypocalcemia; and, in one case, abnormal coagulation function. Except for one patient who had a rotavirus infection, all patients tested negative for common pathogens, including the influenza virus, parainfluenza virus, respiratory syncytial virus, adenovirus, enterovirus, mycoplasma, Chlamydia, and Legionella. Chest CT images of all the patients showed patches or ground-glass opacities in the lung periphery or near the pleura, even large consolidations. This case series is the first report to describe the clinical features of COVID-19 with non-respiratory symptoms as the first manifestation in children.

/pdf/clinical-characteristics-of-5-covid-19-cases-with-non-3efky3zzju.pdf

Clinical Characteristics of 5 COVID-19 Cases With Non-respiratory Symptoms as the First Manifestation in Children

Betulinic acid (BA), a lupane-type pentacyclic triterpenoid saponin from tree bark, has the potential to induce the apoptosis of cancer cells without toxicity towards normal cells in vitro and in vivo. The antitumor pharmacological effects of BA consist of triggering apoptosis via the mitochondrial pathway, regulating the cell cycle and the angiogenic pathway via factors, including specificity protein transcription factors, cyclin D1 and epidermal growth factor receptor, inhibiting the signal transducer and activator of transcription 3 and nuclear factor‑κB signaling pathways, preventing the invasion and metastasis of tumor cells, and affecting the expression of topoisomerase I, p53 and lamin B1. In previous years, several studies have shown its antitumor effect, initially applied to malignant melanoma, however, it also has broad efficacies against most solid types of tumor from different regions of the body. There have been few investigations in hematological malignancies, however, this direction may offer potential in such a novel field of research. In this review, the primary pharmacological effects of BA in tumors, particularly in hematological malignancies are discussed.

/pdf/betulinic-acid-and-the-pharmacological-effects-of-tumor-28ki42ncwm.pdf

Betulinic acid and the pharmacological effects of tumor suppression (Review)

Background We wished to evaluate the clinical remission rate and long-term efficacy of tonsillectomy for patients with IgA nephropathy. Methods We searched a number of databases, including PubMed, CNKI, Wanfang and others, for clinical case-control studies of tonsillectomy in patients with IgA nephropathy. We then performed a meta-analysis of these studies. After evaluating total clinical remission rates, we compared the remission rates for specific treatments: tonsillectomy plus steroid pulse, tonsillectomy plus normal-dose steroid, and general treatment using neither tonsillectomy nor steroids. We also compared the rates of end-stage renal failure (ESRF) at last follow-up to estimate the long-term renal survival rate associated with each treatment. Results Seven retrospective studies met the inclusion criteria and were included. These included a total of 858 patients, in which 534 underwent tonsillectomy and 324 did not. The total clinical remission rate was higher in the operative group, while the ESRF rate was higher in the non-operative group. The clinical remission rate in patients who underwent tonsillectomy remained higher than in the non-operative group at both 5- and 10-year follow-up. The clinical remission rate in patients who underwent tonsillectomy plus steroid pulse was higher than in those treated with steroid pulse alone, normal-dose steroids or general treatment alone (P 0.05). Conclusions Whereas neither tonsillectomy nor steroid treatment alone increased remission rates in patients with IgA nephropathy, tonsillectomy combined with either normal steroid or steroid pulse treatment resulted in higher remission rates with favourable long-term efficacy.

/pdf/a-meta-analysis-of-the-clinical-remission-rate-and-long-term-43an5894cj.pdf

Yan Chen

Papers

Curcumin, a potent anti-tumor reagent, is a novel histone deacetylase inhibitor regulating B-NHL cell line Raji proliferation.

Curcumin, both histone deacetylase and p300/CBP-specific inhibitor, represses the activity of nuclear factor kappa B and Notch 1 in Raji cells.

Clinical Characteristics of 5 COVID-19 Cases With Non-respiratory Symptoms as the First Manifestation in Children

Betulinic acid and the pharmacological effects of tumor suppression (Review)

A meta-analysis of the clinical remission rate and long-term efficacy of tonsillectomy in patients with IgA nephropathy