MicroRNA: Crucial modulator in purinergic signalling involved diseases

Both microRNAs (miRNAs) and purinergic signalling are widely and respectively expressed in various tissues of different organisms and play vital roles in a variety of physiological and pathological processes. Here, we reviewed the current publications contributed to the relationship of miRNAs and purinergic signalling in cardiovascular diseases, gastrointestinal diseases, neurological diseases, and ophthalmic diseases. We tried to decode the miRNAs-purinergic signalling network of purinergic signalling involved diseases. The evidence indicated that more than 30 miRNAs (miR-22, miR-30, miR-146, miR-150, miR-155, miR-187, etc.) directly or indirectly modulate P1 receptors (A₁, A_2A, A_2B, A₃), P2 receptors (P2X1, P2X3, P2X4, P2X7, P2Y2, P2Y6, P2Y12), and ecto-enzymes (CD39, CD73, ADA2); P2X7 and CD73 could be modulated by multiple miRNAs (P2X7: miR-21, miR-22, miR-30, miR-135a, miR-150, miR-186, miR-187, miR-216b; CD73: miR-141, miR-101, miR-193b, miR-340, miR-187, miR-30, miR-422a); miR-187 would be the common miRNA to modulate P2X7 and CD73.     

Impact of chrysin on the molecular mechanisms underlying diabetic complications

Diabetes mellitus is a chronic metabolic disorder, resulting in high morbidity and mortality worldwide. Neuropathy, ocular diseases, kidney diseases, and cardiovascular disease are common complications of diabetes that threats the patient’s life. Chrysin (CH), a natural flavonoid, has several pharmacological effects, including antioxidant, antiapoptotic, anti-inflammatory, and anticancer. Strong scientific documents indicated that chrysin may be effective for preventing and treating complications of diabetes in experimental models. The present study was designed to review the association between chrysin administration and diabetes complications by focusing on the possible molecular pathway. The findings indicate that chrysin has protective effects against diabetes outcomes by modulating oxidative stress, inflammation, and apoptosis in animal models. However, more clinical trial study should be done to clear the protective effects of chrysin in diabetic patients.     

Modulation of inflammation by autophagy: Consequences for human disease

Autophagy and inflammation are 2 fundamental biological processes involved in both physiological and pathological conditions. Through its crucial role in maintaining cellular homeostasis, autophagy is involved in modulation of cell metabolism, cell survival, and host defense. Defective autophagy is associated with pathological conditions such as cancer, autoimmune disease, neurodegenerative disease, and senescence. Inflammation represents a crucial line of defense against microorganisms and other pathogens, and there is increasing evidence that autophagy has important effects on the induction and modulation of the inflammatory reaction; understanding the balance between these 2 processes may point to important possibilities for therapeutic targeting. This review focuses on the crosstalk between autophagy and inflammation as an emerging field with major implications for understanding the host defense on the one hand, and for the pathogenesis and treatment of immune-mediated diseases on the other hand.     

口腔微生物群和人体健康

口腔微生物群作为人体微生物群的重要组成部分,其与人体健康之间的关系已成为各领域研究的焦点。口腔微生物群种类繁多、组成复杂,涵盖了细菌、真菌、古细菌和病毒等。近年来的研究显示,口腔微生物群的组成和比例与人体健康密切相关,会影响口腔疾病如龋齿、牙周病的发生。同时口腔微生物也是全身系统性疾病如肺炎、肿瘤和糖尿病等发生的危险因素之一。大量研究认为,口腔微生物群组成的改变、口腔微生物群之间的相互作用对疾病的发生有协同促进作用。本文聚焦于口腔微生物群的组成相关研究、口腔微生物组的最新进展,并对其与人体健康之间的关系进行综述。     

Blood deoxyribonuclease activity in health and diseases

The review summarizes literature data on (deoxy)ribonuclease activity in blood of healthy donors and patients with diseases. Special attention is paid to methodological aspects of the analysis of deoxyribonuclease activity and factors, which interfere with enzyme activity in blood.     

Signaling pathways of prohibitin and its role in diseases

Abstract

Prohibitin (PHB), appearing to be a negative regulator of cell proliferation and to be a tumor suppressor, has been connected to diverse cellular functions including cell cycle control, senescence, apoptosis and the regulation of mitochondrial activities. It is a growth regulatory gene that has pleiotropic functions in the nucleus, mitochondria and cytoplasmic compartments. However, in different tissues/cells, the expression of PHB was different, such as that it was increased in most of the cancers, but its expression was reduced in kidney diseases. Signaling pathways might be very important in the pathogenesis of diseases. This review was performed to provide a relatively complete signaling pathways flowchart for PHB to the investigators who were interested in the roles of PHB in the pathogenesis of diseases. Here, we review the signal transduction pathways of PHB and its role in the pathogenesis of diseases.     

综述与专论: 灵长类动物在人类神经系统疾病动物模型中的应用

灵长类动物遗传、行为、认知、生理、生化和解剖结构等生物学特性更接近人类,具有其他实验动物无法替代的高级脑功能结构及神经活动的优势,是研究人类神经系统疾病理想的模式动物,研究的结果更容易推广应用到人类。常被用来建立神经退行性疾病、精神性疾病等疾病的动物模型,研究其发病机制、病程的发生发展及治疗药物等,为人类神经科学及相关医学研究做出了不可替代的贡献。本文综述了近年来国内外灵长类动物在人类神经系统疾病动物模型研究中的应用进展,分析了该领域目前存在的困难和问题,探讨了未来的一些研究方向,以期为神系统经疾病的深入研究提供思路。     

Précautions,pièges et artefacts en TEP/TDM au 18FDG : généralités et cas particulier des pathologies de l’abdomen et du pelvis

The PET-CT with ¹⁸F-FDG is a complex technique imaging combining the acquisition of scintigraphic and CT images. CT is often performed with the addition of product oral or intravenous contrast (PDCI) to facilitate localization and characterization of the lesion. All these steps can be a source of artifacts. Furthermore, ¹⁸F-FDG is a non-specific tracer and may accumulate in malignant cells but also inflammatory, benign tumor or just in certain physiologically consuming glucose areas. All these elements are important to consider in order to optimize the interpretation of PET-CT and in this article, we will try to illustrate potential pitfalls and artifacts that could lead to misinterpretation in abdominal and pelvic imaging.     

Night work as a risk factor for future cause-specific disability pension: A prospective twin cohort study in Sweden

The objectives of the study were to investigate the associations between night work and disability pension (DP) due to all causes, cardiovascular (CVD), mental, and other diagnoses, adjusting for familial confounding. The material of the study included comprehensive survey data on 27 165 Swedish twins born in 1935–1958 that were linked with DP data for the survey period (1998–2003) to 2013. Night work was assessed as years of working nights at least every now and then, and categorized into not at all, 1–10 years and over 10 years. For statistical analyses, Cox proportional hazards regressions were used to calculate hazard ratios (HRs) with 95% confidence intervals (CIs). The results of the study indicated that over 10 years duration of night work had an age- and sex-adjusted HR of 1.48 (95% CI 1.11–1.98) for DP due to CVD and 1–10 years of night work an HR of 1.28 (95% CI 1.06–1.55) for DP due to mental diagnoses, but attenuated when covariates were adjusted for. Both 1–10 years (HR 1.27, 95% CI 1.17–1.39) and >10 years of night work (HR 1.20, 95% CI 1.08–1.34) were associated with DP due to all causes and other diagnoses. These risks remained after adjusting for covariates. To conclude, even modest exposure in terms of duration of night work is a risk factor for all-cause DP, but also for DP due to mental and other diagnoses. The risk of DP due to CVD seems to be associated with longer (>10 years) periods of night work. All the associations between night work and DP seem to be influenced by various covariates.     

Regulatory B cell phenotype and mechanism of action: the impact of stimulating conditions

A diverse population of regulatory B (Breg) cells reportedly exhibits significant immunomodulatory effects in various models of inflammatory responses and infectious diseases caused by bacteria, viruses or parasites. Breg cells contribute to maintenance of homeostasis via IL‐10 production and multiple IL‐10‐independent mechanisms. The current review describes various phenotypic and functional subsets of Breg cells in autoimmune and infectious diseases and discusses the impacts of experimental conditions that have been found to drive Breg cell differentiation.

     

Progranulin: A conductor of receptors orchestra,a chaperone of lysosomal enzymes and a therapeutic target for multiple diseases

Progranulin (PGRN), a widely expressed glycoprotein with pleiotropic function, has been linked to a host of physiological processes and diverse pathological states. A series of contemporary preclinical disease models and clinical trials have evaluated various therapeutic strategies targeting PGRN, highlighting PGRN as a promising therapeutic target. Herein we summarize available knowledge of PGRN targeting in various kinds of diseases, including common neurological diseases, inflammatory autoimmune diseases, cancer, tissue repair, and rare lysosomal storage diseases, with a focus on the functional domain-oriented drug development strategies. In particular, we emphasize the role of extracellular PGRN as a non-conventional, extracellular matrix bound, growth factor-like conductor orchestrating multiple membrane receptors and intracellular PGRN as a chaperone/co-chaperone that mediates the folding and traffic of its various binding partners.     

Role of Heat Shock Proteins in Diseases and Their Therapeutic Potential

Heat shock proteins are ubiquitously expressed intracellular proteins and act as molecular chaperones in processes like protein folding and protein trafficking between different intracellular compartments. They are induced during stress conditions like oxidative stress, nutritional deficiencies and radiation. They are released into extracellular compartment during necrosis. However, recent research findings highlights that, they are not solely present in cytoplasm, but also released into extracellular compartment during normal conditions and even in the absence of necrosis. When present in extracellular compartment, they have been shown to perform various functions like antigen presentation, intercellular signaling and induction of pro-inflammatory cytokines. Heat shock proteins represents as dominant microbial antigens during infection. The phylogenetic similarity between prokaryotic and eukaryotic heat shock proteins has led to proposition that, microbial heat shock proteins can induce self reactivity to host heat shock proteins and result in autoimmune diseases. The self-reactivity of heat shock proteins protects host against disease by controlling induction and release of pro-inflammatory cytokines. However, antibodies to self heat shock proteins haven been implicated in pathogenesis of autoimmune diseases like arthritis and atherosclerosis. Some heat shock proteins are potent inducers of innate and adaptive immunity. They activate dendritic cells and natural killer cells through toll-like receptors, CD14 and CD91. They play an important role in MHC-antigen processing and presentation. These immune effector functions of heat shock proteins are being exploited them as therapeutic agents as well as therapeutic targets for various infectious diseases and cancers.     

Vascular endothelial growth factor-B: Impact on physiology and pathology

Angiogenesis plays an important role in controlling tissue development and maintaining normal tissue function. Dysregulated angiogenesis is implicated in the pathogenesis of a variety of diseases, particularly diabetes, cancers, and neurodegenerative disorders. As the major regulator of angiogenesis, the vascular endothelial growth factor (VEGF) family is composed of a group of crucial members including VEGF-B. While the physiological roles of VEGF-B remain debatable, increasing evidence suggests that this protein is able to protect certain type of cells from apoptosis under pathological conditions. More importantly, recent studies reveal that VEGF-B is involved in lipid transport and energy metabolism, implicating this protein in obesity, diabetes and related metabolic complications. This article summarizes the current knowledge and understanding of VEGF-B in physiology and pathology, and shed light on the therapeutic potential of this crucial protein.     

自噬与细胞代谢及疾病关系的研究进展

自噬是以细胞质空泡化为特征的依赖于溶酶体的一种降解途径,是真核细胞特有的普遍生命现象。自噬利用溶酶体降解自身损伤的细胞质和细胞器,降解产物可用于能量生成、新的蛋白质和质膜的合成,以供细胞代谢和老化损伤细胞成分的更新,维持细胞存活、分化、发育和内环境稳态。自噬广泛参与多种生理和病理过程。对自噬与细胞代谢及疾病发生的关系作一概述。     

Dental screening of medical patients for oral infections and inflammation: consideration of risk and benefit

The primary purpose of preoperative dental screening of medical patients is to detect acute or chronic oral conditions that may require management prior to planned medical interventions. The aim of this communication is to discuss the background of preoperative dental screening and the link between dental pathologies and systemic diseases.     

Updated birth prevalence and relative frequency of mucopolysaccharidoses across Brazilian regions

The mucopolysaccharidoses (MPS) are a group of lysosomal storage disorders caused by 11 enzyme deficiencies, classified into seven types. Data on the birth prevalence of each MPS type are available for only a few countries, and the totality of cases may be underestimated. To determine the epidemiological profile of MPS in each Brazilian region, we analyzed data collected between 1982 and 2019 by a national reference laboratory and identified 1,652 patients. Using data between 1994 and 2018, the birth prevalence (by 100,000 live births) for MPS was 1.57. MPS II was the most common type of MPS in Brazil, and its birth prevalence was 0.48 (0.94 considering only male births). Regarding the number of cases per region, MPS II was the most frequent in the North and Center-West (followed by MPS VI), and also in the Southeast (followed by MPS I); MPS I and MPS II were the most common types in the South; and MPS VI was the most common in the Northeast (followed by MPS II). The differences observed in the relative frequencies of MPS types across Brazilian regions are likely linked to founder effect, endogamy, and consanguinity, but other factors may be present and need further investigation.      

Cytoplasmic dynein: a key player in neurodegenerative and neurodevelopmental diseases

Cytoplasmic dynein is the most important molecular motor driving the movement of a wide range of cargoes towards the minus ends of microtubules.As a molecular motor protein,dynein performs a variety of basic cellular functions including organelle transport and centrosome assembly.In the nervous system,dynein has been demonstrated to be responsible for axonal retrograde transport.Many studies have revealed direct or indirect evidence of dynein in neurodegenerative diseases such as amyotrophic lateral sclerosis,Charcot-Marie-Tooth disease,Alzheimer’s disease,Parkinson’s disease and Huntington’s disease.Among them,a number of mutant proteins involved in various neurodegenerative diseases interact with dynein.Axonal transport disruption is presented as a common feature occurring in neurodegenerative diseases.Dynein heavy chain mutant mice also show features of neurodegenerative diseases.Moreover,defects of dynein-dependent processes such as autophagy or clearance of aggregation-prone proteins are found in most of these diseases.Lines of evidence have also shown that dynein is associated with neurodevelopmental diseases.In this review,we focus on dynein involvement in different neurological diseases and discuss potential underlying mechanisms.     

脑靶向寡核苷酸药物策略用于衰老相关脑部疾病治疗

寡核苷酸药物近10年发展迅速,已有多款应用于临床治疗。因其设计便捷、序列灵活、特异性高,有望解决许多靶点难成药的困境,并且其临床转化周期和成本较低,目前已成为新兴生物技术药物研发的前沿领域。脑部疾病包括多种目前无法治愈的疾病,如神经退行性疾病、胶质瘤、运动神经元疾病等,其中很多与年龄相关,被认为是衰老相关脑部疾病。因其病因复杂,许多靶点难成以药,同时由于脑部特殊屏障系统“血脑屏障”的存在,导致大部分药物无法实现脑部病灶的有效积累,众多小分子药物遭遇临床转化失败。寡核苷酸类药物的特异性和序列灵活性提供了新的成药可能性,但同样面临脑部递送的挑战。尽管目前已有多款寡核苷酸类药物应用于医疗市场,但脑靶向寡核苷酸药物仍然极为罕见,随着纳米递送和脑靶向基团研究的逐渐成熟,未来5~10年寡核苷酸药物用于脑部疾病治疗将成为可能。本文针对本领域重点话题如寡核苷酸药物临床批准的应用案例、脑靶向寡核苷酸药物的递送瓶颈和当前策略,以及衰老相关脑部疾病的寡核苷酸药物潜在靶点进行了梳理,同时对临床转化中的难点和面临的挑战展开了综述和讨论。