Amyloidosis and periodic peritonitis (familial mediterranean Fever)

Some reports indicate that amyloidosis is a rare occurrence in persons with periodic peritonitis (familial Mediterranean fever), while others seem to show it occurs relatively frequently. Two cases were seen among 80 patients in Iraq. Twenty-one consecutive rectal biopsies were negative for amyloidosis. The variation in reported incidence is partly real and partly apparent. Amyloidosis occurs frequently in certain ethnic groups, and it is possible that there are two traits, one for periodic peritonitis and the other for amyloidosis.     

Detailed role of microRNA-mediated regulation of PI3K/AKT axis in human tumors

The regulation of signal transmission and biological processes, such as cell proliferation, apoptosis, metabolism, migration, and angiogenesis are greatly influenced by the PI3K/AKT signaling pathway. Highly conserved endogenous non-protein-coding RNAs known as microRNAs (miRNAs) have the ability to regulate gene expression by inhibiting mRNA translation or mRNA degradation. MiRNAs serve key role in PI3K/AKT pathway as upstream or downstream target, and aberrant activation of this pathway contributes to the development of cancers. A growing body of research shows that miRNAs can control the PI3K/AKT pathway to control the biological processes within cells. The expression of genes linked to cancers can be controlled by the miRNA/PI3K/AKT axis, which in turn controls the development of cancer. There is also a strong correlation between the expression of miRNAs linked to the PI3K/AKT pathway and numerous clinical traits. Moreover, PI3K/AKT pathway-associated miRNAs are potential biomarkers for cancer diagnosis, therapy, and prognostic evaluation. The role and clinical applications of the PI3K/AKT pathway and miRNA/PI3K/AKT axis in the emergence of cancers are reviewed in this article.     

Proteomics: Concepts and applications in human medicine

Proteomics is the complete evaluation of the function and structure of proteins to understand an organism’s nature. Mass spectrometry is an essential tool that is used for profiling proteins in the cell. However, biomarker discovery remains the major challenge of proteomics because of their complexity and dynamicity. Therefore, combining the proteomics approach with genomics and bioinformatics will provide an understanding of the information of biological systems and their disease alteration. However, most studies have investigated a small part of the proteins in the blood. This review highlights the types of proteomics, the available proteomic techniques, and their applications in different research fields.     

Correlation of expression of Akt1 and E2F1 and their phosphorylated forms in breast cancer patients with clinicopathological parameters

Journal of Molecular Histology - Breast cancer is the leading cancer worldwide among women. Traditional clinicopathological prognostic and predictive markers need refining to improve clinical...     

Human T-cell responses to vaccinia virus envelope proteins

One approach for a safer smallpox vaccine is to utilize recombinant subunits rather than live vaccinia virus (VACV). The products of the VACV envelope genes A27L, L1R, B5R, and A33R induce protective antibodies in animal models. We propose that proteins that elicit T-cell responses, as well as neutralizing antibodies, will be important to include in a molecular vaccine. To evaluate VACV-specific memory T-cell responses, peripheral blood mononuclear cells (PBMC) from four VACV vaccinees were tested against whole VACV and the individual envelope proteins A27, B5, L1, and A33, using gamma interferon enzyme-linked immunospot and cytokine flow cytometry assays. PBMC were stimulated with autologous dendritic cells infected with VACV or electroporated with individual VACV protein mRNAs. T-cell lines from all donors, vaccinated from 1 month to over 20 years ago, recognized all four VACV envelope proteins. Both CD4(+) and CD8(+) T-cell responses to each protein were detected. Further analysis focused on representative proteins B5 and A27. PBMC from a recent vaccinee exhibited high frequencies of CD4(+) and CD8(+) T-cell precursors to both B5 (19.8 and 20%, respectively) and A27 (6.8 and 3.7%). In comparison, B5- and A27-specific T-cell frequencies ranged from 0.4 to 1.3% in a donor vaccinated 3 years ago. Multiple CD4(+) and CD8(+) T-cell epitopes were identified from both A27 and B5, using overlapping 15-mer peptides. These data suggest that all four VACV envelope proteins may contribute to protective immunity, not only by inducing antibody responses, but also by eliciting T-cell responses.     

N-linked glycosylation of west nile virus envelope proteins influences particle assembly and infectivity

West Nile virus (WNV) encodes two envelope proteins, premembrane (prM) and envelope (E). While the prM protein of all WNV strains contains a single N-linked glycosylation site, not all strains contain an N-linked site in the E protein. The presence of N-linked glycosylation on flavivirus E proteins has been linked to virus production, pH sensitivity, and neuroinvasiveness. Therefore, we examined the impact of prM and E glycosylation on WNV assembly and infectivity. Similar to other flaviviruses, expression of WNV prM and E resulted in the release of subviral particles (SVPs). Removing the prM glycosylation site in a lineage I or II strain decreased SVP release, as did removal of the glycosylation site in a lineage I E protein. Addition of the E protein glycosylation site in a lineage II strain that lacked this site increased SVP production. Similar results were obtained in the context of either reporter virus particles (RVPs) or infectious lineage II WNV. RVPs or virions bearing combinations of glycosylated and nonglycosylated forms of prM and E could infect mammalian, avian, and mosquito cells (BHK-21, QT6, and C6/36, respectively). Those particles lacking glycosylation on the E protein were modestly more infectious per genome copy on BHK-21 and QT6 cells, while this absence greatly enhanced the infection of C6/36 cells. Thus, glycosylation of WNV prM and E proteins can affect the efficiency of virus release and infection in a manner that is cell type and perhaps species dependent. This suggests a multifaceted role for envelope N-linked glycosylation in WNV biology and tropism.     

Prognostic prospect of soluble programmed cell death ligand-1 in cancer management

Aggressive tissue biopsy is commonly unavoidable in the management of most suspected tumor cases to conclusively verify the presence of cancerous cells through ...