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Topic Review
RUNX Gene Family in Hepatocellular Carcinoma
Hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC) is one of the most frequent cancers in humans, characterised by a high resistance to conventional chemotherapy, late diagnosis, and a high mortality rate. It is necessary to elucidate the molecular mechanisms involved in hepatocarcinogenesis to improve diagnosis and treatment outcomes. The Runt-related (RUNX) family of transcription factors (RUNX1, RUNX2, and RUNX3) participates in cardinal biological processes and plays paramount roles in the pathogenesis of numerous human malignancies. Their role is often controversial as they can act as oncogenes or tumour suppressors and depends on cellular context. Evidence shows that deregulated RUNX genes may be involved in hepatocarcinogenesis from the earliest to the latest stages.
  • 601
  • 24 Nov 2023
Topic Review
Lactate-Dependent Mechanisms of Maintaining Cancer Cell Stemness
The role of lactic acid (lactate) in cell metabolism has been significantly revised. Initially, lactic acid was attributed to the role of a toxic end-product of metabolism, with its accumulation in the cell and extracellular space leading to acidosis, muscle pain, and other adverse effects. However, it has now become obvious that lactate is not only a universal fuel molecule and the main substrate for gluconeogenesis but also one of the most ancient metabolites, with a signaling function that has a wide range of regulatory activity. The Warburg effect described (the intensification of glycolysis associated with high lactate production), which is characteristic of many malignant tumors, confirms the key role of lactate not only in physiological conditions but also in pathologies. The study of lactate’s role in the malignant transformation becomes more relevant in the light of the “atavistic theory of carcinogenesis,” which suggests that tumor cells return to a more primitive hereditary phenotype during microevolution. 
  • 600
  • 08 Oct 2022
Topic Review
Extracellular Adenosine Triphosphate Sources and Signalling
Myocardial remodelling is a molecular, cellular, and interstitial adaptation of the heart in response to altered environmental demands. The heart undergoes reversible physiological remodelling in response to changes in mechanical loading or irreversible pathological remodelling induced by neurohumoral factors and chronic stress, leading to heart failure. Adenosine triphosphate (ATP) is one of the potent mediators in cardiovascular signalling that act on the ligand-gated (P2X) and G-protein-coupled (P2Y) purinoceptors via the autocrine or paracrine manners. These activations mediate numerous intracellular communications by modulating the production of other messengers, including calcium, growth factors, cytokines, and nitric oxide. ATP is known to play a pleiotropic role in cardiovascular pathophysiology, making it a reliable biomarker for cardiac protection.
  • 600
  • 08 Mar 2023
Topic Review
Mesenchymal-Stromal-Cell-Conditioned Media
Despite significant advances in biomedical research, osteochondral defects resulting from injury, an autoimmune condition, cancer, or other pathological conditions still represent a significant medical problem. Cell-based therapies and tissue engineering have gradually become promising alternatives. They combine the use of different types of cells and biomaterials to induce regeneration processes or replace damaged osteochondral tissue. One of the main challenges of this approach before clinical translation is the large-scale in vitro expansion of cells without changing their biological properties, while the use of conditioned media which contains various bioactive molecules appears to be very important.
  • 600
  • 28 May 2023
Topic Review
Extracellular Vesicles Regulate Wnt Signaling in Hepatocellular Carcinoma
So far, extracellular vesicles (EVs) have played an important role in the progression of multiple cancers by regulating the Wnt pathway. The regulation of Wnt signaling by Evs in hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC) is primarily achieved by modulating the classical pathway.
  • 599
  • 24 Apr 2023
Topic Review
Oncogenic miRNAs in Breast Cancer Progression and Metastasis
Both clinical samples and cancer cell lines provide researchers with an insight into the complex structure and hierarchy of cancer. Intratumor heterogeneity allows for multiple cancer cell subpopulations to simultaneously coexist within tumors. One category of these cancer cell subpopulations is cancer stem cells (CSCs), which possess stem-like characteristics and are not easily detectable. In the case of breast cancer, which is the most prevalent cancer type among females, such subpopulations of cells have been isolated and characterized via specific stem cell markers. These stem-like cells, known as breast cancer stem cells (BCSCs), have been linked to major events during tumorigenesis including invasion, metastasis and patient relapse following conventional therapies. Complex signaling circuitries seem to regulate the stemness and phenotypic plasticity of BCSCs along with their differentiation, evasion of immunosurveillance, invasiveness and metastatic potential. Within these complex circuitries, new key players begin to arise, with one of them being a category of small non-coding RNAs, known as miRNAs.
  • 599
  • 25 Jun 2023
Topic Review
PPARs and Vitamin D Receptor in Cancer
Peroxisome proliferator-activated receptors (PPARs) are members of the superfamily of nuclear hormone receptors, which respond to specific ligands such as polyunsaturated fatty acids by altering gene expression. Three subtypes of this receptor have been discovered, each evolving to achieve different biological functions. Like other nuclear receptors, the transcriptional activity of PPARs is affected not only by ligand-stimulation, but also by cross-talk with other molecules. For example, both PPARs and the RXRs are ligand-activated transcription factors that coordinately regulate gene expression. In addition, PPARs and vitamin D receptor (VDR) signaling pathways regulate a multitude of genes that are of importance for cellular functions including cell proliferation and cell differentiation. Interaction of the PPARs and VDR signaling pathways has been shown at the level of molecular cross-regulation of their transcription factor. A variety of ligands influencing the PPARs and VDR signaling pathways have been shown to reveal chemopreventive potential by mediating tumor suppressive activities in human cancers.
  • 597
  • 08 Sep 2023
Topic Review
Prevalence of Bidirectional Promoter Complexes in Human Genome
An abundance of antisense promoters in the vicinity of the transcriptional start site of coding genes suggests that they play an important role in gene regulation. The divergent transcription of housekeeping genes by a common central promoter region allows for coordinated regulation of genes in related pathways and is also linked to higher promoter activity. However, closely positioned transcription start sites can also result in competition between overlapping promoter elements and generate a binary switch element. Furthermore, the direct competition resulting from the presence of an antisense promoter immediately downstream of the transcription start site of the gene produces an element that can exist in only one of two stable transcriptional states: sense or antisense.
  • 597
  • 28 Feb 2024
Topic Review
Structure of Glycosylated Arsenicals
Microalgae are abundant components of the biosphere rich in low molecular weight carbohydrate-containing natural products (glycoconjugates). Glycoconjugates take part in the processes of photosynthesis, provide producers with important biological molecules, influence other organisms and are known by their biological activities. Some of them, for example, glycosylated toxins and arsenicals, are detrimental and can be transferred via food chains into higher organisms, including humans. 
  • 596
  • 05 Sep 2023
Topic Review
Fractalkine/CX3CR1 in Dilated Cardiomyopathy
Dilated cardiomyopathy (DCM) is a cardiac condition with structural and functional impairment, where either the left ventricle or both ventricular chambers are enlarged, coinciding with reduced systolic pump function (reduced ejection fraction, rEF). The prevalence of DCM is more than 1:250 individuals, and mortality largely due to heart failure in two-third of cases, and sudden cardiac death in one-third of patients. Damage to the myocardium, whether from a genetic or environmental cause such as viruses, triggers inflammation and recruits immune cells to the heart to repair the myocardium. Examination of myocardial biopsy tissue often reveals an inflammatory cell infiltrate, T lymphocyte (T cell) infiltration, or other activated immune cells. Despite medical therapy, adverse outcomes for DCM remain. The evidence base and existing literature suggest that upregulation of CX3CR1, migration of immune cells, together with cytomegalovirus (CMV) seropositivity is associated with worse outcomes in patients with dilated cardiomyopathy.
  • 596
  • 16 Oct 2023
Topic Review
MicroRNAs as Potential Clinical Biomarkers for Ovarian Cancer
Ovarian cancer is a commonly diagnosed malignancy in women. When diagnosed at an early stage, survival outcomes are favourable for the vast majority, with up to 90% of ovarian cancer patients being free of disease at 5 years follow-up. Unfortunately, ovarian cancer is typically diagnosed at an advanced stage due to the majority of patients remaining asymptomatic until the cancer has metastasised, resulting in poor outcomes for the majority. While the molecular era has facilitated the subclassification of the disease into distinct clinical subtypes, ovarian cancer remains managed and treated as a single disease entity. Biomarkers are objectively measured such that they are informative of normal biological processes, pathological processes, or pharmacological responses to a therapeutic intervention. The incorporation of biomarkers into clinical practice can improve early detection of disease and aid the design of treatment regimens specific for individual patients. However, clinically established biomarkers for ovarian cancer lack robust reliability and specificity. MicroRNAs (miRNAs) are small (19–25 nucleotides), endogenous molecules which are integral to regulating gene expression. Aberrant miRNA expression profiles have been described in several cancers, and have been implicated to be useful biomarkers which may aid cancer diagnostics and treatment.
  • 595
  • 29 Jan 2023
Topic Review
Modulation of Class I TCP Protein Activity
TEOSINTE BRANCHED1, CYCLOIDEA, PROLIFERATING CELL FACTOR 1 and 2 (TCP) proteins constitute a plant-specific transcription factors family exerting effects on multiple aspects of plant development, such as germination, embryogenesis, leaf and flower morphogenesis, and pollen development, through the recruitment of other factors and the modulation of different hormonal pathways. They are divided into two main classes, I and II. The roles of class TCPs from class I in plant growth and development, as well as the modulation of their activity through interaction with other proteins and redox interconversions, proteolytic processing, or intra- or intercellular movement are discussed. Additionally, the function of these proteins in response to different environmental conditions is discussed.
  • 595
  • 03 Apr 2023
Topic Review
PTEN-p53-AKT-MDM2 Loop in Mesenchymal Stem/Stromal Cells Regulation
Mesenchymal stromal/stem cells (MSCs) are multipotent cells that can differentiate to various specialized cells, which have the potential capacity to differentiate properly and accelerate recovery in damaged sites of the body. This stem cell technology has become the fundamental element in regenerative medicine. As reactive oxygen species (ROS) have been reported to adversely influence stem cell properties, it is imperative to attenuate the extent of ROS to the promising protective approach with MSCs’ regenerative therapy. Oxidative stress also affects the culture expansion and longevity of MSCs. Therefore, there is great need to identify a method to prevent oxidative stress and replicative senescence in MSCs. Phosphatase and tensin homologue deleted on chromosome 10/Protein kinase B, PKB (PTEN/AKT) and the tumor suppressor p53 pathway have been proven to play a pivotal role in regulating cell apoptosis by regulating the oxidative stress and/or ROS quenching.
  • 595
  • 08 Sep 2023
Topic Review
Caenorhabditis elegans Models Established for Amyotrophic Lateral Sclerosis
Amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (ALS) is a lethal motor neuron disease characterised by the selective and gradual loss of motor neurons in the spinal, bulbar and cortical regions. C. elegans has established itself as a favoured model organism in the field of neurodegenerative disease research. Through analysis of gene mutations pertinent to these disease, it provides a unique opportunity to identify pathogenic molecular pathways and explore promising therapeutic options. 
  • 595
  • 10 Jan 2024
Topic Review
Biomarkers in Laryngeal Squamous Cell Carcinoma
Laryngeal squamous cell carcinoma is a prevalent cancer associated with poor prognosis in advanced stages. Despite advancements in diagnostic tools, there have been minimal improvements in therapeutic approaches. The potential new frontier lies in the realm of biomarkers.
  • 594
  • 23 Nov 2023
Topic Review
Resveratrol and Quercetin in Reperfusion Injury
Ischemia-reperfusion myocardial damage is a paradoxical tissue injury occurring during percutaneous coronary intervention (PCI) in acute myocardial infarction (AMI) patients. Although this damage could account for up to 50% of the final infarct size, there has been no available pharmacological treatment until now. Oxidative stress contributes to the underlying production mechanism, exerting the most marked injury during the early onset of reperfusion. So far, antioxidants have been shown to protect the AMI patients undergoing PCI to mitigate these detrimental effects; however, no clinical trials to date have shown any significant infarct size reduction. Myocardial ischemia/reperfusion damage results from diverse oxidative stress producing mechanisms. 
  • 593
  • 27 Jun 2022
Topic Review
Molecular Biology of Miscanthus
Miscanthus is a perennial wild plant that is vital for the production of paper and roofing, as well as horticulture and the development of new high-yielding crops in temperate climates. Chromosome-level assembly of the ancient tetraploid genome of miscanthus chromosomes is reported to provide resources that can link its chromosomes to related diploid sorghum and complex polyploid sugarcane. 
  • 593
  • 25 Aug 2023
Topic Review
Long Non-Coding RNAs in Neurodegenerative Diseases
Long non-coding RNAs (lncRNAs) are novel genetic biomarkers that can be used as exclusionary tools specific to Neurodegenerative diseases (NDDs). These historical biomarkers have been there for years, so a change in the approach is necessary to better diagnose and treat these NDDs.
  • 593
  • 18 Mar 2024
Topic Review
Noncoding RNAs of Extracellular Vesicles in Tumor Angiogenesis
Extracellular vesicles (EVs) act as multifunctional regulators of intercellular communication and are involved in diverse tumor phenotypes, including tumor angiogenesis, which is a highly regulated multi-step process for the formation of new blood vessels that contribute to tumor proliferation. EVs induce malignant transformation of distinct cells by transferring DNAs, proteins, lipids, and RNAs, including noncoding RNAs (ncRNAs). However, the functional relevance of EV-derived ncRNAs in tumor angiogenesis remains to be elucidated. 
  • 592
  • 11 Apr 2022
Topic Review
The HMGB Proteins History from Yeast to Cancer
Yeasts have been a part of human life since ancient times in the fermentation of many natural products used for food. In addition, in the 20th century, they became powerful tools to elucidate the functions of eukaryotic cells as soon as the techniques of molecular biology developed.
  • 591
  • 28 Apr 2023
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