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Topic Review
NMDA Receptors in Astrocytes
Studies of the last two decades have demonstrated the presence in astrocytic cell membranes of N-methyl-d-aspartate (NMDA) receptors (NMDARs), albeit their abundance in astrocytes appears to be strikingly lower than of other glutamate (Glu) receptor classes. Recent advancements in visualization techniques have enabled convincing demonstration of the activation of astrocytic NMDARs directly in brain slices and in acutely isolated or cultured astrocytes, by monitoring intracellular calcium increase. Astrocytic NMDARs are activated by mutually unexclusive ionotropic and metabotropic mechanisms.
  • 1.3K
  • 30 Apr 2021
Topic Review
Phytochemicals in Redox Homeostasis
Redox homeostasis, a dynamic process ensuring a balance between cellular oxidizing and reducing reactions, is crucial for maintaining healthy cellular physiology and regulating many biological processes, requiring continuous monitoring and fine-tuning. Reactive species play a critical role in intra/intercellular signaling, and each cell has a specific system guarding cellular redox homeostasis. Reactive oxygen species (ROS) signaling and oxidative stress are involved in cancer initiation and progression.
  • 1.3K
  • 24 Apr 2023
Topic Review
Probiotics in Fish Nutrition
Probiotics are live microbial additives that have a beneficial effect on the host by (1) modifying the host-associated microbial community, (2) ensuring improved use of the feed or enhancing its nutritional value, (3) enhancing the host response towards disease, and/or (4) improving the quality of its ambient environment.
  • 1.3K
  • 21 Jun 2021
Topic Review
Encapsulins—Bacterial Protein Nanocompartments
Recently, a new class of prokaryotic compartments, collectively called encapsulins or protein nanocompartments, has been discovered. The shell proteins of these structures self-organize to form icosahedral compartments with a diameter of 25–42 nm, while one or more cargo proteins with various functions can be encapsulated in the nanocompartment. Non-native cargo proteins can be loaded into nanocompartments and the surface of the shells can be further functionalized, which allows for developing targeted drug delivery systems or using encapsulins as contrast agents for magnetic resonance imaging. Since the genes encoding encapsulins can be integrated into the cell genome, encapsulins are attractive for investigation in various scientific fields, including biomedicine and nanotechnology.
  • 1.3K
  • 12 Jul 2021
Topic Review
Extremophilic Actinobacteria: Microbes to Medicine
Actinobacteria constitute prolific sources of novel and vital bioactive metabolites for pharmaceutical utilization. In recent years, research has focused on exploring actinobacteria that thrive in extreme conditions to unearth their beneficial bioactive compounds for natural product drug discovery. Natural products have a significant role in resolving public health issues such as antibiotic resistance and cancer. The breakthrough of new technologies has overcome the difficulties in sampling and culturing extremophiles, leading to the outpouring of more studies on actinobacteria from extreme environments. This review focuses on the diversity and bioactive potentials/medically relevant biomolecules of extremophilic actinobacteria found from various unique and extreme niches. Actinobacteria possess an excellent capability to produce various enzymes and secondary metabolites to combat harsh conditions. In particular, a few strains have displayed substantial antibacterial activity against methicillin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus (MRSA), shedding light on the development of MRSA-sensitive antibiotics. Several strains exhibited other prominent bioactivities such as antifungal, anti-HIV, anticancer, and anti-inflammation. By providing an overview of the recently found extremophilic actinobacteria and their important metabolites, we hope to enhance the understanding of their potential for the medical world.
  • 1.3K
  • 17 Jun 2021
Topic Review
Carbohydrate
Carbohydrate is the most abundant macronutrient in the human diet, providing 45–70% of daily calories.
  • 1.3K
  • 13 May 2021
Topic Review
Allelopathy of Knotweeds as Invasive Plants
Perennial herbaceous Fallopia is native to East Asia, and was introduced to Europe and North America in the 19th century as an ornamental plant. Fallopia has been spreading quickly and has naturalized in many countries. It is listed in the world’s 100 worst alien species. Fallopia often forms dense monospecies stands through the interruption of the regeneration process of indigenous plant species. Allelopathy of Japanese knotweed (Fallopia japonica), giant knotweed (Fallopia sachalinensis), and Bohemian knotweed (Fallopia x bohemica) has been reported to play an essential role in its invasion. The exudate from their roots and/or rhizomes, and their plant residues inhibited the germination and growth of some other plant species. These knotweeds, which are non-mycorrhizal plants, also suppressed the abundance and species richness of arbuscular mycorrhizal fungi (AMF) in the rhizosphere soil. Such suppression was critical for most territorial plants to form the mutualism with AMF, which enhances the nutrient and water uptake, and the tolerance against pathogens and stress conditions.
  • 1.3K
  • 31 Dec 2021
Topic Review
Proline Isomerization in Human Disease
Proline isomerization influences protein folding and function tremendously and serves as a unique type of post-translational modification that regulates multiple biological pathways. Although impactful, the importance and prevalence of proline isomerization as a regulation mechanism in biological systems has not been fully understood or recognized. 
  • 1.3K
  • 21 Aug 2023
Topic Review
Selenium Nanoparticles in Aquaculture
Balanced aquafeed is the key factor for enhancing the productivity of aquatic animals. In this context, aquatic animals require optimal amounts of lipids, proteins, carbohydrates, vitamins, and minerals. The original plant and animals’ ingredients in the basal diets are insufficient to provide aquafeed with suitable amounts of minerals. Concurrently, elements should be incorporated in aquafeed in optimal doses, which differ based on the basal diets’ species, age, size, and composition. Selenium is one of the essential trace elements involved in various metabolic, biological, and physiological functions. Se acts as a precursor for antioxidative enzyme synthesis leading to high total antioxidative capacity. Further, Se can enhance the immune response and the tolerance of aquatic animals to infectious diseases. Several metabolic mechanisms, such as thyroid hormone production, cytokine formation, fecundity, and DNA synthesis, require sufficient Se addition. The recent progress in the nanotechnology industry is also applied in the production of Se nanoparticles. Indeed, Se nanoparticles are elaborated as more soluble and bioavailable than the organic and non-organic forms. In aquaculture, multiple investigations have elaborated the role of Se nanoparticles on the performances and wellbeing of aquatic animals.
  • 1.3K
  • 09 Sep 2021
Topic Review
The Formation of Chronic Subdural Hematoma
Chronic subdural hematomas (CSDHs) are commonly encountered in elderly individuals aged over 70 years, as they tend to be associated with brain atrophy. As the population ages worldwide, the incidence of CSDH is on the rise at an estimated rate of 1.7 to 21 per 100,000 people per year.
  • 1.3K
  • 28 Jul 2023
Topic Review
Dipsogenic Diabetes Insipidus
Dipsogenic diabetes insipidus (DDI) is a subtype of primary polydipsia (PP), which occurs mostly in healthy people without psychiatric disease. 
  • 1.3K
  • 28 Apr 2021
Topic Review
Redox-Responsive Drug Delivery Systems
With the widespread global impact of cancer on humans and the extensive side effects associated with current cancer treatments, a novel, effective, and safe treatment is needed. Redox-responsive drug delivery systems (DDSs) have emerged as a potential cancer treatment with minimal side effects and enhanced site-specific targeted delivery. 
  • 1.3K
  • 30 Sep 2022
Topic Review
Microorganisms as a Source of Antioxidant Compounds
Microorganisms are a diverse group of microscopic organisms including archaea, bacteria, fungi, protozoa, algae, and viruses. Microbial diversity produces a massive pool of unique chemicals, which have become a valuable source for innovative biotechnology. Microorganisms can be used as a source of antioxidants with the advantage of fast growth under controlled conditions. 
  • 1.3K
  • 02 Jun 2023
Topic Review
Anhydrobiosis
Anhydrobiosis is induced by loss of water and indicates dehydration tolerance. Survival of dehydration is possible through changes at different levels of organism organization, including a remarkable reduction in metabolic activity at the cellular level. Thus, anhydrobiosis may be regarded as an anti-aging strategy.
  • 1.3K
  • 23 Aug 2022
Topic Review
Retrotransposition of Protein Coding Genes
Retrotransposition of protein coding genes is RNA-based gene duplication leading to the creation of single exon nonfunctional copies. Nevertheless, over time, many of these duplicates acquire transcriptional capabilities. In human in most cases, these so-called retrogenes do not code for proteins but function as regulatory long noncoding RNAs (lncRNAs). The mechanisms by which they can regulate other genes include microRNA sponging, modulation of alternative splicing, epigenetic regulation and competition for stabilizing factors, among others.
  • 1.3K
  • 19 May 2021
Topic Review
Fungi and Climate Change
With the over 2000 marine fungi and fungal-like organisms documented so far, some have adapted fully to life in the sea, while some have the ability to tolerate environmental conditions in the marine milieu. These organisms have evolved various mechanisms for growth in the marine environment, especially against salinity gradients. Marine, freshwater and terrestrial fungi and fungal-like organisms vary greatly in their response to salinity. Generally, terrestrial and freshwater fungi grow, germinate and sporulate better at lower salinities, while marine fungi do so over a wide range of salinities. Zoosporic fungal-like organisms are more sensitive to salinity than true fungi, especially Ascomycota and Basidiomycota. Labyrinthulomycota and marine Oomycota are more salinity tolerant than saprolegniaceous organisms in terms of growth and reproduction. Wide adaptability to saline conditions in marine or marine-related habitats requires mechanisms for maintaining accumulation of ions in the vacuoles, the exclusion of high levels of sodium chloride, the maintenance of turgor in the mycelium, optimal growth at alkaline pH, a broad temperature growth range from polar to tropical waters, and growth at depths and often under anoxic conditions, and these properties may allow marine fungi to positively respond to the challenges that climate change will bring.
  • 1.3K
  • 21 Apr 2022
Topic Review
The Cerebellar Involvement in Autism Spectrum Disorders
Autism spectrum disorders (ASD) are pervasive neurodevelopmental disorders that include a variety of forms and clinical phenotypes. This heterogeneity complicates the clinical and experimental approaches to ASD etiology and pathophysiology. To date, a unifying theory of these diseases is still missing. With the recent acknowledgement of the cerebellar contribution to cognitive functions and the social brain, its involvement in ASD has become unmistakable, though its extent is still to be elucidated.
  • 1.3K
  • 28 Apr 2022
Topic Review
Angiogenesis and Inflammation in Neovascular Age-Related Macular Degeneration
Age-related macular degeneration (AMD) is the leading cause of visual impairment in the aging population with a limited understanding of its pathogenesis and the number of patients are all the time increasing. AMD is classified into two main forms: dry and neovascular AMD (nAMD). Dry AMD is the most prevalent form (80–90%) of AMD cases. Neovascular AMD (10–20% of AMD cases) is treated with monthly or more sparsely given intravitreal anti-vascular endothelial growth factor inhibitors, but unfortunately, not all patients respond to the current treatments. A clinical hallmark of nAMD is choroidal neovascularization. The progression of AMD is initially characterized by atrophic alterations in the retinal pigment epithelium, as well as the formation of lysosomal lipofuscin and extracellular drusen deposits. Cellular damage caused by chronic oxidative stress, protein aggregation and inflammatory processes may lead to advanced geographic atrophy and/or choroidal neovascularization and fibrosis.
  • 1.3K
  • 02 Feb 2023
Topic Review
Anti-Photoaging Benefits of Seaweeds
The skin health benefits of seaweeds have been known since time immemorial. They are known as potential renewable sources of bioactive metabolites that have unique structural and functional features compared to their terrestrial counterparts. In addition, to the consciousness of green, eco-friendly, and natural skincare and cosmetics products, their extracts and bioactive compounds such as fucoidan, laminarin, carrageenan, fucoxanthin, and mycosporine like amino acids (MAAs) have proven useful in the skincare and cosmetic industries. These bioactive compounds have shown potential anti-photoaging properties. Furthermore, some of these bioactive compounds have been clinically tested and currently available in the market. In this contribution, the recent studies on anti-photoaging properties of extracts and bioactive compounds derived from seaweeds were described and discussed.
  • 1.3K
  • 13 Jul 2021
Topic Review
Antioxidants in Alzheimer’s Disease
Alzheimer’s disease (AD) is the most common neurodegenerative disease, intensifying impairments in cognition, behavior, and memory. Histopathological AD variations include extracellular senile plaques’ formation, tangling of intracellular neurofibrils, and synaptic and neuronal loss in the brain. Multiple evidence directly indicates that oxidative stress participates in an early phase of AD before cytopathology. Oxidative stress plays a crucial role in activating and causing various cell signaling pathways that result in lesion formations of toxic substances, which advances the disease. Antioxidants are widely preferred to combat oxidative stress, and those derived from natural sources, which are often incorporated into dietary habits, can play an important role in delaying the onset as well as reducing the progression of AD. However, this approach has not been extensively explored yet. Moreover, a combination of antioxidants in conjugation with a nutrient-rich diet might be more effective in tackling AD pathogenesis.
  • 1.3K
  • 10 Feb 2022
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