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Topic Review
Chemokines in Obesity and Metabolic Syndrome
The objective of this entry is to present an update on the link between chemokines and obesity-related inflammation and metabolism dysregulation under the linght of recent knowledge, which may present important therapeutic targets that could control obesity-associated immune and metabolic disorders and chronic complications in near future. In addition, the cellular and molecular mechanisms of chemokines and chemokine receptors including the potential effect of post-translational modification of chemokines in ther regulation of inflammation and energy metabolism will be discussed in this entry.
  • 641
  • 06 Jan 2022
Topic Review
Gene Therapy for Parkinson’s Disease
Parkinson’s disease (PD) is the second most common neurodegenerative disorder with a prevalence that increases steadily with age. Gene therapy is a modern medical practice that theoretically, and practically, has demonstrated its capability in joining the battle against PD and other complex disorders on most if not all fronts. 
  • 641
  • 11 Aug 2022
Topic Review
Retinitis Pigmentosa - Stem Cell Therapy and Optogenetics
Retinitis pigmentosa (RP) is a hereditary disease that causes the gradual degeneration of the photoreceptor cells in the retina, starting with the rods, leading to a progressive loss of vision over time. RP is the most prevalent form of inherited retinal dystrophy, affecting over 1.5 million individuals worldwide and significantly impacting both patients and society. RP is a primary cause of visual disability and blindness in people under 60 years old, and common symptoms include nyctalopia and gradual peripheral vision loss. If left untreated, RP can ultimately lead to complete blindness.
  • 640
  • 05 Jun 2023
Topic Review
Metabolomics in Cancer Research
Glioblastoma (GBM) is the most common malignancy of the brain with a relatively short median survival and high mortality. Advanced age, high socioeconomic status, exposure to ionizing radiation, and other factors have been correlated with an increased incidence of GBM, while female sex hormones, history of allergies, and frequent use of specific drugs might exert protective effects against this disease. Recent developments in analytical techniques, e.g., matrix-assisted laser desorption/ionization (MALDI)-TOF MS, significantly improved the  understanding of cellular metabolism. These techniques, which are collectively known as metabolomics, provide valuable insights into metabolic profiles of healthy cells, as well as tumor cells.
  • 639
  • 31 Jan 2023
Topic Review
HSP70 and Its Targeting in Onco-Hematological Diseases
The search for molecules to be targeted that are involved in apoptosis resistance/increased survival and pathogenesis of onco-hematological malignancies is ongoing since these diseases are still not completely understood. A good candidate has been identified in the Heat Shock Protein of 70kDa (HSP70), a molecule defined as “the most cytoprotective protein ever been described”. HSP70 is induced in response to a wide variety of physiological and environmental insults, allowing cells to survive lethal conditions. This molecular chaperone has been detected and studied in almost all the onco-hematological diseases and is also correlated to poor prognosis and resistance to therapy. 
  • 639
  • 21 Apr 2023
Topic Review
Non-Coding RNAs in Airway Diseases
Inflammation of the human lung is mediated in response to different stimuli (e.g., physical, radioactive, infective, pro-allergenic, or toxic) such as cigarette smoke and environmental pollutants. These stimuli often promote an increase in different inflammatory activities in the airways, manifesting themselves as chronic diseases (e.g., allergic airway diseases, asthma chronic bronchitis/chronic obstructive pulmonary disease, or even lung cancer). Non-coding RNA (ncRNAs) are single-stranded RNA molecules of few nucleotides that regulate the gene expression involved in many cellular processes. ncRNA are molecules typically involved in the reduction of translation and stability of the genes of mRNAs s.
  • 638
  • 04 Jan 2023
Topic Review
SGLT2 Inhibitors in the Treatment of DKD
Diabetic kidney disease (DKD) is a severe and common complication and affects a quarter of patients with type 2 diabetes mellitus (T2DM). Oxidative stress and inflammation related to hyperglycemia are interlinked and contribute to the occurrence of DKD. It was shown that sodium–glucose cotransporter-2 (SGLT2) inhibitors, a novel yet already widely used therapy, may prevent the development of DKD and alter its natural progression. 
  • 638
  • 04 Aug 2023
Topic Review
MHDI-Mediated Inhibition of Aβ-Induced Oxidative Stress
Under physiological conditions, the transmembrane glycoprotein amyloid precursor protein (APP) plays a major role in central nervous system maturation and cell contact and adhesion. However, APP overexpression can cause the production of neurotoxic derivatives, closely related to Alzheimer’s disease (AD) development. APP can be cleaved by α-secretase to initiate the nonamyloidogenic cascade preventing Aβ accumulation. Aβ peptides are produced from APP cleavage through the activation of β- and γ-secretases in the brain regions, particularly in the temporal and frontal lobes during the early AD stages.
  • 636
  • 18 Oct 2022
Topic Review
miRNAs as Biomarkers for Traumatic Brain Injury
microRNA (miRNA) profiling has attracted increasing interest due to these molecules’ ability to regulate physiological and pathological processes. The evidence of differential miRNA expression in both animal models and human samples of traumatic brain injury (TBI) has laid the basis for comprehension of the underlying pathophysiological mechanisms, thus allowing us to identify some of them as possible TBI diagnostic biomarkers. 
  • 636
  • 17 Apr 2023
Topic Review
Innate Immunity in Autoimmune Thyroid Disease during Pregnancy
Autoimmune thyroid disease (AITD) is the most common organ-specific autoimmune disorder clinically presented as Hashimoto thyroiditis (HT) and Graves’ disease (GD). The pathogenesis of AITD is caused by an inappropriate immune response related to genetic, non-genetic, and environmental factors. Pregnancy is one of the factors that have a great influence on the function of the thyroid gland because of the increased metabolic demand and the effects of hormones related to pregnancy. During pregnancy, an adaptation of the maternal immune system occurs, especially of the innate immune system engaged in maintaining adaptive immunity in the tolerant state, preventing the rejection of the fetus. Pregnancy-related hormonal changes (estrogen, progesterone, hCG) may modulate the activity of innate immune cells, potentially worsening the course of AITD during pregnancy. This especially applies to NK cells, which are associated with exacerbation of HD and GD. On the other hand, previous thyroid disorders can affect fertility and cause adverse outcomes of pregnancy, such as placental abruption, spontaneous abortion, and premature delivery. Additionally, it can cause fetal growth retardation and may contribute to impaired neuropsychological development of the fetus.
  • 634
  • 25 Oct 2023
Topic Review
Abnormalities in Metabolic Pathways of Phosphoinositides
Myo-inositol belongs to one of the sugar alcohol groups known as cyclitols. Phosphatidylinositols are one of the derivatives of Myo-inositol, and constitute important mediators in many intracellular processes such as cell growth, cell differentiation, receptor recycling, cytoskeletal organization, and membrane fusion. They also have even more functions that are essential for cell survival. Mutations in genes encoding phosphatidylinositols and their derivatives can lead to many disorders. 
  • 632
  • 04 Dec 2023
Topic Review
Drug Delievery for Glioblastoma
Glioblastoma multiforme (GBM) is the most lethal intrinsic brain tumor. Drug delivery to glioblastoma is challenging because of the molecular and cellular heterogeneity of the tumor, its infiltrative nature, and the blood–brain barrier (BBB). There are several applications of convection-enhanced delivery (CED), controlled-release systems, nanomaterial systems, peptide-based therapeutics, and focused ultrasound for drug delivery to GBM
  • 631
  • 21 Feb 2022
Topic Review
History of Programmed Death-Ligand 1 in Malignant Melanoma
Programmed death-ligand 1 (PD-L1) is the primary ligand of the receptor programmed death-1 (PD-1) which is constitutively expressed or activated in myeloid, lymphoid (T, B and NK), normal epithelial cells, and cancer. The PD-1/PD-L1 interaction is crucial for the physiological development of immunological tolerance but also in the development of the cancer. Among these, malignant melanoma represents a tumour in which the immunohistochemical expression of PD-L1 is important to guide future therapeutic choices based on the presence/absence of expression.
  • 628
  • 25 Jun 2023
Topic Review
Evolution of Pompe Disease Therapy
Pompe disease, also known as glycogen storage disease type II, is caused by the lack or deficiency of a single enzyme, lysosomal acid alpha-glucosidase, leading to severe cardiac and skeletal muscle myopathy due to progressive accumulation of glycogen. The discovery that acid alpha-glucosidase resides in the lysosome gave rise to the concept of lysosomal storage diseases, and Pompe disease became the first among many monogenic diseases caused by loss of lysosomal enzyme activities. 
  • 623
  • 29 Sep 2022
Topic Review
Inflammation in Hepatocellular Carcinoma
Hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC), the most prevalent form of primary liver cancer, is prototypically an inflammation-driven cancer developing after years of inflammatory insults.
  • 623
  • 22 Dec 2022
Topic Review
CAR-T Current Challenges
CAR-Ts have started to move past the “ceiling” of third-line treatment with positive results in comparison trials with the Standard of Care (SoC). One such example is the trial Zuma-7 (NCT03391466), which resulted in approval of CAR-T products (Yescarta™) for second-line treatment, a crucial achievement for the field which can increase the use of this type of therapy.
  • 623
  • 27 Jul 2023
Topic Review
Neurogenesis in Stroke
Harmonic mechanisms orchestrate neurogenesis in the healthy brain within specific neurogenic niches, which generate neurons from neural stem cells as a homeostatic mechanism. These newly generated neurons integrate into existing neuronal circuits to participate in different brain tasks. Despite the mechanisms that protect the mammalian brain, this organ is susceptible to many different types of damage that result in the loss of neuronal tissue and therefore in alterations in the functionality of the affected regions. Nevertheless, the mammalian brain has developed mechanisms to respond to these injuries, potentiating its capacity to generate new neurons from neural stem cells and altering the homeostatic processes that occur in neurogenic niches. These alterations may lead to the generation of new neurons within the damaged brain regions. Notwithstanding, the activation of these repair mechanisms, regeneration of neuronal tissue within brain injuries does not naturally occur.
  • 617
  • 11 Apr 2023
Topic Review
Artificial Intelligence Techniques in Medicine
Machine learning (ML), artificial neural networks (ANNs), and deep learning (DL) are all topics that fall under the heading of artificial intelligence (AI). ML involves the application of algorithms to automate decision-making processes using models that have not been manually programmed but have been trained on data. ANNs that are a part of ML aim to simulate the structure and function of the human brain. DL, on the other hand, uses multiple layers of interconnected neurons. This enables the processing and analysis of large and complex databases. In medicine, these techniques are being introduced to improve the speed and efficiency of disease diagnosis and treatment. 
  • 615
  • 10 Aug 2023
Topic Review
Propranolol in Rare Vascular Diseases
Rare Diseases (RD) are defined by their prevalence in less than 5 in 10,000 of the general population. Considered individually, each RD may seem insignificant, but together they add up to more than 7000 different diseases. Research in RD is not attractive for pharmaceutical companies since it is unlikely to recover development costs for medicines aimed to small numbers of patients. Since most of these diseases are life threatening, this fact underscores the urgent need for treatments. Drug repurposing consists of identifying new uses for approved drugs outside the scope of the original medical indication. It is an alternative option in drug development and represents a viable and risk-managed strategy to develop for RDs. In 2008, the “off label” therapeutic benefits of propranolol were described in the benign tumor Infantile Hemangioma. Propranolol, initially prescribed for high blood pressure, irregular heart rate, essential tremor, and anxiety, has shown increasing evidence of its antiangiogenic, pro-apoptotic, vasoconstrictor and anti-inflammatory properties in different RDs, including vascular or oncological pathologies.
  • 613
  • 25 Apr 2022
Topic Review
Mexican Health and Aging Study
The Mexican Health and Aging Study (MHAS), also known by its Spanish name, Estudio Nacional de Salud y Envejecimiento en México, ENASEM, is the first panel study of health and aging in Mexico. The first phase of MHAS (waves 1 and 2) was supported by a grant from the MHAS was supported by a grant from the National Institutes of Health/National Institute on Aging (AG 18016, BJ Soldo, PI). The study was a collaborative effort among researchers from the Universities of Pennsylvania, Maryland, and Wisconsin in the U.S., and the Instituto Nacional de Estadística, Geografia e Informática (INEGI, Mexico). The second phase of MHAS (waves 3 and 4) is supported by the National Institutes of Health/National Institute on Aging (R01AG018016, R Wong, PI) and by the INEGI in Mexico. The new study is a collaborative effort from the University of Texas Medical Branch (UTMB), Instituto Nacional de Estadística, Geografia e Informática (INEGI, Mexico), the University of Wisconsin, the Instituto Nacional de Geriatría (INGER, Mexico) and the Instituto Nacional de Salud Pública (INSP, Mexico).
  • 611
  • 14 Nov 2022
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