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Topic Review
Neuroimaging and Mitochondrial Dysfunction
Mitochondrial dysfunction is a pathophysiological hallmark of most neurodegenerative diseases. Several clinical trials targeting mitochondrial dysfunction have been performed with conflicting results. Reliable biomarkers of mitochondrial dysfunction in vivo are thus needed to optimize future clinical trial designs.  Neuroimaging methods could map in vivo changes of oxidative phosphorylation (OXPHOS) and oxidative stress, which are based on various physical phenomena to generate molecule-specific image contrasts. 
  • 705
  • 08 Jul 2022
Topic Review
Extracellular Non-Coding RNAs as Biomarkers in Cardiovascular Diseases
Cardiovascular diseases (CVDs) remain the world’s leading cause of death despite the best available healthcare and therapy. Extracellular non-coding RNAs (Ex-ncRNAs) are a heterogeneous group of RNAs, including small ncRNAs, long ncRNAs (lncRNAs), and circular RNAs (circRNAs), which encompass the majority of the extracellular transcriptome.
  • 705
  • 16 Jan 2023
Topic Review
Bacteria-Mediated Modulatory Strategies for Colorectal Cancer Treatment
Colorectal cancer (CRC) is one of the most common tumors worldwide, with a higher rate of distant metastases than other malignancies and with regular occurrence of drug resistance. Therefore, scientists are forced to further develop novel and innovative therapeutic treatment strategies, whereby it has been discovered microorganisms, albeit linked to CRC pathogenesis, are able to act as highly selective CRC treatment agents. Consequently, researchers are increasingly focusing on bacteriotherapy as a novel therapeutic strategy with less or no side effects compared to standard cancer treatment methods. With multiple successful trials making use of various bacteria-associated mechanisms, bacteriotherapy in cancer treatment is on its way to become a promising tool in CRC targeting therapy.
  • 704
  • 25 Apr 2022
Topic Review
Impact of Cytokines on Sepsis
Sepsis is an overwhelming inflammatory response to infection, resulting in multiple-organ injury. Neutrophils are crucial immune cells involved in innate response to pathogens and their migration and effector functions, such as phagocytosis and neutrophil extracellular trap (NET) formation, are dependent on cytokine presence and their concentration. In the course of sepsis, recruitment and migration of neutrophils to infectious foci gradually becomes impaired, thus leading to loss of a crucial arm of the innate immune response to infection. 
  • 703
  • 04 Jul 2022
Topic Review
Risk Factors of Surgical Morbidity and Mortality
Despite advances in surgical techniques, surgical morbidity and mortality remain important public health problems. Postoperative complications often lead to greater morbidity and mortality, as well as increased length of hospital stay and medical costs. Therefore, a reduction in postoperative complications is particularly important with regard to positive long-term outcomes in patients with cancer. To improve patients’ postoperative prognosis, it is necessary to screen for and focus on modifiable risk factors and their subsequent resolution. It was reported that nutritional status, inflammation and surgical approaches are related to postoperative morbidity and mortality.
  • 701
  • 14 Oct 2022
Topic Review
The Naked and Damaraland Mole-Rats
The naked mole-rat (Heterocephalus glaber) and the Damaraland mole-rat (Fukomys damarensis) possess extreme reproductive skew with a single reproductive female responsible for reproduction.
  • 700
  • 29 Nov 2022
Topic Review
Hypoxic Microenvironment of Bone
The normal physiological activities and functions of bone cells cannot be separated from the balance of the oxygenation level, and the physiological activities of bone cells are different under different oxygenation levels. At present, in vitro cell cultures are generally performed in a normoxic environment, and the partial pressure of oxygen of a conventional incubator is generally set at 141 mmHg (18.6%, close to the 20.1% oxygen in ambient air). This value is higher than the mean value of the oxygen partial pressure in human bone tissue. Additionally, the further away from the endosteal sinusoids, the lower the oxygen content. It follows that the construction of a hypoxic microenvironment is the key point of in vitro experimental investigation.
  • 700
  • 04 May 2023
Topic Review
Facultative Annual Life Cycles in Seagrasses
Plant species usually have either annual or perennial life cycles, but facultative annual species have annual or perennial populations depending on their environment. In terrestrial angiosperms, facultative annual species are rare, with wild rice being one of the few examples. 
  • 700
  • 19 Sep 2023
Topic Review
Modeling of Neurodegenerative Diseases
Neurodegenerative diseases have acquired the status of one of the leading causes of death in developed countries, which requires creating new model systems capable of accurately reproducing the mechanisms underlying these pathologies. Each model has unique properties that make it the optimal tool for modeling certain aspects of neurodegenerative disorders. It is necessary to combine models into complexes that include organisms and artificial systems of different organizational levels. Such complexes can be organized in two ways. The first method can be described as “step by step”, where each model for studying a certain characteristic is a separate step that allows using the information obtained in the modeling process for the gradual study of increasingly complex processes in subsequent models. The second way is a ‘network’ approach. Studies are carried out with several types of models simultaneously, and experiments with each specific type are adjusted in conformity with the data obtained from other models.
  • 700
  • 18 Jan 2023
Topic Review
Clinical Biofluid Assays for Prostate Cancer
Prostate cancer (PCa) is a heterogeneous disease, with a large percentage of prostate tumors being indolent, and with a relatively slow metastatic potential. However, due to the high case numbers, the absolute number of PCa-related deaths is still high. In fact, it causes the second highest number of cancer deaths in American men. As a first step for the diagnosis of PCa, the PSA test has been widely used. However, it has low specificity, which results in a high number of false positives leading to overdiagnosis and overtreatment. Newer derivatives of the original PSA test, including the Food and Drug Administration (FDA)-approved 4K (four kallikreins) and the PHI (Prostate Health Index) blood tests, have higher specificities. Tissue-based PCa tests are problematic as biopsies are invasive and have limited accuracy due to prostate tumor heterogeneity. Liquid biopsies offer a minimally or non-invasive choice for the patients, while providing a more representative reflection of the spatial heterogeneity in the prostate. In addition to the abovementioned blood-based tests, urine is a promising source of PCa biomarkers, offering a supplementary avenue for early detection and improved tumor classification. Four urine-based PCa tests are either FDA- or CLIA-approved: PCA3 (PROGENSA), ExoDX Prostate Intelliscore, MiPS, and SelectMDx.
  • 698
  • 12 Jan 2024
Topic Review
Onco-Breastomics: An Eco-Evo-Devo Holistic Approach
Many mechanisms of cancer progression have been explained by principles of ecology, developmental biology, and evolutionary paradigms. Many authors have discussed ecological, developmental, and evolutionary strategies for more successful anti-cancer therapies, or for understanding the ecological, developmental, and evolutionary bases of breast cancer (BC) exploitable vulnerabilities. Researchers use the integrated framework of three well known ecological theories: the Bronfenbrenner’s theory of human development, the Vannote’s River Continuum Concept (RCC), and the Ecological Evolutionary Developmental Biology (Eco-Evo-Devo) theory, to explain and understand several eco-evo-devo-based principles that govern BC progression.
  • 698
  • 05 Feb 2024
Topic Review
Antiviral Gene Expression
Influenza A virus (IAV) is a respiratory virus that alone or in combination with secondary bacterial pathogens can contribute to the development of acute pneumonia in persons >65 years of age.
  • 697
  • 01 Dec 2021
Topic Review
Effect of Long-Term Bio-Compost on Soil Microbial Community
High dosages of bio-compost significantly increased the bacterial and fungal richness. The compositions of bacterial and fungal communities were significantly altered by bio-compost addition. Bio-compost addition enriched the relative abundance of beneficial microorganisms (such as Sphingomonas, Acidibacter, Nocardioides, etc.) and reduced the relative abundance of harmful microorganisms (such as Stachybotrys and Aspergillus). Bio-composts altered the soil bacterial-community metabolic function with respect to carbon, nitrogen and phosphorus cycles and fungal community trophic modes. Suitable bio-compost addition is beneficial to the improvement of soil health and crop quality and therefore the sustainability of agriculture.
  • 697
  • 02 Apr 2022
Topic Review
Autophagy in Brief
This comprehensive entry delves into the multifaceted world of autophagy, a cellular process with profound implications for health and disease. Beginning with an exploration of the autophagic machinery, we uncover the intricate roles played by autophagosomes, autophagy-related proteins (ATGs), and lysosomes in maintaining cellular homeostasis. The regulatory mechanisms orchestrating autophagy, from mTOR to cellular stresses and post-translational modifications, are dissected, highlighting the precise control of this essential process. Autophagy's dual nature in health is unraveled, showcasing its role as a protector, eliminating toxic aggregates in neurodegenerative diseases, bolstering immunity, regulating metabolism, and potentially promoting healthy aging. Conversely, its dark side emerges in diseases, where dysregulation contributes to cancer cell survival, neurodegeneration, chronic inflammation, and pathogen exploitation.The therapeutic potential of autophagy is unveiled, as researchers explore autophagy modulators in cancer therapy, neurodegenerative disease treatments, and metabolic disorder management, with a promising avenue for anti-aging interventions. Yet, navigating autophagy's complexities presents challenges: contextual effects, safety concerns, the need for biomarkers, and the integration of autophagy-targeting therapies with existing treatments. In this ever-evolving field, understanding autophagy's intricacies is a captivating journey with far-reaching implications for human health.
  • 696
  • 14 Sep 2023
Topic Review
The Beta-Globin Locus and the Hemoglobin Switching
Beta-hemoglobinopathies are the most common genetic disorders worldwide, caused by a wide spectrum of mutations in the β-globin locus, and associated with morbidity and early mortality in case of patient non-adherence to supportive treatment. Allogeneic transplantation of hematopoietic stem cells (allo-HSCT) used to be the only curative option, although the indispensable need for an HLA-matched donor markedly restricted its universal application. Hereditary persistence of fetal hemoglobin (HPFH), a syndrome characterized by increased γ-globin levels, when co-inherited with β-thalassemia or SCD, converts hemoglobinopathies to a benign condition with mild clinical phenotype.The evolution of gene therapy approaches made possible the ex vivo delivery of a therapeutic β- or γ- globin gene into patient-derived hematopoietic stem cells followed by the transplantation of corrected cells into myeloablated patients, having led to high rates of transfusion independence (thalassemia) or complete resolution of painful crises (sickle cell disease-SCD).  
  • 695
  • 29 Jun 2023
Topic Review
Impact of Steatotic Liver Grafts for Transplantation
Liver allograft steatosis is a significant risk factor for postoperative graft dysfunction and has been associated with inferior patient and graft survival, particularly in the case of moderate or severe macrovesicular steatosis.
  • 693
  • 25 Jun 2023
Topic Review
MicroRNAs Regulating VSMC
Vascular smooth muscle cell (VSMC) proliferation plays a critical role in atherosclerosis. At the beginning of the pathologic process of atherosclerosis, irregular VSMC proliferation promotes plaque formation, but in advanced plaques VSMCs are beneficial, promoting the stability and preventing rupture of the fibrous cap. Recent studies have demonstrated that microRNAs (miRNAs) expressed in the vascular system are involved in the control of VSMC proliferation.
  • 692
  • 19 May 2021
Topic Review
Epigenetic Mechanisms of Tree Responses to Climatic Changes
Forest trees are complex perennial organisms that are adapted to the local environment as a result of prevailing climate conditions in population history. Because they lead a sedentary lifestyle, plants are exposed to various environmental stimuli, such as changes which can lead to the rapid adjustment or failure of their defence mechanisms. As forests play a crucial role in environmental homeostasis and are the source of many products, it is crucial to estimate the position of forest trees’ plasticity mechanisms in the face of climate change. Fast epigenetic adjustment is the basis for surviving climate fluctuations, however, the question is whether this mechanism will also be efficient if climate fluctuations increase. Epigenetic modifications enable rapid reactions to the inducing stimulus by establishing chromatin patterns and manipulating gene expression without affecting the DNA itself.
  • 692
  • 18 Nov 2022
Topic Review
Microbiota and Glucidic Metabolism
The global prevalence of overweight and obesity has dramatically increased in the last few decades, with a significant socioeconomic burden. 
  • 692
  • 12 Jul 2023
Topic Review
Matrix Metalloproteases in PDAC
Pancreatic cancer is a dismal disorder that is histologically characterized by a dense fibrotic stroma around the tumor cells. As the extracellular matrix comprises the bulk of the stroma, matrix degrading proteases may play an important role in pancreatic cancer. It has been suggested that matrix metalloproteases are key drivers of both tumor growth and metastasis during pancreatic cancer progression. Based upon this notion, changes in matrix metalloprotease expression levels are often considered surrogate markers for pancreatic cancer progression and/or treatment response. Indeed, reduced matrix metalloprotease levels upon treatment (either pharmacological or due to genetic ablation) are considered as proof of the anti-tumorigenic potential of the mediator under study. 
  • 689
  • 12 Jul 2021
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