Subject:
All Disciplines Arts & Humanities Biology & Life Sciences Business & Economics Chemistry & Materials Science Computer Science & Mathematics Engineering Environmental & Earth Sciences Medicine & Pharmacology Physical Sciences Public Health & Healthcare Social Sciences
Sort:
Most Viewed Latest Alphabetical (A-Z) Alphabetical (Z-A)
Filter:
All Topic Review Biography Peer Reviewed Entry Video Entry
Topic Review
Receptor for Advanced Glycation End Products (RAGE)
As a critical molecule in the onset and sustainment of inflammatory response, the receptor for advanced glycation end products (RAGE) has a variety of ligands, such as advanced glycation end products (AGEs), S100/calcium granule protein, and high-mobility group protein 1 (HMGB1). An increasing number studies have shown that RAGE ligand binding can initiate the intracellular signal cascade, affect intracellular signal transduction, stimulate the release of cytokines, and play a vital role in the occurrence and development of immune-related diseases, such as systemic lupus erythematosus, rheumatoid arthritis, and Alzheimer’s disease. In addition, other RAGE signaling pathways can play crucial roles in life activities, such as inflammation, apoptosis, autophagy, and endoplasmic reticulum stress. Therefore, the strategy of targeted intervention in the RAGE signaling pathway may have significant therapeutic potential, attracting increasing attention.
  • 1.1K
  • 25 Aug 2022
Topic Review
Targeting Arginine in COVID-19
Coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) represents a major public health crisis that has caused the death of nearly six million people worldwide. Emerging data have identified a deficiency of circulating arginine in patients with COVID-19. Arginine is a semi-essential amino acid that serves as key regulator of immune and vascular cell function. Arginine is metabolized by nitric oxide (NO) synthase to NO which plays a pivotal role in host defense and vascular health, whereas the catabolism of arginine by arginase to ornithine contributes to immune suppression and vascular disease. Notably, arginase activity is upregulated in COVID-19 patients in a disease-dependent fashion, favoring the production of ornithine and its metabolites from arginine over the synthesis of NO. This rewiring of arginine metabolism in COVID-19 promotes immune and endothelial cell dysfunction, vascular smooth muscle cell proliferation and migration, inflammation, vasoconstriction, thrombosis, and arterial thickening, fibrosis, and stiffening, which can lead to vascular occlusion, muti-organ failure, and death. Strategies that restore the plasma concentration of arginine, inhibit arginase activity, and/or enhance the bioavailability and potency of NO represent promising therapeutic approaches that may preserve immune function and prevent the development of severe vascular disease in patients with COVID-19. 
  • 1.0K
  • 17 Mar 2022
Topic Review
Tumor Microenvironment
In the relatively short history of anti-tumor treatment, numerous medications have been developed against a variety of targets. Intriguingly, although many anti-tumor strategies have failed in their clinical trials, metformin, an anti-diabetic medication, demonstrated anti-tumor effects in observational studies and even showed its synergistic potential with immune checkpoint inhibitors (ICIs) in subsequent clinical studies. Looking back from bedside-to-bench, it may not be surprising that the anti-tumor effect of metformin derives largely from its ability to rewire aberrant metabolic pathways within the tumor microenvironment. As one of the most promising breakthroughs in oncology, ICIs were also found to exert their immune-stimulatory effects at least partly via rewiring metabolic pathways. These findings underscore the importance of correcting metabolic pathways to achieve sufficient anti-tumor immunity. Herein, we start by introducing the tumor microenvironment, and then we review the implications of metabolic syndrome and treatments for targeting metabolic pathways in anti-tumor therapies. We further summarize the close associations of certain aberrant metabolic pathways with impaired anti-tumor immunity and introduce the therapeutic effects of targeting these routes. Lastly, we go through the metabolic effects of ICIs and conclude an overall direction to manipulate metabolic pathways in favor of anti-tumor responses.
  • 1.0K
  • 26 Oct 2020
Topic Review
Cx43-Mediated Signaling
The immunological synapse (IS) is an intercellular communication platform, organized at the contact site of two adjacent cells, where at least one is an immune cell. Functional IS formation is fundamental for the modulation of the most relevant immune system activities, such as T cell activation by antigen presenting cells. Extensive evidence suggests that connexins, in particular connexin-43 (Cx43) hemichannels and/or gap junctions (GJ), regulate signaling events in different types of IS. Although the underlying mechanisms are not fully understood, the current evidence suggests that Cx43 channels could act as facilitators for calcium ions, cyclic adenosine monophosphate, and/or adenosine triphosphate uptake and/or release at the interface of interacting cells. These second messengers have relevant roles in the IS signaling during dendritic cell (DC)-mediated T and NK cell activation, regulatory T cell-mediated immune suppression, and cytotoxic T lymphocyte or NK cell-mediated target tumor cell killing.
  • 1.0K
  • 09 Nov 2020
Topic Review
Glioblastoma Multiforme
To date, surgical resection along with chemotherapy and radiation therapy represent the standard of care in the treatment of high-grade gliomas. Despite, some advancement in diagnostic and therapy, the long-term outcome remains poor in this subset of brain tumors. Since it's discovery, leptin and associated receptor ObR have been shown to exist in several isofroms in various brain regions. Experimental studies suggest an association between obesity/diabetes, glucose lowering drugs (metformin) with the therapeutic outcome of gliobalstoma. Contrary, conflicting findings were observed in retrospective conducted and prospective observational human trials. Although leptin and related pathways represent novel targets for diagnosis and therapy of brain tumors, randomized-controlled Trials have yet to determine it's potential value and are currently on the way. 
  • 1.0K
  • 22 Dec 2020
Topic Review
High-Density Lipoproteins as Homeostatic Nanoparticles
It is well known that blood lipoproteins (LPs) are multimolecular complexes of lipids and proteins that play a crucial role in lipid transport. High-density lipoproteins (HDL) are a class of blood plasma LPs that mediate reverse cholesterol transport (RCT)—cholesterol transport from the peripheral tissues to the liver. Due to this ability to promote cholesterol uptake from cell membranes, HDL possess antiatherogenic properties. This function was first observed at the end of the 1970s to the beginning of the 1980s, resulting in high interest in this class of LPs. It was shown that HDL are the prevalent class of LPs in several types of living organisms (from fishes to monkeys) with high resistance to atherosclerosis and cardiovascular disorders. Lately, understanding of the mechanisms of the antiatherogenic properties of HDL has significantly expanded. Besides the contribution to RCT, HDL have been shown to modulate inflammatory processes, blood clotting, and vasomotor responses. These particles also possess antioxidant properties and contribute to immune reactions and intercellular signaling.
  • 1.0K
  • 30 Nov 2020
Topic Review
Type I Interferons
Interferons (IFNs) are a heterogenous group of proteins that can be classified into three families (Type I, II, and III) based on distinct functions and characteristics. The family of human type I IFN is composed of 5 subgroups: IFN-α, -β, -κ, -ε, and -ω, whereas the type II IFN group only contains IFN-γ. Type III IFNs are composed of four IFN-λ proteins.
  • 1.0K
  • 06 Mar 2021
Topic Review
Immunotherapy-Based Treatment Strategy for Autoimmune Type 1 Diabetes
Type 1 diabetes (T1D) is an autoimmune disease characterized by the destruction of insulin-producing pancreatic β-cells by their own immune system, resulting in lifelong insulin deficiency. Continuous exogenous insulin replacement therapy is the current standard of care for T1D. Transplantation of primary pancreatic islets or the entire pancreas is a viable remedy for managing patients with autoimmune T1D. However, this strategy is not feasible due to several obstacles, including a scarcity of donors, islet cells, and poor vascular engraftment of islets post-transplantation, as well as the need for prolonged immune suppression. 
  • 1.0K
  • 18 Feb 2022
Topic Review
Role of NAD+ in Regulating Inflammatory Bowel Disease
Inflammatory bowel disease (IBD), which includes Crohn’s disease (CD) and ulcerative colitis (UC), is a multifactorial systemic inflammatory immune response. Nicotinamide adenine dinucleotide (NAD+) is a co-enzyme involved in cell signaling and energy metabolism. Calcium homeostasis, gene transcription, DNA repair, and cell communication involve NAD+ and its degradation products. In the case of IBD, the maintenance of intestinal homeostasis relies on a delicate balance between NAD+ biosynthesis and consumption.
  • 1.0K
  • 26 Jun 2023
Topic Review
The Hedgehog Signaling Pathway
Hedgehog–GLI (HH) signaling plays an essential role in embryogenesis and tissue homeostasis. Aberrant activation of the pathway through mutations or other mechanisms is involved in the development and progression of numerous types of cancer, including basal cell carcinoma, medulloblastoma, melanoma, breast, prostate, hepatocellular and pancreatic carcinomas. Activation of HH signaling sustains proliferation, suppresses cell death signals, enhances invasion and metastasis, deregulates cellular metabolism and promotes angiogenesis and tumor inflammation. Targeted inhibition of the HH pathway has therefore emerged as an attractive therapeutic strategy for the treatment of a wide range of cancers.
  • 1.0K
  • 18 Jan 2023
Topic Review
Mutant p53
The p53 tumor suppressor plays a pivotal role in cancer and infectious disease. Many oncology treatments are now calling on immunotherapy approaches, and scores of studies have investigated the role of p53 antibodies in cancer diagnosis and therapy. This review summarizes the current knowledge from the preliminary evidence that suggests a potential role of p53 as an antigen in the adaptive immune response and a monitoring key role of the innate immune system, thereby speculating on the idea that mutant p53 antigens serve as a druggable target in immunotherapy. Except in a few cases, the vast majority of published work on p53 antibodies in cancer patients use wild-type p53 as the antigen to detect these antibodies and it is unclear that they can recognize p53 mutants carried by cancer patients at all. We envision that an antibody targeting a specific mutant p53 will be effective therapeutically against the cancer carrying the exact mutant p53. Thus, novel antibodies targeting mutant p53, but not the wild-type isoform, should be pursued in preclincial and clinical studies.
  • 1.0K
  • 27 Oct 2020
Topic Review
Open MHC Class I Conformers
Open MHC-I conformers are mature fully glycosylated plasma membrane molecules (HLA-A, HLA-B, HLA-C, HLA-E, HLA-G, HLA-E, and CD1d in humans; H-2D, H-2L, and H-2K in mice) that have dissociated from the β2m light chain and the peptide. Given the flexibility and mobility of the α1 domain of the heavy chain, the open MHC-I conformers are free to interact with any nearby complementary amino acid sequences or peptides in a covalent and a non-covalent manner. Open MHC-I conformers are functional cis-trans structures capable of establishing physical cis-associations with themselves (i.e., homodimers), with other surface receptors (i.e., heterodimers), and shed into the extracellular milieu (i.e., soluble open conformers). In turn, the open conformers and the homodimers trans-interact with several receptors expressed by lymphomyeloid cells. Overall, the open MHC-I conformers impact cellular physiology and clinical and biomedical settings, including autoimmune responses, tumor escape, graft rejection, and neuronal development and cognition. 
  • 1.0K
  • 27 Oct 2021
Topic Review
Delivery of Nucleic Acid Using Dendrimers
Dendrimers are a class of three-dimensional nanosized synthetic macromolecules with a well-defined globular architecture. Due to their unique properties of monodispersity, biocompatibility, and excellent biodegradability, dendrimers themselves represent an intriguing class of nanovectors for the delivery of nucleic acid-based vaccines. In this entry, researchers have demonstrated the growing interest in dendrimers as carriers of DNA and mRNA vaccines, which can become an alternative to other delivery methods.
  • 1.0K
  • 28 Apr 2023
Topic Review
AP-1 Transcription Factors in Cancer
Immune check point blockade therapy has revolutionized the standard of cancer treatment and is credited with producing remarkable tumor remissions and increase in overall survival. This unprecedented clinical success however is feasible for a limited number of cancer patients due to resistance occurring before or during a course of immunotherapy, which is often associated with activation of oncogenic signaling pathways, co-inhibitory checkpoints upregulation or expansion of immunosuppressive regulatory T-cells (Tregs) in the tumor microenviroment (TME). Targeted therapy aiming to inactivate a signaling pathway such as the Mitogen Activated Protein Kinases (MAPKs) has recently received a lot of attention due to emerging data from preclinical studies indicating synergy with immune checkpoint blockade therapy. The dimeric transcription factor complex Activator Protein-1 (AP-1) is a group of proteins involved in a wide array of cell processes and a critical regulator of nuclear gene expression during T-cell activation. It is also one of the downstream targets of the MAPK signaling cascade.
  • 1.0K
  • 09 Sep 2021
Topic Review
P53
While viewed as the “guardian of the genome”, the importance of the tumor suppressor p53 protein has increasingly gained ever more recognition in modulating additional modes of action related to cell death. Slowly but surely, its importance has evolved from a mutated genetic locus heavily implicated in a wide array of cancer types to modulating lysosomal-mediated cell death either directly or indirectly through the transcriptional regulation of the key signal transduction pathway intermediates involved in this. Taken with its ability to directly modulate mitochondrial outer-membrane permeabilization (and cell death) collectively highlights the complex role that this protein undertakes at the molecular level
  • 1.0K
  • 07 Dec 2020
Topic Review
Green Tea Catechin EGCG-Sensing Receptor
The body is equipped with a “food factor-sensing system” that senses food factors, such as polyphenols, sulfur-containing compounds, and vitamins, taken into the body, and plays an essential role in manifesting their physiological effects. For example, (−)-epigallocatechin-3-O-gallate (EGCG), the representative catechin in green tea (Camellia sinensi L.), exerts various effects, including anti-cancer, anti-inflammatory, and anti-allergic effects, when sensed by the cell surficial protein 67-kDa laminin receptor (67LR). 
  • 1.0K
  • 19 Aug 2022
Topic Review
Macrophages and Cholesterol-Dependent Cytolysins
Cholesterol-dependent cytolysins (CDCs) are key virulence factors involved in many lethal bacterial infections, including pneumonia, necrotizing soft tissue infections, bacterial meningitis, and miscarriage. Host responses to these diseases involve myeloid cells, especially macrophages. Macrophages use several systems to detect and respond to cholesterol-dependent cytolysins, including membrane repair, mitogen-activated protein (MAP) kinase signaling, phagocytosis, cytokine production, and activation of the adaptive immune system. However, CDCs also promote immune evasion by silencing and/or destroying myeloid cells. While there are many common themes between the various CDCs, each CDC also possesses specific features to optimally benefit the pathogen producing it.
  • 994
  • 09 Nov 2020
Topic Review
Main Potential Cytokine Targets in Psoriasis
Psoriasis is an autoimmune disease mediated by disturbed T cells and other immune cells, and is defined by deep-red, well-demarcated skin lesions. Using biologics to target specific immune components, such as upregulated cytokines secreted by activated immune cells, is the most advanced therapy for psoriasis to date.
  • 994
  • 28 Feb 2022
Topic Review
Machine Learning in T- and B-Cell Epitope Prediction
An antigenic determinant (AD) is a portion of an antigen molecule known as an epitope that is recognized by the human immune system, specifically by antibodies or T and B cells. Recognition of epitopes is considered important in EBPV design to contain pandemics, epidemics, and endemics due to the outbreak of infectious diseases. To design an effective and viable EBPV against different strains of a pathogen, it is important to identify the putative T- and B-cell epitopes. Using the wet-lab experimental approach to identify these epitopes is time-consuming and costly because the experimental screening of a vast number of potential epitope candidates is required. Fortunately, various available machine learning (ML)-based prediction methods have reduced the burden related to the epitope mapping process by decreasing the potential epitope candidate list for experimental trials. Moreover, these methods are also cost-effective, scalable, and fast. 
  • 992
  • 16 Feb 2022
Topic Review
Macrophage, Meta-Inflammation, and Inflammaging
Macrophages are central players in systemic inflammation associated with obesity and aging, termed meta-inflammation and inflammaging. Activities of macrophages elicited by the two chronic conditions display shared and distinct patterns mechanistically, resulting in multifaceted actions for their pathogenic roles. Drastically expanded tissue macrophage populations under obesity and aging stress attribute to both enhanced recruitment and local expansion.
  • 990
  • 25 Nov 2022
  • Page
  • of
  • 39
Featured Entry Collections
>>

Featured Books

>>
Encyclopedia of Social Sciences
Encyclopedia of COVID-19
Encyclopedia of Fungi
Encyclopedia of Digital Society, Industry 5.0 and Smart City
ScholarVision Creations
Feedback