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Topic Review
Histological Healing in Inflammatory Bowel Disease
Inflammatory bowel disease (IBD) comprises two types of chronic intestinal disorders: Crohn’s disease and ulcerative colitis. In long-standing ulcerative colitis disease activity, histological persistent inflammation has been linked to an increased risk of relapse, and long-term corticosteroid use, even when endoscopic remission is reached. In Crohn’s disease, the discontinuous nature of lesions and transmural inflammation have limited the standardized histological assessment. The current evidence from research proposes that besides clinical and endoscopic healing, the achievement of histological healing constitutes an endpoint to assess disease activity and remission in IBD patients concerning better long-term disease outcomes. Histological alterations may persist even in the absence of endoscopic lesions. For these reasons, new advanced techniques promise to revolutionize the field of IBD by improving the endoscopic and histologic assessment, disease characterization, and ultimately patient care, with an established role in daily practice for objective assessment of lesions. 
  • 1.5K
  • 01 Dec 2023
Topic Review
Molecular Classification of Colorectal Cancer
Colorectal cancer, being mostly colorectal carcinomas (CRC), represents the third most diagnosed cancer and the second cause of cancer-related death. Molecular classification serves as indicator of targeted therapy
  • 1.5K
  • 24 Aug 2022
Topic Review
Hepatitis Delta Virus
Hepatitis Delta Virus (HDV) is the cause of hepatitis D, a relatively rare but aggressive form of viral hepatitis developing in patients co-infected with hepatitis B virus (HBV). HDV infection is associated with HBV infection since the defective HDV needs HBV to infect and replicate in the liver. Even if not a frequent cause of chronic liver disease, HDV infection is responsible for an aggressive progression of hepatitis towards advanced liver disease.
  • 1.5K
  • 10 May 2022
Topic Review
Cancer-Associated Fibroblasts in Hepatocellular Carcinoma
Hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC) is one of the most prevalent cancers worldwide and the fourth leading cause of cancer-related death globally. Tumor cells recruit and remodel various types of stromal and inflammatory cells to form a tumor microenvironment (TME), which encompasses cellular and molecular entities, including cancer-associated fibroblasts (CAFs), tumor-associated macrophages (TAMs), tumor-associated neutrophils (TANs), immune cells, myeloid-derived suppressor cells (MDSCs), immune checkpoint molecules and cytokines that promote cancer cell growth, as well as their drug resistance. HCC usually arises in the context of cirrhosis, which is always associated with an enrichment of activated fibroblasts that are owed to chronic inflammation. 
  • 1.5K
  • 23 Feb 2023
Topic Review
Inflammation-Driven Colorectal Cancer Associated with Colitis
Patients with inflammatory bowel disease (IBD) are at an increased risk of developing colorectal cancer (CRC), mainly because of chronic intestinal inflammation. Some unique molecular differences occur in colitis-associated CRC, resulting in a different sequence of events, primarily of inflammation–dysplasia–carcinoma, compared to sporadic cases.
  • 1.5K
  • 10 May 2023
Topic Review
Autoimmune Atrophic Gastritis
Autoimmune atrophic gastritis is an organ-specific immune-mediated condition characterized by atrophy of the oxyntic mucosa. Autoimmune atrophic gastritis (AIG) is characterized by a progressive loss of acid-secreting parietal cells leading to hypo-achlorhydria. Due to this peculiar intra-gastric environment, gastric microbiota composition in individuals with autoimmune atrophic gastritis was first supposed and then recently reported to be different from subjects with a normal acidic healthy stomach. Recent data confirm the prominent role of Helicobacter pylori as the main bacterium responsible for gastric disease and long-term complications. However, other bacteria than Helicobacter pylori, for example, Streptococci, were found in subjects who developed gastric cancer and in subjects at risk of this fearful complication, as well as those with autoimmune gastritis. Gastric microbiota composition is challenging to study due to the acidic gastric environment, the difficulty of obtaining representative samples of the entire gastric microbiota, and the possible contamination by oral or throat microorganisms, which can potentially lead to the distortion of the original gastric microbial composition, but innovative molecular approaches based on the analysis of the hyper-variable region of the 16S rRNA gene have been developed, permitting us to obtain an overall microbial composition view of the RNA gene that is present only in prokaryotic cells. 
  • 1.5K
  • 08 Dec 2020
Topic Review
First-and Second-Line Therapies for Primary Biliary Cholangitis
Primary biliary cholangitis (PBC) is a chronic autoimmune liver disease characterized by the progressive destruction of the intrahepatic bile ducts. Currently, the first line drug for PBC is ursodeoxycholic acid characterized by anti-apoptotic, anti-inflammatory and protective actions on cholangiocytes. 
  • 1.4K
  • 21 Mar 2022
Topic Review
The Role of Immune Cells in Ulcerative Colitis
Ulcerative colitis (UC) is a chronic inflammatory disease with an underlying excessive immune response directed against resident microbiota and/or dietary antigens. The condition is diagnosed mostly between the ages of 20 to 40, however it can occur at every age. Characteristic of UC are alternating periods of clinical relapse and remission.
  • 1.4K
  • 29 Jan 2022
Topic Review
Inflammatory Bowel Disease
The conventional approach to IBD aims to induce and maintain clinical remission free of corticosteroids, thus minimizing the impact on quality of life.(1) Currently, corticosteroids, sulfasalazine, mesalamine (5-ASA), and immunomodulators are treatment options for patients with IBD. Studies indicate that a substantial proportion of patients do not fully respond to conventional treatment for IBD or that its efficacy wanes over time.(2) Corticosteroid resistance/refractoriness rates range from 8.9% to 25% in individuals with IBD.(3, 4) Identifying safe and effective therapeutic agents for complementary therapy remains an unmet need for these patients. Curcumin also acts by inhibiting the activity of pro-inflammatory proteins such as activated protein-1, peroxisome proliferator-activated receptor gamma, signal translators, and transcription activators, as well as the expression of b-catenin, cyclooxygenase 2, 5-lipoxygenase, and inducible nitric oxide synthase isoform, which play a key role in inflammation.(5) In addition, it acts by blocking the binding between TNF-α and its receptor, preventing the perpetuation of inflammation caused by this cytokine.(6) Curcumin's excellent anti-inflammatory profile makes it a promising therapeutic agent in the treatment of IBD. 
  • 1.4K
  • 05 Nov 2020
Topic Review
The Melanocortin System in Inflammatory Bowel Diseases
The melanocortin system is a complex set of molecular mediators and receptors involved in many physiological and homeostatic processes. These include the regulation of melanogenesis, steroidogenesis, neuromodulation and the modulation of inflammatory processes. In the latter context, the system has assumed importance in conditions of chronic digestive inflammation, such as inflammatory bowel diseases (IBD), in which numerous experiences have been accumulated in mouse models of colitis.
  • 1.4K
  • 28 Sep 2023
Topic Review
Magnetic Resonance Imaging of the Gastrointestinal Tract
Magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) performed with the more advanced imaging techniques allows an accurate assessment of many intestinal disorders, particularly inflammatory bowel disease and rectal cancer; in most of these diseases, MRI is invaluable for diagnosis, staging, and monitoring under treatment. Several MRI parameters are currently considered activity biomarkers for inflammatory and neoplastic diseases. Furthermore, in younger patients with acute or chronic GI disease, MRI can be safely used for short-term follow-up studies in many critical clinical situations because it is radiation-free. MRI assessment of functional gastro-esophageal and small bowel disorders is still in its infancy but very promising, while it is well established and widely used for dynamic assessment of anorectal and pelvic floor dysfunction; MRI motility biomarkers have also been described. 
  • 1.4K
  • 07 Aug 2023
Topic Review
Liver Tissue Engineering
The liver is the largest gland in the human body, mediating essential functions in homeostasis, metabolism, serum protein production, storage of glycogen, drug detoxification, immune system, and production and secretion of bile acids. The ultimate goal of liver tissue engineering (LTE)  is to restore partial or total function of the liver during liver failure. A fully functional liver is the ultimate aim of LTE, and functional liver tissue can be used for drug testing. Moreover, LTE has the potential to develop an extracorporeal liver support (ECLS) system performing the essential functions of the liver to reduce mortality or to bridge a patient to a liver transplant. With recent advances in the field of regenerative medicine, tissue engineering holds high potential to progress as an alternative or supplement to LT. A major advance in the LTE area was published by Chhabra and colleagues, reporting the development of a vascularized liver model to understand liver regeneration.
  • 1.4K
  • 05 Jan 2024
Topic Review
ECL Cell
The ECL cell was recognized as the cell producing histamine, taking part in the regulation of gastric acid secretion. The ECL cell carries the gastrin receptor, and gastrin regulates its function (histamine release) as well as proliferation. Long-term hypergastrinemia results in gastric neoplasia of variable malignancies, implying that gastric hypoacidity resulting in increased gastrin release will induce gastric neoplasia, including gastric cancer. Conclusions: The trophic effect of gastrin on the ECL cell has implications to the treatment with inhibitors of acid secretion.
  • 1.4K
  • 29 Dec 2021
Topic Review
Adrenomedullin
Adrenomedullin (AM) is a bioactive peptide with various physiological functions, including vasodilation, angiogenesis, anti-inflammation, organ protection, and tissue repair.
  • 1.4K
  • 12 Oct 2021
Topic Review
Inflammatory Bowel Disease-Associated Colorectal Cancer
Colonic inflammatory bowel disease (IBD) encompasses ulcerative colitis (UC) and Crohn’s colitis (CC). Patients with IBD are at increased risk for colitis-associated colorectal cancer (CACRC) compared to the general population. CACRC is preceded by IBD, characterized by highly heterogenous, pharmacologically incurable, pertinacious, worsening, and immune-mediated inflammatory pathologies of the colon and rectum. The molecular and immunological basis of CACRC is highly correlated with the duration and severity of inflammation, which is influenced by the exogenous free hemoglobin alpha chain (HbαC), a byproduct of infiltrating immune cells; extravasated erythrocytes; and macrophage erythrophagocytosis. The exogenous free HbαC prompts oxygen free radical-arbitrated DNA damage (DNAD) through increased cellular reactive oxygen species (ROS), which is exacerbated by decreased tissue antioxidant defenses. Mitigation of the Fenton Reaction via pharmaceutical therapy would attenuate ROS, promote apoptosis and DNAD repair, and subsequently prevent the incidence of CACRC. Three pharmaceutical options that attenuate hemoglobin toxicity include haptoglobin, deferoxamine, and flavonoids (vitamins C/E). Haptoglobin’s clearance rate from plasma is inversely correlated with its size; the smaller the size, the faster the clearance. Thus, the administration of Hp1-1 may prove to be beneficial.
  • 1.4K
  • 13 Jul 2023
Topic Review
Gastric Intestinal Metaplasia
Gastric cancer (GC) remains one of the most common causes of mortality worldwide. Intestinal metaplasia (IM) is one of the preneoplastic gastric lesions and is considered an essential predisposing factor in GC development. Here we present a review of recent most relevant papers to summarize major findings on the molecular alterations in gastric IM. The latest progress in novel diagnostic methods allows scientists to identify various types of molecular alterations in IM, such as polymorphisms in various genes, changes in the expression of micro-RNAs and long noncoding RNAs, and altered microbiome profiles. The results have shown that some of these alterations have strong associations with IM and a potential to be used for screening, treatment, and prognostic purposes; however, one of the most important limiting factors is the inhomogeneity of the studies. Therefore, further large-scale studies and clinical trials with standardized methods designed by multicenter consortiums are needed. As of today, various molecular alterations in IM could become a part of personalized medicine in the near future, which would help us deliver a personalized approach for each patient and identify those at risk of progression to GC.
  • 1.4K
  • 24 Jun 2021
Topic Review
Quercetin in Hepatocellular Carcinoma
Quercetin is a flavonoid present in fruits, vegetables and plants with beneficial effects in several human disorders, including liver cancer. The antioxidant and anti-inflammatory properties make quercetin an interesting drug to be evaluated in hepatocarcinoma (HCC), the major primary liver tumor with a high mortality rate. Moreover, increasing number of studies reported a high variety of antitumor actions which places quercetin as a promising antitumor agent, not only as single treatment but also improving current therapeutic options against advanced HCC.
  • 1.4K
  • 12 Oct 2021
Topic Review
Acacia Catechu Willd. for CRC
The research for innovative treatments against colon adenocarcinomas is still a great challenge. Acacia catechu Willd. heartwood extract (AC) has health-promoting qualities, especially at gastrointestinal level. This study characterized AC for its catechins content and investigates the apoptotic-enhancing effect in human colorectal adenocarcinoma HT-29 cells, along with its ability to spare healthy tissue. Results showed that AC  induced an increase in apoptotic cells and ROS formation, reduction in mitochondria membrane potential as well as increase in caspase-9 and -3 activity. AC did not affect rat ileum and colon rings viability and functionality, suggesting its safe profile toward healthy tissue. The present findings outline the potential of AC for colon cancer treatment.
  • 1.4K
  • 14 Apr 2021
Topic Review
Liver Diseases and Nutritional Status
Liver fibrosis is the consequence of different inflammatory processes occurring in any chronic liver disease. Its progression determines the development of cirrhosis and portal hypertension. The natural history of cirrhosis is characterized by a compensated phase, with or without portal hypertension, and a decompensated phase characterized by the appearance of major complications, such as ascites, portal hypertensive bleeding, encephalopathy, and jaundice. Malnutrition is frequent in patients with liver cirrhosis, which progresses in parallel with the worsening of the disease. Its etiology is multifactorial, given the great impact of liver disease on multiple processes related to nutrition.
  • 1.4K
  • 27 May 2021
Topic Review
Pathophysiology of NAFLD
Nonalcoholic fatty liver disease (NAFLD), including nonalcoholic steatohepatitis (NASH), is a growing cause of liver cirrhosis and liver cancer worldwide because of the global increases in obesity, dyslipidemia, hypertension, and type 2 diabetes mellitus.
  • 1.4K
  • 27 Apr 2022
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