Encyclopedia
Scholarly Community
Encyclopedia
Entry
Video
Image
Journal
Book
News
About
Log in/Sign up
Submit
Entry
Video
Image
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:
Hottest
Latest
Alphabetical (A-Z)
Alphabetical (Z-A)
Type:
All
Topic Review
Biography
Topic Review
Therapeutic miRNA-Enriched Extracellular Vesicles
Extracellular vesicles (EVs) are 50–300 nm vesicles secreted by eukaryotic cells. They can carry cargo (including miRNA) from the donor cell to the recipient cell. miRNAs in EVs can change the translational profile of the recipient cell and modulate cellular morphology. This endogenous mechanism has attracted the attention of the drug-delivery community in the last few years. EVs can be enriched with exogenous therapeutic miRNAs and used for treatment of diseases by targeting pathological recipient cells. However, there are some obstacles that need to be addressed before introducing therapeutic miRNA-enriched EVs in clinics.
1.2K
19 Oct 2020
Topic Review
Mass Spectrometry Imaging
Mass spectrometry imaging (MSI) or imaging mass spectrometry (IMS) is a promising analytical method to determine and visualize the spatial distribution of specific chemical compositions by their molecular weights or m/z values. MSI is basically a two-dimensional analysis method that can detect intact molecules within tissues or tissue sections without necessitating extraction, purification, and separation.
1.2K
30 Oct 2020
Topic Review
Necrotizing Ulcerative Stomatitis
Acute necrotizing ulcerative gingivitis (ANUG) is a common, non-contagious infection of the gums with sudden onset. The main features are painful, bleeding gums, and ulceration of inter-dental papillae (the sections of gum between adjacent teeth). This disease, along with necrotizing (ulcerative) periodontitis (NP or NUP) is classified as a necrotizing periodontal disease, one of the seven general types of gum disease caused by inflammation of the gums (periodontitis). The often severe gum pain that characterizes ANUG distinguishes it from the more common chronic periodontitis which is rarely painful. If ANUG is improperly treated or neglected, it may become chronic and/or recurrent. The causative organisms are mostly anaerobic bacteria, particularly Fusobacteriota and spirochete species. Predisposing factors include poor oral hygiene, smoking, poor nutrition, psychological stress, and a weakened immune system. When the attachments of the teeth to the bone are involved, the term NUP is used. Treatment of ANUG is by removal of dead gum tissue and antibiotics (usually metronidazole) in the acute phase, and improving oral hygiene to prevent recurrence. Although the condition has a rapid onset and is debilitating, it usually resolves quickly and does no serious harm. The informal name trench mouth arose during World War I as many soldiers developed the disease, probably because of the poor conditions and extreme psychological stress.
1.2K
04 Nov 2022
Topic Review
Mutagens Applied to Microalgae for Random Mutagenesis
Microalgal biomass and metabolites can be used as a renewable source of nutrition, pharmaceuticals and energy to maintain or improve the quality of human life. Microalgae’s high volumetric productivity and low impact on the environment make them a promising raw material in terms of both ecology and economics. To optimize biotechnological processes with microalgae, improving the productivity and robustness of the cell factories is a major step towards economically viable bioprocesses. The success of a random mutagenesis approach using microalgae is determined by multiple factors involving the treatment of the cells before, during and after the mutagenesis procedure. Using photosynthetic microalgae, the supply of light quality and quantity, as well as the supply of carbon and nitrogen, are the most important factors. Besides the environmental conditions, the type of mutagen, its concentration and exposure time are among the main factors affecting the mutation result.
1.2K
01 Aug 2022
Topic Review
Rocaglates Target DEAD-Box RNA-Helicase eIF4A
The increase in pandemics caused by RNA viruses of zoonotic origin highlights the urgent need for broad-spectrum antivirals against novel and re-emerging RNA viruses. Broad-spectrum anti-virals could be deployed as first-line interventions during an outbreak while virus-specific drugs and vaccines are developed and rolled out. Viruses depend on the host’s protein synthesis ma-chinery for replication. Several natural compounds that target the cellular DEAD-box RNA hel-icase eIF4A, a key component of the eukaryotic translation initiation complex eIF4F, have emerged as potential broad-spectrum antivirals. Rocaglates, a group of flavaglines of plant origin that clamp mRNAs with highly structured 5′ untranslated regions (5′UTRs) onto the surface of eIF4A through specific stacking interactions, exhibit the largest selectivity and potential therapeu-tic indices among all known eIF4A inhibitors. Their unique mechanism of action limits the inhibi-tory effect of rocaglates to the translation of eIF4A-dependent viral mRNAs and a minor fraction of host mRNAs exhibiting stable RNA secondary structures and/or polypurine sequence stretches in their 5′UTRs, resulting in minimal potential toxic side effects.
1.2K
23 Apr 2021
Topic Review
Prunus
Prunus species, as climacteric fruits, have a short ripening period and shelf-life after harvest, with a fast period of softening.
1.2K
19 Jan 2021
Topic Review
Regulation of Estrogen Receptor Stability
Estrogen receptor (ER) signalling promotes proliferation in breast cancer (BCa). Endocrine therapies (ET) target this signaling by preventing the production of its ligand estrogen, or by blocking its interaction with the ER. The ER is regulated by a range of posttranslational modifications (PTMs) including ubiquitylation, SUMOylation, phosphorylation, palmitoylation, acetylation, methylation and glycosylation. These PTMs control ER activity, stability as well as its interactions with other proteins. For example, kinases play significant roles in mediating crosstalk between the ER and the PI3K-AKT-mTOR and MAPK pathways, which are implicated in ET resistance. Another major control of ER activity is through the regulation of its half-life, largely by ubiquitin which initiates degradation through the ubiquitin proteasome system. As such, PTMs play a central role in the regulation of ER activity and stability.
1.2K
08 Oct 2020
Topic Review
Commercial Targeted Libraries in Drug Design
After the identification of a biological target (enzyme, receptor, protein and so on), the focus of the early phase of drug discovery rests on the identification of leads or compounds that exhibit pharmacological activity against this specific target. Compounds of interest are most often discovered in pre-existing libraries of compounds that can be either virtual or physical. Computer-aided methods which have become increasingly important over the years in drug development utilize virtual compound libraries. While physical compound libraries reach the number of millions of molecules, virtual compound libraries created by large pharmaceutical companies can range from 107 to 1018 molecules. Investigations of these libraries identifies specific molecules, synthetic pathways and focus on a specific chemical space. Targeted libraries are often smaller and are focused towards a specific chemical space. They are created by using relevant biological information with the aim to decrease the processing time associated with larger libraries while maintaining the most relevant chemical space where lead compounds can be found. Due to the fact that they required less computational or wet-lab labor to process they have become very popular with smaller laboratories which try to compete in the drug-development sector. Many modern vendors of compounds today offer such libraries, but the quality of the procedure used to define desired chemical space and select compounds is questionable.
1.2K
25 May 2022
Topic Review
Semaphorins Effects in Metabolic Disorders
Semaphorins are a family originally identified as axonal guidance molecules. They are also involved in tumor growth, angiogenesis, immune regulation, as well as other biological and pathological processes. Recent studies have shown that semaphorins play a role in metabolic diseases including obesity, adipose inflammation, and diabetic complications, including diabetic retinopathy, diabetic nephropathy, diabetic neuropathy, diabetic wound healing, and diabetic osteoporosis. Evidence provides mechanistic insights regarding the role of semaphorins in metabolic diseases by regulating adipogenesis, hypothalamic melanocortin circuit, immune responses, and angiogenesis. In this review, we summarize recent progress regarding the role of semaphorins in obesity, adipose inflammation, and diabetic complications.
1.2K
28 Aug 2020
Topic Review
Citrus Breeding 2.0 in Japan
Developing varieties with diverse features that satisfy varied commercial needs, improving overall fruit quality, and quickly releasing them, are prerequisites in citrus breeding. However, these three goals require trade-offs in conventional breeding, even with the application of the marker-assisted selection technique. Conventional breeding cannot achieve these three goals simultaneously and it has been regarded as a breeding trilemma. Integrating a genomics-assisted breeding (GAB) approach that relies on quantitative trait locus detection by genome-wide association study and genome-wide prediction of a trait by genomic selection using enriched marker genotypes enhances breeding efficiency and contributes to eliminating the trilemma. Besides these efforts, the analysis of the genealogy of indigenous citrus varieties revealed that many high-quality indigenous varieties were selected within a few generations. It suggested that selecting a new premium quality hybrid is possible by integrating it with the GAB technique and helps avoid the trilemma. Researchers describe an ongoing comprehensive approach for integrating genomic-assisted breeding (GAB) with citrus genealogy on citrus breeding, called Citrus Breeding 2.0. This method can develop new cultivars with premium quality in a short period.
1.2K
11 Aug 2022
Page
of
1815
Featured Entry Collections
>>
Featured Books
>>
Encyclopedia of Social Sciences
Chief Editor:
Michael McAleer
Encyclopedia of COVID-19
Chief Editor:
Stephen Bustin
Encyclopedia of Fungi
Chief Editor:
Luis V. Lopez-Llorca
Encyclopedia of Digital Society, Industry 5.0 and Smart City
Chief Editor:
Sandro Serpa
Entry
Video
Image
Journal
Book
News
About
Log in/Sign up
New Entry
New Video
New Images
About
Terms and Conditions
Privacy Policy
Advisory Board
Contact
Partner
ScholarVision Creations
Feedback
Top
Feedback
×
Help Center
Browse our user manual, common Q&A, author guidelines, etc.
Rate your experience
Let us know your experience and what we could improve.
Report an error
Is something wrong? Please let us know!
Other feedback
Other feedback you would like to report.
×
Did you find what you were looking for?
Love
Like
Neutral
Dislike
Hate
0
/500
Email
Do you agree to share your valuable feedback publicly on
Encyclopedia
’s homepage?
Yes, I agree. Encyclopedia can post it.
No, I do not agree. I would not like to post my testimonial.
Webpage
Upload a screenshot
(Max file size 2MB)
Submit
Back
Close
×