Topic Review Peer Reviewed
The Effects of SARS-CoV-2 on the Angiopoietin/Tie Axis and the Vascular Endothelium
Severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2) infection can cause potentially life-threatening coronavirus disease (COVID-19). COVID-19 is a multisystem disease and is associated with significant respiratory distress, systemic hyperinflammation, vasculitis, and multi-organ failure. SARS-CoV-2 causes the deterioration of numerous systems, with increasing evidence implying that COVID-19 affects the endothelium and vascular function. The endothelium is important for preserving vascular tone and homeostasis. The overactivation and dysfunction of endothelial cells are significant outcomes of severity in patients with COVID-19. The Angiopoietin 1/Tie 2 pathway plays an important role in endothelium quiescence and vessel stability. The disruption of Angiopoietin/Tie balance affects the vessel contact barrier and leads to vessel leakage, and this in turn causes endothelial dysfunction. Although vascular instability through SARS-CoV-2 is associated with endothelial dysfunction, it is still not understood if the virus affects the Angiopoietin/Tie axis directly or via other mechanisms such as cytokine storm and/or immune response associated with the infection. This review provides an overview of the impact SARS-CoV-2 has on endothelial function and more specifically on the Angiopoietin/Tie pathway.
  • 449
  • 21 Mar 2024
Topic Review
Yellow Fever Vaccination
Yellow fever (YF) remains a threat to global health, with an increasing number of major outbreaks in the tropical areas of the world over the recent past. In light of this, the Eliminate Yellow Fever Epidemics Strategy was established with the aim of protecting one billion people at risk of YF through vaccination by the year 2026. The current YF vaccine gives excellent protection, but its use is limited by shortages in supply due to the difficulties in producing the vaccine. There are good grounds for believing that alternative fractional dosing regimens can produce strong protection and overcome the problem of supply shortages as less vaccine is required per person. However, immune responses to these vaccination approaches are yet to be fully understood. In addition, published data on immune responses following YF vaccination have mostly quantified neutralising antibody titers. However, vaccine-induced antibodies can confer immunity through other antibody effector functions beyond neutralisation, and an effective vaccine is also likely to induce strong and persistent memory T cell responses.
  • 445
  • 30 Jun 2021
Topic Review
Parent-infant Psychotherapy
Psychodynamic Therapy with Infants and Parents (abbr. PTIP) aims to relieve emotional disturbances within the parent(s), the baby, and/or their interaction, for example, postnatal depression and anxiety, infant distress with breastfeeding and sleep, and attachment disorders. It rests on attachment theory and psychoanalysis. Sigmund Freud suggested that a modification of his method could be applied to children, and child analysis was introduced in the 1920s by [Anna Freud].., [Melanie Klein], and Hermine Hug von Hellmuth. Klein speculated on infantile experiences to understand her patients' disorders but she did not practice PTIP. Donald Winnicott, a pediatrician and analyst, focused on the mother-baby interplay in his theorizing and his brief parent-child consultations, but he did not work with PTIP.
  • 444
  • 07 Nov 2022
Topic Review
Vitamin D and CKD with Bone Disorder
Chronic kidney disease (CKD) is a highly prevalent condition worldwide in which the kidneys lose many abilities, such as the regulation of vitamin D (VD) metabolism. Moreover, people with CKD are at a higher risk of multifactorial VD deficiency, which has been extensively associated with poor outcomes, including bone disease, cardiovascular disease, and higher mortality.
  • 444
  • 19 Apr 2023
Topic Review
NO Signaling Pathways in Aging
Nitric Oxide (NO) is a potent signaling molecule involved in the regulation of various cellular mechanisms and pathways under normal and pathological conditions. NO production, its effects, and its efficacy, are extremely sensitive to aging-related changes in the cells. 
  • 442
  • 12 Aug 2021
Topic Review
HSPs and Ovarian Cancer
Ovarian cancer is a serious cause of death in gynecological oncology. Delayed diagnosis and poor survival rates associated with late stages of the disease are major obstacles against treatment efforts. Heat shock proteins (HSPs) are stress responsive molecules known to be crucial in many cancer types including ovarian cancer. Clusterin (CLU), a unique chaperone protein with analogous oncogenic criteria to HSPs, has also been proven to confer resistance to anti-cancer drugs. Indeed, these chaperone molecules have been implicated in diagnosis, prognosis, metastasis and aggressiveness of various cancers. However, relative to other cancers, there is limited body of knowledge about the molecular roles of these chaperones in ovarian cancer. Here, we shed light on the diverse roles of HSPs as well as related chaperone proteins like CLU in the pathogenesis of ovarian cancer and elucidate their potential as effective drug targets.
  • 442
  • 31 Aug 2021
Topic Review
TRPM4 in Disease
Transient receptor potential melastatin 4 (TRPM4) is a unique member of the TRPM protein family and, similarly to TRPM5, is Ca2+ sensitive and permeable for monovalent but not divalent cations. It is widely expressed in many organs and is involved in several functions; it regulates membrane potential and Ca2+ homeostasis in both excitable and non-excitable cells. 
  • 441
  • 11 Jan 2022
Topic Review
GLP-1 Receptor Agonists in Polycystic Ovary Syndrome Management
Polycystic ovary syndrome (PCOS) is the most common metabolic and hormonal disorder in reproduction-aged women. Its pathogenesis involves multiple organ systems and is tightly associated with a higher predisposition and prevalence of abdominal obesity and insulin resistance. Profound weight loss effects in diabetic and non-diabetic patients gave birth to the idea that GLP-1 receptor agonists (GLP-1RAs) could be used in a subgroup of women with PCOS.
  • 440
  • 30 Aug 2022
Topic Review
NLRP3 Inflammasome in Neuromuscular Diseases
Inflammasomes are molecular platforms that are formed and activated by a host in response to pathogen- and damage-associated molecular patterns as well as cellular injury and stress. Inflammasome activation is benefical to the host as it plays a pivotal role in the clearance of the pathogen and restore tissue homeostasis. However, aberrant activation of the NLRP3 inflammasome by a wide variety of sterile triggers, including misfolded protein aggregates drives pathological sterile inflammation and is associated with several neuromuscular diseases. Assembly of the NLRP3 inflammasome leads to the caspase-1-mediated proteolytic cleavage and secretion of key proinflammatory cytokines, interleukin (IL)-1β and IL-18, and a lytic form of cell death known as pyroptosis. These cytokines further amplify inflammatory responses by activating various signaling cascades, leading to the recruitment of immune cells and overproduction of proinflammatory cytokines and chemokines, resulting in a vicious cycle of chronic inflammation and tissue damage.
  • 438
  • 08 Jul 2021
Topic Review
Cold Medicine
Cold medicines are a group of medications taken individually or in combination as a treatment for the symptoms of the common cold and similar conditions of the upper respiratory tract. The term encompasses a broad array of drugs, including analgesics, antihistamines and decongestants, among many others. It also includes drugs which are marketed as cough suppressants or antitussives, but their effectiveness in reducing cough symptoms is unclear or minimal. While they have been used by 10% of American children in any given week, they are not recommended in Canada or the United States in children six years or younger because of lack of evidence showing effect and concerns of harm. One version with codeine, guaifenesin, and pseudoephedrine was the 213th most commonly prescribed medication in 2017, in the United States, with more than two million prescriptions.
  • 437
  • 21 Nov 2022
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