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Topic Review
Extracellular Vesicles of MSCs
Mesenchymal stem cells (MSCs), the cells distributed in the stromas of the body, are known for various properties including replication, the potential of various differentiations, the immune-related processes including inflammation. These cells were shown to play relevant roles in the therapy of numerous diseases, dependent on their immune regulation and their release of cytokines and growth factors, with ensuing activation of favorable enzymes and processes. Soon thereafter, it became clear that therapeutic actions of MSCs are risky, accompanied by serious drawbacks and defects. MSC therapy has been therefore reduced to a few diseases, replaced for the others by their extracellular vesicles, the MSC-EVs. The latter vesicles recapitulate most therapeutic actions of MSCs, with equal or even better efficacies and without the serious drawbacks of the parent cells. In addition, MSC-EVs are characterized by many advantages, among which are their heterogeneities dependent on the stromas of origin, the alleviation of cell aging, the regulation of immune responses and inflammation.
  • 371
  • 26 Jul 2021
Topic Review
Extracellular Vesicles(EVs)
Extracellular vesicles (EVs), comprising large microvesicles (MVs) and exosomes (EXs), play a key role in intercellular communication, both in physiological and in a wide variety of pathological conditions. However, the education of EV target cells has so far mainly been investigated as a function of EX cargo, while few studies have focused on the characterization of EV surface membrane molecules and the mechanisms that mediate the addressability of specific EVs to different cell types and tissues. Identifying these mechanisms will help fulfill the diagnostic, prognostic, and therapeutic promises fueled by our growing knowledge of EVs.
  • 498
  • 13 Jul 2021
Topic Review
FAAH inhibitor URB597
Since the inhibition of fatty acid amide hydrolase (FAAH), the main catabolic enzyme of anandamide (AEA), may provide beneficial effects in mice model of Alzheimer’s disease (AD)-like pathology, we aimed at determining whether the FAAH inhibitor URB597 might target microglia polarization and alter the cytoskeleton reorganization induced by the amyloid-β peptide (Aβ). The morphological evaluation showed that Aβ treatment increased the surface area of BV-2 cells, which acquired a flat and polygonal morphology. URB597 treatment partially rescued the control phenotype of BV-2 cells when co-incubated with Aβ. Moreover, URB597 reduced both the increase of Rho protein activation in Aβ-treated BV-2 cells and the Aβ-induced migration of BV-2 cells, while an increase of Cdc42 protein activation was observed in all samples. URB597 also increased the number of BV-2 cells involved in phagocytosis. URB597 treatment induced the polarization of microglial cells towards an anti-inflammatory phenotype, as demonstrated by the decreased expression of iNOS and pro-inflammatory cytokines along with the parallel increase of Arg-1 and anti-inflammatory cytokines. Taken together, these data suggest that FAAH inhibition promotes cytoskeleton reorganization, regulates phagocytosis and cell migration processes, thus driving microglial polarization towards an anti-inflammatory phenotype. 
  • 559
  • 02 Aug 2021
Topic Review
Facilitative Sugar Transporters
Facilitative sugar transporters (GLUTs) are passive membrane transporters that are responsible for nearly all of our cells' sugar uptake. They mainly pass glucose and other similar substrates like fructose, mannose, ascorbate, and urate ions. They have been classified into three classes based on structure similarity and substrate affinity.
  • 375
  • 30 Aug 2022
Topic Review
Factor V Leiden
Factor V Leiden (rs6025 or F5 p.R506Q) is a variant (mutated form) of human factor V (one of several substances that helps blood clot), which causes an increase in blood clotting (hypercoagulability). Due to this mutation, protein C, an anticoagulant protein that normally inhibits the pro-clotting activity of factor V, is not able to bind normally to factor V, leading to a hypercoagulable state, i.e., an increased tendency for the patient to form abnormal and potentially harmful blood clots. Factor V Leiden is the most common hereditary hypercoagulability (prone to clotting) disorder amongst ethnic Europeans. It is named after the Dutch city of Leiden, where it was first identified in 1994 by Rogier Maria Bertina under the direction of (and in the laboratory of) Pieter Hendrick Reitsma. Despite the increased risk of venous thromboembolisms, people with one copy of this gene have not been found to have shorter lives than the general population.
  • 617
  • 07 Nov 2022
Topic Review
Factors Required for the Biosynthesis of Glycosphingolipids
As integral components of the cell membrane, glycosphingolipids (GSLs) consist of a glycosidically bound carbohydrate moiety and a lipid moiety known as ceramide. 
  • 155
  • 11 Aug 2023
Topic Review
FAHFAs
Fatty Acid esters of Hydroxy Fatty Acids (FAHFAs) are ester derivatives of fatty acids (FAs) with hydroxy fatty acids (HFAs) carrying the hydroxyl group at different positions. This novel class of endogenously generated lipids, discovered in 2014, has attracted the interest, because such lipids have been found to exhibit anti-diabetic and anti-inflammatory effects. The great number of possible combinations of FAs with HFAs together with the great number of possible positional isomers makes the analysis of FAHFAs very challenging. FAHFAs have been detected and quantified in a variety of human and animal tissues, as well as in plant tissues and foods. Analytical methodologies, either targeted or untargeted, may highly contribute in studying FAHFA levels under various biomedical conditions, and in understanding their role in physiological and pathological conditions.
  • 996
  • 04 Aug 2020
Topic Review
FAK Inhibition and Corneal Fibroblast Differentiation in vitro
Fibrosis is often known as a response of a tissue to injury, and since the three transforming growth factor-beta (TGF-β) isoforms (TGF-β1, -β2, and -β3) are the main regulators of cell migration, differentiation, proliferation, and gene expression, they were implicated in both reparative and fibrotic responses. All three TGF-β isoforms are homologues, sharing an extensive similarity in their amino acid sequences (80%), which may result in overlapping functions (i.e., SMAD-dependent signaling, modulating inflammatory responses); however, subtle differences in the sequences exist, thus potentially eliciting opposing effects. For example, several studies showed that TGF-β1 and -β2 are factors that drive the formation of fibrosis in corneal scarring models [8,9,10], whereas TGF-β3 was reported to downregulate fibrosis and promote scarless wound healing (healing without fibrosis).
  • 455
  • 29 Mar 2022
Topic Review
Farnesoid X Receptor
Farnesoid X receptor (FXR) has a central role in Bile Acids (BA) homeostasis and recent publications revealed that changes in autophagy due to BA-induced reactive oxygen species and increased anti-oxidant response via nuclear factor E2-related factor 2 (NRF2), result in dysregulation of FXR signaling. Several mechanistic studies have identified new dysfunctions of the cholestatic liver at cellular and molecular level, opening new venues for developing more performant therapies.
  • 588
  • 12 Oct 2021
Topic Review
Fascin
Fascin, an actin-binding protein, regulates many developmental migrations and contributes to cancer metastasis.
  • 770
  • 21 Jan 2021
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