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Topic Review
Biography
Topic Review
Natural Killer Cells: Tumor Surveillance and Signaling
Natural killer (NK) cells play a pivotal role in cancer immunotherapy due to their innate ability to detect and kill tumorigenic cells. The decision to kill is determined by the expression of a myriad of activating and inhibitory receptors on the NK cell surface. Cell-to-cell engagement results in either self-tolerance or a cytotoxic response, governed by a fine balance between the signaling cascades downstream of the activating and inhibitory receptors.
621
04 Jul 2022
Topic Review
P2X7 Variants
The human P2X7 gene is highly polymorphic, and several splice variants of the receptor have been identified in time. P2X7 single-nucleotide polymorphisms (SNPs) have been broadly analyzed by studies relating them to pathologies as different as infectious, inflammatory, nervous, and bone diseases, among which cancer is included. Moreover, in the last years, an increasing number of reports concentrated on P2X7 splice variants’ different roles and their implications in pathological conditions, including oncogenesis. Our article on P2X7 variants in oncogenesis recently published in Cells gives an overview of established and recent literature demonstrating a role for human P2X7 gene products in oncological conditions. Here you find the main structural information on P2X7 variants.
621
02 Feb 2021
Topic Review
PBK/TOPK: A Therapeutic Target
T-lymphokine-activated killer cell-originated protein kinase (TOPK), also known as PDZ-binding kinase (PBK), was a member of the MEK3/6-related MAPKK family. As a mitotic serine/threonine protein kinase, accumulating evidence supported its role in mitosis and cell-cycle progression of mitotically active cells, especially proliferative malignant cells. PBK/TOPK was confirmed to be associated with the development, progression, and metastasis of malignancies, which made it a potential therapeutic target in cancer therapy. Further, it was also demonstrated to play crucial roles in ischemic injury and involve in protection against ischemia. This protective effect of PBK/TOPK in the context of ischemia challeged the development of PBK/TOPK inhibitors in anti-tumor therapy, and more research was required to further explore its role and underlying mechanisms to translate its application to clinical studies.
620
19 Mar 2021
Topic Review
Physiological and Molecular Differences in SMA NSCs
Neural stem cells (NSCs) in the adult nervous tissue were among the last to be identified and isolated in a living organism. While the U.S. Food and Drug Administration and the European Medicines Evaluation Agency have recently approved new drugs to treat spinal muscular atrophy 1 (SMA1) in young patients, they are mostly ineffective in older patients since many motor neurons have already been lost. Therefore, understanding nervous system (NS) physiology in SMA patients is essential.
620
12 Dec 2022
Topic Review
The Oxytocin System in the Brain
Research on oxytocin (OT) was pioneered in the 1920s by German anatomist Ernst Scharrer, after he identified unusual, large-shaped “glandule-like” cells in the hypothalamus of fish. A full anatomical, morphological and functional assessment would follow in the next 50 years, complemented by the Nobel-prize awarded for the synthesis of OT to Vincent du Vigneaud in 1955.
619
09 Dec 2022
Topic Review
Mesenchymal Stromal Cell Aging
Mesenchymal stem/stromal cells (MSCs) are a reservoir for tissue homeostasis and repair that age during organismal aging. Beside the fundamental in vivo role of MSCs, they have also emerged in the last years as extremely promising therapeutic agents for a wide variety of clinical conditions. MSC use frequently requires in vitro expansion, thus exposing cells to replicative senescence. Aging of MSCs (both in vivo and in vitro) can affect not only their replicative potential, but also their properties, like immunomodulation and secretory profile, thus possibly compromising their therapeutic effect. It is therefore of critical importance to unveil the underlying mechanisms of MSC senescence and to define shared methods to assess MSC aging status.
619
16 Jun 2021
Topic Review
Mitochondrial Homeostasis
Mitochondria are essential organelles and crucial for cellular survival. Mitochondrial biogenesis and mitophagy are dynamic features that are essential for both maintaining the health of the mitochondrial network and cellular demands. The accumulation of damaged mitochondria has been shown to be related to a wide range of pathologies ranging from neurological to musculoskeletal.
617
18 Oct 2022
Topic Review
Dietary Antioxidants in Age-Related Macular Degeneration and Glaucoma
Age-related macular degeneration (AMD) and glaucoma are ophthalmic neurodegenerative diseases responsible for irreversible vision loss in the world population. Only a few therapies can be used to slow down the progression of these diseases and there are no available treatment strategies for reversing the degeneration of the neural retina. In AMD, the pathological process causes the malfunction and damage of the retinal pigmented epithelium and photoreceptors in the macula. In glaucoma, damage of the retinal ganglion cells and their axons is observed and treatment strategies are limited to intraocular pressure lowering. Therefore, other prophylactic and/or therapeutic methods are needed. Oxidative stress is involved in the neurodegenerative process accompanying both AMD and glaucoma; therefore, the use of antioxidant agents would clearly be beneficial, which is supported by the decreased prevalence and progression of AMD in patients adherent to a diet naturally rich in antioxidants.
617
11 Nov 2021
Topic Review
Corneal Confocal Microscopy Imaging
In vivo corneal confocal microscopy (IVCM) is a non-invasive ophthalmic imaging technique that provides images of the cornea at the cellular level. The observation of the corneal cells, both normal and inflammatory, and the possibility of quantification of the corneal nerve density with manual or automated tools, makes IVCM have a significant potential to improve the diagnosis and prognosis in several systemic and corneal conditions.
617
04 Jan 2023
Topic Review
Somatic Polyploidy
Somatic polyploidy was found in the tissues of all multicellular organisms (including algae, mosses, lichens, vascular plants, invertebrates, and vertebrates), which points to its adaptive value. In human and warm-blooded animals, polyploidy can be a part of normal postnatal morphogenetic programs and can be a manifestation of response to pathological stimuli and diseases.
617
11 Apr 2022
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