Topic Review
The Role of CH-EUS in Interventional EUS
Over the last decades, contrast-enhanced harmonic endoscopic ultrasound (CH-EUS) has emerged as an important diagnostic tool for the diagnosis and differentiation of several gastrointestinal diseases. The key advantage of CH-EUS is that the influx and washout of contrast in the target lesion can be observed in real time, accurately depicting microvasculature. CH-EUS is established as an evidence-based technique complementary to B-mode EUS to differentiate solid appearing structures, to characterize mass lesions, and to improve the staging of gastrointestinal and pancreatobiliary cancer. In the last few years, interest has increased in the use of CH-EUS in interventional procedures such as tissue acquisition, tumor ablation, biliary drainage, and the management of pancreatic fluid collections.
  • 552
  • 02 Nov 2021
Topic Review
The Role of aHSCs in Hepatocellular Carcinoma
Hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC) is a global healthcare challenge, which affects more than 815,000 new cases every year. Activated hepatic stellate cells (aHSCs) remain the principal cells that drive HCC onset and growth. aHSCs suppress the anti-tumor immune response through interaction with different immune cells. They also increase the deposition of the extracellular matrix proteins, challenging the reversion of fibrosis and increasing HCC growth and metastasis.
  • 431
  • 27 Dec 2022
Topic Review
The Quality of Upper Gastrointestinal Endoscopy
Upper gastrointestinal endoscopy, or EGD, is essential for diagnosing and managing ailments of the upper gastrointestinal tract. The quality of EGD is crucial and carries significant consequences for patient outcomes, the employment of healthcare resources, and the future course of gastroenterology as a medical specialty.
  • 100
  • 28 Dec 2023
Topic Review
The Molecular Mechanisms of Lipopolysaccharides Tolerance
Lipopolysaccharides (LPSs) are complex molecules found in the outer membrane of Gram-negative bacteria, which are composed of three main regions: lipid A, core oligosaccharide, and O antigen.
  • 155
  • 09 Nov 2023
Topic Review
The Microbiome in Pancreatic Ductal Adenocarcinoma
Pancreatic cancer is a highly lethal cancer and less than 10% of patients survive the 5-year mark. The molecular and biological underpinnings leading to this dismal prognosis are well-described, however, translation of these findings with subsequent improvement of the poor prognosis has been slow. The complex and dynamic accumulation of microbes, also called the microbiome, has attracted scientific interest in the pathogenesis of several diseases including pancreatic cancer. Since then, a limited number of significant findings were published pointing towards an important role of the microbiome in cancer, in particular pancreatic cancer.
  • 534
  • 16 Dec 2022
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.
  • 314
  • 28 Sep 2023
Topic Review
The Mediterranean Diet and Inflammatory Bowel Diseases
The Mediterranean diet is considered one of the healthiest dietary patterns worldwide, thanks to a combination of foods rich mainly in antioxidants and anti-inflammatory nutrients. Many studies have demonstrated a strong relationship between the Mediterranean diet and some chronic gastrointestinal diseases, such as inflammatory bowel diseases.
  • 358
  • 18 Jan 2023
Topic Review
The Liver-Centric Role in Insulin Resistance
The central mechanism involved in the pathogenesis of MAFLD is insulin resistance with hyperinsulinemia, which stimulates triglyceride synthesis and accumulation in the liver. On the other side, triglyceride and free fatty acid accumulation in hepatocytes promotes insulin resistance via oxidative stress, endoplasmic reticulum stress, lipotoxicity, and the increased secretion of hepatokines. Cytokines and adipokines cause insulin resistance, thus promoting lipolysis in adipose tissue and ectopic fat deposition in the muscles and liver. Free fatty acids along with cytokines and adipokines contribute to insulin resistance in the liver via the activation of numerous signaling pathways. The secretion of hepatokines, hormone-like proteins, primarily by hepatocytes is disturbed and impairs signaling pathways, causing metabolic dysregulation in the liver. ER stress and unfolded protein response play significant roles in insulin resistance aggravation through the activation of apoptosis, inflammatory response, and insulin signaling impairment mediated via IRE1/PERK/ATF6 signaling pathways and the upregulation of SREBP 1c. Circadian rhythm derangement and biological clock desynchronization are related to metabolic disorders, insulin resistance, and NAFLD, suggesting clock genes as a potential target for new therapeutic strategies.
  • 80
  • 22 Nov 2023
Topic Review
The Intestinal Microbiota in Chronic Liver Disease
Chronic liver disease (CLD) is a significant global health burden, leading to millions of deaths annually. The gut–liver axis plays a pivotal role in this context, allowing the transport of gut-derived products directly to the liver, as well as biological compounds from the liver to the intestine. The gut microbiota plays a significant role in maintaining the health of the digestive system. A change in gut microbiome composition as seen in dysbiosis is associated with immune dysregulation, altered energy and gut hormone regulation, and increased intestinal permeability, contributing to inflammatory mechanisms and damage to the liver, irrespective of the underlying etiology of CLD.
  • 196
  • 26 Sep 2023
Topic Review
The Impact of MicroRNAs during Inflammatory Bowel Disease
Inflammatory bowel disease (IBD) is a debilitating autoimmune disease characterised by chronic inflammation along the GI tract. Patients diagnosed with IBD are symptomatic for recurrent intestinal inflammation, diarrhoea, abdominal pain, rectal bleeding, weight loss and anaemia. Due to its complexity, a number of factors are attributed to IBD aetiology, including patients’ genetics and makeup of microbiota, food and pharmaceutical consumption, and even limiting antigen exposure due to excessive sanitation. All these aspects further contribute to changes in miRNA expression.
  • 460
  • 24 Apr 2022
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