Synthesis, Physicochemical Properties, and Ion Recognition Ability of Azulene-Based Bis-(Thio)Semicarbazone.

Azulene-1,3-bis(semicarbazone), , and azulene-1,3-bis(thiosemicarbazone), , were synthesized by the acid-catalyzed condensation reactions of semicarbazide and thiosemicarbazide, respectively, with azulene-1,3-dicarboxaldehyde in stoichiometric amounts. Compounds and were identified by high-resolution mass spectrometry and characterized by IR, H-NMR, C-NMR, and UV-vis spectroscopic techniques. Crystal structure determination of azulene-1,3-bis(thiosemicarbazone) shows that the thiosemicarbazone units exhibit a -closed conformation, with both arms oriented in the same direction and adopting an configuration with respect to the imine linkages.

Comparative analysis of leptin and carcinoembryonic antigen-related cell adhesion molecule 1 plasma expression in pancreatic cancer and chronic pancreatitis patients.

Compared to the general population, patients with chronic pancreatitis have an up to 12-fold higher risk of developing pancreatic cancer. The aim of our study was the identification of potential proteomic biomarkers to contribute to the detection of pancreatic cancer among patients with chronic pancreatitis. We initially performed a proteomic screening analysis of 105 analytes on plasma pools.

Epithelial‑derived head and neck squamous tumourigenesis (Review).

Head and neck squamous cell carcinomas (HNSCCs), a heterogeneous group of cancers that arise from the mucosal epithelia cells in the head and neck areas, present great challenges in diagnosis, treatment and prognosis due to their complex aetiology and various clinical manifestations. Several factors, including smoking, alcohol consumption, oncogenic genes, growth factors, Epstein‑Barr virus and human papillomavirus infections can contribute to HNSCC development. The unpredictable tumour microenvironment adds to the complexity of managing HNSCC.

Increased mRNA expression for serotonin receptor 1B (HTR1B) is associated with thrombosis in BCR::ABL1-negative myeloproliferative neoplasms.

BCR::ABL1-negative myeloproliferative neoplasms (MPNs) are clonal haematopoietic stem cell disorders characterized by specific driver mutations and an increased risk of both macrothrombosis and microthrombosis. Serotonin receptor type 1B (HTR1B) was found to be expressed by various solid tumours, and also primary bone marrow mononuclear cells from myelodysplastic neoplasm and acute myeloid leukaemia patients, representing a potential therapeutic target. In this study we assessed for the first time the expression levels of HTR1B mRNA in the peripheral blood mononuclear cells (PBMC) of 85 newly diagnosed MPN patients, consisting of 28 polycythemia vera, 25 essential thrombocythemia and 32 primary myelofibrosis cases.

Physico-Chemical Properties of Copper-Doped Hydroxyapatite Coatings Obtained by Vacuum Deposition Technique.

The hydroxyapatite and copper-doped hydroxyapatite coatings (CaCu(PO)(OH); x = 0, 0.03; HAp and 3CuHAp) were obtained by the vacuum deposition technique. Then, both coatings were analyzed by the X-ray diffraction (XRD), scanning electron microscopy (SEM), atomic force microscopy (AFM), X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy (XPS), Fourier transform infrared spectroscopy (FTIR) and water contact angle techniques.

Viruses in Wastewater-A Concern for Public Health and the Environment.

Wastewater monitoring provides essential information about water quality and the degree of contamination. Monitoring these waters helps identify and manage risks to public health, prevent the spread of disease, and protect the environment. Standardizing the appropriate and most accurate methods for the isolation and identification of viruses in wastewater is necessary.

Molecular pathways and targeted therapies in head and neck cancers pathogenesis.

The substantial heterogeneity exhibited by head and neck cancer (HNC), encompassing diverse cellular origins, anatomical locations, and etiological contributors, combined with the prevalent late-stage diagnosis, poses significant challenges for clinical management. Genomic sequencing endeavors have revealed extensive alterations in key signaling pathways that regulate cellular proliferation and survival. Initiatives to engineer therapies targeting these dysregulated pathways are underway, with several candidate molecules progressing to clinical evaluation phases, including FDA approval for agents like the EGFR-targeting monoclonal antibody cetuximab for K-RAS wild-type, EGFR-mutant HNSCC treatment.

Interleukin-6 as a Director of Immunological Events and Tissue Regenerative Capacity in Hemodialyzed Diabetes Patients.

Hemodialyzed patients have innate immunity activation and adaptive immunity senescence. Diabetes mellitus is a frequent cause for chronic kidney disease and systemic inflammation. We studied the immunological pattern (innate and acquired immunity) and the tissular regeneration capacity in two groups of hemodialyzed patients: one comprised of diabetics and the other of non-diabetics.

LncRNAs expression profile in a family household cluster of COVID-19 patients.

More than 3 years after the start of SARS-CoV-2 pandemic, the molecular mechanisms behind the viral pathogenesis are still not completely understood. Long non-coding RNAs (lncRNAs), well-known players in viral infections, can represent prime candidates for patients' risk stratification. The purpose of the current study was to investigate the lncRNA profile in a family cluster of COVID-19 cases with different disease progression, during the initial wave of the pandemic and to evaluate their potential as biomarkers for COVID-19 evolution.

Role of interferons in the antiviral battle: from virus-host crosstalk to prophylactic and therapeutic potential in SARS-CoV-2 infection.

Mammalians sense antigenic messages from infectious agents that penetrate the respiratory and digestive epithelium, as well as signals from damaged host cells through membrane and cytosolic receptors. The transduction of these signals triggers a personalized response, depending on the nature of the stimulus and the host's genetics, physiological condition, and comorbidities. Interferons (IFNs) are the primary effectors of the innate immune response, and their synthesis is activated in most cells within a few hours after pathogen invasion.

Implications of oral dysbiosis and HPV infection in head and neck cancer: from molecular and cellular mechanisms to early diagnosis and therapy.

Head and neck cancer (HNC) is the sixth most common type of cancer, with more than half a million new cases annually. This review focuses on the role of oral dysbiosis and HPV infection in HNCs, presenting the involved taxons, molecular effectors and pathways, as well as the HPV-associated particularities of genetic and epigenetic changes and of the tumor microenvironment occurred in different stages of tumor development. Oral dysbiosis is associated with the evolution of HNCs, through multiple mechanisms such as inflammation, genotoxins release, modulation of the innate and acquired immune response, carcinogens and anticarcinogens production, generation of oxidative stress, induction of mutations.

Leukemic conversion involving mutations of type 1 -mutated primary myelofibrosis in a patient treated for HCV cirrhosis: a case report.

Somatic frameshift mutations in exon 9 of calreticulin () gene are recognized as disease drivers in primary myelofibrosis (PMF), one of the three classical Philadelphia-negative myeloproliferative neoplasms (MPNs). Type 1/type 1-like mutations particularly confer a favorable prognostic and survival advantage in PMF patients. We report an unusual case of PMF incidentally diagnosed in a 68-year-old woman known with hepatitis C virus (HCV) cirrhosis who developed a progressive painful splenomegaly, without anomalies in blood cell counts.

Soluble PD-L1 as a diagnostic and prognostic biomarker in resectable gastric cancer patients.

Background: In this study, we compared programmed death-ligand 1 (PD-L1) expression in primary tissue samples and its soluble form (sPD-L1) concentration in matched preoperative plasma samples from gastric cancer patients to understand the relationship between tissue and plasma PD-L1 expression and to determine its diagnostic and prognostic value.

Methods: PD-L1 expression in tissue was assessed by immunohistochemistry and enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay (ELISA), and sPD-L1 concentration in plasma was quantified by ELISA. The levels of the CD274 gene, which encodes for PD-L1 protein, were examined as part of bulk tissue RNA-sequencing analyses.

Landscape of Genetic Mutations in Appendiceal Cancers.

In appendiceal cancers, the most frequently mutated genes are (i) , which, when reactivated, restores signal transduction via the RAS-RAF-MEK-ERK signaling pathway and stimulates cell proliferation in the early stages of tumor transformation, and then angiogenesis; (ii) , whose inactivation leads to the inhibition of programmed cell death; (iii) , which, when reactivated, links the cAMP pathway to the RAS-RAF-MEK-ERK signaling pathway, stimulating cell proliferation and angiogenesis; (iv) , exhibiting typical tumor-suppressive activity, blocking the transmission of oncogenic TGFB signals via the SMAD2/SMAD3 heterodimer; and (v) , which is part of the RAS-RAF-MEK-ERK signaling pathway. Diverse mutations are reported in other genes, which are part of secondary or less critical signaling pathways for tumor progression, but which amplify the phenotypic diversity of appendiceal cancers. In this review, we will present the main genetic mutations involved in appendix tumors and their roles in cell proliferation and survival, and in tumor invasiveness, angiogenesis, and acquired resistance to anti-growth signals.

Correlation Studies between S100 Protein Level and Soluble MIA or Tissue MelanA and gp100 (HMB45) Expression in Cutaneous Melanoma.

(1) Background: Cutaneous melanoma (CM) originates from melanocytes and causes 90% of skin cancer deaths; therefore, the comparison of different soluble and tissue markers could be valuable in the detection of melanoma progression and therapy monitoring. The present study is focused on the potential correlations between soluble S100B and MIA protein levels in different melanoma stages or with tissue expression of S100, gp100 (HMB45), and MelanA biomarkers. (2) Methods: Soluble S100B and MIA levels were evaluated by means of immunoassay methods in blood samples from 176 patients with CM, while tissue expressions of S100, MelanA, and gp100 (HMB45) were detected by means of immunohistochemistry in 76 melanomas.

New N-acyl Thiourea Derivatives: Synthesis, Standardized Quantification Method and In Vitro Evaluation of Potential Biological Activities.

New N-acyl thiourea derivatives with heterocyclic rings have been synthesized by first obtaining isothiocyanate, which further reacted with a heterocyclic amine, characterized by (FT-IR, NMR spectroscopy and FT-ICR) and tested for their in vitro antimicrobial, anti-biofilm and antioxidant activities to obtain a drug candidate in a lead-optimization process. From the tested compounds, those bearing benzothiazole () and 6-methylpyridine () moieties revealed anti-biofilm activity against ATCC 25922 at MBIC values of 625 µg/mL. Compound exhibited the highest antioxidant capacity (~43%) in the in vitro assay using 1,1-diphenyl-2-picrylhydrazyl (DPPH).

Insights into the Microbicidal, Antibiofilm, Antioxidant and Toxicity Profile of New O-Aryl-Carbamoyl-Oxymino-Fluorene Derivatives.

The unprecedented increase in microbial resistance rates to all current drugs raises an acute need for the design of more effective antimicrobial strategies. Moreover, the importance of oxidative stress due to chronic inflammation in infections with resistant bacteria represents a key factor for the development of new antibacterial agents with potential antioxidant effects. Thus, the purpose of this study was to bioevaluate new O-aryl-carbamoyl-oxymino-fluorene derivatives for their potential use against infectious diseases.

Molecular Aspects of Hypoxic Stress Effects in Chronic Ethanol Exposure of Neuronal Cells.

Experimental models of a clinical, pathophysiological context are used to understand molecular mechanisms and develop novel therapies. Previous studies revealed better outcomes for spinal cord injury chronic ethanol-consuming patients. This study evaluated cellular and molecular changes in a model mimicking spinal cord injury (hypoxic stress induced by treatment with deferoxamine or cobalt chloride) in chronic ethanol-consuming patients (ethanol-exposed neural cultures (SK-N-SH)) in order to explain the clinical paradigm of better outcomes for spinal cord injury chronic ethanol-consuming patients.

Biological and Physico-Chemical Properties of Composite Layers Based on Magnesium-Doped Hydroxyapatite in Chitosan Matrix.

In the present study, we report the development and characterization of composite layers (by spin coating) based on magnesium-doped hydroxyapatite in a chitosan matrix, (CaMg(PO)(OH); x = 0, 0.08 and 0.3; HApCh, 8MgHApCh and 30MgHApCh).

Collagen Family as Promising Biomarkers and Therapeutic Targets in Cancer.

Despite advances in cancer detection and therapy, it has been estimated that the incidence of cancers will increase, while the mortality rate will continue to remain high, a fact explained by the large number of patients diagnosed in advanced stages when therapy is often useless. Therefore, it is necessary to invest knowledge and resources in the development of new non-invasive biomarkers for the early detection of cancer and new therapeutic targets for better health management. In this review, we provided an overview on the collagen family as promising biomarkers and on how they may be exploited as therapeutic targets in cancer.

Common themes in antimicrobial and anticancer drug resistance.

Antimicrobial and anticancer drug resistance represent two of the main global challenges for the public health, requiring immediate practical solutions. In line with this, we need a better understanding of the origins of drug resistance in prokaryotic and eukaryotic cells and the evolutionary processes leading to the occurrence of adaptive phenotypes in response to the selective pressure of therapeutic agents. The purpose of this paper is to present some of the analogies between the antimicrobial and anticancer drug resistance.