Voghera Sweet Pepper: A Potential Ally against Oxidative Stress and Aging.

In the present study, the potential functional properties of the extracts from the edible part of L. var. Peperone di Voghera (VP) were studied.

Cytokine-Induced Memory-Like NK Cells with High Reactivity against Acute Leukemia Blasts and Solid Tumor Cells Suitable for Adoptive Immunotherapy Approaches.

The limited efficacy of Natural Killer (NK) cell-based immunotherapy results in part from the suboptimal expansion and persistence of the infused cells. Recent reports suggest that the generation of NK cells with memory-like properties upon in vitro activation with defined cytokines might be an effective way of ensuring long-lasting NK cell function in vivo. Here, we demonstrate that activation with IL-12, IL-15 and IL-18 followed by a one-week culture with optimal doses of Interleukin (IL-2) and IL-15 generates substantial numbers of memory-like NK cells able to persist for at least three weeks when injected into NOD scid gamma (NSG) mice.

Hydrogen Sulfide-Evoked Intracellular Ca Signals in Primary Cultures of Metastatic Colorectal Cancer Cells.

Exogenous administration of hydrogen sulfide (HS) is emerging as an alternative anticancer treatment. HS-releasing compounds have been shown to exert a strong anticancer effect by suppressing proliferation and/or inducing apoptosis in several cancer cell types, including colorectal carcinoma (CRC). The mechanism whereby exogenous HS affects CRC cell proliferation is yet to be clearly elucidated, but it could involve an increase in intracellular Ca concentration ([Ca]).

Generation of donor-derived Wilms tumor antigen 1-specific cytotoxic T lymphocytes with potent anti-leukemia activity for somatic cell therapy in children given haploidentical stem cell transplantation: a feasibility pre-clinical study.

Background: The Wilms tumor antigen 1 (WT1) is over-expressed in a vast majority of adult and childhood acute leukemia and myelodysplastic syndromes, being lowly or transiently expressed in normal tissues and hematopoietic stem cells (HSCs). A number of HLA-restricted WT1 epitopes are immunogenic, allowing the in vitro induction of WT1-specific cytotoxic T lymphocytes (CTLs) from patients and healthy donors.

Aim: The aim of the study was to investigate the feasibility of producing WT1-specific CTLs suitable for somatic cell therapy to prevent or treat relapse in children with acute myeloid or lymphoblastic leukemia given haploidentical HSC transplantation (haplo-HSCT).

Nicotinic Acid Adenine Dinucleotide Phosphate (NAADP) Induces Intracellular Ca Release through the Two-Pore Channel TPC1 in Metastatic Colorectal Cancer Cells.

Nicotinic acid adenine dinucleotide phosphate (NAADP) gates two-pore channels 1 and 2 (TPC1 and TPC2) to elicit endo-lysosomal (EL) Ca release. NAADP-induced EL Ca signals may be amplified by the endoplasmic reticulum (ER) through the Ca-induced Ca release mechanism (CICR). Herein, we aimed at assessing for the first time the role of EL Ca signaling in primary cultures of human metastatic colorectal carcinoma (mCRC) by exploiting Ca imaging and molecular biology techniques.

Stim and Orai mediate constitutive Ca entry and control endoplasmic reticulum Ca refilling in primary cultures of colorectal carcinoma cells.

Store-operated Ca entry (SOCE) provides a major Ca entry route in cancer cells. SOCE is mediated by the assembly of Stim and Orai proteins at endoplasmic reticulum (ER)-plasma membrane junctions upon depletion of the ER Ca store. Additionally, Stim and Orai proteins underpin constitutive Ca entry in a growing number of cancer cell types due to the partial depletion of their ER Ca reservoir.

In Vitro Killing of Colorectal Carcinoma Cells by Autologous Activated NK Cells is Boosted by Anti-Epidermal Growth Factor Receptor-induced ADCC Regardless of RAS Mutation Status.

Treatment of advanced metastatic colorectal cancer (mCRC) patients is associated with a poor prognosis and significant morbidity. Moreover, targeted therapies such as anti-epidermal growth factor receptor (EGFR) have no effect in metastatic patients with tumors harboring a mutation in the RAS gene. The failure of conventional treatment to improve outcomes in mCRC patients has prompted the development of adoptive immunotherapy approaches including natural killer (NK)-based therapies.

Store-operated Ca2+ entry does not control proliferation in primary cultures of human metastatic renal cellular carcinoma.

Store-operated Ca(2+) entry (SOCE) is activated following depletion of the inositol-1,4,5-trisphosphate (InsP3)-sensitive Ca(2+) pool to regulate proliferation in immortalized cell lines established from either primary or metastatic lesions. The molecular nature of SOCE may involve both Stim1, which senses Ca(2+) levels within the endoplasmic reticulum (ER) Ca(2+) reservoir, and a number of a Ca(2+)-permeable channels on the plasma membrane, including Orai1, Orai3, and members of the canonical transient receptor (TRPC1-7) family of ion channels. The present study was undertaken to assess whether SOCE is expressed and controls proliferation in primary cultures isolated from secondary lesions of heavily pretreated metastatic renal cell carcinoma (mRCC) patients.