Starting points for the development of new targeted therapies for glioblastoma multiforme.

Glioblastoma multiforme (GBM) is one of the most aggressive and lethal brain tumors, characterized by rapid growth, invasiveness, and resistance to standard therapies, including surgery, chemotherapy, and radiotherapy. Despite advances in treatment, GBM remains highly resistant due to its complex molecular mechanisms, including angiogenesis, invasion, immune modulation, and lipid metabolism dysregulation. This review explores recent breakthroughs in targeted therapies, focusing on innovative drug carriers such as nanoparticles and liposomes, and their potential to overcome GBM's chemo- and radioresistant phenotypes.

Treatment of antibiotic-resistant bacteria colonizing diabetic foot ulcers by OLED induced antimicrobial photodynamic therapy.

We evaluate the efficacy of antimicrobial Photodynamic Therapy (APDT) for inactivating a variety of antibiotic-resistant clinical strains from diabetic foot ulcers. Here we are focused on APDT based on organic light-emitting diodes (OLED). The wound swabs from ten patients diagnosed with diabetic foot ulcers were collected and 32 clinical strains comprising 22 bacterial species were obtained.

Phage Interactions with the Nervous System in Health and Disease.

The central nervous system manages all of our activities (e.g., direct thinking and decision-making processes).

Ceramide is implicated in humoral peripheral and intrathecal autoimmune response in MS patients.

Background: The disturbed metabolism of ceramide (Cer) is supposed to evoke the autoimmune response, contributing to MS pathology.

Objectives: To determine levels of anti-Cer immunoglobulins G (IgGs) in the CSF and serum of subjects with various phenotypes of MS, and to investigate relationships between levels of anti-Cer antibodies and MS-related variables.

Methods: IgGs isolated from serum and the CSF of 68 MS patients and appropriate controls were examined for their reactivity to Cer subspecies.

Awake craniotomy with dexmedetomidine during resection of brain tumours located in eloquent regions.

Introduction: An awake craniotomy (AC) is the gold standard for the resection of supra-tentorial brain tumours in eloquent areas. Intraoperative monitoring "on-demand" of essential eloquent brain functions and the increasing need to preserve higher intellectual functions during surgery requires a unique anaesthetic approach during AC. Dexmedetomidine is considered the first-choice pharmacological agent for sedation during AC.

Correction: Gębczak et al. Evaluation of PC12 Cells' Proliferation, Adhesion and Migration with the Use of an Extracellular Matrix (CorMatrix) for Application in Neural Tissue Engineering. 2021, , 3858.

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Three-dimensional Collagen Scaffolds in Cultures of Olfactory Ensheathing Cells Used for Severed Spinal Cord Regeneration.

Background/aim: The regeneration of a completely damaged spinal cord is still a challenge in modern medicine. A promising treatment method is autologous transplantation of olfactory ensheathing cells (OECs). This study aimed primarily to test methods of culturing OECs with the use of materials and reagents that are certified for pharmaceutical use in the production of an advanced cell therapy product intended for humans.

A Thorough Synthesis of Phage Therapy Unit Activity in Poland-Its History, Milestones and International Recognition.

The year 2020 marked 15 years of the Phage Therapy Unit in Poland, the inception of which took place just one year after Poland's accession to the European Union (2004). At first sight, it is hard to find any connection between these two events, but in fact joining the European Union entailed the need to adapt the regulatory provisions concerning experimental treatment in humans to those that were in force in the European Union. These changes were a solid foundation for the first phage therapy center in the European Union to start its activity.

Results of a long-term uniform system of neurorehabilitation in patients with incomplete thoracic spinal cord injury.

Introduction And Objective: The results of kinesiotherapy treatment in patients after incomplete spinal cord injury (iSCI) are inconclusive, mostly due to different, subjective evaluation methods. The study aims to evaluate the range of functional regeneration in long-term 13 months follow-up using comparative neurophysiological tests after uniform kinesiotherapy in patients with thoracic iSCI.

Material And Methods: Comparative tests were performed of sensory perception in dermatomes Th1-S1, electromyography (at rest-rEMG and during maximal contraction-mcEMG) in the muscles of the trunk and lower extremities, electroneurography (ENG) of the motor fibres of the lower extremities, and motor-evoked potential induced transcranially (MEP) before and after treatment in 25 iSCI patients.

Evaluation of PC12 Cells' Proliferation, Adhesion and Migration with the Use of an Extracellular Matrix (CorMatrix) for Application in Neural Tissue Engineering.

The use of extracellular matrix (ECM) biomaterials for soft tissue repair has proved extremely successful in animal models and in some clinical settings. The aim of the study was to investigate the effect of the commercially obtained CorMatrix bioscaffold on the viability, proliferation and migration of rat pheochromocytoma cell line PC12. PC12 cells were plated directly onto a CorMatrix flake or the well surface of a 12-well plate and cultured in RPMI-1640 medium and a medium supplemented with the nerve growth factor (NGF).

The Long-Term Effect of Treatment Using the Transcranial Magnetic Stimulation rTMS in Patients after Incomplete Cervical or Thoracic Spinal Cord Injury.

Repetitive transcranial magnetic stimulation (rTMS) may support motor function recovery in patients with incomplete spinal cord injury (iSCI). Its effectiveness mainly depends on the applied algorithm. This clinical and neurophysiological study aimed to assess the effectiveness of high-frequency rTMS in iSCI patients at the C2-Th12 levels.

Isolation and Characterization of Phages Active against Causing American Foulbrood in Honeybees in Poland.

The aim of this study was the isolation and characterization, including the phage effect on honeybees in laboratory conditions, of phages active against , the causative agent of American Foulbrood-a highly infective and easily spreading disease occurring in honeybee larva, and subsequently the development of a preparation to prevent and treat this dangerous disease. From the tested material (over 2500 samples) 35 spp. strains were obtained and used to search for phages.

Anti-phage serum antibody responses and the outcome of phage therapy.

We examined the appearance of serum anti-phage antibodies in 25 patients with chronic sinusitis treated with phage therapy (PT). Approximately 30% of patients with weak antibody responses responded positively to PT, which was similar to the results of treatment achieved in a group of patients with high antibody production. In addition, there was no correlation between antibody level and the outcome of PT.

Distinctive sphingolipid patterns in chronic multiple sclerosis lesions.

Multiple sclerosis (MS) is a CNS disease characterized by immune-mediated demyelination and progressive axonal loss. MS-related CNS damage and its clinical course have two main phases: active and inactive/progressive. Reliable biomarkers are being sought to allow identification of MS pathomechanisms and prediction of its course.

Treatment of patients with cervical and upper thoracic incomplete spinal cord injury using repetitive transcranial magnetic stimulation.

Purpose: To evaluate the short- and long-term effectiveness of repetitive transcranial magnetic stimulation with parameters based on results of comparative neurophysiological studies in patients with incomplete spinal cord injury. Results may help to understand mechanisms responsible for regeneration of the incomplete spinal cord after injury.

Methods: Repetitive transcranial magnetic stimulation sessions (three to five sessions per month for not less than 5 months) to 15 patients with C4-Th2 incomplete spinal cord injury were applied with individually designed parameters.

Partial Recovery of Proprioception in Rats with Dorsal Root Injury after Human Olfactory Bulb Cell Transplantation.

Transplanted human olfactory ensheathing cells (hOECs) were mixed with collagen into a unilateral transection of four dorsal roots (C6-T1) in a rat model. By mixing with collagen, the limited numbers of hOEC were maximized from an olfactory bulb biopsy and optimize cavity filling. Cyclosporine was administered daily to prevent immune rejection.

Antibody Production in Response to Staphylococcal MS-1 Phage Cocktail in Patients Undergoing Phage Therapy.

In this study, we investigated the humoral immune response (through the release of IgG, IgA, and IgM antiphage antibodies) to a staphylococcal phage cocktail in patients undergoing experimental phage therapy at the Phage Therapy Unit, Medical Center of the Ludwik Hirszfeld Institute of Immunology and Experimental Therapy in Wrocław, Poland. We also evaluated whether occurring antiphage antibodies had neutralizing properties toward applied phages (K rate). Among 20 examined patients receiving the MS-1 phage cocktail orally and/or locally, the majority did not show a noticeably higher level of antiphage antibodies in their sera during phage administration.

Phage Therapy: Combating Infections with Potential for Evolving from Merely a Treatment for Complications to Targeting Diseases.

Antimicrobial resistance is considered to be one of the greatest challenges of medicine and our civilization. Lack of progress in developing new anti-bacterial agents has greatly revived interest in using phage therapy to combat antibiotic-resistant infections. Although a number of clinical trials are underway and more are planned, the realistic perspective of registration of phage preparations and their entering the health market and significantly contributing to the current antimicrobial crisis is rather remote.

Antiphage activity of sera during phage therapy in relation to its outcome.

Aim: The aim was to study the association between the phage neutralization of patients' sera and the clinical outcome of phage therapy (PT).

Patients: About 62 patients with various bacterial infections receiving PT as well as 30 healthy volunteers were studied.

Materials & Methods: Antiphage activity of sera (AAS) was examined using the phage neutralization test of different types of phages before and during PT in relation to the route of phage administration and correlated with the results of PT.

The Effect of Bacteriophage Preparations on Intracellular Killing of Bacteria by Phagocytes.

Intracellular killing of bacteria is one of the fundamental mechanisms against invading pathogens. Impaired intracellular killing of bacteria by phagocytes may be the reason of chronic infections and may be caused by antibiotics or substances that can be produced by some bacteria. Therefore, it was of great practical importance to examine whether phage preparations may influence the process of phagocyte intracellular killing of bacteria.

Functional regeneration of supraspinal connections in a patient with transected spinal cord following transplantation of bulbar olfactory ensheathing cells with peripheral nerve bridging.

Treatment of patients sustaining a complete spinal cord injury remains an unsolved clinical problem because of the lack of spontaneous regeneration of injured central axons. A 38-year-old man sustained traumatic transection of the thoracic spinal cord at upper vertebral level Th9. At 21 months after injury, the patient presented symptoms of a clinically complete spinal cord injury (American Spinal Injury Association class A-ASIA A).

Phage neutralization by sera of patients receiving phage therapy.

The aim of our investigation was to verify whether phage therapy (PT) can induce antiphage antibodies. The antiphage activity was determined in sera from 122 patients from the Phage Therapy Unit in Wrocław with bacterial infections before and during PT, and in sera from 30 healthy volunteers using a neutralization test. Furthermore, levels of antiphage antibodies were investigated in sera of 19 patients receiving staphylococcal phages and sera of 20 healthy volunteers using enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay.

Application of microbiological quantitative methods for evaluation of changes in the amount of bacteria in patients with wounds and purulent fistulas subjected to phage therapy and for assessment of phage preparation effectiveness (in vitro studies).

Purpose: Quantitative microbiological studies may provide important information required for successful phage therapy (PT), however methods for PT monitoring of purulent wounds and fistulas has never been reported before. Therefore our goal was to determine and apply microbiological quantitative methods (MQMs) for monitoring experimental PT.

Methods: Samples from agar plates with growing bacteria were collected using dry and wet sterile compresses, or swabs.

Transplantation of autologous olfactory ensheathing cells in complete human spinal cord injury.

Numerous studies in animals have shown the unique property of olfactory ensheathing cells to stimulate regeneration of lesioned axons in the spinal cord. In a Phase I clinical trial, we assessed the safety and feasibility of transplantation of autologous mucosal olfactory ensheathing cells and olfactory nerve fibroblasts in patients with complete spinal cord injury. Six patients with chronic thoracic paraplegia (American Spinal Injury Association class A-ASIA A) were enrolled for the study.