Insights into the gut microbiome of vitiligo patients from India.

Background: Vitiligo is an autoimmune disease characterized by loss of pigmentation in the skin. It affects 0.4 to 2% of the global population, but the factors that trigger autoimmunity remain elusive.

Metabolic Derangement in Non-Alcoholic Fatty Liver Disease: Opportunities for Early Diagnostic and Prognostic Markers.

Non-alcoholic fatty liver disease is a globally prevalent disorder that can rapidly progress if not detected early. Currently, no accepted markers exist for early diagnosis and prognosis of NAFLD. This review describes derangement in major metabolic pathways of lipid, carbohydrate, and amino acids in NAFLD.

Role of MicroRNA in Hypoxic Tumours and their Potential as Biomarkers for Early Detection of Cancer.

Hypoxia is a pathophysiological condition characterized by oxygen deficiency in tissues, which negatively affects normal biological functions. It is a typical microenvironment character of almost all solid tumours. Noncoding RNA are small functional RNA molecules that regulate gene expression at chromatin and posttranscriptional levels.

Comparative Analysis of Published Database Predicting MicroRNA Binding in 3'UTR of mRNA in Diverse Species.

Background: Micro-RNAs are endogenous non-coding RNA moieties of 22-27 nucleotides that play a crucial role in the regulation of various biological processes and make them useful prognostic and diagnostic biomarkers. Discovery and experimental validation of miRNA is a laborious and time-consuming process. For early prediction, multiple bioinformatics databases are available for miRNA target prediction; however, their utility can confuse amateur researchers in selecting the most appropriate tools for their study.

Overexpression of XRCC1 is Associated with Poor Survival in Patients with Head and Neck Squamous Carcinoma and Has Potential to Be Used as Targeted Therapy by Synthetic Lethality.

Background: Head neck squamous cell carcinoma (HNSC) is globally prevalent cancer attributed to tobacco habit. Despite the significant advances in early diagnosis and treatment of HNSC chemo-radio resistance are routinely observed in patients. Aberrant DNA repair mechanisms mainly microhomology mediated DNA end joining (MMEJ) pathway causing deleterious mutations and is implicated in treatment resistance.

Aetiologies of Acute Complications in Autoimmune Rheumatologic Diseases: A Hospital-Based Cross-Sectional Study.

Background: Autoimmune rheumatic diseases (ARD) present unique challenges in clinical practice. Many of them present in medical emergencies in an unstable state and need immediate evaluation for further plans of action. The clinical conundrum is to distinguish between sepsis, disease flare, or Addisonian crisis (AC) (secondary to steroid withdrawal).

Oxidative Reductive Stress in Breast Cancer Development and Cellular Mechanism of Alleviation: A Current Perspective with Anti-breast Cancer Drug Resistance.

Redox homeostasis is essential for keeping our bodies healthy, but it also helps breast cancer cells grow, stay alive, and resist treatment. Changes in the redox balance and problems with redox signaling can make breast cancer cells grow and spread and make them resistant to chemotherapy and radiation therapy. Reactive oxygen species/reactive nitrogen species (ROS/RNS) generation and the oxidant defense system are out of equilibrium, which causes oxidative stress.

Assessment of zinc inadequacy among tribal adolescent population of central India - A cross-sectional study.

Background & Objectives: Zinc is a crucial micronutrient in adolescence, required for promoting growth and sexual maturation. Adolescents of some tribes may be at high risk of zinc deficiency due to dietary inadequacy and poor bioavailability of zinc from plant-based diets. This study aimed to evaluate the risk of zinc deficiency by estimating prevalence of inadequate zinc intake, prevalence of low serum zinc and stunting among tribal adolescents.

Blood-based biomarkers for diagnosis, prognosis, and severity prediction of COVID-19: Opportunities and challenges.

The reasons for high morbidity and mortality with Corona virus disease (COVID-19) disease remain unanswered with extremes of manifestation and uncertainty of modes of transmission for which biomarkers are urgently needed for early prediction of severity and prompt treatment. We have reviewed publications from PubMed (years 2019-2021) analysing the biochemical, immune-inflammatory, nucleic acid, and cellular biomarkers that predict infection, disease progression in COVID-19 with emphasis on organ-specific damage. Our analysis of 65 biomarkers assessing the impact of SCoV-2 infection on five organs (lung, liver, cardiac, kidney, and neural) reported that increased levels of CRP, TNF-α, ferritin, IL-6, D-dimer, Procalcitonin, Fibrinogen to Albumin Ratio (FAR), and decrease platelet count (PC), lymphocyte count, leukocyte count, and CD4/CD8 ratio shows promising association in the early diagnosis, prediction of prognosis and severity disease and also correlates with cytokine storm a cardinal feature of COVID-19 progression.

Current Scenario of Clinical Diagnosis to Identify Inborn Errors of Metabolism with Precision Profiling for Expanded Screening in Infancy in a Resource-limited Setting.

Inborn errors of metabolism (IEM) are a diverse collection of abnormalities that cause a variety of morbidities and mortality in children and are classified as uncommon genetic diseases. Early and accurate detection of the condition can save a patient's life. By aiding families as they navigate the experience of having a child with an IEM, healthcare practitioners have the chance to reduce the burden of negative emotional consequences.

Elucidating the Role of Cardiac Biomarkers in COVID-19: A Narrative Evaluation with Clinical Standpoints and a Pragmatic Approach for Therapeutics.

With the incidence of the unabated spreading of the COVID-19 (coronavirus disease 2019) pandemic with an increase in heart-related complications in COVID-19 patients, laboratory investigations on general health and diseases of heart have greater importance. The production of a higher level of clots in the blood in COVID-19 individuals carries a high risk of severe lethal pneumonia, pulmonary embolism, or widespread thromboembolism. The COVID-19 pandemic has raised awareness regarding the severe consequences for the cardiac system that might cause due to severe acute respiratory distress syndrome (SARS-CoV-2).

Determinants of behavioural and biological risk factors for cardiovascular diseases from state level STEPS survey (2017-19) in Madhya Pradesh.

Background: National and statewide assessment of cardiovascular risk factors needs to be conducted periodically in order to inform public health policy and prioritise allocation of funds, especially in LMICs. Although there have been studies from India which have explored the determinants of cardiovascular risk factors, they have mostly been from high epidemiological transition states. The present study assessed the determinants of cardiovascular (CVD) risk factors in a low epidemiological transition state (Madhya Pradesh) using the WHO STEPwise approach to surveillance (STEPS).

Computationally validated SARS-CoV-2 CTL and HTL Multi-Patch vaccines, designed by reverse epitomics approach, show potential to cover large ethnically distributed human population worldwide.

The SARS-CoV-2 (Severe Acute Respiratory Syndrome Coronavirus 2) is responsible for the COVID-19 outbreak. The highly contagious COVID-19 disease has spread to 216 countries in less than six months. Though several vaccine candidates are being claimed, an effective vaccine is yet to come.

Descriptive profile of risk factors for cardiovascular diseases using WHO STEP wise approach in Madhya Pradesh.

Background: Periodic information on risk factor distribution is critical for public health response for reduction in non-communicable disease (NCDs). For this purpose, the WHO has developed STEPs wise approach. State representative population-based STEPS survey was last conducted in 2007-08 in seven states of In India.

Cytokines: the yin and yang of vitiligo pathogenesis.

Dysregulation of melanocyte function is associated with vitiligo, an idiopathic autoimmune hypopigmentary skin disorder, caused by the selective destruction of melanocytes. Cytokines, the key mediators of immune response, which are pivotal in maintaining immune homeostasis, are crucial in vitiligo pathogenesis. Several studies indicate that there is an imbalance between pro- and anti-inflammatory cytokines in the skin and serum of vitiligo patients.

Genetic susceptibility to multiple primary neoplasms in the upper aero-digestive tract: genotype score and phenotype correlation.

Early detection and treatment of head and neck cancer has led to increased patient survival. However such patients are at a high risk for multiple primary neoplasm(s) (MPN). In order to study the genetic susceptibility to MPN, 22 candidate SNPs were genotyped based on which a distinctive Genotype Score was created using Additive, Dominant and Recessive models.

Establishment & characterization of lymphoblastoid cell lines from patients with multiple primary neoplasms in the upper aero-digestive tract & healthy individuals.

Background & Objectives: A major drawback for genetic studies as well as long-term genotype-phenotype correlation studies in cancer is lack of representative human cell lines providing a continuous source of basic biomolecules and a system to carry out various experimental investigations. This can be overcome to some extent by establishing lymphoblastoid cell lines (LCLs) by infecting peripheral blood lymphocytes with Epstein Barr virus (EBV) which is known to immortalize human resting B cells in vitro giving rise to actively proliferating B-lymphoblastoid cell lines. The present study involves preparation and characterization of LCLs generated from patients with multiple primary neoplasms (MPN) of upper aero-digestive tract (UADT).

Cernunnos influences human immunoglobulin class switch recombination and may be associated with B cell lymphomagenesis.

Cernunnos is involved in the nonhomologous end-joining (NHEJ) process during DNA double-strand break (DSB) repair. Here, we studied immunoglobulin (Ig) class switch recombination (CSR), a physiological process which relies on proper repair of the DSBs, in B cells from Cernunnos-deficient patients. The pattern of in vivo generated CSR junctions is altered in these cells, with unusually long microhomologies and a lack of direct end-joining.

Multiple pathway-based genetic variations associated with tobacco related multiple primary neoplasms.

Background: In order to elucidate a combination of genetic alterations that drive tobacco carcinogenesis we have explored a unique model system and analytical method for an unbiased qualitative and quantitative assessment of gene-gene and gene-environment interactions. The objective of this case control study was to assess genetic predisposition in a biologically enriched clinical model system of tobacco related cancers (TRC), occurring as Multiple Primary Neoplasms (MPN).

Methods: Genotyping of 21 candidate Single Nucleotide Polymorphisms (SNP) from major metabolic pathways was performed in a cohort of 151 MPN cases and 210 cancer-free controls.

Involvement of Artemis in nonhomologous end-joining during immunoglobulin class switch recombination.

DNA double-strand breaks (DSBs) introduced in the switch (S) regions are intermediates during immunoglobulin class switch recombination (CSR). These breaks are subsequently recognized, processed, and joined, leading to recombination of the two S regions. Nonhomologous end-joining (NHEJ) is believed to be the principle mechanism involved in DSB repair during CSR.

Non-homologous end joining in class switch recombination: the beginning of the end.

Immunoglobulin class switch recombination (CSR) is initiated by a B-cell-specific factor, activation-induced deaminase, probably through deamination of deoxycytidine residues within the switch (S) regions. The initial lesions in the S regions are subsequently processed, resulting in the production of DNA double-strand breaks (DSBs). These breaks will then be recognized, edited and repaired, finally leading to the recombination of the two S regions.

A regulatory role for NBS1 in strand-specific mutagenesis during somatic hypermutation.

Activation-induced cytidine deaminase (AID) is believed to initiate somatic hypermutation (SHM) by deamination of deoxycytidines to deoxyuridines within the immunoglobulin variable regions genes. The deaminated bases can subsequently be replicated over, processed by base excision repair or mismatch repair, leading to introduction of different types of point mutations (G/C transitions, G/C transversions and A/T mutations). It is evident that the base excision repair pathway is largely dependent on uracil-DNA glycosylase (UNG) through its uracil excision activity.

Genotype, phenotype and cancer: role of low penetrance genes and environment in tumour susceptibility.

Role of heredity and lifestyle in sporadic cancers is well documented. Here we focus on the influence of low penetrance genes and habits, with emphasis on tobacco habit in causing head and neck cancers. Role of such gene-environment interaction can be well studied in individuals with multiple primary cancers.