Morphine Analgesia, Cannabinoid Receptor 2, and Opioid Growth Factor Receptor Cancer Tissue Expression Improve Survival after Pancreatic Cancer Surgery.

Pancreatic cancer (PDAC) has a poor prognosis despite surgical removal and adjuvant therapy. Additionally, the effects of postoperative analgesia with morphine and piritramide on survival among PDAC patients are unknown, as are their interactions with opioid/cannabinoid receptor gene expressions in PDAC tissue. Cancer-specific survival data for 71 PDAC patients who underwent radical surgery followed by postoperative analgesia with morphine ( = 48) or piritramide ( = 23) were therefore analyzed in conjunction with opioid/cannabinoid receptor gene expressions in the patients' tumors.

Proteome Mapping of Cervical Mucus and Its Potential as a Source of Biomarkers in Female Tract Disorders.

Cervical mucus (CM) is a viscous fluid that is produced by the cervical glands and functions as a uterine cervix plug. Its viscosity decreases during ovulation, providing a window for non-invasive sampling. This study focuses on proteomic characterization of CM to evaluate its potential as a non-invasively acquired source of biomarkers and in understanding of molecular (patho)physiology of the female genital tract.

Cannabinoid receptor 2 expression in early-stage non-small cell lung cancers identifies patients with good prognosis and longer survival.

Background: Non-small cell lung cancer (NSCLC) is a leading cause of cancer-related death with a 5-year survival of only 21%. Reliable prognostic and/or predictive biomarkers are needed to improve NSCLC patient stratification, particularly in curative disease stages. Since the endogenous cannabinoid system is involved in both carcinogenesis and anticancer immune defense, we hypothesized that tumor tissue expression of cannabinoid 1 and 2 receptors (CB1 and CB2) may affect survival.

2‑Cl‑IB‑MECA regulates the proliferative and drug resistance pathways, and facilitates chemosensitivity in pancreatic and liver cancer cell lines.

Specific A3 adenosine receptor (A3AR) agonist, 2‑chloro‑N6‑(3‑iodobenzyl)‑5'‑N‑methylcarboxamidoadenosine (2‑Cl‑IB‑MECA), demonstrates anti‑proliferative effects on various types of tumor. In the present study, the cytotoxicity of 2‑Cl‑IB‑MECA was analyzed in a panel of tumor and non‑tumor cell lines and its anticancer mechanisms in JoPaca‑1 pancreatic and Hep‑3B hepatocellular carcinoma cell lines were also investigated. Initially, decreased tumor cell proliferation, cell accumulation in the G1 phase and inhibition of DNA and RNA synthesis was found.

Impact of human papillomavirus infection on semen parameters and reproductive outcomes.

Background: Human papillomavirus (HPV) has been shown to adversely affect human reproduction. We aimed to evaluate the prevalence of human papillomavirus (HPV) infection in men and its correlation with semen parameters and reproductive outcomes.

Methods: Semen samples and penile swabs were collected from potential sperm donors (SD, n = 97) and male partners of infertile couples (IM, n = 328).