Extracellular vesicles from activated platelets possess a phospholipid-rich biomolecular profile and enhance prothrombinase activity.

Background: Extracellular vesicles (EVs), in particular those derived from activated platelets, are associated with a risk of future venous thromboembolism.

Objectives: To study the biomolecular profile and function characteristics of EVs from control (unstimulated) and activated platelets.

Methods: Biomolecular profiling of single or very few (1-4) platelet-EVs (control/stimulated) was performed by Raman tweezers microspectroscopy.

Plasma levels of P-selectin and future risk of incident venous thromboembolism.

Background: P-selectin levels are elevated following acute deep vein thrombosis and reported to predict recurrent venous thromboembolism (VTE) and cancer-associated VTE. Yet, it is unknown whether plasma P-selectin levels are associated with incident VTE.

Objectives: We aimed to investigate the association between plasma P-selectin levels and risk of future incident VTE.

Hyaluronic Acid-Based Bioconjugate Systems, Scaffolds, and Their Therapeutic Potential.

In recent years, the development of hyaluronic acid or hyaluronan (HA) based scaffolds, medical devices, bioconjugate systems have expanded into a broad range of research and clinical applications. Research findings over the last two decades suggest that the abundance of HA in most mammalian tissues with distinctive biological roles and chemical simplicity for modifications have made it an attractive material with a rapidly growing global market. Besides its use as native forms, HA has received much interest on so-called "HA-bioconjugates" and "modified-HA systems".

Modulation of Gut Barrier Functions in Ulcerative Colitis by Hyaluronic Acid System.

The active stages of intestinal inflammation and the pathogenesis of ulcerative colitis are associated with superficial mucosal damage and intermittent wounding that leads to epithelial barrier defects and increased permeability. The standard therapeutic interventions for colitis have focused mainly on maintaining the remission levels of the disease. Nonetheless, such treatment strategies (using anti-inflammatory, immunomodulatory agents) do not address colitis' root cause, especially the mucosal damage and dysregulated intestinal barrier functions.

TLR3 absence confers increased survival with improved macrophage activity against pneumonia.

Toll-like receptor 3 (TLR3) is a pathogen recognition molecule associated with viral infection with double-stranded RNA (dsRNA) as its ligand. We evaluated the role of TLR3 in bacterial pneumonia using Klebsiella pneumoniae (KP). WT and TLR3-/- mice were subjected to a lethal model of KP.

Direct pulmonary delivery of solubilized curcumin reduces severity of lethal pneumonia.

Acute respiratory distress syndrome (ARDS), the most severe form of acute lung injury, is associated with reduced lung compliance and hypoxemia. Curcumin exhibits potent anti-inflammatory properties but has poor solubility and rapid plasma clearance. To overcome these physiochemical limitations and uncover the full therapeutic potential of curcumin in lung inflammation, in this study we utilized a novel water-soluble curcumin formulation (CDC) and delivered it directly into the lungs of C57BL/6 mice inoculated with a lethal dose of ().

Hypoxia-Inducible Factor (HIF)-1α Promotes Inflammation and Injury Following Aspiration-Induced Lung Injury in Mice.

Acid aspiration-induced lung injury is a common disease in the intensive care unit (ICU) and acute respiratory distress syndrome (ARDS). Hypoxia-inducible factor (HIF)-1α is a major transcription factor responsible for regulating the cellular response to changes in oxygen tension. A clear understanding of the function of HIF-1α in lung inflammatory response is currently lacking.

Electroporation-mediated delivery of FER gene enhances innate immune response and improves survival in a murine model of pneumonia.

Previously, we reported that electroporation-mediated (EP) delivery of the FER gene improved survival in a combined trauma-pneumonia model. The mechanism of this protective effect is unknown. In this paper, we performed a pneumonia model in C57/BL6 mice with 500 CFU of Klebsiella pneumoniae.