Efficacy of BAFF inhibition and B-cell depletion in non-obese diabetic mice as a spontaneous model for Sjögren's disease.

Introduction: The therapeutic interest of targeting B-cell activating factor (BAFF) in Sjögren's disease (SjD) can be suspected from the results of two phase II clinical trials but has not been evaluated in an animal model of the disease. We aimed to evaluate the therapeutic efficacy of this strategy on dryness and salivary gland (SG) infiltrates in the NOD mouse model of SjD.

Material And Methods: Female NOD mice between ages 10 and 18 weeks were treated with a BAFF-blocking monoclonal antibody, Sandy-2 or an isotype control.

Conservative versus Invasive Approaches in Temporomandibular Disc Displacement: A Systematic Review of Randomized Controlled Clinical Trials.

Background: Temporomandibular disorders (TMDs) frequently cause orofacial pain and dysfunction, with treatment options spanning from conservative therapies to invasive surgical procedures. The aim of this systematic review was to analyze and compare the efficacy and safety profiles of conservative, minimally invasive interventions and surgical procedures in patients diagnosed with TMDs and disc displacement.

Methods: Following PRISMA recommendations, PubMed, Scopus, and Web of Science databases were searched for randomized clinical trials (RCT).

Design of experiment (DoE) of mucoadhesive valproic acid-loaded nanostructured lipid carriers (NLC) for potential nose-to-brain application.

Epilepsy is a highly prevalent neurological disease and valproic acid (VPA) is used as a first-line chronic treatment. However, this drug has poor oral bioavailability, which requires the administration of high doses, resulting in adverse effects. Alternative routes of VPA administration have therefore been investigated, such as the nose-to-brain route, which allows the drug to be transported directly from the nasal cavity to the brain.

Comparative dosimetric analysis of normal brain tissue in patients with Nasopharyngeal carcinoma at different stages after radiation therapy.

Introduction: Radiotherapy (RT) is the main treatment for patients with nasopharyngeal carcinoma (NPC). NPC patients at different stages have varying levels of damage to normal brain tissue after RT. No study has yet thoroughly analyzed the variations in radiation dosages in the brain for different stages of NPC patients treated with RT.

Real-world efficacy, safety data and predictive clinical parameters for treatment outcomes in advanced soft tissue sarcoma treated with combined immunotherapy and antiangiogenic therapy.

Background: The combination of immunotherapy and antiangiogenic therapy has shown potential in the treatment of numerous malignant tumors, but limited evidence was available for soft tissue sarcomas (STS). Therefore, the aim of the present study is to assess the efficacy and safety of immunotherapy in conjunction with antiangiogenic therapy in patients diagnosed with advanced STS (aSTS).

Methods: The study enrolled patients with aSTS from January 2014 to October 2022.

Oral microbiota and gastric cancer: recent highlights and knowledge gaps.

Gastric cancer is one of the most common malignant tumors worldwide and has a high mortality rate. However, tests for the early screening and diagnosis of gastric cancer are limited and invasive. Certain oral microorganisms are over-expressed in gastric cancer, but there is heterogeneity among different studies.

An untargeted metabolomics approach applied to the study of the bioavailability and metabolism of three different bioactive plant extracts in human blood samples.

Advances in the understanding of bioavailability and metabolism of bioactive compounds have been achieved primarily through targeted or semi-targeted metabolomics approaches using the hypothesis of potential metabolized compounds. The recent development of untargeted metabolomics approaches can present great advantages in this field, such as in the discovery of new metabolized compounds or to study the metabolism of compounds from multiple matrices simultaneously. Thus, this study proposes the use of an untargeted metabolomics strategy based on HPLC-ESI-QTOF-MS for the study of bioavailability and metabolism of bioactive compounds from different vegetal sources.

Efficacy of immunotherapy in fusion-positive NSCLC: A meta-analysis.

Background: The Rearranged during Transfection () gene represents a rare driver mutation in non-small cell lung cancer (NSCLC) occurring in only 1 %-2 % of cases, with implications in targeted carcinogenesis. Despite the significant efficacy demonstrated by immunotherapy in advanced NSCLC with wild-type driver genes, its validation in fusion-positive patients is yet to be established.

Objectives: This meta-analysis aims to systematically evaluate the effectiveness of immunotherapy in patients with fusion-positive NSCLC.

Zinc transporter ZnT5 is associated with epithelial mesenchymal transition via SMAD1 in breast cancer.

Zinc levels in breast cancer tissues have been reported to be higher than those in normal tissues. In addition, the expression levels of zinc transporters, including ZnT5 and ZnT6, are reportedly higher in breast cancer than in normal breast tissues. ZnT5 and ZnT6 also contribute to heterodimer formation and are involved in several biological functions.

Heme (dys)homeostasis and liver disease.

Heme is essential for a variety of proteins involved in vital physiological functions in the body, such as oxygen transport, drug metabolism, biosynthesis of steroids, signal transduction, antioxidant defense and mitochondrial respiration. However, free heme is potentially cytotoxic due to the capacity of heme iron to promote the oxidation of cellular molecules. The liver plays a central role in heme metabolism by significantly contributing to heme synthesis, heme detoxification, and recycling of heme iron.

Advancing the enzymatic toolkit for 2'-fluoro arabino nucleic acid (FANA) manipulation: phosphorylation, ligation, replication, and templating RNA transcription.

2'-Fluoro arabino nucleic acid (FANA), classified as a xeno nucleic acid (XNA), stands as a prominent subject of investigation in synthetic genetic polymers. Demonstrating efficacy as antisense oligonucleotides (ASOs) and exhibiting the ability to fold into functional structures akin to enzymes and aptamers, FANA holds substantial promise across diverse biological and therapeutic domains. Owing to structural similarities to DNA, the utilization of naturally occurring DNA polymerases for DNA-mediated FANA replication is well-documented.

Blocker-SELEX: a structure-guided strategy for developing inhibitory aptamers disrupting undruggable transcription factor interactions.

Despite the well-established significance of transcription factors (TFs) in pathogenesis, their utilization as pharmacological targets has been limited by the inherent challenges in modulating their protein interactions. The lack of defined small-molecule binding pockets and the nuclear localization of TFs do not favor the use of traditional tools. Aptamers possess large molecular weights, expansive blocking surfaces and efficient cellular internalization, making them compelling tools for modulating TF interactions.

Strategy of combining CDK4/6 inhibitors with other therapies and mechanisms of resistance.

Cell cycle-dependent protein kinase 4/6 (CDK4/6) is a crucial kinase that regulates the cell cycle, essential for cell division and proliferation. Hence, combining CDK4/6 inhibitors with other anti-tumor drugs is a pivotal clinical strategy. This strategy can efficiently inhibit the growth and division of tumor cells, reduce the side effects, and improve the quality of life of patients by reducing the dosage of combined anticancer drugs.

Berberine attenuates 5-fluorouracil-induced intestinal mucosal injury by modulating the gut microbiota without compromising its anti-tumor efficacy.

Background: 5-Fluorouracil (5-Fu), a prominent chemotherapeutic agent for colorectal cancer (CRC) treatment, is often associated with gastrointestinal toxicities, particularly diarrhea. Our previous study demonstrated that berberine (BBR) ameliorates 5-Fu-induced intestinal mucosal injury by modulating the gut microbiota in rats. Nevertheless, the precise molecular mechanism underlying BBR's protective effect on intestinal mucosa remains elusive, and its impact on the anti-tumor efficacy of 5-Fu warrants further investigation.

Neph1 is required for neurite branching and is negatively regulated by the PRRXL1 homeodomain factor in the developing spinal cord dorsal horn.

The cell-adhesion molecule NEPH1 is required for maintaining the structural integrity and function of the glomerulus in the kidneys. In the nervous system of Drosophila and C. elegans, it is involved in synaptogenesis and axon branching, which are essential for establishing functional circuits.

Spinocerebellar Ataxias: Phenotypic Spectrum of PolyQ versus Non-Repeat Expansion Forms.

Spinocerebellar ataxias (SCA) are most frequently due to (CAG) (coding for polyglutamine, polyQ) expansions and, less so, to expansion of other oligonucleotide repeats (non-polyQ) or other type of variants (non-repeat expansion SCA). In this study we compared polyQ and non-repeat expansion SCA, in a cohort of patients with hereditary ataxia followed at a tertiary hospital. From a prospective study, 88 patients (51 families) with SCA were selected, 74 (40 families) of whom genetically diagnosed.

Noninvasive prediction of CCL2 expression level in high-grade glioma patients.

Background: Gliomas are recognized as the most frequent type of malignancies in the central nervous system, and efficacious prognostic indicators are essential to treat patients with gliomas and improve their clinical outcomes. The chemokine (C-C motif) ligand 2 (CCL2) is a promising predictor for glioma malignancy and progression. However, at present, the methods to evaluate CCL2 expression level are invasive and operator-dependent.