PBX1 as a novel master regulator in cancer: Its regulation, molecular biology, and therapeutic applications.

PBX1 is a critical transcription factor at the top of various cell fate-determining pathways. In cancer, PBX1 stands at the crossroads of multiple oncogenic signaling pathways and mediates responses by recruiting a broad repertoire of downstream targets. Research thus far has corroborated the involvement of PBX1 in cancer proliferation, resisting apoptosis, tumor-associated neoangiogenesis, epithelial-mesenchymal transition (EMT) and metastasis, immune evasion, genome instability, and dysregulating cellular metabolism.

Genomic loci influence patterns of structural covariance in the human brain.

Normal and pathologic neurobiological processes influence brain morphology in coordinated ways that give rise to patterns of structural covariance (PSC) across brain regions and individuals during brain aging and diseases. The genetic underpinnings of these patterns remain largely unknown. We apply a stochastic multivariate factorization method to a diverse population of 50,699 individuals (12 studies and 130 sites) and derive data-driven, multi-scale PSCs of regional brain size.

Decoding Heterogenous Single-cell Perturbation Responses.

Understanding diverse responses of individual cells to the same perturbation is central to many biological and biomedical problems. Current methods, however, do not precisely quantify the strength of perturbation responses and, more importantly, reveal new biological insights from heterogeneity in responses. Here we introduce the perturbation-response score (PS), based on constrained quadratic optimization, to quantify diverse perturbation responses at a single-cell level.

Precise Analysis of Nanoparticle Size Distribution in TEM Image.

As an essential characterization, size distribution is an important indicator for the synthesis, optimization, and application of nanoparticles. Electron microscopes such as transmission electron microscopes (TEMs) are commonly utilized to collect size information on nanoparticles. However, the current popular statistical method of manually measuring large particles one by one, using a ruler tool in the corresponding image analysis software is time-consuming and can introduce manual errors.

Novel cancer treatment paradigm targeting hypoxia-induced factor in conjunction with current therapies to overcome resistance.

Chemotherapy, radiotherapy, targeted therapy, and immunotherapy are established cancer treatment modalities that are widely used due to their demonstrated efficacy against tumors and favorable safety profiles or tolerability. Nevertheless, treatment resistance continues to be one of the most pressing unsolved conundrums in cancer treatment. Hypoxia-inducible factors (HIFs) are a family of transcription factors that regulate cellular responses to hypoxia by activating genes involved in various adaptations, including erythropoiesis, glucose metabolism, angiogenesis, cell proliferation, and apoptosis.

The need to expand the infection prevention workforce in home infusion therapy.

Infection prevention and surveillance training approaches for home infusion therapy have not been well defined. We interviewed home infusion staff who perform surveillance activities about barriers to and facilitators for central line-associated bloodstream infection (CLABSI) surveillance and identified barriers to training in CLABSI surveillance. Our findings show a lack of formal surveillance training for staff.

An open chat with… Laszlo Nagy.

Laszlo Nagy has been on the Editorial Board of FEBS Open Bio since the journal's inception and is a passionate supporter of FEBS Press and other society journals. Currently, he is also an editor of FEBS Letters and The Journal of Clinical Investigation (JCI). He studied medicine at the University Medical School of Debrecen in Hungary, where he graduated with an M.

The epidemiology of mescaline use: Pattern of use, motivations for consumption, and perceived consequences, benefits, and acute and enduring subjective effects.

Background: Mescaline is a naturally occurring psychoactive phenethylamine found in several cacti and historically used ceremonially by Indigenous and Latin American populations. Broader recognition of its possible therapeutic value in Western science began in the 1950s; however, knowledge of the safety profile of mescaline and the extent of its use remains limited. The primary aim of this study is to examine the epidemiology of mescaline use among English-speaking adults.

Inhibition of glutaminolysis in combination with other therapies to improve cancer treatment.

Targeting glutamine catabolism has been attracting more research attention on the development of successful cancer therapy. Catalytic enzymes such as glutaminase (GLS) in glutaminolysis, a series of biochemical reactions by which glutamine is converted to glutamate and then alpha-ketoglutarate, an intermediate of the tricarboxylic acid (TCA) cycle, can be targeted by small molecule inhibitors, some of which are undergoing early phase clinical trials and exhibiting promising safety profiles. However, resistance to glutaminolysis targeting treatments has been observed, necessitating the development of treatments to combat this resistance.

Neuro-innate immune interactions in gut mucosal immunity.

The gastrointestinal (GI) tract performs a set of vital physiological functions related to food and water consumption. To help regulate these complex physiological processes, the GI tract is innervated by extensive neural networks. The GI tract also serves as the largest immune organ aimed to protect hosts from harmful microbes and toxins ingested with food.

Mechanism and quantitative assessment of saturation transfer for water-based detection of the aliphatic protons in carbohydrate polymers.

Purpose: CEST MRI experiments of mobile macromolecules, for example, proteins, carbohydrates, and phospholipids, often show signals due to saturation transfer from aliphatic protons to water. Currently, the mechanism of this nuclear Overhauser effect (NOE)-based transfer pathway is not completely understood and could be due either to NOEs directly to bound water or NOEs relayed intramolecularly via exchangeable protons. We used glycogen as a model system to investigate this saturation transfer pathway in sugar polymer solution.

Inhibition of the MYC-Regulated Glutaminase Metabolic Axis Is an Effective Synthetic Lethal Approach for Treating Chemoresistant Ovarian Cancers.

Amplification and overexpression of the oncogene in tumor cells, including ovarian cancer cells, correlates with poor responses to chemotherapy. As MYC is not directly targetable, we have analyzed molecular pathways downstream of MYC to identify potential therapeutic targets. Here we report that ovarian cancer cells overexpressing glutaminase (GLS), a target of MYC and a key enzyme in glutaminolysis, are intrinsically resistant to platinum-based chemotherapy and are enriched with intracellular antioxidant glutathione.

Bacterial Baptism: Scientific, Medical, and Regulatory Issues Raised by Vaginal Seeding of C-Section-Born Babies.

Several lines of evidence suggest that children born via Cesarean section (C-section) are at greater risk for adverse health outcomes including allergies, asthma and obesity. Vaginal seeding is a medical procedure in which infants born by C-section are swabbed immediately after birth with vaginal secretions from the mother. This procedure has been proposed as a way to transfer the mother's vaginal microbiome to the child, thereby restoring the natural exposure that occurs during vaginal birth that is interrupted in the case of babies born via C-section.

Vaginal Microbiota Transplantation: The Next Frontier.

The success of fecal microbiota transplantation (FMT) as a treatment for Clostrioides difficile infection (CDI) has stirred excitement about the potential for microbiota transplantation as a therapy for a wide range of diseases and conditions. In this article, we discuss vaginal microbiota transplantation (VMT) as "the next frontier" in microbiota transplantation and identify the medical, regulatory, and ethical challenges related to this nascent field. We further discuss what we anticipate will be the first context for testing VMT in clinical trials, prevention of the recurrence of a condition referred to as bacterial vaginosis (BV).

Rational Coarse-Grained Molecular Dynamics Simulations of Supramolecular Anticancer Nanotubes.

Peptide self-assembly has been used to design an array of nanostructures that possess functional biomedical applications. Experimental studies have reported nanofilament and nanotube formation from peptide-based drug amphiphiles (DAs). These DAs have shown to possess an inherently high drug loading with a tunable release mechanism.

Student Perceptions of M.D.-Ph.D. Programs: A Qualitative Identification of Barriers Facing Prospective M.D.-Ph.D. Applicants.

Despite a high degree of interest in research among matriculating M.D. students, very few apply to combined M.

Serum amyloid A - a review.

Serum amyloid A (SAA) proteins were isolated and named over 50 years ago. They are small (104 amino acids) and have a striking relationship to the acute phase response with serum levels rising as much as 1000-fold in 24 hours. SAA proteins are encoded in a family of closely-related genes and have been remarkably conserved throughout vertebrate evolution.