The Potential Effect of Endogenous Antimicrobial Peptides in Cancer Immunotherapy and Prevention.

Antimicrobial peptides (AMPs) are crucial constituents of inherent immunity and serve as vital components of human host defense, playing a pivotal role in combating invading microbial pathogens. Beyond their antimicrobial functions, AMPs also exhibit various other biological activities including apoptosis induction, wound healing promotion, and immune modulation. These peptides are found in various exposed tissues or surfaces throughout the body, such as eyes, skin, mouth, ears, respiratory tract, lungs, digestive, and urinary system.

Historical trends of metals and metalloids into lake and coastal sediments of Halong Bay (Vietnam).

Halong Bay (northern Vietnam) is heavily affected by human activities. Metals and metalloids (e.g.

Spatial and seasonal abundance and characteristics of microplastics along the Red River to the Gulf of Tonkin, Vietnam.

This study aimed to examine the occurrence of microplastics in surface water and sediment samples collected from Hanoi to the Ba Lat estuary along the Red River, the second-largest river in Vietnam (surface area: 156,451 km). 21 stations were sampled during the dry (March 2023) and rainy (September 2023) seasons. The analytical procedure involved: digestion with hydrogen peroxide, flotation with potassium carbonate, and overflow filtration.

Manufacturing exosomes for wound healing: Comparative analysis of culture media.

Mesenchymal stem cell (MSC)-derived exosomes (EXs) have emerged as promising therapeutic agents for wound healing. However, the optimal conditions for manufacturing MSC-derived EXs that maximize their wound-healing potential have yet to be established. Hence, we compared the efficacy of five different MSC culture media, including three different serum-free, a platelet-supplemented, and a fetal bovine serum-supplemented media, in exosome manufacturing for wound healing applications.

Stability and magnetic properties of transition metal (V, Cr, Mn, and Fe) doped cobalt oxide clusters: a density functional theory investigation.

Co TMO ( = 6-8), (TM = V, Cr, Mn, and Fe) clusters are investigated using density functional theory calculations. The transition metal atoms preferentially replace one Co atom at sites where the number of metal-oxygen bonds is maximized, forming more stable structures. The evaporation of a Co atom is the most fragile dissociation channel for both pure and doped species.

Madecassic acid analogues with a five-membered A-ring and their cytotoxic activity.

The structural modification of madecassic acid focused on the contraction of the six-membered A-ring to a five-membered ring, combined with the dehydration of 6-OH to form a new double bond and formation of the esterification or amidation at C-28. The synthesised structures were identified based on the analysis of their NMR and EIS-MS data. Eighteen new madecassic acid analogues were tested for their cytotoxicity against three cancer cell lines, including human mouth carcinoma (KB), human hepatocellular carcinoma (HepG2), and human lung carcinoma (A549) using the MTT (3-[4,5-dimethylthiazol-2-yl]-2,5-diphenyltetrazolium bromide) assay.

Synthesis and Cytotoxic Activities of Novel Ether Conjugates of Dihydroartemisinin and Zerumbone: Evidenced by Integrating Network Pharmacology and In Vitro Assay.

O-alkylation of the hydroxy compounds, including acetaminophen, starting compounds for the synthesis of the drug, and natural compounds with the bromides of dihydroartemisinin (DHA) and zerumbone, produced twenty novel ether conjugates 15a-j and 16a-j, respectively. Their structures were elucidated by 1D-, 2D-NMR, and HRMS data. Their in vitro cytotoxic activity was screened using three cancer cell lines: HepG2, HeLa, and PC-12.

Fenbendazole and Diisopropylamine Dichloroacetate Exert Synergistic Anti-cancer Effects by Inducing Apoptosis and Arresting the Cell Cycle in A549 Lung Cancer Cells.

Background/aim: Lung cancer is the leading cause of cancer-related mortality worldwide, accounting for approximately 2 million new cases and 1.8 million deaths annually. Standard treatment options include surgery, radiation therapy, chemotherapy, and targeted therapies.

Design, synthesis, and structure-activity relationship studies of 6-benzo[]indeno[1,2-]thiophen-6-one derivatives as DYRK1A/CLK1/CLK4/haspin inhibitors.

A series of sulfur-containing tetracycles was designed and evaluated for their ability to inhibit protein kinase DYRK1A, a target known to have several potential therapeutic applications including cancers, Down syndrome or Alzheimer's disease. Our medicinal chemistry strategy relied on the design of new compounds using ring contraction/isosteric replacement and constrained analogy of known DYRK1A inhibitors, thus resulting in their DYRK1A inhibitory activity enhancement. Whereas a good inhibitory effect of targeted DYRK1A protein was observed for 5-hydroxy compounds 4i-k (IC = 35-116 nM) and the 5-methoxy derivative 4e (IC = 52 nM), a fairly good selectivity towards its known DYRK1B off-target was observed for 4k.

Strengthening of the hydrological cycle in the Lake Chad Basin under current climate change.

Central Sahel is affected by a reinforcement of rainfall since the beginning of 1990s. This increase in rainfall is affected by high inter-annual variability and is characterized by extreme rain events causing floods of unprecedented magnitude. However, few studies have been carried out on these extreme events.

May a highly touristic tropical island sustain water resources? Navigating troubled waters to berth on a safe shore.

While being a major economic development force for tropical islands, tourism may aggravate disturbances on local water resources (scarcity, pollution) and the surrounding ecosystem. In this work, we used a discrete events modelling approach to characterize trajectories of Cat Ba Island (Vietnam) and its ability to reach specific trajectories. We wanted to assess if a healthy social ecosystem could be compatible with tourism.

Machine learning analysis of a large set of homopolymers to predict glass transition temperatures.

Glass transition temperature of polymers, Tg, is an important thermophysical property, which sometimes can be difficult to measure experimentally. In this regard, data-driven machine learning approaches are important alternatives to assess Tg values, in a high-throughput way. In this study, a large dataset of more than 900 polymers with reported glass transition temperature (T) was assembled from various public sources in order to develop a predictive model depicting the structure-property relationships.

Acute toxicity and antidiabetic effect of the ethyl acetate fraction of Commelina diffusa Burm.f. on the high-fat diet and streptozotocin-induced type 2 diabetic mice.

Pharmacological studies proved that Commelina diffusa Burm.f. performs various biological activities.

Achieving Excellent H Evolution Activity of Silver Nanocatalyst by a Simple Electrochemical Treatment Process.

Silver nanoparticles (AgNPs) were synthesized in an aqueous solution via the reduction of AgNO employing citrate reducing agent. The resultant AgNPs were first assayed for the catalytic H evolution in an acidic electrolyte, namely pH 0.3 HSO solution, showing negligible activity.

A novel method for the synthesis of MoSSe using an (EtN)[MoSSeBr] complex as the sole precursor.

MoSSe is a semiconducting material with a layered structure similar to MoS and MoSe, which shows potential applications in optoelectronics, solar cells, sensing, and catalysis. Synthesis of this material with a controllable structure and chemical composition represents a great challenge. Herein, we report a new method for the synthesis of MoSSe by employing an [EtN][MoSSeBr] complex as the sole precursor.

Harnessing graph state resources for robust quantum magnetometry under noise.

Precise measurement of magnetic fields is essential for various applications, such as fundamental physics, space exploration, and biophysics. Although recent progress in quantum engineering has assisted in creating advanced quantum magnetometers, there are still ongoing challenges in improving their efficiency and noise resistance. This study focuses on using symmetric graph state resources for quantum magnetometry to enhance measurement precision by analyzing the estimation theory under time-homogeneous and time-inhomogeneous noise models.

Oral Fenbendazole for Cancer Therapy in Humans and Animals.

Fenbendazole is a benzimidazole anthelmintic agent commonly used to treat animal parasitic infections. In humans, other benzimidazoles, such as mebendazole and albendazole, are used as antiparasitic agents. Since fenbendazole is not currently approved by the FDA or EMA, its pharmacokinetics and safety in humans have yet to be well-documented in medical literature.

Identification of breast cancer-associated PIK3CA H1047R mutation in blood circulation using an asymmetric PCR assay.

Purpose: To establish a highly sensitive and specific approach for the detection of circulating PIK3CA H1047R mutation in breast cancer (BC) patients and to investigate the association between the prevalence of PIK3CA H1047R mutation and clinical presentations.

Methods: A proper blocker was designed in an allele-specific manner and optimized for PCR-based identification of the PIK3CA H1047R mutation. The established technique was validated in cell-free DNA samples from 196 recruited BC patients.

QTL-seq identifies genomic region associated with the crown root development under Jasmonic acid response.

Rice root system plays a crucial role in plant adaptation under adverse conditions, particularly drought stress. However, the regulatory gene networks that govern rice root development during stress exposure remain largely unexplored. In this study, we applied a QTL sequencing method to identify QTL/gene controlling the crown root development under Jasmonic acid simulation using the Bulk-segregant analysis.

Alkaloids from Piper longum L and their Anti-inflammatory Properties.

Piper longum L. (PL) is considered one of the most important species traditionally used for treating various ailments and has indicated the presence of alkaloids, flavonoids, and steroids. In this study, we isolated the chemical compounds of PL leaves, and measured NO, IL-6, iNOS, as well as COX-2 protein levels.

A 3-component module maintains sepal flatness in Arabidopsis.

As in origami, morphogenesis in living systems heavily relies on tissue curving and folding through the interplay between biochemical and biomechanical cues. By contrast, certain organs maintain their flat posture over several days. Here, we identified a pathway that is required for the maintenance of organ flatness, taking the sepal, the outermost floral organ, in Arabidopsis as a model system.