Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
Myeloid-derived Suppressor Cells in Cancer: A Review on the Pathogenesis and Therapeutic Potentials

Myeloid-Derived Suppressor Cells (MDSCs) are multifarious group of immature cells that arise from the myeloid and amass in individuals with cancer, sepsis, burns, or chronic inflammation. It has been evidenced that these group of cells are efficient in modifying adaptive and innate immune responses, coherent with their assumed key biological roles. It is evidenced that MDSCs inter-communicate with Tumor-Associated Macrophages (TAM), Tumor-Associated Neutrophils (TAN), Dendritic Cells (DCs), Receptor for Advanced Glycation End-products (RAGE), Toll-Like Receptors (TLRs), Matrix Metalloproteinase (MMPs) as well as High Mobility Group Box 1 (HMGB1) during carcinogenesis. This interaction although elaborated in various studies and reviews still does not explain in details as to how their interplay results in cancer pathogenesis. We noted that MDSC contributed to cancer immune suppressionviaTLR-4 receptor and lipopolysaccharideas (LPS). Furthermore, MDSC contributed to cancer developmentviaMMPs (MMP-9 and MMP1-12) as well as RAGE. In the cancer microenvironment, HMGB1-driven MDSC amassment expedites cancer development and metastasisviaPMN-MDSCs, macrophages, DCs and Immature Myeloid Cells (IMC). Also, HMGB1 intermediation with MDSCsviaRAGE and/or TLR-4 leading to cancer development. Nevertheless, MDSCs have already proven potent in some cancers and are currently been used as treatment options although further studies are needed in some other cancers. Our review, therefore, explores the pivotal pathogenic and therapeutic roles of MDSCs in cancer.
ACE-2 expression in the small airway epithelia of smokers and COPD patients: implications for COVID-19

The World Health Organization (WHO) has declared coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) a pandemic [1]. COVID-19 is caused by severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2). COVID-19 displays symptoms ranging from mild to severe (pneumonia) that can lead to death in some individuals [2–4]. As of 18 April 2020, there have been 2 280 945 cases of COVID-19 worldwide and 156 354 deaths [5]. SARS-CoV-2 uses the angiotensin-converting enzyme II (ACE-2) as the cellular entry receptor [6]. While the virus can infect individuals of any age, to date, most of the severe cases have been described in those >55 years of age and with significant comorbidities, such as COPD [7]. Here, we determined whether patients with COPD have increased expression of ACE-2 in bronchial epithelial cells in the lower respiratory tract. Smokers and those with COPD have increased airway expression of ACE-2, which is the entry receptor for the COVID-19 virus. This may explain the increased risk of severe COVID-19 in these subpopulations and highlight the importance of smoking cessation. https://bit.ly/3bC29es
Serum Vitamin D Level in Type 2 Diabetic Subjects: Relation to Glycemic Control, Insulin Resistance and Proinflammatory Markers

Background: Type 2 diabetes mellitus (DM) is one of the most common diseases worldwide. Early diagnosis and management has a significant role in reducing complications. Vitamin D is a fat-soluble vitamin that showed important functions regarding calcium and phosphate homeostasis, immunity and insulin resistance. There is a well-established link between vitamin D level and type 2 DM. Objective(s): The aim of this study was to assess serum 25(OH) vitamin D3 level in type 2 diabetic subjects and to investigate its relation to glycemic control, proinflammatory markers and insulin resistance. Methods: The study included 60 type 2 diabetic subjects in the age group 40-70 years and 30 controls matched for age and gender. Pregnant females, renal, hepatic and cancer patients were excluded from the study. All participants were subjected to detailed history taking, anthropometric measurements including weight, height and waist circumference, full clinical examination and laboratory investigations including serum 25(OH)vitamin D3, FSG, HbA1c, serum insulin, and CRP.HOMA-IR was calculated using FSG and serum insulin values. Results: The mean serum concentration of 25(OH) vitamin D3 was significantly lower in type 2 diabetics compared to controls (2.91±4.20 ng/ml, 12.04 ±7.74 respectively) (p<0.001). There was a significant increase in BMI, WC, FSG, HbA1c, serum insulin, and HOMA-IR in type 2 diabetics compared to controls (p<0.05). A statistical significant negative correlation was found between 25(OH) vitamin D3 level and the following parameters: BMI (r=-0.584, p<0.001), WC (r=-0.233, p=0.027), FSG (r=-0.735, p<0.001), HbA1C (r=-0.387, p<0.001), HOMA-IR (r=-0.729, p<0.001), serum insulin (r=-0.272, p=0.010). Meanwhile, 25(OH) vitamin D3 did not significantly correlate with the proinflammatory marker CRP (r=-0.126, p=0.238). Conclusion Subjects with type 2 DM have low 25(OH) vitamin D3 level compared to healthy normal individuals. The negative association of 25(OH) vitamin D3 with glycemic control and its irrelevance to the proinflammatory markers suggest that vitamin D may be an important determinant in the pathogenesis of type 2 DM. Hence, cautious Vitamin D supplementation may have a therapeutic potential in prevention and management of Type 2
The cell biology of Nek8, defective in cystic kidney diseases

Ciliopathies, which are caused by defects in cilia and basal bodies include the cystic kidney diseases. Mutations in the NIMA-related kinase, Nek8, are associated with the cystic kidney disease, nephronophthisis, and cause renal cysts in juvenile cystic kidney (jck) mice. In this study, I find that Nek8 localizes to cilia in cell culture and in developing mouse kidney. Specifically, Nek8 is expressed in cilia of epithelial cells lining the tubules of the uretic bud lineage. Cystogenic forms of Nek8 show differential ciliary localization, but do not affect ciliogenesis. In jck mouse kidney, ciliary Nek8 localization is reduced. These data indicate Nek8 functions within the cilium and defects in localization are correlated with renal cystogenesis.
Oral Cancer Knowledge among a Sample of Elderly People in Depok City, West Java, Indonesia

Objective: To determine the level of knowledge concerning oral cancer among a sample of elderly people with various sociodemographic characters, behavior, and dental visits in Depok City, Indonesia. Material and Methods: A cross-sectional study of oral cancer awareness was conducted among 100 elderly people in Depok City using an interviewer-administered questionnaire. We collected information regarding sociodemographic data regarding age, gender, marital status, education, health insurance, risk factors and early signs of oral cancer, and questions related to lifestyle factors relevant to oral cancer, including smoking, drinking alcohol, tobacco chewing, betel quid chewing, and dental visits. Data were analyzed through the Statistical Package for Social Sciences and presented through descriptive and inferential statistics. Statistical significance level was set at p<0.05. Results: 64% of respondents have poor knowledge of the oral cancer risk factors, while only 25% of respondents have sound knowledge of the early signs of oral cancer. There was a significant difference in the level of oral cancer knowledge according to gender (p=0.01), level of education (p=0.008), smoking behavior (p=0.03), and dental visits (p=0.01). Conclusion: The oral cancer knowledge among elderly people in Depok City is still lacking. Further, some sociodemographic factors influence the level of oral cancer knowledge.
Cracking the EMDR code: Recruitment of sensory, memory and emotional networks during bilateral alternating auditory stimulation

Introduction: The inability to extinguish a conditioned fear is thought to be at the core of post-traumatic stress disorder. Eye movement desensitization and reprocessing therapy has been efficacious for post-traumatic stress disorder, but the brain mechanisms underlying the effect are still unknown. The core effect of eye movement desensitization and reprocessing therapy seems to rely on the simultaneous association of bilateral alternating stimulation and the recall of the traumatic memory. To shed light on how eye movement desensitization and reprocessing therapy functions, we aimed to highlight the structures activated by bilateral alternating stimulation during fear extinction and its recall. Methods: We included 38 healthy participants in this study. Participants were examined twice in functional magnetic resonance imaging, over 2 consecutive days. On the first day, they performed two fear conditioning and extinction procedures, one with and one without the bilateral alternating stimulation during the fear extinction learning phase in a counter-balanced order across the participants. On the second day, participants completed the fear extinction recall procedure, in the same order as the previous day. Statistical significance of maps was set at p < 0.05 after correction for family-wise error at the cluster level. Results: The analysis revealed significant activation with versus without bilateral alternating stimulation at the early extinction in the bilateral auditory areas, the right precuneus, and the left medial frontal gyrus. The same pattern was found in the early recall on the second day. The connectivity analysis found a significant increase in connectivity during bilateral alternating stimulation versus without bilateral alternating stimulation in the early extinction and recall between the two superior temporal gyri, the precuneus, the middle frontal gyrus and a set of structures involved in multisensory integration, executive control, emotional processing, salience and memory. Conclusion: We show for the first time that in the eye movement desensitization and reprocessing therapy the bilateral alternating stimulation is not a simple sensory signal and can activate large emotional neural networks.
Etude des mécanismes d'activation transcriptionnelle des gènes de virulence et des fonctions d'adaptation in planta chez la bactérie Ralstonia solanacearum

HrpG est le regulateur central de la virulence chez la bacterie phytopathogene Ralstonia solanacearum. HrpG integre des signaux environnementaux et hote-dependants et induit la transcription du systeme de secretion de type III via HrpB, ainsi que pres de 200 genes independants de HrpB. Un regulateur fortement homologue a HrpG a ete identifie et caracterise. Ce regulateur, PrhG, induit egalement l'expression de hrpB mais uniquement en reponse au signal environnemental. Nous avons montre que HrpG et PrhG sont deux regulateurs directs de hrpB et dont les sequences cis-regulatrices sont partiellement communes. Les etudes effectuees visent a comprendre comment HrpG et PrhG se partagent le controle de l'expression de hrpB et a mieux definir le regulon HrpG pour identifier les fonctions impliquees dans la colonisation et l'adaptation in planta.
Yeast Prion Variants as Models of the Phenotypic and Pathological Consequences of Amyloid Polymorphism

Prion strains (or variants) are structurally distinct amyloid conformations arising from a single polypeptide sequence. The existence of prion strains has been well documented in mammalian prion diseases. In many cases, prion strains manifest as variation in disease progression and pathology, and in some cases, these prion strains also show distinct biochemical properties. Yet, the underlying basis of prion propagation and the extent of conformational possibilities available to amyloidogenic proteins remain largely undefined. Prion proteins in yeast that are also capable of maintaining multiple self-propagating structures have provided much insight into prion biology. Here, we explore the vast structural diversity of the yeast prion [RNQ+] in Saccharomyces cerevisiae. We screened for the formation of [RNQ+] in vivo, allowing us to calculate the rate of spontaneous formation as ~2.96x10-6, and successfully isolate several different [RNQ+] variants. Through a comprehensive set of biochemical and biological analyses, we show that these prion variants are indeed novel. No individual property or set of properties, including aggregate stability and size, was sufficient to explain the physical basis and range of prion variants and their resulting cellular phenotypes. Furthermore, all of the [RNQ+] variants that we isolated were able to facilitate the de novo formation of the yeast prion [PSI+], an epigenetic determinant of translation termination. This supports the hypothesis that [RNQ+] acts as a functional amyloid in regulating the formation of [PSI+] to produce phenotypic diversity within a yeast population and promote adaptation. Collectively, this work shows the broad spectrum of available amyloid conformations, and thereby expands the foundation for studying the complex factors that interact to regulate the propagation of distinct aggregate structures. Citation: Huang VJ, Stein KC, True HL (2013) Spontaneous Variants of the [RNQ+] Prion in Yeast Demonstrate the Extensive Conformational Diversity Possible with Prion Proteins . PLoS ONE 8(10): e79582. doi:10.1371/journal.pone. 0079582 Editor: Jiyan Ma, Ohio State University, United States of America Received August 14, 2013; Accepted October 2, 2013; Published October 25, 2013 Copyright: © 2013 Huang et al. This is an open-access article distributed under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution License, which permits unrestricted use, distribution, and reproduction in any medium, provided the original author and source are credited. Funding: This work was supported by National Institutes of Health grants F31AG040899 (KCS) and GM072778 (HLT). The funders had no role in study design, data collection and analysis, decision to publish, or preparation of the manuscript. Competing interests: The authors have declared that no competing interests exist. * E-mail: heather.true@wustl.edu
Evaluation of santolina oil in search of new drugs against candidiasis

An essential oil obtained from the herb of Santolina chamaecyparissus Linn. (Compositae) was evaluated for its antifungal activity against candidiasis. It was effective in controlling candidiasis both in vivo and in vitro. It also possessed antibacterial activity and the toxicity studies revealed the safety profile of the drug.
Feasibility of a cognitive rehabilitation program for individuals with mild-to-moderate traumatic brain injury: Participants’ engagement and satisfaction

Abstract Purpose: To assess the feasibility of recruitment procedures and delivery of a Norwegian adaptation of a manualized cognitive intervention to a civilian sample with traumatic brain injury (TBI). Materials and methods: Six individuals received a 10-week group-based intervention (Compensatory Cognitive Training, CCT) targeting post-concussive symptom management and cognitive symptoms. Participant engagement (i.e. attendance, level of participation, ability to learn and apply strategies, and homework completion) and satisfaction were assessed by the Therapist Checklist and CCT Feedback Form. Results: All participants had a diagnosis of concussion, were enrolled on average 4 months post-injury, and were sick-listed at a range of 70–100% at the time of inclusion. Attendance across CCT sessions was 97%. Eight out of nine topics in the CCT-intervention received a rating above 3.5 on a 5-point scale (i.e. towards very helpful). The items that received the highest mean ratings were information about TBI and post-concussive symptoms, and strategies targeting fatigue, prospective memory, and memory and learning. All participants were rated as participating fully (3/6) or moderately (3/6), and most participants (5/6) attempted to apply the trained skills to real-life situations. Conclusions: The results support the feasibility of a Norwegian adaptation of the intervention for a civilian sample with TBI.
EIF3H Orchestrates Hippo Pathway–Mediated Oncogenesis via Catalytic Control of YAP Stability

This work demonstrates that EIF3H is a novel bona fide deubiquitinase that counteracts YAP ubiquitylation and proteolysis, and stabilization of YAP by EIF3H promotes tumor invasion and metastasis. EIF3H is presumed to be a critical translational initiation factor. Here, our unbiased screening for tumor invasion factors has identified an unexpected role for EIF3H as a deubiquitylating enzyme that dictates breast tumor invasion and metastasis by modulating the Hippo–YAP pathway. EIF3H catalyzed YAP for deubiquitylation, resulting in its stabilization. Structure-based molecular modeling and simulations coupled with biochemical characterization unveiled a unique catalytic mechanism for EIF3H in dissociating polyubiquitin chains from YAP through a catalytic triad consisting of Asp90, Asp91, and Gln121. Trp119 and Tyr 140 on EIF3H directly interacted with the N-terminal region of YAP1, facilitating complex formation of EIF3H and YAP1 for YAP1 deubiquitylation. Stabilization of YAP via elevated EIF3H promoted tumor invasion and metastasis. Interference of EIF3H-mediated YAP deubiquitylation blocked YAP-induced tumor progression and metastasis in breast cancer models. These findings point to a critical role for YAP regulation by EIF3H in tumor invasion and metastasis. Significance: This work demonstrates that EIF3H is a novel bona fide deubiquitinase that counteracts YAP ubiquitylation and proteolysis, and stabilization of YAP by EIF3H promotes tumor invasion and metastasis.
Risk of Harboring an Unruptured Intracranial Aneurysm

Background and Purpose—The purpose of the present study was to calculate the prevalence and relative risk of unruptured incidental intracranial aneurysms (IAs) among families with IA case(s) compared with the general population in one geographically defined area in East Finland and to identify the risk group that could benefit most from screening for IAs. We compared these results with our earlier study results of familial IA (FIA) cases, with two or more known IA cases in the same family. Methods—The study groups were collected from the catchment area of the University Hospital of Kuopio in East Finland. The inclusion criteria were age 30 to 70 years and unruptured incidental IAs ≥3 mm. Patients with previous subarachnoid hemorrhage or in whom a ruptured IA was found to be the cause of death were excluded from all study groups. During routine forensic autopsies the circle of Willis was studied for IAs to estimate the number of IAs in the general population. In the families with one known IA case and in F.
Mean Platelet Volume to Lymphocyte Ratio: A New Biomarker to Predict Contrast-Induced Nephropathy After Coronary Angiography

Contrast-induced nephropathy (CIN) is a common cause of hospital-acquired acute renal failure and related with prolonged hospitalization, increased morbidity, mortality, and economic costs. 1 Given that inflammation plays a significant role in the pathophysiology of CIN and acute coronary syndrome (ACS), inflammation-related biomarkers have been investigated for the prediction of CIN. 2 Among these biomarkers, hematological parameters have been the focus of research due to fact that they are cheap, simple to calculate, and easily accessible.
Comparison of Outcome of Myringotomy Alone with Myringotomy and Tympanostomy Tube (Grommet) in Otitis Media with Effusion (OME)

Background: To compare the outcome of myringotomy alone with myringotomy and tympanostomy tube (grommet) in otitis media with effusion (OME) in terms of improvement in hearing and tympanogram pattern. Methods: In this comparative study 60 patients diagnosed of otitis media with effusion (OME) not responding to medical treatment were included. They were divided in two groups, each of 30 patients. In first group only myringotomy was done. In second group myringotomy with tympanostomy tube insertion was done. The parameters compared were improvement of hearing and improvement in tympanogram pattern. Hearing was assessed by voice test and tuning fork tests (Rinnie’s, Webers). Patients were assessed before surgery, after two weeks, after one month and after three months. Results:Out of 60 patients 39 were males and 21 were females. Age range was from 5 to 15 years with mean age 8 years. In first group there was 48% improvement in hearing and tympanogram pattern after two weeks, 55% improvement after one month and 62% improvement after three months. In second group there was 67% improvement after two weeks, 84% after one month and 95% after three months. One patient (3%) developed post op otorrhoea which was treated by conservative management. Conclusion:Myringotomy with tympanostomy tube insertion has a better outcome in terms of hearing improvement in OME patients as compared to myringotomy alone.
Computed tomography-guided fine-needle aspiration and concurrent core biopsy in diagnosis of intrathoracic mass: An evaluation of 54 cases in a tertiary care hospital

Introduction: Fine-needle aspiration cytology (FNAC) is a simple, safe, and effective tool for cytological diagnosis of different neoplastic lesions. Computed tomography (CT)-guided core biopsy is also essential for tissue diagnosis. Aims and Objectives: The aim of this study is to assess the diagnostic value and limitations of fine-needle aspiration and core biopsy in diagnosis of intrathoracic lesions; we have done this retrospective study. Materials and Methods: In all 54 cases with mean age of 57.37 years, CT-guided FNAC and core biopsy were performed on same sittings. 20–22 G Chiba needle was used for FNAC, and core biopsy was performed by 18–20 G coaxial automated cutting needle. The cytological and histological evaluations were done in our cytology and histopathology laboratory. Complications were managed by pulmonologists. Results: On the evaluation of FNAC smears, diagnosis was done in 44 cases and 10 cases were inconclusive. In core biopsy, five cases were inconclusive. Most of the tumors were of epithelial origin (43 cases, 87.75%) and 95.59% cases were malignant in our series. Sensitivity and diagnostic accuracy of core biopsy (90.38% and 90.74, respectively) were higher than FNAC (84.62% and 85.18%, respectively). Conclusion: CT-guided core biopsy was more effective and accurate in diagnosis and tumor classification than FNAC in spite of higher complication rate.