Exosomal long non-coding RNAs in glioblastoma.

Glioblastoma multiforme (GBM) is the most prevalent primary tumor found in the central nervous system, accounting for 70% of all adult brain tumors. The median overall survival rate is one year post-diagnosis with treatment, and only four months without treatment. Current GBM diagnostic methods, such as magnetic resonance imaging (MRI), surgery, and brain biopsies, have limitations. These include difficulty distinguishing between tumor recurrence and post-surgical necrotic regions, and operative risks associated with obtaining histological samples through direct surgery or biopsies. Consequently, there is a need for rapid, inexpensive, and minimally invasive techniques for early diagnosis and improved subsequent treatment. Research has shown that tumor-derived exosomes containing various long non-coding RNAs (lncRNAs) play critical regulatory roles in immunomodulation, cancer metastasis, cancer development, and drug resistance in GBM. They regulate genes that enhance cancer growth and progression and alter the expression of several key signaling pathways. Due to the specificity and sensitivity of exosomal lncRNAs, they have the potential to be used as biomarkers for early diagnosis and prognosis, as well as to monitor a patient's response to chemotherapy for GBM. In this review, we discuss the role of exosomal lncRNAs in the pathogenesis of GBM and their potential clinical applications for early diagnosis.

Nano-delivery systems as a promising therapeutic potential for epilepsy: Current status and future perspectives.

Epilepsy is a common chronic neurological disorder caused by aberrant neuronal electrical activity. Antiseizure medications (ASMs) are the first line of treatment for people with epilepsy (PWE). However, their effectiveness may be limited by their inability to cross the blood-brain barrier (BBB), among many other potential underpinnings for drug resistance in epilepsy. Therefore, there is a need to overcome this issue and, hopefully, improve the effectiveness of ASMs. Recently, synthetic nanoparticle-based drug delivery systems have received attention for improving the effectiveness of ASMs due to their ability to cross the BBB. Furthermore, exosomes have emerged as a promising generation of drug delivery systems because of their potential benefits over synthetic nanoparticles. In this narrative review, we focus on various synthetic nanoparticles that have been studied to deliver ASMs. Furthermore, the benefits and limitations of each nano-delivery system have been discussed. Finally, we discuss exosomes as potentially promising delivery tools for treating epilepsy.

Exosomes: Promising Delivery Tools for Overcoming Blood-Brain Barrier and Glioblastoma Therapy.

Gliomas make up virtually 80% of all lethal primary brain tumors and are categorized based on their cell of origin. Glioblastoma is an astrocytic tumor that has an inferior prognosis despite the ongoing advances in treatment modalities. One of the main reasons for this shortcoming is the presence of the blood-brain barrier and blood-brain tumor barrier. Novel invasive and non-invasive drug delivery strategies for glioblastoma have been developed to overcome both the intact blood-brain barrier and leverage the disrupted nature of the blood-brain tumor barrier to target cancer cells after resection-the first treatment stage of glioblastoma. Exosomes are among non-invasive drug delivery methods and have emerged as a natural drug delivery vehicle with high biological barrier penetrability. There are various exosome isolation methods from different origins, and the intended use of the exosomes and starting materials defines the choice of isolation technique. In the present review, we have given an overview of the structure of the blood-brain barrier and its disruption in glioblastoma. This review provided a comprehensive insight into novel passive and active drug delivery techniques to overcome the blood-brain barrier, emphasizing exosomes as an excellent emerging drug, gene, and effective molecule delivery vehicle used in glioblastoma therapy.

Role of vitamin D in oxidative stress modulation in end-stage renal disease patients: A double-blind randomized clinical trial.

INTRODUCTION: Oxidative stress is considered as important actor in uremia-associated morbidity and mortality in hemodialysis (HD) patients. We aimed to evaluate the role of vitamin D supplementation on oxidative stress parameters in this group. METHODS: This double-blind randomized clinical trial was conducted on HD patients who were randomly allocated into intervention (n = 40) or control groups (n = 38) for 10 weeks. Blood samples were taken before and at the end of the trial to measure serum 25-hydroxyvitamin D (25(OH)D), malondialdehyde (MDA), glutathione peroxidase (GPx), catalase (CAT), and superoxide dismutase (SOD). Data were analyzed using SPSS, and P value <0.05 was considered to be statistically significant. FINDINGS: Out of the 78 patients with a mean age of 44.7 ± 13.0 years, 55.1% were men. At the commencement of the study, there was no difference with respect to serum 25(OH)D levels in our groups (P = 0.575), but during the study it was significantly elevated in the intervention group (18.1 ± 9.1 vs. 31.7 ± 12.9, P < 0.0001). Serum antioxidative enzymes activity (GPx, CAT, and SOD) had significantly increased after vitamin D supplementation in the intervention group (P < 0.05). Furthermore, MDA levels was significantly reduced only in the intervention group (31.7 ± 18.0 vs. 24.7 ± 7.7, P = 0.018). DISCUSSION: Regular consumption of vitamin D can increase the GPx, CAT, SOD, and reduce the MDA plasma levels in HD patients. Since no adverse effects of vitamin D supplementation was reported by the patients; hence, it can be prescribed for HD patients.

Mesenchymal Stem Cells with Granulocyte Colony-Stimulating Factor Reduce Stress Oxidative Factors in Parkinson's Disease

Background: Recent studies have shown that bone marrow mesenchymal stem cells (BMSCs) have a putative ability to promote neurogenesis and produce behavioral and functional improvement. Our previous study demonstrated that co-treatment of granulocyte colony-stimulating factor (G-CSF) and BMSCs have beneficial effects on Parkinson's models. The main purpose of this research was to investigate the effects of these two factors on oxidative stress factors in the brain of Parkinson's rat. Methods: Adult male Wistar rats (weighing 200­250 g) were used and randomly divided into five groups of seven each. To create the Parkinson's model, 6-OHDA was injected into the left substantia nigra pars compacta. The BMSCs (2 × 106) and G-CSF (75 µg/kg) were used for treatment after creating the PD model. After four weeks, the brains of rats were removed and processed for immunohistochemical studies, such as tyrosine hydroxylase-positive neurons as well as analysis of oxidative stress factors. Results: The results showed that the injected BMSCs could cross the BBB. The injected cells are also able to settle in different areas of the brain. Analyses of the brain oxidative stress factors showed that G-CSF and BMSCs reduced the expression of malondialdehyde and induced the activity of superoxide dismutase, glutathione, and peroxidase ferric reducing ability of plasma. Conclusion: Co-administration of G-CSF and BMSC reduced the expression of pro-inflammatory cytokines and induced the activity of antioxidant enzymes; however, neurogenesis increased in the brain.

Nasofacial Anthropometric Study Among Students of Shiraz University of Medical Sciences, Iran: A Population Based Study.

Anthropometry is a scientific study of linear dimensions and angles of living subjects. Knowing the details and anthropometric properties of nasofacial for each specific ethnic group is important for cosmetic operation as well as identifying individuals. In this study, facial and nasal anthropometric factors were studied in students of Shiraz University of Medical Sciences. In a cross-sectional study, 200 students of Shiraz University of Medical Sciences (100 male and 100 female and age range of 18-30 years) were selected. Nasal width (NW), nasal length (NL), nasal height (NH), face height (FH) and face width (FW) were measured in and the nasal (NI) and facial index (FI) were calculated for each case. Then, the data were analyzed using SPSS-22. The mean age was 21.84 ± 3.18 years. There were significant differences in the facial and nasal measurements including FH (P = 0.0001), FW (P = 0.0001), FI (P = 0.0001), NL (P = 0.002), NH (P = 0.001), NW (P = 0.0001) and NI (P = 0.0001) of sex groups. The most common types of face were mesoprosopic (36%) and hyperleptoprosopic (38%) types and and platyrrhine (63%) were mostly frequent. Based on the findings, all students of Shiraz University of Medical Sciences had mesoprosopic (36%) and hyperleptoprosopic (38%) types of face and platyrrhine type of nose. As well, a sexual dimorphism was recorded according to the nasofacial measurements in Iranian population that should be considered in the cosmetic operations. Sexual dimorphism and differences between different populations were recorded.