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Follicular Lymphoma (FL) treatment initiation is largely determined by tumor burden and symptoms. In the pre-rituximab era, the Group d'Etude des Lymphomes Folliculaires (GELF) developed widely adopted criteria to identify high tumor burden FL patients to harmonize clinical trial populations. The utilization of GELF criteria (GELFc) in routine therapeutic decision-making is poorly described. This multicenter retrospective study evaluated patterns of GELFc at presentation and GELFc utilization in therapeutic decision-making in newly diagnosed, advanced stage rituximab-era FL. Associations between GELFc, treatment given, and patient survival were analyzed in 300 eligible cases identified between 2002-2019. 163 (54%) had ≥1 GELFc at diagnosis. The presence or cumulative number of GELFc did not predict PFS in patients undergoing watch-and-wait (WW) or those receiving systemic treatment. Of interest, in patients with ≥1 GELFc, 16/163 (10%) underwent initial watch-and-wait (comprising 22% of the watchand- wait cohort). In those receiving systemic therapy +/- radiotherapy, 74/215 (34%) met no GELFc. Our data suggest clinicians are using adjunctive measures to make decisions regarding treatment initiation in a significant proportion of patients. By restricting FL clinical trial eligibility only to those meeting GELFc, reported outcomes may not be applicable to a significant proportion of patients treated in routine care settings.
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In recent years, seminal studies have been devoted to unraveling the puzzling mysteries associated with the cancer preventive/inhibitory role of melatonin. Our current knowledge of the translational mechanisms and the detailed structural insights have highlighted the characteristically exclusive role of melatonin in the inhibition of carcinogenesis and metastatic dissemination. This mini-review outlines recent discoveries related to mechanistic role of melatonin in prevention of carcinogenesis and metastasis. Moreover, another exciting facet of this mini-review is related to phenomenal breakthroughs linked with regulation of noncoding RNAs by melatonin in wide variety of cancers.
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Carcinogênese , Melatonina , Metástase Neoplásica , Neoplasias , RNA não Traduzido , Melatonina/metabolismo , Humanos , Carcinogênese/metabolismo , RNA não Traduzido/metabolismo , Neoplasias/patologia , Neoplasias/metabolismo , AnimaisRESUMO
The discovery of direct-acting antivirals (DAAs) has revolutionized the treatment of hepatitis C worldwide. In contrast, pegylated interferon-alpha (PEG IFN-α), the older regimen, had limited success. However, the effect of DAAs on the expression of immunomodulatory genes involved in liver pathologies remains ambiguous. The objective of this study was to explore and contrast the effects of DAAs and PEG IFN-α on the expression of selected immunomodulatory genes. Fifty individuals were enrolled in the study and they were divided into five categories; healthy individuals, treatment-naive, DAAs-responders, DAAs-nonresponders, and interferon-relapsers. The effect of the therapies on the expression of transforming growth factor-beta (TGF-ß), tumor necrosis factor-alpha (TNF-α), suppressor of cytokine signaling 3 (SOCS-3), copper/zinc superoxide dismutase (Cu/Zn SOD), interleukin 10 (IL-10), and collagen type 1 was analyzed. Expression analysis of the selected genes was done through real time polymerase chain reaction. A significantly increased expression of TGF-ß was observed in the patients who received DAAs or PEG IFN-α, which suggests that patients receiving anti-HCV therapies are prone to developing fibrosis. Moreover, DAAs-nonresponders had higher expression of TNF-α, SOCS-3, and IL-10. The elevated expression of TNF-α and SOCS-3 insinuates that DAAs-nonresponders may develop insulin resistance and steatosis in the future. Finally, in addition to TGF-ß, high expression of collagen was found in interferon relapsers, which suggests that these patients are the most susceptible to developing cirrhosis.
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Antivirais/uso terapêutico , Hepacivirus/efeitos dos fármacos , Hepatite C/tratamento farmacológico , Interferon-alfa/uso terapêutico , Adulto , Feminino , Hepacivirus/patogenicidade , Humanos , Resistência à Insulina , Interleucina-10/metabolismo , Cirrose Hepática/virologia , Masculino , Pessoa de Meia-Idade , Proteína 3 Supressora da Sinalização de Citocinas/metabolismo , Fator de Necrose Tumoral alfa/metabolismo , Adulto JovemRESUMO
The growing complexity of metastasis has sparked tremendous interest in unraveling of the underlying mechanisms which play fundamental role in cancer progression and metastasis. Ground-breaking discoveries in metastasis research have greatly enhanced our understanding about intricate nature of metastasis. Bioactive chemicals obtained from citrus fruits have gained noteworthy appreciation because of significant cancer chemopreventive roles. Deregulated oncogenic signaling cascades play central role in metastasis. Emerging evidence has started to shed light on the metastasis inhibitory properties of naringin, naringenin, tangeretin, nobiletin, hesperidin and hesperetin in different cancer cell lines and xenografted mice. Wnt/?-catenin, TGF/SMAD and NOTCH signaling cascades have been shown to play linchpin role in carcinogenesis and metastasis. There is emerging evidence related to pharmacological targeting of Wnt/?-catenin, TGF/SMAD and NOTCH by citrus-derived bioactive components. These findings are indeed encouraging and will enable researchers to gain further insights into pharmacological targeting of oncogenic pathways to inhibit and prevent metastasis.
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Antineoplásicos Fitogênicos/uso terapêutico , Carcinogênese/efeitos dos fármacos , Citrus/química , Neoplasias/prevenção & controle , Compostos Fitoquímicos/uso terapêutico , Transdução de Sinais/efeitos dos fármacos , Animais , Carcinogênese/metabolismo , Flavonoides/química , Flavonoides/uso terapêutico , Humanos , Metástase Neoplásica , Neoplasias/metabolismo , Neoplasias/patologia , Compostos Fitoquímicos/químicaRESUMO
Ampelopsin or Dihydromyricetin is gradually emerging as a high-quality natural product because of its ability to modulate wide-ranging signaling pathways. Ampelopsin (Dihydromyricetin) has been reported to effectively modulate growth factor receptor (VEGFR2 and PDGFRß) mediated signaling, TRAIL/TRAIL-R pathway, JAK/STAT and mTOR-driven signaling in different cancers. Ampelopsin (Dihydromyricetin) has also been shown to exert inhibitory effects on the versatile regulators which trigger EMT (Epithelial-to-Mesenchymal Transition). Findings obtained from in-vitro studies are encouraging and there is a need to comprehensively analyze how Ampelopsin (Dihydromyricetin) inhibits tumor growth in different cancer models. Better knowledge of efficacy of Ampelopsin (Dihydromyricetin) in tumor bearing mice will be helpful in maximizing its translational potential.
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Flavonoides/metabolismo , Flavonóis/metabolismo , Neoplasias/metabolismo , Animais , Apoptose , Humanos , Transdução de SinaisRESUMO
Research over the decades has sequentially and systematically provided a near-complete resolution of multifaceted and therapeutically challenging nature of cancer. Drug discovery from plants has enjoyed a renaissance in the past few years. Natural products have provided many of the lead structures, which are currently being used as templates for the design and synthesis of novel compounds with biologically enhanced properties. With the maturity and diversification of technologies, there is a growing need to design high-throughput functional assays for the evaluation of the myriad of compounds being catalogued. This review sheds light on the tumor suppressive properties of Solanum nigrum and its bioactive ingredients. Several worthy of mention include uttroside B, solanine, solamargine, and physalins, which have been tested for efficacy in cancer cell lines and xenografted mice. We have summarized the most recent findings related to S. nigrum-mediated regulation of intracellular protein network in different cancers. α-Solanine, an active component of S. nigrum, is involved in the regulation of microRNA-21 (miRNA-21) (oncogenic) and miRNA-138 (tumor suppressor) in prostate cancer. However, this is the only available evidence that gives us a clue related to the tumor suppressive effects exerted by components of S. nigrum at a posttranscriptional level. More interestingly, S. nigrum and its components exerted inhibitory effects on different pathways including PI3K/AKT, JAK-STAT, VEGF/VEGFR, and matrix metalloproteinases in different cancers. We also provide an overview of new tools, methodologies, and approaches, which will allow researchers to extract as much information as possible out of the tremendous data sets currently being generated. The use of computational tools will be helpful in processing structurally complex natural products and also in prediction of their macromolecular targets.
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Antineoplásicos Fitogênicos/farmacologia , Regulação Neoplásica da Expressão Gênica/efeitos dos fármacos , Proteínas Oncogênicas/metabolismo , Solanum nigrum/química , Animais , Antineoplásicos Fitogênicos/química , Feminino , Proteínas Hedgehog/antagonistas & inibidores , Proteínas Hedgehog/metabolismo , Humanos , Neoplasias Hepáticas/tratamento farmacológico , Neoplasias Hepáticas/metabolismo , Masculino , MicroRNAs , Proteínas Oncogênicas/genética , Neoplasias Ovarianas/tratamento farmacológico , Neoplasias Ovarianas/metabolismo , Neoplasias da Próstata/tratamento farmacológico , Neoplasias da Próstata/metabolismo , Solanina/farmacologiaRESUMO
OBJECTIVE: To assess the safety profile of closed and open method of pneumoperitonium by comparing access and closure time during laparoscopic surgery and complications. METHODS: This quassi-experimental study was conducted at Bahawal Victoria Hospital, Bahawalpur, Pakistan, from September 15, 2013, to September 15, 2016, and comprised patients who were block-randomised into two equal groups. The first half constituted Group A where pneumoperitonium was created by closed method, while the latter half was designated as Group B where the open method was employed. The two groups were compared for access, closure time and complications. SPSS 23 was used for data analysis. RESULTS: There were 850 patients, with 425(50%) in each of the two groups. The overall mean age was 38.78±5.41 years, and 667(78%) were females. The mean access time in Group A was 6.58±1.78min and in Group B it was 5.49±1.82 min. The mean closure time was 7.60±2.12min in Group A and 6.91±1.40min in Group B (p<0.00). Access problem in Group A was significantly high (p=0.001). Abdominal wall complications were 13(3.05%) in Group A and 24(5.64%) in Group B (p=0.064). Visceral injury happened in 5(1.17%) patients in Group A and 1(0.23%) in Group B (p=0.101). CONCLUSIONS: Open method of pneumoperitoneum was found to be safe and less time-consuming compared to the closed method.
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Colecistectomia Laparoscópica/métodos , Pneumoperitônio Artificial/métodos , Adulto , Feminino , Cálculos Biliares/cirurgia , Humanos , Incidência , Masculino , Pessoa de Meia-Idade , Paquistão/epidemiologia , Complicações Pós-Operatórias/epidemiologia , UmbigoRESUMO
Whether the capacity of visual working memory is better characterized by an item-based or a resource-based account continues to be keenly debated. Here, we propose that visual working memory is a flexible resource that is sometimes deployed in a slot-like manner. We develop a computational model that can either encode all items in a memory set, or encode only a subset of those items. A fixed-capacity mnemonic resource is divided among the items in memory. When fewer items are encoded, they are each remembered with higher fidelity, but at the cost of having to rely on an explicit guessing process when probed about an item that is not in memory. We use the new model to test the prediction that participants will more often encode the entire set of items when the demands on memory are predictable.
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Memória de Curto Prazo , Modelos Psicológicos , Percepção Visual , Teorema de Bayes , HumanosRESUMO
The high global prevalence of hepatitis B and hepatitis C and the poor prognosis of hepatitis B and hepatitis C-associated hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC), necessitates the early diagnosis and treatment of the disease. Recent studies show that cell-to-cell communication via extracellular vesicles (EVs) is involved in the HCC progression. The objective of the following study was to explore the role of EVs in the progression of viral-induced HCC and investigate their potential for the early diagnosis of cancer. First, the mRNA derived from EVs of HCC patients was compared to the mRNA derived from EVs from the healthy controls. Expression analysis of ANGPTL3, SH3BGRL3, and IFITM3 genes from the EVs was done. Afterward, to confirm whether hepatocytes can uptake EVs, HuH7 cells were exposed to EVs, and the expression analysis of downstream target genes (AKT, TNF-α, and MMP-9) in Huh7 cells was done. Transcriptional analysis showed that in the EVs from HCC patients, the expression levels of ANGPTL3, SH3BGRL3, and IFITM3 were significantly increased by 2.62-, 4.3-, and 9.03-folds, respectively. The downstream targets, AKT, TNF-α, and MMP-9, also showed a considerable change of 4.1-, 1.46-, and 5.05-folds, respectively, in Huh7 cells exposed to HCC EVs. In conclusion, the following study corroborates the role of EVs in HCC progression. Furthermore, the significant alteration in mRNA levels of the selected genes demonstrates their potential to be used as possible biomarkers for the early diagnosis of HCC.
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Proteínas Adaptadoras de Transdução de Sinal , Carcinoma Hepatocelular , Vesículas Extracelulares , Hepatite B , Hepatite C , Neoplasias Hepáticas , Humanos , Carcinoma Hepatocelular/diagnóstico , Carcinoma Hepatocelular/genética , Neoplasias Hepáticas/diagnóstico , Neoplasias Hepáticas/genética , Metaloproteinase 9 da Matriz/metabolismo , Proteínas Proto-Oncogênicas c-akt , Fator de Necrose Tumoral alfa/metabolismo , Hepatite C/genética , Biomarcadores/metabolismo , Vesículas Extracelulares/metabolismo , Vesículas Extracelulares/patologia , RNA Mensageiro/genética , Proteínas de Membrana/genética , Proteínas de Membrana/metabolismo , Proteínas de Ligação a RNA/metabolismo , Proteína 3 Semelhante a AngiopoietinaRESUMO
Most of the transition metal ions and organic dyes are toxic in nature. Therefore, their removal from water is imperative for human health. For this purpose, various types of systems have been developed to tackle either transition metal ions or organic dyes individually. A core-shell microgel system is introduced which is capable of effectively removing both types (toxic organic dyes and transition metal ions) of pollutants. A long-rod-shaped silica@poly(chitosan-N-isopropylacrylamide-methacrylic acid) S@P(CS-NIPAM-MAA) S@P(CNM) core-shell microgel system was developed by free radical precipitation polymerization method (FRPPM). S@P(CNM) was utilized as an adsorbent for extracting palladium (II) (Pd (II)) ions from water under different concentrations of S@P(CNM), several agitation times, palladium (II) ion content, and pH levels. The adsorption data of Pd (II) ions on S@P(CNM) was evaluated by various adsorption isotherms. The kinetic study was investigated by employing pseudo-2nd order (Ps2O), Elovich model (ElM), intra-particle diffusion (IPDM), and pseudo-1st order (Ps1O). Additionally, palladium nanoparticles (Pd NPs) were generated via in-situ reduction of adsorbed Pd (II) ions within the P(CNM) shell region of S@P(CNM). The resulting Pd NPs loaded S@P(CNM) exhibited the capability to reduce organic pollutants like methyl orange (MeO), 4-nitrophenol (4NiP), methylene blue (MeB), and Rhodamine B (RhB) from aqueous medium. 0.766 min-1, 0.433 min-1, 0.682 min-1, and 1.140 min-1 were the values of pseudo 1st order rate constant (kobs) for catalytic reduction of MeB, 4NiP, MeO, and RhB respectively. The S@Pd-P(CNM) system exhibits significant catalytic potential for various organic transformations.
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Quitosana , Nanopartículas Metálicas , Paládio , Dióxido de Silício , Poluentes Químicos da Água , Paládio/química , Quitosana/química , Dióxido de Silício/química , Poluentes Químicos da Água/química , Poluentes Químicos da Água/isolamento & purificação , Adsorção , Nanopartículas Metálicas/química , Cinética , Acrilamidas/química , Géis/química , Purificação da Água/métodos , Concentração de Íons de Hidrogênio , Metacrilatos/química , Íons/químicaRESUMO
Heavy metal accumulation increases rapidly in the environment due to anthropogenic activities and industrialization. The leather and surgical industry produces many contaminants containing heavy metals. Cadmium, a prominent contaminant, is linked to severe health risks, notably kidney and liver damage, especially among individuals exposed to contaminated wastewater. This study aims to leverage the natural cadmium resistance mechanisms in bacteria for bioaccumulation purposes. The industrial wastewater samples, characterized by an alarming cadmium concentration of 29.6 ppm, 52 ppm, and 76.4 ppm-far exceeding the recommended limit of 0.003 ppm-were subjected to screening for cadmium-resistant bacteria using cadmium-supplemented media with CdCl2. 16S rRNA characterization identified Vibrio cholerae and Proteus mirabilis as cadmium-resistant bacteria in the collected samples. Subsequently, the cadmium resistance-associated cadA gene was successfully amplified in Vibrio species and Proteus mirabilis, revealing a product size of 623 bp. Further analysis of the identified bacteria included the examination of virulent genes, specifically the tcpA gene (472 bp) associated with cholera and the UreC gene (317 bp) linked to urinary tract infections. To enhance the bioaccumulation of cadmium, the study proposes the potential suppression of virulent gene expression through in-silico gene-editing tools such as CRISPR-Cas9. A total of 27 gRNAs were generated for UreC, with five selected for expression. Similarly, 42 gRNA sequences were generated for tcpA, with eight chosen for expression analysis. The selected gRNAs were integrated into the lentiCRISPR v2 expression vector. This strategic approach aims to facilitate precise gene editing of disease-causing genes (tcpA and UreC) within the bacterial genome. In conclusion, this study underscores the potential utility of Vibrio species and Proteus mirabilis as effective candidates for the removal of cadmium from industrial wastewater, offering insights for future environmental remediation strategies.
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Cólera , Infecções Urinárias , Vibrio , Humanos , Proteus mirabilis/genética , Cádmio/toxicidade , Sistemas CRISPR-Cas/genética , RNA Ribossômico 16S , Águas Residuárias , RNA Guia de Sistemas CRISPR-Cas , Vibrio/genéticaRESUMO
In the current study, surface-enhanced Raman scattering (SERS) was performed to evaluate the antibacterial activity of lab-synthesized drug (1-isopentyl-3-pentyl-1H-imidazole-3-ium bromide salt) and commercial drug tinidazole againstBacillus subtilis. The changes in SERS spectral features were studied for unexposed bacillus and exposed one with various dosages of drug synthesized in the lab (1-isopentyl-3-pentyl-1H-imidazole-3-ium bromide salt), and SERS bands were assigned associated with the drug-induced biochemical alterations in bacteria. Multivariate data analysis tools including principal component analysis (PCA) and partial least-squares discriminant analysis (PLS-DA) have been utilized to analyze the antibacterial activity of the imidazole derivative (lab drug). PCA was employed in differentiating all the SERS spectral data sets associated with the various doses of the lab-synthesized drug. There is clear discrimination among the spectral data sets of a bacterial strain treated with different concentrations of the drug, which are analyzed by PLS-DA with 86% area under the curve in receiver operating curve (ROC), 99% sensitivity, 100% accuracy, and 98% specificity. Various dominant spectral features are observed with a gradual increase in the different concentrations of the applied drug including 715, 850, 1002, 1132, 1237, 1396, 1416, and 1453 cm-1, which indicate the possible biochemical changes caused in bacteria during the antibacterial activity of the lab-synthesized drug. Overall, the findings show that imidazole and imidazolium compounds generated from tinidazole with various alkyl lengths in the amide substitution can be effective antibacterial agents with low cytotoxicity in humans, and these results indicate the efficiency of SERS in pharmaceuticals and biomedical applications.
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This paper discusses a leader-following consensus problem for nonlinear multi-agent systems (MASs) subjected to generalized Lipschitz-type nonlinearity using output feedback. An event-triggered (ET) leader-following control scheme, based upon estimated states using observers, is proposed for efficient bandwidth utilization by application of invariant sets. Distributed observers are designed to estimate the states of the followers because actual states are not always readily available. Besides, in order to reduce unnecessary data communication among the followers, an ET strategy has been formulated which excludes Zeno behavior as well. Under this proposed scheme, sufficient conditions are formulated using Lyapunov theory. These conditions not only guarantee the asymptotic stability of estimation error, but also ensure the tracking consensus of nonlinear MASs. Further, a simple and less conservative design approach using a decoupling scheme for assuring necessity and sufficiency for the main design approach has also been explored. The decoupling scheme is similar to separation principle for linear systems. Contrary to the existing works, the nonlinear systems considered in this study cover a wide family of Lipschitz nonlinearities, including both globally and locally Lipschitz systems. Moreover, the proposed approach is more efficient in handling ET consensus. Finally, the obtained results are verified with single link robots and modified Chua's circuits.
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In this article, the group consensus problem is addressed for a network of multiagent systems (MASs). Unlike in existing literature, where a relative-state feedback-based distributed control input is used to achieve group consensus, this work aims at designing a relative-output-based distributed control law to achieve the same goal. To that effect, the Lyapunov stability theory is used to formulate the sufficient and necessary conditions for the existence of such a feedback controller and then separate conditions have been included for its design. In addition to that, a new linear matrix inequality is explored to choose the intracluster coupling strengths to ensure group consensus. In this article, the relative-output-based control approach is investigated for both the leaderless and the leader-following frameworks of the group consensus problem, and the theoretical findings presented are validated using numerical examples and simulation results.
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Objectives Patient satisfaction is now becoming the assessment criterion for the quality of health care services provided to patients with mental health issues; therefore, this study aimed to quantify patient satisfaction in the psychiatric outpatient department of Jinnah Hospital, Lahore, Pakistan, and assess the effects of socio-demographic factors and cultural and ethical beliefs on patient satisfaction. Methods This is a cross-sectional, observational study with a sample size of 386 patients, using a simple random sampling technique. Patients older than 14 years were included in this study. A questionnaire comprising demographics and cultural and ethical beliefs using the Cultural Attitudes toward Healthcare and Mental Illness Questionnaire, and satisfaction rates using the Psychiatric Out-Patient Experience Questionnaire (POPEQ), was designed for the research project. Results The mean age ± SD was 31.2 ± 12.2 years. The POPEQ demonstrated a mean satisfaction score of 3.11 ± 0.90. The majority of the population considered stress (54.4%), family issues (33.4%), and medical illness (33.4%) as the cause of their mental illness. In comparison, the preferable type of treatment for most patients was medication (75.1%) and counseling (36.0%). Among socio-demographic characteristics, education was inversely related to satisfaction (p<0.01). The patients who believed medications to be their preferred treatment for their mental illness were most satisfied (p < 0.01). Conclusion This study demonstrates high overall satisfaction rates with psychiatric outpatient services. However, no significant association between sociodemographic characteristics and satisfaction levels was established except for the education status of the patients and their preferred method of treatment. The study did not reveal any influence of cultural beliefs on the degree of satisfaction of patients.
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BACKGROUND: Surface-enhanced Raman spectroscopy is a reliable tool for identification and differentiation of two diseases showing similar symptoms, hepatitis B (HBV) and hepatitis C (HCV). OBJECTIVES: To develop a polymerase chain reaction technique (PCR) based SERS technique for differentiation of two human pathological conditions sharing the same symptoms using multivariate data analysis techniques e.g. principle component analysis (PCA) and partial least square discriminate analysis (PLS-DA). METHODS: PCR products of HBV and HCV were differentiated by SERS using silver nanoparticles (AgNPs) as a SERS substrate. For this analysis, PCR products of both the diseases with predetermined viral loads were collected and analyzed under SERS instrument and unique SERS spectra of HBV and HCV was compared showing many differences at various points. Diseased classes of HBV and HCV and their negative control classes (viral load less than 1) were compared. PCR products of true healthy DNA and RNA were also compared, which were significantly separated. Moreover, SERS data was analyzed using multivariate data analysis techniques including principle component analysis (PCA) and partial least square discriminate analysis (PLS-DA) and differences were so prominent to observe. RESULTS: SERS spectral data of HBV and HCV showed clear differences and were significantly separated using PCA. Negative control samples of both disorders and their true healthy samples of DNA and RNA were separated according to 1st principle component. By analyzing data using partial least square discriminate analysis, differentiation of two disease classes was considered more valid with sensitivity, specificity and accuracy value of 96%, 94% and 98% respectively. Value of area under curve (AUROC) was 0.7527. CONCLUSION: SERS can be employed for identification and comparison of two human pathological conditions sharing the same symptomology.
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Hepatite B , Hepatite C , Nanopartículas Metálicas , Fotoquimioterapia , Hepatite B/diagnóstico , Hepatite C/diagnóstico , Humanos , Fotoquimioterapia/métodos , Fármacos Fotossensibilizantes , Reação em Cadeia da Polimerase , Prata , Análise Espectral RamanRESUMO
The vinyl caprolactam (VCL) based microgel system has become the center of great attention due to its versatile properties. Copolymerization of VCL with an ionic monomer imparts pH responsive properties into the microgel system in addition to thermo-sensitivity. Stimuli responsive behavior of VCL-based microgels makes them prospective and appealing candidates for practical applications covering the fields of drug delivery, catalysis and optical devices. In the last few years, VCL-based microgels have been used as microreactors and stabilizers for the synthesis and stabilization of inorganic nanoparticles to obtain hybrid microgels. The present review article provides a summary of the present-day progress of fabrication, stabilization, categorization and analysis of VCL-based microgels and their hybrids with different morphologies. The stimuli responsive properties and applications of VCL-based hybrid microgels have been reviewed critically. The remaining problems which need to be addressed have been pointed out for further advancement in this field.
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Background: Pulmonary mycosis (PM) poses a great diagnostic challenge due to the lack of pathognomonic and radiological features, especially in the absence of mycology laboratory tests. This study was aimed to isolate, phenotypically identify, determine the prevalence of pulmonary fungal pathogens and antifungal susceptibility pattern of isolates of presumptive tuberculosis (PTB) patients attending Federal Teaching Hospital (FTH) Gombe, Nigeria. Methods: After ethical approval, three consecutive early morning sputa were collected from 216 participants with presumptive of PTB attending FTH Gombe, between May 2, 2017 and May 30, 2018. Samples were processed using standard mycological staining, microscopy, sugar biochemistry, and antifungal susceptibility test protocols. Sociodemographic variables and risk factors of pulmonary fungal infection were assessed through structured questionnaires. Pulmonary fungal infection was defined by the positive culture in at least two sputa. PTB was defined by Genexpert® nested polymerase chain reaction. Results: Of the 216 participants, 19.9% had PTB and 73.6% had pulmonary fungal pathogens. Among the isolated pulmonary fungal pathogens, Aspergillus fumigatus made the highest occurrence, while 6.5% had PTB-fungal co-infection. No significant association existed between the prevalence of PM with age and sex of participants (P < 0.05). Cigarette smoking (adjusted odds ratio [aOR] = 15.9 [95% confidence interval (CI): 0.9-268.8]), prolong antibiotic use (aOR = 77.9 [95% CI: 4.7-1283]) and possession of domestic pet (aOR = 77.9 [95% CI: 4.7-1283]) were significant risk factors of PM (P < 0.05). Penicillium citrinum, Mucor spp. and Aspergillus flavus are more susceptible to voriconazole, and Candida albicans was found to be more susceptible to Nystatin. Of the 159 fungal isolates, 92.5% were resistant to fluconazole. Conclusion: Findings from this study revealed high level pulmonary fungal pathogens, especially among PTB patients. A majority of fungal isolates were resistant to fluconazole. It's recommended that persons should do away with or minimize risk factors for pulmonary fungal pathogens identified in this study.
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Antifúngicos/uso terapêutico , Fungos/classificação , Fungos/efeitos dos fármacos , Pneumopatias/microbiologia , Micoses/epidemiologia , Tuberculose/epidemiologia , Adolescente , Adulto , Coinfecção/epidemiologia , Coinfecção/microbiologia , Estudos Transversais , Feminino , Fungos/patogenicidade , Humanos , Pneumopatias/tratamento farmacológico , Pneumopatias/epidemiologia , Masculino , Testes de Sensibilidade Microbiana , Pessoa de Meia-Idade , Micoses/tratamento farmacológico , Micoses/microbiologia , Nigéria/epidemiologia , Prevalência , Fatores de Risco , Escarro/microbiologia , Tuberculose/diagnóstico , Tuberculose/microbiologia , Adulto JovemRESUMO
Research over decades has progressively explored pharmacological actions of bitter gourd (Momordica charantia). Biologically and pharmacologically active molecules isolated from M. charantia have shown significant anti-cancer activity in cancer cell lines and xenografted mice. In this review spotlight was set on the bioactive compounds isolated from M. charantia that effectively inhibited cancer development and progression via regulation of protein network in cancer cells. We summarize most recent high-quality research work in cancer cell lines and xenografted mice related to tumor suppressive role-play of M. charantia and its bioactive compounds. Although M. charantia mediated health promoting, anti-diabetic, hepatoprotective, anti-inflammatory effects have been extensively investigated, there is insufficient information related to regulation of signaling networks by bioactive molecules obtained from M. charantia in different cancers. M. charantia has been shown to modulate AKT/mTOR/p70S6K signaling, p38MAPK-MAPKAPK-2/HSP-27 pathway, cell cycle regulatory proteins and apoptosis-associated proteins in different cancers. However, still there are visible knowledge gaps related to the drug targets in different cancers because we have not yet developed comprehensive understanding of the M. charantia mediated regulation of signal transduction pathways. To explore these questions, experimental platforms are needed that can prove to be helpful in getting a step closer to personalized medicine.