The bioengineered and multifunctional nanoparticles in pancreatic cancer therapy: Bioresponisive nanostructures, phototherapy and targeted drug delivery.

The multidisciplinary approaches in treatment of cancer appear to be essential in term of bringing benefits of several disciplines and their coordination in tumor elimination. Because of the biological and malignant features of cancer cells, they have ability of developing resistance to conventional therapies such as chemo- and radio-therapy. Pancreatic cancer (PC) is a malignant disease of gastrointestinal tract in which chemotherapy and radiotherapy are main tools in its treatment, and recently, nanocarriers have been emerged as promising structures in its therapy. The bioresponsive nanocarriers are able to respond to pH and redox, among others, in targeted delivery of cargo for specific treatment of PC. The loading drugs on the nanoparticles that can be synthetic or natural compounds, can help in more reduction in progression of PC through enhancing their intracellular accumulation in cancer cells. The encapsulation of genes in the nanoparticles can protect against degradation and promotes intracellular accumulation in tumor suppression. A new kind of therapy for cancer is phototherapy in which nanoparticles can stimulate both photothermal therapy and photodynamic therapy through hyperthermia and ROS overgeneration to trigger cell death in PC. Therefore, synergistic therapy of phototherapy with chemotherapy is performed in accelerating tumor suppression. One of the important functions of nanotechnology is selective targeting of PC cells in reducing side effects on normal cells. The nanostructures are capable of being surface functionalized with aptamers, proteins and antibodies to specifically target PC cells in suppressing their progression. Therefore, a specific therapy for PC is provided and future implications for diagnosis of PC is suggested.

Analysis of anti-apoptotic protein (Bcl-xl) levels and mRNA expression in infertile patients.

In assisted reproductive technology (ART), researchers have tried to predict in vitro fertilization (IVF) outcomes depending on follicular cells apoptosis. Previous reports suggested the B-cell lymphoma-extra-large (BCL-XL) as an apoptosis inhibitor in mammalian ovaries. Therefore, the present research aimed to correlate BCL-XL expression in blood and concentration in follicular fluid (FF) with some outcomes of IVF. A prospective case-control study on infertile women (n=80, mean age= 31.18± 6.04 years) who underwent an IVF program at Kamal Al-Samarai Hospital (Baghdad/Iraq), July 2021- January 2022. All women were split based on pregnancy outcome into two groups: the non-pregnant group (n=40) and the pregnant group (n=40). Samples of FF and blood were assembled at oocyte retrieval time. The BCL-XL mRNA expression was assessed with the Real-Time Quantitative Reverse Transcription-polymerase chain reaction (Real-Time qRT-PCR) technique, whereas the BCL-XL concentration in FF was investigated by sandwich enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay (ELISA). The BCL-XL concentration in FF from pregnant group (3.90 ng/ml ±1.16) raised significantly (P = 0.00) compared with non-pregnant group (1.90 ng/ml ± 0.63). Similarly, the BCL-XL mRNA expression in blood from pregnant group (0.73 ±0.31) raised significantly (P = 0.00) compared with non-pregnant group (0.34± 0.12). In addition, FF BCL-XL concentration associated significantly with fertilization rate (r= 0.399, P=0.048). The research proposed that the elevation of anti-apoptotic BCL-XL might assist in diminished apoptosis in pregnant women who underwent IVF treatment.

The protective role of sulforaphane and Homer1a in retinal ischemia-reperfusion injury: Unraveling the neuroprotective interplay.

AIMS: Retinal ischemia/reperfusion (I/R) injury is a common pathological basis for various ophthalmic diseases. This study aimed to investigate the potential of sulforaphane (SFN) and Homer1a in regulating cell apoptosis induced by retinal I/R injury and to explore the underlying regulatory mechanism between them. MATERIALS AND METHODS: In in vivo experiments, C57BL/6J mice and Homer1flox/-/Homer1a+/-/Nestin-Cre+/- mice were used to construct retinal I/R injury models. In vitro experiments utilized the oxygen-glucose deprivation-reperfusion (OGD/R) injury model with primary retinal ganglion cells (RGCs). The effects of Homer1a and SFN on cell apoptosis were observed through pathological analyses, flow cytometry, and visual electrophysiological assessments. KEY FINDINGS: We discovered that after OGD/R injury, apoptosis of RGCs and intracellular Ca2+ activity significantly increased. However, these changes were reversed upon the addition of SFN, and similar observations were reproduced in in vivo studies. Furthermore, both in vivo and in vitro studies confirmed the upregulation of Homer1a after I/R, which could be further enhanced by the administration of SFN. Moreover, upregulation of Homer1a resulted in a reduction in cell apoptosis and pro-apoptotic proteins, while downregulation of Homer1a had the opposite effect. Flash visual evoked potential, oscillatory potentials, and escape latency measurements in mice supported these findings. Furthermore, the addition of SFN strengthened the neuroprotective effects in the OGD/R + H+ group but weakened them in Homer1flox/-/Homer1a+/-/Nestin-Cre+/- mice. SIGNIFICANCE: These results indicate that Homer1a plays a significant role in the therapeutic potential of sulforaphane for retinal I/R injury, thereby providing a theoretical basis for clinical treatment.