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Articular cartilage (AC) is most susceptible to degeneration in knee osteoarthritis (OA); however, the existing treatments for OA do not target the core link of the pathogenesis-"decreased tissue cell function activity and extracellular matrix (ECM) metabolic disorders" for effective intervention. iMSC hold lower heterogeneity and great promise in biological research and clinical applications. Rps6ka2 may play an important role in the iMSC to treat OA. In this study, the CRISPR/Cas9 gene editing Rps6ka2-/- iMSC were obtained. Effect of Rps6ka2 on iMSC proliferation and chondrogenic differentiation was evaluated in vitro. An OA model was constructed in mice by surgical destabilization of medial meniscus (DMM). The Rps6ka2-/- iMSC and iMSC were injected into the articular cavity twice-weekly for 8 weeks. In vitro experiments showed that Rps6ka2 could promote iMSC proliferation and chondrogenic differentiation. In vivo results further confirmed that Rps6ka2 could improve iMSC viability to promote ECM production to attenuate OA in mice.
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Cartílago Articular , Osteoartritis de la Rodilla , Ratones , Animales , Osteoartritis de la Rodilla/genética , Osteoartritis de la Rodilla/terapia , Osteoartritis de la Rodilla/metabolismo , Cartílago Articular/metabolismo , Diferenciación Celular/genética , Matriz Extracelular , Condrocitos/metabolismo , Modelos Animales de EnfermedadRESUMEN
The field of pediatric critical care has been hampered in the era of precision medicine by our inability to accurately define and subclassify disease phenotypes. This has been caused by heterogeneity across age groups that further challenges the ability to perform randomized controlled trials in pediatrics. One approach to overcome these inherent challenges include the use of machine learning algorithms that can assist in generating more meaningful interpretations from clinical data. This review summarizes machine learning and artificial intelligence techniques that are currently in use for clinical data modeling with relevance to pediatric critical care. Focus has been placed on the differences between techniques and the role of each in the clinical arena. The various forms of clinical decision support that utilize machine learning are also described. We review the applications and limitations of machine learning techniques to empower clinicians to make informed decisions at the bedside. IMPACT: Critical care units generate large amounts of under-utilized data that can be processed through artificial intelligence. This review summarizes the machine learning and artificial intelligence techniques currently being used to process clinical data. The review highlights the applications and limitations of these techniques within a clinical context to aid providers in making more informed decisions at the bedside.
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Inteligencia Artificial , Aprendizaje Automático , Humanos , Niño , Algoritmos , Cuidados Críticos , Medicina de PrecisiónRESUMEN
Bone remodeling is a tightly coupled process between bone forming osteoblasts (OBs) and bone resorbing osteoclasts (OCs) to maintain bone architecture and systemic mineral homeostasis throughout life. However, the mechanisms responsible for the coupling between OCs and OBs have not been fully elucidated. Herein, we first validate that secreted extracellular vesicles by osteoclasts (OC-EVs) promote osteogenic differentiation of mesenchymal stem cells (MSCs) and further demonstrate the efficacy of osteoclasts and their secreted EVs in treating tibial bone defects. Furthermore, we show that OC-EVs contain several osteogenesis-promoting proteins as cargo. By employing proteomic and functional analysis, we reveal that mature osteoclasts secrete thrombin cleaved phosphoprotein 1 (SPP1) through extracellular vesicles which triggers MSCs osteogenic differentiation into OBs by activating Transforming Growth Factor ß1 (TGFß1) and Smad family member 3 (SMAD3) signaling. In conclusion, our findings prove an important role of SPP1, present as cargo in OC-derived EVs, in signaling to MSCs and driving their differentiation into OBs. This biological mechanism implies a paradigm shift regarding the role of osteoclasts and their signaling toward the treatment of skeletal disorders which require bone formation.
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Vesículas Extracelulares , Osteoclastos , Osteoclastos/metabolismo , Osteogénesis , Factor de Crecimiento Transformador beta1/metabolismo , Proteómica , Regeneración Ósea , Osteoblastos , Diferenciación Celular , Vesículas Extracelulares/metabolismoRESUMEN
Reproductive aging is on the rise globally and inseparable from the entire aging process. An extreme form of reproductive aging is premature ovarian insufficiency (POI), which to date has mostly been of idiopathic etiology, thus hampering further clinical applications and associated with enormous socioeconomic and personal costs. In the field of reproduction, the important functional role of inflammation-induced ovarian deterioration and therapeutic strategies to prevent ovarian aging and increase its function are current research hotspots. This review discusses the general pathophysiology and relative causes of POI and comprehensively describes the association between the aging features of POI and infertility. Next, various preclinical studies of stem cell therapies with potential for POI treatment and their molecular mechanisms are described, with particular emphasis on the use of human induced pluripotent stem cell (hiPSC) technology in the current scenario. Finally, the progress made in the development of hiPSC technology as a POI research tool for engineering more mature and functional organoids suitable as an alternative therapy to restore infertility provides new insights into therapeutic vulnerability, and perspectives on this exciting research on stem cells and the derived exosomes towards more effective POI diagnosis and treatment are also discussed.
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Células Madre Pluripotentes Inducidas , Infertilidad , Insuficiencia Ovárica Primaria , Femenino , Humanos , Insuficiencia Ovárica Primaria/terapia , EnvejecimientoRESUMEN
PICU patients who experience critical illness events, such as intubation, are at high risk for morbidity and mortality. Little is known about the impact of these events, which require significant resources, on outcomes in other patients. Therefore, we aimed to assess the association between critical events in PICU patients and the risk of similar events in neighboring patients over the next 6 hours. DESIGN: Retrospective observational cohort study. SETTING: Quaternary care PICU at the University of Chicago. PATIENTS: All children admitted to the PICU between 2012 and 2019. INTERVENTIONS: None. MEASUREMENTS AND MAIN RESULTS: The primary outcome was a critical event defined as the initiation of invasive ventilation, initiating vasoactive medications, cardiac arrest, or death. The exposure was the occurrence of a critical event among other patients in the PICU within the preceding 6 hours. Discrete-time survival analysis using fixed 6-hour blocks beginning at the time of PICU admission was used to model the risk of experiencing a critical event in the PICU when an event occurred in the prior 6 hours. There were 13,628 admissions, of which 1,886 (14%) had a critical event. The initiation of mechanical ventilation was the most frequent event (n = 1585; 59%). In the fully adjusted analysis, there was a decreased risk of critical events (odds ratio, 0.82; 95% CI, 0.70-0.96) in the 6 hours following exposure to a critical event. This association was not present when considering longer intervals and was more pronounced in patients younger than 6 years old when compared with patients 7 years and older. CONCLUSION: Critical events in PICU patients are associated with decreased risk of similar events in neighboring patients. Further studies targeted toward exploring the mechanism behind this effect as well as identification of other nonpatient factors that adversely affect outcomes in children are warranted.
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The human secretome and membrane proteome are a large source of cancer biomarkers. Membrane-bound and secreted proteins are promising targets for many clinically approved drugs, including for the treatment of tumours. Here, we report a deep systematic analysis of 957 adenocarcinomas of the oesophagus, stomach, colon and rectum to examine the cancer-associated human secretome and membrane proteome of gastrointestinal tract adenocarcinomas (GIACs). Transcriptomic data from these GIACs were applied to an innovative majority decision-based algorithm. We quantified significantly expressed protein-coding genes. Interestingly, we found a consistent pattern in a small group of genes found to be overexpressed in GIACs, which were associated with a cytokine-cytokine interaction pathway (CCRI) in all four cancer subtypes. These CCRI associated genes, which spanned both one secretory and one membrane isoform were further analysed, revealing a putative biomarker, interleukin-1 receptor accessory protein (IL1RAP), which indicated a poor overall survival, a positive correlation with cancer stemness and a negative correlation with several kinds of T cells. These results were further validated in vitro through the knockdown of IL1RAP in two human gastric carcinoma cell lines, which resulted in a reduced indication of cellular proliferation, migration and markers of invasiveness. Following IL1RAP silencing, RNA seq results showed a consistent pattern of inhibition related to CCRI, proliferation pathways and low infiltration of regulatory T cells (Tregs) and CD8 naive cells. The significance of the human secretome and membrane proteome is elucidated by these findings, which indicate IL1RAP as a potential candidate biomarker for cytokine-mediated cancer immunotherapy in gastric carcinoma.
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Adenocarcinoma , Proteoma , Adenocarcinoma/patología , Biomarcadores de Tumor/genética , Biomarcadores de Tumor/metabolismo , Colon/patología , Citocinas/metabolismo , Humanos , Proteoma/metabolismo , SecretomaRESUMEN
Mesenchymal stem cells (MSC) isolated from different tissue sources exhibit multiple biological effects and have shown promising therapeutic effects in a broad range of diseases. In order to fulfill their clinical applications in context of precision medicine, however, more detailed molecular characterization of diverse subgroups and standardized scalable production of certain functional subgroups would be highly desired. Thus far, the generation of induced pluripotent stem cell (iPSC)-derived MSC (iMSC) seems to provide the unique opportunity to solve most obstacles that currently exist to prevent the broad application of MSC as an advanced medicinal product. The features of iMSC include their single cell clone origins, and defined and controllable cultural conditions for their derivation and proliferation. Still, comprehensive research of the molecular and functional heterogeneity of iMSC, just like MSC from any other tissue types, would be required. Furthered on previous efforts on iMSC differentiation and expansion platform and transcriptomic studies, advantages of single cell multi-omics analysis and other up-to-dated technologies would be taken in order to elucidate the molecular origin and regulation of heterogeneity and to obtain iMSC subgroups homogeneous enough for particular clinical conditions. In this perspective, the current obstacles in MSC applications, the advantages of iMSC over MSC and their implications for biological research and clinical applications will be discussed.
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PURPOSE OF REVIEW: Traumatic injuries are a leading cause of pediatric mortality; pediatric ICUs (PICUs) are an important but potentially limited resource associated with high costs. In an era of rising healthcare costs, appropriate resource utilization is important. Here, we examine evidence-based guidelines supporting the management of pediatric traumatic injury outside of the PICU. RECENT FINDINGS: Historical management of solid organ injury and traumatic brain injury was focused on operative management. However, over the past four decades, management of solid organ injury has shifted from invasive management to nonsurgical management with a growing body of evidence supporting the safety and efficacy of this trend. The management of traumatic brain injury (TBI) has had a similar evolution to that of solid organ injury with regard to nonoperative management and management outside the critical care setting. SUMMARY: The use of evidence-based guidelines to support expectant management in the setting of pediatric trauma has the potential to reduce unnecessary resource utilization of the PICU. In this review, we present findings that support nonoperative management and management of pediatric trauma outside of the PICU setting. In resource-poor areas, this approach may facilitate care for pediatric trauma patients. The implications are also important in resource-rich settings because of the unintended risks associated with PICU.
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Asignación de Recursos para la Atención de Salud , Unidades de Cuidado Intensivo Pediátrico , Heridas y Lesiones , Niño , Humanos , Heridas y Lesiones/terapiaRESUMEN
Objectives: To ascertain factors associated with worsening of psychiatric conditions during the coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) pandemic. Methods: This study anonymously examined 2,734 psychiatric patients worldwide for worsening of their preexisting psychiatric conditions during the COVID-19 pandemic. An independent clinical investigation of 318 psychiatric patients from United States was used for verification. Results: Valid responses mainly from 12 featured countries indicated self-reported worsening of psychiatric conditions in two-thirds of the patients assessed that was through their significantly higher scores on scales for general psychological disturbance, posttraumatic stress disorder, and depression. Female gender, feeling no control of the situation, reporting dissatisfaction with the response of the state during the COVID-19 pandemic, and reduced interaction with family and friends increased the worsening of preexisting psychiatric conditions, whereas optimism, ability to share concerns with family and friends, and using social media like usual were associated with less worsening. An independent clinical investigation from the United States confirmed worsening of psychiatric conditions during the COVID-19 pandemic based on identification of new symptoms that necessitated clinical interventions such as dose adjustment or starting new medications in more than half of the patients. Conclusions: More than half of the patients are experiencing worsening of their psychiatric conditions during the COVID-19 pandemic.
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Present study aimed to elucidate the anticancer effect and the possible molecular mechanism underlying the action of Latcripin 1 (LP1), from the mushroom Lentinula edodes strain C91-3 against gastric cancer cell lines SGC-7901 and BGC-823. Cell viability was measured by Cell Counting Kit-8 (CCK-8); morphological changes were observed by phase contrast microscope; autophagy was determined by transmission electron microscope and fluorescence microscope. Apoptosis and cell cycle were assessed by flow cytometer; wound-healing, transwell migration and invasion assays were performed to investigate the effect of LP1 on gastric cancer cell's migration and invasion. Herein, we found that LP1 resulted in the induction of autophagy by the formation of autophagosomes and conversion of light chain 3 (LC3I into LC3II. LP1 up-regulated the expression level of autophagy-related gene (Atg7, Atg5, Atg12, Atg14) and Beclin1; increased and decreased the expression level of pro-apoptotic (Bax) and anti-apoptotic (Bcl-2) proteins respectively, along with the activation of Caspase-3. At lower-doses, LP1 have shown to arrest cells in the S phase of the cell cycle and decreased the expression level of matrix metalloproteinase MMP-2 and MMP-9. In addition, it has also been shown to regulate the phosphorylation of one of the most hampered gastric cancer pathway, that is, protein kinase B/mammalian target of rapamycin (Akt/mTOR) channel and resulted in cell death. These findings suggested LP1 as a potential natural anti-cancer agent, for exploring the gastric cancer therapies and as a contender for further in vitro and in vivo investigations.
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Apoptosis/efectos de los fármacos , Autofagia/efectos de los fármacos , Proteínas Fúngicas/farmacología , Hongos Shiitake/química , Neoplasias Gástricas/patología , Línea Celular Tumoral , Movimiento Celular/efectos de los fármacos , Proliferación Celular/efectos de los fármacos , Supervivencia Celular/efectos de los fármacos , Humanos , Invasividad Neoplásica , Metástasis de la Neoplasia , Fosfatidilinositol 3-Quinasas/metabolismo , Proteínas Proto-Oncogénicas c-akt/metabolismo , Fase S/efectos de los fármacos , Transducción de Señal/efectos de los fármacos , Serina-Treonina Quinasas TOR/metabolismo , Cicatrización de Heridas/efectos de los fármacosRESUMEN
The formation of inclusion bodies (IBs) is considered as an Achilles heel of heterologous protein expression in bacterial hosts. Wide array of techniques has been developed to recover biochemically challenging proteins from IBs. However, acquiring the active state even from the same protein family was found to be an independent of single established method. Here, we present a new strategy for the recovery of wide sub-classes of recombinant protein from harsh IBs. We found that numerous methods and their combinations for reducing IB formation and producing soluble proteins were not effective, if the inclusion bodies were harsh in nature. On the other hand, different practices with mild solubilization buffers were able to solubilize IBs completely, yet the recovery of active protein requires large screening of refolding buffers. With the integration of previously reported mild solubilization techniques, we proposed an improved method, which comprised low sarkosyl concentration, ranging from 0.05 to 0.1% coupled with slow freezing (- 1 °C/min) and fast thaw (room temperature), resulting in greater solubility and the integrity of solubilized protein. Dilution method was employed with single buffer to restore activity for every sub-class of recombinant protein. Results showed that the recovered protein's activity was significantly higher compared with traditional solubilization/refolding approach. Solubilization of IBs by the described method was proved milder in nature, which restored native-like conformation of proteins within IBs.
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Fraccionamiento Químico/métodos , Escherichia coli/química , Cuerpos de Inclusión/química , Proteínas Recombinantes/aislamiento & purificación , Escherichia coli/genética , Escherichia coli/metabolismo , Cuerpos de Inclusión/genética , Cuerpos de Inclusión/metabolismo , Pliegue de Proteína , Proteínas Recombinantes/química , Proteínas Recombinantes/genética , Proteínas Recombinantes/metabolismo , Hongos Shiitake/genética , SolubilidadRESUMEN
The recombinant protein of Latcripin-4 regulator of chromosome condensation 1 (RCC1) and ankyrin (ANK) domains were expressed and the antitumor activity of Latcripin-4 on HepG2 cells was studied. First, the Latcripin-4 transcript was selected from the medicinal mushroom Lentinus edodes C91-3 transcriptome by bioinformatics. Then the full-length gene of Latcripin-4 was isolated with 3'-full rapid amplification of cDNA ends (RACE) and 5'-full RACE methods according to the transcriptome. The RCC1 and ANK domains from the full-length gene were selected and inserted into the expression vector pET-32a (+) and expressed in Escherichia coli Rosetta-gami (DE3). Western blotting indicated that the protein was expressed successfully. The biological function of Latcripin-4 RCC1 and ANK domain protein on HepG2 cells was studied with the CCK-8 assay. All results demonstrated that Latcripin-4 RCC1 and ANK domain protein can inhibit the growth of human HepG2 liver cancer cells, which brings new insights to identifying antitumor proteins from medicinal food for cancer therapy.
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Antineoplásicos Fitogénicos/farmacología , Proteínas Fúngicas/química , Proteínas Fúngicas/farmacología , Expresión Génica , Hongos Shiitake/química , Antineoplásicos Fitogénicos/metabolismo , Línea Celular Tumoral , Supervivencia Celular/efectos de los fármacos , Proteínas Fúngicas/genética , Proteínas Fúngicas/metabolismo , Células Hep G2 , Humanos , Dominios Proteicos , Hongos Shiitake/genética , Hongos Shiitake/metabolismoRESUMEN
Lentinula edodes C91-3 is an edible mushroom that has demonstrated a remarkable anti-tumor effect in various cancer cells both in vitro and in vivo. In the present study, we report the ability of recombinant thioredoxin-like latcripin 11 (LP-11) of Lentinula edodes C91-3 to suppress the proliferation of various cancer cells. The LP-11 gene of Lentinula edodes C91-3 was cloned in the pET-32a(+) expression vector and expressed in a prokaryotic system. The expressed protein was refolded by gradual dialysis and purified by affinity gel filtration chromatography. The antioxidant activity of LP-11 was tested by 1,1-dipheny l-2-picrylhydrazyl (DPPH) assay. The anti-tumor activity of recombinant LP-11 was tested in eight kinds of tumor cell lines by CCK-8 assay. Recombinant LP-11 significantly suppressed the proliferation of various cancer cells, but not normal human umbilical vein endothelial cells. Human lymphoma U937 cells exhibited the most sensitivity to LP-11 protein. U937 cell apoptosis was assessed by Annexin V staining coupled with flow cytometry, and mitochondrial morphology was analyzed by light and electron microscopy. It was revealed that recombinant LP-11 induced apoptosis in human leukemic monocyte lymphoma U937 cells. Our findings suggest that recombinant LP-11 is a promising agent for the treatment of lymphoma.
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Antineoplásicos Fitogénicos/farmacología , Antioxidantes/farmacología , Proteínas Fúngicas/farmacología , Neoplasias/metabolismo , Proteínas Recombinantes/farmacología , Hongos Shiitake/metabolismo , Células A549 , Línea Celular Tumoral , Proliferación Celular/efectos de los fármacos , Supervivencia Celular/efectos de los fármacos , Ensayos de Selección de Medicamentos Antitumorales , Proteínas Fúngicas/genética , Células HL-60 , Células Hep G2 , Células Endoteliales de la Vena Umbilical Humana , Humanos , Células K562 , Mitocondrias/efectos de los fármacos , Neoplasias/tratamiento farmacológico , Células U937RESUMEN
Cancer is the leading cause of morbidity and mortality around the globe. For certain types of cancer, chemotherapy drugs have been extensively used for treatment. However, severe side effects and the development of resistance are the drawbacks of these agents. Therefore, development of new agents with no or minimal side effects is of utmost importance. In this regard, natural compounds are well recognized as drugs in several human ailments, including cancer. One class of fungi, "mushrooms," contains numerous compounds that exhibit interesting biological activities, including antitumor activity. Many researchers, including our own group, are focusing on the anticancer potential of different mushrooms and the underlying molecular mechanism behind their action. The aim of this review is to discuss PI3K/AKT, Wnt-CTNNB1, and NF-κB signaling pathways, the occurrence of genetic alterations in them, the association of these aberrations with different human cancers and how different nodes of these pathways are targeted by various substances of mushroom origin. We have given evidence to propose the therapeutic attributes and possible mode of molecular actions of various mushroom-originated compounds. However, anticancer effects were typically demonstrated in in vitro and in vivo models and very limited number of studies have been conducted in the human population. It is our belief that this review will help the research community in designing concrete preclinical and clinical studies to test the anticancer potential of mushroom-originated compounds on different cancers harboring particular genetic alteration(s).
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Agaricales/química , Antineoplásicos/farmacología , Antineoplásicos/uso terapéutico , Neoplasias/tratamiento farmacológico , Animales , Evaluación Preclínica de Medicamentos , Humanos , Transducción de Señal/efectos de los fármacosRESUMEN
Pseudomonas aeruginosa is a ubiquitous Gram negative opportunistic pathogen capable of causing severe nosocomial infections in humans, and tobramycin is currently used to treat P. aeruginosa associated lung infections. Quorum sensing regulates biofilm formation which allows the bacterium to result in fatal infections forcing clinicians to extensively use antibiotics to manage its infections leading to emerging multiple drug resistant strains. As a result, tobramycin is also becoming resistant. Despite extensive studies on drug discovery to alleviate microbial drug resistance, the continued microbial evolution has forced researchers to focus on screening various phytochemicals and dietary compounds for antimicrobial potential. Linolenic acid (LNA) is an essential fatty acid that possesses antimicrobial actions on various microorganisms. It was hypothesized that LNA may affect the formation of biofilm on P. aeruginosa and improve the potency of tobramycin. The present study demonstrated that LNA interfered with cell-to-cell communication and reduced virulence factor production. It further enhanced the potency of tobramycin and synergistically inhibited biofilm formation through P. aeruginosa quorum sensing systems. Therefore, LNA may be considered as a potential agent for adjunctive therapy and its utilization may decrease tobramycin concentration in combined treatment thereby reducing aminoglycoside adverse effects.
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Adequate adolescent nutrition is an important step for optimal growth and development. In this article, we systematically reviewed published studies till December 2014 to ascertain the effectiveness of interventions to improve adolescent nutrition. We found one existing systematic review on interventions to prevent obesity which we updated and conducted de novo reviews for micronutrient supplementation and nutrition interventions for pregnant adolescents. Our review findings suggest that micronutrient supplementation among adolescents (predominantly females) can significantly decrease anemia prevalence (relative risk [RR]: .69; 95% confidence interval [CI]: .62-.76) while interventions to improve nutritional status among "pregnant adolescents" showed statistically significant improved birth weight (standard mean difference: .25; 95% CI: .08-.41), decreased low birth weight (RR: .70; 95% CI: .57-.84), and preterm birth (RR: .73; 95% CI: .57-.95). Interventions to promote nutrition and prevent obesity had a marginal impact on reducing body mass index (standard mean difference: -.08; 95% CI: -.17 to .01). However, these findings should be interpreted with caution due to significant statistical heterogeneity.
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Vaccination strategies are among the most successful and cost-effective public health strategies for preventing disease and death. Until recently, most of the existing immunization programs targeted infants and children younger than 5 years which have successfully resulted in reducing global infant and child mortality. Adolescent immunization has been relatively neglected, leaving a quarter of world's population underimmunized and hence vulnerable to a number of preventable diseases. In recent years, a large number of programs have been launched to increase the uptake of different vaccines in adolescents; however, the recommended vaccination coverage among the adolescent population overall remains very low, especially in low- and middle-income countries. Adolescent vaccination has received significantly more attention since the advent of the human papillomavirus (HPV) vaccine in 2006. However, only half of the adolescent girls in the United States received a single dose of HPV vaccine while merely 43% and 33% received two and three doses, respectively. We systematically reviewed literature published up to December 2014 and included 23 studies on the effectiveness of interventions to improve immunization coverage among adolescents. Moderate-quality evidence suggested an overall increase in vaccination coverage by 78% (relative risk: 1.78; 95% confidence interval: 1.41-2.23). Review findings suggest that interventions including implementing vaccination requirement in school, sending reminders, and national permissive recommendation for adolescent vaccination have the potential to improve immunization uptake. Strategies to improve coverage for HPV vaccines resulted in a significant decrease in the prevalence of HPV by 44% and genital warts by 33%; however, the quality of evidence was low. Analysis from single studies with low- or very low-quality evidence suggested significant decrease in varicella deaths, measles incidence, rubella susceptibility, and incidence of pertussis while the impact was nonsignificant for incidence of mumps with their respective vaccines. Further rigorous evidence is needed to evaluate the effectiveness of strategies to improve immunization uptake among adolescents from low- and middle-income countries.
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Many unhealthy behaviors often begin during adolescence and represent major public health challenges. Substance abuse has a major impact on individuals, families, and communities, as its effects are cumulative, contributing to costly social, physical, and mental health problems. We conducted an overview of systematic reviews to evaluate the effectiveness of interventions to prevent substance abuse among adolescents. We report findings from a total of 46 systematic reviews focusing on interventions for smoking/tobacco use, alcohol use, drug use, and combined substance abuse. Our overview findings suggest that among smoking/tobacco interventions, school-based prevention programs and family-based intensive interventions typically addressing family functioning are effective in reducing smoking. Mass media campaigns are also effective given that these were of reasonable intensity over extensive periods of time. Among interventions for alcohol use, school-based alcohol prevention interventions have been associated with reduced frequency of drinking, while family-based interventions have a small but persistent effect on alcohol misuse among adolescents. For drug abuse, school-based interventions based on a combination of social competence and social influence approaches have shown protective effects against drugs and cannabis use. Among the interventions targeting combined substance abuse, school-based primary prevention programs are effective. Evidence from Internet-based interventions, policy initiatives, and incentives appears to be mixed and needs further research. Future research should focus on evaluating the effectiveness of specific interventions components with standardized intervention and outcome measures. Various delivery platforms, including digital platforms and policy initiative, have the potential to improve substance abuse outcomes among adolescents; however, these require further research.
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Globally, every day, â¼2,300 children and adolescents succumb to unintentional injuries sustained from motor vehicle collisions, drowning, poisoning, falls, burns, and violence. The rate of deaths due to motor vehicle injuries in adolescents is 10.2 per 100,000 adolescents. We systematically reviewed published evidence to identify interventions to prevent unintentional injuries among adolescents aged 11-19 years. We defined unintentional injuries as a subset of injuries for which there was no evidence of predetermined intent, and the definition included motor vehicle injuries, suffocation, drowning, poisoning, burns, falls, and sports and recreation. Thirty-five studies met study eligibility criteria. The included studies focused on interventions to prevent motor vehicle injuries and sports-related injuries. Results suggest that possession of a graduated driver license (GDL) significantly reduced road accidents by 19% (relative risk [RR]: .81; 95% confidence interval [CI]: .75-.88; n = 5). There was no impact of GDL programs on incidence of injuries (RR: .78; 95% CI: .57-1.06; n = 2), helmet use (RR: 1.0; 95% CI: .98-1.02; n = 3), and seat belt use (RR: .99; 95% CI: .97-1.0; n = 3). Sports-related injury prevention interventions led to reductions in the incidence of injuries (RR: .66; 95% CI: .53-.82; n = 15), incidence of injury per hour of exposure (RR: .63; 95% CI: .47-.86; n = 5), and injuries per number of exposures (RR: .79; 95% CI: .70-.88; n = 4). Subgroup analysis according to the type of interventions suggests that training ± education and the use of safety equipment had significant impacts on reducing the incidence of injuries. We did not find any study focusing on interventions to prevent suffocation, drowning, poisoning, burns, and falls in the adolescent age group. The existing evidence is mostly from high-income countries, limiting the generalizability of these findings for low- and middle-income countries. Studies evaluating these interventions need to be replicated in a low- and middle-income country-context to evaluate effectiveness with standardized outcome measures.
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T cells play an important role in tumor immune surveillance. CD147 is a member of immunoglobulin superfamily present on the surface of many tumor cells and mediates malignant cell behaviors. Cyclophilin A (CypA) is an intracellular protein promoting inflammation when released from cells. CypA is a natural ligand for CD147. In this study, CD147 specific short hairpin RNAs (shRNA) were transfected into murine hepatocellular carcinoma Hepa1-6 cells to assess the effects of CD147 on hepatoma cells escaping from immune surveillance of T cells. We found extracellular CypA stimulated cell proliferation through CD147 by activating ERK1/2 signaling pathway. Downregulation of CD147 expression on Hepa1-6 cells significantly suppressed tumor progression in vivo, and decreased cell viability when co-cultured with T cells in vitro. Importantly, knockdown of CD147 on Hepa1-6 cells resulted in significantly increased T cells chemotaxis induced by CypA both in vivo and in vitro. These findings provide novel mechanisms how tumor cells escaping from immune surveillance of T cells. We provide a potential therapy for hepatocellular carcinoma by targeting CD147 or CD147-CypA interactions.