Experimental and Molecular Pathology

The aging process in the elderly results in heightened skin fragility associated with various disorders, including pressure ulcers (PUs). Despite the high incidence of PUs in the elderly population, there is a limited body of research specifically examining the impact of aging on the development of pressure ulcers. Therefore, investigating age-related physiological abnormalities is essential to elucidate the pathogenesis of PUs. Ischemia-reperfusion (I/R) injury and the subsequent oxidative stress caused by reactive oxygen species (ROS) play essential roles in the early stage of PUs...

Alterations in the expression of certain genes could be associated with both patient mortality rates and drug resistance. This study aimed to identify genes in colorectal cancer (CRC) that potentially serve as hub genes influencing patient survival rates. RNA-Seq data were downloaded from the cancer genome atlas database, and differential expression analysis was performed between tumors and healthy controls. Through the utilization of univariate and multivariate Cox regression analyses, in combination with the MCODE clustering module, the genes whose expression changes were related to survival rate and the hub genes related to them were identified...

Pruritus, also known as itching, is a complex sensation that involves the activation of specific physiological and cellular receptors. The skin is innervated with sensory nerves as well as some receptors for various sensations, and its immune system has prominent neurological connections. Sensory neurons have a considerable impact on the sensation of itching. However, immune cells also play a role in this process, as they release pruritogens. Disruption of the dermal barrier activates an immune response, initiating a series of chemical, physical, and cellular reactions...

BACKGROUND AND AIMS: Interleukin-6 (IL-6) is an acute-phase protein that plays an important role in the inflammatory response, vascular inflammation, and atherosclerosis process. The study aimed to establish whether IL-6 gene polymorphisms and IL-6 concentrations are associated with premature coronary artery disease (pCAD) and cardiovascular risk factors. METHODS: The IL-6 concentrations and the rs2069827, rs1800796, and rs1800795 IL-6 polymorphisms were determined in 1150 pCAD patients and 1083 healthy controls (coronary artery calcium equal to zero determined by tomography)...

The spread of ovarian cancer (OC) to the coelomic cavity triggers the secretion and accumulation of ascitic fluid (AF). Although its biochemical composition has been well studied, less is known about the implications of physical factors such as the pH and the mechanical properties of the AF for the malignancy of tumor cells. In this work, we investigated the effect of pH and the mechanical properties of AF on cell proliferation and mitotic morphology. We employed biopsies from patients with OC and the SKOV3 cell line as an in vitro model of OC with HeLa cells as controls...

Familial Mediterranean Fever (FMF) is a recurrent polyserositis characterized by self-limiting episodes or attacks of fever along with serosal inflammation. It mainly impacts people of the Mediterranean and Middle Eastern basin. FMF is a recessive autoinflammatory condition caused by mutation in the MEFV gene located on chromosome 16p13. MEFV mutations lead to the activation of the pyrin inflammasome resulting in an uncontrolled release of IL-1β. Various in vitro, in vivo and ex vivo experimental models have been developed to further comprehend the etiology and pathogenesis of FMF...

BACKGROUND: Neoadjuvant chemotherapy (NCT) can induce a pathological complete response (pCR) in breast cancer patients, leading to improved outcomes. However, predicting which patients will achieve pCR remains a challenge. CD10, a myoepithelial marker, has shown diagnostic and prognostic value in metastatic tumors. Its potential as a predictor of chemosensitivity to anthracycline-based NCT in breast cancer is unknown. AIM: This retrospective study aimed to investigate the potential of CD10 cancer cell expression as a predictive marker of chemosensitivity in breast cancers treated with anthracycline-based neoadjuvant chemotherapy...

Little is known as to whether there may be any pathogenetic link between pulmonary carcinoids and neuroendocrine carcinomas (NECs). A gene signature we previously found to cluster pulmonary carcinoids, large cell neuroendocrine carcinoma (LCNEC) and small cell lung carcinoma (SCLC), and which encompassed MEN1, MYC, MYCL1, RICTOR, RB1, SDHA, SRC and TP53 mutations or copy number variations (CNVs), was used to reclassify an independent cohort of 54 neuroendocrine neoplasms (NENs) [31 typical carcinoids (TC), 11 atypical carcinoids (AC) and 12 SCLC], by means of transcriptome and mutation data...

No abstract text is available yet for this article.

Diabetic kidney disease (DKD) is a leading cause of end-stage renal disease without early diagnostic and specific therapeutic approaches. Podocyte apoptosis and loss play important roles in the pathological process of DKD. This study aimed to explore whether urinary exosomes from type 2 diabetes patients with DKD could induce podocyte apoptosis and the underlying pathological mechanisms. The exosomes were isolated from the urine samples of patients with DKD (DKD-Exo). Later, they were taken up and internalized by MPC5 cells...

Molluscum contagiosum virus (MCV) is a poxvirus that causes benign, persistent skin lesions. MCV encodes a variety of immune evasion molecules to dampen host immune responses. Two of these proteins are the MC159 and MC160 proteins. Both MC159 and MC160 contain two tandem death effector domains and share homology to the cellular FLIPs, FADD, and procaspase-8. MC159 and MC160 dampen several innate immune responses such as NF-κB activation and mitochondrial antiviral signaling (MAVS)-mediated induction of type 1 interferon (IFN)...

No abstract text is available yet for this article.

An increasing number of patients experiences prolonged symptoms, whose profile and timeline remain uncertain, a condition that has been defined as post COVID. The majority of recovered hospitalized patients manifests at least one persistent symptom even sixty days after the first clinical manifestation's onset. Particularly, in light of the COVID-19-related symptomatology, it has been hypothesized that SARS-CoV-2 might affect the dopamine pathway. However, no scientific evidence has been produced so far. To this end, human iPSC-derived dopaminergic neurons were infected with EU, Delta and Omicron SARS-CoV-2 variants...

Homeobox (HOX) genes encode highly conserved transcription factors that play vital roles in embryonic development. DNA methylation is a pivotal regulatory epigenetic signaling mark responsible for regulating gene expression. Abnormal DNA methylation is largely associated with the aberrant expression of HOX genes, which is implicated in a broad range of human diseases, including cancer. Numerous studies have clarified the mechanisms of DNA methylation in both physiological and pathological processes. In this review, we focus on how DNA methylation regulates HOX genes and briefly discuss drug development approaches targeting these mechanisms...

INTRODUCTION: Irisin plays an important role in regulating tissue stress, cardiac function, and inflammation. Integrin αvβ5 was recently identified as a receptor for irisin to elicit its physiologic function. It remains unknown whether integrin αvβ5 is required for irisin's function in modulating the physiologic response to hemorrhage. The objective of this study is to examine if integrin αvβ5 contributes to the effects of irisin during the hemorrhagic response...

Bisphenol A (BPA) is an endocrine-disrupting chemical with a potential role in endocrine cancers. However, the effects of BPA on the salivary glands have been barely explored. We investigated the impact of in vivo sub-chronic exposure to BPA and its in vitro effects on human salivary gland mucoepidermoid carcinoma cell lines. Male and female mice were exposed to BPA (30 mg/kg/day). Sublingual and submandibular salivary glands from an estrogen-deficiency model were also analyzed. BPA concentration in salivary glands was evaluated by gas chromatography coupled to ion trap mass spectrometry...

No abstract text is available yet for this article.

In recent years, the physiological and molecular functions of vitamin D (Vit-D) have been deeply investigated. At first, Vit-D was considered a regulator of mineral and skeletal homeostasis. However, due to the extensive-expression pattern of Vit-D receptor (VDR) in almost every non-skeletal cell, Vit-D is considered mainly a multifunctional agent with broad effects on various tissues, notably the immune system. The expression of VDR in immune cells such as dendritic cells, monocyte/macrophage, neutrophils, B cells and T cells has been well demonstrated...

Mast cells (MCs) are tissue-resident innate immune cells that express the high-affinity receptor for immunoglobulin E and are responsible for host defense and an array of diseases related to immune system. We aimed in this study to characterize the pathways and gene signatures of human cord blood-derived MCs (hCBMCs) in comparison to cells originating from CD34- progenitors using next-generation knowledge discovery methods. CD34+ cells were isolated from human umbilical cord blood using magnetic activated cell sorting and differentiated into MCs with rhIL-6 and rhSCF supplementation for 6-8 weeks...

Assessing the radiosensitivity of cells before administering radiation therapy (RT) to individuals diagnosed with breast cancer (BC) can facilitate the selection of appropriate treatment regimens and minimize the incidence of adverse side effects in patients undergoing radiation exposure. In this research, blood samples were obtained from 60 women who had been diagnosed with Invasive Ductal Carcinoma (IDC) Breast Cancer. The average age of the patients was 47 ± 9.93. Additionally, the study incorporated 20 healthy women, with an average age of 44...