Review
Oncology
Josef Gillson, Yomna S. Abd El-Aziz, Lionel Y. W. Leck, Patric J. Jansson, Nick Pavlakis, Jaswinder S. Samra, Anubhav Mittal, Sumit Sahni
Summary: This review discusses the importance of the autophagy pathway and tumor microenvironment in pancreatic cancer, as well as novel therapeutic strategies to inhibit autophagy. Pancreatic cancer is characterized by fast growth, invasiveness, and chemo-resistance, with low survival rates. The autophagy pathway plays a crucial role as a survival pathway in pancreatic cancer cells and promotes tumor progression and metastasis. Therefore, investigating therapeutic strategies targeting the autophagy pathway is crucial for overcoming chemo-resistance in pancreatic cancer.
Article
Multidisciplinary Sciences
Wei Wei, Yuhuan Li, Myeongsang Lee, Nicholas Andrikopoulos, Sijie Lin, Chunying Chen, David Tai Leong, Feng Ding, Yang Song, Pu Chun Ke
Summary: The production of plastics has played a crucial role in modern society, but the accumulation of plastics in the environment poses a significant threat to environmental sustainability and human health. This study focuses on the biological effects of nanoplastics, specifically anionic polystyrene and poly(methyl methacrylate), and reports that their introduction disrupts the vascular endothelial cadherin junctions. The findings provide important insights into the behavior and impact of nanoplastics, which can guide innovations for a sustainable plastics industry and environmental remediation.
NATURE COMMUNICATIONS
(2022)
Article
Medicine, Research & Experimental
Jelle Verhoeven, Kathryn A. Jacobs, Francesca Rizzollo, Francesca Lodi, Yichao Hua, Joanna Pozniak, Adhithya Narayanan Srinivasan, Diede Houbaert, Gautam Shankar, Sanket More, Marco B. Schaaf, Nikolina Dubroja Lakic, Maarten Ganne, Jochen Lamote, Johan Van Weyenbergh, Louis Boon, Oliver Bechter, Francesca Bosisio, Yasuo Uchiyama, Mathieu J. M. Bertrand, Jean Christophe Marine, Diether Lambrechts, Gabriele Bergers, Madhur Agrawal, Patrizia Agostinis
Summary: Autophagy in tumor endothelial cells plays a role in suppressing inflammatory responses and maintaining immunosuppression. The loss of autophagy in TECs enhances antitumor immunity by promoting infiltration and function of T-cells. The presence of an inflammatory TEC phenotype correlates with clinical responses to immunotherapy.
EMBO MOLECULAR MEDICINE
(2023)
Article
Cell Biology
Karim Harhouri, Pierre Cau, Frank Casey, Koffi Mawuse Guedenon, Yassamine Doubaj, Lionel Van Maldergem, Gerardo Mejia-Baltodano, Catherine Bartoli, Annachiara De Sandre-Giovannoli, Nicolas Levy
Summary: Progeroid syndromes, such as Hutchinson-Gilford Progeria Syndrome (HGPS), are characterized by premature and accelerated aging. Most HGPS patients carry a genetic mutation in the LMNA gene, leading to the production of a truncated prelamin A called progerin. This study found that the proteasome inhibitor MG132 can induce the clearance of progerin and improve cellular phenotypes in HGPS-like patients' cells. These findings provide preclinical evidence for potential therapy for both HGPS-like and classical HGPS.
Article
Cell Biology
Sentiljana Gumeni, Eleni-Dimitra Papanagnou, Maria S. Manola, Ioannis P. Trougakos
Summary: The balanced functionality of cellular proteostatic modules, particularly the Parkin/Pink1 pathway, is crucial for maintaining proteome stability and mitochondrial function. Activation of the Nrf2 pathway shows therapeutic potential in ameliorating age-related degenerative diseases by modulating mitophagy and proteostatic responses.
CELL DEATH & DISEASE
(2021)
Article
Cell Biology
Megan B. Stemberger, Julia A. Ju, Keyata N. Thompson, Trevor J. Mathias, Alexandra E. Jerrett, Katarina T. Chang, Eleanor C. Ory, David A. Annis, Makenzy L. Mull, Darin E. Gilchrist, Michele I. Vitolo, Stuart S. Martin
Summary: Levels of hydrogen peroxide are higher in breast tumor microenvironment. Hydrogen peroxide mediates breast carcinogenesis and metastasis. The study shows the effects of exposure to elevated hydrogen peroxide on breast cancer cells.
Article
Biochemistry & Molecular Biology
Rui Zhang, Yongkang Chen, Xinxin Wang, Haiyan Tian, Han Liu, Zhi Xiang, Dan Qi, Jason H. Huang, Erxi Wu, Xuebing Ding, Xuejing Wang
Summary: ALS is a progressive neurodegenerative disease characterized by pTDP-43-positive inclusions in neurons and glial cells. Injecting TDP-43 PFFs into Atg5(+/-) mice induced elevated levels of pTDP-43 and motor neuron dysfunction, providing evidence that autophagy deficiency promotes the formation and spreading of pathological TDP-43.
INTERNATIONAL JOURNAL OF BIOLOGICAL SCIENCES
(2021)
Article
Engineering, Biomedical
Li You, Pin-Rui Su, Max Betjes, Reza Ghadiri Rad, Ting-Chun Chou, Cecile Beerens, Eva van Oosten, Felix Leufkens, Paulina Gasecka, Mauro Muraro, Ruud van Tol, Debby van Steenderen, Shazia Farooq, Jose Angelito U. Hardillo, Robert Baatenburg de Jong, Daan Brinks, Miao-Ping Chien
Summary: By using a custom-built optical microscope with an ultrawide field of view, fast automated image analysis and a dye activatable by visible light, selective photolabelling of cells of interest in large heterogeneous cell populations based on specific functional cellular dynamics is made possible. This approach allows for the identification and understanding of molecular mechanisms underlying functional phenotypes.
NATURE BIOMEDICAL ENGINEERING
(2022)
Article
Oncology
Qian He, Yilin Dong, Yiting Zhu, Zhiqiang Ding, Xinxin Zhang, Zimeng Wang, Rongshuang Ai, Yujuan He
Summary: The study revealed that TMEM100 plays a role as a tumor suppressor in non-small cell lung cancer, inhibiting tumor growth and promoting cell apoptosis, potentially inducing autophagy by inhibiting the PI3K/AKT signaling pathway. These findings could provide new therapeutic targets for non-small cell lung cancer.
Article
Cell Biology
Jia-Wei Wang, Li Ma, Yuan Liang, Xiao-Jun Yang, Song Wei, Hao Peng, Shi-Pei Qiu, Xu Lu, Ya-Qing Zhu, Bao-Lin Wang
Summary: The increasing incidence of hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC) is a global concern, with sorafenib being the first-line drug for advanced cases. However, resistance to sorafenib is common, and recent studies have shown that the upregulation of RCN1 in sorafenib-resistant HCC cells promotes tumor progression. By activating the IRE1 alpha-XBP1s pathway sustainably, RCN1 may serve as an independent predictor of tumor recurrence and overall survival.
CELL DEATH DISCOVERY
(2021)
Article
Biochemistry & Molecular Biology
Chao Zhang, Shuai Wu
Summary: This study investigates the mechanism of CD3D methylation in uveal melanoma (UM) using epigenetic alterations and immune cell infiltration analysis. The study finds that hypomethylation of CD3D promoter is associated with immune cell infiltration in UM. CD3D expression shows the highest correlation with its methylation and is closely related to four key immune cells in UM development.
Review
Plant Sciences
Emilio Gutierrez-Beltran, Jose L. Crespo
Summary: SnRK1, a multitasking protein kinase, plays a central role in metabolic responses to reduced energy levels in plants. It regulates various cellular functions through signaling in different subcellular compartments.
JOURNAL OF EXPERIMENTAL BOTANY
(2022)
Article
Multidisciplinary Sciences
Dmitry Zenko, Jade Marsh, Andrew R. Castle, Rahel Lewin, Roman Fischer, George K. Tofaris
Summary: We developed a bimolecular fluorescence complementation assay to monitor de novo ubiquitination of alpha-synuclein, and identified lysine residues 45, 58, and 60 as critical sites for its degradation. The degradation involves NBR1 binding, entry into endosomes and subsequent lysosomal degradation. Our data also show the presence of ubiquitinated alpha-synuclein in Lewy bodies and cellular models of aggregation.
Article
Immunology
Guoxin Zhang, Zhen Dong, Ryan C. Gimple, Arthur Wolin, Qiulian Wu, Zhixin Qiu, Lisa M. Wood, Jia Z. Shen, Li Jiang, Linjie Zhao, Deguan Lv, Briana C. Prager, Leo J. Y. Kim, Xiuxing Wang, Lingdi Zhang, Ryan L. Anderson, Jeffrey K. Moore, Shideng Bao, Thomas H. Keller, Grace Lin, Congbao Kang, Petra Hamerlik, Rui Zhao, Heide L. Ford, Jeremy N. Rich
Summary: EYA2, preferentially expressed in GSCs, plays critical roles in their growth and survival by affecting mitotic spindle assembly and cell cycle progression. Inhibitors targeting EYA2 may offer potential therapeutic benefits for GSCs.
JOURNAL OF EXPERIMENTAL MEDICINE
(2021)
Article
Neurosciences
Juhi Mishra, Jitendra Vishwakarma, Rafat Malik, Keerti Gupta, Rukmani Pandey, Shailendra Kumar Maurya, Asmita Garg, Manoj Shukla, Naibedya Chattopadhyay, Sanghamitra Bandyopadhyay
Summary: The study revealed that developmental hypothyroidism disrupts autophagy in the hippocampus, playing a critical role in cognitive functions.
MOLECULAR NEUROBIOLOGY
(2021)