Review
Oncology
Xiaolong Tang, Zaihua Yan, Yandong Miao, Wuhua Ha, Zheng Li, Lixia Yang, Denghai Mi
Summary: Copper, as an essential nutrient, can have both beneficial and toxic effects on cells. Utilizing copper-dependent diseases or copper toxicity may provide new strategies for specific disease treatments. Especially in cancer cells, high copper concentration makes it a critical nutrient for tumor growth, and intervening in cancer cell copper metabolism could be a potential tumor treatment strategy. This review discusses copper metabolism in the body, its role in tumor cell growth and programmed cell death, and the potential of copper-related drugs in cancer treatment.
FRONTIERS IN ONCOLOGY
(2023)
Review
Pharmacology & Pharmacy
Jianguo Feng, Jianlong Zhou, Yunxiao Lin, Wenhua Huang
Summary: This article highlights the importance of heterogeneous nuclear ribonucleoprotein A1 (hnRNP A1) in regulating RNA metabolism and its dysregulation in various diseases. The selective binding sites of hnRNP A1 to RNA and DNA are summarized, along with the co-regulatory factors that interact with hnRNP A1. The potential therapeutic implications of targeting hnRNP A1 are discussed, including small-molecule drugs and biomedicines.
FRONTIERS IN PHARMACOLOGY
(2022)
Article
Biochemistry & Molecular Biology
Massimiliano Gasparrini, Valentina Audrito
Summary: NAMPT plays a crucial role in both intracellular and extracellular functions, which are essential for tumor growth and survival. Over-expression of NAMPT affects various tumor cellular processes, including DNA repair, gene expression, signaling pathways, proliferation, and metastasis. Thus, NAMPT has emerged as a promising anti-cancer strategy.
INTERNATIONAL JOURNAL OF BIOCHEMISTRY & CELL BIOLOGY
(2022)
Review
Food Science & Technology
Jing Wang, Yong Chen, Hao Zhong, Fang Chen, Joe Regenstein, Xiaosong Hu, Luyun Cai, Fengqin Feng
Summary: Hyperuricemia is a metabolic disorder caused by abnormal uric acid metabolism, with the gut microbiota being identified as a new target for treatment. Mechanisms such as promoting purine and UA catabolism, increasing UA excretion, and regulating UA absorption in the intestine can help in treating HUA, along with the use of probiotics and prebiotics targeting the intestinal tract.
CRITICAL REVIEWS IN FOOD SCIENCE AND NUTRITION
(2022)
Review
Cell Biology
Wei-Jie Li, Yun Zhao, Yuan Gao, Ling-Ling Dong, Yin-Fang Wu, Zhi-Hua Chen, Hua-Hao Shen
Summary: Asthma is a chronic inflammatory disease of the lungs with significant health and socioeconomic burden. Lipid metabolism, particularly in various cells, plays a crucial role in regulating cellular responses in the pathogenesis of asthma. Current pharmacological agents mainly target lipid metabolism for intervention.
CELLULAR IMMUNOLOGY
(2021)
Article
Chemistry, Medicinal
Weiguo Xiang, Shaomeng Wang
Summary: The androgen receptor (AR) is crucial in maintaining muscle and bone, supporting male sexual functions, and progressing prostate cancer. Various AR-targeted therapies have been developed, including AR agonists for bone loss and muscle atrophy, and AR antagonists for prostate cancer treatment.
JOURNAL OF MEDICINAL CHEMISTRY
(2022)
Review
Cell Biology
Guang Lei, Chao Mao, Yuelong Yan, Li Zhuang, Boyi Gan
Summary: Ferroptosis, an iron-dependent form of regulated cell death, plays an important role in radiotherapy-induced cell death and tumor suppression, mediating synergy with immunotherapy. This review summarizes the crosstalk between radiotherapy and ferroptosis, and explores combination therapeutic strategies.
Review
Biochemistry & Molecular Biology
Go Woon Kim, Dong Hoon Lee, Yu Hyun Jeon, Jung Yoo, So Yeon Kim, Sang Wu Lee, Ha Young Cho, So Hee Kwon
Summary: Glutamine plays a crucial role in cancer metabolism, with cancer cells consuming excessive amounts for rapid proliferation, especially in poorly vascularized cancers. Glutamine synthetase (GS) is essential in cancer metabolism as the sole enzyme responsible for synthesizing glutamine, which supports nucleotide synthesis. GS exhibits pro-tumoral features by providing glutamine to cancer cells in the tumor microenvironment, enabling cancer cells to maintain sufficient glutamine levels for catabolism, ultimately supporting cancer cell proliferation.
INTERNATIONAL JOURNAL OF MOLECULAR SCIENCES
(2021)
Review
Nutrition & Dietetics
Shuo Ni, Yin Yuan, Shangdao Song, Xiaolin Li
Summary: This review summarizes the roles of iron metabolism in cellular activities and immune regulation, as well as discusses the therapeutic potential of iron and ferroptosis in the treatment of arthropathies.
Review
Pharmacology & Pharmacy
Alerie G. de la Fuente, Silvia Pelucchi, Jerome Mertens, Monica Di Luca, Daniela Mauceri, Elena Marcello
Summary: Ageing is the main risk factor for most primary neurodegenerative disorders, and protein misfolding and toxic protein accumulation are considered causative events. However, other biological pathways affected by brain ageing also contribute to pathogenesis. This article discusses the involvement of mechanisms controlling neuronal structure, gene expression, autophagy, cell metabolism, and neuroinflammation in the onset and progression of neurodegenerative disorders, and reviews therapeutic strategies aiming to normalize these pathways for increased brain resilience.
BRITISH JOURNAL OF PHARMACOLOGY
(2023)
Article
Pharmacology & Pharmacy
Yukari Nagao, Akira Yokoi, Kosuke Yoshida, Mai Sugiyama, Eri Watanabe, Kae Nakamura, Masami Kitagawa, Eri Asano-Inami, Yoshihiro Koya, Masato Yoshihara, Satoshi Tamauchi, Yusuke Shimizu, Yoshiki Ikeda, Nobuhisa Yoshikawa, Tomoyasu Kato, Yusuke Yamamoto, Hiroaki Kajiyama
Summary: This study aimed to identify novel targets for uterine leiomyosarcoma (ULMS) through a three-step screening process using a chemical library. The candidates proscillaridin A and lanatoside C showed superior antitumor effects in mouse models. The downregulation of uncoupling protein 2 (UCP2) induced reactive oxygen species (ROS) and suppressed ULMS cell growth, making it a potential therapeutic target.
PHARMACOLOGICAL RESEARCH
(2023)
Review
Biochemistry & Molecular Biology
Chloe Bernhard, Damien Reita, Sophie Martin, Natacha Entz-Werle, Monique Dontenwill
Summary: Tumor metabolism is a potential target for cancer therapies, particularly for the treatment of glioblastoma, a resistant brain tumor. Glioma stem cells play a critical role in therapy resistance, making their elimination crucial for patients' long-term survival. Recent advancements have revealed the heterogeneous nature of glioblastoma metabolism and the specific metabolic traits of cancer stem cells, providing insights for therapeutic approaches targeting these processes.
INTERNATIONAL JOURNAL OF MOLECULAR SCIENCES
(2023)
Article
Cell Biology
Xiao-ren Zhu, Shi-qing Peng, Le Wang, Xiao-yu Chen, Chun-xia Feng, Yuan-yuan Liu, Min-bin Chen
Summary: PCK1 is significantly elevated in human pancreatic cancer tissues and cells, and its silencing inhibits cell proliferation and induces apoptosis. Conversely, overexpression of PCK1 in pancreatic cancer cells accelerates cell proliferation and migration. In vivo, PCK1 silencing suppresses tumor growth and Akt-mTOR activation in xenograft tissues.
CELL DEATH & DISEASE
(2021)
Review
Multidisciplinary Sciences
Hehe He, Youran Li, Liang Zhang, Zhongyang Ding, Guiyang Shi
Summary: This article aims to provide a systematic introduction to nitrogen metabolism in Bacillus, an important industrial microorganism, and apply its regulatory logic to synthetic biology to improve biosynthesis competitiveness. Understanding the meticulous regulation process of nitrogen metabolism not only facilitates metabolic engineering research but also provides constructive insights and inspiration for studies of other microorganisms.
JOURNAL OF ADVANCED RESEARCH
(2023)
Article
Construction & Building Technology
Pedro Pinto Ferreira Brasileiro, Bruno Augusto Cabral Roque, Yana Batista Branda, Attilio Converti, Mohand Benachour, Leonie Asfora Sarubbo
Summary: Cement is widely used globally, but lack of maintenance in concrete structures increases the risk of collapse. This study explores the use of biomineralizing bacteria to recover structures, with promising results indicating an eco-friendly option to reduce greenhouse gas emissions.
CONSTRUCTION AND BUILDING MATERIALS
(2023)
Article
Anatomy & Morphology
Alejandra Garcia-Hernandez, Emmanuel Reyes-Uribe, Claudia Arce-Salinas, Karen-Griselda de la Cruz-Lopez, Joaquin Manzo-Merino, Ana-Laura Guzman-Ortiz, Hector Quezada, Pedro Cortes-Reynosa, Fernando Breton-Mora, Irma Elizalde-Acosta, Rocio Thompson-Bonilla, Eduardo Perez Salazar
Summary: Breast cancer is the most frequent malignancy among women in developed countries, and it is the leading cause of cancer-related death in women worldwide. A study has shown that EV fractions deprived of platelet EVs from breast cancer patients can enhance cell processes related to angiogenesis, such as migration, invasion, and formation of new tubules.
Article
Chemistry, Medicinal
Alfredo Juarez-Saldivar, Nuria E. Campillo, Eyra Ortiz-Perez, Alma D. Paz-Gonzalez, Emma Saavedra, Gildardo Rivera
Summary: In this study, three ontology-based approaches were used to compare the proteomes of five species of protozoa, leading to the identification of 12 potential drug targets for the development of new broad-spectrum antiprotozoal drugs.
MEDICINAL CHEMISTRY
(2023)
Article
Environmental Sciences
Zahid Hassan, Martin Braster, Wilfred F. M. Roling, Hans Westerhoff
Summary: Arsenate-reducing microorganisms can mobilize arsenic into groundwater. A cultivation-based metagenomic strategy was developed to infer actual activities and bridge the knowledge gap between cultivation-independent and cultivation-dependent analyses. This study clarifies the mechanism for arsenic mobilization and redistribution in rural drinking water wells and highlights the potential risks and the need for appropriate bioremediation strategies. Rating: 8/10.
GEOMICROBIOLOGY JOURNAL
(2023)
Article
Chemistry, Organic
Robert N. Goldberg, Robert T. Giessmann, Peter J. Halling, Carsten Kettner, Hans Westerhoff
Summary: The measurement of apparent equilibrium constants K ' for enzyme-catalyzed reactions involves critical details that cannot be neglected in order to avoid systematic errors. Interferences, impurities, and failure to achieve equilibrium are significant factors to consider. Careful reporting of results, including substance identification, reaction specification, reaction conditions, equilibrium constant definition, nomenclature, symbols, units, and uncertainties, is of great importance. This document provides a general discussion on various aspects of equilibrium measurements and STRENDA recommendations regarding the measurements and reporting of results.
BEILSTEIN JOURNAL OF ORGANIC CHEMISTRY
(2023)
Article
Endocrinology & Metabolism
Yanhua Liu, Hans V. Westerhoff
Summary: Inborn error of metabolism phenylketonuria (PKU) is typically caused by inactivation of phenylalanine hydroxylase (PAH). The reduced PAH activity results in elevated phenylalanine levels and phenylpyruvate in urine. Flux balance analysis (FBA) predicts reduced growth rate in PKU, unless tyrosine is supplemented. However, the PKU phenotype is brain-specific and can be treated by phenylalanine reduction instead of tyrosine supplementation. This study presents an extended FBA model that explains the brain specificity of the disease, the role of phenylpyruvate as a biomarker, the effect of excess phenylalanine on brain pathology, and the superiority of phenylalanine deprivation as therapy.
JOURNAL OF INHERITED METABOLIC DISEASE
(2023)
Article
Mathematics
Hans V. V. Westerhoff
Summary: Dynamic variables in non-equilibrium systems of life are determined by catalytic activities, which are related to genome expression. Modulating gene expression or enzyme function through medicinal drugs is becoming increasingly important. Despite the complexity of cellular systems biology, there are simple principles guiding the control of variables such as fluxes, concentrations, and half-times. By using time-unit invariance, a multitude of laws governing the control coefficients of multiple variables by all catalytic activities can be derived. The control of these variables is determined by time, resulting in simple integer sums when the variables are at maximum, minimum, or steady states.
Article
Biochemistry & Molecular Biology
Abraham Josue Nevarez-Ramirez, Ana Laura Guzman-Ortiz, Pedro Cortes-Reynosa, Eduardo Perez-Salazar, Gustavo Alberto Jaimes-Ortega, Ricardo Valle-Rios, Alvaro Marin-Hernandez, Jose S. Rodriguez-Zavala, Eliel Ruiz-May, Jose Luis Castrejon-Flores, Hector Quezada
Summary: Cellular interactions within the bone marrow microenvironment can modulate leukemic cells and lead to drug resistance. In this study, intercellular protein transfer from mouse bone marrow stromal cells to human T-lymphoblasts was detected using shotgun proteomics. The transferred proteins were found to contribute to drug resistance in the leukemic cells. Shotgun proteomic analysis of co-cultured cells from different species could serve as a simple option for studying the proteins exchanged among interacting cells.
Article
Biology
David D. van Niekerk, Erik Rust, Frank Bruggeman, Hans V. Westerhoff, Jacky L. Snoep
Summary: By analyzing models from the JWS Online and Biomodels databases, we investigated the use of the disequilibrium ratio as an estimator for the flux control of a reaction. While no functional relationship was found, the disequilibrium ratio can still be used as an estimator for the maximal flux control of a reaction step. We further expanded the analysis by incorporating the overall pathway disequilibrium ratio in the expression, leading to explicit expressions for flux control coefficients.
Article
Biology
Hans V. Westerhoff
Summary: This article resolves the paradoxes between microbial growth rate, enzyme activity, and flux control coefficients. The study found that under optimization conditions, enzyme control coefficients can equal zero, and flux balance analysis effectively maximizes growth yield, thereby resolving these contradictions.
Article
Physics, Multidisciplinary
Yanfei Zhang, Hans V. Westerhoff
Summary: Confronted with unfavorable output processes, free-energy transducers can shift to lower gears to reduce output per unit input. This option is well-known in machines but not appreciated in biology. This study extends thermodynamic principles to explain biological gear shifting and identifies mechanisms. It shows that gear shifting optimizes performance in living systems, allowing them to switch to catabolic pathways with lower ATP stoichiometry, thereby increasing ATP synthesis flux and ensuring continued growth even in challenging conditions.
Article
Mathematical & Computational Biology
Yanhua Liu, Hans V. Westerhoff
Summary: This study develops a method called 'dynamic competition Flux Balance Analysis' (dcFBA), which can accommodate changes in cell density caused by competition. The experiment shows that signal transduction between cells is crucial for the co-existence of diverse cell types in multicellular organisms. Moreover, mutants that lose social characteristics can outgrow other cells, suggesting that 'asocialness' rather than enhanced growth rates may characterize cancer cells and organisms causing ecological blooms.
NPJ SYSTEMS BIOLOGY AND APPLICATIONS
(2023)
Article
Biology
Joost W. Aerts, Serban M. Sarbu, Traian Brad, Pascale Ehrenfreund, Hans V. Westerhoff
Summary: Movile Cave is a unique and challenging ecosystem where specialized prokaryotic communities can adapt to different subenvironments and respond to environmental changes in a relatively short time.
Article
Biology
Citlali Vazquez, Rusely Encalada, Javier Belmont-Diaz, Moises Rivera, Samantha Alvarez, Benjamin Nogueda-Torres, Emma Saavedra
Summary: This study used Metabolic Control Analysis to investigate the reverse transsulfuration pathway for cysteine synthesis in Trypanosoma cruzi. The results suggested that cystathionine gamma lyase (CGL) has a high control on the pathway flux and may be a potential drug target. However, the parasite's redundant cysteine supply pathways also need to be considered.
Article
Biology
Frank J. Bruggeman, Maaike Remeijer, Maarten Droste, Luis Salinas, Meike Wortel, Robert Planque, Herbert M. Sauro, Bas Teusink, Hans Westerhoff
Summary: This paper extends the scope of metabolic control analysis (MCA) to a whole-cell context, considering metabolism in the evolutionary context of growth-rate maximisation. The study shows that elementary flux modes (EFMs) naturally emerge as optimal metabolic networks in this context, and their control properties can be derived. The paper also demonstrates the estimation of flux control coefficients from proteomics and ribosome-profiling data. The findings provide insights into the control of metabolic enzymes on growth rate and contribute to the understanding of general principles in cell biochemistry.
Article
Biotechnology & Applied Microbiology
Liliana Guadalupe Vigueras-Meneses, Ximena Escalera-Fanjul, Mohammed El-Hafidi, Javier Montalvo-Arredondo, Nicolas Gomez-Hernandez, Maritrini Colon, Estefany Granados, Carlos Campero-Basaldua, Lina Riego-Ruiz, Claudio Scazzocchio, Alicia Gonzalez, Hector Quezada
Summary: The duplicated genes LkLEU4 and LkLEU4BIS from Lachancea kluyveri have undergone functional diversification, resulting in different transcriptional regulation and predicted subcellular localization, but similar kinetic properties. These genes play important roles in leucine biosynthesis, and their functional diversification is achieved through differential transcription regulation and subcellular localization.
FEMS YEAST RESEARCH
(2022)