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Hepatology 2021 Mar 25. Epub 2021 Mar 25.

The Dumont-UCLA Transplant Center, Division of Liver and Pancreas Transplantation, Department of Surgery, David Geffen School of Medicine at UCLA, Los Angeles, CA, USA.

Background & Aims: The CD47-signal regulatory protein alpha (SIRPα) signaling pathway plays important roles in immune homeostasis and tissue inflammatory response. Activation of the Hedgehog/SMO/Gli1 pathway regulates cell growth, differentiation, and immune function. However, it remains unknown whether and how the CD47-SIRPα interaction may regulate Hedgehog/SMO/Gli1 signaling in mesenchymal stem cell (MSC)-mediated immune regulation during sterile inflammatory liver injury. Read More

Dev Biol 2021 Mar 18;476:41-52. Epub 2021 Mar 18.

Peter the Great St. Petersburg Polytechnic University, Polytechnicheskaya, 29, St. Petersburg, 195251, Russia. Electronic address:

Understanding molecular mechanisms of sexually dimorphic organ growth is a fundamental problem of developmental biology. Recent quantitative studies showed that the Drosophila compound eye is a convenient model to study the determination of the final organ size. In Drosophila, females have larger eyes than males and this is evident even after correction for the larger body size. Read More

Stem Cell Rev Rep 2021 Mar 17. Epub 2021 Mar 17.

Vascular Biology and Therapeutics Laboratory, School of Biotechnology Faculty of Science and Health, Dublin City University, Dublin, 9, Ireland.

A hallmark of subclinical atherosclerosis is the accumulation of vascular smooth muscle cell (SMC)-like cells leading to intimal thickening and lesion formation. While medial SMCs contribute to vascular lesions, the involvement of resident vascular stem cells (vSCs) remains unclear. We evaluated single cell photonics as a discriminator of cell phenotype in vitro before the presence of vSC within vascular lesions was assessed ex vivo using supervised machine learning and further validated using lineage tracing analysis. Read More

Mol Biol Rep 2021 Mar 17. Epub 2021 Mar 17.

Department of Hepatology, The First Hospital of Jilin University, NO. 71, Xinmin Street, Changchun, 130021, Jilin, China.

Chronic liver diseases are attributed to liver injury. Development of fibrosis from chronic liver diseases is a dynamic process that involves multiple molecular and cellular processes. As the first to be impacted by injury, liver sinusoidal endothelial cells (LSECs) are involved in the pathogenesis of liver diseases caused by a variety of etiologies. Read More

Crit Rev Oncol Hematol 2021 Mar 11;160:103277. Epub 2021 Mar 11.

Gonçalo Moniz Institute, Oswaldo Cruz Foundation (IGM-FIOCRUZ/BA), Salvador, Bahia, 40296-710, Brazil. Electronic address:

Acute myeloid leukemia (AML) remains the most lethal of leukemias and a small population of cells called leukemic stem cells (LSCs) has been associated with disease relapses. Some cell signaling pathways play an important role in AML survival, proliferation and self-renewal properties and are abnormally activated or suppressed in LSCs. This includes the NF-κB, Wnt/β-catenin, Hedgehog, Notch, EGFR, JAK/STAT, PI3K/AKT/mTOR, TGF/SMAD and PPAR pathways. Read More

Cell Oncol (Dordr) 2021 Mar 11. Epub 2021 Mar 11.

Stem Cell Biology Laboratory, Department of Genetic Engineering, School of Bioengineering, Faculty of Engineering and Technology, SRM Institute of Science and Technology, Kanchipuram, Kattankulathur, Chennai, Tamil Nadu, 603203, India.

Background: Oral squamous cell carcinoma (OSCC) is a malignant oral cavity neoplasm that affects many people, especially in developing countries. Despite several advances that have been made in diagnosis and treatment, the morbidity and mortality rates due to OSCC remain high. Accumulating evidence indicates that aberrant activation of cellular signaling pathways, such as the Notch, Wnt and Hedgehog pathways, occurs during the development and metastasis of OSCC. Read More

Chem Senses 2021 Mar 8. Epub 2021 Mar 8.

Department of Cell & Developmental Biology, and the Rocky Mountain Taste & Smell Center, University of Colorado Anschutz Medical Campus, Aurora, CO, USA.

Since the early 20 th century, progress in cancer therapies has significantly improved disease prognosis. Nonetheless, cancer treatments are often associated with side effects that can negatively affect patient wellbeing and disrupt the course of treatment. Among the main side effects, taste impairment is associated with depression, malnutrition and morbid weight loss. Read More

J Cancer Res Clin Oncol 2021 May 9;147(5):1275-1286. Epub 2021 Mar 9.

Hangzhou Cancer Institution, Affiliated Hangzhou Cancer Hospital, Zhejiang University School of Medicine, Hangzhou, 310002, China.

Esophageal squamous cell carcinoma (ESCC) is one of most lethal malignancies with high aggressive potential in the world. Radiotherapy is used as one curative treatment modality for ESCC patients. Due to radioresistance, the 5-year survival rates of patients after radiotherapy is less than 20%. Read More

Cancers (Basel) 2021 Feb 18;13(4). Epub 2021 Feb 18.

Department of Biomedical Sciences of Cells and Systems-Section Molecular Cell Biology, University of Groningen, University Medical Center Groningen, 9713 AV Groningen, The Netherlands.

Radiotherapy is involved in the treatment of many cancers, but damage induced to the surrounding normal tissue is often inevitable. Evidence suggests that the maintenance of homeostasis and regeneration of the normal tissue is driven by specific adult tissue stem/progenitor cells. These tasks involve the input from several signaling pathways. Read More

Front Oncol 2020 16;10:598957. Epub 2021 Feb 16.

Cancer Molecular Pathology, School of Medicine, Griffith University, Gold Coast, QLD, Australia.

Cancer stem cells (CSCs) in esophageal cancer have a key role in tumor initiation, progression and therapy resistance. Novel therapeutic strategies to target CSCs are being tested, however, more in-depth research is necessary. Eradication of CSCs can result in successful therapeutic approaches against esophageal cancer. Read More

Life Sci 2021 May 25;273:119270. Epub 2021 Feb 25.

Department of Pharmaceutical Technology, Jadavpur University, West Bengal, Kolkata 700032, India. Electronic address:

Stem cells (SCs) are clonogenic cells that develop into the specialized cells which later responsible for making up various types of tissue in the human body. SCs are not only the appropriate source of information for cell division, molecular and cellular processes, and tissue homeostasis but also one of the major putative biological aids to diagnose and cure various degenerative diseases. This study emphasises on various research outputs that occurred in the past two decades. Read More

BMC Mol Cell Biol 2021 Feb 18;22(1):13. Epub 2021 Feb 18.

Los Alamos National Laboratory, Analytics, Intelligence, and Technology Division, Los Alamos, NM, USA.

Background: Human induced pluripotent stem cells (iPSC) have opened new avenues for regenerative medicine. Consequently, iPSC-derived motor neurons have emerged as potentially viable therapies for spinal cord injuries and neurodegenerative disorders including Amyotrophic Lateral Sclerosis. However, direct clinical application of iPSC bears in itself the risk of tumorigenesis and other unforeseeable genetic or epigenetic abnormalities. Read More

Adv Cancer Res 2021 24;149:63-101. Epub 2020 Nov 24.

Division of Liver Diseases, Liver Cancer Program, Department of Medicine, Tisch Cancer Institute, Icahn School of Medicine at Mount Sinai, New York, NY, United States; Division of Hematology and Medical Oncology, Department of Medicine, Icahn School of Medicine at Mount Sinai, New York, NY, United States. Electronic address:

Despite the recent introduction of new effective systemic agents, the survival of patients with hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC) at advanced stages remains dismal. This underscores the need for new therapies, which has spurred extensive research on the identification of the main drivers of pathway de-regulation as a source of novel therapeutic targets. Frequently altered pathways in HCC involve growth factor receptors (e. Read More

Genes Cancer 2020 Dec 6;11(3-4):137-153. Epub 2020 Oct 6.

Georgia Cancer Center, Augusta University, Augusta, GA, USA.

Background: Wilms tumor is the most common pediatric renal tumor and the fourth most common malignancy in children. Chromosome 16q deletion(del) or loss of heterozygosity (LOH) has been correlated with recurrence and overall poor prognosis, such that patients with 16qLOH and 1p allelic loss are treated with more aggressive chemotherapeutic regimens.

Methods: In the present study, we have compared the variant profiles of Wilms tumors with and without 16q del/LOH using both data available from the TARGET database (42 samples) and tumors procured from our legacy collection (8 samples). Read More

Front Cell Dev Biol 2020 21;8:613557. Epub 2020 Dec 21.

Department of Molecular Medicine, Sapienza University, Rome, Italy.

Major signaling pathways, such as Notch, Hedgehog (Hh), Wnt/β-catenin and Hippo, are targeted by a plethora of physiological and pathological stimuli, ultimately resulting in the modulation of genes that act coordinately to establish specific biological processes. Many biological programs are strictly controlled by the assembly of multiprotein complexes into the nucleus, where a regulated recruitment of specific transcription factors and coactivators on gene promoter region leads to different transcriptional outcomes. MAML1 results to be a versatile coactivator, able to set up synergistic interlinking with pivotal signaling cascades and able to coordinate the network of cross-talking pathways. Read More

Cells 2020 Dec 31;10(1). Epub 2020 Dec 31.

Institute of Anatomy, Medical Faculty Carl Gustav Carus, TechnischeUniversität Dresden School of Medicine, 01307 Dresden, Germany.

The enteric nervous system (ENS) constitutes the largest part of the peripheral nervous system. In recent years, ENS development and its neurogenetic capacity in homeostasis and allostasishave gained increasing attention. Developmentally, the neural precursors of the ENS are mainly derived from vagal and sacral neural crest cell portions. Read More

J Cancer Res Ther 2020 Dec;16(Supplement):S90-S94

Department of Biology, Faculty of Science, Razi University, Kermanshah, Iran.

Aim Of Study: Since the effect of placental growth factor (PlGF) on MicroRNAs (miRNAs) at molecular level was remained unknown, the aim was to predict the transcription factors (TFs) and their regulated miRNAs that activated by PlGF and analysis the function, biological processes, and cancer stem cells (CSCs)-related signaling pathways of miRNAs that regulated in PlGF signaling pathway.

Subjects And Methods: The aim of this study is to find the TFs that activated by PlGF, we used three online software programs PCViz, PubAngioGen, and Kyoto Encyclopedia of Genes and Genomes (KEGG) pathway. Then, the regulatory miRNAs downstream of the TFs were identified by four software TMHD, chipbase, circuits, and transmir databases. Read More

Int J Neurosci 2021 Jan 7:1-13. Epub 2021 Jan 7.

Department of Physiology and Neurophysiology Research Center, School of Medicine, Shahid Beheshti University of Medical Sciences, Tehran, Iran.

Molecular signalling pathways are an evolutionarily conserved multifaceted pathway that can control diverse cellular processes. The role of signalling pathways in regulating development and tissue homeostasis as well as hippocampal neurogenesis is needed to study in detail. In the adult brain, the Notch signalling pathway, in collaboration with the Wnt/β-catenin, bone morphogenetic proteins (BMPs), and sonic hedgehog (Shh) molecular signalling pathways, are involved in stem cell regulation in the hippocampal formation, and they also control the plasticity of the neural stem cells (NSCs) or neural progenitor cells (NPCs) which involved in neurogenesis processes. Read More

Eur Rev Med Pharmacol Sci 2020 12;24(23):12408-12422

Second Department of Endocrinology, Third Hospital of Hebei Medical University, Shijiazhuang, China.

Objective: This study aims to investigate whether liraglutide can affect proliferation, osteogenic differentiation and serum deprivation-induced apoptosis of preosteoblast cell line MC3T3-E1 through the Notch, Wnt/β-catenin, and Hedgehog (Hh) signaling pathways.

Materials And Methods: MC3T3-E1 cells were exposed to different treatments (via Notch inhibitor DAPT, an Hh inhibitor cyclopamine, or serum deprivation) or transfections of different siRNAs (targeting glucagon-like peptide-1 receptor (GLP-1R), β-catenin, or Gli1) in the presence or absence of 100 nM liraglutide. Cell proliferation, mRNA levels of osteogenic differentiation-related genes, mRNA and protein levels of the Notch and Hh signaling pathway proteins, and apoptosis-related proteins were assessed. Read More

Nutr Cancer 2020 Dec 11:1-23. Epub 2020 Dec 11.

Department of Cancer Biology, University of Kansas Medical Center, Kansas City, Kansas, USA.

Bladder cancer is the 9 most prevalent cancer worldwide and carries a protracted treatment course with significant patient expense, morbidity, and mortality. Over 95% of bladder cancers arise from the urothelium and invade into the underlying muscle layer before metastasizing. Trans-urethral resection and BCG therapy is the current first-line treatment for non-muscle invasive bladder cancer but carries a high rate of tumor recurrence and progression. Read More

Arthritis Res Ther 2020 12 10;22(1):286. Epub 2020 Dec 10.

Leeds Institute of Rheumatic and Musculoskeletal Medicine, Faculty of Medicine and Health, University of Leeds, Leeds, UK.

Objectives: Systemic sclerosis (SSc) is characterised by tissue fibrosis of the major organs of the body including the skin, lungs and heart. We have previously reported that the lncRNA HOTAIR plays a central role in the activation of SSc myofibroblasts, the key cellular elements of fibrosis. HOTAIR induces fibroblast activation through H3K27me3-mediated activation of the Notch signalling pathway. Read More

Sci Rep 2020 12 3;10(1):21128. Epub 2020 Dec 3.

Department of Molecular Carcinogenesis, Medical University of Lodz, 90-752, Lodz, Poland.

Lung malignancies comprise lethal and aggressive tumours that remain the leading cancer-related death cause worldwide. Regarding histological classification, lung squamous cell carcinoma (LUSC) and adenocarcinoma (LUAD) account for the majority of cases. Surgical resection and various combinations of chemo- and radiation therapies are the golden standards in the treatment of lung cancers, although the five-year survival rate remains very poor. Read More

Integr Cancer Ther 2020 Jan-Dec;19:1534735420975861

University of Newcastle, Newcastle, NSW, Australia.

We reviewed the research into the mechanisms of growth of triple negative breast cancer (TNBC) based on laboratory pre-clinical studies that have shaped understanding of the disease over the past decade. In response to these findings, we propose an approach to potentially prevent cancer metabolic adaptation and recurrence. This paper collates pre-clinical results, first to determine the tumor's mechanisms of growth and then to source natural substances that could potentially suppress those mechanisms. Read More

J Obstet Gynaecol 2020 Nov 24:1-7. Epub 2020 Nov 24.

Department of Obstetrics, The First Affiliated Hospital of China Medical University, Shenyang, China.

Maternal diabetes may lead to long-term risks for the offspring. The study aims at identifying the potential crucial genes and pathways associated with foetal metabolism and malformation of gestational diabetes mellitus (GDM). Gene Expression Series 49524 and 87295 were downloaded from Gene Expression Omnibus database, including eight from GDM and eight from non-GDM. Read More

Clin Epigenetics 2020 11 19;12(1):179. Epub 2020 Nov 19.

Department of Neuroendocrinology, ICMR-National Institute for Research in Reproductive Health, Jehangir Merwanji Street, Parel, Mumbai, 400012, India.

Background: Paternal obesity has been associated with reduced live birth rates. It could lead to inheritance of metabolic disturbances to the offspring through epigenetic mechanisms. However, obesity is a multifactorial disorder with genetic or environmental causes. Read More

Stem Cell Res Ther 2020 11 18;11(1):489. Epub 2020 Nov 18.

NSU Cell Therapy Institute, Nova Southeastern University, 3301 College Ave, 3200 South University Drive, Fort Lauderdale, FL, 33328, USA.

Over the last decades, the cancer survival rate has increased due to personalized therapies, the discovery of targeted therapeutics and novel biological agents, and the application of palliative treatments. Despite these advances, tumor resistance to chemotherapy and radiation and rapid progression to metastatic disease are still seen in many patients. Evidence has shown that cancer stem cells (CSCs), a sub-population of cells that share many common characteristics with somatic stem cells (SSCs), contribute to this therapeutic failure. Read More

Aging (Albany NY) 2020 11 7;12(21):21992-22018. Epub 2020 Nov 7.

State Key Laboratory of Bioactive Substances and Function of Natural Medicine, Institute of Materia Medica, Chinese Academy of Medical Sciences and Peking Union Medical College, Beijing 100050, China.

Semaphorin 4C (SEMA4C), is an important regulator of axonal guidance and aggravates tumor development. However, the roles and prognostic value of SEMA4C in colorectal cancer (CRC) remain unclear. Here, bioinformatics analyses of transcriptome data from multiple CRC patient datasets and immunohistochemical staining of a CRC tissue microarray (TMA) (n=83) showed that SEMA4C mRNA and protein expression were higher in CRC tissues than normal colorectal tissues. Read More

Cancer Res 2021 Jan 9;81(1):199-212. Epub 2020 Nov 9.

Texas Children's Cancer and Hematology Centers and The Faris D. Virani Ewing Sarcoma Center, Baylor College of Medicine, Houston, Texas.

Rhabdomyosarcoma (RMS) is the most prevalent pediatric soft-tissue sarcoma. Multimodal treatment, including surgery and traditional chemotherapy with radiotherapy, has contributed to improvements in overall survival rates. However, patients with recurrent or metastatic disease have 5-year survival rates of less than 30%. Read More

eNeuro 2020 Nov-Dec;7(6). Epub 2020 Oct 26.

Department of Biology, University of Massachusetts, Amherst, 01003 MA.

Neurogenesis is now known to play a role in adult hypothalamic function, yet the cell-cell mechanisms regulating this neurogenesis remain poorly understood. Here, we show that Hedgehog (Hh)/Gli signaling positively regulates hypothalamic neurogenesis in both larval and adult zebrafish and is necessary and sufficient for normal hypothalamic proliferation rates. Hh-responsive radial glia represent a relatively highly proliferative precursor population that gives rise to dopaminergic, serotonergic, and GABAergic neurons. Read More