Translational research : the journal of laboratory and clinical medicine
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Type 1 diabetes (T1D) is an irreversible degenerative disease with severe complications such as heart disease, nephropathy, neuropathy, and retinopathy. Although exogenous insulin administration is a life-saving therapy, it does not cure the disease. ⋯ We describe novel epigenetic biomarkers for the identification of susceptible individuals and the establishment of innovative therapies with epidrugs and cell therapy to regenerate the lost β-cells. Despite the wealth of promising data regarding the potential benefits of epigenetic tools to reduce the burden of T1D, clinical trials are still very few, and this issue needs to be resolved in the near future.
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We have previously shown that topical opioids including morphine and its congeners promote healing of full thickness ischemic wounds in rats. We examined the contribution of mu opioid receptor (MOPr)-mediated healing of full thickness ischemic wounds using MOPr and delta or kappa opioid receptor knockout (KO) mice. Wound closure in the early (day 5) as well as later phases was delayed in topical morphine or PBS-treated MOPr-KO mice compared with reciprocal treatments of wounds in wild-type (WT) mice. ⋯ Morphine and its congeners stimulated the proliferation of endothelial cells from WT mice but not those from MOPr-KO mice. Furthermore, morphine-induced mitogen-activated protein kinase/extracellular signal-regulated kinase phosphorylation in endothelial cells was significantly decreased in MOPr-KO mice as compared with WT mice. Collectively, these data suggest that MOPr plays a critical role in the proliferation phase with the formation of granulation tissue during wound healing.