Adv Exp Med Biol
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Review Comparative Study
Immune Responses to SARS-CoV, MERS-CoV and SARS-CoV-2.
The world has given an outbreak alarm in the last two decades, with different members of the coronavirus family infecting people at different times. The spread of the SARS-CoV-2 virus, which last appeared in December 2019 in China and spread rapidly to all over the world, has led the scientific world to studies on these viruses. ⋯ In this review, we aimed to provide a good view on immune strategies by comparing immunological responses to SARS-CoV-2 disease among other members of the family, SARS-CoV and MERS-CoV. In the near future, it may contribute to vaccine or drug studies to be developed on immune intervention.
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The interactions between tumor cells and the non-malignant stromal and immune cells that make up the tumor microenvironment (TME) are critical to the pathophysiology of cancer. Mesenchymal stem cells (MSCs) are multipotent stromal stem cells found within most cancers and play a critical role influencing the formation and function of the TME. MSCs have been reported to support tumor growth through a variety of mechanisms including (i) differentiation into other pro-tumorigenic stromal components, (ii) suppression of the immune response, (iii) promotion of angiogenesis, (iv) enhancement of an epithelial-mesenchymal transition (EMT), (v) enrichment of cancer stem-like cells (CSC), (vi) increase in tumor cell survival, and (vii) promotion of tumor metastasis. ⋯ Tumor-suppressive effects are observed when MSCs are used in higher ratios to tumor cells. Additionally, MSC function appears to be tissue type dependent and may rely on cancer education to reprogram a naïve MSC with antitumor effects into a cancer-educated or cancer-associated MSC (CA-MSC) which develops pro-tumorigenic function. Further work is required to delineate the complex crosstalk between MSCs and other components of the TME to accurately assess the impact of MSCs on cancer initiation, growth, and spread.
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As a classical form of programmed cell death, autophagy is widely involved in cellular metabolism and vital for the maintenance of homeostasis in physiological and pathological states. With multiple levels of regulation and signaling integrated in, autography presents complicated relevance with various diseases, such as cancer and neurological diseases. The emerging subject, systems biology, along with multi-omics approaches, offers a new strategy to investigate these interactive processes from a holistic perspective. ⋯ The critical step of systematic study is to explore interplay between biological molecules based on massive biological data, which requires construction of networks in different biological levels, modification, and identification of key pathways and targets via optimized algorithm and experimental verification. Guided by systems biology research, drug design can thus be strengthened by efficient screening and accurate evaluation. Overall, systems biology promises to act as a powerful tool which both helps to clarify the profound mechanism and to develop efficacious medicine.
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Breast cancer diagnosed during pregnancy or lactation up to 1 year post-partum is often referred to as pregnancy-associated breast cancer (PABC) , although the definition varies with length of post-partum period. The incidence rate has been reported to range from 17.5 to 39.9 per 100,000 births, but the rate is substantially lower during pregnancy (ranging from 3.0 to 7.7) than during the post-partum period (ranging from 13.8 to 32.2). ⋯ In studies comparing outcomes in women with PABC to other young breast cancer patients, it is crucial to adjust for age, since the age distribution of PABC depends both on age at pregnancy and age at breast cancer. Large studies have shown similar prognosis for women with PABC compared to other young women with breast cancer, when accounting for differences in age, stage and other tumour characteristics.
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Chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD) is a lung disease affected by both genetic and environmental factors. Therefore, the role of epigenetics in the pathogenesis of COPD has attracted much attention. ⋯ The present review aims at overviewing the effect of DNA methylation on etiology, pathogenesis, pathophysiological changes, and complications of COPD. The clarification of aberrant methylation of target genes, which play important roles in the initiation and progression of COPD, will provide new disease-specific biomarker and targets for early diagnosis and therapy.