RUYU YAN^1,#, JUNJIE WANG^1,#, MINXIA LIU², KECHENG ZHOU^1,3,*

BIOCELL, Vol.46, No.10, pp. 2159-2165, 2022, DOI:10.32604/biocell.2022.021107

Abstract Emerging cohorts and basic studies have associated certain genetic modifications in cancer patients, such as gene mutation, amplification, or deletion, with the overall survival prognosis, underscoring patients’ genetic background may directly regulate drug sensitivity/resistance during chemotherapies. Understanding the molecular mechanism underpinning drug sensitivity/resistance and further uncovering the effective drugs have been the major ambition in the cancer drug discovery. The emergence and popularity of CRISPR/Cas9 technology have reformed the entire life science research, providing a precise and simplified genome editing tool with unlimited editing possibilities. Furthermore, it presents a powerful tool in cancer drug discovery, which hopefully facilitates us with… More >

LUIS S. MAYORGA^*

BIOCELL, Vol.46, No.10, pp. 2217-2220, 2022, DOI:10.32604/biocell.2022.020806

Abstract Cells are open systems that exchange energy and molecules with their environment. As any material system, they perform all the complex activities required for homeostasis and reproduction, obeying the thermodynamic laws. This viewpoint will argue that the basic logic governing the energy flux required to preserve cell organization and function is simple: to decrease the activation energy (Ea) of specific processes. Almost none of the possible chemical reactions and energy transformations inside a cell occur at a measurable speed at room or body temperature. Enzymes or other macromolecular structures speed up particular transformations by decreasing the corresponding energetic barriers. However,… More >

MENGMENG LIU^1,#, YUE PAN^1,2,#, XUFENG TAO¹, WENLI KANG¹, YINGJIE LIU¹, YONGJIE YANG^3,4,*, GARY GUISHAN XIAO^1,*

BIOCELL, Vol.46, No.10, pp. 2257-2265, 2022, DOI:10.32604/biocell.2022.020325

Abstract Pancreatic ductal adenocarcinoma (PDAC) is universally acknowledged as the cancer with the highest mortality rate. Berberine has high medicinal value and has been used as an anti-cancer agent. Hence the purpose of this study was to investigate the anti-cancer effect of berberine in PDAC. Berberine was shown to have a selective anti-cancer effect on PDAC by MTT assay in vitro. Pancreatic cancer stem cells (PCSCs), regulated by epithelial–mesenchymal transition (EMT), could promote the proliferation of PDAC cells. However, berberine suppressed the proliferation and stemness of PCSCs through immunofluorescence staining, stem cell sphere assays and so forth in vitro. In vivo,… More >

GIUSEPPE STEFANO NETTI^1,*, FEDERICA SPADACCINO¹, VALERIA CATALANO¹, GIUSEPPE CASTELLANO², GIOVANNI STALLONE³, ELENA RANIERI¹

BIOCELL, Vol.46, No.10, pp. 2235-2239, 2022, DOI:10.32604/biocell.2022.020209

Abstract Pentraxin-3 (PTX3), the prototype of long pentraxins, seems to influence complement system (CS) modulation. PTX3 and CS sustain carcinogenesis, enriching tumor microenvironment (TME) with pro-inflammatory molecules promoting angiogenesis in prostate cancer (PC) and renal cell carcinoma (RCC). Furthermore, cancer cells overexpress complement regulatory proteins, such as CD46, CD55 and CD59, which negatively affect complement pathways for support cancer cells survival. This viewpoint aims to elucidate the ambivalent role of PTX3 and the CS in the context of tumor microenvironment (TME). More >

FEIFEI TIAN¹, HUAN HU¹, DI WANG¹, HUAN DING¹, QINGJIA CHI², HUAPING LIANG³, WENLI ZENG^4,*

BIOCELL, Vol.46, No.10, pp. 2291-2301, 2022, DOI:10.32604/biocell.2022.020198

Abstract This study used transcriptome and epigenetic data to predict the prognosis of immune-related genes (IRGs) Apelin (APLN) in patients with hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC). The TCGA database has gene expression and clinical data for HCC. And DNA methylation 450 k data for HCC was download from the University of California Santa Cruz (UCSC) Xena browser. Performing clinical and prognostic analysis of APLN expression, results show that APLN is highly expressed in tumor samples. And it has an increasing trend with the development of clinical stage and T stage. To explore the prognostic role of APLN, the Immune-related DNA methylation (DNAm) sites… More >

JU HYUNG LEE¹, IL-KWON KIM^2,3, SANG WOO KIM^2,3, SOYEON LIM^2,3, SEAHYOUNG LEE^2,3, KI-CHUL HWANG^2,3, BYEONG-WOOK SONG^2,3,*

BIOCELL, Vol.46, No.10, pp. 2231-2234, 2022, DOI:10.32604/biocell.2022.020179

Abstract The complex mechanism of degenerative diseases and the non-specific modulation of regenerative targets are topics that need to be elucidated in order to advance the use of stem cells in improvement of neurodegenerative diseases. From pre-transplantation through post-transplantation, there are many changes in the conditions, both inside and outside of the stem cells that have not been carefully considered. This has hindered development in the field of cell therapy and regeneration. This viewpoint highlights the potential implications of intracellular and extracellular alterations of stem cells in transplanted areas at risk of neurodegenerative disease. More >

ISABELLA PANFOLI^1,*, MAURIZIO BRUSCHI², GIOVANNI CANDIANO²

BIOCELL, Vol.46, No.10, pp. 2167-2176, 2022, DOI:10.32604/biocell.2022.020154

Abstract Precision medicine is based on the identification of biomarkers of tumor development and progression. Liquid biopsy is at the forefront of the ability to gather diagnostic and prognostic information on tumors, as it can be noninvasively performed prior or during treatment. Liquid biopsy mostly utilizes circulating tumor cells, or free DNA, but also exosomes. The latter are nanovesicles secreted by most cell types, found in any body fluid that deliver proteins, nucleic acids and lipids to nearby and distant cells with a unique homing ability. Exosomes function in signalling between the tumor microenvironment and the rest of the body, promoting… More >

NADIRE ÖZENVER^1,2, THOMAS EFFERTH^2,*

BIOCELL, Vol.46, No.10, pp. 2151-2157, 2022, DOI:10.32604/biocell.2022.019937

Abstract Carnosic acid (CA) is a natural phenolic diterpene mainly occurring in some species of the Lamiaceae family. Numerous studies described the cytotoxicity of CA towards different types of cancer both in vitro and in vivo. Particularly, the influence of CA in combination with other drugs, vitamins or natural products through affecting various targets has raised interest. Current experimental in vivo data suggested that CA may cooperate with clinically used anticancer drugs promoting their activity against cancer. From this point of view, CA gained importance, because it may alter pharmacodynamic profiles of various agents in the case of their co-administration, and… More >

RéMY GAUTHIER^1,*, HéLèNE FOLLET², ANA-MARIA TRUNFIO-SFARGHIU³, DELPHINE FARLAY², NINA ATTIK^4,5, SYLVAIN MEILLE¹, JéRôME CHEVALIER¹, DAVID MITTON⁶

BIOCELL, Vol.46, No.10, pp. 2209-2216, 2022, DOI:10.32604/biocell.2022.022290

Abstract To develop durable bone healing strategies through improved control of bone repair, it is of critical importance to understand the mechanisms of bone mechanical integrity when in contact with biomaterials and implants. Bone mechanical integrity is defined here as the adaptation of structural properties of remodeled bone in regard to an applied mechanical loading. Accordingly, the authors present why future investigations in bone repair and regeneration should emphasize on the matrix surrounding the osteocytes. Osteocytes are mechanosensitive cells considered as the orchestrators of bone remodeling, which is the biological process involved in bone homeostasis. These bone cells are trapped in… More >

LEI WANG^1,#, QIUXIA DU^1,#, YISU SHI^1,#, MICHAEL ACKAH¹, PENG GUO¹, DANYAN ZHENG¹, MENGMENG WU¹, XIN JIN¹, PEILAN LI³, QIAONAN ZHANG¹, RUIXUE LI⁴, ZHI YIN³, MENGDI ZHAO^2,*, WEIGUO ZHAO^1,*

BIOCELL, Vol.46, No.10, pp. 2327-2342, 2022, DOI:10.32604/biocell.2022.021542

Abstract HMA2 (heavy metal ATPase 2) plays a crucial role in extracellular and intracellular Zn²⁺ transport across biomembranes, maintaining ion homeostasis, and playing an important role in the normal physiological metabolism, growth, and development of plants. In our study, a novel HMA2 gene, named MaHMA2, was isolated and cloned from white mulberry (Morus alba L.). The gene sequence obtained was 1,342 bp long, with an open reading frame of 1,194 bp, encoding a protein of 397 amino acids, with a predicted molecular mass of 42.852 kD and an isoelectric point of 7.53. This protein belonged to the PIB-type ATPase transport protein… More >