BioMed research international
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Calprotectin (CP) is a calcium- and zinc-binding protein of the S100 family expressed mainly by neutrophils with important extracellular activity. The aim of the current review is to summarize the latest findings concerning the role of CP in a diverse range of inflammatory and noninflammatory conditions among children. Increasing evidence suggests the implication of CP in the diagnosis, followup, assessment of relapses, and response to treatment in pediatric pathological conditions, such as inflammatory bowel disease, necrotizing enterocolitis, celiac disease, intestinal cystic fibrosis, acute appendicitis, juvenile idiopathic arthritis, Kawasaki disease, polymyositis-dermatomyositis, glomerulonephritis, IgA nephropathy, malaria, HIV infection, hyperzincemia and hypercalprotectinemia, and cancer. Further studies are required to provide insights into the actual role of CP in these pathological processes in pediatrics.
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Acute lung injury (ALI) is a life-threatening syndrome that causes high morbidity and mortality worldwide. ALI is characterized by increased permeability of the alveolar-capillary membrane, edema, uncontrolled neutrophils migration to the lung, and diffuse alveolar damage, leading to acute hypoxemic respiratory failure. Although corticosteroids remain the mainstay of ALI treatment, they cause significant side effects. ⋯ Several studies, including our own, have demonstrated that plant extracts and/or secondary metabolites isolated from them reduce most ALI phenotypes in experimental animal models, including neutrophil recruitment to the lung, the production of pro-inflammatory cytokines and chemokines, edema, and vascular permeability. In this review, we summarized these studies and described the anti-inflammatory activity of various plant extracts, such as Ginkgo biloba and Punica granatum, and such secondary metabolites as epigallocatechin-3-gallate and ellagic acid. In addition, we highlight the medical potential of these extracts and plant-derived compounds for treating of ALI.
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Patients with brain metastases from malignant melanoma historically have a very poor outcome. Surgery and radiotherapy can be used, but for the majority of patients the disease will progress quickly. ⋯ Novel therapies that have been shown to be superior to chemotherapy in metastatic melanoma have made their way in clinic and data regarding their use in patients with treated or untreated brain metastases are encouraging. In this paper we describe the use of vemurafenib, dabrafenib, and ipilimumab in patients with melanoma disseminated to the brain in addition to other treatments currently in development.
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Current cancer treatment regimens do not only target tumor cells, but can also have devastating effects on the spermatogonial stem cell pool, resulting in a lack of functional gametes and hence sterility. In adult men, fertility can be preserved prior to cancer treatment by cryopreservation of ejaculated or surgically retrieved spermatozoa, but this is not an option for prepubertal boys since spermatogenesis does not commence until puberty. ⋯ Although recent progress has brought clinical application of spermatogonial stem cell autotransplantation in closer range, there are still a number of important issues to address. In this paper, we describe the state of the art of spermatogonial stem cell transplantation and outline the hurdles that need to be overcome before clinical implementation.
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Chordoma is a rare, but often malignant, bone cancer that preferentially affects the axial skeleton and the skull base. These tumors are both sporadic and hereditary and appear to occur more frequently after the fourth decade of life; however, modern technologies have increased the detection of pediatric chordomas. Chordomas originate from remnants of the notochord, the main embryonic axial structure that precedes the backbone, and share with notochord cells both histological features and the expression of characteristic genes. ⋯ Known for decades as a main regulator of notochord formation, Brachyury has recently gained interest as a biomarker and causative agent of chordoma, and therefore as a promising therapeutic target. Here, we review the main characteristics of chordoma, the molecular markers, and the clinical approaches currently available for the early detection and possible treatment of this cancer. In particular, we report on the current knowledge of the role of Brachyury and of its possible mechanisms of action in both notochord formation and chordoma etiogenesis.