Int J Med Sci
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Pulmonary hypertension (PH) is a lethal and rapidly progressing disorder if left untreated, but there is still no definitive therapy. An imbalance between vasoconstriction and vasodilation has been proposed as the mechanism underlying PH. Among the vasomediators of the pulmonary circulation is the renin-angiotensin system (RAS), the involvement of which in the development of PH has been proposed. ⋯ DIZE ameliorated mean pulmonary artery pressure, pulmonary arteriolar remodeling, and plasma brain natriuretic peptide levels, in addition to reversing the overexpression of ACE and up-regulation of both Ang-(1-7) and MAS, in the early and late treatment groups. DIZE has therapeutic potential for preventing the development of PH secondary to left ventricular dysfunction through ACEII activation and the positive feedback of ANG-(1-7) on the MAS receptor. A translational study in humans is needed to substantiate these findings.
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Diabetic nephropathy (DN) is a progressive disease, the main pathogeny of which is podocyte injury inducing glomerular filtration barrier and proteinuria. The occurrence and development of DN could be partly attributed to the reactive oxygen species (ROS) generated by mitochondria. However, research on how mitochondrial dysfunction (MtD) ultimately causes DNA damage is poor. ⋯ Then, we further confirmed that Klotho deficiency could significantly aggravate DNA damage by increasing 8-OHdG and reducing OGG1. Finally, we demonstrated Klotho deficiency may promote MtD to promote 8-OHdG-induced podocyte injury. Therefore, we came to a conclusion that Klotho deficiency may promote diabetes-induced podocytic MtD and aggravate 8-OHdG-induced DNA damage by affecting OOG1.
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Stroke is one of the leading causes of death worldwide. Accumulating evidence suggests that NLRP3 inflammasome activation plays an important role in ischemic stroke injury. However, the existence of the NLRP3 inflammasome in astrocytes remains controversial. ⋯ Interestingly, pretreatment with the caspase-12-specific inhibitor Z-ATAD-FMK attenuated cell injury and apoptosis and decreased the levels of NLRP3, caspase-1, IL-1β, and cleaved caspase-3 in the OGD group. In conclusion, Z-ATAD-FMK protected astrocytes against OGD-induced cell death and inhibited NLPR3-inflammasome activation. Our results indicate that caspase-12 and its potential regulation of NLRP3 inflammasome activation might be a promising target for treatment of ischemic stroke.
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Background: IL-1β is reported to be involved in cancer development and distant metastasis. However, the underlying mechanism of IL-1β upon malignant behaviors remains largely unknown. In this study, we aimed to study whether IL-1β could enhance the stemness traits of tumor cells. ⋯ Mechanistically, IL-1β treatment promoted the phosphorylation of Smad1/5/8 and activated its downstream target inhibitor of differentiation 1 (ID1). Silencing ID1 abrogated sphere formation and upregulated expression of stemness genes which were induced by IL-1β stimulation. Conclusion: Our data demonstrates that IL-1β promotes the stemness of HNSCC and melanoma cells through activating Smad/ID1 signal pathway.
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Acetaminophen (APAP) and roxithromycin (ROX) are often used in combination in clinical practice. To evaluate their drug-drug interactions (DDIs) and the hepatotoxicity of co-administration, rats were randomly separated into four groups: Control, APAP (50 mg/kg), ROX (5.5 mg/kg) and APAP-ROX (50 mg/kg and 5.5 mg/kg, respectively). The pharmacokinetic parameters between APAP and ROX were assayed by HPLC, and a cocktail method was used to evaluate the activities of cytochrome (CYP) 450. ⋯ Histopathological evidence showed the changes of liver tissues in terms of structure, size and tight arrangement. This study confirmed that a combination of APAP and ROX inhibited APAP metabolism and that the peak concentration of ROX was delayed. The resulting high level of CYP2E1 may induce oxidative stress and cause liver damage.