Search results for "Editorial"
showing 10 items of 428 documents
Adaptive Function and Brain Evolution
2012
Comparing brains is not a mere intellectual exercise but also helps to understand how the brain enables adaptive behavioral strategies to cope with an ever-changing world and how this complex organ has evolved during the phylogeny. For instance, comparative neurobiology helps understanding the specific features of our species, an issue that attracted scientists since the time of Santiago Ramon y Cajal. Following this tradition, 20 years ago Hans ten Donkelaar and Gerhard Roth started the European Conferences on Comparative Neurobiology (ECCN). This e-book includes some of the contributions to the last meeting, the sixth ECCN (Valencia, Spain; April 22-24 2010), plus selected works by severa…
MEF2C and SOCS2 in stemness regulation
2015
The physiologic stemness of hematopoietic stem cells (HSC) relies on mechanisms constitutively active under steady state and is fundamental to maintain a lifelong HSC reservoir. On the other side, similar stemness features sustained by partially overlapping molecular circuits, which have recently come into focus, confer aggressive aggressiveness in leukemia clones. Suppressor of Cytokine Signalling 2 (SOCS2) belongs to the SOCS family, comprising eight members (SOCS1–7 and CIS) with similar structures, which are induced upon JAK/STAT activation and function as negative regulators. Recent evidences have demonstrated that SOCS2 is endowed with immunological functions in differentiated cells b…
In the literature: February 2020.
2020
The phosphatidylinositol-3-kinase (PI3K)/Akt and the mammalian target of rapamycin (mTOR) signaling pathways is one of the most frequently deregulated pathways in human cancers. This pathway controls multiple cellular processes, including metabolism, motility, proliferation, growth and survival. It can be aberrantly activated through multiple mechanisms, including diverse genomic alterations involving oncogenes and tumour suppressor genes.1 These alterations offer opportunities for therapeutic targeting of the pathway. PI3Kα protein complex is composed of regulatory (p85α) and catalytic (p110α) subunits. Pik3ca codes for p110α, which is the most frequently mutated oncogene across different …
Health status, health-related quality of life, and socioeconomic outcome in childhood brain tumor survivors: a German cohort study
2019
Abstract Background With rising numbers of childhood cancer survivors, somatic and socioeconomic outcome as well as health-related quality of life (QoL) gain increasing relevance. Based on the first nationwide German Survey on Life Situation, State of Health, and Quality of Life of Childhood Cancer Survivors, the VIVE survey, we report the outcome of survivors of childhood brain tumors localized in the posterior fossa. Methods Two hundred seventy participants with a median follow-up period of 21.9 years completed a questionnaire on socioeconomic and somatic late effects as well as a standardized QoL questionnaire (European Organisation for Research and Treatment of Cancer QLQ-C30). Comparis…
Role of Natural Bioactive Compounds in the Rise and Fall of Cancers
2020
Recent years have seen the idea of a close association between nutrition and the modulation of cancer development/progression reinforced. In fact, an increasing number of experimental and epidemiological evidence have been produced supporting the concept that many different bioactive components of food (e.g. polyphenols, mono- and polyunsaturated fatty acids, methyl-group donors….) may be implicated in either the promotion of or the protection against carcinogenesis. At cellular level, such compounds can have an impact on different but sometimes intertwined processes, such as growth and differentiation, DNA repair, programmed cell death, and oxidative stress. In addition, compelling evidenc…
Cyclooxygenases in hepatocellular carcinoma
2006
Many epidemiological studies demonstrate that treatment with non-steroidal anti-inflammatory drugs (NSAIDs) reduce the incidence and mortality of certain malignancies, especially gastrointestinal cancer. The cyclooxygenase (COX) enzymes are well-known targets of NSAIDs. However, conventional NSAIDs non-selectively inhibit both the constitutive form COX-1, and the inducible form COX-2. Recent evidence indicates that COX-2 is an important molecular target for anticancer therapies. Its expression is undetectable in most normal tissues, and is highly induced by pro-inflammatory cytokines, mitogens, tumor promoters and growth factors. It is now well-established that COX-2 is chronically overexpr…
Ocular Comorbidities and the Relationship between Eye Diseases and Systemic Disorders
2016
Patients with ocular disorders may have additional ophthalmic problems that can have an impact on both morbidity and vision. Ocular comorbidities are commonly associated with vision-related disability and decreased quality of life related to visual impairment. The majority of studies on this topic deal with cataracts, glaucoma, uveitis, and/or retinopathies. It is important to summarize the available evidence to date on the association of one or several ocular diseases and the implications these comorbidities have on prognosis and therapy. The relationship between eye disorders and systemic diseases has recently drawn special interest. The increasing prevalence of neurodegenerative disorder…
Special issue “chemical speciation of organic and inorganic components of environmental and biological interest in natural fluids: Behaviour, interac…
2020
Several different definitions were in the past proposed to describe the term chemical speciation, and some of them were accepted from the scientific community [...]
Physical inactivity and cardiovascular disease at the time of coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19).
2020
Tributo al professor Miguel F. Refojo, PhD, DSc (1928---2016)
2016
[Excerpt] July 21, 2016, Professor Miguel F. Refojo passed away at the age of 88 in Needham (Massachusetts). Saying that Miguel was one of the most renowned Spanish scientists of the second half of the XXth Century does not resembles its actual scientific size. Indeed, Miguel (or “Migüel” as most of his American friends pronounced his name) was a World Class scientist and inventor that will be forever linked to the advances in polymer science applied to the ophthalmic environment. His contributions in the biomedical field start “officially” in 1967 according to the National Library of Medline database (Pubmed-Medline). [...]