Search results for "Endocrine System Diseases"
showing 10 items of 616 documents
Abilities of berberine and chemically modified berberines to interact with metformin and inhibit proliferation of pancreatic cancer cells.
2019
Abstract Pancreatic cancer is devastating cancer worldwide with few if any truly effective therapies. Pancreatic cancer has an increasing incidence and may become the second leading cause of death from cancer. Novel, more effective therapeutic approaches are needed as pancreatic cancer patients usually survive for less than a year after being diagnosed. Control of blood sugar levels by the prescription drug metformin in diseases such as diabetes mellitus has been examined in association with pancreatic cancer. While the clinical trials remain inconclusive, there is hope that certain diets and medications may affect positively the outcomes of patients with pancreatic and other cancers. Other…
Roles of TP53 in determining therapeutic sensitivity, growth, cellular senescence, invasion and metastasis.
2016
TP53 is a critical tumor suppressor gene that regulates cell cycle progression, apoptosis, cellular senescence and many other properties critical for control of normal cellular growth and death. Due to the pleiotropic effects that TP53 has on gene expression and cellular physiology, mutations at this tumor suppressor gene result in diverse physiological effects. T53 mutations are frequently detected in numerous cancers. The expression of TP53 can be induced by various agents used to treat cancer patients such as chemotherapeutic drugs and ionizing radiation. Radiation will induce Ataxia telangiectasia mutated (ATM) and other kinases that results in the phosphorylation and activation of TP53…
Pattern of Invasion in Human Pancreatic Cancer Organoids Is Associated with Loss of SMAD4 and Clinical Outcome
2020
Abstract Pancreatic ductal adenocarcinoma (PDAC) is an aggressive malignancy characterized by extensive local invasion and systemic spread. In this study, we employed a three-dimensional organoid model of human pancreatic cancer to characterize the molecular alterations critical for invasion. Time-lapse microscopy was used to observe invasion in organoids from 25 surgically resected human PDAC samples in collagen I. Subsequent lentiviral modification and small-molecule inhibitors were used to investigate the molecular programs underlying invasion in PDAC organoids. When cultured in collagen I, PDAC organoids exhibited two distinct, morphologically defined invasive phenotypes, mesenchymal an…
Hereditary breast and ovarian cancer in families from southern Italy (Sicily)—Prevalence and geographic distribution of pathogenic variants in BRCA1/…
2020
Recent advances in the detection of germline pathogenic variants (PVs) in BRCA1/2 genes have allowed a deeper understanding of the BRCA-related cancer risk. Several studies showed a significant heterogeneity in the prevalence of PVs across different populations. Because little is known about this in the Sicilian population, our study was aimed at investigating the prevalence and geographic distribution of inherited BRCA1/2 PVs in families from this specific geographical area of Southern Italy. We retrospectively collected and analyzed all clinical information of 1346 hereditary breast and/or ovarian cancer patients genetically tested for germline BRCA1/2 PVs at University Hospital Policlini…
The hallmarks of ovarian cancer: proliferation and cell growth
2020
Epithelial ovarian cancer (EOC) is a heterogeneous group of diseases with distinct biological and clinical behaviour. Despite the differences between them, the capability of tumour cells to continuously proliferate and avoid death is maintained among histotypes. This ability is the result of alterations at different levels, causing the deregulation of cell cycle and proliferative-related pathways. Even if the leading role is played by RB and TP53, changes in other molecular pathways are involved in the development of EOC. This ability can be exploited to generate in vitro and in vivo models resembling the conditions of tumour development in a patient. In vivo models, such as patient-derived…
Abilities of β-Estradiol to interact with chemotherapeutic drugs, signal transduction inhibitors and nutraceuticals and alter the proliferation of pa…
2019
Improving the effects of chemotherapy and reducing the side effects are important goals in cancer research. Various approaches have been examined to enhance the effectiveness of chemotherapy. For example, signal transduction inhibitors or hormonal based approaches have been included with chemo- or radio-therapy. MIA-PaCa-2 and BxPC-3 pancreatic ductal adenocarcinoma (PDAC) cells both express the estrogen receptor (ER). The effects of β-estradiol on the growth of PDAC cells has not been examined yet the ER is expressed in PDAC cells. We have examined the effects of combining β-estradiol with chemotherapeutic drugs, signal transcription inhibitors, natural products and nutraceuticals on PDAC.…
A common SNP in the UNG gene decreases ovarian cancer risk in BRCA2 mutation carriers
2018
Single nucleotide polymorphisms (SNPs) in DNA glycosylase genes involved in the base excision repair (BER) pathway can modify breast and ovarian cancer risk in BRCA1 and BRCA2 mutation carriers. We previously found that SNP rs34259 in the uracil-DNA glycosylase gene (UNG) might decrease ovarian cancer risk in BRCA2 mutation carriers. In the present study, we validated this finding in a larger series of familial breast and ovarian cancer patients to gain insights into how this UNG variant exerts its protective effect. We found that rs34259 is associated with significant UNG downregulation and with lower levels of DNA damage at telomeres. In addition, we found that this SNP is associated with…
Homozygous Resistance to Thyroid Hormone β: Can Combined Antithyroid Drug and Triiodothyroacetic Acid Treatment Prevent Cardiac Failure?
2017
Resistance to thyroid hormone β (RTHβ) due to homozygous THRB defects is exceptionally rare, with only five kindreds reported worldwide. Cardiac dysfunction, which can be life-threatening, is recognized in the disorder. Here we describe the clinical, metabolic, ophthalmic, and cardiac findings in a 9-year-old boy harboring a biallelic THRB mutation (R243Q), along with biochemical, physiologic, and cardiac responses to carbimazole and triiodothyroacetic acid (TRIAC) therapy. The patient exhibits recognized features (goiter, nonsuppressed thyroid-stimulating hormone levels, upper respiratory tract infections, hyperactivity, low body mass index) of heterozygous RTHβ, with additional characteri…
High fat diets for weight loss among subjects with elevated fasting glucose levels: The PREDIMED study
2020
Abstract Aim We studied fasting plasma glucose (FPG) as a determinant of weight change on high-fat diets in the PREDIMED trial. Methods A total of 3,622 participants were randomized to receive one of two Mediterranean diets (n = 2,616) or a control diet (n = 1,006) for 5 years and had complete data for baseline FPG and body-weight development. Weight change by pre-treatment FPG categories ( Results The two Mediterranean diets contained 41.5 E% fat, 16.5 E% protein, and 40 E% carbohydrate whereas the control diet contained 37.8 E% fat, 16.8 E% protein and 43.2 E% carbohydrate. In the Mediterranean diet groups, participants with FPG≥115 lost 1.04 kg (95% CI 0.68; 1.41, n = 1115) whereas parti…
Use of Troponin as a predictor for cardiovascular diseases in patients with type 2 Diabetes Mellitus
2020
People with type 2 diabetes mellitus (T2DM) have two- to four-fold increased cardiovascular mortality in comparison to the general population. With the identification of new therapeutic targets and hypoglycemic drugs for T2DM, the need for a better stratification of CVD risk has emerged to select patients who may need intensive or specific treatment. At present, risk stratification is based on clinical, demographic, and biochemical factors. High sensitivity cardiac troponin (hs-cTn) increases after several ischemic and non-ischemic insults and it is considered a marker of myocardial injury. This review summarizes the main findings about hs-cTn utilization for risk stratification in people w…