Excessive reactive oxygen species (ROS) may cause oxidative stress which is involved in aging and in the pathogenesis of various human diseases. Whereas unregulated levels of the ROS may be harmful, regulated basal level of ROS is even necessary to support cellular functions as a second messenger for homeostasis under physiological conditions. Therefore, redox medicine could develop as a new therapeutic concept for human health-benefits. Here, we introduce the involvement of ROS on the crossroads of stemness, senescence, and carcinogenesis in a stem cell and cancer cell biology. Amazingly, the anti-proliferative (APRO) family anti-proliferative proteins characterized by immediate early growth responsive genes may also be involved in the crossroads machinery. The biological functions of APRO proteins (APROs) seem to be quite intricate, however, which might be a key modulator of microRNAs (miRNAs). Given the crucial roles of ROS and APROs for pathophysiological functions, upcoming novel therapeutics should include vigilant modulation of the redox state. Next generation of medicine including regenerative medicine and/or cancer therapy will likely comprise strategies for altering the redox environment with the APROs via the modulation of miRNAs as well as with the regulation of ROS of cells in a sustainable manner.

Inflammatory bowel disease (IBD) is a multifactorial chronic disease. Patients with IBD have an increased risk of developing colorectal cancer which has become a major health concern. IBD might exert a role of engrams for making the condition of specific inflammation in the gut. Dysregulation of immune cells induced by the command of engrams might be crucial in the pathogenesis of damages in gut epithelium. The anti-proliferative (APRO) family of anti-proliferative proteins characterized by immediate early responsive gene-products that might be involved in the machinery of the carcinogenesis in IBD. Herein, it is suggested that some probiotics with specific bacteria could prevent the development and/or progression of the IBD related tumors. In addition, consideration regarding the application of studying APRO family proteins for the comprehension of IBD related tumors has been presented. It is hypothesized that overexpression of Tob1, a member of APRO family proteins, in the epithelium of IBD could suppress the function of adjacent cytotoxic immune cells possibly via the paracrine signaling.

Progeroid syndromes are characterized by clinical signs of premature ageing, which may contain several diseases such as Werner syndrome, Bloom syndrome, Rothmund-Thomson syndrome, Hutchinson-Gilford progeria syndrome, and Cockayne syndrome. These disorders may also exhibit some pathological involvements reminiscent of primary mitochondrial diseases. Emerging evidence has linked mitochondria even to physiological ageing. In addition, alterations in the maintenance pathway of mitochondria have been also deliberated as relevant in age-related diseases. In particular, mitophagy and its regulatory pathway might be key process for the homeostasis of mitochondria. Therefore, chronic DNA damage and/or the activation of poly[adenosine diphosphate (ADP)-ribose] polymerase 1 (PARP1) could be a threat to the mitochondrial alterations. The PARP1 is an enzyme responding to the DNA damage, which might be also involved in the mitophagy. Interestingly, the PARP1 has been reported to play an important role in the longevity of lifespan, which has attracted growing attention with the social development. This review may provide a rationalized overview of the involvement of mitochondrial oxidative stresses in genetically defined accelerated ageing, progeroid syndromes, physiological ageing, and/or age-related diseases for the innovative therapeutic approaches.

The human body contains trillions of microbes which generally live in symbiosis with the host. The interaction of the gut microbiome with elements of the host immune system has far-reaching effects in the development of normal gut and systemic immune responses. Disturbances to this intricate relationship may be responsible for a multitude of gastrointestinal and systemic immune mediated diseases. This review describes the development of the gut microbiome and its interaction with host immune cells in both health and disease states.

The redox status in pathogenesis is critically regulated by careful balance between the generation of reactive oxygen species (ROS) and their elimination. Increased ROS level above the cellular tolerability threshold results in apoptotic or necrotic cell death. ROS belongs to a group of highly reactive compounds that have evolved to play key roles in cellular signaling pathways. It’s widely assumed that a reasonable amount of ROS is essential for a variety of biological processes. Elevated levels of ROS are known to cause various pathologic conditions like neurological disorders, cardiovascular conditions, inflammation, autoimmunity, and cancer. ROS is well known to initiate and assist in progression of tumor by promoting proliferation and survival of cancer cells and thus facilitates pro-tumorigenic signaling in tumor microenvironment. As cancer cells become more resilient to the effects of ROS manipulating drugs, increased antioxidant capacity attenuates their susceptibility to cancer treatment. Excessive environmental stress, on the other hand, can cause cancer cells to die. This review summarizes various molecular mechanisms including the role of checkpoint inhibitors that can be harnessed to develop effective therapeutic strategies for targeting ROS related signaling in cancer.

Since the early 1970s, the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) has received over 800 investigational new drug applications (INDs) for, and pre-INDs pertaining to, research of cannabis or cannabis-derived products. The current data show that applications for research of these products submitted by both academic researchers and commercial developers focus on four major clinical areas: addiction and pain medicine (53%), neurology (19%), immunology and inflammation (14%), and psychiatry (9%). The product types studied have expanded greatly in recent years and include a wide variety of topical, inhalable, injectable, and oral products. In this article, the authors present a breakdown of cannabis and cannabis-derived applications received by the FDA over the past 50 years. The authors also provide a summary of their experience and challenges in reviewing applications for research of cannabis and cannabis-derived products, as well as recommendations for those interested in studying cannabis and cannabis-derived products in human clinical trials. This perspective article includes a discussion on important IND criteria, the pre-IND consultation program, drug master files (DMFs), and various guidance documents and resources. Lastly, the authors provide their perspective for the future of cannabis drug development.

The pathophysiological mechanisms underlying the close relationship between nonalcoholic fatty liver disease (NAFLD) and type 2 diabetes mellitus (T2DM) are multiple, complex and only partially known. The purpose of this paper was to review the current knowledge of these mechanisms in a unified manner. Subjects with NAFLD and T2DM have established insulin resistance (IR), which exacerbates the two comorbidities. IR worsens NAFLD by increasing the accumulation of free fatty acids (FFAs) in the liver. This occurs due to an increase in the influx of FFAs from peripheral adipose tissue by the activation of hormone-sensitive lipase. In addition, there is de novo increased lipogenesis, a transcription factor, the sterols regulatory element-binding transcription factor 1c (SREBP-1c), which activates the expression of several genes strongly promotes lipogenesis by the liver and facilitate storage of triglycerides. Lipids accumulation in the liver induces a chronic stress in the endoplasmic reticulum of the hepatocytes. Genome-wide association studies have identified genetic variants associated with NAFLD severity, but unrelated to IR. In particular, the alteration of patatin-like phospholipase domain-containing protein 3 contributes to the susceptibility to NAFLD. Furthermore, the lipotoxicity of ceramides and diacylglycerol, well known in T2DM, triggers a chronic inflammatory process favoring the progression from hepatic steatosis to steatohepatitis. Reactive oxygen species produced by mitochondrial dysfunction trigger both liver inflammation and beta-cells damage, promoting the progression of both NAFLD and T2DM. The close association between NAFLD and T2DM is bidirectional, as T2DM may trigger both NAFLD onset and its progression, but NAFLD itself may contribute to the development of IR and T2DM. Future studies on the mechanisms will have to deepen the knowledge of the interaction between the two pathologies and should allow the identification of new therapeutic targets for the treatment of NAFLD, currently substantially absent.

Non-alcoholic fatty liver disease (NAFLD) remains a major cause of chronic liver disease worldwide. Despite extensive studies, the heterogeneity of the risk factors as well as different disease mechanisms complicate the goals toward effective diagnosis and management. Recently, it has been shown that sex differences play a role in the prevalence and progression of NAFLD. In vitro, in vivo, and clinical studies revealed that the lower prevalence of NAFLD in premenopausal as compared to postmenopausal women and men is mainly due to the protective effects of estrogen and body fat distribution. It has been also described that males and females present differential pathogenic features in terms of biochemical profiles and histological characteristics. However, the exact molecular mechanisms for the gender differences that exist in the pathogenesis of NAFLD are still elusive. Lipogenesis, oxidative stress, and inflammation play a key role in the progression of NAFLD. For NAFLD, only a few studies characterized these mechanisms at the molecular level. Therefore, we aim to review the reported differential molecular mechanisms that trigger such different pathogenesis in both sexes. Differences in lipid metabolism, glucose homeostasis, oxidative stress, inflammation, and fibrosis were discussed based on the evidence reported in recent publications. In conclusion, with this review, we hope to provide a new perspective for the development of future practice guidelines as well as a new avenue for the management of the disease.

The renin-angiotensin system (RAS) is a key regulator of blood pressure and electrolyte homeostasis. Besides its importance as regulator of the cardiovascular function, the RAS has also been associated to the modulation of higher brain functions, including cognition, memory, depression and anxiety. For many years, angiotensin II (Ang II) has been considered the major bioactive component of the RAS. However, the existence of many other biologically active RAS components has currently been recognized, with similar, opposite, or distinct effects to those exerted by Ang II. Today, it is considered that the RAS is primarily constituted by two opposite arms. The pressor arm is composed by Ang II and the Ang II type 1 (AT1) receptor (AT1R), which mediates the vasoconstrictor, proliferative, hypertensive, oxidative and pro-inflammatory effects of the RAS. The depressor arm is mainly composed by Ang-(1-7), its Mas receptor (MasR) which mediates the depressor, vasodilatory, antiproliferative, antioxidant and anti-inflammatory effects of Ang-(1-7) and the AT2 receptor (AT2R), which opposes to the effects mediated by AT1R activation. Central Ang-(1-7) is implicated in the control of the cardiovascular function, thus participating in the regulation of blood pressure. Ang-(1-7) also exerts neuroprotective actions through MasR activation by opposing to the harmful effects of the Ang II/AT1R axis. This review is focused on the expression and regulation of the Ang-(1-7)/MasR axis in the brain, its main neuroprotective effects and the evidence regarding its involvement in the pathophysiology of several diseases at cardiovascular and neurological level.