Neutralization Versus Reinforcement of Proinflammatory Cytokines to Arrest Autoimmunity in Type 1 Diabetes

Gut Microbiota is an Impact Factor based on the Brain-Gut Axis to Alzheimer's Disease: A Systematic Review

Alzheimer's disease (AD) is a degenerative disease of the central nervous system. The pathogenesis of AD has been explained using cholinergic, β-amyloid toxicity, tau protein hyperphosphorylation, and oxidative stress theories. However, an effective treatment method has not been developed. In recent years, with the discovery of the brain-gut axis (BGA) and breakthroughs made in Parkinson's disease, depression, autism, and other diseases, BGA has become a hotspot in AD research. Several studies have shown that gut microbiota can affect the brain and behavior of patients with AD, especially their cognitive function. Animal models, fecal microbiota transplantation, and probiotic intervention also provide evidence regarding the correlation between gut microbiota and AD. This article discusses the relationship and related mechanisms between gut microbiota and AD based on BGA to provide possible strategies for preventing or alleviating AD symptoms by regulating gut microbiota.

New insights into the characteristics of DRAK2 and its role in apoptosis: From molecular mechanisms to clinically applied potential

As a member of the death-associated protein kinase (DAPK) family, DAP kinase-associated apoptosis-inducing kinase 2 (DRAK2) performs apoptosis-related functions. Compelling evidence suggests that DRAK2 is involved in regulating the activation of T lymphocytes as well as pancreatic β-cell apoptosis in type I diabetes. In addition, DRAK2 has been shown to be involved in the development of related tumor and non-tumor diseases through a variety of mechanisms, including exacerbation of alcoholic fatty liver disease (NAFLD) through SRSF6-associated RNA selective splicing mechanism, regulation of chronic lymphocytic leukemia and acute myeloid leukemia, and progression of colorectal cancer. This review focuses on the structure, function, and upstream pathways of DRAK2 and discusses the potential and challenges associated with the clinical application of DRAK2-based small-molecule inhibitors, with the aim of advancing DRAK2 research.

Drug Delivery System in the Treatment of Diabetes Mellitus

Diabetes mellitus has been described as a chronic endocrine and metabolic disease, which is characterized by hyperglycemia and the coexistence of multiple complications. At present, the drugs widely applied in clinical treatment of diabetes mellitus mainly include insulin, insulin analogs, non-insulin oral hypoglycemic drugs and genetic drugs. Nevertheless, there is still no complete therapy strategy for diabetes mellitus management by far due to the intrinsic deficiencies of drugs and limits in administration routes such as the adverse reactions caused by long-term subcutaneous injection and various challenges in oral administration, such as enzymatic degradation, chemical instability and poor gastrointestinal absorption. Therefore, it is remarkably necessary to develop appropriate delivery systems and explore complete therapy strategies according to the characters of drugs and diabetes mellitus. Delivery systems have been found to be potentially beneficial in many aspects for effective diabetes treatment, such as improving the stability of drugs, overcoming different biological barriers in vivo to increase bioavailability, and acting as an intelligent automatized system to mimic endogenous insulin delivery and reduce the risk of hypoglycemia. This review aims to provide an overview related with the research advances, development trend of drug therapy and the application of delivery systems in the treatment diabetes mellitus, which could offer reference for the application of various drugs in the field of diabetes mellitus treatment.

Chloroquine as a promising adjuvant therapy for type 1 Diabetes Mellitus

Chloroquine (CQ) and hydroxychloroquine, are promising anti-inflammatory drugs for the treatment of Diabetes mellitus (DM) to prevent associated complications. Therefore, this study evaluated the anti-inflammatory effects of CQ-free and CQ-incorporated polylactic acid nanoparticles (NPs) in the peripheral blood mononuclear cells (PBMCs) of patients with type 1 Diabetes mellitus (T1DM). In total, 25 normoglycemic individuals and 25 patients with T1DM aged 10-16 years were selected and glycemic controls evaluated. After cell viability assessed by MTT assay, T1DM PBMCs were subjected to a CQ concentration of 10 µM in three different conditions: not treated (NT), treated with CQ, and treated with CQ NPs. The cells were incubated for 48 h, and the mRNA expressions of cytokines IL1B, IFNG, TNFA, IL12, and IL10 were determined by relative quantification through real-time PCR at 24 h intervals. IL1B expression decreased in CQ and CQ NP-treated cells after 48 h (p < 0.001) and 24 h (p < 0.05) of treatment, respectively. IFNG and IL12 expressions significantly decreased (p < 0.001) in cells treated with CQ and CQ NPs at 24 and 48 h compared to NT. TNFA and IL10 expressions significantly decreased after 48 h (p < 0.001) and 24 h (p < 0.002), respectively, by both CQ and CQ NPs treatment. Despite being a preliminary in vitro study, CQ has anti-inflammatory activity in the primary cells of T1DM patients and could represent an alternative and adjuvant anti-inflammatory therapy to prevent diabetes complications.

Neuroligin-2-derived peptide-covered polyamidoamine-based (PAMAM) dendrimers enhance pancreatic β-cells' proliferation and functions

Pancreatic β-cell membranes and presynaptic areas of neurons contain analogous protein complexes that control the secretion of bioactive molecules. These complexes include the neuroligins (NLs) and their binding partners, the neurexins (NXs). It has been recently reported that both insulin secretion and the proliferation rates of β-cells increase when cells are co-cultured with full-length NL-2 clusters. The pharmacological use of full-length protein is always problematic due to its unfavorable pharmacokinetic properties. Thus, NL-2-derived short peptide was conjugated to the surface of polyamidoamine-based (PAMAM) dendrimers. This nanoscale composite improved β-cell functions in terms of the rate of proliferation, glucose-stimulated insulin secretion (GSIS), and functional maturation. This functionalized dendrimer also protected β-cells under cellular stress conditions. In addition, various novel peptidomimetic scaffolds of NL-2-derived peptide were designed, synthesized, and conjugated to the surface of PAMAM in order to increase the biostability of the conjugates. However, after being covered by peptidomimetics, PAMAM dendrimers were inactive. Thus, the original peptide-based PAMAM dendrimer is a leading compound for continued research that might provide a unique starting point for designing an innovative class of antidiabetic therapeutics that possess a unique mode of action.