Crosstalk between oxidative stress, autophagy and apoptosis in hemoporfin photodynamic therapy treated human umbilical vein endothelial cells

Recent Advances in Photodynamic Therapy for Vascular Abnormalities

Abstract Background: Photodynamic therapy (PDT) is a minimally invasive therapy that was gradually established as a first-line treatment for vascular abnormalities. Its action depends on the appropriate wavelength of light and photosensitizer to produce toxic oxygen species and cause cell death. Objective: Several new clinical improvements and trends in PDT have been described in recent years. The aim of this review is to provide an overview of the current data from clinical trials. Methods: In this review, we introduce and generalize the wavelength, duration, dose, strength, and photosensitizer of PDT for the treatment of vascular abnormalities, such as circumscribed choroidal hemangiomas (CCH), choroidal neovascularization (CNV) and capillary malformation (CM). Results: The systematic review findings indicate that the application of PDT is a safe effective method to treat CCH, CNV and CM. However, PDT also has early onset side effects and late onset side effects. Conclusions: Based on the discussion of the effectiveness of PDT, we conclude that PDT has great potential for clinical use, although PDT has possible side effects.

ULK1 confers neuroprotection by regulating microglial/macrophages activation after ischemic stroke

Microglial activation and autophagy play a critical role in the progression of ischemic stroke and contribute to the regulation of neuroinflammation. Unc-51-like kinase 1 (ULK1) is the primary autophagy kinase involved in autophagosome formation. However, the impact of ULK1 on neuroprotection and microglial activation after ischemic stroke remains unclear. In this study, we established a photothrombotic stroke model, and administered SBI-0206965 (SBI), an ULK1 inhibitor, and LYN-1604 hydrochloride (LYN), an ULK1 agonist, to modulate ULK1 activity in vivo. We assessed sensorimotor deficits, neuronal apoptosis, and microglial/macrophage activation to evaluate the neurofunctional outcome. Immunofluorescence results revealed ULK1 was primarily localized in the microglia of the infarct area following ischemia. Upregulating ULK1 through LYN treatment significantly reduced infarct volume, improved motor function, promoted the increase of anti-inflammatory microglia. In conclusion, ULK1 facilitated neuronal repair and promoted the formation of anti-inflammatory microglia pathway after ischemic injury.

Eugenol alleviates acrylamide-induced rat testicular toxicity by modulating AMPK/p-AKT/mTOR signaling pathway and blood-testis barrier remodeling

This study aimed to investigate the effects of eugenol treatment on reproductive parameters in acrylamide (ACR)-intoxicated rats. The study evaluated alterations in relative testes and epididymides weights, sperm quality, serum hormonal status, seminal plasma amino acids, testicular cell energy and phospholipids content, oxidative and nitrosative stress parameters, adenosine monophosphate-activated protein kinase/ phosphoinositide 3-kinase/phosphor-protein kinase B/mammalian target of rapamycin (AMPK/PI3K/p-AKT/mTOR) signaling pathway, blood-testis barrier (BTB) remodeling markers, testicular autophagy and apoptotic markers, as well as histopathological alterations in testicular tissues. The results revealed that eugenol treatment demonstrated a significant improvement in sperm quality parameters, with increased sperm cell concentration, progressive motility live sperm, and a reduction in abnormal sperm, compared to the ACR-intoxicated group. Furthermore, eugenol administration increased the levels of seminal plasma amino acids in a dose-dependent manner. In addition, eugenol treatment dose-dependently improved testicular oxidative/nitrosative stress biomarkers by increasing oxidized and reduced glutathione levels and reducing malondialdehyde and nitric oxide contents as compared to ACRgroup. However, eugenol treatment at a high dose restored the expression of AMPK, PI3K, and mTOR genes, to levels comparable to the control group, while significantly increasing p-AKT content compared to the ACRgroup. In conclusion, the obtained findings suggest the potential of eugenol as a therapeutic agent in mitigating ACR-induced detrimental effects on the male reproductive system via amelioration of ROS-mediated autophagy, apoptosis, AMPK/p-AKT/mTOR signaling pathways and BTB remodeling.

Analysis of related factors affecting hemoporfin-mediated photodynamic therapy for port-wine stain: A retrospective study

BACKGROUND

Hemoporfin-mediated photodynamic therapy (HMME-PDT) is currently considered one of the most promising therapies for port-wine stain (PWS). However, the efficacy of this is very variable and needs further studies.

METHODS

A total of 101 patients with PWS in the face, neck, or extremities who received at least 2 HMME-PDT sessions were included in the study, and correlations of efficacy with age, gender, locations, treatment sessions, and PDL treatment history were analyzed.

RESULTS

The efficacy of HMME-PDT in patients with different ages, locations, and different numbers of prior PDL treatment showed constantly significant differences after 1/2/last session (p < .05). The number of treatments was associated with efficacy, and patients who received more than two sessions had a better response than those who underwent two sessions only (p < .001). Ordinal logistic regression analysis confirmed the above-mentioned associations. Nevertheless, patients of different sex, subtype, and lesion size showed no significant differences.

CONCLUSIONS

Our studies demonstrated that HMME-PDT is effective in the treatment of PWS. The more prior PDL treatments, older age, lips involvement, PWS on limbs were adverse factors for Hemoporfin-PDT, while multiple HMME-PDT sessions can improve effective and response rate. Besides, ambient temperature and lesions temperature should be concerned, local cooling provides some relief from pain but may influence effect.

Induction of autophagy via the ROS-dependent AMPK/mTOR pathway protects deoxynivalenol exposure grass carp hepatocytes damage

Deoxynivalenol (DON) is one of the most frequently found mycotoxin sources in feed and raw food products, endangering human and animal health. The mechanism of grass carp (Ctenopharyngodon idellus) liver cell (L8824) toxicity induced by DON is still unknown. The DON was administered to the L8824 cells in concentrations of 150, 200, and 250 ng/mL for 24 h. The results of this study suggested that DON could enable L8824 cells to significantly increase the levels of autophagy. Concurrently, DON could trigger autophagy through the AMPK-mTOR pathway, which upregulated the expression of p-AMPK and p-ULK1 while downregulating the expression of p-mTOR. In the meantime, DON treatment could alter the levels of expression of the related proteins in autophagy. Additionally, DON treatment dramatically reduced the activity of the antioxidant enzymes as well as increased the levels of oxidase, which increased the production of ROS in L8824 cells. This indicates that DON could induce oxidative stress. Furthermore, we discovered that DON exposure caused apoptosis, which is characterized by elevated levels of BAX, Caspase 9, Caspase 3, and decreased Bcl-2 levels. Next, it was investigated how oxidative stress affected DON-induced autophagy. The research revealed that the oxidative stress inhibitor (NAC) attenuated DON-induced autophagy. Additionally, the study also investigated how autophagy worked under the L8824 cells induced by DON. The ROS production, however, was enhanced by the addition of the autophagy inhibitor (3-MA). Additionally, co-treatment with the apoptosis inhibitor Z-VAD-FMK had no influence on autophagy. The combined findings showed that induction of autophagy via the ROS-dependent AMPK-mTOR pathway protects DON-induced L8824 cells from damage.

Hematoporphyrin Monomethyl Ether Photodynamic Therapy of Port Wine Stain: Narrative Review

Port wine stain (PWS) is a congenital and progressive capillary malformation characterized by structural abnormalities of intradermal capillaries and postcapillary venules. The visible manifestation is often considered a disfigurement and the accompanying social stigma often causes serious emotional and physical impact. Hematoporphyrin monomethyl ether (HMME) is a newly authorized photosensitizer for treating PWS in China. Hematoporphyrin monomethyl ether photodynamic therapy (HMME-PDT) has successfully treated thousands of Chinese patients with PWS since 2017, and HMME-PDT may be one of the most promising strategies for the treatment of PWS. However, there are few reviews published about the clinical use of HMME-PDT. So in this article, we want to briefly review the mechanism, efficacy evaluation, effectiveness and influencing factors, and the common postoperative reactions and treatment suggestions of HMME-PDT in the treatment of PWS.

Hematoporphyrin monomethyl ether mediated photodynamic therapy inhibits oral squamous cell carcinoma by regulating the P53-miR-21-PDCD4 axis via singlet oxygen

The objective of this study was to determine the mechanism and effect of hematoporphyrin monomethyl ether mediated photodynamic therapy (HMME-PDT) on oral squamous cell carcinoma (OSCC). Human OSCC CAL-27 cells were randomly divided into four groups: control group, HMME group, laser group, and HMME-PDT group. Cell viability was detected by the CCK-8 method. Cell cycle distribution was evaluated by flow cytometry. GEO database was used to screen differentially expressed microRNAs (DEMs), and TCGA database was performed to verify DEM expression in OSCC and normal tissues. The effects of HMME-PDT on DEM expression were assayed by real-time PCR, and the expressions of miRNAs target genes were measured by western blot. Fluorescence probes were used to determine the production of singlet oxygen (¹O₂). Compared with the other three groups, HMME-PDT dramatically inhibited CAL-27 cell proliferation and induced G0/G1 cycle arrest. The expressions of miR-21 and miR-155 were significantly upregulated in OSCC. HMME-PDT downregulated the expression of miR-21 but had no obvious effect on miR-155. HMME-PDT remarkably upregulated the levels of P53 and miR-21 target proteins, such as PDCD4, RECK, and SPRY2. ¹O₂ was generated during HMME-PDT, and inhibition of ¹O₂ production could reverse the regulation of HMME-PDT on P53, miR-21, and its target proteins, thus restoring cell viability. HMME-PDT can significantly inhibit the growth of OSCC cells, and the mechanism of this effect is related to the regulation of the P53-miR-21-PDCD4 axis via ¹O₂ induced by HMME-PDT.

Hemoporfin-Mediated Photodynamic Therapy for Port-Wine Stains: Multivariate Analysis of Clinical Efficacy and Optical Coherence Tomography Appearance

Background

Hemoporfin-mediated photodynamic therapy (HMME-PDT) is reported to be effective and safe for port-wine stains (PWS). However, its efficacy is influenced by several factors and there is no appropriate method to evaluate efficacy so far. Therefore, this study explored the clinical efficacy of HMME-PDT for PWS on the face and neck and the feasibility of evaluating treatment potency with optical coherence tomography (OCT).

Methods

A total of 211 PWS patients subjected to HMME-PDT were recruited for study and correlations of therapeutic effect with treatment sessions, age, gender, lesion distribution and treatment history analyzed. OCT was utilized for quantitative analysis of PWS lesions of 36 selected patients before and after HMME-PDT.

Results

The efficacy of two consecutive treatments was significantly higher than that of single treatment (P < 0.05). In multivariate analysis, after the first treatment, age, lesion distribution and treatment history were correlative factors affecting treatment efficacy (P < 0.05). The improvement effect on central facial lesions was lower than that on lateral facial lesions (P < 0.05). The efficacy of therapy on the group with no history of pulsed dye laser (PDL) treatment was greater than that on effective and ineffective treatment groups (P < 0.05). After the second session, age remained the only factor correlated with efficacy (P < 0.05). Dilated vessel diameter and depth before and after treatment were significantly different (P < 0.05). With increasing treatment times, age was the most significant factor influencing treatment efficacy.

Conclusions

Our collective findings indicate that HMME-PDT therapy is effective and safe for PWS and support the utility of OCT in objective assessment of the efficacy of HMME-PDT.

Induction of autophagy via the ROS-dependent AMPK-mTOR pathway protects copper-induced spermatogenesis disorder

Copper (Cu) is a necessary micronutrient at lower concentration, while excessive Cu exposure or Cu homeostasis disorders can lead to toxicity. The mechanism of male reproductive toxicity induced by Cu is still unknown. This study aims to investigate whether autophagy plays an important role in copper-induced spermatogenesis disorder in vivo and vitro. The present study showed that copper sulfate (CuSO₄) might significantly promote autophagy level in the testis and mouse-derived spermatogonia cell line GC-1 spg cells. Concurrently, CuSO₄ could induce autophagy via AMPK-mTOR pathway that downregulated p-mTOR/mTOR and subsequently upregulated p-AMPKα/AMPKα as well as p-ULK1/ULK1. In the meanwhile, CuSO₄ treatment could also increase expression levels of the autophagy-related proteins. Then, the role of oxidative stress in CuSO₄-induced autophagy was investigated. The findings demonstrated that oxidative stress inhibitor (NAC) attenuated CuSO₄-induced autophagy in vivo and vitro, reversing the activation for AMPK-mTOR pathway. Additionally, the study also investigated how autophagy worked under the spermatogenesis disorder induced by CuSO₄. Inhibition of autophagy could decrease cell viability, and enhance the ROS accumulation and apoptosis in the GC-1 cells, meanwhile, the spermatogenesis disorder, oxidative stress and histopathological changes were increased in the testis. Furthermore, co-treatment with the apoptosis inhibitor (Z-VAD-FMK) could decrease the spermatogenesis disorder but not influence autophagy. Besides, the crosslink between autophagy and ferroptosis were also measured, the data showed that inhibition of autophagy could suppress CuSO₄-induced ferroptosis in in vivo and vitro. Altogether, abovementioned results indicated that CuSO₄ induced autophagy via oxidative stress-dependent AMPK-mTOR pathway in the GC-1 cells and testis, and autophagy activation possibly led to the generation of protection mechanism through oxidative damage and apoptosis inhibition, however, autophagy also aggravate CuSO₄ toxicology through promoting ferroptosis. Overall, autophagy plays a positive role for attenuating CuSO₄-induced testicular damage and spermatogenesis disorder. Our study provides a possible targeted therapy for Cu overload-induced reproduction toxicology.

Integrated Transcriptome Analysis Reveals the Impact of Photodynamic Therapy on Cerebrovascular Endothelial Cells

Blood vessels in the brain tissue form a compact vessel structure and play an essential role in maintaining the homeostasis of the neurovascular system. The low dosage of photodynamic intervention (PDT) significantly affects the expression of cellular biomarkers. To understand the impact of photodynamic interventions on cerebrovascular endothelial cells, we evaluated the dosage-dependent impact of porfimer sodium-mediated PDT on B.END3 cells using flow cytometer, comet assay, RNA sequencing, and bioinformatics analysis. To examine whether PDT can induce disorder of intracellular organelles, we did not observe any significance damage of DNA and cellular skeleton. Moreover, expression levels of cellular transporters-related genes were significantly altered, implying the drawbacks of PDT on cerebrovascular functions. To address the potential molecular mechanisms of these phenotypes, RNA sequencing and bioinformatics analysis were employed to identify critical genes and pathways among these processes. The gene ontology (GO) analysis and protein-protein interaction (PPI) identified 15 hub genes, highly associated with cellular mitosis process (CDK1, CDC20, MCM5, MCM7, MCM4, CCNA2, AURKB, KIF2C, ESPL1, BUB1B) and DNA replication (POLE2, PLOE, CDC45, CDC6). Gene set enrichment analysis (GSEA) reveals that TNF-α/NF-κB and KRAS pathways may play a critical role in regulating expression levels of transporter-related genes. To further perform qRT-PCR assays, we find that TNF-α/NF-κB and KRAS pathways were substantially up-regulated, consistent with GSEA analysis. The current findings suggested that a low dosage of PDT intervention may be detrimental to the homeostasis of blood-brain barrier (BBB) by inducing the inflammatory response and affecting the expression of surface biomarkers.