Neuropathological Effects of Chemotherapeutic Drugs

Bioactive mesoporous silica materials-assisted cancer immunotherapy

Immunotherapy is initially envisioned as a powerful approach to train immune cells within the tumor microenvironment (TME) and lymphoid tissues to elicit strong anti-tumor responses. However, clinical cancer immunotherapy still faces challenges, such as limited immunogenicity and insufficient immune response. Leveraging the advantages of mesoporous silica (MS) materials in controllable drug and immunomodulator release, recent efforts have focused on engineering MS with intrinsic immunoregulatory functions to promote robust, systemic, and safe anti-tumor responses. This review discusses advances in bioactive MS materials that address the challenges of immunotherapy. Beyond their role in on-demand delivery and drug release in response to the TME, we highlight the intrinsic functions of bioactive MS in orchestrating localized immune responses by inducing immunogenic cell death in tumor cells, modulating immune cell activity, and facilitating tumor-immune cell interactions. Additionally, we emphasize the advantages of bioactive MS in recruiting and activating immune cells within lymphoid tissues to initiate anti-tumor vaccination. The review also covers the challenges of MS-assisted immunotherapy, potential solutions, and future outlooks. With a deeper understanding of material-bio interactions, the rational design of MS with sophisticated bioactivities and controllable responsiveness holds great promise for enhancing the outcomes of personalized immunotherapy.

Nanotechnology Approaches for Prevention and Treatment of Chemotherapy-Induced Neurotoxicity, Neuropathy, and Cardiomyopathy in Breast and Ovarian Cancer Survivors

Nanotechnology has emerged as a promising approach for the targeted delivery of therapeutic agents while improving their efficacy and safety. As a result, nanomaterial development for the selective targeting of cancers, with the possibility of treating off-target, detrimental sequelae caused by chemotherapy, is an important area of research. Breast and ovarian cancer are among the most common cancer types in women, and chemotherapy is an essential treatment modality for these diseases. However, chemotherapy-induced neurotoxicity, neuropathy, and cardiomyopathy are common side effects that can affect breast and ovarian cancer survivors quality of life. Therefore, there is an urgent need to develop effective prevention and treatment strategies for these adverse effects. Nanoparticles (NPs) have extreme potential for enhancing therapeutic efficacy but require continued research to elucidate beneficial interventions for women cancer survivors. In short, nanotechnology-based approaches have emerged as promising strategies for preventing and treating chemotherapy-induced neurotoxicity, neuropathy, and cardiomyopathy. NP-based drug delivery systems and therapeutics have shown potential for reducing the side effects of chemotherapeutics while improving drug efficacy. In this article, the latest nanotechnology approaches and their potential for the prevention and treatment of chemotherapy-induced neurotoxicity, neuropathy, and cardiomyopathy in breast and ovarian cancer survivors are discussed.

Exercise alleviates cisplatin-induced toxicity in the hippocampus of mice by inhibiting neuroinflammation and improving synaptic plasticity

Chemotherapy-induced cognitive impairment is recognized as the most typical symptom in patients with cancer that occurs during and following the chemotherapy treatment. Recently many studies focused on pharmaceutical strategies to control the chemotherapy side effects, however it is far from satisfactory. There may be a need for more effective treatment options. The aim of this study was to investigate the protective effect of exercise on cisplatin-induced neurotoxicity. Eightweek- old C57BL6 mice were separated into three group: normal control (CON, n = 8); cisplatin injection control (Cis-CON, n = 8); cisplatin with aerobic exercise (Cis-EXE, n = 8). Cisplatin was administered intraperitoneally at a dose of 3.5 mg/kg/day. The Cis-EXE group exercise by treadmill running (14-16 m/min for 45 min daily, 3 times/ week) for 12 weeks. Compared to the CON group, the cisplatin injection groups showed significant decrease in body weight and food intake, indicating successful induction of cisplatin toxicity. The Cis-CON group showed significantly increased levels of pro-inflammatory cytokines including IL-6, IL-1β, and TNF-α in the hippocampus, while the Cis-EXE group was significantly decreased in the expression of IL- 6, IL-1β, and TNF-α. In addition, compared to the CON group, the levels of synapserelated proteins including synapsin-1 and -2 were significantly reduced in the Cis- CON group, and there was a significant difference between the Cis-CON and Cis-EXE groups. Antioxidant and apoptosis factors were significantly improved in the Cis-EXE group compared with the Cis-CON group. This study suggest that exercise could be meaningful approach to prevent or improve cisplatin-induced cognitive impairment.

Frontal and anterior temporal hypometabolism post chemoradiation in head and neck cancer: A real-world PET study

BACKGROUND AND PURPOSE

Adverse neurological effects after cancer therapy are common, but biomarkers to diagnose, monitor, or risk stratify patients are still not validated or used clinically. An accessible imaging method, such as fluorodeoxyglucose positron emission tomography (FDG PET) of the brain, could meet this gap and serve as a biomarker for functional brain changes. We utilized FDG PET to evaluate which brain regions are most susceptible to altered glucose metabolism after chemoradiation in patients with head and neck cancer (HNCa).

METHODS

Real-world FDG PET images were acquired as standard of care before and after chemoradiation for HNCa in 68 patients. Linear mixed-effects voxelwise models assessed changes after chemoradiation in cerebral glucose metabolism quantified with standardized uptake value ratio (SUVR), covarying for follow-up time and patient demographics.

RESULTS

Voxelwise analysis revealed two large clusters of decreased glucose metabolism in the medial frontal and polar temporal cortices following chemoradiation, with decreases of approximately 5% SUVR after therapy.

CONCLUSIONS

These findings provide evidence that standard chemoradiation for HNCa can lead to decreased neuronal glucose metabolism, contributing to literature emphasizing the vulnerability of the frontal and anterior temporal lobes, especially in HNCa, where these areas may be particularly vulnerable to indirect radiation-induced injury. FDG PET shows promise as a sensitive biomarker for assessing these changes.

Good's Buffer Based Highly Biocompatible Ionic Liquid Modified PLGA Nanoparticles for the Selective Uptake in Cancer Cells

Achieving safe and efficacious drug delivery is still an outstanding challenge. Herein we have synthesized 20 biocompatible Good's buffer-based ionic liquids (GBILs) with a range of attractive properties for drug delivery applications. The synthesized GBILs were used to coat the surface of poly(lactic-co-glycolic acid) (PLGA) by nanoprecipitation-sonication and characterized by dynamic light scattering (DLS) and proton nuclear magnetic resonance (1H NMR) spectroscopy. The GBIL-modified PLGA NPs were then tested for their interaction with bio-interfaces such as serum proteins (using SDS-PAGE and LCMS) and red blood cells (RBCs) isolated from human and BALB/c mouse blood. In this report, we show that surface modification of PLGA with certain GBILs led to modulation of preferential cellular uptake towards human triple-negative breast cancer cells (MDA-MB-231) compared to human normal healthy breast cells (MCF-10A). For example, cholinium N,N-bis(2-hydroxyethyl)-2-aminoethane sulfonate (CBES) coated PLGA NPs were found to be selective for MDA-MB-231 cells (60.7 ± 0.7 %) as compared to MCF-10A cells (27.3 ± 0.7 %). In this way, GBIL-coatings have increased PLGA NP uptake in the cancer cells by 2-fold while decreasing the uptake towards normal healthy breast cells. Therefore, GBIL-modified nanoparticles could be a versatile platform for targeted drug delivery and gene therapy applications, as their surface properties can be tailored to interact with specific cell receptors and enhance cellular uptake. This formulation technique has shown promising results for targeting specific cells, which could be explored further for other cell types to achieve site-specific and efficient delivery of therapeutic agents.

Marine Sulfated Polysaccharide PMGS Synergizes with Paclitaxel in Inhibiting Cervical Cancer In Vitro

The incidence and mortality of cervical cancer in female malignancies are second only to breast cancer, which brings a heavy health and economic toll worldwide. Paclitaxel (PTX)-based regimens are the first-class choice; however, severe side effects, poor therapeutic effects, and difficulty in effectively preventing tumor recurrence or metastasis are unavoidable. Therefore, it is necessary to explore effective therapeutic interventions for cervical cancer. Our previous studies have shown that PMGS, a marine sulfated polysaccharide, exhibits promising anti-human papillomavirus (anti-HPV) effects through multiple molecular mechanisms. In this article, a continuous study identified that PMGS, as a novel sensitizer, combined with PTX exerted synergistic anti-tumor effects on cervical cancer associated with HPV in vitro. Both PMGS and PTX inhibited the proliferation of cervical cancer cells, and the combination of PMGS with PTX displayed significant synergistic effects on Hela cells. Mechanistically, PMGS synergizes with PTX by enhancing cytotoxicity, inducing cell apoptosis and inhibiting cell migration in Hela cells. Collectively, the combination of PTX and PMGS potentially provides a novel therapeutic strategy for cervical cancer.

Cdk5 mediates rotational force-induced brain injury

Millions of traumatic brain injuries (TBIs) occur annually. TBIs commonly result from falls, traffic accidents, and sports-related injuries, all of which involve rotational acceleration/deceleration of the brain. During these injuries, the brain endures a multitude of primary insults including compression of brain tissue, damaged vasculature, and diffuse axonal injury. All of these deleterious effects can contribute to secondary brain ischemia, cellular death, and neuroinflammation that progress for weeks, months, and lifetime after injury. While the linear effects of head trauma have been extensively modeled, less is known about how rotational injuries mediate neuronal damage following injury. Here, we developed a new model of repetitive rotational head trauma in rodents and demonstrated acute and prolonged pathological, behavioral, and electrophysiological effects of rotational TBI (rTBI). We identify aberrant Cyclin-dependent kinase 5 (Cdk5) activity as a principal mediator of rTBI. We utilized Cdk5-enriched phosphoproteomics to uncover potential downstream mediators of rTBI and show pharmacological inhibition of Cdk5 reduces the cognitive and pathological consequences of injury. These studies contribute meaningfully to our understanding of the mechanisms of rTBI and how they may be effectively treated.

Targeting long-term depression of excitatory synaptic transmission for the treatment of neuropathic pain

Injury or disease in the somatosensory nervous system may cause broad molecular changes and lead to neuropathic pain. Excitatory synaptic transmission in somatosensory pathways conveys the somatosensory information from the peripheral to the central nervous system. Long-term effects of excitatory synaptic transmission on the pain pathway contribute to neuropathic pain hypersensitivity. Synaptic strength is dynamically regulated and undergoes bidirectional changes, manifested by two primary forms of synaptic plasticity, long-term potentiation and long-term depression (LTD), which are mediated by insertion and endocytosis of amino-3-hydroxy-5-methyl-4-isoxazolepropionic acid receptors (AMPARs), respectively. Molecular mechanisms of LTP have been extensively studied; on the other hand, the role of AMPAR endocytosis in the pain-related synaptic enhancement is less well known. Recent research in the anterior cingulate cortex reveals that loss of LTD contributes to the maintenance of neuropathic pain, which provides the novel perspective of the mechanism of LTD also being critical for maintaining neuropathic pain. More importantly, exploring the molecular mechanism of LTD may help with the development of novel analgesic strategies to manage neuropathic pain.

Effect of Pd2Spermine on Mice Brain-Liver Axis Metabolism Assessed by NMR Metabolomics

Cisplatin (cDDP)-based chemotherapy is often limited by severe deleterious effects (nephrotoxicity, hepatotoxicity and neurotoxicity). The polynuclear palladium(II) compound Pd2Spermine (Pd2Spm) has emerged as a potential alternative drug, with favorable pharmacokinetic/pharmacodynamic properties. This paper reports on a Nuclear Magnetic Resonance metabolomics study to (i) characterize the response of mice brain and liver to Pd2Spm, compared to cDDP, and (ii) correlate brain-liver metabolic variations. Multivariate and correlation analysis of the spectra of polar and lipophilic brain and liver extracts from an MDA-MB-231 cell-derived mouse model revealed a stronger impact of Pd2Spm on brain metabolome, compared to cDDP. This was expressed by changes in amino acids, inosine, cholate, pantothenate, fatty acids, phospholipids, among other compounds. Liver was less affected than brain, with cDDP inducing more metabolite changes. Results suggest that neither drug induces neuronal damage or inflammation, and that Pd2Spm seems to lead to enhanced brain anti-inflammatory and antioxidant mechanisms, regulation of brain bioactive metabolite pools and adaptability of cell membrane characteristics. The cDDP appears to induce higher extension of liver damage and an enhanced need for liver regeneration processes. This work demonstrates the usefulness of untargeted metabolomics in evaluating drug impact on multiple organs, while confirming Pd2Spm as a promising replacement of cDDP.

Systemic Administration of a Brain Permeable Cdk5 Inhibitor Alters Neurobehavior

Cyclin-dependent kinase 5 (Cdk5) is a crucial regulator of neuronal signal transduction. Cdk5 activity is implicated in various neuropsychiatric and neurodegenerative conditions such as stress, anxiety, depression, addiction, Alzheimer's disease, and Parkinson's disease. While constitutive Cdk5 knockout is perinatally lethal, conditional knockout mice display resilience to stress-induction, enhanced cognition, neuroprotection from stroke and head trauma, and ameliorated neurodegeneration. Thus, Cdk5 represents a prime target for treatment in a spectrum of neurological and neuropsychiatric conditions. While intracranial infusions or treatment of acutely dissected brain tissue with compounds that inhibit Cdk5 have allowed the study of kinase function and corroborated conditional knockout findings, potent brain-penetrant systemically deliverable Cdk5 inhibitors are extremely limited, and no Cdk5 inhibitor has been approved to treat any neuropsychiatric or degenerative diseases to date. Here, we screened aminopyrazole-based analogs as potential Cdk5 inhibitors and identified a novel analog, 25-106, as a uniquely brain-penetrant anti-Cdk5 drug. We characterize the pharmacokinetic and dynamic responses of 25-106 in mice and functionally validate the effects of Cdk5 inhibition on open field and tail-suspension behaviors. Altogether, 25-106 represents a promising preclinical Cdk5 inhibitor that can be systemically administered with significant potential as a neurological/neuropsychiatric therapeutic.