Regulation of neuronal repair and regeneration through inhibition of oligodendrocyte myelin glycoprotein (OMgp)

Effect of Myelin Debris on the Phenotypic Transformation of Astrocytes after Spinal Cord Injury in Rats

After spinal cord injury (SCI), the accumulation of myelin debris can serve as proinflammatory agents, hindering axon regrowth and exacerbating damage. While astrocytes have been implicated in the phagocytosis of myelin debris, the impact of this process on the phenotypic transformation of astrocytes and their characteristics following SCI in rats is not well understood. Here, we demonstrated that the conditioned medium of myelin debris can trigger apoptosis in rat primary astrocytes in vitro. Using a compressional SCI model in rats, we observed that astrocytes can engulf myelin debris through ATP-binding cassette transporter sub-family A member 1 (ABCA1), and these engulfed cells tend to transform into A1 astrocytes, as indicated by C3 expression. At 4 days post-injury (dpi), astrocytes rapidly transitioned into A1 astrocytes and maintained this phenotype from 4 to 28 dpi, while A2 astrocytes, characterized by S100, were only detected at 14 and 28 dpi. Reactive astrocytes, identified by Nestin, emerged at 4 and 7 dpi, whereas scar-forming astrocytes, marked by N-cadherin, were evident at 14 and 28 dpi. This study illustrates the distribution patterns of astrocyte subtypes and the potential interplay between astrocytes and myelin debris after SCI in rats. We emphasize that myelin debris can induce astrocyte apoptosis in vitro and promote the transformation of astrocytes into A1 astrocytes in vivo. These two classification methods are not mutually exclusive, but rather complementary.

Identification and targeting of metastatic biomarkers for hepatocellular carcinoma therapeutics using small molecules library of curcumin analogues

The understanding of the molecular basis of complex diseases like hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC) needs large datasets of multiple genes and proteins involved in different phenomenon of its development. This study focuses on the molecular basis of HCC and the development of therapeutic strategies. We analyzed a dataset of 5475 genes (Homo sapiens) involved in HCC hallmarks, involving comprehensive data on multiple genes and frequently mutated genes. As HCC is characterized by metastasis, angiogenesis, and oxidative stress, exploration of genes associated with them has been targeted. Through gene ontology, functional characterization, and pathway enrichment analysis, we identified target proteins such as Lysyl oxidase, Survivin, Cofilin, and Cathepsin B. A library of curcumin analogs was used to target these proteins. Tetrahrydrocurcumin showed promising binding affinities for all four proteins, suggesting its potential as an inhibitor against these proteins for HCC therapy.

Inhibition of LINGO1 as a therapeutic target to promote axonal regeneration and repair for neurological disorders

The Central nervous system is blemished by the high incidence of neurodegenerative diseases, which is known to cause disfiguration of regeneration and repair of axonal growth. Recognition of proteins that act as agents of repressing such repair has become the norm to tackle these abominable conditions. One such protein is LINGO1 that act as a repressor for axonal growth. Being one of the critical causative agents of several neurodegenerative pathways. Consequently, its inhibition may tend to help the outcomes of regenerative technologies aiming to outweigh the symptoms of neurodegenerative diseases. For this objective, LINGO1 was targeted with pharmacophore analogs of Fasudil and Ibuprofen, as they are known to have a deterring effect against the concerned protein. 1-Tosyl-2-(chloromethyl)-2,3-dihydro-1H-indole was found showing the least binding score of - 6.8, with verified ADMET admissibility. The pharmacological activity of the said ligand was estimated with QSAR tool showing favourable electro-steric model. All this was finally collaborated with a molecular dynamics simulation study which exhibited a stable structure compatibility of the ligand with LINGO-1. Further, the efficacy of the compound can be evaluated through experimental studies for inferring its future potential and utilization as an effective means to tackle neuronal regeneration and remyleination.

Supplementary Information

The online version contains supplementary material available at 10.1007/s13205-023-03789-4.

The Promising Role of a Zebrafish Model Employed in Neural Regeneration Following a Spinal Cord Injury

Spinal cord injury (SCI) is a devastating event that results in a wide range of physical impairments and disabilities. Despite the advances in our understanding of the biological response to injured tissue, no effective treatments are available for SCIs at present. Some studies have addressed this issue by exploring the potential of cell transplantation therapy. However, because of the abnormal microenvironment in injured tissue, the survival rate of transplanted cells is often low, thus limiting the efficacy of such treatments. Many studies have attempted to overcome these obstacles using a variety of cell types and animal models. Recent studies have shown the utility of zebrafish as a model of neural regeneration following SCIs, including the proliferation and migration of various cell types and the involvement of various progenitor cells. In this review, we discuss some of the current challenges in SCI research, including the accurate identification of cell types involved in neural regeneration, the adverse microenvironment created by SCIs, attenuated immune responses that inhibit nerve regeneration, and glial scar formation that prevents axonal regeneration. More in-depth studies are needed to fully understand the neural regeneration mechanisms, proteins, and signaling pathways involved in the complex interactions between the SCI microenvironment and transplanted cells in non-mammals, particularly in the zebrafish model, which could, in turn, lead to new therapeutic approaches to treat SCIs in humans and other mammals.

Network pharmacological evaluation of strigolactones efficacy as potential inhibitors against therapeutic targets of hepatocellular carcinoma

PURPOSE

Hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC) is the uncontrolled growth of hepatocytes which results in nearly 5 million deaths worldwide. Specific strategies have been developed to treat HCC, including surgery, chemotherapy and radiotherapy. But, the effective disease dealing requires synergistic collaboration with other approaches, which often results in moderate to severe side effects during and after the treatment period. Therefore, the focus is now shifting to explore and retrieve those plant-based products that could be utilized to treat HCC with maximum efficacy without causing any side effects. Strigolactones (SL) are compounds of plant origin derived from Striga lutea responsible for controlling the branching pattern of stem and have reported anti-cancerous activity by promoting apoptosis at micromolar concentrations. However, little work has been done concerning determining the pharmacogenomic effect of strigolactones on HCC.

METHODS

Current work focuses on comparing therapeutic efficiencies of SL analogs against core targets of HCC using network pharmacology approach, pharmacokinetics analysis, gene ontogeny, functional enrichment analysis, molecular docking and Molecular Dynamics simulation.

RESULTS

Drug-target prediction and functional enrichment analysis showed that HDAC1 and HDAC2 are the core proteins involved in hepatocellular carcinoma that strigolactone analogs can target. Consequently, results from molecular docking and MD simulation analyses report that among all the SL analogs strigol, epistrigol and nijmegen1 can turn out to be most effective in downregulating the expression of HDAC1, HDAC2 and CYP19A.

CONCLUSION

Strigol, epistrigol and nijmegen1 could be used as potential inhibitors against HCC and can be further validated through in vitro/in vivo studies.