UCHL1 and Proteasome in Blood Serum in Relation to Dietary Habits, Concentration of Selected Antioxidant Minerals and Total Antioxidant Status among Patients with Alzheimer's Disease

Analysis of complement system and its related factors in Alzheimer's disease

Alzheimer's disease (AD) is a primary cause of dementia. The complement system is closely related to AD pathology and may be a potential target for the prevention and treatment of AD. In our study, we conducted a bioinformatics analysis to analyze the role of the complement system and its related factors in AD using Gene Expression Omnibus (GEO) data. We also conducted a functional analysis. Our study verified that 23 genes were closely related to differentially expressed complement system genes in diseases after intersecting the disease-related complement system module genes and differentially expressed genes. The STRING database was used to predict the interactions between the modular gene proteins of the differential complement system. A total of 21 gene proteins and 44 interaction pairs showed close interactions. We screened key genes and created a diagnostic model. The predictive effect of the model was constructed using GSE5281 and our study indicated that the predictive effect of the model was good. Our study also showed enriched negative regulation of Notch signaling, cytokine secretion involved in the immune response pathway, and cytokine secretion involved in immune response hormone-mediated apoptotic signaling pathway. We hope that our study provides a promising target to prevent and delay the onset, diagnosis, and treatment of AD.

The Levels of Leptin, Cystatin C, Neuropilin-1 and Tau Protein in Relation to Dietary Habits in Patients with Alzheimer's Disease

Alzheimer's disease (AD) is the most common form of dementia in older people. Its prevalence is expected to increase, and therefore it poses a serious challenge to the healthcare system. The aim of the study was to assess the concentration of leptin, cystatin C, neuropilin-1 and tau protein, as well as the influence of dietary habits on these parameters, in a group of AD patients (n = 110) compared to 60 healthy people (n = 60). It has been shown that AD patients, compared to healthy people, are characterized by significantly higher median concentrations of leptin (9.97 vs. 3.08), cystatin c (1.53 vs. 0.56) and tau protein (8.46 vs. 4.19), but significantly lower median neuropilin-1 (69.94 vs. 167.28). Multiple regression analyses showed that leptin levels could be explained by dietary habits in 27%, cystatin C in 51%, neuropilin-1 in 41% and tau protein in 25% of cases. Modification of eating habits may contribute to improving the values of the discussed parameters.

Cathepsin B, D and S as Potential Biomarkers of Brain Glioma Malignancy

Brain gliomas constitute the vast majority of malignant tumors of the nervous system. There is still a lack of fast, reliable and non-invasive methods of diagnostics. Our work focuses on the quantification of cathepsin B, D and S in glioma. The research was conducted with the use of SPRi biosensors sensitive to individual cathepsins. Changes in the quantity of selected cathepsins (cathepsins B, D and S), depending on the advancement of glioma and the presence or absence of important features or comorbidities in the selected patient, were examined. The results were statistically analyzed and interpreted based on the available clinical description. Statistical significance was observed in the difference in the concentration of the studied cathepsins, mainly between the groups Control and G3/G4 and G1/G2 and G3/G4. The strength of the correlation between the concentrations of individual cathepsins and the age of the patient and the size of the tumor, as well as the correlation between individual proteins, was investigated. The influence of IDH 1/2 status on the concentration of determined cathepsins was investigated and ROC analysis was performed. As a result of our research, we have developed a method for the diagnosis of brain glioma that allows us to distinguish grades G1/G2 from G3/G4 and the control group from G3/G4. We found an average positive correlation between the concentrations of the proteins tested and the age of the patient and a high positive correlation between the cathepsins tested. Comparative analysis of the effect of the presence of IDH 1/2 mutations on the number of proteins tested allowed us to demonstrate that the cathepsins assayed can be independent markers.

Cognitive dysfunction associated with COVID-19: Prognostic role of circulating biomarkers and microRNAs

COVID-19 is renowned as a multi-organ disease having subacute and long-term effects with a broad spectrum of clinical manifestations. The evolving scientific and clinical evidence demonstrates that the frequency of cognitive impairment after COVID-19 is high and it is crucial to explore more clinical research and implement proper diagnostic and treatment strategies. Several central nervous system complications have been reported as comorbidities of COVID-19. The changes in cognitive function associated with neurodegenerative diseases develop slowly over time and are only diagnosed at an already advanced stage of molecular pathology. Hence, understanding the common links between COVID-19 and neurodegenerative diseases will broaden our knowledge and help in strategizing prognostic and therapeutic approaches. The present review focuses on the diverse neurodegenerative changes associated with COVID-19 and will highlight the importance of major circulating biomarkers and microRNAs (miRNAs) associated with the disease progression and severity. The literature analysis showed that major proteins associated with central nervous system function, such as Glial fibrillary acidic protein, neurofilament light chain, p-tau 181, Ubiquitin C-terminal hydrolase L1, S100 calcium-binding protein B, Neuron-specific enolase and various inflammatory cytokines, were significantly altered in COVID-19 patients. Furthermore, among various miRNAs that are having pivotal roles in various neurodegenerative diseases, miR-146a, miR-155, Let-7b, miR-31, miR-16 and miR-21 have shown significant dysregulation in COVID-19 patients. Thus the review consolidates the important findings from the numerous studies to unravel the underlying mechanism of neurological sequelae in COVID-19 and the possible association of circulatory biomarkers, which may serve as prognostic predictors and therapeutic targets in future research.

Bisdemethoxycurcumin (BDC)-Loaded H-Ferritin-Nanocages Mediate the Regulation of Inflammation in Alzheimer's Disease Patients

BACKGROUND

Bisdemethoxycurcumin (BDC) might be an inflammation inhibitor in Alzheimer's Disease (AD). However, BDC is almost insoluble in water, poorly absorbed by the organism, and degrades rapidly. We thus developed a new nanoformulation of BDC based on H-Ferritin nanocages (BDC-HFn).

METHODS

We tested the BDC-HFn solubility, stability, and ability to cross a blood-brain barrier (BBB) model. We tested the effect of BDC-HFn on AD and control (CTR) PBMCs to evaluate the transcriptomic profile by RNA-seq.

RESULTS

We developed a nanoformulation with a diameter of 12 nm to improve the solubility and stability. The comparison of the transcriptomics analyses between AD patients before and after BDC-HFn treatment showed a major number of DEG (2517). The pathway analysis showed that chemokines and macrophages activation differed between AD patients and controls after BDC-HFn treatment. BDC-HFn binds endothelial cells from the cerebral cortex and crosses through a BBB in vitro model.

CONCLUSIONS

Our data showed how BDC-Hfn could improve the stability of BDC. Significant differences in genes associated with inflammation between the same patients before and after BDC-Hfn treatment have been found. Inflammatory genes that are upregulated between AD and CTR after BDC-HFn treatment are converted and downregulated, suggesting a possible therapeutic approach.