Systematic elucidation of the multi-target pharmacological mechanism of Terminalia arjuna against congestive cardiac failure via network pharmacology and molecular modelling approaches

Congestive cardiac failure (CCF) is a pathophysiologic state when the heart is not able to maintain its cardiac output to meet the demand of metabolising tissues. CCF is responsible for approximately 2.9 million deaths worldwide. The heterogeneous nature of CCF draws the attention of researchers to find more enthralling and promising diagnostic and treatment options. Terminalia arjuna (Arjuna) is an evergreen, deciduous tree exhibited various astringent, anti-bacterial, and anti-microbial properties. T. arjuna is being used in various regions for anginal pain, hypertension, congestive heart failure, and dyslipidemia. Although previous in vitro studies have demonstrated the therapeutic potential of T. arjuna, the exact molecular mechanism underlying its protective effect on the heart remains unclear. In this study, a network pharmacology technique was used to explore the active ingredients, potential targets in T. arjuna for the treatment of CCF. In the framework of this study, we explored the active ingredient-target-pathway network and figured out that oleanolic acid, arjunolic acid, luteolin, kaempferol, cholesterol, ellagic acid 4-O-xylopyranoside 3,3'-dimethyl ether, and cyclohexyl (2,4-dimethyl phenyl) methanone contributed significantly to the development of CCF by affecting AKT1, MAPK14, TNF, IL6, ESR1, and HSP90AA1 genes. Molecular docking analysis further validated the activities of these compounds against potential targets. To sum up, integrated network pharmacology and docking analysis revealed that T. arjuna exerts its cardioprotective effect by acting on various signalling pathways, including the thyroid hormone, VEGF signalling pathway, AGE-RAGE signalling pathway in diabetic complications, HIF signalling pathway, sphingolipid signalling pathway, and oestrogen signalling pathways. Overall, this study provides valuable insights into the molecular mechanism of T. arjuna in CCF and highlights its potential as a promising preventive treatment for this condition.

Computational study to investigate Proteus mirabilis proteomes for multi-epitope vaccine construct design

Proteus mirabilis is a gram-negative bacterium particularly known for its unique swarming ability. The swarming gives the bacteria ability to enhance adherence to the catheter surface and epithelium cells of the urethra to cause catheter associated urinary tract infections. P. mirabilis has evolved resistant to antibiotics. Additionally, there is an approved vaccine against P. mirabilis, thus demanding for identification of new vaccine targets. This gram-negative bacterium consists of 19,502 core proteins, out of which 19,063 are redundant proteins and remaining 439 are non-redundant proteins. The non-redundant proteins have 21 proteins present on the cell surface out of which 11 proteins are virulent. Antigenicity analysis predicted only 2 proteins as antigenic (fimbrial biogenesis outer membrane usher protein and ligand-gated channel protein). Four and seven B-cells epitopes were predicted from the former and later proteins, respectively. The predicted B-cells epitopes were used for T- cells epitopes prediction. The predicted epitopes were linked to each other through GPGPG linkers and joined with cholera toxin beta subunit adjuvant. A multi-epitopes vaccine construct consisting of 226 residues was docked with MHC-I, MHC-II and TLR-4. The best docked complex in each case has binding energy of -714.6, -744.6 and -829.5 kcal/mol, respectively. Moreover, the docking results were validated through molecular dynamics simulation and binding free energies estimation. The net energy of -137.2 kcal/mol was calculated for vaccine-MHC-I complex, -133.39 kcal/mol for vaccine-MHC-II and -158.68 kcal/mol for vaccine-TLR-4 complex. The designed vaccine construct could provoke immune responses against targeted pathogen and may be used in experimental testing.Communicated by Ramaswamy H. Sarma.

Innovative Strategies of Reprogramming Immune System Cells by Targeting CRISPR/Cas9-Based Genome-Editing Tools: A New Era of Cancer Management

The recent developments in the study of clustered regularly interspaced short palindromic repeats/associated protein 9 (CRISPR/Cas9) system have revolutionized the art of genome-editing and its applications for cellular differentiation and immune response behavior. This technology has further helped in understanding the mysteries of cancer progression and possible designing of novel antitumor immunotherapies. CRISPR/Cas9-based genome-editing is now often used to engineer universal T-cells, equipped with recombinant T-cell receptor (TCR) or chimeric antigen receptor (CAR). In addition, this technology is used in cytokine stimulation, antibody designing, natural killer (NK) cell transfer, and to overcome immune checkpoints. The innovative potential of CRISPR/Cas9 in preparing the building blocks of adoptive cell transfer (ACT) immunotherapy has opened a new window of antitumor immunotherapy and some of them have gained FDA approval. The manipulation of immunogenetic regulators has opened a new interface for designing, implementation and interpretation of CRISPR/Cas9-based screening in immuno-oncology. Several cancers like lymphoma, melanoma, lung, and liver malignancies have been treated with this strategy, once thought to be impossible. The safe and efficient delivery of CRISPR/Cas9 system within the immune cells for the genome-editing strategy is a challenging task which needs to be sorted out for efficient immunotherapy. Several targeting approaches like virus-mediated, electroporation, microinjection and nanoformulation-based methods have been used, but each procedure offers some limitations. Here, we elaborate the recent updates of cancer management through immunotherapy in partnership with CRISPR/Cas9 technology. Further, some innovative methods of targeting this genome-editing system within the immune system cells for reprogramming them, as a novel strategy of anticancer immunotherapy is elaborated. In addition, future prospects and clinical trials are also discussed.

Exploring the role of miR-200 family in regulating CX3CR1 and CXCR1 in lung adenocarcinoma tumor microenvironment: implications for therapeutic intervention

Lung adenocarcinoma (LUAD) is the most common malignant subtype of lung cancer (LC). miR-200 family is one of the prime miR regulators of epithelial-mesenchymal transition (EMT) and worst overall survival (OS) in LC patients. The study aimed to identify and validate the key differentially expressed immune-related genes (DEIRGs) regulated by miR-200 family which may serve for therapeutic aspects in LUAD tumor microenvironment (TME) by affecting cancer progression, invasion, and metastasis. The study identified differentially expressed miRNAs (DEMs) in LUAD, consisting of hsa-miR-200a-3p and hsa-miR-141-5p, respectively. Two highest-degree subnetwork motifs identified from 3-node miRNA FFL were: (i) miR-200a-3p-CX3CR1-SPIB and (ii) miR-141-5p-CXCR1-TBX21. TIMER analysis showed that the expression levels of CX3CR1 and CXCR1 were significantly positively correlated with infiltrating levels of M0-M2 macrophages and natural killer T (NKT) cells. The OS of LUAD patients was significantly affected by lower expression levels of hsa-miR-200a-3p, CX3CR1 and SPIB. These DEIRGs were validated using the human protein atlas (HPA) web server. Further, we validated the regulatory role of hsa-miR-200a-3p in an in-vitro indirect co-culture model using conditioned media from M0, M1 and M2 polarized macrophages (THP-1) and LUAD cell lines (A549 and H1299 cells). The results pointed out the essential role of hsa-miR-200a-3p regulated CX3CL1 and CX3CR1 expression in progression of LC TME. Thus, the study augments a comprehensive understanding and new strategies for LUAD treatment where miR-200 family regulated immune-related genes, especially chemokine receptors, which regulate the metastasis and invasion of LUAD, leading to the worst associated OS.

An integrative reverse vaccinology, immunoinformatic, docking and simulation approaches towards designing of multi-epitopes based vaccine against monkeypox virus

Monkeypox is a viral zoonotic disease that is caused by the monkeypox virus (MPXV) and is mainly transmitted to human through close contact with an infected person, animal, or fomites which is contaminated by the virus. In the present research work, reverse vaccinology and several other bioinformatics and immunoinformatics tools were utilized to design multi-epitopes-based vaccine against MPXV by exploring three probable antigenic extracellular proteins: cupin domain-containing protein, ABC transporter ATP-binding protein and DUF192 domain-containing protein. Both cellular and humoral immunity induction were the main concerning qualities of the vaccine construct, hence from selected proteins both B and T-cells epitopes were predicted. Antigenicity, allergenicity, toxicity, and water solubility of the predicted epitopes were assessed and only probable antigenic, non-allergic, non-toxic and good water-soluble epitopes were used in the multi-epitopes vaccine construct. The developed vaccine was found to be potentially effective against MPXV and to be highly immunogenic, cytokine-producing, antigenic, non-toxic, non-allergenic, and stable. Additionally, to increase stability and expression efficiency in the host E. coli, disulfide engineering, codon adaptation, and in silico cloning were employed. Molecular docking and other biophysical approaches were utilized to evaluate the binding mode and dynamic behavior of the vaccine construct with TLR-2, TLR-4, and TLR-8. The outcomes of the immune simulation demonstrated that both B and T cells responded more strongly to the vaccination component. The detailed in silico analysis concludes that the proposed vaccine will induce a strong immune response against MPXV infection, making it a promising target for additional experimental trials.Communicated by Ramaswamy H. Sarma.

Identification of novel chemical scaffolds against kinase domain of cancer causing human epidermal growth factor receptor 2: a systemic chemoinformatic approach

The Human epidermal growth factor receptor 2 (HER2) is expressed in high magnitude in several cancers. Designing new drug molecules that target kinase domain of the HER2 enzyme might provide an appealing platform. Considering this, herein, a multi-phase bioinformatic approach is applied to screen diverse natural and chemical scaffolds to identify compounds that fit best at the kinase domain of HER2. By doing so, three compounds; LAS_51187157, LAC_51217113, LAC_51390233 were pointed with docking score of -11.4 kcal/mol, -11.3 kcal/mol and -11.2 kcal/mol, respectively. In molecular dynamic simulation, the complexes behaved in a stable dynamic with no major local/global structural variations. The intermolecular binding free energies were further estimated that concluded LAC_51390233 complex was the most stable and has less entropy energy. The good docked affinity of LAC_51390233 with HER2 was confirmed by WaterSwap absolute binding free energy. The entropy energy demonstrated that LAC_51390233 has less freedom energy compared to others. Similarly, all three compounds revealed very favorable druglike properties and pharmacokinetics. All the selected three compounds were also non-carcinogenic, non-immunotoxicity, non-mutagenicity, and non-cytotoxic. In a nutshell, the compounds are interesting scaffolds and might be subjected to extensive experimental testing to reveal their real biological potency.Communicated by Ramaswamy H. Sarma.

A cheminformatics-biophysics correlate to identify promising lead molecules against matrix metalloproteinase-2 (MMP-2) enzyme: A promising anti-cancer target

Matrix metalloproteinase-2 (MMP-2) is an endopeptidase enzyme that is devoted to extracellular matrix proteins degradation. The enzyme is warranted as promising drugs target for different light threating diseases such as arthritis, cancer and fibrosis. Herein, in this study, three drug molecules: CMNPD8322, CMNPD8320, and CMNPD8318 were filtered as high affinity binding compounds with binding energy score of -9.75 kcal/mol, -9.11 kcal/mol, -9.05 kcal/mol, respectively. The control binding energy score was -9.01 kcal/mol. The compounds docked deeply inside the pocket interacting with S1 pocket residues. The docked complexes dynamics in real time at cellular environment was then done to decipher the stable binding conformation and intermolecular interactions network. The compounds complexes achieved very stable dynamics with root mean square deviation (RMSD) with mean value of around 2-3 Å compared to control complex that showed higher fluctuations of 5 Å. The simulation trajectories frames based binding free energy demonstrated all the compounds-MMP-2 complexes reported highly stable energy, particularly the van der Waals energy dominate the overall net energy. Similarly, the complexes revalidation of WaterSwap based energies also disclosed the complexes highly stable in term docked conformation. Also, the compounds illustrated the compounds favorable pharmacokinetics and were non-toxic and non-mutagenic. Thus, the compounds might be used thorough experimental assays to confirm compounds selective biological potency against MMP-2 enzyme.

Integrated molecular modeling and dynamics approaches revealed potential natural inhibitors of NF-κB transcription factor as breast cancer therapeutics

Breast cancer is a silent killer malady among women and a serious economic burden in health care management. A case of breast cancer is diagnosed among women every 19 s, and every 74 s, a woman dies of breast cancer somewhere in the world. Despite the pop-up of progressive research, advanced treatment approaches, and preventive measures, breast cancer remains amplifying ailment. The nuclear factor kappa B (NF-κB) is a key transcription factor that links inflammation with cancer and is demonstrated as being involved in the tumorigenesis of breast cancer. The NF-κB transcription factor family in mammals consists of five proteins; c-Rel, RelA(p65), RelB, NF-κB1(p50), and NF-κB2(p52). The antitumor effect of NF-κB has also been explored in breast cancer, however, the actual treatment for breast cancer is yet to be discovered. This study is attributed to the identification of novel drug targets against breast cancer by targeting c-Rel, RelA(p65), RelB, NF-κB1(p50), and NF-κB2(p52) proteins. To identify the putative active compounds, a structure-based 3D pharmacophore model to the protein active site cavity was generated followed by virtual screening, molecular docking, and molecular dynamics (MD) simulation. Initially, a library of 45000 compounds were docked against the target protein and five compounds namely Z56811101, Z653426226, Z1097341967, Z92743432, and Z464101066 were selected for further analysis. The relative binding affinity of Z56811101, Z653426226, Z1097341967, Z92743432, and Z464101066 with NF-κB1 (p50), NF-κB2 (p52), RelA (p65), RelB, and c-Rel proteins were -6.8, -8, -7.0, -6.9, and -7.2 kcal/mol, respectively which remained stable throughout the simulations of 200 ns. Furthermore, all of these compounds depict maximum drug-like properties. Therefore, the proposed compounds can be a potential candidate for patients with breast cancer, but, experimental validation is needed to ensure their safety.Communicated by Ramaswamy H. Sarma.

Myricetin: A Significant Emphasis on Its Anticancer Potential via the Modulation of Inflammation and Signal Transduction Pathways

Cancer is a major public health concern worldwide and main burden of the healthcare system. Regrettably, most of the currently used cancer treatment approaches such as targeted therapy, chemotherapy, radiotherapy and surgery usually cause adverse complications including hair loss, bone density loss, vomiting, anemia and other complications. However, to overcome these limitations, there is an urgent need to search for the alternative anticancer drugs with better efficacy as well as less adverse complications. Based on the scientific evidences, it is proven that naturally occurring antioxidants present in medicinal plants or their bioactive compounds might constitute a good therapeutic approach in diseases management including cancer. In this regard, myricetin, a polyhydroxy flavonol found in a several types of plants and its role in diseases management as anti-oxidant, anti-inflammatory and hepato-protective has been documented. Moreover, its role in cancer prevention has been noticed through modulation of angiogenesis, inflammation, cell cycle arrest and induction of apoptosis. Furthermore, myricetin plays a significant role in cancer prevention through the inhibition of inflammatory markers such as inducible nitric oxide synthase (iNOS) and cyclooxygenase-2 (Cox-2). Moreover, myricetin increases the chemotherapeutic potential of other anticancer drugs through modulation of cell signaling molecules activity. This review elaborates the information of myricetin role in cancer management through modulating of various cell-signaling molecules based on in vivo and in vitro studies. In addition, synergistic effect with currently used anticancer drugs and approaches to improve bioavailability are described. The evidences collected in this review will help different researchers to comprehend the information about its safety aspects, effective dose for different cancers and implication in clinical trials. Moreover, different challenges need to be focused on engineering different nanoformulations of myricetin to overcome the poor bioavailability, loading capacity, targeted delivery and premature release of this compound. Furthermore, some more derivatives of myricetin need to be synthesized to check their anticancer potential.

Advanced network pharmacology study reveals multi-pathway and multi-gene regulatory molecular mechanism of Bacopa monnieri in liver cancer based on data mining, molecular modeling, and microarray data analysis

Liver cancer is a malignant tumor that grows on the surface or inside the liver. The leading cause is a viral infection with hepatitis B or C virus. Natural products and their structural analogues have historically made a major contribution to pharmacotherapy, especially for cancer. A list of studies evidences the therapeutic efficacy of Bacopa monnieri against liver cancer, but the precise molecular mechanism is yet to be discovered. This study combines data mining, network pharmacology, and molecular docking analysis to potentially revolutionize liver cancer treatment by identifying effective phytochemicals. Initially, the information on active constituents of B. monnieri and target genes of both liver cancer and B. monnieri were retrieved from literature as well as from publicly available databases. Based on the matching results between B. monnieri potential targets and liver cancer targets, the protein-protein interaction (PPI) network was constructed using the STRING database and imported into Cytoscape for screening of hub genes based on their degree of connectivity. Later, the interactions network between compounds and overlapping genes was constructed using Cytoscape software to analyze the network pharmacological prospective effects of B. monnieri on liver cancer. Gene Ontology (GO) and KEGG pathway analysis of hub genes revealed that these genes are involved in the cancer-related pathway. Lastly, the expression level of core targets was analyzed using microarray data (GSE39791, GSE76427, GSE22058, GSE87630, and GSE112790). Further, the GEPIA server and PyRx software were used for survival and molecular docking analysis, respectively. In summary, we proposed that quercetin, luteolin, apigenin, catechin, epicatechin, stigmasterol, beta-sitosterol, celastrol, and betulic acid inhibit tumor growth by affecting tumor protein 53 (TP53), interleukin 6 (IL6), RAC-alpha serine/threonine protein kinases 1 (AKT1), caspase-3 (CASP3), tumor necrosis factor (TNF), jun proto-oncogene (JUN), heat shot protein 90 AA1 (HSP90AA1), vascular endothelial growth factor A (VEGFA), epidermal growth factor receptor (EGFR), and SRC proto-oncogene (SRC). Through, microarray data analysis, the expression level of JUN and IL6 were found to be upregulated while the expression level of HSP90AA1 was found to be downregulated. Kaplan-Meier survival analysis indicated that HSP90AA1 and JUN are promising candidate genes that can serve as diagnostic and prognostic biomarkers for liver cancer. Moreover, the molecular docking and molecular dynamic simulation of 60ns well complemented the binding affinity of the compound and revealed strong stability of predicted compounds at the docked site. Calculation of binding free energies using MMPBSA and MMGBSA validated the strong binding affinity between the compound and binding pockets of HSP90AA1 and JUN. Despite that, in vivo and in vitro studies are mandatory to unveil pharmacokinetics and biosafety profiles to completely track the candidature status of B. monnieri in liver cancer.

Effects and Mechanisms of Kaempferol in the Management of Cancers through Modulation of Inflammation and Signal Transduction Pathways

Cancer is the principal cause of death and its incidence is increasing continuously worldwide. Various treatment approaches are in practice to treat cancer, but these treatment strategies may be associated with severe side effects and also produce drug resistance. However, natural compounds have established their role in cancer management with minimal side effects. In this vista, kaempferol, a natural polyphenol, mainly found in vegetables and fruits, has been revealed to have many health-promoting effects. Besides its health-promoting potential, its anti-cancer potential has also been described in in vivo as well as in in vitro studies. The anti-cancer potential of kaempferol has been proven through modulation of cell signaling pathways in addition to the induction of apoptosis and cell cycle arrest in cancer cells. It leads to the activation of tumor suppressor genes, inhibition of angiogenesis, PI3K/AKT pathways, STAT3, transcription factor AP-1, Nrf2 and other cell signaling molecules. Poor bioavailability of this compound is one of the major limitations for its proper and effective disease management actions. Recently, some novel nanoparticle-based formulations have been used to overcome these limitations. The aim of this review is to provide a clear picture regarding the mechanism of action of kaempferol in different cancers through the modulation of cell signaling molecules. Besides this, strategies to improve the efficacy and synergistic effects of this compound have also been described. However, more studies are needed based on clinical trials to fully explore the therapeutic role of this compound, especially in cancer treatment.

Structural insights into the mechanism of resistance to bicalutamide by the clinical mutations in androgen receptor in chemo-treatment resistant prostate cancer

Despite advanced diagnosis and detection technologies, prostate cancer (PCa) is the most prevalent neoplasms in males. Dysregulation of the androgen receptor (AR) is centrally involved in the tumorigenesis of PCa cells. Acquisition of drug resistance due to modifications in AR leads to therapeutic failure and relapse in PCa. An overhaul of comprehensive catalogues of cancer-causing mutations and their juxta positioning on 3D protein can help in guiding the exploration of small drug molecules. Among several well-studied PCa-specific mutations, T877A, T877S and H874Y are the most common substitutions in the ligand-binding domain (LBD) of the AR. In this study, we combined structure as well as dynamics-based in silico approaches to infer the mechanistic effect of amino acid substitutions on the structural stability of LBD. Molecular dynamics simulations allowed us to unveil a possible drug resistance mechanism that acts through structural alteration and changes in the molecular motions of LBD. Our findings suggest that the resistance to bicalutamide is partially due to increased flexibility in the H₁₂ helix, which disturbs the compactness, thereby reducing the affinity for bicalutamide. In conclusion, the current study helps in understanding the structural changes caused by mutations and could assist in the drug development process.Communicated by Ramaswamy H. Sarma.

Recent Advances in Genome-Editing Technology with CRISPR/Cas9 Variants and Stimuli-Responsive Targeting Approaches within Tumor Cells: A Future Perspective of Cancer Management

The innovative advances in transforming clustered regularly interspaced short palindromic repeats-associated protein 9 (CRISPR/Cas9) into different variants have taken the art of genome-editing specificity to new heights. Allosteric modulation of Cas9-targeting specificity by sgRNA sequence alterations and protospacer adjacent motif (PAM) modifications have been a good lesson to learn about specificity and activity scores in different Cas9 variants. Some of the high-fidelity Cas9 variants have been ranked as Sniper-Cas9, eSpCas9 (1.1), SpCas9-HF1, HypaCas9, xCas9, and evoCas9. However, the selection of an ideal Cas9 variant for a given target sequence remains a challenging task. A safe and efficient delivery system for the CRISPR/Cas9 complex at tumor target sites faces considerable challenges, and nanotechnology-based stimuli-responsive delivery approaches have significantly contributed to cancer management. Recent innovations in nanoformulation design, such as pH, glutathione (GSH), photo, thermal, and magnetic responsive systems, have modernized the art of CRISPR/Cas9 delivery approaches. These nanoformulations possess enhanced cellular internalization, endosomal membrane disruption/bypass, and controlled release. In this review, we aim to elaborate on different CRISPR/Cas9 variants and advances in stimuli-responsive nanoformulations for the specific delivery of this endonuclease system. Furthermore, the critical constraints of this endonuclease system on clinical translations towards the management of cancer and prospects are described.

Integrated virtual screening and molecular dynamics simulation approaches revealed potential natural inhibitors for DNMT1 as therapeutic solution for triple negative breast cancer

Triple negative breast cancers (TNBC) are clinically heterogeneous but mostly aggressive malignancies devoid of expression of the estrogen, progesterone, and HER2 (ERBB2 or NEU) receptors. It accounts for 15-20% of all cases. Altered epigenetic regulation including DNA hypermethylation by DNA methyltransferase 1 (DNMT1) has been implicated as one of the causes of TNBC tumorigenesis. The antitumor effect of DNMT1 has also been explored in TNBC that currently lacks targeted therapies. However, the actual treatment for TNBC is yet to be discovered. This study is attributed to the identification of novel drug targets against TNBC. A comprehensive docking and simulation analysis was performed to optimize promising new compounds by estimating their binding affinity to the target protein. Molecular dynamics simulation of 500 ns well complemented the binding affinity of the compound and revealed strong stability of predicted compounds at the docked site. Calculation of binding free energies using MMPBSA and MMGBSA validated the strong binding affinity between compound and binding pockets of DNMT1. In a nutshell, our study uncovered that Beta-Mangostin, Gancaonin Z, 5-hydroxysophoranone, Sophoraflavanone L, and Dorsmanin H showed maximum binding affinity with the active sites of DNMT1. Furthermore, all of these compounds depict maximum drug-like properties. Therefore, the proposed compounds can be a potential candidate for patients with TNBC, but, experimental validation is needed to ensure their safety.Communicated by Ramaswamy H. Sarma.

Combined Multiomics and In Silico Approach Uncovers PRKAR1A as a Putative Therapeutic Target in Multi-Organ Dysfunction Syndrome

Despite all epidemiological, clinical, and experimental research efforts, therapeutic concepts in sepsis and sepsis-induced multi-organ dysfunction syndrome (MODS) remain limited and unsatisfactory. Currently, gene expression data sets are widely utilized to discover new biomarkers and therapeutic targets in diseases. In the present study, we analyzed MODS expression profiles (comprising 13 sepsis and 8 control samples) retrieved from NCBI-GEO and found 359 differentially expressed genes (DEGs), among which 170 were downregulated and 189 were upregulated. Next, we employed the weighted gene co-expression network analysis (WGCNA) to establish a MODS-associated gene co-expression network (weighted) and identified representative module genes having an elevated correlation with age. Based on the results, a turquoise module was picked as our hub module. Further, we constructed the PPI network comprising 35 hub module DEGs. The DEGs involved in the highest-confidence PPI network were utilized for collecting pathway and gene ontology (GO) terms using various libraries. Nucleotide di- and triphosphate biosynthesis and interconversion was the most significant pathway. Also, 3 DEGs within our PPI network were involved in the top 5 significantly enriched ontology terms, with hypercortisolism being the most significant term. PRKAR1A was the overlapping gene between top 5 significant pathways and GO terms, respectively. PRKAR1A was considered as a therapeutic target in MODS, and 2992 ligands were screened for binding with PRKAR1A. Among these ligands, 3 molecules based on CDOCKER score (molecular dynamics simulated-based score, which allows us to rank the binding poses according to their quality and to identify the best pose for each system) and crucial interaction with human PRKAR1A coding protein and protein kinase-cyclic nucleotide binding domains (PKA RI alpha CNB-B domain) via active site binding residues, viz. Val283, Val302, Gln304, Val315, Ile327, Ala336, Ala337, Val339, Tyr373, and Asn374, were considered as lead molecules.

Current updates of CRISPR/Cas9-mediated genome editing and targeting within tumor cells: an innovative strategy of cancer management

Clustered regularly interspaced short palindromic repeats-associated protein (CRISPR/Cas9), an adaptive microbial immune system, has been exploited as a robust, accurate, efficient and programmable method for genome targeting and editing. This innovative and revolutionary technique can play a significant role in animal modeling, in vivo genome therapy, engineered cell therapy, cancer diagnosis and treatment. The CRISPR/Cas9 endonuclease system targets a specific genomic locus by single guide RNA (sgRNA), forming a heteroduplex with target DNA. The Streptococcus pyogenes Cas9/sgRNA:DNA complex reveals a bilobed architecture with target recognition and nuclease lobes. CRISPR/Cas9 assembly can be hijacked, and its nanoformulation can be engineered as a delivery system for different clinical utilizations. However, the efficient and safe delivery of the CRISPR/Cas9 system to target tissues and cancer cells is very challenging, limiting its clinical utilization. Viral delivery strategies of this system may have many advantages, but disadvantages such as immune system stimulation, tumor promotion risk and small insertion size outweigh these advantages. Thus, there is a desperate need to develop an efficient non-viral physical delivery system based on simple nanoformulations. The delivery strategies of CRISPR/Cas9 by a nanoparticle-based system have shown tremendous potential, such as easy and large-scale production, combination therapy, large insertion size and efficient in vivo applications. This review aims to provide in-depth updates on Streptococcus pyogenic CRISPR/Cas9 structure and its mechanistic understanding. In addition, the advances in its nanoformulation-based delivery systems, including lipid-based, polymeric structures and rigid NPs coupled to special ligands such as aptamers, TAT peptides and cell-penetrating peptides, are discussed. Furthermore, the clinical applications in different cancers, clinical trials and future prospects of CRISPR/Cas9 delivery and genome targeting are also discussed.