Synergistic Interactions between HDAC and Sirtuin Inhibitors in Human Leukemia Cells

Aberrant histone deacetylase (HDAC) activity is frequent in human leukemias. However, while classical, NAD+-independent HDACs are an established therapeutic target, the relevance of NAD+-dependent HDACs (sirtuins) in leukemia treatment remains unclear. Here, we assessed the antileukemic activity of sirtuin inhibitors and of the NAD+-lowering drug FK866, alone and in combination with traditional HDAC inhibitors. Primary leukemia cells, leukemia cell lines, healthy leukocytes and hematopoietic progenitors were treated with sirtuin inhibitors (sirtinol, cambinol, EX527) and with FK866, with or without addition of the HDAC inhibitors valproic acid, sodium butyrate, and vorinostat. Cell death was quantified by propidium iodide cell staining and subsequent flow-cytometry. Apoptosis induction was monitored by cell staining with FITC-Annexin-V/propidium iodide or with TMRE followed by flow-cytometric analysis, and by measuring caspase3/7 activity. Intracellular Bax was detected by flow-cytometry and western blotting. Cellular NAD+ levels were measured by enzymatic cycling assays. Bax was overexpressed by retroviral transduction. Bax and SIRT1 were silenced by RNA-interference. Sirtuin inhibitors and FK866 synergistically enhanced HDAC inhibitor activity in leukemia cells, but not in healthy leukocytes and hematopoietic progenitors. In leukemia cells, HDAC inhibitors were found to induce upregulation of Bax, a pro-apoptotic Bcl2 family-member whose translocation to mitochondria is normally prevented by SIRT1. As a result, leukemia cells become sensitized to sirtuin inhibitor-induced apoptosis. In conclusion, NAD+-independent HDACs and sirtuins cooperate in leukemia cells to avoid apoptosis. Combining sirtuin with HDAC inhibitors results in synergistic antileukemic activity that could be therapeutically exploited

Correction to: Two years later: Is the SARS-CoV-2 pandemic still having an impact on emergency surgery? An international cross-sectional survey among WSES members

Background: The SARS-CoV-2 pandemic is still ongoing and a major challenge for health care services worldwide. In the first WSES COVID-19 emergency surgery survey, a strong negative impact on emergency surgery (ES) had been described already early in the pandemic situation. However, the knowledge is limited about current effects of the pandemic on patient flow through emergency rooms, daily routine and decision making in ES as well as their changes over time during the last two pandemic years. This second WSES COVID-19 emergency surgery survey investigates the impact of the SARS-CoV-2 pandemic on ES during the course of the pandemic. Methods: A web survey had been distributed to medical specialists in ES during a four-week period from January 2022, investigating the impact of the pandemic on patients and septic diseases both requiring ES, structural problems due to the pandemic and time-to-intervention in ES routine. Results: 367 collaborators from 59 countries responded to the survey. The majority indicated that the pandemic still significantly impacts on treatment and outcome of surgical emergency patients (83.1% and 78.5%, respectively). As reasons, the collaborators reported decreased case load in ES (44.7%), but patients presenting with more prolonged and severe diseases, especially concerning perforated appendicitis (62.1%) and diverticulitis (57.5%). Otherwise, approximately 50% of the participants still observe a delay in time-to-intervention in ES compared with the situation before the pandemic. Relevant causes leading to enlarged time-to-intervention in ES during the pandemic are persistent problems with in-hospital logistics, lacks in medical staff as well as operating room and intensive care capacities during the pandemic. This leads not only to the need for triage or transferring of ES patients to other hospitals, reported by 64.0% and 48.8% of the collaborators, respectively, but also to paradigm shifts in treatment modalities to non-operative approaches reported by 67.3% of the participants, especially in uncomplicated appendicitis, cholecystitis and multiple-recurrent diverticulitis. Conclusions: The SARS-CoV-2 pandemic still significantly impacts on care and outcome of patients in ES. Well-known problems with in-hospital logistics are not sufficiently resolved by now; however, medical staff shortages and reduced capacities have been dramatically aggravated over last two pandemic years

Reducing the environmental impact of surgery on a global scale: systematic review and co-prioritization with healthcare workers in 132 countries

Abstract Background Healthcare cannot achieve net-zero carbon without addressing operating theatres. The aim of this study was to prioritize feasible interventions to reduce the environmental impact of operating theatres. Methods This study adopted a four-phase Delphi consensus co-prioritization methodology. In phase 1, a systematic review of published interventions and global consultation of perioperative healthcare professionals were used to longlist interventions. In phase 2, iterative thematic analysis consolidated comparable interventions into a shortlist. In phase 3, the shortlist was co-prioritized based on patient and clinician views on acceptability, feasibility, and safety. In phase 4, ranked lists of interventions were presented by their relevance to high-income countries and low–middle-income countries. Results In phase 1, 43 interventions were identified, which had low uptake in practice according to 3042 professionals globally. In phase 2, a shortlist of 15 intervention domains was generated. In phase 3, interventions were deemed acceptable for more than 90 per cent of patients except for reducing general anaesthesia (84 per cent) and re-sterilization of ‘single-use’ consumables (86 per cent). In phase 4, the top three shortlisted interventions for high-income countries were: introducing recycling; reducing use of anaesthetic gases; and appropriate clinical waste processing. In phase 4, the top three shortlisted interventions for low–middle-income countries were: introducing reusable surgical devices; reducing use of consumables; and reducing the use of general anaesthesia. Conclusion This is a step toward environmentally sustainable operating environments with actionable interventions applicable to both high– and low–middle–income countries

Abscisic Acid Improves Insulin Action on Glycemia in Insulin-Deficient Mouse Models of Type 1 Diabetes

Abscisic acid (ABA), a plant hormone, has recently been shown to play a role in glycemia regulation in mammals, by stimulating insulin-independent glucose uptake and metabolism in skeletal muscle. The aim of this study was to test whether ABA could improve glycemic control in a murine model of type 1 diabetes (T1D). Mice were rendered diabetic with streptozotocin and the effect of ABA administration, alone or with insulin, was tested on glycemia. Diabetic mice treated with a single oral dose of ABA and low-dose subcutaneous insulin showed a significantly reduced glycemia profile compared with controls treated with insulin alone. In diabetic mice treated for four weeks with ABA, the effect of low-dose insulin on the glycemia profile after glucose load was significantly improved, and transcription both of the insulin receptor, and of glycolytic enzymes in muscle, was increased. Moreover, a significantly increased transcription and protein expression of AMPK, PGC1-a, and GLUT4 was observed in the skeletal muscle from diabetic mice treated with ABA, compared with untreated controls. ABA supplementation in conjunction with insulin holds the promise of reducing the dose of insulin required in T1D, reducing the risk of hypoglycemia, and improving muscle insulin sensitivity and glucose consumption

The ABA/LANCL Hormone/Receptor System in the Control of Glycemia, of Cardiomyocyte Energy Metabolism, and in Neuroprotection: A New Ally in the Treatment of Diabetes Mellitus?

Abscisic acid (ABA), long known as a plant stress hormone, is present and functionally active in organisms other than those pertaining to the land plant kingdom, including cyanobacteria, fungi, algae, protozoan parasites, lower Metazoa, and mammals. The ancient, cross-kingdom role of this stress hormone allows ABA and its signaling pathway to control cell responses to environmental stimuli in diverse organisms such as marine sponges, higher plants, and humans. Recent advances in our knowledge about the physiological role of ABA and of its mammalian receptors in the control of energy metabolism and mitochondrial function in myocytes, adipocytes, and neuronal cells allow us to foresee therapeutic applications for ABA in the fields of pre-diabetes, diabetes, and cardio- and neuro-protection. Vegetal extracts titrated in their ABA content have shown both efficacy and tolerability in preliminary clinical studies. As the prevalence of glucose intolerance, diabetes, and cardiovascular and neurodegenerative diseases is steadily increasing in both industrialized and rapidly developing countries, new and cost-efficient therapeutics to combat these ailments are much needed to ensure disease-free aging for the current and future working generations

Abscisic Acid Stimulates Glucagon-Like Peptide-1 Secretion from L-Cells and Its Oral Administration Increases Plasma Glucagon-Like Peptide-1 Levels in Rats

In recent years, Abscisic Acid (ABA) has been demonstrated to be involved in the regulation of glucose homeostasis in mammals as an endogenous hormone, by stimulating both insulin release and peripheral glucose uptake. In addition, ABA is released by glucose- or GLP-1-stimulated \u3b2-pancreatic cells. Here we investigated whether ABA can stimulate GLP-1 release. The human enteroendocrine L cell line hNCI-H716 was used to explore whether ABA stimulates in vitro GLP-1 secretion and/or transcription. ABA induced GLP-1 release in hNCI-H716 cells, through a cAMP/PKA-dependent mechanism. ABA also enhanced GLP-1 transcription. In addition, oral administration of ABA significantly increased plasma GLP-1 and insulin levels in rats. In conclusion, ABA can stimulate GLP-1 release: this result and the previous observation that GLP-1 stimulates ABA release from \u3b2 -cells, suggest a positive feed-back mechanism between ABA and GLP-1, regulating glucose homeostasis. Type 2 diabetes treatments targeting the GLP-1 axis by either inhibiting its rapid clearance by dipeptidyl-peptidase IV or using GLP-1 mimetics are currently used. Moreover, the development of treatments aimed at stimulating GLP-1 release from L cells has been considered as an alternative approach. Accordingly, our finding that ABA increases GLP-1 release in vitro and in vivo may suggest ABA and/or ABA analogs as potential anti-diabetic treatments

Abscisic Acid Improves Insulin Action on Glycemia in Insulin-Deficient Mouse Models of Type 1 Diabetes

Abscisic acid (ABA), a plant hormone, has recently been shown to play a role in glycemia regulation in mammals, by stimulating insulin-independent glucose uptake and metabolism in skeletal muscle. The aim of this study was to test whether ABA could improve glycemic control in a murine model of type 1 diabetes (T1D). Mice were rendered diabetic with streptozotocin and the effect of ABA administration, alone or with insulin, was tested on glycemia. Diabetic mice treated with a single oral dose of ABA and low-dose subcutaneous insulin showed a significantly reduced glycemia profile compared with controls treated with insulin alone. In diabetic mice treated for four weeks with ABA, the effect of low-dose insulin on the glycemia profile after glucose load was significantly improved, and transcription both of the insulin receptor, and of glycolytic enzymes in muscle, was increased. Moreover, a significantly increased transcription and protein expression of AMPK, PGC1-α, and GLUT4 was observed in the skeletal muscle from diabetic mice treated with ABA, compared with untreated controls. ABA supplementation in conjunction with insulin holds the promise of reducing the dose of insulin required in T1D, reducing the risk of hypoglycemia, and improving muscle insulin sensitivity and glucose consumption