Conjugated Alpha-Alumina nanoparticle with vasoactive intestinal peptide as a Nano-drug in treatment of allergic asthma in mice

Asthma is a chronic respiratory disease characterized by airway inflammation, bronchoconstriction, airway hyperresponsiveness and recurring attacks of impaired breathing. Vasoactive intestinal peptide (VIP) has been proposed as a novel anti-asthma drug due to its effects on airway smooth muscle relaxation, bronchodilation and vasodilation along with its immunomodulatory and anti-inflammatory properties. In the current study, we investigated the therapeutic effects of VIP when conjugated with α-alumina nanoparticle (α-AN) to prevent enzymatic degradation of VIP in the respiratory tract. VIP was conjugated with α-AN. Balb/c mice were sensitized and challenges with ovalbumin (OVA) or PBS and were divided in four groups; VIP-treated, α-AN-treated, α-AN-VIP-treated and beclomethasone-treated as a positive control group. Specific and total IgE level, airway hyperresponsiveness (AHR), bronchial cytokine expression and lung histology were measured. α-AN-VIP significantly reduced the number of eosinophils (Eos), serum IgE level, Th2 cytokines and AHR. These effects of α-AN-VIP were more pronounced than that seen with beclomethasone or VIP alone (P<0.05). The current data indicate that α-AN-VIP can be considered as an effective nano-drug for the treatment of asthma

The global burden of cancer attributable to risk factors, 2010-19 : a systematic analysis for the Global Burden of Disease Study 2019

Background Understanding the magnitude of cancer burden attributable to potentially modifiable risk factors is crucial for development of effective prevention and mitigation strategies. We analysed results from the Global Burden of Diseases, Injuries, and Risk Factors Study (GBD) 2019 to inform cancer control planning efforts globally. Methods The GBD 2019 comparative risk assessment framework was used to estimate cancer burden attributable to behavioural, environmental and occupational, and metabolic risk factors. A total of 82 risk-outcome pairs were included on the basis of the World Cancer Research Fund criteria. Estimated cancer deaths and disability-adjusted life-years (DALYs) in 2019 and change in these measures between 2010 and 2019 are presented. Findings Globally, in 2019, the risk factors included in this analysis accounted for 4.45 million (95% uncertainty interval 4.01-4.94) deaths and 105 million (95.0-116) DALYs for both sexes combined, representing 44.4% (41.3-48.4) of all cancer deaths and 42.0% (39.1-45.6) of all DALYs. There were 2.88 million (2.60-3.18) risk-attributable cancer deaths in males (50.6% [47.8-54.1] of all male cancer deaths) and 1.58 million (1.36-1.84) risk-attributable cancer deaths in females (36.3% [32.5-41.3] of all female cancer deaths). The leading risk factors at the most detailed level globally for risk-attributable cancer deaths and DALYs in 2019 for both sexes combined were smoking, followed by alcohol use and high BMI. Risk-attributable cancer burden varied by world region and Socio-demographic Index (SDI), with smoking, unsafe sex, and alcohol use being the three leading risk factors for risk-attributable cancer DALYs in low SDI locations in 2019, whereas DALYs in high SDI locations mirrored the top three global risk factor rankings. From 2010 to 2019, global risk-attributable cancer deaths increased by 20.4% (12.6-28.4) and DALYs by 16.8% (8.8-25.0), with the greatest percentage increase in metabolic risks (34.7% [27.9-42.8] and 33.3% [25.8-42.0]). Interpretation The leading risk factors contributing to global cancer burden in 2019 were behavioural, whereas metabolic risk factors saw the largest increases between 2010 and 2019. Reducing exposure to these modifiable risk factors would decrease cancer mortality and DALY rates worldwide, and policies should be tailored appropriately to local cancer risk factor burden. Copyright (C) 2022 The Author(s). Published by Elsevier Ltd. This is an Open Access article under the CC BY 4.0 license.Peer reviewe

25th Annual Computational Neuroscience Meeting: CNS-2016

Abstracts of the 25th Annual Computational Neuroscience Meeting: CNS-2016 Seogwipo City, Jeju-do, South Korea. 2–7 July 201

Technetium-99m chelator-free radiolabeling of specific glutamine tumor imaging nanoprobe: in vitro and in vivo evaluations

Seyedeh Masoumeh Ghoreishi,1,2 Ali Khalaj,1 Omid Sabzevari,3 Leila Badrzadeh,1 Pardis Mohammadzadeh,1,4 Seyed Shahaboddin Mousavi Motlagh,5 Ahmad Bitarafan-Rajabi,6 Mehdi Shafiee Ardestani1 1Department of Radiopharmacy, Faculty of Pharmacy, Tehran University of Medical Sciences, Tehran, Iran; 2Cancer Research Center, Health Research Institute, Babol University of Medical Sciences, Babol, Iran; 3Department of Toxicology and Pharmacology, Faculty of Pharmacy, Toxicology and Poisoning Research Centre, Tehran University of Medical Sciences, Tehran, Iran; 4Department of Genetics and Molecular Biology, Isfahan University of Medical Sciences, Isfahan, Iran; 5Biotechnology Department of Iranian Food and Drug Administration, Ministry of Health, Tehran, Iran; 6Echocardiography Research Center, Cardiovascular Interventional Research Center, Department of Nuclear Medicine, Rajaie Cardiovascular Medical and Research Center, Iran University of Medical Sciences, Tehran, Iran Introduction: Nowadays, molecular imaging radiopharmaceuticals&rsquo;, nanoparticles&rsquo;, and/or small-molecule biomarkers&rsquo; applications are increasing rapidly worldwide. Thus, researchers focus on providing the novel, safe, and cost-effective ones. Materials and methods: In the present experiment, technetium-99m (99mTc)-labeled PEG-citrate dendrimer-G2 conjugated with glutamine (nanoconjugate) was designed and assessed as a novel tumor imaging probe both in vitro and in vivo. Nanoconjugate was synthesized and the synthesis was confirmed by Fourier transform infrared, proton nuclear magnetic resonance, liquid chromatography-mass spectrometry, dynamic light scattering, and static light scattering techniques. The toxicity was assessed by XTT and apoptosis and necrosis methods. Results: Radiochemical purity indicates that the anionic dendrimer has a very high potential to complex formation with 99mTc and is also very stable in the human serum in different times. Results from the imaging procedures showed potential ability of nanoconjugates to detect tumor site. Conclusion: Suitable features of the anionic dendrimer show that it is a promising agent to improve nanoradiopharmaceuticals. Keywords: biodegradable, biocompatible, dendrimer, glutamine, chelator free, radiolabelin

Novel chlorambucil-conjugated anionic linear-globular PEG-based second-generation dendrimer: in vitro/in vivo improved anticancer activity

Artin Assadi,1 Vahideh Sharifi Najafabadi,1 Seyed Ataollah Sadat Shandiz,2 Azadah Shayeq Boroujeni,1 Sepehr Ashrafi,1 Ali Zaman Vaziri,1 Seyedeh Masoumeh Ghoreishi,1 Mohammad Reza Aghasadeghi,3 Seyed Esmaeil Sadat Ebrahimi,4 Morteza Pirali-Hamedani,4 Mehdi Shafiee Ardestani1 1Department of Radiopharmacy, Faculty of Pharmacy, Tehran University of Medical Sciences, 2Young Researchers and Elite Club, East Tehran Branch, Islamic Azad University, 3Department of Hepatitis and AIDS, Pasteur Institute of Iran, 4Department of Medicinal Chemistry, Faculty of Pharmacy, Tehran University of Medical Sciences, Tehran, Iran Abstract: Evaluating the efficacy of anticancer drugs is an evolving and research-oriented issue. The objective of this study was to reduce the insolubility of chlorambucil (CBL) in water and improve the anticancer activity of CBL in vitro and in vivo through the conjugation of CBL with anionic linear-globular dendrimer (second generation, G2). In the current study, the anticancer activity among three groups that include CBL, CBL&ndash;G2 dendrimer, and control was measured in vitro and in vivo. In vitro studies showed that G2 anionic linear-globular polyethylene-glycol-based dendrimer, which conjugated to the CBL exterior through an ester linkage, was able to significantly improve the treatment efficacy over clinical CBL alone with respect to proliferation assay, 2,3-bis-(2-methoxy-4-nitro-5-sulfophenyl)-2H-tetrazolium-5-carboxanilide; half maximal inhibitory concentration (IC50) was calculated to be 141&nbsp;&micro;g/mL for CBL alone and 27.7&nbsp;&micro;g/mL for CBL&ndash;G2 dendrimer; P&lt;0.05. In addition, CBL&ndash;G2 dendrimer conjugate forestalled the growth of MCF-7 cancerous cells in addition to enhancing the number of apoptotic and necrotic cells as demonstrated by an annexin V-fluorescein isothiocyanate assay. CBL&ndash;G2 dendrimer conjugate was able to checkmate antiapoptotic Bcl-2 expression and Bcl-2/Bax ratio in a large scale compared with the control group and CBL alone (P&lt;0.005). In vivo studies showed that tumor treatment by CBL&ndash;G2 dendrimer conjugate outstrips the efficacy of treatment compared with CBL alone. The evaluation was based on reduction in tumor volume and tumor growth inhibition of murine 4T1 mammary tumor cells. Tumor volume of 140%&plusmn;8% was measured in the treatment with CBL&ndash;G2 dendrimer, whereas 152%&plusmn;13.5% was calculated in the treatment with free CBL (P&lt;0.05). However, there were no significant differences in histological assay among the three groups. In conclusion, tumor growth suppression potential of CBL&ndash;G2 dendrimer, which was assessed in both in vitro and in vivo experiments, has provided empirical evidence to buttress the fact that this compound could be considered for functional cancer treatment with low side effects. Keywords: anionic linear-globular dendrimer, G2, chlorambucil, CBL, in vitro cytotoxicity, in vivo efficac