Studies associating blastocystis sp. tocolorectal cancer Vinoth s/o Kumarasamy

Cancer has become a vital public health issue around the world. Colorectal cancer (CRC) has become one of the major causes of deaths worldwide. Numerous reports have correlated infectious agents and cancer including CRC. Infectious agents are known to contribute to 20% of CRC. Recent findings have demonstrated the possible correlation between Blastocystis and CRC with many conflicting reports on the question of pathogenicity of different subtypes of Blastocystis. To improve our understanding on the molecular epidemiology of this parasite, we determined the Blastocystis subtypes (STs) and their relative frequency in CRC patients and control groups. Epidemiological studies related to Blastocystis often give poor results due to poor sensitivity of standard methods available to detect Blastocystis genotypes in the stool sample. As such, prevalence study was conducted using colonic washouts collected from CRC patients and healthy individuals. The mean prevalence of Blastocystis infection was significantly higher among CRC patients (n=43, 21.08%) compared to healthy control (n=22, 9.95%, p < 0.01) and subtype 3 was predominant (12.75%) among these individuals. We also investigated immunoglobulin levels in Blastocystis positive patients who were newly diagnosed with CRC as well as those subjected to chemotherapy. We found the high infection in both newly diagnosed CRC patients and chemotherapy patients with the elevation of specific antibodies. One healthy individual who was negative for Blastocystis both by direct microscopy and in in vitro cultures had higher IgM titers (1:1600) and 4 showed low titres of IgG antibody. A total of 11 healthy individuals were positive for IgG. Significant number of healthy individuals showed the presence of IgA with the exception of one individual who showed the presence at low titers. The finding showed the presence of association between immune response to Blastocystis antigen and CRC. In addition, we also evaluated the effect of solubilized antigen isolated from five different subtypes of Blastocystis on colon cancer cells, HCT116 and peripheral blood mononuclear cell (PBMC) proliferation. Evaluation of gene expression of cytokines, nuclear transcription factors and apoptotic genes in colon cancer cell and immune cells in the presence of Blastocystis was carried out. The proliferation analysis and gene expression findings in the present study implicate a possible pathogenic role for subtype 3 Blastocystis. The inhibitory effect was seen to be higher in PBMCs isolated from CRC patients compared to healthy volunteers which suggests that Blastocystis infection may prevent immune cell propagation to combat the infection. Besides that, the parasite’s influence on the cytotoxic activity of chemotherapy drugs during cancer treatment was also assessed in this study. We designed an in vitro model to specifically analyse the effect of Blastocystis on chemotherapy drug, 5-fluorouracil (5-FU) in colon cancer cells, HCT116 and normal colon fibroblast cells, CCD18-Co. 5-FU caused a dose-dependent increase in the inhibition of cancer cell proliferation. However, the inhibitory effect was reduced in the presence of Blastocystis antigen at 8μM and 10μM of 5-FU. We speculate that Blastocystis antigen could interfere with the efficacy of 5-FU cytotoxicity towards cancer cells. Blastocystis induced expression of inflammatory cytokines, gene transcription factors and angiogenic factors that resulted in resistance of cancer cells against 5-FU. Further validation of the pathogenicity of Blastocystis was carried out using experimental animal models induced with carcinogen, azoxymethane (AOM). Increased crypts formation and increased colorectal dysplasia and elevated level of oxidative damage were observed in the presence of Blastocystis infection. The study underscores the importance of including Blastocystis infection in routine parasitological investigation among CRC patients especially when it can be easily be acquired from contaminated water, food and possibly from animals

Systematic Review and Meta-Analysis: Epidemiology of Human <i>Blastocystis</i> spp. Infection in Malaysia

Blastocystis spp. is a unicellular enteric protozoan parasite in humans with a controversial role in disease etiology. It is common in developing countries among immunocompromised patients and people who have close contact with animals. In this study, we have systematically reviewed previous studies on the distribution and genotypes of human Blastocystis infection in Peninsular Malaysia. Studies examining the prevalence of Blastocystis in diverse demographics, including rural, urban, comorbid conditions, and high-risk populations, were taken into consideration. The infection has been reported in nine states; the total percentage of infection was 17.8% (1671/9397), with the most cases in Pahang (27.3%) and the least in Johor (3.4%). Molecular studies revealed the presence of six subtypes: ST1, ST2, ST3, ST4, ST5, and ST6. ST3 was reported as the predominant subtype in all the states, with a prevalence of 54.7% (338/618). The findings provide greater clarity on the epidemiology of Blastocystis in Malaysia, which will help in policy making towards planning and strategizing control measures against the parasite

The Fabrication of Polymer-Based Curcumin-Loaded Formulation as a Drug Delivery System: An Updated Review from 2017 to the Present

Turmeric contains curcumin, a naturally occurring compound with noted anti-inflammatory and antioxidant properties that may help fight cancer. Curcumin is readily available, nontoxic, and inexpensive. At high doses, it has minimal side effects, suggesting it is safe for human use. However, curcumin has extremely poor bioavailability and biodistribution, which further hamper its clinical applications. It is commonly administered through oral and transdermal routes in different forms, where the particle size is one of the most common barriers that decreases its absorption through biological membranes on the targeted sites and limits its clinical effectiveness. There are many studies ongoing to overcome this problem. All of this motivated us to conduct this review that discusses the fabrication of polymer-based curcumin-loaded formulation as an advanced drug delivery system and addresses different approaches to overcoming the existing barriers and improving its bioavailability and biodistribution to enhance the therapeutic effects against cancer and other diseases

Magnetic nanosystem a tool for targeted delivery and diagnostic application: Current challenges and recent advancement

Over the last two decades, researchers have paid more attention to magnetic nanosystems due to their wide application in diverse fields. The metal nanomaterials' antimicrobial and biocidal properties make them an essential nanosystem for biomedical applications. Moreover, the magnetic nanosystems could have also been used for diagnosis and treatment because of their magnetic, optical, and fluorescence properties. Superparamagnetic iron oxide nanoparticles (SPIONs) and quantum dots (QDs) are the most widely used magnetic nanosystems prepared by a simple process. By surface modification, researchers have recently been working on conjugating metals like silica, copper, and gold with magnetic nanosystems. This hybridization of the nanosystems modifies the structural characteristics of the nanomaterials and helps to improve their efficacy for targeted drug and gene delivery. The hybridization of metals with various nanomaterials like micelles, cubosomes, liposomes, and polymeric nanomaterials is gaining more interest due to their nanometer size range and nontoxic, biocompatible nature. Moreover, they have good injectability and higher targeting ability by accumulation at the target site by application of an external magnetic field. The present article discussed the magnetic nanosystem in more detail regarding their structure, properties, interaction with the biological system, and diagnostic applications

Comparison of (A) LHP, (B) AOPP, (C) H₂O₂ and (D) FRAP levels in blood and urine samples of normal, <i>Blastocystis</i> infected, AOM-treated controls and rats treated with AOM + <i>Blastocystis</i> infection.

<p>Groups of six rats were inoculated with Blastocystis and injected with AOM simultaneously (co-infection). Data are given as mean SEM of six animals/group by Student’s t-test (SPSS version 13). ***P<0.001 is the comparison between columns of Blastocystis and normal as well as Blastocystis + AOM and AOM.</p

Pearson’s correlation between the urinary biochemical variables in normal and <i>Blastocystis</i> infected group (control experiment for AOM + co-infection with <i>Blastocystis</i>).

<p>Pearson’s correlation between the urinary biochemical variables in normal and <i>Blastocystis</i> infected group (control experiment for AOM + co-infection with <i>Blastocystis</i>).</p