Circular RNAs as Targets for Developing Anticancer Therapeutics.

Circular RNA (CircRNA) is a single-stranded RNA arising from back splicing. CircRNAs interact with mRNA, miRNA, and proteins. These interactions regulate various life processes, including transcription, translation, cancer progression, anticancer drug resistance, and metabolism.

Effectiveness of single-pill combination olmesartan/amlodipine/hydrochlorothiazide therapy in patients with apparent resistant hypertension.

This pioneering study investigated the real-life effectiveness of single-pill combination (SPC) antihypertensive therapy in patients with uncontrolled blood pressure (BP) and cardiovascular risk factors. After treatment with olmesartan medoxomil/amlodipine besylate/hydrochlorothiazide for 24 weeks, adults with apparent resistant hypertension had significantly reduced systolic BP and approximately 80% achieved target BP. SPC therapy may improve adherence in patients with pseudo-resistant hypertension and is a potentially effective treatment for resistant hypertension.

Prognostic impact of changes in left ventricular ejection fraction and wall motion score index in patients with myocardial infarction.

Background: The prognostic significance of changes in left ventricular ejection fraction (LVEF) and wall motion score index (WMSI) in patients with myocardial infarction remains unclear.

Methods: This study evaluated whether changes in LVEF and WMSI can predict clinical outcomes and LV remodeling in post-AMI patients. Using data from the Korea Acute Myocardial Infarction Registry-National Institutes of Health (KAMIR-NIH), 3,510 AMI patients who underwent percutaneous coronary intervention (PCI) were retrospectively analyzed.

Comparative Evaluation of Pre-Test Probability Models for Coronary Artery Disease with Assessment of a New Machine Learning-Based Model.

Purpose: This study aimed to validate pivotal pre-test probability (PTP)-coronary artery disease (CAD) models (CAD consortium model and IJC-CAD model).

Materials And Methods: Traditional PTP models-CAD consortium models: two traditional PTP models were used under the CAD consortium framework, namely CAD1 and CAD2. Machine learning (ML)-based PTP models: two ML-based PTP models were derived from CAD1 and CAD2, and used to enhance predictive capabilities [ML-CAD2 and ML-IJC (IJC-CAD)].

Rocaglamide Suppresses Allergic Reactions by Regulating IL-4 Receptor Signaling.

Rocaglamide (Roc-A), a natural phytochemical isolated from Aglaia species, is known to exert anticancer effects. Allergic inflammation can enhance the tumorigenic potential of cancer cells. We hypothesized that Roc-A could regulate allergic inflammation.

Regulating Immune Responses Induced by PEGylated Messenger RNA-Lipid Nanoparticle Vaccine.

Messenger RNA (mRNA)-based therapeutics have shown remarkable progress in the treatment and prevention of diseases. Lipid nanoparticles (LNPs) have shown great successes in delivering mRNAs. After an mRNA-LNP vaccine enters a cell via an endosome, mRNA is translated into an antigen, which can activate adaptive immunity.

Gasoline exhaust particles induce MMP1 expression via Nox4-derived ROS-ATF3-linked pathway in human umbilical vein endothelial cells.

Gasoline exhaust particles (GEP) are risk factors for cardiovascular disease. Activating transcription factor 3 (ATF3) is a transcription factor known to form a heterodimer with AP-1 transcription factors for its target gene expression. However, the involvement of ATF3 in GEP-induced gene expression in human umbilical vein endothelial cells (HUVECs) has not been investigated.

MeCP2 Interacts with the Super Elongation Complex to Regulate Transcription.

Loss-of-function mutations in methyl-CpG binding protein 2 ( ) cause Rett syndrome, a postnatal neurodevelopmental disorder that occurs in ∼1/10,000 live female births. MeCP2 binds to methylated cytosines across genomic DNA and recruits various partners to regulate gene expression. MeCP2 has been shown to repress transcription and interacts with co-repressors such as the Sin3A and NCoR complexes.

IDF-11774 Induces Cell Cycle Arrest and Apoptosis by Inhibiting HIF-1α in Gastric Cancer.

Hypoxia-inducible factor-1 alpha (HIF-1α) is a regulatory factor of intracellular oxygen supersession. The expression or increased activity of HIF-1α is closely related to various human cancers. Previously, IDF-11774 was demonstrated to inhibit HSP70 chaperone activity and suppress the accumulation of HIF-1α.

Proteomic analysis reveals activation of platelet- and fibrosis-related pathways in hearts of ApoE mice exposed to diesel exhaust particles.

Air pollution is an environmental risk factor linked to multiple human diseases including cardiovascular diseases (CVDs). While particulate matter (PM) emitted by diesel exhaust damages multiple organ systems, heart disease is one of the most severe pathologies affected by PM. However, the in vivo effects of diesel exhaust particles (DEP) on the heart and the molecular mechanisms of DEP-induced heart dysfunction have not been investigated.

Identification of Potential Drug Targets for Antiplatelet Therapy Specifically Targeting Platelets of Old Individuals through Proteomic Analysis.

Aging is a growing problem worldwide, and the prevalence and mortality of arterial and venous thromboembolism (VTE) are higher in the elderly than in the young population. To address this issue, various anticoagulants have been used. However, no evidence can confirm that antithrombotic agents are suitable for the elderly.

TonEBP Haploinsufficiency Attenuates Microglial Activation and Memory Deficits in Middle-Aged and Amyloid β Oligomer-Treated Mice.

Age-related microglial activation is associated with cognitive impairment. Tonicity-responsive enhancer-binding protein (TonEBP) is a critical mediator of microglial activation in response to neuroinflammation. However, the precise role of TonEBP in the middle-aged brain is not yet known.

Nitrosylation of β2-Tubulin Promotes Microtubule Disassembly and Differentiated Cardiomyocyte Beating in Ischemic Mice.

Background: Beating cardiomyocyte regeneration therapies have revealed as alternative therapeutics for heart transplantation. Nonetheless, the importance of nitric oxide (NO) in cardiomyocyte regeneration has been widely suggested, little has been reported concerning endogenous NO during cardiomyocyte differentiation.

Methods: Here, we used P19CL6 cells and a Myocardiac infarction (MI) model to confirm NO-induced protein modification and its role in cardiac beating.

Real-World Effectiveness and Safety of a Single-Pill Combination of Olmesartan/Amlodipine/Hydrochlorothiazide in Korean Patients with Hypertension and Cardiovascular Risk Factors.

Introduction: Patients with hypertension and additional cardiovascular risk factors pose a challenge by requiring more intensive blood pressure (BP) control. Single-pill combination (SPC) therapy can benefit these patients by improving medication adherence.

Methods: This prospective, multicenter observational study assessed the real-world safety and effectiveness of an SPC containing olmesartan, amlodipine, and hydrochlorothiazide (O/A/H) in South Korean patients with hypertension and cardiovascular risk factors.

High-throughput Oligopaint screen identifies druggable 3D genome regulators.

The human genome functions as a three-dimensional chromatin polymer, driven by a complex collection of chromosome interactions. Although the molecular rules governing these interactions are being quickly elucidated, relatively few proteins regulating this process have been identified. Here, to address this gap, we developed high-throughput DNA or RNA labelling with optimized Oligopaints (HiDRO)-an automated imaging pipeline that enables the quantitative measurement of chromatin interactions in single cells across thousands of samples.

Optimized End Functionality of Silane-Terminated Liquid Butadiene Rubber for Silica-Filled Rubber Compounds.

As the world is shifting from internal combustion engine vehicles to electric vehicles in response to environmental pollution, the tire industry has been conducting research on tire performance to meet the requirements of electric vehicles. In this experiment, functionalized liquid butadiene rubber (F-LqBR) with triethoxysilyl groups at both ends was introduced into a silica-filled rubber compound as a substitute for treated distillate aromatic extract (TDAE) oil, and comparative evaluation was conducted according to the number of triethoxysilyl groups. The results showed that F-LqBRs improved silica dispersion in the rubber matrix through the formation of chemical bonds between silanol groups and the base rubber, and reduced rolling resistance by limiting chain end mobility and improving filler-rubber interaction.

Diesel exhaust particles induce human umbilical vein endothelial cells apoptosis by accumulation of autophagosomes and caspase-8 activation.

Diesel exhaust particles (DEP) are risk factors for endothelial cells (ECs) dysfunction. However, the mechanism by which DEP induce ECs apoptosis remains unclear. Here, we investigated how DEP induce death of human umbilical vein ECs (HUVECs), with a focus on the autophagy-mediated apoptotic pathway.

Effects of the Diamine Chain End Functionalized Liquid Butadiene Rubber as a Processing Aid on the Properties of Carbon-Black-Filled Rubber Compounds.

The implementation of vehicle electrification and autonomous driving technologies has recently emphasized the importance of abrasion resistance and fuel efficiency of truck bus radial (TBR) tire treads that undergo high loads and long driving times. In this study, a functionalized liquid butadiene rubber (F-LqBR) was introduced to replace the treated distillate aromatic extracted (TDAE) oil as a way to improve abrasion resistance and fuel efficiency in the TBR tire tread compound and to solve the oil migration. First, radical polymerization was used to synthesize nonfunctionalized LqBR (N-LqBR) and amino-LqBR with an amine group at the chain ends.

Binge alcohol drinking before pregnancy is closely associated with the development of macrosomia: Korean pregnancy registry cohort.

Background: Alcohol drinking during pregnancy has been well-known to cause the detrimental effects on fetal development; however, the adverse effects of pre-pregnancy drinking are largely unknown. We investigate whether alcohol drinking status before pregnancy is associated with the risk for macrosomia, an offspring's adverse outcome, in a Korean pregnancy registry cohort (n = 4,542) enrolled between 2013 and 2017.

Methods: Binge drinking was defined as consuming ≥5 drinks on one occasion and ≥2 times a week, and a total 2,886 pregnant, included in the final statistical analysis, were divided into 3 groups: never, non-binge, and binge drinking.

Associations between local acidosis induced by renal LDHA and renal fibrosis and mitochondrial abnormalities in patients with diabetic kidney disease.

During the progression of diabetic kidney disease (DKD), renal lactate metabolism is rewired. The relationship between alterations in renal lactate metabolism and renal fibrosis in patients with diabetes has only been partially established due to a lack of biopsy tissues from patients with DKD and the intricate mechanism of lactate homeostasis. The role of lactate dehydrogenase A (LDHA)-mediated lactate generation in renal fibrosis and dysfunction in human and animal models of DKD was explored in this study.