[D-Ala2, D-Leu5] Enkephalin Inhibits TLR4/NF-κB Signaling Pathway and Protects Rat Brains against Focal Ischemia-Reperfusion Injury

Long Neuro-COVID-19: Current Mechanistic Views and Therapeutic Perspectives

Long-lasting COVID-19 (long COVID) diseases constitute a real life-changing burden for many patients around the globe and, overall, can be considered societal and economic issues. They include a variety of symptoms, such as fatigue, loss of smell (anosmia), and neurological-cognitive sequelae, such as memory loss, anxiety, brain fog, acute encephalitis, and stroke, collectively called long neuro-COVID-19 (long neuro-COVID). They also include cardiopulmonary sequelae, such as myocardial infarction, pulmonary damage, fibrosis, gastrointestinal dysregulation, renal failure, and vascular endothelial dysregulation, and the onset of new diabetes, with each symptom usually being treated individually. The main unmet challenge is to understand the mechanisms of the pathophysiologic sequelae, in particular the neurological symptoms. This mini-review presents the main mechanistic hypotheses considered to explain the multiple long neuro-COVID symptoms, namely immune dysregulation and prolonged inflammation, persistent viral reservoirs, vascular and endothelial dysfunction, and the disruption of the neurotransmitter signaling along various paths. We suggest that the nucleoprotein N of SARS-CoV-2 constitutes a "hub" between the virus and the host inflammation, immunity, and neurotransmission.

Astrocyte modulation in cerebral ischemia-reperfusion injury: A promising therapeutic strategy

Cerebral ischemia-reperfusion injury (CIRI) poses significant challenges for drug development due to its complex pathogenesis. Astrocyte involvement in CIRI pathogenesis has led to the development of novel astrocyte-targeting drug strategies. To comprehensively review the current literature, we conducted a thorough analysis from January 2012 to December 2023, identifying 82 drugs aimed at preventing and treating CIRI. These drugs target astrocytes to exert potential benefits in CIRI, and their primary actions include modulation of relevant signaling pathways to inhibit neuroinflammation and oxidative stress, reduce cerebral edema, restore blood-brain barrier integrity, suppress excitotoxicity, and regulate autophagy. Notably, active components from traditional Chinese medicines (TCM) such as Salvia miltiorrhiza, Ginkgo, and Ginseng exhibit these important pharmacological properties and show promise in the treatment of CIRI. This review highlights the potential of astrocyte-targeted drugs to ameliorate CIRI and categorizes them based on their mechanisms of action, underscoring their therapeutic potential in targeting astrocytes.

[D-Ala2, D-Leu5]-enkephalin (DADLE) provides protection against myocardial ischemia reperfusion injury by inhibiting Wnt/β-Catenin pathway

BACKGROUND

Acute myocardial infarction is one of the leading causes of death worldwide. Myocardial ischemia reperfusion (MI/R) injury occurs immediately after the coronary reperfusion and aggravates myocardial ischemia. Whether the Wnt/β-Catenin pathway is involved in the protection against MI/R injury by DADLE has not been evaluated. Therefore, the present study aimed to investigate the protective effect of DADLE against MI/R injury in a mouse model and to further explore the association between DADLE and the Wnt/β-Catenin pathway.

METHODS

Forty-four mice were randomly allocated to four groups: Group Control (PBS Control), Group D 0.25 (DADLE 0.25 mg/kg), Group D 0.5 (DADLE 0.5 mg/kg), and Group Sham. In the control and DADLE groups, myocardial ischemia injury was induced by occluding the left anterior descending coronary artery (LAD) for 45 min. PBS and DADLE were administrated, respectively, 5 min before reperfusion. The sham group did not go through LAD occlusion. 24 h after reperfusion, functions of the left ventricle were assessed through echocardiography. Myocardial injury was evaluated using TTC double-staining and HE staining. Levels of myocardial enzymes, including CK-MB and LDH, in the serum were determined using ELISA kits. Expression of caspase-3, TCF4, Wnt3a, and β-Catenin was evaluated using the Western blot assay.

RESULTS

The infarct area was significantly smaller in the DADLE groups than in the control group (P < 0.01). The histopathology score and serum levels of myocardial enzymes were significantly lower in the DADLE groups than in the control group (P < 0.01). DADLE significantly improved functions of the left ventricle (P < 0.01), decreased expression of caspase-3 (P < 0.01), TCF4 (P < 0.01), Wnt3a (P < 0.05), and β-Catenin (P < 0.01) compared with PBS.

CONCLUSIONS

The present study showed that DADLE protected the myocardium from MI/R through suppressing the expression of caspase-3, TCF4, Wnt3a, and β-Catenin and consequently improving functions of the left ventricle in I/R model mice. The TCF4/Wnt/β-Catenin signaling pathway might become a therapeutic target for MI/R treatment.

Endogenous opiates and behavior: 2021

This paper is the forty-fourth consecutive installment of the annual anthological review of research concerning the endogenous opioid system, summarizing articles published during 2021 that studied the behavioral effects of molecular, pharmacological and genetic manipulation of opioid peptides and receptors as well as effects of opioid/opiate agonizts and antagonists. The review is subdivided into the following specific topics: molecular-biochemical effects and neurochemical localization studies of endogenous opioids and their receptors (1), the roles of these opioid peptides and receptors in pain and analgesia in animals (2) and humans (3), opioid-sensitive and opioid-insensitive effects of nonopioid analgesics (4), opioid peptide and receptor involvement in tolerance and dependence (5), stress and social status (6), learning and memory (7), eating and drinking (8), drug abuse and alcohol (9), sexual activity and hormones, pregnancy, development and endocrinology (10), mental illness and mood (11), seizures and neurologic disorders (12), electrical-related activity and neurophysiology (13), general activity and locomotion (14), gastrointestinal, renal and hepatic functions (15), cardiovascular responses (16), respiration and thermoregulation (17), and immunological responses (18).

Promising Application of D-Amino Acids toward Clinical Therapy

The versatile roles of D-amino acids (D-AAs) in foods, diseases, and organisms, etc., have been widely reported. They have been regarded, not only as biomarkers of diseases but also as regulators of the physiological function of organisms. Over the past few decades, increasing data has revealed that D-AAs have great potential in treating disease. D-AAs also showed overwhelming success in disengaging biofilm, which might provide promise to inhibit microbial infection. Moreover, it can effectively restrain the growth of cancer cells. Herein, we reviewed recent reports on the potential of D-AAs as therapeutic agents for treating neurological disease or tissue/organ injury, ameliorating reproduction function, preventing biofilm infection, and inhibiting cancer cell growth. Additionally, we also reviewed the potential application of D-AAs in drug modification, such as improving biostability and efficiency, which has a better effect on therapy or diagnosis.

δ-opioid Receptor, Microglia and Neuroinflammation

Neuroinflammation underlies the pathophysiology of multiple age-related neurological disorders. Microglia, the resident immune cells of the central nervous system, are critically involved in neuroinflammatory regulation and neural survival. Modulating microglial activation is thus a promising approach to alleviate neuronal injury. Our serial studies have revealed a neuroprotective role of the δ-opioid receptor (DOR) in several acute and chronic cerebral injuries by regulating neuroinflammation and cellular oxidative stress. More recently, we found an endogenous mechanism for the inhibition of neuroinflammation is closely related to DOR's modulation of microglia. Our recent studies showed that DOR activation could strongly protect neurons from hypoxia- and lipopolysaccharide (LPS)-induced injury by inhibiting microglial pro-inflammatory transformation, while knocking-down DOR or restraining DOR activity promoted microglia activation and the relevant inflammatory events with an aggravation of cell injury. This novel finding highlights a therapeutic potential of DOR in numerous age-related neurological disorders through the modulation of neuroinflammation by targeting microglia. This review summarized the current data regarding the role of microglia in neuroinflammation, oxidative stress, and age-related neurological diseases focusing on the pharmacological effects and signaling transduction of DOR in microglia.

Inhaled [D-Ala2]-Dynorphin 1-6 Prevents Hyperacetylation and Release of High Mobility Group Box 1 in a Mouse Model of Acute Lung Injury

COVID-19 is a respiratory infection caused by the SARS-CoV-2 virus that can rapidly escalate to life-threatening pneumonia and acute respiratory distress syndrome (ARDS). Recently, extracellular high mobility group box 1 (HMGB1) has been identified as an essential component of cytokine storms that occur with COVID-19; HMGB1 levels correlate significantly with disease severity. Thus, the modulation of HMGB1 release may be vital for treating COVID-19. HMGB1 is a ubiquitous nuclear DNA-binding protein whose biological function depends on posttranslational modifications, its redox state, and its cellular localization. The acetylation of HMGB1 is a prerequisite for its translocation from the nucleus to the cytoplasm and then to the extracellular milieu. When released, HMGB1 acts as a proinflammatory cytokine that binds primarily to toll-like receptor 4 (TLR4) and RAGE, thereby stimulating immune cells, endothelial cells, and airway epithelial cells to produce cytokines, chemokines, and other inflammatory mediators. In this study, we demonstrate that inhaled [D-Ala²]-dynorphin 1-6 (leytragin), a peptide agonist of δ-opioid receptors, significantly inhibits HMGB1 secretion in mice with lipopolysaccharide- (LPS-) induced acute lung injury. The mechanism of action involves preventing HMGB1's hyperacetylation at critical lysine residues within nuclear localization sites, as well as promoting the expression of sirtuin 1 (SIRT1), an enzyme known to deacetylate HMGB1. Leytragin's effects are mediated by opioid receptors, since naloxone, an antagonist of opioid receptors, abrogates the leytragin effect on SIRT1 expression. Overall, our results identify leytragin as a promising therapeutic agent for the treatment of pulmonary inflammation associated with HMGB1 release. In a broader context, we demonstrate that the opioidergic system in the lungs may represent a promising target for the treatment of inflammatory lung diseases.