Mast cells and the liver aging process

p16Ink4a-induced senescence in cultured mast cells as a model for ageing reveals significant morphological and functional changes

BACKGROUND

Mast cells (MCs) are tissue resident cells of the immune system, mainly known for their role in allergy. However, mounting evidence indicates their involvement in the pathology of age-related diseases, such as Alzheimer's disease, Parkinson's disease, and cancer. MC numbers increase in aged tissues, but how ageing affects MCs is poorly understood.

RESULTS

We show that MC ageing is associated with the increased expression of the cell cycle inhibitor p16 Ink4a, a marker and inducer of cellular senescence. Relying on this observation and the tight association of ageing with senescence, we developed a model of inducible senescence based on doxycycline-induced expression of p16Ink4a in cultured bone marrow derived MCs (BMMCs). Using this model, we show that senescent MCs upregulate IL-1β, TNF-α and VEGF-A. We also demonstrate that senescence causes marked morphological changes that impact MC function. Senescent MCs are larger, contain a larger number of secretory granules (SGs) and have less membrane protrusions. Particularly striking are the changes in their SGs, reflected in a significant reduction in the number of electron dense SGs with a concomitant increase in lucent SGs containing intraluminal vesicles. The changes in SG morphology are accompanied by changes in MC degranulation, including a significant increase in receptor-triggered release of CD63-positive extracellular vesicles (EVs) and the exteriorisation of proteoglycans, as opposed to a gradual inhibition of the release of β-hexosaminidase.

CONCLUSIONS

The inducible expression of p16Ink4a imposes MC senescence, providing a model for tracking the autonomous changes that occur in MCs during ageing. These changes include both morphological and functional alterations. In particular, the increased release of small EVs by senescent MCs suggests an enhanced ability to modulate neighbouring cells.

Old age as a risk factor for liver diseases: Modern therapeutic approaches

Recent scientific interest has been directed towards age-related diseases, driven by the significant increase in global life expectancy and the growing population of individuals aged 65 and above. The ageing process encompasses various biological, physiological, environmental, psychological, behavioural, and social changes, leading to an augmented susceptibility to chronic illnesses. Cardiovascular, neurological, musculoskeletal, liver and oncological diseases are prevalent in the elderly. Moreover, ageing individuals demonstrate reduced regenerative capacity and decreased tolerance towards therapeutic interventions, including organ transplantation. Liver diseases, such as non-alcoholic fatty liver disease, alcoholic liver disease, hepatitis, fibrosis, and cirrhosis, have emerged as significant public health concerns. Paradoxically, these conditions remain underestimated despite their substantial global impact. Age-related factors are closely associated with the severity and unfavorable prognosis of various liver diseases, warranting further investigation to enhance clinical management and develop novel therapeutic strategies. This comprehensive review focuses specifically on age-related liver diseases, their treatment strategies, and contemporary practices. It provides a detailed account of the global burden, types, molecular mechanisms, and epigenetic alterations underlying these liver pathologies.

The Role of Inflammation in Cholestatic Liver Injury

Cholestasis is a common clinical event in which bile formation and excretion are blocked, leading to retention of bile acids or bile salts; whether it occurs intra- or extrahepatically, primary or secondary, its pathogenesis is still unclear and is influenced by a combination of factors. In a variety of inflammatory and immune cells such as neutrophils, macrophages (intrahepatic macrophages are also known as Kupffer cells), mast cells, NK cells, and even T cells in humoral immunity and B cells in cellular immunity, inflammation can be a "second strike" against cholestatic liver injury. These cells, stimulated by a variety of factors such as bile acids, inflammatory chemokines, and complement, can be activated and accumulate in the cholestatic liver, and with the involvement of inflammatory mediators and modulation by cytokines, can lead to destruction of hepatocytes and bile duct epithelial cells and exacerbate (and occasionally retard) the progression of cholestatic liver disease. In this paper, we summarized the new research advances proposed so far regarding the relationship between inflammation and cholestasis, aiming to provide reference for researchers and clinicians in the field of cholestatic liver injury research.

Aging of Liver in Its Different Diseases

The proportion of elderly people in the world population is constantly increasing. With age, the risk of numerous chronic diseases and their complications also rises. Research on the subject of cellular senescence date back to the middle of the last century, and today we know that senescent cells have different morphology, metabolism, phenotypes and many other characteristics. Their main feature is the development of senescence-associated secretory phenotype (SASP), whose pro-inflammatory components affect tissues and organs, and increases the possibility of age-related diseases. The liver is the main metabolic organ of our body, and the results of previous research indicate that its regenerative capacity is greater and that it ages more slowly compared to other organs. With age, liver cells change under the influence of various stressors and the risk of developing chronic liver diseases such as non-alcoholic fatty liver disease (NAFLD), non-alcoholic steatohepatitis (NASH), alcoholic steatohepatitis (ASH) and hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC) increases. It has been proven that these diseases progress faster in the elderly population and in some cases lead to end-stage liver disease that requires transplantation. The treatment of elderly people with chronic liver diseases is a challenge and requires an individual approach as well as new research that will reveal other safe and effective therapeutic modalities.

Fenugreek (Trigonella foenum-graecum L.) Seeds Dietary Supplementation Regulates Liver Antioxidant Defense Systems in Aging Mice

Fenugreek seeds are widely used in Asia and other places of the world for their nutritive and medicinal properties. In Asia, fenugreek seeds are also recommended for geriatric populations. Here, we evaluated for the first time the effect of fenugreek seed feed supplementation on the liver antioxidant defense systems in aging mice. The study was conducted on 12-months aged mice which were given fenugreek seed dietary supplement. We evaluated the activities of various antioxidant defense enzymes such as superoxide dismutase (SOD), glutathione reductase (GR), and glutathione peroxidase (GPx), and also estimated the phenolics and free radical scavenging properties in mice liver upon fenugreek supplementation. The estimation of SOD, GPx, and GR activities in aged mice liver revealed a significant (p < 0.01) difference among all the liver enzymes. Overall, this study reveals that fenugreek seed dietary supplementation has a positive effect on the activities of the hepatic antioxidant defense enzymes in the aged mice.

Mast Cells in Liver Fibrogenesis

Mast cells (MCs) are immune cells of the myeloid lineage that are present in the connective tissue throughout the body and in mucosa tissue. They originate from hematopoietic stem cells in the bone marrow and circulate as MC progenitors in the blood. After migration to various tissues, they differentiate into their mature form, which is characterized by a phenotype containing large granules enriched in a variety of bioactive compounds, including histamine and heparin. These cells can be activated in a receptor-dependent and -independent manner. Particularly, the activation of the high-affinity immunoglobulin E (IgE) receptor, also known as FcεRI, that is expressed on the surface of MCs provoke specific signaling cascades that leads to intracellular calcium influx, activation of different transcription factors, degranulation, and cytokine production. Therefore, MCs modulate many aspects in physiological and pathological conditions, including wound healing, defense against pathogens, immune tolerance, allergy, anaphylaxis, autoimmune defects, inflammation, and infectious and other disorders. In the liver, MCs are mainly associated with connective tissue located in the surrounding of the hepatic arteries, veins, and bile ducts. Recent work has demonstrated a significant increase in MC number during hepatic injury, suggesting an important role of these cells in liver disease and progression. In the present review, we summarize aspects of MC function and mediators in experimental liver injury, their interaction with other hepatic cell types, and their contribution to the pathogenesis of fibrosis.

Metabolism in Acute-On-Chronic Liver Failure: The Solution More than the Problem

Chronic inflammatory liver disease with an acute deterioration of liver function is named acute-on-chronic inflammation and could be regulated by the metabolic impairments related to the liver dysfunction. In this way, the experimental cholestasis model is excellent for studying metabolism in both types of inflammatory responses. Along the evolution of this model, the rats develop biliary fibrosis and an acute-on-chronic decompensation. The acute decompensation of the liver disease is associated with encephalopathy, ascites, acute renal failure, an acute phase response and a splanchnic increase of pro- and anti-inflammatory cytokines. This multiorgan inflammatory dysfunction is mainly associated with a splanchnic and systemic metabolic switch with dedifferentiation of the epithelial, endothelial and mesothelial splanchnic barriers. Furthermore, a splanchnic infiltration by mast cells occurs, which suggests that these cells could carry out a compensatory metabolic role, especially through the modulation of hepatic and extrahepatic mitochondrial-peroxisome crosstalk. For this reason, we propose the hypothesis that mastocytosis in the acute-on-chronic hepatic insufficiency could represent the development of a survival metabolic mechanisms that mitigates the noxious effect of the hepatic functional deficit. A better understanding the pathophysiological response of the mast cells in liver insufficiency and portal hypertension would help to find new pathways for decreasing the high morbidity and mortality rate of these patients.

Mast cell-mediated splanchnic cholestatic inflammation

INTRODUCTION

Splanchnic mast cells increase in chronic liver and in acute-on-chronic liver diseases. We administered Ketotifen, a mast cell stabilizer, and measured the mast cells in the splanchnic organs of cholestatic rats.

MATERIAL AND METHODS

These groups were studied: sham-operated rats (S; n = 15), untreated microsurgical cholestasic rats (C; n = 20) and rats treated with Ketotifen: early (SK-e; n = 20 and CKe; n = 18), and late (SK-l; n = 15 and CK-l; n = 14).

RESULTS

The cholestatic rats showed systemic and splanchnic impairments, such as ascites, portal hypertension, and biliary proliferation and fibrosis. The rats also showed a splanchnic increase of TNF-α, IL-1β and MCP-1, and a reduction of IL-4, IL-10 and antioxidants. An increase of VEGF in the ileum and mesenteric lymphatic complex was associated with a liver reduction of TGF-β1. Ketotifen reduces the degree of hepatic insufficiency and the splanchnic inflammatory mediators, as well as VEGF and TGF-ß1 levels. Ketotifen also reduces the connective tissue mast cells in the mesenteric lymphatic complex of cholestatic rats, while increases the hepatic mucosal mast cells.

CONCLUSIONS

In cholestatic rats, Ketotifen improves liver function and ascites, and also reduces pro-inflammatory mediators in the splanchnic area. The decrease in connective tissue mast cells in the mesenteric lymphatic complex due to the administration of Ketotifen would lead to the improvement of the inflammatory splanchnic response, and consequently the abovementioned complications.

Study on Metabolic Trajectory of Liver Aging and the Effect of Fufang Zhenzhu Tiaozhi on Aging Mice

The aim of this study was to investigate the metabolic trajectory of liver aging, the effect of FTZ against liver aging in aging mice, and its mechanism using ultraperformance liquid chromatography/quadrupole-time-of-flight mass spectrometry (UPLC-Q-TOF/MS). Methods: A total of 80 C57BL/6J Narl mice were randomly divided into five groups: 3-month-old group, 9-month-old group, 14-month-old group, 20-month-old group, and FTZ treatment group (20 months old). The mice in the treatment group received a therapeutic dose of oral FTZ extract (1.0 g/kg, on raw material weight basis) once daily during the experiment. The other groups received the corresponding volume of oral normal saline solution. Liver samples of all five groups were collected after 12 weeks, and UPLC-Q-TOF/MS was used to analyze metabolic changes. Orthogonal partial least squares-discriminant analysis (OPLS-DA) was used to analyze the resulting data. Additionally, cholesterol (TC), triglyceride (TG), aspartate aminotransferase (AST), alanine aminotransferase (ALT), secretion levels of TNF-α, IL-6, 5-LOX, and COX-2, as well as their relative mRNA expression in the liver were determined. Results: The levels of TC, TG, AST, and ALT were increased, and liver tissue structure was damaged. The secretion levels of TNF-α, IL-6, 5-LOX, and COX-2, as well as their relative mRNA expression in the liver also increased with aging. FTZ administration reduced the symptoms of liver aging. The OPLS-DA score plot illustrated the effect of FTZ against liver aging, with N-acetyl-leukotriene E4, 20-hydroxy-leukotriene E4, leukotriene E4, and arachidonic acid among the key biomarkers. The pivotal pathways revealed by pathway analysis included arachidonic acid metabolism and biosynthesis of unsaturated fatty acids. The mechanism by which FTZ reduces the symptoms of liver aging in mice might be related to disorders of the abovementioned pathways. Conclusion: A metabolomic approach based on UPLC-Q-TOF/MS and multivariate statistical analysis was successfully applied to investigate the metabolic trajectory of liver aging. FTZ has a protective effect against liver aging, which may be mediated via interference with the metabolism of arachidonic acid, biosynthesis of unsaturated fatty acids, and downregulation of pro-inflammatory factors in the liver in mice in vivo.

The peculiar aging of human liver: A geroscience perspective within transplant context

An appraisal of recent data highlighting aspects inspired by the new Geroscience perspective are here discussed. The main findings are summarized as follows: i) liver has to be considered an immunological organ, and new studies suggest a role for the recently described cells named telocytes; ii) the liver-gut axis represents a crucial connection with environment and life style habits and may influence liver diseases onset; iii) the physiological aging of liver shows relatively modest alterations. Nevertheless, several molecular changes appear to be relevant: a) an increase of microRNA-31-5p; -141-3p; -200c-3p expressions after 60 years of age; b) a remodeling of genome-wide DNA methylation profile evident until 60 years of age and then plateauing; c) changes in transcriptome including the metabolic zones of hepatocyte lobules; d) liver undergoes an accelerated aging in presence of chronic inflammation/liver diseases in a sort of continuum, largely as a consequence of unhealthy life styles and exposure to environmental noxious agents. We argue that chronic liver inflammation has all the major characteristics of "inflammaging" and likely sustains the onset and progression of liver diseases. Finally, we propose to use a combination of parameters, mostly obtained by omics such as transcriptomics and epigenomics, to evaluate in deep both the biological age of liver (in comparison with the chronological age) and the effects of donor-recipient age-mismatches in the context of liver transplant.

The anti-fibrotic role of mast cells in the liver is mediated by HLA-G and interaction with hepatic stellate cells

BACKGROUND & AIMS

We have reported a significant association between HLA-G expression or the number of hepatic mast cells and liver fibrosis. Here, we investigated the role of HLA-G and mast cells in liver fibrosis, focusing, in particular, on interactions between human mast and stellate cells.

METHODS

Human mast cells (HMC cell line, CD34-derived mast cells, or tissue-derived mast cells) were co-cultured with purified human hepatic stellate cells (HSCs), and collagen I production by HSCs was evaluated. Mast cells and HSCs were characterized by immunocytochemistry. Various conditions were tested: different times in direct or indirect contact, presence or absence of cytokines, addition or not of HLA-G, and presence or absence of specific protease inhibitors.

RESULTS

The reciprocal interaction between HSCs and mast cells led to the attraction of mast cells to HSCs in vivo and in vitro, and to a significant decrease in collagen production, at all times of co-culture, following the direct or indirect contact of mast cells with HSCs alone or in the presence of TGF-β, IFN-α or IL-10. We identified the diffusible factors involved in collagen I degradation as mast cell proteases. Moreover, HLA-G expression increased during the co-culture of HSCs and mast cells, with HLA-G acting on both mast cells and HSCs, to enhance collagen I degradation.

CONCLUSIONS

Mast cells play a beneficial, anti-fibrotic role in liver fibrosis, via the HLA-G-mediated decrease of collagen I. These findings are consistent with high levels of cross-communication between mast cells and hepatic stellate cells and the role of HLA-G.

Current therapies and novel approaches for biliary diseases

Chronic liver diseases that inevitably lead to hepatic fibrosis, cirrhosis and/or hepatocellular carcinoma have become a major cause of illness and death worldwide. Among them, cholangiopathies or cholestatic liver diseases comprise a large group of conditions in which injury is primarily focused on the biliary system. These include congenital diseases (such as biliary atresia and cystic fibrosis), acquired diseases (such as primary sclerosing cholangitis and primary biliary cirrhosis), and those that arise from secondary damage to the biliary tree from obstruction, cholangitis or ischaemia. These conditions are associated with a specific pattern of chronic liver injury centered on damaged bile ducts that drive the development of peribiliary fibrosis and, ultimately, biliary cirrhosis and liver failure. For most, there is no established medical therapy and, hence, these diseases remain one of the most important indications for liver transplantation. As a result, there is a major need to develop new therapies that can prevent the development of chronic biliary injury and fibrosis. This mini-review briefly discusses the pathophysiology of liver fibrosis and its progression to cirrhosis. We make a special emphasis on biliary fibrosis and current therapeutic options, such as angiotensin converting enzyme-2 (known as ACE2) over-expression in the diseased liver as a novel potential therapy to treat this condition.

Senescent cell clearance by the immune system: Emerging therapeutic opportunities

Senescent cells (SCs) arise from normal cells in multiple organs due to inflammatory, metabolic, DNA damage, or tissue damage signals. SCs are non-proliferating but metabolically active cells that can secrete a range of pro-inflammatory and proteolytic factors as part of the senescence-associated secretory phenotype (SASP). Senescent cell anti-apoptotic pathways (SCAPs) protect SCs from their own pro-apoptotic SASP. SCs can chemo-attract immune cells and are usually cleared by these immune cells. During aging and in multiple chronic diseases, SCs can accumulate in dysfunctional tissues. SCs can impede innate and adaptive immune responses. Whether immune system loss of capacity to clear SCs promotes immune system dysfunction, or conversely whether immune dysfunction permits SC accumulation, are important issues that are not yet fully resolved. SCs may be able to assume distinct states that interact differentially with immune cells, thereby promoting or inhibiting SC clearance, establishing a chronically pro-senescent and pro-inflammatory environment, leading to modulation of the SASP by the immune cells recruited and activated by the SASP. Therapies that enhance immune cell-mediated clearance of SCs could provide a lever for reducing SC burden. Such therapies could include vaccines, small molecule immunomodulators, or other approaches. Senolytics, drugs that selectively eliminate SCs by transiently disabling their SCAPs, may prove to alleviate immune dysfunction in older individuals and thereby accelerate immune-mediated clearance of SCs. The more that can be understood about the interplay between SCs and the immune system, the faster new interventions may be developed to delay, prevent, or treat age-related dysfunction and the multiple senescence-associated chronic diseases and disorders.

The emerging role of mast cells in liver disease

The depth of our knowledge regarding mast cells has widened exponentially in the last 20 years. Once thought to be only important for allergy-mediated events, mast cells are now recognized to be important regulators of a number of pathological processes. The revelation that mast cells can influence organs, tissues, and cells has increased interest in mast cell research during liver disease. The purpose of this review is to refresh the reader's knowledge of the development, type, and location of mast cells and to review recent work that demonstrates the role of hepatic mast cells during diseased states. This review focuses primarily on liver diseases and mast cells during autoimmune disease, hepatitis, fatty liver disease, liver cancer, and aging in the liver. Overall, these studies demonstrate the potential role of mast cells in disease progression.

Severe sepsis in older adults

Severe sepsis may be underrecognized in older adults. Therefore, the purpose of this article is to review special considerations related to early detection of severe sepsis in older adults. Normal organ changes attributed to aging may delay early detection of sepsis at the time when interventions have the greatest potential to improve patient outcomes. Systems are reviewed for changes. For example, the cardiovascular system may have a limited or absent compensatory response to inflammation after an infectious insult, and the febrile response and recruitment of white blood cells may be blunted because of immunosenescence in aging. Three of the 4 hallmark responses (temperature, heart rate, and white blood cell count) to systemic inflammation may be diminished in older adults as compared with younger adults. It is important to consider that older adults may not always manifest the typical systemic inflammatory response syndrome. Atypical signs such as confusion, decreased appetite, and unsteady gait may occur before sepsis related organ failure. Systemic inflammatory response syndrome criteria and a comparison of organ failure criteria were reviewed. Mortality rates in sepsis and severe sepsis remain high and are often complicated by multiple organ failures. As the numbers of older adults increase, early identification and prompt treatment is crucial in improving patient outcomes.

Pathology of Mouse Models of Accelerated Aging

Progeroid mouse models display phenotypes in multiple organ systems that suggest premature aging and resemble features of natural aging of both mice and humans. The prospect of a significant increase in the global elderly population within the next decades has led to the emergence of "geroscience," which aims at elucidating the molecular mechanisms involved in aging. Progeroid mouse models are frequently used in geroscience as they provide insight into the molecular mechanisms that are involved in the highly complex process of natural aging. This review provides an overview of the most commonly reported nonneoplastic macroscopic and microscopic pathologic findings in progeroid mouse models (eg, osteoporosis, osteoarthritis, degenerative joint disease, intervertebral disc degeneration, kyphosis, sarcopenia, cutaneous atrophy, wound healing, hair loss, alopecia, lymphoid atrophy, cataract, corneal endothelial dystrophy, retinal degenerative diseases, and vascular remodeling). Furthermore, several shortcomings in pathologic analysis and descriptions of these models are discussed. Progeroid mouse models are valuable models for aging, but thorough knowledge of both the mouse strain background and the progeria-related phenotype is required to guide interpretation and translation of the pathology data.

Age-dependent changes of the antioxidant system in rat livers are accompanied by altered MAPK activation and a decline in motor signaling

Aging is characterized by a progressive decrease of cellular functions, because cells gradually lose their capacity to respond to injury. Increased oxidative stress is considered to be one of the major contributors to age-related changes in all organs including the liver. Our study has focused on elucidating whether important antioxidative enzymes, the mTOR pathway, and MAPKs exhibit age-dependent changes in the liver of rats during aging. We found an age-dependent increase of GSH in the cytosol and mitochondria. The aged liver showed an increased SOD enzyme activity, while the CAT enzyme activity decreased. HO-1 and NOS-2 gene expression was lower in adult rats, but up-regulated in aged rats. Western blot analysis revealed that SOD1, SOD2, GPx, GR, γ-GCL, and GSS were age-dependent up-regulated, while CAT remained constant. We also demonstrated that the phosphorylation of Akt, JNK, p38, and TSC2(Ser1254) decreased while ERK1/2 and TSC2(Thr1462) increased age-dependently. Furthermore, our data show that the mTOR pathway seems to be activated in livers of aged rats, and hence stimulating cell proliferation/regeneration, as confirmed by an age-dependent increase of PCNA and p-eIF4E(Ser209) protein expression. Our data may help to explain the fact that liver cells only proliferate in cases of necessity, like injury and damage. In summary, we have demonstrated that, age-dependent changes of the antioxidant system and stress-related signaling pathways occur in the livers of rats, which may help to better understand organ aging.

Mast cells' integrated actions with eosinophils and fibroblasts in allergic inflammation: implications for therapy

Mast cells (MCs) and eosinophils (Eos) are the key players in the development of allergic inflammation (AI). Their cross-talk, named the Allergic Effector Unit (AEU), takes place through an array of soluble mediators and ligands/receptors interactions that enhance the functions of both the cells. One of the salient features of the AEU is the CD48/2B4 receptor/ligand binding complex. Furthermore, MCs and Eos have been demonstrated to play a role not only in AI but also in the modulation of its consequence, i.e., fibrosis/tissue remodeling, by directly influencing fibroblasts (FBs), the main target cells of these processes. In turn, FBs can regulate the survival, activity, and phenotype of both MCs and Eos. Therefore, a complex three players, MCs/Eos/FBs interaction, can take place in various stages of AI. The characterization of the soluble and physical mediated cross talk among these three cells might lead to the identification of both better and novel targets for the treatment of allergy and its tissue remodeling consequences.

Effects of PTEN on the longevity of cultured human umbilical vein endothelial cells: the role of antioxidants

Ageing is a major cause of illness, disease and mortality, mainly due to the shortening of telomeres, resulting in cells undergoing senescence and apoptosis. Increasing autophagy and the levels of antioxidants removes oxidants that cause DNA and telomere damage, thus reducing the rate at which telomeres shorten, resulting in a longer cellular lifespan. Phosphatase and tensin homolog (PTEN) has been shown to increase the lifespan of organisms by upregulating pathways involved in DNA damage repair, autophagy/antioxidants. The aim of this study was to investigate the effects of the overexpression of PTEN on the longevity of human cell cultures by examining the increase in antioxidant potential. Human umbilical vein endothelial cell (HUVEC) cultures were transfected with PTEN plasmids using lipofectamine. An assay was performed to quantify the protein levels of PTEN and the antioxidant potential of the cell cultures. The cell cultures were maintained until senescence occurred in order to determine longevity. The results of each assay were then compared and correlated with each other and with the longevity of the cells. The transfected cultures showed a significant increase in PTEN protein levels, total antioxidant potential and longevity (all P-values <0.001) compared with the non-transfected cell cultures. The correlation coefficient between cell longevity and PTEN levels was 0.8727; and the correlation coefficient between cell longevity and antioxidant potential was 0.6564. The successful transfection of PTEN led to an increase in PTEN levels, antioxidant potential and an increased cellular longevity. This study demonstrates that there is a potential for PTEN to be used to extend human longevity. This can lay the foundation for further studies to be carried out on humans involving PTEN and longevity.

Ellagic acid normalizes mitochondrial outer membrane permeabilization and attenuates inflammation-mediated cell proliferation in experimental liver cancer

Despite great advances in our understanding of the molecular causes of liver cancer, significant gaps still remain in our knowledge of the disease pathogenesis and development of effective strategies for early diagnosis and treatment. The present study was conducted to evaluate the chemopreventive activity of ellagic acid (EA) against experimental liver cancer in rats. This is the first report that implies a possible role of EA in controlling liver cancer through activation of mitochondrial outer membrane permeability via activating proteins such as Bax, bcl-2, cyt-C, and caspase-9, which play important roles in apoptosis. Downregulation of NF-κB, cyclin D1, cyclin E1, matrix metalloproteinases (MMP)-2, MMP-9, and proliferating cell nuclear antigen (PCNA) were noted in EA-treated experimental rats and controlled inflammation mediated liver cancer when compared to the diethylnitrosamine (DEN)-induced group. Transmission electron microscopy (TEM) analysis of the livers of experimental rats demonstrated that EA treatment renovated its internal architecture. Overall, these results demonstrate the value of molecular approaches in identifying the potential role of EA as an effective chemopreventive agent.

Mast cells as a potential prognostic marker in prostate cancer

Despite years of intensive investigation that has been made in understanding prostate cancer, it remains one of the major men's health issues and the leading cause of death worldwide. It is now ascertained that prostate cancer emerges from multiple spontaneous and/or inherited alterations that induce changes in expression patterns of genes and proteins that function in complex networks controlling critical cellular events. It is now accepted that several innate and adaptive immune cells, including T- and B-lymphocytes, macrophages, natural killer cells, dendritic cells, neutrophils, eosinophils, and mast cells (MCs), infiltrate the prostate cancer. All of these cells are irregularly scattered within the tumor and loaded with an assorted array of cytokines, chemokines, and inflammatory and cytotoxic mediators. This complex framework reflects the diversity in tumor biology and tumor-host interactions. MCs are well-established effector cells in Immunoglobulin-E (Ig-E) associated immune responses and potent effector cells of the innate immune system; however, their clinical significance in prostate cancer is still debated. Here, these controversies are summarized, focusing on the implications of these findings in understanding the roles of MCs in primary prostate cancer.