1 5323 80 PULMONARY INVOLVEMENT IN SYSTEMIC SCLEROSIS: EXPLORING CELLULAR, GENETIC AND EPIGENETIC MECHANISMS. SYSTEMIC SCLEROSIS (SSC) IS A CHRONIC PROGRESSIVE AUTOIMMUNE DISEASE CHARACTERIZED BY IMMUNE INFLAMMATION, VASCULOPATHY, AND FIBROSIS. THERE ARE STILL NUMEROUS UNCERTAINTIES IN THE UNDERSTANDING OF DISEASE INITIATION AND PROGRESSION. PULMONARY INVOLVEMENT IN SSC, AND PARTICULARLY PULMONARY FIBROSIS, IS CRITICAL FOR ALL ORGAN SYSTEMS AFFECTIONS IN THIS DISEASE. THIS REVIEW IS AIMED TO DESCRIBE AND ANALYZE NEW FINDINGS IN THE PATHOPHYSIOLOGY OF SSC-ASSOCIATED PULMONARY INVOLVEMENT AND TO EXPLORE PERSPECTIVE DIAGNOSTIC AND THERAPEUTIC STRATEGIES. A MYRIAD OF CELLULAR INTERACTIONS IS EXPLORED IN THE DYNAMICS OF PROGRESSIVE INTERSTITIAL LUNG DISEASE (ILD) AND PULMONARY HYPERTENSION (PH) IN SSC. THE ROLE OF EXOSOMES, MICROVESICLES, AND APOPTOTIC BODIES IS EXAMINED AND THE IMPACT OF MICRO AND LONG NON-CODING RNAS, DNA METHYLATION, AND HISTONE MODIFICATION IN SSC IS DISCUSSED. 2020 2 6053 24 THE CRUCIAL ROLE OF NLRP3 INFLAMMASOME IN VIRAL INFECTION-ASSOCIATED FIBROSING INTERSTITIAL LUNG DISEASES. IDIOPATHIC PULMONARY FIBROSIS (IPF), ONE OF THE MOST COMMON FIBROSING INTERSTITIAL LUNG DISEASES (ILD), IS A CHRONIC-AGE-RELATED RESPIRATORY DISEASE THAT RISES FROM REPEATED MICRO-INJURY OF THE ALVEOLAR EPITHELIUM. ENVIRONMENTAL INFLUENCES, INTRINSIC FACTORS, GENETIC AND EPIGENETIC RISK FACTORS THAT LEAD TO CHRONIC INFLAMMATION MIGHT BE IMPLICATED IN THE DEVELOPMENT OF IPF. THE EXACT TRIGGERS THAT INITIATE THE FIBROTIC RESPONSE IN IPF REMAIN ENIGMATIC, BUT THERE IS NOW INCREASING EVIDENCE SUPPORTING THE ROLE OF CHRONIC EXPOSURE OF VIRAL INFECTION. DURING VIRAL INFECTION, ACTIVATION OF THE NLRP3 INFLAMMASOME BY INTEGRATING MULTIPLE CELLULAR AND MOLECULAR SIGNALING IMPLICATES ROBUST INFLAMMATION, FIBROBLAST PROLIFERATION, ACTIVATION OF MYOFIBROBLAST, MATRIX DEPOSITION, AND ABERRANT EPITHELIAL-MESENCHYMAL FUNCTION. OVERALL, THE CROSSTALK OF THE NLRP3 INFLAMMASOME AND VIRUSES CAN ACTIVATE IMMUNE RESPONSES AND INFLAMMASOME-ASSOCIATED MOLECULES IN THE DEVELOPMENT, PROGRESSION, AND EXACERBATION OF IPF. 2021 3 2796 16 FBW7 MEDIATES SENESCENCE AND PULMONARY FIBROSIS THROUGH TELOMERE UNCAPPING. TISSUE STEM CELLS UNDERGO PREMATURE SENESCENCE UNDER STRESS, PROMOTING AGE-RELATED DISEASES; HOWEVER, THE ASSOCIATED MECHANISMS REMAIN UNCLEAR. HERE, WE REPORT THAT IN RESPONSE TO RADIATION, OXIDATIVE STRESS, OR BLEOMYCIN, THE E3 UBIQUITIN LIGASE FBW7 MEDIATES CELL SENESCENCE AND TISSUE FIBROSIS THROUGH TELOMERE UNCAPPING. FBW7 BINDING TO TELOMERE PROTECTION PROTEIN 1 (TPP1) FACILITATES TPP1 MULTISITE POLYUBIQUITINATION AND ACCELERATES DEGRADATION, TRIGGERING TELOMERE UNCAPPING AND DNA DAMAGE RESPONSE. OVEREXPRESSING TPP1 OR INHIBITING FBW7 BY GENETIC ABLATION, EPIGENETIC INTERFERENCE, OR PEPTIDOMIMETIC TELOMERE DYSFUNCTION INHIBITOR (TELODIN) REDUCES TELOMERE UNCAPPING AND SHORTENING, EXPANDING THE PULMONARY ALVEOLAR AEC2 STEM CELL POPULATION IN MICE. TELODIN, SYNTHESIZED FROM THE SEVENTH BETA STRAND BLADE OF FBW7 WD40 PROPELLER DOMAIN, INCREASES TPP1 STABILITY, LUNG RESPIRATORY FUNCTION, AND RESISTANCE TO SENESCENCE AND FIBROSIS IN ANIMALS CHRONICALLY EXPOSED TO ENVIRONMENTAL STRESS. OUR FINDINGS ELUCIDATE A PIVOTAL MECHANISM UNDERLYING STRESS-INDUCED PULMONARY EPITHELIAL STEM CELL SENESCENCE AND FIBROSIS, PROVIDING A FRAMEWORK FOR AGING-RELATED DISORDER INTERVENTIONS. 2020 4 3628 19 INACTIVATION OF NUCLEAR HISTONE DEACETYLASES BY EP300 DISRUPTS THE MICEE COMPLEX IN IDIOPATHIC PULMONARY FIBROSIS. IDIOPATHIC PULMONARY FIBROSIS (IPF) IS A CHRONIC, PROGRESSIVE, AND HIGHLY LETHAL LUNG DISEASE WITH UNKNOWN ETIOLOGY AND POOR PROGNOSIS. IPF PATIENTS DIE WITHIN 2 YEARS AFTER DIAGNOSIS MOSTLY DUE TO RESPIRATORY FAILURE. CURRENT TREATMENTS AGAINST IPF AIM TO AMELIORATE PATIENT SYMPTOMS AND TO DELAY DISEASE PROGRESSION. UNFORTUNATELY, THERAPIES TARGETING THE CAUSES OF OR REVERTING IPF HAVE NOT YET BEEN DEVELOPED. HERE WE SHOW THAT REDUCED LEVELS OF MIRNA LETHAL 7D (MIRLET7D) IN IPF COMPROMISE EPIGENETIC GENE SILENCING MEDIATED BY THE RIBONUCLEOPROTEIN COMPLEX MICEE. IN ADDITION, WE FIND THAT HYPERACTIVE EP300 REDUCES NUCLEAR HDAC ACTIVITY AND INTERFERES WITH MICEE FUNCTION IN IPF. REMARKABLY, EP300 INHIBITION REDUCES FIBROTIC HALLMARKS OF IN VITRO (PATIENT-DERIVED PRIMARY FIBROBLAST), IN VIVO (BLEOMYCIN MOUSE MODEL), AND EX VIVO (PRECISION-CUT LUNG SLICES, PCLS) IPF MODELS. OUR WORK PROVIDES THE MOLECULAR BASIS FOR THERAPIES AGAINST IPF USING EP300 INHIBITION. 2019 5 289 22 AGING AND INTERSTITIAL LUNG DISEASES: UNRAVELING AN OLD FORGOTTEN PLAYER IN THE PATHOGENESIS OF LUNG FIBROSIS. AGING IS A NATURAL PROCESS CHARACTERIZED BY A PROGRESSIVE FUNCTIONAL IMPAIRMENT AND REDUCED CAPACITY TO RESPOND ADAPTIVELY TO ENVIRONMENTAL STIMULI. AGING IS ASSOCIATED WITH INCREASED SUSCEPTIBILITY TO A VARIETY OF CHRONIC DISEASES, INCLUDING TYPE 2 DIABETES MELLITUS, CANCER, AND NEUROLOGICAL DISEASES. LUNG PATHOLOGIES ARE NOT THE EXCEPTION, AND THE PREVALENCE OF SEVERAL INTERSTITIAL LUNG DISEASES (ILDS), PRIMARILY IDIOPATHIC PULMONARY FIBROSIS, HAS BEEN FOUND TO INCREASE CONSIDERABLY WITH AGE. ALTHOUGH OUR UNDERSTANDING OF THE BIOLOGY OF AGING HAS ADVANCED REMARKABLY IN THE LAST 2 DECADES, THE MOLECULAR MECHANISMS LINKING AGING TO ILD REMAIN UNCLEAR. IMMUNOSENESCENCE, OXIDATIVE STRESS, ABNORMAL SHORTENING OF TELOMERES, APOPTOSIS, AND EPIGENETIC CHANGES AFFECTING GENE EXPRESSION HAVE BEEN PROPOSED TO CONTRIBUTE TO THE AGING PROCESS, AND AGING-ASSOCIATED DISEASES. HERE, WE REVIEW THE EMERGING CONCEPTS HIGHLIGHTING THE PUTATIVE AGING-ASSOCIATED ABNORMALITIES INVOLVED IN SOME HUMAN ILDS. 2010 6 5228 18 PRMT7 TARGETS OF FOXM1 CONTROLS ALVEOLAR MYOFIBROBLAST PROLIFERATION AND DIFFERENTIATION DURING ALVEOLOGENESIS. ALTHOUGH ABERRANT ALVEOLAR MYOFIBROBLASTS (AMYFS) PROLIFERATION AND DIFFERENTIATION ARE OFTEN ASSOCIATED WITH ABNORMAL LUNG DEVELOPMENT AND DISEASES, SUCH AS BRONCHOPULMONARY DYSPLASIA (BPD), CHRONIC OBSTRUCTIVE PULMONARY DISEASE (COPD), AND IDIOPATHIC PULMONARY FIBROSIS (IPF), EPIGENETIC MECHANISMS REGULATING PROLIFERATION AND DIFFERENTIATION OF AMYFS REMAIN POORLY UNDERSTOOD. PROTEIN ARGININE METHYLTRANSFERASE 7 (PRMT7) IS THE ONLY REPORTED TYPE III ENZYME RESPONSIBLE FOR MONOMETHYLATION OF ARGININE RESIDUE ON BOTH HISTONE AND NONHISTONE SUBSTRATES. HERE WE PROVIDE EVIDENCE FOR PRMT7'S FUNCTION IN REGULATING AMYFS PROLIFERATION AND DIFFERENTIATION DURING LUNG ALVEOLOGENESIS. IN PRMT7-DEFICIENT MICE, WE FOUND REDUCED AMYFS PROLIFERATION AND DIFFERENTIATION, ABNORMAL ELASTIN DEPOSITION, AND FAILURE OF ALVEOLAR SEPTUM FORMATION. WE FURTHER SHOWN THAT ONCOGENE FORKHEAD BOX M1 (FOXM1) IS A DIRECT TARGET OF PRMT7 AND THAT PRMT7-CATALYZED MONOMETHYLATION AT HISTONE H4 ARGININE 3 (H4R3ME1) DIRECTLY ASSOCIATE WITH CHROMATIN OF FOXM1 TO ACTIVATE ITS TRANSCRIPTION, AND THEREBY REGULATE OF CELL CYCLE-RELATED GENES TO INHIBIT AMYFS PROLIFERATION AND DIFFERENTIATION. OVEREXPRESSION OF FOXM1 IN ISOLATED MYOFIBROBLASTS (MYFS) SIGNIFICANTLY RESCUED PRMT7-DEFICIENCY-INDUCED CELL PROLIFERATION AND DIFFERENTIATION DEFECTS. THUS, OUR RESULTS REVEAL A NOVEL EPIGENETIC MECHANISM THROUGH WHICH PRMT7-MEDIATED HISTONE ARGININE MONOMETHYLATION ACTIVATES FOXM1 TRANSCRIPTIONAL EXPRESSION TO REGULATE AMYFS PROLIFERATION AND DIFFERENTIATION DURING LUNG ALVEOLOGENESIS AND MAY REPRESENT A POTENTIAL TARGET FOR INTERVENTION IN PULMONARY DISEASES. 2021 7 4450 27 MOLECULAR MECHANISMS AND CELLULAR CONTRIBUTION FROM LUNG FIBROSIS TO LUNG CANCER DEVELOPMENT. IDIOPATHIC PULMONARY FIBROSIS (IPF) IS A CHRONIC, PROGRESSIVE, FIBROSING INTERSTITIAL LUNG DISEASE (ILD) OF UNKNOWN AETIOLOGY, WITH A MEDIAN SURVIVAL OF 2-4 YEARS FROM THE TIME OF DIAGNOSIS. ALTHOUGH IPF HAS UNKNOWN AETIOLOGY BY DEFINITION, THERE HAVE BEEN IDENTIFIED SEVERAL RISKS FACTORS INCREASING THE PROBABILITY OF THE ONSET AND PROGRESSION OF THE DISEASE IN IPF PATIENTS SUCH AS CIGARETTE SMOKING AND ENVIRONMENTAL RISK FACTORS ASSOCIATED WITH DOMESTIC AND OCCUPATIONAL EXPOSURE. AMONG THEM, CIGARETTE SMOKING TOGETHER WITH CONCOMITANT EMPHYSEMA MIGHT PREDISPOSE IPF PATIENTS TO LUNG CANCER (LC), MOSTLY TO NON-SMALL CELL LUNG CANCER (NSCLC), INCREASING THE RISK OF LUNG CANCER DEVELOPMENT. TO THIS PURPOSE, IPF AND LC SHARE SEVERAL CELLULAR AND MOLECULAR PROCESSES DRIVING THE PROGRESSION OF BOTH PATHOLOGIES SUCH AS FIBROBLAST TRANSITION PROLIFERATION AND ACTIVATION, ENDOPLASMIC RETICULUM STRESS, OXIDATIVE STRESS, AND MANY GENETIC AND EPIGENETIC MARKERS THAT PREDISPOSE IPF PATIENTS TO LC DEVELOPMENT. NINTEDANIB, A TYROSINE-KINASE INHIBITOR, WAS FIRSTLY DEVELOPED AS AN ANTICANCER DRUG AND THEN RECOGNIZED AS AN ANTI-FIBROTIC AGENT BASED ON THE COMMON TARGET MOLECULAR PATHWAY. IN THIS REVIEW OUR AIM IS TO DESCRIBE THE UPDATED STUDIES ON COMMON CELLULAR AND MOLECULAR MECHANISMS BETWEEN IPF AND LUNG CANCER, KNOWLEDGE OF WHICH MIGHT HELP TO FIND NOVEL THERAPEUTIC TARGETS FOR THIS DISEASE COMBINATION. 2021 8 3514 28 IDIOPATHIC PULMONARY FIBROSIS: PATHOGENESIS AND THERAPEUTIC APPROACHES. IDIOPATHIC PULMONARY FIBROSIS (IPF), ALSO TERMED CRYPTOGENIC FIBROSING ALVEOLITIS, IS A CLINICOPATHOLOGICAL SYNDROME CHARACTERISED BY COUGH, EXERTIONAL DYSPNEOA, BASILAR CRACKLES, A RESTRICTIVE DEFECT ON PULMONARY FUNCTION TESTS, HONEYCOMBING ON HIGH-RESOLUTION, THIN-SECTION COMPUTED TOMOGRAPHIC SCANS AND THE HISTOLOGICAL DIAGNOSIS OF USUAL INTERSTITIAL PNEUMONIA ON LUNG BIOPSY. THE COURSE IS USUALLY INDOLENT BUT INEXORABLE. MOST PATIENTS DIE OF PROGRESSIVE RESPIRATORY FAILURE WITHIN 3-8 YEARS OF THE ONSET OF SYMPTOMS. CURRENT THERAPIES ARE OF UNPROVEN BENEFIT. ALTHOUGH THE PATHOGENESIS OF IPF HAS NOT BEEN ELUCIDATED, EARLY CONCEPTS FOCUSED ON LUNG INJURY LEADING TO A CYCLE OF CHRONIC ALVEOLAR INFLAMMATION EVENTUATING IN FIBROSIS AND DESTRUCTION OF THE LUNG ARCHITECTURE. ANTI-INFLAMMATORY THERAPIES EMPLOYING CORTICOSTEROIDS OR IMMUNOSUPPRESSIVE OR CYTOTOXIC AGENTS HAVE BEEN DISAPPOINTING. MORE RECENT HYPOTHESES ACKNOWLEDGE THAT SEQUENTIAL ALVEOLAR EPITHELIAL CELL INJURY IS LIKELY TO BE A KEY EVENT IN THE PATHOGENESIS OF IPF, BUT THE CARDINAL EVENT IS AN ABERRANT HOST RESPONSE TO WOUND HEALING. IN THIS CONTEXT, ABNORMAL EPITHELIAL-MESENCHYMAL INTERACTIONS, ALTERED FIBROBLAST PHENOTYPES, EXAGGERATED FIBROBLAST PROLIFERATION, AND EXCESSIVE DEPOSITION OF COLLAGEN AND EXTRACELLULAR MATRIX ARE PIVOTAL TO THE FIBROTIC PROCESS. SEVERAL CLINICAL TRIALS ARE CURRENTLY UNDERWAY OR IN THE PLANNING STAGES, AND INCLUDE DRUGS SUCH AS INTERFERON-GAMMA 1B, PIRFENIDONE, ACETYLCYSTEINE, ETANERCEPT (A TUMOR NECROSIS FACTOR-ALPHA ANTAGONIST), BOSENTAN (AN ENDOTHELIN-1 RECEPTOR ANTAGONIST) AND ZILEUTON (A 5-LYPOXYGENASE INHIBITOR). FUTURE THERAPEUTIC STRATEGIES SHOULD BE FOCUSED ON ALVEOLAR EPITHELIAL CELLS AIMED AT ENHANCING RE-EPITHELIALISATION AND ON FIBROBLASTIC/MYOFIBROBLASTIC FOCI, WHICH PLAY AN ESSENTIAL ROLE IN THE DEVELOPMENT OF IPF. STEM CELL PROGENITORS OF THE ALVEOLAR EPITHELIAL CELLS AND GENETIC AND EPIGENETIC THERAPIES ARE ATTRACTIVE FUTURE APPROACHES FOR THIS AND OTHER FIBROTIC LUNG DISORDERS. 2004 9 760 20 CASZ1: CURRENT IMPLICATIONS IN CARDIOVASCULAR DISEASES AND CANCERS. CASTOR ZINC FINGER 1 (CASZ1) IS A C2H2 ZINC FINGER FAMILY PROTEIN THAT HAS TWO SPLICING VARIANTS, CASZ1A AND CASZ1B. IT IS INVOLVED IN MULTIPLE PHYSIOLOGICAL PROCESSES, SUCH AS TISSUE DIFFERENTIATION AND ALDOSTERONE ANTAGONISM. GENETIC AND EPIGENETIC ALTERNATIONS OF CASZ1 HAVE BEEN CHARACTERIZED IN MULTIPLE CARDIOVASCULAR DISORDERS, SUCH AS CONGENITAL HEART DISEASES, CHRONIC VENOUS DISEASES, AND HYPERTENSION. HOWEVER, LITTLE IS KNOWN ABOUT HOW CASZ1 MECHANICALLY PARTICIPATES IN THE PATHOGENESIS OF THESE DISEASES. OVER THE PAST DECADES, AT FIRST GLANCE, PARADOXICAL INFLUENCES ON CELL BEHAVIORS AND PROGRESSIONS OF DIFFERENT CANCER TYPES HAVE BEEN DISCOVERED FOR CASZ1, WHICH MAY BE EXPLAINED BY A "DOUBLE-AGENT" ROLE FOR CASZ1. IN THIS REVIEW, WE DISCUSS THE PHYSIOLOGICAL FUNCTION OF CASZ1, AND FOCUS ON THE ASSOCIATION OF CASZ1 ABERRATIONS WITH THE PATHOGENESIS OF CARDIOVASCULAR DISEASES AND CANCERS. 2023 10 3862 19 ISOPATHIC USE OF AUTO-SARCODE OF DNA AS ANTI-MIASMATIC HOMEOPATHIC MEDICINE AND MODULATOR OF GENE EXPRESSION? INTRODUCTION: IN ADDITION TO THE FOUR PILLARS OF HOMEOPATHY, VITALISM AND THE MIASMATIC THEORY ARE OFTEN USED TO EXPLAIN THE HEALTH-DISEASE PROCESS. ACCORDING TO HAHNEMANN'S CONCEPTS, HOMEOPATHIC MIASMS ARE THE MAIN OBSTACLE TO THE CURE OF CHRONIC DISEASES, WITH PSORA BEING THE FUNDAMENTAL CAUSE OF ALL FORMS OF DISEASES. ACCORDING TO MODERN GENETICS, THE DISEASE-PROMOTING EPIGENETIC ALTERATIONS ARE THE FUNDAMENTAL CAUSE OF THE MANIFESTATION OF CHRONIC DISEASES. OBJECTIVE: THIS ARTICLE DEVELOPS A PHILOSOPHICAL-SCIENTIFIC CORRELATION BETWEEN CHRONIC MIASMS AND DISEASE-PROMOTING EPIGENETIC MODIFICATIONS, AIMING TO JUSTIFY THE ISOPATHIC USE OF AUTO-SARCODE OF AN INDIVIDUAL'S DNA AS HOMEOPATHIC MEDICINE. RESULTS: BASED ON THE STUDY OF HOMEOPATHIC DOCTRINE AND EPIGENETICS, A CONCEPTUAL AND FUNCTIONAL CORRELATION IS OBSERVED BETWEEN HOMEOPATHIC CHRONIC MIASMS AND DISEASE-PROMOTING EPIGENETIC MODIFICATIONS. ADDITIONALLY, SEVERAL EXPERIMENTAL STUDIES SUGGEST THAT HOMEOPATHY'S MECHANISM OF ACTION MAY BE BY MODULATING GENE EXPRESSION. CONCLUSIONS: BY THE PHILOSOPHICAL-SCIENTIFIC CORRELATIONS DESCRIBED, IT IS INFERRED THAT DISEASE-PROMOTING EPIGENETIC ALTERATIONS ARE THE BIOLOGICAL REPRESENTATION OF THE CHRONIC MIASMS, SUGGESTING THE ISOPATHIC USE OF AUTO-SARCODE OF DNA AS HOMEOPATHIC THERAPEUTIC MODULATOR OF GENE EXPRESSION FOR THE MANAGEMENT OF CHRONIC DISEASES. 2019 11 3933 20 LIVER SINUSOIDAL ENDOTHELIAL CELLS ARE IMPLICATED IN MULTIPLE FIBROTIC MECHANISMS. CHRONIC LIVER DISEASES ARE ATTRIBUTED TO LIVER INJURY. DEVELOPMENT OF FIBROSIS FROM CHRONIC LIVER DISEASES IS A DYNAMIC PROCESS THAT INVOLVES MULTIPLE MOLECULAR AND CELLULAR PROCESSES. AS THE FIRST TO BE IMPACTED BY INJURY, LIVER SINUSOIDAL ENDOTHELIAL CELLS (LSECS) ARE INVOLVED IN THE PATHOGENESIS OF LIVER DISEASES CAUSED BY A VARIETY OF ETIOLOGIES. MOREOVER, CAPILLARIZATION OF LSECS HAS BEEN RECOGNIZED AS AN IMPORTANT EVENT IN THE DEVELOPMENT OF CHRONIC LIVER DISEASES AND FIBROSIS. STUDIES HAVE REPORTED THAT VARIOUS CYTOKINES (SUCH AS VASCULAR ENDOTHELIAL GROWTH FACTOR, TRANSFORMING GROWTH FACTOR-BETA), AND PATHWAYS (SUCH AS HEDGEHOG, AND NOTCH), AS WELL AS EPIGENETIC AND METABOLIC FACTORS ARE INVOLVED IN THE DEVELOPMENT OF LSEC-MEDIATED LIVER FIBROSIS. THIS REVIEW DESCRIBES THE COMPLEXITY AND PLASTICITY OF LSECS IN FIBROTIC LIVER DISEASES FROM SEVERAL PERSPECTIVES, INCLUDING THE CROSS-TALK BETWEEN LSECS AND OTHER INTRA-HEPATIC CELLS. MOREOVER, IT SUMMARIZES THE MECHANISMS OF SEVERAL KINDS OF LSECS-TARGETING ANTI-FIBROSIS CHEMICALS, AND PROVIDES A THEORETICAL BASIS FOR FUTURE STUDIES. 2021 12 2818 15 FIBROSIS UNDER ARREST. APPROXIMATELY 5% OF PEOPLE THAT ARE HOSPITALIZED FOR ANY REASON DEVELOP ACUTE KIDNEY FAILURE, WHICH, IN SOME CASES, PROGRESSES TO A CHRONIC CONDITION RESULTING IN FIBROSIS OF THE KIDNEY AND PERMANENT CHANGES IN THE ORGAN'S FUNCTION. TWO NEW STUDIES SUGGEST THAT CELL CYCLE ARREST OF EPITHELIAL CELLS AND EPIGENETIC MODIFICATIONS HAVE KEY ROLES IN THE SWITCH TO CHRONIC DISEASE (PAGES 535-543 AND 544-550). 2010 13 5763 18 SOME COMMENTS ON MASOCHISM AND THE DELUSION OF OMNIPOTENCE FROM A DEVELOPMENTAL PERSPECTIVE. THIS PAPER EXPLORES THE RELATION OF THE DELUSION OF OMNIPOTENCE TO MASOCHISM AND SUGGESTS THAT THIS FANTASY CONSTITUTES A MAJOR COMPONENT OF THE RESISTANCE SO PROMINENT IN WORK WITH MASOCHISTIC PATIENTS. THE CONNECTIONS AMONG MASOCHISM, OMNIPOTENCE, NEGATIVE THERAPEUTIC REACTION, AND CLINGING TO PAIN ARE DISCUSSED. THE CLASSICAL VIEW HAS BEEN THAT THE FAILURE OF INFANTILE OMNIPOTENCE FORCES THE CHILD TO TURN TO REALITY. OUR EXPERIENCE WITH MASOCHISTIC PATIENTS SUGGESTS THAT IT IS THE REAL FAILURE TO ACHIEVE COMPETENT INTERACTIONS WITH OTHERS THAT FORCES THE CHILD TO TURN TO OMNIPOTENT SOLUTIONS. THE DISTINCTION IS MADE BETWEEN FANTASIES THAT ENHANCE THE REAL CAPACITIES OF THE SELF AND THOSE AIMED AT DENYING AND TRANSFORMING THE PAIN AND INADEQUACY OF THE MOTHER-CHILD RELATIONSHIP. THE EPIGENETIC TRANSFORMATIONS OF OMNIPOTENT FANTASIES THROUGH ALL LEVELS OF DEVELOPMENT ARE DESCRIBED. THE PATIENT'S NEED TO PROTECT THE OMNIPOTENT FANTASY IS DISCUSSED IN RELATION TO RESISTANCE AT EACH PHASE OF ANALYSIS. 1991 14 2640 20 EPIGENOMIC AND TRANSCRIPTIONAL PROFILING IDENTIFIES IMPAIRED GLYOXYLATE DETOXIFICATION IN NAFLD AS A RISK FACTOR FOR HYPEROXALURIA. EPIGENETIC MODIFICATIONS (E.G. DNA METHYLATION) IN NAFLD AND THEIR CONTRIBUTION TO DISEASE PROGRESSION AND EXTRAHEPATIC COMPLICATIONS ARE POORLY EXPLORED. HERE, WE USE AN INTEGRATED EPIGENOME AND TRANSCRIPTOME ANALYSIS OF MOUSE NAFLD HEPATOCYTES AND IDENTIFY ALTERATIONS IN GLYOXYLATE METABOLISM, A PATHWAY RELEVANT IN KIDNEY DAMAGE VIA OXALATE RELEASE-A HARMFUL WASTE PRODUCT AND KIDNEY STONE-PROMOTING FACTOR. DOWNREGULATION AND HYPERMETHYLATION OF ALANINE-GLYOXYLATE AMINOTRANSFERASE (AGXT), WHICH DETOXIFIES GLYOXYLATE, PREVENTING EXCESSIVE OXALATE ACCUMULATION, IS ACCOMPANIED BY INCREASED OXALATE FORMATION AFTER METABOLISM OF THE PRECURSOR HYDROXYPROLINE. VIRAL-MEDIATED AGXT TRANSFER OR INHIBITING HYDROXYPROLINE CATABOLISM RESCUES EXCESSIVE OXALATE RELEASE. IN HUMAN STEATOTIC HEPATOCYTES, AGXT IS ALSO DOWNREGULATED AND HYPERMETHYLATED, AND IN NAFLD ADOLESCENTS, STEATOSIS SEVERITY CORRELATES WITH URINARY OXALATE EXCRETION. THUS, THIS WORK IDENTIFIES A REDUCED CAPACITY OF THE STEATOTIC LIVER TO DETOXIFY GLYOXYLATE, TRIGGERING ELEVATED OXALATE, AND PROVIDES A MECHANISTIC EXPLANATION FOR THE INCREASED RISK OF KIDNEY STONES AND CHRONIC KIDNEY DISEASE IN NAFLD PATIENTS. 2021 15 3512 22 IDIOPATHIC PULMONARY FIBROSIS. IDIOPATHIC PULMONARY FIBROSIS IS A DEVASTATING, AGE-RELATED LUNG DISEASE OF UNKNOWN CAUSE THAT HAS FEW TREATMENT OPTIONS. THIS DISEASE WAS ONCE THOUGHT TO BE A CHRONIC INFLAMMATORY PROCESS, BUT CURRENT EVIDENCE INDICATES THAT THE FIBROTIC RESPONSE IS DRIVEN BY ABNORMALLY ACTIVATED ALVEOLAR EPITHELIAL CELLS (AECS). THESE CELLS PRODUCE MEDIATORS THAT INDUCE THE FORMATION OF FIBROBLAST AND MYOFIBROBLAST FOCI THROUGH THE PROLIFERATION OF RESIDENT MESENCHYMAL CELLS, ATTRACTION OF CIRCULATING FIBROCYTES, AND STIMULATION OF THE EPITHELIAL TO MESENCHYMAL TRANSITION. THE FIBROBLAST AND MYOFIBROBLAST FOCI SECRETE EXCESSIVE AMOUNTS OF EXTRACELLULAR MATRIX, MAINLY COLLAGENS, RESULTING IN SCARRING AND DESTRUCTION OF THE LUNG ARCHITECTURE. THE MECHANISMS THAT LINK IDIOPATHIC PULMONARY FIBROSIS WITH AGEING AND ABERRANT EPITHELIAL ACTIVATION ARE UNKNOWN; EVIDENCE SUGGESTS THAT THE ABNORMAL RECAPITULATION OF DEVELOPMENTAL PATHWAYS AND EPIGENETIC CHANGES HAVE A ROLE. IN THIS SEMINAR, WE REVIEW RECENT DATA ON THE CLINICAL COURSE, THERAPEUTIC OPTIONS, AND UNDERLYING MECHANISMS THOUGHT TO BE INVOLVED IN THE PATHOGENESIS OF IDIOPATHIC PULMONARY FIBROSIS. 2011 16 6888 17 [ROLE OF VASCULAR AGING IN THE PATHOGENESIS OF ABDOMINAL AORTIC ANEURYSM AND POTENTIAL THERAPEUTIC TARGETS]. ABDOMINAL AORTIC ANEURYSM(AAA)IS A COMMON AORTIC DEGENERATIVE DISEASE IN THE ELDERLY,AND ITS INCIDENCE IS GRADUALLY INCREASING WITH THE AGING OF THE POPULATION.THERE ARE NO SPECIFIC DRUGS AVAILABLE TO DELAY THE EXPANSION OF AAA.ONCE THE ANEURYSM RUPTURES,THE MORTALITY WILL EXCEED 90%,WHICH SERIOUSLY THREATENS THE LIFE OF PATIENTS.GIVEN THE HIGH INCIDENCE OF AAA IN THE ELDERLY,THIS REVIEW DISCUSSES THE ROLE OF VASCULAR AGING IN THE PATHOGENESIS OF AAA,INVOLVING CHRONIC INFLAMMATION,OXIDATIVE STRESS,MITOCHONDRIAL DYSFUNCTION,PROTEIN HOMEOSTASIS IMBALANCE,INCREASED APOPTOSIS AND NECROSIS,EXTRACELLULAR MATRIX REMODELING,NUTRITIONAL SENSING DISORDERS,EPIGENETIC CHANGES,AND INCREASED PRO-AGING FACTORS.MEANWHILE,SEVERAL POTENTIAL AGING-RELATED DRUG TARGETS OF AAA ARE LISTED.THIS REVIEW PROVIDES NEW IDEAS FOR BASIC AND TRANSLATIONAL MEDICAL RESEARCH OF AAA. 2021 17 1679 21 DRUG RESISTANCE IN GIARDIA DUODENALIS. GIARDIA DUODENALIS IS A MICROAEROPHILIC PARASITE OF THE HUMAN GASTROINTESTINAL TRACT AND A MAJOR CONTRIBUTOR TO DIARRHEAL AND POST-INFECTIOUS CHRONIC GASTROINTESTINAL DISEASE WORLD-WIDE. TREATMENT OF G. DUODENALIS INFECTION CURRENTLY RELIES ON A SMALL NUMBER OF DRUG CLASSES. NITROHETEROCYCLICS, IN PARTICULAR METRONIDAZOLE, HAVE REPRESENTED THE FRONT LINE TREATMENT FOR THE LAST 40 YEARS. NITROHETEROCYCLIC-RESISTANT G. DUODENALIS HAVE BEEN ISOLATED FROM PATIENTS AND CREATED IN VITRO, PROMPTING CONSIDERABLE RESEARCH INTO THE BIOMOLECULAR MECHANISMS OF RESISTANCE. THESE COMPOUNDS ARE REDOX-ACTIVE AND ARE BELIEVED TO DAMAGE PROTEINS AND DNA AFTER BEING ACTIVATED BY OXIDOREDUCTASE ENZYMES IN METABOLICALLY ACTIVE CELLS. IN THIS REVIEW, WE EXPLORE THE MOLECULAR PHENOTYPES OF NITROHETEROCYCLIC-RESISTANT G. DUODENALIS DESCRIBED TO DATE IN THE CONTEXT OF THE PROTIST'S UNUSUAL GLYCOLYTIC AND ANTIOXIDANT SYSTEMS. WE PROPOSE THAT RESISTANCE MECHANISMS ARE LIKELY TO EXTEND WELL BEYOND CURRENTLY DESCRIBED RESISTANCE-ASSOCIATED ENZYMES (I.E., PYRUVATE FERREDOXIN OXIDOREDUCTASES AND NITROREDUCTASES), TO INCLUDE NAD(P)H- AND FLAVIN-GENERATING PATHWAYS, AND POSSIBLY REDOX-SENSITIVE EPIGENETIC REGULATION. MECHANISMS THAT ALLOW G. DUODENALIS TO TOLERATE OXIDATIVE STRESS MAY LEAD TO RESISTANCE AGAINST BOTH OXYGEN AND NITROHETEROCYCLICS, WITH IMPLICATIONS FOR CLINICAL CONTROL. THE PRESENT REVIEW HIGHLIGHTS THE POTENTIAL FOR SYSTEMS BIOLOGY TOOLS AND ADVANCED BIOINFORMATICS TO FURTHER INVESTIGATE THE MULTIFACETED MECHANISMS OF NITROHETEROCYCLIC RESISTANCE IN THIS IMPORTANT PATHOGEN. 2015 18 4226 15 METHYLATION IN PERICYTES AFTER ACUTE INJURY PROMOTES CHRONIC KIDNEY DISEASE. THE ORIGIN AND FATE OF RENAL MYOFIBROBLASTS IS NOT CLEAR AFTER ACUTE KIDNEY INJURY (AKI). HERE, WE DEMONSTRATE THAT MYOFIBROBLASTS WERE ACTIVATED FROM QUIESCENT PERICYTES (QPERICYTES) AND THE CELL NUMBERS INCREASED AFTER ISCHEMIA/REPERFUSION INJURY-INDUCED AKI (IRI-AKI). MYOFIBROBLASTS UNDERWENT APOPTOSIS DURING RENAL RECOVERY BUT ONE-FIFTH OF THEM SURVIVED IN THE RECOVERED KIDNEYS ON DAY 28 AFTER IRI-AKI AND THEIR CELL NUMBERS INCREASED AGAIN AFTER DAY 56. MICROARRAY DATA SHOWED THE DISTINCTIVE GENE EXPRESSION PATTERNS OF QPERICYTES, ACTIVATED PERICYTES (APERICYTES, MYOFIBROBLASTS), AND INACTIVATED PERICYTES (IPERICYTES) ISOLATED FROM KIDNEYS BEFORE, ON DAY 7, AND ON DAY 28 AFTER IRI-AKI. HYPERMETHYLATION OF THE ACTA2 REPRESSOR YBX2 DURING IRI-AKI RESULTED IN EPIGENETIC MODIFICATION OF IPERICYTES TO PROMOTE THE TRANSITION TO CHRONIC KIDNEY DISEASE (CKD) AND AGGRAVATED FIBROGENESIS INDUCED BY A SECOND AKI INDUCED BY ADENINE. MECHANISTICALLY, TRANSFORMING GROWTH FACTOR-BETA1 DECREASED THE BINDING OF YBX2 TO THE PROMOTER OF ACTA2 AND INDUCED YBX2 HYPERMETHYLATION, THEREBY INCREASING ALPHA-SMOOTH MUSCLE ACTIN EXPRESSION IN APERICYTES. DEMETHYLATION BY 5-AZACYTIDINE RECOVERED THE MICROVASCULAR STABILIZING FUNCTION OF APERICYTES, REVERSED THE PROFIBROTIC PROPERTY OF IPERICYTES, PREVENTED AKI-CKD TRANSITION, AND ATTENUATED FIBROGENESIS INDUCED BY A SECOND ADENINE-AKI. IN CONCLUSION, INTERVENTION TO ERASE HYPERMETHYLATION OF PERICYTES AFTER AKI PROVIDES A STRATEGY TO STOP THE TRANSITION TO CKD. 2020 19 238 23 ADENOSINE KINASE: A KEY REGULATOR OF PURINERGIC PHYSIOLOGY. ADENOSINE (ADO) IS AN ESSENTIAL BIOMOLECULE FOR LIFE THAT PROVIDES CRITICAL REGULATION OF ENERGY UTILIZATION AND HOMEOSTASIS. ADENOSINE KINASE (ADK) IS AN EVOLUTIONARY ANCIENT RIBOKINASE DERIVED FROM BACTERIAL SUGAR KINASES THAT IS WIDELY EXPRESSED IN ALL FORMS OF LIFE, TISSUES AND ORGAN SYSTEMS THAT TIGHTLY REGULATES INTRACELLULAR AND EXTRACELLULAR ADO CONCENTRATIONS. THE FACILE ABILITY OF ADK TO ALTER ADO AVAILABILITY PROVIDES A "SITE AND EVENT" SPECIFICITY TO THE ENDOGENOUS PROTECTIVE EFFECTS OF ADO IN SITUATIONS OF CELLULAR STRESS. IN ADDITION TO MODULATING THE ABILITY OF ADO TO ACTIVATE ITS COGNATE RECEPTORS (P1 RECEPTORS), NUCLEAR ADK ISOFORM ACTIVITY HAS BEEN LINKED TO EPIGENETIC MECHANISMS BASED ON TRANSMETHYLATION PATHWAYS. PREVIOUS DRUG DISCOVERY RESEARCH HAS TARGETED ADK INHIBITION AS A THERAPEUTIC APPROACH TO MANAGE EPILEPSY, PAIN, AND INFLAMMATION. THESE EFFORTS GENERATED MULTIPLE CLASSES OF HIGHLY POTENT AND SELECTIVE INHIBITORS. HOWEVER, CLINICAL DEVELOPMENT OF EARLY ADK INHIBITORS WAS STOPPED DUE TO APPARENT MECHANISTIC TOXICITY AND THE LACK OF SUITABLE TRANSLATIONAL MARKERS. NEW INSIGHTS REGARDING THE POTENTIAL ROLE OF THE NUCLEAR ADK ISOFORM (ADK-LONG) IN THE EPIGENETIC MODULATION OF MALADAPTIVE DNA METHYLATION OFFERS THE POSSIBILITY OF IDENTIFYING NOVEL ADK-ISOFORM SELECTIVE INHIBITORS AND NEW INTERVENTIONAL STRATEGIES THAT ARE INDEPENDENT OF ADO RECEPTOR ACTIVATION. 2021 20 3059 24 GENOME-WIDE DNA METHYLATION ANALYSIS OF ASTRAGALUS AND DANSHEN ON THE INTERVENTION OF MYOFIBROBLAST ACTIVATION IN IDIOPATHIC PULMONARY FIBROSIS. BACKGROUND: IDIOPATHIC PULMONARY FIBROSIS (IPF), A CHRONIC PROGRESSIVE INTERSTITIAL LUNG DISEASE OF UNKNOWN ETIOLOGY, IS CHARACTERIZED BY CONTINUOUS DAMAGE TO ALVEOLAR EPITHELIAL CELLS, ABNORMAL REPAIR OF ALVEOLAR TISSUE, AND ALVEOLAR WALL SCAR FORMATION. CURRENTLY, THE RECOMMENDED TREATMENT FOR IPF IN WESTERN MEDICINE IS RELATIVELY LIMITED. IN CONTRAST, TRADITIONAL CHINESE MEDICINE AND COMPOUND PRESCRIPTIONS SHOW ADVANTAGES IN THE DIAGNOSIS AND TREATMENT OF IPF, WHICH CAN BE ATTRIBUTED TO THEIR MULTI-CHANNEL AND MULTI-TARGET CHARACTERISTICS AND MINIMAL SIDE-EFFECTS. THE PURPOSE OF THIS STUDY WAS TO FURTHER CORROBORATE THE EFFECTIVENESS AND SIGNIFICANCE OF THE TRADITIONAL CHINESE MEDICATIONS ASTRAGALUS AND DANSHEN IN IPF TREATMENT. METHODS: WE PERFORMED WHOLE-GENOME METHYLATION ANALYSIS ON NINE RAT LUNG TISSUE SAMPLES TO DETERMINE THE EPIGENETIC VARIATION BETWEEN IPF AND NON-FIBROTIC LUNGS USING GENE ONTOLOGY AND KYOTO ENCYCLOPEDIA OF GENES AND GENOMES PATHWAY ENRICHMENT ANALYSES AND QUANTITATIVE REVERSE TRANSCRIPTION POLYMERASE CHAIN REACTIONS. RESULTS: WE IDENTIFIED DIFFERENTIALLY METHYLATED REGIONS AND 105 ASSOCIATED KEY FUNCTIONAL GENES IN SAMPLES RELATED TO IPF AND CHINESE MEDICINE TREATMENT. BASED ON THE METHYLATION LEVELS AND GENE EXPRESSION PROFILES BETWEEN THE CHINESE MEDICINE INTERVENTION AND PULMONARY FIBROSIS MODEL GROUPS, WE SPECULATED THAT ASTRAGALUS AND SALVIA MILTIORRHIZA (TRADITIONALLY KNOWN AS DANSHEN) ACT ON THE ISL1, FORKHEAD BOX O3, AND SONIC HEDGEHOG GENES VIA REGULATION AT TRANSCRIPTIONAL AND EPIGENETIC LEVELS DURING IPF. CONCLUSIONS: THESE FINDINGS PROVIDE NOVEL INSIGHTS INTO THE EPIGENETIC REGULATION OF IPF, INDICATE THE EFFECTIVENESS OF ASTRAGALUS AND DANSHEN IN TREATING IPF, AND SUGGEST SEVERAL PROMISING THERAPEUTIC TARGETS FOR PREVENTING AND TREATING IPF. 2023