Extracellular vesicles as tools and targets in therapy for diseases.

Extracellular vesicles (EVs) are nano-sized, membranous structures secreted into the extracellular space. They exhibit diverse sizes, contents, and surface markers and are ubiquitously released from cells under normal and pathological conditions. Human serum is a rich source of these EVs, though their isolation from serum proteins and non-EV lipid particles poses challenges. These vesicles transport various cellular components such as proteins, mRNAs, miRNAs, DNA, and lipids across distances, influencing numerous physiological and pathological events, including those within the tumor microenvironment (TME). Their pivotal roles in cellular communication make EVs promising candidates for therapeutic agents, drug delivery systems, and disease biomarkers. Especially in cancer diagnostics, EV detection can pave the way for early identification and offers potential as diagnostic biomarkers. Moreover, various EV subtypes are emerging as targeted drug delivery tools, highlighting their potential clinical significance. The need for non-invasive biomarkers to monitor biological processes for diagnostic and therapeutic purposes remains unfulfilled. Tapping into the unique composition of EVs could unlock advanced diagnostic and therapeutic avenues in the future. In this review, we discuss in detail the roles of EVs across various conditions, including cancers (encompassing head and neck, lung, gastric, breast, and hepatocellular carcinoma), neurodegenerative disorders, diabetes, viral infections, autoimmune and renal diseases, emphasizing the potential advancements in molecular diagnostics and drug delivery.

Evaluation and Management of Toxicodendron Dermatitis in the Emergency Department: A Review of Current Practices.

Toxicodendron dermatitis is an underappreciated disease seen in the emergency department. Although self-limiting, symptoms can be distressing and can last for weeks if untreated, particularly with re-exposure. Continuing research has improved our understanding of specific inflammatory markers that are associated with exposure to urushiol-the compound responsible for Toxicodendron dermatitis-although consensus for treatment remains varied and poorly supported. Owing to the lack of recent primary literature on the topic, many providers rely on historical precedent, expert opinion, and personal experience when treating this disease. This article provides a narrative review of the literature currently available on the effects of urushiol on key molecular and cellular functions and the prevention and treatment of Toxicodendron dermatitis.

Paenibacillus arachidis sp. nov., isolated from groundnut seeds.

A Gram-stain-positive, endospore-forming, rod-shaped, facultatively anaerobic bacterium, designated as strain E3T, was isolated from groundnut seeds. Based on the 16S rRNA gene sequence analysis, strain E3T belongs to the genus Paenibacillus with Paenibacillus thailandensis S3-4AT (96.0 %), Paenibacillus xanthinilyticus 11N27T (95.7 %), Paenibacillus mendelii C/2T (95.7 %) and other members of the genus Paenibacillus (<95.5 %) as its closest phylogenetic neighbours. The DNA G+C content of strain E3T was 53 mol%. Strain E3T was positive for gelatin hydrolysis, ammonification, catalase, chitinase production, 1-aminocyclopropane-1-carboxylate (ACC) deaminase activity, HCN production, siderophore production, biofilm formation, and urea and starch hydrolysis. Strain E3T had phosphatidylethanolamine, diphosphotidylglycerol, phosphatidylcholine, an unidentified aminophospholipid, two unidentified aminolipids and two unidentified lipids as polar lipids. Strain E3T had diploptene, deplopterol and bacteriohopaneterol as major hopanoids. anteiso-C15 : 0 was the predominant cellular fatty acid with significant proportions of iso-C16 : 0, C16 : 0, C17 : 0, anteiso-C17 : 0, C18 : 1ω9c and iso-C14 : 0. Strain E3T had meso-diaminopimelic acid as the diagnostic diamino acid in the cell-wall peptidoglycan. On the basis of physiological, biochemical, chemotaxonomic and molecular analysis, strain E3T represents a novel species of the genus Paenibacillus, for which the name Paenibacillus arachidis sp. nov. is proposed. The type strain is E3T (=KCTC 33574T=LMG 28417T).