Reviewing the Regulators of COL1A1.

The collagen family contains 28 proteins, predominantly expressed in the extracellular matrix (ECM) and characterized by a triple-helix structure. Collagens undergo several maturation steps, including post-translational modifications (PTMs) and cross-linking. These proteins are associated with multiple diseases, the most pronounced of which are fibrosis and bone diseases. This review focuses on the most abundant ECM protein highly implicated in disease, type I collagen (collagen I), in particular on its predominant chain collagen type I alpha 1 (COLα1 (I)). An overview of the regulators of COLα1 (I) and COLα1 (I) interactors is presented. Manuscripts were retrieved searching PubMed, using specific keywords related to COLα1 (I). COL1A1 regulators at the epigenetic, transcriptional, post-transcriptional and post-translational levels include DNA Methyl Transferases (DNMTs), Tumour Growth Factor ß (TGFß), Terminal Nucleotidyltransferase 5A (TENT5A) and Bone Morphogenic Protein 1 (BMP1), respectively. COLα1 (I) interacts with a variety of cell receptors including integrinß, Endo180 and Discoidin Domain Receptors (DDRs). Collectively, even though multiple factors have been identified in association to COLα1 (I) function, the implicated pathways frequently remain unclear, underscoring the need for a more spherical analysis considering all molecular levels simultaneously.

Carbon dots conjugated to SN38 for improved colorectal anticancer therapy.

Irinotecan (CTP-11) is one of the standard therapies for colorectal cancer (CRC). CTP-11 is enzymatically converted to the hydrophobic 7-ethyl-10-hydroxycamptothecin (SN38), a one hundred-fold more active metabolite. Conjugation of hydrophobic anticancer drugs to nanomaterials is a strategy to improve their solubility, efficacy, and selectivity. Carbon dots (CDs) have garnered interest for their small sizes (<10 â€‹nm), low toxicity, high water solubility, and bright fluorescence. This paper describes the use of CDs to improve drug vehiculation, stability, and chemotherapeutic efficiency of SN38 through a direct intracellular uptake in CRC. The covalent conjugation of SN38 to CDs via a carbamate bond provides a CD-SN38 hybrid material for slow, sustained, and pH-responsive drug release. CD-SN38 successfully penetrates the CRC cells with a release in the nucleus affecting first the cell cycle and then the cytoskeleton. Moreover, CD-SN38 leads to a deregulation of the extracellular matrix (ECM), one of the major components of the cancer niche considered a possible target therapy for reducing the cancer progression. This work shows the combined therapeutic and imaging potential of CD-based hybrid materials for the treatment of CRC. Future efforts for targeted therapy of chronic diseases characterized by altered ECM deposition, such as chronic kidney disease and chronic allograft nephropathy in kidney transplant patients are envisaged.

Dermatofibrosarcoma protuberans with unusual presentation in vulva / Dermatofibrosarcoma protuberans con presentación inusual en vulva

Abstract Gynecological sarcomas are uncommon and their location in the vulva and vagina has an incidence of 5% of all malignant neoplasms of the female genital tract. We present the case of a 54-year-old patient with a diagnosis of dermatofibrosarcoma protuberans in the vulva, an infrequent pathology, with less than 60 cases reported worldwide in this anatomical location. Clinically it has a locally aggressive behavior, due to the proliferation of spindle cells with pleomorphism and frequent figures of mitosis that infiltrate the reticular dermis and subcutaneous cellular tissue, giving rise to tumor lesions of variable size and with high rates of local recurrence. The treatment of first choice is surgical excision of the tumor with Mohs micrographic surgery or other surgical techniques for complete evaluation of the circumferential and deep peripheral margin. However, the identification of carcinogenesis mechanis ms where the chromosomal translocation t (17; 22) (q22; q13) is recognized, forming the COL1A1-PDGFB fusion gene, which participates in stimulating tumor cell proliferation, allowing treatment with tyrosine kinase inhibitors such as imatinib for neoadjuvant therapy of surgically unresectable tumors and local recurrences.

Resumen Los sarcomas ginecológicos son infrecuentes y la localización de estos en vulva y vagina tienen una incidencia del 5% de todas las neoplasias malignas del tracto genital femenino. Presentamos el caso de una paciente de 54 años con diagnóstico de dermatofibrosarcoma protuberans en vulva, una patología infrecuente, con menos de 60 casos reportados a nivel mundial en esta localización anatómica. Clínicamente tiene un comportamiento localmente agresivo, debido a la proliferación de células fusiformes con pleomorfismo y frecuentes figuras de mitosis que infiltran la dermis reticular y tejido celular subcutáneo, dando origen a lesiones tumorales de tamaño variable y con altas tasas de recurrencia local. El tratamiento en primera elección es la escisión quirúrgica del tumor con cirugía micrográfica de Mohs u otras técnicas quirúrgicas para evaluación completa del margen periférico circunferencial y profundo. Sin embargo, la identificación de mecanismos de carcinogénesis donde se reconoce la translocación cromosómica t (17; 22) (q22; q13), formando al gen de fusión COL1A1-PDGFB, el cual participa estimulando la proliferación celular tumoral, ha permitido la utilización de los inhibidores de la tirosina quinasa como el imatinib para la realización de terapia neoadyuvante en casos de tumores irresecables quirúrgicamente y en recurrencias locales.

Bile acid-receptor TGR5 deficiency worsens liver injury in alcohol-fed mice by inducing intestinal microbiota dysbiosis.

BACKGROUND & AIMS: Bile-acid metabolism and the intestinal microbiota are impaired in alcohol-related liver disease. Activation of the bile-acid receptor TGR5 (or GPBAR1) controls both biliary homeostasis and inflammatory processes. We examined the role of TGR5 in alcohol-induced liver injury in mice. METHODS: We used TGR5-deficient (TGR5-KO) and wild-type (WT) female mice, fed alcohol or not, to study the involvement of liver macrophages, the intestinal microbiota (16S sequencing), and bile-acid profiles (high-performance liquid chromatography coupled to tandem mass spectrometry). Hepatic triglyceride accumulation and inflammatory processes were assessed in parallel. RESULTS: TGR5 deficiency worsened liver injury, as shown by greater steatosis and inflammation than in WT mice. Isolation of liver macrophages from WT and TGR5-KO alcohol-fed mice showed that TGR5 deficiency did not increase the pro-inflammatory phenotype of liver macrophages but increased their recruitment to the liver. TGR5 deficiency induced dysbiosis, independently of alcohol intake, and transplantation of the TGR5-KO intestinal microbiota to WT mice was sufficient to worsen alcohol-induced liver inflammation. Secondary bile-acid levels were markedly lower in alcohol-fed TGR5-KO than normally fed WT and TGR5-KO mice. Consistent with these results, predictive analysis showed the abundance of bacterial genes involved in bile-acid transformation to be lower in alcohol-fed TGR5-KO than WT mice. This altered bile-acid profile may explain, in particular, why bile-acid synthesis was not repressed and inflammatory processes were exacerbated. CONCLUSIONS: A lack of TGR5 was associated with worsening of alcohol-induced liver injury, a phenotype mainly related to intestinal microbiota dysbiosis and an altered bile-acid profile, following the consumption of alcohol. LAY SUMMARY: Excessive chronic alcohol intake can induce liver disease. Bile acids are molecules produced by the liver and can modulate disease severity. We addressed the specific role of TGR5, a bile-acid receptor. We found that TGR5 deficiency worsened alcohol-induced liver injury and induced both intestinal microbiota dysbiosis and bile-acid pool remodelling. Our data suggest that both the intestinal microbiota and TGR5 may be targeted in the context of human alcohol-induced liver injury.