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Despite the improvements in endovascular techniques during the last decades, there is still an increase in the prevalence of peripheral artery disease (PAD) with limited practical treatment, which timeline impact of any intervention for critical limb ischemia (CLI) is poor. Most common treatments are not suitable for many patients due to their underlying diseases, including aging and diabetes. On the one hand, there are limitations for current therapies due to the contraindications of some individuals, and on the other hand, there are many side effects caused by common medications, for instance, anticoagulants. Therefore, novel treatment strategies like regenerative medicine, cell-based therapies, Nano-therapy, gene therapy, and targeted therapy, besides other traditional drugs combination therapy for PAD, are newly considered promising therapy. Genetic material encoding for specific proteins concludes with a potential future for developed treatments. Novel approaches for therapeutic angiogenesis directly used the angiogenetic factors originating from key biomolecules such as genes, proteins, or cell-based therapy to induce blood vessel formation in adult tissues to initiate the recovery process in the ischemic limb. As PAD is associated with high mortality and morbidity of patients causing disability, considering the limited treatment choices for these patients, developing new treatment strategies to prevent PAD progression and extending life expectancy, and preventing threatening complications is urgently needed. This review aims to introduce the current and the novel strategies for PAD treatment that lead to new challenges for relief the patient’s suffered from the disorder.

Background: The association between the severity of coronary atherosclerosis and histopathologic findings in patients with non-alcoholic fatty liver disease (NAFLD) is not entirely understood. Considering the gold standard method, this study evaluates the histopathologic association between the severity of NAFLD and the grades of coronary atherosclerosis. Methods: In this descriptive-analytical study, data from 205 cadavers who were referred to an Iranian (Tabriz) forensic medicine organization between 2015 and 2017 and underwent simultaneous liver and coronary artery biopsies were examined. Finally, 168 cases were entered based on the inclusion criteria. First, pathological slides of these cadavers were extracted from the forensic medicine archive and re-examined. Then, the selected cases’ blocks were extracted from the tissue block bank, and again, after preparing a new slide, they were stained with trichrome for accurate estimation of liver fibrosis. Results: The assessment of NAFLD histological status in the studied cases revealed that 75.6% of the cases were classified as severity I, 18.4% as severity II, and 6% as severity III. Most cases with coronary atherosclerosis were classified as American Heart Association staging (AHA), type V (19.6%), and normal (19.6%). There was no statistically significant relationship between the severity of simple steatosis, steatohepatitis, and NAFLD, with coronary atherosclerosis. In subjects with higher severity of coronary atherosclerosis, the liver fibrosis rate is also higher, but no statistically significant difference was observed. Conclusion: The present study revealed no significant histopathological association between NAFLD and coronary artery atherosclerosis grade.

Abstract Over the past few years, the cancer-related disease has had a high mortality rate and incidence worldwide, despite clinical advances in cancer treatment. The drugs used for cancer therapy, have high side effects in addition to the high cost. Subsequently, to reduce these side effects, many studies have suggested the use of natural bioactive compounds. Among these, which have recently attracted the attention of many researchers, quercetin has such properties. Quercetin, a plant flavonoid found in fresh fruits, vegetables and citrus fruits, has anti-cancer properties by inhibiting tumor proliferation, invasion, and tumor metastasis. Several studies have demonstrated the anti-cancer mechanism of quercetin, and these mechanisms are controlled through several signalling pathways within the cancer cell. Pathways involved in this process include apoptotic, p53, NF-κB, MAPK, JAK/STAT, PI3K/AKT, and Wnt/β-catenin pathways. In addition to regulating these pathways, quercetin controls the activity of oncogenic and tumor suppressor ncRNAs. Therefore, in this comprehensive review, we summarized the regulation of these signalling pathways by quercetin. The modulatory role of quercetin in the expression of various miRNAs has also been discussed. Understanding the basic anti-cancer mechanisms of these herbal compounds can help prevent and manage many types of cancer.

Breast cancer is a public health problem globally and is the most frequent cancer world wide. Currently, anti-inflammatory and anti-cancer drugs are of prime interest in treating some cancers especially breast cancer and have become an exciting challenge for researchers. The use of layered structures consisting of anions and cations called layered double hydroxides (LDHs) has attracted the attention of many researchers in the field of biomedical and pharmaceuticals. LDHs-nanostructures can be used as drug carriers, especially anti-inflammatory and anti-cancer drugs to treat cancers. Thus, the LDHs should have a number of physicochemical properties to act as a desirable drug carrier. Among the primary factors to increase the efficiency of LDHs are their surface characteristics and size, number and type of ions, rapid clearance from the body after drug release, and non-toxicity. All of these properties make LDHs nano-carriers for carrying anti-inflammatory and anti-cancer drugs to treat a variety of cancers. Therefore, we focus on reviewing the nature of LDH nano-carriers and evaluating the desirable properties for drug delivery, drug loading methods into LDH and anti-inflammatory drug delivery methods, their potential applications in biomedical and their toxicity and antimicrobial effects in breast cancer.

Background: Klotho is an aging-suppressor gene that encodes a single-pass transmembrane protein and acts as a hormone. In this study, we aim to investigate the serum α-Klotho level in male opioids addicts with normal kidney function compared to healthy male non-smokers and smokers in Tabriz, Iran. Methods: Participnts were 87 men with normal kidney function referred to Sina Educational Research and Treatment Center in Tabriz, Iran (29 opioids addicts, 29 healthy non-smokers, and 29 healthy smokers). Blood samples were collected to measure the soluble a-Klotho level using an ELISA kit. Furthermore, blood creatinine (Cr) and hemoglobin (Hb) levels was measured. Body mass index (BMI) was also calculated for all participants. Results: In addicts, BMI, Hb, and Cr levels were significantly lower than in healthy non-smokers and smokers, but their Klotho level was higher (P>0.05). The Klotho level in healthy smokers was significantly lower than in healthy non-smokers and addicts. The Klotho level of healthy smokers decreased as the pack year increased, but the duration of opioid addiction had no significant association with the Klotho level. There was no significant difference in the Klotho level between control groups (non-smokers and smokers) and men with addiction to different types of opioids. Conclusion: The Klotho level in male opioid addicts is significantly higher than in smokers. There is a significant negative correlation between BMI and Klotho levels among men with normal BMI and overweight. Further studies are recommended in these fields.

Neuropsychiatric diseases are a group of disorders that cause significant morbidity and disability. The symptoms of psychiatric disorders include anxiety, depression, eating disorders, autism spectrum disorders (ASD), attention-deficit/hyperactivity disorder, and conduct disorder. Various medicinal plants are frequently used as therapeutics in traditional medicine in different parts of the world. Nowadays, using medicinal plants as an alternative medication has been considered due to their biological safety. Despite the wide range of medications, many patients are unable to tolerate the side effects and eventually lose their response. By considering the therapeutic advantages of medicinal plants in the case of side effects, patients may prefer to use them instead of chemical drugs. Today, the use of medicinal plants in traditional medicine is diverse and increasing, and these plants are a precious heritage for humanity. Investigation about traditional medicine continues, and several studies have indicated the basic pharmacology and clinical efficacy of herbal medicine. In this article, we discuss five of the most important and common psychiatric illnesses investigated in various studies along with conventional therapies and their pharmacological therapies. For this comprehensive review, data were obtained from electronic databases such as MedLine/PubMed, Science Direct, Web of Science, EMBASE, DynaMed Plus, ScienceDirect, and TRIP database. Preclinical pharmacology studies have confirmed that some bioactive compounds may have beneficial therapeutic effects in some common psychiatric disorders. The mechanisms of action of the analyzed biocompounds are presented in detail. The bioactive compounds analyzed in this review are promising phytochemicals for adjuvant and complementary drug candidates in the pharmacotherapy of neuropsychiatric diseases. Although comparative studies have been carefully reviewed in the preclinical pharmacology field, no clinical studies have been found to confirm the efficacy of herbal medicines compared to FDA-approved medicines for the treatment of mental disorders. Therefore, future clinical studies are needed to accelerate the potential use of natural compounds in the management of these diseases.

Abstract Background MicroRNAs have a significant role in the function and development of the hearing system. Idiopathic sudden sensorineural hearing loss (SSNHL) is a complicated disorder with no long-established reason. Since microRNAs play imperative roles in every aspect of the neural system, their dysregulation may contribute to the onset of SSNHL. The current study aimed to assess the expression patterns of microRNA processing elements (DROSHA, DICER, and DGCR-8) as the vital factors in microRNA biology that can affect the expression levels of microRNA. This study assessed DROSHA, DICER, and DGCR-8 mRNA expression levels in the peripheral blood mononuclear cells (PBMC) of 50 patients with SSNHL and 50 matched controls. After the isolation of PBMC, total RNA was extracted, and the expression levels of DROSHA, DICER, and DGCR-8 genes were evaluated using quantitative real-time PCR. Results The results illustrated significant up-regulation of DICER and DGCR-8 genes in SSNHL patients at the mRNA level. Furthermore, despite no significant change in DROSHA level, DICER and DGCR-8 were significantly correlated with SSNHL. However, there was no significant correlation between these gene expressions and the clinicopathological features of patients. Conclusion This study verified for the first time that the DGCR_8 and DICER mRNA expression levels were significantly up-regulated in patients with SSNHL, proposing that microRNAs and their processing pathways play key roles in the progression and development of SSNHL.