Search

Prokaryotes have developed numerous innate immune mechanisms in order to fend off bacteriophage or plasmid attack. One of these immune systems is clustered regularly interspaced short palindromic repeats (CRISPR). CRISPR-associated proteins play a key role in survival of prokaryotes against invaders, as these systems cleave DNA of foreign genetic elements. Beyond providing immunity, these systems have significant impact in altering the bacterial physiology in term of its virulence and pathogenicity, as well as evolution. Also, due to their diverse nature of functionality, cas9 endoribonuclease can be easily reprogrammed with the help of guide RNAs, showing unprecedented potential and significance for gene editing in treating genetic diseases. Here, we also discuss the use of NgAgo–gDNA system in genome editing of human cells. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Arsenic (As) is a colorless and tasteless naturally occurring metalloid found in water, air and soil. There are two forms of As, i.e., inorganic and organic, the former form is of serious health concern. In Pakistan, mainly in southern and central parts, the ground water level of As is very high (up to 100 µg/L) as against WHO limits (10 µg/L). In Sindh and Punjab, over 36 and 20% of population is exposed to As contamination. The population is exposed to As by poultry and animal products, drinking water, fumes, dietary sources and dust with the highest concentration in seafood, mushrooms and rice. As alters the physiology of the organs leading to various pathological disorders. This review deals with pathophysiology and clinico-histopathological, immuno-pathological and toxico-pathological effects of As in birds and mammals. © 2014 Friends Science Publishers [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Benefits and risks of antimicrobial drugs, used in food-producing animals, continue to be complex and controversial issues. This review comprehensively presents the benefits of antimicrobials drugs regarding control of animal diseases, protection of public health, enhancement of animal production, improvement of environment, and effects of the drugs on biogas production and public health associated with antimicrobial resistance. The positive and negative impact, due to ban issue of antimicrobial agents used in food-producing animals, is also included in discussion. As a double-edged sword, use of these drugs in food-animals persists as a great challenge. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Coronavirus disease-19 (COVID-19) is a complex disease that causes illness ranging from mild to severe respiratory problems. It is caused by a novel coronavirus SARS-CoV-2 (Severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus-2) that is an enveloped positive-sense single-stranded RNA (+ssRNA) virus belongs to coronavirus CoV family. It has a fast-spreading potential worldwide, which leads to high mortality regardless of lows death rates. Now some vaccines or a specific drug are approved but not available for every country for disease prevention and/or treatment. Therefore, it is a high demand to identify the known drugs and test them as a possible therapeutic approach. In this critical situation, one or more of these drugs may represent the only option to treat or reduce the severity of the disease, until some specific drugs or vaccines will be developed and/or approved for everyone in this pandemic. In this updated review, the available repurpose immunotherapeutic treatment strategies are highlighted, elucidating the crosstalk between the immune system and SARS-CoV-2. Despite the reasonable data availability, the effectiveness and safety of these drugs against SARS-CoV-2 needs further studies and validations aiming for a better clinical outcome. • Effective and novel therapies against COVID-19 are urgently needed. • SARS-CoV-2 invade the immune and nervous system. • Cytokines could be promising therapeutic target for the SARS-CoV-2 severe cases therapy. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]