collagen induction therapy

Rheumatoid arthritis (RA) is a systemic autoimmune disease characterized by abnormal activation of CD4+ T cells and an imbalance of T helper 17 (Th17) and regulatory T (Treg) cells. Tolerogenic therapy via administration of self-antigens is a promising strategy for RA treatment, but delivery of autoantigens alone may exacerbate disease conditions. Current studies indicated that codelivery of autoantigens with immunomodulators can lead to a more tolerogenic immune response. Here, we constructed an autoantigen type II collagen peptide (CII250-270 )- and immunomodulator leflunomide (LEF)-coloaded phosphatidylserine liposome vaccine (CII250-270 -LEF-PSL) for RA treatment via induction of tolerant dendritic cells (tolDC) for further activation of Treg cells...

Spinal cord organoids are of significant value in the research of spinal cord-related diseases by simulating disease states, thereby facilitating the development of novel therapies. However, the complexity of spinal cord structure and physiological functions, along with the lack of human-derived inducing components, presents challenges in the in vitro construction of human spinal cord organoids. Here, we introduce a novel human decellularized placenta-derived extracellular matrix hydrogel (DPECMH) and, combined with a new induction protocol, successfully construct human spinal cord organoids...

OBJECTIVES: To access the real-world clinical management of physicians who treat Takayasu arteritis (TAK) and giant cell arteritis (GCA) after the publication of the Japanese Circulation Society (JCS) 2017 Guidelines for the Management of Vasculitis Syndrome. METHODS: This descriptive, cross-sectional study utilized self-administered electronic questionnaires, which were answered in February 2022 by physicians treating TAK or GCA and registered with Macromill Inc...

BACKGROUND: Collagen XIII is a transmembrane collagen associated with neuromuscular junction development, and in humans its deficiency results in congenital myasthenic syndrome type 19 (CMS19), which leads to breathing difficulties. CMS19 patients usually have restricted lung capacity and one patient developed chronic lung disease. In single-cell RNA sequencing studies, collagen XIII has been identified as a marker for pulmonary lipofibroblasts, which have been implicated in the resolution of pulmonary fibrosis...

Liver fibrosis is a chronic liver disease caused by prolonged liver injuries. Excessive accumulation of extracellular matrix replaces the damaged hepatocytes, leading to fibrous scar formation and fibrosis induction. Lactoferrin (LF) is a glycoprotein with a conserved, monomeric signal polypeptide chain, exhibiting diverse physiological functions, including antioxidant, anti-inflammatory, antibacterial, antifungal, antiviral, and antitumoral activities. Previous study has shown LF's protective role against chemically-induced liver fibrosis in rats...

BACKGROUND: Rheumatoid arthritis (RA) is an autoimmune disease characterized by inflammatory reactions and tissue damage in the joints. Long-term drug use in clinical practice is often accompanied by adverse reactions. Extracorporeal photopheresis (ECP) is an immunomodulatory therapy with few side effects, offering a potential and safe therapeutic alternative for RA through the induction of immune tolerance. This study aimed to investigate the therapeutic effects of ECP on RA using a collagen-induced arthritis (CIA) murine model, as well as to explore its immunomodulatory effects in vivo...

OBJECTIVE: Acute lung injury (ALI) is the prevalent respiratory disease of acute inflammation with high morbidity and mortality. Fortunellin has anti-inflammation property, but its role in ALI remains elusive. Thus, this study clarified the function of fortunellin on ALI pathogenesis. METHODS: The ALI mouse model was established by lipopolysaccharide (LPS) induction, and lung tissue damage was evaluated utilizing hematoxylin-eosin (HE) staining. The edema of lung tissue was measured by the lung wet/dry (W/D) ratio...

PURPOSE: Anthracycline-induced cardiotoxicity (AIC), whose major manifestation is diffuse myocardial fibrosis, is an important clinical problem in cancer therapy. Therefore, early identification and treatment are clinically important. This study aims to explore the feasibility of using 68  Ga-labelled fibroblast activation protein (FAP) inhibitor ([68  Ga]Ga-FAPI) positron emission tomography/computed tomography (PET/CT) for the early identification of the fibrotic process and guidance of antifibrosis therapy in AIC...

The aim of this study was to investigate the influence of systemic antibiotic therapy on the development and progression of induced apical periodontitis (AP) in Wistar rats. Fifty-six rats were submitted to pulp exposure of the lower left first molar for the induction of AP. On the same day, intraperitoneal antibiotic therapy was administered once a day, for 15 days, until euthanasia. The groups were formed according to the different treatments (n = 8): C-control; GEN-treated with gentamicin (10 mg/Kg); AC-treated with amoxicillin (100 mg/Kg); MZ-treated with metronidazole (40 mg/Kg); AMP-treated with ampicillin (100 mg/Kg); AMC group-treated with amoxicillin + clavulanic acid (100 mg/kg); CLI-treated with clindamycin (60 mg/kg)...

BACKGROUND: Mesenchymal stromal cells (MSCs) are increasingly employed in regenerative medicine approaches for their immunomodulatory and anti-inflammatory properties, which are encoded in their secretome including extracellular vesicles (EVs). The Hoffa fat pad (HFP) located infrapatellarly harbours MSCs that could assist in tissue homeostasis in osteoarthritic joints. Intraarticular injection therapies based on blood products could modulate the populations of released HFP-MSC-EVs in a quantitative manner...

Although a lot of effort has been put into creating drugs and combination therapies against chronic hepatitis, no effective treatment has been established. Type-I interferon is a promising therapeutic for chronic hepatitis due to its excellent anti-inflammatory effects through interferon receptors on hepatic macrophages. To develop a type-I IFN equipped with the ability to target hepatic macrophages through the macrophage mannose receptor, the present study designed a mouse type-I interferon-mannosylated albumin fusion protein using site-specific mutagenesis and albumin fusion technology...

Magnetoelectric stimulation is a promising therapy for various disorders due to its high efficacy and safety. To explore its potential in chronic skin wound treatment, we developed a magnetoelectric dressing, CFO@CTAB/PVDF (CCP), by electrospinning cetyltrimethylammonium bromide-modified CoFe2 O4 (CFO) particles with polyvinylidene fluoride. Cetyltrimethylammonium bromide (CTAB) serves as a dispersion surfactant for CFO, with its quaternary ammonium cations imparting antibacterial and hydrophilic properties to the dressing...

Dual pathological barriers, including capillarized liver sinusoidal endothelial cells (LSECs) and deposited extracellular matrix (ECM), result in insufficient drug delivery, significantly compromising the anti-fibrosis efficacy. Additionally, excessive reactive oxygen species (ROS) in the hepatic microenvironment are crucial factors contributing to the progression of liver fibrosis. Hence, hyaluronic acid (HA) modified liposomes co-delivering all-trans retinoic acid (RA) and L-arginine (L-arg) were constructed to reverse hepatic fibrosis...

BACKGROUND/OBJECTIVES: Myocardial infarction (MI) frequently leads to cardiac remodeling and failure with impaired life quality, playing an important role in cardiovascular deaths. Although physical exercise is a well-recognized effective non-pharmacological therapy for cardiovascular diseases, the effects of strength training (ST) on the structural and functional aspects of cardiac remodeling need to be further documented. In this study, we aimed to investigate the role of a linear block ST protocol in the rat model of MI...

PURPOSE: Studies during the past 9 years suggest that delivering radiation at dose rates exceeding 40 Gy/s, known as "FLASH" radiation therapy, enhances the therapeutic index of radiation therapy (RT) by decreasing normal tissue damage while maintaining tumor response compared with conventional (or standard) RT. This study demonstrates the cardioprotective benefits of FLASH proton RT (F-PRT) compared with standard (conventional) proton RT (S-PRT), as evidenced by reduced acute and chronic cardiac toxicities...

Oral mucositis (OM) is a severe complication of cancer therapies caused by off-target cytotoxicity. Palifermin, which is recombinant human keratinocyte growth factor (KGF), is currently the only mitigating treatment available to a subset of OM patients. Determining the cell and molecular mechanisms of cancer treatment-induced OM and the anti-mucositis effects of KGF will aid in identifying effective future treatments. This study evaluates a previously developed oral mucositis on a chip (OM-OC) as a screening platform for anti-mucositis treatments, using KGF as a well-studied example...

INTRODUCTION: Salusins, which are translated from the alternatively spliced mRNA of torsin family 2 member A (TOR2A), play a vital role in regulation of various cardiovascular diseases. However, it remains unclear precisely regarding their roles in hypertrophic cardiomyopathy (HCM). Therefore, this study was conducted to explore therapeutic effect and the underlying mechanisms of salusins on HCM. MATERIAL AND METHODS: In vivo experiments, Sprague-Dawley rats were used to induce HCM model by angiotensin (Ang) II infusion for 4 weeks...

BACKGROUND: Idiopathic pulmonary fibrosis (IPF) is a fatal lung disease of unknown origin, with a median patient survival time of ~3 years after diagnosis without anti-fibrotic therapy. It is characterized by progressive fibrosis indicated by increased collagen deposition and high numbers of fibroblasts in the lung. It has been demonstrated that CCL18 induces collagen and αSMA synthesis in fibroblasts. We aimed to identify the CCL18 receptor responsible for its pro-fibrotic activities...

BACKGROUND: Assessment and validation of endothelial-mesenchymal transition (EndoMT) in the retinal endothelium of patients with proliferative diabetic retinopathy (PDR) at the level of retinal and vitreous specimens, and preliminary discussion of its regulatory mechanisms. METHODS: Transcriptome sequencing profiles of CD31+ cells from 9 retinal fibrovascular mem-branes (FVMs) and 4 postmortem retinas were downloaded from GEO databases to analyze EndoMT-related differentially expressed genes (DEGs)...

Idiopathic pulmonary fibrosis (IPF) is a progressive interstitial lung disease for which there is no curative therapy available. Repetitive alveolar epithelial injury repair, myofibroblast (MYF) accumulation and excessive collagen deposition are key pathological features of IPF, eventually leading to cellular hypoxia and respiratory failure. The precise mechanism driving this complex maladaptive process remains inadequately understood. WSB1 (WD repeat and SOCS box containing 1) is an E3 ubiquitin ligase, the expression of which is strongly associated with hypoxia, and forms a positive feedback loop with HIF-1α under anoxic condition...