Research on the cognition of the human genome resulted in the publication of human DNA sequences at the beginning of the 21st century. Thanks to these discoveries, it became possible to learn the location, sequence and mutation of many genes that play an important role in the pathogenesis of certain diseases and are the cause of individual sensitivity to the drug administered [1].

The β2-adrenergic receptor belongs to an important family of G-protein coupled receptors (GPCRs). β2-AR is an extremely important molecular target for drugs used in the treatment of asthma and heart failure. β2-AR is encoded by the ADRB2 gene present in many polymorphs, differing in the types of amino acid residues. Single nucleotide polymorphism (SNP) can lead to differences in the structure and action of the gene-encoded protein, which in turn affects how the protein interacts with the drug molecule, the activation of the receptor, and consequently the course of the disease and the success of the therapy used [1].

Literature data indicate the relationship of polymorphism with the exacerbated course of many chronic diseases such as circulatory failure, arterial hypertension with concomitant obesity, asthma. Receptor polymorphism may also influence the variable response to drugs used, as well as the faster development of tolerance to them [1].

Since the presence of polymorphism may result in differences in intracellular signalling, the present research determined differences in the activation level of intracellular signalling pathways for selected agonists.

1. Litonjua AA, Gong L, Duan QL, i in. (2010). Very important pharmacogene summary ADRB2. Pharmacogenetics and Genomics, 20(1):64–69.

Cutaneous melanoma (CM) is a public health issue and a major challenge for scientists. At the dawn of the "omics era", we witnessed groundbreaking advances in CM molecular stratification and therapeutic management assisted by genomic profiling and sequencing technologies. However, melanomagenesis is a complex and multifactorial process that cannot be restricted only to genomic aspects, requiring investigation from a multi-omics perspective. The integration of multi-omics data in a physiological and clinical context may provide new clues about the mechanisms of CM initiation, progression, and metastasis, as well as novel biological pathways amenable to targeted therapy. The Cancer Genome Atlas (TCGA) is an important repository of multiple types of omics data, and in particular, for CM, it has been shown that multi-integration can lead to prognosis models with improved prediction performance. Among clinicians and researchers, multi-omics-based-biomarkers are regarded with enthusiasm as they offer new opportunities for clinical trials design and reduce the time and cost of developing new treatments. We present herein how droplet digital PCR (ddPCR), a relatively young omics technology can complement existing approaches in the field to detect multiple types of alterations in both body fluids as well as formalin-fixed tissues harvested from CM patients and how these findings may broaden our vision on CM research, diagnosis, prognosis and therapy in the context of precision medicine.

In December 2019, a novel strain of coronavirus, SARS-CoV-2, was identified. Infected patients revealed symptoms of fever, cough (dry), sore throat, and fatigue, which began manifesting after 5 days of incubation. Hoping to prevent transmission, many countries adopted a mandatory mask use in closed public spaces. However, most mask options display a passive action against COVID-19. To overcome such restrictions, this work proposes the incorporation of anti-viral essential oils (EOs) loaded onto a nanofibrous layer that can be adapted to both community and commercial masks.

Twenty EOs selected based on their antimicrobial nature were examined for the first time against the Escherichia virus MS2. The most effective were the lemongrass (LO), Niaouli (NO) and eucalyptus (ELO) with a minimum inhibitory concentration (MIC) of 356.0 mg/mL, 365.2 mg/mL and 586.0 mg/mL, respectively. Polycaprolactone (PCL) and cellulose acetate (CA) were prepared individually at 14 wt% in chloroform/dimethylformamide (DMF) and 10 wt% in acetone/DMF, respectively, and combined at 3:1 ratio. Polymeric solutions were then processed via eletrospinning with processing parameters being optimized to 24.7 kV, 3.2 mL/h and 21 cm. Uniform, beadless nanofibers were obtained. Mats were characterized as mechanically resilient, to endure movements arising from mask positioning, and hydrophobic in nature, to repel droplets coming from the exterior. Loading of the nanofibrous mats was accomplished via physisorption using the free -OH groups of the CA as linkers. Mats were loaded with the EOs at MIC concentration for 72 h (saturation). Presence of the EOs was confirmed along the mats. Antimicrobial testing via halo determination, verified their diffusion abilities. More importantly, time-kill kinetics testing of the loaded mats attested to the EOs capability to fight the virus MS2 even when bonded to the nanofibers. Data demonstrated the potential of these EOs-loaded PCL/CA nanofibers mats to work as COVID-19 active barriers for individual protection masks.

BACKGROUND/AIM: Aberrant crypt foci (ACF) are early lesions in the neoplastic induction found in the rat colon of the carcinogenic model. ACF is one of the first changes in the colon that lead to colorectal cancer (CRC). Probiotics and fermented foods are well known for their beneficial role in gut health and previous studies showed their therapeutic effects on gastrointestinal diseases. The aim of this study is to investigate the preventive role of Propionibacterium freudenreichii and Faecalibacterium prausnitzii probiotics against CRC Induction in rats treated with azoxymethane (AOM).

METHODS: Rats were injected subcutaneously with 7mg/kg of AOM once a week for 3 weeks, and probiotics (P. freundreichii and F. prausnitzii) were administered orally at 1×10⁹ CFU/ml once a day for 6 weeks. 5- Fluorouracil (5-FU) as a reference anti-cancer drug was administered intraperitoneally at 35mg/kg 3 times a week for 6 weeks. After the treatment period, the colon of the rats was harvested and examined microscopically and histologically. Lipid peroxidation levels in colon tissues were measured using malondialdehyde (MDA) assay.

RESULT: Microscopical examination of harvested rat colons after methylene blue staining showed that the total number and multiplicity of ACF were significantly lower in the probiotics groups (p < 0.05) than the AOM control group that did not receive any intervention. Histological examination of the colon showed increased severe hyperplasia and dysplasia of the ACF in the AOM group compared to the treatment groups. Probiotics administration also reduced the levels of MDA in the colon of the rats compared to the rats in the AOM control group

CONCLUSION: These results suggest that probiotics play a preventive role in CRC initiation and development by slowing down ACF formation, reducing the severity of ACF lesions, and reducing lipid peroxidation levels in the colon.

Drug-loaded nanocarriers have overcome various challenges compared with the bare chemo-drug, such as limited bioavailability, multiple drug resistance, poor patient compliance, adverse drug reactions, particularly side effects of chemotherapy and offer advantages such as protection from degradation in the blood stream, better drug solubility and improved drug stability. One promising group of controlled and targeted drug delivery systems is the polymer-based nanoparticles which can sustain release of active agent by diffusion and their degradation.

Sorafenib is the only drug which is capable to prolong the life of patients suffered from Hepatocellular carcinoma. Cisplatin remains one of the most widely used broad spectrum anticancer drug for the treatment of a variety of solid tumors. Nanoformulations can exert synergistic effect by entrapping two drugs with different mode of action, such as sorafenib and cisplatin.

In our study, we prepared polymeric nanoparticles by optimised double emulsion solvent evaporation method with a good production yield by a novel biocatalytically synthetized 12-hydroxystearic acid ε-caprolactone copolymer (12CL) which is biocompatible and biodegradable carrier by co-entrapment of sorafenib and cisplatin in nanotherapeutics in order to investigate the synergistic effect of sorafenib in combination with cisplatin. The active agents were encapsulated and also cross-linked with carbodiimide to increase the encapsulation efficiency. To improve the drug encapsulation efficiency, bovine serum albumin (BSA) was also incorporated as a protein capable of complexation with the cisplatin.