This pooled analysis of two phase 3 studies investigates efficacy and
safety of vonoprazan-based quadruple therapy for Helicobacter pylori (H.
pylori) eradication in Asian patients with peptic ulcers. The researchers
compared vonoprazan based regimens to the lansoprazole-based quadruple therapy.
The results demonstrate that vonoprazan-based therapy was effective and safe
for eradicating H. pylori. The eradication rates achieved with vonoprazan-based
quadruple therapy were noninferior to those achieved with lansoprazole-based
quadruple therapy and exceeded clinically relevant threshold (90%) for
efficacy. This finding suggests that vonoprazan-based quadruple therapy may be
a valuable new treatment option for H. pylori infection in patients with peptic
ulcers.
[Highlighted Paper selected by Editor-in-Chief]
The authors previously developed a drug
delivery system targeting mitochondria (MITO-Porter) by using a microfluidic
device to encapsulate Coenzyme Q10 (CoQ10) on a large
scale. Herein, the authors successfully activated mitochondrial functions in
mesenchymal stem cells (MSCs) using this unique technique by controlling the
amount of CoQ10 encapsulated in MITO-Porter. While the efficacy of
MSC transplantation therapy has been reported for various diseases, it is still
in the developmental stage. This mitochondrial-activated MSCs offers a
promising tool to improve their transplantation therapy, with the potential to
accelerate the clinical application of MSCs.
This groundbreaking study introduces a refined
hepatocyte model that accurately replicates the impact of CYP2D6*10, a
prevalent mutation in East Asian populations. Using the PITCh genome editing
system, researchers successfully engineered HepG2 cells to express six key
drug-metabolizing enzymes, including the CYP2D6*10 variant. The resulting
CYP2D6*10 KI-HepG2 cells exhibited reduced CYP2D6 protein expression and
metabolic activity, mirroring the mutation's effects in vivo. This novel model
promises to enhance drug metabolism predictions and hepatotoxicity studies,
particularly for East Asian populations, potentially revolutionizing drug
development and safety assessments.
Prostate cancer is a common malignant
tumor of the urinary tract in men. It is the fifth leading cause
of cancer death in men worldwide and the second most common
malignancy. The results of this study provide an effective way to improve the
anti-cancer effect of docetaxel. Bisdemethoxycurcumin can be used as an
anticancer adjuvant in combination chemotherapy. These authors suggest that the
combination of bisdemethoxycurcumin and docetaxel may be more effective in
treating prostate cancer than docetaxel alone. However, the development of bisdemethoxycurcumin
as a sensitizer requires more detailed studies to evaluate the feasibility and
benefits of its clinical use.
The authors investigated
sex differences in weight gain induced by the anticancer drug 5-fluorouracil
(5-FU) in mice. The results revealed a decrease in estradiol and an increase in
ghrelin in female mice, along with elevated noradrenaline levels. The increase
in noradrenaline inhibits the estradiol-producing enzyme aromatase and raises
adrenergic receptors in the ovaries. This suggests that
5-FU treatment promotes
weight gain in female mice by lowering estradiol levels
and increasing ghrelin levels
through sympathetic nerve stimulation, which enhances appetite. This study aims
to elucidate the mechanism of 5-FU-induced weight gain in women with breast
cancer, as reported in clinical practice.
Affinity
for target proteins and target selectivity are among the most important factors
in drug development. The authors previously developed a fluorescence
recovery-based polo-like kinase 1 (Plk1) kinase domain-directed binding assay
using an ATP-competitive Plk1 inhibitor-based fluorescent probe. Herein the
authors expanded the assay system to other Plk family members by successfully
constructing novel binding assay methodology for the kinase domains of Plk2 and
Plk3. The authors also demonstrated that polo-box domain-directed affinity
evaluation against full-length Plk’s 1–3 requires much higher affinity probes
to overcome auto-inhibition.
Dab1 is an intracellular
adaptor protein, and its tyrosine phosphorylation plays an important role in
various events of brain development. Loss of Dab1 has been associated with the
onset of neuropsychiatric disorders in humans. The authors demonstrate a novel
mechanism for Dab1 phosphorylation by EphA4, a member of the receptor tyrosine
kinase family. EphA4-mediated Dab1 phosphorylation requires autophosphorylation
of EphA4 and activity of Src family tyrosine kinases. Cultured neurons
expressed EphA4 and Dab1, but activation of EphA4 by ephrin A5 did not induce
Dab1 phosphorylation, suggesting that Dab1 is localized in a different
compartment in them.
The
Accelerated Approval (AA) Program of the United States (US) Food and Drug
Administration (FDA) expedites access to new drugs for serious conditions,
while Japan's conditional approval system remains underutilized. The authors
analyzed postmarketing requirement compliance for AA drugs and their approval
timing in Japan. These findings indicate that while the US AA program is
well-managed, Japan needs improvements to actively utilize its conditional
approval system, enabling rapid introduction of innovative drugs and timely confirmation
of their efficacy and safety.
[Highlighted Paper selected
by Editor-in-Chief]
Vascular smooth muscle contraction has two
phases, an early phase and a sustained phase. Using ionomycin, which increases cytosolic free Ca2+
concentration ([Ca2+]i) without membrane depolarization or
receptor stimulation, the authors demonstrated that the early phase of contraction is due to activation of myosin
light chain kinase (MLCK) via Ca2+/calmodulin (CaM), and the
sustained phase is due to activation of the CaM-independent RhoA/ Rho-associated kinase (ROCK) pathway
via proline-rich tyrosine kinase 2 (Pyk2). These findings suggest Pyk2 may be a new therapeutic
target for cardiovascular disease.
18-β-Glycyrrhetinic
acid (GA) is widely incorporated into hair care cosmetic products as an
anti-inflammatory agent to maintain a healthy scalp. This study revealed that
GA possesses anti-inflammatory effects on the scalp as well as novel effects on
hair, including the stimulation of proliferation in human dermal papilla cells
and human outer root sheath cells, and the inhibition of 5α-reductase.
Promoting the proliferation of these two types of cells is influential in
forming thicker and longer hair, while inhibiting 5α-reductase is effective in
improving androgenetic alopecia.
S-Nitrosylation
of DNA methyltransferase (DNMT) inhibits its enzymatic activity, resulting in
DNA hypomethylation and aberrant gene expression related to its pathogenesis.
The authors demonstrated that nitric oxide epigenetically induces CA9
expression in human small airway epithelial cells through pharmacological
evaluation using DBIC, a specific inhibitor of DNMT3B S-nitrosylation. Hypoxia-inducible
factor 1 alpha (HIF1α) is recruited to the CA9 promoter region via
nitric oxide-induced epigenetic regulation. These findings indicate that nitric
oxide is a key epigenetic regulator in normal human cells.
Transcriptional
activation of endogenous genes using clustered regularly interspaced short
palindromic repeats activation (CRISPRa) is an excellent tool not only for biological
research but also for treatment of diseases. The authors have successfully upregulated
three endogenous genes encoding phosphoinositide phosphatases using the CRISPRa
system targeting multiple promoter sites. The effects of gene upregulation on
autophagy, a potential therapeutic target for various diseases, were investigated.
The results showed that TMEM55A/PIP4P2, a phosphatidylinositol-4,5-bisphosphate
4-phosphatase, promotes autophagosome formation. It was also revealed that TMEM55B/PIP4P1
and SAC1 are involved in autolysosome formation.
The increasing
number of patients with depressive disorder is a serious socioeconomic problem
worldwide, and effectiveness of several therapeutic agents used clinically is
insufficient and thus discovery of novel therapeutic targets is desired. Focusing
on dysregulation of neuronal purinergic signaling in depressive-like behavior, Nishioka
et al. revealed that in astrocytes derived from cerebral cortex of
chronic social defeat stress-susceptible mice, the expression levels of mRNAs
for connexin 43 and P2X7 receptors were inversely correlated with mouse
sociability. Together with recent findings, it is suggested that ATP channels
expressed by cortical astrocytes might be potential therapeutic targets for
depressive disorder.
[Highlighted Paper selected
by Editor-in-Chief]
This
study revealed the gene
expression profiles of bicellular and tricellular tight junction components in
different segments of the human intestinal tract. Claudin-8, angulin-1
and -2 could be potential targets for intestinal permeation enhancers in the
rectum. Claudin-2 and -15 may serve as targets for drug absorption enhancers in
the upper intestine. Claudin-7, occludin, and tricellulin appear to be suitable
targets for enhancing drug absorption throughout all intestinal segments.
Furthermore, claudin-3, -4, and -7 modulators seem to be the most potent
intestinal permeation enhancers. Thus, this study provides valuable insights
for the development of intestinal drug permeation enhancers.
Understanding the
mechanisms behind the induction or inhibition of CYP enzymes, which are pivotal
for drug metabolism, is essential for predicting drug-drug interactions (DDI). In
this study, the authors demonstrate that omeprazole, a well-known inducer of
CYP1A2, not only increased CYP1A2 mRNA expression but also
elevated CYP3A4 mRNA levels. However,
omeprazole treatment did not lead to an increase in CYP3A4 protein levels
because it caused the CYP3A4 protein to degrade more quickly. These
findings suggest that evaluating CYP protein degradation, in addition to CYP
induction and inhibition, is crucial for more accurate DDI predictions.
Since the first report of epidermal growth
factor (EGF) in 1962, research on intracellular signaling through its receptor
EGFR has greatly advanced. While the canonical activation of EGFR via tyrosine
phosphorylation is well understood, the existence of a non-canonical activation
via p38-dependent phosphorylation of serine/threonine residues has recently
attracted attention. The authors have found that both of these mechanisms occur
in parallel and are now analyzing them as a dual-mode activation model. This
review summarizes new advances in EGFR signaling research and the latest status
of EGFR inhibitor development for molecular targeted therapy of lung cancer.
Human
immunodeficiency virus type 1 (HIV-1) hijacks various cellular machinery to
achieve efficient replication. HIV-1 infection induces a metabolic shift towards
aerobic glycolysis as a cellular response to maintain homeostasis, yet the
virus continues to replicate efficiently under these conditions. In this
review, the authors introduce the regulatory role of glycolytic enzymes in
HIV-1 replication and the impact of aerobic glycolysis on viral infection. In
addition, the authors propose a novel strategy to eradicate latently
HIV-1-infected cells.
[Highlighted Paper selected
by Editor-in-Chief]
Nonalcoholic steatohepatitis (NASH)
is a serious form of nonalcoholic fatty liver disease (NAFLD) that can lead to
liver damage and inflammation. In this study, the authors focused on the
therapeutic effects of emodin succinyl ethyl ester (ESEE) on NASH using a
murine model induced by Special tailored diet. After four weeks of ESEE
treatment, researchers observed significant improvements in glycolipid
metabolism disorders, liver injury, and histopathological features of
NAFLD/NASH. ESEE showed effectiveness in reducing cellular steatosis,
inflammation, fat deposition in hepatocytes, and liver fibrosis in the model
mice. These findings suggest that ESEE could serve as a novel therapeutic agent
for NASH, providing protection against diet-induced liver abnormalities and
injuries.
Exposure
of animals to the enriched environments improves memory consolidation that
requires extracellular ripples generated in the hippocampus during sleep.
Natural sleep and general anesthesia are similar in terms of extracellular
oscillations. However, whether the preexposure of animals to the enriched
environment modulates neural activity in the hippocampus under subsequent
anesthesia is not fully understood. The authors allowed mice to explore the
enriched or standard environment, anesthetized them, and recorded local field
potentials in the hippocampus, demonstrating that the amplitude of ripples and
the number of successive ripples were larger in the novel enriched environment
group.
Carbon monoxide (CO) exhibits versatile bioactivities; its preventive effect on the progression of ischemia-reperfusion injury in various organs has been reported. The authors developed CO-bound red blood cells (CO-RBC) as a bioinspired CO delivery donor and investigated the therapeutic potential of CO-RBC against ischemia-reperfusion injury in the hind limbs of rats. As a result, CO-RBC alleviated the skeletal muscle injury and systemic inflammation following ischemia-reperfusion in the rat model. The present study significantly contributes to the advancement of CO-based therapeutic strategies for treating skeletal muscle ischemia-reperfusion injury.