Peroxisome Proliferator-Activated Receptor Gamma Coactivator-1Alpha (PGC-1α): A Transcriptional Regulator at the Interface of Aging and Age-Related Macular Degeneration?
Adv Exp Med Biol. 2023;1415:49-53. doi: 10.1007/978-3-031-27681-1_8. ABSTRACT Human age-related macular degeneration (AMD) is a prevalent age-related disease which causes retinal dysfunction and disability. Genetic and cell culture studies from AMD patients have implicated impaired activity of peroxisome proliferator-activated receptor gamma coactivator-1alpha (PGC-1α). PGC-1α is a transcriptional co-regulator that acts to control a plethora of […]
An optimized temporally controlled Gal4 system in Drosophila reveals degeneration caused by adult-onset neuronal Vps13D knockdown
Front Neurosci. 2023 Jun 29;17:1204068. doi: 10.3389/fnins.2023.1204068. eCollection 2023. ABSTRACT Mutations in the human gene VPS13D cause the adult-onset neurodegenerative disease ataxia. Our previous work showed that disruptions in the Vps13D gene in Drosophila neurons causes mitochondrial defects. However, developmental lethality caused by Vps13D loss limited our understanding of the long-term physiological effects of Vps13D […]
Using Human ‘Personalized’ Cybrids to Identify Drugs/Agents That Can Regulate Chronic Lymphoblastic Leukemia Mitochondrial Dysfunction
Int J Mol Sci. 2023 Jul 3;24(13):11025. doi: 10.3390/ijms241311025. ABSTRACT This study uses personalized chronic lymphoblastic leukemia (CLL) cybrid cells to test various drugs/agents designed to improve mitochondrial function and cell longevity. Age-matched control (NL) and CLL cybrids were created. The NL and CLL cybrids were treated with ibrutinib (Ibr-10 μM), mitochondrial-targeted nutraceuticals such as […]
Differential Efficacy of Small Molecules Dynasore and Mdivi-1 for the Treatment of Dry Eye Epitheliopathy or as a Countermeasure for Nitrogen Mustard Exposure of the Ocular Surface
J Pharmacol Exp Ther. 2023 Jul 13:JPET-AR-2023-001697. doi: 10.1124/jpet.123.001697. Online ahead of print. ABSTRACT The ocular surface comprises the wet mucosal epithelia of the cornea and conjunctiva, the associated glands, and the overlying tear film. Epitheliopathy is the common pathological outcome when the ocular surface is subjected to oxidative stress. Whether different stresses act via […]
Repurposing Drugs for Treatment of Age-Related Macular Degeneration
Adv Exp Med Biol. 2023;1415:73-77. doi: 10.1007/978-3-031-27681-1_12. ABSTRACT The need for new drugs to treat dry forms of age-related macular degeneration remains high. A promising approach is repurposing of FDA-approved medications to treat AMD. Databases containing medical and drug records allow for retroactive identification of drugs whose use correlates with reduced AMD diagnosis. This short […]
A Redox Homeostasis Modulatory Hydrogel with GLRX3+ Extracellular Vesicles Attenuates Disc Degeneration by Suppressing Nucleus Pulposus Cell Senescence
ACS Nano. 2023 Jul 11. doi: 10.1021/acsnano.3c01713. Online ahead of print. ABSTRACT Characterized by nucleus pulposus (NP) cell senescence and extracellular matrix (ECM) degradation, disc degeneration is a common pathology for various degenerative spinal disorders. To date, effective treatments for disc degeneration are absent. Here, we found that Glutaredoxin3 (GLRX3) is an important redox-regulating molecule […]
Identification and genetic characterization of Angiostrongylus cantonensis isolated from the human eye
Parasitol Res. 2023 Jul 11. doi: 10.1007/s00436-023-07922-3. Online ahead of print. ABSTRACT Angiostrongylus cantonensis, or the rat lungworm, is the causative agent of human angiostrongyliasis associated with eosinophilic meningitis or meningoencephalitis. Additionally, this nematode can cause ocular angiostrongyliasis, though this is rare. The worm can cause permanent damage to the affected eye and sometimes even […]
MiR-494-3p aggravates pirarubicin-induced cardiomyocyte injury by regulating MDM4/p53 signaling pathway
Environ Toxicol. 2023 Jul 8. doi: 10.1002/tox.23888. Online ahead of print. ABSTRACT OBJECTIVE: Pirarubicin (THP) is a widely used antitumor drug in clinical practice, but its cardiotoxicity limits its use. There is an urgent need to find drugs to alleviate the cardiotoxicity of THP. This study aimed to investigate the effect and mechanism of miR-494-3p […]
Depleted Hexokinase1 and lack of AMPKα activation favor OXPHOS-dependent energetics in Retinoblastoma tumors
Transl Res. 2023 Jul 5:S1931-5244(23)00108-1. doi: 10.1016/j.trsl.2023.07.001. Online ahead of print. ABSTRACT Lack of retinoblastoma protein (Rb) causes aggressive intraocular retinal tumors in children. Recently, Rb tumors have been shown to have a distinctly altered metabolic phenotype, such as reduced expression of glycolytic pathway proteins alongside altered pyruvate and fatty acid levels. In this study, […]
Impaired mitochondrial dynamics and removal of the damaged mitochondria in diabetic retinopathy
Front Endocrinol (Lausanne). 2023 Jun 21;14:1160155. doi: 10.3389/fendo.2023.1160155. eCollection 2023. ABSTRACT INTRODUCTION: Mitochondrial dynamic plays a major role in their quality control, and the damaged mitochondrial components are removed by autophagy. In diabetic retinopathy, mitochondrial fusion enzyme, mitofusin 2 (Mfn2), is downregulated and mitochondrial dynamic is disturbed resulting in depolarized and dysfunctional mitochondria. Our aim […]