Perspectives for Potential Therapies for SARS-CoV-2

The current pandemic, novel corona virus 19 disease (COVID-19), has created havoc across the world. Now a third wave is possible, and we have already crossed two waves. The current review article presents recent reports about the COVID-19, the ways of treatments, and prevention. In view of the potential threats of a pandemic, various scientists have been trying to understand the pathophysiology of this disease to uncover possible treatment regimens and discover effective therapeutic agents and vaccines. To add further information to support the ongoing current research and development against SARS-CoV-2, the authors have provided the basics of pathophysiology, possible targets, and current treatment strategy for corona viruses. The current review highlights the antiviral strategies involving small molecules and different biological targets involved in corona virus infection and replication. The information included in this article provides a strong intellectual foundation for the ongoing development of therapeutic agents and vaccines.

Current treatment strategy for resectable scalp and neck melanoma

Melanoma is a malignant skin tumor associated with a poor clinical prognosis. The incidence of melanoma is constantly rising. Several studies demonstrated that overall and relapse-free survival rates in patients with head and neck melanoma were lower than those in patients with skin melanoma of other locations. Some authors showed that patients with scalp melanoma had the worst prognosis.Surgery is currently the main treatment option for resectable skin melanoma. It has a number of specific characteristics, such as the need for a smaller resection margin at primary tumor removal in some cases, lower accuracy of sentinel lymph node identification due to the complexity of lymph flow from the scalp and neck, and changes in the standard volumes of lymphadenectomy considering lymph flow from the scalp and neck. Oncologists should have reconstructive surgery skills, because their aim is not only to ensure complete tumor excision, but also to achieve a satisfactory appearance of the patient, especially if the tumor is located in the face, open areas of the head and neck and ears, since this is of functional and aesthetic importance. The administration of adjuvant therapy still causes some controversy in cases where both radiation therapy and pharmacotherapy are indicated.In this article, we describe the main characteristics of the current treatment strategy for resectable scalp and neck melanoma and cover the main problems in this area that have not been addressed so far.

Acute Periprosthetic Infection After Total Knee Arthroplasty in Patients With Rheumatoid Arthritis Versus Osteoarthritis: a Population-based Study

Osteoarthritis is the main cause for total knee arthroplasty, followed by rheumatoid arthritis. Previous studies have reported conflicting results concerning the risk of periprosthetic infection after total knee arthroplasty for rheumatoid arthritis and osteoarthritis patients. Thus, this study aimed to examine whether rheumatoid arthritis patients had a higher risk of acute periprosthetic infection after total knee arthroplasty compared to osteoarthritis patients. We conducted a retrospective cohort study using Taiwan’s National Health Insurance Research Database of the whole population from 2012 to 2015, and collected the medical records of osteoarthritis patients or rheumatoid arthritis patients who underwent total knee arthroplasty. To evaluate the risk of acute periprosthetic infection in rheumatoid arthritis patients, propensity score matching was implemented for osteoarthritis patients. Acute periprosthetic infection was observed in 2.58% of total knee arthroplasty cases in rheumatoid arthritis patients and 2.66% of total knee arthroplasty cases in osteoarthritis patients. Rheumatoid arthritis and osteoarthritis patients had comparable risk for 90-day and one-year periprosthetic infection. In conclusion, patients with rheumatoid arthritis were not at higher risk of acute periprosthetic infection after total knee arthroplasty compared to osteoarthritis patients. The current treatment strategy for patients with rheumatoid arthritis undergoing total knee arthroplasty is safe and appropriate.

Strategies for treating multiple sclerosis with gene therapy

As biomedicine progresses, more laboratories are moving their attention to clinical research, and a significant breakthrough has been made in the treatment of multiple sclerosis (MS). Modern disease therapy, on the other hand, is primarily concerned with alleviating clinical symptoms and, where possible, improving function. Patients with MS are more likely to develop depression, cognitive and behavioral issues, and possibly permanent disability as the disease progresses.There is no doubt that the current treatment strategy is insufficient. We require a more ambitious strategy that incorporates a variety of therapies in order to maximize synergy. It is possible that a combination of symptomatic medicines (such as those for cramps, fatigue and depression), rehabilitation, and specific MS treatments will give the best chance of halting the course of MS in some people. Such research, on the other hand, would be time-consuming, expensive, and challenging.

Angiogenesis Inhibitors for Colorectal Cancer. A Review of the Clinical Data

Since the late 1990s, therapy for metastatic colorectal cancer (mCRC) has changed considerably, and the combination of doublet or triplet chemotherapy and a targeted agent are now routinely used. The targeting of angiogenesis, the development of new blood vessels, represents a key element in the overall treatment strategy. Since the approval in 2004 of the first anti-angiogenetic drug, multiple agents have been approved and others are currently under investigation. We present an overview of the recent literature on approved systemic treatment of mCRC, with a focus on anti-angiogenic drugs, and current treatment approaches, and elaborate on the future role of angiogenesis in colorectal cancer as seen from a clinical perspective. The treatment of mCRC, in general, has changed from “one strategy fits all” to a more personalized approach. This is, however, not entirely the case for anti-angiogenetic treatments, partly due to a lack of validated biomarkers. The anti-angiogenetic standard treatment at the present primarily includes monoclonal antibodies. The therapeutic field of angiogenesis, however, has received increased interest after the introduction of newer combinations. These approaches will likely change the current treatment strategy, once again, to the overall benefit of patients.

Radiation-Activated PI3K/AKT Pathway Promotes the Induction of Cancer Stem-Like Cells via the Upregulation of SOX2 in Colorectal Cancer

The current treatment strategy for patients with aggressive colorectal cancer has been hampered by resistance to radiotherapy and chemotherapy due to the existence of cancer stem-like cells (CSCs). Recent studies have shown that SOX2 expression plays an important role in the maintenance of CSC properties in colorectal cancer. In this study, we investigated the induction and regulatory role of SOX2 following the irradiation of radioresistant and radiosensitive colorectal cancer cells. We used FACS and western blotting to analyze SOX2 expression in cells. Among the markers of colorectal CSCs, the expression of CD44 increased upon irradiation in radioresistant cells. Further analysis revealed the retention of CSC properties with an upregulation of SOX2 as shown by enhanced resistance to radiation and metastatic potential in vitro. Interestingly, both the knockdown and overexpression of SOX2 led to increase in CD44+ population and induction of CSC properties in colorectal cancer following irradiation. Furthermore, selective genetic and pharmacological inhibition of the PI3K/AKT pathway, but not the MAPK pathway, attenuated SOX2-dependent CD44 expression and metastatic potential upon irradiation in vitro. Our findings suggested that SOX2 regulated by radiation-induced activation of PI3K/AKT pathway contributes to the induction of colorectal CSCs, thereby highlighting its potential as a therapeutic target.

Stem Cells in the Treatment of Neuropathic Pain: Research Progress of Mechanism

Neuropathic pain (NP) is pain caused by somatosensory nervous system injury or disease. Its prominent symptoms are spontaneous pain, hyperalgesia, and allodynia, and the sense of pain is extremely strong. Owing to the complex mechanism, conventional painkillers lack effectiveness. Recently, research on the treatment of NP by stem cells is increasing and promising results have been achieved in preclinical research. In this review, we briefly introduce the neuropathic pain, the current treatment strategy, and the development of stem cell therapy, and we collected the experimental and clinical trial articles of many kinds of stem cells in the treatment of neuropathic pain from the past ten years. We analyzed and summarized the general efficacy and mechanism of stem cells in the treatment of neuropathic pain. We found that the multiple-mechanism approach was different from the single mechanism of routine clinical drugs; stem cells play a role in peripheral mechanism, central mechanism, and disinhibition of spinal cord level that lead to neuropathic pain, so they are more effective in analgesia and treatment of neuropathic pain.

Recent advances in understanding osteosarcoma and emerging therapies

Osteosarcoma is the most common bone cancer in adolescents and young adults, but it is a rare cancer with no improvement in patient survival in the last four decades. The main problem of this bone tumor is its evolution toward lung metastatic disease, despite the current treatment strategy (chemotherapy and surgery). To further improve survival, there is a strong need for new therapies that control osteosarcoma cells with metastatic potential and their favoring tumor microenvironment (ME) from the diagnosis. However, the complexity and heterogeneity of those tumor cell genomic/epigenetic and biology, the diversity of tumor ME where it develops, the sparsity of appropriate preclinical models, and the heterogeneity of therapeutic trials have rendered the task difficult. No tumor- or ME-targeted drugs are routinely available in front-line treatment. This article presents up-to-date information from preclinical and clinical studies that were recently published or presented in recent meetings which we hope might help change the osteosarcoma treatment landscape and patient survival in the near future.