Reproduction of different tissues using scaffolds and materials is a major element in regenerative medicine. The regeneration of whole organs with decellularized extracellular matrix (dECM) has remained a goal despite the use of these materials for different purposes. Recently, decellularization techniques have been widely used in producing scaffolds that are appropriate for regenerating damaged organs and may be able to overcome the shortage of donor organs. Decellularized ECM offers several advantages over synthetic compounds, including the preserved natural microenvironment features. Different decellularization methods have been developed, each of which is appropriate for removing cells from specific tissues under certain conditions. A variety of methods have been advanced for evaluating the decellularization process in terms of cell removal efficiency, tissue ultrastructure preservation, toxicity, biocompatibility, biodegradability, and mechanical resistance in order to enhance the efficacy of decellularization methods. Modification techniques improve the characteristics of decellularized scaffolds, making them available for the regeneration of damaged tissues. Moreover, modification of scaffolds makes them appropriate options for drug delivery, disease modeling, and improving stem cells growth and proliferation. However, considering different challenges in the way of decellularization methods and application of decellularized scaffolds, this field is constantly developing and progressively moving forward. This review has outlined recent decellularization and sterilization strategies, evaluation tests for efficient decellularization, materials processing, application, and challenges and future outlooks of decellularization in regenerative medicine and tissue engineering.

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Severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2) is a beta coronavirus that uses the human angiotensin-converting enzyme 2 (ACE2) receptor as a point of entry. The present review discusses the origin and structure of the virus and its mechanism of cell entry followed by the therapeutic potentials of strategies directed towards SARS-CoV2-ACE2 binding, the renin-angiotensin system, and the kinin-kallikrein system. SARS-CoV2-ACE2 binding-directed approaches mainly consist of targeting receptor binding domain, ACE2 blockers, soluble ACE2, and host protease inhibitors. In conclusion, blocking or manipulating the SARS-CoV2-ACE2 binding interface perhaps offers the best tactic against the virus that should be treated as a fundamental subject of future research.

Background Encephalitis is caused by autoimmune or infectious agents marked by brain inflammation. Investigations have reported altered concentrations of the cytokines in encephalitis. This study was conducted to determine the relationship between encephalitis and alterations of cytokine levels in cerebrospinal fluid (CSF) and serum. Methods We found possibly suitable studies by searching PubMed, Embase, Scopus, and Web of Science, systematically from inception to August 2021. 23 articles were included in the meta-analysis. To investigate sources of heterogeneity, subgroup analysis and sensitivity analysis were conducted. The protocol of the study has been registered in PROSPERO with a registration ID of CRD42021289298. Results A total of 23 met our eligibility criteria to be included in the meta-analysis. A total of 12 cytokines were included in the meta-analysis of CSF concentration. Moreover, 5 cytokines were also included in the serum/plasma concentration meta-analysis. According to the analyses, patients with encephalitis had higher CSF amounts of IL-6, IL-8, IL-10, CXCL10, and TNF-α than healthy controls. The alteration in the concentration of IL-2, IL-4, IL-17, CCL2, CXCL9, CXCL13, and IFN-γ was not significant. In addition, the serum/plasma levels of the TNF-α were increased in encephalitis patients, but serum/plasma concentration of the IL-6, IL-10, CXCL10, and CXCL13 remained unchanged. Conclusions This meta-analysis provides evidence for higher CSF concentrations of IL-6, IL-8, IL-10, CXCL10, and TNF-α in encephalitis patients compared to controls. The diagnostic and prognostic value of these cytokines and chemokines should be investigated in future studies.

Background: Breast cancer (BC) is the most common cancer in women. The incidence and morbidity of BC are expected to rise rapidly. The stage at which BC is diagnosed has a significant impact on clinical outcomes. When detected early, an overall 5-year survival rate of up to 90% is possible. Although numerous studies have been conducted to assess the prognostic and diagnostic values of non-coding RNAs (ncRNAs) in breast cancer, their overall potential remains unclear. In this field of study, there are various systematic reviews and meta-analysis studies that report volumes of data. In this study, we tried to collect all these systematic reviews and meta-analysis studies in order to re-analyze their data without any restriction to breast cancer or non-coding RNA type, to make it as comprehensive as possible.Methods: Three databases, namely, PubMed, Scopus, and Web of Science (WoS), were searched to find any relevant meta-analysis studies. After thoroughly searching, the screening of titles, abstracts, and full-text and the quality of all included studies were assessed using the AMSTAR tool. All the required data including hazard ratios (HRs), sensitivity (SENS), and specificity (SPEC) were extracted for further analysis, and all analyses were carried out using Stata.Results: In the prognostic part, our initial search of three databases produced 10,548 articles, of which 58 studies were included in the current study. We assessed the correlation of non-coding RNA (ncRNA) expression with different survival outcomes in breast cancer patients: overall survival (OS) (HR = 1.521), disease-free survival (DFS) (HR = 1.33), recurrence-free survival (RFS) (HR = 1.66), progression-free survival (PFS) (HR = 1.71), metastasis-free survival (MFS) (HR = 0.90), and disease-specific survival (DSS) (HR = 0.37). After eliminating low-quality studies, the results did not change significantly. In the diagnostic part, 22 articles and 30 datasets were retrieved from 8,453 articles. The quality of all studies was determined. The bivariate and random-effects models were used to assess the diagnostic value of ncRNAs. The overall area under the curve (AUC) of ncRNAs in differentiated patients is 0.88 (SENS: 80% and SPEC: 82%). There was no difference in the potential of single and combined ncRNAs in differentiated BC patients. However, the overall potential of microRNAs (miRNAs) is higher than that of long non-coding RNAs (lncRNAs). No evidence of publication bias was found in the current study. Nine miRNAs, four lncRNAs, and five gene targets showed significant OS and RFS between normal and cancer patients based on pan-cancer data analysis, demonstrating their potential prognostic value.Conclusion: The present umbrella review showed that ncRNAs, including lncRNAs and miRNAs, can be used as prognostic and diagnostic biomarkers for breast cancer patients, regardless of the sample sources, ethnicity of patients, and subtype of breast cancer.

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Objective: Neurogenic lower urinary tract dysfunction (NLUTD), a challenging disorder, is defined by lack of bladder control due to the abnormalities in neural pathways and can be classified based on the location of lesions within the nervous system, thus investigating the neural pathways can help us to know the site of the lesion and specify the class of the NLUTD. Diffusion Tensor Imaging (DTI) tractography, a noninvasive advanced imaging method, is capable of detecting central nervous system pathologies, even if routine magnetic resonance imaging shows no abnormality. Accordingly, tractography is an ideal technique to evaluate patients with NLUTD and visualize the pathology site within the spine. This study aimed to introduce a novel method of spinal cord injury (SCI) to establish NLUTD in the rabbit and to investigate the potential of tractography in tracing neural tracts of the spinal cord in an induced NLUTD animal model. Materials and Methods: An animal model of NLUTD was induced through cauterization of the spinal cord at the level T12-L1 in 12 rabbits. Then rabbits were assessed via DTI, urodynamic studies (UDS), voiding cystourethrogram (VCUG), and pathology assessments using antineurofilament 200 (NF200) antibody, anti-S100, anti-Smooth Muscle Actin, anti-Myogenin, and anti-MyoD1. Results: The tractography visualized lesions within spinal cord fibers. DTI parameters including fractional anisotropy (FA) value and tract density were significantly decreased (FA: p-value = 0.01, Tract density: p-value = 0.05) after

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