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Purpose Liver fluke causes severe liver damage in an infected human. However, the infection often remains neglected due to the lack of pathognomonic signs. Nanoparticle-enhanced magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) offers a promising technique for detecting liver lesions induced by parasites. Materials and methods Surface modification of iron oxide nanoparticles produced by coprecipitation from a solution of Fe 3+ and Fe 2+ salts using 3-aminopropylsilane (APS) was carried out. The APS-modified nanoparticles were characterized by transmission electron microscopy, fourier transform infrared spectroscopy, and thermogravimetric analysis. Magnetic resonance properties of MNPs were investigated in vitro and in vivo. Results The amount of APS grafted on the surface of nanoparticles (0.60±0.06 mmol g −1 ) was calculated based on elemental analysis and infrared spectroscopy data. According to transmission electron microscopy data, there were no essential changes in the structure of nanoparticles during the modification. The APS-modified nanoparticles exhibit high magnetic properties; the calculated relaxivity r 2 was 271 mmol −1 s −1 . To obtain suspension with optimal hydrodynamic characteristics, amino groups on the surface of nanoparticles were converted into an ionic form with HCl. Cellular uptake of modified nanoparticles by rat hepatoma cells and human monocytes in vitro was 74.1±4.5 and 10.0±3.7 pg [Fe] per cell, respectively. Low cytotoxicity of the nanoparticles was confirmed by 3-(4,5-dimethylthiazol-2-yl)-2,5-diphenyltetrazolium bromide and Annexin V/7-aminoactinomycin D flow cytometry assays. For the first time, magnetic nanoparticles were applied for contrast-enhanced MRI of liver lesions induced by Opisthorchis felineus . Conclusion The synthesized APS-modified iron oxide nanoparticles showed high efficiency as an MRI contrast agent for the evaluation of opisthorchiasis-related liver damage.

Covalent immobilization of a pH-low insertion peptide (pHLIP) onto Fe3O4 magnetic nanoparticles was carried out resulting in the formation of MRI-visible material able to specifically accumulate in acidic damaged tissue.

Tumor cells can maintain their growth via immunosuppression and escape from host antitumor immunity by controlling the PD-1/PD-L1 system. Expression of PD-L1 (CD274) is an inhibitory signal for T cells, while the increase in CD326 expression in the tumor tissue correlates with metastasis development. The experimental preparation on the basis of α(1,2)-L-rhamno-α(1,4)-D-galactopyranosyluronan from Acorus calamus L. produces an antitumor effect: it reduces tumor node size and the number and area of metastases after transplantation of Lewis lung carcinoma. Using flow cytometry, we demonstrated a decrease in the population of tumor cells expressing surface CD274 (PD-L1) and CD326 antigens after 20-day course of α(1,2)-L-rhamno-α(1,4)-D-galactopyranosyluronan.

Aims: There is a general, inverse relationship between helminth infection and allergic diseases including bronchial asthma (BA). Proteins and other mediators released from parasitic worms exert cogent downmodulation of atopic and other allergic reactivity. We investigated the immune activities of an immortalized murine dendritic cell (mDC) line (JAWSII) and of primary human dendritic cells (hDCs) collected from study participants with and without BA after Opisthorchis felineus hemozoin (OfHz) treatment.Methods and Results: in vitro, expression of lymphocyte-activating factors—T helper 1 (Th1) induction and anti-inflammatory cytokines including tumor necrosis factor alpha (TNF-α), interleukin-1beta (IL-1β), IL-10, and IL-12β–increased significantly in mDCs pulsed with OfHz. In parallel, primary dendritic cells (hDC) from cases clinically diagnosed with BA along with healthy controls were exposed ex vivo to OfHz in combination with lipopolysaccharide (LPS). Whereas no significant change in the cellular maturation markers, CD83, CD86, and CD40, was apparent in BA vs. healthy hDC, pulsing hDC from BA with OfHz with LPS induced significant increases in expression of IL-10 and IL-12β, although not of TNF-α or tumor growth factor-beta (TGF-β).Conclusions: Liver fluke hemozoin OfHz stimulated production of Th1 inducer and anti-inflammatory cytokines IL-10 and IL-12β from BA-hDC pulsed with OfHz, an outcome that enhances our understanding of the mechanisms whereby opisthorchiasis contributes to protection against the atopic disease in liver fluke infection-endemic regions.

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The aim of the study was mammosphere assay optimization for quantifcation of IL6-induced stemness in differentiated (СD44– ) T47D breast cancer cells.Material and Methods. The effect of three commonly used cell-detaching methods (TrypLE, accutase, cell scrapper) at various confuence (40–50 % and 70–80 %) on cell viability, phenotypic profle and mammosphere formation was tested. The cell viability was examined using AnnexinV/propidium iodide assay. The phenotypic profle was analyzed by fow cytometry with fuorescent markers CD24 and CD44.Results. Detachment of the cells using scrapper led to substantial increase in early apoptotic and late apoptotic cells in comparison with TrypLE and accutase. Dissociation with TrypLE reduced the percentage of detected CD44+ positive cells, whereas accutase saved the surface marker. The number of mammosphere and their diameter did not differ between groups. Incubation of differentiated (CD44– CD24+) T47D cells with IL-6 for 24 hours resulted in an appearance of CD44+CD24+ and CD44+CD24–/low subpopulation. Furthermore, the differentiated cells after 24 hours of IL6 exposure formed 3 times more mammospheres compared to the control.Conclusion. Usage of cells with confuence of no more than 80 % and accutase for detachment of cells is recommended for mammosphere assay. Incubation of CD44– CD24+ T47D cells with IL6 for 24 hours is suffcient for stimulation of stemness plasticity.

According to the latest concepts, for micrometastasis to develop into macrometastasis, differentiated cancer cells must revert to a dedifferentiated state. Activation of stemness genes plays a key role in this transition. Suppression of stemness gene expression using microRNAs can become the basis for the development of effective anti-metastatic drugs. This article provides an overview of the existing methods for assessing the effect of microRNAs on stemness genes and cancer cell dedifferentiation.