MicroRNAs (miRNAs) are small non-coding RNA molecules which function as critical post-transcriptional gene regulators of various biological functions. Generally, miRNAs negatively regulate gene expression by binding to their selective messenger RNAs (mRNAs), thereby leading to either mRNA degradation or translational repression, depending on the degree of complementarity with target mRNA sequences. Aberrant expression of these miRNAs has been linked etiologically with various human diseases including breast cancer. Different cellular pathways of breast cancer development such as cell proliferation, apoptotic response, metastasis, cancer recurrence and chemoresistance are regulated by either the oncogenic miRNA (oncomiR) or tumor suppressor miRNA (tsmiR). In this review, we highlight the current state of research into miRNA involved in breast cancer, with particular attention to articles published between the years 2000 to 2019, using detailed searches of the databases PubMed, Google Scholar, and Scopus. The post-transcriptional gene regulatory roles of various dysregulated miRNAs in breast cancer and their potential as therapeutic targets are also discussed.

The evolution of antimicrobial resistance (AMR) in pathogens has prompted extensive research to find alternative therapeutics. Plants rich with natural secondary metabolites are one of the go-to reservoirs for discovery of potential resources to alleviate this problem. Terpenes and their derivatives comprising of hydrocarbons, are usually found in essential oils (EOs). They have been reported to have potent antimicrobial activity, exhibiting bacteriostatic and bactericidal effects against tested pathogens. This brief review discusses the activity of terpenes and derivatives against pathogenic bacteria, describing the potential of the activity against AMR followed by the possible mechanism exerted by each terpene class. Finally, ongoing research and possible improvisation to the usage of terpenes and terpenoids in therapeutic practice against AMR are discussed.

Nutraceuticals are essential food constituents that provide nutritional benefits as well as medicinal effects. The benefits of these foods are due to the presence of active compounds such as carotenoids, collagen hydrolysate, and dietary fibers. Nutraceuticals have been found to positively affect cardiovascular and immune system health and have a role in infection and cancer prevention. Nutraceuticals can be categorized into different classes based on their nature and mode of action. In this review, different classifications of nutraceuticals and their potential therapeutic activity, such as anti-cancer, antioxidant, anti-inflammatory and anti-lipid activity in disease will be reviewed. Moreover, the different mechanisms of action of these products, applications, and safety upon consumers including current trends and future prospect of nutraceuticals will be included.

Combinatory therapies have been commonly applied in the clinical setting to tackle multi-drug resistant bacterial infections and these have frequently proven to be effective. Specifically, combinatory therapies resulting in synergistic interactions between antibiotics and adjuvant have been the main focus due to their effectiveness, sidelining the effects of additivity, which also lowers the minimal effective dosage of either antimicrobial agent. Thus, this study was undertaken to look at the effects of additivity between essential oils and antibiotic, via the use of cinnamon bark essential oil (CBO) and meropenem as a model for additivity. Comparisons between synergistic and additive interaction of CBO were performed in terms of the ability of CBO to disrupt bacterial membrane, via zeta potential measurement, outer membrane permeability assay and scanning electron microscopy. It has been found that the additivity interaction between CBO and meropenem showed similar membrane disruption ability when compared to those synergistic combinations which was previously reported. Hence, results based on our studies strongly suggest that additive interaction acts on a par with synergistic interaction. Therefore, further investigation in additive interaction between antibiotics and adjuvant should be performed for a more in depth understanding of the mechanism and the impacts of such interaction.