Pyruvate kinase plays a pivotal role in regulating cell metabolism. The final and rate-limiting step of glycolysis is the conversion of Phosphoenolpyruvate (PEP) to Pyruvate, which is catalyzed by Pyruvate Kinase. There are four isomeric, tissue-specific forms of Pyruvate Kinase found in mammals: PKL, PKR, PKM1, and PKM2. PKM1 and PKM2 are formed bya single mRNA transcript of the PKM gene by alternative splicing. The oligomers of PKM2 exist in high activity tetramer and low activity dimer forms. The dimer PKM2 regulates the rate-limiting step of glycolysis that shifts the glucose metabolism from the normal respiratory chain to lactate production in tumor cells. Besides its role as a metabolic regulator, it also acts as protein kinase, which contributes to tumorigenesis. This review is focused on the metabolic role of pyruvate kinase M2 in normal cells vs. cancerous cells and its regulation at the transcriptional level. The review also highlights the role of PKM2 as a potential diagnostic marker and as a therapeutic target in cancer treatment.

The extensive application of engineered nanomaterial (ENM) in various fields increases the possibilities of human exposure, thus imposing a huge risk of nanotoxicity. Hence, there is an urgent need for a detailed risk assessment of these ENMs in response to their toxicological profiling, predominantly in biomedical and biosensor settings. Numerous “toxico-omics” studies have been conducted on ENMs, however, a specific “risk assessment paradigm” dealing with the epigenetic modulations in humans owing to the exposure of these modern-day toxicants has not been defined yet. This review aims to address the critical aspects that are currently preventing the formation of a suitable risk assessment approach for/against ENM exposure and pointing out those researches, which may help to develop and implement effective guidance for nano-risk assessment. Literature relating to physicochemical characterization and toxicological behavior of ENMs were analyzed, and exposure assessment strategies were explored in order to extrapolate opportunities, challenges, and criticisms in the establishment of a baseline for the risk assessment paradigm of ENMs exposure. Various challenges, such as uncertainty in the relation of the physicochemical properties and ENM toxicity, the complexity of the dose-response relationships resulting in difficulty in its extrapolation and measurement of ENM exposure levels emerged as issues in the establishment of a traditional risk assessment. Such an appropriate risk assessment approach will provide adequate estimates of ENM exposure risks and will serve as a guideline for appropriate risk communication and management strategies aiming for the protection and the safety of humans.

No abstract

No abstract

No abstract

No abstract

Background: Endometriosis affects an estimated 176 million women worldwide, which constitutes 10% of the total female population causing debilitating symptoms of pelvic pain and infertility, which limits the quality of reproductive life of affected women. The present study aimed to assess the serum level of VEGF and pro-inflammatory marker IL-6 in cases and normal healthy control groups.Methods: VEGF and IL-6 serum levels were measured by competitive sandwich enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay (ELISA) from 34 subjects with surgically confirmed endometriosis, 16 subjects with adenomyosis and 18 similar  age matched healthy controls with no clinical evidence of the disease or detectable endometriotic lesions at the time of surgical examination. Patients were characterized in terms of their socio-demographic and clinically diagnosed characteristics, including the validated infertility and chronic disease registries.Results: The mean serum level of VEGF was significantly (p<0.0001) higher in case of endometriosis (3887 ng/l) followed by adenomyosis (2588 ng/l) group and lower in case of normal healthy control (665 ng/l) group. The mean serum IL-6 was found to be highly significant (p<0.0001) in case of endometriosis (90.49 pg/ml) followed by adenomyosis (70.37 pg/ml) group and lower in case of normal healthy control (22.97 pg/ml) group.Conclusions: VEGF and IL-6 seems to play a crucial role in the implantation and development of endometriotic lesions, and the disease is associated with significant modulations in the serum levels of VEGF. IL-6 can be a reliable non-invasive diagnostic marker for endometriosis.