First seen as a storage organ, the white adipose tissue (WAT) is now considered as an endocrine organ. WAT can produce an array of bioactive factors known as adipokines acting at physiological level and playing a vital role in energy metabolism as well as in immune response. The global effect of adipokines in metabolic activities is well established, but their impact on the physiology and the pathophysiology of the central nervous system (CNS) remains poorly defined. Adipokines are not only produced by the WAT but can also be expressed in the CNS where receptors for these factors are present. When produced in periphery and to affect the CNS, these factors may either cross the blood brain barrier (BBB) or modify the BBB physiology by acting on cells forming the BBB. Adipokines could regulate neuroinflammation and oxidative stress which are two major physiological processes involved in neurodegeneration and are associated with many chronic neurodegenerative diseases. In this review, we focus on four important adipokines (leptin, resistin, adiponectin, and TNFα) and one lipokine (lysophosphatidic acid—LPA) associated with autotaxin, its producing enzyme. Their potential effects on neurodegeneration and brain repair (neurogenesis) will be discussed. Understanding and regulating these adipokines could be an interesting lead to novel therapeutic strategy in order to counteract neurodegenerative disorders and/or promote brain repair.

Inflammation is essential in defense against infection or injury. It is tightly regulated, as over-response can be detrimental, especially in immune-privileged organs such as the central nervous system (CNS). Microglia constitutes the major source of inflammatory factors, but are also involved in the regulation of the inflammation and in the reparation. Autotaxin (ATX), a phospholipase D, converts lysophosphatidylcholine into lysophosphatidic acid (LPA) and is upregulated in several CNS injuries. LPA, a pleiotropic immunomodulatory factor, can induce multiple cellular processes including morphological changes, proliferation, death and survival. We investigated ATX effects on microglia inflammatory response to lipopolysaccharide (LPS), mimicking gram-negative infection. Murine BV-2 microglia and stable transfected, overexpressing ATX-BV-2 (A+) microglia were treated with LPS. Tumor necrosis factor α (TNFα), interleukin (IL)-6 and IL-10 mRNA and proteins levels were examined by qRT-PCR and ELISA, respectively. Secreted LPA was quantified by a radioenzymatic assay and microglial activation markers (CD11b, CD14, B7.1 and B7.2) were determined by flow cytometry. ATX expression and LPA production were significantly enhanced in LPS treated BV-2 cells. LPS induction of mRNA and protein level for TNFα and IL-6 were inhibited in A+ cells, while IL-10 was increased. CD11b, CD14, and B7.1 and B7.2 expressions were reduced in A+ cells. Our results strongly suggest deactivation of microglia and an IL-10 inhibitory of ATX with LPS induced microglia activation.

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(1) Plants, due to their phytochemicals, have long been known for their pharmacological potential and medicinal value. Verjuice, the acidic juice of unripe green grape, is still poorly characterized in terms of its chemical composition and biological activities. (2) In this study, we characterized the chemical composition, antioxidant and antitumor potential of verjuice extract. Folin–Ciocalteu and aluminum chloride reagents were used to identify the total phenol and total flavonoid composition. Various conventional methods were used to quantify the alkaloids and tannins. DPPH (2,2-diphenyl-1-picrylhydrazyl) free radical scavenging assay and Neutral Red assay were used to assess the antioxidant and antitumor activities, respectively. (3) We showed that the verjuice extract contains alkaloids, tannins, and a high quantity of total flavonoids and total phenols. Besides its antioxidant activity, verjuice significantly repressed human pulmonary adenocarcinoma (A549) cells’ viability in both dose- and time-dependent manners. Moreover, verjuice extract significantly enhanced the anticancer potential of cisplatin. (4) Altogether, these observations suggest a potential use of verjuice as a natural antitumor remedy.

Purpose Campylobacter species are currently the most common cause of bacterial gastroenteritis. In Lebanon, Campylobacter infection occurrence is underdiagnosed owing to the lack of specific culture and rapid test kits, particularly among children. This study aimed to evaluate the prevalence, laboratory findings, and clinical characteristics of Campylobacter infection in hospitalized children with acute gastroenteritis in South Lebanon. Methods We conducted a 6-month retrospective cohort study between January and June 2018, including 291 children aged between 1 month and 12 years, who were admitted to a tertiary healthcare center in South Lebanon. The medical files of the patients were reviewed to retrieve the required clinical information, including clinical and laboratory data. Results The prevalence of campylobacteriosis agents in pediatric patients with acute gastroenteritis is 12.02%. Patients infected with Campylobacter had more severe acute gastroenteritis than Campylobacter -negative patients and often presented with high-grade fever, diarrhea episodes more than six times per day, diarrhea lasting for more than five days, and dehydration. Indeed, children with high-grade fever (≥38.5°C) were five times more likely to test positive for Campylobacter than those with low-grade fever. In addition, the results showed a higher Vesikari score for the majority of Campylobacter -positive patients with severe acute gastroenteritis compared to a moderate profile for Campylobacter -negative patients. Conclusion The present study findings highlight that Campylobacter infection is frequent among children with acute gastroenteritis. Therefore, the detection of Campylobacter should be carried out for the diagnosis of human gastroenteritis in Lebanon, along with the detection of routine enteropathogens.