Cal‘MAM’ity at the Endoplasmic Reticulum-Mitochondrial Interface: A Potential Therapeutic Target for Neurodegeneration and Human Immunodeficiency Virus-Associated Neurocognitive Disorders
By Jessica Proulx, In-Woo Park, and Kathleen Borgmann Excerpt from the article published in Frontiers in neuroscience, 15, 715945. https://doi.org/10.3389/fnins.2021.715945 Editor’s Highlights Cooperation and communication between the ER and mitochondria are essential to ensure maintenance of neuronal and organelle homeostasis. Neurons are not directly infected by HIV-1; thus, indirect HIV-induced toxicity via infected glia is a key mechanism […]
Continue ReadingEpilepsy in Neurodegenerative Diseases: Related Drugs and Molecular Pathways
By Amanda Cano, Elena Fonseca, Miren Ettcheto, Elena Sánchez-López, Itziar de Rojas, Silvia Alonso-Lana, Xavier Morató, Eliana B. Souto, Manuel Toledo, Mercè Boada, Marta Marquié, and Agustín Ruíz Excerpt from the article published in Pharmaceuticals. 2021; 14(10):1057. 18 October 2021, DOI: https://doi.org/10.3390/ph14101057 Editor’s Highlights Epilepsy affects approximately 50 million people worldwide. The massive entrance of […]
Continue ReadingHighly Specific Sigma Receptor Ligands Exhibit Anti-Viral Properties in SARS-CoV-2 Infected Cells
by Ostrov, D.A.; Bluhm, A.P.;Li, D.; Khan, J.Q.; Rohamare, M.;Rajamanickam, K.; K. Bhanumathy,K.; Lew, J.; Falzarano, D.;Vizeacoumar, F.J.; et al. Excerpt from the article published in Pathogens 2021,10, 1514. https://doi.org/10.3390/pathogens10111514 Editor’s Highlights Background There is a strong need for prevention and treatment strategies for COVID-19 that are not impacted by SARS-CoV-2 mutations emerging in variants […]
Continue ReadingAging with Down Syndrome—Where Are We Now and Where Are We Going?
by Melissa J. Alldred, Alessandra C. Martini, David Patterson, James Hendrix, and Ann-Charlotte Granholm Excerpt from the article published in Journal of Clinical Medicine 10, no. 20: 4687. 13 October 2021 DOI: https://doi.org/10.3390/jcm10204687 Abstract Down syndrome (DS) is a form of accelerated aging, and people with DS are highly prone to aging-related conditions that include vascular […]
Continue ReadingPGRMC1 acts as a size-selective cargo receptor to drive ER-phagic clearance of mutant prohormones
By Yu-Jie Chen, Jeffrey Knupp, Anoop Arunagiri, Leena Haataja, Peter Arvan, and Billy Tsai Excerpt from the article published in Nature Communications 12, 5991 (2021), 13 October 2021, DOI: https://doi.org/10.1038/s41467-021-26225-8 Editor’s Highlights Protein misfolding in the endoplasmic reticulum (ER) causes a myriad of human diseases, including neurodegenerative diseases, cancer, and diabetes. Amongst the most well characterized of […]
Continue ReadingJuvenile-Onset Huntington Disease Pathophysiology and Neurodevelopment: A Review
By Hannah S. Bakels, MSc, Raymund A.C. Roos, Willeke M.C. van Roon-Mom, and Susanne T. de Bot Excerpt from the article published online 12 October 2021 in Wiley Online Library(wileyonlinelibrary.com). DOI: 10.1002/mds.28823 Editor’s Highlights Huntington disease (HD) is an autosomal dominant progressive brain disorder caused by a pathological CAG repeat expansion coding for huntingtin (HTT gene), […]
Continue ReadingTransmembrane protein 97 exhibits oncogenic properties via enhancing LRP6-mediated Wnt signaling in breast cancer
By Huifang Zhu, Zijie Su, Jiong Ning, Liang Zhou, Lifeng Tan, Sapna Sayed, Jiaxing Song, Zhongyuan Wang, Huan Li, Qi Sun, Shanshan Liu, Ou Sha, Feng Leng, Xianxiong Chen & Desheng Lu Excerpt from the article published in Cell Death & Disease 12, 912 (2021). https://doi.org/10.1038/s41419-021-04211-8 Editor’s Highlights Triple-negative breast cancer (TNBC), negative for estrogen receptor (ER), […]
Continue ReadingIntrathecal interleukin-1β decreases sigma-1 receptor expression in spinal astrocytes in a murine model of neuropathic pain
By Sheu-Ran Choi, Ho Jae Han, Alvin J. Beitz, and Jang-Hern Lee Excerpt from the article published in Biomedicine & Pharmacotherapy, Volume 144, December 2021, 112272, ISSN 0753-3322, published online October 1, 2021, DOI: https://doi.org/10.1016/j.biopha.2021.112272. Editor’s Highlights Autors’ Highlights Abstract The sigma-1 receptor (Sig-1R) plays an important role in spinal pain transmission by increasing phosphorylation of the N-methyl-D-aspartate […]
Continue ReadingSigma-1 Receptor: A Potential Therapeutic Target for Traumatic Brain Injury
By Shi Mingming, Chen Fanglian, Chen Zhijuan, Yang Weidong, Yue Shuyuan, Zhang Jianning, and Chen Xin Excerpt from the article published in Frontiers in Cellular Neuroscience, 2021. DOI:10.3389/fncel.2021.685201 Editor’s Highlights Abstract The sigma-1 receptor (Sig-1R) is a chaperone receptor that primarily resides at the mitochondria-associated endoplasmic reticulum (ER) membrane (MAM) and acts as a dynamic […]
Continue ReadingThe Calcium Channel α2δ1 Subunit: Interactional Targets in Primary Sensory Neurons and Role in Neuropathic Pain
By Wenqiang Cui, Hongyun Wu, Xiaowen Yu, Ting Song, Xiangqing Xuan, and Fei Xu Excerpt from the article published in Frontiers in Cellular Neuroscience, volume 15, 2021. DOI: https://doi.org/10.3389/fncel.2021.699731 Editor’s Highlights In the human genome, four α2δ proteins (α2δ1–α2δ4) are encoded by four genes (CACNA2D1–CACNA2D4), respectively. The upregulated expression of CACNA2D1 contributed to neuronal excitability and neurotransmission. […]
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