Meenal Datta, Laura E Via, Véronique Dartois, Lei Xu, Clifton E Barry, Rakesh K Jain
{"title":"Leveraging insights from cancer to improve tuberculosis therapy.","authors":"Meenal Datta, Laura E Via, Véronique Dartois, Lei Xu, Clifton E Barry, Rakesh K Jain","doi":"10.1016/j.molmed.2024.07.011","DOIUrl":"10.1016/j.molmed.2024.07.011","url":null,"abstract":"<p><p>Exploring and exploiting the microenvironmental similarities between pulmonary tuberculosis (TB) granulomas and malignant tumors has revealed new strategies for more efficacious host-directed therapies (HDTs). This opinion article discusses a paradigm shift in TB therapeutic development, drawing on critical insights from oncology. We summarize recent efforts to characterize and overcome key shared features between tumors and granulomas, including excessive fibrosis, abnormal angiogenesis, hypoxia and necrosis, and immunosuppression. We provide specific examples of cancer therapy application to TB to overcome these microenvironmental abnormalities, including matrix-targeting therapies, antiangiogenic agents, and immune-stimulatory drugs. Finally, we propose a new framework for combining HDTs with anti-TB agents to maximize therapeutic delivery and efficacy while reducing treatment dosages, duration, and harmful side effects to benefit TB patients.</p>","PeriodicalId":23263,"journal":{"name":"Trends in molecular medicine","volume":" ","pages":"11-20"},"PeriodicalIF":12.8,"publicationDate":"2025-01-01","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC11717643/pdf/","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"141983370","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":1,"RegionCategory":"医学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"OA","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
{"title":"Microbes and mood: innovative biomarker approaches in depression.","authors":"Miranda Green, Madhukar H Trivedi, Jane A Foster","doi":"10.1016/j.molmed.2024.09.002","DOIUrl":"10.1016/j.molmed.2024.09.002","url":null,"abstract":"<p><p>Although the field of psychiatry has made gains in biomarker discovery, our ability to change long-term outcomes remains inadequate. Matching individuals to the best treatment for them is a persistent clinical challenge. Moreover, the development of novel treatments has been hampered in part due to a limited understanding of the biological mechanisms underlying individual differences that contribute to clinical heterogeneity. The gut microbiome has become an area of intensive research in conditions ranging from metabolic disorders to cancer. Innovation in these spaces has led to translational breakthroughs, offering novel microbiome-informed approaches that may improve patient outcomes. In this review we examine how translational microbiome research is poised to advance biomarker discovery in mental health, with a focus on depression.</p>","PeriodicalId":23263,"journal":{"name":"Trends in molecular medicine","volume":" ","pages":"50-63"},"PeriodicalIF":12.8,"publicationDate":"2025-01-01","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"142366581","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":1,"RegionCategory":"医学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
Shan Quah, Gowtham Subramanian, Jonathan S L Tan, Kagistia Hana Utami, Prabha Sampath
{"title":"MicroRNAs: a symphony orchestrating evolution and disease dynamics.","authors":"Shan Quah, Gowtham Subramanian, Jonathan S L Tan, Kagistia Hana Utami, Prabha Sampath","doi":"10.1016/j.molmed.2024.07.004","DOIUrl":"10.1016/j.molmed.2024.07.004","url":null,"abstract":"<p><p>The genesis of human disease lies in our evolutionary past. Evolution has featured a general trend towards increased morphological complexity, partly conferred by expansion in gene regulatory capacity via microRNA (miRNA) innovation. Many human diseases are directly related to the evolved roles of these miRNAs, and miRNA-based therapies are emerging as an appealing strategy for precision medicine. We focus on three categories of human disease - cancer, inflammation-linked pathologies, and neurological disorders - which are highly prevalent and are associated with substantial disease burden worldwide. In each category we discuss the pathogenic roles of miRNAs in the context of their evolved functions, as well as current and potential advances in targeting these miRNAs for disease therapy.</p>","PeriodicalId":23263,"journal":{"name":"Trends in molecular medicine","volume":" ","pages":"21-35"},"PeriodicalIF":12.8,"publicationDate":"2025-01-01","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"141902989","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":1,"RegionCategory":"医学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
{"title":"Circadian phase instability in bipolar disorder: a neglected essence.","authors":"Francisco Romo-Nava","doi":"10.1016/j.molmed.2024.06.012","DOIUrl":"10.1016/j.molmed.2024.06.012","url":null,"abstract":"<p><p>Circadian system disruption is an essential but poorly understood feature of bipolar disorder (BD) and associated comorbidities. This forum article summarizes current evidence regarding the emerging concept of circadian phase instability (CPI) as a neglected phenomenon with possibly unique features in BD that could be harnessed to develop individually tailored chronobiological interventions.</p>","PeriodicalId":23263,"journal":{"name":"Trends in molecular medicine","volume":" ","pages":"7-10"},"PeriodicalIF":12.8,"publicationDate":"2025-01-01","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC11717640/pdf/","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"141617166","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":1,"RegionCategory":"医学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"OA","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
Roya Behrouzi, Alexandra Clipson, Kathryn L Simpson, Fiona Blackhall, Dominic G Rothwell, Caroline Dive, Florent Mouliere
{"title":"Cell-free and extrachromosomal DNA profiling of small cell lung cancer.","authors":"Roya Behrouzi, Alexandra Clipson, Kathryn L Simpson, Fiona Blackhall, Dominic G Rothwell, Caroline Dive, Florent Mouliere","doi":"10.1016/j.molmed.2024.08.004","DOIUrl":"10.1016/j.molmed.2024.08.004","url":null,"abstract":"<p><p>Small cell lung cancer (SCLC) is highly aggressive with poor prognosis. Despite a relative prevalence of circulating tumour DNA (ctDNA) in SCLC, liquid biopsies are not currently implemented, unlike non-SCLC where cell-free DNA (cfDNA) mutation profiling in the blood has utility for guiding targeted therapies and assessing minimal residual disease. cfDNA methylation profiling is highly sensitive for SCLC detection and holds promise for disease monitoring and molecular subtyping; cfDNA fragmentation profiling has also demonstrated clinical potential. Extrachromosomal DNA (ecDNA), that is often observed in SCLC, promotes tumour heterogeneity and chemotherapy resistance and can be detected in blood. We discuss how these cfDNA profiling modalities can be harnessed to expand the clinical applications of liquid biopsy in SCLC.</p>","PeriodicalId":23263,"journal":{"name":"Trends in molecular medicine","volume":" ","pages":"64-78"},"PeriodicalIF":12.8,"publicationDate":"2025-01-01","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"142133854","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":1,"RegionCategory":"医学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
{"title":"Vascular dysfunction in Hutchinson-Gilford progeria syndrome.","authors":"Yaping Zhao, Li Wang, Suowen Xu","doi":"10.1016/j.molmed.2024.12.008","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.1016/j.molmed.2024.12.008","url":null,"abstract":"<p><p>Most patients with Hutchinson-Gilford progeria syndrome (HGPS) succumb to cardiovascular disease. Recent studies by Barettino et al., Cardoso et al., and Vakili et al. utilized progeria mouse models to elucidate novel mechanisms by which vascular smooth muscle cell (VSMC) and endothelial cell (EC) dysfunction accelerate the progress of the disease, thus providing directions for the development of new targeted pharmaco-therapies.</p>","PeriodicalId":23263,"journal":{"name":"Trends in molecular medicine","volume":" ","pages":""},"PeriodicalIF":12.8,"publicationDate":"2024-12-30","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"142910894","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":1,"RegionCategory":"医学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
Leire Arrizabalaga, Esmeralda García-Torralba, Lorenzo Galluzzi, Aitziber Buqué
{"title":"Targeting CDK2 to circumvent treatment resistance in HR<sup>+</sup> breast cancer.","authors":"Leire Arrizabalaga, Esmeralda García-Torralba, Lorenzo Galluzzi, Aitziber Buqué","doi":"10.1016/j.molmed.2024.12.009","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.1016/j.molmed.2024.12.009","url":null,"abstract":"<p><p>Genetic and epigenetic defects of the p53 system have previously been associated with resistance to CDK4/6 inhibitors in women with HR<sup>+</sup> breast cancer. Recent data from Kudo et al. demonstrate that CDK2-targeting agents may offer an effective strategy to circumvent such resistance by enforcing cellular senescence downstream of RBL2 dephosphorylation.</p>","PeriodicalId":23263,"journal":{"name":"Trends in molecular medicine","volume":" ","pages":""},"PeriodicalIF":12.8,"publicationDate":"2024-12-27","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"142898449","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":1,"RegionCategory":"医学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
{"title":"Short-chain fatty acids in fetal development and metabolism.","authors":"Xueyun Qin, Mo Zhang, Shiting Chen, Yunhui Tang, Jiajun Cui, Guolian Ding","doi":"10.1016/j.molmed.2024.11.014","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.1016/j.molmed.2024.11.014","url":null,"abstract":"<p><p>Short-chain fatty acids (SCFAs), primarily derived from gut microbiota, play a role in regulating fetal development; however, the mechanism remains unclear. Fetal SCFAs levels depends on maternal SCFAs transported via the placenta. Metabolic stress, particularly from diabetes and obesity, can disrupt maternal SCFAs levels, impairing fetal metabolic reprogramming. Dysregulated SCFAs may negatively impact the development of the fetal cardiovascular, nervous, and immune systems, potentially contributing to adverse outcomes in adulthood. This review focuses on recent advances regarding the role of maternal SCFAs in shaping the metabolic profile of offspring, especially in the context of various maternal metabolic disorders. Given that SCFAs may influence fetal development through the placenta-embryo axis, targeted SCFAs supplementation could be a promising strategy against developmental diseases associated with intrauterine risk factors.</p>","PeriodicalId":23263,"journal":{"name":"Trends in molecular medicine","volume":" ","pages":""},"PeriodicalIF":12.8,"publicationDate":"2024-12-17","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"142855567","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":1,"RegionCategory":"医学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
{"title":"New therapeutic approaches for fibrosis: harnessing translational regulation.","authors":"Sumeen Kaur Gill, Richard H Gomer","doi":"10.1016/j.molmed.2024.11.012","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.1016/j.molmed.2024.11.012","url":null,"abstract":"<p><p>Idiopathic pulmonary fibrosis (IPF) is a progressive and debilitating lung disease characterized by excessive extracellular matrix deposition and tissue scarring. The median survival of patients with IPF is only 4.5 years following diagnosis, and effective treatment options are scarce. Recent studies found aberrant translation of specific mRNAs in various fibrosing diseases, highlighting the role of key translational regulators, including RNA binding proteins (RBPs), microRNAs, long noncoding RNAs, and transcript modifications. Notably, when inhibited, 10 profibrotic RBPs cause a significant attenuation of fibrosis, illuminating potential therapeutic targets. In this review, we describe translational regulation in fibrosis and highlight a model where a conserved evolutionary mechanism may explain this regulation.</p>","PeriodicalId":23263,"journal":{"name":"Trends in molecular medicine","volume":" ","pages":""},"PeriodicalIF":12.8,"publicationDate":"2024-12-16","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"142847656","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":1,"RegionCategory":"医学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}