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Biomarkers in Inflammatory and Chronic Degenerative Diseases
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Biomarkers in Inflammatory and Chronic Degenerative Diseases

A special issue of International Journal of Molecular Sciences (ISSN 1422-0067). This special issue belongs to the section "Molecular Biology".

Deadline for manuscript submissions: closed (30 June 2022) | Viewed by 27109

Special Issue Editors

Prof. Dr. Giuseppe Rengo

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Guest Editor
Department of Translational Medical Sciences, University of Naples Federico II, Naples, Italy
Interests: heart failure; sympathetic nervous system; ageing; beta-adrenergic receptors; biomarkers; cardiac remodeling; frailty
Special Issues, Collections and Topics in MDPI journals
Prof. Dr. Gilda Varricchi

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Co-Guest Editor
Department of Translational Medical Sciences, University of Naples Federico II, 80131 Naples, Italy
Interests: biomarkers of allergic disorders; autoimmune diseases and primary immunodeficiencies
Prof. Dr. Alberto Maria Marra

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Co-Guest Editor
Department of Pneumology, Centre for Pulmonary Hypertension, Thoraxklinik at Heidelberg University Hospital, Röntgenstraße 1, Heidelberg 69126, Germany
Interests: pulmonary hypertension; right heart function; right heart failure

Special Issue Information

Dear Colleagues,

Inflammatory and chronic degenerative diseases are the leading causes of death and disability worldwide, and their burden is accelerating, advancing across every country. These diseases significantly affect the quality of life of patients and caregivers, as well as constitute a huge expense for health systems.

The field of biomarker research is globally expanding to improve the management of patients with inflammatory and chronic pathologies, with a specific focus on disease progression and response to therapies. Molecular biology and molecular medicine support even more the evaluation of physiological and pathogenic processes or therapeutic effectiveness.

Accordingly, their employment is being implemented in the clinical practice for early diagnosis and for the development of novel therapeutic targets to better prevent and manage inflammatory and chronic diseases. Further, biomarkers may be useful in monitoring the effect of actions aimed at ameliorating patients’ management and at optimizing the allocation of resources.

One of the critical points of these degenerative conditions is represented by the limits in the early identification of disease reactivation, and even diagnostic criteria are burdened with the complexity of real-world patients (i.e., high number of comorbidities). In this context, the application of biomarkers is extremely relevant in order to implement diagnosis accuracy, specificity, and sensitivity.

In recent decades, several underlying molecular mechanisms of chronic diseases have been recognized, including low-grade inflammation, allowing the identification of novel therapeutic approaches and biomarkers. Thus, this Special Issue in IJMS will cover a selection of recent investigations and current review articles focused on the identification and application of biomarkers in the management of inflammatory and chronic degenerative diseases, such as cardiovascular, immunological, musculoskeletal, and neurodegenerative disorders. We kindly invite researchers to submit manuscripts regarding novel signaling pathways with relevant implication in the pathophysiology of inflammatory and chronic diseases, which may have a direct potential impact in the management of these patients.

Prof. Dr. Giuseppe Rengo
Guest Editor

Manuscript Submission Information

Manuscripts should be submitted online at www.mdpi.com by registering and logging in to this website. Once you are registered, click here to go to the submission form. Manuscripts can be submitted until the deadline. All submissions that pass pre-check are peer-reviewed. Accepted papers will be published continuously in the journal (as soon as accepted) and will be listed together on the special issue website. Research articles, review articles as well as short communications are invited. For planned papers, a title and short abstract (about 100 words) can be sent to the Editorial Office for announcement on this website.

Submitted manuscripts should not have been published previously, nor be under consideration for publication elsewhere (except conference proceedings papers). All manuscripts are thoroughly refereed through a single-blind peer-review process. A guide for authors and other relevant information for submission of manuscripts is available on the Instructions for Authors page. International Journal of Molecular Sciences is an international peer-reviewed open access semimonthly journal published by MDPI.

Please visit the Instructions for Authors page before submitting a manuscript. There is an Article Processing Charge (APC) for publication in this open access journal. For details about the APC please see here. Submitted papers should be well formatted and use good English. Authors may use MDPI's English editing service prior to publication or during author revisions.

Keywords

  • chronic degenerative diseases
  • low grade inflammation
  • inflammatory diseases
  • biomarkers
  • signaling pathways
  • molecular mechanisms

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Published Papers (5 papers)

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Research

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30 pages, 19758 KiB  
Article
Dynamic Changes in Colonic Structure and Protein Expression Suggest Regulatory Mechanisms of Colonic Barrier Function in Torpor–Arousal Cycles of the Daurian Ground Squirrel
by Weilan Miao, Yuting Han, Yingyu Yang, Ziwei Hao, Ning An, Jiayu Chen, Ziwen Zhang, Xuli Gao, Kenneth B. Storey, Hui Chang and Shiwei Wang
Int. J. Mol. Sci. 2022, 23(16), 9026; https://doi.org/10.3390/ijms23169026 - 12 Aug 2022
Cited by 7 | Viewed by 2211
Abstract
Background: Both pathological conditions and hibernation can affect the barrier function of small intestine mucosa. However, the effect of hibernation on the barrier function of colonic mucosa remains unclear. Methods: We investigated morphological changes in colonic mucosa, the concentrations of specific proteins and [...] Read more.
Background: Both pathological conditions and hibernation can affect the barrier function of small intestine mucosa. However, the effect of hibernation on the barrier function of colonic mucosa remains unclear. Methods: We investigated morphological changes in colonic mucosa, the concentrations of specific proteins and molecules, and the enzymatic activity of diamine oxidase (DAO), in serum and colonic tissue; the expression of tight junction proteins and mucin, and the changes in inflammatory, farnesoid X receptor (FXR)–small heterodimer partner (SHP), and apoptosis-related molecules that could play a role in gut permeability changes in Daurian ground squirrels in summer active (SA), late torpor (LT), and interbout arousal (IBA) periods. Results: The results show that hibernation reduced the thickness of the colonic mucosa and the depth of the crypt, decreased the number of goblet cells (GCs), and damaged the structure of some microvilli. The concentrations of proteins and molecules, and the enzymatic activity of DAO, were all increased in the serum and colon, and the localization of tight junction proteins and mucin in the colonic mucosa were altered (compensatory response). Although the ground squirrels ate during the interbout arousal period, the changes remained similar to the response to torpor. Inflammation, apoptosis–anti-apoptosis, and FXR–SHP signaling may be involved in the possible changes in intestinal gut permeability during the torpor–arousal cycle in Daurian ground squirrels. In addition, periodic interbout arousal may play an inflammation-correcting role during the long hibernation season of Daurian ground squirrels. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Biomarkers in Inflammatory and Chronic Degenerative Diseases)
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15 pages, 2241 KiB  
Article
A Pro-Inflammatory Signature Constitutively Activated in Monogenic Autoinflammatory Diseases
by Paola Galozzi, Ola Negm, Sara Bindoli, Patrick Tighe, Paolo Sfriso and Leonardo Punzi
Int. J. Mol. Sci. 2022, 23(3), 1828; https://doi.org/10.3390/ijms23031828 - 5 Feb 2022
Cited by 7 | Viewed by 2778
Abstract
Autoinflammatory diseases (AIDs) are disorders characterised by recurrent inflammatory episodes in charge of different organs with no apparent involvement of autoantibodies or antigen-specific T lymphocytes. Few common clinical features have been identified among all monogenic AIDs (mAIDs), while the search for a common [...] Read more.
Autoinflammatory diseases (AIDs) are disorders characterised by recurrent inflammatory episodes in charge of different organs with no apparent involvement of autoantibodies or antigen-specific T lymphocytes. Few common clinical features have been identified among all monogenic AIDs (mAIDs), while the search for a common molecular pattern is still ongoing. The aim of this study was to increase knowledge on the inflammatory pathways in the development of mAIDs in order to identify possible predictive or diagnostic biomarkers for each disease and to develop future preventive and therapeutic strategies. Using protein array-based systems, we evaluated two signalling pathways known to be involved in inflammation and a wide range of inflammatory mediators (pro-inflammatory cytokines and chemokines) in a cohort of 23 patients affected by different mAIDs, as FMF, TRAPS, MKD, Blau syndrome (BS), and NLRP12D. Overall, we observed upregulation of multiple signalling pathway intermediates at protein levels in mAIDs patients’ PBMCs, compared with healthy controls, with significant differences also between patients. FMF, TRAPS, and BS presented also peculiar activations of inflammatory pathways that can distinguish them. MAPK pathway activation, however, seems to be a common feature. The serum level of cytokines and chemokines produced clear differences between patients with distinct diseases, which can help distinguish each autoinflammatory disease. The FMF cytokine production profile appears broader than that of TRAPS, which, in turn, has higher cytokine levels than BS. Our findings suggest an ongoing subclinical inflammation related to the abnormal and constitutive signalling pathways and define an elevated inflammatory cytokine signature. Moreover, the upregulation of Th17-related cytokines emphasises the important role for Th17 and/or Th17-like cells also in monogenic AIDs. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Biomarkers in Inflammatory and Chronic Degenerative Diseases)
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Review

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16 pages, 5050 KiB  
Review
Selected Biomarkers of Tick-Borne Encephalitis: A Review
by Monika Gudowska-Sawczuk and Barbara Mroczko
Int. J. Mol. Sci. 2021, 22(19), 10615; https://doi.org/10.3390/ijms221910615 - 30 Sep 2021
Cited by 15 | Viewed by 3588
Abstract
Tick-borne encephalitis (TBE) is an acute disease caused by the tick-borne encephalitis virus. Due to the viral nature of the condition, there is no effective causal treatment for full-blown disease. Current and nonspecific TBE treatments only relieve symptoms. Unfortunately, the first phase of [...] Read more.
Tick-borne encephalitis (TBE) is an acute disease caused by the tick-borne encephalitis virus. Due to the viral nature of the condition, there is no effective causal treatment for full-blown disease. Current and nonspecific TBE treatments only relieve symptoms. Unfortunately, the first phase of TBE is characterized by flu-like symptoms, making diagnosis difficult during this period. The second phase is referred to as the neurological phase as it involves structures in the central nervous system—most commonly the meninges and, in more severe cases, the brain and the spinal cord. Therefore, it is important that early markers of TBE that will guide clinical decision-making and the choice of treatment are established. In this review, we performed an extensive search of literature reports relevant to biomarkers associated with TBE using the MEDLINE/PubMed database. We observed that apart from routinely determined specific immunoglobulins, free light chains may also be useful in the evaluation of intrathecal synthesis in the central nervous system (CNS) during TBEV infection. Moreover, selected metalloproteinases, chemokines, or cytokines appear to play an important role in the pathogenesis of TBE as a consequence of inflammatory reactions and recruitment of white blood cells into the CNS. Furthermore, we reported promising findings on tau protein or Toll-like receptors. It was also observed that some people may be predisposed to TBE. Therefore, to understand the role of selected tick-borne encephalitis biomarkers, we categorized these factors and discussed their potential application in the diagnosis, prognosis, monitoring, or management of TBE. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Biomarkers in Inflammatory and Chronic Degenerative Diseases)
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71 pages, 2979 KiB  
Review
Therapeutic Advances in Diabetes, Autoimmune, and Neurological Diseases
by Jinsha Liu, Joey Paolo Ting, Shams Al-Azzam, Yun Ding and Sepideh Afshar
Int. J. Mol. Sci. 2021, 22(6), 2805; https://doi.org/10.3390/ijms22062805 - 10 Mar 2021
Cited by 15 | Viewed by 12511
Abstract
Since 2015, 170 small molecules, 60 antibody-based entities, 12 peptides, and 15 gene- or cell-therapies have been approved by FDA for diverse disease indications. Recent advancement in medicine is facilitated by identification of new targets and mechanisms of actions, advancement in discovery and [...] Read more.
Since 2015, 170 small molecules, 60 antibody-based entities, 12 peptides, and 15 gene- or cell-therapies have been approved by FDA for diverse disease indications. Recent advancement in medicine is facilitated by identification of new targets and mechanisms of actions, advancement in discovery and development platforms, and the emergence of novel technologies. Early disease detection, precision intervention, and personalized treatments have revolutionized patient care in the last decade. In this review, we provide a comprehensive overview of current and emerging therapeutic modalities developed in the recent years. We focus on nine diseases in three major therapeutics areas, diabetes, autoimmune, and neurological disorders. The pathogenesis of each disease at physiological and molecular levels is discussed and recently approved drugs as well as drugs in the clinic are presented. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Biomarkers in Inflammatory and Chronic Degenerative Diseases)
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14 pages, 1025 KiB  
Review
Inflammatory Biomarkers in the Short-Term Prognosis of Venous Thromboembolism: A Narrative Review
by Francisco Galeano-Valle, Lucía Ordieres-Ortega, Crhistian Mario Oblitas, Jorge del-Toro-Cervera, Luis Alvarez-Sala-Walther and Pablo Demelo-Rodríguez
Int. J. Mol. Sci. 2021, 22(5), 2627; https://doi.org/10.3390/ijms22052627 - 5 Mar 2021
Cited by 34 | Viewed by 4502
Abstract
The relationship between inflammation and venous thrombosis is not well understood. An inflammatory response may be both the cause and consequence of venous thromboembolism (VTE). In fact, several risk factors of VTE modulate thrombosis through inflammatory markers. Acute pulmonary embolism (PE) is burdened [...] Read more.
The relationship between inflammation and venous thrombosis is not well understood. An inflammatory response may be both the cause and consequence of venous thromboembolism (VTE). In fact, several risk factors of VTE modulate thrombosis through inflammatory markers. Acute pulmonary embolism (PE) is burdened by a remarkable mortality rate, up to 34% in severely ill patients presenting with hemodynamic instability. Initial mortality risk stratification is based on hemodynamic instability. Patients with a situation of hemodynamic stability require immediate further risk assessment based on clinical, imaging, and circulating biomarkers, as well as the presence of comorbidities. Some inflammatory biomarkers have shown potential usefulness in the risk stratification of patients with VTE, especially acute PE. C-reactive protein on admission is associated with 30-day mortality and bleeding in VTE patients. P-selectin is associated with right ventricle dysfunction in PE patients and might be associated with VTE recurrences and the extension of thrombosis. Tissue factor microparticles are associated with VTE recurrence in cancer-associated thrombosis. Other inflammatory biomarkers present scarce evidence (inflammatory cytokines, erythrocyte sedimentation rate, fibrinogen, leukocyte count). In this manuscript, we will review the prognostic role of different inflammatory biomarkers available both for clinical practice and research in VTE patients. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Biomarkers in Inflammatory and Chronic Degenerative Diseases)
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