Current Pharmaceutical Design - Volume 22, Issue 40, 2016

Background: In steady state conditions intestinal immune homeostasis is maintained by a sophisticated bidirectional dialogue between the microbiota and the intestinal immune system. This “cross talk“ is enabled by the presence of highly adapted secretory cells, sampling cells and pattern recognition receptors in the gastric epithelium. Methods: Herein we discuss the mechanisms involved in the breakdown of intesti Read More

Background: Autoimmune phenotypes are prevalent in major psychiatric disorders. Disequilibria of cellular processes occurring in the gastrointestinal (GI) tract likely contribute to immune dysfunction in psychiatric disorders. As the venue of a complex community of resident microbes, the gut in a homeostatic state equates with a functional digestive system, cellular barrier stability and properly regulated reco Read More

The comorbid prevalence of major depressive disorder (MDD) with obesity and type II diabetes mellitus reflects the existence of a subset of individuals with a complex common pathophysiology and overlapping risk factors. Such comorbid disease presentations imply a number of difficulties, including: decreased treatment responsivity and adherence; altered glycemic control and increased risk of wider medical co Read More

Background: Many lines of scientific research suggest that Autism Spectrum Disorders (ASDs) may be associated with alterations in the enteric ecosystem, including alterations of the enteric macrobiome (i.e. helminthes and fauna) and changes in predominant microbiome species, particularly a reduction in microbiome species diversity. Methods: We performed a comprehensive review of the literature and summari Read More

Background: The underlying pathophysiology of schizophrenia still remains elusive. Thus, there is a pressing need to identify novel targets for the development of new interventions and elucidate related biomarkers for the identification and monitoring of potentially responsive patients. In this sense, several hypotheses involving immune/inflammatory changes and the consequent oxidative/nitrosative stress, as well as a dysreg Read More

Background: Alterations in gut microbiota, coupled to increased gut permeability are now widely recognized as having a role in the etiology, course and treatment of many medical conditions, including autoimmune and neurodegenerative disorders. Methods: In this review, the role that such gut changes play over the course of multiple sclerosis (MS) is detailed. Results: Given the wide array of biological factors and processes that Read More

Background: Increased gut permeability (leaky gut) and alterations in gut microbiota are now widely accepted as relevant to the etiology, course and treatment of many neuropsychiatric disorders, including Parkinson disease (PD). Although a wide array of data on the biological underpinnings of PD has not yet been linked to such gut-associated changes, increased gut permeability and dysregulated microbiota alter many path Read More

Alzheimer’s disease (AD), the most common form of dementia, is a progressive disorder manifested by gradual memory loss and subsequent impairment in mental and behavioral functions. Though the primary risk factor for AD is advancing age, other factors such as diabetes mellitus, hyperlipidemia, obesity, vascular factors and depression play a role in its pathogenesis. The human gastrointestinal tract has a diverse c Read More

Over the last few decades proteins and peptide therapeutics have occupied an enormous fraction of pharmaceutical industry. Despite their high potential as therapeutics, the big challenge often encountered is the effective administration and bioavailability of protein therapeutics in vivo system. Peptide molecules are well known for their in vivo short half-lives. In addition, due to high molecular weight and susceptibility to Read More

Nanotechnology has emerged as a promising strategy toward inflammatory bowel disease (IBD) treatment. Nano-sized drug delivery systems exhibit an increased accumulation in inflamed tissues due to their nanometer size and present the ability to overcome the challenging inflamed colonic barriers (i.e. thick mucus layer, disrupted epithelium, altered colonic transit time). Moreover, nanocarriers are able to increase t Read More