The functionality of stem cells is tightly regulated by cues from the niche, comprising both intrinsic and extrinsic cell signals. Besides chemical and growth factors, biophysical signals are important components of extrinsic signals that dictate the stem cell properties. The materials used in the fabrication of scaffolds provide the chemical cues whereas the shape of the scaffolds provides the biophysical cues. The effect of the chemical composition of the scaffolds on stem cell fate is well researched. Biophysical signals such as nanotopography, mechanical forces, stiffness of the matrix, and roughness of the biomaterial influence the fate of stem cells. However, not much is known about their role in signaling crosstalk, stem cell maintenance, and directed differentiation. Among the various techniques for scaffold design, nanotechnology has special significance. The role of nanoscale topography in scaffold design for the regulation of stem cell behavior has gained importance in regenerative medicine. Nanotechnology allows manipulation of highly advanced surfaces/scaffolds for optimal regulation of cellular behavior. Techniques such as electrospinning, soft lithography, microfluidics, carbon nanotubes, and nanostructured hydrogel are described in this review, along with their potential usage in regenerative medicine. We have also provided a brief insight into the potential signaling crosstalk that is triggered by nanomaterials that dictate a specific outcome of stem cells. This concise review compiles recent developments in nanoscale architecture and its importance in directing stem cell differentiation for prospective therapeutic applications.

Summary Tetrodotoxin (TTX) is a deadly neurotoxin which selectively inhibits Na+ activation mechanism of nerve impulse, without affecting the permeability of K+ ions. Because of this sodium channel blocking action, it is majorly being studied for biomedical applications. TTX is present in taxonomically diverse groups of animals inhabiting terrestrial, marine, fresh water and brackish water environments, still its origin remains unclear. The extensive study of the toxin has revealed a few possibilities of its origin. This review reports on the aspects of the origin of TTX, where the primary focus is on its exogenous origin. The significance of bacterial, cellular and environmental factors in its biogenesis and accumulation is also discussed. The possible facets for engineering the bacterial genomics to modulate the gene expression for TTX production are also outlined.

The head and neck squamous cell carcinoma (HNSCC) transcriptome has been profiled extensively, nevertheless, identifying biomarkers that are clinically relevant and thereby with translational benefit, has been a major challenge. The objective of this study was to use a meta-analysis based approach to catalog candidate biomarkers with high potential for clinical application in HNSCC. Data from publically available microarray series (N = 20) profiled using Agilent (4X44K G4112F) and Affymetrix (HGU133A, U133A_2, U133Plus 2) platforms was downloaded and analyzed in a platform/chip-specific manner (GeneSpring software v12.5, Agilent, USA). Principal Component Analysis (PCA) and clustering analysis was carried out iteratively for segregating outliers; 140 normal and 277 tumor samples from 15 series were included in the final analysis. The analyses identified 181 differentially expressed, concordant and statistically significant genes; STRING analysis revealed interactions between 122 of them, with two major gene clusters connected by multiple nodes (MYC, FOS and HSPA4). Validation in the HNSCC-specific database (N = 528) in The Cancer Genome Atlas (TCGA) identified a panel (ECT2, ANO1, TP63, FADD, EXT1, NCBP2) that was altered in 30% of the samples. Validation in treatment naïve (Group I; N = 12) and post treatment (Group II; N = 12) patients identified 8 genes significantly associated with the disease (Area under curve>0.6). Correlation with recurrence/re-recurrence showed ANO1 had highest efficacy (sensitivity: 0.8, specificity: 0.6) to predict failure in Group I. UBE2V2, PLAC8, FADD and TTK showed high sensitivity (1.00) in Group I while UBE2V2 and CRYM were highly sensitive (>0.8) in predicting re-recurrence in Group II. Further, TCGA analysis showed that ANO1 and FADD, located at 11q13, were co-expressed at transcript level and significantly associated with overall and disease-free survival (p<0.05). The meta-analysis approach adopted in this study has identified candidate markers correlated with disease outcome in HNSCC; further validation in a larger cohort of patients will establish their clinical relevance.

Differentiation is a major histological parameter determining tumor aggressiveness and prognosis of the patient; cancer stem cells with their slow dividing and undifferentiated nature might be one of the factors determining the same. This study aims to correlate cancer stem cell markers (CD44 and CD147) with tumor differentiation and evaluate their subsequent effect on prognosis. Immunohistochemical analysis in treatment naïve oral cancer patients (n = 53) indicated that the expression of CD147 was associated with poorly differentiated squamous cell carcinoma and moderately differentiated squamous cell carcinoma (p < 0.01). Furthermore, co-expression analysis showed that 45% each of moderately differentiated squamous cell carcinoma and poorly differentiated squamous cell carcinoma patients were CD44/CD147 as compared to only 10% of patients with well-differentiated squamous cell carcinoma. A three-way analysis indicated that differentiation correlated with recurrence and survival (p < 0.05) in only the patients with CD44/CD147 cohort. Subsequently, relevance of these cancer stem cell markers in patterning the differentiation characteristics was evaluated in oral squamous cell carcinoma cell lines originating from different grades of oral cancer. Flowcytometry-based analysis indicated an increase in CD44/CD147 cells in cell lines of poorly differentiated squamous cell carcinoma (94.35 ± 1.14%, p < 0.001) and moderately differentiated squamous cell carcinoma origin (93.49 ± 0.47%, p < 0.001) as compared to cell line of well-differentiated squamous cell carcinoma origin (23.12% ± 0.49%). Expression profiling indicated higher expression of cancer stem cell and epithelial-mesenchymal transition markers in SCC029B (poorly differentiated squamous cell carcinoma originated; p ≤ 0.001), which was further translated into increased spheroid formation, migration, and invasion (p < 0.001) as compared to cell line of well-differentiated squamous cell carcinoma origin. This study suggests that CD44 and CD147 together improve the prognostic efficacy of tumor differentiation; in vitro results further point out that these markers might be determinant of differentiation characteristics, imparting properties of increased self-renewal, migration, and invasion.

Shellfish are diverse, serve as main constituents of seafood, and are extensively consumed globally because of their nutritional values. Consequently, increase in reports of IgE-mediated seafood allergy is particularly food associated to shellfish. Seafood-associated shellfish consists of crustaceans (decapods, stomatopods, barnacles, and euphausiids) and molluskans (gastropods, bivalves, and cephalopods) and its products can start from mild local symptoms and lead to severe systemic anaphylactic reactions through ingestion, inhalation, or contact like most other food allergens. Globally, the most commonly causative shellfish are shrimps, crabs, lobsters, clams, oysters, and mussels. The prevalence of shellfish allergy is estimated to be 0.5-2.5% of the general population but higher in coastal Asian countries where shellfish constitute a large proportion of the diet. Diversity in allergens such as tropomyosin, arginine kinase, myosin light chain, and sarcoplasmic binding protein are from crustaceans whereas tropomyosin, paramyosin, troponin, actine, amylase, and hemoyanin are reported from molluskans shellfish. Tropomyosin is the major allergen and is responsible for cross-reactivity between shellfish and other invertebrates, within crustaceans, within molluskans, between crustaceans vs. molluskans as well as between shellfish and fish. Allergenicity diagnosis requires clinical history, in vivo skin prick testing, in vitro quantification of IgE, immunoCAP, and confirmation by oral challenge testing unless the reactions borne by it are life-threatening. This comprehensive review provides the update and new findings in the area of shellfish allergy including demographic, diversity of allergens, allergenicity, their cross-reactivity, and innovative molecular genetics approaches in diagnosing and managing this life-threatening as well as life-long disease.