Artemisia species are used worldwide for their antioxidant, antimicrobial and anti-inflammatory properties. This research was designed to investigate the phytochemical profile of two ethanolic extracts obtained from leaves and stems of A. absinthium L. as well as the biological potential (antioxidant activity, cytotoxic, anti-migratory and anti-inflammatory properties). Both plant materials showed quite similar thermogravimetric, FT-IR phenolic profile (high chlorogenic acid) with mild antioxidant capacity [ascorbic acid (0.02–0.1) > leaves (0.1–2.0) > stem (0.1–2.0)]. Alcoholic extracts from these plant materials showed a cytotoxic effect against A375 (melanoma) and MCF7 (breast adenocarcinoma) and affected less the non-malignant HaCaT cells (human keratinocytes) at 72 h post-stimulation and this same trend was observed in the anti-migratory (A375, MCF7 > HaCat) assay. Lastly, extracts ameliorated the pro-inflammatory effect of TPA (12-O-tetradecanoylphorbol-13-acetate) in mice ears, characterized by a diffuse neutrophil distribution with no exocytosis or micro-abscesses.

Background and Objectives: Toxoplasma gondii, cytomegalovirus (CMV) and rubella virus, besides other agents, belong to a group named the TORCH complex. Research on the epidemiology of these agents in women is of particular interest, as primary infection during pregnancy could cause severe damage to the fetus. Women who had contracted infection before pregnancy develop IgG antibodies, so the fetus is protected in case of contact with the same agent. Our scope was to identify the childbearing women simultaneously protected or susceptible to a primary infection to two or three agents mentioned above. Materials and Methods: A cross-sectional study was performed on 6961 fertile Caucasian women from Western Romania, to analyze the simultaneous seroprevalence to two or three of the pathogens from the TORCH complex: Toxoplasma gondii, CMV, and rubella virus. Sampling was conducted at two time points: 2008–2010 (group 1; 1461 participants) and 2015–2018 (group 2; 5500 participants). Results: The percentage of women simultaneously seropositive to IgG-anti-Toxoplasma gondii/IgG-anti-CMV, IgG-anti-Toxoplasma gondii/IgG-anti-rubella, IgG-anti-CMV/IgG-anti-rubella or IgG-anti-Toxoplasma gondii and IgG-anti-CMV/IgG-anti-rubella antibodies decreased between the two groups (2008–2010 vs. 2015–2018): 41.4% vs. 36.1%, OR = 0.79, p = 0.0002; 41.8% vs. 35.7%, OR = 0.77, p < 0.0001; 88.9% vs. 83.6%, OR = 0.63, p < 0.0001; 39.6% vs. 33.2%, OR = 0.75, p < 0.0001. When comparing women from urban and rural areas, the simultaneous seroprevalence was higher in rural areas. In women tested 2008–2010 (group 1) the simultaneous seroprevalence (urban vs. rural) was: 38.4% vs. 49.1%, OR = 1.54, p = 0.0002; 38.4% vs. 50.6%, OR = 1.64, p < 0.0001; 88.8% vs. 89.2%, OR = 1.04, NS; 36.4% vs. 47.7%, OR = 1.58, p = 0.0001. A similar trend was found in women tested in group 2. Conclusions: The rate of simultaneous seropositivity to Toxoplasma gondii, CMV and rubella virus among Romanian women of reproductive age decreased significantly between 2008–2010 and 2015–2018 and the susceptibility to infections increased. It is necessary to apply increased prevention measures among susceptible pregnant women.

The role of podoplanin in hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC) is not clear yet. The aim of our study was to evaluate the expression of podoplanin in HCC and to determine its role in hepatocarcinogenesis. We performed immunohistochemistry with monoclonal D2-40 antibody, on paraffin-embedded tissue sections of 72 patients diagnosed with HCC. Lymphatic vessels density (LVD) was increased in patients who had vascular invasion at the time of diagnosis (P=0.018) and in those with associated cirrhosis (P=0.006). Tumor cells showing podoplanin expression were correlated with histological grade (P=0.040). Podoplanin-expressing cancer associated fibroblasts (CAFs) were correlated with both LVD (P=0.019) and tumor cells (P=0.015). Our results sustain the dual role of podoplanin in HCC by its involvement in both HCC tumorigenesis, lymphatic neovascularization and tumor invasion invasiveness. A possible crosstalk between epithelial and stromal tumor cells in HCC tumor microenvironment may be mediated by podoplanin, but this hypothesis needs further studies to elucidate this interrelation.

Background: Angiogenesis plays a pivotal role in tumor development. Although microvessel density (MVD) is the most common method used for evaluation of angiogenesis, it has several limitations. Our aim was to evaluate MVD and microvessel proliferation (MVP) in a series of invasive breast carcinomas and analyze whether angiogenesis is influenced by the molecular phenotype of each tumor. Materials and Methods: We examined vascular proliferation using double immunohistochemistry (CD34/Ki67) in a series of 54 invasive breast carcinomas and compared the results with standard MVD, molecular subtypes and other classical parameters. Results: Increased MVD and MVP values were recorded in basal-like subtype, but only the MVP value reached significance among this group of patients (p=0.0001). For all cases combined, increased MVP was significantly correlated with negative estrogen receptor (ER) status (p=0.010) and higher histological grade (p=0.002). Conclusion: MVP more accurately reflects the state of angiogenesis in breast cancer, compared with standard MVD. Vascular proliferation was associated with aggressive tumor features, indicating its contribution to tumor progression. The strong association between vascular proliferation and basal-like tumors suggests that this marker can be used for stratification of patients who might benefit from therapies targeting angiogenesis.

Research indicates compelling evidence of SARS-CoV-2 vertical transmission as a result of placental pathology. This study offers an approach to histopathological and immunohistochemical placental observations from SARS-CoV-2-positive mothers compared to negative ones. Out of the 44 examined placentas, 24 were collected from patients with a SARS-CoV-2 infection during pregnancy and 20 were collected from patients without infection. The disease group showed strong SARS-CoV-2 positivity of the membranes, trophoblasts, and fetal villous macrophages. Most infections occurred during the third trimester of pregnancy (66.6%). Pathology revealed areas consistent with avascular villi (AV) and thrombi in the chorionic vessels and umbilical cord in the positive group, suggesting fetal vascular malperfusion (FVM). This study shows SARS-CoV-2 has an impact on coagulation, demonstrated by fetal thrombotic vasculopathy (p = 0.01) and fibrin deposition (p = 0.01). Other observed features included infarction (17%), perivillous fibrin deposition (29%), intervillous fibrin (25%), delayed placental maturation (8.3%), chorangiosis (13%), chorioamnionitis (8.3%), and meconium (21%). The negative control group revealed only one case of placental infarction (5%), intervillous fibrin (5%), delayed placental maturation (5%), and chorioamnionitis (5%) and two cases of meconium (19%). Our study sheds light on the changes and differences that occurred in placentas from SARS-CoV-2-infected mothers and the control group. Further research is necessary to definitively establish whether SARS-CoV-2 is the primary culprit behind these intricate complications.