To date, cannabinoids have been allowed in the palliative medicine due to their analgesic and antiemetic effects, but increasing number of preclinical studies indicates their anticancer properties. Cannabinoids exhibit their action by a modulation of the signaling pathways crucial in the control of cell proliferation and survival. Many in vitro and in vivo experiments have shown that cannabinoids inhibit proliferation of cancer cells, stimulate autophagy and apoptosis, and have also a potential to inhibit angiogenesis and metastasis. In this review, we present an actual state of knowledge regarding molecular mechanisms of cannabinoids’ anticancer action, but we discuss also aspects that are still not fully understood such as the role of the endocannabinoid system in a carcinogenesis, the impact of cannabinoids on the immune system in the context of cancer development, or the cases of a stimulation of cancer cells’ proliferation by cannabinoids. The review includes also a summary of currently ongoing clinical trials evaluating the safety and efficacy of cannabinoids as anticancer agents.

Progress in genetic engineering over the past few decades has made it possible to develop methods that have led to the production of transgenic animals. The development of transgenesis has created new directions in research and possibilities for its practical application. Generating transgenic animal species is not only aimed towards accelerating traditional breeding programs and improving animal health and the quality of animal products for consumption but can also be used in biomedicine. Animal studies are conducted to develop models used in gene function and regulation research and the genetic determinants of certain human diseases. Another direction of research, described in this review, focuses on the use of transgenic animals as a source of high-quality biopharmaceuticals, such as recombinant proteins. The further aspect discussed is the use of genetically modified animals as a source of cells, tissues, and organs for transplantation into human recipients, i.e., xenotransplantation. Numerous studies have shown that the pig (Sus scrofa domestica) is the most suitable species both as a research model for human diseases and as an optimal organ donor for xenotransplantation. Short pregnancy, short generation interval, and high litter size make the production of transgenic pigs less time-consuming in comparison with other livestock species This review describes genetically modified pigs used for biomedical research and the future challenges and perspectives for the use of the swine animal models.

Spandidos Publications is a scientific publisher with a long-standing international reputation for excellent standards and high quality science publications

Recently, there has been a growing interest in the medical applications of Cannabis plants. They owe their unique properties to a group of secondary metabolites known as phytocannabinoids, which are specific for this genus. Phytocannabinoids, and cannabinoids generally, can interact with cannabinoid receptors being part of the endocannabinoid system present in animals. Over the years a growing body of scientific evidence has been gathered, suggesting that these compounds have therapeutic potential. In this article, we review the classification of cannabinoids, the molecular mechanisms of their interaction with animal cells as well as their potential application in the treatment of human diseases. Specifically, we focus on the research concerning the anticancer potential of cannabinoids in preclinical studies, their possible use in cancer treatment and palliative medicine, as well as their influence on the immune system. We also discuss their potential as therapeutic agents in infectious, autoimmune, and gastrointestinal inflammatory diseases. We postulate that the currently ongoing and future clinical trials should be accompanied by research focused on the cellular and molecular response to cannabinoids and Cannabis extracts, which will ultimately allow us to fully understand the mechanism, potency, and safety profile of cannabinoids as single agents and as complementary drugs.

Assays based on the flow cytometry technique allow a convenient analysis of multiple cellular parameters; however, their results should be interpreted cautiously due to a strong impact of confounding factors. Different techniques in cell culturing such as either enzymatic or mechanic detachment of adherent cells can heavily influence the structure of the cell membrane or presence of the surface antigens leading to strong false positive signals, and finally, substantial experimental bias. The aim of our study was to assess and compare the impact of cell harvesting methods (both enzymatic and non-enzymatic) on the apoptosis process and on the surface antigen cytometric analyses. We found significant differences in the quality of analysis in terms of the amount of detected surface markers determined by the detachment method. Our results demonstrated clearly how important it is to carefully choose the appropriate detachment method and may help to avoid mistakes in experiment planning. In conclusion, we recommend to adjust the detachment method to the type of analyzed markers (surface antigens or translocated phosphatidylserine).

One of the most informative sources which allow the drawing of far-reaching conclusions about the origins and phylogenetics of many species, including domestic animals and humans, is mitochondrial DNA (mtDNA). One of the important research targets should include the identification of similarities between wild and domestic species. The analysis involved the nucleotide sequences of mtDNA of wisent, auroch, bison, yak, bovine reference sequence (BRS) T3, T3a, T3b, T1, T1a, T1’2’3, T2, T3, T4, T5, Q, Q1, P, R, I1, and I2 bovine haplotypes. The non-coding D-loop regions were excluded from the evolutionary analysis and 15,419-bp coding sequences were used in the final dataset. Trees constructed on the basis of whole mitochondrial genomes or on total mtDNA coding sequences alignment were generally in agreement with previous studies on the Bovini tribe. American bison shows stronger maternal relationships to yak than to wisent. It seems that the isolation and divergence of wisent took place early, almost 2 to 1.6 million years ago. This appears to be compatible with the paleontological date, indicating Late Pleistocene speciation of Bison bonasus. The yak/bison mitochondrial transfer model is in agreement with our mutation analysis and phylogenetic tree. The bison/yak mutations were collected in the bison mitochondrial genome before the transfer. After the transfer, the parallel accumulation of unique mutations took place. According to our assessment, the transfer took place at about 700 ky. The characteristic feature of the wisent and bison evolution is the maintenance of mtDNA variability, despite the fact that both species underwent population bottlenecks. Our studies did not reveal any impact of these phenomena populations in the analyzed mitochondrial genomes.