Osteoporosis is a bone disorder with remarkable changes in bone biologic material and consequent bone structural distraction, affecting millions of people around the world from different ethnic groups. Bone fragility is the worse outcome of the disease, which needs long term therapy and medical management, especially in the elderly. Many involved genes including environmental factors have been introduced as the disease risk factors so far, of which genes should be considered as effective early diagnosis biomarkers, especially for the individuals from high-risk families. In this review, a number of important criteria involved in osteoporosis are addressed and discussed.

Receptor tyrosine kinase (c-Kit) inhibitors: a potential therapeutic target in cancer cells Maryam Abbaspour Babaei,1 Behnam Kamalidehghan,2,3 Mohammad Saleem,4–6 Hasniza Zaman Huri,1,7 Fatemeh Ahmadipour1 1Department of Pharmacy, Faculty of Medicine, University of Malaya, Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia; 2Department of Medical Genetics, National Institute of Genetic Engineering and Biotechnology (NIGEB), Shahrak-e Pajoohesh, 3Medical Genetics Department, School of Medicine, Shahid Beheshti University of Medical Sciences, Tehran, Iran; 4Department of Urology, 5Department of Laboratory Medicine and Pathology, Masonic Cancer Center, University of Minnesota, 6Section of Molecular Therapeutics & Cancer Health Disparity, The Hormel Institute, Austin, MN, USA; 7Clinical Investigation Centre, University Malaya Medical Centre, Lembah Pantai, Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia c-Kit, a receptor tyrosine kinase, is involved in intracellular signaling, and the mutated form of c-Kit plays a crucial role in occurrence of some cancers. The function of c-Kit has led to the concept that inhibiting c-Kit kinase activity can be a target for cancer therapy. The promising results of inhibition of c-Kit for treatment of cancers have been observed in some cancers such as gastrointestinal stromal tumor, acute myeloid leukemia, melanoma, and other tumors, and these results have encouraged attempts toward improvement of using c-Kit as a capable target for cancer therapy. This paper presents the findings of previous studies regarding c-Kit as a receptor tyrosine kinase and an oncogene, as well as its gene targets and signaling pathways in normal and cancer cells. The c-Kit gene location, protein structure, and the role of c-Kit in normal cell have been discussed. Comprehending the molecular mechanism underlying c-Kit-mediated tumorogenesis is consequently essential and may lead to the identification of future novel drug targets. The potential mechanisms by which c-Kit induces cellular transformation have been described. This study aims to elucidate the function of c-Kit for future cancer therapy. In addition, it has c-Kit inhibitor drug properties and their functions have been listed in tables and demonstrated in schematic pictures. This review also has collected previous studies that targeted c-Kit as a novel strategy for cancer therapy. This paper further emphasizes the advantages of this approach, as well as the limitations that must be addressed in the future. Finally, although c-Kit is an attractive target for cancer therapy, based on the outcomes of treatment of patients with c-Kit inhibitors, it is unlikely that Kit inhibitors alone can lead to cure. It seems that c-Kit mutations alone are not sufficient for tumorogenesis, but do play a crucial role in cancer occurrence. Keywords: c-Kit, cancer, oncogene, cancer therapy

There has been a growing interest in naturally occurring compounds from traditional medicine with anti-cancer potential. Nigella sativa (black seed) is one of the most widely studied plants. This annual herb grows in countries bordering the Mediterranean Sea and India. Thymoquinone (TQ) is an active ingredient isolated from Nigella sativa. The anti-cancer effect of TQ, via the induction of apoptosis resulting from mitochondrial dysfunction, was assessed in an acute lymphocyte leukemic cell line (CEMss) with an IC₅₀ of 1.5 µg/mL. A significant increase in chromatin condensation in the cell nucleus was observed using fluorescence analysis. The apoptosis was then confirmed by Annexin V and an increased number of cellular DNA breaks in treated cells were observed as a DNA ladder. Treatment of CEMss cells with TQ encouraged apoptosis with cell death-transducing signals by a down-regulation of Bcl-2 and up-regulation of Bax. Moreover, the significant generation of cellular ROS, HSP70 and activation of caspases 3 and 8 were also observed in the treated cells. The mitochondrial apoptosis was clearly associated with the S phase cell cycle arrest. In conclusion, the results from the current study indicated that TQ could be a promising agent for the treatment of leukemia.

The antifibrotic effects of traditional medicinal herbCaesalpinia sappan(CS) extract on liver fibrosis induced by thioacetamide (TAA) and the expression of transforming growth factorβ1 (TGF-β1),α-smooth muscle actin (αSMA), and proliferating cell nuclear antigen (PCNA) in rats were studied. A computer-aided prediction of antioxidant and hepatoprotective activities was primarily performed with the Prediction Activity Spectra of the Substance (PASS) Program. Liver fibrosis was induced in male Sprague Dawley rats by TAA administration (0.03% w/v) in drinking water for a period of 12 weeks. Rats were divided into seven groups: control, TAA, Silymarin (SY), and CS 300 mg/kg body weight and 100 mg/kg groups. The effect of CS on liver fibrogenesis was determined by Masson’s trichrome staining, immunohistochemical analysis, and western blotting.In vivodetermination of hepatic antioxidant activities, cytochrome P450 2E1 (CYP2E1), and matrix metalloproteinases (MPPS) was employed. CS treatment had significantly increased hepatic antioxidant enzymes activity in the TAA-treated rats. Liver fibrosis was greatly alleviated in rats when treated with CS extract. CS treatment was noted to normalize the expression of TGF-β1,αSMA, PCNA, MMPs, and TIMP1 proteins. PASS-predicted plant activity could efficiently guide in selecting a promising pharmaceutical lead with high accuracy and required antioxidant and hepatoprotective properties.