Background: In exploring the cause of Imatinib Mesylate (IM) resistance among Chronic Myeloid Leukemia (CML) patients who do not harbor BCR-ABL dependent mechanism, BCR-ABL independent pathways are the most probable pathways that should be explored. In BCR-ABL independent pathway, SOCS1 plays an important role as it helps in regulating optimal JAK/STAT activity. Objective: To identify the association of SOCS1 gene hypermethylation in mediating IM Resistance. Method: The SOCS1 promoter methylation level of 92 BCR-ABL non mutated IM resistant CML patients, 83 IM good response CML patients and 5 normal samples from healthy individuals were measured using Methylation Specific-High Resolution Melt (MS-HRM) analysis. Results: Both primers used to amplify promoter region from-333 to-223 and from-332 to-188 showed less than 10% methylation in all CML and normal samples. Consequently, there was no significant difference in SOCS1 promoter methylation level between IM resistant and IM good response patients. Conclusion: SOCS1 promoter methylation level is not suitable to be used as one of the biomarkers for predicting the possibility of acquiring resistance among CML patients treated with IM. � 2018 Bentham Science Publishers.

Background: Hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC) is a common cancer that is frequently diagnosed at an advanced stage. Transarterial chemoembolisation (TACE) is an effective palliative treatment for patients who are not eligible for curative treatment. The two main methods for performing TACE are conventional (c-TACE) or with drug eluting beads (DEB-TACE). We sought to compare survival rates and tumour response between patients undergoing c-TACE and DEB-TACE at our centre. Materials and Methods: A retrospective cohort study of patients undergoing either treatment was carried out from January 2009 to December 2014. Tumour response to the procedures was evaluated according to the modified Response Evaluation Criteria in Solid Tumors (mRECIST). Kaplan-Meier analysis was used to assess and compare the overall survival in the two groups. Results: A total of 79 patients were analysed (34 had c-TACE, 45 had DEB-TACE) with a median follow-up of 11.8 months. A total of 20 patients in the c-TACE group (80%) and 12 patients in the DEB-TACE group (44%) died during the follow up period. The median survival durations in the c-TACE and DEB-TACE groups were 4.9 � 3.2 months and 8.3 � 2.0 months respectively (p=0.008). There was no statistically significant difference noted among the two groups with respect to mRECIST criteria. Conclusions: DEB-TACE demonstrated a significant improvement in overall survival rates for patients with unresectable HCC when compared to c-TACE. It is a safe and promising approach and should potentially be considered as a standard of care in the management of unresectable HCC.

Background: Chronic Myeloid Leukaemia (CML) is associated with the BCR-ABL1 gene, which plays a central role in the pathogenesis of CML. Thus, it is crucial to suppress the expression of BCR-ABL1 in the treatment of CML. MicroRNA is known to be a gene expression regulator and is thus a good candidate for molecularly targeted therapy for CML. Objective: This study aims to identify the microRNAs from edible plants targeting the 3’ Untranslated Region (3’UTR) of BCR-ABL1. Methods: In this in silico analysis, the sequence of 3’UTR of BCR-ABL1 was obtained from Ensembl Genome Browser. PsRNATarget Analysis Server and MicroRNA Target Prediction (miRTar) Server were used to identify miRNAs that have binding conformity with 3’UTR of BCR-ABL1. The MiRBase database was used to validate the species of plants expressing the miRNAs. The RNAfold web server and RNA COMPOSER were used for secondary and tertiary structure prediction, respectively. Results: In silico analyses revealed that cpa-miR8154, csi-miR3952, gma-miR4414-5p, mdm-miR482c, osa-miR1858a and osa-miR1858b show binding conformity with strong molecular interaction towards 3’UTR region of BCR-ABL1. However, only cpa-miR-8154, osa-miR-1858a and osa-miR-1858b showed good target site accessibility. Conclusion: It is predicted that these microRNAs post-transcriptionally inhibit the BCR-ABL1 gene and thus could be a potential molecular targeted therapy for CML. However, further studies involving in vitro, in vivo and functional analyses need to be carried out to determine the ability of these miRNAs to form the basis for targeted therapy for CML. © 2020 Bentham Science Publishers.

Background: Various methods of isolating compounds from plants have been described previously, which include conventional or modern techniques. A preparative-HPLC (prep-HPLC) system has become one of the most convenient methods, with high purity compound as well as consumes less purification time.Objective: This study is intended to purify compounds from E. pulchrum twig extract using prep-HPLC technique and to test all compounds in several biological activities.Methods: Prior to purification using prep-HPLC, the twig extract was injected onto HPLC to develop the method through its chromatograms. The established method from HPLC was used to separate the constituents using prep-HPLC. Purified compounds were elucidated through NMR and MS methods as well as through comparison with previously reported data. Three different biological activities were then conducted on the compounds, including cytotoxicity, DPPH, FRAP, and disc diffusion assays.Results: Cinnamic acid (1) and two aporphine alkaloids (liridine (2) and lysicamine (3)) have been successfully purified and identified. These compounds were first isolated from Enicosanthellum pulchrum using prep-HPLC. Cytotoxic activity revealed that liridine (2) showed strong inhibition against WEHI-3B leukaemic cells of 8.7 �M after 24 h of treatment. In contrast, cinnamic acid (1) and lysicamine (3) exhibited strong inhibitions in antibacterial activity against Staphylococcus aureus, S. epidermidis, Bacillus cereus, Pasteurella multocida and B. subtilis with more than 15 mm of inhibition zone.Conclusion: These phytochemical findings exhibit three isolated compounds from twig extract of E. pulchrum with diverse biological potential to be developed as new agents. � 2019 Bentham Science Publishers.