Type 2 diabetes (T2D) is a metabolic disorder characterized by insulin resistance (IR), inflammation, and dysregulation in glucose metabolism. The disease is spreading globally, partly due to aging, which can damage the immune system and speed up the progression of the metabolic disorder. This review primarily delves into the triggers for T2D within the framework of the ominous octet, which emphasizes 8 principal factors under the “ominous octet” framework that contribute to high blood glucose and associated metabolic disorders. The article studies the interplay of hyperinsulinemia, mitochondrial dysfunction (MD), and endoplasmic reticulum (ER) stress with immune aging in driving disease progression affecting each component of the octet. MD and ER stress can result in defects in insulin signaling, ultimately leading to β-cell death. Chronic inflammation associated with aging, also known as inflammaging, especially affects older adults by worsening IR and glucose regulation, which creates a continuous sequence of metabolic problems. Thus, the “ominous octet” framework provides fundamental knowledge to develop personalized treatment approaches that target metabolic dysfunction together with ER stress, MD, and immune system imbalances. These strategies show promising potential to improve treatments for T2D and may lead to better health outcomes for older adults dealing with this condition.

The proto-oncogene c-Fos is known as a reliable marker of cell activation, which is immediately induced after a new stimulus in specific brain regions, depending on the nature of the stimulus applied. However, the expression of c-Fos is increased in Alzheimer’s disease (AD) and contributes to amyloid β-peptide-induced neurotoxicity. This review attempted to focus on the role of c-Fos in learning and memory in both healthy brain and AD, emphasizing on possible mechanisms. Comparing the available findings, regarding learning and memory, c-Fos expression leads to memory formation through ERK (extracellular signal-regulated kinase)/CREB (cAMP response element-binding protein) and long-term potentiation, while it is down regulated after the repetition and habituation of stimuli. However, its overexpression in neurons and glia of AD, contributes to cognitive deficits and neuronal loss, which represents a defect in its ability to habituate to repeated stimuli. Also, expression pattern in glial is associated with constitutive CREB activation following increasing amyloid beta (Aβ), activation transcription factor (ATF3), and cytochrome c in apoptosis pathways. Thus, two contradictory roles of c-Fos in the healthy brain and AD, reveal more complexity in c-Fos up and down stream signaling pathways, bioavailability, and sensitivity. Future studies focusing on c-Fos modulation, might offer promising strategies to mitigate cognitive decline in AD.

Large granular lymphocytic leukemias (LGLLs), including T-cell LGLL and natural kill (NK)-cell LGLL variants, are rare lymphoproliferative disorders characterized by the chronic proliferation of cytotoxic lymphocytes. Despite recent advancements, challenges remain in distinguishing these entities from one another and from related disorders, such as T-cell prolymphocytic leukemia, adult T-cell leukemia/lymphoma, Sézary syndrome, and aggressive NK-cell leukemia, owing to overlapping clinical and morphologic features. This article aims to review the role of molecular and immunophenotypic markers in guiding diagnosis and prognosis of LGLLs, with brief review of their clinical and morphologic features by synthesizing current advances in molecular pathogenesis, immunophenotypic profiling, and updated World Health Organization (WHO) classification criteria in order to enhance diagnostic precision, improve prognostic assessment, and inform personalized treatment strategies for these challenging disorders.

Literature was searched through Pubmed and the recently published 5th WHO classification criteria. Articles were reviewed and analyzed with emphasis on recent molecular and cytogenetic insights.

A total of 106 publications were reviewed, and the recent molecular insights—focusing on those concerning STAT3 mutations in T-cell LGLL and TET2 mutations in NK-cell LGLL which have refined diagnostic frameworks, though gaps persist in understanding their clinical relevance and variability.

By providing a comparative analysis of large granular lymphocytic leukemias and their differential diagnoses in cooperation of the current advances in molecular pathogenesis, immunophenotypic profiling, and updated WHO classification criteria, this work aimed to enhance diagnostic precision, improve prognostic assessment, and inform personalized treatment strategies for these challenging LGLLs.

Breast cancer remains one of the leading causes of cancer-related deaths worldwide. Early detection of breast cancer significantly improves outcomes and survival rates, minimizing treatments. Imaging techniques are critical in identifying abnormalities and diagnosing breast cancer at its earliest stages, often before clinical symptoms emerge. Mammography remains standard for screening in average-risk women, while supplementary methods like ultrasound, magnetic resonance imaging, and tomosynthesis enhance detection rates, particularly in women with dense breasts or those at high risk. Given that certain factors, such as family history, age, genetic mutations, and breast density, affect the risk of developing breast cancer, some women may benefit from earlier or more frequent screenings. Personalized screening protocols are becoming more common, tailoring the type and frequency of imaging to the individual’s risk profile. Newer technologies, such as molecular breast imaging and contrast-enhanced mammography show promise but require further validation for widespread use. In conclusion, imaging techniques including mammography, ultrasound, magnetic resonance imaging, and newer technologies like three-dimensional mammography and molecular breast imaging are essential tools in the early detection of breast cancer, leading to better outcomes for patients. This literature review provides an overview of current breast cancer imaging methods, their role in early diagnosis, and their effectiveness and limitations.

Ginseng, a traditional Chinese medicinal herb, has been used for centuries to enhance vitality and overall well-being. This review synthesizes multiple studies to summarize the latest discoveries on the immunoregulatory effects of ginseng, its role in improving patients’ quality of life, and new evidence of its antitumor properties. It concludes that ginseng and its extracts can improve patients’ quality of life and may have the potential to target tumor cells. Meanwhile, ginseng extracts significantly improve sub-health status, with an 85% improvement rate observed in young adults after 30 days of intervention. This review provides valuable new evidence for ongoing research on ginseng and its extracts.

Cancer continues to pose a substantial public health problem in Nigeria, characterized by rising rates of occurrence and mortality. While there is increasing interest in using natural products for cancer treatment, comprehensive data on the specific bioactive compounds in these plants and how they modulate different types of cancer are still lacking. Additionally, although traditional knowledge about these food plants is rich and valuable, it has not been fully integrated with modern scientific research to create standardized treatment protocols. Scientific databases like PubMed, ScienceDirect, Google Scholar, and ResearchGate were explored to retrieve empirical data. The key plants discussed are Spondias mombin, Xanthosoma sagittifolium, Elaeis guineensis, Irvingia gabonensis, Allium cepa, Blighia sapida, Dioscorea dumetorum, Psidium guajava, and Talinum triangulare. These plants demonstrate a wide range of anticancer properties, including the ability to induce apoptosis (cell death), halt the cell cycle, inhibit angiogenesis, and regulate inflammatory responses. They contain a variety of phytochemicals, such as flavonoids, tannins, terpenoids, alkaloids, and organosulfur compounds, which contribute to their anticancer effects. For example, Spondias mombin contains flavonoids that inhibit the formation of tumors, whereas Xanthosoma sagittifolium exhibits cytotoxic effects against leukemia cells. Additionally, Elaeis guineensis exhibits antioxidant properties that counteract oxidative stress, a crucial factor in cancer progression. This review highlights the significance of these plants in developing complementary cancer therapies that can be used alongside conventional treatments. By combining traditional knowledge with contemporary scientific methods, these medicinal plants have the potential to provide innovative approaches to cancer prevention and treatment, addressing the pressing demand for safer and more efficient therapeutic alternatives.

Inflammatory bowel disease (IBD) is characterized by chronic inflammation of the gastrointestinal tract and primarily includes ulcerative colitis and Crohn’s disease. As the number of patients suffering from IBD increases, diagnosis and treatment have become pressing yet challenging tasks. A major challenge is that patients with IBD often do not exhibit characteristic symptoms, making it difficult to distinguish IBD from other intestinal abnormalities. Endoscopy is the most conventional method used to diagnose IBD; however, this technique is invasive and costly. Therefore, there is a need to develop affordable, non-invasive diagnostic methods, which underscores the importance of identifying biomarkers specific to IBD. It is now well established that the gut microbiome plays a significant role in the development of IBD, and changes in the abundance of various gut organisms have been widely studied to identify microbial signatures associated with the disease. This review discusses the current state of knowledge regarding biomarkers in IBD, with a primary focus on the gut microbiome, associated metabolic signatures, and their links with immunological biomarkers. These biomarkers will help propose an integrative model to better understand the pathophysiology of this complex disease. Such an integrated approach also offers insights into potential therapeutic targets for designing more effective treatment strategies for patients.

Amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (ALS) and other motor neuron diseases (MNDs) are major global causes of death. However, their global incidence, mortality, and disability-adjusted life years remain largely unknown, despite their importance for disease prevention and resource allocation. We therefore examined the global epidemiology of ALS/MNDs.

This study analyzed data from the Global Burden of Disease 2021 database for 204 regions (1990–2021), focusing on ALS/MNDs. Data from the world, China, and the G8 countries were analyzed separately. Age-standardized incidence rates were reported for the 1990s, 2000s, 2010s, and 2020s.

A rising global burden of ALS/MNDs, with significant variations across regions and levels of the social development index, was observed in the Global Burden of Disease database. A significant overlap of etiology between neurological diseases and ALS was also identified. Among the G8 countries and China, China and the USA exhibited the highest prevalence rates in the 1990s, 2000s, 2010s, and 2020s, with China showing 3.3 per 10,000 and the USA 4.0 per 10,000 in the 2020s.

Understanding the common etiologies of ALS/MNDs is key to their effective control. Recommended strategies include pollution control, chemical and radiation safety management, disease monitoring, public health education, multi-departmental collaboration, and scientific research.

Oral contraceptive pills (OCPs) are commonly used for contraception, but their long-term effects on oxidative stress, lipid profiles, and liver function remain unclear. This study aimed to evaluate the impact of intermediate-term OCP use (Yasmin) on oxidative stress, lipid profile, and liver function, with particular emphasis on antioxidant markers, lipid metabolism, and hepatic enzyme activity, to better understand the potential metabolic and hepatic effects.

A case-control study was conducted in Maysan Governorate, Iraq, involving 150 women (100 OCP users and 50 non-users). Blood samples were collected from Al-Sadr Teaching Hospital and a specialized clinic between February and April 2023. Serum levels of antioxidants, lipids, and liver enzymes were measured using biochemical assays.

OCP users had significantly lower levels of glutathione peroxidase vitamin E and uric acid (p < 0.001) compared to non-users. Lipid profiles showed that OCP users had higher levels of triglyceride and low-density lipoprotein (p < 0.05), whereas total cholesterol was significantly higher in non-users (p < 0.05). Liver enzyme activity, including alanine aminotransferase, aspartate aminotransferase, alkaline phosphatase, and total serum bilirubin, did not show statistically significant differences (p > 0.05). Longer duration of OCP use was significantly negatively correlated with vitamin E levels (r = −0.67), glutathione peroxidase activity (r = −0.56), uric acid levels (r = −0.45) and high-density lipoprotein (r = −0.54). Positive correlations were found between the duration of OCP use and total cholesterol (r = 0.62), triglyceride (r = 0.58), low-density lipoprotein (r = 0.60), and liver enzymes alanine aminotransferase (r = 0.66) and aspartate aminotransferase (r = 0.64).

Intermediate-term OCP use was associated with changes in oxidative stress and lipid metabolism, potentially increasing cardiovascular and metabolic risks. Regular monitoring of these parameters is recommended for OCP users.

Metabolic dysfunction-associated steatotic liver disease (MASLD), the most common chronic liver disorder worldwide, results from multidimensional network dysregulation involving lipid metabolism imbalance, insulin resistance, oxidative stress, chronic inflammation, and gut-liver axis disruption. Silent information regulator 1 (SIRT1), an NAD+-dependent deacetylase, functions as a central regulator of metabolic homeostasis and a key mediator in immune microenvironment remodeling and inter-organ communication. This review systematically describes the multi-target mechanisms of SIRT1 in MASLD pathogenesis through its regulation of critical factors, including peroxisome proliferator-activated receptor gamma coactivator 1-α, Forkhead Box O, and nuclear factor kappa-light-chain-enhancer of activated B cells, which govern hepatocyte lipid remodeling, mitochondrial quality control, autophagy–endoplasmic reticulum stress balance, and Kupffer cell/T cell polarization. This work introduces, for the first time, the concept that SIRT1 mediates systemic regulation of MASLD via coordinated “metabolism–inflammation–organ axis” interactions. Recent studies indicate that natural compounds (e.g., resveratrol, curcumin) improve gut-liver barrier function through microbiota–SIRT1 interactions, while synthetic activators (SRT1720) and NAD+ precursors (NMN) enhance hepatocyte antioxidant capacity and fatty acid β-oxidation. This innovative analysis highlights the spatiotemporal specificity of various SIRT1 activators, emphasizing that tissue-selective delivery and dynamic dosage optimization are crucial for overcoming clinical translation challenges. By integrating mechanistic and translational insights, this review provides a novel foundation for precision intervention strategies targeting SIRT1 network reprogramming.