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It is now well established that ischemia/reperfusion (I/R) injury is associated with the compromised recovery of cardiac contractile function. Such an adverse effect of I/R injury in the heart is attributed to the development of oxidative stress and intracellular Ca2+-overload, which are known to induce remodeling of subcellular organelles such as sarcolemma, sarcoplasmic reticulum, mitochondria and myofibrils. However, repeated episodes of brief periods of ischemia followed by reperfusion or ischemic preconditioning (IP) have been shown to improve cardiac function and exert cardioprotective actions against the adverse effects of prolonged I/R injury. This protective action of IP in attenuating myocardial damage and subcellular remodeling is likely to be due to marked reductions in the occurrence of oxidative stress and intracellular Ca2+-overload in cardiomyocytes. In addition, the beneficial actions of IP have been attributed to the depression of proteolytic activities and inflammatory levels of cytokines as well as the activation of the nuclear factor erythroid factor 2-mediated signal transduction pathway. Accordingly, this review is intended to describe some of the changes in subcellular organelles, which are induced in cardiomyocytes by I/R for the occurrence of oxidative stress and intracellular Ca2+-overload and highlight some of the mechanisms for explaining the cardioprotective effects of IP.

According to the World Health Organization, cancer is a leading cause of death worldwide, representing almost 10 million deaths in 2020 [...]

The five-year survival rate of lung cancer patients is very low, mainly because most newly diagnosed patients present with locally advanced or metastatic disease. Therefore, early diagnosis is key to the successful treatment and management of lung cancer. Unfortunately, early detection methods of lung cancer are not ideal. In this brief review, we described early detection methods such as chest X-rays followed by bronchoscopy, sputum analysis followed by cytological analysis, and low-dose computed tomography (LDCT). In addition, we discussed the potential of metabolomic fingerprinting, compared to that of other biomarkers, including molecular targets, as a low-cost, high-throughput blood-based test that is both feasible and affordable for early-stage lung cancer screening of at-risk populations. Accordingly, we proposed a paradigm shift to metabolomics as an alternative to molecular and proteomic-based markers in lung cancer screening, which will enable blood-based routine testing and be accessible to those patients at the highest risk for lung cancer.