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Background Congenital melanocytic naevi (CMN) are the result of aberrations in the mitogen-activated protein kinase signal transduction pathway. The risk of melanoma is the most important concern among patients with CMN because of its poor prognosis. However, as a result of the great variability between studies, the reported risk of melanoma varies considerably, making it difficult to provide reliable information. Objectives To evaluate the prevalence, incidence density and standardized morbidity ratio (SMR) of melanoma among patients with CMN. Methods We conducted a systematic literature search of studies providing data on the risk of melanoma in patients with CMN following our registered and published protocol (PROSPERO: CRD42022383009). Results Overall, 27 studies with a total of 11 480 patients with CMN and 82 patients developing melanoma were included for analysis. The prevalence of melanoma was 1.84% [95% confidence interval (CI) 1.13–2.99] in patients with CMN and 2.73% (95% CI 1.67–4.43) in the subgroup of patients with large CMN (LCMN). The incidence of melanoma was 237.56 (95% CI 97.79–575.96) per 100 000 person-years in patients with CMN and 585.73 (95% CI 315.39–1085.29) per 100 000 person-years in the LCMN subgroup. The SMR of melanoma was 122.27 (95% CI 11.84–1262.88) among all patients with CMN and 285.97 (95% CI 50.65–1614.59) in the subgroup of patients with LCMN. Conclusions Our research suggests that the risk of melanoma in the CMN population seems to have been overestimated in previous studies, but it is still significantly higher than that in the general population. In addition to the risk of melanoma, aesthetic improvement and mental health should also be taken into account when making management decisions. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The book "Current Issues in Syntactic Cartography: A crosslinguistic perspective" edited by Fuzhen Si and Luigi Rizzi provides a comprehensive study of syntactic cartography. The book is organized into 12 papers that focus on theoretical and descriptive issues of specific aspects of syntactic cartography. The chapters cover topics such as the left periphery, the Inflection Phrase (IP) zone, and the Verb Phrase (VP) zone. The book includes contributions from leading scholars and explores various languages, including Romance, Germanic, Semitic, Japanese, and Chinese. It is recommended for linguists interested in generative syntax and offers new theories and unfamiliar data for exploration. [Extracted from the article]

Congenital melanocytic nevi (CMN) are the result of aberrations in the mitogen‐activated protein kinase signal transduction pathway caused by postzygotic somatic mutations. The estimated incidence of newborns with CMN is 1%–2%. The main complications of CMN include proliferative nodules, melanomas, and neurocutaneous melanosis, and the latter two are the most troublesome issues to address. Treatments are primarily taken into account for aesthetic purposes and the reduction of melanoma risk. Due to the much lower incidence of malignant transformation observed in recent studies than in previous data, clinical management paradigms for CMN patients have gradually shifted towards conservative observation and close monitoring. Surgery and lasers are still the main treatments, and targeted therapy may be a promising strategy to help manage complications. With the increase in awareness of mental health, increasing focus has been placed on the quality of life (QoL) and psychological issues of both CMN patients and their parents. Recent studies have revealed that families coping with CMN might endure intense pressure, a major loss in QoL, and psychological problems after diagnosis and during treatment. Here, we sought to present an overview of genetic basis, complications, treatments, and psychological issues related to CMN and hope to provide better management for patients with CMN. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Glioblastoma is the most aggressive brain tumor with extremely poor prognosis in adults. Routine treatments include surgery, chemotherapy, and radiotherapy; however, these may lead to rapid relapse and development of therapy-resistant tumor. Glioblastoma cells are known to communicate with macrophages, microglia, endothelial cells, astrocytes, and immune cells in the tumor microenvironment (TME) to promote tumor preservation. It was recently demonstrated that Glioblastoma-derived extracellular vesicles (EVs) participate in bidirectional intercellular communication in the TME. Apart from promoting glioblastoma cell proliferation, migration, and angiogenesis, EVs and their cargos (primarily proteins and miRNAs) can act as biomarkers for tumor diagnosis and prognosis. Furthermore, they can be used as therapeutic tools. In this review, the mechanisms of Glioblastoma-EVs biogenesis and intercellular communication with TME have been summarized. Moreover, there is discussion surrounding EVs as novel diagnostic structures and therapeutic tools for glioblastoma. Finally, unclear questions that require future investigation have been reviewed., Competing Interests: The authors declare that the research was conducted in the absence of any commercial or financial relationships that could be construed as a potential conflict of interest., (Copyright © 2024 Dai, Jiang, Hu, Zhang and Chen.)

Introduction: Circular RNAs (circRNAs) are important biological molecules associated with the pathogenesis of multiple cancers., Objective: This work aimed to investigate the function and molecular mechanism of circ_0070203 in high-grade serous ovarian cystadenocarcinoma (HGSOC)., Methods: circRNA microarray was conducted to detect the circ_0070203 expression in HGSOC tissues. Bioinformatics analysis was used to find the binding sites between circ_0070203, miR- 370-3p and TGFβR2. Real-time quantitative reverse transcription PCR (RT-qPCR) was executed to detect the expressions of circ_0070203, miR-370-3p and TGFβR2 in HGSOC tissues and SKOV3 cells. Dual-luciferase reporter gene assay was used to validate the relationships between miR-370-3p and circ_0070203 or TGFβR2. Besides, transwell assays were conducted to assess the migrative, invasive abilities of ovarian cancer (OC) cells. Western blotting was adopted to detect the expression of epithelial-mesenchymal transition (EMT)-related proteins. The related patents were also studied during the research., Results: Circ_0070203 and TGFβR2 were upregulated, while miR-370-3p was downregulated in FIGO stage III-IV HGSOC tissues and SKOV-3 cell lines. circ_0070203 overexpression changed the expression of other EMT-related proteins and enhanced the migrative, invasive abilities of OC cells, while silencing circ_0070203 worked oppositely. Mechanistically, circ_0070203 could upregulate TGFβR2 expression in OC cells via sponging miR-370-3p., Conclusion: Circ_0070203 could promote the epithelial-mesenchymal transition, invasion, and metastasis of HGSOC via regulating the miR-370-3p/TGFβR2 axis. Our findings provided a potential biomarker for HGSOC therapy., (Copyright© Bentham Science Publishers; For any queries, please email at epub@benthamscience.net.)