Neuropilin-1: A feasible link between liver pathologies and COVID-19

The severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2(SARS-CoV-2)pandemic has a tremendous impact on the health of millions of people worldwide.Unfortunately,those suffering from previous pathological conditions are more vulnerable and tend to develop more severe disease upon infection with the new SARS-CoV-2.This coronavirus interacts with the angiotensin-converting enzyme 2 receptor to invade the cells.Recently,another receptor,neuropilin-1(NRP-1),has been reported to amplify the viral infection.Interestingly,NRP-1 is expressed in nonparenchymal liver cells and is related to and upregulated in a wide variety of liver-related pathologies.It has been observed that SARS-CoV-2 infection promotes liver injury through several pathways that may be influenced by the previous pathological status of the patient and liver expression of NRP-1.Moreover,coronavirus disease 2019 causes an inflammatory cascade called cytokine storm in patients with severe disease.This cytokine storm may influence liver sinusoidal-cell phenotype,facilitating viral invasion.In this review,the shreds of evidence linking NRP-1 with liver pathologies such as hepatocellular carcinoma,liver fibrosis,nonalcoholic fatty liver disease and inflammatory disorders are discussed in the context of SARS-CoV-2 infection.In addition,the involvement of the infection-related cytokine storm in NRP-1 overexpression and the subsequent increased risk of SARS-CoV-2 infection are also analyzed.This review aims to shed some light on the involvement of liver NRP-1 during SARSCoV-2 infection and emphasizes the possible involvement this receptor with the observed liver damage.

Effect of ketotifen fumarate on experimental autoimmune orchitis and torsion of the spermatic cord

The aim of this work was to study effects of ketotifen fumarate(KF)on prevention of tissue damage in testes of rats with experimental autoimmune orchitis(EAO)and on the contralateral testis in a model of prolonged testicular cord torsion(TCT).Rats with EAO or TCT were injected intraperitoneally once daily with KF or saline solution(vehicle group).Incidence and severity of testicular damage were evaluated by histopathology using an EAO score or a Johnsen score.Mast cells(MC)were identified by histochemistry and quantified.In EAO model,KF significantly reduced severity of histopathological testicular damage compared to rats in the vehicle group.KF also reduced the number of testicular MC compared to vehicle group.Similarly,in TCT model,multifocal damage of the contralateral testis was observed 30 days after testicular torsion characterized by sloughing of the germinal epithelium,seminiferous tubule atrophy,and interstitial edema.Focal signs of inflammation and fibrosis of seminiferous tubular walls were also observed.In contrast,sections of contralateral testis of rats injected with KF and killed 30 days after surgery showed normal histological features.A significant decrease in the number of MC was observed in rats treated with KF compared to untreated animals.In conclusion,we demonstrated that treatment with KF reduced testicular inflammatory process and MC infiltrates in both EAO and TCT models.The results suggest a promising treatment for infertile male patients with testicular pathologies associated with inflammation and germ cell loss.