2023年 · 第06卷第02期

In recent decades, single-cell (SC) technologies and applications have been a very hot topics in the field of biology and medicine. In fact, early studies involving a single cell were on the malignant process of acute nonlymphocytic leukemia and inherited or sporadic genetic disease in the 1980s. And since the RhD gene in a single cell from maternal plasma was detected by fluorescence-based polymerase chain reaction (PCR) in the 1990s, "SC biopsies"^[1]were widely used for early diagnosis in clinical practice in the 2000s. Previous studies showed that SC RNA sequencing (scRNA-seq) was used to evaluate patterns of allelic gene expression at the allele-specific mRNA level, and SC genome analysis can be used for genetic diagnosis.

In this dispensation of the fourth industrial revolution, protein engineering has become a popular approach for increasing enzymatic activity, stability, and titer in the biosynthesis of natural products. This is attributed to its numerous advantages (over direct isolation from plants or via chemical synthesis), including decreasing or eliminating reaction byproducts, high precision, moderate handling of intricate and chemically unstable chemicals, overall reusability, and cost efficiency. Recently, protein engineering tools have advanced to redesign and enhance natural product biosynthesis. These methods include direct evolution, substrate engineering, medium engineering, enzyme engineering and immobilization, structure-assisted protein engineering, and advanced computational. Recent successes in implementing these emerging protein engineering technologies were critically discussed in this article. Also, the advantages, limitations, and applications in industrial and medical biotechnology were discussed. Last, future research directions and potential were also highlighted.

Cancer is a terrifying disease that has become one of the world’s most challenging health concerns, necessitating a proactive approach to its treatment. Nature is a rich source of new chemical entities and a promising avenue for cancer research. Because of their different modes of action on target events in many ways, nature-derived chemicals are considered good possibilities for anticancer drug development. The current review article highlights recent breakthroughs in cancer therapeutics, including natural therapeutic molecules and their mechanisms of action against cancer treatment, as well as their limits, challenges, and prospect. For the review, article data have been collected from previously studied and published research reports, clinical evaluations, case studies, and clinical statistical data generated by scientific research organizations of repute. The chemical structures have been drawn using computational software (chemsketch). The development of promising candidates that can prevent or reduce the proliferation of cancer cells without causing adverse effects from these therapeutics is now underway. Further, nature-derived products are a game-changer because they are simple, safer, environmentally friendly, low-cost, quick, and less toxic than traditional treatment techniques. However, many bioactive chemicals and their analogs have been discovered as possible anticancer treatment options. In the review, the potent therapeutics phytochemicals derived from nature with their tremendous anticancer effects with limitations and prospects have been studied and analyzed based on previously published articles and reports.

The recent coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) outbreak has highlighted the inadequacy of our ability to respond to newly emerging viruses. Antiviral medications are the most effective means of combating the pandemic, yet their diminishing efficacy and a large population of unvaccinated individuals will create a fertile environment for the virus’s propagation and the emergence of novel variants, posing an ongoing risk of infection for vulnerable populations with compromised immune systems. To treat those infected, effective treatments must be developed. In this review, we discuss a breakthrough in engineered antibody fragments that could provide a protective barrier against the onslaught of severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2) variants as well as future other viral infections.