Objective(s): Since activation of NLRP3 inflammasome results in the production of interleukin-1β (IL 1β ) and initiation of inflammation as the key players in development of cancer, this study investigated possible activation of NLRP3 inflammasome during the progression of colorectal cancer (CRC) and evaluated the role of NLRP3 inflammasome in EPITHELIAL-MESENCHYMAL TRANSITION (EMT) process. Materials and Methods: Tissue samples were collected from cancerous (test) and adjacent normal tissues (control) of forty-three male CRC patients (18 grade I and 25 grade III). The gene expression and protein levels were determined by qRT PCR and Western blotting, respectively, and tissue morphological was examined by histopathology. Results: The gene and protein expression levels of transforming growth factor-β (TGF-β ), IL-1β , nuclear factor κ B (NF-κ B), NLRP3, and caspase-1, as well as the enzyme activity of caspase-1, were significantly increased in CRC. mRNA and protein levels of TGF-β , mature IL-1β , NF-κ B, and NLRP3 were higher in patients with grade III. EMT markers N cadherin, vimentin, and Matrix metalloproteinase (MMP 9) markedly increased in CRC, and were higher in grade III than grade I, whereas expression of E-cadherin declined by the progression of CRC. NLRP3 protein level was inversely correlated with E-cadherin whereas it positively was correlated with IL-β , active NF-κ B, N cadherin, vimentin, and MMP 9. Conclusion: This study for the first time showed that activation of NLRP3 inflammasome contributed to the progression of CRC and is correlated with the EMT process. Although the present study showed that EMT markers are positively correlated with tumor grade, further investigations are required to strongly link the EMT markers to the progression of CRC.

The compound 1-methyltryptophan (1-MT) has been shown to act protectively in renal ischemia-reperfusion injury. Toll-like receptor 4 (TLR-4) signaling is also a regular process of epithelial to mesenchymal TRANSITION (EMT) that can after Ischemia-reperfusion injury (IRI) result in as an increase of renal fibrosis. EMT is associated with specific transcription factors – Snai1, Snai2, Zeb1 and Twist. 1-MT could regulate EMT and act as antifibrotic agent. This study aimed to investigate the effect of 1-MT on EMT transcription factors in tubular epithelial cells that underwent 30 min. Renal tubular epithelial cells (TECs) were isolated from Lewis rats using a standard protocol with Fe2O3 magnetic separation and selective media as previously mentioned. ischemia and 48 hours of reperfusion. Cells were cultivated and divided into 4 groups: C-TECs– control cells, IRI-TECs – IRI-induced TECs, D-IRI-TECs – IRI-induced TECs treated with 1-methyl-D-tryptophan, L-IRI-TECs – IRI-induced TECs treated with 1-methyl-L-tryptophan. IRI was induced in all groups for 30 min by mineral oil (except for C-TECs) followed by 48 hours of reperfusion. RNA and proteins were isolated from harvested cells. Using semi-quantitative PCR (RT-sqPCR) we assessed the relative mRNA expression of EMT transcription factors Snai1, Snai2, Zeb1, and Twist. Hereby we have shown, that the treatment of ischemia-induced TECs with both 1-MT isomers lowers the expression of EMT transcription factors Snai1 and Zeb1 that were increased by ischemia and reperfusion of TECs. This could act favorably in renal IRI decreasing EMT and renal fibrosis, therefore showing the potential of 1-MT as a part of therapy in renal transplantation aimed at renal ischemia-reperfusion injury.

Introduction. Changes in peritoneal membrane characteristics including EPITHELIAL-MESENCHYMAL TRANSITION are an important problem in the maintenance of peritoneal dialysis (PD). This study reports a 3-year follow-up assessment of the effects of lowglucose degradation products (GDP) solution, including epithelialmesenchymal TRANSITION.Materials and Methods. Adult patients who received continuous ambulatory PD between April 2001 and March 2007 were identified, and those who maintained on PD with the same solution for more than 3 years were included. Patients with an initial effluent score of 3 (fibroblastoid cells dominant in overnight effluent dialysate) were excluded. The patients were divided into two groups according to the dialysate: standard and low-GDP. The following were measured: cancer antigen-125, cell score, normalized protein equivalent of nitrogen appearance, dialysate-plasma creatinine and sodium ratios, and residual renal function. Cell score and peritoneal equilibration test were measured at 1, 6, 12, 18, and 24 months after the initiation of PD.Results. Fifty patients were in the standard group and 76 in the low-GDP group. No significant difference in dialysate-plasma creatinine ratio was detected at baseline and at the end-point of follow-up between the two groups. Dialysate-plasma sodium ratio decreased significantly at the end-point of follow-up in the low- GDP group. Initial and follow-up cancer antigen-125 levels were higher in the low-GDP group. Multivariable analysis showed that low-GDP was associated with a higher cell score 3-free survival rate.Conclusions. The present study shows that a low-GDP solution may be associated with preserving the mesothelial cell and peritoneal membrane characteristics.

ABSTRACT The attention of contemporary planners to environmental factors and increasing awareness and communication of man with his surrounding environment has increased the layers and defining factors of design and planning concepts. In such a way, a common problem with the issue of environmental capabilities to respond was put in front of the planners. The collection of ideas presented in this era was in the form of responsive planning, focusing on the maximum use of environmental capabilities. The necessity of the emergence of a comprehensive discourse to overcome the plurality of factors, definitions and design methods in the environmental fields has been given less attention. Based on this, the current research aims to organize the leading theories in this field in a targeted manner and seeks to improve them based on their synergy. The structural question of this research is the meanings, examples and meaningful contexts of flexibility in various aspects and scales of urban planning. The research method used is qualitative thematic analysis with the help of artificial intelligence in MAXQDA software in a 6-step processing process. The important application of this research is to structure the minds of the planners of this field to reduce the scattered and interdisciplinary problems of the resources. The results of this research revealed dimensions such as identification and recognizability, diversity and changeability, adaptability and expandability, distribution, separation and continuity, organization and compatibility in the field of flexibility and related to the corresponding parts in urban planning   Extended Abstract Introduction Responsiveness-based design and planning emphasizing the maximum use of environmental capacities to meet users' needs implicitly cause a targeted improvement of environmental quality. As the environmental awareness of contemporary man has expanded and the platforms have become more diverse, many challenges are raised in the field of environment-oriented in the field of infrastructure quality and service provision. Urban developments and new developments in cities should be interpreted with integrated conceptualization. The conceptualization of interpretive flexibility in the planning and designing of public spaces in the city is used as an interdisciplinary perspective in urban space design to open and discuss its connection and potential as an approach to strengthening social cohesion and inclusion. The general definition of flexibility is that it can create places with new forms of meaning and be used for different groups to strengthen its coherence and multidisciplinary inclusion in terms of design and planning of space and body. On this basis, the concept of flexibility is proposed as a principle in the context of design and planning due to its wide range of effects on background phenomena. The history of such a role can be seen in the diversity of users' needs. In such a way, it is impossible to express the specific time and area of the need to pay attention to this concept. This is in line with Oldenburg's theory of "social public spaces," in which being in public space, communicating with people and the environment through observing the streets, sidewalks, squares, and parks of the city is a necessary step for people as a part of their social life. The meaningfulness of the design of the artificial environment was considered. In any case, in the contemporary era, on the one hand, at the same time as the quantitative and qualitative increase of human environmental awareness, there is no longer any phenomenon in the eyes of contemporary man arising from a unique aspect and range of factors. On the other hand, his life needs in the individual and collective dimensions have seen a high diversity, which has led to the formation of multiple semantic domains of past flexibility. The meaning of flexibility in such an interdisciplinary platform and basic design refers to the concept of understanding and responding quickly and efficiently to environmental changes. Such a holistic definition for this broad field of environmental design means the implicit acceptance of the role of scale in the meaningful domain of these concepts. On a macro scale, it means making design options to increase the presence, participation, and power of choices of users of the environment in participatory urban planning and design methods, and on a small scale, it means making design options to increase spatial quality and, as a result, the quality of activities. The daily activities of environmental users are through selection against the "dominant space." Flexibility at different scales is crucial for dimensional optimization, shaping, and structuring spatial features, leading to improved performance of space components and spaces. The development of the concept of "flexibility" from various studies in metropolitan to micro scales, such as interior architecture, allows it to pass the discourse of responsiveness to provide a broad approach to environmental design in which different values, interests, and priorities are prioritized. As a result, the issue of flexibility in environmental design has been raised as a multi-dimensional field in the design and planning of the basic environment. The breadth and complexity of this concept have made the researchers of this field deal with it in one or more ways, and it has been avoided to provide a comprehensive framework about the nature and structuring processes. The current research presents a structured view of flexibility in architecture and urban planning with an environmental approach.   Methodology The methodology to achieve this goal is to use the macro research method and achieve a comprehensive framework by combining categorized interpretations. In such a way that by sorting and categorizing these concepts and bases in a new way, he has found a new level of theoretical findings, which will be a suitable answer for the gaps in scientific knowledge and scientific methods created in this field. In this context, the research method "thematic analysis" has been used with a qualitative approach and the use of library resources. Also, to overcome the breadth and complexity of these concepts and the multi-layer networking of concepts in this research method, artificial intelligence has been used in MAXQDA research assistance software.   Results and discussion In the meantime, attention should also be paid to the fields of influence and application of the results of this research because designers refer to flexibility as the creator of environmental qualities, including dynamism. Also, since flexibility, along with the principles of readability and adaptability, affect the lifestyle and behavioral patterns of the audience of environmental design in architecture and urban planning, it will also be effective in dealing with the challenge of complexity in environmental design factors. One of the key questions for achieving research goals on this issue is how flexibility in environmental design impacts the relationship between flexibility and scale.   Conclusion The most important finding of this research suggests that first, it requires a focus on the conditions under which the processes of perceiving human abilities and discovering the needs of the human audience can manifest. The theoretical framework arises from a comparative approach between design disciplines. These conditions are independent of the final state of the design product, and strengthening the environmental capacities will lead to a direction and an area that includes environmental flexibility. By responding to new situations, the construction of the space and the body within a space building can be adapted to various configurations. Even though the environment may remain constant, the designed place will continue functioning as a strong living system over time.  It also seems that the nature of issues related to flexibility has complexity. Considering that the quality of flexibility in urban planning and architecture is significant in multilevel and multifaceted scales from micro to macro, it is important to pay attention to the scale of different variables. In order to reduce this problem, the consistency and adjustment of the scale of the variables measured in a specific analysis should be considered in the first step.   Funding There is no funding support.   Authors’ Contribution All of the authors approved the content of the manuscript and agreed on all aspects of the work.   Conflict of Interest Authors declared no conflict of interest.   Acknowledgments We are grateful to all the scientific.