Termitomyces sp. that grow in symbiosis with fungus-farming Termites have medicinal properties. However, they are rare in nature, and their artificial culture is challenging. The expression of AXL receptor tyrosine kinase and immune checkpoint molecules favor the growth of cancer cells. The study evaluated the optimal conditions for the artificial culture of Termitomyces and their inhibitory activity on AXL and immune checkpoint molecules in lung adenocarcinoma and melanoma cell lines. The culture of 45 strains of Termitomyces was compared. Five strains with marked growth rates were selected. Four of the selected strains form a single cluster by sequence analysis. The mycelium of 4 selected strains produces more fungal mass in potato dextrose broth than in a mixed media. The bark was the most appropriate solid substrate forTermitomyces mycelia culture. The mycelium of all five selected strains showed a higher growth rate under normal CO 2 conditions. The culture broth, methanol, and ethyl acetate of one selected strain (T-120) inhibited the mRNA relative expression of AXL receptor tyrosine kinase and immune checkpoint molecules in cancer cell lines. Overall, these results suggest the potential usefulness of Termitomyces extracts as a coadjuvant therapy in malignant diseases.

BACKGROUND: Continuous glucose monitoring (CGM) is reported to be a useful technique, but difficult or inconvenient for some patients and institutions. We are developing a glucose area under the curve (AUC) monitoring system without blood sampling using a minimally invasive interstitial fluid extraction technology (MIET). Here we evaluated the accuracy of interstitial fluid glucose (IG) AUC measured by MIET in patients with diabetes for an extended time interval and the potency of detecting hyperglycemia using CGM data as a reference. METHODS: Thirty-eight inpatients with diabetes undergoing CGM were enrolled. MIET comprised a pretreatment step using a plastic microneedle array and glucose accumulation step with a hydrogel patch, which was placed on two sites from 9:00 AM to 5:00 PM or from 10:00 PM to 6:00 AM. IG AUC was calculated by accumulated glucose extracted by hydrogel patches using sodium ion as standard. RESULTS: A significant correlation was observed between the predicted AUC by MIET and CGM in daytime (r=0.76) and nighttime (r=0.82). The optimal cutoff for the IG AUC value of MIET to predict hyperglycemia over 200 mg/dL measured by CGM for 8 hours was 1,067.3 mg·hr/dL with 88.2% sensitivity and 81.5% specificity. CONCLUSION: We showed that 8-hour IG AUC levels using MIET were valuable in estimating the blood glucose AUC without blood sampling. The results also supported the concept of using this technique for evaluating glucose excursion and for screening hyperglycemia during 8 hours in patients with diabetes at any time of day.
Area Under Curve ; Blood Glucose ; Diabetes Mellitus ; Extracellular Fluid* ; Glucose* ; Humans ; Hydrogel ; Hyperglycemia ; Inpatients ; Mass Screening ; Plastics ; Sensitivity and Specificity ; Sodium