UNASSIGNED: Primary biliary cholangitis (PBC) is an autoimmune liver disease involving the small intrahepatic bile ducts; when untreated or undertreated, it may evolve to liver fibrosis and cirrhosis. Ursodeoxycholic Acid (UDCA) is the standard of care treatment, Obeticholic Acid (OCA) has been approved as second-line therapy for those non responder or intolerant to UDCA. However, due to moderate rate of UDCA-non responders and to warnings recently issued against OCA use in patients with cirrhosis, further therapies are needed.Areas covered. Deep investigations into the pathogenesis of PBC is leading to proposal of new therapeutic agents, among which peroxisome proliferator-activated receptor (PPAR) ligands seem to be highly promising given the preliminary, positive results in Phase 2 and 3 trials. Bezafibrate, the most evaluated, is currently used in clinical practice in combination with UDCA in referral centers. We herein describe completed and ongoing trials involving PPAR agonists use in PBC, analyzing pits and falls.
UNASSIGNED: Testing new therapeutic opportunities in PBC is challenging due to its low prevalence and slow progression. However, new drugs including PPAR agonists, are currently under investigation and should be considered for at-risk PBC patients.

Glaucoma, a progressive optic neuropathy characterized by retinal ganglion cell degeneration and visual field loss, is the leading cause of irreversible blindness worldwide. Intraocular pressure (IOP) is presently the only modifiable risk factor demonstrated to slow or halt disease progression; however, glaucomatous damage persists in almost 50% of patients despite significant IOP reduction. Many studies have investigated the non-IOP-related risk factors that contribute to glaucoma progression as well as interventions that can prevent or delay glaucomatous neurodegeneration and preserve vision throughout life, independently of IOP. A vast number of experimental studies have reported effective neuroprotection in glaucoma, and clinical studies are ongoing attempting to provide strong evidence of effectiveness of these interventions. In this review, we look into the current understanding of the pathophysiology of glaucoma and explore the recent advances in non-IOP related strategies for neuroprotection and neuroregeneration in glaucoma.

BACKGROUND: Peripheral neuropathy (PN) is the damage and dysfunction of neurons of the peripheral nervous system. The present study was conducted to estimate the effectiveness of low-power laser therapy (LPLT) in the management of PN in a rats\' model.
METHODS: PN was induced by giving dichloroacetate (DCA) (250 mg/kg/day) for up to 12 weeks. Four groups of rats were used: control group, PN group, PN group treated with gabapentin and PN group treated with LPLT. The study was conducted for 8 weeks. The management of PN was estimated by behavioral tests which included hot plate and Morris water maze tests. Blood biochemical analysis were carried out.
RESULTS: Using of hot plate test indicated thermal hypoalgesia and using Morris water maze test showed cognitive decline in PN rats. Treatment with LPLT or gabapentin improved both the pain sensations and deteriorated memory that occurred in the PN rats. Biochemical analysis showed that LPLT significantly decreased the elevated beta-endorphin level in PN rats, while gabapentin could not reduce it. Treatment PN rats with LPLT or gabapentin shifted the high levels of TNF-α, IL-1β and IL-10 cytokines back to their normal values. Serum nitric oxide and MDA significantly increased in the PN group together with significant reduction in the rGSH level, these values were significantly improved by LPLT application while this was not the case with gabapentin treatment. Furthermore, treatment with gabapentin or LPLT significantly reduced serum ALAT and ASAT activities which are otherwise increased in the PN group. S100B, PGE2, total cholesterol, triglycerides, LDL-cholesterol, HDL-cholesterol, urea and creatinine showed insignificant changes among all groups.
CONCLUSIONS: Our results showed that treatment with LPLT is more efficient than gabapentin in ameliorating the peripheral neuropathy induced by xenobiotics.