RESUMO
Cardiovascular diseases [CVD] are the number one reason for morbidity and mortality in the modern world, and their incidence is increasing at an incredible pace. Increasing evidence has shown the significant functions of microRNAs in the cardiovascular system and has highlighted their potential application as a new era of diagnostic and therapeutic targets for CVD that can improve the prognosis and life expectancy of patients. Among more than 2,000 microRNAs, microRNA-21 [miR-21] is highly expressed in human hearts and has earned the interest of researchers as a potential biomarker in a wide range of common heart conditions. Here, we summarized recent research progress regarding the significant role of miR-21 in CVD, focusing on cardiotoxicity, heart arrhythmias, cardiomyopathies, and hypertension. Several signaling pathways [TGF-ß1/Smad2 signaling, FGFR1/FGF21/PPARγ, NF-κB/miR-21/SMAD7, miR-21/SPRY1/ERK/mTOR ] and molecular targets [BTG2, PDCD4, PTEN, STAT3 ] were reported to be controlled, at least partially, by miR-21 and are linked to CVD pathogenesis. Most investigations highlighted miR-21 cardioprotective functions in heart injury, while some other studies showed that this miR is elevated in the serum/tissue of patients, promoting fibrosis and cardiac dysfunction. This dual role can be explained by the fact that miR-21 has multiple regulatory functions depending on the microenvironment, downstream signaling, and target genes, which indicates that cell-type-specific investigations should receive more attention. With further investigations, miR-21 can be considered a novel tailored therapy with favorable outcomes.
RESUMO
In this study, new l-asparagine grafted on 3-aminopropyl-modified Fe3O4@SiO2 core-shell magnetic nanoparticles using the EDTA linker (Fe3O4@SiO2-APTS-EDTA-asparagine) was prepared and its structures properly confirmed using different spectroscopic, microscopic and magnetic methods or techniques including FT-IR, EDX, XRD, FESEM, TEM, TGA and VSM. The Fe3O4@SiO2-APTS-EDTA-asparagine core-shell nanomaterial was found, as a highly efficient multifunctional and recoverable organocatalyst, to promote the efficient synthesis of a wide range of biologically-active 3,4-dihydropyrimidin-2(1H)-one derivatives under solvent-free conditions. It was proved that Fe3O4@SiO2-APTS-EDTA-asparagine MNPs, as a catalyst having excellent thermal and magnetic stability, specific morphology and acidic sites with appropriate geometry, can activate the Biginelli reaction components. Moreover, the environmental-friendliness and nontoxic nature of the catalyst, cost effectiveness, low catalyst loading, easy separation of the catalyst from the reaction mixture and short reaction time are some of the remarkable advantages of this green protocol.
RESUMO
In this research, cellulose grafted to chitosan by EDTA (Cs-EDTA-Cell) bio-based material is reported and characterized by a series of various methods and techniques such as FTIR, DRS-UV-Vis, TGA, FESEM, XRD and EDX analysis. In fact, the Cs-EDTA-Cell network is more thermally stable than pristine cellulose or chitosan. There is a plenty of both acidic and basic sites on the surface of this bio-based and biodegradable network, as a multifunctional organocatalyst, to proceed three-component synthesis of 2-amino-4H-pyran derivatives at room temperature in EtOH. The Cs-EDTA-Cell nanocatalyst can be easily recovered from the reaction mixture by using filtration and reused for at least five times without significant decrease in its catalytic activity. In general, the Cs-EDTA-Cell network, as a heterogeneous catalyst, demonstrated excellent catalytic activity in an environmentally-benign solvent to afford desired products in short reaction times and required simple experimental and work-up procedure compared to many protocols using similar catalytic systems.