Mitochondrial and endoplasmic reticulum stress pathways cooperate in zearalenone-induced apoptosis of human leukemic cells

<p>Abstract</p> <p>Background</p> <p>Zearalenone (ZEA) is a phytoestrogen from <it>Fusarium </it>species. The aims of the study was to identify mode of human leukemic cell death induced by ZEA and the mechanisms involved.</p> <p>Methods</p> <p>Cell cytotoxicity of ZEA on human leukemic HL-60, U937 and peripheral blood mononuclear cells (PBMCs) was performed by using 3-(4,5-dimethyl)-2,5-diphenyl tetrazolium bromide (MTT) assay. Reactive oxygen species production, cell cycle analysis and mitochondrial transmembrane potential reduction was determined by employing 2',7'-dichlorofluorescein diacetate, propidium iodide and 3,3'-dihexyloxacarbocyanine iodide and flow cytometry, respectively. Caspase-3 and -8 activities were detected by using fluorogenic Asp-Glu-Val-Asp-7-amino-4-methylcoumarin (DEVD-AMC) and Ile-Glu-Thr-Asp-7-amino-4-methylcoumarin (IETD-AMC) substrates, respectively. Protein expression of cytochrome c, Bax, Bcl-2 and Bcl-xL was performed by Western blot. The expression of proteins was assessed by two-dimensional polyacrylamide gel-electrophoresis (PAGE) coupled with LC-MS2 analysis and real-time reverse transcription polymerase chain reaction (RT-PCR) approach.</p> <p>Results</p> <p>ZEA was cytotoxic to U937 > HL-60 > PBMCs and caused subdiploid peaks and G1 arrest in both cell lines. Apoptosis of human leukemic HL-60 and U937 cell apoptosis induced by ZEA was via an activation of mitochondrial release of cytochrome c through mitochondrial transmembrane potential reduction, activation of caspase-3 and -8, production of reactive oxygen species and induction of endoplasmic reticulum stress. Bax was up regulated in a time-dependent manner and there was down regulation of Bcl-xL expression. Two-dimensional PAGE coupled with LC-MS2 analysis showed that ZEA treatment of HL-60 cells produced differences in the levels of 22 membrane proteins such as apoptosis inducing factor and the ER stress proteins including endoplasmic reticulum protein 29 (ERp29), 78 kDa glucose-regulated protein, heat shock protein 90 and calreticulin, whereas only <it>ERp29 </it>mRNA transcript increased.</p> <p>Conclusion</p> <p>ZEA induced human leukemic cell apoptosis via endoplasmic stress and mitochondrial pathway.</p

CsCu2I3Nanoparticles Incorporated within a Mesoporous Metal-Organic Porphyrin Framework as a Catalyst for One-Pot Click Cycloaddition and Oxidation/Knoevenagel Tandem Reaction

Metal-organic frameworks (MOFs) and metal halide perovskites are currently under much investigation due to their unique properties and applications. Herein, an innovative strategy has been developed combining an iron-porphyrin MOF, PCN-222(Fe), and an in situ-grown CsCu2I3 nontoxic lead-free halide perovskite based on an earth-abundant metal that becomes incorporated within the MOF channels [CsCu2I3@PCN-222(Fe)]. Encapsulation was designed to decrease and control the particle size and increase the stability of CsCu2I3. The hybrid materials were characterized by various techniques including FE-SEM, elemental mapping and line scanning EDX, TEM, PXRD, UV-Vis DRS, BET surface area, XPS, and photoemission measurements. Hybrid CsCu2I3@PCN-222(Fe) materials were examined as heterogeneous multifunctional (photo)catalysts for copper(I)-catalyzed alkyne-azide cycloaddition (CuAAC) and one-pot selective photo-oxidation/Knoevenagel condensation cascade reaction. Interestingly, CsCu2I3@PCN-222(Fe) outperforms not only its individual components CsCu2I3 and PCN-222(Fe) but also other reported (photo)catalysts for these transformations. This is attributed to cooperation and synergistic effects of the PCN-222(Fe) host and CsCu2I3 nanocrystals. To understand the catalytic and photocatalytic mechanisms, control and inhibition experiments, electron paramagnetic resonance (EPR) measurements, and time-resolved phosphorescence were performed, revealing the main role of active species of Cu(I) in the click reaction and the superoxide ion (O2•-) and singlet oxygen (1O2) in the photocatalytic reaction.This work was supported by the Iran National Science Foundation (INSF) (project number: 98024397) and the Iran Science Elites Federation (ISEF). Also, financial support by the University of Zabol is gratefully acknowledged (grant number: IR-UOZ-GR-9381). We thank M. A. Forneli Rubio for the help with steady-state UV–Vis, photoemission, and TEM experiments

Mesoscale morphologies of Nafion-based blend membranes by dissipative particle dynamics

This article belongs to the Special Issue Multifunctional Hybrid Materials Based on Polymers: Design and Performance.Polymer electrolyte membrane (PEM) composed of polymer or polymer blend is a vital element in PEM fuel cell that allows proton transport and serves as a barrier between fuel and oxygen. Understanding the microscopic phase behavior in polymer blends is very crucial to design alternative cost-effective proton-conducting materials. In this study, the mesoscale morphologies of Nafion/poly(1-vinyl-1,2,4-triazole) (Nafion-PVTri) and Nafion/poly(vinyl phosphonic acid) (Nafion-PVPA) blend membranes were studied by dissipative particle dynamics (DPD) simulation technique. Simulation results indicate that both blend membranes can form a phase-separated microstructure due to the different hydrophobic and hydrophilic character of different polymer chains and different segments in the same polymer chain. There is a strong, attractive interaction between the phosphonic acid and sulfonic acid groups and a very strong repulsive interaction between the fluorinated and phosphonic acid groups in the Nafion-PVPA blend membrane. By increasing the PVPA content in the blend membrane, the PVPA clusters’ size gradually increases and forms a continuous phase. On the other hand, repulsive interaction between fluorinated and triazole units in the Nafion-PVTri blend is not very strong compared to the Nafion-PVPA blend, which results in different phase behavior in Nafion-PVTri blend membrane. This relatively lower repulsive interaction causes Nafion-PVTri blend membrane to have non-continuous phases regardless of the composition.U. Sen was supported by JSPS RONPAKU (Dissertation PhD) program with ID No. TUR 11008.Peer reviewe

Metal-organic framework (MOF)-, covalent-organic framework (COF)-, and porous-organic polymers (POP)-catalyzed selective C-H bond activation and functionalization reactions

Although C-H functionalization is one of the simplest reactions, it requires the use of highly active and selective catalysts. Recently, C-H-active transformations using porous materials such as crystalline metal-organic frameworks (MOFs) and covalent-organic frameworks (COFs) as well as amorphous porous-organic polymers (POPs) as new emerging heterogeneous catalysts have attracted significant attention due to their promising activity and potential material tunability. These porous solids offer exceptional structural uniformity, facile tunability and permanent porosity. In addition, tuning the catalytic selectivity of these porous materials can be achieved through engineering their site microenvironments, such as metal node substitution, linker changes, node/linker functionalization, and pore modification. The present review provides an overview of the current state of the art on MOFs, COFs and POPs as advanced catalysts for various C-H bond activation reactions, providing details about their chemo-, regio-, and stereo-selectivity control, comparing their performance with that of other catalysts, triggering additional research by showing the present limitations and challenges in this area, and providing a perspective for future developments.The authors acknowledge financial support from the Iran Science Elites Federation (ISEF) and the University of Zabol (Grant numbers: IR-UOZ-GR-9381 and IR-UOZ-GR-81751). Financial support was provided by the Spanish Government (RTI2018-095038-B-I00, PID2019-110637RB-I00), “Comunidad de Madrid”, European Structural Funds (S2018/NMT-4367), proyectos sinérgicos I+D (Y2020/NMT6469). A. L.-M. thanks UAM for a FPI-UAM predoctoral fellowship. This paper has been supported by RUDN University strategic academic leadership program (R. Luque)