BackgroundWe previously demonstrated that endothelial microparticles (EMPs) are increased in mitral valve diseases and impair valvular endothelial cell function. Perioperative systemic inflammation is an important risk factor and complication of cardiac surgery. In this study, we investigate whether EMPs increase in congenital heart diseases to promote inflammation and endothelial dysfunction.MethodsThe level of plasma EMPs in 20 patients with atrial septal defect (ASD), 23 patients with ventricular septal defect (VSD), and 30 healthy subjects were analyzed by flow cytometry. EMPs generated from human umbilical vascular endothelial cells (HUVECs) were injected into C57BL6 mice, or cultured with HUVECs without or with siRNAs targeting P38 MAPK. The expression and/or phosphorylation of endothelial nitric oxide synthase (eNOS), P38 MAPK, and caveolin-1 in mouse heart and/or in cultured HUVECs were determined. We evaluated generation of nitric oxide (NO) in mouse hearts, and levels of tumor necrosis factor-α (TNF-α) and interleukin-6 (IL-6) in cultured HUVECs and in mice.ResultsEMPs were significantly elevated in patients with ASD and VSD, especially in those with pulmonary hypertension when compared with controls. EMPs increased caveolin-1 expression and P38 MAPK phosphorylation and decreased eNOS phosphorylation and NO production in mouse hearts. EMPs stimulated P38 MAPK expression, TNF-α and IL-6 production, which were all inhibited by siRNAs targeting P38 MAPK in cultured HUVECs.ConclusionsEMPs were increased in adult patients with congenital heart diseases and may contribute to increased inflammation leading to endothelial dysfunction via P38 MAPK-dependent pathways. This novel data provides a potential therapeutic target to address important complications of surgery of congenial heart disease.Electronic supplementary materialThe online version of this article (doi:10.1186/s12967-016-1087-2) contains supplementary material, which is available to authorized users.

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The esterification of salicylic acid with methanol was carried out over a series of Ce 4+ modified cation-exchange resins. The effect of different reaction conditions was studied on the conversion of salicylic acid, and the optimal reaction parameters were obtained. The experimental results indicated that Ce(SO 4 ) 2 /001×7 was an effective catalyst for the synthesis of methyl salicylate. The conversion of salicylic acid could reach 93.3% while its selectivity was more than 99.0%. SEM-EDS and TG-DSC analysis were employed to characterize the structure and property of the catalyst. Besides, the catalytic performance of Ce(SO 4 ) 2 /001×7 in the esterification of salicylic acid with different alcohols was compared. The reusability of Ce(SO 4 ) 2 /001×7 was also studied by using salicylic acid and methanol as model substrates. The mechanism was proposed for the esterification of salicylic acid with methanol over Ce 4+ modified cation-exchange resins.

Extraction with ionic liquids joined with adsorption and catalytic oxidation composed with commercially available tungsten carbide, 30% H2O2 and 1-n-octyl-3-methylimidazolium hexafluorophosphate ([omim]PF6) could achieve the ultra-deep removal of dibenzothiophene (DBT) in model oil. In the case of the system increased the sulfur removal to 100% for 1h, which was remarkably superior to mere solvent extraction with IL (29.4%) or adsorption and catalytic oxidation without IL (2.0%). Especially, we found that the removal of 4,6-DMDBT could be up to 100%. The system could be recycled at least 12 times and the deep removal of DBT still could be achieved.