Anti-NLRP3 (aa 1-100) polyclonal antibody

Several countries around the world have faced an important obesity challenge for the past four decades as the result of an obesogenic environment. This disease has a multifactorial origin and it is associated with multiple comorbidities including type 2 diabetes, hypertension, osteoarthritis, metabolic syndrome, cancer, and dyslipidemia. With regard to dyslipidemia, hypertriglyceridemia is a well-known activator of the NLRP3 inflammasome, triggering adipokines and cytokines secretion which in addition induce a systemic inflammatory state that provides an adequate scenario for infections, particularly those mediated by viruses such as HIV, H1N1 influenza, and SARS-CoV-2. The SARS-CoV-2 infection causes the coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) and it is responsible for the pandemic that we are currently living. COVID-19 causes an aggressive immune response known as cytokine release syndrome or cytokine storm that causes multiorgan failure and in most cases leads to death. In the present work, we aimed to review the molecular mechanisms by which obesity-associated systemic inflammation could cause a more severe clinical presentation of COVID-19. The SARS-CoV-2 infection could potentiate or accelerate the pre-existing systemic inflammatory state of individuals with obesity, via the NLRP3 inflammasome activation and the release of pro-inflammatory cytokines from cells trough Gasdermin-pores commonly found in cell death by pyroptosis.

In recent years, interest in the research of P2 receptor (P2R)-mediated responses has grown significantly due to the recognition of the involvement of these receptors in various physiological and pathological processes. Despite all the progress made in the functional characterization of P2Rs, purinergic signaling research is still limited by the lack of selective or efficient ligands for different receptor subtypes. In this sense, several molecules have been tested towards these receptors as agonists or antagonists. Historically, natural products have always been sources of new bioactive substances for diverse purposes. However, compared to synthetic molecules, the number of natural products assessed for P2R ligands is still low. In this review, we present examples of studies that demonstrated plant natural products acting directly on P2R and modulating their functionality. In some cases, we highlight that the pharmacological activity previously described for the original organism could be correlated to an agonist or antagonist activity of a specific natural product on these receptors. These examples reinforce the need for more studies to investigate the pharmacological potential of new or known natural compounds targeting P2 receptors.