Measurement of Total Antioxidant Capacity by Electrogenerated Iodine at Disposable Screen Printed Electrodes

Total antioxidant capacity is an important parameter for the evaluation of the oxidative status in different kinds of biological samples such as plant extracts, or in food industry. We report a fast, easy, portable, cost‐effective electroanalytical method to measure total antioxidant capacity, based on the reaction of natural antioxidants with electrogenerated iodine using disposable platinum screen‐printed electrodes. This reaction can be measured by the increment of the electrochemical current signal of iodide oxidation to iodine during a voltammetric cycle. Iodine reacts with reducing compounds such as glutathione, ascorbate, gallic acid and NADH without interference of the corresponding oxidized counter‐parts. The addition of ascorbate oxidase also allows the concentration of ascorbate to be determined. The method was tested with real samples of plant extracts and the results correlated well with those obtained with a standard spectrophotometric method.     

Recognition and identification of active components from Radix Bupleuri using human neuroblastoma SH‐SY5Y cells

The aim of the study was to screen active components of Radix Bupleuri (a traditional Chinese herb) and discover novel anti‐schizophrenic candidate drugs using human neuroblastoma SH‐SY5Y cells. SH‐SY5Y cells were used for preparation of the stationary phase in the cell membrane chromatography model. Retention components by the SH‐SY5Y/CMC model were collected and then analyzed by GC/MS under the optimized conditions in offline conditions. After investigating the suitability and reliability of the SH‐SY5Y/CMC method using amisulpride and haloperidol as standard compounds, this method was applied to screening active components from the extracts of Radix Bupleuri. Retention components of SH‐SY5Y/CMC model were saikosaponin A, saikosaponin B1, saikosaponin B2, saikosaponin C and saikosaponin D, which were identified by the GC/MS method. In vitro pharmacological trials‐MTT, saikosaponin B1, saikosaponin B2 and saikosaponin C could protect SY5Y cells. The protective effects of saikosaponin B1 and saikosaponin C were concentration dependent. Saikosaponin A and saikosaponin D inhibited cell viability at concentrations >30 µg/mL (p < 0.05). Via SH‐SY5Y/CMC method and SH‐SY5Y MTT trial, we rapidly detected target components from Radix Bupleuri, accurately identified them and determined their different effects on SH‐SY5Y cells. Saikosaponin B1, saikosaponin B2 and saikosaponin C may be anti‐schizophrenic candidate drugs. Copyright © 2015 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.     

Identification of chemical ingredients of peanut stems and leaves extracts using UPLC‐QTOF‐MS coupled with novel informatics UNIFI platform

Peanut stems and leaves have been used traditionally as both herbal medicines and special food in Asia. In this study, the main functional compounds of peanut stems and leaves extracts were identified using UPLC separation coupled to high resolution mass spectrometry (QTOF‐MS), and a traditional medicine library. Three different extraction solvents (ethyl acetate, petroleum ether and n‐butanol) were evaluated to prepare the extracts of peanut stems and leaves. A total of 283 chemical compounds were identified in peanut stems and leaves extracts, of which 207 compounds are tentatively new identifications in Genus Arachis. The integration of data acquisition and processing with the traditional medicine library provides a simple, efficient process to effectively facilitate the identification of chemical ingredients in complex natural product extracts. The integrated workflow for separation, detection and identification of functional compounds in natural products using UPLC/QTOF‐MS greatly improves productivity for development of traditional herbal medicines. Copyright © 2016 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.     

Chemoselective detection and discrimination of carbonyl‐containing compounds in metabolite mixtures by 1H‐detected 15N nuclear magnetic resonance

NMR spectra of mixtures of metabolites extracted from cells or tissues are extremely complex, reflecting the large number of compounds that are present over a wide range of concentrations. Although multidimensional NMR can greatly improve resolution as well as improve reliability of compound assignments, lower abundance metabolites often remain hidden. We have developed a carbonyl‐selective aminooxy probe that specifically reacts with free keto and aldehyde functions, but not carboxylates. By incorporating ¹⁵N in the aminooxy functional group, ¹⁵N‐edited NMR was used to select exclusively those metabolites that contain a free carbonyl function while all other metabolites are rejected. Here, we demonstrate that the chemical shifts of the aminooxy adducts of ketones and aldehydes are very different, which can be used to discriminate between aldoses and ketoses, for example. Utilizing the 2‐bond or 3‐bond ¹⁵N‐¹H couplings, the ¹⁵N‐edited NMR analysis was optimized first with authentic standards and then applied to an extract of the lung adenocarcinoma cell line A549. More than 30 carbonyl‐containing compounds at NMR‐detectable levels, six of which we have assigned by reference to our database. As the aminooxy probe contains a permanently charged quaternary ammonium group, the adducts are also optimized for detection by mass spectrometry. Thus, this sample preparation technique provides a better link between the two structural determination tools, thereby paving the way to faster and more reliable identification of both known and unknown metabolites directly in crude biological extracts. Copyright © 2015 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.     

Capillary electrophoresis,high‐performance liquid chromatography,and thin‐layer chromatography analyses of phenolic compounds from rapeseed plants and evaluation of their antioxidant activity

Rapeseed plants, known for oil production, are also known to contain phenolic compounds such as phenolic acids and flavonoids, with potential antioxidant and anticancer activities. The separation and identification of 11 phenolic acids in rapeseed extracts (including leaves, flowers, Chinese seeds, Belgian seeds, and cake) by capillary electrophoresis were investigated. The results were compared with those obtained with high‐performance liquid chromatography and thin‐layer chromatography and showed that the capillary electrophoresis technique offers several advantages for the identification of phenolic compounds in various rapeseed extracts. The antioxidant activity of rapeseed extracts and reference compounds was evaluated using four different approaches, namely, 2,2′‐azinobis‐ (3‐ethylbenzohiazoline‐6‐sulfonic acid assay, free radical 2,2‐diphenyl‐1‐picrylhydrazyl assay, electron paramagnetic resonance spectroscopy and the measurement of the total polyphenol content. The contents of total polyphenols in the tested extracts were ranging between 5.4 and 21.1% m/m and ranked as follows: Chinese seeds ? Belgian seeds ? Flowers ? Cake ? Leaves.     

Phenalenones. IV. Heterocycles from 3-hydroxyphenalenone (I)

3-Hydroxyphenalenone reacts with o-disubstituted benzenes (substituents: NH₂, OH, CH₂OH and SH), aliphatic and aromatic aldehydes to give the various heterocyclic compounds which are fused with phenalene ring. These reactions resemble those of 1,3-cyclohexanediones in many respects.     

Identification of short‐chain poly‐3‐hydroxybutyrates in Saiga horn extracts using LC–MS/MS

Saiga horn extracts were analyzed with the goal of obtaining new information about compounds present in it. The purpose of this study is to find synthetic alternatives to Saiga horn extract, which is used in traditional Chinese medicine, by identifying potentially biologically active compounds in the extracts. Using high‐performance liquid chromatography coupled with high‐resolution mass spectrometry, we have been able to identify a series of short‐chain polyhydroxybutyrates in alcoholic extracts of Saiga horn. Optimized high‐performance liquid chromatography coupled with tandem mass spectrometry methods for analysis of short‐chain poly‐3‐hydroxybutyrates were developed and subsequently applied to investigate Saiga horn extract for the presence of these compounds, which might explain its biological actions, particularly for its antipyretic and procoagulant properties.     

The influence of mesoporous silica modified with phosphorus and nitrogen‐containing hyperbranched molecules on thermal stability,combustion behavior,and toxic volatiles of epoxy resin

A hybrid material (HPPA‐SH‐mSiO₂) containing multiple flame‐retardant elements was synthesized and characterized using NMR, FTIR, and XPS techniques. This hybrid was synthesized by the “thiol–ene” click reaction of thiol‐functionalized mesoporous silica (SH‐mSiO₂) with ene‐terminated hyperbranched polyphosphate acrylate (HPPA).When 2 wt% HPPA‐SH‐mSiO₂ hybrid was added to an epoxy matrix, thermogravimetric analysis (TGA) showed that the incorporation of HPPA‐SH‐mSiO₂ increased the thermal stability of epoxy resin composites. Moreover, the combustion behavior of epoxy composites was investigated using a cone calorimeter, and the results show that the PHRR and THR of EP/HPPA‐SH‐mSiO₂ composites clearly decreased by 28.7% and 16%, respectively. Volatile toxic compounds such as aromatic compounds, CO, carbonyl compounds, and hydrocarbons were identified using TGA‐infrared spectroscopy coupling technique. The effect of HPPA‐SH‐mSiO₂ hybrids on the removal of toxic volatiles was also investigated. Functionalized mesoporous silica and polymer composites have potential applications.     

Synthesis and Mechanistic Study of Triheterocyclic 4H‐Pyrimido[2,1‐b]benzothiazole derivatives,One‐Pot Three‐component Reaction under Solvent‐Free Conditions

An efficient method has been developed for the preparation of 4H‐pyrimido[2,1‐b]benzothiazole derivatives by the condensation of aldehydes, β‐ketoester, and 2‐amino benzothiazole under solvent and solvent‐free conditions using various catalysts. The reaction uses benzothiazole as a new component, and good yield is obtained at 60–65°C under solvent‐free conditions. Atom economies, good yield, environmentally benign, and easy to work‐up are some of the important features of this protocol. The present study suggests that acetic acid and metal catalysts follow different mechanism. In acetic acid, 2‐amino benzothiazole reacts with benzaldehyde, and resultant intermediate reacts with ethyl acetoacetate to give final product, whereas in the presence of metal catalysts, 2‐amino benzothiazole first reacts with ethyl acetoacetate, and resultant intermediate reacts with benzaldehyde to give pyrimido[2,1‐b]benzothiazole.     

Chemical Composition of Tomato Seed Flours,and Their Radical Scavenging,Anti-Inflammatory and Gut Microbiota Modulating Properties

In the current study, the chemical composition and total phenolic content of tomato seed flours, along with potential health beneficial properties, including free radical scavenging capacities, anti-inflammatory capacities, and gut microbiota profile modulation, were examined using two different batches. Eight compounds were identified in the tomato seed flour, including malic acid, 2-hydroxyadipic acid, salicylic acid, naringin, N-acetyl-tryptophan, quercetin-di-O-hexoside, kaempferol-di-O-hexoside, and azelaic acid. The total phenolic contents of tomato seed flour were 1.97–2.00 mg gallic acid equivalents/g. Oxygen radical absorbing capacities (ORAC), 2,2-diphenyl-1-picrylhydrazyl radical scavenging capacities (DPPH), and 2,2′-azino-bis(3-ethylbenzothiazoline-6-sulfonic acid) cation radical scavenging capacities (ABTS) were 86.32–88.57, 3.57–3.81, and 3.39–3.58 µmoles Trolox equivalents/g, respectively, on a per flour dry weight basis. The mRNA expression of the pro-inflammatory markers, interleukin-1 beta (IL-1β), interleukin-6 (IL-6), and tumor necrosis factor alpha (TNF-α), were dose-dependently suppressed by tomato seed flour extracts. The extracts altered five of the eight bacterial phyla and genera evaluated. The results may provide some scientific support for the use of tomato seed flour as value-added food ingredients.     

Bioassay‐guided Isolation and Antioxidant Activity of Sulfur‐containing Compounds from Clinacanthus nutans

Clinacanthus nutans has been used in traditional herbal medicine for cancer prevention, but the specific bioactive compounds responsible for the observed activities have not been explored. Different polar solvents such as methanol, chloroform, ethyl acetate, and hexane were used for the extraction. The extracts, fractions, and isolated compounds were subjected to DPPH and ferric reducing antioxidant potential (FRAP) assays. Methanol extracts show significant free‐radical scavenging activity of 69.09% in DPPH and 56.49% FRAP. Purification of MeOH extracts afforded the fraction FB28 and two new sulfur‐containing compounds, named clinamide D and E ( 1 , 2 ). Compound ( 1 ) proved to be more active with an IC₅₀ value for DPPH radical scavenging of 118.27 ± 0.01 µg/mL and reduction of Fe³⁺–TPTZ complex of 386.24 ± 0.02, higher than that of the standard ascorbic acid. Sulfur‐containing compounds isolated from C. nutans is a potential natural antioxidant.     

Theoretical study of mechanism of forming a silapolycyclic compound between methylenesilylene and acetone

The mechanism of the cycloaddition reaction of forming a silapolycyclic compound between singlet methylenesilylene and acetone has been investigated with MP2/6‐31G* method, including geometry optimization and vibrational analysis for the involved stationary points on the potential energy surface. The energies of the different conformations are calculated by CCSD(T)//MP2/6‐31G* method. From the potential energy profile, we predict that the cycloaddition reaction of forming a silapolycyclic compound between singlet methylenesilylene and acetone has two competitive dominant reaction pathways. First dominant reaction pathway consists of four steps: (I) the two reactants (R1, R2) first form an intermediate (INT1) through a barrier‐free exothermic reaction of 46.2 kJ/mol; (II) intermediate (INT1) then isomerizes to a planar four‐membered ring product (P3) via transition state (TS3) with an energy barrier of 47.1 kJ/mol; (III) planar four‐membered ring product (P3) further reacts with acetone (R2) to form an intermediate (INT4), which is also a barrier‐free exothermic reaction of 40.0 kJ/mol; (IV) intermediate (INT4) isomerizes to a silapolycyclic compound (P4) via transition state (TS4) with an energy barrier of 57.0 kJ/mol. Second dominant reaction pathway consists of three steps: (I) the two reactants (R1, R2) first form a four‐membered ring intermediate (INT2) through a barrier‐free exothermic reaction of 0.5 kJ/mol; (II) INT2 further reacts with acetone (R2) to form an intermediate (INT5), which is also a barrier‐free exothermic reaction of 45.4 kJ/mol; (III) intermediate (INT5) isomerizes to a silapolycyclic compound (P5) via transition state (TS5) with an energy barrier of 49.3 kJ/mol. P4 and P5 are isomeric compounds. © 2009 Wiley Periodicals, Inc. Int J Quantum Chem, 2010     

3‐(phenylhydrazono)‐indan‐1‐one and 2‐dimethylaminomethylene‐3‐(phenylhydrazono)‐indan‐1‐one as useful synthons for the construction of new heterocyclic systems

The hydrazone 1 reacts with DMFDMA to give 2‐dimethylaminomethylene‐3‐(phenylhydrazono)‐indan‐1‐one (2) which reacts with hydrazine hydrate and the pyrazole derivative 4 to afford the indenopyrazole derivatives 3 and the indenofluorene 5 respectively. The reaction of 2 with the active methylene compounds, mainly malononitrile, cyanoacetamide and malononitrile dimer was investigated and found to proceed successfully to yield the indenopyran 7 , indenpyridine 8b and trinitrile 9 respectively. Compound 2 reacted with lH‐benzimidazole‐2‐acetonitrile 10 to give to the diazaindenofluorene derivative 11 . Also, 2 reacted with ω‐cyano compounds 12a,b to afford the indenopyran 14 . On the other hand the hydrazone 1 was allowed to react with the enaminones 15, 18 and 21 affording the diazabenzoazulene derivatives 17, 20 and the indeno[1,2‐b]pyridin 23 , respectively.     

Reversed-phase liquid chromatographic separation of phenolic compounds with a new derivatizing reaction

Summary A reversed-phase HPLC method for resolution of phenoic compounds is presented. A new derivatization reaction has been developed employing diazotized 4-amino-benzonitrile, which reacts also with parasubstituted phenols. The products of the reaction can be extracted in n-butanol, allowing preconcentration and clean-up steps; the extracts are very stable and show strong absorption in the visible, where many interferences are avoided. The possibility of resolution of complex mixtures is discussed with reference to the use of reversed-phase columns using octadecyl- and phenyl bonded silica.     

Fully Borylated Methane and Ethane by Ruthenium‐Mediated Cleavage and Coupling of CO

Many transition‐metal complexes and some metal‐free compounds are able to bind carbon monoxide, a molecule which has the strongest chemical bond in nature. However, very few of them have been shown to induce the cleavage of its C?O bond and even fewer are those that are able to transform CO into organic reagents with potential in organic synthesis. This work shows that bis(pinacolato)diboron, B₂pin₂, reacts with ruthenium carbonyl to give metallic complexes containing borylmethylidyne (CBpin) and diborylethyne (pinBC≡CBpin) ligands and also metal‐free perborylated C₁ and C₂ products, such as C(Bpin)₄ and C₂(Bpin)₆, respectively, which have great potential as building blocks for Suzuki–Miyaura cross‐coupling and other reactions. The use of ¹³CO‐enriched ruthenium carbonyl has demonstrated that the boron‐bound carbon atoms of all of these reaction products arise from CO ligands.     

Saccharin‐Based μ‐Oxo Imidoiodane: A Readily Available and Highly Reactive Reagent for Electrophilic Amination

Three new saccharin‐based hypervalent iodine compounds were prepared by the reaction of saccharine with (diacetoxyiodo)arenes or acetoxybenziodoxole. Structures of these new imidoiodanes were established by X‐ray crystallography. The saccharin‐based μ‐oxo‐bridged imidoiodane readily reacts with silyl enol ethers under mild conditions to give the corresponding α‐aminated carbonyl compounds in moderate yields.     

Modified TLC bioautographic method for screening acetylcholinesterase inhibitors from plant extracts

The present work describes modifications to an existing TLC bioautographic method for detecting acetylcholinesterase inhibitors from plant extracts. The basic principle of the method is that the enzyme converts 1‐naphthyl acetate into naphthol which reacts with Fast Blue B salt to make a purple‐colored background on the TLC plates. Inhibitors of acetylcholinesterases produced white spots on the background. Our modifications involve changes in the concentration of the enzyme, the reagents, and the time of the reaction. With these changes, the consumption of the enzyme was reduced by 85% and the detection limits were decreased remarkably.     

On-Line Screening and Identification of Radical Scavenging Compounds Extracted from Flos Lonicerae by LC-DAD–TOF-MS

Flos Lonicerae is commonly used in traditional Chinese medicine. The ethanolic extracts prepared from Flos Lonicerae were used for the rapid evaluation of free radical scavenging activity by using the extracts to clear on-line 2,2′-diphenyl-1-picrylhydrazyl (DPPH·) free radical with LC serving as the separating tool of bioactive compounds, two diode array detectors (DAD) and a time-of-flight mass spectrometer (TOF-MS) as qualitation tools. The LC-DPPH on-line method of Flos Lonicerae extracts revealed the presence of four radical scavenging compounds, which were simultaneously identified as chlorogenic acid, rutin, and two isomers of isochlorogenic acid by high-resolution TOF-MS. To the best of our knowledge, it is original to demonstrate the rapid and successful use of LC-DPPH-DAD–TOF-MS to directly and simultaneously screen and identify the anti-free radical compounds in the extracts of Flos Lonicerae without any purification. The present method provides a useful improvement on the reducing of workload     

A high performance liquid chromatography method for simultaneous detection of 20 bioactive components in tea extracts

Tea is the second most widely consumed beverage and contains various bioactive compounds. A simple method to analyze these compounds is of great scientific and commercial interest. In this work, a 30 min HPLC method was developed using a simple gradient elution system, and the mobile phases and elution gradients were optimized. This method separated 17 polyphenols and three alkaloid compounds in tea extracts, including catechins, alkaloids, phenolic acids, flavonols, and flavone, which are responsible for the bioactivity and flavor of tea. Excellent linearity was observed for all standard calibration curves, and correlation coefficients were above 0.9994. Heatmap analysis demonstrated significant separation between green, black, and pu‐erh tea samples. The method described here is accurate and sensitive enough for the determination of active components in tea and could potentially be applied to other food products for the comprehensive investigation of their quality.     

Pressurized hot water extraction (PHWE)

Pressurized hot water extraction (PHWE) has become a popular green extraction method for different classes of compounds present in numerous kinds of matrices such as environmental, food and botanical samples. PHWE is also used in sample preparation to extract organic contaminants from foodstuff for food safety analysis and soils/sediments for environmental monitoring purposes. The main parameters which influence its extraction efficiency are namely the temperature, extraction time, flow rates and addition of modifiers/additives. Among these different parameters studied, temperature is described as the most important one. It is reported that the extraction of certain compounds is rather dependent on pressurized water with different applied temperature. Thus, the stability and reduced solubilities of certain compounds at elevated temperatures are highlighted in this review. With some modifications, a scaled-up PHWE could extract a higher amount of desirable compounds from solid and powdered samples such as plant and food materials. The PHWE extracts from plants are rich in chemical compounds or metabolites which can be a potential lead for drug discovery or development of disease-resistant food crops.