Cannabinoids and Neurogenesis: The Promised Solution for Neurodegeneration?

The concept of neurons as irreplaceable cells does not hold true today. Experiments and evidence of neurogenesis, also, in the adult brain give hope that some compounds or drugs can enhance this process, helping to reverse the outcomes of diseases or traumas that once were thought to be everlasting. Cannabinoids, both from natural and artificial origins, already proved to have several beneficial effects (e.g., anti-inflammatory, anti-oxidants and analgesic action), but also capacity to increase neuronal population, by replacing the cells that were lost and/or regenerate a damaged nerve cell. Neurogenesis is a process which is not highly represented in literature as neuroprotection, though it is as important as prevention of nervous system damage, because it can represent a possible solution when neuronal death is already present, such as in neurodegenerative diseases. The aim of this review is to resume the experimental evidence of phyto- and synthetic cannabinoids effects on neurogenesis, both in vitro and in vivo, in order to elucidate if they possess also neurogenetic and neurorepairing properties.     

The Reactivity of Ambident Nucleophiles: Marcus Theory or Hard and Soft Acids and Bases Principle?

The model reactions CH₃X + (NH—CH=O)M ➔ CH₃—NH—NH═O or NH═CH—O—CH₃ + MX (M = none, Li, Na, K, Ag, Cu; X = F, Cl, Br) are investigated to demonstrate the feasibility of Marcus theory and the hard and soft acids and bases (HSAB) principle in predicting the reactivity of ambident nucleophiles. The delocalization indices (DI) are defined in the framework of the quantum theory of atoms in molecules (QT-AIM), and are used as the scale of softness in the HSAB principle. To react with the ambident nucleophile NH═CH—O⁻, the carbocation H₃C⁺ from CH₃X (F, Cl, Br) is actually a borderline acid according to the DI values of the forming C…N and C…O bonds in the transition states (between 0.25 and 0.49), while the counter ions are divided into three groups according to the DI values of weak interactions involving M (M…X, M…N, and M…O): group I (M = none, and Me₄N) basically show zero DI values; group II species (M = Li, Na, and K) have noticeable DI values but the magnitudes are usually less than 0.15; and group III species (M = Ag and Cu(I)) have significant DI values (0.30–0.61). On a relative basis, H₃C⁺ is a soft acid with respect to group I and group II counter ions, and a hard acid with respect to group III counter ions. Therefore, N-regioselectivity is found in the presence of group I and group II counter ions (M = Me₄N, Li, Na, K), while O-regioselectivity is observed in the presence of the group III counter ions (M = Ag, and Cu(I)). The hardness of atoms, groups, and molecules is also calculated with new functions that depend on ionization potential (I) and electron affinity (A) and use the atomic charges obtained from localization indices (LI), so that the regioselectivity is explained by the atomic hardness of reactive nitrogen atoms in the transition states according to the maximum hardness principle (MHP). The exact Marcus equation is derived from the simple harmonic potential energy parabola, so that the concepts of activation free energy, intrinsic activation barrier, and reaction energy are completely connected. The required intrinsic activation barriers can be either estimated from ab initio calculations on reactant, transition state, and product of the model reactions, or calculated from identity reactions. The counter ions stabilize the reactant through bridging N- and O-site of reactant of identity reactions, so that the intrinsic barriers for the salts are higher than those for free ambident anions, which is explained by the increased reorganization parameter Δr. The proper application of Marcus theory should quantitatively consider all three terms of Marcus equation, and reliably represent the results with potential energy parabolas for reactants and all products. For the model reactions, both Marcus theory and HSAB principle/MHP principle predict the N-regioselectivity when M = none, Me₄N, Li, Na, K, and the O-regioselectivity when M = Ag and Cu(I). © 2019 Wiley Periodicals, Inc.     

γ-Alumina: The Essential and Unexpected Role of Water for the Structure, Stability, and Reactivity of "Defect" Sites

Combining experiments and DFT calculations, we show that tricoordinate Al(III) Lewis acid sites, which are present as metastable species exclusively on the major (110) termination of γ- and δ-Al(2)O(3) particles, correspond to the "defect" sites, which are held responsible for the unique properties of "activated" (thermally pretreated) alumina. These "defects" are, in fact, largely responsible for the adsorption of N(2) and the splitting of CH(4) and H(2). In contrast, five-coordinate Al surface sites of the minor (100) termination cannot account for the observed reactivity. The Al(III) sites, which are formed upon partial dehydroxylation of the surface (the optimal pretreatment temperature being 700 °C for all probes), can coordinate N(2) selectively. In combination with specific O atoms, they form extremely reactive Al,O Lewis acid-base pairs that trigger the low-temperature heterolytic splitting of CH(4) and H(2) to yield Al-CH(3) and Al-H species, respectively. H(2) is found overall more reactive than CH(4) because of its higher acidity, hence it also reacts on four-coordinate sites of the (110) termination. Water has the dual role of stabilizing the (110) termination and modifying (often increasing) both the Lewis acidity of the aluminum and the basicity of nearby oxygens, hence the high reactivity of partially dehyxdroxylated alumina surfaces. In addition, we demonstrate that the presence of water enhances the acidity of certain four-coordinate Al atoms, which leads to strong coordination of the CO molecule with a spectroscopic signature similar to that on Al(III) sites, thus showing the limits of this widely used probe for the acidity of oxides. Overall, the dual role of water translates into optimal water coverage, and this probably explains why in many catalyst preparations, optimal pretreatment temperatures are typically observed in the "activation" step of alumina.     

The Exciton Model for Molecular Materials: Past,Present and Future?

In assemblies of identical molecules or chromophores, electronic excitations can be described as excitons, bound electron-hole pairs that can move from site to site as a pair in a coherent manner. The understanding of excitons is crucial when trying to engineer favorable photophysical properties through structuring organic molecular matter. In recent decades, limitations of the concept of an exciton have become clear. The exciton can hybridize with phonon and photons. To clarify these issues, the exciton is discussed within the broader context of the gauge properties of the electromagnetic force.     

Do ion tethered functional groups affect IL solvent properties? The case of sulfoxides and sulfones

The covalent incorporation of functional groups-specifically sulfoxide and sulfone-into the cation of imidazolium ionic liquids leads to significant, quantifiable changes in solvent parameters which in turn have important effects on the bulk properties of the materials.     

Do amphiphile aggregate morphologies and interfacial compositions depend primarily on interfacial hydration and ion-specific interactions? The evidence from chemical trapping

Surface-active amphiphiles aggregate spontaneously in water to form association colloids such as micelles, microemulsions, and vesicles. The hydrophobic effect drives aggregation, but the opposing forces that provide balance and determine equilibrium morphologies are not understood, in particular, how specific ion effects, which often follow a Hofmeister series, affect the properties of association colloids. We have harnessed the competitive trapping of arenediazonium ions by weakly basic nucleophiles such as halide counterions, anionic headgroups, alcohols, urea, and water, to estimate their concentrations in the interfacial regions of association colloids from reaction product yields. In the chemical trapping method, product yields are proportional to the concentrations of water and other nucleophiles within the interfacial region, not their stoichiometric concentrations in solution. Changes in the balance of forces controlling aggregate structure are reflected in changes in interfacial concentrations of water and other components in association colloids as reported by the chemical trapping method. Significant changes in interfacial water and counterion concentrations are observed during structural transitions. Specific ion effects on sphere-to-rod transitions of cationic amphiphiles are interpreted in terms of the strengths of headgroup and counterion pairing and ion hydration interactions. Trapping results also provide important information on interfacial compositions of microemulsions, vesicles, nonionic micelles and macroemulsions, reverse micelles, micelles in aqueous urea, and anionic polyelectrolytes. Identifying relationships between aggregate morphology and interfacial composition by chemical trapping has just begun.     

The Synergistic Effect of Triterpenoids and Flavonoids—New Approaches for Treating Bacterial Infections?

Currently, the pharmaceutical industry is well-developed, and a large number of chemotherapeutics are being produced. These include antibacterial substances, which can be used in treating humans and animals suffering from bacterial infections, and as animal growth promoters in the agricultural industry. As a result of the excessive use of antibiotics and emerging resistance amongst bacteria, new antimicrobial drugs are needed. Due to the increasing trend of using natural, ecological, and safe products, there is a special need for novel phytocompounds. The compounds analysed in the present study include two triterpenoids ursolic acid (UA) and oleanolic acid (OA) and the flavonoid dihydromyricetin (DHM). All the compounds displayed antimicrobial activity against Gram-positive (Staphylococcus aureus ATCC 6538, Staphylococcus epidermidis ATCC 12228, and Listeria monocytogenes ATCC 19115) and Gram-negative bacteria (Escherichia coli ATCC 25922, Proteus hauseri ATCC 15442, and Campylobacter jejuni ATCC 33560) without adverse effects on eukaryotic cells. Both the triterpenoids showed the best antibacterial potential against the Gram-positive strains. They showed synergistic activity against all the tested microorganisms, and a bactericidal effect with the combination OA with UA against both Staphylococcus strains. In addition, the synergistic action of DHM, UA, and OA was reported for the first time in this study. Our results also showed that combination with triterpenoids enhanced the antimicrobial potential of DHM.     

Do Ni/Cu and Cu/Ni Alloys have Different Catalytic Performances towards Water‐Gas Shift? A Density Functional Theory Investigation

Density functional calculations were preformed to investigate whether adding Ni into a Cu surface (denoted as Cu/Ni) or adding Cu into a Ni surface (Ni/Cu) is more efficient for catalyzing the water‐gas shift (WGS)? The reactions of water dissociation and monoxide dissociation were selected to assess the activity and selectivity towards WGS, respectively. Our results show that Ni‐atom modification of surfaces is thermodynamically favorable for both reactions. Kinetically, compared with pure Cu, water dissociation is greatly facilitated on Ni‐modified surfaces, and the activity is insensitive to the Ni concentration; however, monoxide dissociation is not well‐promoted on one Ni‐atom‐modified surfaces, but two Ni‐atom modification can notably decrease the dissociation barriers. Overall, on the basis of these results, we conclude that 1) the catalytic performance of bimetallic metals is superior to monometallic ones; 2) at the same Ni concentration on the surface, Cu/Ni and Ni/Cu alloys have almost the same performance towards WGS; and 3) to acquire high WGS performance, the surface Ni atoms should either be low in concentration or highly dispersed.     

Oral,Direct Thrombin and Factor Xa Inhibitors: The Replacement for Warfarin,Leeches, and Pig Intestines?

To prevent thromboses after surgery, patients have until now had to inject themselves daily with heparin. For stroke prophylaxis in atrial fibrillation, patients take vitamin K antagonists of the coumarin type, which have a narrow therapeutic window and whose dosage must be regularly monitored. In order to improve the standard of therapy in thromboembolic diseases such as deep‐vein thrombosis, pulmonary embolism, and stroke in atrial fibrillation, intensive research has been carried out over the last decade in the search for new, orally active thrombin and factor Xa inhibitors. A number of these compounds are already on the market or are in advanced clinical development; they could revolutionize the anticoagulant market.     

The reductionist paradox: are the laws of chemistry and physics sufficient for the discovery of new drugs?

Reductionism is alive and well in drug-discovery research. In that tradition, we continually improve experimental and computational methods for studying smaller and smaller aspects of biological systems. Although significant improvements continue to be made, are our efforts too narrowly focused? Suppose all error could be removed from these methods, would we then understand biological systems sufficiently well to design effective drugs? Currently, almost all drug research focuses on single targets. Should the process be expanded to include multiple targets? Recent efforts in this direction have lead to the emerging field of polypharmacology. This appears to be a move in the right direction, but how much polypharmacology is enough? As the complexity of the processes underlying polypharmacology increase will we be able to understand them and their inter-relationships? Is “new” mathematics unfamiliar in much of physics and chemistry research needed to accomplish this task? A number of these questions will be addressed in this paper, which focuses on issues and questions not answers to the drug-discovery conundrum.     

Matrix Infrared Spectroscopy and Quantum‐Chemical Calculations for the Coinage‐Metal Fluorides: Comparisons of Ar?AuF,Ne?AuF,and Molecules MF2 and MF3

The reactions of laser‐ablated Au, Ag, and Cu atoms with F₂ in excess argon and neon gave new absorptions in the M? F stretching region of their IR spectra, which were assigned to metal‐fluoride species. For gold, a Ng? AuF bond was identified in mixed neon/argon samples. However, this bonding was much weaker with AgF and CuF. Molecules MF₂ and MF₃ (M=Au, Ag, Cu) were identified from the isotopic distribution of the Cu and Ag atoms, comparison of the frequencies for three metal fluorides, and theoretical frequency calculations. The AuF₅ molecule was characterized by its strongest stretching mode and theoretical frequency calculations. Additional evidence was observed for the formation of the Au₂F₆ molecule.