Self-Assembling Drug Formulations with Tunable Permeability and Biodegradability

This review focuses on key topics in the field of drug delivery related to the design of nanocarriers answering the biomedicine criteria, including biocompatibility, biodegradability, low toxicity, and the ability to overcome biological barriers. For these reasons, much attention is paid to the amphiphile-based carriers composed of natural building blocks, lipids, and their structural analogues and synthetic surfactants that are capable of self-assembly with the formation of a variety of supramolecular aggregates. The latter are dynamic structures that can be used as nanocontainers for hydrophobic drugs to increase their solubility and bioavailability. In this section, biodegradable cationic surfactants bearing cleavable fragments are discussed, with ester- and carbamate-containing analogs, as well as amino acid derivatives received special attention. Drug delivery through the biological barriers is a challenging task, which is highlighted by the example of transdermal method of drug administration. In this paper, nonionic surfactants are primarily discussed, including their application for the fabrication of nanocarriers, their surfactant-skin interactions, the mechanisms of modulating their permeability, and the factors controlling drug encapsulation, release, and targeted delivery. Different types of nanocarriers are covered, including niosomes, transfersomes, invasomes and chitosomes, with their morphological specificity, beneficial characteristics and limitations discussed.     

Nutraceutical Role of Polyphenols and Triterpenes Present in the Extracts of Fruits and Leaves of Olea europaea as Antioxidants,Anti-Infectives and Anticancer Agents on Healthy Growth

There is currently a worldwide consensus and recognition of the undoubted health benefits of the so-called Mediterranean diet, with its intake being associated with a lower risk of mortality. The most important characteristics of this type of diet are based on the consumption of significant amounts of fruit, vegetables, legumes, and nuts, which provide, in addition to some active ingredients, fiber and a proportion of vegetable protein, together with extra virgin olive oil (EVOO) as the main sources of vegetable fat. Fish and meat from poultry and other small farm animals are the main sources of protein. One of the main components, as already mentioned, is EVOO, which is rich in monounsaturated fatty acids and to a lesser extent in polyunsaturated fatty acids. The intake of this type of nutrient also provides an important set of phytochemicals whose health potential is widely spread and agreed upon. These phytochemicals include significant amounts of anthocyanins, stilbenes, flavonoids, phenolic acids, and terpenes of varying complexities. Therefore, the inclusion in the diet of this type of molecules, with a proven healthy effect, provides an unquestionable preventive and/or curative activity on an important group of pathologies related to cardiovascular, infectious, and cancerous diseases, as well as those related to the metabolic syndrome. The aim of this review is therefore to shed light on the nutraceutical role of two of the main phytochemicals present in Olea europaea fruit and leaf extracts, polyphenols, and triterpenes, on healthy animal growth. Their immunomodulatory, anti-infective, antioxidant, anti-aging, and anti-carcinogenic capabilities show them to be potential nutraceuticals, providing healthy growth.     

酞菁染料的金属化和溴化与光物理影响的研究

以α位(2,4-二特戊基)苯氧基邻苯二腈作为环合前体,制备了多种金属酞菁,产物经元素分析、紫外、红外、核磁氢谱等分析手段进行表征.并选择了部分酞菁进行溴化,其中着重研究了不同中心金属以及溴化对染料Q带吸收的影响.结果表明,酞菁染料的金属化对于其Q带吸收影响很大,多数染料金属化后会出现蓝移,而选择合适的条件进行溴化,可以使得金属酞菁的Q带吸收出现一定程度的红移,其中部分溴化金属酞菁的吸收波长与光信息产业中使用的近红外激光器很接近,具有潜在的实用价值.     

二氧化碳和丙烯直接合成甲基丙烯酸的NiPMo/TiO2催化剂的研究

用溶胶-凝胶法以磷钼酸(MPA)的镍盐溶液水解钛酸四丁酯制备了NiPMo/TiO2催化剂.使用ICP、 XRD、 TG-DTA、 IR、 TPD-MS和微反应技术研究了催化剂的化学组成、热稳定性、化学吸附性质和催化反应性能.杂多钼酸盐与TiO2通过O2-在TiO2表面发生了键合.在623 K下,杂多阴离子仍保持原有的Keggin结构.CO2在Lewis酸位Ni(Ⅱ)和Lewis碱位Ni-O-Mo的桥氧协同作用下生成CO2卧式吸附态Ni(Ⅱ)←O-(CO)←(O--Ni).丙烯有多种吸附态在催化剂上吸附.在563 K、 1 MPa和空速1500 h-1的反应条件下,丙烯的摩尔转化率为3.2%,产物MAA选择性为95%.     

Pharmacological Extracts and Molecules from Virola Species: Traditional Uses,Phytochemistry, and Biological Activity

Virola is the largest genus of Myristicaceae in America, comprising about 60 species of medium-sized trees geographically spread from Mexico to southern Brazil. The plant species of this genus have been widely used in folk medicine for the treatment of several ailments, such as rheumatic pain, bronchial asthma, tumors in the joints, intestinal worms, halitosis, ulcers, and multiple infections, due to their pharmacological activity. This review presents an updated and comprehensive summary of Virola species, particularly their ethnomedicinal uses, phytochemistry, and biological activity, to support the safe medicinal use of plant extracts and provide guidance for future research. The Virola spp.’s ethnopharmacology, including in the treatment of stomach pain and gastric ulcers, as well as antimicrobial and tryponosomicidal activities, is attributable to the presence of a myriad of phytoconstituents, such as flavonoids, tannins, phenolic acids, lignans, arylalkanones, and sitosterol. Hence, such species yield potential leads or molecular scaffolds for the development of new pharmaceutical formulations, encouraging the elucidation of not-yet-understood action mechanisms and ascertaining their safety for humans.     

天然化合物芦丁的治疗潜力

芦丁属于类黄酮化合物,广泛存在于人们日常食用的各种蔬菜、水果和中草药中。 芦丁是天然的抗氧化剂,有清除自由基的特性,可调节众多疾病有关的细胞内和细胞外信号通路,影响细胞的生长,分化及其功能,对人们的健康,防病治病起着重要作用。芦丁具有广泛的药理活性,抗氧化、抗炎、抗病毒、抗癌、预防和治疗心脑血管疾病。以芦丁为原料的药品有多种,使用芦丁毒副作用小,安全,成本低。由于芦丁的生物利用度低,在临床上应用受到一定的限制。克服芦丁溶解性差的问题已经有各种方法,例如使用环糊精的络合,磷脂等,改善水溶性,从而增加生物利用度。本文综述了芦丁的多种潜在用途和治疗作用的信息,与药物输送相关的问题,以及改善药物生物利用度的可能方法。重点介绍了芦丁的抗炎、抗癌、降糖、对心血管的保护作用,为天然化合物的开发和利用奠定基础。     

High-throughput microwave-digestion procedures to monitor neurotoxic elements in body fluids by means of inductively coupled plasma mass spectrometry

Microwave (MW) digestion procedures with high sample throughput (simultaneous digestion of 36 or 80 samples) and procedural simplicity (disposable plastic tubes, or re-usable liners with screw-cap) were investigated for their efficiency in routine analyses of biological samples. Different digestion vessel materials were tested for metal leaching/adsorption and thermal resistance: quartz, glass, polyethylene (PE) and polystyrene (PS). For the instrumental quantification of Al, Bi, Cd, Co, Cr, Hg, Mn, Mo, Ni, Pb, Sb, and Tl at ultra-trace levels in urine, serum, and whole blood, sector field inductively coupled plasma mass spectrometry (SF-ICP-MS) was used. The different pretreatment conditions and vessels were evaluated in terms of contamination risk, effective power of detection, accuracy, and precision. Results of analyses of serum, urine and whole blood certified reference materials (CRMs) were fully satisfactory for almost all the analytes. In the case of Hg, Mo, and Tl in serum digested in plastic containers the results were just below the lower limit of uncertainty of the certified range. On the basis of the present data the following MW procedures can be suggested: 1. for urine, digestion with nitric acid at atmospheric pressure in plastic vials; 2. for serum, digestion with nitric acid at atmospheric pressure in glass vessels; and 3. for whole blood, digestion under pressure in quartz tubes.Because of the levels of the procedural blanks, Bi was not measurable at the concentrations expected in human fluids, and Al was accurately detectable in whole blood only.     

衬底上石墨烯制备及改性研究

大面积高质量石墨烯的制备对石墨烯电子特性及石墨烯基纳器件相关研究有重要意义。本文综述了近几年来衬底上制备石墨烯的相关实验以及衬底与石墨烯相互作用研究的重要进展。目前,采用化学气相沉积、外延生长等方法可在衬底表面上制备出较大面积、高质量的石墨烯材料。衬底与石墨烯相互作用和界面间晶格匹配、原子成键及电荷转移等密切相关,其对吸附石墨烯的几何结构、能带结构及电子特性等产生明显影响。实验与理论计算的结合可望加深衬底与石墨烯作用机理的理解,指导衬底上石墨烯制备及改性的进一步研究。     

基于环糊精的农药吸附剂的研究进展

农药的研发与使用极大地提高了农作物的产量,为解决人类温饱、改善人类生活品质做出了贡献。但是,农药广泛残留于农副产品以及土壤和水体中,造成的污染日趋严重。残留的农药通常具有微量致毒、难生物降解、生物累积等特性,对生物健康与生态系统造成了巨大威胁。高效检测微量农药、减小污染危害是亟待解决的问题。吸附法具有成本低、操作简单、稳定性强、可重复性强的特点,在农药分离预富集领域得到了广泛关注。作为一种常用的农药吸附剂材料,环糊精是一类具有空腔的超分子化合物,能够作为主体通过主客体作用形成包合物;另外,可以通过醚化、酯化、氧化等化学反应对环糊精进行后修饰以提高其吸附性能。疏水作用、静电作用、范德华力、氢键作用、立体效应协同促进对农药的吸附。环糊精在农药吸附领域已经取得了一定进展,但是目前还没有基于环糊精的农药吸附剂的综述。该文针对杀菌剂、杀虫剂、除草剂、植物生长调节剂这4类农药,系统性地评述了基于环糊精的农药吸附剂的制备、吸附机理及应用,目前存在个别吸附剂吸附容量不高、降解机理不明确、降解产物对环境不友好、容易造成二次污染的问题,研发高吸附容量、易回收、易分离、易再生的基于环糊精的农药吸附剂是未来的主要研究方向。     

Cucurbiturils–a New Family of Host Molecules

The supramolecular chemistry of cucurbituril, a synthetic receptor, is fascinating because of the remarkable guest binding behavior of the host. Although cucurbituril is potentially as useful as crown ethers, cyclodextrins, and calixarenes in many applications, its chemistry has not been developed much until recently because of several shortcomings. Recently we synthesized cucurbituril homologues and derivatives. These new members of the cucurbituril family have expanded the scope further, and interest in them has grown enormously. The diversity in guest binding behavior has led to many interesting studies such as redox control of guest binding, stabilization of charge-transfer complexes inside the host cavity, encapsulation of drug molecules, formation of redox-controllable vesicles, and so on. The cucurbituril homologues and derivatives thus provide new opportunities in many areas of supramolecular chemistry including recognition, catalysis, separation, transport, and many others.     

Diffusion of symmetrical and spherical solutes in protic,aprotic, and hydrocarbon solvents

The diffusion coefficients of a series of symmetrical tetraalkyltins (tetramethyltin, tetraethyltin, tetrapropyltin, tetrabutyltin, tetradodecyltin) of the gases argon, krypton, xenon, methane, and tetramethylmethane and of carbon tetrachloride and tetraethylmethane in hexane, decane, and tetradecane at 25°C have been determined using the Taylor dispersion technique. Diffusion coefficients for the gases in acetone, 2-propanol, 1-butanol, and 1-octanol were also determined. Deviations from the predictions of Stokes' law were found to be large, and the magnitude of the deviation can be directly related to solute size. The predictions of the Hubbard-Onsager equation were tested using the diffusion data.     

多极性基有机添加物对非离子表面活性剂溶液雾点的影响

测定了甲酸、乙酸、草酸、甲醇、乙醇、丙醇、乙二醇、丙三醇和葡萄糖对非离子表面活性剂Triton X-100和Triton X-114水溶液雾点的影响。低级脂肪酸和醇能使雾点升高, 升高的程度随酸或醇的碳氢链的增长而增加。但若在增加分子碳氢链长或碳氢部分的同时引入更多的羧基或羟基, 则雾点升高的效应将受到抑制。当极性基数目较多时, 可导致雾点显著下降。     

Polymer entanglement loss in extensional flow: Evidence from electrospun short nanofibers

High strain rate extensional flow of a semidilute polymer solution can result in fragmentation caused by polymer entanglement loss, evidenced by appearance of short nanofibers during electrospinning. The typically desired outcome of electrospinning is long continuous fibers or beads, but, under certain material and process conditions, short nanofibers can be obtained, a morphology that has scarcely been studied. Here we study the conditions that lead to the creation of short nanofibers, and find a distinct parametric space in which they are likely to appear, requiring a combination of low entanglement of the polymer chains and high strain rate of the electrospinning jet. Measurements of the length and diameter of short nanofibers, electrospun from PMMA dissolved in a blend of CHCl₃ and DMF, confirm the theoretical prediction that the fragmentation of the jet into short fibers is brought about by elastic stretching and loss of entanglement of the polymer network. The ability to tune nanofiber length, diameter and nanostructure, by modifying variables such as the molar mass, concentration, solvent quality, electric field intensity, and flow rate, can be exploited for improving their mechanical and thermodynamic properties, leading to novel applications in engineering and life sciences. © 2013 Wiley Periodicals, Inc. J. Polym. Sci., Part B: Polym. Phys. 2013 , 51, 1377–1391     

Advances in Research on Food Bioactive Molecules and Health

Fresh and processed food products are rich in bioactive molecules, including polysaccharides, vitamins, carotenoids, peptides, antioxidants, phenolics, phytosterols, and novel lipids. Bioactive molecules in food could prevent several diseases (i.e., metabolic syndrome, cardiovascular diseases, cancer, etc.). Thus, consumer awareness is growing about the health-promoting impact of food bioactive molecules. Health claims are essential added-value features, wherein health-enhancing potential of bioactives depend on their chemical structure. On the other hand, the investigation of the structure-function relationship of food bioactive molecules is of importance. In this regard, Molecules is delighted to highlight the importance of food bioactive molecules and their effect on health. In this Special Issue of Molecules, researchers are invited to contribute original research and up-to-date reviews.     

Dry reforming of methane for syngas production: A review and assessment of catalyst development and efficacy

Dry reforming of methane (DRM) involves catalytic reaction of CO₂ and CH₄ to produce syngas. Although the process is environmentally beneficial, it has not been implemented on industrial level due to multiple challenges, particularly with regard to catalyst deactivation because of use of very high temperature. A majority of research has been carried out with catalysts based on nickel. However, recently many new varieties catalysts using noble metals, structured silica-foams, zeolites, etc. have been investigated for DRM. The present review paper deals with understanding the process of DRM, importance of catalysts, supports and promoters, various methods of synthesis of catalysts, design of catalyst, catalytic performance and ways to enhance it, constraining elements like poisoning of the catalyst, in addition to physicochemical properties of catalysts. Various properties of supports and promoters like reduction/oxidation potential, acidity/basicity, reducibility, oxygen storage capacity, etc. are responsible for catalyst activity and stability. It identifies critical gaps and provides future directions.     

Interaction between components of plant-based biopolymer systems

Proteins and polysaccharides are key elements in formulated foods, cosmetics, and pharmaceuticals. Their interaction behavior mainly determines the organoleptic, optical, textural, and rheological properties of foods. Traditionally, animal-based biopolymers have been widely used because of their excellent techno-functionality; however, plant-based alternatives gained enormous interest among scientists and manufacturers because of sustainable, religious, ethical, and nutritional reasons. The directed complexation of mixed biopolymers entirely originated from plants might be used to stabilize food colloids, modulate interfacial and bulk properties, control the release of bioactives, and mask bitter components. As such, this review highlights the general separation mechanism of mixed biopolymers systems entirely composed of plant-based biopolymers to be used as functional food ingredients. Particularly, ‘traditional’ and ‘novel’ proteins and polysaccharides obtained from different plant sources (e.g. soy, wheat, pea, potato, apple, citrus) are introduced to be assembled to modulate interfacial and bulk properties of food colloids.     

苯丙胺类、氯胺酮、卡西酮类毒品手性分离的研究进展

对映异构体在自然界中普遍存在,在药物化学领域尤为突出.虽然手性药物的对映异构体之间具有相同的化学结构,但它们在药理、毒理、药代动力学、代谢等生物活性方面存在明显差异.苯丙胺类、氯胺酮、卡西酮类毒品也是如此,这3类毒品的手性分离研究在常见毒品中具有代表性.目前常用的手性分离色谱方法有气相色谱法(GC)、高效液相色谱法(H...     

Multi-Elemental Analysis of Wine Samples in Relation to Their Type,Origin, and Grape Variety

Wine is one of the most popular alcoholic beverages. Therefore, the control of the elemental composition is necessary throughout the entire production process from the grapes to the final product. The content of some elements in wine is very important from the organoleptic and nutritional points of view. Nowadays, wine studies have also been undertaken in order to perform wine categorization and/or to verify the authenticity of products. The main objective of this research was to evaluate the influence of the chosen factors (type of wine, producer, origin) on the levels of 28 elements in 180 wine samples. The concentration of studied elements was determined by ICP-MS (Ag, B, Ba, Be, Bi, Cd, Co, Cr, Cu, Li, Mn, Mo, Ni, Pb, Rb, Sb, Sn, Sr, Te, Tl, U, Zn), ICP-OES (Ca, Fe, K, Mg, Ti), and CVAAS (Hg) techniques in 79 red, 75 white, and 26 rose wine samples. In general, red wines contained higher values of mean and median of B, Ba, Cr, Cu, Mn, Sr and Zn in contrast to other wine types (white and rose). In white wines (when compared to red and rose wines) higher levels of elements such as Ag, Be, Bi, Cd, Co, Li, K and Ti were determined. In contrast, rose wines were characterized by a higher concentration of Fe and U. The study also revealed that in the case of 18 samples, the maximum levels of some metals (Cd—8 samples, Pb—9 samples, Cu—1 sample) were slightly exceeded according to the OIV standards, while for Zn and Ti in any wine sample the measured concentrations of these metals were above the permissible levels. Thus, it can be stated that the studied wines contained, in general, lower levels of heavy metals, suggesting that they should have no effect on the safety of consumption. The results also showed higher pH level for red wines as a consequence of the second fermentation process which is typically carried out for this type of wine (malolactic fermentation). The highest median value of pH was reported for Merlot-based wines, while the lowest was for Riesling. It is assumed that dry Riesling has a higher content of tartaric and malic acid than dry Chardonnay grown in the same climate. From all of the studied countries, wines from Poland seemed to present one of the most characteristic elemental fingerprints since for many elements relatively low levels were recorded. Moreover, this study revealed that also wine samples from USA and Australia can be potentially discriminated from the rest of studied wines. For USA the most characteristic metal for positive identification of the country of origin seems to be uranium, whereases for Australia – strontium and manganese. Based on the highly reduced set of samples, it was not possible to differentiate the studied wine products according to the grape variety other than Syrah, and partially Chardonnay. Since all the Syrah-based samples originated from the same country (Australia) thus, the observed grouping should be more related with the country of origin than the grape variety.     

表面活性剂与叶酸的相互作用及其对光氧化降解的影响

表面活性剂与有机小分子作用不仅能提高表面活性剂的聚集能力,还能提高小分子的溶解度、稳定性等应用性能,因此研究二者之间的相互作用机理对于促进表面活性剂的发展和实际应用具有重要意义。本工作提出了一种利用功能有机小分子调控表面活性剂聚集行为,进而提高不稳定小分子自身稳定性的新策略。利用表面张力、紫外可见吸收光谱、荧光光谱、动态光散射、等温滴定量热和核磁共振技术研究了在p H为7.0时,叶酸分别与十二烷基硫酸钠(SDS)、十二烷基三甲基溴化铵(DTAB)、季铵盐Gemini 12-6-12和季铵盐线性三聚12-3-12-3-12四种表面活性剂之间的相互作用及其导致的叶酸光氧化降解性能的变化,结果表明,阴离子表面活性剂SDS抑制叶酸光氧化降解的效率较低,而阳离子表面活性剂都能够显著抑制叶酸的光氧化降解,且随着表面活性剂寡聚度的增加,抑制效果增强,所需表面活性剂的浓度显著降低,寡聚表面活性剂12-3-12-3-12的抑制效率高达96%。     

Contributions to the Chemistry of the Binary Compounds of the Transition Elements

Phase and structural relationships of the sulfur, selenium, and tellurium compounds of the 4d and 5d transition elements of groups IV to VII of the periodic system are discussed. Homologous elements behave very similarly with respect to the chalcogens, and this is particularly the case for niobium and tantalum, and for molybdenum and tungsten. However, zirconium, niobium, and molybdenum have a greater tendency towards formation of chalcogen-poor phases than their homologues hafnium, tantalum, and tungsten. Subchalcogenides are known only for zirconium and niobium. The number of phases and the tendency towards formation of solid solutions are considerably smaller among the tellurides than among the sulfides and selenides. The crystal structures of the telluride phases also differ from those of the sulfide and selenide phases of analogous composition. In addition, a review of the phase and structural relationships of the arsenic and antimony compounds of the 4d and 5d transition elements of groups V to VII is given.