Uses of cyclohexan-1,3-dione for the synthesis of tetrahydrochromeno[3,4-c]chromen derivatives with anti-tumor activities

Cyclohexan-1,3-dione ( 1 ) was used as the key starting material, which reacted with salicylaldehyde ( 2 ) and either malononitrile ( 3a ) or ethyl cyanoacetate ( 3b ) in ethanol containing a catalytic amount of triethylamine to give the 3,4,7,12b-tetrahydrochromeno[3,4-c]chromen-1-one derivatives 5a , b . The latter compounds underwent Gewald's thiophene synthesis through the reaction with either malononitrile or ethyl cyanoacetate to give compounds 6a-d , respectively. On the other hand, compound 5a was used for the synthesis of annulated chromeno[3,4-c]chromen derivatives through its reaction with different chemical reagents. The synthesized compounds were evaluated against the six cancer cell lines A549, HT-29, MKN-45, U87MG, SMMC-7721, and H460 using the standard MTT assay in vitro, with foretinib as the positive control, many compounds expressed high inhibitions. The most active compounds 5b , 6b , 6d , 7 , 9b , 11a , 11b , 13 , 17 , 18b , 20b , 21b , 21e , and 21f were selected for inhibition of five tyrosine kinases and some selected compounds for Pim-1 kinase inhibition. The results showed that compounds 6b , 6d , 11a , 13 , 17 , 20b , and 21e were the most potent compounds with the tyrosine kinases and compounds 6d , 11a , 20b , and 21e were the most potent inhibitors of Pim-1 kinase.     

Effect of Ziziphus and Cordia Gums on Dough Properties and Baking Performance of Cookies

The influence of 2% and 5% Cordia (CG) and Ziziphus (ZG) gums on dough characteristics and cookie quality was investigated. Micro-DoughLab, a texture analyzer (TA), a rapid viscoanalyzer (RVA), and solvent retention capacity were used to examine the effect of CG and ZG gums on dough physicochemical parameters (SRC) and cookie quality. The diameter, thickness, spread, and sensory evaluation of cookies were evaluated. With the addition of CG and ZG, dough softness, mixing time, and mixing tolerance index (MTI) increased, whereas stability and water absorption decreased. TA data showed that adding gums resulted in softer and less sticky doughs than the control, whereas RVA data showed that adding CG resulted in a significant increase in peak viscosity, but no change in flour gel setback. In comparison to the control and CG samples, the ZG samples exhibited the most dough extensibility. The thickness and diameter of the cookies increased but the spread decreased, due to the added gums. The gum-containing cookies had a lower overall acceptability by panelists than the control, although only by a small margin. Gum-containing cookies, on the other hand, can deliver up to 5% soluble fiber.     

One-step synthesis of ultra-small amount of Pd-Alloyed Zinc Nanosheets for efficient electrochemical CO2 reduction to CO

The practicality of the electrochemical CO₂ reduction technique depends on the development of cost-effective, robust, and highly selective catalysts. To achieve this goal, we have engineered self-supported 3D electrodes composed of Pd-Zn nanosheets (NSs) for CO₂ electrochemical reduction to CO with minimal Pd content. This innovative electrode with an increased surface area was created using an electrodeposition method employing a dynamic hydrogen bubble template. By precisely adjusting the Pd content, we improved the thickness, porosity, and surface area of the electrodes, resulting in a CO₂-to-CO selectivity reaching as high as 88.5 %, with an average of at least 80 % sustained over 10 hours. This remarkable improved activity can be attributed to the synergistic effects of an appropriate Pd/Zn atomic ratio as well as to the large surface area of nanosheets structures with rich edge active sites. Furthermore, to get around the limitations of CO₂ mass transfer, reactions were done at high pressures conditions ranging from 3 to 9.5 bar; this strategic approach yielded an outstanding partial current density of −304.6 mA cm⁻² for CO. These noteworthy findings establish concepts for constructing effective and earth-abundant CO-producing electrocatalysts.     

Chemoenzymatic Late-Stage Modifications Enable Downstream Click-Mediated Fluorescent Tagging of Peptides

Aromatic prenyltransferases from cyanobactin biosynthetic pathways catalyse the chemoselective and regioselective intramolecular transfer of prenyl/geranyl groups from isoprene donors to an electron-rich position in these macrocyclic and linear peptides. These enzymes often demonstrate relaxed substrate specificity and are considered useful biocatalysts for structural diversification of peptides. Herein, we assess the isoprene donor specificity of the N1-tryptophan prenyltransferase AcyF from the anacyclamide A8P pathway using a library of 22 synthetic alkyl pyrophosphate analogues, of which many display reactive groups that are amenable to additional functionalization. We further used AcyF to introduce a reactive moiety into a tryptophan-containing cyclic peptide and subsequently used click chemistry to fluorescently label the enzymatically modified peptide. This chemoenzymatic strategy allows late-stage modification of peptides and is useful for many applications.