Evaluation of 2-Thioxoimadazolidin-4-one Derivatives as Potent Anti-Cancer Agents through Apoptosis Induction and Antioxidant Activation: In Vitro and In Vivo Approaches

Background: Hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC) is one of the most widespread malignancies and is reported as the fourth most prevalent cause of cancer deaths worldwide. Therefore, we aimed to investigate the probable mechanistic cytotoxic effect of the promising 2-thioxoimidazolidin-4-one derivative on liver cancer cells using in vitro and in vivo approaches. The compounds were tested for the in vitro cytotoxic activity using MTT assay, and the promising compound was tested in colony forming unit assay, flow cytometric analysis, RT-PCR, Western blotting, in vivo using SEC-carcinoma and in silico to highlight the virtual mechanism of action. Both compounds 4 and 2 performed cytotoxic effects against HepG2 cells with IC₅₀ values of 0.017 and 0.18 μM, respectively, compared to Staurosporine and 5-Fu as reference drugs with IC₅₀ values of 5.07 and 5.18 µM, respectively. Compound 4 treatment revealed apoptosis induction by 19.35-fold (11.42% compared to 0.59% in control), arresting the cell cycle at G2/M phase. Moreover, studying gene expression that plays critical roles in cell cycle and apoptosis by RT-PCR demonstrated that compound 4 enhances the expression of the pro-apoptotic genes p53, PUMA, and Caspase 3, 8, and 9, and impedes the anti-apoptotic Bcl-2 gene in the HepG2 cells. It can also inhibit the PI3K/AKT pathway at both gene and protein levels, which was reinforced by the in silico predictions of the molecular docking simulations towards the PI3K/AKT proteins. Finally, in vivo study verified that compound 4 has a promising anti-cancer activity through activating antioxidant levels (CAT, SOD and GSH) and ameliorating hematological, biochemical, and histopathological findings.     

Dielectric Properties of Colossal-Dielectric-Constant Na1/2La1/2Cu3Ti4O12 Ceramics Prepared by Spark Plasma Sintering

In the current study, we report on the dielectric behavior of colossal-dielectric-constant Na_1/2La_1/2Cu₃Ti₄O₁₂ (NLCTO) ceramics prepared by mechanochemical synthesis and spark plasma sintering (SPS) at 850 °C, 900 °C, and 925 °C for 10 min. X-ray powder diffraction analysis showed that all the ceramics have a cubic phase. Scanning electron microscope observations revealed an increase in the average grain size from 175 to 300 nm with an increase in the sintering temperature. SPS NLCTO ceramics showed a room-temperature colossal dielectric constant (>10³) and a comparatively high dielectric loss (>0.1) over most of the studied frequency range (1 Hz–40 MHz). Two relaxation peaks were observed in the spectra of the electrical modulus and attributed to the response of grain and grain boundary. According to the Nyquist plots of complex impedance, the SPS NLCTO ceramics have semiconductor grains surrounded by electrically resistive grain boundaries. The colossal dielectric constant of SPS NLCTO ceramics was attributed to the internal barrier layer capacitance (IBLC) effect. The high dielectric loss is thought to be due to the low resistivity of the grain boundary of SPS NLCTO.     

Ferroptosis: A New Road towards Cancer Management

Ferroptosis is a recently described programmed cell death mechanism that is characterized by the buildup of iron (Fe)-dependent lipid peroxides in cells and is morphologically, biochemically, and genetically distinct from other forms of cell death, having emerged to play an important role in cancer biology. Ferroptosis has significant importance during cancer treatment because of the combination of factors, including suppression of the glutathione peroxidase 4 (Gpx4), cysteine deficiency, and arachidonoyl (AA) peroxidation, which cause cells to undergo ferroptosis. However, the physiological significance of ferroptosis throughout development is still not fully understood. This current review is focused on the factors and molecular mechanisms with the diagrammatic illustrations of ferroptosis that have a role in the initiation and sensitivity of ferroptosis in various malignancies. This knowledge will open a new road for research in oncology and cancer management.     

Equilibrium and kinetic studies for the adsorption of benzene and toluene by graphene nanosheets: a comparison with carbon nanotubes

In this study, graphene nanosheets (GNSs) were adopted as an adsorbent to investigate their characterizations and performance for adsorbing benzene and toluene in aqueous solutions. In order to determine the best fit model for each considered system, nonlinear regressions were used. Experimental data of adsorption were corroborated by the combined Langmuir–Freundlich (Sips) models for the isotherms and pseudo‐first‐order model for the kinetics. As a result, GNSs displayed high affinity to the aromatic hydrocarbons such as benzene and toluene. The high affinity was dominated by π–π interactions to the flat surface and the sieving effect of the powerful groove regions formed by wrinkles on GNS's surfaces. Hydrophobic properties and molecular sizes of benzene and toluene affected the adsorption of GNS. In addition, the favorable adsorption of toluene possibly was due to the increase in the molecular weight, decrease in the solubility, and the increase in the boiling point. A comparative study on the benzene and toluene adsorption revealed that favorable adsorption of GNSs compared with that of carbon nanotubes was consistent with the order of physical properties such as specific surface area and pore's volume. Copyright © 2016 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.     

Graphene-Oxide-Based Fluoro- and Chromo-Genic Materials and Their Applications

Composite materials and their applications constitute a hot field of research nowadays due to the fact that they comprise a combination of the unique properties of each component of which they consist. Very often, they exhibit better performance and properties compared to their combined building blocks. Graphene oxide (GO), as the most widely used derivative of graphene, has attracted widespread attention because of its excellent properties. Abundant oxygen-containing functional groups on GO can provide various reactive sites for chemical modification or functionalization of GO, which in turn can be used to develop novel GO-based composites. This review outlines the most recent advances in the field of novel dyes and pigments encompassing GO as a key ingredient or as an important cofactor. The interactions of graphene with other materials/compounds are highlighted. The special structure and unique properties of GO have a great effect on the performance of fabricated hybrid dyes and pigments by enhancing the color performance of dyes, the anticorrosion properties of pigments, the viscosity and rheology of inks, etc., which further expands the applications of dyes and pigments in dyeing, optical elements, solar-thermal energy storage, sensing, coatings, and microelectronics devices. Finally, challenges in the current development as well as the future prospects of GO-based dyes and pigments are also discussed. This review provides a reference for the further exploration of novel dyes and pigments.     

Intense Upconversion Luminescence of Yb<Superscript>3+</Superscript>-Er<Superscript>3+</Superscript> in Li<Subscript>2</Subscript>O Content Tungsten-tellurite Glasses

The Er³⁺ -Yb³⁺ codoped in Li₂O content tungsten -tellurite (TWL) transparent glasses are synthesized and measured the absorption, Raman and upconversion luminescence (UPL) spectra. At room temperature intense green emission peak at 560 nm ( ⁴S_3/2→⁴I_15/2) and red emission peak at 670 nm ( ⁴F_9/2→⁴I_15/2) of Er³⁺ observed even at minimum 86 mW pumping power of infrared 980 nm excitation. For structure of the TWL glass, Raman spectrum result revealed that an important role of WO₃ in the formation of glass network linkage with Li₂O. Under this influence estimated lifetime of the ⁴I_11/2 of Er³⁺ was 1.89 μs and due to lower phonon energy of the glass produce strong upconversion signal. The effect of Er₂O₃ concentration on emission intensity result indicated that green emission intensity initially increase in compare to red emission. Under the 980 nm pump power variation measured the relatively increases the red emission to the green emission intensity and analyze the possible upconversion mechanism and process.     

Theoretical description of electron phonon Fock space for gapless and gapped nanowires

We study the effect of electron–phonon(e–ph) interaction on the elastic and inelastic electronic transport of a nanowire connected to two simple rigid leads within the tight-binding and harmonic approximations. The model is constructed using Green's function and multi-channel techniques, taking into account the local and nonlocal e–ph interactions. Then, we examine the model for the gapless(simple chain) and gapped(PA-like nanowire) systems. The results show that the tunneling conductance is improved by the e–ph interaction in both local and nonlocal regimes, while for the resonance conductance, the coherent part mainly decreases and the incoherent part increases. At the corresponding energies which depend on the phonon frequency, two dips in the elastic and two peaks in the inelastic conductance spectra appear. The reason is the absorption of the phonon by the electron in transition into inelastic channels.     

ZnO thin film characterization by X-ray reflectivity optimization using genetic algorithm and Fourier transformation

Zinc oxide (ZnO) thin film was fabricated by sol-gel spin coating method on glass substrate. X-ray reflectivity (XRR) and its optimization have been used for characterization and extracting physical parameters of the film. Genetic algorithm (GA) has been applied for this optimization process. The model independent information was needed to establish data analyzing process for X-ray reflectivity before optimization process. Independent information was exploited from Fourier transform of Fresnel reflectivity normalized X-ray reflectivity. This Fourier transformation (Auto Correlation Function) yields thickness of each coated layer on substrate. This information is a keynote for constructing optimization process. Specular X-ray reflectivity optimization yields structural parameters such as thickness, roughness of surface and interface and electron density profile of the film. Acceptable agreement exists between results obtained from Fourier transformation and X-ray reflectivity fitting.     

On the Position Representation of Pedram’s Higher Order GUP

In this paper we show that the position representation of the higher order generalized uncertainty principle (HGUP) is also well defined without approximation. We find the simpler form of this representation with a help of the signature of the discriminant of the cubic equation. Using this we discuss the HGUP derivative, HGUP exponential and HGUP trigonometric functions and HGUP-corrected Bohr atom model. Finally we discuss the D-dimensional HGUP algebra and compute the cosmological constant.